First Aired: May 11st, 2008

Status: Ended

Genre: Documentary

Network: BBC TWO

Summary: In this landmark five-part series, he explores the extraordinary changes that are taking place in Russia today and reveals the contours left by history on this vast land. From the Arctic Circle, where the summer sun never sets, to the breathtaking cities of Vladivostok and St Petersburg, from white witches to hirsute masseurs, from oil wells to shamans, Dimbleby’s journey by boat, train, truck and foot is heart-warming, entertaining and compelling. This is television’s first comprehensive look at a country shrouded in myth. Look through one window and you see an authoritarian regime trying to modernise itself into an oil-rich economy. Look through another and you see exuberant people enjoying new opportunities, struggling with old problems. Everywhere, the marker stones of their turbulent past. Uncover an enormous and diverse country in transition in this beautiful and exhilarating series