Today, few people's clothes attract as much attention as the royal family, but this is not a modern-day paparazzi-inspired obsession. Historian Dr. Lucy Worsley, Chief Curator at Historic Royal Palaces, reveals that it has always been this way. Exploring the royal wardrobes of our kings and queens over the last four hundred years, Lucy shows this isn't just a public fascination, but an important and powerful message from the monarchs. From Elizabeth I to the present Queen Elizabeth II, Lucy explains how the royal wardrobe's significance goes far beyond the cut and color of the clothing. Royal fashion is, and has always been, regarded as a very personal statement to reflect their power over the reign. Most kings and queens have carefully choreographed every aspect of their wardrobe; for those who have not, there have sometimes been calamitous consequences. As much today as in the past, royal fashion is as much about politics as it is about elegant attire.
During the bloody era of the Tokugawa Shogunate collapse, a man appeared capable of overthrowing a corrupt government and ending the feud between the Choshu and Satsuma clans. This is the story of Tsukigat Khanpayit, the sword maker of the Choshu clan, who, along with Katsuro Kogoro and Sakamoto Ryoma, sought to fulfill the dream of a new peaceful era in Japan. Can he realize his ideals or will he die in the chaos of internecine fights...
Death threats, court battles, and an iconic endangered species in middle, The Trouble With Wolves takes an up close look at the most heated and controversial wildlife conservation debate of our time. The film aims to find out whether coexistence is really possible by hearing from the people directly involved.
In 19th century Victorian England, Mrs. Isabella Beeton produced what became an essential book for housewives of the day. She was married at a relatively young age to Sam Beeton, a publisher of books and magazines on a variety of subjects. Not someone to sit at home in the traditional role of a housewife, Mrs. Beeton started work in her husband's business, initially as an editor correcting English but then writing some of the columns herself. It as at this point that she developed an idea for a cookbook and Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management was born. Her life was not an easy one however. The publishing business went bankrupt, she lost two children at a young age and had several miscarriages. She died at the age of 28.
Juan Méndez Bernal leaves his house on the 9th of april of 1936 to fight in the imminent Spanish Civil War. 83 years later, his body is still one of the Grass Dwellers. The only thing that he leaves from those years on the front is a collection of 28 letters in his own writing.
When World War I comes to an end, three pilots find themselves on hard times. They wind up in Hollywood, where they work as stunt fliers for a sadistic director.
The true story of the greatest Greek writer of the 20th century, Nikos Kazantzakis, based on his work, Report to Greco, which is, essentially, his autobiography.
In the Kingdom of France from 1640 is the old with his body ailing Cardinal Richelieu, powerful man under Louis XIII, faced with the machinations of his tipped designated successor, the Marquis de Cinq-Mars.
Winston Churchill, one of the most revered men of the twentieth century. Adolf Hitler, one of the most hated leaders in contemporary history. Between 1940 and 1945, these two enormously contradictory personalities faced each other in both politics and war. A clash of giants whose story begins in the trenches of the World War I and ends with the debacle of the World War II.
The young daughter of a park ranger in Tanzania is distressed to learn that she and her father must permanently return to England, thus separating her from the one thing she loves most, a pet Bushbaby. Fearing what the future holds she decides to set the pet free but while doing so misses the boat back to England. After meeting up with a friendly native they try to resolve the situation together. Things take a turn for the worse when it is falsely reported that the native has kidnapped her, thus putting a price on his head
Cicely Tyson was Emmy-nominated as Outstanding Actress for her portrait of a Chicago schoolteacher whose remarkable achievements with black children labelled "unteachable" were spotlighted in a 1979 "60 Minutes" segment about how she became disillusioned with the traditional school system and decided to work outside of it, transforming her students into young scholars through her unique teaching style.
A fascinating story of the truth behind the legend and history of St Patrick. This special will feature the world reknown voices of two of Ireland's incredible top actors: with narration by Liam Neeson and also Gabriel Byrne supplying the voice of Patrick. The story of the real St. Patrick is a fabulous mix of part adventure tale and part spiritual awakening. His radical ideas were suspect and he attracted the censure of the Church establishment in Roman Britain. Patrick refused to compromise this commitment and soon won the respect and love of the Irish and even the finally the reluctant support of his detractors. He started out as a slave an eventually became a liberator, who learned to forgive and ultimately love his enemies.
18th century Vienna. Maria Theresia von Paradis, a gifted piano player and close friend of Mozart's, lost her eye-sight as a child. Desperate to cure their talented daughter, the Paradis entrust Maria to Dr. Mesmer, a forward-thinking-physician who gives her the care and attention that she requires. With the doctor's innovative techniques of magnetism, Maria slowly recovers her sight. But this miracle comes at a price as the woman progressively starts to lose her gift for music.
Prince Alexander, son of King Philip, and heir to the Macedonian empire, must fend off political saboteurs, assassins, and the jealousy of his own father to ascend to the position of king. Once there, he begins his quest to conquer all nations and become known as the Great King, though an ancient prophecy foretells that he will be the destroyer of the world and forever remembered as the Devil King.
Supper club restaurants were the hot dinning trend in the mid twentieth century. They provided a place for people to spend their evenings enjoying cocktails, home cooked, high quality food and entertainment. The supper club scene slowly faded from the rest of the country, but kept a strong hold in Wisconsin due to a culture that allowed it to thrive. Around for decades, supper clubs in Wisconsin have been able to hold their own style and traditions. While chain restaurants continue to expand and threaten their future, supper clubs are fighting to survive while continuing to offer the same exceptional dinning experience and a personal touch that is not seen in the modern lifestyle of dine and dash. Old Fashioned: The Story of the Wisconsin Supper Club takes you into this uniquely Wisconsin institution.
In late 19th-century Sicily, the noble Uzeda family—whose lineage dates back to the ancient viceroys that ruled those lands—fights to preserve its waning power in the face of the newly unified Italian regime.
The film follows Samuel Murphy who, after the death of his wife, is imprisoned in a labor camp run by Clancy, an unscrupulous overseer, Murphy only wants to escape and regain custody of his daughter, Penny, but becomes entangled in Clancy’s perilous gold smuggling scheme, facing threats from both the treacherous wilderness and potential betrayal within his own group.
A film scrapbook, images, phrases from our past, hiding their meanings behind veils. Let's lift those veils, one by one, to find how images, at one time seeming innocent, have revealed, after decades, to have homosexual overtones.