The State We're In

Marisa poses with a toy gun with her Nan (lying down) & cousin. Milan, 1981

Italy Italy Article: Marisa Merico: "Mafia Princess"

Article: Marisa Merico: "Mafia Princess"

Pat Riley from the UK was on holiday in Milan in the late 1960s when she met a handsome Italian boy named Emilio Di Giovine. It turned out to be no ordinary holiday romance; Emilio was to become a leading member of the Ndrangheta Mafia...

110188
Audio

react More >

Netherlands Netherlands Article: The accidental millionaire

Article: The accidental millionaire

Jerry Winkler had a tough youth growing up in Amsterdam. When he left home as an angry teenager he turned to crime and ended up living on the streets. But finding out the identity of his real father has completely changed his life as he...

109748
Audio

react (1 comment)More >

United States of America United States of America Article: Open secret in a small town

Article: Open secret in a small town

What if everything you thought you knew about yourself was a lie? And everyone knew the truth except you. Steve Lickteig grew up as an adoptee in a farm in Kansas. When he was 18 years old, his best friend told him that he was actually...

109745
Audio

react More >

Radio Show: Family Ties

The State We're In, 7 January 2012. Steve Lickteig thought he was the adopted son of Kansas farmers, only to discover a shocking truth that everyone in town knew, except him. Jerry Winkler was a homeless man in Amsterdam when he discovered...

Audio

react (6 comments)More >

Egyptians wave their national flags and shout slogans as a sit-in takes place at

Egypt Egypt Article: Blogging for revolution

Article: Blogging for revolution

Seven years ago, a revolutionary blog was born: ‘Rantings of a Sandmonkey’. An anonymous Egyptian man was taking on Middle East politics with venom. Comment on this story.

109742
Audio

react More >

United Kingdom United Kingdom Article: Son of my father

Article: Son of my father

Mark Dowd was shocked when he got a voicemail saying that his dad had died. So he called home, but was shocked again when his dad actually answered the phone, very much alive. Then he began to put it all together. Comment on this story....

109749
Audio

react More >

Theo Jansen with one of his beach animals (strandbeesten)

Netherlands Netherlands Article: Sculpting immortality

Article: Sculpting immortality

Dutch artist Theo Jansen makes walking kinetic sculptures, or as he calls them strandbeesten - literally "beach animals" – named because his multi-legged creatures roam the coasts of Holland, all powered by wind. Comment on...

98487
Audio

react (1 comment)More >

Radio Show: Producers' Picks 2011

The State We're In, 31 December 2011. Producers Belinda, Diana and Mignon pick their favourite stories of the year, featuring Egyptian blogger Sandmonkey; a man pretending to be his dead lover’s son at a funeral; the creator of...

Audio

react (2 comments)More >

Radio Show: Don't Shoot the Messenger

The State We're In, 24 December 2011. A man frustrated in his search for spiritual answers decides to become a guru. His message, don’t fall for fake gurus; become your own. An African American who lives in Holland wonders if the...

Audio

react (9 comments)More >

Ashraf El-Hojouj is reunited with his family at Sofia airport, Bulgaria, July 20

Radio Show: Still Here

The State We're In, 17 December 2011. As Libya continues to go through an uncertain rebirth, two people are watching with heightened interest: a Palestinian doctor and a Bulgarian nurse. Both were part of the "Benghazi Six"...