Max Pearson presents a collection of the week's Witness History episodes from the BBC World Service.
We dedicate this edition to Manchester, in England. We hear about the man who opened the city's first racially inclusive nightclub in 1962. This programme contains descriptions of racial discrimination. Our guest Kath McDermott, a Mancunian DJ and producer at BBC 6 Music, tells us about Manchester's musical scene and how it helped shape the town’s culture and identity.
The acclaimed artist Harold Riley was a local to Greater Manchester and also the only one granted access to paint Nelson Mandela from life.
Plus, we remember the time the city hosted the Fifth Pan-African Congress in 1945, where activists from around the world met to discuss the struggle against colonialism and racial discrimination.
And we go back to 1948, when the University of Manchester developed ‘Baby,’ the world’s first stored-program computer.
Also, the mass trespass on Kinder Scout in the Peak District that challenged private landownership to demand access to the countryside.
And the UK’s first female football photographer.
Contributors: Lisa Ayegun – daughter of Phil Magbotiwan, the founder of The Reno. Harold Riley – artist (archive). Peter Abrahams – African National Congress activist and writer. Tom Kilburn – creator of the 'Baby' computer (archive). Hakim Adi – historian. Benny Rothman – organiser of the Kinder Scout mass tresspass (archive). Harry Rothman – son of Benny Rothman. Magi Haroun – football photographer.
(Photo: Albert Square in Manchester in 1968. Credit: Manchester Evening News Archive/Mirrorpix via Getty Images)