Michael IV

…He says, why don't you adopt this Michael? You and Zoe adopt him as your son. He'll be named Caesar and we'll put him in a townhouse in the suburbs and he can hang around. And when you die, he'll come in as Michael V. So we come to the 10th of December, 1041. Michael IV is bloated, he's swollen, fluid everywhere, shambles. So his loving days are over. His…

…Although I suppose they could try and drain him, but that doesn't work. Now, John, the eunuch, says to him, look, you're going to have to name a successor, and ideally from our family, because we want to stay on top. And as luck would have it, they have another Michael, who is their sister's son. It's brilliant, isn't it, how everyone is called Michael? We'…

…He's now been emperor for six years. He's in his late 20s. Michael Sellers says he was as fresh as a blossom, bright eyed and apple cheeked. Nice. So that's nice. Unfortunately, Michael's good looks are starting to curdle. Because he's always suffered from epilepsy and it's getting much worse.…