English

Dubious casting? Methinks not… Portia the witty chameleon, her suitor Bassanio who’s indebted to his besty Antonio, the merchant and debtor of Shylock who is…well…played by the director who’s out to upstage his brother Trevor – what could go wrong? This programme profiles Shakespeare’s complex characters in The Merchant of Venice in a way that students will find quirky and engaging. Show Less

Money, relationships, love, choices, race and isolation… The tangled webs woven in Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice pale into insignificance compared with the director’s relationship with his brother Trevor, Bassanio’s personal struggle with his dating profile, Antonio’s ill-fitting wardrobe and Portia’s blunt assessments of proceedings at rehearsal. This entertaining programme provides students with a comical yet pertinent portrayal of the play’s themes. Show Less

Thanks to a winning scratch card, Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice will open tomorrow night. The director (aka Shylock) bounces back, Portia’s learnt her lines, Antonio’s new shirt is a hit, although Bassanio’s battling with his dating psychometric test – oh the suspense; the dramatic irony…. Show Less

When Victor Frankenstein created his monster he never named it, yet its complex personality and struggle for identity and acceptance provides a profound insight to the human condition. This clip examines the troubled relationship between Frankenstein and the monster, and the role of other characters in the novel, including William, Dr Clerval, Elizabeth, and Captain Walton. It is an ideal resource for English literature students. Show Less

In Frankenstein, Mary Shelley employs writing styles reflective of early 19th century literature. This clip explores a range of those styles, including using a series of letters to develop a narrative, structuring a narrative concentrically, and the inclusion of Gothic elements like horror, suspense, and poetic descriptions of wild, remote settings. It assists students of English literature to gain a fuller appreciation of this important novel. Show Less

Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein delves into a range of themes, which were particularly popular among 19th century Romantics, and which have been perennial favourites of numerous writers since. This clip highlights some of those themes, including the pursuit of knowledge and the responsibility involved with acquiring it, what makes us human, and the power of nature. It is a valuable resource for students of English literature. Show Less

Influenced and educated by her parents, Frankenstein’s author, Mary Shelley, grew up in a world of radical artists and writers. Her immortal novel explores various themes of early 19th century Romanticism. This clip looks at Mary Shelley’s background and major influences on her thinking and writing, giving students of English literature a broader understanding of the nature and significance of this notable work. Show Less

The world over, teachers hear the lament ‘why do we have to study Shakespeare?’ from their students. Here are the answers to that ubiquitous question! This densely packed and student-friendly programme includes well-known examples from his plays and a look at his contribution to the English lexicon to demonstrate Shakespeare’s enduring impact on language and the study of literature. Show Less

Educators looking to introduce students to features of Shakespeare’s plays and the places where they were presented: this is your stop. This concise presentation offers students of all abilities a path to clearly understanding the main features of a Shakespearean play – from the page to the stage – and to put themselves in the picture as audience members. Show Less

Positioning Shakespeare historically and geographically is a must if we are to appreciate his works. This study opens in the wider context of Elizabethan and Jacobean England and narrows to Shakespeare’s familial, personal and creative profile. We also nail down the main forms and genres in which he wrote, along with key techniques such as iambic pentameter. Show Less

Understanding the context and background of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ is critical to appreciating the techniques Shakespeare employed when creating this comedic literary classic. This programme deconstructs the play in an engaging and playful way, using dialogue between some of its key characters to investigate its context and background. It is an ideal resource for students of English and Literature. Show Less

Shakespeare develops a broad range of memorable and contrasting characters from ancient Athens in ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’: royalty, nobility, lowly craftsmen – and fairies. This programme deconstructs the comedy in an engaging way using dialogue to examine some of its key characters, including Titania, Demetrius, Helena, Puck, Lysander, Hermia, and Bottom. It is an ideal resource for students of English and Literature. Show Less

Shakespeare’s classic, immortal comedy has all the ingredients – love stories, tricks and pranks, disguise and mistaken identity, muddle and misunderstanding. This programme deconstructs ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ in an engaging and playful way, using dialogue between some of its characters to explore its comedic elements. It is an ideal resource for students of English and Literature. Show Less

‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ explores dreams and imagination – the blurred lines between dreams and waking, what is real and what is not, what is reasonable…and what is not. This clip deconstructs ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ in an engaging and playful way, using dialogue between some of its key characters to observe the nature of dreams. It is an ideal resource for students of English and Literature. Show Less

This programme analyses how Golding uses the novel to explore the nature of evil. Making detailed reference to the text, it examines the escalation of evil, how characters embrace or reject evil to different degrees, how evil comes to be symbolised by the beast, and how Simon recognises its source and is destroyed by it. Show Less

This programme provides detailed analyses and examples of Golding’s methods, and the key elements of his writing style. It explains the concepts of fable and allegory, and explores Golding’s complex use of symbolism with particular reference to the conch, the fire, clothing and Piggy’s glasses. The programme also investigates Golding’s use of realistic dialogue, and detailed description, to portray characters and convey ideas. Show Less

These characters like and admire each other at first, but by the end of the novel Jack is hunting Ralph to the death. This programme explores the nature and significance of these two main characters, and how Golding uses the struggle between them to expose opposing values and priorities. It demonstrates how the characters represent completely different notions of leadership and government: democratic versus fascist. Show Less

What do World War II, the Holocaust and the development of nuclear weapons have to do with a story about boys stranded on a deserted island? This programme shows how mid-20th century social conditions and political upheaval are reflected in Golding’s fiction. It also explains how his personal experiences affected his writing and how the story was influenced by popular fiction of the era. Show Less

Inspector Goole, an impressively authoritative and purposeful figure, is the focus of this clip. We also examine the way Priestley reveals the key character, who takes on a role more akin to that of a judge than an investigating officer. With content delivered via a presenter, and through scene re-enactments, it is a valuable resource for middle and senior secondary level students of English and Literature. Show Less

In this clip, we examine the devices and dramatic styles Priestley employs to influence the audience’s response to the play’s characters and events – including genre, structure, suspense, speech, melodrama and dramatic irony. Combining a presenter and re-enactments of various scenes, this is an excellent resource for middle and senior secondary level students of English, Literature and Drama. Show Less

Set in 1912, the play unfolds during turbulent times in Britain as workers formed unions, and demanded better wages and conditions. This clip explores class divisions at the time, as well as the context of the play’s first London performance in 1945. The story is told by a presenter and scene re-enactments – an ideal resource for middle and senior secondary level students of English and Literature. Show Less

This clip explores how Priestley conveys his beliefs about community and social responsibility in the play. Driven simply to look after their own interests, each member of the upper-crust Birling family are shown by Inspector Goole to have contributed to the demise of Eva Smith through their own selfishness. Featuring a presenter and re-enactments, it’s an ideal resource for middle and senior secondary level Literature students. Show Less

The characters of ‘Great Expectations’ are just as vivid now as when they were created in the 1800s. As Pip journeys from childhood to adulthood, his encounters with an eclectic cast of characters help define his growth and development to maturity. This programme looks at three of the key characters in Pip’s progress—Joe Gargery, Estella and Magwitch. Show Less

This programme offers insights into the stylistic devices employed by Dickens to great effect in the novel Great Expectations. Learn more about the characteristics and writing style that have contributed to the perennial popularity of this work, including the author’s use of specific literary techniques and his highly memorable characters; some quite familiar and some very strange. Show Less

This programme delves into the who, what, when, where and why of Great Expectations. Locate Charles Dickens’ masterpiece in its historical context and learn about the real-life events that prompted him to pen this beloved bildungsroman. The hero, Pip, is presented against the detailed backdrop of the Industrial Revolution and the age of the ‘self-made man’. Show Less