The BBC has announced that it has a sustainable plan for the future of the BBC Singers, in association with The VOCES8 Foundation.
The threat to reduce the staff of the three English orchestras by 20% has not been lifted, but it is being reconsidered.
See the BBC press release here.

Radio-Lists Home Now on BBC 4 Contact

RADIO-LISTS: BBC FOUR
Unofficial Weekly Listings for BBC 4 — supported by bbc.co.uk/programmes/



SATURDAY 09 JANUARY 2010

SAT 19:00 Diet: A Horizon Guide (b00pqb9q)
Dr Susan Jebb takes a look through nearly fifty years of amazing BBC archive of mankind's relationship with what we eat, charting the shift from the malnutrition of the past to today's obesity epidemic.

This is the story of our attempt to control nature through the wholesale industrialisation of food production in our search for enough to eat, and the consequences of that massive shift in our diet on the shape of our bodies, and the diseases that kill us.
From the BBC's original eccentric scientist Magnus Pyke comparing the virtues of artificial additives to a Beethoven sonata, to the tragic side effects of diet pills, Horizon and the BBC have covered it all.

On her journey through the decades, Dr Jebb explores how scientists have played a crucial role both in transforming the way our food is produced, but also in attempting to understand the biological mechanisms that determine why it is that some of us have become so large.


SAT 20:00 The Scarlet Pimpernel (b00ptvtk)
Series 2

Ennui

More adventures with Sir Percy Blakeney and his crew as he uses ingenious disguises and tricks to rescue French aristocrats from the guillotine, and escape the cluthes of Robespierre. And a new challenge for Percy - Margueritte has died in childbirth leaving him with a baby daughter to look after.


SAT 21:30 ...Sings Elvis (b00pqcg3)
2011 marked the 75th anniversary of Elvis Presley's birth and was celebrated by a host of performances by artists covering the King's classic songs culled from the BBC archives.

Some of Britain's biggest stars were introduced to rock n roll as teenagers via their idol Elvis, and Cliff Richard, Paul McCartney, Tom Jones and John Cale all pay their tribute. The original songwriters of some of Elvis's greatest hits perform their own versions of classic tracks, including Carl Perkins singing Blue Suede Shoes and Mac Davis doing In the Ghetto.

Other artists paying homage from across five decades include The Deep River Boys, the Stylistics, Boy George, Alison Moyet, Pet Shop Boys and Robbie Williams. There will be jumpsuits, pelvic thrusts, brilliant tunes ... and Glen Campbell's Elvis impersonation.


SAT 22:30 Nurse Jackie (b00pv0p3)
Series 1

Pilot

Drama series about Jackie Peyton, a no-nonsense emergency room nurse based in New York who has to balance her frenzied job with a complicated home life. Nurse Jackie Peyton falsifies a boy's organ donor card so that his death will not be, as she sees it, a senseless waste. She also strives to conceal her addiction to prescription painkillers.


SAT 22:55 Nurse Jackie (b00pwlzh)
Series 1

Sweet 'n' All

Drama series about Jackie Peyton, a no-nonsense emergency room nurse based in New York who has to balance her frenzied job with a complicated home life.

Jackie and her husband Kevin worry that their daughter Grace has an anxiety disorder. Somebody else drinks Jackie's drug-laced coffee. Jackie shifts blame for the resurfaced flushed ear onto rookie Zoey, and must swallow her pride and tell Coop that he had been right about diagnosing a patient's unlikely aneurysm.


SAT 23:25 Nurse Jackie (b00pwmw7)
Series 1

Chicken Soup

Drama series about Jackie Peyton, a no-nonsense emergency room nurse based in New York who has to balance her frenzied job with a complicated home life.

An elderly patient has been treating his heart disease with his wife's chicken soup. Jackie discusses her daughter's anxiety with Dr O'Hara and Eddie learns that he is to be replaced by a pill-dispensing machine. Meanwhile, Zoey must work up the courage to ask for her new stethoscope back after Dr O'Hara takes it.


SAT 23:55 Mad Men (b00jf36g)
Series 2

The Gold Violin

Drama series which takes an unflinching look at the world of advertising in 1960s New York.

At Roger's behest, Don buys a new car which befits his image as an executive who has 'arrived'. Don's secretary makes a grave error, which puts her at odds with Joan. Bertram Cooper has a new piece of art in his office that attracts the interest of the employees at Sterling Cooper. Betty learns an ugly truth from Jimmy Barrett. Salvatore invites Ken home for dinner, but there are overtones.


SAT 00:40 La Vie en Rose (b00pq8c6)
Award-winning biopic of French chanteuse and diva Edith Piaf, whose tumultuous life started in abject poverty on the streets of Paris and ended amongst the trials and tragedy of stardom.

In French with English subtitles.


SAT 02:55 Diet: A Horizon Guide (b00pqb9q)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 today]



SUNDAY 10 JANUARY 2010

SUN 19:00 Dear Diary (b00pq8hj)
Richard E Grant

A series asking what we get from reading and writing diaries.

Writing a diary can be dangerous - as can reading one. Richard E Grant, a diarist since childhood, uncovers the power of the diary. He considers the diaries of Joe Orton, Kenneth Williams, Erwin James, John Diamond and Rosemary Ackland and asks whether a diary should, or could, ever be totally honest, wholly accurate and absolutely true.

Richard talks with Joe Orton's sister, Leonie, about her long-held belief that Orton's confessional diary was actually responsible for him losing his life. He also meets prison diarist Erwin James to understand the power of writing for a serving offender. Joss Ackland tells Richard about editing his wife's 50-plus years of diary writing, and Richard meets with Sheila Hancock to talk about Kenneth Williams's diary, in which she appeared many times. Williams had a charming public face but in the diaries he could be savage. He even wrote that he'd never again speak to Sheila Hancock.


SUN 20:00 Lost Kingdoms of Africa (b00pq946)
Series 1

Nubia

Four-part series in which British art historian Dr Gus Casely-Hayford explores the pre-colonial history of some of Africa's most important kingdoms.

The African continent is home to nearly a billion people. It has an incredible diversity of communities and cultures, yet we know less of its history than almost anywhere else on earth.

But that is beginning to change. In the last few decades, researchers and archaeologists have begun to uncover a range of histories as impressive and extraordinary as anywhere else in the world.

The series reveals that Africa's stories are preserved for us in its treasures, statues and ancient buildings - in the culture, art and legends of the people.

The first episode looks at Nubia, in what is now northern Sudan, a kingdom that dominated a vast area of the eastern Sahara for thousands of years. Its people were described as barbarians and mercenaries, and yet Nubia has left us with some of the most spectacular monuments in the world.

Casely-Hayford traces the origins of this fascinating kingdom back to 10,000 BC. He explores how it developed and what happened to it and its people, discovering that its kings once ruled Ancient Egypt and that it was defeated not by its rivals but by its environment.


SUN 21:00 The Lost Libraries of Timbuktu (b00hkb0z)
Aminatta Forna tells the story of legendary Timbuktu and its long-hidden legacy of hundreds of thousands of ancient manuscripts. With its university founded around the same time as Oxford, Timbuktu is proof that the reading and writing of books have long been as important to Africans as they are to Europeans.


SUN 22:00 The Culture Show (b00pq94b)
John Lydon Special

Andrew Graham-Dixon meets his childhood hero John Lydon, revealing the more sensitive, artistic side of the man once known as Johnny Rotten.

Lydon talks about his childhood, his love of Shakespeare and Mozart - and why he's reformed his legendary band, Public Image Ltd.


SUN 22:30 Nurse Jackie (b00pwmy9)
Series 1

School Nurse

Drama series about Jackie Peyton, a no-nonsense emergency room nurse based in New York who has to balance her frenzied job with a complicated home life. Jackie and Kevin wonder whether to send their sensitive daughter to a private school. Sardonic Dr O'Hara is pursued by a boy who is desperate to thank her for saving his twin's life.


SUN 22:55 Nurse Jackie (b00pwn4v)
Series 1

Daffodil

Drama series about a no-nonsense emergency room nurse based in New York who has to balance her frenzied job with a complicated home life. Jackie breaks all the ER rules to help a 10-year-old girl caring for her mother. O'Hara takes Zoey for dinner at a fancy restaurant. Mrs Akalitus accidentally suffers a self-inflicted tasering.


SUN 23:25 We Need Answers (b00pq948)
Series 2

The Sun

Anarchic comedy game show in which celebrity guests answer questions set by the public.

Mark Watson hosts, Tim Key is in the questionmaster's chair and Alex Horne provides expert analysis from a booth as two celebrities battle it out to be crowned the winner and avoid the shame of donning 'The Clogs of Defeat'.

Former editor of The Sun turned broadcaster Kelvin MacKenzie competes with cooking writer and celebrity chef Sophie Grigson.

The rules are simple - contestants must match their answer to the one given by a text answering service. Questions can range from 'How many gerbils would have to be stacked on top of each other to reach the moon?' to 'How heavy is the sky?' to 'Is gravy a condiment?'.

In the cunning physical challenge which pits the contestants against each other, Kelvin and Sophie play a tickling game.


SUN 23:55 Mad Men (b00jn88p)
Series 2

A Night to Remember

Drama series which takes an unflinching look at the world of advertising in 1960s New York.

To win over an imported beer brand as a new client, Duck and Don try to appeal to a new market demographic.

Harry is overwhelmed with his department's workload and finds assistance from an unlikely source, and Father Gill convinces Peggy to become part of a pro bono church project.


SUN 00:45 Moliere (b00nvsz4)
Bankrupt young playwright Moliere (Romain Duris) is employed in secret by a foolish aristocrat who wants to use Moliere's poetic skill to woo his mistress.


SUN 02:40 The Lost Libraries of Timbuktu (b00hkb0z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]


SUN 03:40 We Need Answers (b00pq948)
[Repeat of broadcast at 23:25 today]



MONDAY 11 JANUARY 2010

MON 19:00 World News Today (b00ptw38)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


MON 19:30 The Pharaoh Who Conquered the Sea (b00pq9gs)
Over 3,000 years ago legend has it that Queen Hatshepsut, Egypt's first female pharaoh, sent a fleet of ships to the wonderful, distant land of Punt. A bas-relief in the temple where she is entombed in Luxor shows them bringing back extraordinary treasures. But did this expedition really happen? And if it did, where exactly is the land of Punt?

Drawing upon recent finds, archaeologist Cheryl Ward sets out to recreate the voyage in a full-size replica of one of these ancient ships, sailing it in the wake of Hatshepsut's fleet in search of the mythical land of Punt. A human adventure as well as a scientific challenge, the expedition proves that, contrary to popular belief, the ancient Egyptians had the necessary tools, science and techniques to sail the seas.


MON 20:30 Only Connect (b00pws9c)
Series 3

Polymaths v Strategists

Quiz show presented by Victoria Coren in which knowledge will only take you so far, as patience and lateral thinking are also vital.

The Polymaths pool their disparate skills in chicken husbandry, musical theatre and urban geography to challenge the brainpower of the Strategists, a team unified by their love of sophisticated strategy board games.

They compete to draw together the connections between things which, at first glance, seem utterly random, including Cakes and Ale, The Dogs of War, Brave New World and The Darling Buds of May.


MON 21:00 Dear Diary (b00pws9f)
Mariella Frostrup

Mariella Frostrup asks what it takes to write a compelling diary. She discovers more about the diaries of Virginia Woolf, Anne Frank and Adrian Mole through meeting Virginia Nicholson, Jacqueline Wilson and Sue Townsend.

In seeking to find out what separates a simply dedicated diarist from a great one Mariella travels to Charleston to meet Virginia Nicholson, the grandniece of her favourite diarist, Virginia Woolf. Despite leading inexorably towards her taking her own life, Woolf's diaries are surprisingly funny, and their immediacy and humanity pulls us into her world.

Teenage is a time when many commit their most intimate thoughts to their diary, though few continue into adulthood. Mariella visits Jacqueline Wilson to talk about the teenage diary - often silly, full of self-obsession and lacking in irony. In fact, the former children's laureate describes her own teenage diary as written by 'such an idiot'. But Jacqueline is in awe of the skilled teenage writers who use their diary as confidante to create something resonant and lasting and admits to a lifelong obsession with Anne Frank. Anne Frank couldn't possibly know the end to her story as she wrote. But is there a reader who comes to her diaries without the added poignancy of the tragic end colouring how they respond to every entry?

The importance of a diary's detail and honesty come to dominate Mariella's trip to Leicester to see Sue Townsend. They discuss whether a fictional diary can possibly be entirely fictional, and Sue confesses that there are more similarities between her and her diary-keeping creation, Adrian Mole, than one might imagine.

Contributors include Eileen Atkins, Hermione Lee, Deborah Bull, Kathy Lette, Gyles Brandreth, Ellie Kendrick, Simon Brett, John Lahr and Simon Garfield.


MON 22:00 Anne Frank Remembered (b00gkv53)
Jon Blair's Oscar-winning documentary is the first ever eye-witness account of the life and legacy of the iconic child diarist, Anne Frank.

Combining personal testimony, never-before-seen photos, previously undiscovered family letters, rare archive footage (including the only known moving footage of Anne herself) with evocative contemporary film, this haunting film was hailed as a masterpiece in the British and American press when it was released.

By peeling away the onion skin layers of mythology and concentrating closely on the details of Anne's brief life, rather than her famous diary, the film makes real the story of this one child and her family, and those who lived and died with her.


MON 00:00 Mad Men (b00jqjk1)
Series 2

Six Month Leave

Drama series set in the 1960s New York advertising world. Freddy Rumsen embarrasses himself in the office and Pete sees an opportunity to exploit it.


MON 00:45 Dear Diary (b00pws9f)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]


MON 01:45 Only Connect (b00pws9c)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:30 today]


MON 02:15 The Pharaoh Who Conquered the Sea (b00pq9gs)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:30 today]


MON 03:15 Dear Diary (b00pws9f)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]



TUESDAY 12 JANUARY 2010

TUE 19:00 World News Today (b00ptxbb)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


TUE 19:30 The Diary of Anne Frank (b00gndt1)
Series 1

Episode 1

June 1942. WWII Amsterdam is under Nazi occupation. Anne Frank, a teenage Jewish girl, is celebrating her 13th birthday with her family and friends by having a party. Amongst her birthday presents, she is given a red diary that she starts to write in immediately. Days later, call up papers arrive for her 16-year-old sister Margot and her parents, Otto and Edith, decide to hasten their plan to go into hiding from the Nazis to ensure that the family do not get separated.

The next morning, the Franks head to Otto's spice company. Once there, they are led past the warehouses by their helpers in the office and taken up to a secret annex at the back of the building that occupies the three top floors. Otto and Edith will sleep in one room, with Margot and Anne next door in another. They will soon be joined by their friends Mr and Mrs Van Daan and their teenage son Peter, who will live on the floor above, in the larger shared living area. At the very top of the building is a disused attic, too cold to sleep in but useful for storing food. They must obey strict rules in the annex, remaining completely silent during working hours while the warehouse men are in the building. Only the faithful office staff know of their existence and have agreed to help them survive.

At first, Edith and Margot find the confinement hard to bear and sink into depression, while Otto and Anne make themselves useful, arranging the furniture that has been hidden there for them, and sewing material together to make black-out curtains. The Van Daans soon arrive and liven things up, especially when Peter reveals that he has brought his pet cat Mouschi, while Anne was forced to leave her cat at home. Anne does not think much of Peter but decides she must try and be pleasant to him to keep the peace.


TUE 20:00 Sahara with Michael Palin (b0074p4m)
Destination Timbuktu

Series charting Michael Palin's trek across the Sahara Desert. Leaving the desert behind, Michael briefly savours the delights of cosmopolitan Senegal - jazz clubs, wrestling competitions, dance troupes and the queen of the Senegalese soaps, Marie-Madeleine.

Joining the so-called Bamako Express, he endures two days and nights on the train, but in the process gets to know a schoolmistress who is nothing if not forthright about the disadvantages of polygamy.

In Bamako he finds renowned kora player, Toumani Diabate, and delights in a master class before heading off to Dogon country.

The Dogon people have one of the most distinctive and celebrated cultures of West Africa and they nearly kill him with a combination of excessively complex origin myths, an exploding flintlock and boiling hot millet.

Celebrating the Muslim 'Tabaski' feast in the beautiful city of Djenne with a man called Pygmy and securing a passage on a cargo boat with a Norwegian missionary called Kristin, the rest of the journey down the Niger River to Timbuktu seems plain sailing, until the boat runs aground a day from its destination.


TUE 21:00 Lost Kingdoms of Africa (b00pzc1l)
Series 1

Ethiopia

Four-part series in which British art historian Dr Gus Casely-Hayford explores the pre-colonial history of some of Africa's most important kingdoms.

The African continent is home to nearly a billion people. It has an incredible diversity of communities and cultures, yet we know less of its history than almost anywhere else on earth.

But that is beginning to change. In the last few decades, researchers and archaeologists have begun to uncover a range of histories as impressive and extraordinary as anywhere else in the world.

The series reveals that Africa's stories are preserved for us in its treasures, statues and ancient buildings - in the culture, art and legends of the people.

When Emperor Haile Selassie was deposed by the Ethiopian military in 1974, an ancient kingdom came to an end. According to tradition, the imperial dynasty stretched back virtually unbroken to 950 BC and its origins had links to King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba.

The legitimacy of Haile Selassie and the foundations of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church rested on this claim, but was it true?

Casely-Hayford searches for the evidence and discovers why faith in the legend has lasted for centuries. He traces Ethiopia's heritage back in time, investigating its astonishing secrets and legends.


TUE 22:00 We Need Answers (b00pwsfp)
Series 2

Episode 7

Anarchic comedy game show in which celebrity guests answer questions set by the public.

Mark Watson hosts, Tim Key is in the questionmaster's chair and Alex Horne provides expert analysis from a booth as two celebrities battle it out to be crowned the winner and avoid the shame of donning 'The Clogs of Defeat'.

Ex-Strictly Come Dancing champion Camilla Dallerup competes with presenter and broadcaster Terry Christian.

The rules are simple - contestants must match their answer to the one given by a text answering service. Questions can range from 'How many gerbils would have to be stacked on top of each other to reach the moon?' to 'How heavy is the sky?' to 'Is gravy a condiment?'.

In the cunning physical challenge which pits the contestants against each other, Terry and Camilla see who can nod the most in a minute.


TUE 22:30 Dear Diary (b00pws9f)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 on Monday]


TUE 23:30 Dinner with Portillo (b00ptkjg)
Is It Dishonourable to Publish a Political Diary?

Michael Portillo and his guests discuss whether it is fair for politicians to profit from their years in power by betraying the confidences of their colleagues. Is the modern diarist motivated by money, fame or revenge, rather than the public interest? Or do political diaries serve an important purpose by throwing light on the inner workings of government? Guests include Gyles Brandreth, Oona King, Chris Mullin MP and Lord Hattersley.


TUE 00:00 Mad Men (b00jwbtp)
Series 2

The Inheritance

Drama series which takes an unflinching look at the world of advertising in 1960s New York.

Betty takes Don to visit her father, who has had a stroke. Paul and Pete look set to go to LA for a rocket fair, but Paul's girlfriend Sheila wants him to go on a civil rights march. Betty finds a surprise in the Wendy House. Pete decides he doesn't like his mother.


TUE 00:45 Lost Kingdoms of Africa (b00pzc1l)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]


TUE 01:50 We Need Answers (b00pwsfp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:00 today]


TUE 02:20 Dear Diary (b00pws9f)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 on Monday]


TUE 03:20 Lost Kingdoms of Africa (b00pzc1l)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]



WEDNESDAY 13 JANUARY 2010

WED 19:00 World News Today (b00pv010)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


WED 19:30 The Diary of Anne Frank (b00gn81c)
Series 1

Episode 2

October 1942. World War II. In the secret annex where Anne Frank is in hiding from the Nazis with her family and close friends the Van Daan family, the toilet is blocked and her father, Otto, is forced to try and unblock it with a stick. When he fails, they have to resort to using jam jars until it is mended. Their helpers in the offices downstairs call a plumber, and the family are terrified that he will need to come up to the annex and they will be discovered. Fortunately, it is finally sorted from downstairs and all is well.

Anne finds Mrs Van Daan increasingly hard to bear, as she orders her around and criticises her in a way that her liberal parents never do. She also finds Peter Van Daan frustratingly dim, and never misses an opportunity to tell him so. But overall they are getting used to their incarceration, and the strict rules of daily quiet by which they must live. Otto oversees their school studies and everyone has their routine tasks to perform. Only at night when the bomb raids start is Anne so scared that she runs into her parents' room for comfort.

Anne invites Miep and her husband Jan to come to dinner in the annex and to stay overnight in her room, while she and Margot camp in their parents' room, and Miep agrees. Anne is thrilled and draws up a special menu in their honour, which Mrs Van Daan cooks for them. But Miep brings the bad news, which she tells only the Franks, that the Van Daans' apartment has been ransacked by the Nazis and all their property confiscated. When Mrs Van Daan asks Miep to bring her some more of her things, it is Anne who covers the difficult moment with a toast to the helpers.


WED 20:00 Joanna Lumley in the Land of the Northern Lights (b00dhv1n)
An amazing journey in Norway's far North as Joanna Lumley pursues a lifelong dream to track down the elusive, stunningly beautiful Northern Lights - 'the true wonder of the world,' as she puts it.

Joanna grew up in tropical Malaysia, and as a little girl never saw snow or felt cold. Inspired by fairytales and picture books, she always longed to make the journey north. At last she travels north across the Arctic Circle, up through Norway to Svalbard, the most northerly permanently inhabited place on Earth, where she has to cope with temperatures approaching minus 30 degrees centigrade.

With a box of crayons in hand, her journey takes her from train to boat, to husky-sled, to snowmobile, as she is pulled ever northwards by what she calls 'the strongest point of the compass'. She explores the romantic fjords of Lofoten and learns to ride a snowmobile, speeding across endless expanses of Lapland tundra with a Sami herdsman in search of his reindeer. As she reaches the Arctic Ocean, she prepares for bed in a hotel made entirely of ice. Everywhere she goes, she asks about the mysterious Northern Lights.


WED 21:00 The Man Who Shot the 60s (b00pwsns)
A tribute to Brian Duffy, who passed away in May 2010. Duffy was one of the greatest photographers of his generation. Along with David Bailey and Terence Donovan he defined the image of the 1960s and was as famous as the stars he photographed. In the 1970s he suddenly disappeared from view and burned all his negatives. Filmed on the eve of the first-ever exhibition of his work, Duffy agrees to talk about his life, his work and why he made it all go up in flames.


WED 22:00 Flight of the Conchords (b008fmyw)
Series 1

The Actor

Comedy series about Kiwi folk musicians Bret and Jemaine as they to try to make it big in New York. The boys hire an actor to cheer Murray up by pretending he's a good manager. But things get out of hand when he ends up accidentally offering Murray a non-existent record deal with Sony and Murray blows all his money on a Lord of the Rings video shoot. Features the songs Frodo and Cheer Up Murray.


WED 22:30 We Need Answers (b00pwsfp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:00 on Tuesday]


WED 23:00 Orson Welles over Europe (b00phtpq)
When Orson Welles went into self-imposed exile in Europe, he first found stardom with The Third Man and then immersed himself in challenging films, television, theatre and bullfighting. Simon Callow trails the complex actor-director.


WED 00:00 Mad Men (b00jzjmq)
Series 2

The Jet Set

Drama series which takes an unflinching look at the world of advertising in 1960s New York.

Don takes a business trip to Los Angeles, where he has some 'Joy'. Peggy's in the mood for an office romance and Duck contemplates the future at Sterling Cooper. Roger looks to make a radical change to his life.


WED 00:45 The Man Who Shot the 60s (b00pwsns)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]


WED 01:45 We Need Answers (b00pwsfp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:00 on Tuesday]


WED 02:15 Orson Welles over Europe (b00phtpq)
[Repeat of broadcast at 23:00 today]


WED 03:15 The Man Who Shot the 60s (b00pwsns)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]



THURSDAY 14 JANUARY 2010

THU 19:00 World News Today (b00pv19x)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


THU 19:30 Only Connect (b00pws9c)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:30 on Monday]


THU 20:00 Time (b0074s93)
Lifetime

Series in which Michio Kaku goes on an extraordinary exploration of the world in search of time.

How long would you like to live? 100 years? What about 200 or even 1,000? Amazingly it could happen, as Kaku finds out.

The greatest power that time holds over us is that it is both limited and yet so precious. But new discoveries in nature and genetic research are suggesting that we have the potential for a massive extension of human life, and one scientist believes that children already alive today could become effectively immortal.

But what would immortality really mean? Culturally, we are shaped by the knowledge that our time is limited, both as people and societies. Death surrounds us in our art, monuments, and music. Change our relationship with death and everything else changes too.


THU 21:00 The Secret Life of Chaos (b00pv1c3)
Chaos theory has a bad name, conjuring up images of unpredictable weather, economic crashes and science gone wrong. But there is a fascinating and hidden side to Chaos, one that scientists are only now beginning to understand.

It turns out that chaos theory answers a question that mankind has asked for millennia - how did we get here?

In this documentary, Professor Jim Al-Khalili sets out to uncover one of the great mysteries of science - how does a universe that starts off as dust end up with intelligent life? How does order emerge from disorder?

It's a mindbending, counterintuitive and for many people a deeply troubling idea. But Professor Al-Khalili reveals the science behind much of beauty and structure in the natural world and discovers that far from it being magic or an act of God, it is in fact an intrinsic part of the laws of physics. Amazingly, it turns out that the mathematics of chaos can explain how and why the universe creates exquisite order and pattern.

And the best thing is that one doesn't need to be a scientist to understand it. The natural world is full of awe-inspiring examples of the way nature transforms simplicity into complexity. From trees to clouds to humans - after watching this film you'll never be able to look at the world in the same way again.


THU 22:00 Storyville (b00pzcc0)
Cage Fighting Women

From the acclaimed BBC Storyville strand, an eye-opening look at the brutal world of women's cage fighting.

Cage Fighting Women follows the fortunes of two British female cage fighters - Rosi Sexton and Lisa Higo, a mother of two married to her trainer John - as they travel to America for the biggest bouts of their lives. Inside the cage, punching, kneeing, kicking, elbowing and choking are all allowed - in fact, very little isn't.

Both women have their own reasons for stepping into the cage and both are prepared to lay their safety on the line in search of success. Fight nights and family life are explored in this in-depth portrait of the women who have decided to enter the ring of this extreme sport.


THU 23:00 The Man Who Shot the 60s (b00pwsns)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 on Wednesday]


THU 00:00 Mad Men (b00k3651)
Series 2

The Mountain King

Drama series which takes an unflinching look at the world of advertising in 1960s New York. Don renews his acquaintance with an old friend. Pete's personal problems impact on a major account. Joan introduces her fiance to the office staff.


THU 00:45 The Secret Life of Chaos (b00pv1c3)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]


THU 01:50 Time (b0074s93)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 today]


THU 02:50 Storyville (b00pzcc0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:00 today]


THU 03:50 The Secret Life of Chaos (b00pv1c3)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]



FRIDAY 15 JANUARY 2010

FRI 19:00 World News Today (b00pv1gc)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


FRI 19:25 DEC Haiti Earthquake Appeal (b00qj35d)
Kirsty Young presents an appeal on behalf of the Disasters and Emergency Committee for aid to help those affected by the earthquake in Haiti.


FRI 19:30 Carmen: The Dream and the Destiny (b00pwstr)
1970s documentary by celebrated filmmaker Christopher Nupen which tells the story of composer Georges Bizet and his most famous composition.

A failure when it premiered in Paris in 1875, Carmen is now regarded as one of the great stories in the history of Western music. But Bizet never lived to know that his opera would become one of the most popular of all time, dying of a heart attack at 36 just three months after the disaster of the opening night.

The film explores Bizet's most famous work and offers a revealing insight into the life of the great composer.


FRI 21:00 Legends (b00pv1l3)
Neil Sedaka: That's When the Music Takes Me

Documentary telling the story of songwriter and performer Neil Sedaka, the man behind some of the biggest smash hits in history, including Oh Carol, Is This the Way to Amarillo, Solitaire, Breaking up is Hard to Do, and Love Will Keep Us Together.

Sedaka was destined for life as a classical pianist when he was seduced by the raw sounds of rock 'n' roll. In the early sixties he recorded a string of teenage anthems such as Calendar Girl, Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen and Breaking up is Hard to Do.

The arrival of the Beatles on the musical landscape signalled the end of Sedaka's singing career and he turned to writing songs for other artists such as the Monkees, Tom Jones and Tony Christie. But a move to England in the early 1970s was the launch pad for a remarkable comeback. He recorded with British band 10cc in Stockport before returning to the top of the American charts with Laughter in the Rain and Bad Blood.

In 2009, at the age of 70, Sedaka still has a huge following. He toured the UK to packed houses and released a new album, The Music of My Life. Singers Tony Christie and Connie Francis, musicians Graham Gouldman of 10cc and Jay Siegel of the Tokens, and Brill Building songwriting colleagues Don Kirshner and Carol Bayer Sager are among those paying tribute to the 'king of doobie-dos'.


FRI 22:00 Neil Sedaka Says: All You Need Is the Music (b00pwstt)
During a career which was originally designed to make him a classical pianist, the musical achievements and statistics of singer-songwriter Neil Sedaka have made him a compelling figure in contemporary music, with 600 songs written and 20 million records sold. The hits from his early rock 'n' roll days to his later, more lyrical age are all included in this special one-man show from the 1980s.


FRI 22:45 Jazz 625 (b00jw7z3)
Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers

1965 concert featuring Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, one of America's most dynamic jazz groups.


FRI 23:25 Jazz 625 (b00jnr22)
Modern Jazz Quartet

1964 performance by the Modern Jazz Quartet, featuring members John Lewis, Milt Jackson, Percy Heath and Connie Kay and a guest appearance from Laurindo Almeida.


FRI 00:00 Mad Men (b00k9b41)
Series 2

Meditations in an Emergency

Against the backdrop of the Cuban missile crisis, the staff at Sterling Cooper ponder the meaning of a company audit. Duck tells Pete what's going on and offers him promotion. Betty receives unwanted news and has a dangerous liaison. Don returns after going AWOL and is in for a shock. Peggy tells Pete the awful truth.


FRI 00:45 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.


FRI 01:15 Arena (b00jks9j)
Cool

Documentary exploring the meaning and history of cool through the American music of the 1940s and 50s that became known as cool jazz. Those who wrote and played it cultivated an attitude, a style and a language that came to epitomise the meaning of a word that is now so liberally used.

The film tells the story of a movement that started in the bars and clubs of New York and Los Angeles and swept across the world, introducing the key players and setting them in the context of the post-war world.


FRI 02:15 Jazz 625 (b00jwcr2)
The Thelonious Monk Quartet

1960s concert featuring jazz pianist Thelonious Monk and his quartet of Ben Riley, Larry Gayles and Charlie Rouse.


FRI 02:50 Storyville (b00jwcr6)
The Jazz Baroness

Documentary, made by her great niece, about the British Jewish baroness who fell in love with the jazz genius Thelonious Monk.

Pannonica Rothschild was born with everything, got married and had five children, but one track by a man she had never met inspired her to leave and start a new life in America.

Helen Mirren is the voice of 'Nica', while Sonny Rollins, TS Monk Jr, the Duchess of Devonshire, Quincy Jones, Lord Rothschild, Roy Haynes, Chico Hamilton and others appear as themselves.


FRI 04:15 Legends (b00pv1l3)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]




LIST OF THIS WEEK'S PROGRAMMES
(Note: the times link back to the details; the pids link to the BBC page, including iPlayer)

...Sings Elvis 21:30 SAT (b00pqcg3)

Anne Frank Remembered 22:00 MON (b00gkv53)

Arena 01:15 FRI (b00jks9j)

Carmen: The Dream and the Destiny 19:30 FRI (b00pwstr)

DEC Haiti Earthquake Appeal 19:25 FRI (b00qj35d)

Dear Diary 19:00 SUN (b00pq8hj)

Dear Diary 21:00 MON (b00pws9f)

Dear Diary 00:45 MON (b00pws9f)

Dear Diary 03:15 MON (b00pws9f)

Dear Diary 22:30 TUE (b00pws9f)

Dear Diary 02:20 TUE (b00pws9f)

Diet: A Horizon Guide 19:00 SAT (b00pqb9q)

Diet: A Horizon Guide 02:55 SAT (b00pqb9q)

Dinner with Portillo 23:30 TUE (b00ptkjg)

Flight of the Conchords 22:00 WED (b008fmyw)

Jazz 625 22:45 FRI (b00jw7z3)

Jazz 625 23:25 FRI (b00jnr22)

Jazz 625 00:45 FRI (b008wdpn)

Jazz 625 02:15 FRI (b00jwcr2)

Joanna Lumley in the Land of the Northern Lights 20:00 WED (b00dhv1n)

La Vie en Rose 00:40 SAT (b00pq8c6)

Legends 21:00 FRI (b00pv1l3)

Legends 04:15 FRI (b00pv1l3)

Lost Kingdoms of Africa 20:00 SUN (b00pq946)

Lost Kingdoms of Africa 21:00 TUE (b00pzc1l)

Lost Kingdoms of Africa 00:45 TUE (b00pzc1l)

Lost Kingdoms of Africa 03:20 TUE (b00pzc1l)

Mad Men 23:55 SAT (b00jf36g)

Mad Men 23:55 SUN (b00jn88p)

Mad Men 00:00 MON (b00jqjk1)

Mad Men 00:00 TUE (b00jwbtp)

Mad Men 00:00 WED (b00jzjmq)

Mad Men 00:00 THU (b00k3651)

Mad Men 00:00 FRI (b00k9b41)

Moliere 00:45 SUN (b00nvsz4)

Neil Sedaka Says: All You Need Is the Music 22:00 FRI (b00pwstt)

Nurse Jackie 22:30 SAT (b00pv0p3)

Nurse Jackie 22:55 SAT (b00pwlzh)

Nurse Jackie 23:25 SAT (b00pwmw7)

Nurse Jackie 22:30 SUN (b00pwmy9)

Nurse Jackie 22:55 SUN (b00pwn4v)

Only Connect 20:30 MON (b00pws9c)

Only Connect 01:45 MON (b00pws9c)

Only Connect 19:30 THU (b00pws9c)

Orson Welles over Europe 23:00 WED (b00phtpq)

Orson Welles over Europe 02:15 WED (b00phtpq)

Sahara with Michael Palin 20:00 TUE (b0074p4m)

Storyville 22:00 THU (b00pzcc0)

Storyville 02:50 THU (b00pzcc0)

Storyville 02:50 FRI (b00jwcr6)

The Culture Show 22:00 SUN (b00pq94b)

The Diary of Anne Frank 19:30 TUE (b00gndt1)

The Diary of Anne Frank 19:30 WED (b00gn81c)

The Lost Libraries of Timbuktu 21:00 SUN (b00hkb0z)

The Lost Libraries of Timbuktu 02:40 SUN (b00hkb0z)

The Man Who Shot the 60s 21:00 WED (b00pwsns)

The Man Who Shot the 60s 00:45 WED (b00pwsns)

The Man Who Shot the 60s 03:15 WED (b00pwsns)

The Man Who Shot the 60s 23:00 THU (b00pwsns)

The Pharaoh Who Conquered the Sea 19:30 MON (b00pq9gs)

The Pharaoh Who Conquered the Sea 02:15 MON (b00pq9gs)

The Scarlet Pimpernel 20:00 SAT (b00ptvtk)

The Secret Life of Chaos 21:00 THU (b00pv1c3)

The Secret Life of Chaos 00:45 THU (b00pv1c3)

The Secret Life of Chaos 03:50 THU (b00pv1c3)

Time 20:00 THU (b0074s93)

Time 01:50 THU (b0074s93)

We Need Answers 23:25 SUN (b00pq948)

We Need Answers 03:40 SUN (b00pq948)

We Need Answers 22:00 TUE (b00pwsfp)

We Need Answers 01:50 TUE (b00pwsfp)

We Need Answers 22:30 WED (b00pwsfp)

We Need Answers 01:45 WED (b00pwsfp)

World News Today 19:00 MON (b00ptw38)

World News Today 19:00 TUE (b00ptxbb)

World News Today 19:00 WED (b00pv010)

World News Today 19:00 THU (b00pv19x)

World News Today 19:00 FRI (b00pv1gc)