Francesco's Venice : Complete BBC Series

A breathtaking journey through the ages, telling the story of one of the world's most famous and beautiful cities. This lavish, landmark series explores how a place with no firm ground, no crops, no indigenous riches and no land army came to snatch success from the jaws of failure time and time again - right up to the present day. Step back in time to early Venice, recreated by the magic of CGI. See wooden houses on stilts replaced by the daring rebuild in stone and brick.
Witness the sacking of Constantinople and the Venice of Casanova, Napoleon, Byron and Mussolini. The stunning recreations and dramatisations in each episode are enriched by insights from charismatic aristocrat, architect and historian Francesco da Mosto. His family has lived in Venice for over a thousand years and, far from having that sinking feeling, he believes passionately in the future of this miraculous city…

Presented by Francesco da Mosta, architect, historian and filmmaker. Profiles the history and secrets of Venice from its establishment in the fifth century through the strong republican times to the modern day. Features dramatised re-enactments, a tour of the city and look at what the future could be for the city now that the sea levels are rising.


Part One: Blood
In this edition, Da Mosto reveals a secret history of violence, torture, political intrigue and revenge via the stunning interiors of the Doge's Palace, the Basilica of St Mark, the Ca da Mosto, the Ca D'Oro and the first low-level aerial shots of the city in years.

Part Two: Beauty
The golden age of architecture arrived and stone and marble palaces replaced wooden houses as artists like Titian and Palladio transformed the look and reputation of Venice. But a calamity lurked just around the corner - plague.

Part Three: Sex
He moves on to its most outrageous period of partying and licentiousness - the age of Casanova and the courtesan, when Venice was the red-light district of Europe and attracted rich and hopeful dandies from across the continent. But storm clouds lay on the horizon when Napoleon Bonaparte saw Venice as rich pickings with which to fund his revolution.

Part Four: Death
He moves towards the present day and the problems of the sinking city, for which he partly blames the tourist industry originally inspired by those such as Byron. Francesco was a young boy during the great flood of 1966 and he looks at ways the future of Venice can be safeguarded in the future.