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A People Stolen

Enslaved with Samuel L Jackson Series 1
Episode 1 of 4

Samuel L Jackson and a team of journalists and divers explore 400 years of slavery. What happened to the 12 million enslaved Africans who were stolen from their homes and shipped across the Atlantic?

Samuel L Jackson traces his ancestry to Gabon, visiting the coastal area of Loango National Park to see from where his enslaved ancestors were shipped in their millions to the Americas. But he wants to do more than tell the story of the enslaved who survived. The transatlantic slave trade existed for well over 400 years, involving more than 45,000 voyages from dozens of outposts along the African coast. Over 2 million Africans died en route, and up to 1,000 slave ships ended up as wrecks, with only a handful ever having been identified. Jackson teams up with a group of underwater investigators who view the ocean floor as a graveyard and a crime scene. They dive the English Channel to find the 350-year-old wreck of an unidentified slave ship and discover its secrets. This is the oldest slave ship ever discovered, and deep on the dark ocean floor the divers make a remarkable find.

58 minutes

Last on

Wed 5 Oct 2022 01:10
BBC Four

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Music Played

Timings (where shown) are from the start of the programme in hours and minutes

  • 00:04

    Nina Simone & Studio Rio

    I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free

  • 00:30

    Ben Folds Five

    House

  • 00:30

    Kosheen

    Coming Home

  • 00:39

    Mary-Ann Rissmann

    On My Own

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