PickFlick
History's Greatest Hoaxes

History's Greatest Hoaxes

2016•7.0/10
Documentary

Ratings

🎬TMDb
7.0/10(1)

History's Greatest Hoaxes looks at some of the most spectacular hoaxes that show that you can fool some of the people some of the time, but not all of the people all of the time. It looks at remarkable hoaxes including the Hitler Diaries, the Piltdown Man, the War of the World broadcast, Papillon, the Loch Ness Monster, and the Alien Autopsy film.

Open in PickFlick

Language

EN

Status

Returning Series

First Aired

October 13, 2016

Last Aired

November 17, 2016

Created By

Bruce Burgess

Where to Watch
Region US · Lang EN
US
No providers available for this region.
Seasons & Episodes
Select a season to view episodes. Reddit links may contain spoilers.
Season
Alien Autopsy
E1
Alien Autopsy
Air date: 2016-10-13
History's Greatest Hoaxes looks at how in the 1990s a British music and record promoter presented a black and white film and claimed it was footage of a Roswell-era alien autopsy. While many believed the film at the time, it is now recognized as a hoax with producers of the film going public with their methods for making the film.
The Loch Ness Monster
E2
The Loch Ness Monster
Air date: 2016-10-20
History's Greatest Hoaxes looks at the Loch Ness Monster. According to folklore a large sea monster lurks in depth of Loch Ness in Scotland. Over the years, grainy photographs and inconclusive video footage has emerged to keep the legend alive. Is it a clever hoax or the real thing?
The Hitler Diaries
E3
The Hitler Diaries
Air date: 2016-10-27
History's Greatest Hoaxes looks at the case of the Hitler Diaries which purported to be sixty-two volumes of Adolph Hitler's personal journals. Convinced of their reality, Rupert Murdoch paid over a half a million dollars to publish them. The hoax turned out to be one of the greatest scam ever done to a newspaper.
War Of The Worlds
E4
War Of The Worlds
Air date: 2016-11-03
History's Greatest Hoaxes looks at Orson Welles's Mercury Theater radio adaptation of the H.G. Wells novel 'The War of the Worlds'. The simulated news broadcast convinced many Americans that an invasion by Martians was underway. Newspapers claimed that it led to a massive panic around the country, but was the original audience actually that large?
Papillon: Fact Or Fiction
E5
Papillon: Fact Or Fiction
Air date: 2016-11-10
History's Greatest Hoaxes looks at the story of Papillon one of the most popular books and films of the 1970s. It tells the dramatic story of the prison life of Henri Charriere, a convicted murderer with a large butterfly tattoo on his chest. How much of his story was true? Was he ever imprisoned on Devil's Island? Or was it all fiction?
Piltdown Man
E6
Piltdown Man
Air date: 2016-11-17
History's Greatest Hoaxes looks at the Piltdown Man. In 1912 the discovery of an unusual skull and jawbone in Sussex, England, led many to believe that a 'missing link' had finally been found. The revelation of a hoax, however, had wide reaching impact on anthropology and science.

Recommended

The Office

The Office

7.8
2001
TV Show

Nightmare boss. Tedious colleagues. Pointless tasks. Welcome to Wernham Hogg. Fancy a tea break with David Brent? Classic comedy from the archive.

The Office

2001
7.8
The Terminal List: Dark Wolf

The Terminal List: Dark Wolf

7.5
2025
TV Show

Before The Terminal List, Navy SEAL Ben Edwards finds himself entangled in the black operations side of the CIA. The deeper Ben goes into the 'gray', the harder it will become to not give himself over to his darker impulses. Every man has two wolves inside him – light and dark – fighting for control. Which wolf will Ben Edwards feed?

The Terminal List: Dark Wolf

2025
7.5
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

7.6
1979
TV Show

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is a seven-part BBC Two spy drama written by Arthur Hopcraft, adapted from John le Carré's eponymous 1974 novel. The serial, which stars Alec Guinness, Alexander Knox, Ian Richardson, Michael Jayston, Bernard Hepton, Anthony Bate, Ian Bannen, George Sewell and Michael Aldridge, was broadcast from 10 September to 22 October 1979. George Smiley, the aging master spy of the Cold War and once heir apparent to Control, is brought back out of retirement to flush out a top level mole within the Circus. Smiley must travel back through his life and murky workings of the Circus to unravel the net spun by his nemesis Karla 'The Sandman' of the KGB and reveal the identity of the mole before he disappears.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

1979
7.6
The King of Queens

The King of Queens

7.1
1998
TV Show

Life’s good for deliveryman Doug Heffernan, until his newly widowed father-in-law, Arthur, moves in with him and his wife Carrie. Doug is no longer the king of his domain, and instead of having a big screen television in his recently renovated basement, he now has a crazy old man.

The King of Queens

1998
7.1
T. J. Hooker

T. J. Hooker

6.5
1982
TV Show

Sergeant Thomas Jefferson Hooker is a tough-as-nails veteran police officer with the LCPD who turns his back on a gold badge and goes back to patrolling the streets and training recruits. Along with his young partners in blue, Hooker take on Lake City's toughest criminals.

T. J. Hooker

1982
6.5
The Closer

The Closer

7.9
2005
TV Show

Deputy Police Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson transfers from Atlanta to LA to head up a special unit of the LAPD that handles sensitive, high-profile murder cases. Johnson's quirky personality and hard-nosed approach often rubs her colleagues the wrong way, but her reputation as one of the world's best interrogator eventually wins over even her toughest critics.

The Closer

2005
7.9
Star Wars Rebels

Star Wars Rebels

7.7
2014
TV Show

Set between the events of Star Wars: Episodes III and IV, the story unfolds during a dark time when the evil Galactic Empire is tightening its grip of power on the galaxy. Imperial forces have occupied a remote planet and are ruining the lives of its people. The motley but clever crew of the starship Ghost — cowboy Jedi Kanan, ace pilot Hera, street-smart teenager Ezra, the “muscle” Zeb, warrior firebrand Sabine, and cantankerous old astromech droid Chopper — is among a select few who are brave enough to stand against the Empire. Together, they will face threatening new villains, encounter colorful adversaries, embark on thrilling adventures, and become heroes with the power to ignite a rebellion.

Star Wars Rebels

2014
7.7
The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius

The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius

7.4
2002
TV Show

Jimmy Neutron is the smartest kid in town. As a genius, Jimmy thinks most things can be solved with the invention of a new gizmo. But Jimmy usually takes the easy way out, and his backfiring gadgets result in comedic adventures.

The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius

2002
7.4
The L Word

The L Word

7.6
2004
TV Show

A group of lesbian friends struggle with romance and careers in Los Angeles.

The L Word

2004
7.6
Childhood's End

Childhood's End

7.0
2015
TV Show

The peaceful alien invasion of Earth by the mysterious “Overlords,” whose arrival begins decades of apparent utopia under indirect alien rule, at the cost of human identity and culture.

Childhood's End

2015
7.0
I, Claudius

I, Claudius

7.8
1976
TV Show

Acclaimed blackly comic historical drama series. Set amidst a web of power, corruption and lies, it chronicles the reigns of the Roman emperors - Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula and finally Claudius.

I, Claudius

1976
7.8
Knight Rider

Knight Rider

7.5
1982
TV Show

Michael Long, an undercover police officer, is shot while investigating a case and left for dead by his assailants. He is rescued by Wilton Knight, a wealthy, dying millionaire and inventor who arranges life-saving surgery, including a new face and a new identity--that of Michael Knight. Michael is then given a special computerized and indestructible car called the Knight Industries Two Thousand (nicknamed KITT), and a mission: apprehend criminals who are beyond the reach of the law. The series depicts Michael's exploits as he and KITT battle the forces of evil on behalf of the Foundation for Law and Government.

Knight Rider

1982
7.5

Similar TV Shows

Molière pour rire et pour pleurer

Molière pour rire et pour pleurer

10.0
1973
TV Show

No overview available.

Molière pour rire et pour pleurer

1973
10.0
McMillion$

McMillion$

7.0
2020
TV Show

A detailed account of the McDonald's Monopoly game scam during the 1990s as told by the participants in the case, including the prizewinners and the FBI agents who caught the security officer who orchestrated the entire scheme.

McMillion$

2020
7.0
Pervert: Hunting the Strip Search Caller

Pervert: Hunting the Strip Search Caller

6.7
2022
TV Show

This docuseries follows the investigation into a hoax caller who talked managers into strip-searching employees at fast food businesses across the US.

Pervert: Hunting the Strip Search Caller

2022
6.7
Doorbell Detectives

Doorbell Detectives

2025
TV Show

Matt Allwright meets the doorbell detectives fighting crime with doorbell cameras.

Doorbell Detectives

2025
Bug Out

Bug Out

7.0
2022
TV Show

This four-part investigative documentary series holds the magnifying glass to one of the most bizarre crimes in recent history: the theft of 7,000 living bugs from the Philadelphia Insectarium. Delve into this whodunnit through exclusive interviews with insect collectors, bug smugglers, and the law enforcement agencies charged with looking into this case.

Bug Out

2022
7.0
Scamanda

Scamanda

6.1
2025
TV Show

Docuseries based on the podcast of the same name. The story of Amanda Riley — a wife, mother, blogger and Christian — whose tragic cancer tale captivates thousands. But Amanda has a secret that she's dying to keep, and after an anonymous tip to an investigative reporter, her own words may prove to be her downfall.

Scamanda

2025
6.1
You've Been Scammed By Nigel Latta

You've Been Scammed By Nigel Latta

2023
TV Show

While scams have always been around, the internet means the number of people falling for them is rising exponentially. Nigel Latta shows us different types of scams and the specific traits that make us vulnerable to being ripped off!

You've Been Scammed By Nigel Latta

2023
Rococo: Travel, Pleasure, Madness

Rococo: Travel, Pleasure, Madness

2014
TV Show

Rococo art is often dismissed as frivolous. But Waldemar Januszczak disagrees and in this three-part series he tries to bring Rococo art closer to us, and argues that the Rococo was the age in which the modern world was born.

Rococo: Travel, Pleasure, Madness

2014
Corée

Corée

2019
TV Show

No overview available.

Corée

2019
La relève du dinosaure

La relève du dinosaure

6.0
2010
TV Show

No overview available.

La relève du dinosaure

2010
6.0
The Proof Is Out There

The Proof Is Out There

7.4
2021
TV Show

Each episode analyzes and passes verdicts on several seemingly impossible things “caught on film,” including giant beasts, UFOS, apocalyptic sounds, hairy humans, alleged mutants from the deep, conspiracies, and many other cases. Host and veteran journalist Tony Harris takes nothing for granted in a quest for answers, tracking down eyewitnesses, putting each photo or film through a battery of tests, calling out the hoaxes, and highlighting the most credible evidence in an attempt to better understand our world.

The Proof Is Out There

2021
7.4
True Believers

True Believers

2022
TV Show

People searching for answers, healing, or human connection end up joining some of the strangest organizations.

True Believers

2022