Seven Ages o Britain

The Seven Ages of Elvis sets out to explore exactly who Elvis was and the true meaning of his unprecedented impact on popular culture. Using Shakespeare's Seven Ages of Man as a framework, the film charts 'The King of Rock n Roll's' extraordinary life, act by act - from his impoverished childhood in the depressed American South, through his meteoric rise to international fame, to his Vegas years and sad death in 1977. Combining archive material with personal testimonies from those who knew Elvis best, the film throws light on the secret to his triumphant, universal success and asks why audiences are still drawn to him 40 years after his death.

"All the world's a stage… And one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages." As You Like It, Act II Scene VII – William Shakespeare. If the world is a stage then regardless of what you think of his film career Elvis Presley was its finest performer, his sound and style defined an era. "Before Elvis there was nothing," said John Lennon. And he was right. Elvis gave our world its first "rise and fall" megastar. No one played the role of "rags to riches" with more aplomb. In the 1950s ‘Elvis-mania' became the benchmark for celebrity. He lived out a larger-than-life comic tragedy of decline, redemption, drug addiction and depression that chased him to an early grave at just 42.

Elvis was the ultimate “rise and fall” megastar – he defined the pitfalls of modern super-celebrity. His childhood immersed in “trash white” poverty exposed him to black cultural influences that created a curious and electric fusion of influences that shaped a new musical phenomenon. We discover why, Dead Elvis has become an even bigger phenomenon than he was in life, worth more annually than Michael Jackson, Frank Sinatra and David Bowie combined. By dividing Elvis’s life into seven distinct phases, we marry his achievements to his times and his historical context.

This is the epic story of the stars, and how discovering their tale has transformed our own understanding of the universe. Once we thought the sun and stars were gods and giants. Now we know, in a way, our instincts were right. The stars do all have their own characters, histories and role in the cosmos. Not least, they played a vital part in creating us. There are old, bloated red giants, capable of gobbling up planets in their orbit; explosive deaths - supernovae - that forge the building blocks of life; and black holes, the most mysterious stellar tombstones. And, of course, stars in their prime, like our own sun. Leading astronomers reveal how the grandest drama on tonight is the one playing above our heads.

An exploration of the dramatic life of Dr No?l Browne – a socialist challenger of consensus, radical Minister for Health, author of the Mother and Child Scheme, and nemesis of Archbishop John Charles McQuaid.

Able to inspire wonder and awe in all who gazed upon them, The Seven Wonders of Ancient Rome - the Pantheon, the Aqueducts of Rome, the Via Appia, the Baths of Caracalla, Trajan's Markets, Circus Maximus and the Colosseum - were the works of great men who translated fantastic visions into the epitome of human achievement. These visionaries included ambitious Emperors like Hadrian and engineers with revolutionary ideas such as Apollodorus. By the second century AD, Rome had become the 'caput mundi' - the head of the world.

Rome is falling… It is the time of the barbarians. In Secrets Of The Dark Ages, Richard Rudgley goes in search of evidence of the barbarians of the dark ages, people whose names have for 1500 years been bywords for mindless brutality: the Huns, the Vandals, the Goths. The real truth about the barbarians who marched across Europe during the Dark Ages is more shocking than what you may know!

Over Britain's tens of thousands of years of civilization, its history has played host to a series of strange and mysterious rituals, events, and cultures. British talk show host Clive Anderson and anthropologist Mary-Ann Ochota travel across the U.K. to explore the sacred sites and supernatural beliefs of the ancient Britons. By examining their mystic places and practices, they hope to unlock the secrets of their ancestors and better understand the worlds in which they lived.

Paul O'Grady takes a personal journey through the history of the British working classes.

It has been described as the most uplifting ceremony of the year. Pride of Britain is about to enter its milestone third decade after it has been celebrating remarkable people who make the nation a better place for 20 years. In this one-off special, presented by Pride of Britain’s very own Carol Vorderman, we will be reliving many of her favourite memories spanning over the last 20 years. Those big surprises, those outstanding winners and those unforgettable moments. For this special occasion, Carol has hit the road to visit some of the winners who truly stick in the memory and our hearts. Some who have done great things since and some who are still just simply great.