Boys watching TV in the 1950s

Historical film TV and radio

From binge-worthy period dramas to award-winning documentaries, find out why historical movies, TV and radio programs are more popular than ever, with this series of articles, podcasts and video

Katheryn WInnick as Lagertha in season 2 of 'Vikings'. A strong belief in Viking women warriors is now rife in many quarters of cyberspace, says Judith Jesch. (Image by Alamy)

Viking ‘warrior women’: Judith Jesch, expert in Viking studies, examines the latest evidence. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Olivia Colman as Queen Anne in 'The Favourite'. (Photo by Twentieth Century Fox/Entertainment Pictures)

The Favourite: the real history behind the new Queen Anne film

Soon Gone: A Windrush Chronicle. (Image Credit: BBC/Douglas Road Productions/Carlton Dixon)

“A platform to ask ‘was it really like that?’”: Sir Lenny Henry on new Windrush drama

Danny Dyer’s Right Royal Family. (Image Credit: BBC/Wall to Wall Media/Jack Coathupe)

Danny Dyer is “making people think again” about history, say historians

Olivia Colman as Queen Anne in the film The Favourite, directed by Yorgos Lanthimos. (Photo by Alamy)

The true history of The Favourite. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

French writer Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette and husband Willy, photographed c1902. (Photo by Apic/Getty Images)

Who was the real Colette?

Queen Anne, based on a work by Sir Godfrey Kneller, c1702–10. Anne's reign saw women take centre stage in fierce political debates. (Photo by Bridgeman/National Trust Photographic Library)

Queen Anne's feuding favourites. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Bernard Cornwell. (Photo by Felix Clay)

Bernard Cornwell on The Last Kingdom. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Ross Poldark in London in the BBC's drama. The capital city was described in contemporary magazines and newspapers as the "vortex of dissipation", says Hannah Greig. (Image Credit: BBC/Mammoth Screen/Robert Viglasky)

From politics to pleasure gardens: the real history behind Poldark's 18th-century London. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

The American War of Independence: Three Films

Young women labour on a farm during the First World War. The radio series Home Front explores life in Britain during the conflict. (Photo by Popperfoto/Getty Images)

Sanitising the past: should historical drama reflect modern sensibilities?. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

World War One at home. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Rupert Everett as Oscar Wilde in 'The Happy Prince'. "The image of Wilde in Paris at the end of the 19th century is full of fantasy and sadness, tragedy and humour," says Everett. (Lionsgate)

The Happy Prince: Rupert Everett on Oscar Wilde's life in exile. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Winston Graham’s central relationship – between the gentlemanly Ross Poldark and Demelza Carne, an illiterate young kitchen maid – is highly unusual. But was there a real ‘Ross and Demelza’ in history? (Photo by Mammoth Screen/BBC)

Poldark series 3 recap – what happened and what is the real history behind the hit TV series?

The Vietnam War on film. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

The real history behind ‘The Crown’ with Robert Lacey. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

The history of today. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Charlie Chaplin, in a still from his 1936 film 'Modern Times’. (Photo by American Stock/Getty Images)

My history hero: Charlie Chaplin. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

The Sultanahmet district in Istanbul, Turkey, which is classified as World Heritage by UNESCO. (Photo by DOZIER Marc via Getty Images)

A new civilisation rises. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Radio Times cover, 1931. (Photo by Pictorial Press Ltd/Alamy Stock Photo)

Radio nation

Vikings on screen. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

‘Vikings’ creator Michael Hirst on the real history behind the hit drama. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

BBC Arabic at 80. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Journey’s End: behind the scenes of the new First World War film. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

What’s the real history behind ‘Britannia’?

The real history behind Victoria series two

'Darkest Hour': an interview with director Joe Wright. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Q&A: When were the first film trailers shown?

The real history behind ‘The White Princess’

In ‘Venus Uncovered’ on BBC Four, Wednesday 15 November at 9pm, Bettany Hughes investigates the mythological figure of Venus. (© Sandstone Global/Image by Tim Knight)

Bettany Hughes on the symbol of Venus