Reel Stories: An Oral History of London's Projectionists

At the 1996 Atlanta Games, the Magnificent Seven became the first American women to ever win gymnastics team gold. Sixteen years later, in London, the Fierce Five joined them in the history books. Relive all the excitement as Gabby Douglas, Aly Raisman, Jordyn Wieber, McKayla Maroney and Kyla Ross take the lead from the first rotation and never look back on their way to gold. Follow Gabby Douglas on her way to the podium to make it three straight American gold medals in the individual all-around competition. Every individual event final is featured on this DVD, including Aly Raisman's historic gold-medal performance in the floor exercise, her bronze on the balance beam, as well as McKayla Maroney's silver medal in the vault.

In 1960, acclaimed filmmaker James Ivory traveled to Afghanistan to shoot scenes for a documentary that was never completed. In 2022, he decided to revisit this unique footage, which takes him back to his adventurous youth.

Cameras go behind the scenes at Brown's, London's oldest luxury hotel, during the Christmas season, as staff face the expectations of delivering a luxury festive stay for guests booking rooms that start at £750 a night. The hotel's elite team hosts a vibrant charity Christmas fayre, creates imaginative festive pastries, and concocts a signature holiday cocktail, all aimed at delivering the Christmas feast of a lifetime.

Documentary illustrating the birth of sound cinema.

Tassel-spinning showgirl Tina stars in this rare 60s British burlesque stage show reel.

During a three-month period in 1888, a knife-wielding serial killer murdered six women on the streets of Whitechapel. Their throats were cut and their bodies horribly mutilated. He was never caught and his identity remains one of the world's greatest crime mysteries. In the years that have passed since Jack the Ripper's killing spree, many high-profile suspects have been suggested, yet the fact remains that none of them can be placed at any of the crime scenes. Now, journalist Christer Holmgren believes that he has found a suspect who can not only be linked directly to one of the murders but also whose daily routine could be consistent with all the other deaths

An oral history exploring the development of film projection and cinema in Kingston-on-Thames - from resident innovator Eadweard Muybridge through the heyday, decline, and re-emergence of cinema. Features interviews with historians, projectionists and usherettes as well as cinema-goers with rare footage and images from Kingston’s cinemas.

This fascinating 60s tour catches London's South Bank in the middle of a cultural metamorphosis.

Dance for All

The glorious and tragic story of American athlete and actor Johnny Weissmuller (1904-84), Olympic swimmer, water polo player and the only true Tarzan, an archetypal character and myth of cinema, that of the original Hollywood blockbusters (1932-48).

Fifty years after its release, the special effects makeup team behind Planet of the Apes reflect on making the iconic film.

Cecil B. DeMille, l'inventeur du blockbuster

The baker, the pie-maker and the diminished long-term community of Hoxton Street face gentrification in this compelling portrait of a rapidly changing London.

The history of Frankenstein's journey from novel to stage to screen to icon.

The story of how Norma Jeane Mortenson became Marilyn Monroe (1926-62), a lucid path of self-discovery, from anonymity to stardom: the painful birth of a myth.

A documentary revealing an observation on three barbershops throughout the course of one summer's day in the city of London - Hackney, Herne Hill, and Catford.

An inventive remembrance of the impact of the Hollywood blacklist on two American classics, rendered as a visually mesmerizing dialogue between Carl Foreman and Elia Kazan.

A retrospective documentary about the groundbreaking horror series, Friday the 13th, featuring interviews with cast and crew from the twelve films spanning 3 decades.

Minimalist movie making at its best: kids learn the art of film language using illustrations and margarine boxes.

A documentary about film producer Hal Roach.