John Turturro’s TV adaptation of The Name of the Rose, Umberto Eco’s dark murder mystery set in a Benedictine abbey in 14th-century Italy, began screening on BBC2 in October, 2019. Author Jean Goodhind has read the book and seen the film; how will this version compare? The moment I saw this in my TV schedule […]
Review: Downton Abbey: the film
Does Downton Abbey work as a film? Should you take your non-DA-addict friend or partner to see it? Will there be posh frocks and implausible plots? These and many other important questions are answered in LJ Trafford’s Historia review. The world is neatly divided into those who have never seen Downton Abbey and those who […]
Review: World on Fire
Screening a Second World War drama series so soon after the 80th anniversary commemorations could be a bold decision – or a predictable one. Elizabeth Buchan has watched the first episode of World on Fire (BBC One, Sundays, 9pm) and tells Historia whether the gamble has paid off. A world war with the best tourist […]
Review: Sanditon
Does Sanditon, the new ITV Sunday evening serial, succeed as a drama? Historian of the Regency period Naomi Clifford reviews it for Historia.
Review: Peaky Blinders Season 5
At last, the waiting’s over. Peaky Blinders is back, and on BBC One, too. Was it worth hanging on for? Katherine Clements reviews Season 5 for Historia.
Review: The Last Czars
Gill Paul, author of two novels about the Romanovs, reviews the Netflix series The Last Czars for Historia
Review: Charles I: Downfall of a King
Charles I: Downfall of a King (BBC Four, 9 July, 2019) reviewed by James Burge for Historia magazine
Review: Year of the Rabbit
Having written four books set in the East End of London in the 1880s I like to think I know a trope when I see one, and Year of the Rabbit has them in spades. In fact, they come so thick and fast in the first episode of Channel 4’s new crime comedy it’s as […]