PRESS RELEASE | WASHINGTON NEW AND EXCLUSIVE SERIES ON HISTORY®

Saturday 4 July to Monday 6 July at 21.00 (3x2hr) 

Three-part mini-series premiering over US Independence Day Weekend

INTERVIEWS AVAILABLE ON REQUEST

HISTORY® explores the myth, the legend and the truth behind one of the most influential men in American history, George Washington, in this brand new docu-drama. Narrated by Emmy award-winning actor Jeff Daniels and executive produced by world-renowned presidential historian and Pulitzer Prize®-winning bestselling author Doris Kearns Goodwin.

Contributions to the series come from a wide range of prominent individuals, including Bill Clinton, Colin Powell, and several leading Washington biographers, including Pulitzer Prize® winning historians: Joanne Freeman, Alan Taylor, Jon Meacham and Annette Gordon-Reed.

Washington chips away at the pristine image of America's first President and brings to life the man whose name is known to all, but whose epic story is understood by few. The 3x2 hour miniseries, playing over US Independence Day weekend, traces George Washington’s path from a young man hungry for prestige to eventually becoming the first President of the United States of America.

Originally an officer in the British military, Washington (played by British actor Nicholas Rowe) grew disenchanted with the empire he once aspired to serve and set course for achieving the unimaginable through cunning, ingenuity and sheer force of will.

As the American colonies made their final break from the British empire, their newly minted commander-in-chief fought the most powerful and seasoned armed forces in the world with a ragtag group of soldiers that was undisciplined, inexperienced and underfunded. Washington, with no formal military training or major victory to his name, led the American colonies to independence from the British Empire.

During the process he is also transformed, from a man driven by ambition, to a man leading a far larger cause of liberty. With the fate of the young republic at stake, Washington rises to the moment, becoming the inevitable, though reluctant, hero his country needs.

While warring nations attack America's borders and uprisings threaten from within, Washington builds the new United States – enduring treachery and personal attacks – while setting the country on a course that still dictates much of the American experience to this day.

Washington is the all-encompassing tale of the founding father’s life and achievements, which explores the heroic alongside the more troubling – and much less widely known – side to Washington’s character and story.

Interview with executive producer and presidential historian, Doris Kearns-Goodwin, iincluded within the attached release.

Washington (3x120) from Saturday 4 July to Monday 6 July at 21.00 only on HISTORY.

ENDS