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 MARCH 2013

SAT 19:00 Natural World (b00p9210)
2009-2010

A Highland Haven

This stunningly beautiful film reveals the unique wildlife of the Scottish Highlands, seen through the eyes of film-maker Fergus Beeley.

Based for a year at Loch Maree and the surrounding hills in Scotland's far north west, Beeley presents his personal view of the shy animals whose lives are ruled by the rains. He follows the fortunes of rare black-throated divers and white-tailed sea eagles, which both breed there, while capturing the red deer and salmon whose lives also revolve around the loch.

With an evocative score provided by local musician Phil Cunningham, this enchanting film captures the magic of a very special place.


SAT 20:00 Carved with Love: The Genius of British Woodwork (b01psbwz)
The Extraordinary Thomas Chippendale

Thomas Chippendale is the most famous furniture designer the world has ever produced, but what about the man behind the chairs? This episode shows how Chippendale worked his way up from humble roots to working for the nobility, but also how he was ruined by the very aristocrats he created such wonders for.


SAT 21:00 Spiral (b01r85b9)
Series 4: State of Terror

Episode 9

On learning of Cetin's release from police custody, the Ozbeks suspect him of informing against them and Rodi is ordered to eliminate him, but Rodi's associates have other ideas. Karlsson is called to the police station to answer a traffic offence, but is instead charged with perverting the course of justice. Roban chases a further lead in the case against Garnier, but time is running out as the judicial review into his own professional behaviour draws ever nearer.

In French with English subtitles.


SAT 21:55 Spiral (b01r85bm)
Series 4: State of Terror

Episode 10

An online clue leads the team to the anarchists' squat, but during a raid Thomas Riffaut manages to escape. A plastic bag found at the scene of Cetin's execution provides a vital DNA clue. Judge Roban is given the results of his disciplinary hearing, but vows to carry on. Clement is hounded by an unsavoury associate of his client Jorkel.

In French with English subtitles.


SAT 22:50 Blondie: One Way or Another (b0074thn)
The story of New York's finest - the most successful and enduring band fronted by a woman - Debbie Harry and Blondie. From their Bowery beginnings at CBGB's in 1974 to their controversial induction into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame in New York. The band crossed pop with punk, reggae and rap and had no 1s in all styles. With exclusive backstage and performance footage from their UK tour plus in-depth interviews with current and ex-band members and friends Iggy Pop, Shirley Manson, Tommy Ramone, and Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth of Talking Heads.


SAT 00:00 New York Rock at the BBC (b007mwcf)
From the streets of New York City to the studios of the BBC comes the cream of the New York rock scene, including classic archive performances from The Ramones, New York Dolls, Television, Blondie, Lou Reed and many more.


SAT 01:00 The Doors - The Story of LA Woman (b01f7y7c)
By 1969, the Doors had found themselves at the forefront of a movement that consisted of a generation of discontents. Operating against a backdrop of the Vietnam War and of social unrest and change in the USA, the Doors were hip, they were dangerous, they were anti-establishment, anti-war and they were hated by middle-America.

Featuring exclusive interviews with surviving band members Ray Manzarek, John Densmore, Robby Kreiger and their closest colleagues and collaborators, along with exclusive performances, archive footage and examination of the original multi-track recording tapes with producer Bruce Botnick, this film tells the amazing story of landmark album LA Woman by one of the most influential bands on the planet.


SAT 02:00 The Sky at Night (b08slxyt)
Moore Winter Marathon Results

There are amazing astronomical objects to see in the winter night sky and Sir Patrick Moore chose a few of them for his last Moore Winter Marathon. To find out how everyone got on, Chris Lintott and Lucie Green travel to the Kielder observatory in Northumberland to enjoy some of the darkest skies in Britain. Jon Culshaw joins them to take part in Patrick's final challenge and the rest of the team set up their telescopes to try to catch an asteroid which is about to whizz past the Earth, closer than any before.


SAT 02:30 Sounds of the 70s 2 (b01glwkz)
Arthouse Glam - Get in the Swing

Performances from The Kinks, Roxy Music, Elton John, New York Dolls, Queen, Sparks, Rod Stewart and the rediscovered David Bowie performance of The Jean Genie from January 1973.

Welcome to gender-bending, boys getting in the swing and girls who would be boys and boys who would be girls in this mixed-up, shook-up 70s world.


SAT 03:00 Carved with Love: The Genius of British Woodwork (b01psbwz)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 today]



SUNDAY 10 MARCH 2013

SUN 19:00 Arena (b0074prh)
Ken Dodd's Happiness

A tribute to Liverpudlian comic Ken Dodd, in which he discusses his career and the influences of his comedy style.

Features film clips of his early performances and footage of him on tour in more recent times.


SUN 20:00 Parks and Recreation (p015043t)
Series 1

Pilot

Indiana government worker Leslie Knope is given the assignment to convert an abandoned quarry pit into a community park. A documentary film crew follows Leslie through her mishaps and gaffs as she tries to make her assignment a reality.


SUN 20:20 Parks and Recreation (b01r6x6z)
Series 1

The Reporter

Leslie arranges for a reporter to do a story about her park project, but she and her committee have the worst time staying on topic. She then calls Mark to help her save the story, but it ends up hurting more than helping.

Meanwhile, Tom does all he can to suck up to his boss.


SUN 20:40 Minuscule: The Private Life of Insects (b01rb2j6)
Acrobatics

Using a seamless combination of animation and real life, the insect world comes to life in this award-winning series of French animated shorts exploring all things insects and bugs. Based on years of study of insect movement, our computer-modelled characterful heroes show off their skills in a charming and comic way. Wasps set a date for their annual flight demonstration competition, but the deafening racket annoys a ladybird, who, wanting to save a quiet place for herself, disturbs this acrobatics championship.


SUN 20:45 Minuscule: The Private Life of Insects (b01rbxg3)
The Wing Case

Using a seamless combination of animation and real life, the insect world comes to life in this award-winning series of French animated shorts exploring all things insects and bugs. Based on years of study of insect movement, our computer-modelled characterful heroes show off their skills in a charming and comic way.

A mother ladybird, saved by the providential fall of a tiny egg, decides to adopt it. When it hatches, she realises it contains a little caterpillar.


SUN 20:50 Minuscule: The Private Life of Insects (b01rbxg5)
The Grasshopper Who Didn't Know How to Leap

Using a seamless combination of animation and real life, the insect world comes to life in this award-winning series of French animated shorts exploring all things insects and bugs. Based on years of study of insect movement, our computer-modelled characterful heroes show off their skills in a charming and comic way.

A grasshopper who has just had babies hurries to teach them the most important lesson of all - how to leap properly. But one of the babies is unable to hop and ends up an outcast.


SUN 21:00 The Aviator (b00b2swv)
Oscar-winning biopic charting the life of eccentric film director Howard Hughes over a 20-year period. Breaking into the film industry in 1927, he went on to achieve box-office success, romanced some of his leading ladies and used his millions in an attempt to break the airspeed record.


SUN 23:35 Totally British: 70s Rock 'n' Roll (b01r3pm9)
1970-1974

Trawled from the depths of the BBC Archive and classic BBC shows of the day - Old Grey Whistle Test, Top of the Pops and Full House - a collection of performance gems from a totally rock 'n' roll early 1970s.

This was a golden era for British rock 'n' roll as everyone moved on from the whimsical 60s and looked around for something with a bit more oomph! In a pre-heavy metal world bands were experimenting with influences that dated back to 50s rock 'n' roll, whilst taking their groove from old-school rhythm and blues. It was also a time when men grew their hair long!

In a celebration of this era, we kick off with an early 1970s Badfinger number direct from the BBC library and continue the groove from the BBC vaults with classic rock 'n' roll heroes like Free, Status Quo, the Faces, Humble Pie and Mott the Hoople. Plus from deep within the BBC archives we dig out some rarities from the likes of Babe Ruth, Stone the Crows, The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Man, Heavy Metal Kids and original rockers Thin Lizzy... to name but a few.

Sit back and enjoy a 60-minute non-stop ride of unadulterated Totally British 70s Rock 'n' Roll!


SUN 00:40 The Ballad of Mott the Hoople (b01r3pmc)
Documentary telling the bruised and battered, but triumphant, tale of one of the UK's most cherished rock 'n' roll bands, Mott the Hoople.

Originating from Herefordshire, the band were thrown together in 1969 and signed to Island Records by the increasingly erratic manager/producer Guy Stevens, in a bid to find a band that would combine The Rolling Stones rhythmic power with the melody and lyricism of 'Blonde on Blonde' era Bob Dylan.

The documentary charts their journey from cult struggling touring band to their successful transformation into 'glam rock players' thanks to the intervention of David Bowie who gave them their biggest hit, 'All The Young Dudes', and their subsequent collapse after the addition of Mick Ronson to their line-up.

Mott the Hoople's story is brought to life through a combination of rare and unseen archive footage, their magnificent music and the testimony of band members Ian Hunter, Mick Ralphs, Verden Allen, Dale Griffin, Luther Grosvenor aka Ariel Bender and various other associates and witnesses, including boyhood fan Mick Jones of The Clash and Queen's Roger Taylor.


SUN 01:40 Legends (b01lcz64)
Iron Maiden: Behind the Beast

A fascinating, high-quality 'home movie', produced entirely in-house by Iron Maiden's own crew led by Andy Matthews, it reveals how to put on an Iron Maiden tour and what goes on behind the scenes at a show. It describes the extraordinary story of one of the most acclaimed and ambitious touring shows in the world, illustrating the day-to-day life and complex tasks of the crew and the other characters behind the scenes.

As well as interviews with the Iron Maiden crew, it interweaves anecdotes from the band and their fans, and includes footage of the live show in this comprehensive guide to the intricacies of staging massive, live stadium shows around the world out of the belly of a Boeing 757.

Starting in Moscow and performing across the globe from Asia to Australia to South America and finishing up in Florida, the band travel over 60,000 miles with lead singer Bruce Dickinson once again at the wheel of their customised Boeing 757- Ed Force One.


SUN 02:35 New York Rock at the BBC (b007mwcf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 00:00 on Saturday]



MONDAY 11 MARCH 2013

MON 19:00 World News Today (b01r79vx)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


MON 19:30 Great British Railway Journeys (b00y47ts)
Series 2

Sandwich to Folkestone

Michael Portillo takes to the tracks with a copy of George Bradshaw's Victorian Railway Guidebook. Portillo travels the length and breadth of the country to see how the railways changed us and what remains of Bradshaw's Britain, as his journey goes through Kent, from London Bridge around the scenic south coast to Hastings.

Michael explores a secret port that ran the first train ferries to France carrying vital supplies during World War I, visits Walmer Castle, the home of the Duke of Wellington, and discovers how the Victorians initiated the building of the Channel Tunnel.


MON 20:00 Britain on Film (b01nz93z)
Series 1

Getting Down to Business

In 1959 Britain's biggest cinema company, the Rank Organisation, decided to replace its newsreels with a series of short, quirky, topical documentaries that examined all aspects of life in Britain. For the next ten years, Look at Life chronicled - on high-grade 35mm colour film - the changing face of British society, industry and culture. Britain on Film draws upon the 500 films in this unique archive to offer illuminating and often surprising insights into what became a pivotal decade in modern British history.

This episode examines Look at Life's surprisingly entertaining films on the British economy, at a time when industry faced ever-increasing competition from abroad.


MON 20:30 Only Connect (b01r9y7d)
Specials

Comic Relief Special: Neuromantics vs Muppets

Victoria Coren hosts a special celebrity edition of the quiz where knowledge will only take you so far, and patience and lateral thinking are also vital. Two teams of clever celebrities prepare to lose their dignity in honour of Comic Relief, as the Neuromantics (Charlie Higson, Rufus Hound and Baroness Susan Greenfield) take on the combined wits of the Muppets (David Mitchell, Rosie Boycott and Bill Turnbull). So join Victoria if you want to know what connects £100,000, PG Wodehouse, deep reddish-purple and Jack Horner's thumb.


MON 21:00 Reputations (b0078cw9)
Frankie Howerd

Thanks to his role as Lurcio in Up Pompeii, Frankie Howerd became on of Britain's most popular and distinctive comedians. But behind the titters there were secrets - things he was desperate to keep from the public, and truths so painful he tried to keep them even from himself.

The programme explores Howerd's turbulent life from his early days in south London and his efforts at serious acting through his radio stardom in the 1950s to his TV triumphs of the 60s and 70s. His closest friends and colleagues talk about his depression, his money troubles and his complex and hidden sex life. And we hear for the first time about his LSD-assisted psychotherapy and the shocking experiences it uncovered. With contributions from Jonathan Ross, Griff Rhys Jones, Eric Sykes and Ian Carmichael.


MON 22:00 Mark Lawson Talks To... (b01rbhv7)
Michael Palin

Mark Lawson talks to Python and globetrotting national treasure Michael Palin about his childhood and early career days. He recalls some of the highs and lows of the famous ensemble and regales Mark with a German rendition of the Lumberjack song. Palin has been a successful writer, comedian and broadcaster for nearly fifty years. After his early global success with Monty Python, he reinvented himself as our favourite Englishman abroad with his prolific travelogues, as well as an author of novels and diaries.


MON 23:00 Around the World in 80 Days - 20 Years On (b00gd3hz)
Michael Palin goes in search of the crew of the wooden dhow Al Shama, featured in his series Around the World in 80 Days. The eight-day voyage across the Arabian Sea to Bombay filmed in 1988 has become a TV classic.

Michael's search begins in Dubai, which has been transformed since he was last there 20 years ago. He soon moves on to what is now Mumbai. There, a helpful freight broker tells him what has befallen Al Shama. But there is better news of Captain Hassan Suleyman, and Michael books himself onto the Kutch Express, which will take him far to the north, close to the Pakistani border. There he hopes that his long search will be crowned with a reunion with men with whom he forged a special bond, and on whom his life depended 20 years ago.


MON 00:00 Omnibus (b0074kgk)
Elizabeth Taylor - England's Other Elizabeth

Profile drawn from Elizabeth Taylor's visit to Britain in 2000, during which she received her damehood from the Queen. Hollywood's last great star talks for the first time in years about her career, her life and the challenges of the future.

From her early days as a child star in Lassie Come Home and National Velvet to becoming the century's biggest star of all - in Cleopatra - her life, her loves and her work have all been lived to an intensity no other star can match.

Joined by Shirley MacLaine, Rod Steiger and Angela Lansbury, Taylor remembers the glory days of working with Richard Burton, Montgomery Clift, Rock Hudson, James Dean and Paul Newman, how filming never stopped regardless of what life threw at her, the pain and pleasure of two Oscars - one for a film she can hardly bear to remember - and, not least, the feelings she has for Britain, where she was born and how it was her English accent that launched her on the way to stardom at the very beginning.


MON 00:55 Hidden Treasures of... (b00z09hp)
Australian Art

Griff Rhys Jones sets off on a series of adventures to find out what extraordinary treasure is still being created in far-off places by the indigenous people of today. In a rapidly changing world, can traditional art survive? What meaning does it still have?

In this first programme, Griff crosses the globe to the remote Torres Strait Islands between Australia and Papua New Guinea to explore what remains of an unusually creative and warlike culture. Cut off from the rest of the world for most of their history, the islanders were fierce head-hunters who believed in magic and sorcery. What made their art so striking and powerful? Why are the islanders so reluctant to give up their secrets? And can Griff solve the mysteries surrounding a strange and compelling mask?


MON 01:55 Edgar Allan Poe: Love, Death and Women (b00vfhhp)
Crime author Denise Mina investigates the life and work of one of the world's greatest horror writers, Edgar Allan Poe. The relationships between Poe and the women in his life - mother, wife, paramour and muse - were tenuous at best, disastrous at worst, yet they provided inspiration and stimulus for some of the most terrifying and influential short stories of the early 19th century.

Travelling between New York, Virginia and Baltimore, Mina unravels Poe's tortuous and peculiar relationships. Dramatised inserts take us into the minds of Poe and his women through their own letters, journals and published writing.


MON 02:55 Britain on Film (b01nz93z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 today]


MON 03:25 Sounds of the 70s 2 (b01gymg9)
Reggae - Stir it Up

By the start of the 70s, the Windrush generation of immigrants who came to the UK from the Caribbean and West Indies were an established part of the British population and their influence and culture permeated UK society.

This second programme rejoices and revels in the reggae music exported from Jamaica and the home-grown reggae-influenced sounds that sprouted from the cities of England. Reggae's dominance of the UK charts is celebrated with performances from Ken Boothe, Dave and Ansel Collins, Steel Pulse, Althea and Donna, Bob Marley and the Wailers, Janet Kay, Susan Cadogan and The Specials.



TUESDAY 12 MARCH 2013

TUE 19:00 World News Today (b01r79w4)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


TUE 19:30 Great British Railway Journeys (b00y47wd)
Series 2

Hythe to Hastings

Michael Portillo takes to the tracks with a copy of George Bradshaw's Victorian Railway Guidebook. Portillo travels the length and breadth of the country to see how the railways changed us and what of Bradshaw's Britain remains, as his journey goes through Kent, from London Bridge around the scenic south coast to Hastings.

Michael discovers a hardy breed of sheep on the atmospheric Romney Marsh, explores Kent's sparkling wine industry and finds out why the Victorians went mad for ferns in Hastings.


TUE 20:00 Horizon (b00vv0w8)
2010-2011

Asteroids - The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Famed for their ability to inflict Armageddon from outer space, asteroids are now revealing the secrets of how they are responsible for both life and death on our planet.

Armed with an array of powerful telescopes, scientists are finding up to 3,000 new asteroids every night. And some are heading our way.

But astronomers have discovered that it's not the giant rocks that are the greatest danger - it's the small asteroids that pose a more immediate threat to Earth.

Researchers have explained the photon propulsion that send these rocks across space, and have discovered that some asteroids are carrying a mysterious cargo of frost and ice across the solar system that could have helped start life on Earth.


TUE 21:00 Planet Ant: Life Inside the Colony (p00scslp)
Ant colonies are one of the wonders of nature - complex, organised and mysterious. This programme reveals the secret, underground world of the ant colony in a way that's never been seen before. At its heart is a massive, full-scale ant nest, specially designed and built to allow cameras to see its inner workings. The nest is a new home for a million-strong colony of leafcutter ants from Trinidad.

For a month, entomologist Dr George McGavin and leafcutter expert Professor Adam Hart capture every aspect of the life of the colony, using time-lapse cameras, microscopes, microphones and radio tracking technology. The ants instantly begin to forage, farm, mine and build. Within weeks, the colony has established everything from nurseries and gardens to graveyards.

The programme explores how these tiny insects can achieve such spectacular feats of collective organisation. This unique project reveals the workings of one of the most complex and mysterious societies in the natural world and shows the surprising ways in which ants are helping us solve global problems.


TUE 22:30 Beyond Time: William Turnbull (b01r3nw7)
Documentary which journeys into the life and work of an artist widely recognised as one of the pioneers of modernism in Britain. In a life that has spanned horse-drawn transport to the internet, the film chronicles William Turnbull's intimate involvement in the critical developments of modern art. Exploring his experiences in Paris, London and New York where he befriended and worked alongside artists like Alberto Giacometti, Richard Hamilton, Mark Rothko and Barnett Newman, the film gives an insightful account into the life of one of the great masters of 20th-century art.


TUE 23:30 Heritage! The Battle for Britain's Past (p014fycm)
From Old Bones to Precious Stones

Charting the birth of the heritage movement and the first arguments of radical thought, from figures including John Lubbock MP, Lieutenant General Augustus Henry Lane Fox Pitt Rivers, Charles Darwin and John Ruskin. These remarkable individuals asked important questions and came up with the building blocks of a new world that valued the past. Their actions led to the first piece of legislation to safeguard prehistoric and ancient structures which until then had often fallen prey to the short-term interests of farmers and landowners.


TUE 00:30 Hidden Treasures of... (b00z2phx)
African Art

Griff Rhys Jones continues his quest to find traditional art in remote places by travelling to West Africa.

Antique carvings from the region can fetch millions of pounds, but what makes a piece 'authentic', and are they still being made? Is there such a thing as pure African art?

Griff starts his investigation in the Bandiagara Escarpment in Mali, where the Dogon people have used their carvings and sculptures as a spiritual tool to help them survive. Can belief in the power of these objects withstand the march of modernity?

In a revelatory journey which ends in Accra, the capital of Ghana, Griff learns that the passage of history and modern realities have had a surprising influence on invention and creativity in contemporary West Africa.


TUE 01:30 The Rattigan Enigma by Benedict Cumberbatch (b012tnt0)
Benedict Cumberbatch, one of the country's leading actors, explores the life and work of enigmatic playwright Terence Rattigan.

Rattigan was the master of the 'well crafted play' of upper class manners and repressed sexuality and he dominated the West End theatre scene throughout the 40s and early 50s. But then, in the mid fifties 'the angry young men arrived'; a wave of young playwrights and directors who introduced a new, radical style of theatre. Rattigan's work faced a critical onslaught and he fell completely out of fashion. But now, in his centenary year his plays are enjoying a huge revival.

But Rattigan himself remains an enigmatic figure - a troubled homosexual whose polite, restrained dramas confronted the very issues - sexual frustration, failed relationships, adultery and even suicide - that he found so difficult to deal with in his own life. He had a gift for commercial theatre but yearned to be taken seriously as a playwright.

In this film Benedict re-visits his old school Harrow where Rattigan was also educated and was first inspired to write plays. He takes a trip down memory lane with one of Rattigan's closest friends (Princess Jean Galizine) and he talks to playwrights, critics and directors about what it is about Rattigan's work which we find so appealing today.


TUE 02:30 Planet Ant: Life Inside the Colony (p00scslp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]



WEDNESDAY 13 MARCH 2013

WED 19:00 World News Today (b01r79w9)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


WED 19:35 Great British Railway Journeys (b00yd1bv)
Series 2

Ayr to Paisley

Michael Portillo takes to the tracks with a copy of George Bradshaw's Victorian Railway Guidebook. Portillo travels the length and breadth of the country to see how the railways changed us, and what of Bradshaw's Britain remains, as he journeys up the west coast of Scotland from Ayr to Skye.

Michael visits the hometown of Robbie Burns and finds out how to make haggis, discovers how the railways transformed the game of golf in Prestwick, and uncovers the story of the great Victorian tartan hoax in Paisley.


WED 20:05 Sissinghurst (b00jclx2)
Episode 8

Documentary series about the attempts of writer Adam Nicolson and his wife Sarah Raven to bring farming back into the heart of the estate and garden at Sissinghurst Castle in Kent, their historic home which is owned by the National Trust and was moulded into its present form by Nicolson's grandmother Vita Sackville-West and her husband Harold Nicolson back in the 1930s.

Fiona Reynolds, director-general of the National Trust, comes to Sissinghurst to respond to Adam's concerns about the future of the farm project.

Sarah's menu pleases the punters in the restaurant, but head chef Steve is still reluctant to give her credit.

Adam and his sister Juliet relive Vita's last days as she contracted cancer and died, leaving husband Harold devastated.

The garden closes for the winter and Adam surprises Sarah with a trip in a hot air balloon. They look down on Sissinghurst and wonder if the changes they envisaged have been achieved and whether they can continue to live at Sissinghurst.

Whatever the outcome and whatever the upheavals, the beauties of Sissinghurst will continue to delight visitors for years to come.


WED 20:35 Insect Worlds (b01r9097)
Them and Us

Steve Backshall explores the connections and relationship that we have with insects and other arthropods. In Kenya, huge armies of driver ants give houses a five-star clean-up, and in China, we discover how silkworm caterpillars have shaped our culture and distribution. While locusts devastate crops in Africa, bees and beetles across the world provide a key link in our food chains. Many of us perceive these animals merely as creepy crawlies and nothing more than a nuisance, but as Steve reveals, we couldn't live without them.


WED 21:05 Metamorphosis: The Science of Change (p00zv0wk)
Metamorphosis seems like the ultimate evolutionary magic trick, the amazing transformation of one creature into a totally different being: one life, two bodies.

From Ovid and Kafka to X-Men, tales of metamorphosis richly permeate human culture. The myth of transformation is so common that it seems almost preprogrammed into our imagination. But is the scientific fact of metamorphosis just as strange as fiction or... even stranger?

Film-maker David Malone explores the science behind metamorphosis. How does it happen and why? And might it even, in some way, happen to us?


WED 22:05 Parks and Recreation (p01504pg)
Series 1

Canvassing

Leslie decides that she and her committee need to gain support for the park project as well as support for an upcoming town hall meeting. However, their mission does not go as planned. Meanwhile, Tom wanders away from the canvassing group and uses his own creative recruitment tactics.


WED 22:25 Parks and Recreation (p01504sq)
Series 1

Boys' Club

Leslie attempts to break into the political old boys' club, resulting in an ethical dilemma. Andy plans a surprise for Ann.


WED 22:50 The Many Faces of... (b018nvwc)
Series 1

Les Dawson

Les Dawson was one of Britain's all time great comedy talents, best known as a comedian but also a talented musician, writer and actor. This programme traces his career, with familiar favourite TV clips and some rare gems from the archives. Together with interviews from friends, relatives and colleagues, the programme unpicks the secrets of his enduring legacy nearly 20 years after his untimely death.

After 'discovery' on the Opportunity Knocks talent show in the 60s, he quickly became a regular face on TV, hosting comedy-led variety shows like Sez Les and The Les Dawson Show. His trademarks were short, pithy jokes, usually targeting his wife or mother in law, long verbose monologues and, perhaps most famously, piano recitals that went hilariously off key.

His reputation attracted guest appearances from some unexpected fans like John Cleese and Shirley Bassey, and he created an overweight dance troupe, The Roly Polys.

The programme shows how his career unfolded and illustrates the different facets of his comedy genius. John Cleese remembers their unlikely friendship, modern comedy stars Robert Webb and Russell Kane talk about his inspiration and Dawson's widow Tracy recalls their marriage and his joy at being a father late in life.


WED 23:50 Arena (b01pjlhv)
Screen Goddesses

Documentary about the early female movie stars: Greta Garbo, Marlene Dietrich, Rita Hayworth, Marilyn Monroe - immortal goddesses made by Hollywood to reign over the silver screen.

With the beginnings of Hollywood, the star system was born with an archetypal bad girl - the vampish Theda Bara - and the good girl - the blazingly sincere Lillian Gish. From the 1920s, vivacious Clara Bow and seductive siren Louise Brooks are most remembered, but none made the impact of Marlene Dietrich, an icon of mystery, or Greta Garbo, with her perfect features and gloomy introspection.

From the power of Joan Crawford and Bette Davis to the seductiveness of Rita Hayworth and Ava Gardner, Hollywood studios produced their own brand of beautiful, sassy and confident women. But it wasn't to last. The era drew to a close with the supreme fame of Elizabeth Taylor and the tragic death of Marilyn Monroe.

Narrated by Elizabeth McGovern.


WED 00:50 Hidden Treasures of... (b00zfmkd)
Indian Art

In his quest to find out if traditional art still thrives among the indigenous people of the world, Griff Rhys Jones goes to India in search of exquisite textiles. Can he solve the mystery of an extraordinary Indian floor cloth kept in Hardwick Hall, Derbyshire for over 300 years? Who made it and does the skill that produced such a work still exist?

Griff travels to Gujarat in India, famed throughout history for its beautiful handmade textiles. He goes off the beaten tracks to the towns and villages of the north-west plains and discovers how centuries-old printing, dyeing and embroidery techniques are still the cornerstones to a way of life.

Finally, he travels to the heart of one of the most reclusive and fiercely traditional societies in India, the Rabari, who are famed for their toughness and their astonishing embroidery. Here, women spend years sewing dowry gifts - but can the custom survive in the 21st century?


WED 01:50 Blondie: One Way or Another (b0074thn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:50 on Saturday]


WED 03:05 Metamorphosis: The Science of Change (p00zv0wk)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:05 today]



THURSDAY 14 MARCH 2013

THU 19:00 World News Today (b01r79wh)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


THU 19:30 Top of the Pops (b01r3nw3)
09/03/78

Tony Blackburn introduces the weekly pop chart programme featuring performances from Generation X, Elkie Brooks, Hot Chocolate, Tina Charles, Brian & Michael, Blondie, Andy Cameron, the Jam, Kate Bush and Legs & Co.


THU 20:00 The Pre-Raphaelites (b00lc6x8)
Episode 2

Three-part series examining the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, who brought notoriety to British art in the 19th century, bursting into the spotlight in 1848 and shocking their peers with a new kind of radical art.

This second part looks at how they continued by transforming landscape painting with a microscopic examination of the natural world, some ten years before the French Impressionists.


THU 20:30 Pagans and Pilgrims: Britain's Holiest Places (b01r9s6j)
Water

Presenter and Welsh poet Ifor ap Glyn explores the wealth of Britain's extraordinary holy places on a pilgrimage that spans almost 2,000 years of history. Travelling across the breadth of the UK, Ifor uncovers the stories and rich history behind many of our most famous sites, explaining the myths and legends of some of Britain's most sacred places.

In the second episode, Ifor explores why water crops up again and again as the essential element in many of our most holy places. Why has a yearning for pure natural water always been bound up with our spiritual beliefs?

His journey takes him to our oldest mass baptismal pool which marks the place that Scottish Picts first came into the Christian fold, the site on Loch Ness where Celtic missionaries battling the forces of paganism first encountered the legendary monster, a healing well where a young woman was reputedly brought back to life by having her severed head re-attached to her body, and a 2,000-year-old holy spring that has become a major international brand.


THU 21:00 Heritage! The Battle for Britain's Past (b01r7h3t)
The Men from the Ministry

The second episode reveals the unsung heroes of the heritage movement, the clever civil servants who saved the great ruins of Britain. It explores the determination of Charles Reed Peers from the Office of Works, who seized the chance in the interwar years to make history a popular cause, and looks at how the increasingly mobile British public began to embrace the idea of a day out at an historic site. As the country houses faced a crisis with owners demolishing or abandoning their homes, who would come to the rescue - the Ministry of Works or the National Trust?


THU 22:00 Planet Ant: Life Inside the Colony (p00scslp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 on Tuesday]


THU 23:30 Dive, Dive, Dive! (b00s96m9)
To the sound of pinging sonar, Robert Llewellyn ups periscope to discover why submarine movies have gripped us for over a century. He travels along the River Medway to find a beached Cold War Russian nuclear sub and then on to the abandoned WWII German U-boat pens on the French coast, recalling many of the real events that inspired these films.

From 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea to Das Boot and The Hunt for Red October, Llewellyn discovers that fear - and its antithesis, bravery - is the key, and he also reveals the unique role that Walt Disney played in promoting atomic submarines. Interviewees include director John McTiernan (The Hunt For Red October), Sir Christopher Frayling and screenwriter Michael Schiffer (Crimson Tide).


THU 00:30 Beyond Time: William Turnbull (b01r3nw7)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:30 on Tuesday]


THU 01:30 Top of the Pops (b01r3nw3)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:30 today]


THU 02:00 The Pre-Raphaelites (b00lc6x8)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 today]


THU 02:30 Pagans and Pilgrims: Britain's Holiest Places (b01r9s6j)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:30 today]


THU 03:00 Heritage! The Battle for Britain's Past (b01r7h3t)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]



FRIDAY 15 MARCH 2013

FRI 19:00 World News Today (b01r79wn)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


FRI 19:30 Rostropovich: The Genius of the Cello (b015j8g5)
No-one has done more for the cello than Mstislav Rostropovich, or Slava as he was widely known. As well as being arguably the greatest cellist of the twentieth century, he expanded and enriched the cello repertoire by the sheer force of his artistry and his personality and composers lined up to write works for him.

In this film by John Bridcut, friends, family and former pupils explore the unique talents of this great Russian artist, and listen to and watch him making music. Contributors include his widow Galina Vishnevskaya and their daughters Olga and Elena; the eminent conductors Seiji Ozawa and Gennadi Rozhdestvensky; and cellists who attended his famous classes in Moscow, including Natalya Gutman, Mischa Maisky, Moray Welsh, Elizabeth Wilson and Karine Georgian.

The film traces the development of Rostropovich's international career amid the political tensions of the final years of the Soviet Union.


FRI 21:00 Totally British: 70s Rock 'n' Roll (b01r7hk5)
1975-79

A romp through the BBC archive library from 1975 to 1979 has unearthed some seldom-seen performances of the rarely explored genre of pub rock and other late 70s rock 'n' roll gems from classic music programmes like the Old Grey Whistle Test and Top of the Pops. Before the DIY culture of punk took hold there was a whole breed of real musicians who honed their craft in the backrooms of pubs. And towards the end of the 70s men's hair was starting to get shorter too.

This compilation has uncovered rarely seen footage from the likes of Canvey Island's Dr Feelgood, original pub rockers Ducks DeLuxe, Eddie and the Hot Rods, Elvis Costello, Meal Ticket, Steve Gibbons Band, Dave Edmunds and chum Nick Lowe, a pre-Mike & the Mechanics' Paul Carrack in his first band Ace, a post-Faces Ronnie Lane, The Motors, the first TV performance from Dire Straits, Graham Parker and the Rumour and many more.


FRI 22:00 Graham Parker: Don't Ask Me Questions (b01r7hsh)
Before there was punk, before there was new wave and before there was Elvis Costello, there was Graham Parker and his incendiary band the Rumour, rooted in traditional r 'n' b and rock 'n' roll forms but with a vitriolic lyrical edge that demanded to be heard.

Forming the Rumour in 1975, Parker came from Camberley where, amongst many other things, he'd been a petrol pump attendant. The Rumour included many of the cream of the pub rock scene including guitarists Brinsley Schwarz and Martin Belmont, formerly of Ducks DeLuxe. Deemed too edgy for the mid 1970s music scene and too traditional for the ensuing punk wave that they helped spark, they were a band born out of time. After five years of international critical acclaim but moderate sales, the band broke up.

In the intervening years Parker transformed as an artist into a kind of troubadour based in upstate New York, playing to his base of cult fans and having the occasional brush with success. The other members lived their lives in quiet contentment, but always wondering how their lives may have unfolded if they had shared the success of artists who were inspired by them and eventually eclipsed them.

In the summer of 2011, on a whim, they reunited to record an album of new Graham Parker songs. In the same summer, as fate would have it, long-time Graham Parker and the Rumour fan, director Judd Apatow cast the band to play themselves in his film This is Forty. The reunion and high level of exposure caused the band, now all in their sixties, to assess their lives, the notion of success and the meaning of true happiness.

This film, ten years in the making, documents these events and offers a heartfelt look at the lives of all the members focusing on the elusive recluse lead singer and songwriter Graham Parker. Contributions come from the Rumour, Bruce Springsteen, Nick Lowe and, of course, Parker himself.


FRI 23:35 Oil City Confidential: Dr Feelgood (b00s2y91)
Director Julien Temple's film celebrates Canvey Island's Dr Feelgood, the Essex R 'n' B band that exploded out of the UK in the prog era of the early Seventies, delivering shows and albums that helped pave the way for pub rock and punk.

Temple examines Canvey Island culture as a 'Thames delta' for British rhythm and blues, with a central performance from the Feelgood's guitarist and songwriter Wilko Johnson. A British original, his dynamic stage presence and relationship with lead singer Lee Brilleaux drove the band through their early performances, characterising their three albums between 1975 and 1976, Down by the Jetty, Malpractice and the number one live album, Stupidity.

Wilko left the band in 1977, bassist John B Sparks and drummer The Big Figure both left in 1982, and Lee Brilleaux died in 1994. This is an imaginative, filmic and moving study of the place, times and characters that created the heyday of a seminal British band, and the personal forces that pulled them apart.


FRI 01:25 Sight and Sound in Concert (b01rbs93)
Graham Parker and the Rumour

70s rockers Graham Parker and the Rumour in concert at the Hippodrome in Golders Green, introduced by David 'Kid' Jensen.


FRI 02:25 Graham Parker: Don't Ask Me Questions (b01r7hsh)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:00 today]




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

Arena 19:00 SUN (b0074prh)

Arena 23:50 WED (b01pjlhv)

Around the World in 80 Days - 20 Years On 23:00 MON (b00gd3hz)

Beyond Time: William Turnbull 22:30 TUE (b01r3nw7)

Beyond Time: William Turnbull 00:30 THU (b01r3nw7)

Blondie: One Way or Another 22:50 SAT (b0074thn)

Blondie: One Way or Another 01:50 WED (b0074thn)

Britain on Film 20:00 MON (b01nz93z)

Britain on Film 02:55 MON (b01nz93z)

Carved with Love: The Genius of British Woodwork 20:00 SAT (b01psbwz)

Carved with Love: The Genius of British Woodwork 03:00 SAT (b01psbwz)

Dive, Dive, Dive! 23:30 THU (b00s96m9)

Edgar Allan Poe: Love, Death and Women 01:55 MON (b00vfhhp)

Graham Parker: Don't Ask Me Questions 22:00 FRI (b01r7hsh)

Graham Parker: Don't Ask Me Questions 02:25 FRI (b01r7hsh)

Great British Railway Journeys 19:30 MON (b00y47ts)

Great British Railway Journeys 19:30 TUE (b00y47wd)

Great British Railway Journeys 19:35 WED (b00yd1bv)

Heritage! The Battle for Britain's Past 23:30 TUE (p014fycm)

Heritage! The Battle for Britain's Past 21:00 THU (b01r7h3t)

Heritage! The Battle for Britain's Past 03:00 THU (b01r7h3t)

Hidden Treasures of... 00:55 MON (b00z09hp)

Hidden Treasures of... 00:30 TUE (b00z2phx)

Hidden Treasures of... 00:50 WED (b00zfmkd)

Horizon 20:00 TUE (b00vv0w8)

Insect Worlds 20:35 WED (b01r9097)

Legends 01:40 SUN (b01lcz64)

Mark Lawson Talks To... 22:00 MON (b01rbhv7)

Metamorphosis: The Science of Change 21:05 WED (p00zv0wk)

Metamorphosis: The Science of Change 03:05 WED (p00zv0wk)

Minuscule: The Private Life of Insects 20:40 SUN (b01rb2j6)

Minuscule: The Private Life of Insects 20:45 SUN (b01rbxg3)

Minuscule: The Private Life of Insects 20:50 SUN (b01rbxg5)

Natural World 19:00 SAT (b00p9210)

New York Rock at the BBC 00:00 SAT (b007mwcf)

New York Rock at the BBC 02:35 SUN (b007mwcf)

Oil City Confidential: Dr Feelgood 23:35 FRI (b00s2y91)

Omnibus 00:00 MON (b0074kgk)

Only Connect 20:30 MON (b01r9y7d)

Pagans and Pilgrims: Britain's Holiest Places 20:30 THU (b01r9s6j)

Pagans and Pilgrims: Britain's Holiest Places 02:30 THU (b01r9s6j)

Parks and Recreation 20:00 SUN (p015043t)

Parks and Recreation 20:20 SUN (b01r6x6z)

Parks and Recreation 22:05 WED (p01504pg)

Parks and Recreation 22:25 WED (p01504sq)

Planet Ant: Life Inside the Colony 21:00 TUE (p00scslp)

Planet Ant: Life Inside the Colony 02:30 TUE (p00scslp)

Planet Ant: Life Inside the Colony 22:00 THU (p00scslp)

Reputations 21:00 MON (b0078cw9)

Rostropovich: The Genius of the Cello 19:30 FRI (b015j8g5)

Sight and Sound in Concert 01:25 FRI (b01rbs93)

Sissinghurst 20:05 WED (b00jclx2)

Sounds of the 70s 2 02:30 SAT (b01glwkz)

Sounds of the 70s 2 03:25 MON (b01gymg9)

Spiral 21:00 SAT (b01r85b9)

Spiral 21:55 SAT (b01r85bm)

The Aviator 21:00 SUN (b00b2swv)

The Ballad of Mott the Hoople 00:40 SUN (b01r3pmc)

The Doors - The Story of LA Woman 01:00 SAT (b01f7y7c)

The Many Faces of... 22:50 WED (b018nvwc)

The Pre-Raphaelites 20:00 THU (b00lc6x8)

The Pre-Raphaelites 02:00 THU (b00lc6x8)

The Rattigan Enigma by Benedict Cumberbatch 01:30 TUE (b012tnt0)

The Sky at Night 02:00 SAT (b08slxyt)

Top of the Pops 19:30 THU (b01r3nw3)

Top of the Pops 01:30 THU (b01r3nw3)

Totally British: 70s Rock 'n' Roll 23:35 SUN (b01r3pm9)

Totally British: 70s Rock 'n' Roll 21:00 FRI (b01r7hk5)

World News Today 19:00 MON (b01r79vx)

World News Today 19:00 TUE (b01r79w4)

World News Today 19:00 WED (b01r79w9)

World News Today 19:00 THU (b01r79wh)

World News Today 19:00 FRI (b01r79wn)