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 13 NOVEMBER 2010

SAT 19:00 Life (b00nxks3)
Insects

There are 200 million insects for each of us. They are the most successful animal group ever. Their key is an armoured covering that takes on almost any shape.

Darwin's stag beetle fights in the tree tops with huge curved jaws. The camera flies with millions of monarch butterflies which migrate 2000 miles, navigating by the sun. Super-slow motion shows a bombardier beetle firing boiling liquid at enemies through a rotating nozzle. A honey bee army stings a raiding bear into submission. Grass cutter ants march like a Roman army, harvesting grass they cannot actually eat. They cultivate a fungus that breaks the grass down for them. Their giant colony is the closest thing in nature to the complexity of a human city.


SAT 20:00 Birds Britannia (b00vv6vm)
Waterbirds

The British have always had a passion for waterbirds and the wild and lonely places where they live, but by destroying these vast wetlands we drove them to the brink of extinction. At the eleventh hour the tide turned, and instead of exploiting these birds we chose to protect them.


SAT 21:00 Wallander (b00pssh8)
Series 2

Faceless Killers

Detective drama. Wallander investigates the brutal slaying of an elderly couple at an isolated farmhouse.

A police leak of the wife's dying words leads to an outbreak of racist reprisals in Ystad. The fallout from the case leads Wallander to doubt everything, including his abilities as a police officer.


SAT 22:30 Mad Men (b00vtz46)
Series 4

Hands and Knees

After the agency lands a contract with North American Aviation, Don and Betty are rattled when Department of Defence agents visit the Francis home as part of the security clearance process. Joan has some important news for Roger, and so does Lee Garner Jr. Lane's father is displeased when Lane expresses his feelings for an African-American waitress at the local Playboy Club.


SAT 23:15 Getting On (b00vtymj)
Series 2

Episode 3

Darkly comic series that offers a glimpse inside a world a million miles away from traditional hospital dramas. This is the dull, dreary, dog end of the health service with paperwork to fill in, bottoms to wipe and the drama played out in a thousand tiny acts of revenge and kindness, shining a light on the way workplace relationships play out and mapping out the life of a hospital through six shifts (five days and one night) on B4 ward.

Kim has stepped in to cover a night shift and is looking forward to a quiet few hours, when a new admission and the surprise appearance of an emotional Den puts paid to any plans of a kip. With Dr Moore forced to divert from her regional sports awards dinner and attend an emergency a happy ending looks possible, but B4 isn't the sort of place where things run smoothly.


SAT 23:45 Frost on Satire (b00srhgn)
Sir David Frost presents an investigation into the power of political satire with the help of some of the funniest TV moments of the last 50 years.

Beginning with the 1960s and That Was the Week That Was, he charts the development of television satire in Britain and the United States and is joined by the leading satirists from both sides of the Atlantic. From the UK, Rory Bremner, Ian Hislop and John Lloyd discuss their individual contributions, while from the US, Jon Stewart analyses the appeal of The Daily Show, Tina Fey and Will Ferrell talk about their respective portrayals of Sarah Palin and George W Bush, and Chevy Chase remembers how Saturday Night Live turned them into huge stars.

All of them tackle the key question of whether satire really can alter the course of political events.


SAT 00:45 Rude Britannia (b00srf2d)
A History Most Satirical, Bawdy, Lewd and Offensive

In the early 18th century, Georgian Britain was a nation openly, gloriously and often shockingly rude. This was found in the graphic art of Hogarth, Gillray, Rowlandson and George Cruikshank, and the rude theatrical world of John Gay and Henry Fielding. Singer Lucie Skeaping helps show the Georgian taste for lewd and bawdy ballads, and there is a dip into the literary tradition of rude words via the poetry of Alexander Pope, Jonathan Swift and Lord Byron, and Laurence Sterne's novel Tristram Shandy.


SAT 01:45 Rude Britannia (b00ssrsg)
Presents Bawdy Songs and Lewd Photographs

A popular culture of rudeness managed to survive and even thrive in the long era of Victorian values, from the coronation of Queen Victoria in 1837 until the 1950s. The arrival of photography in the Victorian age sparked a moral panic, as rude and saucy images became available to anyone who had the money to buy them.

Current-day performers recreate the acts of celebrated rude music hall stars such as Champagne Charlie and Marie Lloyd, and there is a look at the satirical and rude world of one of Britain's first comic book icons, boozy anti-hero Ally Sloper. The documentary shows how a 20th-century seaside culture of rudeness emerged, with peepshows on the pier - the Mutoscopes - and the picture postcard art of Donald McGill.


SAT 02:45 Rude Britannia (b00sss1g)
You Never Had It So Rude

The final part of a series exploring British traditions of satire and bawdy humour brings the story of a naughty nation up to date and explores how a mass democracy of rude emerged, beginning with the 1960s revolutions and continuing with the today's controversies.

There is a look at how a tradition of rude cartooning came back to life, as cartoonists draw the iconic political figures of the last 50 years: Gerald Scarfe captures Harold Macmillan, Steve Bell does Margaret Thatcher and Martin Rowson depicts Tony Blair.

The rude comic art of Viz is revealed in the characters of Sid the Sexist and the Fat Slags, and the rude theatre of Joe Orton, the rude radio of Round the Horne and the hippy rudeness of underground magazine Oz are also investigated.

And the history of rude television is traced from Till Death Us Do Part to Little Britain via Spitting Image. Finally, there is a look at how rude comedy begins to be seen as offensive in sexist and racist ways.


SAT 03:45 Birds Britannia (b00vv6vm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 today]



SUNDAY 14 NOVEMBER 2010

SUN 19:00 Time to Remember (b00vtydp)
The Pursuit of Peace

Material from the 1950s newsreel documentary series Time to Remember tells the story of the struggle to maintain peace in the decades after the Great War. The politicians' high hopes for improved international relations through the League of Nations were gradually eroded by expansionism and aggression across the globe.

Includes footage of the signing of the Treaty of Versailles; the first Armistice Day parade in 1919; Ramsay MacDonald addressing the League of Nations in 1924; Neville Chamberlain's visits to Germany to negotiate with Hitler; the liberations of Rome and Paris in the summer of 1944; the signing of the German surrender in 1945; and the signing of the United Nations charter.


SUN 19:30 How Earth Made Us (b00qhqr8)
Water

Professor Iain Stewart continues his epic exploration of how the planet has shaped human history.

This time he explores our complex relationship with water. Visiting spectacular locations in Iceland, the Middle East and India, Iain shows how control over water has been central to human existence.

He takes a precarious flight in a motorised paraglider to experience the cycle of freshwater that we depend on, discovers how villagers in the foothills of the Himalayas have built a living bridge to cope with the monsoon, and visits Egypt to reveal the secret of the pharaohs' success.

Throughout history, success has depended on our ability to adapt to and control constantly shifting sources of water.


SUN 20:30 More Dawn French's Girls Who Do: Comedy (b0074syv)
Series 1

Victoria Wood

Dawn French talks to Victoria Wood about her comedy life and influences. (2006)


SUN 21:00 Mark Lawson Talks To... (b00vz5mj)
Tom Jones

Mark Lawson talks to the iconic singer Sir Tom Jones about his life in and out of the limelight. Jones reflects on his modest upbringing in a coal mining community from the early pub tours in his native south Wales to achieving international acclaim - and the accompanying pressures of fame.

Since the 1960s Jones's unique voice and charisma established him as the quintessential pop star and sex symbol with hits such as It's Not Unusual and What's New Pussycat? After a succession of number one records, he moved to the USA where he hosted television shows and toured tirelessly. For five decades he has remained one of the most recognisable voices in popular music. Given his success at 70, a new album and new image, Sir Tom shares some of his most memorable life experiences and his dreams for the future.


SUN 22:00 Tom Jones at the BBC (b00vz5ml)
An archive celebration of Tom Jones's performances at the BBC from the start of his pop career in the mid-60s to Later...with Jools Holland in 2010 and all points in between, including Top of the Pops and The Dusty Springfield Show. A chronological celebration of Sir Tom through the years that is also a history of music TV at the BBC over most of the past 50 years.


SUN 23:00 The Culture Show (b00vll85)
2010/2011

Keith Richards: A Culture Show Special

To mark the publication of Keith Richards' autobiography, Life, this Culture Show special looks at the life of the man with five strings and nine lives. In a candid interview he chats to Andrew Graham-Dixon about his childhood in Dartford, his passion for music and the decade that catapulted the Rolling Stones from back-room blues boys to one of the greatest rock 'n' roll bands in the world.


SUN 00:00 Legends (b00vv0zz)
Roll over Beethoven - The Chess Records Saga

Chicago's Chess Records was one of the greatest labels of the post-war era, ranking alongside other mighty independents like Atlantic, Stax and Sun. From 1950 till its demise at the end of the 60s, Chess released a myriad of electric blues, rock 'n' roll and soul classics that helped change the landscape of black and white popular music.

Chess was the label that gave the world such sonic adventurers as Chuck Berry, Muddy Waters, Bo Diddley, Howlin' Wolf and Etta James. In this documentary to mark the label's 60th anniversary, the likes of Jimmy Page, Mick Hucknall, Public Enemy's Chuck D, Paul Jones and Little Steven, as well as those attached to the label such as founder's son Marshall Chess, pay tribute to its extraordinary music and influence.

The film reveals how two Polish immigrants, Leonard and Phil Chess, forged friendships with black musicians in late 1940s Chicago, shrewdly building a speciality blues label into a huge independent worth millions by the end of the 1960s. Full of vivid period detail, it places the Chess story within a wider social and historical context - as well as being about some of the greatest music ever recorded, it is, inevitably, about race in America during these tumultuous times.


SUN 01:00 Tom Jones at the BBC (b00vz5ml)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:00 today]


SUN 02:00 Mark Lawson Talks To... (b00vz5mj)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]


SUN 03:00 How Earth Made Us (b00qhqr8)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:30 today]


SUN 04:00 Time to Remember (b00vtydp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 today]



MONDAY 15 NOVEMBER 2010

MON 19:00 World News Today (b00vzxv5)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


MON 19:30 Ancient Worlds (b00w0dqx)
Come Together

Archaeologist and historian Richard Miles explores the roots of one of the most profound innovations in the human story - civilisation - in the first episode of an epic series that runs from the creation of the first cities in Mesopotamia some 6,000 years ago, to the decline and fall of the Roman Empire.

Starting in Uruk, the 'mother of all cities', in southern Iraq, Richard travels to Syria, Egypt, Anatolia and Greece, tracing the birth and development of technology and culture.


MON 20:30 Only Connect (b00w8kf0)
Specials

Children in Need Special

A special Children in Need episode of the quiz show presented by Victoria Coren in which knowledge will only take you so far, as patience and lateral thinking are also vital.

The cunning wiles of the Wheel Men (Rev Richard Coles, Adam Hart-Davis and Grub Smith) take on the combined brains of the Larks (Michael Bywater, Sir Andrew Motion and Stuart Maconie), trying to work out what connects the likes of Fawlty Towers to St Joseph's Wort, Pesto and the Great Mouse Detective.


MON 21:00 Greek Myths: Tales of Travelling Heroes (b00vzxv9)
Eminent classical historian Robin Lane Fox embarks on a journey in search of the origins of the Greek myths. He firmly believes that these fantastical stories lie at the root of western culture, and yet little is known about where the myths of the Greek gods came from, and how they grew. Now, after 35 years of travelling, excavation and interpretation, he is confident he has uncovered answers.

From the ancient lost city of Hattusas in modern Turkey to the smouldering summit of the Sicilian volcano Mount Etna, the documentary takes the viewer on a dazzling voyage through the Mediterranean world of the 8th century BC, as we follow in the slipstream of an intrepid and mysterious group of merchants and adventurers from the Greek island of Euboea. It's in the experiences of these now forgotten people that Lane Fox is able to pinpoint the stories and encounters, the journeys and the landscapes that provided the source material for key Greek myths.

And along the way, he brings to life these exuberant tales - of castration and baby eating, the birth of human sexual love, and the titanic battles with giants and monsters from which the gods of Greek myth were to emerge victorious.


MON 22:30 Aristotle's Lagoon (b00q0hh2)
In the 4th century BC the Greek philosopher Aristotle travelled to Lesvos, an island in the Aegean teeming, then as now, with wildlife. His fascination with what he found there, and his painstaking study of it, led to the birth of a new science - biology. Professor Armand Leroi follows in Aristotle's footsteps to discover the creatures, places and ideas that inspired the philosopher in his pioneering work.


MON 23:30 Elgar: The Man Behind the Mask (b00vv0zx)
The composer of Land of Hope and Glory is often regarded as the quintessential English gentleman, but Edward Elgar's image of hearty nobility was deliberately contrived. In reality, he was the son of a shopkeeper, who was awkward, nervous, self-pitying and often rude, while his marriage to his devoted wife Alice was complicated by romantic entanglements which fired his creative energy.

In this revelatory portrait of a musical genius, John Bridcut explores the secret conflicts in Elgar's nature which produced some of Britain's greatest music.


MON 01:00 Ancient Worlds (b00w0dqx)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:30 today]


MON 02:00 Aristotle's Lagoon (b00q0hh2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:30 today]


MON 03:00 Greek Myths: Tales of Travelling Heroes (b00vzxv9)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]



TUESDAY 16 NOVEMBER 2010

TUE 19:00 World News Today (b00vzy33)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


TUE 19:30 It's Only a Theory (b00nxks7)
Episode 7

Comedians Andy Hamilton and Reginald D Hunter host a series in which qualified professionals and experts submit their theories about life, the universe and everything for examination by a panel of Hamilton, Hunter and a guest celebrity, who then make a final decision on whether the theory is worth keeping.

The guest celebrity is broadcaster Dermot Murnaghan and the experts are Dr George McGavin and Andrew Keen.


TUE 20:00 Blackpool on Film (b00tlvj3)
From the earliest Victorian filmmakers to the news cameras of today, this programme uses moving images from almost every decade in between to tell the story of this fascinating seaside town. With wall-to-wall archive including newsreel, documentary films and entertainment shows, it explores over a century of filmmaking to get to the heart of a remarkable British holiday resort.


TUE 20:30 Time to Remember (b00vzy35)
Crime and Prohibition

Newsreel footage and voiceover from the original 1950s Time to Remember documentary TV series tells the story of the media circus that surrounded notorious gangsters and other Depression-era criminals in the United States of America. This is encapsulated in the kidnapping of Charles and Anne Lindbergh's baby - the 'crime of the century'.

Includes footage of rumrunners trying to outrun the US Coastguard and beat prohibition; mobster Jack 'Legs' Diamond; John Dillinger behind bars; Al Capone at the racecourse; and coverage from inside the courtroom during the Lindbergh baby murder trial of German illegal immigrant Bruno Richard Hauptmann.


TUE 21:00 ArtWorks Scotland (b00sm21r)
The Glasgow Boys

Muriel Gray tells the story of the Glasgow Boys, the group of late 19th century painters who put Glasgow on the art world map. Focusing mainly on just four of the Boys - John Lavery, James Guthrie, George Henry and EA Hornel - she examines their masterpieces in detail and charts their shifting friendships. Following in the Boys' footsteps, Muriel travels through Scotland and northern France to uncover the sources of their inspiration and show just how radical their paintings were.


TUE 22:00 Getting On (b00vzy37)
Series 2

Episode 4

Darkly comic series that offers a glimpse inside a world a million miles away from traditional hospital dramas. This is the dull, dreary, dog end of the health service with paperwork to fill in, bottoms to wipe and the drama played out in a thousand tiny acts of revenge and kindness, shining a light on the way workplace relationships play out and mapping out the life of a hospital through six shifts (five days and one night) on B4 ward.

Hilary's 'Icing the Cake' initiative is spreading... but not always successfully. Best behaviour has a habit of bringing out the worst. Pippa has a lunch appointment with Peter, while Den and Hilary have a difficult matter to deal with. Kim embarks on a vendetta of a different kind. Will they ice each other's cakes?


TUE 22:30 Accused (b00w4dzk)
Series 1

Willy's Story

Willy Houlihan is in the holding cells beneath a Crown Court, awaiting the verdict of his trial. As he begins the long walk back up to his courtroom, viewers learn the events that brought him there. Willy was a hard-working plumber, with money pressures and a family who rely on him. But what did he get involved in?


TUE 23:30 Mark Lawson Talks To... (b00vz5mj)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 on Sunday]


TUE 00:30 Tom Jones at the BBC (b00vz5ml)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:00 on Sunday]


TUE 01:30 Getting On (b00vzy37)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:00 today]


TUE 02:00 Time to Remember (b00vzy35)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:30 today]


TUE 02:30 Blackpool on Film (b00tlvj3)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 today]


TUE 03:00 ArtWorks Scotland (b00sm21r)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]



WEDNESDAY 17 NOVEMBER 2010

WED 19:00 World News Today (b00vzy9r)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


WED 19:30 A History of the World (b00sj0qx)
Jenner's Marvellous Medicine

Professor Mark Horton celebrates the achievements of Edward Jenner, the Gloucestershire doctor who developed a vaccination for smallpox. His discovery saved billions of lives across the globe, leading to the eventual eradication of the disease 30 years ago. A monument is being unveiled in front of the World Health Organisation in Geneva to celebrate the milestone.

Professor Horton is a trustee of the Jenner Museum in the Gloucestershire village of Berkeley. He argues a statue of Jenner that was erected in Trafalgar Square before being ousted by campaigners opposed to vaccinations should now be restored to its original position.

The documentary is part of a season of programmes telling a history of the world using objects in museums. Mark Horton's chosen object is a cow horn reputed to have come from Blossom the Cow, from whom an extract of cowpox was famously extracted to create the vaccination for smallpox.


WED 20:00 We Need Answers (b00qvl9j)
Series 2

Music, Fauna and Smut

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 Erotic Review and Daily Mail columnist Rowan Pelling battles against Radio One DJ Nihal Arthanayake.

The rules are simple - contestants must match their answer to the one given by a text answering service. Questions range from 'How old were the UK's oldest couple when they divorced?' to 'Is music a language?'.

In the cunning physical challenge which pits the contestants against each other, Rowan and Nihal attempt to stuff a week's worth of shopping down their trousers.


WED 20:30 Johnny Kingdom's Year with the Birds (b00vzz1g)
Episode 3

Johnny Kingdom, gravedigger-turned-amateur filmmaker spends a year recording the bird life in and around his home on his beloved Exmoor.

Johnny has spent three years creating a wildlife habitat on his 52-acre patch of land on the edge of Exmoor. He's been busy nailing nest boxes on tree trunks, planting a wildflower meadow, dredging his pond, putting up remote cameras and wiring them up to a viewing station in his cabin on the land - all the time hoping against hope that not only will he attract new wildlife but also that he will be able to film it.

He is turning his attention to the bird life, hoping to follow some of the species he finds near his home and on his land, across the seasons. We see the transitions from the lovely autumn mists of the oak wood, through the sparkling snow-clad landscape of a north Devon winter, into spring's woodland carpet of bluebells and finally the golden glow of early summer.

The bulk of the series is from Johnny's own camera. Don't expect the Natural History Unit - instead expect passion, enthusiasm, humour and an exuberant love of the landscape and its wildlife.

As spring moves into summer, Johnny is relieved to find a healthy brood of wren chicks and heartened to see that some adults did survive the cold winter. He is thrilled with his footage of swallow chicks, but now faces the challenges of getting close-up shots of the woodpecker chicks and finding a pair of barn owls to film.

Johnny's old friend Bob tries to help out with the woodpecker chicks by fixing a camera on a long pole and Johnny returns to one of his old hides in an attempt to film owl chicks. While Bob's camera brings mixed results, the owl footage is an overwhelming success.


WED 21:00 Birds Britannia (b00vzz1j)
Seabirds

The British people's relationship with seabirds is an ancient and turbulent one, like our relationship with the sea itself. It is an untold chapter in the history of our rise and fall as a seafaring people, a story of conflict, exploitation and, finally, understanding.


WED 22:00 Mad Men (b00vzz1l)
Series 4

Chinese Wall

The employees of SCDP scramble to hold onto the rest of their accounts when word leaks of Lucky Strike's defection to BBDO. Roger lies to the rest of the firm about going to Raleigh to try to win back the account. While waiting for Trudy to give birth to their daughter, Pete is wooed by Ted Chaough at rival firm CGC. Megan shows interest in both Don and the advertising business.


WED 22:45 Storyville (b009s0rd)
The English Surgeon

Henry Marsh is one of Britain's leading brain surgeons. Ten years ago he befriended Igor Kurilets, a fellow neurosurgeon who works in the Ukraine, and ever since he has travelled to the Ukraine twice a year to operate on patients for free.

Geoffrey Smith's moving film follows Henry as he travels to Kiev to help Igor operate on a young man called Marian, who without surgery has just months to live. When Henry arrives, he faces a serious challenge - Marian must be awake when his tumour is removed, and Henry must use the most basic tools, including a Black and Decker drill.


WED 00:15 Johnny Kingdom's Year with the Birds (b00vzz1g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:30 today]


WED 00:45 Birds Britannia (b00vzz1j)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]


WED 01:45 A History of the World (b00sj0qx)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:30 today]


WED 02:15 Getting On (b00vzy37)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:00 on Tuesday]


WED 02:45 Birds Britannia (b00vzz1j)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]



THURSDAY 18 NOVEMBER 2010

THU 19:00 World News Today (b00w0036)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


THU 19:30 Birds Britannia (b00vzz1j)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 on Wednesday]


THU 20:30 The Beauty of Diagrams (b00vl3h1)
Vitruvian Man

Series in which mathematician Marcus du Sautoy explores the stories behind some of the most familiar scientific diagrams.

He looks at Leonardo da Vinci's world-famous diagram of the perfect human body, which has many layers from anatomy to architecture, and defines our species like no other drawing before or since. The Vitruvian Man, drawn in the 1480s when he was living and working in Milan, has become one of the most famous images in the world. Leonardo's drawings form a vast body of work, covering every imaginable subject in spectacular detail: from feet, skulls and hands to muscles and sinews; from hearts and lungs to buildings, bridges and flying machines.

Vitruvian Man perfectly synthesises Leonardo's passions for anatomy, for the mechanics of the human body and for geometry. It is also full of surprises, illustrating an ancient architectural riddle set out 1,500 years earlier by the classical writer Vitruvius about the relative proportions of buildings and men; a riddle that, even today, still fascinates and beguiles experts and viewers alike.


THU 21:00 Billy Connolly and Aly Bain: Fishing for Poetry (b00vtxh2)
One of the greatest poets of his generation, Norman MacCaig (1910-96) was also an expert fly-fisher. His favourite loch, the Loch of the Green Corrie, lies high up in the mountains of Assynt in the far north-west of Scotland.

Fiddle maestro Aly Bain, Billy Connolly and award-winning poet and novelist Andrew Greig celebrate MacCaig in the centenary year of his birth with a journey from Edinburgh to Assynt and then the long climb to the Loch of the Green Corrie with its elusive trout.

Friends and fellow poets - including Jackie Kay, Liz Lochhead, Douglas Dunn and Nobel laureate Seamus Heaney - also feature with anecdotes, tributes and readings of some of MacCaig's finest poems.


THU 22:00 Norman MacCaig at 80: None a Stranger (b00w003d)
Documentary first shown on Scottish poet Norman MacCaig's 80th birthday in 1990 to mark the centenary of his birth, featuring archive footage and readings of nine of his celebrated poems.


THU 22:25 The First Men in the Moon (b00vfgcw)
Mark Gatiss's adaptation of HG Wells's science fiction classic. July 1969, and as the world waits with bated breath for the Apollo astronauts to land on the moon, a young boy meets 90-year-old Julius Bedford. He's a man with an extraordinary story of how, way back in 1909, he got to the moon first, and, together with the eccentric Professor Cavor, discovered a terrifying secret deep beneath its seemingly barren surface.


THU 23:55 The Beauty of Diagrams (b00vl3h1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:30 today]


THU 00:25 Billy Connolly and Aly Bain: Fishing for Poetry (b00vtxh2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]


THU 01:25 Norman MacCaig at 80: None a Stranger (b00w003d)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:00 today]


THU 01:50 The First Men in the Moon (b00vfgcw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:25 today]


THU 03:20 Billy Connolly and Aly Bain: Fishing for Poetry (b00vtxh2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]



FRIDAY 19 NOVEMBER 2010

FRI 19:00 World News Today (b00w009q)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


FRI 19:30 Opera Italia (b00sjdmp)
Beginnings

Three-part series tracing the history of Italian opera presented by Antonio Pappano, world-renowned conductor and music director at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. The series features sumptuous music, stunning Italian locations and some of the biggest names in opera as contributors.

In the first programme, Pappano takes a whistle-stop tour of the beginnings of opera, from Monteverdi to Rossini. He also looks at the works of two non-Italian composers, Handel and Mozart, both of whom were pivotal in the development of the art form. Along the way he enlists the help of some of the world's greatest singers - Juan Diego Florez, Joyce DiDonato, Danielle de Niese, Sarah Connolly and Pietro Spagnoli.


FRI 20:30 The Highland Sessions (b0074rv6)
Episode 1

Six-part series celebrating the historical and contemporary links between Scottish and Irish Gaelic song by bringing together top exponents of both traditions to sing and play with no audience except themselves, using a house band of their peers. Australian-born Donegal resident Steve Cooney is music director and the first programme sets the talents of Mary Black, Karan Casey and Afro-Celt Sound System's Iarla O'Lionaird in a uniquely Scottish context.


FRI 21:00 Bird on a Wire (b00w009s)
Tony Palmer's film, thought lost for almost 40 years, about Leonard Cohen's 1972 European tour, has now been pieced together from almost 3,000 fragments and restored to its former glory. A unique record of a major poet and singer/songwriter at the height of his powers.


FRI 22:45 Leonard Cohen: Songs from the Road (b00vdgmf)
A selection of live performances from Leonard Cohen's triumphant 2008-2009 world tour, featuring classic songs like Bird on the Wire, Famous Blue Raincoat and Hallelujah performed by Leonard and his impeccable musicians and singers before transfixed audiences in a variety of venues across the world.


FRI 23:45 Brian Eno: Hits, Classics and Tracks (b00q9xqm)
The music Brian Eno has been involved in making ranges from the experimental to the massively popular. Paul Morley talks about some of Eno's hit tracks, including Heroes, Once in a Lifetime, With or Without You and Viva La Vida.


FRI 00:45 The Highland Sessions (b0074rv6)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:30 today]


FRI 01:15 Opera Italia (b00sjdmp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:30 today]


FRI 02:15 Bird on a Wire (b00w009s)
[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)

A History of the World 19:30 WED (b00sj0qx)

A History of the World 01:45 WED (b00sj0qx)

Accused 22:30 TUE (b00w4dzk)

Ancient Worlds 19:30 MON (b00w0dqx)

Ancient Worlds 01:00 MON (b00w0dqx)

Aristotle's Lagoon 22:30 MON (b00q0hh2)

Aristotle's Lagoon 02:00 MON (b00q0hh2)

ArtWorks Scotland 21:00 TUE (b00sm21r)

ArtWorks Scotland 03:00 TUE (b00sm21r)

Billy Connolly and Aly Bain: Fishing for Poetry 21:00 THU (b00vtxh2)

Billy Connolly and Aly Bain: Fishing for Poetry 00:25 THU (b00vtxh2)

Billy Connolly and Aly Bain: Fishing for Poetry 03:20 THU (b00vtxh2)

Bird on a Wire 21:00 FRI (b00w009s)

Bird on a Wire 02:15 FRI (b00w009s)

Birds Britannia 20:00 SAT (b00vv6vm)

Birds Britannia 03:45 SAT (b00vv6vm)

Birds Britannia 21:00 WED (b00vzz1j)

Birds Britannia 00:45 WED (b00vzz1j)

Birds Britannia 02:45 WED (b00vzz1j)

Birds Britannia 19:30 THU (b00vzz1j)

Blackpool on Film 20:00 TUE (b00tlvj3)

Blackpool on Film 02:30 TUE (b00tlvj3)

Brian Eno: Hits, Classics and Tracks 23:45 FRI (b00q9xqm)

Elgar: The Man Behind the Mask 23:30 MON (b00vv0zx)

Frost on Satire 23:45 SAT (b00srhgn)

Getting On 23:15 SAT (b00vtymj)

Getting On 22:00 TUE (b00vzy37)

Getting On 01:30 TUE (b00vzy37)

Getting On 02:15 WED (b00vzy37)

Greek Myths: Tales of Travelling Heroes 21:00 MON (b00vzxv9)

Greek Myths: Tales of Travelling Heroes 03:00 MON (b00vzxv9)

How Earth Made Us 19:30 SUN (b00qhqr8)

How Earth Made Us 03:00 SUN (b00qhqr8)

It's Only a Theory 19:30 TUE (b00nxks7)

Johnny Kingdom's Year with the Birds 20:30 WED (b00vzz1g)

Johnny Kingdom's Year with the Birds 00:15 WED (b00vzz1g)

Legends 00:00 SUN (b00vv0zz)

Leonard Cohen: Songs from the Road 22:45 FRI (b00vdgmf)

Life 19:00 SAT (b00nxks3)

Mad Men 22:30 SAT (b00vtz46)

Mad Men 22:00 WED (b00vzz1l)

Mark Lawson Talks To... 21:00 SUN (b00vz5mj)

Mark Lawson Talks To... 02:00 SUN (b00vz5mj)

Mark Lawson Talks To... 23:30 TUE (b00vz5mj)

More Dawn French's Girls Who Do: Comedy 20:30 SUN (b0074syv)

Norman MacCaig at 80: None a Stranger 22:00 THU (b00w003d)

Norman MacCaig at 80: None a Stranger 01:25 THU (b00w003d)

Only Connect 20:30 MON (b00w8kf0)

Opera Italia 19:30 FRI (b00sjdmp)

Opera Italia 01:15 FRI (b00sjdmp)

Rude Britannia 00:45 SAT (b00srf2d)

Rude Britannia 01:45 SAT (b00ssrsg)

Rude Britannia 02:45 SAT (b00sss1g)

Storyville 22:45 WED (b009s0rd)

The Beauty of Diagrams 20:30 THU (b00vl3h1)

The Beauty of Diagrams 23:55 THU (b00vl3h1)

The Culture Show 23:00 SUN (b00vll85)

The First Men in the Moon 22:25 THU (b00vfgcw)

The First Men in the Moon 01:50 THU (b00vfgcw)

The Highland Sessions 20:30 FRI (b0074rv6)

The Highland Sessions 00:45 FRI (b0074rv6)

Time to Remember 19:00 SUN (b00vtydp)

Time to Remember 04:00 SUN (b00vtydp)

Time to Remember 20:30 TUE (b00vzy35)

Time to Remember 02:00 TUE (b00vzy35)

Tom Jones at the BBC 22:00 SUN (b00vz5ml)

Tom Jones at the BBC 01:00 SUN (b00vz5ml)

Tom Jones at the BBC 00:30 TUE (b00vz5ml)

Wallander 21:00 SAT (b00pssh8)

We Need Answers 20:00 WED (b00qvl9j)

World News Today 19:00 MON (b00vzxv5)

World News Today 19:00 TUE (b00vzy33)

World News Today 19:00 WED (b00vzy9r)

World News Today 19:00 THU (b00w0036)

World News Today 19:00 FRI (b00w009q)