The Origins of the Celts • 2015 • episode "S1E1" • The Celts: Blood, Iron, and Sacrifice

59:10

Simon explores Spain's golden age under Philip II through to the Spanish Civil War and dictatorship under Franco, from which Spain has emerged as a modern democratic monarchy.

S1E3 • Blood and Gold: The Making of Spain • 2015 • History

104:23

A suspenseful, immersive look at the lengths to which people will go to gain freedom. The film follows various individuals as they attempt to flee North Korea, one of the most oppressive places on earth and a land they grew up believing was a paradise. At the film's core are a mother desperate to reunite with the child she was forced to leave behind; a family of five - including small children and an elderly grandmother - embarking on a treacherous journey across the Yalu River and into the hostile mountains of China; and a South Korean Christian pastor on a mission to help them. Leaving their homeland is fraught with danger - severe punishment if caught and possibly even execution - as well as potential exploitation by unscrupulous brokers. Family members who remain behind may also face retribution. Yet these individuals are driven to take the risk. Gripping, visceral and urgent, Madeleine Gavin's film embeds the viewer with these family members as they attempt their perilous escape, palpably conveying life-or-death stakes.

2024 • History

51:59

We count down from 49 to 34 events that include a Treaty in Versailles aimed at bringing peace to the world, the Watergate political scandal, the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the assassination of John Lennon.

S1E5 • 101 Events that Made the 20th Century • 2018 • History

51:31

From the 15th to well into the 20th century, Europeans conquered and dominated the world. On behalf of Spain, Christopher Columbus sought a new sea route to India and instead found a "New World". His discovery was the starting signal for the "Europeanization of the Earth".

S1E3 • The Story of Europe • 2018 • History

58:45

Historian Michael Scott begins his journey through Sicily on the slopes of Mount Etna, Europe's largest active volcano. For the ancient Greeks, the island was a land of gods and monsters - a dangerous and unpredictable world. Michael discovers how 3,000 years ago, the Greeks began to settle on Sicily's east coast - planting their olives and vines and building great city states that soon came to rival even Athens itself. He learns how great battles were fought between the Greeks and the Carthaginians for control of the island. How the Romans made it their first foreign colony and stripped Sicily of its forests to plant vast fields of grain.

S1E1 • Sicily: The Wonder of the Mediterranean • 2017 • History

64:41

As communism takes off in Russia and China, Joseph Stalin begins his ruthless reign and the Soviet Union enters an era of terror.

S1E2 • Turning Point: The Bomb and the Cold War • 2024 • History