Historian Sam Willis teams up with Journalist Li Qiuyuan to dig into historical legacies of the past and explore how today's rail link compares to the caravans of the past - from Yiwu, the most eastern terminus of the China-Europe Railway Express to Chengdu; the busiest train station in China's Southwestern province of Sichuan.
In this three-part series for BBC Four, intrepid historian Dr. Sam Willis reveals a remarkable story of invasion in Britain, spanning thousands of years. From the time that continuous settlement began in Britain over 10,000 years ago, to Iron Age hillforts and Viking ships, Sam Willis explores the many invasions of Britain. He unearths hidden stories to build a vivid picture of both successful and unsuccessful invasions and examines how they have shaped our psyche - including fear of invasion. Some invasions are bloody, some bloodless. Some were by invitation, some absurd and doomed. From Barbary pirates and brutal border raids to the air attacks of the 20th century, these invasions have shaped modern Britain and made us the people we are today.
Before the world's oceans became the center of global trade, Chinese fleets sailed west to exchange goods. Professor Sam Willis explores the golden age of maritime trade.
Sam Willis explores British history with reference to technological advances in arms
Seven decades on from WW2...as living memory fades, the dark corners of the web are teeming with tales of the bizarre. Dr. Sam Willis, a UK-based historian, and Robert Joe (RJ), a Korean-American urban explorer, combine their talents to embark on a journey to set the record straight. They’re one of the oddest partners since Mulder and Scully, and just as determined to get to the truth that’s out there. Whether its reports of Nazis dabbling in the occult, the world’s worst man-eating crocodile attack, or a long-lost train carrying stolen gold, a path of twists and turns will show us that, when it comes to war, truth is often weirder than fiction.
Dr Sam Willis reveals how the Silk Road was the world's first global superhighway where people with new ideas, new cultures and new religions made exchanges that shaped humanity.
Dr Sam Willis charts the history of the British outlaws.
Historian Sam Willis traces the story of Britain's castles and their unique role in our history, art and literature.
Maritime historian Dr Sam Willis looks at how and why the shipwreck came to loom so large in British history.
Samuel Bruce Adlam Willis is a British historian, television presenter and writer. He lives in Devon. He studied History and Archaeology at Exeter University, graduating in 2000 and went on to earn a PhD in Naval History from Exeter, studying under Professor Nicholas Rodger. He went on to research for an MA in Maritime Archaeology from the University of Bristol where he studied under Professor Mark Horton. He is a visiting Fellow in Maritime and Naval History at the University of Plymouth, and a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries. He is the editor of Navy Records Online, the online-publishing branch of the Navy Records Society.