Britain’s Outlaws: Highwaymen, Pirates and Rogues: Episode 3 of 3 (BBC Four Saturday 18 November 2023)

Britain’s Outlaws: Highwaymen, Pirates and Rogues: Episode 3 of 3 airs Saturday 18 November 2023 on BBC Four.

What is this episode about

There are few people in British history who have captivated the public’s interest like the outlaw. From dashing highwaymen to swashbuckling pirates to evasive city rogues and thieves, the outlaw was the anti-hero of his or her day due to their daring exploits and flamboyance; the wealthy feared them, the poor admired them, and artists and writers celebrated them.

Dr. Sam Willis, a historian, brings to life the great age of the British outlaw in this three-part series by venturing into the highwaymen’s, pirates’, and rogues’ worlds in 17th and 18th century Britain. As Sam demonstrates, outlaws were not ‘outsiders,’ but rather products of their time, moulded by significant national events. He zeroes in on a specific era and kind of outlaw in every episode.

Taken together, the episodes paint a picture of how criminal activity evolved throughout the 17th and 18th centuries. In the last episode, Sam investigates 18th-century urban corruption, fraud, and crime, and he finds an intriguing rogues’ gallery of con artists, con artists, and villains. Jack Sheppard, a notorious thief and serial escaper, was charmed into hanging in front of an audience of nearly 25,000.

Mary Toft, the original “con” artist, was nearly as divisive during her lifetime as she was after she deceived everyone from King George I and his surgeon into believing she had given birth to rabbits.

Episode 3

When can we see the episode

Britain’s Outlaws: Highwaymen, Pirates and Rogues: Episode 3 of 3 airs Saturday 18 November 2023 at 8:00pm on BBC Four

Featured Image Credit: BBC Four