Documentary

• Martin Scorsese Presents The Blues: A Musical Journey | DVD | (12/12/2008) from £19.99   |  Saving you £3.00 (15.01%)   |  RRP £22.99

  It may have been underrated when first broadcast, but executive producer Martin Scorsese's homage to the blues is a truly significant, if imperfect, achievement. "Musical journey" is an apt description, as Scorsese and the six other directors responsible for these seven approximately 90-minute films follow the blues--the foundation of jazz, soul, R&B, and rock & roll--from its African roots to its Mississippi Delta origins, up the river to Memphis and Chicago, then to New York, the United Kingdom, and beyond. Some of the films (like Wim Wenders's The Soul of a Man and Charles Burnett's Warming by the Devil's Fire) use extensive fictional film sequences, generally to good effect. There's also plenty of documentary footage, interviews, and contemporary studio performances recorded especially for these films. The last are among the best aspects of the DVDs, as the bonus material features the set's only complete tunes. Lou Reed's "See That My Grave Is Kept Clean" and the ElektriK Mud Kats' (with Chuck D. of Public Enemy) hip-hop-cum-traditional updating of Muddy Waters's "Mannish Boy" are among the best of them; on the other hand, a rendition of "Cry Me a River" by Lulu (?!) is a curious choice, even with Jeff Beck on hand. The absence of lengthier vintage clips, meanwhile, is the principal drawback. For that reason alone, Clint Eastwood's Piano Blues is the best of the lot; a musician himself, Eastwood simply lets the players play, which means we get extensive file footage of the likes of Art Tatum, Oscar Peterson, and Nat "King" Cole, as well as new performances by Ray Charles, Dr. John, and others. Overall, this is a set to savor, a worthwhile investment guaranteed to grow on you over the course of repeated viewings. --Sam Graham

• Audrey | DVD | (30/11/2020) from £10.49   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  How do you describe Audrey Hepburn? She was beautiful, talented, compassionate, charming and graceful but these words don't quite seem to fully capture her spirit. All the best fairy tales contain transformation, and Audrey's story is no exception. A malnourished child, estranged from her father, growing up in war-torn Europe, she harnessed her rare talent as an actress and ascended to the heights of Hollywood, becoming a superstar in just a few short years. Yet her life was more than just a fairy tale. It was a life of many heartbreaks, glossed over by her image as a joyful, pixie-like figure still reproduced on memorabilia all over the world. With bespoke animation mirroring the fairy tale elements of Audrey's story, this film is an intimate portrait of an enduring and global icon, celebrating a woman who lived her own version of a meaningful and fulfilling life.

• Vera: Series 1-13 | DVD | (26/02/2024) from £150.25   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

• Ghosthunting with The Dingles (Emmerdale) | DVD | (01/03/2010) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Yvette Fielding the world's foremost ghost hunter takes a group of celebrity friends to explore the deepest darkest places in the country. Today she is joined by the actors who play the mischievous Dingle family in Emmerdale - Mark Charnock (Marlon) Verity Rushworth (Donna) Lucy Pargeter (Chaz) Joseph Gilgun (Eli) and Hayley Tamaddon (Delilah). The group follows Yvette to three haunted locations around Yorkshire where their bravery and beliefs are put to the test.

• Churchill | DVD | (09/06/2014) from £4.99   |  Saving you £2.00 (40.08%)   |  RRP £6.99

  Now stunningly repackaged 50p from the sale of this DVD will be paid to Royal British Legion Trading Limited which gives its taxable profits to The Royal British Legion (Charity no. 219279) and Poppyscotland (Scottish Charity No. SC014096). The programme explores how this formidable character was formed during an early life set against the most turbulent events in British history: The Boer War The First World War and The General Strike. This documentary charts his time on the fringes of politics during the 'Wilderness Years' of the 1930's and how when he returned to lead the country as Prime Minister his powerful speeches inspired the nation to fight the Second World War. 'Churchill' follows his career after victory and shows how the now legendary leader coped with the decline of his power and the onset of old age. Special Features: Recreating Churchill Diaries and Letters: Winston to Randolph 1929 Winston to Clementine 1942 Winston to Clementine 1916 The Early Years Wartime Leader Family Recollections

• My Grandparents' War: Series 2 | DVD | (12/12/2022) from £9.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

• Classic Albums - Fleetwood Mac - Rumours | DVD | (01/12/2008) from £8.47   |  Saving you £2.52 (29.75%)   |  RRP £10.99

  Oh, the heartache. Oh, the drug intake. And oh, the sales records they did break. It's all here in this 70-minute, 1997 chronicle of the making of one of pop music's biggest albums ever, Rumours. All five members of Fleetwood Mac's most successful incarnation are interviewed, and their comments are even more candid than the confessional songs ("Dreams", "Go Your Own Way" et al.) on the album itself; descriptions of the torturous process of making a record while John and Christine McVie's marriage and the Lindsey Buckingham-Stevie Nicks liaison were breaking up at the same time makes for compelling, if slightly discomfiting, viewing. Meanwhile, lest one forget that Rumours was terrific as well as revealing, plenty of attention is paid to the songs. Particularly fascinating (as with most Classic Albums packages) are the breakdowns of the separate instrumental and vocal components of individual tracks. This is a great tale, wonderfully told. --Sam Graham, Amazon.com

• Bobby | DVD | (30/05/2016) from £3.59   |  Saving you £16.40 (456.83%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Celebrating the 50th anniversary of England's 1966 World Cup win, Bobby is the revealing story of triumph and tragedy behind British sports greatest ever hero. With spectacular archive footage including some never-seen-before from the '66 World Cup, the golden era of English football is vividly brought to the big screen like never before. Featuring stars of the football world and more including Pele, Geoff Hurst, Gordon Banks, Harry Redknapp, Russell Brand, Ray Davies and Bobby Moore's family, this authorised account is an incredible tale of an extraordinary man.

• Around The World In 80 Days | DVD | (09/11/2009) from £8.99   |  Saving you £11.00 (122.36%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Around The World In 80 Days: Special Edition

• The Imposter | Blu Ray | (18/11/2013) from £11.98   |  Saving you £12.00 (120.12%)   |  RRP £21.99

  A kidnapped young boy is returned to his family after two years, but when the family notices strange differences they begin to question things...

• The Story of Science | DVD | (07/06/2010) from £5.08   |  Saving you £19.91 (391.93%)   |  RRP £24.99

  The Story Of Science tells the story of the forces that came together to create scientific knowledge; the practical business of making instruments and machines; the great forces of history - revolutions voyages of discovery and artistic movements - and the dogged determination of scientists and experimenters. This is the story of how scientific ideas shaped the modern world and how science made history. For 3 000 years people have wrestled with the great questions of existence. What is out there what is the world made of where did we come from? Across the series the audience will come on a journey to discover how vital science is to all our lives today covering the following key questions?

• Rawhide - The Complete Series Two | DVD | (11/04/2011) from £20.56   |  Saving you £22.42 (127.60%)   |  RRP £39.99

  Academy Award-winner Clint Eastwood returns to tame the Wild West in the eagerly-awaited second series of the classic Western Rawhide. This 8 disc-set containing all 32 digitally re-mastered episodes features Eastwood in his early TV role as Rowdy Yates the tough-as-nails cowhand and Eric Fleming as Rowdy's strong-minded trail boss Gil Favor. With sweeping locations a stampede of guest stars and Frankie Laine's impossible-to-forget hit theme song Rawhide rustles up one rip-roaring adventure after another! The Wild West has never been so exciting!

• Britain's Railways: The Golden Age Of The Big Four' 1923 to 1939 | DVD | (29/08/2011) from £20.23   |  Saving you £-14.24 (-237.70%)   |  RRP £5.99

  The definitive archive film led history of the interwar grouping of Britain's extensive railway network into The Big Four of the New Railway Era - The Great Western Railway the Southern Railway the London Midland & Scottish Railway and the London & North Eastern Railway.

• Beyond The Mat | DVD | (18/09/2000) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  At first, this behind-the-scenes documentary about professional wrestling seems as if it will be an unabashed fan's whitewash of the increasingly bizarre and popular world of "sports entertainment", as it is known. But director Barry Blaustein (a Saturday Night Live veteran who has co-written many of Eddie Murphy's films) goes much deeper than you'd expect in a film that is at once entertaining and disturbing. By focusing on a trio of wrestlers who give him surprising access, Blaustein uncovers human stories that can be wrenching in their stark honesty. That's particularly true of one-time superstar Jake "the Snake" Roberts, whose career has fallen on hard times because of a crack habit; Roberts brings Blaustein along for his first encounter in several years with his grown, estranged daughter. Blaustein also goes into the lives of Terry Funk and Mick "Mankind" Foley in ways that are both revealing and, at times, upsetting. More than just a fan's appreciation, this is that rare documentary that shows you sides of a familiar subject you never knew existed. --Marshall Fine, Amazon.com

• Frozen Planet II | Blu Ray | (31/10/2022) from £12.33   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  In 2011, Frozen Planet gave BBC viewers an unprecedented insight into life in the Poles. Now, 11 years later, Frozen Planet II - presented by Sir David Attenborough returns to the Arctic and Antarctic to observe the amazing species that thrive there. But, going further than Series 1, it also explores life beyond the Poles witnessing the wildlife dramas that play out in all the world's coldest regions: our high mountains, frozen grasslands, snowbound forests, and ice-cold oceans. These are the last true wildernesses on earth; places so challenging for survival that only a heroic cast of animals can live here. From polar bears to penguins, Siberian tigers to snow monkeys, each species must overcome unique challenges to survive their extreme environments.

• Chasing Ice | DVD | (10/06/2013) from £5.99   |  Saving you £10.00 (62.50%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Acclaimed photographer James Balog was once a sceptic about climate change. But through his Extreme Ice Survey he discovers undeniable evidence of our changing planet. In Chasing Ice Balog deploys revolutionary time-lapse cameras to capture a multi-year record of the world's changing glaciers. His hauntingly beautiful videos compress years into seconds and capture ancient mountains of ice in motion as they disappear at a breathtaking rate. Travelling with a team of young adventurers across the brutal Arctic Balog risks his career and his well-being in pursuit of the biggest story facing humanity. As the debate polarises America and the intensity of natural disasters ramps up globally Chasing Ice depicts a heroic photojournalist on a mission to deliver fragile hope to our carbon-powered planet.

• Gladiators Of World War 2 - The Kamikazes | DVD | (21/01/2005) from £15.97   |  Saving you £0.01 (0.08%)   |  RRP £12.99

  In the Middle Ages a breed of Japanese warrior known as the Samurai followed the Bushido code. Death held no fears for the Bushido warrior who believed that if he died in battle he would be reincarnated. He was unswervingly loyal and obedient to his Emperor whom he regarded as a God. In the autumn of 1944 as American forces began the reconquest of the Philippine islands they face a terrifying weapon born from the Bushido code the Kamikaze suicide attack. With dwindling resources

• Francesco's Mediterranean Voyage | DVD | (18/08/2008) from £7.72   |  Saving you £17.27 (223.70%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Venetian architect and historian Francesco da Mosto sets out from Venice to cross the Mediterranean sea - following in the wake of his ancestor the explorer Alvise da Mosto - to discover the cities and islands where Western civilization was born. Sailing in a late nineteenth-century schooner his journey starts in Venice and finishes in Istanbul. Along the way he takes in spectacular ruins like the Acropolis in Athens and the Roman city of Ephesus in Turkey; sacred sites like the monasteries of Mount Athos and the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul; and beautiful Dubrovnik (destroyed and rebuilt in the last decade). Ancient history and bygone legends intertwine as Francesco visits these wonderful ancient sites bringing the past vividly to life.

• The Buccaneers: The Complete Series (Repackaged) | DVD | (01/11/2008) from £23.98   |  Saving you £8.00 (36.38%)   |  RRP £29.99

  Famous movie-star Robert Shaw stars as the fondly remembered 1950's swashbuckler series - The Buccaneers. Set in the early 1600's on the exotic Caribbean island of New Providence Captain Dan Tempest is a reformed pirate who rallies to the flag to serve his King defending the island against the enemy in the war with Spain. Presented here is the entire series of 39 action packed episodes of this top rated show.

• My Life Directed | DVD | (02/03/2015) from £3.99   |  Saving you £6.00 (150.38%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Documentary directed by Liv Corfixen, following her husband, the Danish film-maker Nicolas Winding Refn, during the filming and release of his 2013 film 'Only God Forgives'. Going behind the scenes of the film's production, Corfixen captures the director as he works and provides an insight into his fears about the project not measuring up to his 2011 film 'Drive'.