The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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)