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Synopsis
Bettany Hughes relives eight pivotal days that defined the Roman Empire and made it the world's first superpower.
Episode 8 : The Rebirth of Rome
December. 15,2017
After more than a century of steady Roman decline, one man restores order to the disintegrating empire, setting it on a new course with Christianity at its heart. Host Bettany Hughes examines the life of Constantine the Great--the last emperor to rule over a united empire--and the day he was baptized in May 337 A.D. Explore ancient Constantinople, the city he founded that would shape the dynamics of the known world, and examine recently discovered traces of Constantine's imperial palace.
Episode 7 : The Colosseum's Grand Opening
December. 08,2017
Out of the carnage of Emperor Nero's death and the civil war that followed, a new imperial dynasty was born, one that looked to win over the hearts of the people by building the largest arena the world had ever seen: Rome's Colosseum. Examine the day in 80 A.D. when the Flavian Amphitheatre opened with a 100-day exhibition of animal and human slaughter. Visit the site, explore ancient artifacts, and see how the Colosseum remains a testament to Rome's reach and ambition and its thirst for blood and glory.
Episode 6 : The Downfall of Nero
December. 01,2017
It's 54 A.D. and Nero just succeeded his stepfather Claudius to become the fifth emperor of Rome. What followed was 14 years of cruel behavior that would unite the empire against Nero and, on June 9, 68 A.D., bring a violent end to his rule. Host Bettany Hughes travels the Roman world and examines ancient artifacts to reveal new insights into the most notorious reign in the empire's history. Witness key events in Nero's life that ultimately plunged Rome into a dangerous new phase of its history, an era of civil wars and military coups.
Episode 5 : Boudica's Revenge
November. 24,2017
It's 60 A.D. Seventeen years after the invasion of Britannia, Roman forces march into the settlement of the Iceni tribe, flog its queen, and abused her daughters. The attack sparked a retaliatory revolt that came perilously close to ending the Roman occupation of Britain. Host Bettany Hughes retraces the events that led to Boudica's war of annihilation, an onslaught of fire and fury that burnt cities to the ground, left thousands of Romans and native Britons dead, and earned the queen a place in history.
Episode 4 : Rome's First Emperor
November. 17,2017
Upon Julius Caesar's death, his 18-year-old great nephew stepped into the delicate balance of power and became Rome's first emperor and a ruthless political operator. The 44-year reign of Octavian, also known as Augustus, was vast and far-reaching, but it may never have happened if it weren't for one critical moment in 32 B.C. Host Bettany Hughes examines the day Octavian ordered the theft of the private will of his archrival Mark Antony and read its contents to Rome's Senate, a massive gamble that would have world-altering ramifications.
Episode 3 : Crossing the Rubicon
November. 10,2017
Rome had defeated her great rival Carthage and overcame a slave revolt led by Spartacus, but these victories came at a price. Army generals who could deliver foreign conquests accumulated enormous amounts of power. Julius Caesar, seeking glory, would challenge the very existence of the republic. Join historian Bettany Hughes in an exploration of the momentous day in 49 B.C. when Caesar crossed the Rubicon River, violated Roman law, and heralded the transformation of the Roman Republic into an empire ruled by a single man.
Episode 2 : The Spartacus Revolt
November. 03,2017
Bettany Hughes relates the events of 73BC when a Thracian gladiator started a slave revolt that so panicked the Roman elite that they offered power to a single man.
Episode 1 : Hannibal's Last Stand
October. 27,2017
Examining the day in 202BC when Rome defeated the might of Carthage at the Battle of Zama. This decisive moment set Rome on the path to greatness.
Seasons
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Chelmsford 123
Chelmsford 123 is a British television situation comedy produced for Channel 4 by Hat Trick Productions. It ran for two series, of six and seven episodes, in 1988 and 1990.
The series was set in the British town of Chelmsford in the year AD 123, and concerned the power struggle between Roman governor Aulus Paulinus and the British chieftain, Badvoc. Britain is a miserable place, cold and wet – just the place to exile Aulus for accidentally insulting the Emperor's horse, but also give him something useful to do. Aulus, probably a play on Aulus Platorius Nepos, the governor of Roman Britain between 122 and 125, was a rather delicate Roman, who was usually outwitted by the scheming Badvoc, who hadn't had a haircut for twenty-five years. Many of the other regular "Hat Trick" actors, previously seen in shows such as Who Dares Wins, also appeared.
Both series are now available on 4 on Demand and SeeSaw.
Series 1 and 2 was released on DVD by Acorn Media UK on 15 September 2011.
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