Microbes and Men (DVD)

BBC drama series about the founders of modern medicine. Arthur Lowe stars.

Until the 1840s, the practice of medicine had remained relatively unchanged since the days of Ancient Greece. Germ theory revolutionised the medical world however and in the next 60 years it was transformed into a modern science.

This fascinating dramatic series follows the discoveries that changed the world forever, shifting from country to country as it travels the world in search of the scientific advances that saved countless lives.

From Edward Jenners rural English practice to Louis Pasteurs laboratories in the breweries and silk farms of France and on to Robert Kochs surgery in Prussia, this BBC series brings to life the work and pressures of some of the best known scientists in history.

Episodes cover Ignacz Semmelweis and the search for the cause of puerperal fever, Louis Pasteur and Robert Koch separately establishing the link between bacteria and disease and becoming bitter rivals; Pasteurs discovery of vaccines; the hunt for the Cholera germ; the first successful use of a vaccine against rabies; and Paul Ehrlich and salvarsan, the first miracle drug.

Based on the book by Robert Reid and starring BAFTA winning actor Arthur Lowe(Dads Army), Frank Gillard, James Grout (Inspector Morse), Antonia Pemberton (A Passage to India) and Michael Gough (Batman, Sleepy Hollow), the series was nominated for two BAFTAs, Best Specialised Series and Best Actor.

Starring: Frank Gillard, Arthur Lowe, Antonia Pemberton

Genre: Tv Series

Release Date: 21st September 2015

Year of production: 1974

Director: Peter Jones, Simon Langton, John Glenister, Denis Postle

Running Time: 330 min

Cat No: 163509

Format: DVD