SATURDAY 12 DECEMBER 2015

SAT 19:00 Empire of the Seas: How the Navy Forged the Modern World (b00qfylw)
Series 1

High Tide

In the third programme in this epic four-part series on how the Navy has shaped modern Britain, Dan Snow sheds light on the evolution of Nelson's navy in the late 18th century. It was the most powerful maritime fighting force in the world, with highly trained crews and ambitious officers. He explores the national enterprise which supported it, and explains how the empire it helped create put Britain on the path to war with France.

Through the stories of naval heroes like Captain Cook, naval administrators like Charles Middleton and of course Admiral Nelson, Snow explores the elite training, the growing naval meritocracy and the years of tough experience which created a ruthless and professional 'band of brothers'. He looks at the impact of innovations such as the copper bottoming of the navy's ships and the introduction of a new tax - income tax - to pay for the fleet.

Pushing back the boundaries of the known world, the Navy's highly trained crews and ambitious officers laid claim to a burgeoning empire, but at a huge price. By 1800, Britain had been dragged into the greatest sequence of wars the nation had ever seen.


SAT 20:00 Britain's Outlaws: Highwaymen, Pirates and Rogues (b06rfl46)
Rogues Gallery

Few figures in British history have captured the popular imagination as much as the outlaw. From gentleman highwaymen, via swashbuckling pirates to elusive urban thieves and rogues, the brazen escapades and the flamboyance of the outlaw made them the anti-hero of their time - feared by the rich, admired by the poor and celebrated by writers and artists.

In this three-part series, historian Dr Sam Willis travels the open roads, the high seas and urban alleyways to explore Britain's 17th and 18th-century underworld of highwaymen, pirates and rogues, bringing the great age of the British outlaw vividly to life.

Sam shows that, far from being 'outsiders', outlaws were very much a product of their time, shaped by powerful national events. In each episode, he focuses not just on a particular type of outlaw, but a particular era. The series as a whole offers a chronological portrait of the changing face of crime in the 17th and 18th centuries.

In the final episode, Sam looks at urban crime, fraud and corruption in the 18th century, uncovering a fascinating rogues’ gallery of charmers, fraudsters and villains. Charmers like thief and serial escaper Jack Sheppard, so notorious that almost a quarter of a million people turned up to witness his hanging. Almost as controversial in her lifetime was Mary Toft, a fraudster who managed to convince no less than King George I and his surgeon that she had given birth to rabbits, making her, perhaps, the original 'con' artist.


SAT 21:00 The Bridge (b06ndxx7)
Series 3

Episode 7

Burglars make the gruesome discovery of two new victims, which Henrik recognises reflect the title of another of Freddie Holst's artworks called Cancel Christmas. The victims were foster carers and, whilst the team await a list of their charges, Saga and Henrik receive a breakthrough lead from John's new girlfriend Tina, who has been staking out the Holst house.

In Swedish and Danish with English subtitles.


SAT 22:00 The Bridge (b06ns7jp)
Series 3

Episode 8

As the Internal Affairs investigation continues over the death of Saga's mother, the pressure on her becomes intense. Saga, Henrik and John receive new leads when it becomes clear a potential suspect in the mysterious serial killings is actually a victim.

In Swedish and Danish with English subtitles.


SAT 23:00 Radio 2 In Concert (b06pk50c)
Jeff Lynne's ELO

The BBC's Radio Theatre opens its doors to an iconic band that have been making music history since the 1970s. ELO and their frontman Jeff Lynne have sold over 50 million albums worldwide and created a back catalogue of chart-topping hits that include Mr Blue Sky, Telephone Line, Livin' Thing and Strange Magic. Jeff Lynne's ELO play his classic tracks along with some new songs from their first album of new material in almost 15 years, Alone in the Universe, to an intimate crowd of fans.

Known as one of the most iconic forces in music history, ELO delivers the new album, Jeff Lynne's ELO Alone in the Universe , which will be the first new ELO music in a decade. As with ELO's previous chart-topping albums, Jeff Lynne continues to serve as ELO's producer, songwriter, arranger, lead singer and guitarist. Jeff Lynne was the creative genius behind ELO which sold more than 50 million albums worldwide, had more than 20 Top 40 Hits across the US and the UK and received countless awards and accolades. At the time of ELO's formation, Lynne had said the goal was to create modern rock and pop songs - a goal that remains true some 30 years later with the creation of this new material.


SAT 00:00 Mr Blue Sky: The Story of Jeff Lynne and ELO (b01n3yf4)
Documentary which gets to the heart of who Jeff Lynne is and how he has had such a tremendous musical influence on our world. The story is told by the British artist himself and such distinguished collaborators and friends of Jeff as Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Tom Petty, Joe Walsh, Olivia and Dhani Harrison, Barbara Orbison and Eric Idle.

The film reveals that Lynne is a true man of music, for whom the recording studio is his greatest instrument. With access to Lynne in his studio above LA, this is an intimate account of a great British pop classicist who has ploughed a unique furrow since starting out on the Birmingham Beat scene in the early 60s, moving from the Idle Race to the multimillion-selling ELO in the 70s and then, with Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Roy Orbison and George Harrison, as a key member of the Traveling Wilburys.


SAT 01:00 Top of the Pops (b06rhpc2)
Simon Bates presents the weekly pop show. Includes performances from the Beat, St Winifred's School Choir, the Specials, Gary Numan, Robert Palmer, the Nolans and Jona Lewie, and a dance routine by Legs & Co.


SAT 01:40 Rollermania: Britain's Biggest Boy Band (b06bbct4)
In 1975, The Bay City Rollers were on the brink of global superstardom. The most successful chart act in the UK with a unique look and sound were about to become the biggest thing since the Beatles. Featuring interviews with Les McKeown and other members of the classic Bay City Roller line-up, and using previously unseen footage shot by members of the band and its entourage, this is the tale of five lads from Edinburgh who became the world's first international teen idols and turned the whole world tartan.


SAT 02:40 TOTP2 (b01cyxhs)
Boybands

Showcasing the boy band, from its origins in 60s beat groups and R&B outfits to the new wave of 80s boy bands and beyond. Defined by their vocal harmonies, synchronised dance steps and groups of men, each with 'their own distinct appeal', this compilation celebrates the best of boy bands down the ages.

From JLS to The Four Tops, The Monkees to Westlife, and Village People to Blazin' Squad, relive your teenage years with the boys that mattered most.



SUNDAY 13 DECEMBER 2015

SUN 19:00 Blood and Gold: The Making of Spain with Simon Sebag Montefiore (b06rwgp7)
Conquest

In the first episode, Simon explores Spain's early years, its emergence as the battleground of empires and its golden age under the Cordoba Caliphate.


SUN 20:00 Ballrooms and Ballerinas: Dance at the BBC (b06sg7zj)
Strictly Come Dancing - today one of the most popular shows on television - is the latest manifestation of the BBC's enduring love affair with dance. Whether it was profiling stars such as Margot Fonteyn, reluctantly teaching us how to do the twist or encouraging us to dance like John Travolta, the BBC's cameras were there to capture every move and every step. From ballet to ballroom and beyond, this is Dance at the BBC.


SUN 21:00 Dance Rebels: A Story of Modern Dance (b06spm22)
Documentary which tells the compelling story of the mavericks like Isadora Duncan, Martha Graham, Merce Cunningham and Pina Bausch, whose radical ideas created modern dance in the 20th century. With historical archive and the first-hand experiences of student dancers from the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, it shows the ideas that challenged audiences and changed dance forever. Also, the biggest stars in dance explain what inspired them to create their own groundbreaking choreography. With contributions from Michael Clark, William Forsythe, Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker, Wayne McGregor, Akram Khan, Boris Charmatz and Lea Anderson.


SUN 22:30 Easy Money 2 (b0394rdq)
JW is serving time in prison and trying to get his life back on track but finds himself being pulled back into a life of crime.

In Swedish with English subtitles.


SUN 00:05 Storyville (b04m3k1q)
Russia's Toughest Prison: The Condemned

With unprecedented access, this documentary looks into the hidden world of one of Russia's most impenetrable and remote institutions - a maximum security prison exclusively for murderers. Deep inside the land of the gulags, this is the end of the line for some of Russia's most dangerous criminals - 260 men who have collectively killed nearly 800 people. The film delves deep into the mind and soul of some of these prisoners.

In brutally frank and uncensored interviews the inmates speak of their crimes, life and death, redemption and remorselessness, insanity and hope. The film tracks them though their unrelenting days over several months, lifting the veil on one of Russia's most secretive subcultures to reveal what happens when a man is locked up in a tiny cell for 23 hours every day, for life.

A startling insight into inscrutable minds and the forbidding world they have been condemned to.


SUN 01:25 Treasures of the Anglo Saxons (b00t6xzx)
Art historian Dr Nina Ramirez reveals the codes and messages hidden in Anglo-Saxon art. From the beautiful jewellery that adorned the first violent pagan invaders through to the stunning Christian manuscripts they would become famous for, she explores the beliefs and ideas that shaped Anglo-Saxon art.

Examining many of the greatest Anglo Saxon treasures - such as the Sutton Hoo Treasures, the Staffordshire Hoard, the Franks Casket and the Lindisfarne Gospels - Dr Ramirez charts 600 years of artistic development which was stopped dead in its tracks by the Norman Conquest.


SUN 02:25 A Timewatch Guide (b051h0gy)
Series 1

The Mary Rose

Historian Dan Snow explores the greatest maritime archaeology project in British history - the Mary Rose. Using 40 years of BBC archive footage Dan charts how the Mary Rose was discovered, excavated and eventually raised, and what the latest research has revealed about this iconic ship and her crew. Dan also investigates how the Mary Rose project helped create modern underwater archaeology, examining the techniques, challenges and triumphs of the divers and archaeologists involved.



MONDAY 14 DECEMBER 2015

MON 19:00 World News Today (b06s5lkg)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


MON 19:30 The Boats That Built Britain (b00scqb3)
The Phoenix

The square rigger is arguably the most important vehicle in history. In the 19th century these boats transported finished goods and raw materials all over the world, transforming Britain from a second-rate European power into the richest and most powerful nation on earth.

Sailor and writer Tom Cunliffe sets out on the Phoenix, a plank-perfect square rigger, to discover just how these incredible boats changed Britain and the world forever.


MON 20:00 The Boats That Built Britain (b00scqsj)
The Reaper

The Reaper is the biggest sailing lugger ever to fish the seas. Seventy feet long and capable of pulling in ten tonnes of herring in a single haul, the Reaper was an awesome beast that fed Britain at a time when she needed it most.

Sailor and writer Tom Cunliffe sails her for himself and finds out just how this giant of the seas came about.


MON 20:30 The Quizeum (b06s5vbc)
Series 2

Episode 7

The Quizeum visits the Horniman Museum in London, which specialises in anthropology, natural history and musical instruments. Being quizzed by Griff Rhys Jones are historian Dr Janina Ramirez, ceramics expert Lars Tharp, explorer Benedict Allen, and biologist and author Miranda Krestovnikoff.


MON 21:00 Inside Einstein's Mind: The Enigma of Space and Time (b06s75vs)
The story of the most elegant and powerful theory in science - Albert Einstein's general relativity.

When Einstein presented his formidable theory in November 1915, it turned our understanding of gravity, space and time completely on its head. Over the last 100 years, general relativity has enabled us to trace the origins of the universe to the Big Bang and to appreciate the enormous power of black holes.

To mark the 100th anniversary of general relativity, this film takes us inside the head of Einstein to witness how his idea evolved, giving new insights into the birth of a masterpiece that has become a cornerstone of modern science. This is not as daunting as it sounds - because Einstein liked to think in pictures. The film is a magical visual journey that begins in Einstein's young mind, follows the thought experiments that gave him stunning insights about the physical world, and ultimately reaches the extremes of modern physics.


MON 22:00 Timewatch (b00sl29f)
Atlantis: The Evidence

Historian Bettany Hughes unravels one of the most intriguing mysteries of all time. She presents a series of geological, archaeological and historical clues to show that the legend of Atlantis was inspired by a real historical event, the greatest natural disaster of the ancient world.


MON 23:00 A Timewatch Guide (b052775d)
Series 1

Cleopatra

Using the BBC film archives, historian Vanessa Collinridge explores how our view of Cleopatra has changed and evolved over the years - from Roman propaganda, through Shakespeare's role in casting her as a doomed romantic heroine, to her portrayal in the golden age of Hollywood.

Along the way Vanessa investigates Cleopatra's relationships with Julius Caesar and Mark Anthony, her role as a politician, whether she should be seen as a murderer, and her tragic end. Drawing on the views of academic experts, BBC documentaries and drama, Vanessa charts how, throughout history, Cleopatra's image has been subject to myth, cliche and propaganda.


MON 00:00 Empire of the Seas: How the Navy Forged the Modern World (b00qfylw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Saturday]


MON 01:00 Sex and the Sitcom (b00zwnt0)
How has the sitcom responded to the sexual revolution?

From Hancock's Half Hour in the 50s, through 70s sitcoms like Up Pompeii! and Reggie Perrin to contemporary comedies like Him & Her, this documentary explores sexual frustration as an enduring sitcom theme, the changing role of women and the British love of innuendo.

Why did Butterflies cause such a stir in the 80s? Did Men Behaving Badly really capture the sexual politics of the 90s? And how did the permissive society affect Terry and June?

The film looks at the changing language of sitcom, contrasts British comedy with its more liberal American counterpart, and asks whether the modern sitcom recognises any taboos at all.

Contributors include sitcom stars Leslie Phillips, Lesley Joseph, Wendy Craig, and writers David Nobbs, Simon Nye and Jonathan Harvey.


MON 02:00 The Quizeum (b06s5vbc)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:30 today]


MON 02:30 Inside Einstein's Mind: The Enigma of Space and Time (b06s75vs)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]



TUESDAY 15 DECEMBER 2015

TUE 19:00 World News Today (b06s5lkm)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


TUE 19:30 The Boats That Built Britain (b00sfshw)
Bristol Channel Pilot Cutter

Many consider the Bristol Channel pilot cutter to be the finest sailing boat design ever. Fast, seaworthy and beautiful to behold, the pilot cutter is the perfect combination of form and function - a thoroughbred perfectly adapted to a life in one of the Britain's most treacherous stretches of water. Sailor and writer Tom Cunliffe explores the life of the pilots and sails a perfectly restored cutter to find out just what drove these men and their wonderful machines.


TUE 20:00 Swarm: Nature's Incredible Invasions (b00gkrm2)
When Worlds Collide

This two-part documentary reveals the awe-inspiring world of animal swarms, discovering what happens when superswarms invade people's lives and, using the latest camera techniques, going to the heart of the swarm to reveal how the creatures therein view our world.

Real-life footage from camcorders and mobile phones captures the amazing impact they can have. Killer bees mount an attack on an international football match in Costa Rica. In the US, the Illinois River boils with leaping silver carp, an alien species that has hijacked the river, smashing into boats and injuring people.

In South Australia, a sea of mice raids farms, consuming and destroying in their millions on a scale that defies belief. The largest swarm on Earth erupts from Lake Victoria - trillions of flies blanket villages, but the locals have learnt to turn the swarm into a highly nutritious fly burger. In Rome, cameras fly alongside ten million starlings, the largest swarm in Europe. Their mesmeric waves stop many residents in their tracks, but as they roost they smother the city in tons of excrement.

One man has learnt to control the ultimate swarm. He has become their 'queen bee' with startling results, learning to control what most people fear and to understand one of the most incredible forces of nature.


TUE 21:00 Blood and Gold: The Making of Spain with Simon Sebag Montefiore (b06s5x0t)
Reconquest

Simon uncovers the truth about Spain's hero El Cid. He also investigates the horror of the Spanish Inquisition and in the process discovers an unsettling story about one of his own ancestors.


TUE 22:00 Ian Hislop Goes off the Rails (b00drtpj)
Ian Hislop brings his customary humour, analysis and wit to the notorious Beeching Report of 1963, which led to the closure of a third of the nation's railway lines and stations and forced tens of thousands of people into the car and onto the road.

Was author Dr Richard Beeching little more than Genghis Khan with a slide rule, ruthlessly hacking away at Britain's rail network in a misguided quest for profitability, or was he the fall guy for short-sighted government policies that favoured the car over the train?

Ian also investigates the fallout of Beeching's plan, discovering what was lost to the British landscape, communities and ways of life when the railway map shrank, and recalls the halcyon days of train travel, celebrated by John Betjeman.

Ian travels from Cornwall to the Scottish borders, meeting those responsible and those affected and questioning whether such brutal measures could be justified. Knowing what we know now, with trains far more energy efficient and environmentally sound than cars, perhaps Beeching's plan was the biggest folly of the 1960s?


TUE 23:00 Life of a Mountain (b04y4gd7)
A Year on Scafell Pike

A beautifully cinematic documentary following a year in the life of England's highest mountain, Scafell Pike, through the eyes of the farmers who work the valleys and fells, those who climb the mountain for pleasure and those who try to protect its slopes.

Filmed over a twelve-month period, it follows the seasons on the mountain from spring lambs through to winter snows. The contributions of the British Mountaineering Council and National Trust volunteers make clear the crucial importance of maintaining the landscape quality of England's highest peak for future generations.


TUE 00:00 Swarm: Nature's Incredible Invasions (b00gkrm2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 today]


TUE 01:00 The Fisherman's Apprentice with Monty Halls (b01f89sm)
Episode 5

Marine biologist Monty Halls has seen the problems UK fishermen face - now he wants to look for solutions. He heads out to sea with one of Cornwall's most successful skippers, to uncover the secret of his success. And he travels to the USA and discovers a revolutionary way of supporting traditional fishermen.


TUE 02:00 Horizon (b039grrx)
2013-2014

Dinosaurs: The Hunt for Life

The hunt for life within the long-dead bones of dinosaurs may sound like the stuff of Hollywood fantasy, but one woman has found traces of life within the fossilised bones of a Tyrannosaurus rex.

Dr Mary Schweitzer has seen the remains of red blood cells and touched the soft tissue of an animal that died 68 million years ago. Most excitingly of all, she believes she may just have found signs of DNA. Her work is revolutionising our understanding of these iconic beasts.


TUE 03:00 Blood and Gold: The Making of Spain with Simon Sebag Montefiore (b06s5x0t)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]



WEDNESDAY 16 DECEMBER 2015

WED 19:00 World News Today (b06s5lks)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


WED 19:30 The Boats That Built Britain (b00sfsqw)
World War Two Landing Craft

Looking more like a skip than a boat, the LCVP, or Landing Craft Vehicle and Personnel, won't win any prizes for beauty. Yet the craft did more to win World War II than any other piece of machinery. There were once over 20,000 of these little boats, but only a handful remain. Sailor and writer Tom Cunliffe puts one of them through its paces and finds out how the boat was developed for one momentous day in 1944.


WED 20:00 Timeshift (b06pm5vf)
Series 15

How Britain Won the Space Race: The Story of Bernard Lovell and Jodrell Bank

The unlikely story of how one man with some ex-WWII army equipment eventually turned a muddy field in Cheshire into a key site in the space race. That man was Bernard Lovell, and his telescope at Jodrell Bank would be used at the height of the Cold War by both the Americans and the Russians to track their competing spacecraft. It also put Britain at the forefront of radio astronomy, a new science which transformed our knowledge of space and provided the key to understanding the most mind-bending theory of the beginnings of the universe - the Big Bang.


WED 21:00 Horizon (b06spxtc)
Beyond the Moon

A chance to look back at a classic Horizon special in which James Burke looks at space exploration and exploitation. Originally transmitted in 1984, James begins by looking at the Apollo XI moon landing, before moving on to future space plans for humankind.


WED 22:00 Horizon (b05527mp)
2014-2015

Secrets of the Solar System

New planets are now being discovered outside our solar system on a regular basis, and these strange new worlds are forcing scientists to rewrite the history of our own solar system. Far from a simple story of stable orbits, the creation of our solar system is a tale of hellfire, chaos and planetary pinball.

It's a miracle our Earth is here at all.


WED 23:00 2001: A Space Odyssey (b00ls6sl)
Stanley Kubrick's acclaimed science fiction film that spans four million years as it charts the evolution of humans from ape to star child - via computer technology.

The film set a benchmark for special effects photography and the use of music.


WED 01:15 Horizon (b06spxtc)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]


WED 02:15 Botany: A Blooming History (b0122k8y)
Hidden World

For 10,000 years or more, humans created new plant varieties for food by trial and error and a touch of serendipity. Then 150 years ago, a new era began. Pioneer botanists unlocked the patterns found in different types of plants and opened the door to a new branch of science - plant genetics. They discovered what controlled the random colours of snapdragon petals and the strange colours found in wild maize.

This was vital information. Some botanists even gave their lives to protect their collection of seeds. American wheat farmer Norman Borlaug was awarded the Nobel peace prize after he bred a new strain of wheat that lifted millions of people around the world out of starvation. Today, botanists believe advances in plant genetics hold the key to feeding the world's growing population.



THURSDAY 17 DECEMBER 2015

THU 19:00 World News Today (b06s5lky)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


THU 19:30 Reel History of Britain (p00jwrg2)
The End of the Line

Melvyn Bragg, accompanied by a vintage mobile cinema, travels across the country to show incredible footage preserved by the British Film Institute and other national and regional film archives, to tell the history of modern Britain.

Melvyn visits Sheringham in Norfolk, home of the North Norfolk Heritage Railway, to look back to the 1960s when the Beeching Axe led to the closure of 4,000 miles of track, over 2,000 stations and the loss of 67,000 railway jobs.

Susan Hawkes sees her beloved uncle on film for the first time in twenty years, tending his station garden at Aldeburgh. Lifelong signalman Michael Gatenby comes face to face with his younger self on screen. And there is a trip down memory lane with pop mogul and lifelong train enthusiast Pete Waterman.


THU 20:00 The Secret Life of Rockpools (b01rtdr4)
Paleontologist Professor Richard Fortey embarks on a quest to discover the extraordinary lives of rock pool creatures. To help explore this unusual environment he is joined by some of the UK's leading marine biologists in a dedicated laboratory at the National Marine Aquarium in Plymouth. Here and on the beach in various locations around the UK, startling behaviour is revealed and new insights are given into how these animals cope with intertidal life. Many popular rock pool species have survived hundreds of millions of years of Earth's history, but humans may be their biggest challenge yet.


THU 21:00 What a Performance! Pioneers of Popular Entertainment (b06s5zw9)
Variety Finds a New Home

In the third programme of this insightful and entertaining series about the history of popular entertainment, comedian Frank Skinner and music presenter Suzy Klein examine what happened to British popular entertainment - its stars and its audiences - during the Second World War and beyond.

They explore how it braved challenges from an American invasion called rock and roll, a whole lot of nudity and how, in the 50s, it faced its biggest threat as a new form of entertainment appeared in our living rooms. They bring the period wonderfully alive by studying the lives and acts of some of the major stars of popular entertainment of the day, and recreate in a final performance an act close to their hearts. For Suzy, this means attempting to replicate the formidably powerful sound of American supergroup the Andrews Sisters - an act she has loved since she a child. Frank takes on an act a little closer to home - Max Miller was a legendary British comic, who went on to influence generations of stand-ups, Frank included.


THU 22:00 Best Possible Taste: The Kenny Everett Story (p00xzvlw)
Told with the help of some of his most famous comic characters including Cupid Stunt and Quentin Pose, the story of pioneering radio DJ and television star Kenny Everett's against-the-odds struggle to achieve both personal and professional fulfilment, as seen through the decade-and-a-half prism of his marriage to Lee Middleton.


THU 23:30 Radio 2 In Concert (b06pk50c)
[Repeat of broadcast at 23:00 on Saturday]


THU 00:30 The Secret Life of Rockpools (b01rtdr4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 today]


THU 01:30 Ballrooms and Ballerinas: Dance at the BBC (b06sg7zj)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 on Sunday]


THU 02:30 What a Performance! Pioneers of Popular Entertainment (b06s5zw9)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]



FRIDAY 18 DECEMBER 2015

FRI 19:00 World News Today (b06s5ll5)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


FRI 19:30 Andrea Chénier from the Royal Opera House (b06sg8s6)
Jonas Kaufmann and Eva-Maria Westbroek star in the Royal Opera's new production of Umberto Giordano's passionate drama about liberty and love in the French Revolution. Antonio Pappano conducts David McVicar's sumptuous production, and the programme is presented by Suzy Klein.

Andrea Chénier has become celebrated for the lyrical music it offers the tenor in the title role - in this production performed by star tenor Kaufmann, who received an Olivier award nomination.

This production contrasts the opulence of pre-Revolutionary France with the horrors of the Reign of Terror, whilst Giordano's score has all the richness and romanticism of Giordano's contemporary, Puccini.


FRI 21:35 Sounds of the Eighties (b0074sm9)
Episode 5

Flouncy-haired pop merchants and indie stalwarts on The Old Grey Whistle Test and its younger, more colourful sibling, The Whistle Test dominate this trawl through the 80s. Featuring The Teardrop Explodes, Orange Juice, Robert Wyatt, Aztec Camera, Billy Bragg, The Fall, The Pogues, Robyn Hitchcock and the ever-smiling Style Council.


FRI 22:00 Queen: From Rags to Rhapsody (b06s76l4)
To mark the 40th anniversary of Bohemian Rhapsody, this documentary digs deep into archive to tell the story of Queen as it follows their journey from a struggling band gigging at pubs and colleges to the moment they captured the UK's hearts and minds with what was to become one of - if not the - greatest song of all time.

Queen's formative years have never been explored in such detail. With a wealth of unseen interviews, recently unearthed rushes of Queen's first ever video and outtakes from the recording sessions of Bohemian Rhapsody itself, this is the unique story of early Queen, told by the band themselves.

This documentary completes the final part of the trilogy alongside Days of Our Lives and Freddie Mercury: The Great Pretender.

It's simple. It's real. It's raw. It's what happened.


FRI 23:00 Queen: The Legendary 1975 Concert (b00p4hgm)
On Christmas Eve 1975, Queen crowned a glorious year with a special concert at London's Hammersmith Odeon. The show on the final night of their triumphant UK tour was broadcast live on BBC TV and radio, and has become a legendary event in Queen's history.

Featuring stunning renditions of early hits Keep Yourself Alive, Liar and Now I'm Here alongside Brian May's epic guitar showcase Brighton Rock, a rip-roaring version of the then new Bohemian Rhapsody and the crowd-pleasing Rock 'n' Roll Medley, this hour-long concert shows Queen at an early peak and poised to conquer the world.


FRI 00:00 Great Guitar Riffs at the BBC (b049mtxy)
Compilation of BBC performances featuring some of the best axe men and women in rock 'n' roll, from Hendrix to The Kinks, Cream to AC/DC, The Smiths to Rage Against the Machine and Radiohead to Foo Fighters. Whether it is The Shadows playing FBI on Crackerjack, Jeff Beck with The Yardbirds, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Cream's Sunshine of Your Love from their final gig, Pixies on the Late Show, AC/DC on Top of the Pops or Fools Gold from The Stone Roses, this compilation is a celebration of rock 'n' roll guitar complete with riffs, fingerstylin', wah-wah pedals and Marshall amps.


FRI 01:00 Queen: From Rags to Rhapsody (b06s76l4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:00 today]


FRI 02:00 Queen: The Legendary 1975 Concert (b00p4hgm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 23:00 today]


FRI 03:05 Sounds of the Eighties (b0074sm9)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:35 today]


FRI 03:30 Sounds of the Eighties (b0074sn5)
Episode 6

Rocking out with the loud guitars and manly hair of Motorhead, ZZ Top, U2, Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi, INXS, The Cult and The Mission.