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Tom ward (narrates):
Forgotten, yet famous.
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00:00:04,560 --> 00:00:07,000
Empty, but iconic.
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00:00:07,040 --> 00:00:11,080
Five abandoned sites
deep-routed in our popular culture.
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00:00:13,240 --> 00:00:15,200
An overgrown ruin in India
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00:00:15,240 --> 00:00:18,680
immortalised by
world-renowned musicians...
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00:00:18,720 --> 00:00:20,200
What do the lads
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00:00:20,240 --> 00:00:22,520
from liverpool have
to do with all this?
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00:00:22,560 --> 00:00:25,200
..A shattered
compound in Columbia
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00:00:25,240 --> 00:00:27,680
linked to a criminal
mastermind...
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00:00:27,720 --> 00:00:29,920
When you're the seventh
richest man in the world,
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you got to watch
your back at all times.
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00:00:33,920 --> 00:00:35,040
..The launch pad
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00:00:35,080 --> 00:00:38,280
for a sporting
superstar in Germany...
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00:00:38,320 --> 00:00:41,760
You can actually
see the long jump pit
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00:00:41,800 --> 00:00:43,456
where one of the
greatest American athletes
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of all time trained.
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..Disintegrating
remains in Poland
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where real-life heroes
inspired Hollywood...
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00:00:53,080 --> 00:00:55,400
Looking around, it's
very redolent of that movie
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00:00:55,440 --> 00:00:57,880
and this is actually the
site that it was based on.
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..And mythical
strongholds in Romania,
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home to a legendary villain.
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00:01:06,320 --> 00:01:10,760
All sorts of tall tales swirl
around about these sites.
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He was far more
bloodthirsty and brutal
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than his fictional counterpart.
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..These five derelict locations
set the stage for moments
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that captured the
world's imagination.
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(Dramatic music)
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Decaying relics...
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Ruins of lost worlds...
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Sites haunted by the past.
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Their secrets waiting
to be revealed.
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(Dramatic music)
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At the foot of the
himalayas in northern India,
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a far-out site once attracted
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some of the world's
most famous faces.
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It could have been a resort,
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but you can kind of tell
that even when it was new,
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it was pretty rough
around the edges.
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The deeper you go, the
stranger things become.
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Wherever you walk
through the trees,
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another unique structure
pops up in front of you.
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It's like some kind
of magical land.
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You're not quite sure
what to expect next.
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Sprouting from the forest floor
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is a collection of
small roundhouses.
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There are these
dome-like structures.
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It's quite a jumble
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and some of them
even look like caves.
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There are a lot of
these small spaces
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and there's not much there
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to give you clues as to
what these were used for.
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Inside, there's hindi
writing on the walls.
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One clue is all this,
kind of, spiritual graffiti.
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This is not the normal world.
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It's like you're entering into
a whole different dimension.
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There's a very relaxing
feeling to the whole site.
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It's a calm place to be.
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But what was it for?
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So, how did this decaying
site in an Indian forest
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00:03:31,360 --> 00:03:33,880
come to play a vital
role in western culture?
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(Eerie beat)
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Below this clifftop ruin
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is one of the world's most
sacred rivers, the Ganges.
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(Traditional music)
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Raju gosai knows
this compound well.
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This is a very spiritual place
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with nice, beautiful
setting and all.
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This is a place where
pilgrims from far and near come
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00:04:04,760 --> 00:04:06,960
and they take holy
bath in the Ganges.
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00:04:07,000 --> 00:04:09,000
(Traditional music)
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These structures sit
high above the throng
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of the legendary
Indian city of rishikesh.
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Rishikesh is a place
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of considerable
religious significance.
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Pilgrims have been
coming here for centuries.
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This site is different.
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People come here, were coming
here for a very particular purpose.
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If you want to understand
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what this place
was really all about,
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it's those small domed
cave-like structures
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that are the real clues.
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More than 100 domes
hide in this forest.
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Each one built from
thousands of stones.
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All the material for building
this domes and other structure
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are collected from river ganga.
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All those stones
used was from the...
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Collected from the riverbank.
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These crumbling structures
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were once the height
of spiritual luxury.
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This place was created
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by a famous
Indian spiritual guru,
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maharishi mahesh yogi in 1961.
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The maharishi was known for
developing his particular brand
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of transcendental meditation.
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And in 1955, he introduced
that transcendental meditation
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to India and the
rest of the world.
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The maharishi created this place
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with western habits in mind.
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This is the chaurasi
kutia ashram.
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An ashram is a centre
of religious study.
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The maharishi's ashram was a
place that people came to study
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and to meditate, to
hear lecturers from him,
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to get away from the pressures
of daily life and the world.
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It's quiet. It's calming.
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It's private.
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This is a place to
meditate, to find peace,
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to make inner explorations.
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He created all the
modern facilities
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that was required for
his student to learn,
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his disciple to learn
transcendental meditation.
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This is a cluster of
domes, you can say.
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It only lacked a proper shower
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and maharishi used
to motivate people
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to go and take
bath in the Ganges.
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When these meditation
domes were built in 1970,
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they were unrivalled in India.
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But thanks to one of
the biggest pop bands
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in history, this
now-forgotten ashram
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become the most
sought-after place on earth.
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You round the
corner and, suddenly,
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00:06:59,360 --> 00:07:03,160
there's a massive
image of the Beatles.
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00:07:03,200 --> 00:07:06,360
What do the lads from
liverpool have to do with all this?
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00:07:06,400 --> 00:07:08,720
(Upbeat music)
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00:07:08,760 --> 00:07:10,680
In 1968, the Beatles came here
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00:07:10,720 --> 00:07:13,120
and it was a
worldwide media hype.
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Also along for the
ride was Mike love
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00:07:17,000 --> 00:07:19,280
from the beach boys,
the singer Donovan,
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00:07:19,320 --> 00:07:22,760
the actress Mia farrow
and her sister prudence,
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00:07:22,800 --> 00:07:24,640
and all sorts of other people.
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This big entourage
all showed up here.
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00:07:29,280 --> 00:07:34,320
George Harrison was really
dedicated to transcendental meditation
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00:07:34,360 --> 00:07:37,920
and threw himself into it
and he said, at one point,
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"we have all the money
you could dream of.
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00:07:40,600 --> 00:07:43,200
"We have all the fame
you could wish for.
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00:07:43,240 --> 00:07:44,960
"But it isn't peace, is it?"
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When the Beatles came here,
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there were hardly
any infrastructure here.
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The owner, maharishi
mahesh yogi,
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made sure his esteemed
guests got what they needed.
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00:07:58,320 --> 00:08:00,840
You know, the
maharishi was no dummy
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and he recognised that
when the Beatles showed up,
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00:08:03,800 --> 00:08:05,416
this was the best thing
that ever happened
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00:08:05,440 --> 00:08:06,520
to his movement.
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We are at the Beatles bungalow.
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These are some of the rooms
where the Beatles used to stay.
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The bungalows allotted to
the Beatles were more spacious
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and better equipped
than those assigned
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to the other students.
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(Traditional music)
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So, this place was
known as rishikesh Hilton
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because it had wall-to-wall
carpet, it had curtains,
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it had bunk beds
with mattresses.
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They had an attached
toilet here with bathtubs.
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And this is the room
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where John Lennon and
Cynthia Lennon used to stay.
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John Lennon and Cynthia
Lennon came here together
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and they used to
stay here, in one room.
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But after a few days,
John and Cynthia separated
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00:09:03,160 --> 00:09:06,120
and they used to
live in another...
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Different rooms.
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The compound also
had a post office.
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John was often
leaving his wife Cynthia
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who was there with him to
go down to the post office
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00:09:16,120 --> 00:09:18,840
and see if there'd
been any new telegrams
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00:09:18,880 --> 00:09:22,480
from Yoko Ono, who he was
beginning to become involved with.
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Although there had
been tensions in the band,
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this site fuelled
their creativity.
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00:09:32,720 --> 00:09:34,880
We are on the roof of
the Beatles bungalow,
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where the Beatles used to
come and play music here.
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00:09:38,280 --> 00:09:40,880
The white album, many of the
songs which they composed here.
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Between hanging out with
the maharishi and meditating,
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they wrote roughly 40
songs in just seven weeks.
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00:09:53,120 --> 00:09:54,640
"Back in the ussr"
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and "I'm so tired"
were composed here.
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The latter, apparently, by
Lennon after he was suffering
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from weeks of poor
sleep at the ashram.
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This is the room where
prudence farrow used to stay
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and which inspired the Beatles
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to compose here one of
the most memorable song,
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"dear prudence".
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Mia farrow's sister,
prudence, spent so much time
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in her room meditating
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that people started
to worry about her.
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So, this period in the ashram
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is linked to one of
the most creative times
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for the Beatles.
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After the "fab four"
returned to britain,
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the ashram continued to flourish
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thanks to the
attention it had gained.
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New meditation pods were built
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00:10:48,520 --> 00:10:50,520
to accommodate the
tourists who flocked here.
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The whole enterprise was
resting on shaky foundations.
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00:11:00,320 --> 00:11:04,760
Maharishi mahesh yogi took this
land from the forest department in 1961.
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00:11:04,800 --> 00:11:08,080
That lease expired in 1981.
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00:11:08,120 --> 00:11:11,000
And after that, the maharishi
mahesh yogi foundation
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00:11:11,040 --> 00:11:14,200
made several attempts
for the renewal of the lease,
198
00:11:14,240 --> 00:11:17,360
but the process
never got completed.
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00:11:19,160 --> 00:11:21,840
The former ashram
fell into disrepair
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00:11:21,880 --> 00:11:24,760
as a result of vandalism
and the encroachment
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of the jungle.
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00:11:25,840 --> 00:11:27,840
(Traditional music)
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00:11:34,280 --> 00:11:36,240
Today, this atmospheric site
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00:11:36,280 --> 00:11:38,640
is controlled by the
rajaji tiger reserve.
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00:11:39,800 --> 00:11:43,720
But it will always be synonymous
with four lads from liverpool.
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00:11:45,560 --> 00:11:48,800
Intellectually, this
site, these bungalows,
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00:11:48,840 --> 00:11:51,560
these strange halls,
had a serious influence
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00:11:51,600 --> 00:11:54,840
on who the Beatles
became as a band afterwards.
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00:12:01,800 --> 00:12:05,400
In Germany, west of
Berlin, a unique complex
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00:12:05,440 --> 00:12:08,600
is linked to a seminal
moment in sporting history.
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00:12:12,440 --> 00:12:17,160
Few Germans realised
that the site even exists.
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00:12:17,200 --> 00:12:21,120
It's almost as if it's been
forgotten on purpose.
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00:12:22,720 --> 00:12:26,200
A silent swimming
pool awaits guests.
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00:12:26,240 --> 00:12:28,240
(Eerie beat)
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00:12:29,640 --> 00:12:33,280
A lone pommel horse sits
in an empty gymnasium
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00:12:33,320 --> 00:12:37,720
and meadows stretch out in
front of carefully positioned huts.
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00:12:40,400 --> 00:12:41,880
(Eerie beat)
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00:12:44,360 --> 00:12:47,800
Jan bejsovec is an expert
on the history of this place.
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00:12:50,520 --> 00:12:54,320
This site really mirrors
much of our past.
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00:12:57,960 --> 00:13:00,160
They have the beauty
of youth on one side
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00:13:00,200 --> 00:13:02,960
and they have the tragedy
of death on the other.
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00:13:06,680 --> 00:13:10,200
This complex dates back to 1934,
223
00:13:10,240 --> 00:13:13,960
just one year after Adolf Hitler
had become chancellor of Germany.
224
00:13:16,680 --> 00:13:19,200
He understood the
power of propaganda
225
00:13:19,240 --> 00:13:20,320
and planned to use it
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00:13:20,360 --> 00:13:22,760
at the forthcoming
Berlin olympic games.
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00:13:25,880 --> 00:13:28,960
Now, in 1936,
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00:13:29,000 --> 00:13:33,280
he has an opportunity
to show to the world
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a new and rebuilt, completely
new kind of Germany.
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This is the olympic village
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00:13:42,640 --> 00:13:47,240
for the 1936 Berlin games,
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00:13:47,280 --> 00:13:49,960
built to impress
the 4,000 athletes
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00:13:50,000 --> 00:13:52,600
who would be flocking
in from all over the globe.
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00:13:57,800 --> 00:14:01,280
People met here to
celebrate their youth,
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00:14:01,320 --> 00:14:02,840
their physical strength.
236
00:14:02,880 --> 00:14:07,760
These were the most elite
sportsmen of their time.
237
00:14:09,400 --> 00:14:12,240
Among them was the
American Jessie Owens.
238
00:14:14,440 --> 00:14:17,720
You can actually
see the long jump pit
239
00:14:17,760 --> 00:14:19,400
where Jessie Owens,
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00:14:19,440 --> 00:14:20,776
one of the greatest
American athletes
241
00:14:20,800 --> 00:14:22,440
of all time, trained.
242
00:14:23,960 --> 00:14:27,000
This site had everything
the foreign athletes needed
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00:14:27,040 --> 00:14:30,440
to ensure they sent
favourable reports back home.
244
00:14:33,680 --> 00:14:36,440
Here, we can clearly see
how the Germans improved
245
00:14:36,480 --> 00:14:40,280
by building an olympic village
which nobody had seen so far.
246
00:14:40,320 --> 00:14:42,880
It's not just having little
houses for accommodation.
247
00:14:42,920 --> 00:14:47,600
It's having real houses
with a terrace for sunbathing,
248
00:14:47,640 --> 00:14:50,280
with a central
heating system inside,
249
00:14:50,320 --> 00:14:53,360
and all the luxury
of that period.
250
00:14:53,400 --> 00:14:59,240
And all the people who were here
in 1936 were really impressed by it.
251
00:15:02,880 --> 00:15:06,160
The athletes could also watch
their colleagues performing live
252
00:15:06,200 --> 00:15:07,280
on the big screen.
253
00:15:09,800 --> 00:15:12,600
The cinema rooms are
a major breakthrough
254
00:15:12,640 --> 00:15:15,400
in technology because
here on this wall
255
00:15:15,440 --> 00:15:19,040
was a TV set and
was for the first time
256
00:15:19,080 --> 00:15:22,600
in sports history, that
you had a live broadcast.
257
00:15:25,320 --> 00:15:28,240
The games videos were
the first video games.
258
00:15:28,280 --> 00:15:31,440
The first real propaganda games.
259
00:15:31,480 --> 00:15:33,320
So, incorporating
everything they had.
260
00:15:34,680 --> 00:15:37,960
But outside of the
luxurious olympic village,
261
00:15:38,000 --> 00:15:41,560
the racial purification of
Germany continued at pace.
262
00:15:42,960 --> 00:15:44,800
While the Germans allowed Jews
263
00:15:44,840 --> 00:15:48,120
to participate in the
games, they were,
264
00:15:48,160 --> 00:15:49,480
behind the scenes,
265
00:15:49,520 --> 00:15:51,720
continuing to pass
anti-semitic laws.
266
00:15:55,720 --> 00:15:57,880
Meanwhile, in the
olympic stadium,
267
00:15:57,920 --> 00:16:01,040
an African-American athlete
was about to make history.
268
00:16:05,000 --> 00:16:09,040
Here, Jessie Owens took
the first of four gold medals
269
00:16:09,080 --> 00:16:12,800
from Hitler's Aryan athletes,
humiliating the fuhrer.
270
00:16:17,880 --> 00:16:19,640
Once the Olympics were over,
271
00:16:19,680 --> 00:16:21,600
the village was handed
to the German army.
272
00:16:23,080 --> 00:16:26,640
After the war, it fell
under Soviet control
273
00:16:26,680 --> 00:16:28,600
until the ussr collapsed
274
00:16:28,640 --> 00:16:30,640
and this site was
left to disintegrate.
275
00:16:38,320 --> 00:16:40,640
Now, the village is
being re-purposed
276
00:16:40,680 --> 00:16:42,120
into modern apartments.
277
00:16:44,400 --> 00:16:48,120
But the events of the
1936 olympic games
278
00:16:48,160 --> 00:16:49,600
leave an enduring legacy.
279
00:16:52,200 --> 00:16:55,320
There are important lessons
offered by a place like this.
280
00:16:55,360 --> 00:16:58,080
One is that we can have
281
00:16:58,120 --> 00:17:00,440
peaceful competition
between nations,
282
00:17:00,480 --> 00:17:03,840
even nations that are about
to engage in terrible war.
283
00:17:03,880 --> 00:17:06,680
But possibly the most
important lesson is,
284
00:17:06,720 --> 00:17:10,560
you shouldn't be betting on
demonstrating white supremacy
285
00:17:10,600 --> 00:17:12,160
when Jessie Owens
is in the same room.
286
00:17:16,960 --> 00:17:18,560
(Eerie beat)
287
00:17:21,720 --> 00:17:22,840
In Romania,
288
00:17:22,880 --> 00:17:26,480
the mystical carpathian
mountains sit cloaked in legend.
289
00:17:31,280 --> 00:17:33,200
You got these incredible valleys
290
00:17:33,240 --> 00:17:35,520
with the rivers running
along the bottom.
291
00:17:35,560 --> 00:17:38,160
It is stunning,
absolutely stunning.
292
00:17:39,560 --> 00:17:44,600
Atop one forested peak is a
blood-soaked cluster of ruins.
293
00:17:46,120 --> 00:17:48,440
This is a proper fortress.
294
00:17:48,480 --> 00:17:50,360
It looks impregnable,
295
00:17:50,400 --> 00:17:53,240
but there's an incredible
amount of damage as well.
296
00:17:55,240 --> 00:17:59,240
It certainly looks like it had a
dramatic downfall in the end.
297
00:18:00,920 --> 00:18:03,880
Local folklore tells
of a shadowy link
298
00:18:03,920 --> 00:18:06,280
to another medieval
castle nearby.
299
00:18:10,000 --> 00:18:13,440
It has turrets. It
has battlements.
300
00:18:13,480 --> 00:18:17,800
It's every single fairytale
that you've ever heard.
301
00:18:19,240 --> 00:18:23,440
Every fairytale has its villain
and this one's no exception.
302
00:18:25,000 --> 00:18:27,320
All sorts of tall tales,
303
00:18:27,360 --> 00:18:31,520
legends and rumours swirl
around about these sites.
304
00:18:31,560 --> 00:18:34,080
Some are old and some are new.
305
00:18:34,120 --> 00:18:35,520
But what do we know for sure?
306
00:18:38,560 --> 00:18:40,040
(Eerie beat)
307
00:18:43,720 --> 00:18:47,960
The man who links these two
castles is known the world over.
308
00:18:48,000 --> 00:18:50,000
('Dracula' movie plays)
309
00:18:55,240 --> 00:18:57,640
I am Dracula.
310
00:18:59,760 --> 00:19:04,880
Dracula is one of the
most famous villains
311
00:19:04,920 --> 00:19:05,920
of all time.
312
00:19:05,960 --> 00:19:08,960
It's a story that's been
told over and over again
313
00:19:09,000 --> 00:19:13,520
in various interpretations
of what vampires are like.
314
00:19:13,560 --> 00:19:14,680
(Long roll of thunder)
315
00:19:19,880 --> 00:19:23,520
This is castello bran
otherwise known
316
00:19:23,560 --> 00:19:25,800
as the fabled Dracula's castle.
317
00:19:28,720 --> 00:19:31,640
Matei petrisor has
spent the past eight years
318
00:19:31,680 --> 00:19:33,600
establishing
what links this site
319
00:19:33,640 --> 00:19:37,120
and the legendary "count" to
the mysterious ruined fortress
320
00:19:37,160 --> 00:19:38,240
in the mountains.
321
00:19:41,360 --> 00:19:45,720
So, we are now in transylvania,
the land of legend and mystery.
322
00:19:48,520 --> 00:19:52,120
A place that will give
you a perfect feeling
323
00:19:52,160 --> 00:19:55,840
for the legend of Dracula
hiding here in this castle,
324
00:19:55,880 --> 00:19:56,960
in transylvania.
325
00:19:58,400 --> 00:20:00,600
In this part of the world,
326
00:20:00,640 --> 00:20:04,080
fear of vampires is
a very common thing.
327
00:20:06,360 --> 00:20:09,920
Transylvanians have been
known to practice a ritual
328
00:20:09,960 --> 00:20:11,880
that stops the
dead from returning.
329
00:20:13,480 --> 00:20:15,200
We go at the graveyard.
330
00:20:15,240 --> 00:20:18,200
We dig into the tomb.
331
00:20:18,240 --> 00:20:20,800
And then, after that,
in order to make sure
332
00:20:20,840 --> 00:20:22,920
that he will never
come back again,
333
00:20:22,960 --> 00:20:25,720
we have to cut the head
with the silver dagger.
334
00:20:27,680 --> 00:20:30,240
And then, we place the
head between the legs
335
00:20:30,280 --> 00:20:34,480
to make sure that he will never
come and kill people in the village.
336
00:20:37,400 --> 00:20:41,160
The local law fired author
bram stoker's imagination.
337
00:20:42,360 --> 00:20:43,680
When he describes the castle,
338
00:20:43,720 --> 00:20:45,920
it's perfectly just
like in the book,
339
00:20:45,960 --> 00:20:49,080
up on the cliff, a
little river nearby.
340
00:20:51,400 --> 00:20:52,400
It's gothic.
341
00:20:52,440 --> 00:20:55,320
It's got this haunted
feeling about it.
342
00:20:55,360 --> 00:20:59,920
It's the quintessential
transylvanian castle.
343
00:20:59,960 --> 00:21:03,360
But this wasn't the
real Dracula's home.
344
00:21:03,400 --> 00:21:05,840
(Eerie beat)
345
00:21:05,880 --> 00:21:09,760
That accolade lies with
the run-down hilltop citadel,
346
00:21:09,800 --> 00:21:12,440
where a true-life
Dracula did exist.
347
00:21:14,160 --> 00:21:17,160
In fact, he was far
more bloodthirsty
348
00:21:17,200 --> 00:21:20,040
and brutal than his
fictional counterpart.
349
00:21:22,120 --> 00:21:27,080
Looking at it, you can see
these incredible, strong walls
350
00:21:27,120 --> 00:21:30,880
heading up from vertical cliffs.
351
00:21:30,920 --> 00:21:32,720
Absolutely vertical.
352
00:21:32,760 --> 00:21:35,000
And then, there's no
easy way to get up there.
353
00:21:35,040 --> 00:21:37,920
There's no defined road.
354
00:21:37,960 --> 00:21:40,120
Just inaccessible.
355
00:21:41,840 --> 00:21:43,960
This is poenari castle.
356
00:21:45,800 --> 00:21:49,520
Historian nicolae ionescu
has extensively studied
357
00:21:49,560 --> 00:21:51,160
the defensive structures
358
00:21:51,200 --> 00:21:54,000
which have stood here
for nearly 1,000 years.
359
00:21:59,280 --> 00:22:00,696
Nicolae (translation):
"The tower behind us
360
00:22:00,720 --> 00:22:02,560
"is the first part of
the castle to be built.
361
00:22:05,280 --> 00:22:07,360
"It was probably built
in the 13th century.
362
00:22:09,400 --> 00:22:11,560
"They chose this
location to build a castle
363
00:22:11,600 --> 00:22:13,520
"because of the close
proximity to the road.
364
00:22:16,640 --> 00:22:18,760
"In trading routes like this,
365
00:22:18,800 --> 00:22:22,080
"castles were built to
control borders and customs,
366
00:22:22,120 --> 00:22:24,800
"where local rulers wanted
to collect taxes from traders."
367
00:22:31,920 --> 00:22:33,720
In the 15th century,
368
00:22:33,760 --> 00:22:36,440
this site earned the
blood-soaked reputation
369
00:22:36,480 --> 00:22:40,200
that easily outstripped that
of the fictional castle Dracula.
370
00:22:44,960 --> 00:22:46,440
Poenari castle
371
00:22:46,480 --> 00:22:50,120
lay in the medieval kingdom
of wallachia, a buffer state
372
00:22:50,160 --> 00:22:53,280
between the expanding ottoman
empire and the kingdom of Hungary.
373
00:22:56,720 --> 00:22:59,720
The castle sat on a flash
point in the border lands.
374
00:23:03,640 --> 00:23:05,480
And this site was the domain
375
00:23:05,520 --> 00:23:08,720
of a wallachian
prince, Vladislav III.
376
00:23:10,440 --> 00:23:13,160
He had inherited his
father's honourable title,
377
00:23:13,200 --> 00:23:14,480
"order of the dragon".
378
00:23:16,880 --> 00:23:18,440
In Romanian tradition,
379
00:23:18,480 --> 00:23:22,520
the word "dracul"
translates as dragon or devil.
380
00:23:22,560 --> 00:23:27,120
So, for most Romanians,
Dracula means the son of the devil.
381
00:23:30,400 --> 00:23:33,920
Vladislav III became
known as "vlad Dracula".
382
00:23:35,080 --> 00:23:38,120
But it wasn't just the name that
earned the real "count Dracula"
383
00:23:38,160 --> 00:23:40,040
his notorious place in history.
384
00:23:42,840 --> 00:23:45,680
Holed up in this
hilltop fortress,
385
00:23:45,720 --> 00:23:48,080
"vlad Dracula" was
known far and wide
386
00:23:48,120 --> 00:23:50,000
for his blood-curdling cruelty.
387
00:23:52,040 --> 00:23:54,760
He earned the nickname
"vlad the impaler"
388
00:23:54,800 --> 00:23:57,040
or "vlad tepist" in
the local tongue.
389
00:23:58,240 --> 00:24:01,720
The stories of
brutality litter his reign.
390
00:24:04,040 --> 00:24:05,840
Within these walls,
391
00:24:05,880 --> 00:24:08,640
Turks who refuse to
remove their turbans,
392
00:24:08,680 --> 00:24:10,280
had them nailed to their heads.
393
00:24:11,760 --> 00:24:14,600
The local nobility was
invited to a banquet
394
00:24:14,640 --> 00:24:16,320
where vlad impaled them.
395
00:24:17,760 --> 00:24:20,000
And rumours of
cannibalism were rife.
396
00:24:21,760 --> 00:24:25,880
As you can imagine though,
such wholesale slaughter
397
00:24:25,920 --> 00:24:27,920
didn't make vlad the
most popular person
398
00:24:27,960 --> 00:24:29,840
at the time.
399
00:24:29,880 --> 00:24:32,160
His brutality was
most often focused
400
00:24:32,200 --> 00:24:33,680
on the marauding ottomans.
401
00:24:38,640 --> 00:24:41,240
Translation: "His most
iconic historical episode...
402
00:24:43,160 --> 00:24:45,400
"Was when he seized a
part of the ottoman army
403
00:24:45,440 --> 00:24:47,760
"that was pursuing
him and impaled them."
404
00:24:55,480 --> 00:24:58,760
In some ways,
vlad, the real person,
405
00:24:58,800 --> 00:25:02,600
is a more terrifying figure
than "count Dracula".
406
00:25:04,760 --> 00:25:08,880
Images circulated at the time
exaggerated vlad's appetite
407
00:25:08,920 --> 00:25:11,480
for impaling and human flesh.
408
00:25:15,480 --> 00:25:17,240
Wherever the truth lies,
409
00:25:17,280 --> 00:25:19,960
vlad Dracula finally
met his match...
410
00:25:21,320 --> 00:25:25,360
When the ottoman sultan
mehmed ii arrived at the gates.
411
00:25:27,160 --> 00:25:30,640
So, 1462, we find
Dracula fighting
412
00:25:30,680 --> 00:25:33,400
against mehmed
down in wallachia.
413
00:25:33,440 --> 00:25:35,960
The capital was
conquered and destroyed.
414
00:25:36,000 --> 00:25:40,800
He was running up poenari,
the fortress that he built.
415
00:25:40,840 --> 00:25:44,960
But eventually, vlad was
driven out of poenari castle
416
00:25:45,000 --> 00:25:47,480
and he fled here to seek refuge
417
00:25:47,520 --> 00:25:50,360
in what would later become
known as Dracula's castle.
418
00:25:51,680 --> 00:25:52,880
He hide here,
419
00:25:52,920 --> 00:25:57,160
and then the spies of
the Hungarian king find out
420
00:25:57,200 --> 00:26:00,280
he's trying to run away
using the secret passage
421
00:26:00,320 --> 00:26:01,360
and they wait for him.
422
00:26:01,400 --> 00:26:05,320
He was arrested at
the exit from the tunnel.
423
00:26:07,880 --> 00:26:11,440
It's believed he spent two
months as a prisoner there,
424
00:26:11,480 --> 00:26:13,600
rotting in the dungeons.
425
00:26:14,960 --> 00:26:16,320
After his release,
426
00:26:16,360 --> 00:26:20,120
vlad Dracula swiftly
regained his lost territories,
427
00:26:20,160 --> 00:26:22,600
but his reign was short-lived.
428
00:26:22,640 --> 00:26:26,200
While marching to yet
another battle with the ottomans,
429
00:26:26,240 --> 00:26:29,840
vlad and a small vanguard
of soldiers were ambushed
430
00:26:29,880 --> 00:26:31,360
and vlad was killed.
431
00:26:33,800 --> 00:26:38,320
His head was cut off and
sent to the sultan as a trophy.
432
00:26:40,920 --> 00:26:45,800
The name Dracula may be synonymous
with the world's favourite villain,
433
00:26:45,840 --> 00:26:50,840
but in his home country of Romania,
Vladislav III is a national hero.
434
00:26:54,200 --> 00:26:55,720
Translation: "Vlad
the impaler was
435
00:26:55,760 --> 00:26:58,600
"and always will remain in
the Romanian conscience
436
00:26:58,640 --> 00:27:00,280
"as a lover of
truth and justice.
437
00:27:01,320 --> 00:27:03,200
"Even though he
used brutal methods,
438
00:27:03,240 --> 00:27:05,040
"he tried to make the
world a better place."
439
00:27:07,240 --> 00:27:11,560
Here, he's admired as a leader
who protected his merchants,
440
00:27:11,600 --> 00:27:16,160
rid the land of thieves and
stood up to oppressive empires.
441
00:27:19,200 --> 00:27:21,960
Translation: "His
courage to do so,
442
00:27:22,000 --> 00:27:23,400
"that's what got him to remain
443
00:27:23,440 --> 00:27:25,360
"in the Romanian
national conscience."
444
00:27:35,960 --> 00:27:40,800
Today, while "vlad Dracula's"
real-life home lies abandoned,
445
00:27:40,840 --> 00:27:44,440
tourists flock to the castle
of his fictional counterpart.
446
00:27:46,160 --> 00:27:49,200
Many movies were
made of this character,
447
00:27:49,240 --> 00:27:53,520
so, I do believe that
this legend will never die.
448
00:27:56,400 --> 00:27:58,080
(Eerie beat)
449
00:27:59,520 --> 00:28:03,720
In guatape, Columbia,
a battered waterside ruin
450
00:28:03,760 --> 00:28:06,360
was once home to
an infamous outlaw.
451
00:28:07,960 --> 00:28:09,720
(Eerie beat)
452
00:28:13,640 --> 00:28:14,976
It looks a little
bit like a cross
453
00:28:15,000 --> 00:28:18,400
between a playboy mansion
and some kind of military fort.
454
00:28:21,040 --> 00:28:26,720
Evidence of violence soon emerges
in this sprawling, 20-acre site.
455
00:28:26,760 --> 00:28:29,920
There is signs of some
kind of enormous explosion.
456
00:28:29,960 --> 00:28:32,920
So, this place clearly
has a story to tell.
457
00:28:38,600 --> 00:28:42,400
William jimenez once worked
at this dilapidated compound.
458
00:28:45,640 --> 00:28:47,296
William (translation): "It
took almost seven years
459
00:28:47,320 --> 00:28:49,640
"to build the structures
that you can see here today."
460
00:28:51,160 --> 00:28:54,520
It had a swimming pool,
tennis courts, a football pitch,
461
00:28:54,560 --> 00:28:57,000
none of which sound
out of the ordinary,
462
00:28:57,040 --> 00:28:59,600
but that football pitch
doubled up as a helipad
463
00:28:59,640 --> 00:29:03,160
and it also had its own
private seaplane dock.
464
00:29:03,200 --> 00:29:05,880
This place was
anything but ordinary.
465
00:29:07,400 --> 00:29:10,880
It's just 25 miles from
the town of medellin...
466
00:29:13,080 --> 00:29:16,160
Where the Colombian
drug lord Pablo Escobar
467
00:29:16,200 --> 00:29:18,200
founded his infamous cartel.
468
00:29:20,320 --> 00:29:24,680
When you're Pablo Escobar,
you can never really relax.
469
00:29:24,720 --> 00:29:26,680
He was always
surrounded by security.
470
00:29:27,880 --> 00:29:33,720
This is hacienda la manuela,
named after his only daughter.
471
00:29:33,760 --> 00:29:37,640
Escobar built this luxury
retreat to keep his family safe.
472
00:29:39,920 --> 00:29:41,320
He had armed guards.
473
00:29:41,360 --> 00:29:45,120
He had walls that were built
like the walls of a fortress.
474
00:29:46,200 --> 00:29:48,680
Escobar wanted to
be ready for anything.
475
00:29:51,000 --> 00:29:52,200
William remembers
476
00:29:52,240 --> 00:29:54,800
the elusive drug
baron's visits here.
477
00:29:56,760 --> 00:29:58,096
Translation: "Pablo
himself was here
478
00:29:58,120 --> 00:29:59,960
"only two or three
times maximum.
479
00:30:00,000 --> 00:30:02,280
"He'd only spend a few
hours here and then leave.
480
00:30:02,320 --> 00:30:03,680
"He wouldn't even
stay the night."
481
00:30:04,720 --> 00:30:06,720
When you're the seventh
richest man in the world,
482
00:30:06,760 --> 00:30:08,480
you got to watch
your back at all times.
483
00:30:09,920 --> 00:30:13,880
Escobar had become a target
not just for columbian authorities
484
00:30:13,920 --> 00:30:17,440
and the us government,
but also rival cartels.
485
00:30:18,520 --> 00:30:23,240
And in 1993, devastation
came to hacienda la manuela.
486
00:30:25,040 --> 00:30:28,520
Some of Escobar's rivals
managed to infiltrate the compound.
487
00:30:30,640 --> 00:30:32,776
Translation: "What happened
was that six more pick-ups
488
00:30:32,800 --> 00:30:34,400
"and one Van
came full of people.
489
00:30:37,320 --> 00:30:38,400
"It was around midnight.
490
00:30:38,440 --> 00:30:40,880
"They placed two
bombs, one on that side
491
00:30:40,920 --> 00:30:42,000
"and one on the other side.
492
00:30:45,760 --> 00:30:47,600
"This was where they
placed the biggest bomb.
493
00:30:49,240 --> 00:30:50,880
"There was a huge explosion.
494
00:30:50,920 --> 00:30:52,960
"You can imagine
everything was shaking.
495
00:30:55,120 --> 00:30:58,200
"In this area, there
was a bathroom
496
00:30:58,240 --> 00:31:00,160
"and that's where the
bomb exploded upward
497
00:31:00,200 --> 00:31:02,000
"and destroyed
the walls around it.
498
00:31:04,200 --> 00:31:05,880
"It was such a
powerful explosion."
499
00:31:11,320 --> 00:31:13,360
This bombing was
kind of the beginning
500
00:31:13,400 --> 00:31:15,240
of the end for Escobar.
501
00:31:16,760 --> 00:31:19,960
Although Escobar survived
the assassination attempt,
502
00:31:20,000 --> 00:31:22,000
his luck would soon run out.
503
00:31:23,880 --> 00:31:26,120
In December 1993,
504
00:31:26,160 --> 00:31:29,080
Columbia's national
police finally pinpointed
505
00:31:29,120 --> 00:31:31,520
the gangster's whereabouts
506
00:31:31,560 --> 00:31:35,760
and shot him dead as he tried
to flee across medellin's rooftops.
507
00:31:42,560 --> 00:31:45,920
Today, Escobar's
complex legacy means
508
00:31:45,960 --> 00:31:48,680
his once-glorious
mansion lies abandoned.
509
00:31:51,880 --> 00:31:53,360
(Eerie beat)
510
00:31:53,400 --> 00:31:55,560
In the woods of western Poland,
511
00:31:55,600 --> 00:31:58,000
an unassuming
collection of ruins
512
00:31:58,040 --> 00:32:01,400
saw a heroic endeavour
immortalised by Hollywood.
513
00:32:04,320 --> 00:32:09,960
You see some concrete
vestiges of the past,
514
00:32:10,000 --> 00:32:14,080
but it seems that the forest has
reclaimed whatever was here.
515
00:32:15,800 --> 00:32:20,560
So, at some point, years
ago, this was cleared.
516
00:32:22,160 --> 00:32:25,440
But why did somebody clear
517
00:32:25,480 --> 00:32:27,920
a space in this forest?
518
00:32:30,400 --> 00:32:33,360
You actually come across some
concrete pillars in the ground.
519
00:32:34,800 --> 00:32:37,760
They're clearly the constructs
of something that's repeated,
520
00:32:37,800 --> 00:32:38,960
something quite large.
521
00:32:40,360 --> 00:32:45,400
Below-ground a series of
passages seems to go nowhere.
522
00:32:45,440 --> 00:32:49,240
And deeper in the words,
a curious feature emerges.
523
00:32:50,600 --> 00:32:53,440
On a pathway, you
see this line of stones
524
00:32:53,480 --> 00:32:56,040
with names inscribed
on the stones.
525
00:32:57,160 --> 00:32:59,200
Then, you arrive at the end
526
00:32:59,240 --> 00:33:02,080
and there's a big stone
and it says, "Harry."
527
00:33:02,120 --> 00:33:06,080
Harry, here in the middle of
a forest somewhere in Poland.
528
00:33:06,120 --> 00:33:07,200
Quite the mystery.
529
00:33:13,800 --> 00:33:17,600
Marek lazarz has scoured
these woods to piece together
530
00:33:17,640 --> 00:33:20,200
what went on here,
back in the 1940s.
531
00:33:22,920 --> 00:33:26,160
These are foundations
of the theatre,
532
00:33:26,200 --> 00:33:29,440
large, large theatre, 350 seats.
533
00:33:30,840 --> 00:33:33,520
What you see
here is orchestra pit,
534
00:33:33,560 --> 00:33:37,680
stage, backstage
and few rooms behind.
535
00:33:40,560 --> 00:33:44,680
Surrounding it are the remnants
of neatly built barrack buildings.
536
00:33:46,160 --> 00:33:50,120
This was a military
camp and in the 1940s,
537
00:33:50,160 --> 00:33:53,640
this Polish wood was
part of Nazi Germany.
538
00:33:53,680 --> 00:33:56,360
It was known as stalag luft III.
539
00:33:57,600 --> 00:33:59,440
"Stalag" is short
for stammlager.
540
00:33:59,480 --> 00:34:00,840
This is where
they kept prisoners.
541
00:34:00,880 --> 00:34:03,880
"Luft", because it was
run by the luftwaffe.
542
00:34:03,920 --> 00:34:09,080
And it housed various prisoners
from the allied air forces.
543
00:34:11,040 --> 00:34:12,560
From 1942,
544
00:34:12,600 --> 00:34:15,760
it held more than
10,000 prisoners of war.
545
00:34:16,800 --> 00:34:19,440
One of the biggest
officer's camp for the army.
546
00:34:23,920 --> 00:34:26,760
Risky allied air raids
in the early years
547
00:34:26,800 --> 00:34:28,120
of the second world war
548
00:34:28,160 --> 00:34:30,440
resulted in many
daredevil airmen
549
00:34:30,480 --> 00:34:32,440
caught behind enemy lines.
550
00:34:34,240 --> 00:34:37,120
Prisoner of war
camps were filled
551
00:34:37,160 --> 00:34:41,920
with brilliant, highly motivated
officers and sergeants.
552
00:34:41,960 --> 00:34:46,720
And these guys were
able to make life miserable
553
00:34:46,760 --> 00:34:48,120
for the German soldiers.
554
00:34:50,160 --> 00:34:53,080
There was a code of
honour among officers
555
00:34:53,120 --> 00:34:55,480
that, in world war ii,
that if you were captured,
556
00:34:55,520 --> 00:34:57,000
you had to try to escape.
557
00:34:59,560 --> 00:35:02,840
And it was clear that the
German luftwaffe knew this.
558
00:35:07,680 --> 00:35:10,760
This place was
built in the heartland
559
00:35:10,800 --> 00:35:11,960
of the German reich.
560
00:35:13,800 --> 00:35:17,440
Even if you managed
to get out of this camp,
561
00:35:17,480 --> 00:35:19,880
you weren't going anywhere.
562
00:35:21,160 --> 00:35:23,680
But that wasn't enough
to stop the allied airmen
563
00:35:23,720 --> 00:35:24,800
trying to get out.
564
00:35:26,040 --> 00:35:29,440
This camp, surrounded
by searchlight towers,
565
00:35:29,480 --> 00:35:33,680
rows of barbed wire,
machine guns and dogs,
566
00:35:33,720 --> 00:35:37,680
meant there was only one
way to do that, by tunnel.
567
00:35:38,720 --> 00:35:40,880
But the Germans
had that covered too.
568
00:35:42,360 --> 00:35:45,440
They build the huts, the
barracks, off the ground,
569
00:35:45,480 --> 00:35:46,520
with a clearance beneath.
570
00:35:48,120 --> 00:35:50,240
So, that it's harder
to tunnel down.
571
00:35:53,080 --> 00:35:55,800
Undeterred, a group
of allied officers
572
00:35:55,840 --> 00:36:00,680
led by squadron leader Roger bushell
came up with a daring escape plan.
573
00:36:04,120 --> 00:36:07,560
Bushell's idea is that
you're going to build
574
00:36:07,600 --> 00:36:11,600
three big tunnels nicknamed
Tom, dick and Harry.
575
00:36:11,640 --> 00:36:13,440
You're going to assume
that the Germans
576
00:36:13,480 --> 00:36:15,520
are going to discover
one or two of them.
577
00:36:15,560 --> 00:36:18,000
But with three, you'll all
get out of the third one.
578
00:36:21,080 --> 00:36:23,360
The hope was that
one of these tunnels
579
00:36:23,400 --> 00:36:25,440
would lead 200 men to freedom.
580
00:36:26,520 --> 00:36:28,960
It would become
the stuff of legend.
581
00:36:29,000 --> 00:36:30,920
(Gunfire)
582
00:36:30,960 --> 00:36:32,800
Give up your hopeless
attempts to escape.
583
00:36:32,840 --> 00:36:34,096
We're going to
devote our energies
584
00:36:34,120 --> 00:36:37,920
to sports and gardening,
all the cultural pursuits.
585
00:36:37,960 --> 00:36:40,520
Meanwhile, we dig.
586
00:36:44,040 --> 00:36:46,440
This is the basis of the
movie 'the great escape'
587
00:36:46,480 --> 00:36:48,400
starring Steve
McQueen, James garner,
588
00:36:48,440 --> 00:36:50,160
Charles Bronson
and other greats.
589
00:36:51,560 --> 00:36:53,080
Man: They did manufacture.
590
00:36:53,120 --> 00:36:55,120
(Dramatic music)
591
00:36:58,840 --> 00:37:01,480
Remains on the
site still hold traces
592
00:37:01,520 --> 00:37:03,360
of the true-life escape,
593
00:37:03,400 --> 00:37:06,360
including the most
audacious tunnel, Harry.
594
00:37:08,920 --> 00:37:11,400
We are now actually
in the north compound,
595
00:37:11,440 --> 00:37:13,800
where the hut 104 was.
596
00:37:13,840 --> 00:37:18,000
Not much left except
few pieces of the concrete.
597
00:37:18,040 --> 00:37:20,360
And it was selected
because it was almost
598
00:37:20,400 --> 00:37:22,520
in the middle of the compound.
599
00:37:22,560 --> 00:37:27,720
So, the Germans, they didn't
suspect there would be any tunnelling.
600
00:37:30,160 --> 00:37:33,320
Even so, the
Germans still left gaps
601
00:37:33,360 --> 00:37:34,880
under their accommodation,
602
00:37:34,920 --> 00:37:37,800
so tunnelling could
easily be spotted.
603
00:37:37,840 --> 00:37:39,640
But there was a solution.
604
00:37:39,680 --> 00:37:41,440
Inside all the huts,
605
00:37:41,480 --> 00:37:45,800
solid stove bases stood
between two rooms.
606
00:37:45,840 --> 00:37:49,000
These plinths went down
through the gap to the ground.
607
00:37:51,320 --> 00:37:54,160
Two stoves were connected
to the one chimney.
608
00:37:54,200 --> 00:37:57,600
After they removed the
stove from this place,
609
00:37:57,640 --> 00:38:00,840
they used this area
to build the entrance
610
00:38:00,880 --> 00:38:05,960
and, kind of, fake floor
was built using the same tiles
611
00:38:06,000 --> 00:38:09,520
here to cover the
entrance of the tunnel.
612
00:38:11,760 --> 00:38:16,280
Harry would be dug
nearly 10m below hut 104,
613
00:38:16,320 --> 00:38:20,800
then travel more than 90m
under two barbed wire fences
614
00:38:20,840 --> 00:38:24,000
and exit at the tree line
that bordered the camp.
615
00:38:24,040 --> 00:38:27,880
At under 1m wide,
the tunnel was tiny.
616
00:38:27,920 --> 00:38:31,880
So, two larger staging
areas were also incorporated.
617
00:38:31,920 --> 00:38:35,320
These would aid the movement
of escapees and house
618
00:38:35,360 --> 00:38:37,160
some of its
technical innovations.
619
00:38:38,720 --> 00:38:41,760
The diggers moved
into the tunnel
620
00:38:41,800 --> 00:38:47,440
using a kind of underground railway
and they were able to illuminate
621
00:38:47,480 --> 00:38:51,680
by using lamps made
with cooking fat scavenged
622
00:38:51,720 --> 00:38:56,000
from the camp's own kitchens
and from the prisoners own meals.
623
00:38:56,040 --> 00:39:00,680
In order to ensure that people
didn't asphyxiate in the tunnels,
624
00:39:00,720 --> 00:39:02,080
fresh air was pumped in.
625
00:39:02,120 --> 00:39:04,920
They used a gym
bag as a set of bellows
626
00:39:04,960 --> 00:39:07,520
to pump fresh
air into the tunnel.
627
00:39:09,800 --> 00:39:13,720
Dug with only improvised
tools including cutlery,
628
00:39:13,760 --> 00:39:16,480
even the earth they were
excavating was hostile.
629
00:39:17,680 --> 00:39:19,576
One of the reasons the
Germans decided to camp here is,
630
00:39:19,600 --> 00:39:21,560
the soil is very
weak, very Sandy.
631
00:39:21,600 --> 00:39:22,760
It's prone to collapse.
632
00:39:24,600 --> 00:39:27,320
So, the tunnels were
shored up with timber
633
00:39:27,360 --> 00:39:29,880
that had been looted
from around the camp.
634
00:39:30,920 --> 00:39:32,760
The bunks, the bed boards,
635
00:39:32,800 --> 00:39:34,440
the benches, the chairs,
636
00:39:34,480 --> 00:39:36,160
they disassembled all this stuff
637
00:39:36,200 --> 00:39:38,920
and they'd take it underground
to shore up these tunnels.
638
00:39:40,440 --> 00:39:43,560
And the soil at this site
created a further problem.
639
00:39:45,200 --> 00:39:49,120
Topsoil of the camp
was actually dark grey.
640
00:39:49,160 --> 00:39:51,960
Meanwhile, the dirt
taken from the tunnels
641
00:39:52,000 --> 00:39:54,200
was extremely bright and yellow.
642
00:39:55,240 --> 00:39:59,640
So, you can see the top
soil, which is dark grey,
643
00:39:59,680 --> 00:40:04,360
but if you try to dig, you
will find some yellow soil.
644
00:40:05,880 --> 00:40:09,120
This could be soil dug out
from the escape tunnel Harry.
645
00:40:10,880 --> 00:40:13,840
You feel like you
are touching history.
646
00:40:16,080 --> 00:40:17,320
So, the inmates
647
00:40:17,360 --> 00:40:22,120
would conceal soil
inside their baggy,
648
00:40:22,160 --> 00:40:24,560
second world war trousers
649
00:40:24,600 --> 00:40:27,160
and they would walk
out across the camp
650
00:40:27,200 --> 00:40:30,600
and they would spread
the soil from the tunnels,
651
00:40:30,640 --> 00:40:33,280
so, that it wouldn't be
noticeable to the Germans.
652
00:40:34,440 --> 00:40:38,560
It's estimated they removed
about 100 tonnes of material
653
00:40:38,600 --> 00:40:41,000
with essentially, sort
of, handmade tools.
654
00:40:42,840 --> 00:40:45,960
Before long, every
available area of the camp
655
00:40:46,000 --> 00:40:49,240
was being used to dispose
of the excavated soil,
656
00:40:49,280 --> 00:40:50,440
even the theatre.
657
00:40:52,480 --> 00:40:54,920
The theatre was
selected by the prisoners
658
00:40:54,960 --> 00:40:58,200
because there was
a large, empty space
659
00:40:58,240 --> 00:40:59,920
underneath the
floor of the audience
660
00:40:59,960 --> 00:41:03,240
and it was perfect place
to hide tonnes of the soil.
661
00:41:04,280 --> 00:41:06,480
Oh, my god! They found Tom.
662
00:41:06,520 --> 00:41:09,480
But the tunnellers'
luck would soon run out.
663
00:41:09,520 --> 00:41:14,160
First, curious guards uncovered
Tom and destroyed it with dynamite.
664
00:41:14,200 --> 00:41:17,080
Then, dick was abandoned
when the camp expanded
665
00:41:17,120 --> 00:41:19,160
and covered its exit point.
666
00:41:19,200 --> 00:41:21,360
Now, all hope rested on Harry.
667
00:41:21,400 --> 00:41:23,160
But even that
wouldn't last long.
668
00:41:25,080 --> 00:41:26,160
They had to escape
669
00:41:26,200 --> 00:41:29,360
because Germans were
very close to find tunnel
670
00:41:29,400 --> 00:41:30,680
and they had to make a decision.
671
00:41:30,720 --> 00:41:33,400
"We have to escape
as soon as possible."
672
00:41:33,440 --> 00:41:36,440
The airmen knew that
Harry wasn't quite ready.
673
00:41:36,480 --> 00:41:39,040
A stone line running
through the wood shows
674
00:41:39,080 --> 00:41:40,400
the tunnel's path.
675
00:41:40,440 --> 00:41:44,800
They actually break out
through Harry in march 1944.
676
00:41:45,960 --> 00:41:47,880
In reality, it was the tail end
677
00:41:47,920 --> 00:41:50,640
of the coldest winter
in European history.
678
00:41:50,680 --> 00:41:51,760
It was freezing cold.
679
00:41:51,800 --> 00:41:54,720
They get to the end of Harry
and the hatch won't open,
680
00:41:54,760 --> 00:41:58,680
'cause it's just frozen shut
beneath a carapace of snow.
681
00:41:58,720 --> 00:42:00,936
So, they're sitting there, they
spend an hour and a half...
682
00:42:00,960 --> 00:42:03,560
An hour and a half, trying
to like knock this thing loose.
683
00:42:04,680 --> 00:42:07,600
Another problem was that
the tunnel was too short.
684
00:42:07,640 --> 00:42:10,200
Hold onto yourself,
bartlett. You're 20ft short.
685
00:42:10,240 --> 00:42:11,696
The wall is right
here on the opening.
686
00:42:11,720 --> 00:42:13,320
The guard is between
us and the lights.
687
00:42:14,640 --> 00:42:18,400
So, it makes the
escape very difficult.
688
00:42:19,640 --> 00:42:22,920
By the time guards
spotted the fleeing prisoners,
689
00:42:22,960 --> 00:42:26,760
76 men had crawled
their way to freedom.
690
00:42:26,800 --> 00:42:29,920
Tragically, the majority
were quickly rounded up.
691
00:42:31,840 --> 00:42:34,680
When Hitler heard
about the great escape,
692
00:42:34,720 --> 00:42:38,040
he was absolutely furious.
693
00:42:40,600 --> 00:42:44,800
And Hitler wanted
to kill every airman
694
00:42:44,840 --> 00:42:47,360
who escaped
from stalag luft III.
695
00:42:49,720 --> 00:42:54,240
Actually, only three of them
successfully escaped to england.
696
00:42:54,280 --> 00:42:59,160
73 were captured by the
Germans and 50 of them
697
00:42:59,200 --> 00:43:01,240
were executed by the gestapo.
698
00:43:06,480 --> 00:43:09,160
The pows quiet determination,
699
00:43:09,200 --> 00:43:11,200
spirit and resistance
700
00:43:11,240 --> 00:43:14,200
were stirringly
captured by Hollywood,
701
00:43:14,240 --> 00:43:16,880
although with a bit
of artistic licence.
702
00:43:18,120 --> 00:43:19,216
You know, people would expect
703
00:43:19,240 --> 00:43:20,896
that there are a lot
of Americans involved
704
00:43:20,920 --> 00:43:23,160
in this escape attempt
because of, you know, the role
705
00:43:23,200 --> 00:43:25,520
of Steve McQueen in the
movie 'the great escape'.
706
00:43:25,560 --> 00:43:27,960
But, in fact, all the Americans
in the camp had been moved
707
00:43:28,000 --> 00:43:30,320
to a different stalag
before the escape attempt.
708
00:43:32,120 --> 00:43:34,320
So, there are actually
no Americans involved
709
00:43:34,360 --> 00:43:35,520
in this "great escape".
710
00:43:45,120 --> 00:43:48,120
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