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Categories: Drama: Classic & Period

  1. How Green Was My Valley

    Drama series about a mining family facing upheaval with the arrival of the 20th century.

    BBC Two

  2. Rumer Godden - Black Narcissus

    A sinister destiny overtakes the nuns living in the shadow of the Himalayas.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  3. Marie Antoinette

    The tumultuous early years of the Austrian princess who became the queen of France.

    BBC Two

  4.

    A Christmas Carol: A Ghost Story

    Mark Gatiss's fantastic theatrical production of Dickens’s classic winter ghost story.

    BBC Four

  5. Romeo + Juliet

    Baz Luhrmann's explosive update of Shakespeare's tragedy.

    BBC Three

  6. Twelfth Night from Shakespeare’s Globe

    Shakespeare’s comedy of mistaken identity and love, from the Globe Theatre.

    BBC Four

  7. Walter de la Mare - Memoirs of a Midget

    The diminutive Miss M must struggle to find her place, and love, in Victorian society.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  8. Fortunes of War

    A newly married couple find themselves stranded in eastern Europe at the onset of WWII.

    BBC One

  9. Paris Police 1905

    To catch a killer, you must think like one. Stylish French noir.

    BBC Four

  10. Margaret Forster - Lady's Maid

    The story of Elizabeth Barrett Browning's loyal maid and companion, Lily Wilson.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  11. O Caledonia by Elspeth Barker

    A glittering, gothic and surreal coming-of-age story with a deadly twist.

    BBC Radio 4

    Show available episodes

  12. The Six Wives of Henry VIII

    Coerced. Manipulated. Murdered. The classic 1970s drama about Henry VIII's six wives.

    BBC Two

  13.

    Moths

    Lady Dolly Vanderdecken is horrified when her daughter arrives for the season.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  14. Mr Jones

    1933. Suspicious of Russia’s resurgence, journalist Gareth Jones travels to Ukraine.

    BBC Two

  15. Great Expectations

    Orphan Pip's life changes forever when he meets wealthy Miss Havisham and her daughter.

    BBC One

  16. La Vie de Boheme

    Henry Murger's tales of Bohemian life in Paris in the 1840s

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  17. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (Omnibus)

    Charlotte Bronte's story of a woman's search for independence and love on her own terms.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  18. Ten Pound Poms

    You can make your own world when you leave the past behind.

    BBC One

    Show available episodes

  19. The House of Doors by Tan Twan Eng

    Based on real events, Tan Twan Eng's novel of love and betrayal under the shadow of Empire

    BBC Radio 4

  20. The Gallows Pole

    David Hartley assembles a gang to bring comfort and dignity back to his community.

    BBC Two

    Show available episodes

  21. The Lonely Londoners by Sam Selvon (Omnibus)

    Don Warrington reads Sam Selvon's 1950's classic of immigrant life in London.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  22. When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit by Judith Kerr (Omnibus)

    Judith Kerr's semi-autobiographical story set in Berlin in 1933

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  23. Absolute Beginners by Colin MacInnes (Omnibus)

    Cult classic about youth culture, cool music and racial tension in 1950s London.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  24. The Waiting Game

    Tom Naismith returns to Lancashire to find his uncle's business floundering. Why?

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  25. A Midsummer Night's Dream from Shakespeare's Globe

    Shakespeare's riotous tale of love and magic, filmed live at the Globe Theatre in 2016.

    BBC Four

  26. Tchaikovsky

    A docudrama series exploring the life of Russian composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky.

    BBC Two

  27. Elizabeth: The Golden Age

    A mature Queen Elizabeth endures multiple crises late in her reign.

    BBC One

  28. The Piano

    A non-speaking Scottish piano player is sold into marriage in 19th-century New Zealand.

    BBC Two

  29. One Moonlit Night

    Caradog Prichard's classic story of a young boy's passage to adulthood in North Wales.

    BBC Radio Wales

  30. Graeme Fife - A Breath of Fresh Air

    Proud chemist Antoine Lavoisier is in grave danger the longer he stays in Paris.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  31. NC Hunter - A Day By the Sea

    The loves, hopes and fears of a family - and a blast from their past.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  32. Soho Nights

    A serial set in London in 1956 as the Cold War and Suez Crisis loom over the UK.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  33. The Wars of the Roses

    Peter Hall's landmark 1960s RSC productions of Henry VI, Edward IV and Richard III.

    BBC Four

  34. Richard III

    Richard conspires to seize the throne of England, orchestrating a bloody rise to power.

    BBC Two

  35. Henry V from Shakespeare’s Globe

    Shakespeare’s masterpiece about the turbulence of war and the arts of peace.

    BBC Four

  36. Julius Caesar

    Classic Hollywood adaptation of William Shakespeare’s play.

    BBC Two

  37.

    Hamlet at Elsinore

    1964 production of Shakespeare's famous play. Filmed in Elsinore, Denmark.

    BBC One

  38.

    Hamlet from Bristol Old Vic

    Billy Howle stars in a bold stage adaptation of Shakespeare’s famous tragedy.

    BBC Four

  39. Arnold Bennett - The Old Wives' Tale

    Stories following the lives of two very different sisters, Constance and Sophia Baines.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  40. Arnold Bennett - The Old Wives' Tale (Omnibus)

    Stories following the lives of two very different sisters, Constance and Sophia Baines.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  41. Casanova

    Peter O'Toole and David Tennant star as the 18th century master of seduction.

    BBC Four

  42. Belfast

    Belfast, 1969. Young Buddy’s happy home life is rocked by the eruption of the Troubles.

    BBC Two

  43. The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro (Omnibus)

    John Moffatt reads the classic tale of a butler's devoted service at a stately home

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  44. A Christmas Carol By Candlelight

    Nicholas Parsons narrates a musical version of the Charles Dickens classic.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  45. The Big Sleep

    Philip Marlowe is hired to deal with a series of debts incurred by a general's daughter.

    BBC Two

  46. Murder Is Easy

    One death is a tragedy – are four deaths a crime?

    BBC One

    Show available episodes

  47. Mary, Queen of Scots (1971)

    Returning from France to rule Scotland, Mary Stuart gets a grudging welcome.

    BBC Two

  48. The Witness for the Prosecution

    Thrilling two-part drama about a man accused of killing his lover.

    BBC One

    Show available episodes

  49. Under Milk Woods

    For the 70th anniversary of Under Milk Wood, five short drama portraits of Wales in 2024.

    BBC Radio 3

    Show available episodes

  50. Frenchman's Creek by Daphne du Maurier

    A classic tale of love, daring and a painted pirate ship in a hidden Cornish creek.

    BBC Radio 4

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