BBC Sounds - Real Dictators - Available Episodes

Fidel Castro Part 1: Rise of ‘The Crazy One’

We travel to the island paradise of Cuba to explore the early years of Fidel Castro.

30 Apr 2025,61 mins

Lenin Part 4: Ghost at the Kremlin

With power in Bolshevik hands, state terror arrives in Russia. The Soviet Union is born.

23 Apr 2025,51 mins

Lenin Part 3: First Russia, Then the World...

Marooned in Switzerland, Lenin prepares for an incredible journey home, by land and sea.

16 Apr 2025,51 mins

Lenin Part 2: Underground, On the Run

As the First World War upends Russia, the Bolsheviks wait for their moment.

09 Apr 2025,39 mins

Lenin Part 1: The Revolution is Born

Long before his time in power, Lenin's life is something straight out of a spy thriller.

02 Apr 2025,52 mins

Manuel Noriega Part 3: Bush Invades Panama

The Americans go all-in as agents attempt to penetrate the dictator’s inner circle.

26 Mar 2025,52 mins

Manuel Noriega Part 2: A Tale of Two Spy Chiefs

Noriega finds himself on a collision course with future US president George H.W. Bush…

19 Mar 2025,47 mins

Manuel Noriega Part 1: The Narco Dictator

Noriega stamped his authority on Panama as its de facto military ruler in the 1980s.

12 Mar 2025,60 mins

General Tojo Part 4: The Atom Bombs

Tojo takes hands-on control of the military, with catastrophic consequences.

05 Mar 2025,38 mins

General Tojo Part 3: Attack on Pearl Harbor

Japan attacks Pearl Harbor. The Pacific War is underway.

26 Feb 2025,34 mins

General Tojo Part 2: Terror in China

Major General Hideki Tojo takes command of the secret police - the Kempeitai.

19 Feb 2025,38 mins

General Tojo Part 1: The Young Samurai

The man they call “The Razor” begins his journey up the ladder of Japanese politics.

12 Feb 2025,31 mins

Hitler Part 20: Attack on Russia, War with America

After bailing out Mussolini in the Balkans, German troops march into the Soviet Union.

05 Feb 2025,55 mins

Benito Mussolini Part 7: Break for the Border…

With the Axis collapsing, Mussolini makes for Switzerland - stowed away and in disguise.

29 Jan 2025,60 mins

Benito Mussolini Part 6: The Road to Perdition

Benito Mussolini's son telephones his father with devastating news…

22 Jan 2025,56 mins

Benito Mussolini Part 5: The Pact of Steel

With Hitler in the ascendancy, the Rome-Berlin Axis is upgraded to a military alliance.

15 Jan 2025,52 mins

Benito Mussolini Part 4: A Fine Bromance

As the World Cup comes to the Fatherland, Benito Mussolini prepares to meet Adolf Hitler…

08 Jan 2025,56 mins

Benito Mussolini Part 3: Murder in Broad Daylight

An Anglo-Irish aristocrat prepares to make an astonishing attempt on Mussolini’s life...

01 Jan 2025,58 mins

Benito Mussolini Part 2: The March on Rome

In a smoke-filled hall in Milan, Benito Mussolini declares the birth of a new movement.

18 Dec 2024,59 mins

Benito Mussolini Part 1: Italy's Fascist Godfather

As one of modern history's significant figures, we follow the early years of Il Duce.

11 Dec 2024,57 mins

Hitler Part 19: Third Reich, Adolf Hitler vs Winston Churchill

Newly installed in Downing Street, Prime Minister Winston Churchill arrives with a bang.

04 Dec 2024,47 mins

Hitler Part 18: Third Reich, A Brush with Death...

As World War Two begins, a lone clockmaker decides to bump off Hitler once and for all…

27 Nov 2024,51 mins

General Videla Part 4: Dictator in the Courtroom

A legal case is brought against Videla. Justice for his victims is finally within reach.

20 Nov 2024,48 mins

General Videla Part 3: God, Football, the Falklands

Foreign journalists begin to uncover Videla's cruelty at the 1978 FIFA World Cup.

13 Nov 2024,53 mins

General Videla Part 2: Mr Clean's Dirty War

Videla’s dirty war begins, but he employs elaborate means to gloss over the atrocities.

06 Nov 2024,54 mins

General Videla Part 1: The Skinny One and the Witch

In 1925, Jorge Rafael Videla is born in Argentina: a country at a crossroads.

30 Oct 2024,57 mins

Hitler Part 17: Third Reich, Hitler’s Birthday, Poland’s Doom

As Hitler turns 50, the finishing touches are put to a shock pact with Stalin.

23 Oct 2024,51 mins

Hitler Part 16: Rise to Power, The Gathering Storm...

Hitler expands the Third Reich, while the Nazis stir up an orgy of anti-Jewish violence.

16 Oct 2024,59 mins

Hitler Part 15: Rise to Power, Unassailable Führer

In mid-1930, under Hitler's command, Germany's armed forces expand at an alarming rate

09 Oct 2024,51 mins

Hitler Part 14: Rise to Power, Night of the Long Knives

To ward off the Western Allies, Hitler takes a trip to Venice to visit Mussolini.

02 Oct 2024,49 mins