The Human Body

Documentary series focusing on the seven ages of existence, using real-life examples as well as state-of-the-art photography and specially-devised medical imaging. In this programme, Professor Robert Winston explores the complexity of the human body, explaining how it came to be the most advanced life-form on the planet.

This programme follows a pregnancy from conception to birth using new medical imaging techniques developed for the series

Motion analysis, a new filming technique, reveals the intricacies of how babies crawl. Medical imaging shows the tiny organ in a baby's ear that ensures balance. And an ingenious experiment proves how children as young as three can lie convincingly.

In this programme, Professor Robert Winston looks at the physical changes brought about by puberty. Footage shot inside the body reveals how sexual development accelerates, periods start, voices break, and spots and body odour make their first appearance as hormones surge through the system.

This programme examines the human brain, the most complicated object in the known universe. Cameras capture a single brain cell, magnified 10,000 times, as it fires an electrical impulse. Scanners show the complex activity required for simple pastimes. And, in the name of science, Professor Robert Winston shows how the brain's delicate balance of chemicals can be disrupted by a few glasses of wine.

Humans are the only mammals to live beyond their child-bearing years, and this programme examines the ravages of ageing. Professor Robert Winston explains why baldness and wrinkles set in, and how we become more vulnerable to diseases and accidents.

Professor Robert Winston explores the processes our bodies go through when we die. He discovers what it is that determines when we are dead, and hears from people who have been through heart attacks and near-death experiences. And to shed light on the human side of dying, cameras accompany Herbie as he slowly succumbs to cancer and shows that it is possible to die without pain and fear.