As It Happens: The Thursday Edition
Part One
Channel drownings
27 people have drowned in the English Channel; a volunteer who helps rescue migrants says their deaths were all but inevitable — because the British government has blocked off routes that would allow safe passage.
Lush cosmetics no social
Cosmetics company Lush is about to reverse course and shut down all its social media accounts — saying its customers' mental health is more important than follows, likes, and retweets.
Berlin WWII friends
When Betty Grebenschikoff and her family fled the Nazis in the 1930s, she was separated from her childhood friend. Now, eight decades later, the two women have reunited in person.
Part Two
Taliban 100 days
An official with the Red Cross says sanctions against the Taliban are driving Afghans to starvation — and that the international community is responsible for a man-made catastrophe.
Australia funnel web spider
A reptile park in Australia is thrilled to receive an anonymous gift of a deadly funnel web spider — and our guest attempts to explain the cult of poisonality around it.
Part Three
Reimagining Sir John A. Macdonald statue
After a statue of the first Canadian Prime Minister was removed from a plinth in Montreal, the Canadian Centre for Architecture asked students what should go there instead. A Nisga'a architect who evaluated their suggestions is very impressed.
Estate sale find
A man paid thirty dollars for a sketch at a house sale in Massachusetts. The drawing turns out to be by a Renaissance master. It also turns out to be worth a lot more than $30. We'll get the full story from the director of the art gallery that now owns the picture.