Romancing the Stone: The Golden Ages of British Sculpture

Original version

BBC Four HD

BBC One

BBC Four

Simulcast of network BBC One in high definition. From 03/11/2010

BBC One HD

The BBC West region started on 1st September 1957 as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One West.

BBC One West

The BBC South West region started on 20th April 1961 as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One South West.

BBC One South West

The BBC South region started on 5th January 1961 as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One South.

BBC One South

BBC One London

London

BBC One West Midlands

BBC One region covering Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire.

BBC One East Midlands

The BBC East region started on 1st May 1959 as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One East.

BBC One East

BBC One North West

The BBC North East & Cumbria region started in 1959 (tbc) as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One North East & Cumbria.

BBC One North East & Cumbria

BBC One Yorkshire

BBC One Oxfordshire

Formerly part of a wider BBC One South East region that included London and part of the South region. Separated from BBC One London 2001-09-03 following reorganisation of the South East region.

BBC One South East

BBC One Cambridgeshire

BBC One Channel Islands

BBC One Yorks & Lincs

BBC One Scotland

Scotland

BBC Northern Ireland region started on 19th April 1955 as part of the BBC Television Service, before becoming BBC One Northern Ireland.

BBC One Northern Ireland

BBC One Wales

Wales

Alastair Sooke

Jonty Claypole

Mark Halliley

Romancing the Stone: The Golden Ages of British Sculpture: Episode 2: Mavericks of Empire

Documentaries

Mavericks of Empire

Episode 2

Episode 2: Mavericks of Empire

BBC Four - Romancing the Stone: The Golden Ages of British Sculpture, Mavericks of Empire

Alastair Sooke looks at the maverick sculptors working in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Alastair Sooke looks at great sculptors of the British Empire, mavericks who bucked prevailing trends, such as John Flaxman, Francis Chantrey and Alfred Gilbert.

By the middle of the 18th century, Britain was in possession of a vast empire. It required a new way of seeing ourselves and so we turned to the statues of ancient Greece and Rome to project the secular power and glory of the British Empire. 

The message was clear: Britain was the new Rome, our generals and politicians on a par with the heroes of the ancient world. The flood of funds, both public and private, into sculptural projects unleashed a new golden age, yet it was also a remarkably unorthodox one. The greatest sculptors of the 18th and 19th centuries were those mavericks who bucked prevailing trends - geniuses like John Flaxman, Francis Chantrey and Alfred Gilbert. 

Alastair Sooke tells the story of these mavericks and reveals the extraordinary technical breakthroughs behind their key works: carving in marble with a pointer machine and the primal power of the lost-wax technique.

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.

Factual: Arts, Culture & the Media

Series that reveals how sculpture communicates our most cherished beliefs and values.

Series that reveals how sculpture communicates our most cherished beliefs and values - the British soul captured in three dimensions.

Accessibility links

Programme Index

Romancing the Stone: The Golden Ages of British Sculpture

Episode 2: Mavericks of Empire

Contributors

Genres

Formats

Series

BBC Four HD

About BBC Four