Empire Is Untenable • 2024 • episode "S1E6" • Turning Point: The Bomb and the Cold War

46:16

The evacuation of allied troops from the beaches at Dunkirk was rightly celebrated as a great moment in British history. What very few people know, though, is that after Dunkirk tens of thousands of British troops were left in France, fighting for their lives. After the rest of the British army had gone home, the 51st Highland Division were ordered to fight on against the might of Adolf Hitler's war machine. Now, almost 80 years later, the only remaining survivors of that Division tell their extraordinary story for the first time - and probably the last. Using recently declassified secret documents, the full details of their fight for survival and why they were left to fight on in France can now be revealed. It's the story of a desperate battle in the face of overwhelming odds, a remarkable, courageous last stand and the doomed maverick rescue mission launched to save the men of the 51st.

2018 • History

58:34

In this episode, Ella Al-Shamahi explores the fate of the Neanderthals - asking why they became extinct, and discovering how they live on inside of us today. The programme starts in the caves of Gibraltar, which may have been the last place the Neanderthals survived. Discoveries here have shown the Neanderthals lived a good life - feasting on seafood and wild game. These were a people who were supremely well adapted to their environment. But about 40,000 years ago they disappeared. Why? One of the reasons might have been that they lost out in a physical showdown with modern humans. Ella investigates one of the world's oldest murder mysteries.

S1E2 • Neanderthals: Meet Your Ancestors • 2018 • History

45:55

Witness the 1950s when teens discovered rock 'n' roll, Elvis became a phenomenon, the Space Race took off, and war in Korea erupted.

S1E4 • America in Colour • 2017 • History

44:11

March 1953. Stalin is dead. Following many long hours of agony in his dacha, the Little Father of Peoples is now no more than an embalmed corpse. His potential successors eagerly flock to pay their respects. In East Berlin, a wave of hope swept through the German workers who rise up against the Party. This hope is swiftly crushed by Soviet tanks... In Asia, the hot conflicts are coming to an end. After the Panmunjom truce, the US ingloriously leaves Korea. The few remaining troops impatiently await a visit from Marilyn Monroe. In the meantime, in Indochina, another army prepares for a far less exciting event. The French hope to stop the Vietminh in Dien Bien Phu, a village surrounded by mountains 300 km from Hanoi... But the French generals do not suspect that at the same time, General Giap of Vietminh and his Chinese advisers, are developing a plan battle that will take the form of a trap: let the French forces settle in the basin of Dien Bien Phu, then surround and destroy them. The French army soon evacuated the country, terribly bruised and humiliated, but Ho Chi Minh only partially triumphed: during the Geneva negotiations, his Chinese and Soviet comrades disappointed his expectations, for fear of an escalation of the conflict. Ho Chi Minh got North Vietnam, but the South is still in Western hands. What will Ho Chi Minh do?

S1E4 • Apocalypse: War of Worlds 1945-1991 • 2019 • History

165:30

Michael Buerk looks at the transformation of the nation during the Victorian era, telling the surprising stories behind famous landmarks and the hidden heroes behind epic constructions. He begins by revealing how the Victorians created public transport and sewerage systems. Michael Buerk looks at how the Victorians created what is now known as the modern home, exploring the huge rise in house-building during the period. He travels to Fakenham, Norfolk, to visit the last remaining gasworks in England, and discovers how the Victorians mastered the art of producing `town gas" from coal. He also investigates how the kitchen was transformed with the advent of gas cookers, as more complex meals including the Sunday roast steadily became the norm across the nation.

2018 • History

59:26

Andrew Marr sets off on an epic journey through 70,000 years of human history. Using dramatic reconstructions, documentary filming around the world and cutting-edge computer graphics, he reveals the decisive moments that shaped the world we live in today, telling stories we thought we knew and others we were never told. (Part 1: Survival) Starting with our earliest beginnings in Africa, Marr traces the story of our nomadic ancestors as they spread out around the world and settled down to become the first farmers and townspeople. He uncovers extraordinary hand-prints left in European caves nearly 30,000 years ago and shows how human ingenuity led to inventions which are still with us today. He also discovers how the first civilisations were driven to extremes to try to overcome the forces of nature, adapting and surviving against the odds, and reveals how everyday life in ancient Egypt had more in common with today's soap operas than might be imagined.

S1E1 • Andrew Marr's History of the World • 2012 • History