Murder in the Cathedral

The Hunchback of Notre Dame

June 1996 •English

Isolated bell-ringer Quasimodo wishes to leave Notre Dame tower against the wishes of Judge Claude Frollo, his stern guardian and Paris' strait-laced Minister of Justice. His first venture to the outside world finds him Esmeralda, a kind-hearted and fearless Romani woman who openly stands up to Frollo's tyranny.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame

December 1956 •French

Paris, 1482. Today is the festival of the fools, taking place like each year in the square outside Cathedral Notre Dame. Among jugglers and other entertainers, Esmeralda, a sensuous gypsy, performs a bewitching dance in front of delighted spectators. From up in a tower of the cathedral, Frollo, an alchemist, gazes at her lustfully. Later in the night, Frollo orders Quasimodo, the deformed bell ringer and his faithful servant, to kidnap Esmeralda. But when the ugly freak comes close to her is touched by the young woman's beauty...

Andrei Rublev

December 1966 •Russian

An expansive Russian drama, this film focuses on the life of revered religious icon painter Andrei Rublev. Drifting from place to place in a tumultuous era, the peace-seeking monk eventually gains a reputation for his art. But after Rublev witnesses a brutal battle and unintentionally becomes involved, he takes a vow of silence and spends time away from his work. As he begins to ease his troubled soul, he takes steps towards becoming a painter once again.

The Cathedral

January 2006 •French

A day in the life of Lina, a young girl from Port-Louis, capital of Mauritius, seen through the eyes of the cathedral. A day that will not be the same as the rest when an unexpected meeting brings Lina face to face with reality and she is forced her to make a choice.

The Ten Commandments

November 1923 •English

The first part tells the story of Moses leading the Jews from Egypt to the Promised Land, his receipt of the tablets and the worship of the golden calf. The second part shows the efficacy of the commandments in modern life through a story set in San Francisco. Two brothers, rivals for the love of Mary, also come into conflict when John discovers Dan used shoddy materials to construct a cathedral.

Gli astronomi

January 2003 •Italian

Building the Great Cathedrals

October 2010 •French

These skyscrapers of stone dominated skylines for nearly a thousand years. Now, a team of scholars and builders investigates how they we went up, and why some of the tallest fell down. Embedded in stone and stained glass, they uncover a hidden mathematical code — ripped from pages of the Bible — that was used as a blueprint to build the great Gothic Cathedrals.

Memories of a Rainy Day

June 2023 •Portuguese

In a rainy afternoon drive, a man embarks on a journey through his memories. As he questions his faith, the line between past and present begins to blur, leading him into a maelstrom of fragmented images.

Beato, el Origen del Xacobeo

November 2023 •Spanish

David Macaulay: Cathedral

April 1986 •English

Author David Macaulay hosts CATHEDRAL, based on his award-winning book. Using a combination of spectacular location sequences and cinema-quality animation, the program surveys France's most famous churches. Travel back to 1214 to explore the design of Notre Dame de Beaulieu, a representative Gothic cathedral. The program tells period tales revealing fascinating stories of life and death, faith and despair, prosperity, and intrigue.

Sur les pas de Marie

May 2022 •French

Au cœur de Notre-Dame

April 2011 •French

Hockney, The Queen and the Royal Peculiar

October 2018 •English

David Hockney undertakes a commission to design and install a stained-glass window in Westminster Abbey to commemorate the sixty-fifth year of Queen Elizabeth II's reign.

Ladyhawke

March 1985 •English

Captain Etienne Navarre is a man on whose shoulders lies a cruel curse. Punished for loving each other, Navarre must become a wolf by night whilst his lover, Lady Isabeau, takes the form of a hawk by day. Together, with the thief Philippe Gaston, they must try to overthrow the corrupt Bishop and in doing so break the spell.

Secrets of Sacred Architecture

April 2022 •English

For most of America's history, sacred buildings represented our greatest feats of innovative engineering and artistic design. Unlock the elements of design that make these structures so fascinating and unveil the meaning in religious architecture, ranging from grand cathedrals and simple country churches to synagogues and mosques.

Splendour of the Heavens

September 1962 •English

A film about astronomy which also happens to show views of the ancient city of Winchester, before focussing on a particular house in the suburbs with its own observatory.

The Jönsson Gang in Mallorca

November 1989 •Swedish

Vanheden and Dynamit-Harry, together with Harry's fiancée Doris, are in Mallorca while Sickan is still in Stockholm. However, Wall-Enberg talks him into doing a break-in at Las Palmas cathedral in Mallorca. Once persuaded, he can't resist the temptation and travels to Mallorca as well. However, Wall-Enberg obviously can't be trusted. Sickan is framed, caught and put in jail. While being escorted home to Sweden again, Vanheden and Harry sets up a plan to break him free. Sickan, once free, wants payback. The gang discover that an antiques dealer called Germann has something to do with the whole thing and that she's also collaborating with Wall-Enberg. The gang then decide to take a closer look at her and her antiques and they discover that there's a heist being planned against the cathedral in Palma.

Great Peter of York

September 1927 •

A large crowd and choir, on an historic day at York Minster, greet the arrival of a replacement big bell, watching and singing as labourers manfully slide the 10 ton bell off a truck.

Cologne Cathedral: The French Cathedral on the Rhine

September 2024 •German

An exploration of Cologne Cathedral, an emblematic monument and world heritage site. The towering place of worship took over 600 years to complete. Once the tallest building in the world, its ornate facade remains a masterpiece of Gothic architecture - and a reflection of the evolution of Franco-German relations.

Rebuilding Notre-Dame: The Next Chapter

April 2022 •English

Taking you back inside the world-famous Cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris in France. It’s three years since the inferno devastated the vast timber and lead roof and the 850-year-old Gothic masterpiece is now at a critical turning point. Work to rebuild the monument is being ramped up, with 200 scientists, historians, restorers and construction workers now on site. They’re racing to meet an ambitious deadline; to reopen Notre Dame to the public ahead of the 2024 Olympic Games to be held in Paris. 1,200 tons of scaffolding now fills the cathedral, giving the team unprecedented access to every inch of the structure. This not only allows them to restore Notre Dame, but also solve its architectural mysteries.