About this season
In this unique take on British history, Professor Alice Roberts explores Britain's rich and varied past through the stories of individual towns and cities. In each programme Alice studies one key period in history by delving into the secrets of a historic town that encapsulates the era, providing an accurate impression of what life was really like at key moments in our turbulent past. At the climax of each programme, cutting-edge CGI reveals the entire historic town in all its former glory.
Episodes (7)
1. Medieval Lincoln
Aired 7 November 2020 • 45 min
Alice is in Lincoln, getting to grips with life in medieval England. She visits the magnificent cathedral that was once the tallest building in the world and re-lives the battle at Lincoln Castle.
2. Restoration London
Aired 14 November 2020 • 45 min
Alice is in London, as she attempts to make sense of the world-changing events during the short but eventful Restoration period. She learns the violent and vengeful truth behind Charles II's carefully crafted public image.
3. Naval Portsmouth
Aired 21 November 2020 • 45 min
Alice explores Nelson's dark side, the heat of the battle at Trafalgar, the role of the Navy in the British Empire, and the lives of Portsmouth's sex workers.
4. Elizabethan Plymouth
Aired 28 November 2020 • 45 min
Alice Roberts visits Elizabethan Plymouth, exploring the story of England's `Golden Age', from Sir Francis Drake to the Spanish Armada, piracy, theft, and the slave trade.
5. Glasgow's Age of Steam
Aired 5 December 2020 • 45 min
Alice Roberts explores Glasgow's age of steam, from lethal diseases and industrial injury to genteel tea rooms, football at Celtic Park, and the beautiful Loch Katrine.
6. Georgian Edinburgh
Aired 12 December 2020 • 45 min
Alice Roberts explores Georgian Edinburgh's finest architecture, the origins of `Auld Reekie', the roots of modern Scottishness, and some dark imperial controversies.
7. Industrial Revolution Manchester
Aired 19 December 2020 • 45 min
Professor Alice Roberts explores Manchester's history of protest and revolution during the Industrial Revolution, from Marx to the Suffragettes and the Peterloo massacre.