Helen Troy

The Trojan War was a legendary battle, fought between the Spartan king Menelaus and Paris, Prince of Troy, over Helen, the woman so beautiful that 'her face could launch a thousand ships'. The setting for the final showdown was the fabled city of Troy. But did it ever exist and did the war really happen?

Prince Paris of Troy, shipwrecked on a mission to the king of Sparta, meets and falls for Queen Helen before he knows who she is. Rudely received by the royal Greeks, he must flee…but fate and their mutual passions lead him to take Helen along. This gives the Greeks just the excuse they need for much-desired war.

Acclaimed presenter of historic documentaries, Bettany Hughes, embarks on a journey across the eastern Mediterranean to discover the truth about HELEN OF TROY, the woman blamed for causing the Trojan War, a conflict that resulted in countless deaths. Following weapons experts, the two-hour film shows how the conflict in Helens name would have been fought, unraveling the reality from the myths and putting flesh on the "face that launched a thousand ships", exploring the ways the Greeks made love and war circa 1300 B.C.

One of the most epic adventure stories of all time comes powerfully to life in this original four-hour epic-series. Filmed in exotic locales with an international cast and featuring state-of-the-art special effects, Helen of Troy depicts one of the greatest battles ever fought to win the love of the world's most beautiful woman. Though married to Menelaus, King of Sparta, Helen (Sienna Guillory) falls madly in love with Paris (Matthew Marsden) a handsome Trojan prince. Together, the lovers flee to Troy, where they are given safe haven by Paris' father, King Priam (John Rhys-Davies). Bent on bringing Helen back, the king's ruthless brother Agamemnon (Rufus Sewell) leads the skilled Spartan army to the shores of the fabled city. There the Greeks lay siege to Troy, thus beginning one of history's most legendary wars which would ultimately decide the destinies of two empires.

To avoid a taxi war, city officials blame a gang bombing on driver Joe Benton's wife Anna and put her on a ship to deport her. The mayor is speaker at a boxers' banquet where Joe pleads for them to go with him to the wharf and rescue Anna (about to deliver their baby) from the ship.

Historian Bettany Hughes gives her personal take on the diverse cultures of the ancient world in this 2010 documentary series on More 4. The series begins with an examination of Alexandria, the city founded by Alexander the Great in 332 BC to become the world’s first global centre of culture. The programme explores Alexandria’s role as a powerhouse of science and learning, and focuses on the female mathematician, astronomer and philosopher Hypatia, the subject of the feature film Agora, starring Rachel Weisz.

Now in its 2nd Season, the story of archaeology fascinates both laymen and professionals. In these installments we accompany Ernst Herzfeld on his last expedition to Persepolis in 1923; we travel to Mexico with the man who cracked the code of the Aztec calendar; we visit the greatest pre-industrial city on earth at Angkor; we join Isidoro Falchi as he discovers proof of the existence of the Etruscans; and we watch Alfred Merlin found the discipline of marine archaeology when he discovers shipwrecks in the Mediterranean..

Homer wrote his epic, The Iliad, in 700 BC 500 years after the Trojan Wars were supposed to have taken place. On what did he base his story? Where was Troy situated? Did Paris and Helen really exist? What was the significance of the famous wooden horse? Can archaeology help us to recreate a Bronze Age citadel which stood at the cross roads of the major trading routes of the day? Did the Trojan war ever happen,or was the city destroyed by natural causes?It's fascinated poets, painters and Hollywood directors for over 2,500 years.