Timelines.tv is a free-to-view online resource delivering a thousand years of British history in 50 video modules.

Andrew launched the site in 2010 with his long time collaborator Paul Trainor.  

From the medieval world to the miners' strike, the resource offers Andrew's engaging take on the History of Britain.  Filmed in castles, cathedrals and factories the length and breadth of the UK, it shows how the complex trajectory of the national story fits together into one coherent whole.

The material on the site was originally commissioned by the BBC, and was broadcast between 2005 and 2008 as 'Timelines', a series of five hour-long programmes.  The series was written, directed and presented by Andrew, and produced by Lodestar Productions and October Films.

Timelines.tv reversions the material in modular form across three parallel timelines:

  • The PURPLE timeline covers Social History - the story of our changing lives.

  • The BROWN timeline covers Political History - the story of rulers and ruled, from feudal tyranny to the dawn of democracy.

  • The GREEN timeline covers Imperial History - the story of the formation of the UK, and the rise and fall of the British Empire.

The site won the 2010 BAFTA Award for best educational resource.   Re-launched in 2018 in a simpler format and with higher resolution videos, it remains a perennial favourite in British schools, with 9 million views to date.

Clips from 'timelines'
Beyond This Narrow Horizon

(from the module ‘Medieval Minds’)

These Plays Still Speak to Us

(from the module ‘Shakespeare’s World’)

Getting Things Done

(from the module ‘Civic Pride’)

Those Glory Days

(from the module ‘A Golden Age’)

No Such Thing as Society?

(from the module ‘The Death of Industry’)

Comments for Timelines TV:

 

"Timelines.tv points the way to the future of learning History" - Douglas Belshaw

"This is the most useful, engaging and intellectually stimulating visual source I have came across. Andrew Chater makes for an outstanding host and is incredibly enthusiastic, passionate and knowledgeable" - Christopher Warren

"These are some of the best history documentaries I've seen, giving a very clear overview of British history. Excellently presented too!" - David Illingworth

"Wow. This is an amazing resource - a wonderful concept that actually delivers!" - Jason Langford

"This site is fantastic. It's a history lovers' treasure trove!" - Cinbarnsley

"I hail Andrew Chater as the David Attenborough of educational history broadcasting" – Dafydd Humphreys

(comments posted on schoolshistory.co.uk and the timelines.tv messageboard)