BBC Radio 4

From Our Own Correspondent

News EN ↓ 1218 episodes

Insight, wit and analysis from BBC correspondents, journalists and writers telling stories beyond the news headlines. Presented by Kate Adie.

Author

BBC Radio 4

Category

News

Podcast website

www.bbc.co.uk

Latest episode

Jul 4, 2026

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Episodes

Venezuela: Maduro’s Downfall 10.01.2026

Kate Adie introduces stories from Venezuela, the United States, Iran, India and Germany. The capture of Nicolas Maduro following America’s night-time military operation in Venezuela caught the world off-guard. Quickly transported to New York, Mr Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, will now face trial. Will Grant reflects on his own encounters with Maduro and his legacy in Venezuela. Miami is home t...

Syria: Rebuilding a life amid the ruins 03.01.2026

Kate Adie introduces stories from Syria, China, the USA, Greece and Brazil. In the devastated Syrian district of Ghouta, a man calls out from the ruins to our correspondent Lyse Doucet and tells the story of how he is rebuilding his home - and his life - after the fall of the Assad regime. Chinese ambition continues to strive for pole position in the global pecking order as it makes advances in gr...

Iran’s hijab protests 27.12.2025

Kate Adie presents stories from Iran, Norway, France, Ireland and Switzerland. A recent marathon race in Iran caused controversy after many of the 2000 women runners ignored the country's mandatory hijab law, and ran without a head covering. Years after deadly protests rocked the country, Faranak Amidi charts how women in Iran today are continuing to defy the religious authorities on a daily basis...

Ukraine's defiant stand in Pokrovsk 20.12.2025

Kate Adie introduces stories from Ukraine, Hong Kong, Australia, the USA and Laos. Russian forces have tried to capture the city of Pokrovsk for nearly two years as it seeks to control Eastern Ukraine, but Ukrainian forces have continued to resist the advance, helped by Ukraine's innovative arms industry. Jonathan Beale met battle-scarred troops at a command centre and visited a secret missile fac...

Syria: a year after the fall of Assad 13.12.2025

Kate Adie introduces stories from Syria, Ukraine, the USA, China and Germany. Syrians took to the streets to celebrate one year since the fall of the Assad regime, but in the background post-war reconstruction has been slow and sectarian violence is on the rise. Lina Sinjab has been travelling the country and reflects on the challenges ahead. Despite the constant threat of drones and missiles, man...

Israel's ultra-Orthodox conscription bill 06.12.2025

Kate Adie introduces stories from Israel, Honduras, Turkey and Lebanon, Georgia and Russia. Israel is facing an impending crisis over conscripting ultra-Orthodox Jews into the Israeli army, and the issue is threatening to undermine Israel's government and split the country. Lucy Williamson reports from the city of Bnei Brak. Donald Trump surprised many in his own Republican party this week when he...

From Our Own Correspondent at 70 06.12.2025

Anna Foster and some of the BBC’s best-known foreign correspondents are joined by an audience of Radio 4 listeners to celebrate 70 years of ‘From Our Own Correspondent’. Since the first episode was broadcast on 25th September 1955, FOOC – as it’s affectionately known – has reported from almost every country in the world. Anna’s guests for the event, recorded in the Radio Theatre in Broadcasting Ho...

Nigeria's school kidnapping crisis 29.11.2025

Kate Adie introduces stories from Nigeria, Ukraine, the United States, Sweden and France. Nigeria's president, Bola Tinubu, has declared a nationwide security emergency amidst a spate of kidnappings in the country’s north. More than 250 children abducted from a Catholic school last week are still missing, according to authorities. Mayeni Jones reports from Minna, in Niger state. Moscow, Abu Dhabi,...

The Story of Abdelrahman and the Oud 22.11.2025

Kate Adie introduces stories from Jordan, Bangladesh, Ukraine, Spain and the Black Sea. 11-year-old Abdelrahman was injured during an Israeli attack in Gaza, which led to the loss of one of his legs. He was selected to travel to Jordan for hospital treatment, to be fitted with a new prosthetic leg. Fergal Keane met him while he was undergoing treatment - and learning to play the traditional Middle...

The Islamic State in Syria 15.11.2025

Kate Adie introduces stories from Syria, the Philippines, Tanzania and Brazil. During his visit to Washington this week, Syria’s interim president Ahmed Al Sharaa announced that Syria will join the coalition of 90 countries trying to eliminate the remnants of the Islamic State group. The threat of IS is increasing on Syrian soil, where 8,000 suspected IS fighters remain in jails, and 34,000 of the...

Zohran Mamdani: The Democratic Party fightback 08.11.2025

Kate Adie presents stories from the USA, Jamaica, Uganda, Kazakhstan and Germany. Zohran Mamdani won New York City's race for mayor in a contest that rallied young voters and sparked debate about the future direction of the US Democratic Party. BBC North America editor Sarah Smith considers the political choices and challenges ahead. The world watched last week as Hurricane Melissa slowly crashed...

Argentina’s Milei wins big 01.11.2025

Kate Adie introduces stories from Argentina, South Korea, Japan, Ireland and the Occupied West Bank. For decades, Argentina's cycle of boom and bust seemed endless, but two years ago, a chainsaw-wielding, self-styled 'anarcho capitalist' called Javier Milei promised a way out of all that. Since elected as president he’s shown some signs of being able to shrink the state – but are voters happy? Ion...

Sudan's children of war 27.10.2025

Kate Adie introduces stories from Sudan, France, India, the USA and Mauritius. Sudan's civil conflict has left millions of people displaced and at risk of hunger and famine. In the capital Khartoum, Nawal Al-maghafi witnesses the toll the violence has taken on families, and meets children whose young lives have been forever shaped by the war. France has been reeling this week from the fallout of l...

Trump’s Middle East Victory Lap 18.10.2025

Kate Adie presents stories from Israel and Egypt, Haiti, Italy and Ireland. President Trump received a hero’s welcome when he landed in Israel this week, following his central role in brokering the Gaza ceasefire and hostage exchange deal. He also flew into the Red Sea resort of Sharm el Sheikh, where he declared ‘an historical turning point’ to the gathered world leaders. Tom Bateman travelled wi...

Ukraine’s Death Messenger 11.10.2025

Kate Adie introduces stories from Ukraine, Madagascar, St Helena, Uzbekistan and Bolivia. We follow a Ukrainian army officer in the western city of Lviv who has the unenviable task of informing families that their loved ones have been killed on the battlefield. Richard Pendry witnesses the heartbreak and anger that has faced Major Serhiy Laziuk every day for the past three years. Gen Z led protest...

Dubai’s hidden sex trade 04.10.2025

Kate Adie introduces stories from Dubai, The Dominican Republic, Denmark, Spain and Australia. Dubai is often described as one of the safest cities in the world - but safe for who? In the shadows of shining skyscrapers and shopping malls is an exploitative sex trade. Runako Celina has been investigating the suspicious deaths of two women who travelled to Dubai with big dreams. The Dominican Republ...

Palestinian lives in the occupied West Bank 27.09.2025

Kate Adie presents stories from the occupied West Bank, the US, Brazil, South Korea and Russia. When the UK government recognised a Palestinian state, he said he was acting “to revive the hope of peace and a two-state solution.” But Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the move won’t “bind Israel in any way.” Our Middle East Correspondent, Yolande Knell has been to Bethlehem to hear abo...

Europe's migrant challenge 20.09.2025

Kate Adie introduces stories from across Europe, Nepal, Ghana, and Moldova-Transnistria. As countries across Europe harden their stance on immigration, Fergal Keane retraces the journeys refugees have taken over the years, including stories he has heard from Ireland, Syria, Turkey and Sweden. Nepal’s government was dramatically overthrown in the deadliest unrest seen in the Himalayan country in de...

Israel's ultimatum for Gaza City 13.09.2025

Kate Adie introduces stories from Gaza, France, the Thailand-Cambodia border, Iraq and Slovenia. Around a million Palestinians have been told to leave Gaza City ahead of a new Israeli offensive - though many are wary of leaving, saying there is nowhere to go. Lucy Williamson was granted rare access to Gaza by the Israeli army, and was taken to see its planned new aid distribution site. Days after...

China eyes a new world order 06.09.2025

Kate Adie introduces stories from China, Afghanistan, Spain, Armenia and Finland. In Beijing this week, President Xi Jinping declared his country to be ‘unstoppable’. Flanked by President Putin and North Korea’s Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un at a vast military parade, China put on a striking display of its growing military power. BBC China correspondent Laura Bicker was watching on in Beijing. Afghan...

Ukraine and the battle for the Donbas 30.08.2025

Kate Adie presents stories from Ukraine, Greenland, the US and Germany. Ukraine has this week come under its heaviest bombardment in weeks, with the UK and the EU summoning their Russian envoys after their offices in Kyiv were hit. Quentin Sommerville has been in Donetsk, the area Vladimir Putin wants to fully control in the resource rich region of the Donbas, as residents flee attacks and soldier...

Putin, Trump and the art of no deal (yet) 23.08.2025

Kate Adie presents stories from Alaska, Washington, South Korea, Chile and France. From the military fly-past to the grandiose entrance on the red carpet, to the press conference, without any questions, the meeting between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin drew dismay from Western governments. Steve Rosenberg was in Alaska - and reflects on the aftermath. After the pomp and pageantry of Donald Trump...

Afghanistan’s hidden lives 16.08.2025

Kate Adie presents stories from Afghanistan, China, Japan and Tajikistan. In Afghanistan's Ghor Province, Mahjooba Nowrouzi reports from a small maternity hospital where two female doctors serve thousands of patients. With limited resources and financial support, the odds are stacked against them - and against the women they tend to and treat. Last year, BBC Radio 4’s Crossing Continents aired the...

Ukraine's summer camp for children of the missing 09.08.2025

Kate Adie introduces stories from Ukraine, Japan, Bahrain and Croatia. Nestled in the forest, far away from falling bombs is a pioneering summer camp for Ukrainian children whose parents have gone missing during the war. A Ukrainian charity is working to give them some relief – and much needed support – to help them cope with the ongoing uncertainty of not knowing where their parents are. Will Ver...

Gaza: a turning point? 02.08.2025

Kate Adie presents stories from Gaza and Israel, the US, Lesotho, Taiwan and Peru. This week the British government pledged to recognise a Palestinian state, unless Israel meets certain conditions, including agreeing to a ceasefire in Gaza and reviving the prospect of a two-state solution. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the decision rewarded 'Hamas's monstrous terrorism.' Jeremy Bo...

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