The story of The Boomtown Rats, who fought a conservative Ireland, broke through the UK punk scene, scored global No 1 hits and revolutionised the world with Bob Geldof’s Live Aid.
With exclusive access to a major new excavation, Alice Roberts discovers what King Arthur's Britain was like, including surprisingly modern connections we all share with our past.
Benjamin and Awad run Sudan's national film archive. The two men, who have worked together for more than 40 years, are devoted to protecting their country's visual memories. Home to some 13,000 films, the archive preserves pivotal moments of Sudan's turbulent history and is one of the largest in Africa. But the archive is in a fragile state. Following years of neglect and poor storage, many film reels are turning to dust in Sudan's unforgiving tropical climate. The two friends are determined to turn it around and embark on a mission to save the old films. Will they succeed in preserving Sudan's visual history for future generations before it's too late?
Lou Reed was wise to chronicle a concert by his early-'80s band, featuring lead guitarist Robert Quine and bassist Fernando Saunders. Reed had used them on his trilogy of strong albums -- The Blue Mask, Legendary Hearts, and New Sensations -- released between 1982 and 1984. This 52-minute video, shot at the Capitol Theater in Passaic, NJ, in 1984, is a straightforward, no-frills live show. Reed, in black T-shirt and black leather pants, stands on-stage before a cityscape background and makes his way through a set that features both a selection of Velvet Underground songs, and his sole hit single, "Walk on the Wild Side," plus highlights from his three recent albums, notably such songs as "I Love You Suzanne." As such, the video makes a good Lou Reed career sampler.
A story about the first Serbian Olympian who won bronze medal at the first Olympic games in 1896, also a world class architect.
Through dramatization and interviews with her colleagues, this film captures the life and work of famed Puerto Rican poet Mercedes Negrón Muñoz (also known as Clara Lair).
Norwegian documentary from 2013. The Kensington stone was found in 1898 in Minnesota, USA. The disputed, stone-hewn inscriptions, if genuine, would prove that a Norwegian-Swedish expedition explored the American continent 100 years before Columbus. Rheological expertise has always maintained that the stone is a forgery, but others continue stubbornly and enthusiastically to assert the authenticity of the stone and that the history books must be rewritten.
In the mid 1800s, New York City was one of the most crowded places on earth. The congested streets and pokey transportation system were a source of constant complaint. On March 24, 1900, ground was broken for the Big Apple's subway; the Interborough Rapid Transit Line opened four years later, running more than 26 miles of underground track at the speed of 35 miles per hour. Soon thousands in the city were "doing the subway."
A poetic journey about the life and work of Puerto Rican poet Julia de Burgos.
Ed Kemper, also known as the Co-Ed Killer, murdered and dismembered 10 people, including his own mother. Former FBI agent John Douglas takes us through his extensive interviews with Kemper, which became the backbone of modern criminal psychology.
With the British government promoting an inaccurate revisionist version of the 1807 Abolition of the 'Slave Trade' Act many are determined to ensure that Truth prevails in 2007. With contributions from community activists, project workers, teachers, historians and the business community, this documentary confronts the myths about British slavery, presents the true history of the Maafa and African resistance and examines the politics of the government's bicentenary celebrations. On Screen Contributors: Dr Abiola Ogunshola, emma pierre, Bro Hakim, Dr Hakim Adi, Henry Bonsu, Ms Serwah, Bro Omowale, Kwaku Bonsu, Kubara Zamani, Dr Kimani Nehusi, Bro Ldr Mbandaka, Michael Eboda, Onyeka, shaka Marday, Stephen Henry, Teleica Kirkland and Dr William Lez Henry. Directed by Toyin Agbetu Produced by emma pierre
Maafa Legacy exposes the euro-academic view that British slavery was just ‘trade’ as a lie and reveals why the crimes both past and present that continue to be committed against Mama Africa and her children stand as the most heinous ever in World history. This documentary also provides a retrospective view of Wilberfest 2007 and explores the enduring legacy of the Maafa on African people residing in the Diaspora. On Screen Contributors: Dr Abiola Ogunshola, Sis Ayen Meke, Christopher Cole, emma pierre, Bro Hakim, Hakim Adi, Sis Jendayi Serwah, Kimani Nehusi, Kubara Zamani, Kwaku Bonsu, Kwaku-Jesse Konadu Olaleye, Dr Lez Henry, Manga Clem Marshall, Bro Mbandaka, Michael Eboda, Morenike Fasuyi, Netsanet Solomon, Oleander William, Onyeka, Bro Omowale, Sis Panyin Aikins, Royson James, Sis Dr. Sandra Richards, Teleica Kirkland, Tony Warner, Toyin Agbetu, Tracey Jarrett Directed and produced by Toyin Agbetu
In a two part documentary, specifically made for a Pan African audience, we follow the writer and activist, Toyin Agbetu as he shares the results of his three year journey across three continents in seek of solutions to the many problems African people currently face as a result of Maafa. Rejecting the classic ten point plan method, Maisha Solutions instead features contributions from various voices across the world with a strong emphasis placed upon independent learning and the empowerment of young people and women. This two part film offers insights into various topics and invites viewers to take leadership roles by becoming Pan African community workers that utilise our progressive traditional customs in order to successfully tackle many of the challenges we face today. Directed and Produced by Toyin Agbetu
On 27 March 2007 a Pan Africanist named Toyin Agbetu challenged the British Government, Monarchy and Church as they gathered to hold a religious celebration for the Bicentenary of the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act in Westminster Abbey, England. Toyin, who condemned the service as an insult and disgrace, halted the proceedings with words that gave a voice to the collective view of millions around the world. As Maafa truths were revealed he was demonised and misrepresented in the British media as a ‘lone madman’. Watch the restored uncensored footage of what happened that day and afterwards when the African community in Britain stood beside him - from his arrest and incarceration to the eventual dropping of all criminal charges. Directed by Toyin Agbetu Produced by emma pierre
This heart-rending love letter from one brother to another uses animation to mythologize Jonathan's fantasy life as punk singer Johnny Physical. After being hit on the head with a beer bottle, Jonathan was dealt a devastating diagnosis—and escape into rock star Johnny's sex, drugs and rock ‘n' roll lifestyle becomes a vital source of energy as he fights for his life
A Dutch documentary about the history of the anarchist punk band Crass. The film features archival footage of the band, and interviews with former members Steve Ignorant, Penny Rimbaud and Gee Vaucher.
A documentary about an Iowa artist who made his career from two antique photo albums that he found in the trash. It has been four years since he originally found the two photo albums and since then he has had featured exhibits around the country. This is the first film in the MADE IN IOWA documentary series.
Michael Strunge and other young Danish poets, accompanied by images of night-time Copenhagen.
THIS FILM SHOULD NOT EXIST is a slight-of-hand trick replete with all the details of a rock documentary. Archival footage from the orgiastic 1995 tour with The Oblivians and stories of everyday life leads the audience down a familiar path, and with a delicately insistent grin, transports us somewhere else completely. Echoing the artistic path taken by Ben Wallers, the film winds through the underground world of the 1990's garage rock band Country Teasers to form a portrait of a man, musician, and leader.
Three spoken word poets and event organizers based in Dublin - Melissa Ridge, Hazel Hogan and Kasey Shelley - reveal the positive impact poetry has had on their lives, and the challenges they have turning their hobby into a career.