History

Mary Beard’s career began with a piece of cake. On a trip to the British Museum with her mother, a curator noticed her struggling to see one of the exhibits, a 3,000-year-old piece of carbonised cake from Ancient Egypt.

“He got his keys out, he opened the case, he got the bit of cake out and he showed it to me.” It was a “light-bulb moment” for the then five-year-old, and a lesson in the joy of sharing. “People will see you wanting to know something and they’ll get their keys and unlock the case.”

Historian and writer Dan Jones will front the mini-series from independent production company Pernel Media and Chris Holt (Elizabeth I) has been hired as director.

The series documents the turbulent conflicts between the French royal houses of Valois and Burgundy, and their Plantagenet rivals in England, which exploded with such ferociousness in the colossal struggle of The Hundred Years War.

The Shiers Trust grant, now in its 18th year, is normally worth £2,000. This year, to mark the 90th anniversary of the RTS, it has been raised to £4,000. 

Launched in 2000, the Shiers Trust grant is named after George Shiers, a distinguished US TV historian.

The grant has enabled a range of projects, including the digitalisation of back issues of the Radio Times and the creation of a website which presents a collection of historical consumer electronics images.

The History of Football will be broadcast on May 28 to June 10 and will capture the anticipation of the World Cup in the build up to this year’s event in Russia.

The series will include a slate of original, globally-focused premium documentary series, and short form specials.

Food: Nigella: at My Table

Monday

8.30pm, BBC2

CBBC’s Horrible Histories was the subject of RTS London’s latest production focus in early November – with a team of creatives from producers Lion Television explaining how they put together the award-winning show.

Commissioned by A+E Networks UK, the series takes a unique and extraordinary look at some of the most impactful events to have affected Britain in the 20th and 21st centuries.

Set to air in early 2018 on History, the original six-part series will unravel the events that led to some of the most devastating disasters of the past 60 years.