Max Pearson presents a collection of science fiction themed Witness History stories from the BBC World Service.

Our guest is Lisa Yaszek, Regents' Professor of Science Fiction Studies at Georgia Tech in the USA.

Actor Peter Coyote looks back on the making of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, sharing memories from the set and reflecting on the film's enduring appeal.

We hear the story of Octavia E. Butler, who overcame poverty, racism and sexism to become one of the most influential voices in science fiction.

Plus, how American television boldly went where it had never gone before with what is claimed to be the country’s first interracial kiss broadcast on television, in an episode of Star Trek in 1968.

We also hear about Turkish Star Wars, the cult film that would go on to gain a reputation as one of the world's worst movies.

And how the success of the original Star Wars transformed toy marketing forever.

Then, in Sporting Witness, the story behind Norwegian commentator Bjørge Lillelien's legendary reaction to Norway's 2-1 victory over England in a World Cup qualifier in Oslo in 1981.

Contributors: Lisa Yaszek - Regents' Professor of Science Fiction Studies at Georgia Tech in the USA. Peter Coyote - actor in E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Nisi Shawl - friend of Octavia E. Butler. Nichelle Nichols - actress who played Lieutenant Uhura in Star Trek (archive). Çetin İnanç - film director (archive). Jim Swearingen - toy designer. Marius Lillelien - son of Bjørge Lillelien.

(Photo: On the set of E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial. Credit: Universal/Getty Images)

Max Pearson presents a collection of the week's Witness History episodes.

We learn why, in 2004, Uruguayans voted to enshrine water as a human right in their constitution - the first country in the world to do so. And environmental historian Ellen Arnold reveals how water has shaped human history.

Also, we tell the story of the fatal hijacking of Pan Am Flight 73 in Pakistan, 40 years ago. And how the island of Antigua was devastated when Hurricane Luis hit the Caribbean in 1995.

We find out more about the abandoned Nazi photo album revealing the chilling normality of life at the Auschwitz concentration camp. Plus, how a Northern Ireland peace movement was born from one family’s tragedy.

Finally, in Sporting Witness, why Ghana’s sprinting superstar Alice Annum won the nickname ‘Baby Jet’.

Contributors: Carmen Sosa - member of the water workers trade union. Ellen Arnold – environmental historian. Eli Fuller – Antigua resident. Madhvi Bahunga - Pan-American Airways flight attendant. Rebecca Erbelding – archivist and historian. Gerry Grehan - chairperson of the Peace People. Alice Annum - Ghanian sprinter.

(Photo: A woman casts her ballot in Montevideo, 2004. Credit: Miguel Rojo/AFP via Getty Images)

Max Pearson presents a collection of the week's Witness History episodes from the BBC World Service.

Our guest is Dr Elisabeth Fondren, Associate Professor of Journalism at St John's University in New York, USA.

We start by hearing some groundbreaking frontline reporting from the Battle of Mandalay in World War Two.

Then, we hear how in 1950s Canada, a controversial government scheme saw the relocation of nearly 30 thousand people.

Next, a pioneering scientist on his role in the fight against a flesh-eating parasite, the New World screwworm in the 1950s.

Plus, the extraordinary life and times of India's "Queen of Melody", Asha Bhosle.

Then, the formation of the English Premier League in 1992.

Finally, how, an Australian recipe book brought novelty birthday cakes to the masses in 1980.

Contributors: Dr Elisabeth Fondren - Associate Professor of Journalism at St John's University in New York, USA. Douglas Cleverdon - BBC radio producer (Archive). Don White - one of thousands relocated under a Canadian government scheme (Archive). Edward Knipling - entomologist known for his development of the Sterile Insect Technique (Archive). Asha Bhosle - celebrated Indian playback singer (Archive). David Dein, co-founder, English Premier League. Agnes Lee - former home economist at The Australian Women's Weekly.

(Photo: British and Indian Troops of the 14th Army in Burma, March 1945. Credit: Keystone/Getty Images)

Max Pearson presents a collection of the week's Witness History episodes focussing on Kenya.

We hear about Muthoni Kirima, one of the last Mau Mau fighters to come out of hiding and lay down her arms.

Caroline Elkins, Professor of History at Harvard University, discusses the brutality of the conflict between Kenya’s Land and Freedom Army, the British and Kenyan loyalists.

Next, when Princess Elizabeth became queen while staying at the Treetops Hotel, a lodge in the Aberdare National Park.

In 1997, scientists travelled to Kenya, in search of a cave believed to have been the den of the man-eating lions that terrorised railway workers in 1898.

Plus, we hear how Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki and his rival Raila Odinga signed an unprecedented power-sharing deal to end a wave of violence that left more than 1,200 people dead.

And the heartwarming story of the friendship between a baby hippo and a 130-year-old giant tortoise.

Finally for our Sporting Witness story, we head to the first Ultimate Frisbee World Championship in Gothenburg, Sweden in 1983.

Contributors: Caroline Elkins - Professor of History at Harvard University, and author of Britain's Gulag: The Brutal End of Empire in Kenya. Muthoni Kirima - Field Marshall in the Kenya Land and Freedom Army. Frank Gillard - BBC correspondent. Thomas Gnoske - Scientist. Alan Patterson - British Lieutenant Colonel John Henry Patterson's grandson. Maina Kiai - Chair of the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights in 2008. Maini Schildt - Swedish Ultimate Frisbee player.

(Photo: Mau Mau suspects are rounded up by police outside the camp in Manyani, Kenya, 1955. Credit: Getty Images/Authenticated News)