Ray’s History Radio & TV Picks. No.2016/23.

[Ray Boyles]

Ray’s History Radio & TV Picks. No.2016/23. 18 June 2016

The Medici: Godfather’s of the Renaissance.
PBS America: Mon 20 to Wed 22 June 2016, 8.20 – 9.30 (Rptd 18.35 – 19.50) Sky 534 Virgin 276
Last three episodes of four-part dramatized documentary series which tells the story of one of the most powerful dynasties in Europe and their influence on the most important cultural and artistic revolution in Western history.
http://www.pbs.org/empires/medici/
http://www.pbs.org/empires/medici/show/index.html

Now All Roads Lead to France
BBC Radio 4 Extra: Mon 20 to Fri 24 June 2016, daily 11.00 – 11.15 & 21.00- 21.15. Book of the Week 2011.
Matthew Hollis’s haunting account of the final five years in the life of First World War poet Edward Thomas, who is perhaps best-remembered for his poem ‘Adlestrop’. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0135q6c

The Musketeers
BBC One: Mon 20 June 2016, 20.30 – 21.25. 3 /10
As the swashbuckling romp continues, there is trouble in Paris when King Louis’ estranged brother, the treacherous Gaston, returns to the city. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07bjdlr

Private Lives of the Tudors
Yesterday: Tues 21 June 2016, 19.00 – 20.00. 3 / 3
Tracy Borman turns her attention to Elizabeth I. She examines life at the Elizabethan court, charting the queen’s relationships with her attendants, attitudes towards other women and tooth-rotting fondness for sugar.
http://yesterday.uktv.co.uk/shows/private-lives-of-the-tudors/

Lucy Worsley: Mozart’s London Odyssey
BBC Four: Tues 21 June 2016, 21.00 – 22.00
The historian looks back at 1764, when the eight-year-old Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart arrived in Georgian England. While the prodigy and his family encountered difficulties, it was in London that Mozart’s talents as a composer first began to emerge. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07hk1qx

Vikings
History Channel: Tues 21 May 2016, 22.00 – 23.00. 5 / 10: The Unsurper
The fleet returns to Kattegat to find tragic circumstances await. Lagertha learns that her Earldom has been usurped and convinces Ragnar to travel to Hederby with her in an effort to reclaim her title. Ragnar causes great surprise when he announces the next raid. The Seer has interesting prophecies for Rollo.. http://www.history.co.uk/shows/vikings/episode-guide/vikings-series-3

Versailles
BBC Two: Wed 22 June 2016, 21.30 – 22.25. (Rpted Sat 25 June 22.55). 4 / 10.
This episode of the opulent drama about life in the court of Louis XIV sees Philippe find success as a soldier, much to his brother’s chagrin. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07hrt9b

Inside Versailles
BBC Two: Wed 22 June 2016, 22.25 – 22.30. 4 /10
Historical discussion show inspired by drama series Versailles. Professor Kate Williams and Greg Jenner discuss 17th-century warfare as seen in drama series Versailles. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07hrt9d

Islam: Empire of Faith
PBS America: Thu 23 to Fri 24 June 2016. 8.20 – 9.30 (Rptd 18.35 – 19.50) 1 / 2 of 3. Sky 534 Virgin 276.
What is Islam? Who is Muhammad? This documentary narrated by Ben Kingsley about Islam and attempts to answer these questions. http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/islam-empire-faith/
Timeline, features & making of the film: http://www.pbs.org/empires/islam/

Tommies
BBC Radio 4: Thu 23 June 2016, 14.15 – 15.00. 4 / 5:
Meticulously based on war diaries and eye-witness accounts, each episode of Tommies traces one real day at war exactly 100 years ago. On a morale-boosting tour of troops massing in the Somme valley, a celebrity poet and priest arrives to perform his popular verse. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07gh4sz

In Our Time: Songs of Innocence and of Experience
BBC Radio 4: Thu 23 June 2016, 9.00 – 9.45
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss William Blake’s Songs of Innocence and of Experience, first published in 1789. Drawing on street ballads and children’s rhymes of the era, Blake’s verse contrasted the optimism of early childhood with the more cynical outlook of adulthood. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07gh4pg

Genius of the Modern World: Nietzsche
BBC Four: Thu 23 June 2016, 21.00 – 22.00. 2 / 3.
In the second of three documentaries about thinkers who shaped the 20th century, Bettany Hughes traces the life of Frederick Nietzsche. Hughes reveals how the German philosopher’s work was twisted to serve the ends of Nazism, whose worldview he would have loathed. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07h0hg9

Sources: Radio Times / History Extra

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