The History Hour

Max Pearson presents a collection of the week's Witness History interviews from the BBC World Service.
Our guest Sugandhi Jayaraman, lecturer in air transport management at the University of Westminster, discusses the changes in airports over time. We hear about the Irish priest whose dream of air travel in a remote part of West Ireland became a reality.
And we travel back to 1943 to one of the most audacious hoaxes of World War Two. Plus the Challenger Shuttle disaster where a member of the public had been chosen to join the experienced astronaut crew.
We also commemorate Agatha Christie and we go back to 1979 when Ayatollah Khomeini flew back to Tehran from Paris after being exiled.
Contributors:
Pearce Concannon - firefighter at Knock airport
Sugandhi Jayaraman - lecturer
Roger Morgan - amateur historian
Barbera Morgan - trained alongside the Challenger team
Mathew Prichard- Agatha Christie's grandson
Mohsen Sazegara - worked for the Ayatollah
(Picture: Cabin crew with Monsignor James Horan at Knock Airport. Credit: Independent News And Media/Getty Images)

Max Pearson presents a collection of the week's Witness History interviews from the BBC World Service.
Our guest is food historian Dr Annie Gray.
She discusses the impact of the first modern, fitted kitchen - the Frankfurt Kitchen - on the kitchens of today. It all goes back to 1926 and the reluctant Austrian architect Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky who said she wanted to be remembered for more than designing a "damned" kitchen. Sorry Margarete.
Next is the invention of the board game Cluedo, or Clue in the United States, which stemmed from playing the piano at murder mystery parties in English country houses and hotels in the 1930s.
Then, we enter the murky world of computer viruses. The first one to affect personal computers in 1986 became known as 'Brain'.
We hear from a survivor of the deadly mudslides which affected Venezuela in December 1999.
A Lotus mechanic gives his account of Brazilian racing star Ayrton Senna's first Formula 1 win in 1985.
And finally, a glimpse into a period of freedom in Afghanistan from 2005 when a TV musical talent contest called Afghan Star gripped audiences.
Contributors:
Christine Zwingl - architect.
Marcia Lewis - daughter of the creators of Cluedo.
Amjad Farooq Alvi - founder of Brain Computers.
Leydys Crespo - survivor of Venezuelan mudslides in 1999.
Chris Dinnage - Ayrton Senna's mechanic.
Jahid Mohseni - the development producer for Afghan Star.
(Picture: A 1950s fitted kitchen. Credit: Getty Images)

Max Pearson presents a collection of the week's Witness History interviews from the BBC World Service.
This programme contains distressing details.
Our guest is Bárbara Fernández Melleda, Assistant Professor in Latin American Studies at the University of Hong Kong.
We start with Chilean author Isabel Allende on her debut novel, The House of the Spirits, in 1982 which reflects Chile’s 20th century history.
Then, we hear the memories of a soldier injured in the Battle of Gallipoli.
The recollections of a mother who lost both her daughters in a crowd crush at Hillsborough stadium in 1989 - the UK's worst sporting disaster.
How a British artist's unmade bed was nominated for a prestigious art prize in 1999.
Next the swimsuit made ahead of the Beijing Olympic games in 2008 that was so good it had to be banned.
Finally, we learn about the world's longest running animated TV series that began in 1969.
Contributors:
Isabel Allende - a Chilean author.
Rupert Westmacott - a soldier (from archive).
Jenni Hicks - a mother who lost her two daughters in the Hillsborough tragedy.
Dame Tracey Emin - an artist.
Jason Rance - former head of Speedo's global research and development team.
Sunishi Yukimuro - an animated cartoon writer.
(Image: Chilean author Isabel Allende. Credit: Felipe Amilibia/AFP via Getty Images)

Max Pearson presents a collection of the week's Witness History interviews from the BBC World Service.
Our guest is Professor Barbara Keys, a specialist in US history at Durham University.
We start with a celebration of the American Freedom Train, as the US prepares to mark 250 years of independence.
Then, the South African railway enthusiast who created one of the most luxurious train services in the world.
We hear about the invention of text messaging and how it changed the way we communicate.
Plus, 75 years of Radio Free Europe broadcasting news to audiences behind the Iron Curtain.
The thousand-year-long musical composition that's due to end in 2999.
And our Sporting Witness looks at how a British teenager won a six-month contract to play for Italian champions Inter Milan.
Contributors:
Lou Nelson - former security guard on the American Freedom Train 1975-76.
Rohan Vos - founder and CEO of Rovos Rail.
Friedhelm "Fred" Hillebrand - inventor of SMS and text messaging.
Arch Puddington - former deputy director Radio Free Europe.
Jem Finer - musician and composer of Longplayer.
Ben Greenhalgh - Margate player-manager and winner of reality show "Football's Next Star".
(Photo: American Freedom Train, 1976. Credit: NARA/DVIDS)

Max Pearson presents a collection of the week’s Witness History episodes from the BBC World Service.
We learn about how Play-Doh evolved from a cleaning product to a childhood favourite and the creation of one of the best-selling board games of all time, Catan.
Our guest is the editor of Toy World Magazine, Caroline Tonks, who takes us through the history of toy crazes.
We also hear about the invention of the hoverboard, and how the Tamagotchi allowed people to have their own virtual pet.
Plus, how the family favourite game, Jenga, was born in 1970s Ghana.
And our Sporting Witness looks at how a piece of software revolutionised the game of football through data analysis.
Contributors:
Peg Roberts – daughter of Kay Zufall
Benjamin Teuber – son of Catan inventor Klaus Teuber
Caroline Tonks – editor of Toy World Magazine
Shane Chen – the inventor of the hoverboard
Akihiro Yokoi – the inventor of the Tamgotchi
Leslie Scott – the creator of the game Jenga
Ramm Mylavaganam – inventor of ProZone
(Photo: The Tamagotchi was introduced in 1996 and is one of the best-selling toys in history. Credit: Reuters)