Sign language

BBC Two Northern Ireland

Monkman & Seagull's Genius Guide to Britain

Documentaries

Factual: Travel

Factual: Science & Nature: Science & Technology

University Challenge icons Eric Monkman and Bobby Seagull road trip around Britain.

University Challenge icons Eric Monkman and Bobby Seagull road trip around Britain in search of hidden gems of British scientific and technological ingenuity.

Series 1

BBC Four

BBC Two Scotland

Until 03/01/2009 BBC Two Wales (analogue) was known simply as BBC Two Wales. BBC Two Wales (digital) was BBC 2W. From 03/01/2009 BBC Two Wales schedules on both analogue and digital became identical

BBC Two Wales

BBC Two England

England

Simulcast of network BBC Two in high definition.

BBC Two HD

Simulcast of BBC Two Wales in high definition

BBC Two Wales HD

Simulcast of BBC Two Northern Ireland in high definition

BBC Two Northern Ireland HD

BBC Four HD

Monkman & Seagull’s Genius Guide to Britain

Bobby Seagull

Eric Monkman

Simon Dickson

Lorraine Charker-Phillips

Merle Currie

Samuel Palmer

Label1 Television Ltd

Monkman & Seagull's Genius Guide to Britain: Series 1: Episode 3: Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

Episode 3

Episode 3: Northern Ireland

BBC Two - Monkman & Seagull's Genius Guide to Britain, Series 1, Northern Ireland

Monkman and Seagull's guide to Northern Ireland begins with a look at the ejector seat.

Eric Monkman and Bobby Seagull present a guide to Northern Ireland, starting with a look at a piece of aviation history that has saved thousands of lives.

University Challenge icons and real-life best friends Eric Monkman and Bobby Seagull are on a road trip with a difference. Feeding their insatiable appetite for knowledge, they visit Scotland, England, Northern Ireland and Wales in search of hidden gems of British scientific and technological ingenuity.

Their 'genius guide' to Northern Ireland celebrates some of the most significant and iconic transportation breakthroughs of the last century. It begins with an encounter with a piece of aviation history that has saved thousands of lives - the ejector seat, designed in Northern Ireland - and ends in Belfast on the deck of 'Titanic's Little Sister', with a host of inquisitive encounters along the way.

Heading west, there is a must-see for anyone with an interest in the cosmos. The Armagh Observatory has been monitoring the night sky and measuring the weather for over two centuries. Here, Monkman and Seagull encounter one of the most important telescopes ever made - the 1885 Grubb ten-inch Refractor, which played a pivotal role in the discovery and cataloguing of thousands of interstellar galaxies.

Passing through the small town of Enniskillen gives Monkman and Seagull the chance to visit a unique railway museum located inside a barber shop. As their journey through Northern Ireland nears its climax, Eric and Bobby arrive at the historic Belfast docks, where they step on board the ship known 'Titanic's little sister'. Built in 1911, The SS Nomadic ferried 274 passengers to the Titanic as it embarked upon its doomed journey and - somewhat eerily - is now the only remaining White Star Line ship in the world, outliving its tragic big sister. Finally, Monkman and Seagull meet one of the most iconic cars ever to be built in Northern Ireland - the DeLorean - famous for its appearances in the Back to the Future movies. The conversation soon turns to flux capacitors and the existential possibilities of time travel, which Monkman refuses to rule out the possibility of.

Monkman & Seagull's Genius Guide to Britain: Series 1

BBC Two

BBC Two is a TV channel that started broadcasting on the 20th April 1964.

BBC 2

BBC2

BBC Two is a lively channel of depth and substance, carrying a range of knowledge-building programming complemented by great drama, comedy and arts.

Accessibility links

Programme Index

Monkman & Seagull's Genius Guide to Britain

Series 1

Episode 3: Northern Ireland

Contributors

Genres

Formats

Brand

Series

BBC Two Northern Ireland

About BBC Two