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.
Stephen Hawking and Jim Al-Khalili explain how Isaac Newton saw mathematics at the root of everything, from gravity to light.
James Dyson demonstrates Robert Boyle's air pump, which revealed the life-giving invisible world around us, whose laws could be understood through experiment and reason.
David Attenborough celebrates the many interests of Christopher Wren, who was best known as an architect, but was equally fascinated by surgery and astronomy.
Richard Dawkins explores Robert Hooke's revelatory microscopic world, and champions the virtues of a scientist whose name was almost wiped from the history books by men who despised him: most notably his arch-rival Newton.
And Kathy Sykes charts Edmond Halley's exploration of the stars, which helped Britain's sailors to rule the waves.
SERIES:
-
-
Series 1 Episode 1
The first programme begins 350 years ago when a small group of friends, colleagues and rivals defied everything that…
- This episode has subtitles available.
- 6 days left
-
Series 1 Episode 2
This episode looks at the scientific spark that ignited the Industrial Revolution in Britain.
- This episode has subtitles available.
- 6 days left
-
Series 1 Episode 3
This episode looks at the scientific titans of the 19th century, whose drive and ambitions created the railways…
- This episode has subtitles available.
- 6 days left
-
Series 1 Episode 4
This episode examines how war can bring with it innovation as well as horror.
- This episode has subtitles available.
- 6 days left
-
Series 1 Episode 5
The final programme in the series looks at the incredible discoveries of the last 50 years and reveals where some of…
- This episode has subtitles available.
- 6 days left
-
MORE:
-
Brave New World with Stephen Hawking
5 Episodes
Favourite ShowProfessor Stephen Hawking examines how science is striving for humankind's next leap forward
-
Hippo: Nature's Wild Feast
1 Episode
Favourite ShowA high-tech illustration of nature's food chain in action as an entire ecological system, including predators, scavengers, birds and insects, consumes the carcass of an adult hippo
-
The Space Shuttle's Last Flight
1 Episode
Favourite ShowAs Atlantis completes its 135th and final mission, this definitive documentary charts the legacy and tragedies of the most ambitious space programme ever undertaken - the space shuttle
-
Disasters at Sea: Why Ships Sink
1 Episode
Favourite ShowA hundred years after the Titanic disaster, the sinking of the Costa Concordia provided a reminder of the dangers of the sea. This film examines how maritime disasters can be prevented.
-
Is Our Weather Getting Worse?
1 Episode
Favourite ShowDroughts, violent storms and floods - has 2012 been a freak year or should we prepare for more extreme weather?
-
What Destroyed the Hindenburg?
1 Episode
Favourite ShowNo one knows why the Hindenburg airship crashed in 1937. Now, a team of experts build three scale models to put the leading theories to the test.
-
How the Bismarck Sank HMS Hood
1 Episode
Favourite ShowTwo of the world's leading shipwreck detectives use state-of-the-art equipment to discover how the Hood battleship was sunk so quickly during World War II
-
The Year the Earth Went Wild
1 Episode
Favourite Show2011 has been a year of epic-scale climate and geological events across the world. This film looks back on a year of natural disasters, all caught on camera in spectacular fashion.
-
The World's Weirdest Weather
2 Episodes
Favourite ShowTV weatherman Alex Beresford explores the mysteries behind some of the world's most bizarre weather
-
Fat Plague
1 Episode
Favourite ShowWhat if you could catch obesity as easily as you catch a common cold? Dr Nikhil Dhurandhar believes that he's found a virus, ad-36, that could be infecting over 30% of Americans.
-
Edge of the Universe
3 Episodes
Favourite ShowIn this three-part series the world's leading astronomers and cosmologists reveal extraordinary new discoveries about the shape and structure of the universe and what lies beyond its edge
-
Extinct
6 Episodes
Favourite ShowOf all the species that have ever existed, 99.9% are now extinct. This documentary brings to life the compelling stories of these lost creatures and solves the mystery of their demise.
-
In the Shadow of the Moon
1 Episode
Favourite ShowIn this unique documentary, crew members from every Apollo mission that flew to the moon are brought together for the first time to share their remarkable stories
-
Japan's Tsunami: How It Happened
1 Episode
Favourite ShowThe science behind the earthquake and tsunami that have devastated Japan
-
Brave New World with Stephen Hawking
5 Episodes
Favourite ShowProfessor Stephen Hawking examines how science is striving for humankind's next leap forward
-
Anatomy for Beginners
4 Episodes
Favourite ShowControversial anatomist Dr Gunther von Hagens and pathologist Professor John Lee explore the beauty beneath our skin in a fascinating series of anatomy classes
