Britain's Hidden Heritage Collection

Filming on the sunniest days in the U.K. (an astounding sight in itself), this BBC six-part series hosted by Paul Martin—featuring an ensemble of presenters (including Charley Boorman)—takes viewers to stately homes and lesser-known attractions off the beaten path of British history. Venues range from decaying medieval castles to 20th-century masterpieces of Art Deco interior design. HRH Prince Charles pops up during a tour of Dumfries House, a grand mansion he personally helped preserve for future generations. Osborne House, on the Isle of Wight, was a retreat of Prince Albert and Queen Victoria and remains a time capsule of the latter's long reign. Cragside, the home of Victorian inventor Sir William Armstrong, is still a showcase of cutting-edge 1800s technology, including the first dishwashing machine in the British Isles. Offshore, Boorman investigates the century-old wreck of the A-1, an early Royal Navy submarine. DVD extras include the rather arch 1996 documentary short "High Stakes at Highclere," which finds one desperate lord striving to maintain his expensive ancestral estate of Highclere as a profitable enterprise, even down to the indignity of hiring a business consultant (Highclere is now used for exteriors in the PBS mega-hit Downton Abbey). Sure to appeal to Anglophiles and armchair travelers alike, this is highly recommended. Aud: P. (C. Cassady)