Poop Cruise. Disaster. Documentary. In this unmissable episode, we sit down with the director, James Ross, behind the new Trainwreck episode diving into the infamous 2013 Carnival cruise from hell. With raw insight and behind-the-scenes revelations, we explore how an engine fire left 4,000 passengers stranded at sea with no power, no plumbing, and nowhere to go – transforming a dream vacation into a floating nightmare. Tune in for the wild backstory, unseen footage, and what really went down dur...
Jun 26, 2025•41 min
Rob Ford, Toronto mayor, and scandal – we dive deep into the chaos of the new Netflix documentary Trainwreck: Mayor of Mayhem, with director Shianne Brown. From political rise to crack-smoking infamy, this episode unpacks how a beloved yet controversial figure shook Canadian politics – and why his story still matters today. Subscribe to Factual America: https://linktr.ee/FactualAmerica Timestamps: 00:00 – Introduction 03:55 – Who Was Rob Ford? 09:55 – Scandals & Controversies 12:26 – The Dow...
Jun 20, 2025•34 min
One of the deadliest music festivals in recent history, the 2021 Astroworld tragedy left 10 dead and thousands traumatised. Now, a powerful new documentary uncovers what really happened – with first-hand accounts from survivors, paramedics, and festival staff. In this episode, we go behind the scenes of the film with director Yemi Bamiro and executive producer Kari Lia, as they reveal how they navigated trauma, and uncovered systemic failures behind the disaster. Subscribe to Factual America: ht...
Jun 12, 2025•39 min
In this exclusive interview, we speak to Yotam Guendelman and Ari Pines, the directors of the latest Netflix true crime documentary, which uncovers the chilling details behind the 1982 Tylenol poisonings – a case that shook America. With cyanide-laced pills, and a suspect who was never charged, the Chicago Tylenol murders remain one of the most disturbing unsolved crimes in US history. We explore the evidence, media panic and legacy of this case that undermined Americans’ trust in pharmaceutical...
May 27, 2025•40 min
Osama bin Laden, CIA, and the manhunt that changed history. In this interview with award-winning directors Mor Loushy and Daniel Sivan of American Manhunt: Osama bin Laden, we uncover the untold truths behind one of the most intense and dangerous global manhunts. Explore rare footage, insider interviews, and shocking revelations about the CIA’s pursuit of Osama bin Laden. How did the mission unfold? What went wrong? And what secrets are still hidden about the operation that led to the historic r...
May 14, 2025•27 min
The Liver King built a supplement empire by devouring raw meat on social media. And he had the muscles to prove it. But how did the Liver King get so huge? Netflix director Joe Pearlman tells all. In this interview, we dig into the raw truth behind the man, the myth, and the meat-fueled machine that captivated millions.From viral fame and ancestral living to steroids, scandal, and supplement sales – this conversation goes beyond the beef.Timestamps: 00:00 - Trailer02:07 - Introduction 04:32 - An...
May 13, 2025•31 min
Vietnam War secrets, untold stories, and hidden history - revealed by Netflix director Brian Knappenberger and renowned historian Lien-Hang Nguyen. As we approach the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War, this interview uncovers new accounts from the war - from suppressed footage to shocking revelations about U.S. involvement and North Vietnam's internal strategy. A must-watch for anyone interested in war documentaries, declassified history, and the truth behind one of the most controv...
May 10, 2025•54 min
In this chilling episode, filmmaker Liam Le Guillou takes us deep inside A Cursed Man - his harrowing real-life journey into the world of black magic and satanic rituals. What begins as a sceptical social experiment soon spirals into a terrifying descent, as Liam invites powerful practitioners to place real curses on him. Facing nightmares, unexplained anxiety, and even a blood pact with a Satan-worshipping shaman, he confronts the true cost of dabbling with the unknown. Liam opens up about the ...
May 03, 2025•31 min
"One of the deadliest tornadoes in US history is headed directly for their high school graduation…” In this episode, filmmaker Alexandra Lacey takes us inside her powerful new Netflix documentary, Twister: Caught in the Storm, a raw and moving look at life in Joplin, Missouri, after a catastrophic natural disaster. Alexandra shares how the disaster reshaped a generation of young people and reflects on the resilience, identity, and community spirit that emerged in the storm’s aftermath. She opens...
Apr 23, 2025•35 min
In this episode, Matthew sits down with acclaimed filmmaker R.J. Cutler to discuss his latest Netflix documentary, 'Martha'. Cutler offers fascinating insights into the making of the film, which chronicles the life and career of Martha Stewart, the iconic businesswoman and lifestyle guru. Discover how Cutler gained unprecedented access to Stewart and her vast personal archives, and learn about the challenges he faced in capturing her complex story. The director shares his perspective on Stewart'...
Nov 12, 2024•28 min
Unsolved murders, paranormal activity, and UFOs. Unsolved Mysteries , the iconic docu-series that was a staple of TV in the 80s and 90s is back on Netflix with Volume 5. Joining Matthew Sherwood on Factual America is multiple Emmy nominated filmmaker Terry Dunn Meurer, the co-creator and producer of Unsolved Mysteries . She shares the secrets of Unsolved Mysteries ’ success and why we have such a fascination with true crime and the unexplained. The filmmaker also describes the different cases th...
Oct 23, 2024•30 min
Stopping the Steal gives an inside account of Donald Trump's challenge to the 2020 presidential election results and how an unsung group of Republican politicians, staffers, and election officials prevented the election from being stolen. Joining Matthew Sherwood on Factual America is Emmy and Bafta-winning director and producer Dan Reed. He discusses why he decided to interview pro-Trump Republicans about the election and the benefits he experienced being a British reporter. Dan explains what c...
Oct 13, 2024•32 min
In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon surveys the studio as Paul records his new album Seven Psalms while reflecting on his six-decade career and wrestling with the issues of faith and mortality. Joining Matthew Sherwood on Factual America is Oscar-winning director Alex Gibney, who discusses the impact Paul Simon had on American culture and music, the inspiration behind Paul’s album Seven Psalms, and the challenges of making a documentary about a musical icon. Alex explains his own creativ...
Jul 07, 2024•39 min
Dancing For The Devil: The 7M TikTok Cult explores the experiences of a group of prominent TikTok dancers who are trapped in a cult masquerading as a management company. In the process the film uncovers disturbing truths about the agenda of Robert Shinn, the cult’s founder and pastor of the Shekinah Church. Joining Matthew Sherwood on Factual America are executive producers Jessica Acevedo and director Derek Doneen, who discuss the making of the film and the challenges of interviewing people who...
Jun 20, 2024•48 min
In 2002 the Ashley Madison website went live. It was a dating agency with a difference for its targets were people already in relationships. Inevitably, Ashley Madison was roundly criticised. The company’s CEO, however, stated that affairs actually helped marriages. In 2015, hackers broke into the website and published the names, addresses, credit card information, and more of every user. Relationships were destroyed, and some of those named committed suicide. Directed by Toby Paton, Ashley Madi...
May 15, 2024•35 min
It’s April 19th 1995, the 220th anniversary of the start of the American War of Independence, and two years since the violent end of the Waco, Texas siege. In Oklahoma City, a disaffected army veteran named Timothy McVeigh leaves a truck outside the Alfred P Murrah Federal Building. Inside the truck is a bomb. At 9am, McVeigh lights the two minute fuse. When the bomb explodes, it kills 168 people and wounds 680 more. In An American Bombing: The Road to April 19th, Marc Levin retraces McVeigh’s f...
Apr 24, 2024•1 hr
Climate change, terrorism, social inequality and poverty, wars between nations, and injustice. Things do not look too good for the world today, and there seems to be little to no hope for the future. A Brief History of the Future, a new docu-series on PBS, challenges this pessimistic outlook. Directed by Andrew Morgan and presented by Ari Wallach, the series visits people from all over the world who are doing something – no matter how big or small – to make the world a better place, not just for...
Apr 18, 2024•50 min
Why would US military veterans take up arms against the country they swore to protect? This is the question at the heart of Against All Enemies , a new documentary by Charlie Sadoff. In it, Charlie explores the role disaffected veterans played in the January 6th attack on the US Capitol. In order to better understand what happened on that day, he looks at the history of civil unrest involving veterans, from groups such as the Ku Klux Klan through to modern day extremist organisations like the Pr...
Apr 04, 2024•49 min
God Save Texas is a three-part docu-series inspired by Lawrence Wright’s book of the same name. In each episode, an acclaimed filmmaker explores the past, present, and future of the Lone Star State. Episode One is directed by Richard Linklater, Episode Three by Iliana Sosa. Episode Two is directed by Alex Stapleton, and she joins Matthew Sherwood to discuss what it was like returning to her hometown of Houston to explore the effect of Texas’ oil and gas industry on her family and local communiti...
Mar 27, 2024•49 min
Between 2001-19, head coach Bill Belichick created one of the most successful dynasties ever seen in American football. Under his leadership, the New England Patriots won a record equalling six Super Bowl titles. Guided by quarterback Tom Brady, the team also set a host of other NFL records, including most wins over a ten year period, longest regular season/play-off winning streak, and most consecutive divisional titles. But this era of nearly unprecedented success did not come without a cost, a...
Mar 14, 2024•58 min
On November 13th 1974, Ronald DeFeo shot his family dead in Amityville, New York. Not long after he was convicted of the killings, the Lutz family moved into the DeFeos’ former home. They did not stay long. After just 28 days, they fled, claiming to have been driven out by paranormal activity. The Lutz family’s experience formed the basis of The Amityville Horror. Released in 1979, it went on to spawn a seemingly endless number of sequels, prequels, and derivatives: over 40 to date. In his docu-...
Mar 05, 2024•42 min
The 1980s were a time of allegation and scandal in America. From the 1980 October Surprise, 1985-87 Iran-Contra Affair, and 1986-91 BCCI scandal, the decade seemed only to be going downhill. And in the midst of it all, the US Justice Department was accused of stealing PROMIS, a piece of software that could be used to create a programme that would allow the US government to spy on whomever used it. Danny Casolaro was a writer, poet, and investigative journalist. At the start of the 1990s, he bega...
Feb 28, 2024•48 min
Tatiana Suarez was born into poverty, endured a “tumultuous [and] traumatic childhood”, and at school chose to compete in a sport – wrestling – that led to her being relentlessly bullied. She overcame every obstacle that life and people put in front of her and became a champion. And not just once, but multiple times. Finally, the greatest prize of all, Olympic glory, lay within her grasp. And then, she broke her neck. And as that was being treated, doctors discovered that Tatiana had cancer. In ...
Feb 14, 2024•42 min
Who is Mark Zuckerberg? That is the question at the heart of Nick Green’s new Sky documentary, Zuckerberg: King of the Metaverse . We all know how Zuckerberg took Facebook from being a website accessible to just a few American college students in 2004 to one that is used by over a billion people worldwide in 2024. Along the way, he has acquired Instagram and WhatsApp making him one of the most wide reaching and influential men in the world today. But what are his thoughts? His views? What does h...
Feb 01, 2024•56 min
On the night of March 23rd 2015, Denise Huskins and Aaron Quinn were drugged and bound by a mystery assailant who had broken into their home. Denise was then kidnapped. When Aaron called the police the next day, they believed he had murdered her. Two days later, however, Denise – who had been sexually assaulted by her kidnapper - was freed. Now the police believed no crime had been committed at all, and that Aaron and Denise were hoaxers. The psychological thriller Gone Girl had been released ju...
Jan 18, 2024•35 min
Lady Bird Johnson is best known today as the wife of Lyndon Baines Johnson, 36th President of the USA between 1963-69. However, there was much more to her life than simply the role of ‘First Lady’. In this episode of Factual America, Matthew Sherwood takes a deep dive into Lady Bird Johnson’s life with Dawn Porter, director of new documentary film, The Lady Bird Diaries . It’s 1963. Liz Carpenter, Lady Bird’s Press Secretary, suggests that she records her ‘thoughts and experiences’ on a tape rec...
Dec 22, 2023•32 min
On January 28th 2017, a mosque in Victoria, Texas was burnt to the ground by an arsonist. In the aftermath, Victorians stood side-by-side with their Muslim neighbours. In A Town Called Victoria , Li Lu – who grew up in nearby Sugar Land, Texas – explores what happened next: to the town, its Islamic community, and to the arsonist, who was soon apprehended. Li joins Matthew Sherwood to discuss her series, its themes, which include white supremacy, patriotism and mental illness, as well as the limi...
Dec 13, 2023•27 min
Racism is a blight upon the United States of America, and has been all through the country’s history. In Stamped from the Beginning , a documentary film featuring and based on the book of the same name by Dr. Ibram X Kendi, director Roger Ross Williams explores the history of racist ideas in the US. Using an innovative array of methods, including VFX, animation, and music, he explores how the Trans-Atlantic slave trade gave birth to racist ideas, and how racist myths regarding black hypersexuali...
Dec 06, 2023•22 min
In 1983 America was overwhelmed by a disaster, the likes of which it had never seen before. Hysteria led to riots; mayhem became the norm. And the reason? Chubby, potato faced toys: the Cabbage Patch Kids. In this episode of Factual America, Matthew Sherwood meets Dan Goodman, co-executive producer of Billion Dollar Babies , a documentary about the rise and rise of the awkward looking but homely and utterly desirable Cabbage Patch Kids. They discuss the origin of the Cabbage Patch Kids’ success,...
Nov 30, 2023•37 min
In 1999, Rose Tajiri, a second-generation Japanese-American, was diagnosed with dementia. She was 76. Over the following years, as her condition worsened, her daughter, filmmaker Rea Tajiri, became her caregiver. In Wisdom Gone Wild Rea documents the journey that she and her mother took together, a journey that sees them navigate both the now of life with dementia and the past as Rose recalls memories from her early years, including the time she spent in an internment camp during the Second Worl...
Nov 22, 2023•36 min
