Synopsis
Series combining human stories, expert interviews, book illustrations and historic archive to reveal the beauty of books.
Episodes
Season 11E1Ancient BiblesThe British Library in London is home to 14 million books, on shelves that stretch over 600km. Extraordinary vessels of ideas and knowledge, they testify to the love affair we have with books. This series explores the enduring appeal and importance of books from a 4th century bible to present day paperbacks.30m2E2Medieval MasterpiecesThe medieval era was the heyday of illuminated manuscripts. In the 14th and 15th centuries, there was a flowering of religious texts set into beautifully-decorated pages. Among these devotional books were psalters, or books of psalms. Hundreds of these were produced, but the Luttrell Psalter is remarkable for its whimsical, humorous and vivid pictures of rural life and a demonic world that is terrifying and grotesque.30m3E3Illustrated WonderlandsThe Victorians were masters of illustrated books, especially for children. Thanks to an emerging middle class readership, new printing technology and a sentimentalised regard for childhood, fairy tales and fantasy fiction containing words and pictures grew into an established genre.30m4E4Paperback WriterThe paperback book democratized reading in the 20th century, and printing directly onto the covers became a way of selling a book in the mass market.30m
Cast
Stephen BayleyHimself - Author & Design Critic
Rick GekoskiHimself - Writer & Rare Book Dealer
Michelle BrownHerself - University of London
Christopher de HamelHimself - Corpus Christi College Cambridge
Alison BaileyHerself - Curator British Library
Andrew BiswellHimself - Burgess Biographer
Alixe BoveyHerself - University of Kent
Michael ForemanHimself - Illustrator
John GrayHimself - Designer
Carolyne LarringtonHerself - St. John's College Oxford
Patricia LovettHerself - Scribe & Illustrator
