To the Ends of the Earth

At the height of the Gulf War, eight SAS soldiers were dropped behind enemy lines in an audacious mission. Three died, four were captured and one escaped. The story is familiar to millions via books written by two of the survivors, but desert explorer and former SAS trooper Michael Asher doubts the whole story has been told before now. In this programme, he retraces the mission and tries to find out what really happened.

In 2001, Jim Shekhdar became the first person to cross the Pacific Ocean alone in a boat. It took the arthritic "fiftysomething" businessman nine months to complete the trip from Peru to Australia in his 23ft-long boat. This compelling film, shot by Shekhdar as he braved sharks, hurricanes and supertankers, recounts the eight-and-a-half thousand mile journey.

A year ago Tom Hart Dyke set off on a journey from Panama to Colombia in pursuit of rare orchids, but found himself kidnapped and held hostage for nine months by local guerrillas. 'To the Ends of the Earth' follows him now as decides to continue his search in Papua New Guinea.

2500 years ago an army of Persians vanished apparently without trace while crossing the remote Western Sahara. Examining new evidence found.