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Zimbabwean boxer Tobias Mupfuti was just eight years old when he became homeless after his mother was no longer able to take care of him. Sleeping rough, begging for food from tourists or scavenging the dumpsite, he eked out a survival on the streets of Victoria Falls. But life was tough and Tobias would often get harassed by older children on the street, so his brother suggested he learn how to box to defend himself. Tobias followed him to a boxing club where he quickly discovered he had a talent. When his coach and then his brother left town, he continued training by himself in the bush, using a grain sack filled with sand as a makeshift punching bag. Training every day, by his early 20s he had gathered a small following of younger street kids who would watch him throw punches with curiosity. Eventually, he decided to start training them himself, forming the Victoria Falls Boxing Club, which has since grown into a boxing academy and children’s home. Tobias’ story has recently inspired an award-winning short film called Rise.

Golda Schultz is a South African Soprano based in Berlin, Germany, but her path to operatic greatness is not a typical one. Born in the early 1980s at the height of apartheid, Golda grew up within a bubble, surrounded by people who looked like her and so the realities of racial segregation in the rest of South Africa seemed somewhat remote. That was until the early 1990s, when Golda's town was besieged by white supremacists who objected to everything the place stood for. Her love of music led her to the stage but her mind and body threatened to disrupt her ambitions. Golda spoke to Mobeen Azhar in 2024.

Presenter: Mobeen Azhar
Producer: Zoe Gelber

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(Photo: A portrait of Tobias looking at the camera, photographer is Jessie Rowlands )