SATURDAY 02 AUGUST 2025

SAT 19:00 Agatha Christie: Lucy Worsley on the Mystery Queen (p0d9cd6n)
Series 1

Unfinished Portrait

Lucy Worsley examines Agatha Christie’s later life and discovers how, amid the turbulent social and political change of the 1930s and 40s, newfound personal happiness ushered in a golden age for her writing.

In 1930, recovering from a personal crisis, Agatha Christie fell in love with and married Max Mallowan. This relationship, and the security it brought, saw Agatha enter the most prolific and successful chapter of her career. This would be the period in which she penned some of her most famous and enduring bestsellers, including Murder on the Orient Express.

Lucy follows in Agatha’s footsteps to discover the roots of these works and explores how, in later life, Agatha achieved global celebrity but remained very much the anonymous observer, hiding in plain sight.


SAT 20:00 Miss Marple (p03rdrkc)
The Murder at the Vicarage

When the Colonel is found murdered in the vicar's study, Miss Marple has to whittle down her long list of suspects. After all, the Colonel was not a popular man.


SAT 21:30 Cairo Conspiracy (m002gv2z)
Adam, the son of a fisherman, is offered the privilege of studying at the Al-Azhar University in Cairo, the center of power of Sunni Islam. Shortly after his arrival in Cairo, the university's highest-ranking religious leader, the Grand Imam, suddenly dies, and Adam soon becomes a pawn in a ruthless power struggle between Egypt's religious and political elites.

In Arabic with English subtitles.


SAT 23:25 Parkinson (m002gv31)
Frederick Forsyth, Pete Murray and Blossom Dearie

Michael Parkinson in conversation with Frederick Forsyth, Pete Murray and Blossom Dearie.


SAT 00:25 The Good Life (p02qyh1h)
Series 3

The Happy Event

A 400 per cent increase in their livestock population is a source of great joy for the Goods, although their excitement is not shared by the Leadbetters.


SAT 00:55 Yes Minister (b0074rh7)
Series 2

The Quality of Life

Jim Hacker makes a rash promise to save a popular city farm from closure, but he needs Sir Humphrey's help.


SAT 01:25 Miss Marple (p03rdrkc)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 today]


SAT 02:55 Agatha Christie: Lucy Worsley on the Mystery Queen (p0d9cd6n)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 today]

SUNDAY 03 AUGUST 2025

SUN 19:00 The Fairy-Tale Castles of King Ludwig II with Dan Cruickshank (b036f9vc)
Ludwig II of Bavaria, more commonly known by his nicknames the Swan King or the Dream King, is a legendary figure - the handsome boy-king, loved by his people, betrayed by his cabinet and found dead in tragic and mysterious circumstances. He spent his life in pursuit of the ideal of beauty, which found expression in three of the most extraordinary, ornate architectural schemes imaginable - the castle of Neuschwanstein and the palaces of Linderhof and Herrenchiemsee. Today, these three buildings are among Germany's biggest tourist attractions.

In this documentary, Dan Cruickshank explores the rich aesthetic of Ludwig II - from the mock-medievalism of Neuschwanstein, the iconic fairy-tale castle that became the inspiration for the one in Walt Disney's Sleeping Beauty, to the rich, baroque splendour of Herrenchiemsee, Ludwig's answer to Versailles. Dan argues that Ludwig's castles are more than flamboyant kitsch and are, in fact, the key to unravelling the eternal enigma of Ludwig II.


SUN 20:00 Oscar Peterson: Words and Music (m001jvq1)
Series 1

Ella Fitzgerald

Oscar Peterson hosts his own entertainment showcase of some of the world's foremost jazz musicians. In this edition, he is joined by Ella Fitzgerald. Performances include In a Mellow Tone and More than You Know.


SUN 20:50 In Concert (b0074hkm)
Oscar Peterson

Footage of the internationally feted jazz pianist with his trio at Ronnie Scott's Club in 1974.


SUN 21:20 Omnibus (b008wdpq)
Oscar Peterson and Andre Previn

Oscar Peterson and conductor Andre Previn look at some of the styles and personalities involved in the development of piano jazz.


SUN 22:25 Oscar Peterson: Words and Music (b008wdpp)
Series 1

Count Basie and Joe Pass

Jazz pianist Oscar Peterson is joined by guests Count Basie and his Orchestra and Joe Pass for conversation and music.


SUN 23:15 Jazz 625 (b008wdpn)
Oscar Peterson

Flora Purin introduces a restored and re-edited version of a session by jazz pianist Oscar Peterson from October 1964.


SUN 23:40 In Concert (m002gv52)
Iris Williams

A performance by celebrated Welsh singer Iris Williams, from St David's Hall, Cardiff. Accompanied by her ten-piece band, Iris performs popular songs, including the hits of Nat King Cole and Edith Piaf.


SUN 00:30 Omnibus (b008wdpq)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:20 today]


SUN 01:40 The Fairy-Tale Castles of King Ludwig II with Dan Cruickshank (b036f9vc)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 today]

MONDAY 04 AUGUST 2025

MON 19:00 Timothy Spall: Back at Sea (b013fj45)
Mad about the Buoys

Untrained mariner Timothy Spall has spent a fortune on technology for his new challenge - the unpredictable Irish Sea - as he and his wife continue their mini-odyssey around Britain.

Entering Liverpool means navigating their first big city since leaving London, but reaching dry land can be daunting in a small boat when dodging tankers and ferries. It's even more difficult when the coastguard sends him round in circles because he's on the wrong side of the marker buoys.

On his way to Glasson Dock in Lancashire, Tim is tricked again by another buoy. Misunderstanding his sea chart results in an unplanned dropped anchor in the middle of the Irish Sea, where they have to wait all night before he can enter the port.

Their next destination finds them in the company of royalty - Piel Island near Barrow-in-Furness has the unusual honour of having its own king and queen, a tradition which goes back centuries.


MON 19:30 Days That Shook the World (m002gv54)
Attack on Pearl Harbor

Sailors, naval officers, nurses and pilots recall the 1941 attack on Hawaii, bringing to life the extraordinary 24 hours that would change the course of world history.


MON 20:30 James May at the Edge of Space (b00lc5ph)
James May always wanted to be an astronaut. Now, 40 years after the first Apollo landings, he gets a chance to fly to the edge of space in a U2 spy plane. But first he has to undergo three gruelling days of training with the US Air Force and learn to use a space suit to stay alive in air so thin it can kill in an instant. He discovers that during the flight there are only two people higher than him, and they are both real astronauts on the International Space Station.


MON 21:00 Atomic People (m0021lrg)
The decision by the United States to drop atomic bombs on two Japanese cities - Hiroshima on 6 August 1945 and Nagasaki three days later - was one of the most momentous and destructive in world history.

Now, nearly 80 years later, this unique film gathers the testimony of some of the last ‘Hibakusha’, survivors of the two atomic bombs, before their voices are lost forever. With an average age of 85, most Hibakusha were children when the bombs were dropped.

Combining their personal accounts with archive footage, the film features a significant number of voices from this shrinking group, the only people left on earth to have survived a nuclear bomb, while exploring how their experiences continue to affect them to this day.


MON 22:30 Timewatch (m001tc4z)
Napoleon's Last Battle

Documentary drama exploring the last days of Napoleon's life in exile on the island of St Helena.

To the British, Napoleon has always been an ogre - an enemy, a foreign despot - but he is also remembered as a man of incredible energy, who laid the foundations of the modern French state.

In exile on St Helena, he fought his last battle with words, turning defeat at Waterloo to his advantage, presenting himself as the rescuer of France and a man who hated war.

Timewatch explores the myth of the man who had a vision of a united Europe over 200 years ago.


MON 23:35 Art on the BBC (m0013c82)
Series 2

Van Gogh - Life and Art

Art historian Kate Bryan examines six decades of BBC archive to create a television history of the man who has become the embodiment of the ‘tortured artist’, Vincent van Gogh. Van Gogh was 37 when he shot himself, but in the four years before he died, he painted some of the world’s most beloved works, using colour in ways that changed art forever.

In this programme, Kate discovers that film-makers have found it impossible to separate van Gogh's work from his life – from his fraught relationship with fellow artist Paul Gauguin to the heartbreaking struggle with his mental health that ended in tragedy. In their efforts to understand van Gogh’s complex psyche, and where his talent and extraordinary feeling for colour came from, programme makers have explored the French countryside, where his most famous works were painted, set off on detective trails to solve the mystery of his severed ear and delved into his personal letters, casting some of the world's most remarkable actors – from Benedict Cumberbatch to Kirk Douglas – to bring his words and work to life.

Drawing on archive broadcasts from Doctor Who to Simon Schama’s Power of Art, with contributions from experts and enthusiasts alike, including Jeremy Paxman and Andrew Graham-Dixon, Kate reveals how our interpretation of van Gogh's work and his illness have undergone seismic changes through the decades.


MON 00:35 Timothy Spall: Back at Sea (b013fj45)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 today]


MON 01:05 Atomic People (m0021lrg)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]


MON 02:35 Timewatch (m001tc4z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:30 today]

TUESDAY 05 AUGUST 2025

TUE 19:00 Timothy Spall: Back at Sea (b013rknf)
The Bit in the Middle

Sea adventurers Timothy Spall and his wife Shane take their barge to three different countries and the Isle of Man.

From Whitehaven, where Tim learns about the pirate John Paul Jones, they steam over to Douglas to visit Tim's son, actor Rafe Spall, who is there to work on BBC Two's The Shadow Line.

Next, they visit a city Tim loves dearly, Belfast, and a special pub he says is 'the finest drinking establishment in the English-speaking world'. Finally, it's across to Portpatrick and Scotland as they clock up some serious nautical mileage in their circumnavigation of the British Isles.


TUE 19:30 The Lakes with Paul Rose (b0bbzj2m)
Series 1

Windermere

Explorer Paul Rose digs out his rucksack and heads for Windermere in the first of a four-part series about the Lake District. The National Park attracts 18 million visitors each year, and is now a World Heritage Site. In this episode, Paul joins the crowds and finds out why the early tourists thought the Lakes were one of the most dangerous spots in the country. He plunges into the world of long-distance swimming and helps the staff who run the boats on the lake, before meeting a Holocaust survivor who was airlifted to Windermere in 1945, as part of a mercy mission involving 300 orphans after the Second World War.


TUE 20:00 The Good Life (p02r4q90)
Series 3

A Tug of the Forelock

After Tom brainstorms an idea for revamping the cultivator into a transport vehicle, the Goods try their hand at becoming a housekeeping service to the Leadbetters to earn cash.


TUE 20:30 Yes Minister (b0074rjz)
Series 2

A Question of Loyalty

Hacker and Sir Humphrey are called to appear before a select committee looking into government expenditure, and Hacker must choose between toeing the party line and doing what the civil service want him to do.


TUE 21:00 The Royle Family (p00bk9q6)
Series 2

Episode 4

Nana has come to stay to recuperate after an operation, but how much longer can the family cope with her?


TUE 21:30 Caroline Aherne at the BBC (m000t1f8)
Actor and comedian John Thomson looks back at the life and work of his friend and comedy colleague, the late and greatly missed Caroline Aherne. From rarely seen early routines from Caroline’s days on the Manchester stand-up circuit, through to some favourite moments from The Fast Show, Mrs Merton and The Royle Family, John is our guide as we wallow in a special selection of clips, characters and magic moments. To misquote Mrs Merton’s famous line to Debbie McGee – this is a collection that reveals exactly what it was that first attracted us to one of British television’s best-loved writers and performers.


TUE 22:00 Caroline Aherne: Queen of Comedy (m001ty35)
A celebration of the unique life and talent of Caroline Aherne, featuring unseen photographs and contributions from a cast of her lifelong friends, including Steve Coogan, John Thompson, Craig Cash and producer Andy Harries.

Aherne’s pioneering representation of working class and family life in The Royle Family won her two Baftas and changed comedy writing forever, while her alter ego Mrs Merton’s question to stage performer Debbie McGee - 'So what first attracted you to the millionaire Paul Daniels?' - has been voted the greatest comedy put-down in British TV history.


TUE 23:10 Storyville (m000pqyw)
The Hijacker Who Vanished: The Mystery of DB Cooper

A mysterious fugitive, a hijacked airplane and a daring mid-air escape. This is the extraordinary, real-life tale of one of the greatest unsolved heists in American history and a case that has taunted the FBI for decades. This documentary brings the stories of the four possible suspects to life through candid testimony, archive footage and stylised drama. Each account is gripping and highly plausible. But who is telling the truth, who is lying and, ultimately, who is DB Cooper?


TUE 00:35 Timothy Spall: Back at Sea (b013rknf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 today]


TUE 01:05 The Lakes with Paul Rose (b0bbzj2m)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:30 today]


TUE 01:35 James May at the Edge of Space (b00lc5ph)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:30 on Monday]


TUE 02:05 Days That Shook the World (m002gv54)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:30 on Monday]

WEDNESDAY 06 AUGUST 2025

WED 19:00 Timothy Spall: Back at Sea (b0140vqb)
Scotch Mist

As summer comes to a close, Timothy Spall's trip around the coast of his beloved Britain reaches the halfway mark. He encounters several Scottish ports and islands, mostly in the famous Scottish misty drizzle. Before the weather worsens, he winds his way through the Scottish western islands and takes his barge Princess Matilda back to her roots by venturing up the Caledonian Canal, a shortcut from the west of Scotland to the east, which sets up next year's trip down the east coast and back home to London.

This year, Timothy and his wife Shane have travelled further than in any other of their previous six years at sea. All they need is somewhere to moor up for winter.


WED 19:30 The Lakes with Paul Rose (b0bc6fg2)
Series 1

Derwentwater

Explorer Paul Rose packs his waterproofs and heads for Derwentwater and Borrowdale in his latest adventure in the Lake District. It's a place that's no stranger to tough weather - Borrowdale is officially the wettest place in England. He meets those who've battled against flooding and have learned to live with extreme weather events. Along the way, he tells the story of Millican Dalton, the professor of adventure, who ran his own expeditions in the Lake District more than 70 years ago. Paul also heads for the summit of Great Gable, one of the Lake's best-known peaks.


WED 20:00 Japan’s Master of Restoration (m002gj1p)
Series 1

The Four Legs

The father and son undertake the restoration of a ceramic horse from the Edo period. A previous restoration is now showing signs of age, and a new approach is needed to give the horse back its stallion stance. The Mayuyamas are also charged with the repair of a beautiful Nabeshima-ware plate belonging to a living Japanese national treasure.


WED 20:50 Around the World in 80 Treasures (b00qg8jb)
Series 1 Shorts

Mali - Dogon Art

Dan Cruickshank visits the Dogon people and sees some masks and wall paintings.


WED 21:00 Tribe (2005) (p00hvr23)
Series 1

Adi

Fly-on-the-wall documentary following Bruce Parry experience life among the world's disappearing tribes. Bruce joins the Adi people of Arunchal Pradesh in the Himlayas in hunting, eating rats and sacrificial rituals.


WED 22:00 Sherlock (b00t8wp0)
Series 1

A Study in Pink

A war hero, invalided home from Afghanistan, meets a strange but charismatic genius who is looking for a flatmate - it is London in 2010, and Dr Watson and Sherlock Holmes are meeting for the first time. A string of impossible suicides has Scotland Yard baffled - and only one man can help.


WED 23:30 Mark Lawson Talks To... (b01fd3my)
Mark Gatiss

Mark Lawson talks to writer, actor and comedian Mark Gatiss about his life, career and fulfilling childhood dreams. In this entertaining interview Gatiss explores formative memories of growing up opposite a psychiatric hospital in County Durham, admits the difficulty of coming out as a gay man, reveals why his role in the British film flop Sex Lives of the Potato Men was the biggest mistake of his career yet also his 'Pistols moment', and talks about how his lifelong passion for horror and science fiction have influenced his success and contributed to his 'long revenge against PE teachers who told me that I would never come to anything'.

Gatiss first made a name for himself as one of the comedy quartet The League of Gentlemen, which he formed with university friends Reece Shearsmith, Steve Pemberton and Jeremy Dyson. Their first breakthrough was winning the Perrier Award for their stage show in 1997, and BBC radio and television success quickly followed. Gatiss has gone on to form a successful solo career as an actor, with notable roles including Bamber Gascoigne in Starter for Ten and Malcolm McLaren in Worried About the Boy. As a writer Gatiss is living out his childhood obsessions, writing episodes of Dr Who and the BAFTA-Award winning series Sherlock, and presenting a series on horror for the BBC.


WED 00:30 Timothy Spall: Back at Sea (b0140vqb)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 today]


WED 01:00 The Lakes with Paul Rose (b0bc6fg2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:30 today]


WED 01:30 Storyville (m000pqyw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 23:10 on Tuesday]


WED 02:55 Tribe (2005) (p00hvr23)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]

THURSDAY 07 AUGUST 2025

THU 19:00 All about Eve (b01ncpfk)
Keen fan Eve ingratiates herself into the life of sharp-tongued Broadway star Margo Channing, whose friends come to suspect the younger woman's intentions.

Classic multi-Oscar-winning comic drama.


THU 21:15 Gladiator (m0026dmm)
Maximus Decimus Meridius, heir and favoured general of the Roman emperor, is betrayed by the emperor's son Commodus and enslaved to a gladiator trainer.

Proving himself a virtuoso in the arena, Maximus's career takes him closer and closer to Rome, the Colosseum and the only thing he cares about - vengeance against the Emperor.


THU 23:40 When Harry Met Sally (m000vthr)
Can a man and a woman be friends without sex getting in the way? Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal find out in Rob Reiner and Nora Ephron's classic romantic comedy.


THU 01:10 Art on the BBC (m0013c82)
[Repeat of broadcast at 23:35 on Monday]


THU 02:10 Caroline Aherne: Queen of Comedy (m001ty35)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:00 on Tuesday]

FRIDAY 08 AUGUST 2025

FRI 19:00 Top of the Pops (m002gv57)
Jo Whiley presents the pop chart programme, first broadcast on 8 March 1998 and featuring Spice Girls, The Wombles, James, Alexia, Kylie Minogue, Bryan Adams, Texas and Run DMC v Jason Nevins.


FRI 19:30 Top of the Pops (m002gv59)
Jamie Theakston presents the pop chart programme, first broadcast on 27 March 1998 and featuring Celine Dion, Pulp, Destiny's Child, M-People, All Seeing I, Tin Tin Out feat Shelley Nelson, Robbie Williams and Run DMC v Jason Nevins.


FRI 20:00 BBC Proms (m002gv5c)
2025

Dvorak's 'New World' Symphony at the Proms

A concert of musical postcards from the Americas featuring Dvorák’s masterful ‘New World’ Symphony. The Prom features two pieces from North America alongside a trumpet concerto full of the sounds of Latin America by Mexican composer Arturo Márquez, where Venezuelan virtuoso Pacho Flores performs on four types of trumpet. The prom is presented by fellow trumpeter Alison Balsom.


FRI 21:45 Top of the Pops (b09x5z6f)
Richard Skinner and Simon Bates present the pop chart programme, first broadcast on 8 August 1985 and featuring Dire Straits, Princess, Go West, Phil Collins and Amazulu.


FRI 22:15 Top of the Pops (b037kmgr)
Peter Powell presents the pop chart programme, first broadcast on 10 August 1978 and featuring performances by The Rezillos, Foreigner, Hi-Tension, Raydio, Renaissance, Jilted John and a dance routine by Legs & Co.


FRI 22:40 Weather Hits at the BBC (m00220dt)
An unpredictable but joyous collection of weather-related chart hits, courtesy of two of the BBC’s most formidable forecasters, Carol Kirkwood and Tomasz Schafernaker. It’s a selection that covers all conditions, from Ain’t No Sunshine When She’s Gone, to Why Does It Always Rain on Me, sprinkled throughout with fun facts and crucial context from Carol and Tomasz - clearly relishing this chance to step away from weather charts and test out the music charts.


FRI 01:10 TOTP2 (b01lwbt0)
Summertime Special

TOTP2 once more delves into the archives to brighten up your day with summer sizzlers from John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John, The Undertones, Shaggy, Bananarama, Bobby Goldsboro, Bay City Rollers, Fun Boy Three, The Style Council and Don Henley.

Other scorchers include Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince, The Sundays, Sabrina, Chris Rea, The Barracudas, Zoe, Martha and the Muffins, Bryan Adams, Girls Aloud and ELO.


FRI 02:05 Top of the Pops (m002gv57)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 today]


FRI 02:35 Top of the Pops (m002gv59)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:30 today]


FRI 03:05 Top of the Pops (b09x5z6f)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:45 today]