Eras

In a few hectic years, the Spice Girls had surpassed their wildest dreams. But it hadn’t come easy. By the turn of the Millennium, they’d given everything they had. Time for a new chapter. Just don’t call it a breakup. In Episode Four, Rosie Ramsey is your guide to life after Spice. From chart-topping solo careers to reinvention, reconciliation and the occasional reunion, this story’s far from ove...

After parting ways with manager Simon Fuller, the Girls are doing it for themselves. But storm clouds are gathering over Spice World. In Episode Three, Rosie Ramsey follows the Spice Girls as they enter an uncertain new era. Tabloids abound, a backlash brews, and five become four. Friendship never ends. Or does it? It’s a story told in the Girls’ own words from the BBC Archive, and featuring new i...

In 1996, the world met The Spice Girls. It didn’t know what hit it. In Episode 2, Rosie Ramsey takes you inside the all-conquering whirlwind that was Spice Mania. Under the watchful eye of music biz supremo Simon Fuller, Geri Halliwell, Melanie Brown, Melanie Chisholm, Emma Bunton and Victoria Adams bring Girl Power to the masses. It’s a dream come true - but is it all too much? You’ll hear it fro...

Five girls. One era-defining phenomenon. Meet the Spice Girls. In Episode One, Rosie Ramsey follows the Girls as they take their first steps on the path to superstardom. It’s a time for sisterhood, a little subterfuge, and a total refusal to do anything but win. Told in the Spice Girls own words from the BBC archive, and featuring brand new interviews with friends, fans and collaborators - includi...

In celebration of what would’ve been his 100th birthday, we’re excited to share a clip from the latest series of the Legend podcast, The Miles Davis Story. In the series, acclaimed actor and longtime fan Clarke Peters (The Wire, Treme, Da 5 Bloods) explores the life and legacy of a visionary artist whose relentless pursuit of the "new" often scorched his own life and the lives of those around him....

In the final part of Eras: Phil Collins, Zoe Ball sits down with the man himself for a new and exclusive conversation, encompassing everything from Phil’s earliest aspirations as a kid with a drum set to his poignant reflections at the other end of an incredible career. Featuring special appearances from Robert Plant, Mike Rutherford and Phil’s son, Nic Collins, it’s an emotional grand finale – wi...

In the 1990s, Phil Collins’ status as rock and roll’s resident nice guy is thrown into question after the collapse of his second marriage, the leak of a certain fax, and a subsequent tabloid frenzy. Bruised by the experience, Phil begins a gradual retreat from the industry – moving to Switzerland, then quitting Genesis, and ultimately announcing his own ‘Final Farewell Tour’ in 2004. But retiremen...

In 1985, after a couple of massive singles and an Oscar nomination, Phil Collins stands on the precipice of global megastardom. Then comes No Jacket Required, Live Aid, a red hot hit streak with Genesis – and he’s hurled over the edge. From time zone defying Concorde operatics to soundtracking – and starring in – Miami Vice, Zoe Ball charts Phil’s imperial era. The critics might be giving him a ha...

It’s the dawn of the 1980s, and Phil’s life has been thrown into turmoil by the breakdown of his marriage – but amidst the heartbreak, he finds a new drive to create. Zoe Ball follows Phil Collins as he steps away from Genesis and makes his first, unforgettable statement as a solo artist. The album – and a certain drum fill in its opening track – propel Phil to the status of Britain’s most unassum...

Who’s that cherubic lad, beaming out from the cover of a 9 penny knitting pattern? Meet young Philip Collins – a boy born with two distinct paths laid out before him. Follow his dad into the world of office work and suburban domesticity? Or listen to that voice that tells him to climb onto stage, any stage, and perform? In episode one of Eras: Phil Collins – Zoe follows Phil as he receives his fir...

Hosted by comedian and lifelong Queen super fan Bill Bailey, this latest installment of the ERAS series dives deep into the story of the band told through the prism of their operatic masterpiece, Bohemian Rhapsody, which celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2025. Bill sits down for brand-new conversations with Brian May and Roger Taylor, Queen’s legendary guitarist and drummer, who look back on thei...

In this episode of Eras: Queen, Bill Bailey tells the story of the band's most poignant and powerful chapter. By the start of the 90s, Queen knew time was running short as Freddie Mercury was gravely ill. Instead of slowing down, they pushed forward, making another album, Innuendo, and creating the video for "These Are The Days Of Our Lives," Freddie’s final on-camera appearance. This episode expl...

This episode of Eras: Queen, Bill Bailey explores the emotional and creative toll of fame on the band. After a breakneck pace in the previous decade, Queen quietly disappear from the spotlight in the early 80s, each member pursuing solo projects. They return sharper with renewed clarity for their next album, The Works, culminating in their iconic Live Aid performance in 1985. A year later, Queen c...

Bill Bailey tells the story of Queen and in the second episode it's 1975, and Queen are on the brink of failure. With financial issues they are exhausted and overlooked, but take a huge gamble on something long, weird, and radio-unfriendly: Bohemian Rhapsody. As the world turns to Queen we explore their evolution into stadium-shaking titans throughout the late 1970s. Through archive and new interv...

Bill Bailey tells the story of rock's most flamboyant and iconic band. In the first episode of Eras: Queen, it's the late 60s, and four outsiders with academic brains collide in London. We find out how Freddie, Brian, Roger, and John were drawn together through college friendships and a shared creative vision. In the first half of the 70s, they played college gigs and support tours, started to ref...

Trevor Nelson tells the story of Reggae’s first and greatest superstar. In the final chapter of Eras: Bob Marley, Bob’s incredible life comes to end. But his Legend is immortal. Friends, fans and collaborators celebrate his legacy of activism, his potent spirituality and his undeniable musical accomplishments, which left the world so much richer than he found it. A Cup and Nuzzle Production. Serie...

Trevor Nelson tells the story of Reggae’s first and greatest superstar. In Episode 3 of Eras: Bob Marley, it’s an election year - and Jamaica is rocked by political turmoil. Bob is living peacefully at his home in Kingston, but when violence comes to 56 Hope Road, his days in the city are numbered. The next chapter of his story will cement his legacy as the King of Reggae - an icon whose impact go...

Trevor Nelson tells the story of Reggae’s first and greatest superstar. In the second episode of Eras: Bob Marley, it’s 1972, and The Wailers find themselves in London. When a strange twist of fate puts them in front of Island Records’ Chris Blackwell, a new chapter begins for Bob, Peter and Bunny. But under the pressure of life on the road, tensions grow between the old friends - and something ha...

Rock Star. Poet. Visionary. Peacemaker. Trevor Nelson tells the story of Reggae’s first and greatest superstar, Bob Marley. In the years since his death in 1981, Bob Marley has become an icon unlike any other. In Episode One of Eras: Bob Marley, you’ll discover where his story began. From the rural village of Nine Mile to the yards of Kingston, follow Bob’s first steps into the music industry, and...

Rock Star. Poet. Visionary. Peacemaker. He’s sold tens of millions of records - but his influence goes far beyond music. He’s one of the most recognisable faces on Earth - but how much do you know the man behind the smile? As the world celebrates 80 years of Bob Marley, Trevor Nelson sits down with Cedella and Skip Marley to hear their personal takes on the enduring legend of Reggae’s first and gr...

Storyteller. Activist. Superstar. This is the story of Sting. Vernon Kay is your guide to one of British music’s most individual artists. In Episode One, you’ll hear the stories, and the music, that shaped Sting’s early life. From the terraces of Wallsend to Punk-era London, where a single phone call changed his destiny forever. Told in Sting’s own words through the BBC archive, and featuring bran...

When Sting, Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers formed the Police, none of them could have predicted the phenomenon that they would become. In Episode Two, we follow the band from the start of that journey to their world-dominating peak. In 5 years, they’ll go from grubby bars to the home of arena rock - Shea Stadium. Along the way, they’ll produce some of the defining hits of a generation. But as S...

The Police are no more. But Sting never rests on his laurels. In Episode Three, Vernon Kay follows the first stages in a solo career spanning four decades. Embracing his origins in Jazz, and his magpie instinct for melody, Sting joins the ranks of the great British soloists. At the same time, he’ll help to forge the bond between pop music and philanthropy that still exists today. Through the BBC a...

When you’ve been in the game for as long as Sting has, it’s tempting to just keep giving the people what they want. But that’s just not him, is it? In Episode Four, Vernon Kay finds Sting in a place in which inspiration is everything. Whether it’s a lute album, a turn on Broadway, traditional folk or Reggae, Sting refuses to be pinned down. That’s the attitude that’s won him millions of fans, the...

They’re famous for their marriages, divorces, and impossibly perfect pop songs. But how much do you really know about ABBA? In this series, Sara Cox is your guide to Sweden’s biggest musical export. When Benny, Bjorn, Agnetha and Anni-Frid won the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest, their lives changed forever. But that win didn’t come easy. Because the road to Waterloo is a long one. It took years of h...