Disappearing London

London is one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the world, and has a history packed with interesting stories and details. Disappearing London takes a look at what made London what it is today and the problems which the traditional elements may face in the future. The programme takes a look at the London of old - the last of the capital’s rag-and-bone men, the traditional hatter’s shops which have adorned the city for centuries, and the Italian coffee houses that are still around today and may be under threat.

London has a population of over 7 million but this number is much higher when you consider the surrounding areas and new suburbs. Interestingly, the capital has a sub-economy and a sub-climate all of its own, with numerous research projects revealing that the city absorbs heat in the day time and emits it at night.

It will be interesting to see exactly what is happening to our great capital city, and how its history impacts on the metropolis we see today.

Jesus Camp

There can be few subjects that prompt such differing opinions as religion and politics, but when you mix the two together in the United States of America you have the potential for real fireworks. Jesus Camp is an interesting and often disturbing look into the fundamentalist Christian movement in the US and their attempts to teach children how to become the future foot soldiers of “God’s Army”.

This documentary follows the lives of devout Christians Levi and Rachael as they head off to Pastor Becky Fischer’s summer camp in the bizarrely named Devil’s Lake area of North Dakota (even more alarmingly, the camp is commonly referred to as “Kids on Fire” camp). The program tracks the two new entrants through their time at the camp and allows them to express their thoughts as they progress.

Those who have covered the US Christian movement at length will know that it has a strong moral, religious and politic standing in the United States. Jesus Camp is one of many such camps across the country and Pastor Becky Fischer is only the tip of iceberg for her chosen profession.

The Christian movement in the US has been at the forefront of an array of controversial subjects from abortion to casinos and everything else in between. They hold a very powerful position in many states and cities across the US and have a substantial input when it comes to events such as the Presidential Elections. These very secretive associations have rarely allowed access to their inner working and camps such as “Kids on Fire” so tonight’s show should be an eye opener to those not aware of what happens.

Escape from Alcatraz : The True Story

Al Capone While the Alcatraz prison, which was located on Alcatraz island in the middle of San Francisco, closed down in 1963 it is still possibly the best known prison in the world. It housed some of the more dangerous criminals in the US and was known to many as a fortress, until that fateful day in 1962 when three prisoners decided to break out.

Escape from Alcatraz : The True Story tracks the amazing escape attempt, how it was planned and exactly what happened to the three prisoners, who were never seen again. The show has footage of interviews with former inmates who knew what was happening, prison guards from Alcatraz and FBI agents.

Each of these contributors offer an interesting angle on life at the prison and how likely it was that the men actually made it to shore in their makeshift raft. Three modern day coastguards agreed to retake that fateful journey in a replica of the raft which the prisoners used to escape, in an attempt to see if it was possible that they survived.

While the stories about Alcatraz continue to circulate to this day, by far the most high profile of “guests” was the gangster “Al Capone” who arrived on the island with one of the worst reputations in US criminal history. As soon as he “landed” it was stated that he would not receive any special treatment from the guards and was just another inmate, but the fact that he was still able to run his criminal rackets from Alcatraz island is a mystery!

Alcatraz seems to have one of those reputations which continues to grow even though it was decommissioned back in the 1960s. Afforded official US designation in the 1970s and 1980s the island is now operated by the National Park Service and open to the public for tours.

Michael Barrymore: What Really Happened

After the success of last weeks Heather Mills show the audience figures for tonight’s instalment are sure to rise substantially higher with many people amazed at some of the facts and the people that Jacques Peretti managed to unveil on air. The show caused a number of uncomfortable comments and headlines in the press in the proceeding two days with furious denials from Australia with regards to the country’s richest businessman and claims made on the show.

While there are many who have reason to see the fall of Michael Barrymore, there are just as many who feel that the entertainer is something of a tortured soul, with his private and public life at different ends of the spectrum. Michael Barrymore: What Really Happened takes a fateful look at the night when a young man drowned at Barrymore’s mansion and the sudden demise of his TV career over night.

Tonight’s show contains a number of interviews with those closest to Michael Barrymore as well as the father and brother of Stuart Lubbock who so tragically died on that fateful night. We have seen a number of police investigations, rumours, counter rumours and much controversy surrounding this case but nobody seems to be able to get to the bottom of what happened that night.

This is sure to make very uncomfortable viewing for Michael Barrymore with his whole life and lifestyle dissected in front of the UK public yet again. He has made a number of attempts to restart his career in the UK, after emigrating for a few years, but it seems that his once adoring fans are no more. Unfortunately there are no winners in this particular show but it will be interesting to see what new facts have emerged in the years since the event.

Bad Manners Britain : Tonight

If like many of us you are sick and tired of being labelled as loutish and ill mannered just because a handful of the UK population feel it is ok to act that way, take a look into the real world of the UK with Jonathan Maitland.

Bad Manners Britain : Tonight investigates whether the UK population have wholeheartedly taken on the mantle of boorish louts with bad manners, or whether the minority in this bracket are the ones damaging our rep. The program takes a look at a number of different areas, attempting to pinpoint a specific demise in British behaviour over the years.

Maitland and his team have enlisted the help of an amateur football team, aiming to turn them into gents on the field to see if this has any impact on their performance and general outlook on life. While football has long been the number one sport in the UK, it is never too long out of the headlines with many fans and players alike showing unnecessary aggression towards each other and match officials.

Tonight’s show should certainly prove thought-provoking. Writer and author, Maitland has a history for courting controversy and getting to the heart of the matter, having carried out a number of hard hitting investigations for programs such as BBC’s Watchdog and ITV’s House of Horrors. It will be fascinating to see the results of an investigation that should hopefully dispel some of the labels that many of the UK population have been unfairly afforded.

Strictly Baby Fight Club

This Channel 4 documentary from Cutting Edge has already inspired controversy in the UK, with many expressing disgust at what has been reported in the papers. Tonight we get the chance to see the documentary in full, and many of the people involved are adamant that they have been unfairly portrayed by the media.

Thai boxing has become increasingly popular in the UK. Now many people are concerned that the art is being taught to children as young as four. As well as being coached in the martial art they are taking part in pre-arranged fight tournaments (all legal with referees and doctors) in which they are encouraged to kick and wrestle their opponents to the floor.

Strictly Baby Fight Club tells the story of four families, each with a child destined for future success in the ring. Camera crews have been following them over a period of time to provide an insight into the lives of the children who take part in this controversial sport. The show also highlights the demise of youth football and other more tradititonal sports due to local councils selling pitches to land developers.

The parents of these juvenile fighters believe that the strict martial arts regime has given their children self-respect and discipline which is missing in so many young people today.

Strictly Baby Fight Club is an intriguing portrait of a sport which is growing steadily in popularity. Whether the show will change the opinions of the sport’s detractors remains to be seen.

Heather Mills : What Really Happened?

They held the front pages for over two years, their public spats becoming more and more personal, and then finally they thrashed out a deal which saw Heather Mills awarded somewhere in the region of £24 million from her husband Paul McCartney. However, if you thought that was the end of the story, think again as Heather Mills : What Really Happened? is sure to be the first in a series of shows about the celebrity couple and the controversy and mystery which has followed Heather in particular.

Tonight’s show sees journalist Jacques Peretti trying to get to the bottom of the mystery which is Heather Mills, with exerts from her father and Pamela Cockerill, the lady who ghost wrote her autobiography. There are many in the industry who are surprised to see this show make it to the screens when you consider that Ms Mills has threatened to sue anyone who makes even the slightest derogatory remark against her – and she now has the money to carry out those threats.

It will be interesting to finally speak to the people who you would guess should know Ms Mills the best, her father and the writer of her autobiography. However, she is rumoured to have been estranged from her father for over 20 years and the press comments attributed to him along the way have been anything but supportive.

Will we finally get to the truth about Ms Mills claims to be a substantial supporter of charities, even though her tax returns shown in court indicated otherwise, along with a number of claims she made about her treatment at the hands of Paul McCartney. It promises to be an interesting show and something which will no doubt create a barrage of new headlines in the newspapers later in the week.

Hitler’s War

The increasingly popular History Channel shows “Hitler’s War” today, a programme which offers an interesting perspective on World War II from a German angle. The show takes us back in time to when the War began, leading us right through to the mystery of what happened to Hitler and the whereabouts of his remains.

Eyewitness accounts, real footage from the days of the War and comments from those who saw battle all add to the reality of the show. While the German leader was hero worshipped in many parts of Germany as he took on the might of the West, it is interesting to see what propaganda and news they were being fed as the German army began to run out of steam. A depressed economy, no food and no money saw many Germans struggling to make ends meet as Hitler battled the might of the foreign forces.

The August 1944 uprising in Paris had a major impact upon the war and, slowly but surely, the German Army was dismantled. Allied troops pushed them further and further back towards their homeland before occupying German as millions of prisoners and captives were released – although it was too late for many.

It is easy to forget the hardship and ill-treatment which soldiers on both sides endured in World War II, and many will be fascinated to learn how the War actually started. World War II is said to have resulted in the direct death of 60 million people, mostly civilians, and is widely believed to be the most costly conflict of all time. The end of World War II saw a number of treaties and agreements signed to try and ensure that no other war of its size would ever be fought again. In many ways the War was a turning point in history, but the cost to human life was astronomical.

Forensic Detectives

This fascinating show tracks the lives and investigations of a team of Forensic Detectives who work tirelessly to bring criminals to justice, even many years after the event. The techniques which they use are getting more and more sophisticated and even evidence from crimes carried out decades ago can be re-examined using new techniques and clues found which could pinpoint the perpetrators.

While we have seen crimes in the UK solved using the slightest of hair samples, the smallest drop of saliva or the tiniest spec of DNA, the Forensic Detectives actually go much further that this. Some of the techniques which they use are mind blowing and the fact that much of their information can be vital to a successful prosecution adds to the pressure of the job.

Can you imagine working in a spotlessly clean environment every day of your working life? Can you imagine the pressure you are under not to contaminate evidence with even the smallest piece of your own DNA? This is the kind of atmosphere and pressure which these people live under every day of their working lives.

If one thing has become apparent after watching this show it is the fact that no matter how hard you try, it is almost impossible not to leave a trace of your DNA, or some other form of identification at the scene of a crime. Thankfully, while there have been miscarriages of justice, the information by the Forensic Detectives has also been used to clear those who may have served time in prison for crimes which they did not commit.

The Discovery Sci-Trek channel is a mine of information with a whole array of different documentaries and informative shows on each and every day. This is real life, this is the cutting edge of technology, and the Forensic Detectives are out to get the criminals!

How Do They Do That?

How do they do that? Have you ever wondered how the power suppliers get the electricity from the power station to your door? How your telephone actually works? Or how engineers operate the world’s largest floating crane?

While the Discovery Channel may not be the first TV channel which you look at when switching on the TV, there are actually a great number of different, entertaining and informative shows on the Discovery Channel. These are the types of shows which never receive any promotion and while they seem to be repeated time and time again, very few of us actually know what we are missing.

The beauty of a great scientific show is the ease with which they break down often complicated and difficult to understand systems and procedures. How do they do that? Is a show which actually tells you what is happening in a way which you can understand – using common sense. By clever use of props, diagrams and simple yet detailed descriptions of what is happening you will soon understand how the electricity gets into your home, and how the engineers actually control the world largest floating crane!

It is a shame that more scientific programs are not promoted to the wider public because as well as being very useful for adults to see how and what is happening, surely these programs must be a great prop for those studying at school, college or university?

Quite what the show will tackle in the future remains to be seen but the main attraction of this type of show is the mixture of everyday and specialist scientific procedures which are covered. So maybe next time you have a few minutes spare, switch on the TV, flick along to the Discovery Channel and see exactly how and why so many everyday systems and procedures actually work. You will be surprised!