Browse all episodes of Days That Shook the World

4 June 1942

At a tiny atoll in the Pacific Ocean, the massed forces of the US and Japanese fleets meet for a decisive showdown. In the space pf just four minutes, the entire course of World War II is about to be transformed.

The Battle of Midway

26 October 1881 and 14 February 1929

From the wild west and the mob-run city come two stories that have entered American mythology: the gunfight in the obscure mining town of Tomestone and Al Copone's frenzied attack on George 'Busgsy' Malone in Chicago.

Rule of the Gun: The O.K. Corral/Saint Valentine's Day Massacre

12 April 1633 and 12 April 1961. Two days on which science challenged the conventional view of our place in the universe: April 12, 1633 when Galileo stands trial for heresy for claiming the sun and not the Earth is the centre of the known universe, and exactly 328 years to the day later (1961) when Soviet cosmonaut Major Yuri Gagarin steps from the Earth into space.

Reach For The Stars: Trials of Galileo / Yuri Gagarin's Flight

The Overthrow of Ceaucescu

1 May 1960 and 18 February 1962

These two stories from the height of the Cold War illustrate the mistrust and suspicion of an era. A spy plane shot down from the skies over Russia and the eventual dramatic exchange of the pilot for a Russian spy across a bridge in Berlin.

Cold War Spies: Gary Powers/Rudolf Abel

6 December 1773 and 14 August 1947

The catalyst and repercussions of freedom from colonial rule are explored in the American 'patriots' raid on a British ship and the web of devastation and destruction the soured India's independence celebrations.

Let Freedom Rise: The Boston Tea Party/The Independence of India

25 December 1914

The first Christmas of World War 1 bore witness to an incredible phenomenon. A spontaneous truce broke out in the murderous trenches, led by the gun-fodder troops of each side and reluctantly followed by, for once, important officers and generals.

The Christmas Truce

9 May and 28 August 1963.  The intriguing stories behind two of Britain's most audacious robberies centres on the parts played by the central characters mastermind criminals, victims, a getaway driver and the King himself.

Grand Heist: The Theft of the Crown Jewels / The Great Train Robbery

19 June 1953 and 25 May 1951

The differing fates of the most famous Soviet spies are explored as, in the USA, the Rosenbergs face the electric chair for passing atomic secrets to the Soviets and, after a dramatic flight, the British spies Burgess and Maclean find safety in the hands of the KGB.

The Cost of Betrayal: The Defection of Burgess & MacLean/The Execution of the Rosenbergs

September 1824 and 20 November 1953

Two archaeological 'discoveries' which profoundly altered our understanding of the natural world: the first unearthing of the bones of an ancient giant reptile, and the astonishing discovery of the 'missing link' between ape and man - soon to be revealed as an elaborate hoax.

Dinosaurs & Duplicity: Discovery of the First Dinosaur/Piltdown Man

6 May 1937 And 27 January 1986. Two traumatic air disasters highlighting the human cost of aviation: the transatlantic crossing of the luxurious airship Hindenburg ends in disaster while tragic events accompany the launch of the Challenger space shuttle.

Disaster in the Sky: The Hindenburg / Challenger Disaster

14 April 1865 and 19 April 1995

Eye-witness accounts, key figures and court transcripts are used to retell tow terrorist acts which shook America. The killing of the President and the bombing of a federal office over a century apart were both committed by Americans seemingly at war with their own country.

Terrorism: Assassination of Abraham Lincoln/Oklahoma City Bombing

11 November 1918

This dramatic story of the final days of World War 1 finds soldiers still fighting and Germany turning to anarchy. Meanwhile, in a wood in France, hostile negotiations take place in a race to end the war.

The War to End All Wars: The End of World War I

The Road To Revolution: The Execution of Ceauşescu/The Iranian Revolution

30 October 1938 and 24 April 1983

Over a million radio listeners panic thinking the nation was being attacked by Martians in Orsen Welles 'War of the Worlds' and one of the world's most venerable newspapers falls for fake diaries of Adolf Hitler. Clever fakers or just a gullible public?

Fact or Fiction: The War of the Worlds/Hitler Diaries

The Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II & The Death of Diana

7 June 1967

By the third day of a six day war, Israeli forces have destroyed egypt's armies in the Sinai, captured the West Bank and seized the Old City of Jurusalem. But the euphoria of victory soon turns to anguish.

Battle For The Holy City: The Six-Day War

7 December 1941

The devastating pre-emptive strike on the American fleet in Hawaii that caught the USA sleeping was a strategic triumph for the Japanese. With eye-witness accounts and reconstructions, we relive the events that propelled America into the second World War.

Attack on Pearl Harbor

19 May 1536 and 10 December 1936

The Story of two English kings whose private affairs become national events - how the Queen of England gambled everything only to end her life on the scaffold and how the King put his love for a divorcee before his duty to the nation.

Affairs of the Crown: The Execution of Anne Boleyn/The Abdication of Edward VIII

22 August 1962 and 20 July 1944. Two assassination attempts that, if successful, might have changed the course of history: the Algerian Secret Army's attempt to shoot President de Gaulle of France and Colonel von Stauffenberg's planting of a bomb under Hitler's desk.

Conspiracy to Kill: The Real Day of the Jackal / Wolf's Lair

Episode 9

Days That Shook the World is a British documentary television series that premiered on BBC Two on 17 September 2003. The programme features various milestones throughout history. It has been broadcast on the BBC, Discovery Channel UK, The History Channel and Viasat History.

The series was also released on DVD by the Polish edition of Newsweek in 2007.

All Episodes of Days That Shook the World

Season 1

The Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II & The Death of Diana

Season 1 Episode 1 - Aired 11/1/2003