Original version

BBC Four

BBC 4

BBC Four HD

Mothers, Murderers and Mistresses: Empresses of Ancient Rome

Catharine Edwards

Elliott Gerner

Tom Webber

Mothers, Murderers and Mistresses: Empresses of Ancient Rome: Episode 2

Documentaries

Factual: History

Episode 2

BBC Four - Mothers, Murderers and Mistresses: Empresses of Ancient Rome, Episode 2

A look at the lives of the scandalous Messalina and the skilled politician Agrippina.

Catharine Edwards explores the lives of Messalina, whose scandalous reputation lives on, and the skilled politician Agrippina, Caligula's sister, Claudius's wife and Nero's mother.

Professor Catharine Edwards explores the dramatic lives of two women at the heart of power in 1st-century imperial Rome. One is Messalina, whose scandalous reputation lives on 2,000 years after her bloody and dramatic death. The other is Agrippina - sister of Caligula, wife of Claudius and mother of Nero - an extraordinary woman who was not only a skilled and ambitious politician but also a murderer and ultimately a murder victim.

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.

The dramatic lives of women who tasted power in the Roman Empire.

Exploring the role played by extraordinary women in creating, ruling and transforming the Roman Empire, whose influence was felt everywhere from the power struggles of court to the distant provinces.

Accessibility links

Programme Index

Mothers, Murderers and Mistresses: Empresses of Ancient Rome

Episode 2

Contributors

Genres

Formats

Series

BBC Four

About BBC Four