Episode Details

Alcatraz is one of the most famous prisons in the world. Known as the Rock, for decades it was home to the most wanted criminals in America. Men like Al Capone, ‘Machine Gun’ Kelly and Robert Stroud, the so-called ‘Birdman of Alcatraz’, all do time on the island.

Why did this prison become an icon and crime and punishment? What really lies behind its unbreakable reputation?

Today experts are investigating Alcatraz’s remarkable engineering secrets. They’re uncovering the Rock’s forgotten past, protecting its concrete cells and exploring why so many convicts tried and failed to escape the toughest jail in America.

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