James Burke 1970's docs

[Tarquin]

Connections, directed by Mick "Threads/The Bodyguard" Jackson is great. Watching The Day the Universe Changed now and it's also superb.

Heard he did a show where he fired live firearms into lumps of meat in a BBC studio but I've been unable to find it. Is that a myth? He hosted the BBC's coverage of the Moon landing too but that's long gone.

One episode of Connections starts with him planting a dirty bomb in Hastings, then cuts to him hacking meat with a sword to show real close combat. J.B. is not afraid to weild an axe whilst wearing flares and brown trench coat combo to make a point.

[jamiefairlie]

Yeah absolutely brilliant television. It was on in the same era as Blake's 7 so they're attached in my mind.

[Famous Mortimer]

They were fantastic, definitely.

I just found out he's still around and making things, which warms my heart. And that he started down the science reporting path due to working on "Tomorrow's World".

He made a new series of "Connections" for the Curiosity Stream...service? site? app? earlier this year, which is pretty brilliant. I presume it'll be still images, stock footage and cheap CGI, but he's such a good presenter that it should be worth a go. And he made a documentary mini-series about the US bicentennial which he co-hosted with Perry Mason himself, Raymond Burr!

[Proactive]

Would recommend listen to his appearance on the Dan Carlin Common Sense podcast, ep 312.

[Proactive]

In fact, if you just search for him under podcasts in Spotify, he's been on a few here and there.

[Norton Canes]

Watched his 9180 six-part series The Real Thing a few months ago - brilliant stuff, its communicative level is pitched perfectly. They're all in one YouTube video:

Sadly the sound levels are really low - I had to crank my volume right up to make it comfortable to hear. Also, one or two episodes contain some amusingly dodgy gender role stereotyping. The 80's, huh! Excellent, all the same.

Must get started on Connections.

[superthunderstingcar]

Connections, directed by Mick "Threads/The Bodyguard" Jackson is great. Watching The Day the Universe Changed now and it's also superb.

I strongly agree with this.

[Mr Banlon]

He had a dark side:

[Mr_Simnock]

His doc about 'brass hands' is probably the best

[gilbertharding]

Paging @beanheadmcginty ...

Loved Connections when I was nine, and I really should get around to watching it again now it's (I guess) all on YouTube.

Impressed as I was at the time, I also remember my parents making slightly sarcastic comments about him being a bit of a big-head, I guess because they remembered when he was 'the whippersnapper' on Raymond Baxter's Tomorrow's World.

The modern equivalent is probably Hannah Fry's The Secret Genius of the Modern World starring Hannah Fry - a programme for which full enjoyment can only really be had if you are as fascinated with every aspect of Hannah Fry as everyone involved in the production seems to be.