Having made it through colonisation by everyone from the Phoenicians to the Romans to the British, Malta may now be facing its biggest threat of all: tourists. This week, host Rebecca Hallett (instagram.com/becca.hallett) looks at the beautiful island nation’s history and the future it may be heading for through the lens of its architecture.

As we near the end of Valletta’s tenure as European Capital of Culture 2018, we ask whether Malta will be able hang onto the heritage that makes it so unique. And how will it balance that with the needs of the thousands of people travelling there each year?

Thanks to the Malta Tourism Authority, Dr Nik Soukmandjev, Konrad Buhagiar, of Architecture Project (architecture-project.com), our producer Alannah Chance, of Reduced Listening (reducedlistening.co.uk), and assistant producer Femi Oriogun-Williams. Episode photo and some on-location audio by Jonathon Kram.