Documentaries

John Grierson poetically defined documentaries as "The creative interpretation of actuality". Recent years have seen a surge of popularity in the form, but its true riches are to be found in the past - few areas of film have such a rich heritage, full of creativity, beauty and soul. Our documentaries library is organised by theme, each with an introduction and recommendations.

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Cinema & Film 104 titles

A collection that includes the Media Magica series, which deals with the history of the moving image before cinema, documentaries dealing with cinematographers (Visions of ... More

Cinema & Film Documentaries section

Music 204 titles

From Broadway to Abbey Road, Glyndebourne to Woodstock, the Isle of Wight to Altamont, welcome to a world of music on film. Whether your taste is Son House or Sviatoslav Ri... More

Music Documentaries section

Natural World 112 titles

Woody Allen put it best when he said, 'I am at two with nature.' Thanks mainly to British TV, there is a plethora of truly wonderful DVDs and Blu-rays available that explor... More

Natural World Documentaries section

Other 358 titles

Political 197 titles

Political Documentaries section

Sport 68 titles

Sport is made for film. Action, drama, speed, tension, heroic endurance - you name it, it's got it. Here, from a fascinating look at sport in Edwardian times, courtesy of M... More

Sport Documentaries section

Transport & Travel 162 titles

As you can see, the main focus here is on the films of the British Transport Films Unit, which detailed Britain's transport heritage from the 1950s to the 1980s. They are a... More

Transport & Travel Documentaries section

War 178 titles

An unfortunate defining characteristic of humans is their capacity for war. One only has to look at the timeline of centuries of continuous conflict to know that war is one... More