Classic Movies: The Story of...: Story, Cast and Series Facts

Story and premise

Classic Movies: The Story of... goes in search of the cinematically sublime. Those films that have transcended their era to enter the pantheon of greats.

With each episode devoted to a single film, their story will be told with detail, affection, looking for the truth behind the myth, all the trials and triumphs that went into forging a classic. But this isn't simply history, the standard making of, it's about identifying those ingredients immortal scenes, performances, themes, luxuriant cinematography, art direction, special effects, music, even the power of a single line – that elevate a film to a new level.

Hosted by Ian Nathan, guide us through the story from inception to legacy, supplemented with regular input along with special guest, with unique insight, historians who have devoted entire books, and visit to special location, where they shot or that served as  a key inspiration, bringing each of these films to life with a dynamic presentation. We are on a journey to find out not what makes a film good, but what makes it classic.

Series details

• Title: Classic Movies: The Story of...
• Format: Documentary
• Language: English
• Premiere date: 2023-08-31
• Status in TVmaze: Running
• Network listed by TVmaze: Sky Arts
• Network country: United Kingdom
• Typical episode runtime: 60 minutes
• TVMaze ID: 70842
• IMDb ID: tt29207711
• TVDB ID: 439102

Cast and credited roles

• Ian Nathan — Host

Seasons in the TVmaze catalogue

• Season 1: premiered 2023-08-31; final listed air date 2023-10-05; episode order: 6.
• Season 2: premiered 2024-08-08; final listed air date 2024-09-12; episode order: 6.
• Season 3: premiered 2025-05-01; final listed air date 2025-06-05; episode order: 6.
• Season 4: premiered 2025-10-16; final listed air date 2025-11-20; episode order: 6.
• Season 5: premiered 2026-05-07; final listed air date 2026-06-04; episode order: 6.

Source and licence

Adapted from Classic Movies: The Story of... on TVmaze. The synopsis is reproduced as plain text; catalogue facts, cast and season records are selected and reformatted. This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, following the TVmaze API licence. Network and web-channel credits identify the service listed in this source; they do not establish current streaming availability.