The Documentary Podcast

The annual pilgrimage to Mecca, in Saudi Arabia, is something millions of people look forward to as an immensely spiritual experience. A main pillar of Islam, Muslims try to do it at least once in their lives, if they are physically and financially able. Saudi Arabia says 1.8 million people took part in Hajj this year. It coincided with a heatwave where temperatures reached more than 50C. Some 1,300 people died, many of those due to the intense heat. Three Muslims - from Kenya, the United States and Saudi Arabia – share their experiences of Hajj, including spiritual enlightenment, overcrowding, bereavement and sexual harassment.

Roma photographer Artúr Čonka joins the annual Romani pilgrimage to Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer in the south of France. Thousands of Romani from across western Europe gather in the small town in Provence each year to honour their patron saint, Sara-la-Kâli, who represents motherly love, is a protector of the oppressed, and is even said to help couples conceive. It is Artúr's first time on the pilgrimage and is keen to uncover the legends behind this enigmatic saint and what she represents to the Romani community today. The streets are packed with musicians playing rumba, flamenco and manouche jazz. Artúr meets writer and scrap metal dealer Kerensa Smith, film-maker and journalist Jake Bowers and Dutch pilgrim Kali Van Esch who has been coming every year since she was a baby.

The brilliant cricketer Frank Worrell became the first permanent Black captain of the West Indies team in 1960 – but he had to wait for a decade to get the job, denied by the elitism, insularity and racism of Caribbean cricket's rulers. BBC producer and cricket author Simon Lister travels to Barbados to find out how Worrell's upbringing, his cricketing adventures and his determination not to be cowed by the powers that ran island cricket, shaped a man who changed the West Indian game for ever. Simon Lister also considers Frank Worrell's legacy for today, speaking to Ebony Rainford-Brent, England's women's first Black cricketer who discovered that she had a unique connection to Frank Worrell that changed her life. ***This programme contains outdated and discriminatory language***

The websites have names like DC Weekly and Chicago Crier. They are filled with thousands of legitimate-looking stories, plucked from real news websites and rewritten by artificial intelligence. But BBC Trending has found that these sites are part of a wide-ranging operation designed to insert false stories into political debates, over Ukraine and now gradually shifting to the US election campaign. One of the people involved is John Dougan, a former Florida police officer now living in Moscow. Online evidence links him to the network of sites, which reference American cities and are populated by fake journalists. Experts believe they are part of a wide effort to influence American public opinion in advance of November’s presidential election.

In late 2023 a group of German journalists released a podcast series, Legion: Most Wanted. It described their ultimately unsuccessful search for a terrorist suspect, Daniela Klette, using an AI facial recognition tool. She had been on the run for more than 30 years, together with two accomplices. The trio are believed by the police to have been members of the Red Army Faction, the RAF, an anti-imperialist terrorist group, often referred to as the Baader Meinhof gang. The RAF claimed responsibility in the late 1980s and early 1990s for the assassination of a number of prominent Germans. None of these crimes has ever been cleared up.

Hanna Harris is Helsinki’s chief design officer and the second person in the job since the role was created in 2016. But why does a city need a chief design officer? And, what can design do to boost wellbeing? Erika Benke joins Hanna as she searches for new pioneering opportunities that have the potential to change people’s lives. They visit a vast decommissioned power plant, inviting local people to share their views on how to give an industrial facility that has served its purpose, a new lease of life. They also go to an old playground that is about to be transformed into a new themed playground where children can learn about computing, algorithms and AI. As Hanna travels a cross the city, we hear her plotting, planning and exploring ideas and infecting others with her passion for design.

After a lull in activities, in 2024 the Islamic State Group claimed to be behind several major attacks, showing the world they have not gone away. Among them was the storming by gunmen of a Moscow concert hall. Ten years after the Islamist extremists declared the establishment of a caliphate, our Jihadist Media Monitoring Team considers the current capabilities and ambitions of the group that once ruled over a large territory in Iraq and Syria. Producer: Kriszta Satori Presenter: Krassi Twigg

Writer Alvin Hall returns to Wakulla County, Florida, the world he grew up in, to shed light on the political present and share a haunting portrait of a disappearing way of life. It has long been deeply rural, a place of unspoilt wilderness and incredible natural beauty. But it has also been a place with a violent history of racial segregation and oppression. But change is coming. Since Alvin’s last visit almost 10 years ago, unprecedented development has swept the county and it seems as if decades of racial division might really be starting to wear away. Is this really the beginning of the end?

10 years ago, IS proclaimed the creation of an Islamic State or Caliphate in Iraq and Syria. They went on to dominate headlines for years, committing terrible attacks and atrocities in the Middle East and beyond. Despite losing territory in 2019, the group still exists and is active in many countries around the world. Jihadist media specialist Mina Al-Lami analyses IS' most recent activities and the threats posed by them and other militant groups.Produced by Caroline Ferguson and Alice Gioia.(Photo: Faranak Amidi. Credit: Tricia Yourkevich)

The war in Ukraine has contributed to a heightened awareness of security in parts of Europe, and in some countries, the reintroduction of different forms of national service has become a debate once again. In the UK, the ruling Conservative party has promised a system of national service if re-elected. In Italy too, deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini has introduced a controversial bill to bring back mandatory military service. In Germany, the defence minister has presented a proposal for selective military service focused on volunteers to boost its depleted armed forces. Our conversations in this edition bring people together who have completed national service in some form.

This special programme is dedicated to the team of scientists and support staff isolated at British research stations in the Antarctic midwinter. For the staff living at three British Antarctic Survey research stations (Rothera, Bird Island and South Georgia), and at other national bases across the frozen continent, midwinter is a special time. With no sunlight, Antarctica is at its coldest and those stationed on the frozen continent face months of total isolation. Midwinter celebrations at the British research stations include a feast, exchange of presents, watching the 1982 horror film The Thing (where an alien monster terrorises an Antarctic base) and listening - on short wave - to the BBC’s Midwinter Broadcast. Presenter Cerys Matthews features messages from family and friends at home, as well as music requests from Antarctica.

Over 800 ethnically-Korean refugees fled Ukraine for Koryo Village in South Korea’s Gwangju province following Russia’s invasion. Many Koryoin are women and children who escaped Ukraine when male family members were drafted. Some have secured legal status and jobs, while others await document processing. They are descendants of Koreans who fled to the Soviet Union during the Japanese occupation of Korea. Journalist So Jeong Lee visits the village, observing new arrivals and a school where children learn Korean. But recent elections have led to new government policies which will impact the Koryoin.

Fighters from dissident armed groups in Colombia are using TikTok to glorify their lives as guerrillas and recruit youngsters. These armed groups did not like the terms of a peace treaty negotiated between the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the government in 2016, and they kept fighting against the Colombian government. Videos glorifying life inside the guerrilla: money, cars, guns, women, community and purpose, have struck a chord with teens, particularly in rural areas like the Cauca region in west Colombia. So how popular are these TikToks and what does it mean for Colombia?

Is Russia Europe’s last empire? Is its invasion of Ukraine a “colonial war”? Is “decolonising” the country the only way of ensuring it stops being a threat to its neighbours and world peace?Since last year, “decolonising Russia” has become a buzz-phrase in Ukraine and other former members of the soviet union, among many Western strategists and politicians, Russian studies experts – and Russia’s own liberal opposition and ethnic minorities.And that’s triggered a vigorous debate about whether the term “decolonisation” is really relevant to Russia – and what it means. Is it about challenging the “imperial mindset” of its rulers – and perhaps of every ordinary Russian? Or perhaps it means dismembering the country itself?In “Assignment: Decolonising Russia” Tim Whewell dissects a new and vital controversy with the help of historians, policy makers and activists in the former Soviet Union, the West and the Global South.

For artist Nazanin Moradi, who was brought up in Iran where women are “second-class citizens in every sense,” reversing the “unfair” gender roles is paramount. In her new project, the multidisciplinary artist challenges male domination and toxic masculinity, within a fragmented historical context where fantasy meets rebellion. She does this by changing the narrative of ancient Mesopotamian mythology, fixating on the legendary battle where the supremely powerful dragon goddess of oceans Tiamat, was killed by the storm god Marduk. Sahar Zand spends time with Nazanin as she embarks on the ambitious project.

Eighty years ago at least three million Indians, who were British subjects, died in the Bengal Famine. But today different generations in Britain are coming to terms with this difficult past. Kavita Puri meets Susannah Herbert the granddaughter of Sir John Herbert, the governor of Bengal, who is only just learning about her grandfather's role in the famine. Initially she feels shame, but discoveries in her family archive change her perspective. A 97 year-old British man makes a surprising revelation about his role in the Bengal famine. And three generations on, British Bengalis mark the famine in Britain, in an unexpected way. To hear the other episodes in the mini-series Three Million, scroll down to 23 February 2024.

Would you turn to AI to create your perfect partner? Wanqing Zhang from the BBC Global China Unit has been looking into an AI dating trend that is going viral in China. Plus, Daria Taradai from BBC Ukraine tells us what it's like to live and work with power cuts in Kyiv. Produced by Caroline Ferguson and Alice Gioia. (Photo: Faranak Amidi. Credit: Tricia Yourkevich)

Politics in Europe took a shift to the right following the recent European parliamentary elections, with far-right parties making gains in several countries, most notably France. The size of victory for the opposition National Rally Party led President Macron to call a snap national election. We bring together two men who support Marine Le Pen’s far-right party to discuss what’s informing their views. A major concern, they say, is fear about crime and security, which causes some people to carry knives.

Attar is the essential oil that is produced when aromatics like jasmine and sandalwood are pressed and distilled. It has been a feature of life in India, as well as many other parts of the world, for over 5,000 years, and it has been the defining industry of the Indian city of Kannauj for over a thousand. But whereas once this ancient discipline employed nearly all the city’s residents, it’s now suffering severely from the impact of climate change and the rise of synthetic perfumes. Journalist Jigyasa Mishra meets the farmers, flower pickers and traditional perfumers of Kannauj to better understand the way of life attar sustains and to ask: can anything be done to reverse the trend?Producers: Jigyasa Mishra and Artemis IrvineA Whistledown Production for BBC World Service

George Antone is a member of the only Roman Catholic Church in Gaza, part of a dwindling Christian community whose roots in this area, go back to the 4th Century. When war broke out in October 2023, he is convinced that staying in Gaza City is the right option - for safety and to continue bearing witness to Jesus in this part of the world. His is the first family to move into the compound of the Holy Family Church and he helps lead the parish through the next months as they suffer deaths of loved ones, near starvation and destruction of their homes. Throughout it all, he keeps in contact with BBC Producer Catherine Murray sending her WhatsApp messages from a warzone.

Jusper Machogu is a farmer from south-western Kenya who describes himself as a “climate sceptic”. He wrongly claims that climate change is a “scam” or a “hoax” designed to hold Africa back. On social media, he has also become known as a staunch defender of fossil fuel exploration in Africa. His views have caught the eye of those in the West who, like him, deny the overwhelming scientific consensus on global warming. They have helped him grow his following and spread his message globally. But, in doing so, has Mr Machogu unwittingly become a tool for the fossil fuel industry? How dangerous is the message of social media influencers like him?

Greystones made global headlines a year ago when, concerned by rising anxiety levels among their pupils, the headteachers from all the primary schools in the town invited parents to sign a voluntary pact or code; not to buy their child a smartphone before they moved up to secondary school. In Ireland that’s usually at age 12. Beth McLeod talks to teachers, pupils and parents about their reaction to the initiative. Has there been any backlash? At one of the town’s secondary schools she meets an assistant headteacher who is passionately demanding a culture change around phone use for older students too, warning parents that although they think they are giving their children access to the internet, they are really giving the internet access to their children. She speaks to teenagers about their views on what is the right age to be on social media and asks the Irish Health Minister what the government is doing to hold tech companies to account.

Released in 2017, the video game Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice saw players take control of dark-age warrior Senua as she battled to rescue the soul of her dead lover from the Norse underworld. The action-adventure game from British studio Ninja Theory won awards for its gameplay, acting and storytelling, as well as plaudits for its nuanced and well-researched depiction of psychosis. German actor Melina Juergens was awarded a Bafta for her performance as the titular character. Now studio head Dominic Matthews and his team are working on the sequel, Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II. Nathan Jones joins Dominic, Melina and the rest of the team in Cambridge as they tell this next chapter of their story.

The Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, the Hajj, attracted no fewer than two million pilgrims in 2023. But this pilgrim boom has an environmental downside: climate scientists are warning that the five-day Hajj alone, with its bargain flights, hotels, catering and local transport, produces over 1.8 million tonnes of greenhouse gases, roughly the amount New York City emits every two weeks. Yet the Saudi government has plans to go much bigger still: by 2030, they want 30 million pilgrims a year to take part in the Hajj and Umrah. Zubeida Malik asks what the Saudi authorities, local groups and campaigners, religious scholars and the pilgrims themselves can do to reduce the environmental footprint of one of the largest religious gatherings on the planet.

For the hundreds of people who live in a cluster of villages between India and Pakistan, a map drawn up long ago still causes daily struggles. Punjab - the land of the five rivers - was carved up to create Pakistan during The Partition of 1947 when India gained its independence. Two rivers went to Pakistan, two stayed with India and one, the Ravi, crosses both countries. For 72 years, communities who live by the Ravi on the Indian side have been asking for a permanent bridge, so they can access hospitals, schools, shops, banks. What they have is a makeshift pontoon bridge, which has to be dismantled for the monsoon season. Journalist Chhavi Sachdev travels to the western part of India to meet the Indian people whose lives are shaped by the Ravi river.

The election of Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum is a moment of history. For the first time, a woman is in charge of the country. Host James Reynolds travels around the country hearing about the challenges facing the new president through the lives and concerns and hopes of the people he spoke to. Many live in fear of criminal cartels and armed gangs, and women feel unsafe on the streets. Ricardo, whose brother was abducted and sister was murdered, is afraid to go out with his daughters. In a migration camp in Tijuana, a couple with two young daughters describe how they left their hometown after receiving death threats from a cartel and Ana, who wants to be a doctor, hopes a woman in power will make a difference.

'Spiritual but not religious’ is the fastest growing faith category amongst Gen Z and Millennials around the world. However, in Nigeria, where most people identify as either Christian or Muslim, questioning doctrine or exploring alternative beliefs is still often seen as taboo. Kamsy and Ore were both raised in evangelical Christian households, but began questioning their faith in their early 20s. Separately, they began reading about other belief systems, such as Judaism, Buddhism and traditional African religions, and posting their thoughts and experiences on social media. Neither were prepared for the backlash they received. When the two of them finally connected, they bonded over how lonely their ‘deconstruction’ journeys had been. So they created a WhatsApp group for others like them. Today, The Table defines itself as a community for the irreligious yet spiritual, and aims to provide a space for connection and discussion free from the dogma.

Why is football such a universal language? Three BBC World Service journalists and football fans - Matias Zibell Garcia, Pooria Jafereh and Njoroge Muigai – explain what the game mean to their audiences in Argentina, Iran and Kenya, and look ahead at the summer season. Plus, Tamara Ebiwei from BBC Pidgin on why Nigerian players have to learn a new national anthem.Produced by Alice Gioia and Caroline Ferguson. (Photo: Faranak Amidi. Credit: Tricia Yourkevich)

Female genital mutilation affects around 230 million women and girls globally, with rates highest in Africa. FGM is considered a human rights violation and has no health benefits. That’s according to World Health Organisation. Hibo Wardere, a survivor from Somalia, recounts her ordeal and discusses the importance of education in ending the practice.The Gambia banned FGM in 2015, but it could be about to reverse this. BBC journalist Esther Ogola, who’s based in Nairobi, explains why. We also hear how Kenya has more than halved its victims - and discuss the likelihood of the practice ending by 2030, which is the UN’s goal.To find out more of what is going on in the world search for "What in the World" wherever you get your BBC Podcasts.Note: This episode contains some graphic descriptions of FGM.

Attacked on social media - how Nobel Prize laureate Maria Ressa came under fire for doing her job as a journalist in the Philippines, covering the presidency of Rodrigo Duterte. She talks to Babita Sharma about the fight to stop social media being used to spread lies and hate against powerful women. Babita also speaks to two female digital pioneers. Lucina Di Meco is the co-founder of the US-based group #ShePersisted, which addresses the digital threat faced by women in politics. Audrey Pe is founder of the non-profit organisation WiTech, which aims to inspire young people to use technology to bring positive change.This content was created as a co-production between Nobel Prize Outreach and the BBC. Image of Maria Ressa: Getty Images

Nobel Prize laureate Sir Paul Nurse wants science, not politics, to guide the debate surrounding climate change. But how do you convince the denialists? Babita Sharma takes us through the evolving strategies of those who claim climate change isn’t real, and speaks to two young people who are trying to make a difference. UK climate activist Phoebe L Hanson founded Teach the Teacher, which gives school children the resources to engage with their teachers on climate change. Ugandan Nyombi Morris set up a non-profit organisation, Earth Volunteers, to mobilise young people like him who wanted to promote the fight against the climate crisis.This content was created as a co-production between Nobel Prize Outreach and the BBC. Image credit: Francis Crick Institute

Can information become a weapon of war? Oleksandra Matviichuk, whose organisation was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, is documenting alleged Russian war crimes against Ukraine. She talks to Babita Sharma about how she uncovers the evidence. Babita also speaks to Anastasiia Romaniuk, a young Ukrainian digital platforms analyst, who is exposing disinformation around the war, and to Lisa Kaplan, founder and CEO of a US company which helps organisations protect themselves from social media manipulation.This content was created as a co-production between Nobel Prize Outreach and the BBC. Image: Courtesy of Oleksandra Matviichuk

How Nobel Prize laureate Katalin Kariko got caught up in the Covid vaccine disinformation wars. What was it like - as someone behind one of the vaccines – to be in the eye of the false information storm? Katalin tells her story to Babita Sharma. And US educator and artist Young Elder tells Babita how she helped to build trust in the vaccine among Baltimore’s black community. She works with Hip Hop Health, an organisation combating health and vaccine disinformation, started by rapper Doug E Fresh.This content was created as a co-production between Nobel Prize Outreach and the BBC. Image: Courtesy of Katalin Kariko

Farmers' protests have been erupting across Europe, and on 20 February one image from a protest in Poland went viral. It showed a tractor carrying a soviet flag and bearing a slogan calling on Russian President Vladimir Putin to ‘bring order to Ukraine, Brussels and our rulers’. The man driving the tractor was arrested and is currently awaiting trial. After the image was released Poland’s foreign ministry spokesperson released a statement warning of attempts to take over the country’s agricultural protest movement by extreme and irresponsible groups ‘possibly under the influence of Russian agents.’ We attempt to track down the man behind the banner. Who is he? And what is the evidence for Russian involvement in, or amplification of, farmers’ protests in Poland and beyond?

El Salvador used to be known as one of the most dangerous places in the world. The central American country was dominated by rival gangs who terrorised the population. President Bukele declared a State of Emergency in 2022 and since then more than 76,000 people have been arrested – around 1% of the population. Two years on Jane Chambers travels to El Salvador to find out how people’s lives have changed – for better and for worse - since the crack down on crime.

Andy Riley is an Emmy-winning scriptwriter and a million-selling author and cartoonist published in more than 20 countries, notably with the Bunny Suicides book series. Antonia Quirke follows him as he begins to write and draw the third book in his graphic novel series for children. The series is called Action Dude. That's the name of the main character, too; he lives for danger, he lives for excitement, he lives with his Mum because he's eight years old. Antonia also follows Andy as he performs a semi-improvised, hour-long stand up show with live drawing.

How many soldiers are fighting - and dying - for Russia in Ukraine? Who are they, and what do their stories tell us about Russia's frontline tactics? We'll ask Olga Ivshina, who has been monitoring Russian losses in Ukraine from day one. Plus, Anne McAlpine from BBC Alba dives into the history of Gaelic proverbs. Produced by Alice Gioia and Caroline Ferguson.(Photo: Faranak Amidi. Credit: Tricia Yourkevich)

Anyone seeking election as a politician can expect to have to argue their case with the electorate, and deal with opposition and criticism. But what happens when that democratic debate turns toxic and politicians face personal abuse, intimidation and threats of violence? With election campaigns being fought in several countries around the world, we bring together politicians in Canada, France and the UK to discuss some of their experiences of public office. Heather Williams, a councillor in the east of England tells presenter Luke Jones how she was threatened with being shot and Catherine McKenna who served in the Canadian government, and her son Matt share the challenges they faced living life under the political spotlight.

Anna Holligan spends time with Dutch Muslim Nora Akachar, whose world was turned upside down with the traditional progressive country voted for right-wing politician Geert Wilders. Nora is left questioning her identity and what it means for her to be Muslim in the Netherlands today.

Ghanaian gamer and broadcaster Kobby Spiky explores the video game landscape across Africa. He speaks to everyday gamers and developers about their experiences of playing and creating them. While Asia and North America are seen as the hubs of the video game industry - the homes of the three major console manufacturers and some of the largest publishers in the world, countries like Ghana, Kenya and Nigeria are paving the way for Africa to emerge as the next big thing in gaming. As smartphones and tablets become more accessible, mobile gaming has taken hold across the continent, and African developers are standing out from their foreign competitors.

In a viral thread posted on X in January this year, a 23-year-old Russian man claims he used ChatGPT to filter through and chat thousands of women on Tinder, eventually proposing to one that was selected by the algorithm. The scale and success of his experiment sparked scepticism. Some raised doubts about the technical plausibility of it, while others voiced concerns about the ethical implications of such an endeavour. In an attempt to better understand his experiment, BBC Trending interviewed the Russian man and asked experts what they made of it. As AI becomes more advanced and accessible, the story also highlights broader concerns about the future of this technology in online dating. How will AI reshape the landscape of online dating in the coming years? What biases may be inherent in its algorithms? Is using AI in this manner a form of catfishing?

Myanmar is in the grip of a country-wide insurgency as armed resistance groups, including many young people from the cities, attempt to overthrow a military regime which seized power in a coup three years ago. As much as two thirds of Myanmar, mostly the countryside, may now be under the control of the resistance. Access is extremely difficult, hundreds of journalists have been jailed, but our correspondent Quentin Sommerville has managed to travel to Karenni and Shan states – in the east of the Myanmar - with young revolutionaries. Some have taken up arms, but others - doctors and teachers - are supporting the insurgency with skills of their own.Presenter: Quentin Sommerville Producer: Lindle Markwell Editor: Penny Murphy Sound Engineer: Andy Fell Production Coordinator: Gemma Ashmanimage: KNDF graduates in Myanmar. Credit: BBC

The global perfume industry is worth billions. Some luxury brands sell for hundreds of dollars a bottle. But BBC Eye Investigations has discovered that, when the sun goes down in Egypt, there is a hidden human cost to this industry. In the summer of 2023, the BBC visited four different locations in Egypt’s main jasmine-growing area, Al Gharbia, and found children - some as young as five - working at night to pick the jasmine that was supplied to some of the world’s leading perfume brands through factories in Egypt. The UN’s Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery tells the BBC what it’s uncovered ‘may constitute the worst form of child labour’. We hear the story of one family who say they have no choice but to take their children into the jasmine fields to work, in order to earn enough money to live. Reporter: Natasha Cox Producers: Ahmed El Shamy and Louise Hidalgo Editors: Rebecca Henschke and Rosie Garthwaite Sound engineer: Neil Churchill + James Beard

As a unique creative experiment, Chilean director and playwright Constanza Hola Chamy is directing in parallel both a professional cast and a community cast of her new play Mad Women. Highlighting bipolar disorder, it’s inspired by the lives and deaths of three outstanding Latin American artists: the Mexican painter Frida Kahlo, Chilean singer-songwriter and visual artist Violeta Parra and Columbian painter Judith Marquez, and their struggles with mental health. The professional actors are from the same country as their characters, while the community cast have volunteered to participate in the project, having experienced mental health challenges themselves. They’re women from underrepresented sections of the community in the East End of London, which is where some of the performances will take place. ‘Mad Women’ is fighting the stereotypes and stigma of what it has historically meant to be a woman with mental health conditions, in different countries, through sometimes brutal conversations about sexuality, motherhood, gender oppression and the role of women in the arts, as artists and muses. Felicity Finch follows Constanza as she and her international creative team collaborate and face the challenges of working with the two casts: juggling rehearsals, coping with a very tight deadline, while making sure they are sensitive to the needs of the four women in the understandably vulnerable community cast. Constanza is also making plans to take her play and this unique way of working to different communities of women internationally, including her native Chile. If you need support following anything you’ve heard in this episode, there’s information at bbc.com/actionlinePresenter and Producer: Felicity Finch Exec producer: Andrea Kidd(Photo: Professional Cast of Mad Women. Credit: Héctor Manchego)

The rise of China is a defining challenge for the West. How far should it co-operate, compete or confront Beijing? And were Western countries slow to respond to China’s growing assertiveness? The BBC’s Security Correspondent, Gordon Corera, delves into the worlds of espionage, surveillance, technology, the theft of commercial secrets, free speech at universities and political interference to explore the points of friction. In this documentary, he speaks to spy chiefs, former prime ministers and dissidents as well as those on the frontline of this Shadow War.

What's the price journalists pay for telling the truth? For many it's exile. We'll hear from two colleagues, TV presenter Shazia Haya from BBC Pashto and Nina Nazarova from BBC Russian, both living and working in exile.Produced by Alice Gioia and Caroline Ferguson.(Photo: Faranak Amidi. Credit: Tricia Yourkevich)Show less

In the United States, questions are being asked after two beauty queens, Miss USA and Miss Teen USA, stepped down in as many weeks. The sudden and controversial resignations have put the spotlight on a global, multi-million dollar business. We get a broader overview of what it is like to take part with former winners from Germany, Finland and Nigeria. Presenter James Reynolds also hears from two pageant judges and an organiser on how protections are put in place for those taking part.

Hervé lost a leg in a motorbike accident. On the eve of the operation, he made a deal with God: “If I walk again, I'll go to Santiago.” He did walk again, but not on pilgrimage. Instead, he got caught up in his business affairs, had a burn out, tried to kill himself and spent several months in a psychiatric hospital before he decided to keep his side of the bargain. He set out, with crutches and a prosthetic leg, for Santiago de Compostela, a journey of 1,920 kilometres from his home in Brittany in north west France to the cathedral that contains the relics of Saint James at the tip of north west Spain. John Laurenson walks with him for a couple of days to hear his story and talk about life, God, pilgrimage.

The world of esports is a wide and varied domain which has captured audiences around the world. OJ Borg explores how Denmark is leading the way in embracing the sport. Speaking to star players, schools that have embraced it in their curriculum and the fans pushing it forward, OJ investigates Denmark’s esports revolution.

Long Covid can ruin lives, and scientists are striving to understand the condition and beginning to get some early clues about possible treatments. While there are still more questions than answers, though, many have turned online for help. But could what they find there sometimes do more harm than good? Rachel Schraer goes undercover to investigate the Lightning Process, a controversial treatment programme for Long Covid being promoted online. Reporter: Rachel Schraer Producer: Paul Grant Editor: Flora Carmichael