The best Paul McGann’s documentary movies
We present our ranking of the best Paul McGann’s movies. Do you love cinema? Or are you looking for a movie of your favorite actor to watch tonight? Surely you have some to see or that you did not know yet about Paul McGann.
Wreckage and Rage: Making 'Alien³'
7.7/10
The creation of the film Alien³ (1992) is covered here in this feature-length documentary in exhaustive detail. Many interviews with the cast and crew give us an idea of how hard of a time David Fincher had creating his first feature film, as well as present us with much information about every element that went into making this film, including how the plot and script changed drastically through filming.
Britain's Greatest Codebreaker
7/10
Alan Turing is the genius British mathematician who was instrumental in breaking the German naval Enigma Code during World War II, arguably saving millions of lives. Turing's achievements went unrecognised during his lifetime. Instead he ended up being treated as a common criminal, for being homosexual at a time when homosexual acts were a crime. In 1952, he was convicted of 'gross indecency' with another man and was forced to undergo so-called 'organo-therapy' - chemical castration. Two years later, he killed himself with cyanide, aged just 41. Alan Turing was driven to a terrible despair and early death by the nation he'd done so much to save.
The Great Wall of China: The Hidden Story
7.2/10
It's the most extraordinary feat of engineering in history, and one of the most iconic man-made structures on the planet - the Great Wall of China, stretching thousands of miles across barren deserts and treacherous mountains before finally plunging into the sea. But why did the Chinese go to such staggering lengths to build it, and what are the secrets that have enabled it to survive for over 2,000 years? Now, ground breaking science is re-writing its complex history and de-coding its mysteries to reveal that there is much more to the Great Wall than just bricks and mortar. Cutting edge chemistry reveals that the secret to the Great Wall's remarkable strength is a simple ingredient found in every kitchen, and a new survey also determines that its length is truly amazing, as we finally solve the enigma at the heart of the world's greatest mega-structure.
Picasso's Last Stand
Biographer Sir John Richardson and Picasso’s granddaughter, Diana Widmaier Picasso, are the star witnesses in a documentary that reassesses the artist’s output in the years before his death in 1973. The story is of a creative spirit finding new impetus in response to both death’s approach and the censure of contemporaries and critics. Those who were members of Picasso’s private inner circle – gossip about his lifestyle also helped to fire him back up – put the later work forward as some of his frankest, wittiest and most profound.
Davros Connections
Exclusive to this boxset is Brendan Sheppard's new documentary, Davros Connections, which pulls together the whole of the Davros Boxset into a single chronology, as well as being a fascinating documentary in its own right. This is an in-depth look at the history of the Daleks' creator, Davros, as portrayed in both the TV stories from the BBC and in audio adventures from official licensee Big Finish. With actors Terry Molloy, David Gooderson and Peter Miles, producer/director Gary Russell, director Ken Grieve, writers Eric Saward, Ben Aaronovitch, Gary Hopkins and Joseph Lidster. Narrated by Terry Molloy.
Churchill: When Britain Said No
7.7/10
Documentary which examines the reasons why Winston Churchill and the Conservative Party lost the General Election of 1945, after Churchill had just led the country to victory in the World War II.
Doctor Who: Tales Lost in Time
Go behind the scenes of Dr Who as never before - and discover the 'lost tales' of the show! Doctors David Tennant, Paul McGann, Peter Davison and Sylvester McCoy are joined in providing insights by Rula Lenska, Simon Pegg, Adam Garcia, John Barrowman, Russell T. Davis and Graham Cole!
Finding Babylon's Hanging Garden
7.3/10
Cosmonauts: How Russia Won the Space Race
7.8/10
When Neil Armstrong stepped onto the moon in 1969, America went down in popular history as the winner of the space race. But that history is bunk. The real pioneers of space exploration were the Soviet cosmonauts. This remarkable feature-length documentary combines rare and unseen archive footage with interviews with the surviving cosmonauts to tell the fascinating and at times terrifying story of how the Russians led us into the space age. A particular highlight is Alexei Leonov, the man who performed the first spacewalk, explaining how he found himself trapped outside his spacecraft 500 miles above the Earth. Scary stuff.
Ghosts on the Underground
7.8/10
More than one billion people use the London Underground annually, yet few of them know just how haunted the tube really is. This hair-raising documentary investigates the supernatural.
The Day John Lennon Died
7.5/10
Reconstructing John’s last day in detail by way of radio and TV reports, the memories of people John knew and those he encountered before his assassination by Mark Chapman, relive one of the most momentous and tragic events in music history.
Oi For England's Green and Pleasant Land
8.9/10
Playwright Trevor Griffiths' Oi For England, originally set in Moss Side, was first screened by Central TV in April 1982. It was then staged at The Royal Court Theatre Upstairs, directed by the late, then resident director Antonia Bird and featured Paul McGann, Robin Hayter, Dorian Healy, Peter Lovstrom, Paul Moriarty, and Beverley Martin in the cast. The play toured youth clubs and community centres across London in a bid to engage young people in the social and political issues of the day and to unite them against racism and fascism. This film replete with exclusive interviews from Griffiths, musical director Andy Roberts and guests Alan Gilbey (east end writer) and Micky Geggus (Cockney Rejects) looks back at the tour by way of a reunion of the play's original cast and crew almost 30 years later.
Super Powered Owls
8.4/10
With their charismatic faces and extraordinary head-turning ability, owls are one of our best-loved birds. And yet it's rare to catch more than a glimpse of one in the wild. These mysterious birds haunt our night, floating through the darkness with an eerie silence. But how do they see in the dark? And how do they fly so silently? Through the eyes of two special barn owl chicks and with the help of world leading scientists, Natural World reveals the magic behind owls' superpowers.
China - Treasures of the Jade Empire
7.1/10
JFK's Secret Killer: The Evidence
7.2/10
Documentary investigating the events during and after the assassination of John F Kennedy.
Bidding Adieu: A Video Diary
7.2/10
In January 1996 filming began on a new episode of Doctor Who set in San Francisco, but shot in Vancouver, Canada. Sylvester McCoy flew out to join the production team to re-create his role as the Seventh Doctor and to hand over to Paul McGann. In this behind-the-scenes video diary, Sylvester gives us a personal account of his final days as the famous Timelord. Reminiscing about the "old days" and drawing comparisons with the experience of working on this latest adventure, he talks to Paul McGann, Daphne Ashbrook (Dr Grace Holloway) from the new production and Anneke Wills (Polly) from the show's past. All shot on Hi-8 camcorder.
Egypt's Great Pyramid: The New Evidence
Egypt's Great Pyramid may be humanity's greatest achievement: a skyscraper of stone built without computers or complex machinery. This super-sized tomb has fascinated historians and archaeologists for centuries, but exactly how the ancient Egyptians finished the monument and fitted its two and a half million blocks in a quarter of a century has long remained an enigma. Today the secrets of the pyramid are finally being revealed thanks to a series of new findings. At the foot of the monument, archaeologists are uncovering the last surviving relic of the pharaoh Khufu, whose tomb it is: a huge ceremonial boat buried in flat-pack form for more than 4500 years. It's a clue that points to the important role that ships and water could have played in the pyramids' construction. This documentary follows investigations that reveal how strong the link between pyramids and boats is. It's a story of more than how Egypt built a pyramid: it's about how the pyramid helped build the modern world.
Unfinished: The Making of Massive Attack
The story of how Bristol found its musical identity and tracing the creation of the city's most famous band. The documentary looks at the emergence of the 'Bristol Sound' in the 1980s culminating in the release of Massive Attack's first album. Narrated by actor Paul McGann - who was a part of Bristol's creative scene throughout this period - it traces the history of the scene. From the sound system culture that arrived in the city with the immigrants from the Caribbean, and how that mixed with the existing punk and new wave scene in Bristol, to hip-hop which arrived in Bristol from New York before any other city in Britain was aware of it. It explores how this clash of cultures and musical styles gave the city a musical identity which to that point it lacked, unlike other industrial cities in Britain such as Liverpool and Manchester.
The Other Prince William
7.9/10
For the first time on camera Zsuzsi Starkloff tells the story of her forbidden relationship with Prince William of Gloucester, in a film rebuilding the lost legacy of the royal family's forgotten star.
