Frank Serpico was shot on 3 February 1971, after exposing corruption in the NYPD. The following year, the BBC reported on the "widespread" rot in the Big Apple's police force.

How did a charismatic but impoverished British woman become the leader of the progressive religious sect known as "the Shakers" in 18th-Century America?

Bold new film Pillion stars Alexander Skarsgård as a "dom" in a relationship with a timid gay man. It's been hailed by some as "charming" and "feel-good" – but not everyone agrees

For years, UK politician Jeremy Thorpe's affair was a secret – but when his former lover Norman Scott blurted out the truth, an astounding story emerged.

On Burns Night this week – and 235 years after Tam O'Shanter was published – Scots everywhere may well be treated to a masterwork with a unique appeal.

In today's Oscar nominations, the biggest shock was that sequel Wicked: For Good, starring Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, earned zero nods – despite its predecessor earning 10.

A Norwegian rocket launched on 25 January 1995 in order to study the Northern Lights, was mistaken by Russia for an incoming nuclear missile on a direct course to Moscow.

Her murder mysteries have captivated audiences for more than a century, but, 50 years after her death, she remains an enigma. A BBC profile from 1955 reveals some of her secrets.

The CIA officer, who has died, aged 84, sold secrets to the Soviet Union, leading to the deaths of at least 10 Western agents. In 1994, the BBC spoke to one of the spies Aldrich Ames betrayed.

When an oil embargo rocked the US, the president's radical solution was to make citizens start their working days an hour earlier – even in the darkness of midwinter.

With his mocking English accent, the mysterious radio host broadcast to the UK from a German station, spreading rumours and exaggeration in the early days of World War Two.

In a daring raid 75 years ago, four university students stole back an early symbol of the Scottish kings. It had been taken by an English monarch more than six centuries before.