The Ascent of Man (1973)
Yellowbeard 2 points 4 years ago*.

One of the finest documentary series ever made, The Ascent Of Man was a cultural phenomena when it first aired in 1973 - it was even skitted by Monty Python. It was commissioned by David Attenborough himself when he was the controller of the brand new BBC2 channel. The series set a new benchmark for high quality documentaries from the BBC, Attenborough touched it.

The presenter Jacob Bronowski was one of the scientists sent into Nagasaki and Hiroshima to do bomb damage assessment. After seeing this devastation he turned his back on military and government work and became a biologist. His delivery at points in this series will make your hair stand up, you can see the intellect shining out of the man. Bronowski was dead of a heart attack a year after this series aired - he left us this and his books. If you like documentaries watch it - itโ€™s sublime and a masterpiece.