Social & External
The Secret Life of Machines is an educational television series presented by Tim Hunkin and Rex Garrod, in which the two explain the inner workings and history of common household and office machinery. According to Hunkin, the show's creator, the programme was developed from his comic strip The Rudiments of Wisdom, which he researched and drew for the Observer newspaper over a period of 14 years. Three separate groupings of the broadcast were produced and originally shown between 1988 and 1993 on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom, with the production subsequently airing on The Learning Channel and the Discovery Channel.
Coinciding with the release of the remastered original episodes of The Secret Life Of Machines, Tim Hunkin began a self-produced spiritual successor called The Secret Life of Components. It explores some of the individual parts that so often make up the appliances and machines that were the focus of the original series. The weekly episodes included what Hunkin has learned through his experience with the component, along with many models for demonstration and examples from his amusement machines and other works.
Massive engineering mistakes occur all over the world, some with devastating consequences. These are assessed by design teams, eyewitnesses, and experts who analyze what went wrong and how the engineers fixed the mistakes.
Guy Martin celebrates the workers of the Industrial Revolution by getting stuck into six of the country's biggest restoration projects, bringing some of the 19th century's most impressive engineering achievements back to life.
Providing a rare glimpse into the concepts and processes behind some of Mark Rober's most outrageous viral videos, including all-new and never-before-seen footage.
James May gives a straightforward guide to some of science's big ideas, explaining everything from evolution and Einstein to engineering and chemistry.
A look back at a cruel conflict, the Franco-Prussian War (1870-71), which changed the political geography of Europe and sowed the seeds of a deep antagonism between France and Germany that culminated in two world wars. Excerpts from the diaries of the witnesses, photographs and painted panoramas tell the truth about a forgotten war.
A look at some of the world's largest machines.
Design expert Kevin McCloud secures breathtaking vantage points from which to view impressive feats of architecture as he scales some of Britain's highest structures.
Extraordinary structures, buildings and machines around the world have been transformed from their original function into something completely different. Experts reveal how.
Unlock the secrets of iconic machines, such as roller coasters, bullet trains, and cargo planes. Transforming our understanding of the machines around us, the series goes inside, under, over, and through them, revealing how they were built, how they work, and more.
Of all the remarkable events of this century perhaps the most fascinating has been the spontaneous growth, flowering and then decay of a handful of great cities. These cities were places where art, culture and political liberties co-mingled with corruption, brutality and decadence. Everything and just about anyone could be bought and sold. The immigrant would struggle beside the artist. Gamblers, thieves and prostitutes co-habited with soul-savers, the rich and the powerful. The exhilarating combination of the seamy with the sublime made these places a magnet for all the lost souls and refugees of the world. Pushing the limits of tolerance and freedom, they defined the social, political and sexual culture of the 20th century. Their names ring out: Paris of the '20s, Berlin of the '20s and '30s and Shanghai of the '30s.
Submarines today are highly complex machines crammed with technology and weapons. As impressive as their construction is, as terrifying is their destructive power. Hardly any other weapon triggers as many emotions as the submarine. It strikes from ambush and can use nuclear missiles to drag the whole world into the abyss. Submarines originated from a completely non-military idea, namely to be able to view the world under water. But the interest in the military use of submarines soon prevailed.
These are some of the most spectacular examples of abandoned engineering the world has ever known. The series explores how and why they were built, consider the financial and social costs of their failure and examine the environmental and ecological impacts. The series also explores how experts came up with plans to make something beautiful or useful from the ruins.
How do you build a medieval castle from scratch? Domestic historian Ruth Goodman and archeologists Peter Ginn and Tom Pinfold make perhaps their most ambitious foray into the past as they head to France to take part in a build that has been underway since 1997. Our intrepid history adventurers join this magnificent construction at Guédelon Castle to recreate authentic medieval castle living from within its rising walls.
Former aerospace engineer Justin Cunningham tries to keep the Glasgow Tower turning, and Tomo Umewaka helps engineers in Osaka keep their airport from sinking into the sea.
