History documentaries

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BBC Select is the place to discover so much more about history. Stream a range of compelling BBC history documentaries that explore the people, places and events of the past that shaped our world. Whether it’s the Roman Empire, Nelson and Napoleon, Black history, the story of the Titanic or the Tudors, BBC Select brings acclaimed and award-winning history shows, and featuring experts including Bettany Hughes, Lucy Worsley, Simon Schama and David Olusoga.

How Mad Was King George?

King George

King George III was the longest-reigning king in British history. But his reputation brands him a foolish, incapable madman. As this history documentary reveals, this unfair assessment overshadows his achievements and qualities as a monarch. With new revelations from diaries and letters and interviews with experts, a very different side to this remarkable ruler emerges.

The Last Days Of Anne Boleyn

In 1536, Anne Boleyn, the wife of Henry VIII, became the first queen in Britain’s history to be executed. The brutal speed of her downfall and the astonishing nature of the charges against her – treason, adultery, even incest – make her story shocking even to this day. The truth behind her brutal death, and who was responsible, has been the subject of fiery debate across six centuries.

Philippa Gregory's The Real White Queen And Her Rivals

The dynastic conflict known as the War of the Roses was steeped in treason and bloodshed. Three remarkable women were at the very center of this pivotal moment in English history. Bestselling author Philippa Gregory presents an emotional portrait of Elizabeth Woodville, the White Queen, Margaret Beaufort, the Red Queen and Anne Neville, wife of Richard III, one of England’s most notorious kings.

The Most Dangerous Man In Tudor England

Image of the most dangerous man in Tudor

He was a man whose life and legacy have been hidden from history, but whose impact on Christianity in Britain endures today. In this BBC history documentary, Melvyn Bragg explores the dramatic story of William Tyndale and his mission to translate the Bible into English. His radical work made him a profound threat to the authority of the church and set him on a fateful collision course with Henry VIII’s heretic hunters.

Renaissance Education: The Schooling Of Thomas More's Daughter

Image of a statue of a girl reading

The revolutionary intellect of one woman in Tudor era England helped change the country’s cultural life forever. In this BBC Tudor history documentary, Historian Helen Castor reveals how the life and education of Margaret More, daughter of Henry VIII’s Chancellor Thomas More, transformed the power of knowledge. Educated to a high level, Margaret embodied the spirit of the age, which embraced humanism and the English Renaissance