Witness History

In May 1974 India successfully detonated its first atomic device. It had been developed in secret with the codename Smiling Buddha.
India called it a peaceful nuclear explosion, though the experimental device was in effect a plutonium bomb.
The test was seen as a triumph of Indian science and technology, but it led to the suspension of international nuclear cooperation with India, and spurred Pakistan to speed up development of its own nuclear bomb.
Dr SK Sikka, who was one of India’s leading nuclear scientists, spoke to Alex Last in 2018 about his role in the secret project.
Dr Sikka died in 2023 at the age of 82.
Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by and curious about the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there.
For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more.
Recent episodes explore everything from how the Excel spreadsheet was developed, the creation of cartoon rabbit Miffy and how the sound barrier was broken.
We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: the moment Reagan and Gorbachev met in Geneva, Haitian singer Emerante de Pradines’ life and Omar Sharif’s legendary movie entrance in Lawrence of Arabia.
You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, like the invention of a stent which has saved lives around the world; the birth of the G7; and the meeting of Maldives’ ministers underwater. We cover everything from World War Two and Cold War stories to Black History Month and our journeys into space.
(Photo: A crater showing the aftermath of the nuclear test. Credit: Reuters)

On 11 September 1985 in Mangualde, central Portugal, an express train collided head-on with a regional train killing an estimated 150 people.
The impact destroyed both engines and the leaking diesel caught fire. Many of the bodies were unidentifiable after passengers who survived the collision were trapped in the wreckage and unable to escape the blaze and toxic fumes.
An inquiry found both trains had been allowed to use the same single track line when the express should have had priority. A station master who realised the mistake was unable to contact the drivers in time.
Most of the victims’ remains are buried in a mass grave near the disaster site and a small chapel has now been built where memorial services take place every year.
Jacqueline Paine speaks to former voluntary fire station Commander Américo Borges who was one of the first on the scene.
Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by and curious about the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there.
For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more.
Recent episodes explore everything from how the Excel spreadsheet was developed, the creation of cartoon rabbit Miffy and how the sound barrier was broken.
We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: the moment Reagan and Gorbachev met in Geneva, Haitian singer Emerante de Pradines’ life and Omar Sharif’s legendary movie entrance in Lawrence of Arabia.
You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, like the invention of a stent which has saved lives around the world; the birth of the G7; and the meeting of Maldives’ ministers underwater. We cover everything from World War Two and Cold War stories to Black History Month and our journeys into space.
(Photo: Monument in memory of the Alcafache accident. Credit: Vitor Oliveira)

In 1960, as he headed home from military service, the King of Rock ’n’ Roll made an unexpected stop at Prestwick Airport.
It's believed to be the only time Elvis Presley is known to have set foot on British soil.
It was only a brief visit, but for 16 year old Anne Murphy, watching him walk down the airplane steps is a memory that has never faded.
More than six decades later, she tells Megan Jones what it was like to see Elvis up close.
Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by and curious about the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there.
For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more.
Recent episodes explore everything from how the Excel spreadsheet was developed, the creation of cartoon rabbit Miffy and how the sound barrier was broken.
We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: the moment Reagan and Gorbachev met in Geneva, Haitian singer Emerante de Pradines’ life and Omar Sharif’s legendary movie entrance in Lawrence of Arabia.
You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, like the invention of a stent which has saved lives around the world; the birth of the G7; and the meeting of Maldives’ ministers underwater. We cover everything from World War Two and Cold War stories to Black History Month and our journeys into space.
(Photo: Elvis at Prestwick Airport, with Anne Murphy looking up at him. Credit: The Hollywood Archive/Alamy)

Jamaica’s musicians have had a profound impact on modern music. It’s best known for Reggae, but before that came Ska. Many of the early Ska stars came from an orphanage in Kingston, The Alpha Boys school. It was run by nuns who were keen to teach the children music, but they couldn’t have known that so many of the Alpha old boys would end up on the world’s stage.
(Photo: Eddie 'Tan Tan' Thornton playing in London. Credit: Howard Denner/Photoshot/Getty Images)

Outraged by the Christmas bombings of Hanoi in 1972 by the USA during the Vietnam War, the Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme made a critical speech.
He compared the US’s actions to several massacres from history, including the killing of hundreds of thousands of Jews at the Treblinka Concentration Camp by the Nazis.
President Richard Nixon and National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger reacted by recalling their ambassador and refusing to accept the Swedish counterpart.
Jan Ellisson was the first person to see the speech in the Swedish embassy in Washington and spent the next 15 months working to re-establish relations.
He has been speaking to Tim O’Callaghan.
Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by and curious about the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there.
For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more.
Recent episodes explore everything from how the Excel spreadsheet was developed, the creation of cartoon rabbit Miffy and how the sound barrier was broken.
We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: the moment Reagan and Gorbachev met in Geneva, Haitian singer Emerante de Pradines’ life and Omar Sharif’s legendary movie entrance in Lawrence of Arabia.
You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, like the invention of a stent which has saved lives around the world; the birth of the G7; and the meeting of Maldives’ ministers underwater. We cover everything from World War Two and Cold War stories to Black History Month and our journeys into space.
(Photo: Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme, who made the speech about the Hanoi bombings. Credit: Sjöberg Bildbyrå/ullstein bild via Getty Images)