Simon Thurley reveals the history behind London's lost Whitehall Palace, a sprawling collection of buildings which were home to the monarchy for 170 years. The historian and his team of experts put the spotlight on the reign of James II, when the royal residence became a means for the king to impose his Catholic beliefs onto a Protestant country
Simon Thurley turns his attention to recreating the gothic anarchy of Fonthill Abbey. Built almost 200 years ago by William Beckford, its peculiar mix of architecture caused almost as much of a scandal in society as the shocking goings-on inside. Thurley reveals how the reclusive Beckford's strange habits and obsessions were played out here, including his fixation with height - which could have been the catalyst for the abbey's destruction
Simon Thurley visits the ruins of Glastonbury Abbey which, prior to its destruction by Henry VIII, boasted some of the most spectacular stained glass of its era, said to transport many a pilgrim to religious ecstasy. But it also wielded a great deal of financial power, acting as the centre of an influential business empire. Ultimately, it was the king's jealousy of the abbot's wealth that would seal the abbey's fate
Simon Thurley investigates 19th-century Millbank Penitentiary, which was built where Tate Britain now stands. In its day. It was the largest prison in the country and was designed to test out a radical new approach to incarceration. It was a plan that would ultimately end in disaster and the mistakes made there have influenced the penal system for generations