<description>&lt;p&gt;Max Pearson presents a collection of the week's Witness History episodes.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;We hear the story of the pianist who played on when Damascus was bombed and the Christians who met in secret.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Plus how William Golding wrote Lord of the Flies, the handover of Macau to China in 1999 and the start of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;This episode contains descriptions of violence, which some listeners may find distressing. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Contributors:
Aeham Ahmad - the Pianist of Yarmouk.
Dr Gillian Howell - Senior Research Fellow at the University of Melbourne.
Naghmeh Panahi - founder of a network of secret 'house churches' in Iran.
Miguel Senna Fernandes - former member of the Macau Legislative Council.
Judy Carver - William Golding's daughter.
Campbell McLaren - co-creator of UFC.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;(Photo: Aeham Ahmad, the Pianist of Yarmouk and other Palestinian musician refugees in Damascus, in Syria, in 2014. Credit: Rame Alsayed/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)&lt;/p&gt;</description>

The pianist who played on when Damascus was bombed and the Christians who met in secret

Max Pearson presents a collection of the week's Witness History episodes.We hear the story of the pianist who played on when Damascus was bombed and the Christians who met in secret.Plus how William Golding wrote Lord of the Flies, the handover of Macau to China in 1999 and the start of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.This episode contains descriptions of violence, which some listeners may find distressing. Contributors:
Aeham Ahmad - the Pianist of Yarmouk.
Dr Gillian Howell - Senior Research Fellow at the University of Melbourne.
Naghmeh Panahi - founder of a network of secret 'house churches' in Iran.
Miguel Senna Fernandes - former member of the Macau Legislative Council.
Judy Carver - William Golding's daughter.
Campbell McLaren - co-creator of UFC.(Photo: Aeham Ahmad, the Pianist of Yarmouk and other Palestinian musician refugees in Damascus, in Syria, in 2014. Credit: Rame Alsayed/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

The Siege of Yarmouk and Iran's 'house churches'

<description>&lt;p&gt;We hear about the half-clay, half-grass exhibition match between Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. Argentinean creative entrepreneur and tennis fan Pablo del Campo tells Uma Doraiswamy how he made the iconic court possible in May 2000. Fiona Skille, professor of Sports History at Glasgow Caledonian University, explains the history of sport exhibition matches.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;In 1974, Greece held a referendum to decide the future of the country’s monarchy, and whether Constantine II would remain their king. In December 1974 4.5million million people went to the polls to cast their vote. The result was two to one in favour of a republic. Jane Wilkinson looks through the BBC archives to find out more.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Next, a mountain massacre in base camp of the Nanga Parbat mountain in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan killed 19 people. . Polish climber Aleksandra Dzik, aged 30, was on the mountain that night, at camp two, and speaks to Megan Jones.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Plus, India’s coal-mine rescue. On 16 November 1989, mining engineer Jaswant Singh Gill saved 65 miners from the Mahabir Coal Mine, in India. The miners, who had been trapped for three days after a flood, were winched out one by one using a tiny, steel capsule. Rachel Naylor speaks to Jaswant's son, Sarpreet Singh Gill.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;In 2013, a six-year-old from Argentina became one of the youngest people in the world to legally have their gender changed on official documents through self-declaration. Gabriela Mansilla reveals, the fight for recognition was not easy for her daughter Luana.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;(Photo: 'The Battle of the Surfaces' at The Palma Arena on May 2, 2007 in Mallorca. Credit: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)&lt;/p&gt;</description>

A half-clay, half-grass tennis court, losing a crown and a mine rescue

We hear about the half-clay, half-grass exhibition match between Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. Argentinean creative entrepreneur and tennis fan Pablo del Campo tells Uma Doraiswamy how he made the iconic court possible in May 2000. Fiona Skille, professor of Sports History at Glasgow Caledonian University, explains the history of sport exhibition matches.In 1974, Greece held a referendum to decide the future of the country’s monarchy, and whether Constantine II would remain their king. In December 1974 4.5million million people went to the polls to cast their vote. The result was two to one in favour of a republic. Jane Wilkinson looks through the BBC archives to find out more.Next, a mountain massacre in base camp of the Nanga Parbat mountain in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan killed 19 people. . Polish climber Aleksandra Dzik, aged 30, was on the mountain that night, at camp two, and speaks to Megan Jones.Plus, India’s coal-mine rescue. On 16 November 1989, mining engineer Jaswant Singh Gill saved 65 miners from the Mahabir Coal Mine, in India. The miners, who had been trapped for three days after a flood, were winched out one by one using a tiny, steel capsule. Rachel Naylor speaks to Jaswant's son, Sarpreet Singh Gill.In 2013, a six-year-old from Argentina became one of the youngest people in the world to legally have their gender changed on official documents through self-declaration. Gabriela Mansilla reveals, the fight for recognition was not easy for her daughter Luana.(Photo: 'The Battle of the Surfaces' at The Palma Arena on May 2, 2007 in Mallorca. Credit: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)

The ‘Battle of the Surfaces’ and becoming a republic

<description>&lt;p&gt;We hear about Polish war hero Irena Sendler who saved thousands of Jewish children during the World War Two.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Expert Kathryn Atwood explains why women’s stories of bravery from that time are not as prominent as men’s.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Plus, the invention of ‘Baby’ – one of the first programmable computers. It was developed in England at the University of Manchester. Gill Kearsley has been looking through the archives to find out more about the 'Baby&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;In the second half of the programme, we tell stories from Iran. Journalist Sally Quinn looks back at the excess of the Shah of Iran’s three-day party, held in 1971.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Two very different women – the former Empress of Iran, Farah Pahlavi, and social scientist Rouhi Shafi – describe how it feels to be exiled from their country.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Finally, Barry Rosen shares the dramatic story of when he was held hostage in the US embassy in the Tehran for 444 days.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Presenter: Max Pearson &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;(Photo: Children rescued from the Warsaw Ghetto by Irena Sendler. Credit: Getty Images)&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Female heroes from WW2, the pioneering 'Baby' computer and the Iranian Revolution

We hear about Polish war hero Irena Sendler who saved thousands of Jewish children during the World War Two.Expert Kathryn Atwood explains why women’s stories of bravery from that time are not as prominent as men’s.Plus, the invention of ‘Baby’ – one of the first programmable computers. It was developed in England at the University of Manchester. Gill Kearsley has been looking through the archives to find out more about the 'BabyIn the second half of the programme, we tell stories from Iran. Journalist Sally Quinn looks back at the excess of the Shah of Iran’s three-day party, held in 1971.Two very different women – the former Empress of Iran, Farah Pahlavi, and social scientist Rouhi Shafi – describe how it feels to be exiled from their country.Finally, Barry Rosen shares the dramatic story of when he was held hostage in the US embassy in the Tehran for 444 days.Presenter: Max Pearson (Photo: Children rescued from the Warsaw Ghetto by Irena Sendler. Credit: Getty Images)

Female heroes of WW2 and the Iranian Revolution

<description>&lt;p&gt;Max Pearson presents a collection of the week's Witness History episodes.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;For nearly 40 years, Siegfried and Roy wowed audiences in Las Vegas with death-defying tricks involving white lions and tigers. But in 2003, their magic show came to a dramatic end when a tiger attacked Roy live on stage.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;We find out what went wrong, and speak to magician and author Margaret Steele about the - sometimes dangerous - history of illusion and magic.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Plus, we learn more about the so-called ‘Ken Burns effect’; the technique of making still photographs that appear to be moving. In 2002, the method came to the attention of one of the biggest names in the field of technology, Steve Jobs.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Also, the New Zealand woman who was nicknamed ‘the Queen of the Skies’ for her record breaking flights of the 1930s. Jean Batten flew planes made of wood and canvas during the golden age of aviation.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;And we go back to 1996 for Brazil's early adoption of electronic voting, and discover more about the experiments behind the creation of Greenwich Mean Time.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Contributors:
Ken Burns - film maker
Chris Lawrence - animal trainer
Margaret Steele - magic historian, magician and author
Carlos Velozo - lawyer
Jean Batten – aviator
Emily Akkermans - Curator of Time, Royal Museums Greenwich
Keith Moore - the Royal Society of London&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;(Photo: Siegfried and Roy with a white lion cub, Las Vegas, 1997. Credit: Barry King/WireImage)&lt;/p&gt;</description>

The Siegfried and Roy show in Las Vegas which ended in a tiger attack and tragedy in 2003

Max Pearson presents a collection of the week's Witness History episodes.For nearly 40 years, Siegfried and Roy wowed audiences in Las Vegas with death-defying tricks involving white lions and tigers. But in 2003, their magic show came to a dramatic end when a tiger attacked Roy live on stage.We find out what went wrong, and speak to magician and author Margaret Steele about the - sometimes dangerous - history of illusion and magic.Plus, we learn more about the so-called ‘Ken Burns effect’; the technique of making still photographs that appear to be moving. In 2002, the method came to the attention of one of the biggest names in the field of technology, Steve Jobs.Also, the New Zealand woman who was nicknamed ‘the Queen of the Skies’ for her record breaking flights of the 1930s. Jean Batten flew planes made of wood and canvas during the golden age of aviation.And we go back to 1996 for Brazil's early adoption of electronic voting, and discover more about the experiments behind the creation of Greenwich Mean Time.Contributors:
Ken Burns - film maker
Chris Lawrence - animal trainer
Margaret Steele - magic historian, magician and author
Carlos Velozo - lawyer
Jean Batten – aviator
Emily Akkermans - Curator of Time, Royal Museums Greenwich
Keith Moore - the Royal Society of London(Photo: Siegfried and Roy with a white lion cub, Las Vegas, 1997. Credit: Barry King/WireImage)

Magic, illusion and tigers

<description>&lt;p&gt;First, on its 50th anniversary of Dungeons &amp;amp; Dragons, we hear from Luke Gygax, whose father created the fantasy role-play game. We also hear from Dr Melissa Rogerson, senior lecturer and board games researcher at the University of Melbourne in Australia.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Then, the first dinosaur remains discovered in Antarctica in 1986, by Argentinian geologist Eduardo Olivero.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Next, Ethiopia’s internal relief efforts during the famine in 1984, led by Dawit Giorgis. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Plus, the fight to stop skin lightening in India with Kavitha Emmanuel who launched a campaign in 2013. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Finally, Angolan singer and former athlete Jose Adelino Barceló de Carvalho, known as Bonga Kwenda, speaks about his music being banned in 1972 and going into exile.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Presenter: Max Pearson&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;(Photo: Vintage game modules from the role-playing game Dungeons &amp;amp; Dragons on display. Credit: E.Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune/Getty Images)&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Fifty years of the fantasy tabletop role-play game and a fossil discovery

First, on its 50th anniversary of Dungeons &amp; Dragons, we hear from Luke Gygax, whose father created the fantasy role-play game. We also hear from Dr Melissa Rogerson, senior lecturer and board games researcher at the University of Melbourne in Australia.Then, the first dinosaur remains discovered in Antarctica in 1986, by Argentinian geologist Eduardo Olivero.Next, Ethiopia’s internal relief efforts during the famine in 1984, led by Dawit Giorgis. Plus, the fight to stop skin lightening in India with Kavitha Emmanuel who launched a campaign in 2013. Finally, Angolan singer and former athlete Jose Adelino Barceló de Carvalho, known as Bonga Kwenda, speaks about his music being banned in 1972 and going into exile.Presenter: Max Pearson(Photo: Vintage game modules from the role-playing game Dungeons &amp; Dragons on display. Credit: E.Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune/Getty Images)

Dungeons & Dragons and dinosaur remains

A compilation of the latest Witness History programmes.

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