What is life really like in North Korea, away from the strictly controlled portrayal of leader Kim Jong-un and his military might?
In an Australian exclusive, tonight's Dateline at 9.30pm on SBS ONE will include the full BBC Panorama investigation that has sparked controversy and generated media headlines around the world.
Reporter John Sweeney spent eight days undercover capturing a glimpse of life in one of the most rigidly controlled nations on earth, where he found people being brainwashed with propaganda almost everywhere they go.
As journalists are all but banned in the secretive state, John joined a group of university students on an official tour, taking in the capital Pyongyang, life in the countryside and the tense border with South Korea.
Despite being under constant watch from tour guides and military officials, he reveals the grinding poverty and bleak existence of real North Koreans, who are under constant threat for speaking out against the God-like leadership of the Kim family.
And he questions whether the regime and its threats of nuclear war really make it as invincible as it would like to look.
The BBC has defended itself against accusations that students on the trip were put in danger by the undercover crew, saying they were not placed at undue risk and the report is in the public interest.
See John Sweeney's investigation tonight at 9.30pm on SBS ONE and read more now on the Dateline website.
