What was life actually like in the court of Elizabeth I?

The historian, Ian Mortimer, journeys back in time to find out what life was really like in the court of Elizabeth I. He starts at Hampton Court, one of twenty royal residences inherited by Elizabeth I. Here he discovers that appearance played a vital role at court helping to denote a person’s social status and whether they were of sufficient importance and wealth to be granted an audience with the Queen.

He retraces Elizabeth’s royal progresses around the country and uncovers evidence that increasing numbers of people were becoming richer and using their new found wealth to build their own manor houses. A visit from the monarch and her vast entourage would be a mixed blessing, the ultimate privilege and confirmation of the highest social status but also ruinously expensive.