History TV and radio in the UK: what's on our screens this week?
Can't decide which shows to watch or listen to this week? Here are the latest history radio and TV programmes airing in the UK that you won't want to miss
Sandi Toksvig’s Great Riviera Rail Trip
Channel 4
Saturday 29th November, 8.05pm
The broadcaster journeys along the Mediterranean coast. In the first of four episodes, Toksvig begins her travels in Marseille and then heads for St Tropez. A travelogue that often touches on historical matters, such as how Brigitte Bardot helped launch the sexual revolution of the 1960s.
Archive On 4: A Journey Behind Bars
BBC Radio 4
Saturday 29th November, 8pm
For 50 years, Rex Bloomstein has made films and radio shows about the British penal system, including a hugely revealing series showing the grim reality of life in Strangeways, first broadcast in 1980. At a time when there’s a crisis in our prisons, Bloomstein reflects on how we got here.
Prisoner 951
BBC One
Sunday 30th November, 9pm
The excellent drama detailing the experiences of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe (Narges Rashidi) concludes with two episodes shown over successive evenings. On Wednesday 3rd December, documentary Prisoner 951: The Hostages’ Story (BBC Two, 9pm) considers how Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s six-year imprisonment can be linked to a decades-old debt owed by the British government.
The Marvellous Miniature Workshop
BBC One
Monday 1st December, 2pm
Sara Cox presents a series in which model-makers recreate places linked to people’s personal histories. In the first of four episodes this week, miniaturist Hannah Lemon recreates Manchester’s Crumpsall Library for a retired social worker, Leah. The building is now derelict, but Leah wants a reminder of happier times and, in particular, meeting her future husband.
Civilisations: Rise And Fall
BBC Two
Monday 1st December, 9pm
Why did the Ptolemies of Egypt fall from power? Civilisations goes back to the time of Cleopatra to relate a story taking in civil war between siblings, greed and financial mismanagement, the failure of the Nile’s flood cycle and the increasing influence of Rome.
The Essay: Electronic Women
BBC Radio 3
Monday 1st December, 9.45pm
Composer and producer Hannah Peel profiles five female electronic musicians, all of whom helped pave the way for subsequent performers, including Peel herself. In the first of five weekday episodes, she focuses on Daphne Oram (1925–2003), co-founder of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop.
The Reith Lectures
BBC Radio 4
Tuesday 2nd December, 9am
The title of the second of historian Rutger Bregman’s talks is How To Start A Moral Revolution. We can take inspiration from the past here, he suggests, citing the work of figures such as Elizabeth Fry, who campaigned for prison reform, and the suffragettes.
What’s The Monarchy For? – pick of the week
BBC One
Tuesday 2nd December, 9pm
David Dimbleby, no stranger to reporting on royal matters, presents a three-part series looking at, among other questions, whether the idea of an unelected head of state is now hopelessly anachronistic. Featuring the contributions of those close to the royals and politicians, including former prime minister David Cameron.
The Abandons
Netflix
Streaming from Thursday 4th December
Created by showrunner Kurt Sunner of Sons Of Anarchy fame, here’s a drama set on the US frontier in the 1850s. At the centre of events lie two matriarchs: posh and villainous Constance Van Ness (Gillian Anderson) and Irish-American upstart Fiona Nolan (Lena Headey).
Free Thinking
BBC Radio 4
Friday 5th December, 9pm
As detailed above, Rutger Bregman thinks small groups of campaigners can have a huge influence on how society develops. Is this true? Matthew Sweet chairs a roundtable discussion on whether individuals or broader forces shape history. Featuring contributions from, among others, Anne Applebaum.