Life And Death

An investigation into what happened to activist Sandra Bland, who died in police custody after a routine traffic stop.

For thousands of years, stars have been the prime example of something unattainable and unknowable—places so far away that we can learn almost nothing about them. Yet amazingly, astronomers have been able to discover exactly what stars are made of, how they are born, how they shine, how they die, and how they play a surprisingly direct role in our lives. Over the past century, this research has truly touched the stars, uncovering the essential nature of the beautiful panoply of twinkling lights that spans the night sky.

Egypt captivates us like few other ancient civilizations but what was it like to actually live there as an ordinary person, 3500 years ago? Egyptologist Dr Joann Fletcher goes on a fascinating journey in search of people like us not the great Pharaohs but the ordinary people who built and populated this incredible place, creating a remarkable way of life and an extraordinary way of death. Joann explores their homes, workplaces and temples and she climbs down into their tombs to discover the remarkable world of these Ancient Egyptians, both in life and the afterlife.

"Into the Night: Portraits of Life and Death," a documentary by Director Helen Whitney, explores the various ways we think about death – not death in general, but our own in particular. It is the great unanswered question. How do we live with death in our eye? What are the stories we tell ourselves as we go into the night – or into the light? "Into the Night" features nine fascinating men and women from all walks of life, all ages, believers and unbelievers, well-known and obscure. For them, death is no longer an abstraction.

This year marks 20 years since Princess Diana was killed in a car accident on August 31, 1997. In an all-new, two-hour special, Dateline takes an in-depth look at the life and death of the 'People's Princess', featuring exclusive interviews and new details about Diana’s troubled marriage, turbulent life in the monarchy, love affairs, tragic death and ensuing investigation.