Episode list

Combat Ships

Warships of the World Wars
The crucial role ships have played in international conflict over the past 500 years, beginning with the battleship's declining influence during the 20th century.
7.8 /10
The Vessels That Saved D-Day
A chronological appraisal of the dramatic D-Day story, focusing on the vessels that made the landings on the beaches of Normandy possible.
8.1 /10
The First Metal Warships
The crucial role ships have played in international conflict over the past 500 years. This program looks at early metal warships, and examines HMS Rattler's screw propeller in 1845 would lead to the revolutionary HMS Dreadnought in the 20th century.
8 /10
Torpedo Boats at War
A look at the silent threat of submarines, from tests in the River Thames, to the German's deadly U-boat attacks in the Second World War.
7.8 /10
Cold War Warriors
The role of ships during the Cold War, featuring a look at two submarines - former enemies - now moored in a Kent river. Plus, the story of Soviet submariner Vasili Arkhipov, who refused to authorize a nuclear launch.
7.8 /10
Rescue Ships

Mon, Jul 31, 2017
Stories of hospital ships and those who served on them, including the tragic story of the sinking of the Titanic's sister vessel, The Britannic.
7.7 /10
The Smallest Ships of War
The smallest ships of war, such as the tiny canoes of the Cockleshell Heroes who led an audacious attack on German ships, and the boats that rescued soldiers from Dunkirk.
7.9 /10
Mighty Wooden Warships
An examination of objects found on the Mary Rose and what they reveal about life on a Tudor ship. Plus, the battle-winning tactics of Admiral Nelson on HMS Victory.
7.9 /10
Secrets and Lies
A look at the tactics employed to pass strategically important ships under the nose of the enemy, and the use of intelligence to carry out naval attacks.
7.3 /10

Edit Focus

Stelvio. Crossroads of Peace

Stelvio. Crossroads of Peace

A documentary that showcases an extraordinary place in the heart of Europe: The Stelvio Pass. Here, at 3,000 metres above sea-level in the middle of the Italian Alps, one finds an imposing natural treasure where the present meets the past and the visitor discovers a breath-taking landscape and mountain sports experience. Whereas the Stelvio alpine glacier is a big tourist attraction for summer skiing, the mountain road to the Pass, an engineering wonder built in 1825 by the Austrian Empire, hosts the most famous stage of the Giro d'Italia. But people once battled here not just for sporting reasons: One hundred years ago soldiers on those peaks experienced the so-called White War which took place on the highest and coldest battlefield of World War I. After one hundred years trenches, cans, bombs and weapons from that cruel war are still found in the snow by people like Mario Pasinetti, a hotel porter and former member of the Italian Alpine brigade, who collects war remains in his spare time. Through Mario's story the viewer meets the people that make the Stelvio a lively microcosm: Claudia, a female forest ranger; Gustav Thöni, a former world skiing champion; Pompa, an aficionado and pilot of vintage airplanes as well as inventor of Artic rescue tools which he tests personally on the glacier; and Lorenz, a shaman who lives at the foot of the Stelvio road. Through these people and other characters, along with the help of majestic mountain shoots (including helicams and wescam shoots), this documentary enables us to discover the unexpected power and magic of this alpine microcosm that has changed from a point of collision between hostile forces to a place of interchange and discovery, of encounters and leisure activities: a "crossroad of peace".

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