IS IT REAL?

Since the dawn of time, disturbing tales have emerged from some of the most haunted places in the world. Folks with a penchant for the supernatural claim that disembodied voices, sudden temperature changes, and wisps of ectoplasm are irrefutable proof of ghostly stomping grounds. Time to call in the ghostbusters? Or maybe just have our heads examined?From phantom images caught on tape to strange orbs of light that careen through creepy places, we'll follow scientists who probe the minds of the haunted... and dissect the most compelling evidence of ghostly visitations with paranormal detectives.Believers and scientists roll up their sleeves for a chilling debate.

Across the English countryside, a decades-old mystery refuses to die. Are crop circles highly complex messages from the outer limits… or a man-made hoax of profound proportions? When two artists admitted in 1991 to creating hundreds of crop circles as a practical joke, it seemed the case was finally closed. But Instead, the circles started appearing more often - and in spectacularly intricate patterns. From balls of light caught on tape to baffling crop deformities, "croppies" come armed with a slew of evidence supporting their claim that the circles are the marks of UFOs or weird weather patterns. But skeptics have their own weapon - critical scrutiny - that they say proves the crop circle fields are nothing more than hogwash. Join believers, scientists, and crop circle makers for a cosmic debate.

Is there really a giant primate running around the world's wilderness areas? Or are Bigfoot and his cousins around the world figments of our imagination? Examine the evidence for yourself with believers and skeptics alike: listen to tales of terrifying encounters, take a look at giant footprints, and examine the famous 1967 film. Follow the forensic trail - and a real sasquatch stakeout - as science goes after that most elusive of legendary creatures.

Scientists and astronomers dissect alien video footage and anecdotal evidence as we consider the case for the existence of flying saucers and UFOs.

Is Spontaneous Human Combustion (SHC) the gruesome result of a mysterious fire within the body, or the misinterpretation of a rare - but very real - type of external fiery burn. Paranormal Investigators, Forensic Biologists, Physicists and Fire Experts examine the evidence and the theories: from pyrotrons in the body run awry, to poltergeists; ball lightning to the wick effect. These theories are applied to a documented SHC case, and are used to investigate the story of a recent survivor of a mysterious fire.

Is it possible that remnants of pre-historic Plesiosaurs and sea creatures still exist - living in the shadows where science has yet to reach? To find out, we join cryptozoologists and witnesses on a monster hunt stretching from the San Francisco Bay to British Columbia's Lake Okanagan; examine the video and photographic evidence with a forensic analyst; attempt to capture the beast with our own cameras and animators; and visit a marine invertebrate expert to test the perplexing globsters for monster DNA.

Is it possible for karate masters to zap each other with invisible energy, for Indian "miracle men" and Sufi mystics to mutilate their bodies and feel no pain, for masters of Hindu Transcendental Meditation to fly? Do superpowers really exist? From India to Iraq, from Italy to a sideshow in LA, Is It Real? investigates the claims of so-called "superhumans." In Iraq, Sufis survive a stab-wound to the head in a seemingly intolerable ritual called Deliberately Caused Bodily Damage - how do they do it? In the US, Hindu practitioners of Transcendental Meditation say they can fly - is it true? In India, "miracle men" perform the seemingly impossible - walking on hot coals, lying on beds of nails, eating fire, and thrusting their hands in boiling oil - is it possible, or just sleight of hand? And finally, karate grandmasters claim to be able to knock any person unconscious - without even touching them? Is it real?

Boats vanish, planes disappear without a trace. What exactly is going on in the sinister sea known as the Bermuda Triangle?

Piecing together clues and fragments of surviving documents dating back 1500 years, we investigate if a real King Arthur ever did exist.

Do you believe in haunting and supernatural power? Join Is it Real? in an intriguing investigation and the results that might scare you to death.

King Arthur is the greatest of British literary heroes and legend describes him as a gallant and noble warrior. But is the story of King Arthur true?  

Tales of GHOST SHIPS, ghastly and cursed, have intrigued and haunted us for centuries. From phantom ships manned by the souls of the damned to the Queen Mary, an ocean liner that echoes at night with the moans of dead sailors and the Mary Celeste, a ship whose crew vanished into thin air. It seems there's more supernatural activity on the open ocean than in all the graveyards in the world. Could these legends be real? Can they be explained away by science and logic or is there something unexplainable going on?

He terrorized the streets of London's East End for three months in the autumn of 1888. He did this by killing, and then butchering, five women… at least. This brief murder spree earned the killer the grand daddy of all nicknames. That name, and the grotesque way he dispatched his victims has made Jack the Ripper the most notorious serial killer of all time. But no one knows who he was. In the years since the Ripper plied his grisly trade, the search for his identity has practically become a cottage industry. And it's still going on. But is the search getting any closer to the truth? Some people believe the answer is yes. Crime writer Patricia Cornwell has peaked the world's interest, and animosity, with her new book on the Ripper's identity. Like almost everyone who has studied Jack the Ripper, Cornwell has a theory about who he was. The evidence she has amassed points to a prominent British artist named Walter Sickert, who was 28 at the time of the murders, and seemed to take an unusual interest in them. Sickert's artwork is macabre, his relationship with women dubious, and his childhood ripe for Freudian analysis. But can any of this prove he was a serial killer of prostitutes? For this, Cornwell points to the largest body of physical evidence remaining in the Ripper case: the hundreds of letters written to police during the time of the murders, supposedly by the murderer himself. Cornwell believes the letters tell a story - not just through their words, but also in the way those words were formed, the paper they were written on, and the sketches in the margins. She believes some of the letters are the work of Walter Sickert, and we'll talk to the paper and art conservators and handwriting analysts who are scouring the letters for clues. Meanwhile, other theories about the Ripper's identity abound. We visit the murder sites with Ivor Edwards, a professional criminal turned amateur sleuth, who believes Jack the Ripper was a black magic occultist. Edwards reveals a pattern to the crimes that he believes incriminates suspect Robert Donston Stephenson, who may have killed his victims at strategic points on a map in order to desecrate the Christian cross. If Edwards' theory sounds far-fetched, it isn't the first. There is also the Freemason angle - pointing to similarities between the ritualistic nature of the murders and ancient Masonic rites. And conspiracy theories flourish, even including the royal family. Can any of the theories hold true? Was Jack the Ripper an iconic artist, a black magic occultist, a member of the royal family, or just an anonymous "Jack Doe", whose name is lost to history? Ripperologists, forensic psychologists, crime experts and scientists investigate the clues in search of the Ripper's identity.

Join us on an intriguing investigation that examines the evidence and separates the science from the science fiction.

There are many theories for what is viciously sucking the blood of livestock in Central and South America that have inspired a chupacabras fervour.

ONE PARAGRAPH - Wild Child The idea of a child living on its own in the wild has captivated our society for centuries. From tales of a jungle boy raised by monkeys to twin girls nurtured by wolves. These are tragedies of humanity that defy any explanation. Or could they be described as tragedies? Over the years, theories and experiments have been debated, proposed, examined and tossed around. For some, destiny had a plan in store; particularly, for one young man from Uganda. First, we'll take an in- depth look of his captivating story from the outskirts of Kampala. Then we'll gather experts in every field from behavioral science to child psychiatry to figure out what's really going on. So join us on an intriguing investigation as Is It Real? examines the evidence and separates the facts from the depths of the jungle. TV GUIDE - Wild Child Green monkeys, wild dogs, grey wolves…chickens? Would any of these animals be capable of raising or caring for a child? What kind of world do we live in when a child has a wild animal for a caretaker? Can history confirm these phenomena or dispel them all to be a farce? Experts join in to share their knowledge as Is It Real? takes you on a fascinating journey to near and far to get to the bottom of this monkey business.

Is it possible that people can commit complex crimes while they are sleepwalking?Explore the science behind it.

Is there such a thing as a perfect society? Join the 3 men research team in search for the ever elusive lost civilization of Atlantis.

Is it possible that hobbits still exist deep in the jungles of Sumatra or Malaysia?Venture into the Indonesian jungle to film the Orang Pendek.

Mars – the fourth rock from the sun – has long been an object of fascination for mankind, but do Martian lifeforms walk its red surface? Is It Real? investigates.

Track prophesies of today's premier 'seers' like Sylvia Brown and make your judgment. Is it possible to predict the future?

Science books say Neanderthals went extinct around 30,000 years ago but what if they still exist today? Rumors swirl that a stone-age man called "wildman" or "man of the forest" survives in the remote mountains of Russia and Mongolia, and a hominologist claims to have skulls and hair samples to prove it. Join the National Geographic Channel as Is it Real? investigates the evidence with believers and skeptics alike.

There are many theories for what is viciously sucking the blood of livestock in Central and South America that have inspired a chupacabras fervour.