Episodes
| Episode | Title | First Broadcast | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Moonshine | 20231018 | To listen online, visit www.BBCworldservice.com/thebomb After befriending some of the world's greatest physicists in 1920s Berlin, Albert Einstein among them, Leo Szilard is forced to flee when the Nazis come to power. In London, he discovers the destructive possibilities of harnessing nuclear power; setting the course for the world's first atomic bomb. |
| 02 | Race To The Bomb | 20231025 | It's a race against time to beat the Nazis to the first nuclear bomb. After his epiphany in London, Leo Szilard must convince the scientific establishment to take the nuclear threat seriously. He turns to Frederick Lindemann, a friend of Winston Churchill. Meanwhile, in Germany, two scientists are about to make a discovery that will change the rules of science. To listen online, visit www.BBCworldservice.com/thebomb |
| 03 | The Einstein Letter | 20231101 | A vital message must be delivered to US President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Fearing the Nazis are on the verge of creating the first nuclear bomb, Leo Szilard needs to convince the US Government to take the threat seriously. In his hour of need, he reaches out to an old friend, Albert Einstein. To listen online, visit BBCworldservice.com/thebomb |
| 04 | Pearl Harbour | 20231108 | An attack on Pearl Harbour changes everything. After a surprise Japanese attack destroys US ships, the US declares war on Japan, and intensifies its efforts to create the first nuclear bomb. Caught in the middle of it all, Leo Szilard starts to lose his grip on the project. To listen online, visit BBCworldservice.com/thebomb The story of the atomic bomb. Told through the scientists and spies who changed history |
| 05 | Enemy Alien | 20231115 | The FBI pursues Leo Szilard as he loses control of the project to create a nuclear bomb. With his influence waning, the leaders of the Manhattan Project now threaten his liberty. But as the world's first nuclear bomb comes within touching distance, Szilard fears it might soon be used on a city in Japan. To listen online, visit www.BBCworldservice.com/thebomb The story of the atomic bomb. Told through the scientists and spies who changed history |
| 06 | The First Atomic Bomb | 20231122 | Time is running out. As Manhattan Project scientists test the world's first nuclear bomb, Leo Szilard knows it's the last chance to stop the US government from dropping the bomb on Japanese civilians. Working with colleagues at Chicago's Met Lab, Szilard does all he can to alert the US president. But will his message get there in time? To listen online, visit www.BBCworldservice.com/thebomb Christopher Nolan's Hollywood film Oppenheimer tells the story of the father of the atomic bomb. And one of the other key players in the creation of the bomb was the scientist Leo Szilard – he was instrumental to both the creation of the bomb, and later, the fight to stop it being used. The writer Emily Strasser's family was involved too, and she tells the story of the chain reaction onwards from the splitting of the atom. To listen online, visit BBCworldservice.com/thebomb The story of the atomic bomb. Told through the scientists and spies who changed history |
| 07 | The Doomsday Clock | 20231129 | The world's first nuclear bomb drops on the unsuspecting city of Hiroshima. On 7 August 1945, the world is changed forever. In this final episode, featuring first-hand accounts of the attack that day, Emily Strasser asks how the bomb changed humanity. Have we really come to terms with it? To listen online, visit www.BBCworldservice.com/thebomb Christopher Nolan's Hollywood film Oppenheimer tells the story of the father of the atomic bomb. And one of the other key players in the creation of the bomb was the scientist Leo Szilard. He was instrumental to both the creation of the bomb, and later, the fight to stop it being used. The writer Emily Strasser's family was involved too, and she tells the story of the chain reaction onwards from the splitting of the atom. To listen online, visit BBCworldservice.com/thebomb The story of the atomic bomb. Told through the scientists and spies who changed history |