Looking for something to watch? Here are the best historical dramas, TV shows and films available to stream in the UK and US in 2022 – from binge-watchable period dramas to fascinating documentaries…
*All information correct at time of publication
Follow the links below to jump to the highlights in each section:
- Best history TV/documentaries/movies streaming on BBC iPlayer
- Best history TV/documentaries/movies streaming on other British TV services (BBC iPlayer/All 4)
Best history movies/documentaries/series on Netflix
- Best history movies to watch on Netflix
- Best history documentaries to watch on Netflix
- Best history TV shows and series to watch on Netflix
Best history movies/documentaries/series on Amazon Prime
- Best history movies to watch on Amazon Prime
- Best history documentaries to watch on Amazon Prime
- Best history TV shows and series to watch on Amazon Prime
Best history movies/documentaries/series on HBO
- Best history TV shows and series to watch on HBO
- Best history documentaries to watch on HBO
- Best history movies to watch on HBO
Best history movies/documentaries/series on Now
- Best history films to watch on Now
- Best history documentaries to watch on Now
- Best history TV shows and series to watch on Now
Other history streaming
- Best history series/documentaries/movies streaming on Hulu
- Best history films streaming on Apple TV
- Best history films and series streaming on Disney+
Best history TV/documentaries/movies streaming on BBC iPlayer
The Witchfinder (comedy series)
Written by brothers Neil and Rob Gibbons (This Time With Alan Partridge), The Witchfinder is a sitcom set in the England of 1647. It’s a time of civil war, plague and, in the form of the era’s infamous witch-hunts, misogyny. Still a chap’s got to make a living and so it is that the down-at-heel witchfinder of the show’s title, Gideon Bannister (Tim Key), arrives in the East Anglican village where unmarried Thomasine Gooch (Daisy May Cooper) has upset her neighbours and been accused of being a witch. With Gooch under Bannister’s charge, the duo set out across the unquiet countryside. Absurd misadventures ensue. Now streaming on BBC iPlayer
A Very British Scandal (drama series)
It was a divorce that scandalised and fascinated the country in equal measure. In 1963, the marriage between Ian Campbell, the 12th duke of Argyll, and glamorous socialite Margaret Sweeny, fell apart amidst lurid stories of infidelity on Margaret’s part, stories supported by Campbell finding sexually explicit photographs of his wife. It’s a divorce revisited here in a modern take on the story that shows Margaret (Claire Foy) as a heroic figure who, in the words of screenwriter Sarah Phelps, “set fire to the expectation of her class, gender and her sex rather than go quietly” when she found herself engulfed by scandal. Paul Bettany stars as Campbell. Now streaming on BBC iPlayer
Wolf Hall (drama series)
One of the finest historical dramas of recent years, the Wolf Hall (first broadcast in 2015) bears repeated revisiting. At its centre is an extraordinary performance from Mark Rylance as Thomas Cromwell, a lowborn man who, via the patronage of Thomas Wolsey (Jonathan Pryce), rises to become chief minister – although perhaps chief fixer might be a better description of his role – to an increasingly unpredictable and dangerous Henry VIII (Damian Lewis). Based on the first two novels in Hilary Mantel’s trilogy (Wolf Hall and Bring Up The Bodies), the series also charts the rise and fall of Anne Boleyn (Claire Foy). Now streaming on BBC iPlayer in the UK and Hoopla in the US
The Real Peaky Blinders (two-part documentary series)
An anti-hero for the ages, the fictional Tommy Shelby is a dangerously charming figure. However, as this two-part series explores, the real-life gangsters who once terrorised Britain’s inner-city communities weren’t nearly such good company. With a focus on the slums of Birmingham, The Real Peaky Blinders reaches back to the latter part of the 19th century as it uncovers how gangs emerged at a time of sectarian violence. Those offering their thoughts here include historian Professor Carl Chinn, whose work has done so much to promote understanding of historical gangland culture, and Steven Knight, creator of the Peaky Blinders TV series. Now streaming on BBC iPlayer
Digging For Britain (documentary series)
First aired in 2010, Digging For Britain rests on a straightforward premise, the idea that, for all the foul weather, mud and long hours of patient work involved, archaeology is inherently fascinating. It helps too of course that every year the series focuses in on those excavations that have radically changed our understanding of the past and/or made the most jaw-dropping discoveries – such as when archaeologists, working at a Buckinghamshire site through which the HS2 High Speed Rail link between London and Birmingham will one day run, dug at the ruin of a Norman church and uncovered spectacular Roman artefacts. Presented by Alice Roberts. Now streaming on BBC iPlayer in the UK and Hoopla in the US
Empire Of The Tsars: Romanov Russia With Lucy Worsley (documentary series)
If the past helps us to understand the present, it would currently seem wise to focus on Russia’s often troubled history. Empire Of The Tsars, first broadcast in 2016, may help here. It finds Lucy Worsley tracing the story of the Romanovs over 300 years. The series begins in 1613 when Mikhail Romanov, despite being aged just 16, was offered the crown of Russia. Peter the Great, Catherine the Great and the repelling of Napoleon all feature in a series that concludes by looking at how the Romanovs’ grip on power unravelled in the years leading up to 1918, when the Bolsheviks assassinated Nicholas II and his family. Now streaming on BBC iPlayer in the UK and Curiosity Stream in the US
Rise Of The Nazis (documentary series)
How did Adolf Hitler and his fanatical followers first seize and retain power in Germany? It’s a subject covered in depth in Rise Of The Nazis, which combines the insights of experts with dramatic recreations of key moments in history. The first three episodes, collectively entitled ‘Origins’, deal with the years between the two World Wars, and charts how the Nazis outmanoeuvred a political elite that despised them. The second tranche of episodes, ‘Dictators At War’, in truth deals less with the ascent of the Nazis than with the way the invasion of the USSR acted as a prelude to Germany’s defeat in the Second World War. Now streaming on BBC iPlayer in the UK and PBS in the US
Andy Warhol’s America (documentary series)
The life of Andy Warhol (1928–87) can be used as a prism through which to view the 20th-century history of the USA. So runs the premise of this series, which looks at Warhol in three distinct time periods. The first episode covers the artist’s working-class childhood in Pittsburgh, and how he made his name by both critiquing and celebrating American culture. The second episode looks at the 1960s, years when Warhol’s Factory was central to the story of American popular culture. The final programme shows Warhol as a man obsessed with money and security, something perhaps partly explained by his surviving an assassination attempt in 1968. Now streaming on BBC iPlayer
Call the Midwife (series)
Call the Midwife is one of the BBC’s flagship period dramas. Inspired by the memoirs of real-life midwife Jennifer Worth, the programme follows the lives of staff at an East London nursing convent during the late 1950s and, latterly, through the 1960s. Boasting a cast that includes Jenny Agutter, Helen George and Stephen McGann, the award-winning show paints a realistic picture of maternity care during Britain’s postwar baby boom, while also tackling gritty issues such as poverty, racism, domestic violence and abortion. All seasons now streaming on BBC iPlayer
Small Axe (anthology series)
Too often the Black British experience is treated as a kind of parallel history. One of the many triumphs of director Steve McQueen’s mesmerising anthology series is to remind us how the stories of Black Britons are intrinsic to wider British history. The first film in the sequence, Mangrove, which details an infamous trial that followed police harassment of a restaurant used by activists, rightly attracted rave reviews. Elsewhere, there’s considerable star power on view, including John Boyega (Star Wars) taking the lead in Red, White And Blue as Leroy Logan, a copper who bravely fought institutional racism in the Met from within. Now streaming on BBC iPlayer
Peaky Blinders (series)
The epic BBC gangster drama set in 1920s Birmingham has gone from cult viewing to worldwide hit. Inspired by the real-life Peaky Blinders – a criminal urban youth gang that operated in the city in the late 19th-century – the series follows the rise of gangster boss Tommy Shelby (played by Cillian Murphy). The fifth and final season takes the Shelbys’ story into the years after 1929, when the world is thrown into turmoil by the Great Depression. But that may not be quite the end. According to the show’s creator, Steven Knight, a big-screen movie may be in the works. The show offered the late Helen McCrory OBE, who played the matriarch of the Peaky Blinders, Aunt Polly, one of her defining roles. Now streaming on BBC iPlayer
A House Through Time
Almost all of live in homes that come to us second-hand. One result of this is that spaces we associate with privacy and intimacy are also spaces where we’re often aware of those who were here before us – and that makes many of us curious about the life stories of these former residents. A House Through Time plays off this curiosity by focusing on just one home per series. The latest episodes find presenter David Olusoga in Headingley, a leafy suburb of Leeds that was swallowed up during the Industrial Revolution, an era when the city, a centre for textiles production, expanded rapidly. Now streaming on BBC iPlayer
Thatcher: A Very British Revolution
Between 1979 and 1990, the Conservative governments led by Margaret Thatcher transformed Britain. But how did a grocer’s daughter, a political outsider best known as the “milk snatcher” after serving in the government of Edward Heath, ascend to become prime minister? And why was she ousted from power in 1990? It’s a story told here over five episodes in a series featuring interviews with many of those who were in the Iron Lady’s inner circle. Along the way, the series explores such subjects as how Thatcher faced down critics in her own cabinet, the decision to go to war over the Falkland Islands and the miners’ strike. Now streaming on BBC iPlayer
Art Of Persia
Since the Islamic revolution in 1979, the authorities in Iran have rarely allowed western documentary teams to film in the country. One result has been that few of us are as familiar with Iran’s deeper culture and history as we might be. Here’s a series that does much to redress this as broadcaster and journalist Samira Ahmed travels in the country and gains rare access to historical sites. Along the way, she details how the Persian Empire was born, explores how the country’s distinct culture survived Arab conquest, and learns how a golden age of Persian poetry and art emerged during the Safavid dynasty era. Now streaming on BBC iPlayer
My Family, The Holocaust And Me
When Robert Rinder appeared on Who Do You Think You Are?, the Holocaust was an almost constant presence as the barrister and TV presenter traced the stories both of relatives who survived and those who were murdered. The episode provoked an extraordinary response from viewers. It also led to this two-part documentary being commissioned. It finds Rinder continuing his research into his own often tragic family history. In addition, it follows the personal journeys of Britons who, to quote psychologist Bernie Graham, were born into “a state of bereavement” because of the way the Holocaust cast a shadow over their lives. Now streaming on BBC iPlayer
Mrs. America (series)
Author and activist Phyllis Schlafly (1924–2016) was a conservative who doggedly fought the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment to the US Constitution in the 1970s, legislation that would have offered women protection from discrimination. The contradictions of such an intelligent, formidable and self-starting campaigner, a woman who herself often had to battle sexism, pitting herself against the leading lights of American feminism are explored in a series that stars Cate Blanchett as Schlafly. Those on the other side of the argument include writer and feminist leader Gloria Steinem, played with a waspish intensity by Rose Byrne. Streaming now on BBC iPlayer
Black Power: A British Story Of Resistance (documentary)
A companion piece to the dramas in Steve McQueen’s Small Axe season, and in particular Mangrove, this documentary tells the story of Britain’s Black Power movement in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Its leaders included the likes of writer Darcus Howe, scientist Altheia Jones-LeCointe and the activist Olive Morris, figures who emerge vividly from the past. Directed by George Amponsah, this is a documentary rich in archive material that deserves to be more widely seen and which has much to say not just about how we got to now, but about how racism endures in contemporary Britain. Streaming now on BBC iPlayer.
Black and British: A Forgotten History (documentary series)
First shown in 2016, David Olusoga’s series charts the relationship between Britain and those whose origins lie in Africa. This is a story that goes back further in time than many may imagine. African-Roman legionaries, we learn in the first of four episodes, once guarded Hadrian’s Wall. In other episodes, Olusoga tells the stories of some of the black sailors who fought at Trafalgar, explores Victorian attitudes towards slavery and, closer to our own time, charts the experiences of those who arrived as part of the Windrush generation. Olusoga’s Britain’s Forgotten Slave Owners is also available to stream via iPlayer. Streaming now via BBC iPlayer and via BritBox in the US
Best history TV/documentaries/movies streaming on other British TV services
Deutschland 89 (series)
The German-American Cold War spy drama reaches its third and final series, set in the year the Berlin Wall fell. Not every East German, we’re reminded, welcomed this momentous moment. For many of those working for the Stasi, there was a sudden imperative to cover their tracks and even hide horrors. Jonas Nay heads the cast as Martin Rauch, an ex-intelligence officer who is forced to return to his former employment as a double agent. Expect an atmospheric evocation of the past. Newbies may be better off working their way through Deutschland 83 and Deutschland 86 first. Now streaming on All 4, and available on Hulu in the US
Jungle Mystery: Lost Kingdoms Of The Amazon (series)
For many years, received wisdom, at least outside South America, suggested the Amazon rainforest had long been, in human terms, sparsely inhabited. This was despite an account by the Spanish Dominican missionary Gaspar de Carvajal (c1500–1584), who travelled the Amazon and wrote of seeing large cities and other evidence of an advanced civilisation on the great river’s banks. Sadly, as palaeoarchaeologist and explorer Ella Al-Shamahi explores in this excellent series, diseases imported from Europe decimated the local population. Over three episodes, cameras follow Al-Shamahi as she travels in South America in search of evidence to tell us how these forgotten peoples lived. Now streaming on All 4
It’s A Sin (series)
It’s 1981, and Ritchie, Roscoe and Colin begin new lives in London. Each, in their way, is searching for freedom in the capital at a time when, as gay men, they face overt prejudice But a mysterious new illness is causing unexplained deaths. The Aids epidemic has begun. Following the interweaving stories of the boys and their friends over the next decade, Russell T Davies’ acclaimed drama It’s A Sin, which landed during lockdown to become All4’s most binged show ever, is funny and touching without ever trivialising the tragedy we see inexorably unfolding. Olly Alexander leads a superb ensemble cast. Now streaming on All 4
The Great British Dig: History In Your Garden (documentary series)
When it comes to excavating certain areas of the United Kingdom, community archaeology is really the only way forward. That’s because so many historically important sites in the country have either been continuously occupied, or built upon after earlier structures have fallen into disrepair. Still, as the success of The Great British Dig proves, many people are happy for their gardens or community spaces to be dug over in the name of curiosity and historical research. It probably helps too to have presenter Hugh Dennis of Outnumbered fame on hand, a man whose good humour consistently shines through, when embarking on such projects. Now streaming on All4
The Architecture the Railways Built (documentary series)
Tim Dunn likes railways a lot, an enthusiasm he conveys so vividly that in itself it greatly explains why this series has become cult viewing. More seriously, Dunn, who is especially good on the Victorian era, is adept at explaining how the railways have transformed our lives down the years. It’s a subject he approaches through the buildings associated with trains – not just stations but viaducts, signal boxes, tunnels, pedestrian walkways, workshops and railway hotels.
Streaming now via UKTV Play
Britain’s Most Historic Towns (documentary series)
In a series based on an elegantly simple idea, Alice Roberts explores Britain’s history by focusing on a town or city that encapsulates a particular era. When it comes to Roman times, for example, she heads for Chester while York is her destination when Roberts wants to tell the story of Viking Britain. There’s a certain amount of dressing up and larking around involved, but the series is nonetheless revealing as, for example, she explores how Oxford lay at the heart of a battle for control of England played out between an autocratic monarch and parliament during the Civil War. Streaming via All4 in the UK and via Pluto in the US
Guy Martin’s D-Day Landing (documentary)
Even when he’s telling us he’s having fun, Guy Martin often looks vaguely worried. As well he might considering his documentaries inevitably involve an element of personal risk. This documentary, made to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day, is a case in point. It follows the mechanic as he helps to restore a Dakota transport plane, an aircraft once used to ferry paratroopers into Normandy, soldiers who landed at night ahead of the seaborne invasion. Martin also meets some of those who did this and trains with the Red Devils as he himself prepares to leap from the sky into France. Streaming now via All4 in the UK
The Six Wives Of Henry VIII (documentary series)
Divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived. The story of Henry VIII’s multiple marriages is, at least in outline, familiar to many of us. Yet how much do we really know about, for example, the Tudor monarch’s reasons for selecting those he wed? In a series first broadcast back in 2001, David Starkey, then a comparative newcomer to television, explores Henry’s reign through the prism of these marriages. In the process, he offers a rich and detailed portrait of life in Henry’s court and, in showing events from the women’s perspectives, brings Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn and those who followed them vividly to life. Streaming via All4 in the UK, and BritBox in the US
Time Team (documentary series)
There are shows that it’s easy to take for granted, especially when they play out over multiple seasons. Time Team is a case in point, an archaeology series that first transmitted back in 1994 and eventually ran for 20 years. Some 96 of these episodes are currently available to stream for free via the All4 website in the UK, in addition to various specials. Once you’ve got over the shock of how young Tony Robinson looks, the programme has dated well, principally because it’s fascinating to see professional bonediggers at work. It’s also instructive to see how the field of archaeology has developed through these years. Streaming via All4 in the UK and Amazon in the US
Downfall (film)
It’s easy to forget how shocking the very idea of this drama based on Hitler’s final days seemed back in 2004. This was the first German screen portrayal of the Führer for 50 years. That it’s come to be seen as a hugely important drama is in great part down to the late Bruno Ganz, who plays Hitler as a man sick with Parkinson’s disease, raging at what’s happening and yet utterly unable to take responsibility for what’s become of his country. Directed by Oliver Hirschbiegel, the film is also horribly claustrophobic as we follow events playing out in a Berlin soon to fall to the Red Army. Now streaming on Hoopla in the US
Best history shows and series to watch on Netflix
Bridgerton (series)
Streamed by 82 million households worldwide, Bridgerton has found an audience far exceeding the numbers usually drawn to bonnets-and-breeches fiction. In part, that’s because its portrait of high society during the Regency era is unapologetically escapist – and frequently steamy. But the casting has been key to its success too, in that here is an alternate-history period drama that shows London as racially integrated. The second season focuses on the eldest Bridgerton, Anthony (Jonathan Bailey), who decides it’s time he married. Cue complications when the efforts of Kate Sharma (Simone Ashley) to stop Anthony courting her sister, Edwina (Charithra Chandran), put Kate in close proximity to a man she regards as a rake. Now streaming on Netflix – Season 2 arrives on 25 March
Bridgerton: everything you need to know
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Against The Ice (drama)
In 1909, Danish explorer Ejnar Mikkelsen (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) set out on an expedition across Greenland. His aim was to prove that Greenland was not, as some maintained, two islands separated by a body of water known as the Peary Channel. This in turn would help to counter an American claim to the north-east of the territory. It would prove to be a brutal journey, one that culminated in Mikkelsen being forced to spend a long winter in the wilds of the north. This atmospheric drama charts Mikkelsen’s adventures and his friendship with his companion on the ice, rookie mariner Iver Iversen (Joe Cole). Now streaming on Netflix in the UK and US
Vikings: Valhalla (drama series)
Set a century after the conclusion of Vikings, this similarly visceral swords-and-seafaring sequel follows a new collection of mariner-warrior Norsemen and Norsewomen. Chief among them is Leif Erikson (Sam Corlett), a figure from the Icelandic sagas who is reputed to have been the first European to set foot on continental North America, where he established the settlement of Vinland, hundreds of years before Christopher Columbus crossed the Atlantic. His headstrong sister, Freydís Eiríksdóttir (Frida Gustavsson), and an ambitious prince, Harald Sigurdsson (aka Harald Hardrada, Leo Suter), also feature strongly. Set in the early 11th century, the first series begins with tensions high in England, a prelude to violence. Now streaming on Netflix in the UK and US
Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution (feature-length documentary)
Don’t be put off by the deliberately provocative title. Nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Documentary Feature category, Crip Camp traces the disability rights movement of the 1970s and 1980s to Camp Jened. This was a summer camp for disabled people in the Catskill Mountains, New York State. From the late 1960s, it was also a place where hippy-tinged, countercultural values held sway, and many found a sense of freedom and belonging – and the confidence to become campaigners. They included filmmaker James LeBrecht, born with spina bifida, whose memories inspired Crip Camp when he told his co-director, Nicole Newnham, about Jened. Now streaming on Netflix in the UK and US
Barbarians (series)
The battle of the Teutoburg Forest of 9AD represented one of the Roman empire’s most humbling defeats. But what happened in the lead-up to a day when Germanic forces, led by Arminius, who had trained as a Roman soldier, ambushed and slaughtered three Roman legions and their auxiliaries? This German drama, which can be viewed with subtitles or dubbed into English, traces the story of how Germanic resistance to Rome coalesced. A series for fans of The Last Kingdom and Vikings in that, for all it’s frequently violent, Barbarians tells its story with energy and even a little wit. Now streaming on Netflix
The Queen’s Gambit (series)
Yes, the idea of a hit drama about a chess prodigy orphan with addiction issues does seem unlikely. However, it’s probably worth noting that not only is Queen’s Gambit based on a 1983 novel by Walter Tevis (The Hustler, The Color Of Money, The Man Who Fell To Earth) but this TV adaptation never outstays its welcome, telling its story over seven tightly scripted episodes. Anya Taylor-Joy stars as Beth Harmon, who first starts to pop pills as a child in the 1950s, a time when children in orphanages were routinely given tranquillisers, but who is determined to make the most of her talents. Streaming now on Netflix
The Liberator (series)
Filmed in Trioscope, a technique that fuses live-action with animation, the visual style of Second World War drama The Liberator gives it a distinctive look and feel. But get beyond the (possibly off-putting) novelty of its visuals and this is a drama that’s well worth a look. At the centre of its story lies the real-life figure of infantry officer Felix ‘Shotgun’ Sparks (Bradley James). Rising to take charge of the 3rd Battalion, 157th Infantry Regiment, he was a man who fought in such famously brutal bloody encounters as the battle of Anzio and the battle of the Bulge. Streaming now on Netflix
Babylon Berlin (series)
With a budget of €40 million, which reportedly ballooned to €55 million with reshoots, Babylon Berlin is said to be the most expensive TV series ever made in Germany. If that’s true, the money certainly wasn’t wasted because it’s an extraordinary drama that vividly brings to life the nervy, paranoid interwar world of the Weimar Republic era. Strong performances abound, especially from Volker Bruch as Inspector Gereon Rath, copper and First World War combat veteran who struggles with PTSD. As for the plotting, it’s knotty – do pay close attention. A fourth series, set in the winter of 1930 and 1931. has been filmed and is due to transmit in 2022. Now streaming on Netflix in the US
Kingdom (series)
As a supernatural thriller based on a web-comic series – and with a plot based around the idea of a mysterious plague – you would hesitate to call Kingdom a historical drama per se. Nevertheless, it’s fascinating for the way it explores Korea’s story in the late 16th century, when the Japanese invaded the peninsula. Expect gore, as its 18-certificate suggests. A feature-length episode, Kingdom: Ashin Of The North, is also available to stream. Now streaming on Netflix
The Last Kingdom (series)
While it’s doubtful whether any TV series could encompass the knottiness and epic sweep of Bernard Cornwell’s Saxon Stories novels, The Last Kingdom comes mighty close as it plays out over five series. At the centre of the action is Uhtred of Bebbanburg, aka Uhtred Ragnarsson, an Anglo-Saxon raised as a Dane, and a warrior present at key battles during an era when England was coalescing into a single nation. While production of the series has now wrapped, Netflix has commissioned a movie set in the same fictional timeline, Seven Kings Must Die, which star Alexander Dreymon says will be “an epic end to a wonderful journey”. Now streaming on Netflix
The Last Kingdom: everything you need to know
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Hollywood (series)
Created by Ryan Murphy (Glee, Pose), Hollywood looks back at Tinseltown’s golden age in the wake of the Second World War. Its focus is largely on those struggling to make it in an unforgiving town and there’s much here about just how far people will go to find success. In the case of Jack Castello (David Corenswet), for example, this means working as a male escort as he searches around for a break as an actor. A drama that mixes in real-life characters, and often shows them in a less than flattering light, but is perhaps in the end nevertheless too glossy for its own good. Now streaming on Netflix
Mindhunter (series)
A dark historical crime series directed in part by David Fincher, this Netflix original is a tense 10-episode dramatisation of the FBI’s forays into criminal profiling in the late 1970s. Much of the show is based on a true crime book by John E Douglas who, during the 1970s and 80s, gained a reputation as a serial killer ‘whisperer’. A former hostage negotiator, Douglas worked with notorious criminals including Charles Manson, Ted Bundy and Edmund Kemper, and the slow-burning show explores how steps were first taken to interview perpetrators of hideous crimes in order to gain knowledge about criminal psychology. Now streaming on Netflix
Outlander (series)
Based on the novels of Diana Gabaldon and developed for television by Ronald D Moore (Battlestar Galactica), Outlander is both historical drama and time-travel fantasy romance. At its centre lies Claire Randall (Caitriona Balfe), a former Second World War nurse who finds herself transported from 1946 to the Scotland of 1743, where she meets a handsome Highland warrior, Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan) and finds herself caught up in the Jacobite risings. The BBC’s Poldark, a series that perhaps takes a less fantastical approach to the actual history, is an apposite comparison; they are both perfect for escapist binge-viewing. Season five (2020) dealt with the Regulator movement, while season six recently launched. Now streaming on Netflix in the US
Patria (documentary)
The years between 1854 and 1867, argues Paco Ignacio Taibo II, are crucial to understanding contemporary Mexico. As the award-winning writer notes in a feature-length documentary, these were years when the “country rattled”. Events certainly proceeded at a breakneck pace as, following the exile of Antonio López de Santa Anna, who served as president a dozen times and previously dominated politics, the country entered an era of coups, counter-revolutions and foreign intervention. It’s a history with which many outside the country will be unfamiliar, and one told by Taibo with plenty of visits to historic sites, pace and no little wit. Streaming now on Netflix
Peaky Blinders (series)
The epic BBC gangster drama set in 1920s Birmingham has gone from cult viewing to worldwide hit. Inspired by the real-life Peaky Blinders – a criminal urban youth gang that operated in the city in the late 19th-century – the series follows the rise of gangster boss Tommy Shelby (played by Cillian Murphy). The fifth and final season takes the Shelbys’ story into the years after 1929, when the world is thrown into turmoil by the Great Depression. But that may not be quite the end. According to the show’s creator, Steven Knight, a big-screen movie may be in the works. The show offered the late Helen McCrory OBE, who played the matriarch of the Peaky Blinders, Aunt Polly, one of her defining roles. Now streaming on Netflix
Poldark (series)
Set in 18th-century Cornwall, this BBC adaptation of Winston Graham’s novels follows the trials and tribulations of a young Ross Poldark. Upon returning from the American War of Independence, Poldark is devastated to learn that his father is dead; his sweetheart is engaged to his cousin and his copper and tin mine is failing.
The hugely popular BBC One drama starring Aidan Turner (as Poldark) and Eleanor Tomlinson (as Demelza) draws inspiration from Winston Graham’s 12 novels, which were written between 1945 and 2002. The show’s historical adviser Hannah Greig told HistoryExtra: “Although Poldark’s characters are fictional, Winston Graham drew inspiration for his stories from wide-ranging historical research and these new characters capture yet more facets of everyday 18th-century life and the place of ordinary people whose experiences might otherwise be lost to history.” Now streaming on Netflix in the UK and Amazon Prime in the US
Ripper Street (series)
Ripper Street is one of those series that, after recurring problems with its financing, and being cancelled at different points by the BBC and Amazon, seemed to end with more of a whisper than a bang. Shame, because over five series and 37 episodes (2012–16), it was consistently excellent, a Gothic Victorian crime drama that on occasion sends proper shivers down the spine. Set in Whitechapel shortly after the last of the Jack the Ripper murders, the cast included Matthew Macfadyen as haunted copper Edmund Reid, Jerome Flynn as taciturn police enforcer Bennet Drake and MyAnna Buring as brothel madam ‘Long’ Susan Hart. Now streaming on Netflix in the US and Amazon Prime in the UK and Hoopla in the US
Medici: The Magnificent (series)
Playing out over three series (the first called Masters of Florence), this Italian-British drama focused on the Medici banking dynasty returns. The third and final series concluded the story of Lorenzo the Magnificent (Daniel Sherman), de facto leader of the Republic of Florence at the height of the Renaissance, a man who was a patron to the likes of Botticelli and Michelangelo. Not that Lorenzo’s life was all messing around with an appreciation of paint and perspective. The final episodes found him dealing with the aftermath of the Pazzi conspiracy, aimed at displacing the Medici family, and setting out on a potentially perilous diplomatic mission. Now streaming on Netflix in the UK and US
The Crown (series)
No list of popular historical TV series on Netflix would be complete without a mention of its ever-popular show The Crown. The sumptuous royal drama has explored the intricacies of the Windsors over four series so far, providing an engrossing portrait of the Windsors and covering events including the Suez crisis, the Aberfan disaster, and the marriage of Prince Charles and Diana Spencer. The story follows the life of Queen Elizabeth II and her family over several decades, charting the personal and political challenges facing the Queen’s reign as well as the intricate family dramas going on behind the scenes. There have been cast changes along the as the royal family ‘ages up’. A must-watch for royal enthusiasts and those who enjoy British history. The fifth and final season of The Crown looks likely to transmit in November2022. Now streaming on Netflix in the US and UK
Now streaming on Netflix in the US and UK
Cursed (series)
Arthurian myth, it seems, is endlessly open to reinvention. This latest take on the genre stars Katherine Langford as Nimue, a young heroine with mysterious gifts whose life trajectory (mild spoiler alert) may have something to do with destiny and becoming the Lady of the Lake. Meantime, the series follows Nimue, in the company of a young mercenary called Arthur, on a quest to locate Merlin and deliver a sword. Co-created byFrank Miller (Sin City) and writer/producer Tom Wheeler (Puss In Boots), the 10-part series promises to explore themes such as religious terror and the destruction of the natural world. Streaming now on Netflix
Self-made (mini-series)
Inspired by the real story of Madam C J Walker, Self Made charts the life of the first ‘self made’ female millionaire in the US. It is a true rags-to-riches tale: Walker, born Sarah Breedlove, rose from poverty to create a vastly successful haircare business at a time when jobs for women (and specifically black women) were somewhat limited. As this series reveals, Walker wasn’t just an astute business woman, she was also a passionate activist and philanthropist – but faced a number of challenges on her way to the top. Now streaming on Netflix
When They See Us (series)
In April 1989, a white female jogger, later identified as Trisha Meili, was found in critical condition in Manhattan’s Central Park. She was so badly injured following her assault and rape that she remained in a coma for 12 days. Five young black defendants found themselves falsely accused of the crime and would each spend years in jail. A righteously angry, powerful drama that highlights the institutional racism that led to their convictions, and which also explores the difficulties of beginning anew. Streaming now on Netflix, along with Oprah Winfrey Presents: When They See Us Now, featuring an interview with the wrongly convicted men
The English Game (mini-series)
Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes has been busy of late. Not only is his ITV drama Belgravia arriving on our screens imminently, but there’s also this new six-part mini-series, which focuses on football – soccer if you must – in the 1870s. Class conflict is a recurring theme, with Edward Holcroft (Wolf Hall) playing Lord Kinnaird, who played in nine FA Cup finals between 1873 and 1883 with amateur sides Wanderers and Old Etonians. The new era of professional sport is embodied in the figure of Fergus Suter (Kevin Guthrie), a Glaswegian stonemason who wanted to be paid to play. Now streaming on Netflix
La Révolution (drama series)
The events surrounding the overthrow of the monarchy in France might seem quite dramatic enough not to need too much embellishment, but that’s to reckon without the needs of episodic television. The premise for this expensive-looking French Netflix series is that the future inventor of the guillotine – a device used in the execution of, among others, Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette – uncovers a disease that drives the aristocracy to murder common folk. An alternate and horror-tinged take on late 18th-century history. Young actor Amir El Kacem leads the cast. Now streaming on Netflix
Halston (Netflix drama series)
Roy Halston Frowick (1932–90) was one of America’s most influential fashion designers, whose creations included the pillbox hat that Jacqueline Kennedy wore to her husband’s inauguration. Subsequently, Halston’s clothes, which typically mixed clean lines with luxurious fabrics, would do much to define the look of the 1970s and 1980s. In a biopic series executive produced by Ryan Murphy (Glee, Pose), Ewan McGregor stars as a man who was famous enough to be known only by his surname, yet who endured business setbacks and drugs issues prior to his death from an Aids-related illness. Now streaming on Netflix
Best history documentaries to watch on Netflix
Amend: The Fight For America (documentary series)
Ratified in 1868, the Fourteenth Amendment of the US Constitution granted citizenship to “all persons born or naturalized in the United States”. Three years after end of the Civil War, here was legal protection of the rights of emancipated slaves – and indeed all Americans. But even rights enshrined in law have to be fought for and protected. This six-part documentary, co-presented by Will Smith, explores how the ideals enshrined in the Fourteenth Amendment have influenced subsequent American history. Featuring readings from the Hollywood A-list likes of Mahershala Ali, Diane Lane and Samuel L Jackson. Now streaming on Netflix
Age Of Samurai: Battle For Japan (drama-documentary series)
It’s said that, as a child, the 16th-century warlord Date Masamune plucked out his own smallpox-blinded eye. Whether this story is true or not, the fact that it’s passed down the years gives an idea of just how tough he must have been. It’s also said his ‘kabuto’ helmet helped inspire the costume of Darth Vader in Star Wars. If that all sounds like catnip to a certain stripe of filmmaker, you’re not wrong, and this series puts Masamune and those he fought at the centre of events as it looks back to when competing clans struggled for control of feudal Japan. Now streaming on Netflix
Pelé (documentary)
Ferenc Puskás, a man who scored 84 goals in 85 internationals for Hungary, once declared that his teammate at Real Madrid, Alfredo Di Stéfano, was the “greatest player in history”. However, there was a caveat. “I refuse to classify Pelé as a player,” said Puskás. “He was above that.” Such otherworldly talent enabled Pelé, who played Brazil at four World Cups and scored in the finals of 1958 and 1970, to become a major figure in his country’s turbulent 20th-century history. This documentary, featuring interviews with the great man himself, charts the years when Pelé became football’s first global superstar. Now streaming on Netflix
Bobby Kennedy for President (documentary series)
On 6 June 1968, in Los Angeles where he was on the campaign trail to be the Democratic presidential candidate, Bobby Kennedy was targeted by a Palestinian gunman, Sirhan Sirhan, and murdered. Following soon after the April assassination of Martin Luther King Jr, it’s a tragedy that’s come to be seen as one of the days when the idealism of the 1960s also perished. This four-part documentary series traces Kenned’s trajectory through the decade, taking in his work on his brother’s campaigns, JFK’s death, Bobby’s championing of civil rights. It also looks at events in the aftermath of the killing. Now streaming on Netflix
Challenger: The Final Flight (documentary series)
On 28 January 1986, the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded as the world looked on. The tragedy occurred just 73 seconds into its tenth mission. All seven crew members died. What went wrong and could the accident have been prevented? This four-part documentary series explores a story of an institutional failure to tackle a known technological problem. It’s a story given added poignancy by the presence onboard the spacecraft of Christa McAuliffe, a civilian schoolteacher chosen because NASA wanted to promote interest in its work amongst students. Engineers, officials and the crew’s family members are among those offering their perspective. Now streaming on Netflix
Mercury 13 (documentary)
When Nasa launched its programme to select astronauts, it focused on recruiting military test pilots, in part because these men had already undergone rigorous testing and training. But what if Nasa’s intake had been different? This documentary offers a glimpse of what might have been as it traces the experiences of a baker’s dozen of female flyers. These were pilots who, in a privately funded initiative launched with the support of William Randolph Lovelace II, chairman of the Nasa Special Advisory Committee on Life Science, subjected themselves to the physical tests their male counterparts also undertook, only to find themselves denied the opportunity of further training. Now streaming on Netflix
13th (documentary)
In 1865, the Thirteenth Amendment to the US Constitution abolished both slavery and involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for a crime. In other words, nobody could be forced to work except prisoners. It’s an idea taken up by director Ava DuVernay (Selma) in this documentary charting the history of what’s been dubbed ‘the US prison-industrial complex’, which has developed since the 1970s as the country’s prison population has increased (while at the same time as crime rates have declined). It all makes for a righteously angry piece of filmmaking as DuVernay also explores the history of post-American Civil War racist legislation from an economic perspective. Now streaming on Netflix
Five Came Back (documentary)
In the wake of the USA entering the Second World War, Hollywood swung into action to support the war effort. Leading directors John Ford, William Wyler, John Huston, Frank Capra and George Stevens enlisted in the armed forces to document the war, ultimately crafting documentaries that we should (probably) see as propaganda pieces. They are, however, brilliantly made pieces of film – as contemporary directors including Steven Spielberg (discussing Wyler) and Paul Greengrass (Ford) attest in this documentary exploring works including Ford’s The Battle Of Midway(1942). Meryl Streep narrates – and many of the original films featured in the series are also available to stream via Netflix. Now streaming on Netflix
The Vietnam War (documentary series)
The historical documentaries of American director Ken Burns have won him an international reputation, but even by his own considerable standards, The Vietnam War stands out. Made with long-time collaborator Lynn Novick, it’s a 10-part series that takes us back in time to trace just how the US came to be involved in the country before taking viewers through the major campaigns and onwards to the ignominious American withdrawal from the country. Importantly, Vietnamese voices feature throughout and there’s a strong sense of the filmmakers going back over the historical record to grapple with what happened rather than accepting narratives imposed after the event. Now streaming on Hoopla in the US
We interviewed Lynn Novick about the series for our podcast back in 2018. You can still listen here:
Fear City: New York vs The Mafia (documentary series)
In the 1970s and 1980s, New York wasn’t the largely gentrified city of today. This was a decade when the city, which suffered a fiscal crisis, was synonymous with violence. It was also a time when organised crime – and, in particular, five Italian-American Mafia families – exerted a destructive influence on day-to-day life. But the passing of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act in 1970 had given the authorities new powers to bring down mobsters. As this new series explores, the authorities now had the power to target not just Mafia foot soldiers, but those who directed them. Now streaming on Netflix
High On The Hog: How African-American Cuisine Transformed America (cooking series)
Yes, this is a cookery series, but it’s one that delves into the past as food writer Stephen Satterfield tells a story that takes in slavery, the American Civil War and Juneteenth, the holiday celebrating the emancipation of those who had previously been enslaved. The first of four documentaries, Our Roots, gives an idea of what to expect as Satterfield heads for bustling Dantokpa Market in Benin. Here, he meets Jessica B Harris, culinary historian author of the book on which the series is based, and the two investigate the deeper roots of African-American cuisine. The show has been renewed for a second season. Now streaming on Netflix
Roman Empire (Netflix docudrama series)
It certainly isn’t the most subtle evocation of the past, but Roman Empire doesn’t want for spectacle and incident. Each of its three series focuses on a specific story from Roman times, beginning with Commodus: Reign of Blood (narrated by Sean Bean), the tale an emperor who outraged and disgusted his contemporaries by performing as a gladiator. Julius Caesar: Master of Rome tells of the general’s rise and eventual assassination at a time when the great and good competed violently for power; while The Mad Emperor charts the reign of Caligula, whose name has become associated with sadism, corruption and sexual perversity. Now streaming on Netflix
I Am Not Your Negro (documentary)
When he died, James Baldwin (1924–87) left behind the unfinished manuscript and notes for Remember This House. This was his personal memoir of Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr and the less-celebrated Medgar Evers, who was gunned down by a segregationist in Jackson, Mississippi in 1963. Raoul Peck’s Academy Award-nominated documentary (2016) uses Baldwin’s words, narrated by Samuel L Jackson, to take us back to some of the most vivid and dangerous years of the civil rights struggle. The documentary also serves another important function, to remind us that Baldwin was a figure whose meditations on racism and American history still carry huge weight today. Now streaming on Netflix in the US
- Malcolm X: Activism, assassination and how he predicted his own death
- “I have a dream”: the story of Martin Luther King’s struggle for civil rights in America
- From Rosa Parks to Martin Luther King: the boycott that inspired the dream
Best history movies to watch on Netflix
A Call To Spy (film)
Female agents with the Special Operations Executive (SOE) played a vital role in the Allied war effort during the Second World War. The women who served faced not just the risks inherent in going behind enemy lines, but had to contend with sexism from male colleagues along the way. Written by Sarah Megan Thomas and directed by Lydia Dean Pilcher, A Call To Spy, based on a true story, charts the experiences of some of those who served: Romanian-born “spymistress” Vera Atkins (Thomas); Virginia Hall (Stana Katic), an adventurous American who had a wooden leg; and Indian-Muslim pacifist Noor Inayat Khan (Radhika Apte). Streaming now on Netflix and available on Showtime in US via Fubo
Dance Of The 41 (film)
It was a scandal that rocked Mexico. In November 1901, police conducted an illegal raid on a private home in Mexico City where a party was taking place. Of the gay men in attendance, half were in drag and all were from the higher echelons of society. Despite official efforts to hush up what had happened, the press were keenly interested, the first time the Mexican media had talked so openly about homosexuality. Alfonso Herrera stars as Ignacio de la Torre y Mier, the son-in-law of Mexico’s president, who in real life was rumoured to have been in attendance at the party. Now streaming on Netflix
Emma (film)
Rather lost on its cinema release in early 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic, this version of Jane Austen’s acerbic Regency romcom is a delight. Scripted by novelist Eleanor Catton, it stars Anya Taylor-Joy, whose Emma Woodhouse is cool and detached even by the standards of a character Austen hardly portrayed as warm. It’s probably just as well that longtime acquaintance George Knightley (Johnny Flynn) won’t take any nonsense. Directed by Autumn de Wilde, famed for her photography and music videos, this Emma looks fantastic, and a sterling supporting cast includes Miranda Hart, Bill Nighy and Rupert Graves. Streaming on Netflix in the UK
Little Women (film)
The sisters are most definitely doing it for themselves in writer-director Greta Gerwig’s multiple Oscar-nominated take on Louisa May Alcott’s classic novel set in the aftermath of the American Civil War. Saoirse Ronan leads the cast as Josephine ‘Jo’ March, a fiercely opinionated aspiring writer and one of four sisters raised in genteel poverty. In the supporting cast, the likes of Emma Watson, Florence Pugh and, as wealthy and wilfully difficult Aunt March, Meryl Streep all make the most of their screen time. A generous and big-hearted drama that explores themes of sibling rivalry, grief and the need for independence. Streaming on Netflix in the UK and Direct TV in the US
News Of The World (film)
It’s five years after the end of the American Civil War and a former Confederate infantryman, Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd (Tom Hanks), makes his living as a storyteller, spreading news of the wider world out in frontier towns. But Kidd’s lonely life changes forever when he crosses paths with a 10-year-old, Johanna (Helena Zengel), who has spent years living with the Kiowa people. Co-written and directed by Paul Greengrass (United 93, Captain Phillips) from Paulette Jiles’ novel, a Western that blends elements of The Outlaw Josey Wales, True Grit and The Searchers to fine effect. Now streaming on Netflix in the UK and HBO in the US
Gladiator (film)
Easy to forget now, but the sword-and-sandals epic was something of a joke movie genre when Ridley Scott set to work on Gladiator. The payoff for Scott’s faith in the project was the second-highest grossing film of 2000 (behind Mission: Impossible 2) and five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and, for Russell Crowe, Best Actor. If you’ve not seen it for a while, Gladiator is well worth revisiting, both because it evokes the world of the Romans so vividly via then groundbreaking CGI techniques, and because Crowe brings a mesmerising mix of anger and angst to Maximus Decimus Meridius, a warrior forced into slavery. Streaming now on Netflix in the UK
The Dig
The discovery of an undisturbed ship burial at Sutton Hoo in Suffolk gave the world both spectacular artefacts and new insights into the Anglo-Saxon era. As this drama adapted from John Preston’s novel explores, it was an excavation largely undertaken by a self-taught archaeologist, Basil Brown, who began work on the eve of the Second World War at the behest of landowner Edith Pretty. Taking a few dramatic liberties, The Dig is an understated and melancholy film, but one with subtle central performances from Carey Mulligan and Ralph Fiennes. It’s also a film that beautifully conveys an appreciation of the landscape in which it’s set. Streaming now on Netflix
The Forgotten Battle
In the autumn of 1944, the Allies needed to open up the shipping route to Antwerp in order to supply troops fighting their way through north-west Europe. But to secure access to the port, the Allies had to overcome resistant from well-established Wehrmacht troops. This would take five weeks and cost 12,873 Allied casualties, including more than 6,000 Canadians. The Forgotten Battle, one of the most expensive films ever produced in the Netherlands, follows what came to be known as the battle of the Scheldt from the perspective of a British glider pilot, a Dutch Axis soldier and a resistance operative. Streaming now on Netflix
Outlaw King (film)
In the constant battle to keep up with what everyone else is watching, it can be easy to overlook films and series that you missed when they were first released. Reason enough in itself to recommend Outlaw King. Directed by Scottish filmmaker David Mackenzie, it revisits the story of Robert the Bruce (1274–1329) – and attracted much comment back in 2018 for a full-frontal scene featuring its star, Chris Pine. Scenes recreating the battle of Loudoun Hill are spectacular, but there’s much else to admire here too, including a taut script and a strong performance from Florence Pugh as Bruce’s queen consort, Elizabeth de Burgh. Now streaming on Netflix
The Wind Rises (animated film)
The inclusion of Japanese animation powerhouse Studio Ghibli’s back catalogue on Netflix reveals flight as a recurring theme, notably in the movies of co-founder Hayao Miyazaki. Nowhere is this more true than in Miyazaki’s biopic of Jiro Horikoshi (1903–82), chief designer at Mitsubishi as the company worked on creating the A6M Zero fighter, a fighter famed for its manoeuvrability. Miyazaki shows Horikoshi as a dreamer, a man who longs to be a pilot, but whose nearsightedness makes this impossible. Solace comes from his work creating flying machines, only for Horikoshi to look on in horror when his creations are employed in the Second World War. Now streaming on Netflix in the UK and available on HBO Max in the US
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (film)
Dubbed the “Mother of the Blues”, Gertrude ‘Ma’ Rainey, née Pridgett (1886–1939) was one of the first singers to lay down blues tracks in the recording studio. Based on August Wilson’s 1982 play, a heavily fictionalised account of the recording of one of Ma’s trademark songs, this feature-length Netflix drama, set in 1927, shows her as fiery and single-minded. Viola Davis stars as Ma, while the supporting casts includes Chadwick Boseman (Black Panther) in his final screen appearance as ambitious trumpet player Levee. A taut and claustrophobic piece with much to say about American social and cultural history. Now streaming on Netflix
Da 5 Bloods (film)
For many African-American veterans, the Vietnam War and its aftermath remain especially vivid. These are the former soldiers who returned from the front line with physical and psychological injuries, only to find they weren’t supported properly back in the US. The experiences of four such soldiers lie at the centre of Academy Award winner Spike Lee’s new drama, debuting on Netflix and which follows the four veterans – Paul (Delroy Lindo), Otis (Clarke Peters), Eddie (Norm Lewis) and Melvin (Isiah Whitlock, Jr) – as they return to Asia to search for the remains of their squad leader and, they fervently hope, to recover some buried treasure. Now streaming on Netflix
The Irishman (film)
Considering its three-hour-plus running time, it may help to put aside a couple of evenings for Martin Scorsese’s innovative gangster epic, which utilises digital technology to de-age stars Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Joe Pesci. Based on I Heard You Paint Houses by Charles Brandt, it follows the life of Frank Sheeran (1920–2003), a corrupt union official with links to organised crime who, towards the end of his life, claimed to have murdered Teamster leader Jimmy Hoffa (1913–75) – a disputed claim, it’s worth noting. A self-referencing salute to Scorsese’s own cinematic past? Maybe, but a vital, compelling drama nonetheless. Now streaming on Netflix
Mank (film)
Despite its central place in the history of Hollywood, Citizen Kane (1941) won just one Academy Award, awarded to the film’s director and star, Orson Welles, and Herman J Mankiewicz for the screenplay. Mankiewicz was unhappy at the way Welles took credit for work the writer thought was his and tension between the two men lies at the heart of biopic Mank. Directed by David Fincher of Fight Club fame from a script by his late father, Jack Fincher, this Netflix original stars Gary Oldman in the title role. A stellar supporting cast includes Tom Burke (lately seen as Cormoran Strike) as Welles. Now streaming on Netflix
Sergio (Netflix original film)
Brazilian career diplomat Sérgio Vieira de Mello (1948-2003), styled in this drama as “the world’s Mister Fixit” and “the most powerful official in UN history”, was a man who spent much of his life trying to bring peace to war zones. He lost his life in Iraq when a suicide bomber driving a truck packed with explosives targeted the Canal Hotel in Baghdad. Director Greg Barker’s drama cuts between this atrocity and Vieira de Mello (Wagner Mouraof Narcosfame), caught between life and death, looking back on his own sometimes questionable choices. Netflix also has a documentary, Sergio (2009), profiling Vieira de Mello. Now streaming on Netflix
The Trial of the Chicago 7 (film)
Culture wars are not new, as the story of the Chicago 7 demonstrates. The seven (originally eight, including Black Panther leader Bobby Seale) were countercultural figures tried for inciting to riot and conspiracy related to anti-Vietnam protests. Their trial, in part at the instigation of the defendants, who included Abbie Hoffman and Jerry Rubin of Yippies fame, became a circus. Just how this happened is the subject of this legal drama written and directed by West Wing creator Aaron Sorkin. A fine ensemble cast includes Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Sacha Baron Cohen, Michael Keaton, Eddie Redmayne and Mark Rylance. Now streaming on Netflix
1917 (film)
Because of its sheer scale, Sam Mendes’ 1917 demanded to be seen on the big screen. Here was a First World War drama that showed us the shell-pocked landscapes of the Western Front in widescreen. And yet it works equally well on the small screen too, in part because of its race-against-time structure, which draws you in, and it because it tells a story so largely centred on just two men and one mission. Besides, wherever you see 1917, its combination of cinematography, script and central performances by young actors Dean-Charles Chapman and George MacKay is utterly extraordinary. Now streaming on Netflix in the UK
Best history TV shows and series to watch on Amazon Prime
The Underground Railroad (drama series)
Prior to filming this 10-part series, Oscar-winning writer and director Barry Jenkins (Moonlight) noted on more than one occasion that he wanted to make a drama dealing with slavery. But how to approach such a difficult subject? By adapting Colson Whitehead’s award-winning 2016 novel, which reimagines the underground railroad, the network of secret routes and safe houses used by slaves fleeing the American South, as a physical system of tracks. The fantastic element adds to the power of the piece, by making us look back with fresh eyes. Thuso Mbedu stars as Cora Randall, a young woman fleeing life on a plantation. Streaming now.
Outlander (series)
Based on the novels of Diana Gabaldon and developed for television by Ronald D Moore (Battlestar Galactica), Outlander is both historical drama and time-travel fantasy romance. At its centre lies Claire Randall (Caitriona Balfe), a former Second World War nurse who finds herself transported from 1946 to the Scotland of 1743, where she meets a handsome Highland warrior, Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan) and finds herself caught up in the Jacobite risings. The BBC’s Poldark, a series that perhaps takes a less fantastical approach to the actual history, is an apposite comparison; they are both perfect for escapist binge-viewing. Season five (2020) dealt with the Regulator movement, while season six recently launched. Now streaming on Starz via Amazon Prime in the UK
Mad Men (series)
For anyone who missed out on following Matthew Weiner’s story of Madison Avenue advertising executives when it was first broadcast between 2007 and 2015, it’s well worth the effort of catching up. Over seven seasons and 92 episodes, it follows a cast of characters you may not always much like, but who always demand your attention. Chief among these is Don Draper (Jon Hamm), a creative director with a shadowy past linked to his experiences in the Korean War. A drama that, by looking at the 1960s from the perspective of one industry, turns out to have much to say about America’s history in a tumultuous decade. Streaming now on AMC in US and Amazon Prime in UK
Leonardo (drama series)
It’s 1506 and Leonardo da Vinci is in trouble. Accused of poisoning Caterina de Cremona (Matilda De Angelis), his muse and confidant, the genius polymath has been arrested in Milan. His interrogator, Stefano Giraldi (Freddie Highmore) is far from convinced that Leonardo is guilty and decides to investigate further. The scene is set for an excellent eight-part drama that finds Leonardo looking back at key moments in his life and how these played into his art. Created by Frank Spotnitz (The Man In The High Castle) and Steve Thompson (Vienna Blood), and starring Aidan Turner of Poldark fame. A second series has been commissioned. Streaming now in the UK | Read more about the real history in Leonardo
Vikings (series)
In AD 793, northern raiders sacked the monastery at Lindisfarne, an event now taken to mark the beginning of the Viking Age. It’s also the starting point for this six-season drama that follows the exploits of Viking chieftain Ragnar Lothbrok and his crew, and in later seasons Ragnar’s descendants as well. Originally made for the History Channel, the show draws extensively on chronicles written later and also on contemporary historical sources, which isn’t in any way to suggest it’s somehow didactic. Rather, this is blood-and-thunder entertainment that’s not for the squeamish. A sequel, Vikings: Valhalla, is now available to stream via Netflix. Now streaming on Amazon Prime in the UK and Amazon Prime/Hulu in the US
The Americans (series)
Evoking the chill of the Cold War during the Reagan years, The Americans ran for six seasons from 2013–18. The title is, of course, ironic because Elizabeth (Keri Russell) and Philip Jennings (Matthew Rhys) are in reality Soviet spies so deeply embedded that few guess at their true identities – and those that do sometimes wind up dead. At the heart of the series lies the emotional cost of such duplicity within the Jennings’ marriage, often played out via the couple’s strained relationships with their children. A slow-burning and subtle series whose reputation, quite rightly, continues to grow. Perfect binge-viewing. Streaming now on Amazon Prime in the US
Poldark (series)
Set in 18th-century Cornwall, this adaptation of Winston Graham’s novels follows the trials and tribulations of a young Ross Poldark. Upon returning from the American War of Independence, Poldark is devastated to learn that his father is dead; his sweetheart is engaged to his cousin and his copper and tin mine is failing.
- The ‘Poldark effect’ and 7 other shows that have tourists flocking to Britain
- Podcast: Poldark and historical TV drama
The hugely popular BBC One drama starring Aidan Turner (as Poldark) and Eleanor Tomlinson (as Demelza) draws inspiration from Winston Graham’s 12 novels, which were written between 1945 and 2002. The show’s historical adviser Hannah Greig told History Extra: “Although Poldark’s characters are fictional, Winston Graham drew inspiration for his stories from wide-ranging historical research and these new characters capture yet more facets of everyday 18th-century life and the place of ordinary people whose experiences might otherwise be lost to history”. Now streaming on Netflix in the UK and Amazon Prime in the US
Hunters (series)
It’s 1977 in New York City and, in a big-budget series inspired by the work of real-life Nazi hunters, it seems the USA has a problem with fascism. More specifically, in part thanks to the real-life Operation Paperclip, under which top German scientists were covertly brought to the USA at the end of the Second World War, Nazis have settled Stateside and are dreaming of a Fourth Reich. Cue clever young Jewish maths whiz Jonah Heidelbaum (Logan Lerman) finding his way to concentration camp survivor Meyer Offerman (Al Pacino), who it turns out is leading a decidedly motley band trying to track down war criminals. Now available on Amazon Prime in the UK and US
- Read our review of Hunters
- Discover more about the real Nazi hunters – and those who brought them to justice
The Man in the High Castle (series)
Based on a 1962 novel by science fiction writer Philip K Dick, this four-season drama imagines life in a USA that lost the Second World War to the Axis powers. On a continent divided between Germany and Japan, much is made of the gap in technology between the Greater Nazi Reich and, controlling territory on the west coast, the Empire of Japan. At the heart of a sometimes opaque series lie newsreels and home movies that seem to show history panning out differently. Rufus Sewell does much scene-stealing as John Smith, an American SS man at home in suburbia. Streaming now on Amazon Prime in the UK and US
The Marvelous Mrs Maisel (series)
The ‘Mrs Maisel’ of the title here is a New York housewife who, via downtown misadventures with alcohol and an encounter with Lenny Bruce (1925–66), finds she has a knack for comedy. Created by Amy Sherman-Palladino, who also unleashed Gilmore Girls on the world, the Emmy-winning Mrs Maisel sometimes trades in fuzzy nostalgia, yet more often offers an acerbic take on the social mores of the USA in the late 1950s and early 1960s. At times it could interrogate Maisel’s privilege more acutely, but it’s always funny and the main cast, notably Rachel Brosnahan as Miriam ‘Midge’ Maisel, is terrific. Now streaming on Amazon Prime in the UK and US
Small Axe (anthology series)
Too often the Black British experience is treated as a kind of parallel history. One of the many triumphs of director Steve McQueen’s mesmerising anthology series is to remind us how the stories of Black Britons are intrinsic to wider British history. The first film in the sequence, Mangrove, which details an infamous trial that followed police harassment of a restaurant used by activists, rightly attracted rave reviews. Elsewhere, there’s considerable star power on view, including John Boyega (Star Wars) taking the lead in Red, White And Blue as Leroy Logan, a copper who bravely fought institutional racism in the Met from within. Streaming now on Amazon Prime in the US
The Legend of El Cid (series)
Forget Charlton Heston, this Spanish take on Rodrigo ‘Ruy’ Díaz de Vivar, aka, El Cid, stars Jaime Lorente (Money Heist) as the Spanish national hero, a complex and even contradictory character. Over five episodes, it explores El Cid’s younger years when, according to an Amazon press release, “he becomes a faithful subject, knight and hero for the crown”. Set in the 11th century, it thus revisits an era when the Iberian Peninsula was home to Christians, Arabs and Jews. Expect a mix of court politics, battle scenes and romance. Also expect scale. This was a series that employed 11,000 extras. Streaming now on Amazon Prime
Death Comes to Pemberley (series)
A mash-up between Jane Austen and Agatha Christie may sound initially like an awful idea, but there’s much fun to be had from this adaptation of PD James’ sequel to Pride And Prejudice, first shown by the BBC back in 2013. Set six years after the marriage of Fitzwilliam Darcy (Matthew Rhys) and Miss Elizabeth Bennet (Anna Maxwell Martin), it follows what happens after George Wickham (Matthew Goode) is accused of murdering his friend, Captain Denny. Granted, Elisabeth’s brother-in-law isn’t the most admirable of men, but is he really capable of such a heinous crime? Streaming now via Amazon Prime in the UK and PBS Masterpiece in the US
Ripper Street (series)
Ripper Street is one of those series that, after recurring problems with its financing, and being cancelled at different points by the BBC and Amazon, seemed to end with more of a whisper than a bang. Shame, because over five series and 37 episodes (2012–16), it was consistently excellent, a Gothic Victorian crime drama that on occasion sends proper shivers down the spine. Set in Whitechapel shortly after the last of the Jack the Ripper murders, the cast included Matthew Macfadyen as haunted copper Edmund Reid, Jerome Flynn as taciturn police enforcer Bennet Drake and MyAnna Buring as brothel madam ‘Long’ Susan Hart. Now streaming on Amazon Prime in the UK
Britannia (drama series)
The year is 43 AD and life for ordinary Britons is about to change thanks to the arrival of Roman invaders who, unlike the troops landed by Julius Caesar many decades previously, aren’t going to go home anytime soon. Jez Butterworth’s series, a mix of fantasy and historical drama, may be over the top, but it’s undeniably entertaining, at least so long as you enjoy a mix of Celtic-tinged mysticism, strong violence and switchback plotting. Amidst an ensemble cast, look out for David Morrissey as General Aulus Plautius, Kelly Reilly as Kerra and Mackenzie Crook as Veran. Streaming now via NOW in the UK, and Amazon Prime in the US.
Best history documentaries to watch on Amazon Prime
Berlin 1945 (documentary series)
What was it like to live in Berlin in the year when the Allies defeated Nazism? This German-made documentary series charts a momentous year in the city’s history, beginning in months when the regime’s propaganda held out a promise of victory in stark contrast to a day-to-day reality of bombing raids, blasted-out buildings and the endless task of burying corpses. The second documentary charts the battle for the city, which would see the Red Flag flying over the Reichstag and the suicide of Hitler; while the final documentary focuses on days when the fate of the city was determined at the Potsdam Conference. Streaming now on Amazon Prime in the US and BBC iPlayer in the UK
The Witness (documentary)
On 13 March 1964, 28-year-old Kitty Genovese was murdered near the Queens apartment where she lived, stabbed and raped by Winston Moseley. The case became notorious in the USA after The New York Times claimed that 38 witnesses saw or heard the attack, yet did nothing to help. As this documentary narrated by Kitty’s brother, William Genovese, relates, the truth was rather different, a case of misreporting giving such a strong impression of big-city indifference that Genovese syndrome became a synonym for bystander apathy. Directed by James D Solomon, The Witness also explores the enduring effects of the crime on William. Now streaming on Amazon Prime in the UK and Hoopla in the US
The American West (documentary series)
The eight-part series focuses on the Wild West in the years between 1865 and 1880, and features the gun-toting histories of such legendary figures as Jesse James, Billy the Kid, Crazy Horse, George Custer, Sitting Bull and Wyatt Earp. Expect a mix of docudrama footage and interviews, with those speaking ranging from historians to Hollywood actors that have played cowboys, including Kiefer Sutherland, Danny Glover and Mark Harmon. Now streaming on Amazon Prime in the US
Best history movies to watch on Amazon Prime
Escape From Pretoria (film)
In 1979, a trio of anti-apartheid activists escaped prison in Pretoria. But how exactly did Tim Jenkin, Stephen Lee and Alex Moumbaris (renamed Leonard Fontaine here) get away? Adapted from a book by Jenkin, this Australian film takes us back to an era when South Africans could be incarcerated for distributing pro-ANC leaflets and when political prisoners received especially harsh treatment in jail. The trio’s ingenious bid for freedom involves making wooden keys and plays out as a thriller. Daniel Radcliffe leads the cast as Jenkin. Ian Hart plays Denis Goldberg, a long-imprisoned activist who helps his fellow prisoners. Streaming now, and available on Starz in the US
The Green Knight
The story of Sir Gawain And The Green Knight, dating from the 14th century, is one of the most haunting chivalric romances. It tells the story of a mysterious figures fetching up in Camelot and issuing a challenge, which is taken up by King Arthur’s nephew. Directed, written, edited and produced by David Lowery (The Old Man & The Gun), this new cinematic take stars Dev Patel (The Personal History of David Copperfield) as Gawain, and offers both Hollywood spectacle and an underlying respect for its source material. A strong cast also includes Alicia Vikander, Joel Edgerton, Sarita Choudhury and Sean Harris. Expect a talking fox. Streaming now on Amazon Prime in the UK, and via Showtime in the US
Peterloo (film)
On Monday 16 August 1819, a crowd of between 60,000 and 80,000 people gathered at St Peter’s Field in Manchesterto demand electoral reform and the extension of the franchise. The actions of the authorities would become infamous after cavalrymen charged the gathering, leaving 18 dead and hundreds injured. Mike Leigh’s drama, released in cinemas to coincide with the 200th anniversary of an event dubbed the Peterloo Massacre, conveys a righteous anger as it explores what happened that day. Throughout, there’s a sense of the epic that seems wholly appropriate and there are fine performances from the likes of Rory Kinnear, who plays radical orator Henry Hunt. Now streaming on Amazon Prime in the UK and US
We interviewed Mike Leigh about the film for our podcast back in 2019. You can still listen here:
One Night in Miami (film)
In February 1964, 7-1 underdog Cassius Clay (Eli Goree), soon to change his name to Muhammad Ali, defeated Sonny Liston to become world heavyweight champion. After the fight, he met up with three friends: soul singer Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr), Nation of Islam leader Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir) and American football star Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge). Directed by Regina King and scripted by Kemp Powers from his own play, One Night imagines what might have transpired. Suffice to say the quartet spent more time musing on their lives and the fight for civil rights than partying. Illuminating and powerful. Now streaming on Amazon Prime in the UK and US
The Lost City of Z (film)
The British explorer Percy Fawcett was convinced there was an ancient lost city, which he dubbed ‘Z’, to be found in the jungles of Brazil. In 1925, Fawcett set off on what would be his final foray into the Amazon basin. He never returned from an expedition during which his own son, Jack, also went missing. On the film’s cinema release in 2016, there were complaints that, in real life, Fawcett was at best an incompetent. Leaving that criticism aside, director James Gray’s take on the story makes for a fine adventure tale that draws strong performances from Charlie Hunnam and Tom Holland as father-and-son Fawcetts. Now streaming on Amazon Prime in the US
Sylvie’s Love (film)
As an exercise in creating atmosphere, writer/director Eugene Ashe’s drama is a terrific piece of film-making. It’s the summer of 1957, Harlem, and Sylvie (Tessa Thompson) helps out at the family record store as she waits for her fiancé to return from serving with the military. Enter saxophone player Robert (Nnamdi Asomugha), who needs a day job to help make ends meet. The attraction is immediate and we follow the duo down the years. A study of how two people can experience adversity that self-consciously nods towards the melodramas of Hollywood’s golden age without ever seeming too knowing. Streaming now on Amazon Prime in the UK
The Aeronauts (film)
James Glaisher (Eddie Redmayne) has a big idea. He thinks it’s possible to predict the weather. To help prove this, he needs to get as high up in the sky as possible in a balloon. Enter pilot Amelia (Felicity Jones), a fictionalised composite of women balloonists. Based on Falling Upwards: How We Took To The Air (2013) by academic and biographer Richard Homes, Tom Harper’s fine drama charts an ascent in 1862, when Glaisher (and, in reality, balloonist Henry Tracey Coxwell) climbed to at least 29,000ft and perhaps as high as 37,000ft, the kinds of altitudes at which today’s jet liners fly. Now streaming on Amazon Prime in the UK and US
Best history TV shows and series to watch on Now
Chernobyl (series)
On 26 April 1986, a safety test at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine went catastrophically wrong. The plant’s No4 reactor exploded, an accident that spewed nuclear contamination across Europe. What would it have been like to be on the ground, living through these events as they happened? The multiple award-winning drama Chernobyl, based in part on Svetlana Alexievich’s book Voices From Chernobyl, imagines just that. Those who lives we glimpse include firefighters who were first responders and miners who had to dig beneath the facility. A strong ensemble cast includes Jared Harris, Stellan Skarsgård, Paul Ritter, Jessie Buckley and Emily Watson. Now streaming on Now in the UK
Listen to our podcast exploring the real history behind the events of 1986:
Band of Brothers (series)
First shown in 2001, the 10-part Band Of Brothers has dated well. In great part, that’s down to the elegant simplicity of the central idea: to follow Easy Company, part of the 101st Airborne Division, from jump training through parachute landings in Normandy and onwards to the end of conflict. Based on historian Stephen E Ambrose’s 1992 book, which gathered together interviews with veterans, it conveys a gritty authenticity, although the filmmakers did take some historical liberties for dramatic reasons. Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks bag credits as executive producers, further proof if any were needed that Band Of Brothers was a big-money, high-profile project. Now streaming on Now in the UK
- Countdown to WW2: the 72 hours that took the world to war
- The boys who lied about their age to fight in WW2
Britannia (series)
The year is 43 AD and life for ordinary Britons is about to change thanks to the arrival of Roman invaders who, unlike the troops landed by Julius Caesar many decades previously, aren’t going to go home anytime soon. Jez Butterworth’s series, a mix of fantasy and historical drama, may be over the top, but it’s undeniably entertaining, at least so long as you enjoy a mix of Celtic-tinged mysticism, strong violence and switchback plotting. Amidst an ensemble cast, look out for David Morrissey as General Aulus Plautius, Kelly Reilly as Kerra and Mackenzie Crook as Veran. Streaming now via NOW in the UK
The American West (documentary series)
he eight-part series focuses on the Wild West in the years between 1865 and 1880, and features the gun-toting histories of such legendary figures as Jesse James, Billy the Kid, Crazy Horse, George Custer, Sitting Bull and Wyatt Earp. Expect a mix of docudrama footage and interviews, with those speaking ranging from historians to Hollywood actors that have played cowboys, including Kiefer Sutherland, Danny Glover and Mark Harmon. Now streaming on Now in the UK
Domina (drama series)
Livia Drusilla (Kasia Smutniak) was one of the most powerful women in Rome, both wife and advisor to the emperor Augustus Caesar. But as this new series fictionalising her early life makes clear, she first had to survive through years when the men around her ruthlessly competed for power. It helps, it seems, that Livia was single minded and ambitious. We meet the young Livia in the wake of the assassination of Julius Caesar when, despite still being a teenager, she is married to boorish Tiberius Claudius Nero. A strong cast includes Liam Cunningham, Isabella Rossellini and Matthew McNulty. Now streaming on Now in the UK
The Good Lord Bird (series)
Ethan Hawke is on fine form as real-life abolitionist John Brown in a raucous adaptation of James McBride’s 2013 novel. The plot here has strong fictional elements, not least because we see events through the eyes of Henry ‘Little Onion’ Shackleford (Joshua Caleb Johnson), a teenage slave Brown frees and then informally adopts. Bowen mistakenly thinks Henry is a girl, Henrietta, and survivor Henry isn’t about to tell the truth if it keeps him out of trouble. It was Brown, remember, who led the Harpers Ferry raid in October 1859, an attempt to initiate a slave revolt in the South. Streaming via Now in the UK and Showtime in US
John Adams (series)
Adapted from historian David McCullough’s Pulitzer Prize-winning biography, John Adams chronicles the political life of the founding father and second president of the US. The life of Adams (1735–1826) was eventful, yet by telling its story over seven episodes, there’s plenty of time for the series (from 2008) to explore the deeper currents of his life. Paul Giamatti stars as Adams, Laura Linney as his wife, Abigail. There are some inaccuracies, yet John Adams never takes too many liberties with the historical record and its sheer quality was reflected in a haul of 13 Emmy Awards. Now streaming on Now in the UK
The Plot Against America (series)
Alternate histories don’t come much spookier than Philip Roth’s 2004 novel, The Plot Against America, which imagines a xenophobic Charles Lindbergh using his fame as an aviator to run for president and then to turn the country towards fascism. In this six-part mini-series from writers David Simon and Ed Burns of The Wire fame, it’s a rise to power we see primarily through the eyes of a working-class Jewish family from Newark, New Jersey. A strong cast includes Winona Ryder as independently minded Evelyn Finkel and John Turturro as charismatic Rabbi Lionel Bengelsdorf, who supports Lindbergh despite the disquiet this causes many in his community. Streaming via Now in the UK
Das Boot (series)
Like the 1981 movie, the television version of submarine drama Das Boot probably isn’t for those who suffer from claustrophobia. Nevertheless, the series widens out the story considerably. In season one, set in 1942, we see events on U-boat 612 as a secret mission starts to go badly wrong. Back on land, watch as the French Resistance seeks to disrupt the Nazi war effort in La Rochelle, home to the Germans’ submarine base. Season two takes the show further from Lothar-Günther Buchheim’s 1973 novel and its sequel, Die Festung (1995), but without losing any of the essence of the books. Streaming now on Now in the UK and Hulu in the US
The Pacific (series)
Once again numbering Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks as executive producers, the follow-up to Band of Brothers focuses on the experiences of three real-life members of the US 1st Marine Division, Robert Leckie, Eugene Sledge and John Basilone. Based on such first-hand memoirs as Leckie’s Helmet For My Pillow, it’s a series notable for offering, as its predecessor did, an unflinching portrait of men at war. Over 10 episodes, it also portrays many of the key engagements in the Pacific theatre during the Second World War, including the Guadalcanal campaign, the battle of Iwo Jima and the notoriously bloody US landing at Okinawa. Now streaming on Now in the UK
Boardwalk Empire (series)
Playing out over five series that originally aired between 2010 and 2014, Boardwalk Empire set out to tell an epic story of Atlantic City gangsters in the prohibition era. And it largely succeeded, although it’s arguable the earlier episodes are stronger, notably a pilot directed by Martin Scorsese that cost $18m. Back before the long-form television revolution meant it was routine to see film stars on TV, its cast was notably starry, including Steve Buscemias Enoch ‘Nucky’ Thompson, corrupt city treasurer; Michael Shannon as Nelson Van Alden, a puritanical government agent whose life spirals out of control; and Kelly Macdonald as troubled widow Margaret Thompson. Now streaming on Now in the UK
Catherine the Great (series)
Far more imperious than most royals, Helen Mirren deservedly won a Golden Globe for her turn here as the empress who ruled Russia from 1762 until 1796, and who revitalised the country after organising a coup d’état against her own husband, Peter III. The four-part series, where you can see the budget in every frame, focuses on Catherine’s years in power, and shows her as both ruthless and enlightened, interested in the latest thinking across Europe. It also makes much of the relationship between the empress and her lover, military commander Grigory Potemkin (Jason Clarke), which is central to the series. Streaming on Now TV in the UK
Best history documentaries to watch on Now TV
1968: A Year of War, Turmoil and Beyond (documentary)
As the title here series suggests, 1968 was a momentous year in US history. This was the year of the Tet offensive, a coordinated series of attacks by the Viet Cong that played a key role in weakening support for the Vietnam War in the USA. It was also the year that Lyndon B Johnson announced he wouldn’t be standing for re-election as president, a decision that threw open the race to be Democratic candidate. Both Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr were assassinated. Above the Earth, the crew of Apollo 8 circled the Moon and Bill Anders captured his famous Earthrise image. Now streaming on Now in the UK
River Hunters (documentary series)
Exploring Britain’s rivers can reveal hitherto unfound archaeological evidence. That’s broadly the premise of this entertaining series, which sees wild swimmer Rick Edwards, underwater archaeologist Gary Bankheadand American river detectorist Beau Ouimette diving into the past. Series two, which recently aired on Sky History, begins by looking back at the battle of Killiecrankie, fought during the Jacobite rising of 1689, an engagement notable for featuring one of the earliest uses of grenades. Other shows in the series take a look back at the Viking era in York and find the researchers hunting for relics left by 12th-century pilgrims in Canterbury. Now streaming on Now in the UK.
The Beatles: Eight Days A Week – The Touring Years (documentary)
In 1966, The Beatles quit touring. The Fab Four, the cheeky lads from Liverpool who had conquered the world, ceased to be – and been replaced by serious musicians who preferred recording at Abbey Road to life on the road. Yet the quartet’s itinerant years between 1962 and 1966 are important to understanding the band, and Ron Howard’s acclaimed documentary from 2016 tells a cultural history story of huge significance as we see The Beatles on the hoof redefining what it meant to be a pop star. Plus, for all the screaming, the music’s pretty good. Streaming on Now in the UK
Apollo 11 (documentary)
Originally released in cinemas to mark the 50th anniversary of Neil Armstrong becoming the first human being to step out onto the surface of the Moon, director Todd Douglas Miller’s extraordinary documentary uses hi-res period footage and audio to tell the story of the Apollo 11 mission. Yes, you know what happens, but that doesn’t lessen the awe and wonder. More specifically, the pervading sense that all this happened a long time gives the footage a near-mythic quality. Did men and women really do this less than a quarter of a century after the end of the Second World War? Yes, they did. Streaming on Now TV in the UK
Hillary (documentary series)
If journalism is the “first rough draft of history”, the analysis piece that runs a little after the newsmen have gone home might be said to be its second draft. Television has developed its own variation on this latter idea with series that offer testimony from those who were there during major events yet have had time to reflect, an approach much used by the BBC. Hillary, one of the highlights of the recent Sky Documentaries launch, takes a similar approach. Nanette Burstein’s four-part series draws on campaign footage from the 2016 presidential election, and features Hillary Clinton reflecting on what’s been, by any standards, an eventful life. Streaming via Now TV in the UK
Battle of Britain 80: Allies at War (documentary)
The summer of 1940 was a time when the fate of Great Britain hung in the balance. The retreat from Dunkirk may have been a small miracle of improvisation but it also represented a demoralising defeat. And yet somehow the Royal Air Force, its Spitfires and Hurricanes flown by those Churchill dubbed “the few”, summoned up the fighting strength and will to repel the Luftwaffe, which was seeking to establish control of the skies over the country prior to invasion. This one-off documentary celebrates the role of those Polish and Czech pilots who escaped Nazi-occupied Europe to fight alongside their British compatriots. Streaming now on Now TV (in the UK)
Best history movies to watch on Now TV
Six Minutes To Midnight (film)
In a drama loosely inspired by a strange-but-true story, co-scriptwriter Eddie Izzard, in what he recently dubbed “boy mode”, stars as Thomas Miller, who in the summer of 1939 takes a job at Augusta Victoria College in Bexhill-on-Sea. It’s a place where, despite tensions between Britain and Germany, the pupils are the daughters of high-ranking Nazi officials. (In real life, the school badge featured both a union jack and a swastika.) The school is also, it transpires, at the centre of a Nazi intelligence plot. Dame Judi Dench stars as Miss Rocholl, the school’s head teacher. Streaming now on Now in the UK and Fubo/Showtime in the US
Michael X: Hustler, Revolutionary, Outlaw (film)
Michael De Freitas or Michael Abdul Malik, better known as Michael X, was once feted as the UK’s answer to Malcolm X. But what are we to make of the life of a Black Power leader who was hanged for murder in 1975 in Port Spain, Trinidad and Tobago? This new film, initially broadcast on Sky Documentaries, tries to make sense of a contradictory and controversial figure. It traces a life where pre-gentrification Notting Hill is key, both because Michael X was an enforcer for slum landlord Peter Rachman, and because it was here that Michael first encountered so many of the political ideas he espoused. Streaming now on Now in the UK
Best history TV shows and series to watch on HBO
The Pacific (series)
Once again numbering Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks as executive producers, the follow-up to Band of Brothersfocuses on the experiences of three real-life members of the US 1st Marine Division, Robert Leckie, Eugene Sledge and John Basilone. Based on such first-hand memoirs as Leckie’s Helmet For My Pillow, it’s a series notable for offering, as its predecessor did, an unflinching portrait of men at war. Over 10 episodes, it also portrays many of the key engagements in the Pacific theatre during the Second World War, including the Guadalcanal campaign, the battle of Iwo Jima and the notoriously bloody US landing at Okinawa. Now streaming on HBO in the US
The Plot Against America (series)
Alternate histories don’t come much spookier than Philip Roth’s 2004 novel, The Plot Against America, which imagines a xenophobic Charles Lindbergh using his fame as an aviator to run for president and then to turn the country towards fascism. In this six-part mini-series from writers David Simon and Ed Burns of The Wire fame, it’s a rise to power we see primarily through the eyes of a working-class Jewish family from Newark, New Jersey. A strong cast includes Winona Ryder as independently minded Evelyn Finkel and John Turturro as charismatic Rabbi Lionel Bengelsdorf, who supports Lindbergh despite the disquiet this causes many in his community. Streaming via HBO in the US.
Catherine the Great (series)
Far more imperious than most royals, Helen Mirren deservedly won a Golden Globe for her turn here as the empress who ruled Russia from 1762 until 1796, and who revitalised the country after organising a coup d’état against her own husband, Peter III. The four-part series, where you can see the budget in every frame, focuses on Catherine’s years in power, and shows her as both ruthless and enlightened, interested in the latest thinking across Europe. It also makes much of the relationship between the empress and her lover, military commander Grigory Potemkin (Jason Clarke), which is central to the series. Now streaming on HBO in the US
Perry Mason (series)
The character of Perry Mason has long been associated with Raymond Burr, who played the character on television from 1957 until his death, from kidney cancer, in 1993. This longevity perhaps explains why it’s taken so long for crime novelist Erle Stanley Gardner’s upstanding defence attorney to return to our screens. The spin in this big-budget HBO series is that we meet Mason (Matthew Rhys) in 1932 Los Angeles, where he’s working as a gumshoe detective. Haunted by his experiences in the First World War, this is Mason down on his luck, when along comes a kidnapping case that holds out the opportunity for redemption. Now streaming on HBO in the US
Chernobyl (series)
On 26 April 1986, a safety test at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine went catastrophically wrong. The plant’s No4 reactor exploded, an accident that spewed nuclear contamination across Europe. What would it have been like to be on the ground, living through these events as they happened? The multiple award-winning drama Chernobyl, based in part on Svetlana Alexievich’s book Voices From Chernobyl, imagines just that. Those who lives we glimpse include firefighters who were first responders and miners who had to dig beneath the facility. A strong ensemble cast includes Jared Harris, Stellan Skarsgård, Paul Ritter, Jessie Buckley and Emily Watson. Now streaming on Now in the UK and HBO in the US
Boardwalk Empire (series)
Playing out over five series that originally aired between 2010 and 2014, Boardwalk Empire set out to tell an epic story of Atlantic City gangsters in the prohibition era. And it largely succeeded, although it’s arguable the earlier episodes are stronger, notably a pilot directed by Martin Scorsese that cost $18m. Back before the long-form television revolution meant it was routine to see film stars on TV, its cast was notably starry, including Steve Buscemias Enoch ‘Nucky’ Thompson, corrupt city treasurer; Michael Shannon as Nelson Van Alden, a puritanical government agent whose life spirals out of control; and Kelly Macdonald as troubled widow Margaret Thompson. Now streaming on HBO in the US
John Adams (series)
Adapted from historian David McCullough’s Pulitzer Prize-winning biography, John Adams chronicles the political life of the founding father and second president of the US. The life of Adams (1735–1826) was eventful, yet by telling its story over seven episodes, there’s plenty of time for the series (from 2008) to explore the deeper currents of his life. Paul Giamatti stars as Adams, Laura Linney as his wife, Abigail. There are some inaccuracies, yet John Adams never takes too many liberties with the historical record and its sheer quality was reflected in a haul of 13 Emmy Awards. Now streaming on HBO in the US
It’s A Sin (series)
It’s 1981, and Ritchie, Roscoe and Colin begin new lives in London. Each, in their way, is searching for freedom in the capital at a time when, as gay men, they face overt prejudice But a mysterious new illness is causing unexplained deaths. The Aids epidemic has begun. Following the interweaving stories of the boys and their friends over the next decade, Russell T Davies’ acclaimed drama It’s A Sin, which landed during lockdown to become UK streaming platform All4’s most binged show ever, is funny and touching without ever trivialising the tragedy we see inexorably unfolding. Olly Alexander leads a superb ensemble cast. Now streaming on HBO in the US
Band of Brothers (series)
First shown in 2001, the 10-part Band Of Brothers has dated well. In great part, that’s down to the elegant simplicity of the central idea: to follow Easy Company, part of the 101st Airborne Division, from jump training through parachute landings in Normandy and onwards to the end of conflict. Based on historian Stephen E Ambrose’s 1992 book, which gathered together interviews with veterans, it conveys a gritty authenticity, although the filmmakers did take some historical liberties for dramatic reasons. Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks bag credits as executive producers, further proof if any were needed that Band Of Brothers was a big-money, high-profile project. Now streaming on HBO in the US
Best history documentaries to watch on HBO
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Best history movies to watch on HBOj.
J. Edgar (film)
Leonardo DiCaprio stars as J Edgar Hoover, the chief of the FBI between 1935 and 1972, in a biopic directed by Clint Eastwood. It’s a movie told in flashback as Hoover dictates his life story to a succession of junior agents. Throughout, DiCaprio gives a nuanced performance that makes much of Hoover’s interest in library systems and collating information, and explores the ambiguities of his sexuality. As to whether the film, which received mixed reviews on its cinema release in 2011, ever quite comes to any firm opinions about its subject, that’s a different matter. Judi Dench plays Hoover’s mother, a domineering figure. Streaming via HBO in the US
Best history series/documentaries/movies streaming on Hulu
Mrs. America (series)
Author and activist Phyllis Schlafly (1924–2016) was a conservative who doggedly fought the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment to the US Constitution in the 1970s, legislation that would have offered women protection from discrimination. The contradictions of such an intelligent, formidable and self-starting campaigner, a woman who herself often had to battle sexism, pitting herself against the leading lights of American feminism are explored in a series that stars Cate Blanchett as Schlafly. Those on the other side of the argument include writer and feminist leader Gloria Steinem, played with a waspish intensity by Rose Byrne. Streaming now on Hulu in the US
Apollo 11 (documentary)
Originally released in cinemas to mark the 50th anniversary of Neil Armstrong becoming the first human being to step out onto the surface of the Moon, director Todd Douglas Miller’s extraordinary documentary uses hi-res period footage and audio to tell the story of the Apollo 11 mission. Yes, you know what happens, but that doesn’t lessen the awe and wonder. More specifically, the pervading sense that all this happened a long time gives the footage a near-mythic quality. Did men and women really do this less than a quarter of a century after the end of the Second World War? Yes, they did. Now streaming on Hulu in the US
The Beatles: Eight Days A Week – The Touring Years (documentary)
In 1966, The Beatles quit touring. The Fab Four, the cheeky lads from Liverpool who had conquered the world, ceased to be – and been replaced by serious musicians who preferred recording at Abbey Road to life on the road. Yet the quartet’s itinerant years between 1962 and 1966 are important to understanding the band, and Ron Howard’s acclaimed documentary from 2016 tells a cultural history story of huge significance as we see The Beatles on the hoof redefining what it meant to be a pop star. Plus, for all the screaming, the music’s pretty good. Now streaming on Hulu in the US
Hillary (documentary series)
If journalism is the “first rough draft of history”, the analysis piece that runs a little after the newsmen have gone home might be said to be its second draft. Television has developed its own variation on this latter idea with series that offer testimony from those who were there during major events yet have had time to reflect, an approach much used by the BBC. Hillary, one of the highlights of the recent Sky Documentaries launch, takes a similar approach. Nanette Burstein’s four-part series draws on campaign footage from the 2016 presidential election, and features Hillary Clinton reflecting on what’s been, by any standards, an eventful life. Streaming via Hulu in the US
The People v OJ Simpson: American Crime Story (series)
The 1995 trial of sportsman OJ Simpson, who was accused of murdering his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ron Goldman, became a media sensation and was followed by millions around the world. This Emmy award-winning 10-part drama recounts how the investigation unfolded – from Simpson’s arrest to his ultimate acquittal.
Starring John Travolta as Simpson’s defence attorney, Robert Shapiro, and David Schwimmer as OJ’s most loyal friend Robert Kardashian, the series was met with near-universal praise and was considered to be one of the best dramas of 2016. Also available is the second instalment of American Crime Story, The Assassination of Gianni Versace.
Also available are the second and third instalments of American Crime Story, The Assassination of Gianni Versace and, dealing with the Clinton–Lewinsky scandal, Impeachment.
Now streaming on Hulu in the US
The Vietnam War (documentary series)
The historical documentaries of American director Ken Burns have won him an international reputation, but even by his own considerable standards, The Vietnam War stands out. Made with long-time collaborator Lynn Novick, it’s a 10-part series that takes us back in time to trace just how the US came to be involved in the country before taking viewers through the major campaigns and onwards to the ignominious American withdrawal from the country. Importantly, Vietnamese voices feature throughout and there’s a strong sense of the filmmakers going back over the historical record to grapple with what happened rather than accepting narratives imposed after the event. Now streaming on Hoopla in the US
We interviewed Lynn Novick about the series for our podcast back in 2018. You can still listen here:
Best history films streaming on Apple TV
Greyhound (film)
Ever adept at playing everyman figures placed in danger, Tom Hanks stars as a US Navy commander, Ernest Krause, given command of a destroyer, USS Keeling. Krause is tasked with defending a merchant ship convoy from u-boat attack during the Battle of the Atlantic in 1942, but also has to battle his own demons. Based on CS Forester’s novel The Good Shepherd and scripted by Hanks himself, the film was initially going to be released in cinemas in June, until the pandemic made this impossible and Apple stepped in. Also starring Stephen Graham, Rob Morgan and Elisabeth Shue. Streaming from now on Apple TV+
The Banker (film)
Pulled from release in December 2019 following allegations of sexual abuse were levelled at one of its producers (the son of one of the lead characters, whose name was removed from the film’s credits), The Banker arrived with baggage. It is a drama that tells an important story, of how real-life African-American entrepreneurs – Bernard Garrett (Anthony Mackie) and Joe Morris (Samuel L Jackson) – employed a white frontman, Matt Steiner (Nicolas Hoult), and beat a racist system to make a fortune in Los Angeles real estate in the 1950s. But success eventually brings the unwanted attention of the authorities. Now streaming on Apple TV+ in the UK
The Velvet Underground (documentary film)
The Velvet Underground’s debut, released in 1967, sold only a few thousand copies. Yes according to Brian Eno, everyone who bought the album started a band. Yes, that’s an exaggeration, but the very fact this idea exists is testament to the huge, and ongoing, cultural influence of the Velvets. As to why the band are considered so important, director Todd Haynes’ documentary, which features new interviews with surviving members John Cale and Mo Tucker, should help to explain this. Expect evocative footage of Lou Reed, Nico and the denizens of Andy Warhol’s Factory, including Drella himself, where the Velvets were the house band. Streaming now on Apple TV+ in the UK
Lincoln’s Dilemma (documentary series)
The thoughts of Abraham Lincoln on slavery evolved through his life. For much of his life, for example, he was a supporter of ‘colonization’, the idea that African-Americans might be funded to leave the United States. Ultimately, after issuing the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, he abandoned this position. The subject of how his standpoint on this crucial issue changed over the years, and why, is at the centre of Lincoln’s Dilemma. In this context, much is made of the way abolitionist and social reformer Frederick Douglass may have pushed the 16th president into changing his stance. Narrated by Jeffrey Wright. Now streaming on Apple TV+
Best history films and series streaming on Disney+
The Help (film)
Based on Kathryn Stockett’s 2009 novel, The Help begins with an aspiring journalist, Eugenia ‘Skeeter’ Phelan (Emma Stone), deciding to interview African-American maids working for white families in Jackson, Mississippi. However, the heart of an drama lies in Skeeter’s relationship with Aibileen Clark (Viola Davis) and Minny Jackson (Octavia Spencer). While Hollywood’s take on the story (2001) lacks many of the nuances of the book and was criticised for putting a white character at the centre of the story, the film stands up as a fine ensemble piece, reflected by Davis, Spencer and their co-star Jessica Chastain all receiving Academy Award nominations. Now streaming via Disney+ in the UK and Hoopla in the US
The Thin Red Line (film)
Launched in late February 2021, Disney’s Star Channel gather together much of the studio’s grown-up content, including plenty of films and series that are well worth revisiting. These include Terrence Malick’s Second World War drama, which follows GIs at the battle of Mount Austen, part of the Guadalcanal campaign. For all the gunfire that punctuates the film, this is a drama that’s as much as anything about the ominous silence of conflict, the awful moments when troops are waiting for something to happen. Reflecting Malick’s near-legendary status, the film attracted an A-list ensemble cast, including Sean Penn, Adrien Brody and Jim Caviezel. Streaming now on Star via Disney+ in the UK
Hamilton (film)
Was there ever a more unlikely Broadway hit? Inspired by Ron Chernow’s biography, Lin-Manuel Miranda’s hip-hop musical traces the eventful life and times of founding father Alexander Hamilton, lawyer, soldier, statesman and banker, a man who rose to prominence despite the stigma of being born out of wedlock in the British Leeward Islandds. It’s an exhilarating show that received rave reviews and, at least before Covid-19 intervened, could be seen in London as well as New York. This film dates from the show’s first Broadway run and features Miranda himself in the title role. Streaming now on Disney+
- The women of Hamilton: Angelica, Eliza and… Maria Reynolds
- Read about the darker side of Alexander Hamilton
Mulan (film)
Controversy has swirled around Disney’s live-action remake of its 1998 animation. These arrived both over star Liu Yifei’s support for Hong Kong’s police in their crackdown against pro-democracy campaigners, and because the movie was filmed in Xinjiang, associated with allegations of human rights abuses against Uighurs. Despite these news stories, it seems Disney’s decision to stream the movie has paid off commercially. Reports suggest it’s been a hit despite Disney+ subscribers needing to pay a premium to access a spectacular account of a female fighter who passes herself off as a man when China’s emperor issues a call to arms. Streaming now on Disney+
Buried Secrets Of WWII (documentary series)
The latest 3D scanning techniques are revealing hitherto hidden information about the battlefields of the Second World War. Step forward Pete Kelsey, an expert in this technology, who here teams up with military historian Martin KA Morgan to look anew at the past. The six-part series takes in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the Nazi V-bomb programme, the relentless German Siege of Malta in 1940, the Allied advance on Rome, the 1944 battle of Hürtgen Forest on the Belgian-German border, and Allied attempts to dismantle the Japanese war machine during the long-running New Guinea campaign. Streaming now on National Geographic via Disney+ and on Fubo in the US
Notre Dame: Race Against the Inferno (documentary)
On 15 April 2019, at around 6.20pm, a fire broke out beneath the roof at Notre-Dame de Paris. What followed was a catastrophe, as the cathedral’s spire and much of its roof were destroyed. Yet it could have been much worse. In part because of the bravery of the city’s firefighters, who fought for seven hours and more to bring the blaze fully under control, restoration has already begun at a building that’s a marvel of the French Gothic style. Drawing on exclusive footage and interviews with those who were there, this National Geographic documentary focuses on efforts to contain the blaze. Streaming now on Disney+
Europe From Above (documentary series)
The format here is straightforward. Deploying cameras in the sky and ‘hyperlapse’ effects, Europe From Above travels to six countries, and looks down on both natural wonders and manmade marvels. The results of this filming are frequently mesmerising as we’re offered, for example, a bird’s eye view of star-shaped Fort Bourtange in the Netherlands, originally constructed in the 16th century to control the only road between Germany and the city of Groningen. Subsequent episodes are devoted to Italy, Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain and Poland, home to the world’s largest castle, which sprawls over more than 50 acres. Streaming now on Disney+
The Americans (series)
Evoking the chill of the Cold War during the Reagan years, The Americans ran for six seasons from 2013–18. The title is, of course, ironic because Elizabeth (Keri Russell) and Philip Jennings (Matthew Rhys) are in reality Soviet spies so deeply embedded that few guess at their true identities – and those that do sometimes wind up dead. At the heart of the series lies the emotional cost of such duplicity within the Jennings’ marriage, often played out via the couple’s strained relationships with their children. A slow-burning and subtle series whose reputation, quite rightly, continues to grow. Perfect binge-viewing. Streaming now on Disney+ in the UK
The Lost City Of Machu Picchu (documentary)
It’s not compulsory to access only Marvel, Star Wars and Pixar product via Disney+. There’s also a terrific range of National Geographic documentaries, including this documentary focusing on the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, the existence of which was revealed to the wider world by American archaeologist Hiram Bingham (1875–1956) in 1911, after he had been guided to the site with the help of local farmers. The selling point here is that the documentary will go below the citadel where “mummy kings wait to share their stories”. In truth, the chance just to see the site in detail makes this worth watching. Streaming now.
The Right Stuff (series)
Published in 1979, Tom Wolfe’s account of test pilots and Project Mercury astronauts was as meticulously researched as it was vivid, an attempt to understand why people would choose to put themselves in such danger. Although it has previously been filmed – a 1983 movie that was critically lauded but a box-office flop – it’s easy to see why National Geographic chose to commission a drama of the book (although it has subsequently been cancelled). Even leaving aside the opportunities for spectacular footage of planes and rockets, episodic television provides ample time to explore the backstories of such figures as Alan Shepard (Jake McDorman), the first American to reach space. Streaming on Disney+
The Beatles: Get Back (film)
Released in 1970, The Beatles’ Let It Be movie, directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg, was widely interpreted as showing the disintegration of the Fab Four. Here was a story of infighting and young men growing up to find they are tired of spending time with the same bandmates. But was that really the whole story? Arriving amidst much fanfare, Get Back found Peter Jackson of Lord Of The Rings and They Shall Not Grow Old fame returning to the raw footage captured by Lindsay-Hogg, and telling a story where friendly camaraderie and deep bonds of shared experience are to the fore. Streaming now on Disney+
Drain The Oceans (series)
What might we find if we could, as the title here has it, drain the world’s oceans? Plenty of evidence of sunken cities and lost ships if this series from National Geographic is anything to go by. There are two seasons to stream, and individual episodes cover such subjects as D-Day, treasure ships and shipwrecks dating from the American Civil War. While the show doesn’t skimp on CGI recreations and spectacle, this is also a series that reflects recent advances in marine archaeology, in particular the insights offered by new scanning techniques that are leading to sometimes radical reappraisals of what lies beneath. Streaming now on Disney+
Summer Of Soul (…Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (film)
In the summer of 1969, a series of half-a-dozen free concerts took place in Manhattan’s Mount Morris Park (now Marcus Garvey Park). The Harlem Cultural Festival, dubbed the Black Woodstock, attracted 300,000 people to see performances by such African-American musical luminaries as Nina Simone, BB King, Stevie Wonder, Sly And The Family Stone and Mahalia Jackson. The concerts were filmed and yet somehow don’t feature in all too many cultural histories of the era. The feature debut from musician Questlove explores how and why this happened, as well as offering restored footage of the concerts, recorded at the time by TV producer Hal Tulchin. Streaming now on Disney+
Pride (documentary series)
Setting itself a near-impossible task – telling the story of the queer experience in the US over six decades – Pride, probably sensibly, doesn’t offer a conventional narrative history. Instead, each of the six documentaries here offers its own take on the ongoing battle for LGBTQ+ rights. ‘People Had Parties’, for example, looks back at the 1950s and, while telling stories of police harassment and tragedies rooted in institutionalised homophobia, also challenges assumptions about how gay men and women lived and loved. With each film covering a different decade and made by a different filmmaker, Pride builds a mosaic picture of how contemporary queer America came to be. Streaming now on Disney+ and Hulu in the US
The Last Duel (film)
Rooted in Germanic law, a judicial duel involved two parties fighting in single combat to settle a dispute. Such duels were fought in Europe through the Middle Ages, with the last such encounter in France taking place in 1386, a real-life face-off that underpins this historical epic directed by Ridley Scott of Gladiator fame. The drama plays out over three distinct chapters, each essentially offering a different character’s perspective, and relates what happens after Marguerite de Carrouges (Jodie Corner), the wife of knight Jean (Matt Damon), accuses his one-time friend, squire Jacques Le Gris (Adam Driver), of raping her. Now streaming on Disney+ in the UK and HBO in the US
Flooded Tombs Of The Nile (documentary)
As anyone who has watched an Indiana Jones movie can testify, it’s dangerous exploring ancient sites. Doubly so when the ancient site in question is a pyramid that has become inundated because of rising groundwaters. This one-off documentary shows the risks very clearly as it follows efforts to explore a site associated with Nastasen, the Nubian king of Kush, a kingdom that was centred on the Nile valley in northern Sudan and southern Egypt. The work of Pearce Paul Creasman, an archaeologist whose expertise encompasses ancient Egypt and Nubia, maritime archaeology and the study of the ancient environment, is central to the documentary. Now streaming on Disney+ in the UK and US