BBC R3 Documentary - 'Tyndale's Testament'
Presenter David Daniels
Produced by Denis Nolan
Readers Anthony Hyde and Phillip Anthony
Broadcast January 15, 1993
Coded from tape at 128/44.1

Documentary about William Tyndale 1493? - 1536

William Tyndale believed that the bible should be available to the
people in their mother tongue rather interpreted for them by the few
who understood and could read Latin.

His studies showed him that the Latin texts were significantly
divergent from the original Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic. With the
help of Dutch and Swiss non-conformists, he learned these languages.

He commenced translation, and had copies of parts printed in Worms.
These were shipped into England. Most were intercepted and burned;
but some began to circulate in 'samizdat' form. This caused a 'fatwah'
(or whatever the Xian church called this kind of hounding) to be declared
against him.

When caught he was interrogated under church directed torture. Thumbscrews
and fire. He was then broken on the rack. When he had nothing left to tell, he
was strangled by a priest. His remains were then burnt. His name was near
lost to history. We know so much of him now only because the detailed
records of his statements under torture later surfaced.

Tyndale had as much influence on the English language as Shakespeare,
Jonson, and Coverdale. He invented compounds - like 'loving kindness',
and 'king of kings'. Four fifths of the King James Authorised edition are
his. Most English speaking people use his phrases every day without
knowing their author.

The words: 'In the beginning was the word ...' are his.