Latest Documentaries
Professor Brian Cox fulfils a childhood dream by going behind the scenes at Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), mission control for Mars 2020 – one of the most ambitious missions ever launched that may finally reveal if life ever existed on the red planet. In 1980, a young Brian Cox wrote to JPL asking for photos from some of their missions to the planets. The pictures they sent him from Voyager and the Viking mission to Mars were a source of inspiration that set him on the path to becoming a physicist. Now, over 40 years later, he has been granted privileged access to JPL, including key mission areas that are usually off-limits to film crews. Brian spends a week following the team who guide the Perseverance rover and the Ingenuity helicopter - the first powered aircraft ever sent to another planet - across the surface of Mars during a critical stage of the mission. Perseverance's goal is to search for signs of long extinct life on the surface of Mars in an area called Jezero Crater, which, 3.8 billion years ago, was filled by a vast lake. If it finds evidence of that life, it could change everything we know about life in the universe - and even transform our understanding of our own origins.
2022 • Astronomy
France is in chaos. The French people take to the roads, trying to escape. The government signs an armistice as Germans take over half the country. May 1940. The French and the English retreat desperately. In Dunkirk, there are more than 300,000 troops waiting to be transhipped in hundreds of ships, which perform a heroic back and forth trips to England. Thousands of men perish at the sea, struck down by German bombs. Celebrated as heroes throughout Britain, the soldiers of Dunkirk were saved by the sacrifice of French soldiers. To take advantage of the booty, Mussolini's Italy attacked in turn in the Alps. Paris is emptying of millions of refugees who experience a desperate exodus on the roads, and the government surrender. The entry of two major figures does not change anything: on June 17 Petain was appointed head of state and calls for an end to the fight, when de Gaulle urges, on June 18, to resist. But the armistice was signed, in a ceremony desired by Hitler to reverse the humiliation of the Germans in 1918. Half occupied by the Germans, the other subject to the Vichy regime, France offered its coasts and airfields to the Germans who want to invade England. Will she be able to survive this Apocalypse better than France?
S1E2 • Apocalypse: Hitler Takes on the West • 2020 • History
1940. Nine months after the outbreak of World War II, Hitler attacks in the West, Belgium, the Netherlands, France and Great Britain. The "phoney war" ends, the real war begins, in an unleashing of violence never seen before. The devastating blitzkrieg exceeds all expectations in intensity and its soldiers push back all human limits by consuming Pervitine, a synthetic drug that prevents them from sleeping. After a four-year-long First World War, Hitler's feat was to defeat Belgium and the Netherlands in 18 days and France in barely 45 days... The Nazi apocalypse swept through Sedan, on the Somme and to the English Channel, the last rampart of Great Britain. At Dunkirk, which had become a bottleneck, the British fled en masse under enemy fire. Can Churchill save them?
S1E1 • Apocalypse: Hitler Takes on the West • 2020 • History
If there’s one question Matt Walsh never thought he’d be seriously asking the general public, it’s "What is a woman?" But unfortunately, he is. Help Matt find the answer to this elusive question.
2022 • People
Reveals the events that led to the 1986 nuclear accident. Ch1: Meltdown The events that led up to the nuclear disaster in 1986, hearing from those who were caught up in the tragedy, and those who risked their lives cleaning up afterwards. The series also details events in 2022, when Russian forces took over Chernobyl during its war against Ukraine, and the plant was once again set on a potentially catastrophic course. Narrated by Ben Fogle. Ch2: Firestorm With the reactor on fire and radiation spewing out into the atmosphere, firefighters battle to bring the blaze under control. A former Soviet helicopter pilot reveals what it was like flying over the core, while a historian who grew up in neighbouring Belarus reveals how her mother pulled her out of school and kept her inside when her father - a nuclear scientist - heard rumours of an explosion. Ch3: Fallout Reveals the huge sacrifice made by thousands to contain this devastating nuclear disaster. Contributors include those who risked persistent deadly radioactive levels to clean up the site.
2022 • Environment
A documentary about how the most talented comic genius of all time Buster Keaton fell prey to the Hollywood Studio system machinery in 1930s which curbed his artistic freedom, leading to alcoholism and ultimately completely destroyed not only his career but also his life.
2016 • People
Daniel Henry dives into the new world of algorithms and computer-automated hiring, with the help of an animated co-presenter to explain how the technology works. Daniel's journey begins at the first stage of a job application - writing a CV. At the University of Liverpool, he is given tips from their student career advisers about how best to tailor his CV so it isn't rejected by software used to select applicants to progress to the next stage. But he discovers there may be ways to play this system.
2022 • Technology
When Hannah Fry is diagnosed with cervical cancer at the age of 36, she starts to interrogate the way we diagnose and treat cancer by digging into the statistics to ask whether we are making the right choices in how we treat this disease. Are we sometimes too quick to screen and treat cancer? Do doctors always speak to us honestly about the subject? It may seem like a dangerous question to ask, but are we at risk of overmedicalising cancer? At the same time, Hannah records her own cancer journey in raw and emotional personal footage, where the realities of life after a cancer diagnosis are laid bare.
2022 • Health
Ancient footprints in New Mexico’s White Sands National Park reveal new evidence of Ice Age humans that walked the land alongside enormous ground sloths and mammoths—thousands of years earlier than archaeologists thought people were in the Americas.
A journey through an underground cave in North America turns perilous when a young Triceratops is separated from its mother.
S1E5 • Prehistoric Planet • 2022 • Nature
Within the snow-covered forest, a tense standoff develops between ancient rivals, Pachyrhinosaurus and Nanuqsaurus.
S1E4 • Prehistoric Planet • 2022 • Nature
With its feathered body and duck bill, the eight-ton Deinocheirus wades through an Asian wetland in search of relief from pesky biting flies.
S1E3 • Prehistoric Planet • 2022 • Nature
Recommended Documentaries
Normal people can become monsters, given the right situation. That’s the standard narrative of the Stanford Prison Experiment, one of the most famous psychological experiments of all time. But what if the cause of its participants’ cruel behavior wasn’t what we’ve always been told?
S3E4 • Mind Field • 2018 • Brain
Are you genetically destined to despise brussels sprouts? We’re all human, but why are we all so different? With the help of a line-up of dogs and many sets of twins, Prof Alice Roberts explores what makes each of us totally unique.
3/3 • Who Am I (Royal Institution Christmas Lectures) • 2018 • Nature
In this episode, Brian travels round Australia to explore the physics of the size of life.
4/5 • Wonders of Life • Nature
Our species has discovered a way to communicate through the dark, to transcend immense distances
5/10 • The Sagan Series • 1989 • Astronomy
Mark turns to horror and shows how film-makers have devilishly deployed a range of cinematic tricks to exploit our deepest, darkest and most elemental fears. He explores the recurring elements of horror, including the journey, the jump scare, the scary place, the monster and the chase. He reveals how they have been refined and reinvented in films as diverse as the silent classic The Phantom of the Opera, low-budget cult shockers The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and The Evil Dead, and Oscar-winners The Silence of the Lambs and Get Out. Mark analyses the importance of archetypal figures such as the clown, the savant and the 'final girl'. And of course, he celebrates his beloved Exorcist films by examining two unforgettable but very different shock moments in The Exorcist and The Exorcist III. Ultimately, Mark argues, horror is the most cinematic of genres, because no other kind of film deploys images and sound to such powerful and primal effect.
Part 5 • Mark Kermode's Secrets of Cinema • 2018 • Creativity
Math Documentaries
Professor David Spiegelhalter tries to pin down what chance is and how it works in the real world. A blend of wit and wisdom, animation, graphics and gleeful nerdery is applied to the joys of chance and the mysteries of probability, the vital branch of mathematics that gives us a handle on what might happen in the future. How can you maximise your chances of living till you're 100? Why do many of us experience so many spooky coincidences? Should I take an umbrella? These are just some of the everyday questions the film tackles as it moves between Cambridge, Las Vegas, San Francisco and Reading. Spiegelhalter discovers One Million Random Digits, a book full of hidden patterns and shapes, introduces us to the unit called the micromort (a one-in-a-million chance of dying), and uses the latest infographics to demonstrate how life expectancy has increased in his lifetime and how it is affected by our lifestyle choices - drinking, obesity, smoking and exercise.
2012 • Math
Kicking off the lectures with a mind-boggling stunt to prove how counterintuitive our gut instincts can be, Hannah launches into a lecture full of daring live experiments and surprising discoveries. From predicting the chance of snow at Christmas to dodging erupting volcanoes with Prof Chris Jackson, Hannah explores whether we really can predict the future. She meets the maths gurus behind Liverpool Football Club's winning streak to spill the beans on how analysing the numbers can give a team an edge in the Premier League, and reveals the tricks to perfecting your Christmas cracker pull to win the prize every time. Hannah also gathers tips from mind-performance coach Dr Michael Gervais, the 'secret weapon' crafting Olympic athletes' lucky mindsets, and the man responsible for Felix Baumgartner's jump from space, when 'first time lucky' meant life or death. Enrolling the help of maths comedian Matt Parker for the pinnacles of the lecture, the duo find order in unruly crowds, and whittle the audience down to the luckiest person in a series of challenges, before finally putting them to the test to prove whether they truly are one in a million. Using a host of maths tricks - from probability to game theory - Hannah discovers if we can in fact make our own luck, and ultimately shares the secrets to help us all lead luckier lives.
1/3 • Royal Institution Christmas Lectures: Secrets and Lies - The Hidden Power of Maths • 2019 • Math
Can you ever travel from one place to another? Ancient Greek philosopher Zeno of Elea gave a convincing argument that all motion is impossible - but where's the flaw in his logic? Colm Kelleher illustrates how to resolve Zeno's Dichotomy Paradox.
Where earth meets sky: how the most thrilling and dangerous point at the top of the world continues to fascinate, and what it takes to conquer the Big One.
S1E1 • History By The Numbers • 2021 • Math
Latif explores a law of numerical probability that applies to classical music, contemporary social media, tax fraud and perhaps the entire universe.
S1E4 • Connected - The Hidden Science of Everything • 2020 • Math
Stuff happens. The weather forecast says it’s sunny, but you just got drenched. You got a flu shot—but you’re sick in bed with the flu. Your best friend from Boston met your other best friend from San Francisco. Coincidentally. What are the odds? Risk, probability, chance, coincidence—they play a significant role in the way we make decisions about health, education, relationships, and money. But where does this data come from and what does it really mean?
World Science Festival • 2015 • Math
Science Documentaries
Jeff does a grand jet? into the world of dance. From spinning in a roller disco to entertaining a dance battle, Jeff uncovers the reason we can't resist moving and shaking to a sweet melody.
S2E2 • The World According to Jeff Goldblum • 2021 • Science
Dark matter. Microorganisms. Consciousness. Space-time. Distinct subjects -- yet parallel quests for knowledge.
2018 • Science
Drinking alcohol on a cold day warms you up. Eating grilled meat can increase your risk of cancer. Mosquitoes prefer blondes… ah, women. We've all heard the claims, but are they true? From Winnipeg to Florida, from New York City to Vancouver, B.C, molecular biologist Dr. Jennifer Gardy goes in search of the answers. It's a journey through seldom-seen research that forces Dr. Gardy to become a real-life guinea pig to test these claims and discover, once and for all, whether they're science fact or science fiction. The surprising results are revealed in Myth or Science. , results that could change your life. Most of us just accept these myths as fact. But it is surprising to discover which are true and which aren't. It's not what you expect. And the answers can make a major difference to your daily life, and your health.
The Nature of Things • 2011 • Science
Why do storms spin in different directions depending on their location—and why do they spin in the first place?
2013 • Science
David Attenborough talks to Brian Cox about his admiration for the achievements of Charles Darwin, and how On the Origin of Species inspires him in his work in the natural world.
1/6 • People of Science with Brian Cox • 2018 • Science
Brings viewers all the amazing news-breaking advances in science in technology from 2021. Startling discoveries from around the globe, from a prehistoric nursery to a covid treatment breakthrough. Join us for an exclusive hyper-tour from earth to space.
2021 • Science
Randoms! Documentaries
The Battle for Berlin has begun. Step by step, the soon-to-be victorious powers advance. On 30 April, the Red Flag flies over the Reichstag and Adolf Hitler takes his own life. Another seven days pass before the Wehrmacht disassembles. National Socialism is finally beaten, along with Germany and Berlin. But for many, the fall of Nazism spells liberation rather than defeat.
2/3 • Berlin 1945: Diary of a Metropolis • 2020 • History
Glass so strong you can jump on it, rubber so tough it protects a clay pot dropped from 50 feet, endless varieties of plastic. Scientists and engineers have created virtually indestructible versions of common materials by manipulating the chains of interlocking atoms that give them strength—but have they made them too tough? Host David Pogue explores the fantastic chemistry behind the everyday.
1/3 • Beyond the Elements • 2020 • Science
When Mars One invited citizens to journey to Mars, 200,000 people applied. The final 100 include a military jet pilot, an ER doctor, and an IT consultant -- all willing to leave their loved ones forever. They share a common dream -- and a willingness to endure almost unimaginable isolation.
2/5 • Destination Mars • 2015 • Astronomy
The geological history of New York City is as superlative as it's current economic impact including; a titanic mountain rage, massive volcanic eruptions, immense glaciers and an enormous flash flood.
S1E5 • How the Earth Was Made • 2009 • Environment
What is involved in creating a groundbreaking film that documents the latest paleoanthropological findings? This film will shed light on the talent, research, and scientific discoveries that made Out of the Cradle possible.
2/2 • Out of the Cradle • 2019 • History
What if there was a museum that contained every type of life form in the universe? This experience takes you on a tour through the possible forms alien life might take, from the eerily familiar to the utterly exotic, ranging from the inside of the Earth to the most hostile corners of the universe.
melodysheep • 2020 • Astronomy