On August 7 1974,  New Yorkers woke to the amazing sight of a figure walking on a cable strung between the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre.



High-wire artist Philippe Petit remembers one of his most daring feats, high above the streets of New York.



(Photo: AP Photo/Alan Welner) Published on August 8, 2016.

The Twin Towers High-Wire Walk

In August 1986 the first Studio Ghibli film hit the cinema screens.  It would go on to bring Japanese animation to a world audience. Hirokatsu Kihara was a young animator who joined the studio to work on 'Castle in the Sky' its first feature length film.  He has been speaking to Ashley Byrne of Made in Manchester about the early days of the great animation studio.



Photo: Oscar-winning animator Hayao Miyazaki, one of the founders of Studio Ghibli.  Credit: Getty Images. Published on August 17, 2016.

Studio Ghibli - Japanese Animation

In August 1969, Arthur Mitchell founded the Dance Theatre of Harlem - the first classical ballet company to focus on black dancers. Virginia Johnson, now the organisation's director, was a founder member.



(Photo: The Dance Theatre of Harlem, circa 1970. Virginia Johnson pictured back row, third from left. Credit: Marbeth) Published on August 24, 2016.

The Dance Theatre of Harlem

In August 1973, a Latin music supergroup called Fania All Stars played a historic concert at New York's Yankee Stadium. It helped spread the sound of salsa music from New York to the world. Simon Watts talks to Larry Harlow, pianist and producer with the All Stars, and Puerto Rican salsa DJ, Ray Collazo.



PHOTO: Fania All Stars singer Hector Lavoe (Getty Images) Published on August 26, 2016.

Fania All Stars - Legends of Salsa

On September 9th 1976 the Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong died.  American Sidney Rittenberg first met him in the 1940s and he spent decades living in Communist China. He spoke to Rebecca Kesby about of one of the world's great revolutionaries.



Photo: a poster of Chairman Mao in Beijing in the 1960s. Credit: AFP. Published on September 6, 2016.

Remembering Chairman Mao

On 8 September 1966 the cult American science fiction series first went on air. It was not an immediate hit with audiences. Herb Solow, the original producer of the series, spoke to Ashley Byrne about how the first Star Trek was made.



(Photo: Left to right, William Shatner as Captain James T Kirk, DeForest Kelley as Dr Leonard "Bones" McCoy and Leonard Nimoy as Mr Spock. Credit: Hulton Archive/Getty Images) Published on September 7, 2016.

Star Trek - The Early Years

In September 1988, Jacques Delors, the President of the European Commission convinced British trade unionists to support Europe.  For years many on the left had been sceptical of the EC, regarding it as a 'rich man's club'. The Labour party and the unions had even called for withdrawal of the European Community, but as Europe geared up for the opening of the single market in 1992 Jacques Delors began to talk about something new, it was called the social dimension and one TUC official, David Lea, wanted to know more, so he invited him to Britain's Trades Union Congress.  Claire Bowes spoke to Lord Lea along with John Edmonds, formerly of the GMB union.



Photo: Jacques Delors, President of the European Commission, addressing the Trade Union Congress in Bournemouth.  08/09/1988 Published on September 8, 2016.

How Europe Won Over The British Left

In 1926 Stanley Spencer, one of the most admired British painters of the twentieth century, began work on an ambitious project in the village of Burghclere near London.  He'd been commissioned to fill a new chapel with images of his experiences in the First World War, at home and abroad.  Vincent Dowd speaks to Spencer's daughters, Shirin and Unity Spencer, about their father and his work.



Photo: Stanley Spencer in 1958.(AP) Published on September 30, 2016.

Sir Stanley Spencer

On 21st October 1966, tragedy struck a village in Wales when a landslide of coal waste engulfed a primary school. 144 people, most of them children, were killed. Rob Walker introduces interviews and reports from the BBC archive to commemorate the disaster.



Photo: Rescue workers trying to reach children trapped in Pantglas Junior school.  Credit: Press Association. Published on October 21, 2016.

The Aberfan Disaster

In World War One, thousands of troops began suffering from psychiatric disorders which were given the name Shell Shock. It was initially thought they were caused by soldier's proximity to exploding shells, but it soon became clear that the conflict was having an unprecedented psychological impact. Alex Last presents BBC archive recordings of WW1 veterans talking about their experiences.

Photo: French soldiers taking cover during a German bombardment, 1918 (Photo by General Photographic Agency/Getty Images) Published on October 25, 2016.

Shell Shock

In the 1990s Sizani Ngubane began the Rural Women's Movement to fight for the rights of one of the most marginal groups in South Africa. It's estimated that across the whole of Africa between 70 and 85 per cent of all food is grown by women, but less than 2 per cent of the land is owned or even controlled by women. Helping women with farming tips and business ideas and supporting women evicted from their land, Sizani's movement has grown over the years, and now has more than 50,000 members nationwide. "I'm a trouble-maker" is how she describes herself to Rebecca Kesby.





Photo:Sizani Ngubane Published on December 9, 2016.

Fighting for Rural Women in South Africa

Vida Alves starred in Latin America's first soap opera, or telenovela. 'Sua Vida Me Pertence' was broadcast in Brazil in December 1951. It kick-started a TV genre that has spread across the globe and is now worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Vida speaks to Mike Lanchin about her memories of making TV history.



Photo: Vida Alves and Walter Forster in a scene from 'Sua Vida Me Pertence', Brazil 1951 (Museu Pró-TV) Published on December 16, 2016.

The First Latin American 'Telenovela'

History as told by the people who were there. Witness talks to people who lived through moments of history to bring you a personal perspective on world events. Broadcast on weekdays.

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