The Great Escape

Winter, 1944. At the heart of Nazi Germany, 76 pilots – the British, the Canadians, the Norwegian and French, who were held in a prison camp of the Luftwaffe, escaped. The tunnel used for their flight was built in the greatest secrecy, under the nose of the German jailers. This historical epic, immortalised in 1963 by John Sturges’ movie ‘The Great Escape’ with Steve Mac Queen, went round the world. But the real story of these men overtakes by far the fiction imagined by Hollywood. Among the witnesses of this documentary is Jack Lyon, one of the last survivors of this adventure.

Put a fence in front of these men… and they'll climb it! - In 1943, the Germans opened Stalag Luft III, a maximum-security prisoner-of-war camp

A team of engineers, archaeologists and serving RAF officers have an extraordinarily ambitious plan: to excavate for the first time ever the remains of 'Harry', the Great Escape tunnel.

The October 14, 1943, mass escape from the Nazi death camp of Sobibor in Poland is recounted through the firsthand accounts of survivors Thomas Blatt, Philip Bialowitz, Selma Engel-Wijnberg and Semjon Rozenfeld.

For 60 years American intelligence steadfastly refused to declassify the work of unit known simply as MIS-X. At last its extraordinary story can be told. The program reveals how MIS-X trained US pilots to send back coded messages if captured by the Germans, how the unit disguised maps, compasses, radios and even guns inside humanitarian parcels.

For 60 years American intelligence steadfastly refused to declassify the work of unit known simply as MIS-X. At last its extraordinary story can be told. The program reveals how MIS-X trained US pilots to send back coded messages if captured by the Germans, how the unit disguised maps, compasses, radios and even guns inside humanitarian parcels.

Guy sets out to recreate the iconic motorcycle movie stunt at the climax of The Great Escape. But unlike Steve McQueen's film character, he aims to successfully clear both fences.

In the 1800s, southern newspapers ran ads seeking runaway slaves suspected of taking refuge in a vast wetland called the Great Dismal Swamp. For decades, scholars have sought proof that the reports were true, and now they finally have it. See how a team of archaeologists is using new discoveries and modern dating methods to piece together this lost part of American history. Then discover what life was like for these brave men and women, who chose to suffer in the swamp and keep their freedom rather than live under the conditions of slavery.

In the 1800s, southern newspapers ran ads seeking runaway slaves suspected of taking refuge in a vast wetland called the Great Dismal Swamp.