Nicola Kelly

Here's a cut of some of my work from 2018, mostly taken from my foreign trips to Algeria, Serbia, the US, Italy and Norway. All of these clips were originally broadcast on the BBC World Service and BBC Radio 4. Enjoy!

Trailer: How to live to 100, BBC News by

Here's my little story about the wonderful Zorgan Laroussi, my host and Dad for a week in south-west Algeria. I'm really fond of him, so thought I'd give his tale of love and loss some airtime. Enjoy...

Here's a quick trailer for my programme on fantasies. On air on Monday 16 April on the BBC World Service.

World Service package: Western Sahara's Champion Athlete by

Here's the trailer for my new programme, on air in late April/early May 2018.

Hypnotism: Why would anyone allow a complete stranger to access their mind? Running live from Monday 5 February 2018 and available on the BBC World Service podcast.

Pick of the crop 2017.

As part of this series of 'Feedback' on Radio 4(which I'm currently producing)we've set up a regular segment on a radio report or programme that has changed a listener's life. For this couple, radio didn't just alter their life course; it helped them to survive. In 1984, Rob and Eeva John took a long weekend break to Lalibela in the north of Ethiopia, where they were taken hostage by an armed rebel faction. At the time, the world's attention was focused on the famine further south. Nobody knew they were being held - or so they thought. They managed to smuggle a tiny crackly transistor radio through and heard their names mentioned on the BBC World Service. From there, they knew they were safe. This is their story.

Here's the short version of my programme on mental health in Zanzibar in case you haven't got 26 minutes free to listen to the full programme.

Zanzibar's mental health system is on the verge of collapse. I travelled across the island and met spiritual healers making a profit from the mental torment affecting thousands of people on this tiny island. This dispatch was the lead story on BBC Radio 4 and the BBC World Service's 'From Our Own Correspondent', tx 14/10/17.

With only one psychiatrist and thousands of mentally-ill patients, Zanzibar is on the cusp of a mental health crisis. I travelled to the archipelago to meet some of those afflicted by psychotic, neurological and psycho-social disorders. What I found was mass mistreatment and exploitation at the hands of profiteering exorcists and herbalists. It makes for disturbing but compelling listening. Here's the trailer for my programme, which will run in mid-October on the BBC World Service.

Back on the road, in northern Myanmar. This was, without doubt, the most challenging trip I've ever done, but along the way, I met Naw San, a 19 year old heroin and meth addict. I followed his story, meeting his family and going back to visit his school. We didn't end up using it in the final programme, so here it is! To hear the full programme, visit http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p057w3f6

BBC Radio 4 'World at One': Myanmar pkg by

The lives of a vigilante anti-drug squad leader, a jade mine tycoon and a heroin addict intertwine. This was the lead dispatch on BBC Radio 4's 'From Our Own Correspondent' on 13 July. To hear the full programme, go to: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p057w3f6

In the past few years, Iranians have flocked to Armenia to celebrate big festivals like Nowruz, or Persian New Year. I went to meet some of them as they took their first trip over the border from Iran to let their hair down, have a drink and dance until dawn.

Here's the trailer (or billboard) for my documentary from Myanmar, scheduled to run from Thursday 13 July. It has been a labour of love. Hope you enjoy the full piece. I'll stick the link to up here once it has been broadcast.

When the so-called Islamic State encircled and slaughtered more than 5,000 Yezidis on Mount Sinjar in northern Iraq, those who could fled. Lesser known are the handful of Yezidis who travelled to Armenia to seek sanctuary in rural communities like the one I visited, Araks. This piece ran on BBC Radio 4 on Saturday 20 May 2017.

Since the conflict in Syria started, more than 20,000 native Syrian Armenians have settled in Yerevan and the surrounding areas, setting up businesses in the service industry. Unfortunately they haven't always been welcomed by Armenians, due to the impact the added competition has had on their profits. I've changed the names to protect identities and run a lot of traditional accordion music underneath because I'm quite a fan.

When the so-called Islamic State encircled and slaughtered over 5,000 people, those who could fled to the refugee camps in neighbouring countries. Lesser known are those who made the arduous journey to Armenia, seeking sanctuary among their fellow Yezidis. I travelled to the south of the country to meet some of them.

Back on the road, this time in Armenia. This one is mainly Yezidis jumping through fire, me stuck in a rainstorm trying to work and a very drunk Syrian bar owner. Photos on Facebook @nicolakellybbc.

In the last year, there has been a 65% increase in anti-semitic attacks against ultra-Orthodox Jews in the Stamford Hill community of north-east London, including one incident in which a gas canister was thrown out the window of a passing white van and 'Heil Hitler' was shouted repeatedly. Many of the local community, including rabbis and members of Schomrim, the community police, attribute this sharp increase to the rise of populism - namely Brexit and Trump. They fear they are starting to turn inward to protect themselves, making them more closed-off than ever. I went to meet some of them at Purim, the annual Jewish festival, to hear more. *The sound quality isn't great and some of the presenter intro and outro got cut in this edit but the sense is there!*

On the Sudanese border, old Nubia lies submerged under the largest man-made lake in the world, Lake Nasser. More than 100,000 displaced people have been moved to an area 300 kilometres away, but they're starting to fight back, taking to the streets to call for their right to return. I went to old Nubia to spend a few days with a family living around the lake and to new Nubia to meet activists organising the protests. Absolutely loved gathering, writing and voicing this story.

More Syrian refugees have arrived in Glasgow than any other city in the UK. But Glasgow faces it's own problem of wide-spread homelessness, with more than 500 people sleeping rough each night. I met Ali, a new arrival who has been housed on the 19th floor of a high-rise tenement block. On the other side of the city, Brian, a local, has been sleeping in the same doorway for over 8 years as he waits for social housing. Here's my dispatch on the tensions that exist between the two men, both struggling to find their way home.

Since the damming of the Nile, more than 250,000 have been forced to leave their original homeland and move 300 kilometres north to an area called Kom Ombo. Aware that they are becoming disconnected from their roots, young people are now taking to the streets to call for their right to return. I went to meet some of the protest organisers in Kom Ombo and Abu Simbel on the Sudanese border.

This is a short package of my long-form documentary on religious freedom in Egypt. It ran across World Service News programmes on Friday 24 February with a back anno to the full 27-minute doc, tx 26 February at 02.30, 10.30 and 19.30 on the BBC World Service. Listen here for the full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04tbvnw

In an emergency setting, aid workers and journalists are prepared for a high level of risk, but until recently, the extent to which they experience sexual assault had not been fully recognised. I travelled to Geneva to meet Megan Nobert and to speak to the UN to find out how they are seeking to address this issue.

Before a field posting begins, aid workers are prepared for a high level of risk. But now the threat comes from within their own ranks, with reports that international staff are being drugged and raped by their colleagues. I travelled to Geneva to meet Megan Nobert, Founder and Director of Report the Abuse and sexual violence survivor. Here is the interview that ran across BBC World Service and Radio 4 programmes.

A little trailer for my BBC World Service documentary, airing on Sunday 26 February. For more details or to download the podcast, go to: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p002vsn4/broadcasts/upcoming

New Facebook page to like: https://www.facebook.com/nicolakellybbc/ Photos on Twitter & Instagram: @mllenicolakelly This story ran on 'Newshour', 'Weekend' and was the BBC World Service's Story of the Day on the 'Global Update' podcast. Here's the live version. The Nubians of southern Egypt have been gradually oppressed by successive Islamic governments. Now their language and culture faces extinction. I went to meet some of the musicians and poets struggling against the state to keep their language alive through song.

Back on the road. This time, I'm in southern Egypt, mainly eating and going to weddings. Work stuff to come soon. Twitter & Instagram: @mllenicolakelly

There's a growing number of initiatives on smallholder farms in south-east Kenya that aim to prevent elephants from being poached. I met Enzoumou, a farmer who has created a beehive fence to ensure his crops aren't trampled on and protects the welfare of the wildlife in the National Park nearby. This two-way was with Alex Ritson for the World Business Report on the World Service. I had a bad cold.

A quick round-up of some of the stories I've covered this year. Feedback would be very welcome! Twitter: @mllenicolakelly

Young Syrians arriving in the UK are in limbo. They're not allowed to work or return to education until they hear about the outcome of their asylum application. This is a piece I did for BBC Radio 1's 'Newsbeat', field produced and reported from Glasgow.

BBC World Service: From Syria to Scotland by

In the Taita Hills of south-east Kenya, honey hunting has long been a way of life. Now, new technologies are coming in. Entrepreneurs welcome the changes, citing the potential for foreign exports to the Middle East, Europe and the US. But traditional beekeepers are resistant, convinced that the quality and quantity of the honey will be vastly reduced. This piece ran across Newsday's daily morning programmes and World Update on 25 November 2016.

In the 'desert badlands' of Kenya's interior close to the border with Somalia, maternal mortality rates are at an all-time high. Motorbikes are now being offered to traditional birth attendants to encourage them to bring women to health facilities - and to abandon harmful practices passed down through the generations. This report was for 'Health Check' on the World Service.

In Kenya, Chinese businesses have been investing heavily in recent years, building roads and train lines. The influx of Chinese migrant labour has led to some tensions, with the local population and accusations of 'land grabbing'. Now these Chinese entrepreneurs are turning to the slum areas around Nairobi, seeking to improve relations with education and outreach programmes. I went to meet some of those living and working in the Mathare slums to hear their views.

Among the Borena tribe in southern Ethiopia, there are three methods for predicting the future. Communities believe that village elders have the rare ability to read goat's intestines, the stars and the leaves to determine when disease, famine and war will occur. In Yabelo, I met Dalacha Dabasa, Doyo Huka and Sanou, three village elders known throughout Ethiopia for their accurate predictions.

NB: The sound quality is cringe-worthy. New mics now. In remote rural Kenya, most hospitals and health centres work off-grid, with frequent power failures. Life support machines go off, babies are born in the dark using the light from mobile phones and medicines go bad in refrigerators. Solar panels are helping to save lives in these communities, replacing expensive gas cylinders. I went to meet some of the doctors and patients benefiting from this new technology.

From Nepal to Syria. That's the route girls as young as 7 are now taking, exploited by human trafficking networks. Most of the girls were orphaned in last year's earthquake and they are now seeking 'the golden dream': earning a lot of money working in a mansion in the Middle East. When they arrive in Syria, they are sold to brothels and dance bars, their passports confiscated, unable to return home. This report ran on Newshour, Newsday, World Update and was pick of the day for the World Service's Global Update podcast.

Senegal, one of the starting points for many migrants on the now well-trodden and ever more life-threatening journey through Libya to Europe, has been hit hard by the outward flow of its bright young things. Aware of the situation, local municipalities have stepped up funding for initiatives like this, a DJ school for aspiring musicians. I went to meet Amadou and DJ G G Base on the outskirts of Dakar to find out more.