What is Lucy Worsley Investigates?
Lucy Worsley Investigates is a BBC TV series presented by historian and broadcaster Lucy Worsley. It deals with the mysteries of some of the most infamous and brutal chapters in British history, finding new witnesses and compelling evidence.
When is the new series of Lucy Worsley Investigates?
The first episode of the new series of Lucy Worsley Investigates will be broadcast on BBC Two at 9pm on Friday 3 January 2025. Three more episodes will air on the following Fridays.
What is the new series of Lucy Worsley Investigates about?
In the first episode of Lucy Worsley Investigates, Lucy will uncover the notorious killing spree perpetuated by Jack the Ripper. The serial killer, who has never been identified, brutally murdered five women in the East End of London in 1888. As Lucy explains, the public and media fascination with Jack the Ripper was “the prototype for all the true crime stories to follow”. Even Queen Victoria got involved, writing about the killings in her diary and sending a coded telegraph about the case to her prime minister, Lord Salisbury.
Next, Lucy will look at the 1605 Gunpowder Plot, where a group of Catholic extremists plotted to blow up Parliament. As a story of radicalisation and terrorism, it has many parallels with the modern day.
The other two episodes will deal with William the Conqueror’s invasion of England in 1066, which, Lucy says, was far more violent than the sanitised version depicted in the famous Bayeux Tapestry. She will also look at the reign of Queen Mary I, or ‘Bloody Mary’. Was she the tyrant she was painted as, or is her terrible reputation due to historical sexism?
Where can you watch the first series of Lucy Worsley Investigates?
The first series of Lucy Worsley Investigates was broadcast in 2022. The episodes are about the witch hunts, the Black Death, the disappearance of the Princes in the Tower and the madness of George III. All episodes are available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
Who is Lucy Worsley?
Lucy Worsley is joint chief curator at Historic Royal Palaces. She is known as the author of many bestselling history books and the presenter of popular TV history programmes including British History’s Biggest Fibs with Lucy Worsley.