Show Documentary
Timewatch is a long-running British television series showing documentaries on historical subjects, spanning all human history. It was first broadcast on 29 September 1982 and is produced by the BBC, the Timewatch brandname is used as a banner title in the UK, but many of the individual documentaries can be found on US cable channels without the branding.
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Victoria Cross: For Valour
A 2003 BBC television historical documentary presented by Jeremy Clarkson who examines the history of the Victoria Cross, and follows the story of one of the 1,358 men who were awarded it: Major Robert Henry Cain.
Bones of the Buddha
Bones of the Buddha is a 2013 television documentary produced by Icon Films and commissioned by WNET/THIRTEEN and ARTE France for the National Geographic Channels. It concerns a controversial Buddhist reliquary from the Piprahwa Stupa in Uttar Pradesh, India. It was released in May, 2013, and was broadcast in July 2013 in the US on PBS as part of the Secrets of the Dead series.
Life on Air: David Attenborough's 50 Years in Television
Life on Air: David Attenborough's 50 Years in Television is a BBC documentary film that recounts David Attenborough's television career. It is presented by Michael Palin and produced by Brian Leith. The BBC first transmitted the documentary in 2002 and is part of the Attenborough in Paradise and Other Personal Voyages collection of 7 documentaries. It includes interviews with Attenborough and several of his former colleagues, along with archival footage.
9/11: Voices From the Air
Recall 9/11 via radio transmissions between the cockpit and the control tower, and through cellphone calls between passengers and their loved ones.
The Human Behavior Experiments
Most people never have to face the fact that at the right time and right place, they're capable of anything," says John Huston's character, Noah Cross, in the movie Chinatown -- dialogue that seems especially apt watching this engrossing docu collaboration to be simulcast by Sundance Channel and Court TV. Following up on their "First Amendment Project," the cable nets tap filmmaker Alex Gibney (Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room) to craft this thought-provoking examination of three controversial psychological studies whose chilling results still resonate today.
First Invasion: The War of 1812
First Invasion: The War of 1812, a History Channel documentary that first aired in 2004, portrays a young United States of America "on the brink of annihilation" as it battles the largest and most powerful empire on earth. Critics say the documentary is far too pro-American, and that it ignores or downplays crucial elements of the War of 1812. Others praise First Invasion for its compelling presentation of a far too neglected period of history.
Zoo Quest in Colour
Thanks to a remarkable discovery in the BBC's film vaults, the best of David Attenborough's early Zoo Quest adventures can now be seen as never before - in colour - and with it the remarkable story of how this pioneering television series was made. First broadcast in December 1954, Zoo Quest was one of the most popular television series of its time and launched the career of the young David Attenborough as a wildlife presenter. Zoo Quest completely changed how viewers saw the world - revealing wildlife and tribal communities that had never been filmed or even seen before. Broadcast 10 years before colour television was seen in the UK, Zoo Quest was thought to have been filmed in black and white, until now. Using this extraordinary new-found colour film, together with new behind-the-scenes stories from David Attenborough and cameraman Charles Lagus, this special showcases the very best of Zoo Quest to West Africa, Zoo Quest to Guiana and Zoo Quest for a Dragon in stunning HD colour.
Directed by Alan Smithee
This documentary on the elusive director Alan Smithee was first shown on the American Movie Classics (AMC) cable channel. We learn where the name came from and why the Directors Guild of America (DGA) first allowed his name to be used on Richard Widmark's western Death of a Gunfighter. The film follows the numerous problems that director Tony Kaye had during the production and post-production of the film American History X and why the DGA refused to allow Alan Smithee to be credited for that film.
Television's Opening Night: How the Box Was Born
TV presenter Dallas Campbell, engineer Professor Danielle George and engineer Dr Hugh Hunt re-create the opening of the BBC's television service on 2 November 1936. This involves building the mechanical flying-spot cameras that were used by Baird's system.
Hidden Values: The Movies of the Fifties
This documentary was broadcast on the Turner Classic Movies (TCM) cable channel to kick off the presentation of films related to TCM's theme of the month for September 2001. Actors Lee Grant and Paul Mazursky, producer Roger Corman, director John Carpenter, film critic Molly Haskell, and journalist Peter Biskind discuss the issues involved in six films of the 1950s. Topics include teenage loneliness, youth rebellion, changing gender roles, and the beginning of the sexual revolution.
The Rejected
The Rejected is a made-for-television documentary film about homosexuality, the first of its kind to be broadcast on American television. It was first shown on KQED on September 11, 1961, and was later syndicated to National Educational Television (NET) stations across the United States, receiving positive critical reviews.
9/11: The Heartland Tapes
Across America, the morning of September 11, 2001 began routinely, with news and radio broadcasts sharing local human interest stories and traffic reports. But by 9 a.m., the day's narrative had taken a tragic turn. Most of us are familiar with the national news coverage of 9/11, but the local reporting from TV and radio affiliates across the nation was no less important and no less compelling. This is an account of the tragedy as it unfolded, and as it aired in American cities large and small, told without narration or interviews.
The Siege of Fort William Henry
1757 Three years into the French and Indian War, Fort William Henry was under siege. The French army, along with 1,800 Indian allies, bombarded the fort over six long days. The British subjects in the fort held out for as long as they could…and would ultimately suffer a fate worse than surrender. Using historic journals from men on both sides of the conflict, this documentary recounts the events. Through filmed reenactments and animations, the story of the siege and surrounding events come to life.
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20/20
20/20 is an American television newsmagazine that has been broadcast on ABC since June 6, 1978. Created by ABC News executive Roone Arledge, the show was designed similarly to CBS's 60 Minutes but focuses more on human interest stories than international and political subjects. The program's name derives from the "20/20" measurement of visual acuity. The hour-long program has been a staple on Friday evenings for much of the time since it moved to that timeslot from Thursdays in September 1987, though special editions of the program occasionally air on other nights.
Mobsters
Mobsters is an American documentary television series that profiles the lives of infamous individuals in history; the series puts the spotlight on some of history's most infamous gangsters and all that went on during their reigns. The series airs on The Biography Channel. Some episodes of Mobsters are rehashes of the similar TV Series American Justice as well as Notorious (TV series), both series that were originally broadcast on Biography Channel's sister channel, A&E Network; some episodes also rehash segments from another A&E series American Gangster, which began airing on the Black Entertainment Television channel. The only differences are the intro of the episodes and the lead-in's after commercials. Besides this, the rehashed episodes are no different in any way.
MysteryQuest
MysteryQuest is an American Paranormal television series that premiered on September 16, 2009 on the History channel. Produced by KPI Productions, the program is a spin-off of MonsterQuest. The tagline of the show is: "What if everything you believe is wrong?"
Omnibus
Omnibus was an arts-based BBC television documentary series, broadcast mainly on BBC1 in the United Kingdom. The programme was the successor to the long-running arts-based series 'Monitor'. It ran from 1967 until 2003, usually being transmitted on Sunday evenings. During its 35-year history, the programme won 12 Bafta awards. Among the series' best remembered documentaries are Cracked Actor, a profile of David Bowie, and Rene Magritte, a graduate film by David Wheatley, 'Madonna: Behind the American dream', a film produced by Nadia Hagger, and a profile of the British film director Ridley Scott. For a season in 1982, the series was in a magazine format presented by Barry Norman. The series was replaced by 'Imagine' hosted by Alan Yentob.
Arena
Arena is a British television documentary series, made and broadcast by the BBC. Voted by leading TV executives in Broadcast as one of the top 50 most influential programmes of all time, it has run since 1 October 1975 with over five hundred episodes made, directed by the likes of Martin Scorsese, Alan Yentob, Roly Keating, Frederick Baker, Volker Schlondorff and Vikram Jayanti. Arena's subjects are a roll-call of the world's best known cultural figures from the 20th and 21st centuries, from singers Bob Dylan and Amy Winehouse to academics Edward Said and Eric Hobsbawm, from writers Jean Genet and V S Naipaul to artists Francis Bacon and Louise Bourgeois. The current series editor is Anthony Wall.
Seven Wonders of the Industrial World
Seven Wonders of the Industrial World is a 7-part British documentary/docudrama television miniseries that originally aired from 4 September 2003 to 16 October 2003 on BBC. The programme examines seven engineering feats that occurred during the Industrial Revolution.
Battlefield Detectives
Battlefield Detectives is a forensic documentary television series that aired on the History Channel from 2003 to 2006. The series explores famous battles focusing on the battlefield itself, and tell its story based on recent scientific research. It uses modern science to examine how the battles were won or lost. According to History Television, "This series approaches the perennially interesting topic of famous battles in a fresh and exhilarating way. Focusing on the battlefield itself, each programme takes an important battle telling its story and posing a puzzling central question about the battle that recent scientific research is helping to illuminate - a contemporary journey of discovery and a compelling story from the past."
Heroes and Villains
Heroes and Villains was a 2007-2008 BBC Television docudrama series looking at key moments in the lives and reputations of some of the greatest warriors of history. Each hour long episode featured a different historical figure, including Napoleon I of France, Attila the Hun, Spartacus, Hernán Cortés, Richard I of England, and Tokugawa Ieyasu. The statements at the beginning of each episode read: "This film depicts real events and real characters. It is based on the accounts of writers of the time. It has been written with the advice of modern historians." In the United States the show is aired on The Military Channel and was called "Warriors".
Secret History
Secret History was a long-running British television documentary series. Shown on Channel 4, the Secret History brandname was used as a banner title in the UK, but many of the individual documentaries can still be found on US cable channels without the branding. It can be seen as Channel 4's answer to the BBC's Timewatch.
Edwardian Farm
Edwardian Farm is an historical documentary TV series in twelve parts, first shown on BBC Two from November 2010 to January 2011. It depicts a group of historians trying to run a farm like it was done during the Edwardian era. It was made for the BBC by independent production company Lion Television and filmed at Morwellham Quay, an historic quay in Devon. The farming team was historian Ruth Goodman and archaeologists Alex Langlands and Peter Ginn. The series was devised and produced by David Upshal and directed by Stuart Elliott. The series is a development from two previous series Victorian Farm and Victorian Pharmacy which were among BBC Two's biggest hits of 2009 and 2010, garnering audiences of up to 3.8 million per episode. The series was followed by Wartime Farm in September 2012, featuring the same team but this time in Hampshire on Manor Farm, living a full calendar year as wartime farmers. An associated book by Goodman, Langlands, and Ginn, also titled Edwardian Farm, was published in 2010 by BBC Books. The series was also published on DVD, available in various regional formats.
Conspiracy?
Conspiracy? is a documentary television series that was created and originally aired on The History Channel that examines recent historical events from the perspective of conspiracy theory. Premiering in 2004 and hosted by Tom Kane, notable episodes have examined the President John F. Kennedy assassination, the Senator Robert F. Kennedy assassination, the conspiracy theory that President Franklin Roosevelt had knowledge of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor before December 7, 1941, and theories about government agencies covering up UFO reports.
Gigglebiz
Gigglebiz is a children's television programme made in the UK. There have been two series, first broadcast on CBeebies, the BBC's younger children's channel, in 2009 and 2011. The programme's star and creator is Justin Fletcher, who plays the chief characters in all the comic sketches. Some sketches are filmed in the studio; one regular external location is Portmeirion, used for the town of Wiggyville where the Captain Adorable sketches are set. The sketches are interspersed with 'Giggle Box' - film segments of children viewers telling Justin jokes. The first series was broadcast in September 2009 and comprised 25 15-minute episodes. The second series of 15 episodes was shown in January 2011. The new series saw some characters disappear to make way for new ones.
Two Greedy Italians
Two Greedy Italians is a BBC television series that first aired on BBC Two in the UK on May 4, 2011. The series sees the chefs Gennaro Contaldo and Antonio Carluccio travelling around Italy to see how society and food has evolved over the years. It was produced by Nicola Gooch. An accompanying cookery book was produced for the series. A second series was broadcast in April and May 2012. The series has also been sold and broadcast internationally, including on the Australian channels ABC and SBS, and the Swedish broadcaster SVT.
Andrew Marr's History of the World
Andrew Marr's History of the World is a 2012 BBC documentary television series presented by Andrew Marr that covers 70,000 years of world history from the beginning of human civilisation, as African nomadic peoples spread out around the world and settled down to become the first farmers, up to the twentieth century.
A Timewatch Guide
Series looking at how the BBC has revealed and interpreted monumental moments in our history. Using the BBC archive, the programmes examine changes in research covered in documentary television.
Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession
A documentary on the Z Channel, one of the first pay cable stations in the US, and its programming chief, Jerry Harvey. Debuting in 1974, the LA-based channel's eclectic slate of movies became a prime example of the untapped power of cable television.