Global News Podcast

Brazil's left-wing President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has been elected to a fourth term in office, defeating Flávio Bolsonaro in the runoff of the presidential election. The right-wing challenger Bolsonaro has called for the election to be annulled, following in his father Jair Bolsonaro’s footsteps by not recognising the results. Lula becomes the first president in Brazil's history to win a fourth term.
Also: joy and disbelief on Serbia's streets as a student-led protest movement defeats the long-standing leader Aleksandar Vučić. The Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado returns to Caracas after nearly a year in exile. Why the money from China's soaring exports isn't reaching the nation's workers. Uganda imposes a 21-day Ebola quarantine for travellers arriving from the DRC. Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly clashes with his military chief. And why wind-up radios are flying off the shelves in the UK.
The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight.
Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and daily at weekends, plus special bonus episodes reacting to urgent breaking stories. Follow or subscribe now and never miss a moment.
Get in touch: globalpodcast@bbc.co.uk
Photo: Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, the Workers' Party (PT) candidate for re-election, gestures as he addresses supporters after his victory in the presidential runoff election, at Paulista Avenue, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, October 26, 2026. REUTERS/Amanda Perobelli

Midterm elections in the United States are normally about domestic issues such as the economy and the cost of living. They’re often a pulse check on voter sentiment towards the party in power, or a reflection of local political battles and regional trends. Midterms are rarely impassioned referendums on a specific foreign policy issue. But this year in Michigan, for some voters, the Senate race is shaping up to be just that. Today on the show, The Global Story’s Asma Khalid shares her reporting from Michigan, where a debate among Democrats over the conflict in the Middle East has become a touchstone issue, especially among the state’s large Arab American and Jewish communities. The Global Story brings clarity to politics, business and foreign policy in a time of connection and disruption. For more episodes, just search 'The Global Story' wherever you get your BBC Podcasts.

Protests against poor economic conditions have been held across France. Nearly 1,000 people have been arrested after clashes with riot police in cities including Paris and Marseilles.
Also: campaigning intensifies ahead of the US mid-term elections. We have a special report from the Rio Grande Valley in South Texas. Gianni Infantino claims the "vast majority" supports his bid for re-election as head of world football's governing body, FIFA. Final rallies are held in Brazil ahead of Sunday's presidential run-off election between Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Flávio Bolsonaro. One man has been arrested after Hitler's Eagle's Nest retreat in Bavaria was engulfed in flames. And Europe's busiest shopping street, Oxford Street in London, prepares to go traffic free.
The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight.
Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and daily at weekends, plus special bonus episodes reacting to urgent breaking stories. Follow or subscribe now and never miss a moment.
Get in touch: globalpodcast@bbc.co.uk
Photo: People clash with police during a demonstration against the high cost of living in Bordeaux, France, 24 October 2026.
Credit: EPA/Shuttershock

Patrick Mohr thought his wedding ring was gone after it fell off his hand while he swam in Italy, but it led to an international friendship with three locals who dived to find it. Filippo Palagi, Nicola Malloggi and Edoardo Poggi went on a trip to return it to Patrick in Ireland.
Also: the grandmother who competed at Miss Great Britain and made history in the process. Glamour Gran Ann wants other women to see that getting older does not mean disappearing. In Australia, the reporter who ended up saving a man's life while covering floods in Brisbane. ABC reporter Will Murray pulled a man from a sinking car, after the driver accidentally drove into the flood.
Plus - World Athletics are holding their first ever World Treadmill Championship. And the live stream in Finland where you can watch puppies 24/7.
Image: The three men who helped Patrick find his ring, posing with Patrick holding it. Credit: Patrick Mohr.
Our weekly collection of inspiring, uplifting and happy news from around the world.
Presenter: Holly Gibbs. Music composed by Iona Hampson

The White House says the US first lady, Melania Trump, has brokered a local ceasefire for a frontline city in a Russian-occupied part of Ukraine. The truce in Oleshky, in the Kherson region, is due to begin on October 29. The White House says the city is on "the brink of disaster" without medicine, food and clean water. Residents of the city have resorted to eating garden weeds to survive. Also: Donald Trump files a lawsuit seeking to block Alaska's result in the midterms if the Republican incumbent does not win his Senate seat. We look at the legacy of the iPod as the device turns 25. The company behind ChatGPT announces that it will no longer train its AI models live on the internet amid security concerns. Brazilians go to the polls on Sunday in what’s predicted to be an incredibly close presidential election. And the hunt for the next James Bond is underway, with screen tests rumoured to be taking place in London.
The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight.
Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and daily at weekends, plus special bonus episodes reacting to urgent breaking stories. Follow or subscribe now and never miss a moment.
Get in touch: globalpodcast@bbc.co.uk
Photo: Rally demanding the establishment of a humanitarian corridor to evacuate Ukrainian civilians from Oleshky in Kherson region, in Kyiv. October 6, 2026. REUTERS/Alina Smutko