The Great Wall

Walk back in time to the Ming dynasty as you encounter the 4,000 milewonder of China's Great Wall and travel along the legendary Silk Road. It tells a tale of the great power of ancient dyanties, and the immense beauty possible in the fortification of borders.

A spectacular aerial journey flying over the world’s longest man-made monument, the Great Wall of China. In classic slow-TV style - without commentary and using authentic location sound - fly 2,500 kilometres along the 2,300-year-old wall, from the Yellow Sea in the crowded east, near Beijing, to the remote Gobi Desert in the west. This epic adventure explores 20 location highlights of the UNESCO-world-heritage site, built by the Ming Dynasty between 1368 and 1644, starting at Old Dragon’s Head on the east coast and ending at the extraordinary Jaiyuguan Fortress - once the gateway into China from the ancient Silk Road trading route.

There are few objects as compelling or iconic as the Great Wall of China and this feature length drama doc takes on this monumental subject with typical style and scale of ambition. Recently shown on Channel 4 this 1.45min film traces the story of the building of the wall in its latest, greatest guise the colossal brick structure that everyone recognizes as the Wall, from the terror of apocalyptic Mongol attacks in 1550 the Ming dynasty’s own 9/11 - through the founding of the nation s first professional army to the building of the wall itself and its testing in battle.

It was the most ambitious building project ever attempted in the history of mankind. And its story has been almost impossible to tell - until now. Based on astonishing new archaeological finds and extraordinary first-person accounts, Great Wall of China tells the story of one of the greatest wonders the world has ever known.

It's more than 3,000 miles in length and was built in just 20 years by a workforce of nearly two million using technology and construction techniques that continue to inspire awe even today. The story of its building, one of human drama, labour and loss, is told in this film through three individuals, each one central to the tale. Thirteen-year-old Emperor Muzong, whose Kingdom is pushed to the brink of destruction by invading Mongolian warriors, demands that a wall be built that can never be breached again. General Qi Jiguang, a military hero and engineering genius, is tasked with overseeing the largest workforce ever assembled on earth. And Zhou Li, an ordinary soldier, is forced to work in conditions of unimaginable hardship but ultimately finds sanctuary and peace in the shadow of this great wall.

Winding roughly 6,700 kilometers through undulating mountains, grasslands, and desert, its vastness seems beyond the realm of human possibility. A wonder of the ancient world, the Great Wall of China is one of mankind's most massive building achievements. Yet contrary to popular belief, there is no single wall of China, but rather a series of walls built for different reasons at different times. MODERN MARVELS® embarks on a journey of discovery, investigating the mysterious history surrounding this cultural marvel. Historians and modern engineers discuss the planning, construction, and function of various segments while extensive location footage illuminates the stunning majesty of its architecture. Legend claims that the wall is a wellspring of warfare, madness, and death–can this be true?

Winding roughly 6,700 kilometers through undulating mountains, grasslands, and desert, its vastness seems beyond the realm of human possibility. A wonder of the ancient world, the Great Wall of China is one of mankind's most massive building achievements. Yet contrary to popular belief, there is no single wall of China, but rather a series of walls built for different reasons at different times. MODERN MARVELS® embarks on a journey of discovery, investigating the mysterious history surrounding this cultural marvel. Historians and modern engineers discuss the planning, construction, and function of various segments while extensive location footage illuminates the stunning majesty of its architecture. Legend claims that the wall is a wellspring of warfare, madness, and death–can this be true?

With access to the first nationwide survey and state-of-the-art drones mapping the Great Wall of China, this documentary offers new evidence that reveals its extraordinary magnitude, rewrites its millennia-long history and decodes its complex signals system. Using cutting-edge chemistry, the programme also finds out what has kept the wall standing for so long - a simple cooking ingredient found in kitchens across the world.

The Great Wall of China is one of the world's greatest engineering marvels. It took dangerous, cutting-edge construction to build it. Experts use the latest tech and modern-day science to reveal if building it a second time would be just as deadly.