For centuries it was uncertain what caused the pestilence of 1348, until a vast plague pit was uncovered in Smithfield, London in the 1980s. The find revealed the bones of hundreds of victims of the 14th century pandemic.

Now stored in the basement of the Museum of London, Lucy learns how DNA extracted from the skeletons enabled scientists to finally identify a bacteria called Yersinia Pestis – a pathogen to which the mediaeval population had no immunity.

In little more than a year, almost half the population had been wiped out by the Black Death. Lucy investigates what this sudden loss of life meant for the church, landowners and for the those who survived.

Exploring the social structure of mediaeval England, made up largely of rural peasants indentured to landowners, Lucy discovers a rare and remarkable set of documents: the Court Rolls of the Suffolk village of Walsham the Willows, providing a perfect microcosm of life across the country before, during and after the pandemic.

Lucy discovers how, despite the unfolding apocalypse, rather than shaking people’s belief in God, it entrenched their faith. Many went on devotional pilgrimages to sacred sites like Canterbury Cathedral.

Despite the devastation, the plague propagated a shake-up of the status quo. Workers were in short supply and could demand higher wages, shifting the balance of power. Women occupied professions and roles that were previously closed to them and acquired an independence and status that would previously have been impossible.

Clips in this episode all come from 1981 – a year of significant breakthroughs and TV debuts as New Order, Depeche Mode and Soft Cell appear on screen for the first time in some rare and unseen footage. It was also the year in which the charts were ruled by Planet Pop, as children’s TV brings us classic hits from Adam and the Ants, Kirsty MacColl, Kim Wilde and Toyah. There’s a Stiff Records connection between featured artists Elvis Costello & The Attractions, Madness, The Belle Stars and Dave Edmunds with The Stray Cats, while mod revivalists Secret Affair perform their final charting single on Get It Together. Guy also takes a look at interviews from The Human League’s Philip Oakey, as well as Simon Le Bon and John Taylor from Duran Duran.