Catch up TV
Series 8: 1. Queen Vic's Home Vids
Did you know that the Victorians invented films? Not only that, but one of the first stars of the moving image was Queen Victoria! Using real footage recently restored by the BFI, this special show takes a Horribly Historical look at the Victorians’ obsession with film. We see some of Queen Vicky’s very first filmic appearances (also featuring an initially reluctant Tsar Nicholas I), and also how the Victorians became obsessed with filming everything, from their holidays abroad to strapping cameramen to the front of a moving train (using only ropes) to make ‘Phantom Ride’ films.\n\nAlong the way we also meet the Lumiere brothers (one of whom looks a lot like First Dates' Fred Sirieix), Kaiser Wilhelm II, notable Victorian actor Herbert Beerbohm Tree, and we see that the Victorians were also early adopters of Fake News. The episode ends with a show-stopping song that traces the evolution of film from the Victorians’ first forays through to the blockbusters we see in the multiplexes today.
Source: CBBC
Most recent episodes of Horrible Histories
Horrible Histories
Series 11: 13. Phiendish Pharaohs
From preparing for the afterlife to having your own butt doctor, Tutankhamun, Cleopatra, Ramesses II and more are here to reveal what life was like as a fiendish pharaoh.
05-12-2025
CBBC
Horrible Histories
Series 7: 14. Awesome Ancient Civilisations Special
Horrible Histories presents our guide to Ancient Civilizations, featuring new sketches about Alexander the Great's first kiss, Emperor Nero's greatest hits, and how double parki ...
05-12-2025
CBBC
Horrible Histories
Series 10: 15. Kings And Queens - A Right Royal Special
Featuring a new sketch with Elizabeth I searching for a successor in her show England’s Got Monarchs, and Rattus is the guide through some of HH's most regal sketches!
04-12-2025
CBBC
Horrible Histories
Series 11: 1. Brilliant Brains
From taking man to the moon to figuring out how to get rid of a poo in a submarine, Mark Labbett joins Rattus for a look at some of history’s most brilliant brainboxes.
04-12-2025
CBBC
Horrible Histories
Series 10: 4. Gruesome Gunpowder Plot
Horrible Histories presents the sometimes-ludicrous story of Guy Fawkes and the Gunpowder Plot.
04-12-2025
CBBC
Horrible Histories
Series 10: 13. Loo Man's Gross Guide
From bottom complaints to snot, bird poo and farts, Loo Man provides a guided tour through some of history's grossest things.
03-12-2025
CBBC
Horrible Histories
Series 10: 14. Songtastic Musical Special
Rattus has enlisted the help of Richie - the Horrible Histories songwriter - to help him present a special song-filled show by making every one of Rattus’s bits a song too ...
03-12-2025
CBBC
Horrible Histories
Series 9: 7. Foul Feasting
Horrible Histories serves up the history of foul feasting, from Stone Age lentils to Queen Victoria’s anti-fart bread.
03-12-2025
CBBC
Horrible Histories
Series 10: 9. The Chaotic Civil War
Take a journey through one of the weirdest, wildest periods in English history, featuring the only time that a king has been tried and executed for treason!
02-12-2025
CBBC
Horrible Histories
Series 10: 12. Rotten Romans In Britain
Everything from roads to baths to pies, hosts Emperor Nero and warrior queen Boudicca are here to show what the Romans did while they were here in Britain
02-12-2025
CBBC
Most popular episodes of Horrible Histories
Horrible Histories
Series 9: 8. Infectious Influencers
From Cleopatra’s hairdo to Elizabeth I’s flushing loo, meet history’s biggest Influencers.
10-11-2025
CBBC
Horrible Histories
Sport Special
All the top sporting action from the past, including Emperor Nero and Jesse Owens singing the history of the Olympics.
02-11-2025
CBBC
Horrible Histories
Series 5 - Episode 4
Historical sketch show. Featuring the rather eccentric Georgian philosopher Jeremy Bentham and super-rich Roman politician Crassus, who raps about his blinging lifestyle.
15-09-2025
CBBC
Horrible Histories
Animated Specials: 1. Gruesome Guide To Growing Up
Life wasn’t always fun for children in the past. Horrible Histories delves into the not-so-easy lives of children throughout history, from the strict parenting of ancient ...
26-09-2025
CBBC
Horrible Histories
Series 5 - Episode 6
Historical sketch show. Queen Victoria's coronation doesn't go quite as planned, while George IV pulls out all the stops to impress his guests on Historical Come Dine With Me.
17-09-2025
CBBC
Horrible Histories
Series 9: 2. Protesting With Pankhurst
Protests about inequality or environmental damage are common today, but how have people protested in the past? Emmeline Pankhurst is our guide through this history of protest, f ...
25-09-2025
CBBC
Horrible Histories
Series 9: 15. Big Bbc Birthday Bonanza
Horrible Histories celebrates 100 years of the BBC with this special episode. What was the secret of looking great on a 1930s TV show? How did the BBC try to defeat the Nazis us ...
27-11-2025
CBBC
