Paris: Blood And Chocolate

Few cities boast the romantic allure of Paris: its charm, its energy, its style. Sandrine Voillet reveals how Paris battled through turmoil and trauma to become the city of dreams – the capital of the world in all but name, in this BBC/OU series.

In this episode, Sandrine traces the growth of Paris from its origins on a small island in the middle of the River Seine to the world capital of revolution, revealing a city of haves and have nots in an era of the Salon, theatre and chocolate, which famously and bloodily divided a nation. She talks to top fashion designer, Christian Lacroix, about his inspiration from the past and joins a demonstration where she meets a controversial rap band.

She also visits the eerie Catacombs, where human bones are stacked high, and the beautiful Basilica of Saint Denis in search of the remains of the victims of the revolution – a revolution that set Paris on course to becoming the world’s first truly modern city.