Former Conservative MP Michael Portillo takes viewers into the darkest reaches of science and attempts to discover a method of executing criminals that is fundamentally humane, in How To Kill A Human Being, the first programme in a new series of Horizon.
Across the world, capital punishment is in crisis. In Vietnam, shaky marksmen have brought into question the reliability of firing squads, whilst in Iraq, Saddam’s half-brother was hanged and decapitated by mistake. And in the United States – arguably the most technologically advanced nation in the world – the use of their primary method of execution, the lethal injection, has ground to a halt as the Supreme Court examines whether prisoners are actually dying in unnecessary pain.
Michael looks to science to find a better solution and explores the key execution methods still available today. He discovers why convicts can catch fire in the electric chair, how easy it is to botch a hanging and explores the terror of the gas chamber.
Armed with the startling evidence he uncovers, Michael sets out to establish what he believes are the criteria for a perfect, humane execution. As he does so, he sets his sights on a new method utilising a biological phenomenon known as hypoxia – the lack of oxygen to the brain. Could it be the solution?
Tuesday 15 January
9.00-9.50pm BBC TWO
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