In November 1724, aged 18, Franklin is sent to London for the first time to buy printing equipment for a Philadelphia newspaper. Show more

After spending over 30 years in America, Franklin returns to London - not as a humble printer, but as a leading politician. Show more

Franklin's achievements in the field of physics, and specifically that of electricity, have won him an international reputation. Show more

Franklin's opponents in the Pennsylvania Assembly are preparing poisonous attacks to greet him on his return to America. Show more

It is 1775, and Franklin is no longer of any political use in London. He becomes ambassador to France in the days before the revolution. Show more