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Private Notes
For over fifty years, Richard Hayward was at the centre of cultural life in Northern Ireland. Yet after his death in a car crash in 1964, his name and achievements faded from view. Actor Dan Gordon sets out to rediscover Hayward's extraordinary life and career and find out why we know so little about him today.
Historian John Bew uncovers the remarkable story of Lord Castlereagh, the Irish-born British Foreign Secretary who was instrumental in the defeat of Napoleon yet became one of the country's most reviled politicians before ending his own life in 1822.
The remarkable story of the Millisle missionary who devoted her life to saving children from sex abuse in India. Sir Mark Tully visits Tamil Nadu to discover Amy's enduring legacy.
William Crawley follows the incredible story of Belfast-born scientist Lord Kelvin and a group of visionaries, who long before the first telephone call, embarked on a quest to join Europe and America, spanning the Atlantic with a single 2,500-mile telegraph cable.
Northern Ireland native and Apprentice star Margaret Mountford takes a step into the past to uncover the life and legacy of Ulster's Forgotten Radical, Isabella Tod. Isabella was one of the most prominent campaigners for women's rights in Victorian times, yet today it's a name hardly anyone would recognise. She was born in Scotland but spent her adult life in Belfast, and was central to securing some of the most significant rights for women, including access to Queen's University. In this documentary Margaret Mountford turns history detective to discover more about Isabella Tod's remarkable life.
Dan Gordon returns to his native east Belfast to explore the work of four writers with strong connections to this part of the city. In doing so he considers how these writers - St John Ervine, Thomas Carnduff, Sam Thompson and Stewart Parker - explored the experiences of Belfast's working class communities and brought their voices to a wider audience.
Actress Michelle Fairley reveals the life and legacy of social revolutionary Mary Ann McCracken, from her pioneering role as a determined feminist to her efforts to alleviate poverty and abolish slavery.
Historian John Bew explores the remarkable story of William Tennent, whose private life was cloaked in scandal and who was almost hanged for his part in the 1798 Rising, yet he went on to become the richest man in Belfast.
Writer and journalist Lesley Riddoch explores the forgotten story of Nesca Robb, the 20th-century Ulster poet, writer and historian who played a key role in saving so much of the Ulster heritage we value and enjoy today.
Duncan Bannatyne explores the life and legacy of Sir Thomas Lipton, from his family's humble Ulster Scots beginnings, to the heights of his international business success and how he earned the title 'The Man Who Charmed the World'.
Dr Saleyha Ahsan uncovers the story of Anne Acheson, the trailblazing Ulster artist and sculptor whose voluntary work during World War One changed the face of modern medicine. She discovers how Anne's innovative, creative mindset combined with her training in sculpting, led to the widespread use of plaster of Paris splints, still being used in hospitals 100 years on. Dr Ahsan travels from Ulster to London, to discover the remarkable story of how Anne Acheson combined art and medicine to leave her mark on history.
Adventurer and travel writer Leon McCarron retraces part of the 1856 voyage to the Arctic made by one of his heroes, Lord Dufferin. In June 1856, the 1st Marquess of Dufferin and Ava, Frederick Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, left his home in Bangor to travel across Scotland and on to the Arctic in a small sailing schooner. After travelling 6,000 miles in four months, Lord Dufferin published a best-selling account of his journey and in the process set the course for the rest of his life. He became the most outstanding diplomat of the Victorian era, a charming fixer solving international and domestic disputes everywhere from Canada to Burma. Leon McCarron recreates this seminal voyage by following the accounts written in Lord Dufferin's book, introducing us to some of the stories of this extraordinary man. Leon considers Dufferin's family background, his Ulster-Scots heritage, his drive for adventure and achievement, and explores the parallels with his own background and adventurous life a century and a half later. We reveal how the Scottish part of that first epic journey and his passion for Sir Walter Scott impacted Lord Dufferin's future, his Clandeboye estate, and the landscape of North Down as we know it today.
Best-selling author Kate Mosse reveals how Ulster-Scots writer Helen Waddell has influenced her, and uncovers the fascinating story of how Waddell's life and work intertwined. Helen Waddell's 1933 novel Peter Abelard was a bestseller, and she was feted by the literati, politicians, and even royalty. She was a pioneer of the type of historical fiction that is so popular, and respected today. Born in Japan, the daughter of a Presbyterian missionary, Helen was among the first wave of women to study at Queen's Belfast and Oxford University. She became an acclaimed scholar, translator, and novelist, but throughout her life she faced such adversity as bereavement, discrimination, complicated relationships and illness. Kate discovers how Waddell's fascination with the famous medieval lovers Abelard and Heloise had a profound and startling effect on her own romantic life.
