Smithsonian TV Guide — Wednesday, 1 July 2026

Browse the full Smithsonian TV guide for Wednesday, 1 July 2026. 24 programmes listed , including 6 tonight. US listings updated daily — scroll down to tonight's highlights or use the day tabs above to browse the weekly schedule.

Early Morning

00:00 1h

The Lost Tapes

S2 · E3 · Tet Offensive Documentary

Tet Offensive

The story of the Tet Offensive, where North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces launched a series of attacks, is depicted through combat footage and media reports.

01:00 1h

America's Hidden Stories

S3 · E2 · Birth of Shadow Ops True

Birth of Shadow Ops

Modern historians rely on new evidence and state-of-the-art technology to unravel the mysteries surrounding the most iconic stories from America's past.

02:00 1h

America's Hidden Stories

S2 · E5 · Southern Women Union Spies True

Southern Women Union Spies

Historians discuss the rumor that a freed female slave and a society lady in Virginia acted as spies for the Union during the Civil War.

03:00 1h

America's Hidden Stories

S3 · E4 · The Black Wild West True

The Black Wild West

Modern historians rely on new evidence and state-of-the-art technology to unravel the mysteries surrounding the most iconic stories from America's past.

04:00 1h

America's Hidden Stories

S3 · E3 · Forged In Slavery True

Forged In Slavery

Modern historians rely on new evidence and state-of-the-art technology to unravel the mysteries surrounding the most iconic stories from America's past.

05:00 1h

America in Color

S3 · E6 · Small Town Life True

Small Town Life

The Great Migration, Will Rogers and soap box derbies are relived through colored footage as an in-depth look is taken at the history of small-town America.

Morning

06:00 1h

America in Color

S2 · E4 · Playtime True

Playtime

Home movies and digitally remastered archival footage depict how Americans in 1953 would spend their time and money on leisure activities.

07:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S3 · E1 · Fantastic & Futuristic Science

Fantastic & Futuristic

Host Mike Davidson goes on a global journey to see the world's mightiest machines and meet the mechanics, engineers and technicians who keep them running.

08:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S2 · E3 · Retrofits & Airport Glitz Science

Retrofits & Airport Glitz

Host Jay Ellis goes to Hearst Tower in Manhattan and the Jewel Changi Airport in Singapore and learns how designers try to create a worthy museum.

09:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S1 · E1 · Cantilevers & Lifts Science

Cantilevers & Lifts

Designers share what inspired their radical structural ideas, including a Manhattan skyscraper, a museum in Paris and a cliffside elevator in Hunan, China.

10:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S1 · E2 · Towers & Roofs Science

Towers & Roofs

An in-depth look at numerous innovative structures around the world includes a Manhattan high-rise, an Athens cultural center and a university in Singapore.

11:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S2 · E1 · Riverparks & Artworks Science

Riverparks & Artworks

Engineers and architects discuss the stories behind the Hearst Tower in New York City, the Library Learning Centre in Vienna and the Audain Museum in Vancouver.

Daytime

12:00 1h

How Did They Fix That?

S2 · E1 · Powerships Science

Powerships

Host Mike Davidson goes to Brazil to meet up with a crew who's racing against the clock to use powerships to deliver electricity to a country in need.

13:00 1h

How Did They Fix That?

S2 · E4 · Super Stallion Helicopter Science

Super Stallion Helicopter

Mike Davidson meets the US Marines' "Heavy Haulers" squadron as they keep their fleet of CH53 'Super Stallion' choppers in the air.

14:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S4 · E5 · Ecobuilds & Earthquakes Science

Ecobuilds & Earthquakes

Host Jay Ellis explores the construction of the many buildings designed to be both environmentally friendly and resistant to seismic activity.

15:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S2 · E6 · Upside Down & Undersea Science

Upside Down & Undersea

Host Jay Ellis goes to the Vancouver House, Norway's Under Restaurant and the Seattle Central Library to figure out how these visionary buildings were created.

16:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S2 · E2 · Swamps & Swagger Science

Swamps & Swagger

The Dali Museum in Florida, the Equinor Offices in Oslo and Little Island, an island in New York City with a waterside amphitheater.

17:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S2 · E7 · Steep & Stunning Science

Steep & Stunning

Exploring the engineering and design history behind a renovated 145-year-old museum, an innovative condo in Miami and the world's steepest mountain railway.

Evening

18:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S3 · E6 · Tricks & Trains Science

Tricks & Trains

Engineers are put to the test with a new Olympic and Paralympic museum's cutting-edge accessible design and a gravity-defying curved glass skyscraper in Milan.

19:00 1h

Breaking the Sound Barrier

Science Special

A study of the people and planes that first broke the speed barrier in 1947 highlights the impact it has had on aviation today.

20:00 1h

Aboard Air Force One

Documentary Special

An exclusive look inside the fleet of jumbo jets known as Air Force One, which have been used by U.S. commanders-in-chief for over 50 years.

21:00 1h

Crowning New York

True Special

A review of the construction of New York City's One World Trade Center in the place where the Twin Towers once stood recalls the debates and the dangers.

22:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S3 · E1 · Fantastic & Futuristic Science

Fantastic & Futuristic

Host Mike Davidson goes on a global journey to see the world's mightiest machines and meet the mechanics, engineers and technicians who keep them running.

23:00 1h

How Did They Build That?

S2 · E3 · Retrofits & Airport Glitz Science

Retrofits & Airport Glitz

Host Jay Ellis goes to Hearst Tower in Manhattan and the Jewel Changi Airport in Singapore and learns how designers try to create a worthy museum.