Ever wondered what would happen in your own home if you were taken away, and everything inside was left to rot? The answer is revealed in this fascinating program, which explores the strange and surprising science of decay. For two months in summer 2011, a glass box containing a typical kitchen and garden was left to rot in full public view within Edinburgh Zoo. In this resulting documentary, time-lapse cameras and specialist photography captures the extraordinary way in which moulds, microbes and insects are able to break down our everyday things and allow new life to emerge from old.

Originally released by BBC Worldwide Learning, 2011. Streaming video file encoded with permission for digital streaming by Infobase on November 21, 2019.