The Compass

by BBC World Service
65

Surprising stories from unusual places. With ideas too big for a single episode, The Compass presents mini-series about the environment and politics, culture and society.

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Recent Episodes
  • The sacred song of war
    Mar 8, 2023 – 27:44
  • Catherine the Great and the question of Europe
    Mar 1, 2023 – 27:49
  • The Invention of Russia: The empire strikes back
    Feb 22, 2023 – 28:21
  • The invention of Russia: A tale of two Ivans
    Feb 15, 2023 – 28:11
  • Sounds of the city: Tel Aviv
    Jan 11, 2023 – 27:30
  • Sounds of the city: Los Angeles
    Jan 4, 2023 – 27:38
  • Bhopal: Part one
    Dec 21, 2022 – 27:35
  • How to be a former president: Part three
    Dec 14, 2022 – 28:15
  • How to be a former president: Part two
    Dec 7, 2022 – 27:15
  • How to be a former president: Part one
    Nov 30, 2022 – 27:13
  • Stories from the New Silk Road: Mexico
    Nov 23, 2022 – 28:00
  • Stories from the New Silk Road: Jamaica
    Nov 16, 2022 – 27:56
  • Stories from the New Silk Road: Panama
    Nov 9, 2022 – 27:50
  • Stories from the New Silk Road: Ecuador
    Nov 2, 2022 – 27:19
  • On the Border: Narva
    Oct 26, 2022 – 28:18
  • On the Border: Kinshasa and Brazzaville
    Oct 19, 2022 – 28:18
  • On the Border: Niagara Falls
    Oct 12, 2022 – 27:37
  • On the Border: Maastricht
    Oct 5, 2022 – 27:51
  • Life in soil: Tasting the earth in France
    Sep 28, 2022 – 27:48
  • LIfe in soil: The death of soil
    Sep 21, 2022 – 27:51
  • Life in soil: The psychology of soil in California
    Sep 14, 2022 – 28:00
  • Green energy: Finance
    Aug 31, 2022 – 27:52
  • Green energy: Iceland
    Aug 24, 2022 – 27:47
  • Green energy: Renewables
    Aug 17, 2022 – 28:09
  • Green energy: Transport
    Aug 10, 2022 – 28:03
  • The reclaimers: The games people play
    Aug 3, 2022 – 28:22
  • The reclaimers: Into the valley
    Jul 27, 2022 – 27:20
  • The reclaimers: Return to Zambia
    Jul 20, 2022 – 27:09
  • The reclaimers: Bronzes and Birmingham
    Jul 13, 2022 – 27:09
  • Walking the Iron Curtain: Booming Balkans
    Jun 29, 2022 – 27:10
  • Walking the Iron Curtain: Wild lands reunited
    Jun 22, 2022 – 27:45
  • Life on the line
    Jun 15, 2022 – 27:08
  • Saving Asia’s water towers
    Jun 8, 2022 – 27:10
  • High lives
    Jun 1, 2022 – 27:49
  • Money, money, money: Power
    May 25, 2022 – 27:40
  • Money, money, money: Psychology
    May 18, 2022 – 27:32
  • Money, money, money: Value
    May 11, 2022 – 27:37
  • Money, money, money: Trust
    May 4, 2022 – 27:08
  • Slick: 4. The oil thieves
    Apr 27, 2022 – 27:49
  • Slick: 3. Black creeks
    Apr 20, 2022 – 27:26
  • Slick: 2. On trial
    Apr 13, 2022 – 27:18
  • Slick: 1. The great white hope
    Apr 6, 2022 – 27:28
  • Emotional Baggage: June Angelides
    Mar 30, 2022 – 27:40
  • Emotional Baggage: Halima Begum
    Mar 23, 2022 – 40:31
  • Emotional Baggage: Maya Youssef
    Mar 16, 2022 – 32:03
  • Emotional Baggage: Dina Nayeri
    Mar 9, 2022 – 27:07
  • It's a Bird's World: Noise pollution
    Mar 2, 2022 – 27:06
  • It’s a Bird's World: Viruses and infection
    Feb 23, 2022 – 27:23
  • It's a Bird's World: Toxic substances
    Feb 16, 2022 – 27:26
  • Why We Play: Old age
    Feb 2, 2022 – 27:10
Recent Reviews
  • garnarvian
    Always engaging and informative
    I love learning about new and unexpected topics from this podcast. It never ceases to entertain and instruct! Definitely one of my favorite podcasts.
  • avm1406
    Jim O’Neill’s new series is five stars
    One of the best of compass
  • jenymc
    Best BBC podcast
    While I love so much of the BBC’s material, this podcast is a standout. The diverse topics are fascinating and well covered. An in depth look at our world from so many angles, I’m endlessly entertained. Well done BBC
  • S_Hermes_G
    Love it!
    Very impressive scope of stories researched for each episode. I’ve learned more from these multi-episode series than any other news/educational podcast I’ve found. None of the topics under discussion cover commonly known content - as so many other programs do. Rather, each features insider interviews that expose angles of contemporary issues I’ve never encountered despite being a news junkie. I can’t imagine the expense of bringing interviewers to so many distant (from one another) locations, organizing the many layers of translation that are typically needed for each story - If the story is in Cambodia, the interviewees include Mandarin, Vietnamese, English and Khmer speakers.
  • JJRROMI
    Spoiled by overproduction
    Good content. Can’t abide the intrusive sound track.
  • Jim Sack
    Editing fails
    Excellent program! Pathetic editing between programming and inserted commercials/promos. Sheesh.
  • jspeyton
    Lovely Podcast
    This is a fantastic podcast that’s my go-to for regular, realistic but non-nihilistic exposure to world affairs. My favorite series is My Perfect Country, which selects a different country every episode for an examination of a notable policy that improves its citizens lives in some way. I hope this podcast has exponentially more listeners than it does reviews, because it’s a gem.
  • L Shibata
    Very well produced
    As all BBC programs, very high quality.
  • Tune inner
    Entertaining and educational
    I love this podcast. Listening to Black Sea episodes now.Host's genuine delight at discoveries make me feel as if I standing beside him. Well researched and produced.
  • andyroyaloak71
    andyroyaloak71
    Every now and then something just pops up in iTunes that changes my listening habits and world view. The Perfect Country series was a delightful door to a significant program. Thank you all.
  • alexs8980
    Really opened my eyes to current conflict
    Loved this podcast. I never had much idea why current conflicts had been perpetuated from conflict to conflict. This series on islam was really good
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