Richard III, coming to a TV near you

When he died, in 1485, Richard III's body was paraded publicly and buried quickly in a grave that was soon lost. In 2015, things will be very different. The reinterment of Richard will be carried live on a major British TV channel while other broadcasters are launching apps and internet based coverage to feed an appetite for history that shows no signs of being satisfied.

Richard III, King of England, 1483 - 1485

Richard III's bones were discovered under a car park in Leicester in 2012 - the site used to be part of Grey Friars church in the city where the last Plantagenet king was buried after his death at Bosworth. Confirmation that this much maligned king had definitely been found came in 2013 and after a judicial dispute over where he should be laid to rest again, plans were made for his reinterment in a tomb in Leicester. On March 26th the ceremony takes place with the Countess of Wessex and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester among the congregation. Now millions will get the chance to watch the event as it happens as Channel 4 offers live coverage of the reburial and the processions in the days preceding it.

Richard III will be reburied in Leicester on March 26th 2015

The programmes will no doubt get a huge audience. Interest in Richard III has never been greater. It's not every day that a former king is found but the desire to know all about the all time great villain of British royal history is one of the media stories of 2015. There are several other royal events that will get plenty of TV coverage this year - from baby Cambridge number two to the Queen becoming the longest reigning monarch in British history. But when the story of 2015 comes to be written, Richard III will figure large too. The latest chapter in the tale of a man born before printing was invented will be told on live TV.