Messengers In the last episode of Professor Brian Cox’s epic journey across the universe, he travels from the fossils of the Burgess Shale to the sands of the oldest desert in the world to show how light holds the key to our understanding of the whole universe, including our own deepest origins.To understand how light holds the key to the story of the universe, you first have to understand its p
Turning on The Lights The third programme in the series looks at the scientific titans of the 19th century, whose drive and ambitions created the railways, discovered electricity and devised one of the most explosive ideas ever: evolution. James Dyson looks at the life of Michael Faraday, the impoverished son of a blacksmith who became obsessed with electricity and gave us energy at the flick of
Superstars Of Speed Brilliant BBC documentary. Jeremy Clarkson finds out why it is that some people can go faster than others. He plays slaps with F1 champion Michael Schumacher, plays tennis against Greg Rusedski, and goes for a spin, literally! with one of Britain's top test pilots
Stardust In the second stop in his exploration of the wonders of the universe, Professor Brian Cox goes in search of humanity’s very essence to answer the biggest questions of all: what are we? And where do we come from? This film is the story of matter – the stuff of which we are all made.Brian reveals how our origins are entwined with the life cycle of the stars. But he begins his journey here
Out of Sight : The human eye is a remarkable piece of precision engineering, but it is also extremely limited. Beyond the narrow range of light that makes up the familiar colours of the rainbow is a vast spectrum of light, entirely unseen. But what if we could see beyond the narrow boundaries of our eyes and peer into this invisible realm? Richard Hammond does just that, using groundbreaking new i
A Roomful of Brilliant Minds This episode looks at the scientific spark that ignited the Industrial Revolution in Britain. James Dyson tells the story of how a young James Watt was inspired to perfect the steam engine that would change the world forever. Jim Al-Khalili explains how Joseph Priestley, a clergyman with a fascination for gases, discovered the very air we breathe and started a craze fo
The Thrill of Speed The central premise of Speed is an intriguing one, that human beings are the only species capable of exceeding the speed limit that nature intended. Clarkson sets out to explore both what compels us to pursue these limits--often at considerable risk to our own safety--and what effect the quest has on us. The result was an immensely engaging series, a few highlights of which ar
The First FiveSome of Britain’s great scientists and inventors have literally created the modern world, from the invention of the steam engine, computers and the world-wide web, to the discovery of the theory of evolution and the atom.The first programme begins 350 years ago when a small group of friends, colleagues and rivals defied everything that was known about the world at that time.Ste
Broadcast 9 February 1995, the final episode deals with plants that live in hostile environments. Attenborough visits Ellesmere Island, north of the Arctic Circle, to demonstrate that even in a place that is unconducive to life, it can be found. Algae and lichens grow in or on rock, and during summer, when the ice melts, flowers are much more apparent. However, they must remain close to the ground