Christopher Nolan Film The Odyssey Premieres

This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK This is Chelsea Handler from Dear Chelsea. I'm going to be honest with you. I am online way more than I probably should be. And between me and everyone else at my house, we've got a zillion screens going on at any given moment. So when my internet slows down, it is a full crisis. That's why having fast, reliable internet that can keep up really matters and why you need optimum famously fast fiber Internet Optimum fiber blows flaky five G out of the water and keeps it cool with the fastest and most reliable speeds that don't slow when things heat up. And right now, they have the deal of the summer, just thirty dollars a month for five years. So don't wait, call eight eight eight for optimum. Visit optimum dot com or stop by your local optimum store today Famously Fast fiber for thirty dollars a month for five years. You can't beat it Terms apply, see optimum d. com for details The twenty twenty six World Cups started with forty eight teams and we've now reached the knockout stage cords have been broken the way that Messy has been able to score these goals late in his career. His cage unbroken records is the consequence for him. And new heroes have emerged. This country's caught the fever. Casual fans are now die hard fans More than the score podcast is bringing you the stories beyond the score lines More than the score from the BBC World Service Listen now wherever you get your BBC podcasts This is the Global News podcast from the BBC World Service. I'm Valerie Andanderson and at fourteen Hours GMT on Monday the sixth of July, these are our main stories Ukraine pleads for air defenses after revealing that none of the ballistic missiles in Russia's latest deadly barrage overnight were intercepted In Iran, the funeral procession for the late Supreme leadeer Ayatollah Ali Khmani is moving through the capital Tehran correspondent hears from people in the country. Also in this podcast, there's condemnation of FIFA's decision to abolish a one match suspension for America's top goal scorer in the World Cup after a phone call from Donald Trump. I think it's an absolute disgrace. Infantino You should be ashamed of this because I think for the sportsmanship of this game is in question here A two day prison riot in Sri Lanka has left at least twenty five people dead and more than one hundred injured And the Zulu language drama, The Polygamist, produced by daughters of a former South African president. We start in Ukraine where at least twenty one people have died after Russia carried out another barrage of air attacks in and around Kyiv Russia says they were aimed at defence installations, but three blocks of flats have partially collapsed The assault included twenty three ballistic missiles launched by Moscow, none of which were shot down because of a shortage of missiles that could intercept. Alexandra is a student in Kieiv and she told us what last night was like. Last night was outstanding one. Uually they strike drones, like massive groups of drones before striking the ballistics right away or other types of arms, but this night they began only with the ballistics straight away, which was kind of unexpected drones could be intercepted easily when we see the ballistics approaching the city, you should know like the first thing that comes to my mind is that, okay, so I have like ten seconds and then I can hear Mentally, this is Absolutely horrendous like It is so hard to get back to your usual life. Meanwhile, in Russian occupied Crimea, electricity was cut in Sevastopol, following a Ukrainian attack on energy infrastructure near the city Here's the view of one resident The situation is catastrophic. We have blackouts, watercuts, the beaches are empty. When you step outside in the morning, there are hardly any cars. People thought the war would be far away in Ukraine Now it's here A correspondent in the Ukrainian capapital Kyiv, Sarah Raininsford, T me more. I'm actually at the site in one region of Kyiv where the authorities say one of the missiles hit the block of flats that I'm looking at. It is a big nine story building and there's a big hole right through the middle of it. Multiple flats have collapsed in on themselves. There are huge slabs of concrete that have just crashed down to floors below. It is a scene of massive destruction and there are scenes like this all across Ukraine's capital because Russia launched dozens of missiles last night, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and it also launched hundreds of drones. striking statistic, I think, if we can talk about numbers is How few of those missiles this time Ukraine managed to intercept? Just over half of those missiles were knocked down on their way to their targets here in Ukraine. and that is significant because the damage that they cause when they strike is enormous. And if Russia was aiming at military targets, well this is not a military target, this is a block of flats. we know in this one location have lost their lives and there's a lady sitting on a bench in tears who we're told has two relatives still missing somewhere in the ruins of this apartment block. And why didn't Ukraine intercept the missiles? Because it is really, really difficult to do it because ballistic missiles travel very, very fast And Ukraine right now doesn't have enough interceptor missiles to knock them out of the sky. It says it really clearly, it says it time and time again. And in fact, I've just been speaking to a lady called Elena who lives in this building and who luckily escapes with her life. But she has told me she has one question. She says, why are Ukraine's allies not giving us the interceptor missiles that we need President Zelensky said the same. he said, Th these are miles that save lives and every delay and provided them to Ukraine, he said is causing destruction like this. So it is a massive problem for Ukraine right now as Russia is clearly increasing the number of missiles specifically that it launches at Ukraine in every attack, and it is quite clearly focusing very heavily right now on Kyiv itself And meanwhile, Sarah, there's been an attack by Ukraine on Russian occupied Crimea. What can you tell us about that Yeah, that's right. This is something that Ukraine has been doing for recent weeks, and it happened again last night. Drones, Ukrainian drones are targeting military sites, military logistics, and also the energy infrastructure in the peninsula of Crimea, which of course Russia has annexed illegally back in twenty fourteen We don't have any reports of mass casualties from Crimea. I should make a clear distinction between what'sing in Crimea and what's happening here in Kyiv. but certainly in Crimea, there are reports of blackouts overnight, lots of the big cities there with no power. We know that there are major fuel shortages because Ukraine has repeatedly been striking oil refineries in and around Crimea. Ukraine says is to try to cut off military logistics to stop Russia launching its attacks on Ukraine itself, but also To hitladimir Putin, frankly, where it hurts, because Crimea is really important to him personally and politically. The annexation boosted his popularity in Russia. It's kind of a foundation stone of his very, very long rule in Russia. So Kyiv Ukraine is quite clearly putting Crimea at the focus of its campaign to try to pressure Russia, Vladimir Putin to come to peace talks. Sarah Raininsford in Kiv and we'll have more on this on our YouTube channel Search for BBC News on YouTube and you'll find the Global News podcast in the podcast section. There's a new story available every weekday. Now to the Football World Cup where controversy is growing over FIFA's decision to allow the US star striker, Falarnt Balligan to play against Belgium later on Monday, despite receiving a red card in the previous game European football body, UEFA has expressed disbelief It follows reports that President Trump made as many as three calls to the FIFA boss, Janviv Infantino, to overturn the one match ban This is former England Captain Wayne Runy's response I think it's an absolute disgrace. infantino is should be ashamed of this because I think for the sportsmanship of this game It is in question here Well just before we recorded this podcast, President Trump was asked about the decision to allow Falarn Balligan to play I said, boy, that's a big, you know, if it happened to Another play it would have been unfair, but when they take your best play or just about they have some great players, but And they say you can't play That's very unfair. That's You know, it's one thing to penalize somebody for the game penalize them for a game that hasn't been played yet. It's very unfair. You can't do that. So Yes, I asked for a review by FIFA I spoke to a man who's highly respected. and by the way, whose level of respect has gone up. Tenfold Will Belgium have been allowed to appeal the decision? but, as Nick Miller, at the athletic. com explains That is not straightforward The kind of central problem with all of this is that in Premier League and you know, the European Leagues, if a player is given a red card and then subsequently a suspension for the subsequent games. There is a defined appeals process where their club can say, you know, we think this is unfair. they can make amount to kind of legal submissions within a kind of sporting context anyway. and then the decision on whether that appeal is granted It's all very kind of clear and open and the written reasons is given process isn't in place at the World Cup. so the decision to suspend Balligan's ban It's all very unclear, FIFA haven't really explained the reasons for it The BBC sports reporter Joe Kurry gave me the background to the story. USA's top golf scorer, Flara Balagan was shown a straight red card in the USA's last thirty two match over Bosnia Herzegovina. He was given a one match ban, which should have mean he wouldt be missing this last sixty match against Belgium. Without explanation, FIFA have said that that band will now be suspended for a year, and so he is free to play in this match. This has never happened in a World Cup before. Now ourur US media partner, CBS has confirmed that that change in punishment came after the U.S presresident Donald Trump directly phoned the FIFA President Gianni In Fantino. Just to put this into precedence, we've had eleven other players sent off of this World Cup. They have all served their punishments. FIFA have simply said that They're using Article twenty seven. and all it says is that it allows them to fully or partially suspend the implementation of a disciplinary measure. And it has called on some to say, this is making an absolute mockery of the rules. In fact, the UEFA have released a statement that said that the decision to suspend the one game ban has crossed a red line. sometimes rules open to interpretation, this is not the case. When the certainty of rules is no longer guaranteed by its guardians, the integrity of the game is at stake and the credibility of competition is undermined. We express our disbelief at the unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable decision Joe Curry The funeral procession of the late Supreme leadeer Ayatollah Ali Khammeni has been moving through Tehran after lying in state in the capital's Grand Masalah Mosque complex. Huge crowds have lined the streets to mourn the assassinated leader who was killed on the first day of the US Israeli war in Iran in February The BBC's chief international correspondent, Lisuset, is reporting from Tehran on conditions that none of her material is used on the BBC's Persian surface These restrictions apply to all international media organizations operating in Iran Lis spoke to people in Teran about the funeral and life there Massive funeral farewell like this takes massive preparations, including rest points like this. We're just on the outskirts of Tehran. and we've see many like this where in this parking lot buses keep pulling up, bringing people here from many cities and towns. And in front of us a huge queue, one of men Wen in a separate queue and people are going by us with sandwiches, with bottles of water. There are places to rest here, places to pray Many of them tell us they're heading to Tehron or they want to be part of this moment Get a sense of the mood. Hello, Are you going to the funeral Yes,es. And what does it mean to you If you look at my eyes lastast two days I didn't didn't sleep. G way suupremely there. Be So sad, so sad about that. It makes you emotional He meant a lot to you This man for me is I though In life, real life Thank you for your time. Thank you I wanted to speak about this matter. Is it possible for you? Yense. What is your name? Bisard? Bizard. Are you on your way to Tehran No, no, no Just passenger. This passenger, are you going to the funeral? No, no, no, of course no Why not It's not possible for me Why them test cheese chicken. Wh? I'm busy. You're busy. Yeah busy. Are you worried about your future Of course, Well very much. What is your worry The situation of the economy of the country is not stable. I do . manyany of the people don't have work They have Unemployed We are so so unhappy What do you want to change in your life I cannot say to you, answer to you because this is not safe for me You don't feel you can speak your mind. Of course Cowds are a bit thinner in the blazing heat of the day. There are young men with water hoses spraying water in people's faces to cool them down Others are handing out slices of Fresh watermelon. of these the faithful, the loyalists here think of the fact that Iranians aren't turning out for the funeral. Everybody has her idea. I recommended them to participation in this foreignal because they chilled our leader by operation. They attack us. Are you worried Musha Bahammane has not been seen in public since those attacks Because of Israel and Aar, he cannot appear in general pubch and we want You in, help us. We want our leader. We want for our harmony. And what about you? Does it bother you that Nobody knows where Mushab Aahamman is He's in my heart He is in my heart and I hope that he was safe from Netanyahu and Tump Last touset in Iran If you've been online in the last couple of weeks, you may have come across clips from a Zulu language drama called The poolygamist and you hit on Netflix It follows the tangled love life of wealthy Johannesburg businessman Jannasi Gomora. Secrets, family conflict, and infidelity are at the heart of the story The series was produced by two daughters of the former African president Jacob Zumer. He was the country's first democratically elected president to openly practice polygamy We got together producers Tuli Zuma and Googletto, Zuma and Kubi and Suni Athit, the author of the twenty twelve novel The Sh is based on, which is set in Zimbabwe. BBC's Ansoy first asked Suniathi why it was important to tell the story. I was witnessing something. and probably at the time when I was witnessing it, I didn't understand what it was that I was witnessing, but because the inspiration really came fromrom what I call coVted Plygamy or underground polygamy So I'm not a stranger to polygamy. My maternal grandfather was a polygamist And he had five wives And my great grandfather at eleven wives. So I understood traditional polygamy sense And it was open and transparent And oftentimes, you know, everyone knew everyone, who' who in the zoo, And the children knew each other to see a different brand of polygamon and I found that it was deceptive You had people living parallel lives or parallel lives And most of the people in the setup weren't aware of each other And so for me, it was intriguing Because that kind of set up as collateral damage notot just emotionally and mentally but physically as well in terms of diseases like HIV And so that's why, you know, I felt it was a pertinent story to tell There have been criticisms on the storyline and the depiction of the characters Critics and reviewers point out that the central character isn't truly practicing recognized cultural or traditional polygamy. The mainland Guardian in South Africa says that you know the shore consistently chooses a sensation of a subtlety Holy A friend of mine after watching the show just recently two days ago, messaged me and said, Jonasy is not a polygamist. he is pererpetual cheat And I said You know, you can be both. Yes, polygamy exists traditionally the way it ought to be practiced. And like any system like any institution. there are those who practice it as it's intended. And there are those who don't. mononogamy, if this was a story about a monogamist who was also a cheetah, I don't believe people would be saying, this is not traditional monogamy. you can't call it this It's a weak take on patriarchy and its enablers and women are reduced to basically reacting to, you know the next scandal of the main character What do you say to that Google I can't satisfy everyone. We can't tell every single story and give every type of perspective in this one show. I think it's resonated with a lot of people. I think it's hit home and struck chords with a lot of people. And we are very proud of the product that we made at the end of the day. Tony. At the end of the day, We're telling a story It is kind of very explosive and very shocking I think it still points to a lived reality Googletter, Zumoma and Kubi, Tuli Zooma, and Suniaththi speaking there to the BBCs and Soi. . ill to come in this podcast, as the film The Odyssey preremieres in London why the ancient Greek poem it's based on is still relevant. America shaped the world I'm Am Makhalid, host of the Global Story Podcast from the BBC As the United States marks its two hundred and fifty year anniversary, we've been exploring the surprising and often hidden ways the U. S has shaped the modern world Today on the show, we answer your questions about this moment and what to expect in the years to come From the BBC, it's the United States at two hundred fifty. Listen to the global story on bbc dot com or wherever you get your podcast The twenty twenty six World Cup started with forty eight teams and we've now reached the knockout stage. Records have been broken. The way that Messy has been able to score these goals late in his career. He got tw un broken records is the consequence for him And new heroes have emerged. This country's caught the fever. Casual fans are now die hard fans. And the moreor than the Sore podcast is bringing you the stories beyond the score lines. More than the score from the BBC World Service. listen now wherever you get your BBC podcasts The United States is about to mark its two hundred fiftieth anniversary. And so on the global story podcast from the BBC, we're telling surprising tales of American influence on the world stage and in ordinary people's lives all across the globe. We have this ability to export our story, and a lot of people bought it. I feel like the American Dream is alive, but not well Wr from the BBC, it's the United States at two hundred fifty. Listen on bbC d. com or wherever you get your podcasts. Sudan is a nation now into the fourth year of a civil war. The focus of the fighting is the city of El Obbeid in the south of the country, where drones are increasingly being used. The UN Children's Agency, UNICEF, says that at least eighteen children have been killed over the last few months in those attacks Charignette is UNICF representative to Sudan He's in Kart two. And this is a war now that is grinding into its fourth year And every year seems to get worse and worse, the conflict expands as we go to every corner of this country. We have some fifteen million children who need humanitarian assistance Right now, one of the areas that has seen the most conflict is the area of the strategic crossroads of Al Bed, where we have just daily attacks killing children blocking markets, hitting infrastructure, it's a catastrophe unfolding by the day Richard Kaggoy is our reporter in Nairobi The fighting seems to be going on and what has happened is that the paramilitary Rpid support forces that has been fighting, the Sudanese army has been encircling the city about two weeks ago. They were said to have been about sixty kilometers to the north, east and the west of the city. So they want to lay a siege on the city Repeated attacks. They have been launching drone strikes which have been targeting civilian infrastructure. So these are hospitals, schools and even markets. And what has happened is that children have also been caught up in these intensified fighting by the two sides. So far, what we are hearing is that eighteen children have been killed And seventeen others have been injured. So they suffer from fear, they suffer from trauma, they have been largely displaced. And also what has really come more prominently from this research is that from the film monitors, a lot of them really are facing the risk of disease and also hunger. And Richard, what humanitarian help is there people near this city and in this city, if any. Its it's It difficult because aid agencies have not been able to access the vulnerable population simply because the commercial and humanitarian convoys have been targeted. And as a result of that, just as out of abundance of caution, aid agencies have decided to withdraw because the humanitarian corridors have been you know caught up in this conflict. So it's difficult medicine Our food cannot reach these populations that have been largely affected. And this is a city of about half a million people and about one hundred thousand of them are people who have been displaced by the conflict elsewhere and that come to seek refuge there Richard Kugoy. The UN Human Rights Council has ordered an urgent investigation into allegations of abuse The Council says it's deeply concerned about the growing risk of mass atrocities. Pictures coming out of Sri Lanka show members of the security forces carrying injured people covered in blood out of a prison At least twenty five people have been killed and more than one hundred injured in two days of rioting at Nagombo jail in the west of the country Charles Havvelland is a former Sri Lanka correspondent who's following the story It seems that it started on Sunday when prisoners grabbed guns There was some kind of a clash between them apparently down to a clash between detainees and actual prisoners over drug distribution that was going on in the prison and some of these detainees disapproved of it And at least a couple of people were killed on Sunday, and matters became much worse prisoners attempted to storm the entrance to the jail and there were clashes with prison officers, at least four of whom are reported to have been killed. Another thing that happened is that prisoners have been coming out onto the roof notot only the male prisoners, but also women from an adjoining section, demanding to be freed, so it's been quite a spectacle What do we know about this jail, Nagombo jail Probably typical of Sri Lankan jails and the statistics are quite stark The average Sri Lankan jail is about three hundred percent O overcrowded so there's three times as many prisoners in there as there are capacity for. I've read that there's one point two meters space available for inmate in some facilities and that they have to sleep in shifts and sleep beside the toilets. So conditions are certainly not good. And what did the authorities say? Well, the prrison' minister has said he has to take responsibility for it He's trying to get to the bottom of what happened and he's saying that it seems that there were factions of rival gang members clashing with each other There has been a network of gangs in Sri Lanka, but there's been a lot of dismantling of those gangs over the years. So what has happened is that gang leaders, erstwile gang leaders have ended up in the jails Some of them having been deported from overseas and brought back to Sri Lanka. So that has obviously served partly to foster this kind of violent activity that's resulted in this tragedy Charles Havvelland o Australia now where the Prime Minister Anthony Abonizi has apologized for comments he made on a podcast about the Australian pop star Kyie Minogue He faced a backlash following an appearance on the Bush Deep podcast with the comedian Nicki Osborne Simon Atkinson in Sydney told us more he appeared on this podcast, I think, an attempt to kind of reach audiences that he might not get through mainstream media. And as part of that He was asked kind of an old kind of game really, listed some celebrities asked who he would like to sleep with, who he'd like to marry and who he would date. He was given the options of Kylie Minogue, Nicole Kidman and another Australian entertainer Rhonda Birchmore. He pushed back, he tried to sort of avoid the question. he pointed out he was very recently married But eventually when he's kind of pushed on it, he said Kylie Mu, all three Kylie Menauak went on to say she's terrific. And this is kind of in the whole tone of the interview, there's other questions about his sex life and other things like that. After the podcast went out, the backlash has been fairly swift, It's been pointed out by some opposition MPs that his comments were inappropriate, and that he should have pushed back, but rather than engaging in these grubby conversations as one politicians put it, he should have pointed out it' a very sexist question and that these are things that weren't really fitting for Prime Minister to get involved in. So as you say, he has put out a statement this morning, a very brief one saying that he apologizes unequivocally for the comments Simon Atkinson. Later today, the world premiere of the Odyssey, the film adaptation of Homer's ancient Greek tale will take place in London The cast includes Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, and Zendaya But can it become another box office blockbuster for its director Christopher Nolan? And will the story strike a chord with moviegers? Tombrook has been finding out am between me This long awaited epic, which follows the Greek warrior Odysseus on his journey home from the Trojan War, directed by Oscar winning British filmmaker Christopher Nolan is a very ambitious undertaking In promotional videos, superlatives are deployed to emphasise the scale of the endeavour