The Secret War was a six–part television series produced by the BBC in conjunction with the Imperial War Museum documenting various technical developments during the Second World War. It was aired during 1977 and presented by William Woollard. The programme opening music was an excerpt from Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition. The closing music was by the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. The 'seventh' episode often included with video versions of the series was not part of the original series but produced separately.
In the last months of 1942, only a few yards of bitterly contested ground stood between Hitler and the prize which he valued above all others - Stalingrad. The fighting for Stalingrad was intense, protracted and took place under the worst imaginable conditions, including the iron grip of a Russian Winter. After the battle the wretched survivors of a beaten German army surrendered to the Red Army. They had once been 350,000 strong but only 90,000 of these frost bitten, starving scarecrows remained to make the painful forced march into Russian captivity. In the weeks to come 85,000 of these pathetic prisoners would die from disease, starvation, brutality, neglect and despair. Only 5000 survivors from the doomed 6th Army endured the long years of captivity in slave labor camps and lived to see Germany again. This is their story.
Written and presented by Martin Gilbert, Sir Winston Churchill's official biographer and the author of Churchill: A Life, The Complete Churchill is a treasury of rare newsreel clips and interviews with Churchill's family, staff, and political contemporaries, both the supporters and the detractors.
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As the world's eyes turn towards Asia, it has never been more important to understand the recent history of the world's largest continent. This landmark series deconstructs the pivotal events which have shaped the current Asian Century.
Combining rare archival footage and personal eyewitness testimony, the series challenges accepted views and reveals the personalities and rivalries that have shaped history.
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As the deadliest war in history draws to an end, the bloodshed is far from over. For ten soldiers and civilians caught in this theatre of war's final act, the last days of World War II would change their lives forever. Witness the stories of the courageous men and women whose sacrifice and survival, triumph and tragedy provide unique insight into some of the most terrifying days in history. Their firsthand accounts will take you into Hitler's Bunker, to the scene of Mussolini's capture and murder, and to the horrific discovery of the Nazi's most ghastly secret.
The film is based on real events described in the documentary novel by Soviet writer Ivan Novikov, Ruins Shoot Point Blank, dedicated to the heroes of the Minsk underground during the WWII.