Doing History in Public

Tag: BBC

Responses to BBC Radio 4: “Germany: Memories of a Nation” Part 1

by Tiia Sahrakorpi and Janine Noack This morning, the first episode of the BBC radio 4 programme Germany: Memories of a Nation aired. Neil MacGregor, Director of the British Museum, presented…

August 12, 2025
Responses to BBC Radio 4 Germany: Memories of a Nation “Divided Heaven” Part 2

by Tiia Sahrakorpi and Janine Noack This morning the second episode of the BBC Radio 4 programme, Germany: Memories of a Nation aired. Janine Noack (JN) and Tiia Sahrakorpi (TS) provided…

August 12, 2025
Wolf Hall and the historians: What can historical drama do?

By Carys Brown @HistoryCarys Typing #WolfHall into Twitter reveals no end of enthusiasm about the BBC’s current Tudor drama. Even Prince Charles has admitted to ‘enjoying’ it.1 However, not everyone is happy. Historian and television presenter David Starkey has described both the novel and the TV adaptation as a ‘deliberate perversion’ of history, expressing particular discontent…

August 12, 2025
A familiar tune: the Proms affair highlights Britain’s reluctance for critical self-reflection

By Daniel Adamson (@DanielEAdamson) Controversy was caused by the recent announcement that orchestral versions of Rule, Britannia! and Land of Hope and Glory would feature at the Last Night of the Proms, in a break with the traditional singing of the anthems. Eventually, this decision was reversed by the BBC. According to the broadcaster, the…

August 12, 2025