BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, Podcasts

While the war in Ukraine has dominated news headlines this year, we hear it from our

own correspondent have reported from some 116 countries in 2022. Today we'll be returning

to some of the highlights of the past year, from colleagues close up to the major stories

to more personal reflections. We recall the unrest in Sri Lanka, when protesters

angry about the government's handling of the economy took a dip in the President's

swimming pool before setting light to the Prime Minister's mansion. Spurious, form-filling

requests for South Africans traveling with Ryanair brought back bad memories of apartheid.

So what does Africanants represent for Black South Africans today? And we've heard

about the Porsche for Uttkutur in the corridors of power in France, but even the dress-down look

is a studied affair, as our correspondent found out as he went in search of a new suit.

But first the BBC's Russia editor Steve Rosenberg has lived in Moscow for more than

30 years. He's charted Vladimir Putin's rise and his ever-tightening grip on power. And

while President Putin's invasion of Ukraine in February initially left NATO powers struggling

to find the right response, Steve spoke to Russians of all persuasions from those who

wholeheartedly supported the so-called special military operation to those who showed apprehension

or even outright opposition. Every day, as part of his daily ritual, Steve has visited

a newspaper kiosk in central Moscow and got to know its vendor Valentina. This is the

story of their friendship.

It's six o'clock in the morning, a bone-chillingly cold winter morning. It's one of those mornings

when the world seems to be telling you, are you crazy? Go back to bed. But there I am,

bundled up in my thick coat, struggling down the street in a Moscow snowstorm. Why? Well,

...