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CUBA AND THE COLD WAR | From revolution to missile crisis

About this collection

At the height of the Cold War, on 1 January 1959, a guerrilla army led by Fidel Castro defeated the US-backed Batista government. Attempts by the US government to undermine Castro's new administration, coupled with similarities of ideology, pushed Cuba into the arms of the Soviet Union. So began years of dangerous political manoeuvring that culminated in the 1962 missile crisis and the day the world came close to nuclear war.

Remember the days when a tropical island caused a political whirlwind with this collection of broadcasts featuring Fidel Castro, Che Guevara and JFK.

Cuba and the Cold War Collection

Fidel Castro © CORBIS.

NEWS

Castro Interview

BROADCAST 1959
1 MINUTE

Castro speaks to reporters a week after the revolution.

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Robin Day.

PANORAMA

Cuba - Anti-Castro Rebels

BROADCAST 1961
13 MINUTES

Robin Day reports from Florida on the Cuban exiles.

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President John F. Kennedy confers with the Secretary of Defence, Robert S. McNamara, by the West Wing Colonnade, the Whitehouse.

JOHN F. KENNEDY

The President of the United States

RECORDED 1961
13 MINUTES

President Kennedy speech following the Bay of Pigs incident.

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Classic car on the streets of Cuba.

PANORAMA

Cuba

BROADCAST 1961
17 MINUTES

'Panorama' visits Fidel Castro after the Bay of Pigs invasion.

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John F. Kennedy signs a document at his desk.

FAMOUS SPEECHES

Kennedy: Cuban Missile Crisis

BROADCAST 1962
1 MINUTES

Kennedy's speech on the Cuban missile crisis.

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Hugh Gaitskell.

NEWS

Cuba and the Labour Party

BROADCAST 1962
2 MINUTES

The Labour Party leader speaks to BBC News about the missile crisis.

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Adlai Stevenson.

NEWS

Cuba Crisis

BROADCAST 1962
4 MINUTES

An extract from a radio newsreel.

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Aerial photograph of Cuban missile bases.

NEWS

UN Security Council Meeting

BROADCAST 1962
1 MINUTE

An emergency meeting of the UN Security Council discusses the Cuban missile crisis.

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The Capitol building in Washington.

PANORAMA

Cuba Day: Senator Mansfield in ...

BROADCAST 1962
8 MINUTES

Robin Day interviews US Senator Mike Mansfield for 'Panorama'.

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Peter Woods.

NEWS

Cuba: Evacuee Ship

BROADCAST 1962
1 MINUTE

A brief news report on the arrival of an evacuee ship from Guantanamo during the missile crisis.

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The Right Honourable Harold Wilson.

PANORAMA

Cuba

BROADCAST 1962
31 MINUTES

After 'one of the most dangerous weeks in history', what now for the world?

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John F. Kennedy.

NEWS

Cuba Crisis

BROADCAST 1962
4 MINUTES

President Kennedy announces the end of the Cuban blockade.

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The National Capital Building, Havana.

PANORAMA

Cuba

BROADCAST 1963
15 MINUTES

Castro celebrates 10 years since the first uprising against the former regime.

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Che Guevara © CORBIS.

THE SUNDAY FEATURE

Che

BROADCAST 1997
45 MINUTES

A profile of Che Guevara.


go to The Sunday Feature - Che
Cuban countryside.

FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT

BROADCAST 2002
11 MINUTES

Kate Adie introduces a report on the Cuban missile crisis.

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Fidel Castro surrounded by the press.

COLD WARRIOR

BROADCAST 2002
28 MINUTES

A profile of the man devoted to removing Castro.


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St Basil Cathedral in Red Square, Moscow.

THE CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS

40 Years On: As Seen from ...

BROADCAST 2002
43 MINUTES

While the USA prepared for war, what was happening inside the USSR and Cuba?

go to The Cuban Missile Crisis: 40 Years On - As Seen from Moscow and Havana

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