Season 1

145 million years ago an adolescent Allosaurus lay down to die in a dried up river bed. In 1991 scientists discovered his perfectly preserved body and nicknamed him Big Al. This is the story of this predatory dinosaur's life - how he grew from a tiny hatchling to the terror of the Jurassic plains, why his body was covered in so many wounds and how he ended up in the river bed.

The life of a dinosaur was recreated in amazing detail in the Ballad of Big Al, but how was so much known about an animal that died millions of years ago? This programme tells the story of the extraordinary scientific detective work that got Big Al, the Allosaurus back on his feet. Scientists used forensics, spectacular paleontological finds and studies of his closest living relatives to unravel his intriguing life. Find out the real reason why Big Al earned the reputation as the dinosaur who lived fast and died young.