Engineering Connections-Series 2 (2009)

It’s back! Richard Hammond’s Engineering Connections returns for a second series and this time it is bigger, bolder and braver than ever with six brand new and exclusive episodes.

The intrepid Richard climbs to the top of Sydney Opera House, stands on the summit of the world’s tallest road bridge, closes the roof on Wembley Stadium – and reveals the secrets behind these and other modern day superstructures.

Want to learn how Wembley’s arch holds up the roof thanks to a 19th century glider, what connects the Millau Bridge with Teflon, and how a brass band helped to shape Hong Kong International Airport? Join Richard Hammond on his global quest to uncover the incredible ideas and unconventional technologies that lie beneath some of the world’s most iconic structures.

WEMBLEY STADIUM

Richard kicks off proceedings at Wembley Stadium, the high-tech home of English football. No one can deny the magnificence of Wembley, but how is its towering arch inspired by a medieval crossbow and how did a simple rock climbers’ knot help engineers raise it into place? Richard tracks down the answers – and finds out how experts preserved the famous ‘Wembley Roar’.

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE

Towering over Sydney Harbour, the famous Opera House is one of the most recognisable and iconic buildings in the world. Richard heads Down Under, takes a stroll along the incredible structure’s roof, learns how its unique “sails” work on the same principles as a simple child’s collapsible toy, and discovers a bizarre engineering connection with a First World War gas mask.

HMS ILLUSTRIOUS

The mighty British aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious is an airport, city and battleship all rolled into one, but what are the secrets behind the design of this floating powerhouse?

Landing on the vast deck in a helicopter, Richard learns how Tower Bridge, a boomerang, a hearing aid and an 18th century seed drill all have links to one of the most remarkable ocean-going craft in the world.

GUGGENHEIM BILBAO

Starting life as a mere initial scrawl by renowned architect Frank O. Gehry, Bilbao’s illustrious Guggenheim museum is one of the modern cultural world’s most breathtaking structures and display spaces. This futuristic structure is made of titanium just 0.5mm thick – but how were its unique curves influenced by Russian submarines, a Hawaiian volcano and Sir Walter Raleigh? Richard heads to Spain to find out.

THE MILLAU BRIDGE

With its 343 metre-tall pillars, the Millau Bridge linking the roads to Paris and Barcelona dwarfs the Eiffel Tower and is the tallest road bridge in the world. Undaunted, Richard scales this extraordinary structure to discover its engineering connections with nuclear submarines and ancient Celtic boats. He also learns how the bridge could not have been built without Teflon – and a humble gecko helps him to demonstrate.

HONG KONG INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

Hong Kong houses the fifth largest international passenger airport in the world – yet before it was built in the late 1990s, its site was no more than a featureless expanse of water.