Best Italian documentary series

Rome, 1983. After leaving a music lesson, 15-year-old Emanuela Orlandi vanishes — embroiling the Vatican in a decades-long mystery.

Follow renowned soccer club Juventus on and off the pitch as they attempt to win a seventh straight Italian title and achieve Champions League glory.

This docuseries digs into the disappearance of 13-year-old Yara and the disconcerting investigation that shattered the peace of a small Italian town.

Over 80 per cent of Madagascar's animals and plants are found nowhere else on Earth. Discover what made Madagascar so different from the rest of the world, and how evolution ran wild here.

Amidst a heroin crisis, Vincenzo Muccioli cared for the addicted, earning him fierce public devotion — even as charges of violence began to mount.

Follow controversial slimming cream sellers turned con artists Wanna Marchi and Stefania Nobile, from their TV success to their scam and jail time.

Michael Palin attempts to copy the exploits of fictional character Phileas Fogg, by trying to travel around the world (without flying) in 80 days.

Salvados is a program of current affairs reports. The humorous and provocative style with which it deals with issues has made it, after several stages, a star program.

In 1997 a peaceful provincial community is disrupted by a number of cases of pedophilia and Satanism.

Tells the extraordinary life of Chiara Ferragni and Fedez. An authentic tale that unveils the behind the scenes of one of the most followed couples ever and the most intimate moments of a young family that passionately fights for their dreams to come true.

Michelin-starred chef Carlo Cracco undertakes six trips across Italy to rediscover its most authentic cuisine with famous actors for each destination.

Alessandro Cattelan searches for happiness through interviews and unique experiences with celebrity guests like Paolo Sorrentino and Roberto Baggio.

After being banned for doping, Olympic medalist race walker Alex Schwazer enlists one of his accusers to help him make a comeback.

Right beneath our feet, there are cities hidden by time that may hold clues that could rewrite history. In “Cities of the Underworld,” Don Wildman travels to the farthest and deepest reaches of the globe, using cutting-edge technology to explore mysteries buried deep underground. Across the season, Don will follow in the footsteps of treasure hunters to search for a lost Aztec colony, travel to Croatia to learn about the lost history of a little known pirate queen who supposedly ruled her empire from a muddy cave, and explore tunnels below the city of Los Angeles that may hold the clues to solving one of the most infamous cold cases in American history.

"Il testimone" (i.e. The witness) is a tv show created, made and presented by Pif. Every episode consists of a "mini-reportage", filmed through a little camera that Pif brings himself. This makes the spectator feel as if most of the tv filtres are removed and thus they can almost witness the events with their own eyes and feel directly involved in the social messages brought on by the show. Themes vary: they go from interviews to famous individuals, to trips, to the work of associations or even small everyday realities.

This docuseries sheds light on the killing of a German teenager in '78 through the accounts of his sister and the royal family involved in the case.

A docuseries about Silvio Berlusconi before becoming prime minister of Italy, from succeeding as a charismatic entrepreneur to changing European TV.

Alberto Angela leads the dissemination program dedicated to history, art and culture. A historical, archaeological, informative story, with the presence of some protagonists of the Italian cultural or artistic scene.

Forbidden love blossoms in the city of Pompeii, which until the eruption of volcano Vesuvius in 79 AD, is one of the empire's most powerful cities.

Television program of cultural diffusion, born in September 1995, designed and conducted by Piero Angela, development of transmission appreciated Quark.

The Docu Concert

Italy's most beloved rock star Vasco Rossi grants unprecedented access to intimate details of his personal life and successful career over the decades.

Documenting the genesis and the various stages of writing and production of the TV series "Gomorrah" based on the novel by Roberto Saviano.

Top Gear Italia is an international version of the popular British BBC Two motoring show. This version of the show is presented by Guido Meda (an Italian commentator of the Moto GP), Joe Bastianich (an American restaurateur, previously a judge on MasterChef Italia) and Davide Valsecchi (an Italian racing driver and GP2 Series champion). It also features the Italian version of "The Stig".

The beautiful Italy

La vita di Leonardo da Vinci — in English, The Life of Leonardo da Vinci — is a 1971 Italian television miniseries dramatizing the life of the Italian Renaissance polymath Leonardo da Vinci. The Golden Globe-winning miniseries was directed by Renato Castellani, and produced by RAI and distributed in the United States by CBS, which aired it from August 13, 1972 to September 10, 1972. Castellani wrote the screenplay. It was filmed entirely on location in Italy and France. The total runtime of the five episodes is nearly five hours.

The murder of Elisa Claps represents one of the most discussed Italian crime cases of recent decades. In this docu-series the entire story is reconstructed, from the disappearance of the girl on 12 September 1993 until the discovery of her mummified corpse in March 2010.

Alberto Angela returns with the journey to discover the "Wonders" which, in this new series entitled "Stars of Europe", crosses national borders for the first time to explore, in addition to the Italian ones, also the most spectacular UNESCO sites of our continent.

Stories Of A Generation narrates the values of life: from love to pain, from work to dreams. 18 generational stories are enriched with the participation of Pope Francis and Martin Scorsese.

Through a combination of interviews and studio reconstructions, recount the gripping stories behind those who have excavated and stolen masterpieces.

Mafia Connection exposes old and new mafia organizations threating Italy.

Caserta. Billy is a wedding photographer grappling with his latest job before closing his shop. A few hours after the ceremony inside his studio, Michele, a graduate student looking for an internship, peeps out. The photographer decides to take the boy with him on a day full of unexpected events.

Ten minutes, ten mini-events to tell the story of the World Cup. "The World Cup marked the time of our lives, and will mark the times of those who will come," with these words Federico Buffa opens each of the ten episodes of its show. A journey through the history of the World Cup, every Saturday at 23.30 on Sky Sports 1 HD, starting April 5. The program, produced for the first time with Sky Arts, will be an extraordinary journey of accompaniment towards Brazil 2014. Accompanied by live music of the great jazz musician Max De Aloe, Buffa illustrates the stories of the characters who have immortalized the World Cup.

A weekly current affairs Italian show

Il Pianeta dei Dinosauri was a television documentary series, hosted by Piero and Alberto Angela in 1993, dedicated to the life of the Dinosaurs studied by the reconstructions, thanks to the co-production with Agip and the advice of Professor Dale Russell

Alberto Angela with Noos, the new series dedicated to popular science, takes the place historically occupied by "Superquark" and is a completely new program while maintaining the strengths of its predecessor. The latest discoveries in the fields of medicine, genetics, neuroscience, biology. But with an eye also to archeology, paleontology, the most important technological, energy and environmental innovations. All always explained in an understandable way by Alberto Angela in the studio with guests and services.

The life of Leonardo Da Vinci, the most brilliant mind in history. Who was Leonardo Da Vinci, and what are the secrets behind his genius? Winner of the Golden Globe, this acclaimed docudrama chronicles Leonardo's life from his birth in Florence to his death in France at age 67. Based on eyewitness accounts and documentary evidence, filmed in Italy, it has been hailed as one of the most accurate and accomplished films about the Renaissance master ever made. We witness his most historic triumphs, including the creation of the Last Supper and the Mona Lisa, paintings that have become embedded in our collective consciousness. We experience his most bitter defeats, from the crash-landing of his beloved flying machine to the fiery liquefaction of his Battle of Anghiari. We see- and come to understand- the bitterness of his rivalry with Michelangelo, perhaps the only Renaissance artist who was Da Vinci's equal. Based on eyewitness accounts, documentary evidence and informed speculation, this beautifully acted, richly photographed film adds compelling brushstrokes to the Da Vinci legend. Produced by the Italian TV network RAI, the series also aired on CBS in 1972 as "I, Leonardo". DIRECTOR: Renato Castellani PRODUCTION: RAI, ORF, TVE and ISTITUTE LUCE S.P.A.

Davide Cironi is an experienced test driver and a reference point for four-wheel enthusiasts. Dealing with ancient glories and old wrecks, he recovers battered cars from remote places with the aim of refurbishing them and bringing them to the track. To carry out each project, he uses the help of the best workshops around the country, because a real restoration does not only require time and dedication, but above all experience and great knowledge of the four wheels.

The story of the 1986-87 "Maxi-trial" against Cosa Nostra in Palermo, Italy. Instructed by the Anti-Mafia pool, led by Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino, the story of this historical process and of its exceptional numbers is recounted through the real images from court audiences enriched by reconstructions with fictional scenes.

Il biopic dedicato al poeta della canzone italiana, che racconta l'avventura umana di un artista che ha segnato la storia della canzone e della cultura italiana.

Follow TV host Ilary Blasi as she defines her life post-divorce, balancing personal growth, career opportunities and a new love.

Program about historical dissemination, presented by Paolo Mieli. Each episode sees a historian interacting with the presenter and three young university students.