BBC - Days that Shook the World Series 2 (2004) Part 7 Dinosaurs and Duplicity Discovery of the First Dinosaur/Piltdown Man

Through dramatic reconstructions, eye-witness accounts and archive footage, each episode in the “Days That Shook the World” TV series pieces together the thrilling stories of the landmarks of our time; the moments in history - human tragedies, scientific breakthroughs and calamitous events that have profoundly affected the way the world thinks and acts. Days that Shook the World examines some of the most important days in history, creating a detailed and forensic analysis of 24 hours that changed the world. It covers some of the biggest themes in World history - from the history of flight, to the rise and fall of Communism. This fresh and unusual BBC production explores mankind's defining moments. A gripping anatomy of some of the most important days in history, hour by hour as they unfolded. Incisive, fascinating & dramatic, the complete series builds a compelling picture of the seismic moments in world history. From ancient Egypt to the Berlin Wall, these episodes look at events that had a lasting impact on human history, from technological breakthroughs to political tragedies. Finding new angles and putting events into historical context, the series spans centuries and continents with one common thread On each of these days, the lives of millions were changed forever. Incredible breakthroughs, acts of shocking brutality, and stories of hope form the themes of these compelling programs. As the clock ticks, the events of the day climax, and we learn just what happened and how the day affected the course of history. The series focuses on events that defined the 20th century, from the discovery of the first dinosaur remains to the Hindenburg disaster. The programmes also investigate Yuri Gagarin's space flight; the Great Train Robbery; the abdication of Edward VIII; the events leading to the fictional Day Of The Jackal; the theft of the Crown Jewels; the hoax that was Piltdown Man; and disasters such as the Oklahoma bombing and the Challenger explosion.

A Lion Television Production for BBC in Association with The History Channel

Part 7 Dinosaurs and Duplicity Discovery of the First Dinosaur/Piltdown Man

The first discovery of a dinosaur, in 1824, and 1953's “Piltdown Man” hoax are recalled. DISCOVERY OF THE FIRST DINOSAUR. Sussex, England. It is September 1824, and amateur geologist, Dr Gideon Mantell, is about to become the first person to identify the bones of an ancient, plant-eating, giant reptile which will later be called a 'Dinosaur'. In Dinosaurs and Duplicity, we see that a few weeks earlier, his wife, Mary, had spotted a large fossilised tooth in some rubble left by workmen in the Sussex Weald and Dr Mantell has since collected several other giant teeth. He is convinced he has made a remarkable discovery, but the scientific establishment has so far dismissed the teeth as uninteresting. PILTDOWN MAN. It is November 20, 1953, and news is breaking that one of the most significant archaeological discoveries of the century is an elaborate hoax. Forty years earlier, Charles Dawson, a solicitor and amateur antiquarian from Sussex, had announced the discovery of remains from the earliest known human being. Piltdown Man was heralded as the long-awaited 'missing link' between ape and man, proof of Darwin's theory of evolution. But the bones were in fact a cleverly constructed forgery.

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