UPCOMING EPISODES

On March 29th 2016, the world was saddened by the news that American sweetheart, Patty Duke had died. As Hollywood’s original child star she had been charming audiences for over sixty years. She overcame a childhood of deprivation and abuse to become a household name. In 1963 she became the then youngest actress to win an Oscar, for her career defining role as Helen Keller, in The Miracle Worker. She went on to star in The Patty Duke Show, playing identical twin cousins. It seemed nothing could stop her. But in her late teens her life began to unravel. She drank heavily, spent wildly, became promiscuous. She attempted suicide many times. Patty was diagnosed with a mental illness in her mid thirties and once under control, she became a pioneering spokeswoman for mental health issues for the rest of her life. She died at the age of 69 of complications due to a ruptured intestine. Intestinal rupture is pretty rare and with surgical intervention there’s a reasonable survival rate. So what happened? World renowned forensic pathologist, Dr. Michael Hunter needs to analyse every detail in the limited available information to piece together what else was going on in her body to find the answers.

Desi Arnaz was famed for playing the much-loved character, Ricky Ricardo, in the 1950s TV series ‘I Love Lucy’. Almost 30 years later, in the early hours of December 2nd, 1986, Desi died. He was 69 years old. Born in Cuba, 16-year-old Desi & his family were exiled to Miami following the 1933 revolution. Starting from zero, Desi’s drive to succeed saw him rise to fame & garner attention as the bongo-playing leader of a Latin orchestra. With his Cuban charisma & boyish good looks he soon won the heart of up & coming film star, Lucille Ball. Together, they would change the face of TV with the series ‘I Love Lucy’. But Desi was so much more than just a TV star – forming their company, Desilu he became one of the most powerful men in TV. But his success would become his downfall. In this episode, world-renowned forensic pathologist, Dr. Michael Hunter, uses the Death certificate, first-hand reports, and archive to uncover the facts behind the sad demise of Desi Arnaz.

On the morning of April 26th, 1989, Lucille Ball died in a Los Angeles hospital leaving the world heartbroken. America’s first lady of comedy had delighted audiences with a glittering career that spanned over half a century: but it was her television show, ‘I Love Lucy, ’ that had transformed television and turned the actress into the most famous face on the planet. The 77 year old would die of a rupture of the aorta - a life-ending tear of the largest artery in the human body. This is rare, and even more mysterious given the fact that she was in great shape just weeks before her death. So what exactly was going on inside Lucille Ball’s body that led to this catastrophic failure? And could a mystery teenage illness have played a part? World renowned forensic pathologist, Dr. Michael Hunter investigates every aspect of Lucille’s life in forensic detail, using her death certificate, medical documents and first-hand accounts to piece together what was going on in the body of America’s most loved Lucy to find the answers.

Rue McClanahan was beloved for playing the sassy Southern Belle, Blanche Devereaux, on the classic show “The Golden Girls.” But behind the smiles, Rue’s life was blighted by heartbreak, disease and near-death experiences. Her cause of death was reported as a stroke, which is most commonly caused by a blood clot to the brain. Mysteriously, however, Rue was taking the drug Warfarin, which is a powerful anticoagulant medication specifically designed to prevent blood clotting. So why did the actress die of a stroke at the age of 76? World renowned Forensic Pathologist, Dr. Michael Hunter needs to analyze every detail of the limited information available to piece together the answer

The death of Florence Henderson in November 2016, best known as Carol Brady in The Brady Bunch, left her fans the world over mourning the loss of an iconic mother figure. She was 82 but looking characteristically vibrant on live TV just days beforehand, her death caught everyone by surprise. With a career spanning over 60 years, Florence was an incredibly multi-talented performer on stage and screen. The last of 10 children, she grew up in extreme poverty. But by the age of 19, thanks to her remarkable determination and work ethic, she became an overnight Broadway star and was rarely out of the spotlight for the rest of her life. Reports state that Florence died from complications with her heart leading to complete heart failure. Working and travelling flat out to the very end undoubtedly put her under great mental and physical strain. But her heart may also have been burdened by a period of heavy drinking and living, depression, a hysterectomy and osteoporosis drugs. By her mid 70s, Florence was suffering from an irregular heartbeat and coronary artery disease leading to major surgery, including a procedure just 24 hours before she died. With the help of Florence’s medical history and eyewitness accounts, world renowned forensic pathologist Dr Michael Hunter, digs deep to discover exactly what caused the heart of America’s beloved Mom to fail so suddenly.

On the morning of April 26th, 1989, Lucille Ball died in a Los Angeles hospital leaving the world heartbroken. America’s first lady of comedy had delighted audiences with a glittering career that spanned over half a century: but it was her television show, ‘I Love Lucy, ’ that had transformed television and turned the actress into the most famous face on the planet. The 77 year old would die of a rupture of the aorta - a life-ending tear of the largest artery in the human body. This is rare, and even more mysterious given the fact that she was in great shape just weeks before her death. So what exactly was going on inside Lucille Ball’s body that led to this catastrophic failure? And could a mystery teenage illness have played a part? World renowned forensic pathologist, Dr. Michael Hunter investigates every aspect of Lucille’s life in forensic detail, using her death certificate, medical documents and first-hand accounts to piece together what was going on in the body of America’s most loved Lucy to find the answers.

On the morning of April 26th, 1989, Lucille Ball died in a Los Angeles hospital leaving the world heartbroken. America’s first lady of comedy had delighted audiences with a glittering career that spanned over half a century: but it was her television show, ‘I Love Lucy, ’ that had transformed television and turned the actress into the most famous face on the planet. The 77 year old would die of a rupture of the aorta - a life-ending tear of the largest artery in the human body. This is rare, and even more mysterious given the fact that she was in great shape just weeks before her death. So what exactly was going on inside Lucille Ball’s body that led to this catastrophic failure? And could a mystery teenage illness have played a part? World renowned forensic pathologist, Dr. Michael Hunter investigates every aspect of Lucille’s life in forensic detail, using her death certificate, medical documents and first-hand accounts to piece together what was going on in the body of America’s most loved Lucy to find the answers.

On July 3 2012, Americans were saddened by the death of Andy Griffith. Andy was notoriously private, and very little is known about what happened, or the state of his health in the last few years of his life. Dr Hunter will be analysing every detail in the available information, to piece together what led to his demise. In a career spanning almost seventy years, he had charmed audiences as an actor, comedian and recording artist. But it was his performance as Sheriff Andy Taylor, in The Andy Griffith Show, that catapulted him into the hearts of Americans everywhere. Beloved for this character’s gentle kindness and good humour, audiences believed he was their friend and father figure. But the public perception of Andy was at odds with who he was. Friends recall a Jekyll and Hyde personality and a man who became increasingly reclusive. Andy’s death certificate states that he died as a result of a heart attack, after years of suffering from other illnesses. Dr Hunter’s investigation builds up a picture of a man whose private habits and behaviours left him susceptible to heart disease in multiple ways. Though his death, at 86, may not have come as a surprise, what did raise eyebrows was the fact that he was buried in the grounds of his home within four and a half hours of the 911 call alerting the emergency services that he was unresponsive. As part of his investigation Dr Hunter will uncover whether this bears any significance on the manner in which he died.

Actress Elizabeth Montgomery became a global household name for playing Samantha, the nose-twitching witch in TV series “Bewitched”. She was born into acting nobility. Her father was the acclaimed actor Robert Montgomery who was twice academy nominated. Despite his early misgivings about her becoming an actress, he embraced her onto his TV drama show. His old-school resolute attitude influenced her entire life. Highly motivated, Elizabeth went on to have a successful and diverse acting career spanning 4 decades. She was nominated for 9 EMMYs and 4 Golden Globes. On May 18th 1995, Elizabeth unexpectedly died at the age of 64, after a short battle with colon cancer. She appeared to only experience 6 weeks of pain, before a biopsy proved her cancer had reached stage IV. It had spread to her liver and lungs with disastrous repercussions. Strangely, it is a disease that should be easy to treat and prevent. This episode investigates and uncovers the tragic and harrowing chain of events that resulted in this much loved star passing away too early.

In this investigative medical documentary series, we look at the lives and deaths of the biggest names in American entertainment history. Through a combination of interviews with family and friends, archive footage and dramatic reconstructions, we tell these stories and unpick the- sometimes mysterious- circumstances around their deaths. Larry Hagman is fondly remembered as playing the bumbling astronaut, Major Anthony "Tony" Nelson, in the 1960s sitcom I Dream of Jeannie. He had supporting roles in numerous films, including Superman, Nixon and Primary Colors. But he is best known for playing the king of all soap villains: the wicked, scheming, JR Ewing on the hit prime time soap Dallas. The subject of the biggest cliff-hanger ever, thirty million viewers from fifty-seven countries watched the episode where JR Ewing was shot, making Larry Hagman one of the biggest soap stars in the world. With a larger-than-life, fun-loving personality, Larry was a hippy at heart, belying the conservative facade of his oil baron character in Dallas. However, he was also a big drinker and was known to finish off five bottles of champagne a day during his Dallas heyday. This eventually resulted in severe liver damage and a life-saving liver transplant operation. Ever the optimist, Larry continued performing and played a vital role in the Dallas reboot in 2012 but died during filming the second season from complications resulting from throat cancer. We'll explore what drove Larry to continue performing into his early 80s and what really led to his death in November 2012.

On July 3 2012, Americans were saddened by the death of Andy Griffith. Andy was notoriously private, and very little is known about what happened, or the state of his health in the last few years of his life. Dr Hunter will be analysing every detail in the available information, to piece together what led to his demise. In a career spanning almost seventy years, he had charmed audiences as an actor, comedian and recording artist. But it was his performance as Sheriff Andy Taylor, in The Andy Griffith Show, that catapulted him into the hearts of Americans everywhere. Beloved for this character’s gentle kindness and good humour, audiences believed he was their friend and father figure. But the public perception of Andy was at odds with who he was. Friends recall a Jekyll and Hyde personality and a man who became increasingly reclusive. Andy’s death certificate states that he died as a result of a heart attack, after years of suffering from other illnesses. Dr Hunter’s investigation builds up a picture of a man whose private habits and behaviours left him susceptible to heart disease in multiple ways. Though his death, at 86, may not have come as a surprise, what did raise eyebrows was the fact that he was buried in the grounds of his home within four and a half hours of the 911 call alerting the emergency services that he was unresponsive. As part of his investigation Dr Hunter will uncover whether this bears any significance on the manner in which he died.

Actress Elizabeth Montgomery became a global household name for playing Samantha, the nose-twitching witch in TV series “Bewitched”. She was born into acting nobility. Her father was the acclaimed actor Robert Montgomery who was twice academy nominated. Despite his early misgivings about her becoming an actress, he embraced her onto his TV drama show. His old-school resolute attitude influenced her entire life. Highly motivated, Elizabeth went on to have a successful and diverse acting career spanning 4 decades. She was nominated for 9 EMMYs and 4 Golden Globes. On May 18th 1995, Elizabeth unexpectedly died at the age of 64, after a short battle with colon cancer. She appeared to only experience 6 weeks of pain, before a biopsy proved her cancer had reached stage IV. It had spread to her liver and lungs with disastrous repercussions. Strangely, it is a disease that should be easy to treat and prevent. This episode investigates and uncovers the tragic and harrowing chain of events that resulted in this much loved star passing away too early.

In this investigative medical documentary series, we look at the lives and deaths of the biggest names in American entertainment history. Through a combination of interviews with family and friends, archive footage and dramatic reconstructions, we tell these stories and unpick the- sometimes mysterious- circumstances around their deaths. Larry Hagman is fondly remembered as playing the bumbling astronaut, Major Anthony "Tony" Nelson, in the 1960s sitcom I Dream of Jeannie. He had supporting roles in numerous films, including Superman, Nixon and Primary Colors. But he is best known for playing the king of all soap villains: the wicked, scheming, JR Ewing on the hit prime time soap Dallas. The subject of the biggest cliff-hanger ever, thirty million viewers from fifty-seven countries watched the episode where JR Ewing was shot, making Larry Hagman one of the biggest soap stars in the world. With a larger-than-life, fun-loving personality, Larry was a hippy at heart, belying the conservative facade of his oil baron character in Dallas. However, he was also a big drinker and was known to finish off five bottles of champagne a day during his Dallas heyday. This eventually resulted in severe liver damage and a life-saving liver transplant operation. Ever the optimist, Larry continued performing and played a vital role in the Dallas reboot in 2012 but died during filming the second season from complications resulting from throat cancer. We'll explore what drove Larry to continue performing into his early 80s and what really led to his death in November 2012.

On March 23, 2011, actress and Hollywood legend, Elizabeth Taylor, died of a cardiac arrest in Los Angeles. Her death at 79 caused shock waves around the world at the loss of one of the world’s last great movie stars. Despite her glittering career, Elizabeth Taylor’s life had been blighted by ill health, tragedy and failed marriages leading to addictions to alcohol and prescription drugs. In this episode, expert Coroner and Forensic Pathologist, Dr. Michael Hunter examines Elizabeth Taylor’s extensive medical history to try and discover what caused the death of this Hollywood icon.

Actress Elizabeth Montgomery became a global household name for playing Samantha, the nose-twitching witch in TV series “Bewitched”. She was born into acting nobility. Her father was the acclaimed actor Robert Montgomery who was twice academy nominated. Despite his early misgivings about her becoming an actress, he embraced her onto his TV drama show. His old-school resolute attitude influenced her entire life. Highly motivated, Elizabeth went on to have a successful and diverse acting career spanning 4 decades. She was nominated for 9 EMMYs and 4 Golden Globes. On May 18th 1995, Elizabeth unexpectedly died at the age of 64, after a short battle with colon cancer. She appeared to only experience 6 weeks of pain, before a biopsy proved her cancer had reached stage IV. It had spread to her liver and lungs with disastrous repercussions. Strangely, it is a disease that should be easy to treat and prevent. This episode investigates and uncovers the tragic and harrowing chain of events that resulted in this much loved star passing away too early.