Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

This week: 24th to 30th November

28th November 1893 - Women vote for the first time in New Zealand 24th November 1974 - Lucy, the most complete early human skeleton, is discovered 24th November 1852 - Matthew C Perry sets out on a 'diplomatic' mission to Japan.

Presented by Caroline Nicholls and Ron Brown

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

This week: the 17th to the 23rd of November

17th November 1558 - The Death of Queen Mary the First 22nd November 1963 - John F. Kennedy is assassinated 23rd November 1963 - Doctor Who debuts on BBC Television

Presented by Ron Brown and Viji Alles Produced by Amanda Litherland and Sofie Vilcins

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

This week: 10th to 16th November

11th November 1918 - A republic was declared in Poland 14th November 1680 - Gottfried Kirch discovers the Great Comet 16th November 1979 - Anthony Blunt is revealed as the 'fourth man' in the Cambridge spy ring

Presented by Viji Alles and Ron Brown

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

This week: 3rd to 9th November

3rd November 1534 - English parliament passes the Act of Supremacy 9th November 1938 - Kristallnacht 4th November 1922 - Discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb

Presented by Jane Steel and Ron Brown

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

This week: 27th October to 2nd November

31st October 1984 - Indian Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi is assassinated 28th October 1726 - "Gulliver's Travels" by Jonathan Swift is published. 30th October 1974 - Muhammad Ali defeats George Foreman in 'The Rumble In The Jungle'

Presented by Viji Alles and Caroline Nicholls Produced by Stuart Ross and Amanda Litherland

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

This week: 20th October to 26th October

- 25th October, 1400 - The death of the 'Father of English Poetry', Geoffrey Chaucer. - 21st October, 1805 - The Battle of Trafalgar: a British naval victory that would shape the nation's imperial future and identity. - 21st October, 1966 - A colliery spoil tip collapses in the village of Aberfan, South Wales, engulfing a school and killing 144 people, 116 of them children.

Presented by Ron Brown and Jane Steel. Producers: Carys John and Sofie Vilcins.

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

This week: The 13th to the 19th of October.

- 19th October 1987 Shares plunge after Wall Street crash - aka Black Monday - 13th October 1884 International Meridian Conference in Washington establishes Greenwich as the Universal Prime Meridian of longitude - 14th October 1926 A.A. Milne’s book Winnie-The-Pooh released

Presented by Caroline Nicholls and Jane Steel. Producers: Chris Pearson and Sofie Vilcins.

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

This week: the 6th to the 12th October. 8th October 1769 - James Cook and the crew of HMS Endeavour land in New Zealand 9th October 2012 - 15 year old Malala Yousafzai survives a shooting by the Taliban. 9th October 1446 - King Sejong the Great creates the Korean Hangul alphabet.

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

This week: 29th September to 5th October

- 3rd October 1990. East and West Germany were officially reunified. - 29th September 1829. Formation of The Metropolitan police, London's first official police force. - 5th October 1962. The first James Bond film, Dr. No, had its world premiere.

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

This week: 22nd September to 28th September

- 22nd September 1692. The last eight victims are hanged in the Salem Witch trials - 22nd September 1968. A ceremony takes place to mark the relocation of the ancient Egyptian Abu Simbel temples - 25th September 1066. King Harold II wins the Battle of Stamford Bridge.

Read by Ron Brown and Caroline Nicholls Produced by Chris Pearson

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

This week: 15th September to 21st September

- 16th September 1620. The Mayflower sets sail from Plymouth to America - 19th September 1960. Britain deploys it's first Traffic Wardens - 21st September 1915. Cecil Chubb purchases Stonehenge

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

This week: 8th - 14th September

- 9th September 1976. Death of Mao Zedong - 12th September 1846. HMS Terror and HMS Erebus, the British expedition searching for a Northwest Passage, become trapped in ice. - 12th September 1940. Discovery of the Lascaux Cave Paintings

Presented by Viji Alles and Jane Steel. Producers: Sofie Vilcins and Luke Doran.

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

This week: 1st September to 7th September

- 1st September 1939. Operation Pied Piper begins, evacuating British children to the countryside - 7th September 1936. The last captive Thylacine, commonly known as the Tasmanian Tiger, dies in a zoo in Australia - 3rd September 1967. Sweden begins driving on the right-hand side of the road

Presented by Jane Steel and Ron Brown. Producers: Chris Pearson and Luke Doran.

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

BBC Radio 4 explores the history books and archives to see what has happened on this same week throughout history. With short vignettes of the events that have shaped the world and made us who we are today.

This week: August 25th - August 31st - 27th August 1896. The British Empire defeat the sultanate of Zanzibar in the shortest recorded war in History. - 26th August 1994. Arthur Cornhill receives the world's first 'Bionic Heart'. - 29th August 1930. The evacuation of the archipelago of St Kilda.

Presented by Jane Steel and Ron Brown. Produced by Chris Pearson and Luke Doran.

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

BBC Radio 4 explores the history books and archives to see what has happened on this same week throughout history. With short vignettes of the events that have shaped the world and made us who we are today.

This week: August 18th - August 24th - 20th of August 1968. Soviet-led forces invade Czechoslovakia and crush the reform movement known as the “Prague Spring”. - 22nd of August 1485. The Battle of Bosworth Field ends The Wars of the Roses. - 23rd of August 1973. A bank siege leads to the identification of a contested psychiatric condition; Stockholm syndrome.

Presented by Caroline Nicholls and Ron Brown. Produced by Stuart Ross.

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

BBC Radio 4 explores the history books and archives to see what has happened on this same week throughout history. With short vignettes of the events that have shaped the world and made us who we are today.

This week: August 4th - August 10th - 15th of August 1947. Indian Independence began and the country woke to 'life and freedom'. But what was the impact of this new freedom? - 12th of August 1990. One of the world's largest T-Rex skeletons is discovered in South Dakota, prompting a long custody battle over who owns it. - 16th of August 1819. A peaceful protest for Parliamentary Reform was brutally suppressed in Manchester, an event that became known as the 'Peterloo Massacre'.

Presented by Jane Steel and Viji Alles. Produced by Carys John and Luke Doran.

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

BBC Radio 4 explores the history books and archives to see what has happened on this same week throughout history. With short vignettes of the events that have shaped the world and made us who we are today.

This week: August 4th - August 10th - 6th of August 1945. An atomic bomb is dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima; it is the first time a nuclear weapon is used during a war. - 6th of August 1991. The computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee launches the first web page. - 4th of August 1976. The first women's international cricket match is played at Lord's.

Presented by Jane Steel and Ron Brown. Produced by Stuart Ross.

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

BBC Radio 4 explores the history books and archives to see what has happened on this same week throughout history. With short vignettes of the events that have shaped the world and made us who we are today.

This week: July 28th - August 3rd - 3rd of August 1936. The African-American athlete Jesse Owens wins the first of his four gold medals at the Berlin Olympics, in front of Adolf Hitler. - 1st of August 1774. The English chemist Joseph Priestley discovers oxygen, but did he get there first? - 28th of July 1939. The iconic Sutton Hoo helmet is unearthed in Suffolk and provides a connection to Britain’s Anglo-Saxon past.

Presented by Ron Brown and Viji Alles. Produced by Stuart Ross.

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

BBC Radio 4 explores the history books and archives to see what has happened on this same week throughout history. With short vignettes of the events that have shaped the world and made us who we are today.

This week: July 21st - July 27th - 26th of July 1956 - When the Suez Canal Company was nationalised in Egypt, it began a chain of events that led to the downfall of the British Prime Minister Anthony Eden. - 24th of July 1917- The trial begins of the apparent double-agent Mata Hari. But who was she really? - 24th of July 1936 - The Speaking Clock launches, becoming a revolutionary new automated service at the end of the phone line.

Presented by Jane Steel and Caroline Nicholls. Produced by Amanda Litherland and Chris Pearson

Fascinating, surprising and eye-opening stories from the past, brought to life.

BBC Radio 4 explores the history books and archives to see what has happened on this same week throughout history. With short vignettes of the events that have shaped the world and made us who we are today.

This week: July 14th - July 20th - 16th of July 1969 - The Apollo 11 spacecraft launches in to space, and sets down on the moon four days later. - 14th of July 1789 - the royal fortress prison Bastille was stormed by a crowd of angry Parisians, igniting the French Revolution. - 19th of July 1545 - Henry VIII's leading warship the Mary Rose capsizes and sinks in the Solent.

Presented by Jane Steel and Caroline Nicholls. Produced by Amanda Litherland and Chris Pearson