Connections by James Burke
Hacker ApprovedThe most recommended of 11 documentary series
Influential BBC documentary series tracing surprising links between historical discoveries; fans say it sparked lasting curiosity. Critics note later seasons' connections feel strained.
Influential BBC documentary series tracing surprising links between historical discoveries; fans say it sparked lasting curiosity. Critics note later seasons' connections feel strained.
34 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 33
- criticize it
- 1
- approval share
- 97%
Recommended in 8 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 33 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 33 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 8 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Beloved since childhood
“I was so lucky to be able to grow up watching quality shows like this.”
Comment from 11 May 2026 in “The Greatest Shot in Television: James Burke Had One Chance to Nail This Scene” “I watched this show religiously as a kid”
Comment from 11 May 2026 in “The Greatest Shot in Television: James Burke Had One Chance to Nail This Scene” “I loved this show as a kid.”
Comment from 11 May 2026 in “The Greatest Shot in Television: James Burke Had One Chance to Nail This Scene” Praised as excellent, top docuseries
“Connections was kind of like this, and it was excellent.”
Comment from 5 Feb 2026 in “Ask HN: Why not have a news channel that views the world as deterministic?” “Connections is the best docuseries I have ever seen.”
Comment from 11 May 2026 in “The Greatest Shot in Television: James Burke Had One Chance to Nail This Scene” “Hands down one of the best TV shows ever made”
Comment from 11 May 2026 in “The Greatest Shot in Television: James Burke Had One Chance to Nail This Scene” Sparks curiosity about tech history
“Connections was so influential that my university (Purdue) introduced a 3 semester series of courses on the history of technology.”
Comment from 11 May 2026 in “The Greatest Shot in Television: James Burke Had One Chance to Nail This Scene” “an excellent initiation to curiosity about the long tail of human achievement”
Comment from 11 May 2026 in “Connections – James Burke” “it is a presentation of technical development that meets my standard”
Comment from 12 Aug 2026 in “Compression Is Prediction” Strong finale ties threads together
“the final scene of the last episode, "inside the British Airways computer", had me standing on my couch pointing at the screen”
Comment from 11 May 2026 in “The Greatest Shot in Television: James Burke Had One Chance to Nail This Scene” “All the ends left about in the preceding episodes are drawn together neatly in the final one.”
Comment from 11 May 2026 in “The Greatest Shot in Television: James Burke Had One Chance to Nail This Scene”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Later seasons' connections feel scattershot
“as it got into the later seasons the so-called "connections" got tenuous and sometimes quite strained”
Comment from 12 Feb 2026 in “Carl Sagan's Baloney Detection Kit: Tools for Thinking Critically (2025)” “Connections 2 and 3 were indeed scattershot because people liked Burke's charming mannerisms”
Comment from 11 May 2026 in “The Greatest Shot in Television: James Burke Had One Chance to Nail This Scene” “ends up pretty scattershot”
Comment from 11 May 2026 in “The Greatest Shot in Television: James Burke Had One Chance to Nail This Scene”
Other documentary series people recommend
The four most recommended other documentary series, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Connections by James BurkeThis page | 33 | 1 | 97% | 8 | — | Approved |
| Triumph of the Nerds | 31 | 0 | 100% | 4 | — | Approved |
| All Watched Over by Machines of Loving Grace by Adam Curtis | 10 | 1 | 91% | 7 | — | Approved |
| The Century of Self by Adam Curtis | 10 | 1 | 91% | 5 | — | Approved |
| The Secret Life of Machines | 8 | 0 | 100% | 5 | — | — |
What people said
30 of the 36 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“Where discoveries in one area of science would revolutionize or fundamentally change a completely different area.”
“Just ask "More James Burke Connections".”
“it is a presentation of technical development that meets my standard”
“forget how much I hate it”
“The pilot episode is amazing, highlighting the problem with dependence on technology that we don't understand.”
“my personal policy that when I write a white each paragraph has a "layperson's" explanation beneath it, which was inspired by the first and the last episode of his BBC show Connections”
“All the ends left about in the preceding episodes are drawn together neatly in the final one.”
“I loved this show as a kid.”
“Connections was so influential that my university (Purdue) introduced a 3 semester series of courses on the history of technology.”
“Hands down one of the best TV shows ever made”
“He didn't shy away from talking about technology for good or ill”
“I absolutely adore both Burke and the Connections series, and without a doubt this is a lovely shot”
“the final scene of the last episode, "inside the British Airways computer", had me standing on my couch pointing at the screen”
“an excellent initiation to curiosity about the long tail of human achievement”
“Connections is the best docuseries I have ever seen.”
“I think every young student should be exposed to Connections at various stages of their education.”
“Connections 2 and 3 were indeed scattershot because people liked Burke's charming mannerisms”
“ends up pretty scattershot”
“There's so many better clips from this show.”
“I watched this show religiously as a kid”
“The late 1970's were the golden age of documentaries”
“I was so lucky to be able to grow up watching quality shows like this.”
“It still holds up for the most part”
“as it got into the later seasons the so-called "connections" got tenuous and sometimes quite strained”
“Connections was kind of like this, and it was excellent.”
“has a great episode on computation that covers the loom”
“Mythbusters and Connections (I believe it was called) both qualify.”
“A must-watch for any tech curious nerd.”
“all about making these mental connections between words”
“a fantastic program that just got a new season”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.