Stephen Hawking's Universe

In this two-hour finale Professor Hawking tells the biggest tale of all: the entire history, present and future of the universe in one epic show: from the awe-inspiring energy of the Big Bang to the end of time itself.

He explains how the universe came into being from nothing fourteen billion years ago, forming countless billions of galaxies from clouds of gas, and creating everything in them - from planets to humans - from star dust, and all without the need for a creator.

Professor Hawking ponders where life itself came from, what the future holds for the universe and the enormous challenges our own species faces, from asteroids wiping us out to supernova irradiating us and our own sun becoming a red giant and devouring the Earth.

Hawking asks whether we are too intelligent for our own good, or if our ingenuity could bring longer life spans and help our descendants to spread to distant planets orbiting stars across our galaxy.

And he turns his attention to the ultimate mysteries: why the universe ever existed at all, and how it will end: whether in a 'Big Crunch' or a 'Big Chill'...