Ancient Egypt was vandalised by tomb raiders and treasure hunters until one Victorian adventurer took them on. Most of us have never heard of Flinders Petrie, but this maverick genius underook a scientific survey of the pyramids, discovered the oldest portraits in the world, unearthed Egypt's prehistoric roots - and in the process invented modern field archaeology, giving meaning to a whole civilisation.

They are constantly circling hundreds of miles above our heads, driving our daily lives - yet we barely give satellites a second thought.

In this documentary, Rageh Omaar sets out to find out that if human depiction is the source of such controversy, how is it that the art displayed here shows a tradition of figurative art at the heart of Islam for century after century? He explores what forms of art are acceptable for a Muslim - and why this artistic tradition has thrived - in the hidden art of the muslim world.

Science series. People like to think they are in control of their lives - of what they feel and think. But scientists are now discovering this is often simply an illusion.

Pure white lemurs called silky sifaka live in the remote rainforests of Madagascar. They are one of the rarest animals in the world. Now a passionate scientist joins forces with an undercover detective to investigate whether there is a link between these endangered lemurs, illegal logging and expensive guitars in the USA.

A mother grizzly bear brings up her two cubs in the wilds of Alaska. She must keep them safe from prowling males, teach them to hunt and prepare them to survive the savage winter.

You know the music - now meet the man. Still Bill is an intimate portrait of soul legend Bill Withers, best known for his classics Ain't No Sunshine, Lean on Me, Lovely Day, Grandma's Hands and Just the Two of Us.

In 2011 Channel 4 exposed damning evidence of atrocities committed in the war in Sri Lanka. Jon Snow presents this powerful follow-up film, revealing new video evidence as well as contemporaneous documents, eye-witness accounts, photographic stills and videos relating to how exactly events unfolded during the final days of the civil war.

Scientists are expecting a fit of violent activity on the sun which will propel billions of tonnes of superheated gas and pulses of energy towards our planet.

A look at the career of Barcelona's Argentinian striker who at the age of just 24 has already established himself as the greatest player currently active.

Through compelling testimony from 7-10 year-old survivors, this film reveals how the deadly wave and the Fukushima nuclear accident have changed children's lives forever

Documentary looking at the Secret History of the Mongols, said to have been written by Genghis Khan's adopted son, which reveals a very different man to the brutal butcher of Western legend.

In the 2012 Richard Dimbleby Lecture, leading geneticist and Nobel laureate Sir Paul Nurse explores the wonder of science and how it enhances our culture and civilisation.

2011 has been a year of epic-scale climate and geological events across the world. This film looks back on a year of natural disasters, all caught on camera in spectacular fashion.

To mark the 200th anniversary of the publication of Jane Austen’s first novel, Sense and Sensibility, Professor Amanda Vickery, one of the leading chroniclers of Georgian England, explores the ebb and flow of Austen’s popularity and the hold her fiction has on us now.

A footstomping return to the BBC vaults of Top of the Pops, The Old Grey Whistle Test and Later with Jools as the programme spins itself to a time when disco ruled the floor, the airwaves and our minds.

The extraordinary and deeply moving story of the million British horses that served in World War I

Documentary about how a much-derided music actually changed the world. Between 1969 and 1979 disco soundtracked gay liberation, foregrounded female desire in the age of feminism and led to the birth of modern club culture as we know it today.

For three and a half years Ruth was subjected to emotional and mental abuse at the hands of an unknown stalker.

Documentary exploring the sport of wheelchair rugby and the fierce rivalry between the American and Canadian teams before and during the Athens games of 2004.

International investigative documentary series. When a tsunami struck Japan in 2011, it swamped the Fukushima nuclear complex causing nuclear meltdown and releasing radiation that ultimately would leave hundreds of square miles uninhabitable, and cost a hundred thousand people.

International investigative documentary series. In February 2011, millions of Egyptians came together to bring down President Hosni Mubarak in what became the defining moment of the Arab Spring.

Documentary about the case of heiress Patty Hearst, who was famously kidnapped in 1974 by a militant group, and ultimately appeared to come to embrace her abductors' ideology of prisoners' rights and class struggle.

Nominated for a 2011 Academy Award, this documentary tells the remarkable story of a young American environmentalist involved with the Earth Liberation Front - a group the FBI came to describe as America's 'number one domestic terrorism threat'.

Documentary which tells the story of a group of men and women who risked their lives to rescue a library - and preserve a nation's history - in the midst of the Bosnian war.

Augustus Northmore Welby Pugin is far from being a household name, yet he designed the iconic clock tower of Big Ben as well as much of the Palace of Westminster.

Documentary which tells the story of how West Indies cricket triumphed over its colonial masters through the achievements of one of the most gifted teams in sporting history.

Documentary following the lives of the members of the world's largest wolf pack in Yellowstone National Park. Daughters plot behind their father's back, sister slays sister and steals her lover, and a family is torn apart.

A preview of Natural World: Jungle Gremlins of Java, showing some of the mysteries that make this primate so special.

With one and a half million American children now homeless, reporter Hilary Andersson meets the school pupils who go hungry in the richest country on Earth.