Professor Mary Beard looks beyond the stories of emperors, armies, guts and gore to meet the everyday people at the heart of Ancient Rome's vast empire.
Stream
Social & External
Self - Presenter
This stylish mix of documentary and historical epic chronicles the reign of Commodus, the emperor whose rule marked the beginning of Rome's fall.
Do you know the real story behind the New Testament? We all share a fascination for discovering ‘the rest of the story.’ Through reading the New Testament we discover that God indeed keeps his promises, but those promises don’t always look like what people expected. Especially when it comes to Jesus. Join well-known Bible scholars N.T. Wright and Michael F. Bird as they team up to take you on a tour of the explosive story behind the story of the New Testament.
The history of Rome is a 1,000-year-long epic, filled with murder, ambition, betrayal and greed and encompassing such legendary characters as Rome’s Iron Age founders Romulus and Remus and its greatest general Julius Caesar. Larry is accompanied by some of Europe and America’s foremost classical experts who reveal the atmosphere of intrigue, conflict and violence at the places where the saga unfolded.
Forbidden love blossoms in the city of Pompeii, which until the eruption of volcano Vesuvius in 79 AD, is one of the empire's most powerful cities.
Supported by stunning 3D graphics, Dr. Darius Arya explains the purpose and architectural significance of ancient Roman buildings.
Turning points in ancient Roman history and some of the Empire's greatest stories are brought to life in this drama documentary series.
Travel back in time to one of the most glorious empires in history. For over 1,000 years, Rome was the center of the known world, bringing to her subjects a common language, shared culture and wealth beyond imagination. But war, barbarian attacks and moral decay eventually took their toll, and the empire slowly began to crumble. Experience ancient history come to life, from Rome's primitive beginnings to the height of its glory – and its eventual downfall. Filmed in 10 countries, this documentary combines location footage of ancient monuments, detailed reenactments, period art and writings, and fascinating insights from scholars and public figures. Witness the ancient world come to life – and see history in all its drama.
Against the background of decline of the Roman Empire, "Peplum" takes us into the lives of Bravus, a former slave who became adviser to the tyrannical Emperor Maximus. Under pressure, stuck between a professional life stressful and chaotic family life, his days are not looking easy. Indeed, work side Bravus must wet the gown to slow a decline that has a tendency to accelerate under the leadership of the incompetent messy, cruel, capricious and narcissistic Maximus. Personal side, he must face every night his son Caius freshly converted to Christianity, his wife Octavia, foreign to the codes of good Roman society and daughter Lydia sassy which assimilates too well. "Peplum" or how to avoid the burn out in a declining society. The parallel with today can not be a coincidence.
A down-to-earth account of the lives of both illustrious and ordinary Romans set in the last days of the Roman Republic.
Up Pompeii! is a British television comedy series broadcast between 1969 and 1970, starring Frankie Howerd. The first series was written by Talbot Rothwell, a scriptwriter for the Carry On films, and the second series by Rothwell and Sid Colin. Two further specials were transmitted in 1975 and 1991. In ancient Pompeii, much-put-upon slave Lurcio navigates the chaotic lives of his owner's family
Acclaimed blackly comic historical drama series. Set amidst a web of power, corruption and lies, it chronicles the reigns of the Roman emperors - Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula and finally Claudius.
Friends and Heroes is a Christian children's program that airs on TBN, Smile of a Child TV, and was also shown on BBC TV. The show is both traditionally animated and computer animated. It takes place from 69 - 71 AD. There are three series each of 13 Episodes: Series 1 is set in Alexandria, Egypt; Series 2 in Jerusalem and Series 3 in Rome. The series was created by Brian D. Brown and Eric J. Danenberg, who also worked on The Storykeepers.
Roar is an American television show that originally aired on the Fox network in July 1997. In the year AD 400, a young Irish man, Conor, sets out to rid his land of the invading Romans, but in order to accomplish this, he must unite the Celtic clans.
Torn from his homeland and the woman he loves, Spartacus is condemned to the brutal world of the arena where blood and death are primetime entertainment.
The story is a comedy about Lucius, an architect of public bath houses in ancient Rome, who time-travels to various modern-day baths in Japan. The author explores the two cultures in the world "that have loved baths the most: the Japanese and the Romans."
As a young boy, future emperor Nero witnesses the mad Emperor Caligula kill his father and exile his mother. While in exile in the pontine islands, Agrippina, his mother, sees a vision telling her that her son can become emperor, but she will have to die first. She accepts the proposal. Back in Rome, Nero, now being raised by emperor Claudius after Caligula's death, Agrippina returns. She poisons Claudius' food and Nero becomes emperor. At first, Nero cuts taxes and introduces successful programs and invades Brittania. Soon he meets a beautiful slave named Claudia Acte, and marries her, throwing off his engagement with Claudius' daughter, Claudia Octavia, telling her she can marry someone she will be happy with. Heartbroken, she arrives at an island and kills herself. Nero enjoys being married to Claudia Acte, but soon he gradually goes mad with power and sets fire to Rome.
Cleopatra, the famed Egyptian Queen born in 69 B.C., is shown to have been brought by Roman ruler Julius Caesar at age 18. Caesar becomes sexually obsessed by the 18 year old queen, beds her, and eventually has a son by her. However, his Roman followers and his wife are not pleased by the union. In fact, as Caesar has only a daughter by his wife, he had picked Octavian as his successor.
Within the spectacular, complex and corrupt world of gladiatorial sports in Ancient Rome, follow an ensemble of diverse characters across the many layers of Roman society where sports, politics and business intersect and collide.
The Roman Holidays is a Hanna-Barbera animated television series that was broadcast in 1972 on NBC. It ran for 13 episodes before being cancelled. Very similar in theme to both The Flintstones and The Jetsons, The Roman Holidays brought a look at "modern-day" life in Ancient Rome, around 63 AD, as seen through the eyes of Augustus "Gus" Holiday and his family. The opening showed a chariot traffic jam and a TV showing football on Channel "IV" An Ancient Roman setting was actually one of the ideas that Hanna-Barbera considered as they were working to create The Flintstones.
In this four-part series classicist and historian, Professor Mary Beard draws on her immense scholarship, unique viewpoints and myth-busting approach to Roman history, to give her definitive take on the Roman Empire. How and why did it happen? In search of answers, she takes us to the most telling sites and the most revealing artifacts, and she examines the legacy the Roman Empire has left behind.
Christianity slowly emerged from being a persecuted minority to the state religion of the Roman Empire. This episode is a history of the ways believers grappled with a way to depict Jesus. Simple symbolic meaning developed into splendid art and churches.
The Ellis family travel back in time to discover how changing food in the north of England reveals what life was like for working class families over the past 100 years.
Three years after the zombie virus has gutted the country, a team of everyday heroes must transport the only known survivor of the plague from New York to California, where the last functioning viral lab waits for his blood.
It's 1946, and peace has dealt Peggy Carter a serious blow as she finds herself marginalized when the men return home from fighting abroad. Working for the covert SSR (Strategic Scientific Reserve), Peggy must balance doing administrative work and going on secret missions for Howard Stark all while trying to navigate life as a single woman in America, in the wake of losing the love of her life - Steve Rogers.
A casual encounter between Adriana and Sergio, two former high school friends, triggers the beginning of the game of the keys where four couples generate new sexual and emotional combinations in a dangerous and lustful game. The game consists of everyone putting their keys in a bowl. At random, each one chooses some keys and he must go to spend the night with the owner of the keys. This game will revolutionize the group of friends and their lives. It will make them discover who they are and what they really want.
Wealth, lust, and betrayal set in the backdrop of Regency era England, seen through the eyes of the powerful Bridgerton family.
When a young boy vanishes, a small town uncovers a mystery involving secret experiments, terrifying supernatural forces, and one strange little girl.
The true story of one of the worst man-made catastrophes in history: the catastrophic nuclear accident at Chernobyl. A tale of the brave men and women who sacrificed to save Europe from unimaginable disaster.
Inexperienced Otis channels his sex therapist mom when he teams up with rebellious Maeve to set up an underground sex therapy clinic at school.
The adventures of a present-day, multinational exploration team traveling on the Ancient spaceship Destiny many billions of light years distant from the Milky Way Galaxy. They evacuated there and are now trying to figure out a way to return to Earth, while simultaneously trying to explore and to survive in their unknown area of the universe.
Many years ago, the last remnants of humanity were forced to retreat behind the towering walls of a fortified city to escape the massive, man-eating Titans that roamed the land outside their fortress. Only the heroic members of the Scouting Legion dared to stray beyond the safety of the walls – but even those brave warriors seldom returned alive. Those within the city clung to the illusion of a peaceful existence until the day that dream was shattered, and their slim chance at survival was reduced to one horrifying choice: kill – or be devoured!
Patrick Jane, a former celebrity psychic medium, uses his razor sharp skills of observation and expertise at "reading" people to solve serious crimes with the California Bureau of Investigation.
Beginning in a time of relative peace, we follow an ensemble cast of characters as they confront the re-emergence of evil to Middle-earth. From the darkest depths of the Misty Mountains, to the majestic forests of Lindon, to the breathtaking island kingdom of Númenor, to the furthest reaches of the map, these kingdoms and characters will carve out legacies that live on long after they are gone.
When three working class kids enroll in the most exclusive school in Spain, the clash between the wealthy and the poor students leads to tragedy.
A single-camera ensemble comedy following the lives of an eclectic group of detectives in a New York precinct, including one slacker who is forced to shape up when he gets a new boss.
Seven noble families fight for control of the mythical land of Westeros. Friction between the houses leads to full-scale war. All while a very ancient evil awakens in the farthest north. Amidst the war, a neglected military order of misfits, the Night's Watch, is all that stands between the realms of men and icy horrors beyond.
Smart, sarcastic and a little dead inside, Wednesday Addams investigates twisted mysteries while making new friends — and foes — at Nevermore Academy.
Light Yagami is an ace student with great prospects—and he’s bored out of his mind. But all that changes when he finds the Death Note, a notebook dropped by a rogue Shinigami death god. Any human whose name is written in the notebook dies, and Light has vowed to use the power of the Death Note to rid the world of evil. But will Light succeed in his noble goal, or will the Death Note turn him into the very thing he fights against?
A gritty chronicle of the war against Colombia's infamously violent and powerful drug cartels.