The World's Most Photographed
Season 1
Series exploring the way photography has been used and manipulated to construct the image of ten figures from history.
Where to Watch The World's Most Photographed • Season 1
10 Episodes
- Audrey HepburnE3
Audrey HepburnHer waif-like figure may have redefined Hollywood standards of beauty, but few people knew that the enigmatic actress owed her slender physique to the long-term effects of wartime starvation and a childhood scarred by fear and emotional distress. Pictures in this programme shed light on the less familiar side of her story. - Adolf HitlerE4
Adolf HitlerHow did a camera-shy politician end up the world's most photographed man? Initially, Hitler was suspicious of the medium, but later wielded its power as a tool for mass manipulation. Hitler's chosen photographer was Heinrich Hoffmann. In the 1930s, his carefully composed portraits showed the Nazi dictator as strong yet benevolent - insidious propaganda that was to enthral and corrupt a nation. - Marilyn MonroeE5
Marilyn MonroeAnxious and filled with self doubt on a film set, with a photographer the Hollywood beauty felt at ease and in control. This was despite a nude photo taken at the start of her career which ended up as the first Playboy centrefold and threatened to destroy her reputation. - James DeanE7
James DeanIn February 1955, photographer Dennis Stock was given unique access to the troubled, enigmatic star. But Stock felt that some of the shots were so disturbing he refused to release them to the press. This film reveals those pictures taken just seven months before Dean's sudden, violent death. - Mahatma GandhiE8
Mahatma GandhiGandhi brought the British Empire to its knees. He liberated India with protest, prayer and fasting - but also photography. This is the unknown history of Gandhi's life in front of the lens, from an 18-year-old dandy in London, through a fruitful rapport with Life magazine photographer Margaret Bourke-White , to Cartier- Bresson haunting images of the millions that mourned at the funeral of the Father of the Nation. - Queen VictoriaE9
Queen VictoriaThe monarch's accession to the throne in 1837 coincided with the invention of photography. Initially, she and her family used the camera purely for pleasure. But soon the queen began to understand its value as a political tool: to win her subjects' affection and to establish herself as the figurehead of British imperial power.