History TV and radio in the UK: what's on our screens this week?
Can't decide which shows to watch or listen to this week? Here are the latest history radio and TV programmes airing in the UK that you won't want to miss
Archive On 4: No Blacks, No Irish
BBC Radio 4
Saturday 1st March, 8pm
Peter Curran and Tony Phillips reflect on the history of a sign that, displayed at boarding houses and rented accommodation, came to represent the worst of racist British insularity. The two men also discuss the links between Irish and Caribbean communities down the centuries.
Portugal With Michael Portillo
Channel 5
Saturday 1st March, 8.30pm
Off around Europe again, Michael Portillo begins his latest travelogue in Portugal’s bustling second city, Porto. Here, highlights include a dish of the day that’s not for the faint-hearted (or for vegetarians), a visit to the city’s former stock exchange and a retelling of the history of those who grafted in Porto’s industrial revolution.
Dope Girls
BBC One
Saturday 1st March, 9.20pm
Episode two of the impressive crime drama set in inter-war Soho finds Kate and Billie flush with cash following the demise of Billie’s abusive, Sicilian mob-connected boss. However, to make the most of this opportunity, the women need to dispose of a body…
Call The Midwife
BBC One
Sunday 2nd March, 8.05pm
The current series concludes in November 1970 and a main story that involves a mother-and-baby home needing to be evacuated, Elsewhere, Nancy’s wedding plans take a surprising turn and Sister Catherine takes her first vows. Episodes dating back to series one are available to view via BBC iPlayer.
Towards Zero – pick of the week
BBC One
Sunday 2nd March, 9.05pm
Auntie’s latest Agatha Christie adaptation takes us to 1936 and a coastal estate owned by the formidable Lady Tressilian (Anjelica Houston). Here, her tennis star nephew Neville Strange, his wife and, following a scandalous divorce, his ex, all converge. Dastardly deeds follow in an atmospheric whodunit that also boasts the star power of Matthew Rhys and Clarke Peters.
Assume Nothing: Killer Dust
BBC Radio 4
Monday 3rd March, 1.45pm
While looking through newspaper archives, Ophelia Byrne came across a strange headline. “Hush hush process in Ballyclare firm,” referred to the opening of a new factory. But what was being made? It’s the starting point for an exploration, broadcast over 10 weekdays, of the hidden history of asbestos.
Pauline Boty: I Am The Sixties
BBC Four
Monday 3rd March, 10pm
A pop art pioneer who rubbed shoulders with 1960s luminaries such as Bob Dylan and made an uncredited appearance in Alfie, Pauline Booty should really be better known. This documentary profile remembers a figure whose best work anticipated many of the concerns of 1970s feminism and who, tragically, died of cancer at the age of 28.
History’s Secret Heroes
BBC Radio 4
Tuesday 4th March, 3pm
Helena Bonham Carter returns to narrate a third series of the show that highlights stories from the Second World War. This time around, the first figure profiled is Noor Khan, codenamed Madeline, a female wireless operator who served behind enemy lines as an agent with the Special Operations Executive (SOE).
A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story
ITV1
Wednesday 5th March, 9pm
The last woman to be hanged in the UK, nightclub hostess Ruth Ellis became a notorious figure after she murdered her lover, racing-car driver David Blakely. This four-part drama offers a more sympathetic picture as it shows her as the victim of an abusive relationship. Starring Lucy Boynton as Ellis.
Inside The Tower Of London: Building The World’s Greatest Castle
Channel 5
Thursday 6th March, 9pm
The Tower of London might be better described as a sprawling complex of buildings rather than a castle. So how and when did the constituent parts of the famous fortress come to be built? Jason Watkins and Tracy Borman tell the story.