A History of Britain

Simon Schama is not a revisionist; he's a reviver; a magical veterinarian, who has resuscitated a dead horse. And that's not simple. Kudos to Simon Schama and his fabulous series. A History of Britain is exactly that: a history, not the history. It's entertaining, exactly what the teaching of history should be; it bakes, rendering couch potatoes unstrung; and it's downright riveting. The BBC have always produced the best in documentary programming, and A History of Britain does not disappoint. If you have to beg, borrow or steal, it is highly recommended that anyone with half a brain dash off and purchase this jewel. Thank you and goodnight.

"A History of Britain" is a beautifully done 15x55 minute miniseries (5 DVDs) in which British Jew and Columbia University professor Simon Schama accompanies you in person and with narration on a journey through British history from the Iron Age through Winston Churchill. Not caring to paint his portrait of Britain with broad brush strokes, the eloquent Schama talks and walks you through time as he hops from one historical benchmark to another, pausing to explain each point in time, the forces at work, and its effect on history set against a backdrop castles and manors, cities and farms, queens and beggars, pictures and maps, relics and treasures, and locations spanning several continents. Schama doesn't spend time exalting Britain but delves into the harsh realities which both forged and bedeviled one of the world's great empires. "A History of Britain" serves up great gulps of information, assumes some knowledge of British history, uses words which may be unfamiliar to the average American audience, doesn't have enough show and tell visual aids to make for an easily assimilated presentation, and, unfortunately is sans captions or subtitles. However, the tradeoff between didactics and aesthetics is such that it should be an enjoyable and educational watch for anyone interested in British history. (A)

I recently watched the programme on the British Civil War. It is clear from the beginning that Simon Schama, the presenter, has taken on a revisionist view of the causations leading to the War which I personally agree with. I enjoyed Simon's dramatic presenting style and the visuals, for instance when he's standing on the battlefield where the Civil War took place, which are particularly useful in creating an image of events in your head. Some scenes of the documentary are filmed from above which helps to heighten drama and suspense. He is somewhat egotistical but I find this only adds to the entertainment value of the programme. I find Schama much easier to understand than his counterpart David Starkey who uses academic language that makes it much more difficult to follow. Overall, I enjoyed the video and found it to be an exciting and often quirky take on British history. I hope to watch more of the collection of 15 programmes in the future.

This is an extremely subjective documentary series, not evenly-balanced. Yes, I enjoyed it; it was entertaining, but not purely history. 8/10.

The series exists on video as "A History of Britain I (3500BC - 1603AD)" and "A History of Britain II (1603 - 1776)". The following is based upon viewing the latter.

"A History of Britain II (1603 - 1776)". This series is probably more interesting for a non British viewer because of the time period: the emergence of Great Britain out of conflict between England and Scotland, the waning of the power of the monarch, the related growth of the power of the elected assembly, catholicism vs protestantism, civil war (parliament vs the monarchy), democracy as a means of mitigating the power of the monarch, exploration and growing relationships with the world beyond Europe.

It is a recent production (2000), it meets modern production values and it is not dry - typical handicaps of this genre. The presenter has a breezy style which you'll either enjoy or it will grate! He certainly knows his stuff and sticks to the broad themes. Fascinating stuff.