Discover how restoring your natural "primal posture" can help reduce back pain, neck pain, and other common musculoskeletal problems
Hannah takes a drive to the National Highways control centre for the UK’s busiest motorway to meet the team that keep the motorways running 24/7.
S3E5 • The Secret Genius of Modern Life • 2025 • Technology
The rise of the smart doorbell is one of the great tech success stories of the 21st century. Hannah heads to Los Angeles to take a deep dive into doorbell history and talk to market leaders Ring.
S3E4 • The Secret Genius of Modern Life • 2025 • Technology
Hannah uncovers the wild origins of the modern-day rollercoaster and gets the inside story on the UK’s newest, tallest and fastest coaster – Thorpe Park's Hyperia.
S3E3 • The Secret Genius of Modern Life • 2025 • Technology
Hannah hits the production line with appliance giants Bosch to find the lifeblood at the heart of every fridge and gets a lesson in carrot droop.
S3E2 • The Secret Genius of Modern Life • 2025 • Technology
Hannah takes a look at the air fryer – a device that is rapidly taking over people's kitchens, cooking up everything from bread rolls to baked Alaska and almost making ovens obsolete.
S3E1 • The Secret Genius of Modern Life • 2025 • Technology
Hannah goes behind the scenes to look at the technology behind the lift, entering a 246m high lift shaft to test everything from the brakes to her own fear of heights.
S2E6 • The Secret Genius of Modern Life • 2023 • Technology
Headphones: these marvels of miniaturisation are worn by 30 million people in the UK. Hannah Fry visits Bose to find out how the teeny earbud tech works and meets the human testers with ‘golden ears’.
S2E5 • The Secret Genius of Modern Life • 2023 • Technology
Hannah Fry discovers the hidden WWII radar technology that heats up baked beans, learns the legend of the melted candy bar in an engineer’s pocket that kick-started a kitchen revolution and puts her life on the line to demonstrate why microwaves zap food but not people!
S2E4 • The Secret Genius of Modern Life • 2023 • Technology
With rare access to electronics giant Samsung, Hannah uncovers the technological game changers that have made the smartphone a reality.
S2E3 • The Secret Genius of Modern Life • 2023 • Technology
Hannah takes a look at the vacuum cleaner, going behind the scenes with Dyson and discovering how the motor in their latest vacuum spins nine times faster than that of a Formula One race car.
S2E2 • The Secret Genius of Modern Life • 2023 • Technology
Hannah gains access to a top-secret site where anonymous staff and the latest tech work to make the British passport one of the most secure documents on the planet.
S2E1 • The Secret Genius of Modern Life • 2023 • Technology
In a series about scientists with brilliant minds, James Lovelock explains how his maverick way of thinking led him not only to technical breakthroughs in atmospheric detection systems on Earth and Mars, but also to Gaia - a new way of thinking about the Earth as a holistic, self-regulating system. He tells of his struggle against the scientific consensus of the day, the ridicule of his peers and his belief that the mainstream scientific establishment stifles intellectual creativity.
S1E2 • Beautiful Minds • 2010 • People
Sprawling moss, towering trees, flying insects, limbed amphibians: Early species vied for domination as the land went from hostile to hospitable.
S1E3 • Life on Our Planet • 2023 • Nature
Once life arrived in the Galapagos, it exploded into unique and spectacular forms. David Attenborough investigates the driving forces behind such evolutionary innovations. We learn that life must be able to adapt quickly in these ever-changing volcanic landscapes. It has resulted in species found nowhere else in the world, such as giant whale sharks and marine iguanas that can spit sea-salt from their noses, dandelion seeds that grow into tree-sized plants and spiders that can blend perfectly into the darkness. Adaptation has been the key to survival in these islands so far, but the story of life in the Galapagos doesn’t end here. The catalyst that triggers these explosions of life remains in place.
S1E2 • Galapagos with David Attenborough • 2010 • Nature
Rome brings its enemies inside its borders as the age of Empire begins; Spartacus leads a slave uprising that threatens Rome on its own turf; Arminius, Germania's native son raised as a Roman, must choose a side in the fight for freedom.
Part 2 • Barbarians Rising • 2016 • History
Insects are very good at making more insects, but it's not easy. Insects are tiny creatures living in a big world. Partners must find each other to mate and the next generation must survive in a huge dangerous world.
S1E2 • Planet Insect • 2022 • Nature
Since the first star lit up the universe, they have been engines of creation. Professor Brian Cox reveals how, ultimately, stars brought life and meaning to the universe.
S1E1 • Universe BBC • 2021 • Astronomy
From its extraction through sale, use and disposal, all the stuff in our lives affects communities at home and abroad, yet most of this is hidden from view. The Story of Stuff is a 20-minute, fast-paced, fact-filled look at the underside of our production and consumption patterns. The Story of Stuff exposes the connections between a huge number of environmental and social issues, and calls us together to create a more sustainable and just world. It'll teach you something, it'll make you laugh, and it just may change the way you look at all the stuff in your life forever. http://storyofstuff.org
2009 • Economics
As the build-up to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar nears its climax, this documentary investigates the human cost that the host nation has put into it. Allegations of foreign labour abuse and unexplained deaths have dogged the organisers of the massive construction projects necessary for the event - at the same time, Qatar has also been accused of putting LGBT football fans and players at risk.
2022 • Economics
‘Economics is for everyone’, argues legendary economist Ha-Joon Chang in our latest mind-blowing RSA Animate. This is the video economists don’t want you to see! Chang explains why every single person can and SHOULD get their head around basic economics. He pulls back the curtain on the often mystifying language of derivatives and quantitative easing, and explains how easily economic myths and assumptions become gospel. Arm yourself with some facts, and get involved in discussions about the fundamentals that underpin our day-to-day lives.
Information Tensions in the world's largest democracy. India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been dogged by accusations over his attitude to the nation's Muslim minority. What's the truth? Chapter 1: Focuses on Indian PM Narendra Modi and the persistent allegations about his attitude towards India's Muslim population that have plagued his premiership. Investigates the truth behind these allegations and explores Modi's backstory and also examines claims about his role in 2002 riots that left over a thousand dead. Chapter 2: Focuses on his government's track record following his re-election in 2019. A series of controversial policies has been accompanied by reports of violent attacks on Muslims by Hindus. Modi and his government reject any suggestion that their policies reflect any prejudice towards Muslims - but these policies have been repeatedly criticised by human rights organisations such as Amnesty International.
2023 • Economics
The global economy is in crisis. The exponential exhaustion of natural resources, declining productivity, slow growth, rising unemployment, and steep inequality, forces us to rethink our economic models. Where do we go from here? In this feature-length documentary, social and economic theorist Jeremy Rifkin lays out a road map to usher in a new economic system. A Third Industrial Revolution is unfolding with the convergence of three pivotal technologies: an ultra-fast 5G communication internet, a renewable energy internet, and a driverless mobility internet, all connected to the Internet of Things embedded across society and the environment. This 21st century smart digital infrastructure is giving rise to a radical new sharing economy that is transforming the way we manage, power and move economic life.
2017 • Economics
Behind the scenes with the team who look after all 843 acres of Central Park, revealing the hidden systems and organisational miracles that keep the world's busiest urban park clean and green. Plus, Ant Anstead sees how an entirely new district is being built on top of a functioning rail depot in Manhattan and Dan Snow is in Coney Island, where he discovers that television, air conditioning and extreme weather almost killed off this historic amusement zone.
Part 3 • New York: America's Busiest City • 2016 • Economics
Charlie visits Romania's capital of Bucharest and its massive Palace of Parliament, then learns how to make a clay oven and dines at a unique resort.
S2E4 • Flavours of Romania • 2023 • Travel
This leg takes Ade across central Africa, from the coast of Gabon, through the giant Democratic Republic of Congo, and on to Uganda. He starts off the coast of Gabon looking for humpback whales. It is one of Africa's best spots for seeing them, thanks to Gabon's vast marine sanctuaries. The country is an eco-paradise, not just in the water, but on land as well where 80% of it is forested. But the country has recently introduced one of the most destructive agri-businesses in the tropics - palm oil farming. Ade discovers how Gabon hopes to do it sustainably. The country has impressive environmental credentials, but on a tour of its divided capital Ade hears that some people are skeptical. One critic suggests it is a way for the country's autocratic ruler Ali Bongo Ondimba to curry favour with the international community. Next up is perhaps the most chaotic and corrupt country in Africa, the Democratic Republic of Congo. Ade discovers first-hand how everyone from the traffic police to the country's top politicians are on the take. He also spends time with some of Kinshasa's musicians and ‘sapeurs' – people who get kitted out in the finest haute couture in one of the poorest countries on the planet. In DRC's far east, he finds out what lies at the heart of the country's problems: a never-ending conflict amongst local militia, fuelled by foreign countries who want to get their hands on the DRC's vast resources. After going on a tank patrol with the UN, he meets Kibomango, a champion boxer who is helping to rehabilitate some of the country's 30,000 child soldiers. Travelling into one of the most famous national parks in the world, Virunga, Ade discovers that few areas of the country have been left unscarred by the violence. And the impact on the wildlife has been extreme, as Ade encounters some of the world's few remaining mountain gorillas. His final stop on this trip is Uganda where he meets Bobi Wine, one of Africa's most outspoken political campaigners. Bobi was recently arrested and beaten, and his driver killed, after his protests drew the attention of long-serving autocratic ruler Yoweri Museveni. Ade meets a defiant man who will not give up, no matter what threats are made on his life. He is part of a new generation of Africans who are fighting to take back control from the post-colonial leaders who have done so much to wreck the continent.
S1E2 • Africa with Ade Adepitan • 2019 • Travel
Mumbai is a city of contrasts. Here, the super-rich and slum dwellers live side by side. As more and more luxury skyscrapers go up, slums are forced to make way for them. Conflicts ensue. So what is life like, in a megacity with 20 million inhabitants?
2022 • Travel
Beginning in Afghanistan, he will push himself to his physical limits as he treks 1,700 miles across the roof of the world, teaming up with local guides and meeting soldiers, monks and nomadic tribes. As well as battling natural obstacles, from punishing terrain to altitudes above 5,000m, Levison has to tread carefully through one of the most fought-over areas of the world.
S1E1 • Walking the Himalayas with Levison Wood • 2016 • Travel
Levison and Alberto explore an uncharted vampire bat-infested cave, visit the Panama Canal and modern Panama City, meet indigenous tribes-people and tackle the world's most dangerous stretch of jungle.
S1E4 • Walking the Americas with Levison Wood • 2017 • Travel
As autumn begins, Charlie visits an authority on Maramure? history and culture, feasts on a traditionally-prepared lamb and forages for mushrooms.
S2E8 • Flavours of Romania • 2023 • Travel
From stunning heights, witness the mountains, rivers, and people that make up China's great interior. Visit celebrations at the center of the Buddhist world and on the edges of river cities, soar over the world's most famous peak 29,000 feet in the air, and dive into an ancient city submerged under a lake. China's heartland is a place where urban and rural communities embrace the challenges of a changing 21st century world.
S1E4 • China from Above • 2018 • Travel
Francois Duvalier trained as a medical doctor, but his healing touch was lost as he became the ruthless dictator "Papa Doc". The tools of his tyranny were violence and Voodoo. He killed 30,000 people, and kept a nation in fear of his mystical powers.
10/10 • Evolution of Evil • 2015 • History
It's hard to get to space.But there is a concept that might make it possible: the space elevator. How exactly does it work.
In a Nutshell • 2016 • Astronomy
Wildlife series. Steve Backshall descends into the crater of a giant extinct volcano in New Guinea which biologists have long believed could be home to spectacular new creatures.
S1E3 • Lost Land of the Volcano • 2009 • Nature
In the autumn of 2007, Matthew Lee, a worried accounting executive at Lehman Brothers, began to notice serious financial irregularities in the company's practices. When he refused to approve tens of billions of dollars' worth of suspicious transactions, he was fired. Six months later, Lehman Brothers sank with 631 billion dollars of debt. Lee, who has since emerged as a crucial figure in Lehman's downfall, and other whistleblowers recount their personal stories of fraud and deception that went right to the top of the bank. Ultimately, they paid the price for trying to expose the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis.
Storyville • 2019 • Economics
Imagine you could make a copy of a loved one. A digital clone with a life of its own – their Avatar. That’s the dream of biomechanical engineer, Dr Jordan Nguyen, and he says we have the technology to do it right now in the form of Virtual Reality.
S1E1 • Catalyst: Series 18 • 2017 • Technology