About
Series combining human stories, expert interviews, book illustrations and historic archive to reveal the beauty of books.
Cast
Richard Dormer
as Narrator
Stephen Bayley
as Himself - Author & Design Critic
Rick Gekoski
as Himself - Writer & Rare Book Dealer
Michelle Brown
as Herself - University of London
Christopher de Hamel
as Himself - Corpus Christi College Cambridge
Alison Bailey
as Herself - Curator British Library
Andrew Biswell
as Himself - Burgess Biographer
Alixe Bovey
as Herself - University of Kent
Michael Foreman
as Himself - Illustrator
John Gray
as Himself - Designer
Carolyne Larrington
as Herself - St. John's College Oxford
Patricia Lovett
as Herself - Scribe & Illustrator
Edward Maggs
as Himself - Rare Book Dealer
John McConnell
as Himself - Designer
Scot McKendrick
as Himself - British Library
Paul W. Nash
as Himself - Bodleian Library Oxford
David Parker
as Himself - University of Birmingham
Sebastian Peake
as Himself
David Pearson
as Himself - Designer
David Pelham
as Himself - Designer
Seasons
Episodes
Season 1
Ancient Bibles
The 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.
Medieval Masterpieces
The 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.
Illustrated Wonderlands
The 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.
Paperback Writer
The 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.
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