When God Spoke English: The Making of the King James Bible

The celebration of the four-hundredth anniversary of the King James Bible continued earlier this week with an excellent documentary on BBC Four:

When God Spoke English: The Making of the King James Bible

Documentary telling the unexpected story of how arguably the greatest work of English prose ever written, the King James Bible, came into being. 

Author Adam Nicolson reveals why the making of this powerful book shares much in common with his experience of a very different national project - the Millennium Dome. The programme also delves into recently discovered 17th century manuscripts, from the actual translation process itself, to show in rich detail what makes this Bible so good.

In a turbulent and often violent age, the King hoped this Bible would unite a country torn by religious factions. Today it is dismissed by some as old-fashioned and impenetrable, but the film shows why, in the 21st century, the King James Bible remains so great.

It's an excellent documentary, compelling told, beautifully and colourfully filmed with shots of Oxford, Cambridge and London.  It delves into the political dimensions of the translation at the same time as celebrating its scholarship and poetry.  Strongly recommended.

The programme was first broadcast on Monday and it is repeated next Wednesday, 2 March.  It is available on the iPlayer for several more days.  If, like me, you are outside the UK, you'll have to use some jiggery pokery to access it.

King James Bible Programmes on Radio 4

It's been a real treat of the new year to have some excellent programmes on Radio 4 to celebrate the 400th year anniversary of the King James Bible. Let me strongly recommend in particular the three part series presented by James Naughtie:

The Story of the King James Bible

It's a lively, clear and entertaining series with three episodes of 45 minutes each. It features scholars like Alistair McGrath. It's available on the iPlayer for all, international users included, so there are no excuses for not catching up with this. Go to the main link above or to individual episodes here:

1. The Commission
2. The Translation
3. The Legacy

Then don't miss Sunday from 9 January when a whole episode was devoted to the King James Bible. It includes interviews with the Archbishop of Canterbury and Ed Kessler and Simon Gathercole. As always with Sunday, it is available as a podcast.

Also worth catching is a discussion on Beyond Belief on 3 January on Translation and this one you can get as a podcast. It is a discussion of translation more broadly but the catalyst is the King James Bible anniversary.

Lots to enjoy there, but the series is the top priority -- well worth a listen.

Don't you just love Radio 4?