Part 1: Henry VIII - Going It Alone • 2022 • episode "S1E1" • Fortress Britain

132:03

Three-part drama-documentary series revealing the truth about England's most infamous King, King Henry VIII. Filming in historic locations including Hampton Court, Windsor Castle and the Vatican and unearthing new documents never seen before on TV, a team of Tudor experts uncover the real Henry, and explore how his complex personality fundamentally shaped the nation. Ch1. Rise of a Tyrant Experts examine how Henry VIII's traumatic childhood affected his personality, from the death of his older brother to the tragic early death of his beloved mother. Narrated by Jason Isaacs. Ch2. Bloodlust and the Boleyns Takes viewers on a journey through the turbulent marriages, affairs and tyrannical politics of King Henry VIII's reign, and explores how Henry's obsession with marrying Anne Boleyn resulted in a cataclysmic and hugely unpopular split with the Roman Catholic Church. The programme also examines Henry's relationship with his new chief advisor and enforcer, Thomas Cromwell, who would come to bear the brunt of the King's increasing unhinged behaviour in the years to come. Narrated by Jason Isaacs. Ch3. Endgame A look at the king's final years, when the pain caused by an infected ulcer on his leg had a detrimental impact on his increasingly angry temperament. Lauren Johnson examines the king's exotic diet, including meat from porpoises and seals, and considers its impact on both his weight and his health. Plus, a look at a Catholic rebellion and the breakdown of Henry's relationship with advisor Thomas Cromwell.

2020 • History

30:50

Corruption, loose morals, depravity – the German monk Martin Luther had enough of this and demanded a pure church and a pure faith. His goal was nothing less than a revolution: the Reformation of the church and the ousting of the "depraved" popes. Instead, the freedom within every Christian believer was to be expressed. The first example was the Peasants' Wars. Christianity once again became divided after the downfall of Byzantium: there were now Catholics, Lutherans and Reformed, for the rebels soon went their own way. The new longing for a purer Christianity soon led to the biggest catastrophe in Europe, the Thirty Years' War. It was not foremost a religious war, although it was easier to kill more mercilessly without a legitimation than have to worry about "eternal life." Europe lost half of its population during this period. The horror of the roving hordes of soldiers, the plunge into the most terrible atrocities that humans are capable of, caused the educated to doubt the beneficial power of religion. The separation of church and state is the result of the European experience of so-called religious wars. Outlining the provincial causes and ravaging effects of Europe's Thirty Years' War, this program illustrates the ability of religious fervor to inflame nationalism and drive the quest for power. With background on Martin Luther's split with the Catholic Church and the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre, Dr. Helmut Neuhaus of Friedrich Alexander University offers detailed analysis of the Hapsburg-Bohemian conflict, the shifting alliances of Catholics and Protestants, and the mercenary campaigns of Wallenstein—leading to a comparison with large-scale natural disaster. The program clearly identifies the three-decade inferno as an inspiration for later divisions of church and state.

S1E2 • The Holy Wars: War and Religion • 2004 • History

52:58

The Mandrin Cave in southern France has been attracting the attention of archaeologists for 30 years. The cave was regularly occupied in prehistoric times, and a remarkable record of human habitation going back thousands of years has been preserved by its soils. In 2015, the remains of a Neanderthal were uncovered, and the archaeological evidence points to this individual, named Thorin, living in close proximity to newly arrived Homo sapiens. Follows an international team of scientists as they discover and investigate precious relics of the Palaeolithic period, resulting in groundbreaking revelations about the human populations of around 50,000 years ago as researchers uncover some of the secrets of the Mandrin Cave.

2025 • History

51:56

Marc Antony and Octavian were part of the triumvirate seeking to avenge Caesar. The two leaders managed to combine their forces to punish Brutus and Cassius, Caesar’s assassins, following the Battle of Philippi in 42 BC. But how would the ambitions of the two men collide as time went on?

Part 1 • The Destiny of Rome: Series 1 • 2011 • History

67:16

A new Russian leader emerges, and the republics seek independence. As the Soviet Union dissolves, several powers sign a landmark treaty on nuclear arms.

S1E7 • Turning Point: The Bomb and the Cold War • 2024 • History

58:30

The Ukrainian government says that thousands of children have been taken unlawfully to Russia since the start of the war. The International Criminal Court has issued a warrant for President Putin's arrest. Now, Panorama investigates what happened to more than 40 children taken by Russian forces from a children's home in Kherson. The film-makers, working with journalists in Ukraine, uncover birth certificates, a secret adoption and a trail of evidence leading all the way to the Russian parliament.

2023 • History