Documentaries

Buying Defence
Is Britain wasting billions through bad defence procurement? Francis Tusa investigates.
27 Dec 2011,40 mins
21st Century Relaxation Tape
A hypnotic half-hour of aural bliss taking you inside the world of 'wellness sound'.
09 Apr 2023,28 mins
Dying for a Transplant
Emmanuel Sonubi examines the lack of organ donors from ethnic minority backgrounds.
17 Jul 2024,28 mins
Duelling Scars
Horatio Clare meets the German student duellists for whom a scar is a badge of honour.
26 Oct 2015,28 mins
Black Flight and the New Suburbia
Hugh Muir charts the movement of ethnic minorities from cities to the English countryside.
10 Jul 2016,30 mins
Inheriting the Earth
Charlotte Smith explores Labour's 2024 budget and asks why farmers are so cross about it.
24 Nov 2024,28 mins
Idle Talk: Wales's Oral Tradition
You’re invited to an open mic in the Middle Ages.
06 Jun 2023,28 mins
Aleks in Wonderland: The Story of the Internet
Series 1
Attack of the Zombie Baby Monitors
Can we control the dark side of the internet?
30 Aug 2017,28 mins
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Treating Tumours: Old Drug, New Tricks
An old antidepressant has unexpected anticancer properties, but no-one is developing it.
23 Aug 2011,40 mins
A Very Australian Scandal
The curious story of the Sydney Opera House’s founding father, Sir Eugene Goossens.
03 Oct 2023,28 mins
Classics Illustrated: The Comic Book Unbound
Bill Paterson marks the 70th anniversary of the Classics Illustrated comic book series.
25 Oct 2011,30 mins
Kings in the North
How two high-profile metro mayors are rebalancing power in England's great northern cities
03 Jun 2023,28 mins
Flight of the Vulture
Sacha Dench investigates the plight of one of the world's most persecuted birds.
16 Apr 2025,28 mins
In Search of Barney Bubbles
The hunt for the truth about the most influential and enigmatic of graphic designers.
30 mins
The Horns of a Dilemma
Will the sale of harvested rhino horn help to stop poaching?
22 Mar 2016,28 mins
The Art of Being a Zombie Ant Fungus
Cultural entomologist Bridget Nicholls investigates a bizarre natural phenomenon.
15 Jul 2026,28 mins
In Search Of The Holy Tail
Marc Riley, Damon Albarn and Ceri Levy travel to Mull to swim with seals and sharks.
25 Oct 2014,30 mins
Hotel Room Art
Ian McMillan gets close to the art in hotel rooms.
26 Dec 2023,28 mins
Back Seat Drivers
Historian Steven Fielding explores the political role of ex-prime ministers, then and now.
03 Oct 2022,28 mins
The Hidden History of the Mantelpiece
Rachel Hurdley explores the story of the mantelpiece and how it reveals our secret selves.
24 Mar 2020,28 mins
Clearing the Air
Eddie Nestor looks at the health crises caused by air pollution.
09 Aug 2022,28 mins
A Year in the Life of the Swinging Sixties
James Peak and Joan Bakewell find incredible archive from 1963. Wait! Is that The Beatles?
20 Aug 2024,28 mins
The Club Nobody Wants to Join
The American principals dealing with shootings in the hallways of their school.
14 Jul 2024,28 mins
Podcasting - The First Ten Years
Episode 2
Podcasters Helen Zaltzman and Olly Mann trace the origins of on-demand radio.
11 Apr 2014,28 mins
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Director of Me
Faris
Faris, who lives with PTSD, reflects on how he manages his mind.
30 Jul 2023,28 mins
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Falling Stars
Poet Dr Sam Illingworth looks at our shifting relationship with scientific language.
29 Nov 2022,28 mins
What Are the Railways For?
The railways are soon to be reorganised, but what are they for?
29 May 2023,28 mins
Arts and Africa
Cry Freedom
Reactions to 'Cry Freedom', Richard Attenborough defends his film about Steve Biko
01 Jan 1998,30 mins
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The Green Backlash
Why many across Europe are now unwilling to pay the costs associated with the Green Deal.
05 Dec 2023,28 mins
Scott's Legacy
Episode 2
Can the heroic age of Antarctic exploration show the way back to the Moon and onto Mars?
20 Mar 2012,28 mins
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