At a time when most ships were built to traditional designs in wood, and powered by sail, Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s colossal ship, the Great Eastern, was almost 700 feet long and built of iron. His vision was that it should carry 4,000 passengers, in magnificent style, as far as the Antipodes - without needing to refuel.

This innovative series tells the story of eight battles to design and build the fastest cars, ships, planes, boats and trains

The 1930s was a highpoint for ocean-going liners. Crossing the Atlantic by boat was the only way to reach the US, and competition between the French and British shipyards was never less than fierce, a focus for patriotic pride.

The fourth episode in the series visits the fast, furious and all-too-often deadly powerboat races of the 1920s and 30s.

Poet Roger McGough narrates the extraordinary story of how a simple invention - the shipping container - changed the world forever and forced Britain into the modern era of globalisation.