John Cleese, friends, and the best bits of TV's quirkiest chat show.

In the first century, after the death of Herod the Great, Judea goes through a long period of turbulence due to the actions of the corrupt Roman governors and the internal struggles, both religious and political, between Jewish factions, events that soon lead to the uprising of the population and a cruel war that lasts several years and causes thousands of deaths, a catastrophe described in detail by the Romanized Jewish historian Titus Flavius Josephus.

An account of the reign of Herod the Great, king of Judea under the rule of the Roman Empire, remembered for having ordered, according to the Gospel of Matthew, the murder of all male infants born in Bethlehem at the time of the birth of Jesus, an unproven event that is not mentioned by Titus Flavius Josephus, the main historian of that period.

Hugh Bonneville reveals how a perfect storm of political intrigue, power struggles and clashing religious passions combined, in a single week, to cause the event that changed the world: the killing of Jesus.

Two Biblical scholars explore a controversial new theory: that many of Jesus’ closest followers were women. Why have they been cut out of history?

Take a pilgrimage across the Holy Land as we explore the life of Jesus of Nazareth, separating history from legend.

A series of programmes exploring great figures and events from biblical times. Historical, archaeological and anthropological evidence gives fresh insights into the historical realities of the times. Stylish drama re-enactments, CGI graphics, and expert opinions offer a comprehensive exploration into some of the Bible's most compelling people and stories. Was Mary Magdalene really a prostitute? Where was St Peter laid to rest? Did Joseph actually have a 'coat of many colours'? Did Herod really order the massacre of the innocents? This series answers these questions and more.