Social & External
In Iraq 2003 Corporal Martin Webster filmed fellow soldiers beating Iraqi youths during rioting in Al Amara. Two years later, a British newspaper obtained his footage. The story that ran led to outrage across the world.
In honour of the 15th Anniversary of 9/11, National Geographic Channel is looking back at the very best reporting we have done since this world-changing tragedy first happened using extended excerpts from past specials that relate directly to events leading up to and following the attacks on New York City and Washington DC.
The second Gulf War from 1990 to 1991 represents in the collective Arab memory a turning point in regards to the Arab nationalism’s self-perception as well as a moment of deep historical and existential insecurity. Five Arab directors discuss the events from their personal perspective.
How the Soviet Union was able to copy the Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber, and the influence of the resulting Tupolev TU-4 on the Cold War.
The first American space station Skylab is found in pieces scattered in Western Australia. Putting these pieces back together and re-tracing the Skylab program back to its very conception reveals the cornerstone of human space exploration.
Journalist Maggie O’Kane returns to Iraq five years after Desert Storm to try to understand why she was not able to report the war freely and to investigate some of the stories which did not stand up.
Recorded during World War II, this rare color film traces an RAF Bomber Command night attack on Berlin -- from strategic planning and preparation to the execution of the actual attack with Avro Lancaster bombers. Air Commodore H.I. Cozens filmed the events during a period when the Bomber Command flew into Germany nearly every night for a massive series of raids on key targets.
From May 10, 1940, France is living one of the worst tragedies of it history. In a few weeks, the country folds, and then collapsed in facing the attack of the Nazi Germany. On June 1940, each day is a tragedy. For the first time, thanks to historic revelations, and to numerous never seen before images and documents and reenacted situations of the time, this film recounts the incredible stories of those men and women trapped in the torment of this great chaos.
A single female voice sings of waiting in her garden for her ‘dark-eyed sailor’ to return from war, bearing the other half of their token, a gimmel ring. Three veterans pass on the road as she waits, and she asks them: “When you were fighting in distant lands, did you think of the home you left?” In reply the veterans relate their recollections. The garden images in the accompanying film represent ‘home’, but also stand for a more general possibility of redemption, of the potential of the past to return at any time, disguised and changed, to renew the present: “Each moment of time is a garden gate,” the song goes, “Through it my love may walk.”
The story of the 25th Infantry Bicycle Corps and their 2000-mile bicycle journey from Montana to St. Louis in 1897.
About trauma, resilience and post-traumatic growth in the medics who served with Australia's special forces in Afghanistan. From losing mates in the battlefield to treating horrifically injured Afghan kids in remote surgical theatres.
A weapon so technologically perfect in structure, so formidable in strength and so beautiful in creation. This high definition one hour special is the inside track on the World's most influential weapon. For over a thousand years this weapon dominated the battlefields of Japan, instilled fear and terror into every enemy it faced, and created a new spiritual way of life that lasts through to the present day. The Samurai sword – a weapon so technologically perfect in structure, so formidable in strength and so beautiful in creation. For the first time unique access has been granted and we travel into the core of the ancient foundries, sword-smiths and fighting schools to reveal what makes the so-called perfect sword. This is a no holds barred look at one of the most iconic man-made objects ever forged. Join us as we take the inside track on the making of the legend that is the Samurai Sword.
The 'mighty' Hood was the pride of the British Navy for more than 20 years, revered around the world as the largest and most powerful warship afloat. But when it was sunk by the German battleship Bismarck off the coast of Greenland on 24 May 1941, its end was shockingly swift.
Chronicles of a male homosexual drug addict in 1980's in voice-over with long take scenes from Rome, television snippets of news of Gulf War and commercials.
When BA Flight 149 unwittingly landed in a warzone, its passengers and crew were taken hostage. Did the UK government allow it? And who were the mercenaries on board?
The Civil War Confederate commerce raider C.S.S. Alabama sailed over 75,000 miles and captured more than 60 Union merchant ships. For two years the "ghost ship" wreaked havoc--until the U.S.S. Kearsage caught up with her in a French port where she had pulled in for repairs. Out-manned and out-gunned, the Alabama sank to the bottom of the English Channel. We join marine archaeologist Gordon Watts and a team of U.S. and French divers as they attempt to excavate the wreck and recover artifacts.
This short film takes viewers on a whirlwind tour of the history of air combat, from World War I through the Vietnam War. It was produced by General Dynamics sometime prior to 1990 and re-released by Lockheed Martin in the mid-nineties. As a promotional short for the F-16 Fighting Falcon, the film reviews the development of aerial combat to place the F-16 in historical context. Informational narration is supplemented with snippets from interviews of top fighter aces. The aces focus on the characteristics that make great fighter pilots and great fighter aircraft. The interviewees include World War I ace W.C. "Bill" Lambert; World War II aces Douglas Bader, Stanford Tuck, Adolf Galland, Erich Hartmann, Gabby Gabreski, Tex Hill, and Svein Heglund; Korean War ace Ralph Parr; and Vietnam War ace Steve Ritchie. The film includes historical footage and stills, along with opening and closing segments briefly featuring the F-16 Fighting Falcon.
Explore the events of the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis and hear from some of the actual participants in this riveting program. After an American naval blockade intercepted Soviet submarines on a secret mission to set up a military base in Cuba, the two nations engaged in a tense standoff that led the world to the brink of nuclear war. Submariners from both sides talk about the conflict, and viewers get a look inside their subs and the U.S. war room.
Guy Martin undertakes a challenge to restore a plane from the Second World War, and recreate a parachute jump into Normandy, as thousands of Allied soldiers did during D-Day.
The life and career of one of comedy's most inimitable modern voices, Mr. Gilbert Gottfried.
Alexander McQueen's rags-to-riches story is a modern-day fairy tale, laced with the gothic. Mirroring the savage beauty, boldness and vivacity of his design, this documentary is an intimate revelation of McQueen's own world, both tortured and inspired, which celebrates a radical and mesmerizing genius of profound influence.
Artists in LA discover the work of forgotten Polish sculptor Stanislav Szukalski, a mad genius whose true story unfolds chapter by astounding chapter.
Vulgar, taunting texts blow up the phones of a teen and her boyfriend. Who's sending them — and why? This twisty documentary reveals the shocking answer.
A night of drunken chaos rocks a quiet Dutch town in this shocking documentary about a teen's birthday invite that accidentally went viral on Facebook.
A documentary examining the decade of the 1970s as a turning point in American cinema. Some of today's best filmmakers interview the influential directors of that time.
Experience the iconic rock band's legacy in the first major documentary to tell their story. Directed with the era’s avant-garde spirit by Todd Haynes, this kaleidoscopic oral history combines exclusive interviews with dazzling archival footage.
This raucous journey into the heart of democracy captures an unusual rite of passage: 1,100 teenage boys from across Texas coming together to build a representative government from the ground up.
From the heights of her modeling fame to her tragic death, this documentary reveals Anna Nicole Smith through the eyes of the people closest to her.
Investigators reveal how Boeing’s alleged priority of profit over safety could have contributed to two catastrophic crashes within months of each other.
Documentary about legendary Paramount producer Robert Evans, based on his famous 1994 autobiography.
At the age of 34, former New Orleans Saints defensive back Steve Gleason was diagnosed with ALS and given a life expectancy of two to five years. Weeks later, Gleason found out his wife, Michel, was expecting their first child. A video journal that began as a gift for his unborn son expands to chronicle Steve’s determination to get his relationships in order, build a foundation to provide other ALS patients with purpose, and adapt to his declining physical condition—utilizing medical technologies that offer the means to live as fully as possible.
Alex Gibney explores the phenomenon of Stuxnet, a self-replicating computer virus discovered in 2010 by international IT experts. Evidently commissioned by the US and Israeli governments, this malware was designed to specifically sabotage Iran’s nuclear programme. However, the complex computer worm ended up not only infecting its intended target but also spreading uncontrollably.
In this documentary, recovering addict and amputee John Wood finds himself in a stranger-than-fiction battle to reclaim his mummified leg from Southern entrepreneur Shannon Whisnant, who found it in a grill he bought at an auction and believes it therefore to be his rightful property.
Taking inspiration from Peter M. Bracke's definitive book of the same name, this seven-hour documentary dives into the making of all twelve Friday the 13th films, with all-new interviews from the cast and the crew.
A feature length, theatrical documentary on the life of Paul Gascoigne, one of the greatest footballers that ever lived: delving deep into his psyche, vulnerabilities, fears and triumphs.
Serving life in prison for murdering their parents, Lyle and Erik Menendez speak out in this documentary explaining the shocking crime and ensuing trials.
Police pull over a woman who claims she just gave birth. But the baby — and the blood — aren't hers. Twisted lies unravel in this true-crime documentary.
Ten of Muhammad Ali's former rivals pay tribute to the three-time world heavyweight champion.
A homemade flying saucer lifts off, and a 6-year-old boy might be inside. National panic ensues — but what truly happened? This documentary investigates.
