Skip to content
Streambay
The Power of Nightmares poster
TV series

The Power of Nightmares

Latest episode

S1 E3 · The Shadows in the Cave

About The Power of Nightmares

The Power of Nightmares is a documentary TV series that premiered on BBC Two on October 20, 2004. It has 1 season and 3 episodes so far and has ended. The latest episode, Season 1 Episode 3 "The Shadows in the Cave", aired on November 3, 2004.

Examines how politicians have used our fears to increase their power and control over society.

  • Documentary

Last updated

Episodes

3 episodes · 1 season

Miniseries

2004 · 3 episodes · Last episode: 22 years ago

The Power of Nightmares Miniseries release dates →
  1. The Power of Nightmares S1 E3 still E3

    3. The Shadows in the Cave

    Finale

    Curtis argues that, after their failed revolutions, bin Laden and Zawahiri had little or no popular support, let alone a serious complex organisation of terrorists, and were dependent upon independent operatives to carry out their new call for jihad. The film instead shows the United States government wanting to prosecute bin Laden in absentia for the 1998 U.S. embassy bombings, and needing to prove him to be the head of a criminal organisation to do so. They find a former associate of bin Laden, Jamal al-Fadl, and pay him to testify that bin Laden was the head of a massive terrorist organisation called "al-Qaeda". With the September 11th attacks, Neo-Conservatives in the new Republican government of George W. Bush use this created concept of an organisation to justify another crusade against a new evil enemy, leading to the launch of the War on Terrorism.

  2. The Power of Nightmares S1 E2 still E2

    2. The Phantom Victory

    Islamist factions, rapidly falling under the more radical influence of Zawahiri and his rich Saudi acolyte Osama bin Laden, join the Neo-Conservative-influenced Reagan Administration to combat the Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan. They are successful in repulsing the Soviet armies and, when the Eastern Bloc begins to collapse in the late 1980s, both groups believe they were the primary architect of the "Evil Empire's" defeat and thus have the power to carry out their revolutions in their homelands. Curtis instead argues that the Soviets were on their last legs and were doomed to collapse without intervention.

  3. The Power of Nightmares S1 E1 still E1

    1. Baby It's Cold Outside

    In the past our politicians offered us dreams of a better world. Now they promise to protect us from nightmares. The most frightening of these is the threat of an international terror network. But just as the dreams were not true, neither are these nightmares. The first part of the series explains the origins of Islamism and Neo-Conservatism.

Cast & crew

Created by Adam Curtis

  • Gamal Abdel Nasser

    Gamal Abdel Nasser

    Self (archive footage)

The Power of Nightmares FAQ

Will there be new episodes of The Power of Nightmares?

The Power of Nightmares has ended, so no new episodes are scheduled. The final episode aired on November 3, 2004.

When did the latest episode of The Power of Nightmares come out?

The most recent episode of The Power of Nightmares, Season 1 Episode 3 "The Shadows in the Cave", aired on November 3, 2004.

How many seasons of The Power of Nightmares are there?

The Power of Nightmares has 1 season with 3 episodes in total.

When did The Power of Nightmares first air?

The Power of Nightmares first aired on BBC Two on October 20, 2004.

How do I get notified when new episodes of The Power of Nightmares are released?

Download the Streambay app, follow The Power of Nightmares, and you'll get a push notification the moment each new episode is released.

More like The Power of Nightmares

  • Arena poster

    7.2

    S1 · E686 1 year ago

    Arena

    Synopsis: Arena is a British television documentary series, made and broadcast by the BBC. Voted by leading TV executives in Broadcast as one of the top 50 most influential programmes of all time, it has run since 1 October 1975 with over five hundred episodes made, directed by the likes of Martin Scorsese, Alan Yentob, Roly Keating, Frederick Baker, Volker Schlondorff and Vikram Jayanti. Arena's subjects are a roll-call of the world's best known cultural figures from the 20th and 21st centuries, from singers Bob Dylan and Amy Winehouse to academics Edward Said and Eric Hobsbawm, from writers Jean Genet...

  • The South Bank Show poster

    5.6

    S45 · E4 3 years ago

    The South Bank Show

    Synopsis: The South Bank Show is a television arts magazine show produced by ITV between 1978 and 2010. A new series began on Sky Arts from 27 May 2012. Presented by Melvyn Bragg, the show aims to bring both high art and popular culture to a mass audience.

  • Galileo poster

    4.8

    S14 · E235 4 years ago

    Galileo

    Synopsis: This daily German magazine show delivers interesting facts on numerous topics centering around technology, life, and bizarre knowledge.

  • Cosmic Disclosure poster

    10.0

    S30 · E11 6 months ago

    Cosmic Disclosure

    Synopsis: For the first time ever, a 30-year insider has come forward to reveal over 70 years of humanity's hidden history in space. Corey Goode joins David Wilcock in this inaugural presentation of Cosmic Disclosure to offer an overview of the history and extent of humanity's celestial presence.

  • Mayday poster

    8.2

    S26 · E10 7 months ago

    Mayday

    Synopsis: Major real-life air disasters are depicted in this series. Each episode features a detailed dramatized reconstruction of the incident based on cockpit voice recorders and air traffic control transcripts, as well as eyewitnesses recounts and interviews with aviation experts.

  • Fuse poster

    7.6

    S47 · E136 18 years ago

    Fuse

    Synopsis: Fitil is a popular Soviet/Russian television satirical/comedy short film series which ran for about 500 episodes. Some of the episodes were aimed at children, and were called Фитилёк, Fitilyok, Little Fuse. Each issue contained from the few short segments: documentary, fictional and animated ones. Directed by various artists, including Leonid Gaidai who presented his famous trio of Nikulin, Vitsin and Morgunov into the cast. It was called in USSR as "the anecdotes from the Soviet government".

  • Great Performances poster

    6.1

    S55 · E4 1 week ago

    Great Performances

    Synopsis: The best in the performing arts from across America and around the world including a diverse programming portfolio of classical music, opera, popular song, musical theater, dance, drama, and performance documentaries.

  • NOVA poster

    7.1

    S53 · E16 5 days ago

    NOVA

    Synopsis: PBS' premier science series helps viewers of all ages explore the science behind the headlines. Along the way, NOVA demystifies science and technology, and highlights the people involved in scientific pursuits.

  • Fantástico poster

    8.4

    S54 · E45 Yesterday

    Fantástico

    Synopsis: 'Fantástico' is a journalistic program shown on Sundays, presented by Poliana Abritta and Maju Coutinho. Every week, he presents special reports, shows and various paintings.

  • 20/20 poster

    6.3

    S50 · E3 1 month ago

    20/20

    Synopsis: 20/20 is an American television newsmagazine that has been broadcast on ABC since June 6, 1978. Created by ABC News executive Roone Arledge, the show was designed similarly to CBS's 60 Minutes but focuses more on human interest stories than international and political subjects. The program's name derives from the "20/20" measurement of visual acuity. The hour-long program has been a staple on Friday evenings for much of the time since it moved to that timeslot from Thursdays in September 1987, though special editions of the program occasionally air on other nights.

Never miss The Power of Nightmares.

Download Streambay and follow The Power of Nightmares. We’ll notify you the moment a new episode is released. It’s free, with no sign-up and no personal information required.

Coming soon to App Store Get it on Google Play
The Power of Nightmares Get new episode alerts Get alerts