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James Burke

James Burke

Acting

Biography

James Burke is a British broadcaster, science historian, author, and television producer, who is known, among other things, for his documentary television series Connections, and for its more philosophically oriented companion series, The Day the Universe Changed, which is about the history of science and technology. The Washington Post called him "one of the most intriguing minds in the Western world".

Known For

Tomorrow's World
6.4

Tomorrow's World was a long-running BBC television series on new developments in science and technology. First transmitted on 7 July 1965 on BBC1, it ran for 38 years until it was cancelled at the beginning of 2003.

Tomorrow's World

1965
Doomwatch
6.4

Doomwatch is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC, which ran on BBC 1 between 1970 and 1972. The series was set in the then present-day, and dealt with a scientific government agency led by Doctor Spencer Quist, responsible for investigating and combating various ecological and technological dangers. The series was followed by a film adaptation produced by Tigon British Film Productions and released in 1972, and a revival TV film was broadcast on Channel 5 in 1999.

Doomwatch

1970
Connections
8.2

Taking an interdisciplinary approach to the history of science and invention, Connections explores an "Alternative View of Change" that rejects the conventional linear and teleological view of historical progress. To demonstrate this view, Burke begins each episode with a particular event or innovation in the past (usually ancient or medieval) and traces a path from that event through a series of connections to a fundamental and essential aspect of the modern world.

Connections

1978
The Real Thing
8.3

Asking how you tell what's real and what isn't sounds like an obvious question. But in this series of six programmes, James Burke shows that the more you think about it the harder it is to answer. After all, what have you got, apart from your five senses, to prove those senses are giving you the real thing?

The Real Thing

1983
Apollo: Missions to the Moon
7.3

National Geographic's riveting effort recounts all 12 crewed missions using only archival footage, photos and audio.

Apollo: Missions to the Moon

2019
The Day the Universe Changed
8.8

Documentary series about the effect of advances in science and technology on western society in its philosophical aspects.

The Day the Universe Changed

1985
Connections with James Burke
8.2

Historian James Burke continues his journey through random historical connections that together have shaped our world and provide important clues to our future.

Connections with James Burke

2023
Speed
6.1

A documentary on the history on mankind's attempts to reach high speeds. Starting with the invention of the bicycle, going on to sports cars, cars with jet engines, rocket-powered cars, attempts to break the sound barrier, and rocket-engine airplanes. Each achievement is documented by title card indicating the speed reached in miles per hour.

Speed

1984
After the Warming
7.0

Set in 2050, social journalist James Burke looks back at events of the world from the dawn of civilization and shows how climate change has affected human history. At the point of the Industrial Revolution, humans began to do things to the climate, rather than the other way round. When he brings us up to date (1989), that is when the predictions begin. From Kyoto to the two Gulf Wars, Burke accurately predicts many of the events that have taken place so far. His predictions have been sound, even to the tune of carbon credits and climate change agreements. Using virtual reality computer simulations, Burke traces the Earth's history of ice ages and warming trends and presents several possible scenarios caused by the greenhouse effect during the 1990s to 2050.

After the Warming

1989
Masters of Illusion
N/A

This exploration of visual illusions, explained by James Burke in the context of its discovery by the Renaissance masters, and now used by Hollywood special effects wizards is certainly of the most valuable and entertaining educational videos ever produced. If you teach art or film, or if you are a student of any age, your education is incomplete unless you have seen this film. Works of Brunelleschi, Michelangelo, da Vinci, Botticelli, Rapheal and others are used to illustrate the technical and artistic achievements of the Renaissance, but within a very contemporary context of how we see the world in reality or artificial illusion. This is about the discovery of how to make a two dimensional image appear in three dimensions through an understanding of light, shadow, color, and vanishing point perspective.

Masters of Illusion

1991
Apollo 11: A Night to Remember
7.0

This is one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind." Commemorating the 40th anniversary of NASA's 1969 moon landing, this documentary uses news coverage from the BBC archives to recount the excitement of the historic event. Led by science reporter James Burke and astronomer Sir Patrick Moore, the BBC team captures all the drama of the momentous occasion, from the exhilarating takeoff to Neil Armstrong's unforgettable first step.

Apollo 11: A Night to Remember

2006
No image
7.0

25th anniversary of James Burke's landmark Connections program, in which Burke looks back and forward to the program's digital incarnation, the Knowledge Web

ReConnections

2004
Lucky 13: Rockets, Aliens & Spare Parts
N/A

A documentary presented by Robin Ince on how the science of the early 1970s influenced Doctor Who. Featured as an extra on The Collection Season 7 BluRay boxset.

Lucky 13: Rockets, Aliens & Spare Parts

2025
The Neuron Suite
N/A

James Burke roams the Hotel del Coronado, using its services as a metaphor for the neuro-chemical activity of the human brain.

The Neuron Suite

1982