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Britain's Lost Masterpieces

Documentaries

Factual: Arts, Culture & the Media: Arts

Series tracking down lost and hidden paintings from local museums and galleries.

Series 2

BBC Four

Bendor Grosvenor

Emma Dabiri

Spike Geilinger

Tern Television Productions Ltd

Brendan Hughes

Harry Bell

Britain's Lost Masterpieces: Series 2: Episode 4: Arbroath

Arbroath

Episode 4

Episode 4: Arbroath

BBC Four - Britain's Lost Masterpieces, Series 2, Arbroath

A painting of an unknown man by an unknown artist turns out to be by one of the greats.

Dr Bendor Grosvenor and Emma Dabiri visit Hospitalfield House in Arbroath, where a painting of an unknown man by an unknown artist turns out to be by one of the greats.

Hospitalfield House in the fishing town of Arbroath on Scotland's east coast is a Victorian treasure trove. The couple who owned this great house back in the 19th century were obsessed with the decorative arts and Hospitalfield is full of ornate carved ceilings, sculpted fireplaces, exquisite plasterwork and stonework carved by master masons. It's still a place where artists work today and it has a fine picture collection.
 
Amongst the many Victorian paintings, could a mysterious 16th-century portrait by one of the great Old Master artists lie waiting to be discovered? Dr Bendor Grosvenor and Emma Dabiri travel to Arbroath to investigate what could be a true Old Master painting, obscured by 400 years of dirt and old varnish. Bendor suspects the painting is a lost masterpiece by giant of Dutch art Antonis Mor, court painter to Philip II of Spain. But with no documentary evidence, it's a hard case to prove. 

While Bendor travels to Madrid to track down other examples of Mor's work, Emma digs deeper into the double standards of Victorian morals, finds the true story of the couple who made Hospitalfield a haven for artists, and meets the contemporary artists working at Hospitalfield today.

Britain's Lost Masterpieces: Series 2

Knowledge, arts, music and culture from the UK and the world.

BBC Four reflects arts, music and culture with an ambitious range of intellectually and culturally enriching programmes, taking an expert and in-depth approach to its subjects.

Tracking down lost and hidden paintings from Britain's local museums and country houses.

Series tracking down lost and hidden paintings from Britain's local museums and country houses, with art sleuth Dr Bendor Grosvenor and social historian Emma Dabiri.

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Britain's Lost Masterpieces

Series 2

Episode 4: Arbroath

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