- Radio Times
- Review by:
- Mark Braxton
In an illuminating three-part series, Janina Ramirez pores over old manuscripts (no gloves!) to shed light on England’s medieval monarchy. Athelstan, Edgar the Peaceful and Cnut come in for heavy scrutiny, but it’s with the arrival of 13th-century chronicler Matthew Paris – the Ian Hislop of his day – that things get interesting.
The ancient tomes on display are beautiful objects, full of vibrant draftsmanship and glistening gold, but the trouble is that looking at books just isn’t televisual. Breathy, wide-eyed Ramirez counters this by scraping cowhides to show how vellum is made, while the Graphics team do that nifty trick of lifting pictures off the page.
About this programme
1/3. Art historian Janina Ramirez investigates what illuminated manuscripts commissioned for the kings of England between the ninth and 16th centuries reveal about the evolution of the country's art, culture and monarchy. She begins by exploring the British Library's collection of royal manuscripts, encountering books more than 1,000 years old and learning about the first Anglo-Saxon rulers to create a united England. She also visits Westminster Abbey to view the Liber Regalis, which has provided the basis for the order of service for all coronations since Richard II's in 1377.
Cast and crew
Cast
- Presenter
- Janina Ramirez
Crew
- Director
- Peter Sweasey
- Producer
- Peter Sweasey
- Writer
- Janina Ramirez
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