Podcast
From Our Own Correspondent
Hosted by BBC Radio 4 · EN
Insight, wit and analysis from BBC correspondents, journalists and writers from around the world
497episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Syria: a year after the fall of Assad
Dec 1300:28:34Summary readyKate Adie introduces stories from Syria, Ukraine, the USA, China and Germany.Syrians took to the streets to celebrate one year since the fall of the Assad regime, but in the background post-war reconstruction has been slow and sectarian violence is on the rise. Lina Sinjab has been travelling the country and reflects on the challenges ahead.Despite the constant threat of drones and missiles, many Ukrainians are finding ways to carry on with their lives - including the country's artists and musicians. Marcel Theroux recently visited Chernivtsi in western Ukraine, to attend the opening night of an unexpected musical gem.Just a few years ago, the city of El Paso in Texas declared a state of emergency as local shelters struggled to cope with the influx of migrants crossing the border from Mexico. Today, the picture is very different with the flow of migrants now a trickle. Bernd Debusmann looks at the impact of Donald Trump's immigration crackdown.China's mighty Yangtze river is one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, but the wildlife living in the river is struggling for survival with many native species already extinct. Stephen McDonell met a team of scientists trying to save the endangered finless porpoise.The German city of Chemnitz is currently a European Capital of Culture, and among the celebrations is an exhibition of a cultural icon - the Trabant. Adrian Bridge explores the history of East Germany's car culture - and how it provided some welcome respite from the spying eyes of the Stasi.Series Producer: Serena Tarling Production coordinators: Katie Morrison and Sophie Hill Editor: Richard Fenton-Smith
SummaryFrom Our Own Correspondent at 70
Dec 6Summary readyAnna Foster and some of the BBC’s best-known foreign correspondents are joined by an audience of Radio 4 listeners to celebrate 70 years of ‘From Our Own Correspondent’. Since the first episode was broadcast on 25th September 1955, FOOC – as it’s affectionately known – has reported from almost every country in the world. Anna’s guests for the event, recorded in the Radio Theatre in Broadcasting House in London, are Kate Adie, the presenter of FOOC and a former BBC Chief News Correspondent, Jeremy Bowen, the BBC’s International Editor, Lyse Doucet, the BBC’s Chief International Correspondent, and Steve Rosenberg, the BBC’s Russia Editor. They discuss what the job of a foreign correspondent is these days when anyone can get on a plane, take a mobile phone and broadcast to the world. They reflect on how to report on a more hostile world. Together, they offer insights into the world of the foreign correspondent - including the time Jeremy Bowen once told the Mujahideen in Afghanistan that he was Lyse Doucet - and Steve Rosenberg takes to the piano to explain why his hopes for Russia rest with a newspaper vendor in Moscow. Producers: Adele Armstrong, Serena Tarling and Polly Hope. Editor: Richard Fenton-Smith
SummaryFrom Our Own Correspondent at 70
Dec 601:01:14Summary readyAnna Foster and some of the BBC’s best-known foreign correspondents are joined by an audience of Radio 4 listeners to celebrate 70 years of ‘From Our Own Correspondent’. Since the first episode was broadcast on 25th September 1955, FOOC – as it’s affectionately known – has reported from almost every country in the world. Anna’s guests for the event, recorded in the Radio Theatre in Broadcasting House in London, are Kate Adie, the presenter of FOOC and a former BBC Chief News Correspondent, Jeremy Bowen, the BBC’s International Editor, Lyse Doucet, the BBC’s Chief International Correspondent, and Steve Rosenberg, the BBC’s Russia Editor. They discuss what the job of a foreign correspondent is these days when anyone can get on a plane, take a mobile phone and broadcast to the world. They reflect on how to report on a more hostile world.Together, they offer insights into the world of the foreign correspondent - including the time Jeremy Bowen once told the Mujahideen in Afghanistan that he was Lyse Doucet - and Steve Rosenberg takes to the piano to explain why his hopes for Russia rest with a newspaper vendor in Moscow. Producers: Adele Armstrong, Serena Tarling and Polly Hope. Sound mix: Dave O'Neill Editor: Richard Fenton-Smith
SummaryTurkey’s clampdown
Mar 29, 202500:28:48Summary readyKate Adie presents stories from Turkey, the US, El Salvador, and Georgia.
SummaryUkraine’s fading hopes
Mar 22, 202500:28:58Summary readyKate Adie presents stories from Ukraine, Serbia, Guatemala, Kenya and the Philippines.Diplomatic efforts to end the fighting in Ukraine are continuing after initial attempts to secure a ceasefire stalled. Russia has refused to support a US-led plan for a 30-day ceasefire and demanded talks about its red lines first. James Landale has been in Kyiv where he says hopes are fading for any meaningful victory.Serbia saw its largest ever protest last weekend in the capital, Belgrade. Demonstrators blame corruption and corner-cutting by the ruling party for lives lost after a railway station collapsed last year. There have been several resignations, but the protests have only gathered momentum. Guy De Launey has been in Belgrade.Guatemala is notorious for endemic corruption. For years, state funds ended up in the pockets of a powerful elite known as “the pact of the corrupt." In the last election, political underdog Bernardo Arevalo defied the odds and won power on an anti-corruption platform. But some are growing impatient with his lack of progress, finds Jane Chambers.Between 2020 and 2022, the Horn of Africa suffered its worst drought in at least 40 years. The UN has thrown its support behind an initiative to help farmers fight drought through early warning systems. Peter Yeung has been to Kenya to find out more.President Rodrigo Duterte was arrested in Manila last week and flown to the Hague. There, he faces charges of crimes against humanity over his deadly ‘war on drugs.' During his term, thousands of small-time drug dealers and users were killed without trial. Tim Mansel recalls an illuminating meeting with a priest and a pathologist.Series Producer: Serena Tarling Editor: Max Deveson Production Coordinators: Katie Morrison & Sophie Hill
SummaryInside Mexico’s drug cartels
Mar 15, 202500:28:29Summary readyKate Adie introduces dispatches from Mexico and the USA, Bangladesh, Syria and the Faroe Islands.Donald Trump has threatened Mexico with sanctions if it does not do more to halt the flow of deadly fentanyl into the US. Quentin Sommerville gained rare access to a Mexican drug smuggling operation, meeting the foot-soldiers of a prominent cartel as it prepares to send fentanyl north of the border.Bangladesh is homes to hundreds of thousands of Rohingya people, who have been living in refugee camps since fleeing pesecution in Myanmar back in 2017. The Rohingya’s survival has been dependent on foreign aid – but that lifeline is now at risk, following cuts to the US aid budget. Samira Hussain visited one of the refugee camps.US negotiators proposed an immediate 30 day ceasefire in Ukraine this week. While President Zelensky accepted the proposal, President Putin said questions remain about the nature of the truce. Frank Gardner assesses the chances for a lasting peace.Back in 2014, swathes of north-east Syria came under the control of Islamic State - though when its fighters reached the city of Kobane, they met strong resistance from Kurdish forces. With the help of international allies, IS was eventually driven out, but local Kurds still worry that IS may one day return, reports Jiyar Gol.In the autonomous Danish territory of the Faroe Islands, locals have been keeping an eye on what’s been going on in another Danish territory – Greenland. Donald Trump’s proposal that the US might look to buy it has sparked fresh conversations over Faroese independence – and a growing sense of local pride, finds Amy Liptrot.Series Producer: Serena Tarling Editor: Richard Fenton-Smith Production Coordinators: Katie Morrison & Sophie Hill
SummaryGaza’s future
Mar 8, 202500:28:40Summary readyKate Adie introduces dispatches from Egypt, Poland, the USA, Malaysia, and the Mekong River.Arab leaders convened in Egypt this week to draw up a post-war plan for Gaza - and to counter Donald Trump's proposal to turn it into the 'riviera of the Middle East'. Lyse Doucet travelled to Cairo to report on the new Arab resolve, but found herself being pulled back into the city's own tumultuous history.Increased uncertainty about the future of Ukraine is fueling a sense of unease in neighboring Poland. The question of 'how safe are we?' is a hot topic of discussion in the country's current presidential election campaign. Adam Easton reports from Warsaw.In order to tackle the country's opioid crisis, some US states are focussing less on prosecution, and more on treatment. The first state to decriminalise the personal possession of hard drugs was Oregon back in 2020 – a decision it would come to reverse in 2024. Martin Vennard has been to the famously progressive state to find out what’s been happening.Malaysia has become a global hub for recycling, importing an estimated five million tonnes of plastic each year - but does it really make a difference? Leanna Hosea went to find out what happens to the world's waste once it arrives.Finally, we head to the banks of the Mekong River, where the borders of Thailand, Myanmar and Laos meet. Matthew Gwyther travelled through the region and reflects on how its past and present have being shaped by dominant powers.Series Producer: Serena Tarling Editor: Richard Fenton-Smith Production Coordinators: Katie Morrison & Sophie Hill
SummaryTrump, Putin and the new global order
Mar 1, 202500:28:54Summary readyKate Adie presents stories from Russia, the occupied West Bank, Bangladesh, South Africa and IndiaUS relations with its Western allies have been upended recently amid a rapprochement between Washington and Moscow. The BBC’s Russia Editor Steve Rosenberg reveals how the warming of relations has been feted in the pro-Putin press, while ordinary Russians are seemingly more cautious.As the first stage of the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel comes to an end, Israel's defence forces are in the midst of another major operation against armed Palestinian groups in the occupied West Bank. Paul Adams visited one of the region's refugee camps to see what impact Israel’s military action is having on the thousands of people forced to leave their homes.Bangladesh remains politically unstable six months after the violent student-led uprising which brought down long-term leader, Sheikh Hasina. In the absence of political certainty, fundamentalist Islamic groups – previously side-lined in politics – have found fresh impetus, says David Loyn.Johannesburg in South Africa is often framed as one of the world's most dangerous cities - but there are signs of improvement, with both locals and tourists returning to explore areas once regarded as no-go zones. Ed Habershon met the Joburgers trying to change their city’s image.Each year, in the south Indian state of Kerala, ancient folk rituals, known as theyyams, are held in family estates and around temples. Sara Wheeler went to watch the dramatic spectacles, where performers become living embodiments of Hindu deities.Series Producer: Serena Tarling Editor: Richard Fenton-Smith Production Coordinators: Katie Morrison & Sophie Hill
SummaryDisappeared in Ukraine
Feb 22, 202500:28:17Summary readyKate Adie presents stories from Ukraine, the United States, The Gambia and Uzbekistan. Its three years since Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, during which time hundreds of thousands of people have been killed or injured - though others have simply disappeared without trace. Sarah Rainsford travelled to Ukraine, where she met one woman trying to find out what happened to her parents after they were detained during Russia's occupation of her home town. US President Donald Trump has pledged to curb government waste by cutting spending. Under review are the billions of dollars set aside for research grants, intended for universities and scientific institutions. At the annual gathering of one of the country’s oldest scientific societies, which took place in Boston last week, Sandra Kanthal found a decidedly dampened mood. Each year thousands of people leave sub-Saharan Africa in hope of reaching Europe and forging a better life. It's a dangerous and potentially deadly journey - and for some the challenge is just too much. So what happens after they return home? Alex Last went to The Gambia to find out. The city of Bukhara in Uzbekistan is located on the route of the legendary Silk Road, and in the Middle Ages it became a major intellectual hub of the Islamic world. It's also home to a centuries-old Jewish community, which over generations blended culture with the Muslim community. Post-Soviet emigration means it's now much smaller than it used to be, but Monica Whitlock met one man who is still happy to call Bukhara home.
SummaryGermany's young people and the far right
Feb 15, 202500:28:37Summary readyIn Saxony, our correspondent hears why young voters are increasingly supporting the AfD. The party is polling consistently in second place ahead of a snap election next SundayLONG: Kate Adie presents stories from Germany, the US, Afghanistan, Spain and Morocco.Germany goes to the polls on 23rd February, with the conservative CDU party showing a strong lead. But the far right AfD is consistently polling in second place. The biggest rise in support for the party has been among young voters, and Jessica Parker has spoken to some of them in Saxony to hear why.Mahjooba Nowrouzi returns to Afghanistan, for the first time in nearly 30 years, having fled the oppressive Taliban regime as a young student. She describes how despite initial first impressions, not much had changed with the Taliban back in control once more.This week, Jordan's King Abdullah visited Washington, where he made clear to President Trump that he and other regional leaders were unanimous in rejecting plans to take over Gaza and transfer Palestinians to Jordan and Egypt. Tom Bateman followed the encounter between King Abdullah and the President.In Southern Spain, the olive yield has risen substantially after several years of punishing drought. But apart from the challenges of climate change and on-going desertification in Spain, farmers have another worry – crime. Last year in Andalucía over 500 tonnes of olives were stolen. It’s a headache for local law enforcement, as Linda Pressly found out on a visit to the olive groves there.Morocco has long been the film location of choice for many a Hollywood director, with its array of studios and versatile backdrops. But now, as John Kampfner discovered on a recent visit, a combination of tight budgets and technology, suggest that the good times might be running out in the ‘Hollywood of Africa.’Series Producer: Serena Tarling Editor: Bridget Harney Production coordinators: Katie Morrison & Sophie Hill
Summary