Top Rated Documentary TV Series - Page 287

Warship

1973

Warship

1973
5.5
Warship was a popular British television drama series produced by the BBC between 1973 and 1977. The series dealt with life on board a Royal Navy warship, the fictional HMS Hero.
The Mechanical Universe

1985

The Mechanical Universe

1985
8.8
The Mechanical Universe... And Beyond, is a 52-part telecourse filmed at the California Institute of Technology, and produced by Caltech and INTELECOM Intelligent Telecommunications. The series introduces university level physics, covering topics from Copernicus to quantum mechanics. Produced starting in 1985, the videos make heavy use of historical dramatizations and visual aids to explain physics concepts. The latter were state of the art at the time, incorporating almost 8 hours of computer animation created by computer graphics pioneer Jim Blinn. Each episode opens and closes with a "phantom" lecture by Caltech professor David Goodstein. After more than a quarter century, the series is still often used as a supplemental teaching aid, for its clear explanation of fundamental concepts such as special relativity. The Mechanical Universe lectures are actual freshman physics lectures from Physics 1a and 1b courses at the California Institute of Technology. The room seen in the videos is the Bridge lecture hall. T
The Root of All Evil?

2006

The Root of All Evil?

2006
9
The Root of All Evil?, later retitled The God Delusion, is a television documentary written and presented by Richard Dawkins in which he argues that humanity would be better off without religion or belief in God. The documentary was first broadcast in January 2006, in the form of two 45-minute episodes, on Channel 4 in the UK. Dawkins has said that the title The Root of All Evil? was not his preferred choice, but that Channel 4 had insisted on it to create controversy. The sole concession from the producers on the title was the addition of the question mark. Dawkins has stated that the notion of anything being the root of all evil is ridiculous. Dawkins' book The God Delusion, released in September 2006, goes on to examine the topics raised in the documentary in greater detail. The documentary was rebroadcast on the More4 channel on the 25 August 2010 under the title of The God Delusion.
Cutting Edge

1990

Cutting Edge

1990
6.5
The flagship documentary series show distinctive, compelling films that offer a snapshot of life in Britain today.
Micro Live

1983

Micro Live

1983
8.5
Micro Live was a BBC2 TV series that was produced by David Allen as part of the BBC's Computer Literacy Project, and followed on from earlier series such as The Computer Programme, Computers In Control, and Making the Most of the Micro. As the name implies, the series was broadcast live. The first programme was actually a one-off two-hour-long special, broadcast on Sunday 2 October 1983 under the name Making the Most of the Micro Live. A second one-hour special was then broadcast in the summer of 1984 - in that programme it was announced that Micro Live would be back on BBC2 as a regular monthly one-hour series starting in October of that year. A second season of Micro Live launched in 1985 as a weekly half-hour programme and was followed by a third series of weekly half-hour shows in 1986. The series broadcast its last programme in 1987. The scope of the programme was much wider than the preceding computer series and had a less formal feel due to its 'live' nature - not only did it cover more subject areas but
An American Family

1973

An American Family

1973
4.5
Originally intended as a chronicle of the daily life of the Louds, a Santa Barbara upper-middle-class family, the groundbreaking program documented the breakup of the family via the separation and subsequent divorce of parents Bill and Pat Loud.
The Most Extreme

2002

The Most Extreme

2002
7.5
The Most Extreme is a documentary television series on the American cable television network, Animal Planet. It first aired on July 7, 2002. Each episode focuses on a specific animal feature, such as strength, speed, behavior, anatomy, or diet, and examines and ranks ten animals that portray extreme or unusual examples of that quality. The rankings serve only to give a broad depiction; a scientifically rigorous procedure is not employed to quantify them. Along with each animal on the countdown, each episode presents a computer-animated segment which compares the animal's ability with something equivalent in humans, followed by an interview segment with people who share some common trait. For example, in "Super Sharks", the animal ranked #1 was the Hammerhead shark, for its extreme senses of vision and smell, along with its ability to sense voltages as small as a half-billionth of a volt. This was then compared with a team of human hackers, including StankDawg, who were war-driving around a neighborhood and looking
Corwin's Quest

0000

Corwin's Quest

0000
6.2
: Corwin's Quest is an American television program about animals airing on Animal Planet. It is similar to The Crocodile Hunter. It is hosted by actor and conservationist Jeff Corwin from The Jeff Corwin Experience. Music composed by Rich Stubbings
City Confidential

1998

City Confidential

1998
7
Tells the story of one crime, the ensuing investigation, and the ripple effect it had on a community. Speaking with family, friends, detectives, journalists, and others close to the case, the series mixes firsthand accounts and archival footage to explore the crime and its outcome.
Meeting of Minds

1977

Meeting of Minds

1977
9.5
The show featured guests who played significant roles in world history. Guests would interact with each other and host Steve Allen, discussing philosophy, religion, history, science, and many other topics. As nearly as was possible, the actual words of the historical figures were used. The show was fully scripted, yet the scripts were carefully crafted to give the appearance of spontaneous discussion among historic figures. Typically, each episode would be split into two parts, broadcast separately, with most or all of the guests introduced over the course of the first part, and the discussions continuing into the second part. A total of 24 episodes were produced.
Bill Moyers Journal

2007

Bill Moyers Journal

2007
9
Bill Moyers Journal is an American television current affairs program that covered an array of current affairs and human issues, including but not limited to economics, history, literature, religion, philosophy, science, and most frequently politics. Originally, Bill Moyers executive produced, wrote and hosted the Journal. WNET in New York produced it and PBS aired it from 1972 to 1976. In 1979, following a nearly three-year hiatus, many presidential members of PBS announced that Bill Moyers Journal would return for a second series. The second series covered a broader range of issues in depth. This included election coverage and documentary footage from several U.S. states, among them Florida, Texas, Illinois, D.C. and Nevada. In addition, among its pop-culture coverage, the Journal reported on the 25th anniversary of the premiere of the long-running NBC talk program The Tonight Show. Like the first installment, the second one was produced by WNET in New York City, and was aired on PBS. However, the second install
Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous

1984

Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous

1984
6.5
Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous is an American television series that aired in syndication from 1984 to 1995. The show featured the extravagant lifestyles of wealthy entertainers, athletes and business moguls. It was hosted by Robin Leach for the majority of its run. When Leach was joined by Shari Belafonte in 1994, the show was renamed Lifestyles with Robin Leach and Shari Belafonte. Leach ended each episode with a wish for his viewers that became his signature phrase, "champagne wishes and caviar dreams."
Zoo Quest

1954

Zoo Quest

1954
8.5
Documentary series starring David Attenborough who follows zoo keepers on a quest to find different animals to be added to the zoo. David Attenborough and a team from London Zoo travel in search of exotic animals. Their aim is to capture them and bring them back to the UK for exhibit in the zoo.
Animal Airport

2000

Animal Airport

2000
7
Heathrow Airport in London, one of the world's busiest, isn't full of just people from all around the world who pass through its doors. This series tells tales of the many creatures that end up at the airport's Animal Reception Centre - some legally, many illegally - and the staff who handle arriving and departing shipments of animals in every shape, size, breed and colour. Along with thousands of cats and dogs, the centre has welcomed sloths, giant octopi, bears, elephants, tigers, lions, sharks, alpacas, venomous snakes, vampire bats, and Britain's equestrian team.
Making the Video

1999

Making the Video

1999
4.5
Making the Video is an MTV show, consisting of half-hour episodes, which chronicles the process of filming various music videos. Usually the director outlines the concept of the video and the show often includes light-hearted and humorous moments. It always concludes with a premiere of the finished video. The show premiered on July 11, 1999 and is currently on a hiatus as of 2009. MTV2 has a similar show entitled [Name of Band/Artist] Makes a Video that has featured artists such as 50 Cent, Fall Out Boy, Dashboard Confessional, Evanescence, and Mos Def among others.
Ghosthunters

1996

Ghosthunters

1996
10
Ghosthunters is a British paranormal documentary television series that originally aired from 1996 to 1997 on the Discovery Channel. The four-series program was produced by Inca Productions of Covent Garden, London, hosted by Ian Cashmore, and narrated by William Woollard. Ian Cashmore also appeared in the promo for the American Syfy series Ghost Hunters.
Harley Street

2008

Harley Street

2008
7.5
Harley Street is a British television medical drama shown on ITV in 2008. The series was made by Carnival Films and was set in Harley Street, London. Created by Marston Bloom and written by Howard Overman, Jack Williams and Nicole Taylor, the stories were about the lives of Harley Street specialists and the cases that were presented to them.
The War that Made America

2006

The War that Made America

2006
9.5
The War that Made America is a PBS miniseries about the French and Indian War, which was first aired in two parts on January 18 & 25, 2006. The series features extensive reenactments of historical events, with on-screen narration provided by Canadian actor Graham Greene. Much of the story focuses on George Washington, connecting his role in the war with the later American Revolution. Pontiac's Rebellion, which followed the French and Indian War, is also covered in the series. The series was filmed in June, July, and August 2004 in and around the Western Pennsylvania region where many events actually took place during the war.
Homeland Security USA

2009

Homeland Security USA

2009
10
Homeland Security USA portrayed members of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and other agencies tasked with the security of the US, performing their day-to-day duties. It was the American version of the Australian reality show Border Security. The show premiered on January 6, 2009 on ABC. The show was put on hiatus May 19, 2009. Prior to the show premiering, ABC was met with minor protests from Latin American groups, claiming that the series was anti-immigrant. Once the series premiered, it was shown to be a balanced look at officers within Homeland Security who fought various crimes such as drug trafficking. Remaining episodes aired a few months later on weekend afternoons on ABC.
Oceans

2008

Oceans

2008
8
Oceans is an eight-part series on BBC Two, which seeks to provide a better understanding of the state of the Earth's oceans today, their role in the past, present and future and their significance in global terms. Paul Rose also documents some of the scientific observations his team made as a feature for BBC News.