
Michael Wood explores village life in 14th century England, a time of plague, war and famine. Through the use of a remarkably complete set of documentary records, he explores one village - that of Codicote in Hertfordshire - looking at its boom times and its poorer times. Wood brings the period to life by focusing in on one family, that of the poor peasant Christina Cok, her father Hugh, her estranged husband William, and her children John and Alice. By looking at the poorest members of Codicote's society, Wood approaches his history from the bottom-up rather than taking the traditional historical approach of top-down, 'kings and barons' story-telling.


Michael Wood explores village life in 14th century England, a time of plague, war and famine. Through the use of a remarkably complete set of documentary records, he explores one village - that of Codicote in Hertfordshire - looking at its boom times and its poorer times. Wood brings the period to life by focusing in on one family, that of the poor peasant Christina Cok, her father Hugh, her estranged husband William, and her children John and Alice. By looking at the poorest members of Codicote's society, Wood approaches his history from the bottom-up rather than taking the traditional historical approach of top-down, 'kings and barons' story-telling.
2008-05-05
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7.0In 1375, China was in chaos between Yuan Dynasty and Ming Dynasty. Coryo (an ancient kingdom of Korea then) sent a delegation of many diplomats, soldiers and a silent slave to make peace with the new Chinese government. However, this delegation got charged as spies and sent in exile to a remote desert.
6.7The film describes the microcosmos of the small village Wacken and shows the clash of the cultures, before and during the biggest heavy metal festival in Europe.
The history of Westminster Abbey and a tour of the monuments within it; accompanied by choral music and including footage of the coronation of King George VI in 1937.
6.7A Muslim ambassador exiled from his homeland joins a group of Vikings, initially offended by their behavior but growing to respect them. As they travel together, they learn of a legendary evil closing in and must unite to confront this formidable force.
0.0Documentary to mark the WI's centenary. Lucy Worsley goes beyond the stereotypes of jam and Jerusalem to reveal the surprisingly radical side of this Great British institution.
8.8Recreating festivities from Henry VIII's era, Lucy Worsley dresses, eats, drinks, sings and parties like it is 500 years ago - discovering long-lost traditions as well as familiar customs.
9.0A representation of queer and feminist imagery that was mainly shot in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, remote and developing areas in southwest China, and metropolitan cities like Beijing from 2000 to 2004 to document the social changes in contemporary China. The director sympathetically and erotically represents a variety of women, including women as laborers, women as prayers, women in the ground, women in marriage, and women who lie on the funeral pyre with their dead husbands. Her camera juxtaposes the mountains and rivers in old times, the commercialized handicrafts as exposition, the capital exploitation of the elders’ living space, and the erotic freedom of the young people in a changing city.
5.0Set in the dense forests of 1940s Eastern Europe, this story reveals the supernatural encounters that challenge three soldiers' understanding of life and death.
In 14th-century England, knight Edward Carnifex marries his devoted love Eleanor after murdering her father — only to betray her for a wealthier bride. And it is only a matter of time before Eleanor will be forced to take a bloody revenge...
0.0In 1981, an unusual person arrives in Natashquan, marking the beginning of an unlikely love story between this small Quebec village and the young man they call “The Punk”. Five years later, he vanishes without a trace, forever impacting the community.
7.3The first documentary to present an unabashed critique of the impact of the Syrian government’s agricultural and land reforms, Everyday Life in a Syrian Village delivers a powerful jab at the state’s conceit of redressing social and economic inequities.
5.2England, 11th century. William the Conqueror (ca. 1027-1087) wins the Battle of Hastings (1066), changing the shape of medieval Europe and the course of English history. An account of the life of the extraordinary Norman warrior who became king.
8.0Mary Beard is on a mission to uncover the real Julius Caesar, and to challenge public perception, exploring Caesar's surprising legacy.
0.0From Well Dressing to Garland Day and even elephants in Alfreton - a celebration of the traditional customs of Derbyshire.
0.0"The most exciting thing going on in Europe, if not the world": welcome to Milton Keynes circa 1973.
6.7Elephants disrupt the lives of a family deep in the jungles of Northern Siam, and an entire village.
0.0Belarus, Vileika district of Minsk region. Lonely elderly people are leaving for winter to the home of seasonal residence. Each of them carries their own experience and beliefs, but they will have to stay the winter together. The days pass in sicknesses, conversations, watching TV... In mid-winter, there appears a new resident of the house, and the life inside changes.
6.1During the Crimean War between Britain and Russia in the 1850s, a British cavalry division, led by the overbearing Lord Cardigan, engages in an infamously reckless strategic debacle against a Russian artillery battery.
6.1England, 14th century. King Edward II falls in love with Piers Gaveston, a young man of humble origins, whom he honors with favors and titles of nobility. The cold and jealous Queen Isabella conspires with the evil Mortimer to get rid of Gaveston, overthrow her husband and take power…