Impossible Factual

In 1936, Victor H. Green (1892-1960) published The Negro Motorist Green Book, a book that was both a travel guide and a survival manual, to help African-Americans navigate safe those regions of the United States where segregation and Jim Crow laws were disgracefully applied.

Imagine a biology lab filled by a 40-foot specimen, ready for dissection. The creature has skin like a crocodile, eyes the size of softballs and intestines large enough to fit your arm. T. rex Autopsy will go inside a full-size T. rex for the first time ever to reveal how the 65-million-year-old beast may have lived. Using cutting-edge special effects techniques, and in collaboration with esteemed veterinary surgeons, anatomists and paleontologists, T. rex Autopsy will build the world’s first full-size anatomically precise Tyrannosaurus rex, based on the very latest research and findings. The massive monster will be lifelike inside and out, giving scientists the chance to touch it, smell it, scan it, x-ray it and cut it open from head to toe.

D-Day marks the starting point for the liberation of Western Europe from the grip of the Nazi yoke. On June 6th, 1944, Allied soldiers attack German positions at no less than five sectors of the beach in Normandy. The assault takes place from the sea and is considered the largest amphibious landing operation in history. This event now sees its 80th anniversary. But so close, so authentic, this battle has never been shown before. American and British cameramen are at the scene in landing boats, under fire at the beaches, and during the rescue of wounded soldiers. Their original footage, shot in black-and-white, was extensively restored and colourized for this documentary. The historically unique footage appears in motion picture quality. The war gets colour. And thereby a different impact. We look directly in the faces of those, Americans, Canadians, Britons, and Germans, who are often not older than 20. In “24h D-Day”, they tell about their D-Day, the day they never can forget.

Does new evidence show that Queen Victoria and her Highland servant John Brown had a romantic relationship, secretly married and had a child? Rob Rinder and Dr Fern Riddell investigate.

In 2017, a routine archaeological dig is taking place on the site of a proposed housing development in the village of Fenstanton in the Cambridgeshire Fens. When human remains are found alongside a variety of Roman artefacts, none of the team at Albion Archaeology see anything out of the ordinary. But once the bones are washed back at HQ, something highly unusual is uncovered: a nail through the heelbone of one of the individuals. Could this be evidence of a Roman crucifixion? When they do some research, they find that only one confirmed example has ever been unearthed before, discovered in the 1960s in Jerusalem. To find out more, they call in renowned Osteoarchaeologist Dr Corinne Duhig to investigate.

In the 14th century, Siena thrived until the Black Death struck in 1348, decimating its population from 50,000 to 25,000. Agnolo di Tura, a shoemaker, chronicled the societal collapse and fear surrounding the epidemic. This documentary explores the history and impact of Yersinia pestis, tracing its origins to Kyrgyzstan and examining contemporary outbreaks, emphasizing ongoing threats from epidemics and recent instances of the plague in various countries.

A feature documentary about the Herculaneum scrolls, a collection of more than 1,800 ancient papyri carbonised by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE.

A sensational discovery in Great Britain provides new insights into the life and death of the Roman Empire. It is the first intact skeleton of a Roman crucifixion victim ever discovered. A forensic investigation is being carried out on it - with CT scans, DNA profiling, isotope analysis and state-of-the-art forensic imaging technology.