Ray’s History Radio & TV Picks. No.2016/35. 15 Oct 2016

Britain’s Ancient Tracks with Tony Robinson
Channel 4: Sat 15 Oct 2016, 20.00 – 21.00. 1 / 3
Britain’s landscape is crisscrossed with trackways that date back thousands of years. In this new three-part series, Tony Robinson tramps some of these routes, beginning with the Icknield Way.
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/britains-ancient-tracks-with-tony-robinson

The Greatest Tomb on Earth: Secrets of Ancient China
BBC Two: Sun 16 Oct 2016, 20.00 – 21.00
In a one-off documentary, Dan Snow, Alice Roberts and explorer-engineer Dr Albert Lin outline some of the latest findings made at the final resting place of the First Qin Emperor. Expect footage of terracotta warriors and, we’re promised, “an explosive secret from the foundations of the Chinese empire”.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04bsjvw?ns_mchannel=email&

Tutankhamun
ITV: Sun 16 Oct 2016, 21.00 – 22.00. 1 / 4
Max Irons and Sam Neil star in this four-part drama based on the story of archaeologist Howard Carter and his backer, Lord Carnarvon. They dream of finding a royal tomb in Egypt only for, inconveniently, the First World War to break out. https://itvstudios.com/programmes/tutankhamun

Hitler: the Rise and Fall.
More 4: Sun 16 Oct 2016, 21.00 – 22.00. 3 /6
This episode explores Hitler’s state of mind during his four-year as dictator of Germany, during which time he rebuilt the country’s military in defiance of the Treaty of Versailles. http://www.channel4.com/programmes/hitler-the-rise-and-fall

Drama: Graham Greene – The Confidential Agent
BBC Radio 4: Sun 16 Oct 2016, 15.00 – 16.00. 2 / 2
In the second part of Nick Perry’s adaptation of Graham Greene’s masterful tale of suspense, Edgar Dominguez is sent to England on a mission to arrange a supply of coal for the Republicans in the Spanish Civil War. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07z3hpp

Poldark
BBC One: Sun 16 Oct 2016, 21.00 – 22.00. 7 /10
Ross Poldark tries smuggling in the Isles of Scilly to ease his money troubles. In his absence, George moves in on Elizabeth. Caroline convinces Dwight they must elope for a new life in Bath, and Captain McNeil plans to ambush the smugglers on their return. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0808ksz

The Robber Barons
BBC Radio 4: Mon 17 Oct 2016, 13.45 – 14.00
In the 19th century, a succession of businessmen made fortunes as the US moved from being an agrarian to an industrial society. This weekday series sees historian Adam Smith profiling five of America’s so-called robber barons. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b080kw3g/broadcasts/upcoming

The Victorian Slum
BBC Two: Mon 17 Oct 2016, 21.00 – 22.00. 2 /5
The living history series jumps to the 1870s as the tailoring family the Howarths become “sweated workers”, a description reflecting the pace at which they’re forced to work. Elsewhere, there are new arrivals as siblings John and Maria Barker head for London from Ireland. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08070j8

The Anglo-Irish Century
BBC Radio 4: Tue 18 Oct 2016, 21.30 – 22.00. 1 / 4 (Repeat of April 2016 broadcast)
In this first programme looking back at a century of Anglo-Irish relations, Diarmaid Ferriter begins with the Anglo-Irish agreement of 1921. The names on the treaty document, and indeed the names missing from it, tell a story in themselves. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b077jp13

Medieval Dead
Yesterday: Tue 18 Oct 2016, 19.00 – 20.00
The archaeology series returns with a focus on the site of the 1179 siege of Vadum Jacob, where Saladin destroyed a border castle built by the Knights Templar. http://yesterday.uktv.co.uk/shows/medieval-dead/

Great Continental Railway Journeys
BBC Two: Tue 18 Oct 2016, 21.00 – 22.00. Genoa to the Brenner Pass.
Michael Portillo learns how to prepare a mean pesto genovese, visits the picturesque villages of the Cinque Terre and discovers how winding mountain roads played a key part in the story of Rolls Royce. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07zchsj

Huge and Mighty Men of Valour
BBC Radio 2: Tue 18 Oct 2016, 22.00 – 23.00
Sir Trevor McDonald charts the history of the British West Indies Regiment, a tale that’s at least as much about racism and disappointment as it is about bravery. Up until 1915, the War Office was reluctant to recruit troops from the West Indies to fight in the First World War. Then huge losses forced the authorities’ hand.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07yszmg

In the Shadow of Mary Seacole
ITV: Tue 18 Oct 2016, 22.40 – 23.40.
David Harewood embarks on a three-year journey across Britain, Jamaica and Crimea, tracing the creation of a statue of Mary Seacole, the Jamaican woman who set up a British hotel and served as a nurse during the Crimean War. http://www.radiotimes.com/tv-programme/e/fdxpxn/perspectives–in-the-shadow-of-mary-seacole

In Our Time: The 12th Century Renaissance
BBC Radio 4: Thu 20 Oct 2016, 9.00 – 9.45.
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the changes in the intellectual world of Western Europe in the 12th Century, and their origins. This was a time of Crusades, the formation of states, the start of Gothic architecture, a reconnection with Roman and Greek learning and their Arabic development and the start of the European universities. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07z6vzq

Railways: The Making of a Nation
BBC Four: Thu 20 Oct 2016, 20.00 – 20.30. The New Commuters.
Historian Liz McIvor explores how Britain’s expanding rail network encouraged the development of suburbia as workers could increasingly live further away from their places of employment. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07xn9fv/episodes/player

Sources: Radio Times / History Extra