Arena — Season 1, Episode 562: Dylan Thomas - from Grave to Cradle
Documentary • 90 min • 3 seasons, 689 episodes • ★ 7.2/10
Episode synopsis
In the 50th year since his tragic death, author and broadcaster Nigel Williams examines the work and legend of one of the most famous poets of the 20th century-Dylan Thomas. Born in 1914 in Swansea, he was an unruly child, yet determined to become a poet. Though cited by Bob Dylan, John Lennon and other cultural icons as a profound influence, it was his death that truly made him a legend. But did Thomas really die after drinking 18 straight whiskies? Starting with his death, Arena works back through his life to find the man behind the myth.
About Arena
Arena is a British television documentary series, made and broadcast by the BBC. Voted by leading TV executives in Broadcast as one of the top 50 most influential programmes of all time, it has run since 1 October 1975 with over five hundred episodes made, directed by the likes of Martin Scorsese, Alan Yentob, Roly Keating, Frederick Baker, Volker Schlondorff and Vikram Jayanti. Arena's subjects are a roll-call of the world's best known cultural figures from the 20th and 21st centuries, from singers Bob Dylan and Amy Winehouse to academics Edward Said and Eric Hobsbawm, from writers Jean Genet and V S Naipaul to artists Francis Bacon and Louise Bourgeois. The current series editor is Anthony Wall.