Heroes and Villains: Napoleon

Crying out for a hero? Well look no further than this six-part drama about some of the greatest men in history. The series' look at the story of Napoleon Bonaparte is as revolutionary as the man himself, and not just because of its impressive appearance. For one thing, it's not every BBC drama series that casts the English army as the bad guys in the Napoleonic Wars, or goes out of its way to show the good side of the marauding Bonaparte.

Starring Tom Burke as the Corsican, this episode of the series looks at the key moment in Napoleon's rise to the very top, the siege of Toulon in 1793, when the young Corsican showed that he was a master tactician and ear-marked himself for greatness by winning a surprise victory over the English. Based in part on Bonaparte's own letters the adaptation got the nod of approval from history buffs and viewers alike. Starting in the heady days of the guillotine and filmed on location in Malta and Gozo, the cocktail of special effects and shocking reality is every bit as epic as the feats it portrays, and shows the beginnings of one of the most impressive marches to power of all time. Vive la revolution!