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The History Hour
Arabian Peninsula
The History Hour
Nov 19, 2022

Max Pearson presents a collection of this week's Witness History and Sporting Witness episodes, which focus on the Arabian Peninsula to mark the start of the football World Cup in Qatar.

Our guest is Dr Wafa Alsayed, Lecturer in Political Science and History at the Gulf University for Science and Technology in Kuwait.

We hear about how the states across the peninsula won independence, and speak to the architect of the region's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa.

There's also the invention of the robot camel jockey, and a pioneering female Qatari author.

On the World Cup theme, we end with the story of American popstar Diana Ross missing a penalty during the opening ceremony of the 1994 tournament.

Contributors: Mohammed Al-Fahim on the formation of the UAE Adrian Smith, architect of the Burj Khalifa Kaltham Jaber, Qatari author Esan Maruff who developed robot camel jockeys Alan Rothenberg who organised the 1994 World Cup

(Photo: Dubai skyline. Credit: Getty Images)

More Episodes
Jun 21, 2025
Jaws and the Charleston church shooting

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

This programme includes outdated and offensive language.

It’s 50 years since the original Jaws film was released in cinemas across America. The movie premiered on 20 June 1975. Our guest is Jenny He, senior exhibitions curator at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles. She tells us about the history of this blockbuster movie. We also hear from Carl Gottlieb, who co-wrote the screenplay.

Also, the story of the women who were forcibly detained in sexual health clinics across East Germany, the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, and the 1964 civil rights swimming protest that ended when acid was poured into the pool.

Finally, the horrific account of Polly Sheppard who was a survivor of the Charleston church shooting in South Carolina, USA in 2015.

Contributors: Carl Gottlieb - Jaws co-writer. Jenny He - senior exhibitions curator at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles. Sabine - one of the women forcibly detained and abused in a sexual health clinic in East Germany. Archive of William Norman Ewer - journalist who attended the signing of the Treaty of Versailles. Archive of JT Johnson and Mimi Jones -activists in a civil rights swimming protest . Polly Sheppard- survivor of the Charleston Church shooting.

This programme contains movie excerpts from the 1975 film which was a Universal Picture, a Zanuck/Brown production and directed by Steven Spielberg. (Photo: Steven Spielberg on the set of the film 'Jaws' in 1975. Credit: Archive Photos/Stringer)


51min 07sec




Arabian Peninsula

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