This is the first of three audio volumes taken from the 90-part Radio 4 series. It tells the story of America through the voices of those who were there, from presidents to slaves. It celebrates the American achievement and evokes the sound and colour of daily life; it also explores the paradoxes of American history.

Christopher Lee's history of Britain, 'This Sceptred Isle', provided the definitive radio account of the nation from the arrival of Julius Caesar to the death of Queen Victoria. Volume 2, covering the years 1919-1938, looks at a Britain ravaged by war and at the mercy of millions of striking workers. It also takes in the lighter side of life in the...

Christopher Lee's history of Britain, This Sceptred Isle, provided the definitive radio account of the nation from the arrival of Julius Caesar to the death of Queen Victoria. This Sceptred Isle, The Twentieth Century, continues the story, taking us through decades of whirlwind change and technological advancement in the diverse and colourful count...

Christopher Lee's history of Britain, This Sceptred Isle, provided the definitive radio account of the nation from the arrival of Julius Caesar to the death of Queen Victoria. This Sceptred Isle, The Twentieth Century, continues the story, taking us through decades of whirlwind change and technological advancement in the diverse and colourful count...

Volume Two of David Reynold's major BBC Radio 4 series traces America's story from the Civil War to World War Two. This epic narrative tells the saga of the United States through the voices of those who lived it - presidents and farmers, mothers and children, settlers and soldiers, immigrants and Native Americans. This is also the story of how ordi...

Is the Greek alphabet all Greek to you? Is geometry your Achilles heel and does your knowledge of Homer have more to do with The Simpsons than the Sirens? From engineering and architecture to drama and democracy, the world around us is founded on the principles and discoveries of the Ancient World, yet our understanding of it is episodic at best. S...

An engrossing BBC Radio 4 series spanning the history of the home and domestic relationships over the past 500 years, presented by Amanda Vickery. Professor Amanda Vickery is one of the most charismatic historians in Britain today. In 'A History of Private Life' she reveals the intimate secrets of life at home, from the Tudor mansion to the modern...

Presented by award-winning children's writer Michael Morpurgo, this genuinely ground-breaking history of British childhood from the year 1000 to the present explores, through a wide and colourful range of primary sources, how the idea of childhood has been constantly reinvented down the centuries and why the role of children in society continues to...

Britain had the biggest empire the world has ever known. At one time a quarter of the global land mass was British. Over a third of the world was insured at Lloyds. At his coronation, more than 400 million people saluted George V. Truly, the sun never set on this historical phenomenon. Whatever the day, whatever the hour, somewhere on the globe, th...

Britain had the biggest empire the world has ever known. At one time a quarter of the global land mass was British. Over a third of the world was insured at Lloyds. At his coronation, more than 400 million people saluted George V. Truly, the sun never set on this historical phenomenon. Whatever the day, whatever the hour, somewhere on the globe, th...

The award-winning story of Britain, from the arrival of Julius Caesar in 55BC to the death of Queen Victoria in 1901. 'Wonderful This Sceptred Isle has provided one of the greatest treats for listeners in recent years.' Paul Donovan, Sunday Times. William the Conqueror famously acquired for himself the throne of England but there were to be many st...

The award-winning story of Britain, from the arrival of Julius Caesar in 55BC to the death of Queen Victoria in 1901. 'Wonderful.This Sceptred Isle has provided one of the greatest treats for listeners in recent years.' Paul Donovan, Sunday Times. King Edward the Third was only fourteen years old when he succeeded to the throne of England in 1327....

The award-winning story of Britain, from the arrival of Julius Caesar in 55BC to the death of Queen Victoria in 1901. 'Wonderful.This Sceptred Isle has provided one of the greatest treats for listeners in recent years.' Paul Donovan, Sunday Times. The story of Britain, from the arrival of Julius Caesar in 55BC to the death of Queen Victoria in 1901...

The award-winning story of Britain, from the arrival of Julius Caesar in 55BC to the death of Queen Victoria in 1901. 'Wonderful.This Sceptred Isle has provided one of the greatest treats for listeners in recent years.' Paul Donovan, Sunday Times. After the death of Oliver Crowmwell, the Protectorate collapsed and parliament voted for the return of...

The award-winning story of Britain, from the arrival of Julius Caesar in 55BC to the death of Queen Victoria in 1901. 'Wonderful.This Sceptred Isle has provided one of the greatest treats for listeners in recent years.' Paul Donovan, Sunday Times. Britain was at the egde of the known world when, under the Emperor Claudius, the Romans brought to the...

A BBC Radio 4 "Book at Bedtime" recording of Samuel West reading from the novella The Aspern Papers by Henry James, set against the decaying grandeur of Venice. Originally broadcast 26 April - 4 May 2010. Henry James took as inspiration for his tale The Aspern Papers the story of a mistress of Byron's who outlived the poet into lonely old age. H...

First-hand accounts featuring the RAF pilots who took part in the Battle of Britain - one of the chief turning points of World War Two. "Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few" - Winston Churchill The "Few" were the nearly 3,000 RAF pilots who fought against the Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain, which rag...

Tim Pigott-Smith presents a unique audio snapshot of the history of the Twentieth Century. Released in ten volumes, Eyewitness provides a rare opportunity to hear the history of the 20th century described by those who were actually there. Tim Pigott-Smith weaves together fascinating reminiscences taken from the BBC archives - many previously unbroa...

Eyewitness provides a rare and fascinating opportunity to hear the events of the century described by those who saw them happen. A wealth of BBC archive recordings, some never previously broadcast, is interwoven with an illuminating commentary by the historian Joanna Bourke. Published in ten volumes, Eyewitness examines the role and the life of the...

Britain had the biggest empire the world has ever known. At one time a quarter of the global land mass was British. Over a third of the world was insured at Lloyds. At his coronation, more than 400 million people saluted George V. Truly, the sun never set on this historical phenomenon. Whatever the day, whatever the hour, somewhere on the globe, th...

Authentic voices from the past illustrate this unique history of the twentieth century, written by Joanna Bourke and presented by Tim Pigott-Smith. Eyewitness provides a rare and fascinating opportunity to hear the events of the century described by those who saw them happen. A wealth of BBC archive recordings, some never previously broadcast, is i...