Ludwig II of Bavaria, more commonly known by his nicknames the Swan King or the Dream King, is a legendary figure - the handsome boy-king, loved by his people, betrayed by his cabinet and found dead in tragic and mysterious circumstances. He spent his life in pursuit of the ideal of beauty, an ideal that found expression in three of the most extraordinary, ornate architectural schemes imaginable - the castle of Neuschwanstein and the palaces of Linderhof and Herrenchiemsee. Today, these three buildings are among Germany's biggest tourist attractions. Dan Cruickshank explores the rich aesthetic of Ludwig II - from the mock-medievalism of Neuschwanstein, the iconic fairytale castle that became the inspiration for the one in Walt Disney's Sleeping Beauty, to the rich Baroque splendour of Herrenchiemsee, Ludwig's answer to Versailles. Dan argues that Ludwig's castles are more than flamboyant kitsch and are, in fact, the key to unravelling the eternal enigma of Ludwig II.
Originally intended as an advertising short, this film follows The Elizabethan, a non-stop British Railways service from London to Edinburgh along the East Coast Main Line. A nostalgic record of the halcyon years of steam on British Railways and the ex-LNER Class A4.
A short documentary about the transportation of goods and livestock by train around the UK.
Artist Rolf Schulz's pursuit to make his dreams come true through his endless toil to complete the majestic Mundo King Castle on a hill in the Dominican Republic
TGV, la réussite française
A multibillion-pound investment is underway to make our railways bigger, better and faster. Over three years, we go behind the scenes with Wales’s newest rail body as they try to make ambitious promises a reality.
This Traveltalk series short celebrates San Francisco, past and present.
This rich, historical documentary captures the story of the high-speed, electric transit system that sparked the growth and development of Puget Sound's twin cities during the first quarter of the 20th century.
The Unreserved is an inquiry into the lives of passengers who use the Unreserved Compartment, the cheapest way to travel across India on the Indian Railways system. The film portrays the passengers’ aspirations, efforts and opinions through conversations and personal stories.
For the past ten years, Jürgen Henn has filmed over-height trucks crashing into the 11foot8 train bridge affectionately nicknamed the "Can Opener." In that time, millions have viewed the crashes online. Regional, national, and international news organizations have dined out on the story and the goofy crash reels. But why do motorists continue to crash despite the many warnings, sensors, and signs? And what is it about these crashes that holds our attention? In this piece, we look for the humanity in human error.
Jerry Macri's Pennsylvania Railroad is huge, 4300 square feet of big time four track mainline! In fact this may be the largest home layout ever built! This HO layout runs from Chicago to New York and can handle more than 1200 pieces of rolling stock. It takes a train 25 minutes to run across the layout. Along the line there is a massive steel mill and a 30 foot deep Horseshoe Curve-- two signature elements of Western Pennsylvania. The Pennsy began in 1990 in a 2800 square foot basement. But then Jerry decided to add more layout space and more house and even a patio above. So the layout is now 3 inter-connected rooms with about 50% of the scenery completed. There are more than 20,000 trees on the layout. This is a prototype-based HO layout with a lot of freelanced scenic elements. Creating realistic and evocative scenes is Jerry's favorite part of the hobby because this helps him remember special times and places from his youth in the late 50s and early 60s.
Known as the setting of "Downton Abbey," Highclere Castle truly was the home of aristocrats and an army of servants, with a rich past to share.
André Le Notre is certainly the most famous French gardener. He was also a designer, architect, engineer, landscaper and urban planner. He worked for Louis XIV from 1645 to 1700 and designed the gardens of Versailles, Vaux le Vicomte, Chantilly and Fontainebleau, as well as the Tuileries in Paris.
A documentary on the passing of the steam locomotive as the primary means of transportation in the United States
Documentation on the Berlin S-Bahn, which threatened to fall into oblivion as a result of the division of the city.
The film explores how the three British colonies of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island became provinces of Canada and charts the subsequent decline of their economies after Confederation. Photographs, archival drawings, cartoons and interviews with Maritime historians are used to document the case.
Trace the history of Hitler's armored private train, a 15-car mobile headquarters boasting state-of-the-art communications and anti-aircraft cannons.
May 27th, 1971 was a rainy day. In the small town Radevormwald, the world seems to be still in order. But on this day, 46 people die in a train crash, amongst them 41 schoolchildren. Since then, Radevormwald has been connected with one of the worst railway catastrophes of Germany. The touching documentary reconstructs the tragedy and shows how much the event still influences the life in the town until today.
Second part of a two-part documentary about the now largely defunct network of local railways in the areas around Erlangen and Forchheim, Germany.
Documentary filmmakers offer a fascinating look at one of the most spectacular engineering feats of the 19th Century as the story of the Transcontinental Railroad comes to life in a film that's sure to appeal to historians and railroad enthusiasts alike. As legions of tireless workers toiled for six years to realize the vision of shady entrepreneurs and imaginative engineers, the remarkable railway dream slowly became a reality. But not everyone was so pleased with the remarkable achievement. Despite the devastating effect that the tremendous transportation breakthrough would have on the Native American population, the lasting impact of the Transcontinental Railroad on the politics and culture of a rapidly expanding country would forever mark it as an invaluable component of the American success story.