4. Women in the Alehouse

Historian Dr Justin Champion goes in search of Britain's multicultural past and pieces together a picture of society during the Elizabethan era.

From criminals and migrants to prostitutes and people regarded as mad scientists, he examines the life and times of some of Elizabeth I's more unusual subjects.

Piecing together evidence from dusty archives, diaries, court records and murder pamphlets, Justin paints an intriguing picture of the darker side of Elizabethan life.

Now, Justin investigates the lives of Elizabethan women through the stories of the customers, owners and 'working girls' who made up the world of the alehouse.

Reader: Jonathan Keeble

Producer: Sarah Taylor

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2003.