Ardal O’Hanlon explores a 1930s quest to find the first Irish men and women using archaeology, answering his deepest questions about what it means to be Irish.
Self - Presenter
24 Dec 2017
Over the centuries, Mont Saint-Michel, an extraordinary island located in the delta of the Couesnon River, in Normandy, France, a place floating between the sea and the sky, has been a sanctuary, an abbey, a fortress and a prison. But how was this architectural wonder built?
01 Sep 1959
Inspired by Patrick Pearse’s poem Mise Éire (“I Am Ireland”), this documentary assembles archival footage from across Europe to trace the rise of Irish nationalism from the 1890s through the 1916 Easter Rising. Directed by George Morrison, the film chronicles key figures and events of the independence movement, with Irish-language narration and a score by Seán Ó Riada.
19 Mar 1970
In the wake of the 1916 Easter Rising, a married schoolteacher in a small Irish village has an affair with a troubled British officer.
28 Jul 2011
A short documentary exploring the ways LGBT couples show affection, and how small interactions like holding hands in public can carry, not only huge personal significance, but also the power to create social change.
01 Sep 1997
Oscar Wilde is a married playwright who has occasionally indulged his weakness for male suitors. After much toil, Wilde debuts 'The Importance of Being Earnest' in London, and a chat at the theatre with Lord Alfred 'Bosie' Douglas leads to a full-fledged romance. However, this affair leads to a legal dispute with Lord Alfred's oppressive father, the Marquess of Queensberry, and, given the local anti-gay laws, Wilde is jailed. Wilde's vast intellect helps him survive until he regains his freedom.
25 Oct 1996
Michael Collins plays a crucial role in the establishment of the Irish Free State in the 1920s, but becomes vilified by those hoping to create a completely independent Irish republic.
03 Apr 2016
A biography of the poet W. B. Yeats and his contribution to the Irish independence movement as a Protestant nationalist.
29 Dec 2022
Before the summer of 2022, Ireland had never beaten the All Blacks in New Zealand. Using behind the scenes footage and interviews with players and coaches this documentary reflects on the experience of triumphing in New Zealand for the first time.
09 Sep 2017
Mohawk archaeologist Baptiste Asigny engages in a search for his ancestors following a tragic terrain slump in the Percival Molson Stadium.
29 Jul 2013
What is true and what is false in the hideous stories spread about the controversial figure of the Roman emperor Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (12-41), nicknamed Caligula? Professor Mary Beard explains what is accurate and what is mythical in the historical accounts that portray him as an unbalanced despot. Was he a sadistic tyrant, as Roman historians have told, or perhaps the truth about him was manipulated because of political interests?
15 Feb 2020
Archaeologist Raksha Dave and historian Dan Snow return to Pompeii to gain special access to a variety of new excavations, including two never-before-seen discoveries.
10 Aug 2010
In this hour-long documentary, Oxford academic Janina Ramirez tours the country in search of Anglo-Saxon art treasures. Her basic thesis - and it is a plausible one - is that we should not look upon their era as a "dark age" as compared, for example, to Roman times, but rather celebrate it as an age in which creativity flowered, especially in terms of artistic design as well as symbolism. She shows plenty of good examples, ranging from the Franks Casket to the Staffordshire Hoard, and the Lindisfarne Gospels.
30 Aug 2002
Three young Irish women struggle to maintain their spirits while they endure dehumanizing abuse as inmates of a Magdalene Sisters Asylum.
14 Aug 2013
In 2012, Stephen Vaughan and Kay Ferreter are invited to address the congregation at St. Joseph's Redemptorists Church in Dundalk, Ireland for the Solemn Novena Festival. In a powerful speech, the pair describe their experiences being gay and lesbian in Ireland, feeling excluded by Catholic doctrine, and the importance of a more inclusive church.
02 Aug 2025
No overview found
01 Sep 2015
Narrated by Oscar-winning actor Jeremy Irons, The Genius of George Boole assembles academics and industry leaders from across the globe to explore the life and importance of one of the world’s greatest unsung heroes.
09 May 2025
A chilling 911 call. A gruesome scene. What really happened inside a family's quiet suburban home? Murder or self-defense? Told from both sides, this documentary explores Jason Corbett's brutal death.
01 Jan 2007
Move over, King Tut: There's a new pharaoh on the scene. A team of top archaeologists and forensics experts revisits the story of Hatshepsut, the woman who snatched the throne dressed as a man and declared herself ruler. Despite her long and prosperous reign, her record was all but eradicated from Egyptian history in a mystery that has long puzzled scholars. But with the latest research effort captured in this program, history is about to change.
01 Sep 2022
In northern Peru, the unprecedented archaeological discovery of the largest known mass child sacrifice in the world opens the doors to the kingdom of Chimor. This international archaeological investigation carried out like a criminal investigation reveals the mysteries of the last civilization of the Andes before the arrival of the Incas.
01 Jan 2012
49,000 year old Neanderthal bones have been discovered by chance in a remote, mountainous region of Northern Spain. The bones may help solve the biggest Neanderthal puzzle of all – why we are here today and Neanderthals are not. ‘The Neanderthals’ dark Secret’ revolves around ongoing investigations deep inside the forbidding subterranean cave system called El Sidrón. Here, Palaeontologist Antonio Rosas and Archaeologist Marco de la Rasilla are in their 11th year of excavation. Bones from at least 12 people and 400 stone tool fragments have been recovered. We’ll bring these people back from the past. Our haunting, hologram-like Neanderthal characters, will communicate to the scientists of today, as they unlock the secrets of El Sidrón. Many mysteries surround the site, foremost, how the bones and tools came to be here in the first place. The remains aren’t weathered nor do they show signs of scavenging from large animals.