Three-part series presented by historian Benjamin Woolley about popular games in Britain from the Iron Age to the Information Age, in which he unravels how an apparently trivial pursuit is a rich and entertaining source of cultural and social history.
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Games journey from the board to the screen, reflecting the rapidly changing history of modern Britain. In the 1980s, the power of our imagination was harnessed in early video games like Elite, putting the audience at the heart of a space adventure they could influence.
Board games have had a surprising political and social impact in Britain the last 200 years. It was the British who developed the idea of the board game as an instrument of moral instruction and exported it to America, where it was adapted to promote the American Dream of free enterprise and economic success. This crusading element in board games is perhaps best exemplified by the best-selling game in history - Monopoly - which celebrated wealth and avarice in the wake of the Great Depression.
From 1st-century Britain to the Victorian era, the instinct to play games is as universal and elemental as language itself. Ancient and medieval games weren't just fun, they were fundamental, and often imbued with prophetic significance.
Three-part series presented by historian Benjamin Woolley about popular games in Britain from the Iron Age to the Information Age, in which he unravels how an apparently trivial pursuit is a rich and entertaining source of cultural and social history.
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