Nelson Mandela

Sir Francis Drake is most famous for his role in defeating the Armada of 1588 and saving England from a Spanish invasion. By that point in his life, he was already a wealthy and famous seafarer: the first Englishman to sail around the world, knighted by Queen Elizabeth I in recog ...  Show more

The American singer-songwriter and musician Bob Dylan is one of the most important recording artists on the planet. A cultural icon, his work has had a profound influence on popular music since the 1960s. First gaining fame as a folk singer with songs that addressed the subjects ...  Show more

Nelson and Winnie Mandela were one of the most famous couples of the 20th century. Their relationship became a powerful symbol of the freedom struggle in apartheid South Africa, but it was also dogged by infidelity, violence, Nelson's long imprisonment and the oppressive weight o ...  Show more

This year marks 35 years since Nelson Mandela was released from prison and apartheid was dismantled in South Africa.To mark the anniversary we are revisiting an episode that looks at some of aspects of the anti-apartheid struggle that you might not know: pirate radio and protest ...  Show more

On 13 December 1990, the anti-apartheid politician Oliver Tambo returned to South Africa after 30 years in exile.As the president of the banned African National Congress (ANC), he had lived in Zambia building the liberation movement while other key ANC members including Nelson Ma ...  Show more

The interviews behind Nelson Mandela’s epic memoir The Long Walk To Freedom are out now as the podcast Mandela: The Lost Tapes. Here, South Africa’s first Black president explains himself in his own words – always inspiring, often funny too.  Co-writer Richard Stengel, former Ti ...  Show more