Loading titles…
Documentary
Historian Dr Lucy Worsley immerses herself in the world of Restoration England, exploring the captivating lives of the women of the period.
In the first episode, Dr Lucy Worsley investigates the lives of women at the top - the king's mistresses at the royal court. When Charles and his entourage returned from exile, they came back with a host of continental ideas. Some of the women at court gained unprecedented political influence and independence. Amongst a fascinating cast of female characters, the most astonishing were Charles II's own mistresses. Lucy examines the lives of these women, discovering how their fortunes were shaped by the Restoration and how their stories reflect the atmosphere of these extraordinary years. Along her journey, Lucy gets the full mistress make-over, takes to the dance floor and treads the corridors of power. As she discovers, these women were key Restoration players, but, as Mistresses, were they truly in charge of their own destinies or were they simply part of the world's oldest profession?
Lucy Worsley explores the ordinary as well as the extraordinary lives of women in the home. This was an age when respectable women were defined by their marital status as maids, wives or widows. If they fell outside these categories they were in danger of being labelled whores or, at worst, witches. While history has left many women voiceless over the centuries, Lucy discovers that in the Restoration a surprising number of women were beginning to question their roles in relationship to their husbands, their position in the home, their attitudes to sex and, most importantly, the expectation to produce children. Meeting a host of experts and experiencing what life was like behind closed doors, Lucy explores whether their lives changed for better or worse during the second half of the 17th century.
Lucy Worsley explores the lives of some of the most remarkable women of the age, including writers, actresses, travellers and scientists. Against a backdrop of religious and political turmoil, the rise of print culture, the rapid growth of London, the burgeoning scientific revolution and the country's flourishing trading empire, she meets a host of female mavericks who took advantage of the extraordinary changes afoot to challenge the traditional male bastions of society. Women like Nell Gwyn, the most famous of a new generation of actresses; Aphra Behn, the first professional female writer; and Christian Davies, who disguised herself as a man to fight as a soldier - all of them gained notoriety and celebrity, challenging the inequalities of the age. As Lucy discovers, these women's attitudes, ambitions and achievements were surprisingly modern.
Self - Presenter
Rylan Clark teams up with anthropologist Professor Alice Roberts to investigate one of the darkest and most harrowing chapters in Essex’s history - the murder of hundreds of women accused of witchcraft. Each episode centres on a specific witch trial, with Rylan and Alice opening a cold case into the stories behind some of the women accused of witchcraft during the 16th and 17th centuries, many of whom were found guilty and sentenced to death by hanging. They visit the towns and villages in Essex where the women lived and died. Guided by original court documents and a team of historians, psychologists and medical experts, they explore these women’s lives, alleged crimes and trials.
This is the story of one of Europe's biggest migrations; one of people fleeing poverty or persecution and hoping for a better life. German-speaking people descended the Rhine and Danube rivers, from the 17th century until the end of the First World War, and settled in America, Eastern Europe, Russia and Africa.
In 17th century France, young D'Artagnan wants to join the King's Musketeers, but instead befriends three legendary musketeers—Athos, Porthos, and Aramis—and together, they become embroiled in the political intrigue surrounding King Louis XIII and his adversaries, particularly the powerful Cardinal Richelieu.
In 1620s London, young Scottish nobleman Nigel Olifaunt travels to the English court to recover money owed by King James VI and I. Seeking to save his mortgaged estate, Nigel becomes entangled in courtly intrigue, dangerous rivalries, and the schemes of powerful nobles. When he makes an enemy of the dissolute Lord Dalgarno, the young lord finds himself forced into hiding among London's underworld, fighting for survival and honour.
Set in the volatile world of 17th century Massachusetts, 'Salem' explores what really fueled the town's infamous witch trials and dares to uncover the dark, supernatural truth hiding behind the veil of this infamous period in American history. In Salem, witches are real, but they are not who or what they seem.
