We offer the complete second series of “Ancient Apocalypse” in a single video. In this series, journalist Graham Hancock travels to the Americas to search for evidence supporting his hypothesis: that an advanced civilization was lost to history during the cataclysms that marked the apocalyptic end of the last Ice Age, between 12,800 and 11,600 years ago. Each episode investigates new discoveries being made in the American hemisphere, which until recently has been largely under-explored by archaeologists interested in humanity’s origins. Graham reveals new findings and speculates about how those findings might suggest the existence of a globe-traveling advanced civilization that left traces of itself in ancient cultures. In episode one, evidence from New Mexico’s White Sands desert confirms the presence of people in the Americas long before it was possible to migrate across the Bering Straits that formed a land bridge during the lowered sea-levels of the Ice Age. The series takes us to multiple locations in the US, Mexico, Brazil, Peru and Easter Island to investigate when people first arrived in the “New World” and how they made the journey. The findings give Graham reason to question the accepted timeline of human history. During his journey, Graham interviews highly regarded archaeologists and historians as well as indigenous elders, who share their unique knowledge of the sites and their oral histories. Hollywood actor, Keanu Reeves, also joins Graham across the series, discussing, among other things, his insights into storytelling as an act of preserving culture. Experts in the series include American archaeologist Dr. Chris Davis, Brazilian palaeontologist Dr. Alceu Ranzi, and archaeo-botanist Dr. Sonia Cardinali of Rapa Nui, Easter Island, among others.
Explore the intriguing world of M.C. Escher in this captivating documentary, which delves deep into his life and artistic journey through his own words. Narrated with excerpts from his writings, the film is visually enriched with archival footage of Escher himself and showcases his iconic drawings. Gain unique insights from interviews with his surviving family members who illuminate aspects of his personal and professional life. Escher, who often described his work as straddling the realms of art and mathematics, admitted to not excelling in either yet found profound expression in geometry-infused art. Choosing to work in stark black and white, he embraced the challenge of conveying complex ideas without the use of color. The film explores pivotal phases in his career, including his mesmerizing explorations of the human eye and his ultimate obsession with the concept of infinity—depicted in real forms like circles and through visual illusions such as his famous never-ending staircase. The documentary also features perspectives from admirers such as musician Graham Nash, who argues that Escher's genius remains underappreciated. This film promises not only to shed light on Escher’s innovative work but also to inspire a deeper appreciation for his unique blend of visual storytelling and mathematical precision.
After 400 BC, a new philosophy was born in South east Asia, generated from the ideas of Buddha, a mysterious Prince from India who gained enlightenment while he sat under a large, shapely fig tree. He remains one of the most legendary and influential of all religious progenitors, but what of his actual life? In this biographical documentary, director David Grubin tells the historical tale of Gautama Buddha (563-483 BC), from his initial enlightenment through his death around the age of 80. In the process, Grubin makes an unusual point: that Gautama never once claimed to be God or God's emissary, but instead sought to find a way to bring peace and alleviation from suffering to others in a cruel and often insane world. In telling this story, Grubin combines a number of elements including original animations, testimony by contemporary Buddhists such as the 14th Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyatso, glimpses of sculptures and paintings that help tell Gautama's story, and much more. Narrated by Richard Gere
The years 1825-1918 were bloody and traumatic, a period when four tsars tried - and failed - to deal with the growing pressure for constitutional reform and revolution. In 1861, millions of enslaved serfs were freed by the Tsar-Liberator, Alexander II. But Alexander paid the ultimate penalty for opening the Pandora's box of reform when he was later blown up by terrorists on the streets of St Petersburg. Elsewhere, there was repression, denial, war and - in the case of the last tsar, Nicholas II - a fatalistic belief in the power of God, with Nicholas's faith in the notorious holy man Rasputin being a major part in his undoing. Lucy Worsley also details the chilling murder of Nicholas and his family in 1918, and asks whether all of this horror have been avoided.
Intrepid adventurer Michael Palin travels through Pakistan's North-West Frontier Province, starting on the Khyber Pass and ending five miles from K2 on the Pakistan/China border. He passes through Darra, visits a street dentist in Peshawar, goes bull racing with a Pakistani aristocrat and is almost trampled to death, and finally crosses over the Lowari Pass into the buffer state of Chitral.
Whales have long been a profound mystery to us. They live in a world so removed from our own that we can barely imagine their lives. Their environment is different, their senses are different, their relationships are different. How might such almost alien creatures see the world?, Narrated by David Attenborough.
In episode one, evidence from New Mexico’s White Sands desert confirms the presence of people in the Americas long before it was possible to migrate across the Bering Straits that formed a land bridge during the lowered sea-levels of the Ice Age. The series takes us to multiple locations in the US, Mexico, Brazil, Peru and Easter Island to investigate when people first arrived in the “New World” and how they made the journey. The findings give Graham reason to question the accepted timeline of human history. During his journey, Graham interviews highly regarded archaeologists and historians as well as indigenous elders, who share their unique knowledge of the sites and their oral histories. Hollywood actor, Keanu Reeves, also joins Graham across the series, discussing, among other things, his insights into storytelling as an act of preserving culture. Experts in the series include American archaeologist Dr. Chris Davis, Brazilian palaeontologist Dr. Alceu Ranzi, and archaeo-botanist Dr. Sonia Cardinali of Rapa Nui, Easter Island, among others.