TV and radio

Josh Widdicombe at Hever Castle

History TV and radio in the UK: what’s on our screens in October 2021?

Tony Robinson as Private Baldrick and Rowan Atkinson as Captain Blackadder

Q&A Was there a real Blackadder?

Dev Patel stars as Sir Gawain in The Green Knight an adaptation of the Arthurian romance Sir Gawain and The Green Knight

“An intoxicating triumph true to the grandeur of the poem”: a historian’s review of The Green Knight

BBC/See-Saw Films/Nick Wall

“A dead whale or a stove boat”: whaling in the 19th century

Historian Bettany Hughes in front of the Rock of Gibraltar

Bettany Hughes “We were trying to find stories that tell us about resilience – history as a kind of therapy”

Rege-Jean Page as Simon Basset and Phoebe Dynevor as Daphne Bridgerton

The best historical TV shows and movies to stream in 2021

Prince Charles with his great-uncle Lord Mountbatten at Windsor

Why was Lord Mountbatten, Prince Charles’s great-uncle, assassinated?

A panel of experts tackle the big questions surrounding period drama in the 21st century and ask: what’s next? (Images by Getty, Channel 5 and Alamy)

What’s next for period drama?

The cast of Downton Abbey in front of Highclere Castle. (Image by Alamy)

The upstairs/downstairs world of Downton Abbey: how true to life is it?

A composite of characters from 21st century period drama

What’s next for period drama?

Actor Errol Flynn as Robin Hood in the film 'The Adventures of Robin Hood', 1938. (Photo by Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images)

What’s the most accurate Robin Hood film?

'Sanditon' - an adaption of Jane Austen's unfinished novel of the same name – is currently airing in the UK on ITV. Pictured: Clara Brereton (played by Lily Sacofsky), Esther Denham (Charlotte Spencer), Lady Denham (Anne Reid) and Edward Denham (Jack Fox). (Photo by RED PLANET/ITV)

Your guide to Sanditon, Jane Austen’s last unfinished work

The historical drama series Outlander, based on a series of novels by Diana Gabaldon, has become a TV phenomenon. (Image by Outlander/Starz)

Outlander: the real history that inspired the time-slip drama

Catherine Fletcher discusses what is known about the private life and relationships of the Renaissance polymath, and considers the historical inspirations for the new TV drama Leonardo. (Image by Getty Images)

Leonardo da Vinci’s private life

Frank Spotnitz and Steve Thompson, creators of the new drama 'Leonardo' starring Aidan Turner, talk about the inspirations behind their series on the Renaissance polymath. (Image by © Fabio Lovino)

Leonardo: bringing Da Vinci to the screen