Pioneers of surgical hygiene

The painful route to cleanliness in 19th century hospitals

• 40 mins

Mark Twain: The 'father of American literature'

Bridget Kendall and guests discuss the life, work and legacy of Mark Twain

• 40 mins

Vincent van Gogh: The struggling artist

Charting the highs and lows of the influential Dutch post-Impressionist painter

• 40 mins

Christina of Sweden: Queen of surprises

The rebellious monarch who scandalised 17th-century Europe

• 39 mins

Waiting for Godot: The play that changed the rules of theatre

How a play in which nothing happens created a revolution in contemporary theatre

• 40 mins

Empress Nur Jahan: Leader of the Mughals

The woman who wielded unparalleled power over the Mughal Empire in 17th century India

• 38 mins

Friedrich Engels: The Man Behind Karl Marx

The eventful life of Engels and his pivotal contribution to Marxism

• 40 mins

The Acropolis: Cradle of democracy

How the Acropolis of Athens provided the West with its foundations of politics and drama

• 40 mins

The American author James Baldwin

A giant of twentieth century American culture

• 40 mins

The Making of Modern Japan

Rajan Datar and guests discuss the astonishing transformation of Japan over 150 years

• 40 mins

Edgar Allan Poe: Master of horror

The dark, tumultuous life of America’s great gothic writer

• 40 mins

The Jet Engine

The trailblazing technology which made the air age soar

• 40 mins

Frida Kahlo: A life in colour

The life of Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, known for her ground-breaking self-portraits

• 39 mins

Cool: Sunglasses, style and American counter-culture

Exploring the elements of that seemingly effortless pose to which so many aspire

• 40 mins

Karl Kraus: Austria’s fearless satirist

The scathing critic of deceit and corruption in Vienna

• 40 mins

Who was the real Cleopatra?

Unpicking fact from fiction in the life of the last queen of Egypt

• 39 mins

Cambodia's ancient Khmer Empire

Builders and sculptors of South East Asia's awe-inspiring monuments

• 40 mins

Calm in the chaos: The story of the Stoics

A philosophy for resilience and equanimity

• 40 mins

Lifting the lid: The history of the toilet

An invention many rely on, but prefer not to discuss

• 40 mins

Coal: a Burning Legacy

How coal created empires and wealth but also caused misery and unprecedented pollution

• 40 mins

Charlie Chaplin

The life and work of early Hollywood's most successful comedian

• 40 mins

Diaghilev and the ballet revolution

The Russian impresario whose Ballet Russes company transformed 20th century dance

• 40 mins

The Iranian Coup of 1953: Overthrow of a Prime Minister

How British and US intelligence agencies helped oust Iran’s leader Mohammad Mossadeq

• 40 mins

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn: Revealing the Gulag

The Russian writer who exposed the grim, nightmarish world of Soviet forced labour camps

• 40 mins

The Emergence of Modern Turkey

The birth of the secular republic of Turkey from the ashes of the Ottoman Empire

• 40 mins

Fermentation: Ancient Food Alchemy

What's your brew? Friendly microbes making our fare tastier

• 40 mins

The Master and Margarita: Devilish satire

One of Russia’s favourite novels that combines magical fantasy with dark political satire

• 40 mins

Antigone: A drama of defiance

The classic play from Ancient Greece about civil disobedience

• 40 mins

Goya: Seeking truth through art

The Spanish artist Francisco Goya, whose work explored the darker side of human nature

• 40 mins

The Heel and the Sneaker

A history of footwear

• 40 mins