“It is full of old houses”*

In Britain’s Secret Homes (Friday 7 June 2013 on ITV at 9:00pm), Michael Buerk and Bettany Hughes present a new five-part series which reveals the remarkable and compelling stories of the people and houses that have changed the history of Britain and the world.

In the first episode, Michael Portillo, Simon Weston and Mark Williams visit homes across the country and discover the amazing secrets and fascinating tales that lie hidden within.

Included in the itinerary is Stonyhurst College, near Clitheroe in Lancashire, a school attended by Arthur Conan Doyle and which is thought to have inspired some of his Sherlock Holmes stories.

*Suss 1035