Channel 4 (UK) Documentaries

The Battle for Britain's Heroes (2018x27)

Air date: May 29, 2018

Brits are proud of their past. We celebrate our exceptional island nation that ruled the waves, triumphed over its enemies and built an empire that many feel changed the world for the better. We've erected statues to the heroic figures in our history and worship them almost like saints. But in this programme, the writer and journalist Afua Hirsch calls time on this version of British history. She believes we need to question some of the uncomfortable aspects of our heroes. Around the world, people are challenging how nations deal with the darker side of their history, including involvement with slavery, racism or colonialism. This is history at its most heated. People have been killed in protests over statues in the US. So now that the battle has come to Britain, how should we remember our past, and should we think again about the heroes we honour?