Schedule

In Russia and the CIS, World War II is known by a different name, the Great Patriotic War. In that conflict more Soviet people died than from any other nation. There were hardly any families in the USSR that had not lost loved ones. Today, the stories of the many who gave their lives in defence of their motherland are retold, using their own letters from the front. They don’t just talk of love, bravery and sacrifice but shed light on the scale of human tragedy suffered during WWII.

For three decades, the picturesque and fertile land in the foothills of Italy’s Mount Vesuvius has been contaminated by toxic waste, illegally buried and burnt here by mafia gangs. The resulting pollution caused a dramatic increase in cancer among the local population, including children.

Who needs art in wartime? The Syrian conflict made artists redundant. With RTD, meet those who are fighting for humanity with their own weapons: a street dancer who dares people to live out their dreams. A conscript who sculpted a tunnel where rebels made missiles. And a jazz orchestra conductor who came back to his homeland to realise his creative ideas.

The creative vision of one man transformed a community of farmers into a centre of modern art. Russian artist Nikolay Polissky turned his village into an artistic colony, where residents are the co-authors of his monumental nature-inspired sculptures. Twice a year, the village holds the largest Land-Art festival in Russia - Archstoyanie.

These girls are called Bacha Posh. They have to reject their femininity and pretend to be male. In Afghanistan’s traditional patriarchal society, many women can’t leave the house without a male accompanying them. For this reason, if a family has no son, a daughter is often appointed to play his role. Having tasted freedom, some of the girls never want to go back.

When Auschwitz was freed on January 27, 1945, the survivors met their liberators with shouts of “the Russians have come.” Some 70 years later, the Red Army’s instrumental role in defeating the Nazis in WWII is being wiped from Western history books. However, not all have forgotten who stopped Hitler’s war machine. Those who remember still honour their tremendous sacrifices.

Knocking on doors pays off for Paula Slier as she investigates a story of young Arab men from Israel joining ISIS. After a fruitless interview with a mayor, after concerted efforts to engage with the locals, Paula and the team meet the men’s families. In the UK, Harry Fear is to speak at a conference in Manchester about reporting from conflict zones. He’s not impressed by the gathering or the participants.

Staking out a UK detention centre proves fruitless for Harry Fear and Marina Kosareva. Standing around for hours in the cold, Harry’s mind turns to warm food and he becomes fixated on pizza. In Israel, Paula Slier interviews a man whose son was killed by ISIS for being a suspected Mossad agent. The interview moves Paula to tears.

After arriving in Belgrade, Paula Slier wants to get down to work on a story about ISIS involvement in Kosovo. Two expert interviews confirm her suspicions and she can’t wait to learn more. In the UK, Harry Fear sees the irony in a story about a squatters’ camp close to where the Magna Carta was signed, the first document ever to recognise British civil rights.

Paula Slier makes her way from Belgrade to Pristina in Kosovo on the trail of ISIS in the western Balkans. Her rental car with Serbian number plates has to be hidden to avoid attracting attention. Trying to find ISIS won’t be easy but interviewing the abbot in an Orthodox monastery provides some insight and direction, and leaves Paula feeling more spiritual.

Success for Paula Slier in Kosovo as she tracks down the local family of an ISIS leader in Syria. However, they refuse to talk following a bad experience with journalists. The team try to talk with people on the street but are shunned or told there’s no problem with Islamic extremism. When the day ends, Paula has a story, but not quite the one she’d planned.

Frustration all around as Harry Fear waits in London to hear if he’ll be sent to cover Gaza. In Donetsk, Ilya Petrenko has started looking for working coal mines but is thwarted by bureaucracy. Paula Slier in Kosovo gets the brush off when an ISIS fighter’s wife, in respoinse to an interview request, gives an emphatic ‘No!’.

Every year, crowds from around the world flock to the small Serbian town of Guca, for its famous, annual trumpet festival. The lively, upbeat music makes for a great summer event and gives less-known bands a chance to get noticed and make it big. But behind the fun and carefree festive atmosphere, few people see the gruelling demands placed on the musicians dedicated to their art.

14 women on a sail boat, but this is no pleasure cruise. The Sea Dragon is taking them on a scientific expedition to the Caribbean. On a mission to explore the extent of plastic pollution in the Atlantic Ocean, their main focus is the proliferation of micro-plastic that poisons fish and can harm humans. They also hope to educate children about how to reduce the use of plastic.

A cartoonist’s vocation is to draw attention to what’s wrong in society, at least as he sees it! What happens though, if the most important issues are taboo and any kind of public criticism might cost him his life?

Mica is a shiny mineral that’s all the rage in modern-day makeup, helping to give beauty products a bright gleam and natural-looking glow. This beauty, however, comes at a price that most are unaware of. Those who pay it are the poorest and the most vulnerable. RT Doc visits India’s illegal mica mines where child labour is rife. 

A cathedral founded on pure faith and its creator who’s dedicated more than 50 years of his life to building it. 91-year-old Don Justo, of the small Spanish town of Mejorada del Campo, is a former monk. On a whim and a dream he decided to build a monumental house of God and since 1961, he’s been doing just that using scrap, recycled building materials and as much good will as he can find.

In Russia and the CIS, World War II is known by a different name, the Great Patriotic War. In that conflict more Soviet people died than from any other nation. There were hardly any families in the USSR that had not lost loved ones. Today, the stories of the many who gave their lives in defence of their motherland are retold, using their own letters from the front. They don’t just talk of love, bravery and sacrifice but shed light on the scale of human tragedy suffered during WWII.

Where can you take to the snowy slopes in a bikini? Welcome to Russia! RT Doc’s Peter Scott explores some of the craziest things to do in Russia: from festivals on snowy mountains to a smash room ready to be destroyed. Nothing gets in the way of his madcap fun, not even a broken leg!

For three decades, the picturesque and fertile land in the foothills of Italy’s Mount Vesuvius has been contaminated by toxic waste, illegally buried and burnt here by mafia gangs. The resulting pollution caused a dramatic increase in cancer among the local population, including children.

These girls are called Bacha Posh. They have to reject their femininity and pretend to be male. In Afghanistan’s traditional patriarchal society, many women can’t leave the house without a male accompanying them. For this reason, if a family has no son, a daughter is often appointed to play his role. Having tasted freedom, some of the girls never want to go back.

When Auschwitz was freed on January 27, 1945, the survivors met their liberators with shouts of “the Russians have come.” Some 70 years later, the Red Army’s instrumental role in defeating the Nazis in WWII is being wiped from Western history books. However, not all have forgotten who stopped Hitler’s war machine. Those who remember still honour their tremendous sacrifices.

The creative vision of one man transformed a community of farmers into a centre of modern art. Russian artist Nikolay Polissky turned his village into an artistic colony, where residents are the co-authors of his monumental nature-inspired sculptures. Twice a year, the village holds the largest Land-Art festival in Russia - Archstoyanie.

The Saint Petersburg Valkyries; Russia’s oldest and strongest women’s American-football team, over the course of a season, RTD follows them and their coach in pursuit of victory in the Finnish League, Europe’s toughest championship. Tag along with RTD for practice sessions, overnight coach trips and high-stakes games. Meet the players, big or small, who find their place through the team. Then decide: does this bruising sport destroy femininity, or help young women bloom?

A skin-whitening trend is ravaging Senegalese women. Magazine and billboard ads display light-skinned models, insisting that this is what men want. Skin-lightening pills and creams can be easily bought everywhere, but pharmacists rarely warn the buyers of their possible catastrophic side effects. Though these products have long been banned in other countries, Senegalese women bent on flaunting a lighter skin shade don’t hesitate to use them.

A cartoonist’s vocation is to draw attention to what’s wrong in society, at least as he sees it! What happens though, if the most important issues are taboo and any kind of public criticism might cost him his life?

Who needs art in wartime? The Syrian conflict made artists redundant. With RTD, meet those who are fighting for humanity with their own weapons: a street dancer who dares people to live out their dreams. A conscript who sculpted a tunnel where rebels made missiles. And a jazz orchestra conductor who came back to his homeland to realise his creative ideas.

14 women on a sail boat, but this is no pleasure cruise. The Sea Dragon is taking them on a scientific expedition to the Caribbean. On a mission to explore the extent of plastic pollution in the Atlantic Ocean, their main focus is the proliferation of micro-plastic that poisons fish and can harm humans. They also hope to educate children about how to reduce the use of plastic.

Five years into the devastating Syrian war, the country’s capital, Damascus is a shelter for the civilians who refuse to flee their motherland. Yet, even here no one is really safe as shells hit the streets and buildings regularly. Sameer is a local cameraman who continues his work despite its dangers. Through his lens, he shows us the everyday life of ordinary Syrians. 

In Israel, where serving in the army is compulsory, there is a special military unit whose sole task is to inform relatives when a soldier is killed in action. RT Doc meets some of the officers who knock on doors to deliver the most devastating news any parent can hear. They have come to be known as, Angels of Death.

The city of Flint in Michigan, US, has a water crisis. It’s been going on since 2014 when residents were switched to a cheaper supply but it took a year before the authorities admitted there was a problem. As a result, thousands were exposed to lead poisoning, carcinogenic chemicals and legionella bacteria.

A cathedral founded on pure faith and its creator who’s dedicated more than 50 years of his life to building it. 91-year-old Don Justo, of the small Spanish town of Mejorada del Campo, is a former monk. On a whim and a dream he decided to build a monumental house of God and since 1961, he’s been doing just that using scrap, recycled building materials and as much good will as he can find.

You awake in a country where you know no one, where crime lurks behind every corner, and where you barely speak the language. Is it a nightmare? For those deported back to Mexico after decades living in the US, this horrific situation is very much a reality. Meanwhile, on the other side of the border, Americans are engaged in a fierce debate over whether Trump’s ‘Wall’ is a symbol of security and sovereignty, or racism and oppression. 

Mica is a shiny mineral that’s all the rage in modern-day makeup, helping to give beauty products a bright gleam and natural-looking glow. This beauty, however, comes at a price that most are unaware of. Those who pay it are the poorest and the most vulnerable. RT Doc visits India’s illegal mica mines where child labour is rife. 

Every year, crowds from around the world flock to the small Serbian town of Guca, for its famous, annual trumpet festival. The lively, upbeat music makes for a great summer event and gives less-known bands a chance to get noticed and make it big. But behind the fun and carefree festive atmosphere, few people see the gruelling demands placed on the musicians dedicated to their art.

According to a Russian proverb, war is no excuse for missing lunch. Oscar and Glen travel back in time to learn how Soviet troops cooked and ate during WWII. They join a group of military reenactors in a snowy forest to get close up and personal with a military field kitchen. 

Glen learns to make one of Russia’s most ancient dishes, a fish soup called ukha. It’s essential to use freshly caught fish, but it’s winter, so Oscar and Glen must go ice fishing. As the broth simmers over a fire, Oscar takes Glen for his first taste of a real Russian bathhouse. Relaxed and refreshed, they put the final touches to the soup. But does the taste justify three hours’ preparation?

Oscar and Glen say NO to rabbit food and eat the rabbit instead. With the help of an experienced chef, the friends make rabbit stew, a traditional hunters’ dish. But first, to honour the spirit of its origins, they practice archery and learn to hunt with falcons and hounds. When the stew is ready, Glen renders his verdict. 

Glen thinks he’s gained weight and wants to make something simple this time. And what could be simpler than pelmeni? The meat-filled dumplings can be found frozen and ready-to-boil in any Russian supermarket. Oscar has other ideas, he says the only good ones are made from scratch. It seems the dish might not be so simple after all!

Oscar says to truly understand Russian cuisine, reading Tolstoy is a must. He and Glen visit the count’s estate, Yasnaya Polyana to discover what fare was served at the renowned author’s table. After plunging into the spirit of the times, the friends enlist the help of a chef to make two popular 19th-century dishes: forshmak and baked apples.

Since its invention in the late 19th century, pastila has remained a popular Russian sweet.  The most famous brand, Belevskaya pastila, was even served to European royalty.  It and its cousin zephyr are still made in the small medieval town of Belyov. Glen and Oskar visit the factory to learn how to make these appetising apple confections… and have a sneaky taste while no one’s looking.