The Documentary Podcast Podcast
Hear the voices at the heart of global stories. Where curious minds can uncover hidden truths and make sense of the world. Documentary storytelling from the BBC World Service.
Hear the voices at the heart of global stories. Where curious minds can uncover hidden truths and make sense of the world. The best of documentary storytelling from the BBC World Service.
From Sierra Leone's cocaine trail, to Israelis driving sick Palestinians to hospital, to child obesity in Italy...we go beyond the headlines. Each week we dive into the minds of the world’s most creative people, take personal journeys into spirituality and connect people from across the globe to share how news stories are shaping their lives.
Episodes to download
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Skatepark designers Nine Yards
Today
The designers of Paris's Olympic skatepark start work on a new project in Amsterdam
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What is so-called 'Jihadi cool'?
Yesterday
How extremist content is quietly spreading on TikTok and Instagram
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Wildfires in Europe
Saturday
Victims and volunteers share their experiences of the wildfires in France and Spain
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Rastafari and I
Friday
Silas Gray travels to Ethiopia to explore the legacy he inherited from his Rastafarian dad
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A battle that changed Ireland
Thursday
How a World War One battle still affects people and communities
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Sierra Leone: The cocaine trail
Wednesday
Ed Butler investigates one of Europe’s most wanted drug smugglers
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The Kenyans taking on multinational chemical companies
Last Tuesday
We follow a lawyer and a nurse who are building this unprecedented case
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James Turrell: Master Of Light
Last Monday
James Turrell in Aarhus, Denmark, on his latest Skyspace, As Seen Below – The Dome
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Driving across the divide
Last Sunday
Israeli volunteers meeting ill Palestinians at the check point to drive them to hospital
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Saving Nigeria's vultures
Sat 25 Jul 2026
Vultures are under threat. One community in Nigeria is turning that around
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The lifelong toll of surviving disaster
Sat 25 Jul 2026
Disaster survivors share experiences of coping with the lifelong impact on their lives
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Searching for my samurai mother
Fri 24 Jul 2026
Will researching her samurai ancestry help Rimi get to know her deceased mother?
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The spirit of Tala: The rapid rise of Tonga's netball team
Thu 23 Jul 2026
Tonga’s extraordinary netball journey to becoming a force on the international stage
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Bonus: Forgiving a killer - from Lives Less Ordinary
Wed 22 Jul 2026
Why I don’t hate my attacker – from Lives Less Ordinary
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Italy’s child obesity time-bomb
Tue 21 Jul 2026
How Italian children have become some of the most overweight in Europe
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Tom Bailey: Can a walk across the Arctic be art?
Mon 20 Jul 2026
British artist Tom Bailey starts his 600km trek through the Arctic borderlands
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Love on trial: India's age of consent controversy
Sun 19 Jul 2026
How India’s child‑protection law is punishing some teens for consensual relations
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Belarus's university in exile
Sat 18 Jul 2026
How the Belarus government targets independent higher education by threatening students
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Older women and the challenge of IVF
Sat 18 Jul 2026
Women share their experiences of fertility treatment
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Harry Haft's unspeakable fight
Fri 17 Jul 2026
A father's story of survival from Nazi death matches to US boxing rings
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Follow the money: The beef with US beef
Thu 16 Jul 2026
Why have US beef prices risen around 13% over the past year?
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Moscow’s enemy number one
Wed 15 Jul 2026
“Perfidious Albion” - how Britain replaced the US as Russia’s top nemesis
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Euthanasia in Spain: Whose life is it anyway?
Tue 14 Jul 2026
The fall-out from the death by euthanasia of Noelia Castillo in Spain earlier this year
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The Chinese fentanyl king
Mon 13 Jul 2026
Zhang Zhidong has been labelled one of the world's most significant drug traffickers
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Jordanian director Zain Duraie
Sun 12 Jul 2026
Zain Duraie talks about her debut film Sink, an intense family drama about mental health
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Fruit Wars!
Sat 11 Jul 2026
Why Taiwan and Malaysia's luxury fruit growers have a complex relationship with China
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Chasing the Wimbledon dream
Sat 11 Jul 2026
Tennis pros in the lower rankings share their stories of sacrifice
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Diving for Yuko
Fri 10 Jul 2026
Yasuo Takamatsu has spent nearly 15 years diving for the remains of his wife, Yuko
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Secrets of the ant trade
Thu 9 Jul 2026
The multi-million dollar ant trade and the enthusiasts working to stop illegal smuggling
