Backdrop fallback

The Century of the Self

The Century of the Self

Share

The Century of the Self

"A secret history of the 20th century."

2002- 2002

1 Seasons

4 Episodes

8.5(121 votes)

Ended

Documentary

War & Politics

Overview

The legacy of famed psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud informs the lives of people throughout the world even to this day, though it's a phenomenon to which most are unaware. The film is an exhaustive examination of his theories on human desire, and how they're applied to platforms such as advertising, consumerism and politics.

Links & Resources

Website IMDbView

Social & External

Production Companies

BBC

Episodes

No episodes found for this season.

The people behind it

Cast & crew

10 featured cast members

Starring

Adam Curtis

Adam Curtis

Narrator

Anne Bernays

Anne Bernays

Self

Martin Bergmann

Self

Robert Reich

Robert Reich

Self

Edward L. Bernays

Edward L. Bernays

Self (archive footage)

Sigmund Freud

Sigmund Freud

Self (archive footage)

Anna Freud

Self (archive footage)

Wilhelm Reich

Wilhelm Reich

Self (archive footage)

Tony Blair

Tony Blair

Self (archive footage)

Margaret Thatcher

Margaret Thatcher

Self (archive footage)

Creative team

Created by: Adam Curtis
Showrunner: Stephen Lambert
Written by: Adam Curtis
Produced by: Adam Curtis

Similar TV Shows

The Family

The Family

An enigmatic conservative Christian group known as the Family wields enormous influence in Washington, D.C., in pursuit of its global ambitions.

Michael Palin: Around the World in 80 Days

Michael Palin: Around the World in 80 Days

Michael Palin attempts to copy the exploits of fictional character Phileas Fogg, by trying to travel around the world (without flying) in 80 days.

Pole to Pole

Pole to Pole

Michael Palin undertakes an epic journey of 23,000 miles, traveling from the North to the South Pole across 17 countries with a minimum of air travel, all on a tight deadline.

Michael Palin's Hemingway Adventure

Michael Palin's Hemingway Adventure

Michael Palin's Hemingway Adventure is a 1999 BBC television documentary presented by Michael Palin. It records Palin's travels as he visited many sites where Ernest Hemingway had been. The sites include Spain, Chicago, Paris, Italy, Africa, Key West, Cuba, and Idaho. After the trip was over Michael Palin wrote a book about the journey and his experiences. This book contains both Palin's text and many pictures by Basil Pao, the stills photographer who was on the team.

Planet Earth

Planet Earth

David Attenborough celebrates the amazing variety of the natural world in this epic documentary series, filmed over four years across 64 different countries.

Space Race

Space Race

The untold true story behind the Cold War race to put man into space.

Billy, How Did You Do It?

Billy, How Did You Do It?

Director Billy Wilder is interviewed by German critic Hellmut Karasek and director Volker Schlöndorff about his movies.

This Is the Zodiac Speaking

This Is the Zodiac Speaking

In this true-crime docuseries, a family searching for answers shares clues and eye-opening testimonies about the prime suspect in the Zodiac murders.

Witches: Truth Behind the Trials

Witches: Truth Behind the Trials

This captivating six-part series brings the era of witches and witch-hunters to life through cinematic reenactments, complemented by insights from leading historians and experts in the field. The show immerses viewers in the historical context, blending expert testimony with vivid storytelling to explore the reality of witch trials.

Supreme Team

Supreme Team

This limited docuseries takes an in-depth look at the notorious Queens, New York gang, and tells the real story from the mouths of its two leaders and family members, Kenneth “Supreme” McGriff and Gerald “Prince" Miller.

Volta Priscila

Volta Priscila

In 2004, Brazil is shaken by the disappearance of Priscila, sister of MMA world champion Vitor Belfort. The police are racing against time to solve the case, but twenty years later, they have more questions than answers.

The Manhattan Alien Abduction

The Manhattan Alien Abduction

A woman claims to have been abducted from her bedroom in Manhattan. This docuseries explores whether it was an elaborate hoax — or proof of alien life.

On My Way with Irina Rimes

On My Way with Irina Rimes

After two years of working nonstop, singer Irina Rimes makes a two-week journey in a mobile studio, traveling across Romania and beyond in order to reconnect with herself, find inspiration, and complete her new album, Home.

One Day in October

One Day in October

An anthology series exploring the aftermath of the October 7 attacks in Israel, where Hamas militants killed and took hostages. It portrays stories of love, bravery, endurance, and grief arising from the senseless violence.

The Anarchists

The Anarchists

Unfolding over six years, what begins as an impulsive one-off gathering turns into an ever-growing annual event attracting sponsorship from crypto-currency companies and featuring capitalist statist speakers such as Ron Paul and BitCoin investor Roger Ver. And when rule-avoidant "freedom" activists come together in one of the most dangerous cities in the world, incoherent ideology and cognitive dissonance rears its ugly head.

Kingdom

Kingdom

Filmed across five years in a single spectacular location, the lives and fates of our four families - leopards, hyenas, wild dogs, and lions - are inextricably linked as they strive for a foothold in a remote and fertile river valley in Zambia.

Island at War

Island at War

Island at War is a British television series that tells the story of the German Occupation of the Channel Islands. It primarily focuses on three local families: the upper class Dorrs, the middle class Mahys and the working class Jonases, and four German officers. The fictional island of St. Gregory serves as a stand-in for the real-life islands Jersey and Guernsey, and the story is compiled from the events on both islands. Produced by Granada Television in Manchester, Island at War had an estimated budget of £9,000,000 and was filmed on location in the Isle of Man from August 2003 to October 2003. When the series was shown in the UK, it appeared in six 70-minute episodes.

The Diary of Anne Frank

The Diary of Anne Frank

Five-part adaptation of Anne Frank's famous wartime diaries in which a young teenager and her family go into hiding from the Nazis in wartime Amsterdam.

I'm Not a Monster: The Lois Riess Murders

I'm Not a Monster: The Lois Riess Murders

In 2018, a small-town murder in Minnesota shocks a community when 56-year-old wife, mother, and grandmother Lois Riess kills her husband David and goes on the run from the authorities. Years later, Lois sits down with the filmmakers telling her story for the first time. Lois herself attempts to explain her reprehensible actions which reveals a disturbing family history and an addiction to gambling.

Get Gotti

Get Gotti

Murder. Extortion. Drug smuggling. Racketeering. The charges are mounting against John Gotti — but will any of them stick to the "Teflon Don"? Told from both sides of the law, this docuseries from the makers of "Fear City" follows the FBI's battle to bring down infamous mob boss.

Recommended TV Shows

World War II: From the Frontlines

World War II: From the Frontlines

Through vividly enhanced archival footage and voices from all sides of the conflict, this docuseries brings WWII to life like never before.

WWII in HD

WWII in HD

WWII in HD is a 10-part American documentary television miniseries that originally aired from November 15 to November 19, 2009 on the History Channel. The program focuses on the firsthand experiences of twelve American service members during World War II, including an Army nurse, a member of the Tuskegee Airmen, a second generation Japanese American and prisoner of war, and an Austrian Jewish immigrant. The twelve members recorded their time in both theaters and some had later interviews; found footage from the battlefield was paired with the stories of the twelve service members. The episodes premiered on five consecutive days, with two episodes per day. The series is narrated by Gary Sinise and was produced by Lou Reda Productions in Easton, Pennsylvania, United States.

The War

The War

The story of the Second World War through the personal accounts of a handful of men and women from four American towns. The war touched the lives of every family on every street in every town in America and demonstrated that in extraordinary times, there are no ordinary lives.

How to Become a Tyrant

How to Become a Tyrant

The documentary series explores different political figures throughout history.

Eli Roth's History of Horror

Eli Roth's History of Horror

An in-depth look at the history and pop cultural significance of horror films.

The Civil War

The Civil War

A documentary on the American Civil War narrated by Ken Burns, covering the secession of the Confederacy to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.

World War II with Tom Hanks

World War II with Tom Hanks

Explores WWII from Germany's invasion of Poland through the atomic age, examining pivotal battles, wartime leaders like Churchill and Roosevelt, and the human cost of total war.

Love Has Won: The Cult of Mother God

Love Has Won: The Cult of Mother God

Chronicles the life and death of Amy Carlson, also known as Mother God, a self-proclaimed spiritual savior who built a cult through her online manifestos and live-streaming sessions. As Amy's health declined, her followers believed her death would lead to her evacuation by UFO and salvation for humanity. Told through the eyes of Amy's devotees and constructed from the cult's archival footage, the three-part docuseries captures the perils of internet proselytizing and a conspiracy-driven faith.

Hitler's Circle of Evil

Hitler's Circle of Evil

Surviving power struggles, betrayals and plots, Hitler's inner circle of Nazi leaders seizes control of Germany and designs its disastrous future.

Marvel Studios Legends

Marvel Studios Legends

Revisit the epic heroes, villains and moments from across the MCU in preparation for the stories still to come. Each dynamic segment feeds directly into the upcoming series — setting the stage for future events. This series weaves together the many threads that constitute the unparalleled Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Hitler and the Nazis: Evil on Trial

Hitler and the Nazis: Evil on Trial

This gripping docuseries examines Adolf Hitler and the Nazis' rise, rule and reckoning from pre-WWII to the Holocaust to the Nuremberg trials.

Mind Field

Mind Field

Explore the surprising things we know (and don’t know) about why people are the way they are through expert interviews, rare footage from historical experiments, and brand-new, ground-breaking demonstrations of human nature at work.

Nazi Megastructures

Nazi Megastructures

In a quest for world domination, the Nazis built some of the biggest and deadliest pieces of military hardware and malevolent technology in history. This is the stories of the engineers who designed them and how these structures sparked a technological revolution that changed warfare forever.

Trust Me: The False Prophet

Trust Me: The False Prophet

In this true-crime documentary, a cult expert and filmmaker infiltrate a polygamist sect to expose a self-proclaimed prophet and bring him to justice.

The American Revolution

The American Revolution

The American Revolution was at once a war for independence, a war of conquest, a civil war, and a world war, fought by neighbors on American farms and between global powers an ocean or more away. It impacted millions from Vermont’s Green Mountains to the swamps of South Carolina, from Indian Country to the Iberian Peninsula. In defeating the British Empire and giving birth to a new nation, the American Revolution turned the world upside-down. Thirteen colonies on the Atlantic Coast united in rebellion, won their independence, and established a republic that still endures. The American Revolution will present the story of the men and women of the Revolutionary generation, their humanity in victory and defeat, and the crisis that they lived through.

Oliver Stone's Untold History of the United States

Oliver Stone's Untold History of the United States

Oliver Stone's re-examination of under-reported events in American history.

The World at War

The World at War

A documentary series that gives a historical account of the events of World War II, from its roots in the 1920s to the aftermath and the lives it profoundly influenced.

Greatest Events of World War II in Colour

Greatest Events of World War II in Colour

Using highly advanced colourisation techniques, critical moments from World War II, from Stalingrad to The Battle of Britain, are shown in a whole new light.

The Andy Warhol Diaries

The Andy Warhol Diaries

After he's shot in 1968, Andy Warhol begins documenting his life and feelings. Those diaries, and this series, reveal the secrets behind his persona.

Paranormal Witness

Paranormal Witness

A tense, filmic and high-octane drama-documentary series that brings to life the stories of people who have lived through paranormal experiences that defy explanation. Using a mixture of intimate first-hand testimony and grittily realistic drama, the audience is transported into a world turned upside down by extraordinary and terrifying events.