S1.E1 ∙ Part One

Shakespeare's life and work are sometimes romanticized as a product of the golden age of Elizabeth I. But the bard produced some of his finest plays after the Virgin Queen's death. In this illuminating BBC series, American scholar James Shapiro examines the plays Shakespeare wrote during the turbulent reign of Elizabeth's successor, King James I. One of the new king's first official acts was to name Shakespeare a "king's man." Overnight, the dramatist attained security, prestige, and an up-close view of the Jacobean court. Shapiro convincingly argues that the dark, complex plays of Shakespeare's last decade--King Lear, Macbeth, and The Tempest, among others--mirrored both royal life and the era's profound social changes. Visiting sites that Shakespeare would have known, scouring archives, and consulting leading historians, literary experts, and directors, Shapiro reveals a Shakespeare we've never seen. "As accomplished a storyteller as he is a scholar" (Radio Times, U.K.), James Shapiro has been a professor of English at Columbia University since 1985. He is the author of the acclaimed books 1599 and Contested Will.

It follows as she returns to her roots in Louisiana, going back home from the first time since achieving all her success in Hollywood and showing fans a more personal side than they have ever seen before.

Documentary series marking the centenary of the Windsor dynasty by examining the history of the royal residence over the last 80 years - using archive material, interviews and dramatic recreations.

American Apparel was initially celebrated for its provocative advertising and message of social change. Then the unpredictability of its founder imploded the iconic company.

From The Creators Of The Best-Selling Documentary Series "Up From Slavery"... A 7-Part Compelling Journey Through America's Greatest Saga. In 1860, the nation founded upon an idea that all men are created equal and endowed by their creator with the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness had as many as four hundred thousand slave-owners and almost four million slaves. By denying these rights to more than twelve percent of its population, America would soon pay with the blood of a generation. The story of African Slavery in America started with the first permanent English Colony in the 17th century... and ended with the Civil War. But those two hundred and fifty years of struggle were just the beginning. The beginning of a journey down the long Emancipation Road...