News

LONDON, 21^st December 2021: A+E Networks® UK has commissioned Future Studios to produce a 5 x 60’ history series presented by Professor Alice Roberts entitled: Curse of the Ancients.

The Krempelwood co-production for Sky HISTORY casts new light on the most dramatic extinction-level events in early modern and ancient human history; battles for survival against natural and man-made catastrophes, which shaped the world we live in today. The series will broadcast on Sky HISTORY in March 2022. Future Studios is also producing 20 pieces of short form content for the series.

Curse of the Ancients spans the period 6200 BCE and the global Neolithic migrations sparked by rising sea levels, to 1486 CE, with the advent of the age of exploration and the rise of the nations and societies we recognise today. In each episode, Alice takes viewers on a journey of discovery, to epic sites and landmarks which punctuated the rise and fall of the greatest civilisations in human history; including a lost Roman palace in Serbia, the mysterious abandoned city of Shivta in Israel and the epic Spanish Iron Age hill fort of Mount Bernorio.

Along the way Alice will reveal the latest archaeological evidence of civilisation-ending calamities, including the devastating tsunami that changed the fate of 10,000 Ancient Britons, the volcanic eruption that sparked the beginning of the end for an entire Mediterranean civilisation, the results of the world’s most deadly pandemic – as well as the scene of Europe’s earliest and bloodiest battle,  some three-and-a-half thousand years ago. 

Professor Alice Roberts said: “This series shows how cutting-edge science can help us to uncover the truth about historical events. Historical research is now a truly multidisciplinary exercise. We find out what happened as our ancestors faced plague, famine and conflict, and how these calamitous events shaped the course of history, echoing down the centuries to today”.

The series was commissioned, and executive produced by Dan Korn, VP of Programming at A+E Networks UK, with Diana Carter, Commissioning Editor and Head of Talent at A+E Networks UK.

Dan Korn said: “There is always the temptation to think of one’s own experience or era as unique and its challenges unprecedented. In fact, as Curse of the Ancients shows us, humanity has been tested again and again throughout history and each time has found the collective will and fortitude to not only survive but to endure.”

Curse of the Ancients is a Future Studios production, Executive Producers are Peter Wyles and John Farrar for Future Studios and Blair Krempel and Mark Wood for Krempelwood.

Peter Wyles, Director of Programmes and Executive Producer for Future Studios, said: “I’m delighted to be working with Alice again on this exciting and stylish series. With the crises that we currently face around the world, it feels very timely to take a look at some of the new research into the study of ancient disasters by scientists who are exploding myths and rewriting history.”

Drive will distribute Curse of the Ancients internationally.

Curse of the Ancients is currently in production and is set to broadcast in the UK on Sky HISTORY in March 2022. SKY HISTORY is available on Sky 123, Virgin 270, Talk Talk 327 and NOW. For more go to www.SkyHISTORY.co.uk or visit Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. The series will also premiere in March on The HISTORY® Channel in Africa, The Middle East, Sweden, Netherlands, Poland and CEE and throughout the rest of Europe.

 

ENDS

 

For more information please contact:

David Clifton at A+E Networks® UK on David.Clifton@aetn.co.uk / 07715 799 967

Justin Crosby at Boom! PR on justin@boomdialogue.com  / 07966 228361

Editor’s Notes

• Show page:www.history.co.uk/shows/curse-of-ancients-with-alice-roberts·               
• Social: #CurseOfTheAncients @HISTORYUK
• SKY HISTORY is available on Sky 123, Virgin 270, Talk Talk 327 and streaming service NOW.
• Clips, viewing materials and images to be provided on request when available.
• Interview access available depending on availability.

About Sky HISTORY

Sky HISTORY is the flagship brand of the A+E Networks® UK portfolio which is made up of true crime channel Crime + Investigation®; Sky HISTORY2® and free to air channel BLAZE®. Sky HISTORY is available in the UK on Sky, Virgin, Talk Talk and on streaming service NOW. www.skyhistory.co.uk

About A+E Networks UK

A+E Networks® UK, a joint venture between Hearst and Sky, is a leading media network reaching 58 million homes across 100 countries. With our global portfolio of popular, high-performing and creative brands - HISTORY®, Crime+Investigation®, HISTORY2® and UK free-to-air BLAZE® - we have entertained and inspired audiences for over 20 years; telling the stories that need to be told. We complement our programming with innovative, talent-led exclusive digital content and top-rated podcasts. We currently partner with over 360 operators broadcasting throughout the Nordics, Benelux, Central Europe, the Middle East and Africa. We have offices in London, Warsaw, and Johannesburg. www.aenetworks.tv

About Future Studios

Future Studios is an award-winning factual production company that specialises in producing amazing content, enjoyed and shared by millions of people worldwide. Its partners are global platforms, broadcasters and media outlets around the world. Part of Future plc, the business is dedicated to creating world-class television and digital video content celebrating a diverse range of incredible true stories.

About Drive

Drive works with producers and broadcasters to help get content funded and produced. Originally founded by Ben Barrett and Lilla Hurst in 2013 to facilitate co-production and funding for TV projects, Drive is now a global 360-degree funding, sales and distribution business. The company offers a full range of commercial services from development and financing through to rights exploitation and specific project management. http://drive-tv.co.uk/