Introduction

Historical events are extensively re-explored both through written records and systematic examinations in the field.

Outline

Secret History is a long-running British television documentary series. Shown on Channel 4, the Secret History brandname is still used as a banner title in the UK, but many of the individual documentaries can still be found on US cable channels without the branding. It can be seen as Channel 4’s answer to the BBC’s Timewatch. The series returned to Channel 4 on 10 November 2013 after a nine-year break.

Production

According to Channel 4, Secret History is the home of single, hour-long history documentaries that shed new light on some of the most intriguing stories from the past. New evidence from excavation, research, and investigation reveal strange, forgotten stories and shed new light on the events we thought we knew well. The programmes challenge accepted views of key events in history. Sometimes concealed, sometimes manipulated by the media, the truth has been submerged behind the headlines and the propaganda. From Roman legions to Nazi television, the series re-examined contemporary evidence, focusing on often shocking first-hand accounts and the ground-breaking views of leading experts.

In 1992, the show won the Royal Television Society award for Best Documentary Series.

Secret History Series

Only those episodes with a military-orientation are outlined below.

• Series 01 (1991):
  • Episode 01: The Hidden Hand.
  • Episode 03: Ratlines.
  • Episode 04: Bloody Sunday.
  • Episode 06: Prisoners of Propaganda.

• Series 02 (1992):
  • Episode 02: Birds of Death.
  • Episode 03: Drowning by Bullets.
  • Episode 05: The Hidden Holocaust.
  • Episode 06: Death of a Democrat.

• Series 03 (1994):
  • Episode 03: The Dambusters Raid.
  • Episode 04: Dead or Alive?.
  • Episode 06: Suicide Island.

• Special (1995):
  • Special 01: The Roswell Incident.

• Series 04 (1996):
  • Episode 01: The Battle of Goose Green.
  • Episode 04: Mutiny in the RAF.
  • Episode 07: Hello Mr President.

• Series 05 (1997):
  • Episode 02: The Tragedy of HMS Glorious.
  • Episode 03: Breaking the Sound Barrier.

• Specials – India Summer Season (1997):
  • Special 02: The Forgotten Famine.
  • Special 03: The Cawnpore Massacres.
  • Special 04: Bloody Partition.

• Series 06 (1998):
  • Episode 01: The Voyage of the Exodus.
  • Episode 04: Dad’s Army.
  • Episode 05: Killer Flu.
  • Episode 06: The Berlin Airlift.
  • Episode 10: D-Day Disaster.

• Series 07 (1999):
  • Episode 02: The Hidden Jews of Berlin.
  • Episode 03: Hitler’s Search for the Holy Grail.
  • Episode 04: Mau Mau.
  • Episode 06: Sex and the Swastika.
  • Episode 08: Miracle on the River Kwai.
  • Episode 10: Execution at Camp 21.

• Special (2000):
  • Special 05: The Few.

• Series 08 (2000):
  • Episode 03: Last Train from Budapest.
  • Episode 04: Prisoners of the Kaiser.
  • Episode 05: Mutiny – The True Story of the Red October.

• Series 09 (2001):
  • Episode 03: The Lost Legions of Varus.
  • Episode 04: Television in the Third Reich.
  • Episode 05: Wartime Crime.
  • Episode 06: Spanish Armada.
  • Episode 07: The Falklands – Exocet!.

• Series 10 (2002):
  • Episode 01: Charge of the Light Brigade.
  • Episode 03: Witchfinder General.
  • Episode 04: Magic at War.
  • World War I Sub-Series:
    • Episode 05: The Crucified Soldier.
    • Episode 06: The War That Made the Nazis.
    • Episode 07: Horror on the Home Front.
    • Episode 08: Dogfight – The Mystery of The Red Baron.

• Series 11 (2003):
  • Episode 02: Hitler of the Andes.
  • Episode 05: The Strangest Viking.
  • Episode 06: The Nazi Officer’s Wife.

• Series 12 (2004):
  • Episode 02: Britain’s Boy Soldiers.
  • Episode 04: Sex Bomb.
  • Episode 05: Sink the Belgrano.
  • Episode 06: The Nazi Expedition.

• Series 13 (2013):
  • Episode 02: Queen Victoria and the Crippled Kaiser.
  • Episode 04: New Secrets of the Terracotta Warriors.
  • Episode 05: The Dambusters’ Great Escape.

• Series 14 (2014):
  • Episode 02: Hitler’s Hidden Drug Habit.
  • Episode 03: WW1’s Forgotten Heroes.
  • Episode 04: The Great Wall of China.

• Series 15 (2015):
  • Episode 03: Hunt for the Arctic Ghost Ship.
  • Episode 06: Cleopatra’s Lost Tomb.
  • Episode 08: Sex Change Spitfire Ace.

• Series 16 (2016):
  • Episode 03: Jutland – WW1’s Greatest Sea Battle.
  • Episode 04: Messages Home – Lost Films of the British Army.
  • Episode 05: China’s Forgotten Emperor.
  • Episode 06: Saddam Goes to Hollywood.
  • Episode 07: Heroes of Helmand – The British Army’s Greatest Escape.
  • Episode 10: The Last Heroes of the Somme.
  • Episode 11: Pearl Harbour – The New Evidence.

• Series 17 (2017):
  • Episode 01: Dunkirk – The New Evidence.
  • Episode 04: Britain’s Forgotten Army.
  • Episode 05: Holocaust – The Revenge Plot.
  • Episode 08: Hannibal’s Elephant Army – The New Evidence.

• Series 18 (2019):
  • Episode 01: Skeletons of the Mary Rose – The New Evidence.

Production & Filming Details

• Director(s):
• Producer(s):
• Writer(s):
• Music:
• Cinematography:
• Editor(s):
• Production:
• Distributor:
• Release Date:
• Running Time: 60 minutes.
• Country: UK.
• Language: English.

Video Link(s)