The Auctioneers: How Jewish Property Was Sold Off under Nazism | Full Documentary

31 May 2025 | With the pogroms in 1938/39, the systematic antisemitism of the Nazis broke through. This led to incomparable violence and despotism towards Jewish citizens. The events, that reached their first peak in the Reichspogromnacht but continued for years afterwards, also led to a massive wave of expropriation. The vast monetary and material values taken from the Jews are beyond imagination. But they’ve been documented meticulously in the books of a then booming industry: the auctioneers.

They were the exploiters of Jewish property, from industrial enterprises to silver spoons: tax inspectors and bailiffs, pawnbrokers, and auctioneers. Especially the latter are among the major profiteers of the Holocaust. Their files, which in many cities only now have been made accessible, paint a new and more detailed picture of the persecution of Jews in Germany.

The accuracy, with which events have been documented, allows telling this story with the means of historical data journalism for the first time ever, putting private stories in perspective with the main developments in Nazi-Germany

“The Auctioneers” is a hunt for relics of the past that leads from private property to everyday life between 1938 and 1944, to those who’ve profited most from the property transfers, and finally to some sort of economic balance of the Holocaust.

Documentary: The Auctioneers: Profiting From the Holocaust (2018)
Directed by Jan N.Lorenzen
Production: Hoferichter & Jacobs, ARD, MDR


The currency exchange for the Reichsmark against the US dollar in the Thirties was as follows:

Around 1930 – 1931, there were approximately 4.2 Reichsmarks to the US dollar. (With one or two slight variations.)

From the mid to late Thirties, the Nazi regime implemented currency controls, so the exchange rate moved closer to 2.5 Reichsmarks to the US dollar. – Mark

The Ordinary People Who Hid Their Jewish Neighbours from the Nazis

11 Jan 2026 | After the invasion of the German army in 1940, the Jews living in France, with the help of many, began their fight for survival. Of those in France, 75% survived the Holocaust. The film shows the circumstances surrounding the rescue of tens of thousands of Jews and the civilian resistance that produced the many Silent Saviours. The Nazi regime’s rise to power in 1933 brought with it the persecution of Jews living in Germany. In an attempt to escape this oppressive system, many fled to France – a revolutionary land known for its protection of human rights. The persecuted were more than ever before, heavily dependent on the kindness of strangers. During this period of persecution many people of the French populous, were ready to risk their lives in order to protect the hunted Jews.

Lessons from a Dark Era | Hitler - Germany's Fatal Attraction | Episode 3 | Full Documentary

Dec 4, 2025 | This documentary examines the final years of Hitler’s regime and the catastrophic consequences of Nazi ideology between 1939 and 1945. Through historical analysis, survivor testimony, and archival footage, it explores how Germany fell under the influence of a destructive leader—and how that vision ultimately collapsed under the weight of war, genocide, and total devastation.

The film also reflects on the legacy of these events: the moral consequences, the profound human cost, and the ongoing debate in Europe and the United States about whether earlier intervention could have prevented the atrocities.

This is an educational, fact-based look at one of the darkest chapters in world history, highlighting the importance of vigilance, accountability, and remembering the past to prevent future tragedies.


Es scheint, als stünden wir bald wieder vor ähnlich finsteren Zeiten! Die Menschen scheinen nichts aus der Geschichte gelernt zu haben. Damals wurde die Welt durch Adolf Hitler, seine finstere Ideologie und seine perversen Begierden in Dunkelheit gehüllt. Heute wird die Welt durch Donald Trump und Wladimir Putin in Verderben gestürzt. Diesen beiden geht es nur um Profit und persönliche Bereicherung. Wie viele Menschen dafür sterben müssen, ist ihnen völlig egal. — © Mark Alexander

An Actor, Womanizer and Lover of Life | Omar Sharif | True Story Documentary Channel

May 19, 2024 | Film classics like “Lawrence of Arabia” and “Doctor Zhivago” made Omar Sharif a world star. He was an actor, bridge player, nomad, womanizer and loved life. This portrait shows a man full of contradictions, who loved playing bridge more than the film business and who lived half of his life in hotels.

Mohammad bin Salman: Prince with Two Faces

Feb 7, 2025 | Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman (known as MBS), at only 34 years old, leads a state in Western Asia with immense oil reserves that significantly impact the global economy. This country is also home to Islam's holiest sites and remains the world's largest arms buyer. Accused of orchestrating the brutal assassination of a journalist and the kidnapping of a foreign Prime Minister, engaged in a bloody war in Yemen, and determined to counter Iran at all costs, MBS is also a key partner in the fight against terrorism and is implementing spectacular reforms that are reshaping his kingdom.

Poland’s Fentanyl Crisis | DW Documentary

Nov 25, 2025 | Fentanyl is estimated to be fifty times as potent as heroin and is extremely addictive. The number of people in Poland abusing this powerful painkiller is growing. There have been dozens of fatalities.

Michal lives in a small town south of Gdansk. Because of the stigma surrounding people with addiction, he prefers to remain anonymous. Every two weeks, he travels to Święciec to take methadone, a substitute drug, at the addiction clinic of the psychiatric hospital.

After using various drugs, he started taking fentanyl, the strongest of all opiates. Fentanyl is used to treat people with severe pain and as an anesthetic. Addicts remove the gel from pain patches and inject it directly into their bloodstream. There have been dozens of fatal overdoses in Poland.

Michal has also lost one of his close friends. Corrupt pharmacists are believed to have sold large quantities of fentanyl patches to dealers. The authorities have since put a stop to this.

In Żuromin, Jadwiga Karpinska lost her son Pawel to a fatal overdose. Their town, a two-hour drive from the capital Warsaw, was known as the country’s unofficial fentanyl capital in 2024. That changed when police detained a well-known local dealer.

The drug continues to be available there, but in smaller quantities. Elementary school teacher Adam Ejnik believes in prevention. He wants to keep his students away from the drug by raising awareness about its dangers.

Artur from Łódź has managed to get off fentanyl. A few years ago, he was so addicted, he had lost the will to live. Today, his girlfriend Agnieszka helps him stay clean. His goal: he hopes to finish his psychology degree and work as a therapist to help other addicts get off the extremely powerful drug.

Smoking - Anatomy of an Addiction Industry | DW Documentary | Reupload

Dec 13, 2024 | Smoking has an image problem, because everyone knows it can kill you. That’s why tobacco multinationals are increasingly focused on e-cigarettes, enticing consumers with bright colors and fruity flavors. The target group: young people.

The World Health Organization says smoking results in the death of eight million people every year. That’s one reason why you’ll now often hear tobacco companies promoting the switch to e-cigarettes, with claims that these are less harmful to our health.

It’s first and foremost young people who believe the industry’s promises, thereby taking the first step on the road to addiction. After all, nicotine is an addictive substance. And although it may taste better than tobacco, puffing on a vape is still going to get you hooked in precisely the same way as smoking a regular cigarette.

The film investigates the cynicism of an industry that not only accepts this, but also deliberately aims for it.

Big Nicotine - Anatomy of an Addiction Industry /TEMPS PRESENT / Laurent Burkhalter & Philippe Mach / 2024 / RTS Radio television Suisse


There is no doubt about it: smoking can kill. But so do many other things! When it comes to consumption, sugar is a case in point. How many people a year does sugar kill? Precise figures are unavailable, but Google has the following to say...

"While there is no single figure for the total number of deaths from all sugar consumption, studies show that sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) are linked to hundreds of thousands of deaths annually from related conditions like type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Recent research estimates that SSBs are linked to over 330,000 deaths per year globally. Sugar consumption is a significant factor in cardiovascular diseases and diabetes, which are leading causes of death worldwide.

This figure is an estimate of preventable deaths, suggesting how many fewer people would die if sugary drinks were not consumed at all, and it is based on links to specific diseases:

• 133,000 deaths from diabetes
• 45,000 deaths from cardiovascular (heart) disease
• 6,450 deaths from cancers

More recent research from January 2025 has suggested even higher figures, linking sugary drinks to over 330,000 deaths a year from type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease." — [Source: Google.]

Fact is this: If we gave up everything that could and does kill us, there'd be little left to consume and enjoy! We simply cannot get out of this life alive. — © Mark Alexander

Life in Lebanon as the Country Falls

Oct 23, 2025 | Lebanon, the former “Switzerland of the Middle East”, stands on the brink of becoming a failed state. Years of civil war, border conflicts and corrupt government has left the country bankrupt and spiralling into chaos. The Beirut port explosion reduced the capital to tatters and exposed the utter failure of sectarianism politics. Lebanon now finds itself more vulnerable than ever to foreign influence, once again a key stake for international powers playing out their broader ambitions across the Mideast. But in this deeply divided country, a young generation is ready to battle for reform.

At the supermarkets in Beirut, hyperinflation has led to the food changing price every day. Lilian, 24, hoped to become a diplomat but the economic crisis forced her to quit her studies. Now she is has joined the protest movement and pawns her clothes to buy food. The man most people blame for this desperate situation is Riad Salameh, head of the central bank for the past three decades and accused of embezzling close to a billion dollars. The IMF and World Bank has offered to bail out Lebanon if the central bank opens up its account books. Something that Salameh – with the support of the whole political class – absolutely refuses to do.

Yet economic collapse isn’t the only cause of the country’s woes. In southern Lebanon, safety risks along the border with Israel are a main source of instability. This is a stronghold for Hezbollah, which operates as a state within a state, providing for every aspect of daily life in exchange for absolute loyalty. Further north, the Bekaa valley is the other Hezbollah stronghold. But it is also home to one of Lebanon’s most serious problems the Syrian refugee crisis. The mass arrival of 1.5 million Syrian refugees has further destabilised a nation long distrustful of Syria. Everything is done to hide the Syrian problem. Large international NGO are prevented from working here and the refugees themselves, like 12-year-old Abdelfateh, are forced to slave long hours to survive.

No population census has been held for decades in Lebanon to avoid threatening the fragile balance of sectarian powers. But the sunnis are convinced they form the largest section of the population.They feel oppressed and increasingly look towards Saudi Arabia or Turkey’s Muslim brotherhood for help. But despite everything, people like Lilian are determined to confront these endemic problems. “My destiny is to stay here and engage in political action…. The proverb “Lebanese love life” is very true, we love life despite everything!”

This documentary was produced by Kaliste Productions and directed by Alfred de Montesquiou. It was first released in 2021.

Covert Journey into North Korea’s Daily Life

Oct 5, 2025 | Step inside the world’s most secretive nation. This documentary takes you behind the curtain of North Korea under Kim Jong Un, revealing rare glimpses of everyday life in Pyongyang and beyond. From choreographed public displays and propaganda-filled subways to elite schools, kindergartens, water parks, and heavily monitored family homes — every scene reflects a society shaped by loyalty to the Kim dynasty. We explore how ordinary citizens live under strict surveillance, limited freedoms, and constant state control, while the regime projects an image of prosperity and pride.

Grace Kelly: Behind the Glamour and the Crown | Full Documentary

Oct 25, 2025 | Considered one of the most beautiful actresses of her time, Grace Kelly remains an icon today. Her life and career are well documented, from her work in Hollywood to her marriage to Prince Rainier and her tragic death in a car accident in 1982.

But do we know the inside story? Who really was Grace Kelly?

Thanks to an exclusive agreement with the Principality of Monaco, this documentary will tell Grace’s life story as it’s never been told before, through the eyes of those close to her and who loved her, including her family – notably Prince Albert of Monaco –, and friends.

For the first time, the Grimaldi family has given access to its private archives, much of which has never been made public before, and agreed to talk us through this intimate material. This comprises many films shot in 8mm, 16mm and super-8 by Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier themselves, which reveal a mother who is quite different to the official image: Free, vibrant, surrounded by her children and participating in family life.

A look back on an icon with a tragic destiny.

Documentary: Her Name Was Grace Kelly (2020)
Director: Serge de Sampigny
Production: Patrick Spica Productions

Spying on the Royals - Part 2 (2018) | Full Documentary

Oct 25, 2025 | Newly declassified secret files reveal how King George VI himself paid for espionage on his own brother, the former Edward VIII, based on intelligence that Edward was attempting to usurp George VI. And fears of Wallis and Edward’s scheming was so great, that Wallis and Edward were tailed, bugged, and their phone tapped in an operation carried out on the orders of the American president himself.

Welcome to PBS America, a channel curated for an international audience from America's Public Broadcasting Service, PBS. This is a factual focussed channel including award-winning American history, current affairs and science.


Part 1 can be viewed here.

Spying on the Royals - Part 1 (2018) | Full Documentary

Oct 24, 2025 | December 1936: King Edward VIII telephoned his brother Bertie to tell him that he could no longer be King if it meant losing the woman he loved, Wallis Simpson. His every word was being scrutinized by intelligence officers. This royal romance can now be seen through a unique new perspective: the eyes of those who spied on Edward VIII, and Wallis Simpson, creating a secret dossier unlike any other.

Welcome to PBS America, a channel curated for an international audience from America's Public Broadcasting Service, PBS. This is a factual focussed channel including award-winning American history, current affairs and science.

"Orwell: 2+2=5": Raoul Peck & Alex Gibney on New Documentary, Authoritarianism, Trump & More

Oct 2, 2025 | We speak with the acclaimed filmmakers Raoul Peck and Alex Gibney about their latest documentary, "Orwell: 2+2=5," which explores the life and career of George Orwell and why his political writing remains relevant today.

Democracy Now! can be supported here.

Bad Faith: Christian Nationalism's Unholy War on Democracy (2024)

Apr 26, 2025 | Zionists, Evangelists, whatever you want to call them, their BLASPHEMY goes so far as to claim that George Washington went through an "apotheosis" when he died. Literally claiming that a slave-owning, over-taxing Freemason "became a god." That is what apotheosis means. It is an undeniable and documented fact that the vast majority of all U.S. founders were Deists and Freemasons, with a much smaller percentage of Christians. The patriotic (PAY-tri-IDIOT) crowd would like to keep dreaming that their slave-owning Deists and Masons were "Christians" but in educated reality, they are heavily uninformed and massively in need of facts.

Mussolini's Fall from Grace | Documentary | Part 2

May 16, 2024 | In the mid-1930s, after 15 years in power, Mussolini remained unsatisfied with his accomplishments. Becoming increasingly radical, he was consumed by a singular obsession: to transform Italians into "new men" and Italy into a warrior nation.

By 1938, having already defeated the Left in the 1920s and the Ethiopians in the mid-1930s, he identified a new enemy: the Jews.

Aligning himself with Hitler, whom he believed would assist him in establishing a new empire along the Mediterranean shores, Mussolini found Italy less willing to rally behind him.


For Part 1, click here.

Rise to Power: Mussolini's March on Rome I Documentary | Part 1

May 19, 2024 | In the fall of 1922, former teacher and journalist Benito Mussolini had only recently been elected to parliament when he seized power. His legal coup d’état, which began on 24 October in Naples, was a masterstroke. Standing before 40,000 Fascist party members, he issued an ultimatum to the fragile Italian parliamentary monarchy: “Either they hand us the power, or we will descend on Rome!”

The militants, wearing black shirts and armed with clubs, headed for the capital. Following on from this legendary march on Rome, Mussolini headed up a totalitarian regime that lasted two decades.

The first episode of this portrait of Il Duce will explore how Mussolini took power and consolidated it until the Second Italo-Ethiopian War in the mid-1930s.

He was a populist leader in terms of how he spoke to the Italian people, and a dictator in terms of how he exerted his power. He came from the extreme left but governed from the extreme right. Mussolini invented the new ideology of fascism and was helped in his mission by the business community who wanted an end to left-wing rule.

Despite his brutality, he sought to please the Italian people, promising them a return to the grandeur of Rome. He enjoyed undeniable success for several years, both at home and abroad, until his inevitable downfall.

Evita, The Documentary by Eduardo Montes-Bradley

Sep 25, 2021 | A powerful and unflinching portrait of one of the most iconic and polarizing women in Latin American history, Evita: The Documentary traces the extraordinary life of Eva Perón—from her impoverished beginnings as the illegitimate daughter of a rural landowner to her rise as Argentina’s First Lady and a force in 20th-century politics.

Through archival footage and a critical lens, the film explores Evita’s early struggles, her ascent as an actress, and her profound influence within President Juan Perón’s government. It examines her role in founding a far-reaching charitable foundation, her international “Rainbow Tour,” and the adoration she inspired among Argentina’s working class.

But beyond the myth, Evita also confronts the complexities of her final years—her battle with cancer, her death at the age of 33, and the bizarre posthumous odyssey of her embalmed body through decades of political upheaval.

Offering nuance beyond the familiar iconography, this documentary peels back layers of legend to reveal the woman, the symbol, and the legacy still debated today.

No Man Is an Island: A British Society and Its Historic Push for Gay Rights | Reupload

May 29, 2025 | This creative documentary immerses us in a little-known chapter of gay history. In 1992, the Isle of Man was one of the last places in western Europe to decriminalise homosexual acts.

Through verbatim reconstruction and newly discovered archives, we understand the impact of discriminatory parliamentary debates, controversial media coverage and overreaching police surveillance. In a short period of time, this corner of the British Isles went on to create some of the most progressive legislation in the world. Do people change, or do laws change people?

If you have been affected by the issues raised in this film, help and support is available. In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counsellor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org


The Guardian publishes independent journalism, made possible by supporters. You can contribute to The Guardian today by clicking here.

The Hidden Empire of Giorgio Armani

Sep 4, 2025 | This documentary explores the life and empire of fashion legend Giorgio Armani, from his humble beginnings in Italy to his rise as a global icon. We go behind the scenes to uncover the secrets of his success, from the iconic power suits that defined 80s America to his expansion into luxury hotels and restaurants. This film reveals the man behind the brand, a visionary who dressed Hollywood and built a billion-dollar empire, changing the face of fashion forever.

Portugal’s Forgotten Dictatorship: The Era Salazar | History Documentary

Aug 28, 2025 | For 48 years, António Salazar ruled Portugal with silent force. This documentary reveals how Europe’s longest right-wing dictatorship controlled a nation—and why the world barely remembers it.