The Ascent of Man(1973)
Documentary
First Air Date: 1973-05-05
Average Runtime: 50m
Rating: 8.5
Votes: 23
Seasons: 1
Episodes: 13
The Ascent of Man is a thirteen-part documentary television series produced by the BBC and Time-Life Films first transmitted in 1973, written and presented by Jacob Bronowski. Intended as a series of "personal view" documentaries in the manner of Kenneth Clark's 1969 series Civilisation, the series received acclaim for Bronowski's highly informed but eloquently simple analysis, his long unscripted monologues and its extensive location shoots.
Top Cast
Available on
Free
BBC iPlayerSeasons & Episodes
Season 1
Episodes: 13E01
Lower Than the Angels
Air Date: 1973-05-05
The programme follows the changes in Man as he marches out of Africa, through desert and ice age, to leave the print ...
E02
The Harvest of the Seasons
Air Date: 1973-05-12
As the ice retreats and the land flowers, Man the hunter turns to agriculture, domesticating plant and animal, imposi...
E03
The Grain in the Stone
Air Date: 1973-05-19
The wandering nomads cease their migrations and settle in townships, learning new skills.
E04
The Hidden Structure
Air Date: 1973-05-26
The programme follows the beginnings of chemistry: from the techniques of ancient metallurgy in China and Japan to th...
E05
Music of the Spheres
Air Date: 1973-06-02
Mathematics is a way of describing the world that we see, hear and touch.
E06
The Starry Messenger
Air Date: 1973-06-09
From the earliest times, Man has looked outwards from the earth and wondered at the movements of sun, stars and plane...
E07
The Majestic Clockwork
Air Date: 1973-06-16
The universe of Newton, clear, English, stately, like the music and the great buildings of his century ticking away w...
E08
The Drive for Power
Air Date: 1973-06-23
As political revolutions shook France and America, another quieter, yet more profound restructuring was taking place ...
E09
The Ladder of Creation
Air Date: 1973-06-30
How did life begin on earth? Dr Jacob Bronowski recounts the adventures of Alfred Russell Wallace, and how they trigg...
E10
World Within World
Air Date: 1973-07-07
Dr Jacob Bronowski tells the story of the men and ideas that gave concrete expression to the invisible, intangible st...
E11
Knowledge or Certainty
Air Date: 1973-07-14
Dr Jacob Bronowski considers how the great achievement of physics in the 20th century has been to show that absolute ...
E12
Generation Upon Generation
Air Date: 1973-07-21
Dr Jacob Bronowski follows the history of genetics, from the lonely experiments of Gregor Mendel to the discovery of ...
E13
The Long Childhood
Air Date: 1973-07-28
From his home, Dr Jacob Bronowski takes stock of man's complex and often precarious ascent, drawing on experiences fr...
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