Palace for the People • 2019

46:59

From battlefields and ancient swords to mighty castles and Durham cathedral, the rich, brutal story of William the Conqueror's journey from invader to ruler of England. Alice Roberts discovers who the Normans really were, tests a nearly thousand-year-old sword from William the Conqueror's time and wonders why there are so few women depicted in art from the time. Plus, Danielle George gets a brutal lesson in medieval 11th-century battlefield combat techniques, and Onyeka learns how William's coronation turned into a PR disaster.

S1E4 • Fortress Britain • 2022 • History

25:27

The Story of Aerial Photographic Reconnaissance The fascinating story with newly released footage on how flying high and fast, and often unarmed, aircraft brought back valuable intelligence on the enemy in both war and peace. Sometimes they did not return. We have come a long way since the first few silk-suited aerostiers of the French revolution ascended in tethered balloons to scan the battlefield through wobbly telescopes. In just 230 years, humanity has progressed from its first faltering flights to the capability to photograph from space an object the size of a grapefruit - a testament both to technological progress and our need to keep a close eye on the world around us. From the days of artillery-spotting balloons the extensive use of aerial reconnaissance began in the Great War and has continued throughout wartime and peacetime. Newly released footage shows the dangers that these planes faced flying high and fast in enemy territory. Many of these reconnaissance planes were unarmed with only their wits to guide them safely back home. Some however never returned.

18/20 • The True Action Adventures of the Twentieth Century • 1996 • History

52:42

The True Story of King Tut’s Treasure unravels the fascinating tale of the boy pharaoh Tutankhamun, whose lavish tomb lay hidden for over 3,000 years beneath the sands of Egypt’s Valley of the Kings. When British archaeologist Howard Carter uncovered the burial chamber in 1922, he revealed an astonishing collection of golden artifacts, intricate jewelry, and the legendary golden funerary mask. This discovery captivated the world, fueled myths about the “Curse of the Pharaohs,” and transformed our understanding of ancient Egyptian civilization.

2018 • History

21:52

Tools and machines have allowed us to overcome our physical limitations, and become the most successful species on Earth. But tools are also transforming what it means to be human.

5/12 • Mankind Decoded • 2013 • History

44:11

September 1950. On the banks at Incheon, 30 miles from Seoul, General MacArthur is victorious. The landing he planned, to rescue his men stuck in Pusan, was a success. But the war isn't over. In the North, the Americans will have to face an unexpected enemy. On the other side of the frozen Yalu river, Mao, covert as always, has stationed 300,000 of his men. On Thanksgiving Day, the Chinese and North Koreans attack the US army, whose only choice is to fall back. Faced with his army's defeat and Chinese intervention, Truman considers the atomic bomb... Further south, in Indochina, the French are also suffering setbacks. An ambush set by the Vietminh on the road Route Coloniale 4 annihilates them. To relieve the situation, the French government sent as a last resort one of its most famous generals: Jean de Lattre de Tassigny. French win a victory in Vinh Yen , but suffer heavy losses too. The parallel between Korea and Indochina is striking: the same hidden operators, frightened civilians, bomb blasted regions, columns of emaciated prisoners... For De Lattre, it is indeed one and the same war: the war for freedom, against communism. And the real enemy is Stalin, who sends North Koreans weapons and MIG-15 planes, and struts in front of his people with a super bomber capable of carrying his brand new atomic bomb. Will Stalin conquer the world?

S1E3 • Apocalypse: War of Worlds 1945-1991 • 2019 • History

50:34

About 8,000 BC, in a few select places some people begin to experiment with a new way of harvesting energy. They’re growing their own crops. An act so simple, it’s hard to believe it will kick start a revolution. But it will. These are the first seeds, literally, of the rise of civilization.

S1E1 • Deep Time History • 2016 • History