Boys watching TV in the 1950s

Historical film TV and radio

From binge-worthy period dramas to award-winning documentaries, find out why historical movies, TV and radio programs are more popular than ever, with this series of articles, podcasts and video

Halle Berry holds up her Oscar statuette while posing in a sheer embroidered evening gown beside a large gold Oscar statue at a press backdrop.

20th Century

16 remarkable moments in the history of the Oscars

Two men sat outside a cafe with drinks on a table

First World War

How the work of American folk song collectors inspired The History of Sound

Trixie in 'Call the Midwife'

Period

History TV and radio in the UK: what's on our screens this week?

Georgian

Could Benedict and Sophie have lived happily ever after? The true history behind Bridgerton's cross-class romance

Will Sharpe as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Paul Bettany as Antonio Salieri in historical drama Amadeus

Georgian

Is Amadeus a true story? The real history of Mozart's feud with Salieri

Shea Whigham as Roscoe Conkling in the Netflix series Death by Lightning, beside a portrait of the real Conkling.

Victorian

Who was Roscoe Conkling? The real story of how US politics’ ‘spoils system’ met its match

Membership

Was Robin Hood ACTUALLY real? The history explained. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A side-by-side comparison of the real Lucretia Garfield, alongside how she is seen in the Netflix series Death by Lightning.

Victorian

Who was the real Lucretia Garfield? Inside the forgotten life of a fleeting First Lady

Chester Arthur as played by Nick Offerman in Netflix drama Death by Lightning, and a photo of the real Chester Arthur

Victorian

Who was the real Chester Arthur – and what was his relationship with James Garfield?

US President James Garfiled as played by Michael Shannon in Netflix drama Death by Lightning, and a photo of the real James Garfield

Victorian

Who was the real James Garfield, ‘the man from Ohio’ and doomed president of Death by Lightning?

A collage of Matthew Macfadyen as Charles Guiteau in Netflix series Death by Lightning, alongside a portrait of the real Charles Guiteau.

Victorian

Death by Lightning real history: the true story of Charles Guiteau and a president’s assassination

Frances Forsyte (Tuppence Middleton) and Jolyon Forsyte Jr (Danny Griffin) of new drama The Forsytes, against a backdrop of 19th-century stockbrokers in London. (Images by Getty Images/Mammoth Productions/Masterpiece)

Victorian

The real history behind The Forsytes

Author/veterinarian Dr. James Alfred Wight (pen name James Herriot) holding up a black cat that he is examining at his veterinary surgery. (Photo by Ian Cook/Getty Images)

20th Century

Who was the real James Herriot?The true story behind All Creatures Great and Small

The real Edward Guinness, Earl of Iveagh (right), played by Louis Partridge (left)

Victorian

Who was the real Edward Guinness of House of Guinness?

Arthur Edward Guinness, 1st Baron Ardilaun, played by Anthony Boyle

Victorian

Who was the real Arthur Guinness of House of Guinness, and what happened to him?

The characters of Ellen Cochrane (right) and her brother Patrick seem to take inspiration from some real figures within the Fenian cause (left shows an illustration of a Fenian demonstration in Hyde Park in the 1860s)

Victorian

What was the Fenian Brotherhood? And was Ellen Cochrane real?

Anthony Boyle and Louis Partridge star as Arthur and Edward Guinness

Victorian

Is House of Guinness a true story? Here’s the real history behind the Netflix drama

Studio portrait of a man dressed as British detective Sherlock Holmes with a plaid cap, a pipe, and a magnifying glass. His silhouette is visible in the background

Victorian

9 things you might not know about Sherlock Holmes

A woman in a grey cloak holds a swaddled infant to her shoulder

Anglo-Saxon

Edith the Fair: the life of Harold Godwinson’s first wife

Luther Ford as Tostig Godwinson in BBC drama King and Conqueror

Anglo-Saxon

How Tostig Godwinson’s brotherly betrayal hastened the fall of the Anglo-Saxons

Juliet Stevenson as Emma of Normandy in BBC drama King and Conqueror (Photo via BBC)

Anglo-Saxon

Emma of Normandy: not just a two-time queen consort of England

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as William the Conqueror in BBC Norman Conquest drama King and Conqueror

Norman

How historically accurate is King and Conqueror? Here’s the real history that should have happened

This posthumous portrait of William I, known as the Conqueror, was painted c.1590–1610 and is held by the National Portrait Gallery, London. Though created centuries after his death, it reflects early modern interest in the legacy of England’s first Norman monarch. (Photo by Getty Images)

Norman

Meet the real William the Conqueror, the Duke of Normandy who reshaped England

A medieval manuscript illustration depicting two crowned men, one holding a large upright sword. The figures, dressed in brightly coloured green and orange robes, represent William the Conqueror and Harold Godwinson.

Anglo-Saxon

How well did Harold Godwinson and William the Conqueror know each other prior to the battle of Hastings?

A composite illustration of four contenders for the English throne around the time of the Norman Conquest. From left to right are Harold Godwinson, Edgar Ætheling, Harald Hardrada and William the Conqueror, with Harold shown enthroned and William on horseback.

Membership

1066: who was the rightful king?. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Membership

Shakespeare didn't do the Norman Conquest, but the Bayeux Tapestry did, so where does that leave the BBC's King and Conqueror?. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Jason Momoa as Ka'iana in Apple TV+ drama Chief of War

Georgian

Who was the real Kaʻiana in Chief of War? Meet the warrior noble who defied a king

Jason Momoa as Ka'iana in Apple TV+ drama Chief of War (Photo via Apple TV+)

Georgian

Chief of War: the true story behind the creation of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi

Dorrigo Evans (Jacob Elordi) and Bonox Baker (Reagan Mannix) square off against Major Nakamura (Show Kasamatsu) in The Narrow Road to the Deep North

Second World War

The Narrow Road to the Deep North: the real story behind the construction of the Burma Railway

J Robert Oppenheimer (left), and Cillian Murphy

20th Century

Is Oppenheimer a true story? Meet the real Robert Oppenheimer, ‘father of the atomic bomb’

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