On 24 December 1951, in the United States, television history was made with the live broadcast of Amahl and the Night Visitors, the first opera ever composed specifically for TV.

Written by acclaimed Italian composer Gian Carlo Menotti, the opera almost didn’t happen. Struggling with writer’s block and a looming deadline, Menotti feared he wouldn’t finish, until a visit to an art gallery sparked a childhood memory and inspired the story.

Broadcast live every Christmas Eve on NBC until 1966, Amahl and the Night Visitors became a much-loved holiday tradition for American audiences.

Produced and presented by Gill Kearsley using a variety of archive from the 1950s through to the 2000s.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by 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 the death of Adolf Hitler, the first spacewalk and the making of the movie Jaws, to celebrity tortoise Lonesome George, the Kobe earthquake and the invention of superglue. We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: Eva Peron – Argentina’s Evita; President Ronald Reagan and his famous ‘tear down this wall’ speech; Thomas Keneally on why he wrote Schindler’s List; and Jacques Derrida, France’s ‘rock star’ philosopher. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the civil rights swimming protest; the disastrous D-Day rehearsal; and the death of one of the world’s oldest languages.

(Photo: Gian Carlo Menotti in 1957. Credit: Erich Auerbach/Getty Images)

In December 1953, Hollywood film stars Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy spent a few weeks at the Bull Inn, Bottesford, Leicestershire, while they performed a show at the nearby Nottingham Empire.

Stan’s sister, Olga Healey, was the landlady.

Customers and staff said the duo spent time serving behind the bar, signing autographs and chatting with regulars.

This was produced and presented by Rachel Naylor, in collaboration with BBC Archives.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by 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 the death of Adolf Hitler, the first spacewalk and the making of the movie Jaws, to celebrity tortoise Lonesome George, the Kobe earthquake and the invention of superglue.

We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: Eva Peron – Argentina’s Evita; President Ronald Reagan and his famous ‘tear down this wall’ speech; Thomas Keneally on why he wrote Schindler’s List; and Jacques Derrida, France’s ‘rock star’ philosopher.

You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the civil rights swimming protest; the disastrous D-Day rehearsal; and the death of one of the world’s oldest languages.

(Photo: Oliver Hardy and Stan Laurel. Credit: Getty Images)

In the late 1980s, Norway needed a new market for its growing farmed salmon production.

Fish-loving Japan and its lucrative sushi market seemed to fit the bill. But salmon was one fish the Japanese did not eat raw.

Lars Bevanger speaks to Bjørn-Eirik Olsen, the man who came up with the idea of putting salmon on sushi rice, and who spent years convincing the Japanese to eat it.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by 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 the death of Adolf Hitler, the first spacewalk and the making of the movie Jaws, to celebrity tortoise Lonesome George, the Kobe earthquake and the invention of superglue. We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: Eva Peron – Argentina’s Evita; President Ronald Reagan and his famous ‘tear down this wall’ speech; Thomas Keneally on why he wrote Schindler’s List; and Jacques Derrida, France’s ‘rock star’ philosopher. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the civil rights swimming protest; the disastrous D-Day rehearsal; and the death of one of the world’s oldest languages.

(Photo:Bjørn-Eirik Olsen in Japan. Credit: Bjørn-Eirik Olsen)

In December 1995, India's parliament passed the country's first disability rights legislation.

The landmark law aimed to give full participation and equality rights to an estimated 60 million people - around five percent of India's population who are affected by physical or mental disabilities.

In 2015, Farhana Haider spoke to disability rights activist Javed Abidi who led the campaign to change the law.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by 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 the death of Adolf Hitler, the first spacewalk and the making of the movie Jaws, to celebrity tortoise Lonesome George, the Kobe earthquake and the invention of superglue. We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: Eva Peron – Argentina’s Evita; President Ronald Reagan and his famous ‘tear down this wall’ speech; Thomas Keneally on why he wrote Schindler’s List; and Jacques Derrida, France’s ‘rock star’ philosopher. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the civil rights swimming protest; the disastrous D-Day rehearsal; and the death of one of the world’s oldest languages.

(Photo: Javed Abidi with a crowd of protestors demonstrating over disabled rights. Credit: NCPEDP)