B4

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

SATURDAY 31 DECEMBER 2016

SAT 19:00 Show Boat (b025ydw0)
Classic musical set in 1880s America. When the show boat Cotton Blossom arrives in a Mississippi town, all the townsfolk rush out to see them. Julie, the daughter of the boat's captain, falls in love with a charming gambler, but their relationship is disapproved of in the racially segregated deep south.

Musical based on Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II's stage musical and Edna Ferber's controversial novel.

SAT 20:45 Sounds of the Sixties (b072w25j)
Reversions

1964-6 The Beat Room 2

Tom Jones, The Rolling Stones and Manfred Mann star in archive clips from the 60s.

SAT 20:55 Pop Go the Sixties (b00crz39)
Series 2

Herman's Hermits

Pop moments from the BBC's sixties archive. Britain's inoffensive pop conquerors of America, who anticipated the sound that the Monkees would later call their own, perform Something Is Happening on the Wednesday Show in 1968. Peter Noone leads the band on the song that made number six in the Swiss charts.

SAT 21:00 Dawn French Live: 30 Million Minutes (b086knj2)
Dawn French in her critically acclaimed one-woman show, 30 Million Minutes. Filmed during its final West End run in October 2016, it takes the audience on a journey through various delights and riches, with the odd irksome tribulation thrown in, as Dawn speaks about the lessons life has taught her and the things she knows to be true. The evidence is there for all to see. She is already three quarters certifiably daft. The other quarter is utterly bewildered. And the remaining quarter simply can't do maths. With a sharp eye for comic detail and a wicked ear for the absurdities of life, this is a true Christmas treat to see the critically acclaimed comedian at her finest.

SAT 23:00 Timeshift (b06l0v9d)
Series 15

Looking for Mr Bond: 007 at the BBC

After more than 60 years tracking James Bond in print and on screen, the BBC opens up its vaults to reveal the forgotten files on the world's most famous secret agent. Featuring rare and candid interviews with all six actors to play 007, and exclusive behind-the-scenes footage, this is James Bond unguarded, unrestricted and unseen.

SAT 00:00 Premium Bond with Mark Gatiss and Matthew Sweet (p02sx893)
In impeccable evening dress, Mark Gatiss and Matthew Sweet ponder the Bonds we've seen on screen since Dr No in 1962 and ask - which 007 is the best? To date, six actors have portrayed British Secret Service agent James Bond. Was Sean Connery impossible to surpass? Was George Lazenby really that bad? Was Live and Let Die really a blaxploitation movie in disguise? Gatiss and Sweet consider these and many other questions, and raise a martini in honour of their premium Bond.

SAT 00:55 A Year in the Life of a Year (b086twq2)
2016

A comic cultural review of 2016, told through mash-up and manipulated archive footage.

SAT 01:25 Dawn French Live: 30 Million Minutes (b086knj2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]

SUNDAY 01 JANUARY 2017

SUN 19:00 New Year's Day Concert (b087k5rc)
2017 - Highlights

A chance to enjoy highlights from the live concert in which virtuoso Venezuelan Gustavo Dudamel conducted the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra in their traditional start to the New Year. Petroc Trelawny is on hand to guide us through their finest galops, polkas and waltzes composed by the Strauss family and their contemporaries.

Viewers can enjoy performances not only from the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra but also by dancers from the Vienna State Ballet and the world-renowned Choir of the Society of the Friends of Music, consistently ranked among the best concert choirs in the world.

As is traditional, the concert comes to a close with the beloved By the Beautiful Blue Danube, and concludes with the stirring crowd-pleaser, the Radetzky March.

SUN 21:00 Flying Scotsman: Sounds from the Footplate (b087k5rf)
Another chance to enjoy the view from the driving seat of the world's most famous steam locomotive as Flying Scotsman travels the length of the Severn Valley Railway.

Special 'cab cameras' and microphones capture all the action from the footplate - this time without commentary. Viewers can appreciate the evocative sound of steam transportation as this magnificent engine attracts crowds from far and wide.

Veteran driver Roger Norfolk and fireman Ryan Green guide Scotsman on the leisurely journey through the countryside of the English midlands, from Bridgnorth in Shropshire to Kidderminster in Worcestershire. Hundreds of enthusiasts also watch and wave from platforms, bridges and surrounding fields.

SUN 22:00 I'm Not In Love: The Story of 10cc (b06r14pr)
In celebration of the 40th anniversary of smash hit I'm Not in Love, the original members of 10cc - Graham Gouldman, Eric Stewart, Kevin Godley and Lol Creme - reunite to tell their story. The documentary shares the secrets to some of their most successful records, from the writing and the recording to the tours and the tensions.

With contributions from an impressive array of music industry legends including 10cc's band manager Harvey Lisberg, lyricist Sir Tim Rice, broadcaster Paul Gambaccini, legendary producer Trevor Horn, Stewart Copeland (The Police), Graham Nash (The Hollies) and Dan Gillespie Sells (The Feeling), not only does this film highlight the diversity of these four brilliant musicians' songwriting talent, but it also delves into the influence they had, as well as the politics beneath their acrimonious split in 1976, at the height of their fame.

SUN 23:00 Top of the Pops (b086xg7z)
Simon Bates presents the weekly chart show, first broadcast on 9 December 1982. Includes appearances from Shalamar, Soft Cell, Shakin' Stevens, Yazoo, Junior, Lionel Richie, The Jam, Renee & Renato, and David Bowie & Bing Crosby.

SUN 23:35 Top of the Pops (b086xg81)
David Jensen presents the weekly chart show, first broadcast on 23 December 1982. Includes appearances from The Maisonettes, David Bowie & Bing Crosby, Incantation, Shakin' Stevens, Imagination, ABBA, Keith Harris & Orville, Renee & Renato and Modern Romance.

SUN 00:05 Pop Charts Britannia: 60 Years of the Top 10 (b01nwfxs)
Documentary chronicling our ever-changing love affair with the British singles chart on the occasion of its sixtieth anniversary. From the first NME chart in 1952, via Pick and Top of the Pops to home-taping the Radio One chart show and beyond, we have measured out our lives to a wonderful churn of pop driven, unbeknownst to us, by a clandestine world of music biz hustle. Featuring contributions by 60 years of BBC chart custodians from David Jacobs to Reggie Yates, chart fans Grace Dent and Pete Paphides and music biz veterans Jon Webster and Rob Dickins.

SUN 01:35 Forever Young: How Rock 'n' Roll Grew Up (b00sxjls)
Documentary which looks at how rock 'n' roll has had to deal with the unthinkable - namely growing up and growing old, from its roots in the 50s as music made by young people for young people to the 21st-century phenomena of the revival and the comeback.

Despite the mantra of 'live fast, die young', Britain's first rock 'n' roll generations are now enjoying old age. What was once about youth and taking risks is now about longevity, survival, nostalgia and refusing to grow up, give up or shut up. But what happens when the music refuses to die and its performers refuse to leave the stage? What happens when rock's youthful rebelliousness is delivered wrapped in wrinkles?

Featuring Lemmy, Iggy Pop, Peter Noone, Rick Wakeman, Paul Jones, Richard Thompson, Suggs, Eric Burdon, Bruce Welch, Robert Wyatt, Gary Brooker, Joe Brown, Chris Dreja of The Yardbirds, Alison Moyet, Robyn Hitchcock, writers Rosie Boycott and Nick Kent and producer Joe Boyd.

SUN 02:35 British Sitcom: 60 Years of Laughing at Ourselves (b07vxlnl)
Documentary celebrating the British sitcom and taking a look at the social and political context from which our favourite sitcoms grew. We enjoy a trip through the comedy archive in the company of the people who made some of the very best British sitcoms. From The Likely Lads to I'm Alan Partridge, we find out the inspiration behind some of the most-loved characters and how they reflect the times they were living in.

Narrated by Rebecca Front, with commentary and insider knowledge from Steve Coogan, Richard Curtis, Beryl Vertue, James Corden, Jack Dee and top writing team Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais.

MONDAY 02 JANUARY 2017

MON 19:00 The Queen Mary: Greatest Ocean Liner (b07d2wy4)
With exclusive access to the magnificent liner and its extensive archive of film and photographs, this documentary explores the action-packed life of the Clyde-built ship - an epic journey through some of the most dynamic periods of the 20th century.

Built with the blood and sweat of the master craftsmen of the Clydebank shipyards, she helped drag a nation from the depths of the great depression and set sail as a symbol of new hope and a better future. Leaving Southampton on 27 May 1936, her maiden voyage to New York set a new benchmark in transatlantic travel. Designed in peacetime to link the old world with the new, she ferried movie stars, politicians and royalty across the Atlantic, luxuriously cocooned in an art-deco floating palace.

Then, in 1939, she was transformed to challenge the fury of the Nazis in the Battle of the Atlantic. With a wartime record to rival that of the highest-ranking general, she carried whole armies through enemy-infested seas. Hitler offered a bonus of $250,000 and the Iron Cross to any U-boat captain who could sink the Queen Mary.

When the war was over, the Queen Mary gave passage to thousands of British war brides and children who planned a new life in the New World. The Queen Mary was a great attraction to the rich and famous celebrities of the 1950s and 60s.

From an exclusive interview with singer Johnny Mathis, we find out what it was like to perform on the rough seas of the Atlantic. The liner continued in service until 1967 and is now a floating luxury hotel and museum docked in a custom-made lagoon in Long Beach, California.

MON 20:00 How the Wild West Was Won with Ray Mears (b045nz9q)
Deserts

Ray Mears looks at how the landscapes of America's five great deserts challenged the westward push of the early pioneers.

As Ray travels through the cold high mountain Great Basin desert and the hot Sonoran desert of southern Arizona, he discovers how their hostile geography and rich geology shaped the stories of fortune hunting and lawlessness in the Wild West, and were the setting for the last wars between the US Army and the Apache warrior tribes.

Ray's journey begins in Monument Valley, whose dramatic desert landscape has become synonymous with the Wild West years. He explores how plants and animals survive in this waterless climate and how the Navajo Indian people adapted to the conditions. In Tucson, he meets up with desert coroners Bruce Anderson and Robin Reineke, who show him how the desert still kills people today.

He explores how the Apache adapted their warfare methods to the desert and how the US cavalry struggled in the hot arid landscape. In Tombstone, he gets to grips with the myths around lawmakers and lawlessness and how it flourished in the remote desert regions of the Old West. He discovers how this forbidding landscape was the perfect refuge for bandits and pursues the outlaw trail to Butch Cassidy's hideout at Robber's Roost. His journey ends with the story of Geronimo's surrender which marked the end of the Indian Wars, and of the Old West.

MON 21:00 Albert Nobbs (b01pzrk5)
Industrious but introverted Albert hides a secret from the world, especially his fellow staff at a Dublin hotel. Encounters with decorator Hubert Page fuel Albert's dreams, not only of a better life, but of being able to share it with someone like maid Helen - though she is in love with new handyman Joe.

Unusual period drama featuring Oscar-nominated performances.

MON 22:45 Dames of Classic Drama at the BBC (b06nxrv3)
Today, they are at the centre of British cultural life and among our greatest exports - the acting dames, an exclusive club of stage and screen greats who were honoured for their services to drama. But, lurking in the BBC archives - from long before their talents were recognised by royal decree - we find the early work and some career defining moments of Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Diana Rigg and Helen Mirren. David Tennant narrates the story of our dames of classic drama, from a golden age of British television drama.

MON 23:45 Clara Bow: Hollywood's Lost Screen Goddess (b01pjn8h)
Documentary about Clara Bow, a cinema sensation who broke box office records and became one of the greatest stars of the silent screen. Amid scandal and ill health, she retired for good at the age of just 28. Once the Queen of Hollywood, now largely forgotten - whatever happened to Clara Bow?

MON 00:45 The King & the Playwright: A Jacobean History (p00qhsr7)
Incertainties

American scholar James Shapiro presents a three-part series about Shakespeare in the reign of King James, beginning with the anxious mood of 1603 when a new dynasty came to power. Puritans, plague, an extravagant gift to a Spanish diplomatic delegation, and a new British coin called the Unite all feature in Shapiro's rich and fascinating history of a troubled time which saw an extraordinary creative outpouring.

MON 01:45 Shakespeare's Mother: The Secret Life of a Tudor Woman (b05279pq)
Michael Wood tells the extraordinary story of an ordinary woman in a time of revolution. Born during the reign of Henry VIII, Mary Arden is the daughter of a Warwickshire farmer, but she marries into a new life in the rising Tudor middle class in Stratford-upon-Avon. There she has eight children, three of whom die young. Her husband becomes mayor, but is bankrupted by his shady business dealings. Faced with financial ruin, religious persecution and power politics, the family is the glue that keeps them together until they are rescued by Mary's successful eldest son - William Shakespeare!

MON 02:45 The Queen Mary: Greatest Ocean Liner (b07d2wy4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 today]

TUESDAY 03 JANUARY 2017

TUE 19:00 World News Today (b087c936)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.

TUE 19:30 Secrets of Bones (b03vrtzp)
Size Matters

Evolutionary biologist and master skeleton builder Ben Garrod begins a six-part journey to discover how bones have enabled vertebrates to colonise and dominate practically every habitat on Earth.

Ben shows us what bone is constructed from and how it can support animals that are both minuscule - a frog just a few millimetres long - and massive - the blue whale, two hundred million times bigger.

TUE 20:00 Timeshift (b00nrtj6)
Series 9

The Last Days of the Liners

Documentary which tells the story of how, in the years following the Second World War, countries competed to launch the most magnificent passenger ships on the great ocean routes.

National pride and prestige were at stake. The Americans had the United States, the fastest liner of all; the Dutch had the elegant Rotterdam; the Italians had the sleek Michelangelo; the French had the France as their supreme symbol of national culture and cuisine; and Britain had the Queens Mary and Elizabeth.

The coming of the jetliner and the 1960s' assault on class and privilege might have swept this world away, but as the film explains, the giant vessels sailed on. Today, more people than ever travel on big ships - liners that have a modern take on glamour and romance.

TUE 21:00 Why the Industrial Revolution Happened Here (b01pz9d6)
Professor Jeremy Black examines one of the most extraordinary periods in British history: the Industrial Revolution. He explains the unique economic, social and political conditions that by the 19th century, led to Britain becoming the richest, most powerful nation on Earth. It was a time that transformed the way people think, work and play forever.

He traces the unprecedented explosion of new ideas and technological inventions that transformed Britain's agricultural society into an increasingly industrial and urbanised one. The documentary explores two fascinating questions - why did the industrial revolution happen when it did, and why did it happen in Britain?

Professor Black discusses the reasons behind this transformation - from Britain's coal reserves, which gave it a seemingly inexhaustible source of power, to the ascendency of political liberalism, with engineers and industrialists able to meet and share ideas and inventions. He explains the influence that geniuses like Josiah Wedgewood had on the consumer revolution and travels to Antigua to examine the impact Britain's empire had on this extraordinary period of growth.

TUE 22:00 Ben Building: Mussolini, Monuments and Modernism (b07d7nj9)
Having previously investigated the architecture of Hitler and Stalin's regimes, Jonathan Meades turns his attention to another notorious 20th-century European dictator, Mussolini.

His travels take him to Rome, Milan, Genoa, the new town of Sabaudia and the vast military memorials of Redipuglia and Monte Grappa.

When it comes to the buildings of the fascist era, Meades discovers a dictator who couldn't dictate, with Mussolini caught between the contending forces of modernism and a revivalism that harked back to ancient Rome. The result was a variety of styles that still influence architecture today.

Along the way, Meades ponders on the nature of fascism, the influence of the Futurists, and Mussolini's love of a fancy uniform.

TUE 23:30 Horizon (b01cywtq)
2011-2012

The Truth about Exercise

Like many, Michael Mosley wants to get fitter and healthier but can't face hours on the treadmill or trips to the gym. Help may be at hand.

Michael uncovers the surprising new research which suggests many of us could benefit from just three minutes of high intensity exercise a week.

He discovers the hidden power of simple activities like walking and fidgeting, and finds out why some of us don't respond to exercise at all.

Using himself as a guinea pig, Michael uncovers the revealing new research about exercise that has the power to make us all live longer and healthier lives.

TUE 00:30 A Very British Renaissance (b03yzjy6)
The Renaissance Arrives

We think of the Renaissance as something that happened only in Italy, or in continental Europe. Art historian Dr James Fox believes otherwise - that Britain had its own Renaissance - one that easily measures up to the explosion of art and ideas that happened on the continent.

He tells the story of the painters, sculptors, poets, playwrights, composers, inventors, explorers, craftsmen and scientists who revolutionised the way we saw the world.

In the first episode, he traces the story of how the arrival of a handful of foreign artists in the 16th century sparked a cultural revolution in Britain.

TUE 01:30 Why the Industrial Revolution Happened Here (b01pz9d6)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]

TUE 02:30 Timeshift (b00nrtj6)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 today]

WEDNESDAY 04 JANUARY 2017

WED 19:00 World News Today (b087c93c)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.

WED 19:30 Secrets of Bones (b03wct07)
Down to Earth

Evolutionary biologist and master skeleton builder Ben Garrod discovers how the skeleton has adapted for vertebrates to move on land in a remarkable number of ways. They can swing through the trees, slide on the forest floor, dig through dark subterranean worlds and run at speed across the savannahs. Ben explores the role of the spine in both cheetahs and snakes, shows how adaptations to the pentadactyl limb have helped gibbons and horses thrive and how one unique bone in the animal kingdom has been puzzling scientists for years.

WED 20:00 10 Things You Didn't Know About... (b008vrwk)
Avalanches

Iain Stewart travels across mountain ranges and glaciers to reveal ten remarkable stories about avalanches.

Over a million avalanches happen throughout the world each year, and yet we know more about the surface of the moon than we do about the chaotic turbulence inside an avalanche. Scientists have had to put themselves right inside a raging avalanche to find out more.

Stewart shows how the deadliest avalanche in history killed 18,000 people in three minutes; how Hannibal's army was devastated by avalanches as he crossed the Alps to fight Rome; why an avalanche was key to one of the greatest aviation mysteries of all time; and how global warming may increase the rate of ice avalanches in the future.

WED 21:00 James May: The Reassembler (b087kbc8)
Series 2

Food Mixer

When it comes to cooking James May is not the first name that comes to mind, but when it comes to reassembling cooking appliances, James is your man.

James reassembles the 135 parts that make up a 1960s Kenwood Chef a701a Food Mixer. This literal food revolution is responsible for mixing more cake batter than Mary Berry has mixed in her entire lifetime.

On James's journey to reassembling the food mixer he comes face to face with some mind-boggling components that will all come together to work in unison in the hope of making a chocolate cake mix. From reassembling the planetary gear system and the AC electric motor James muses on the imperial measurement system and shows off his trendy new magnification head gear as he attempts some dreaded soldering.

WED 21:30 Pop Quiz: The Comeback (b087kbcb)
Episode 2

First seen in 1981 Pop Quiz was the BBC's Saturday night smash hit music quiz show. Over 30 years later it's back, with the original presenter Mike Read hosting his 50th edition where the biggest pop stars from the 1980s go head to head in a test of their 80s music knowledge.

Guests include Nick Heyward (Haircut 100), Carol Decker (T'Pau), David Grant (Linx), Cheryl Baker and Jay Aston (Bucks Fizz) and Ranking Roger (The Beat).

WED 22:00 Top of the Pops (b00zwrn5)
1964 to 1975 - Big Hits

1964 saw the birth of a very British institution. Spanning over four decades, Top of the Pops has produced many classic moments in pop culture.

Digging deep within the darkest depths of the BBC's archive, this compilation offers some memorable performances from 1964 through to 1975 from the likes of The Rolling Stones, Tom Jones, Status Quo, Procol Harum, Stevie Wonder, Queen and The Kinks, and opens the vintage vaults to rare performances from Stealers Wheel, Julie Driscoll, Peter Sarstedt and The Seekers.

So sit back and witness once again where music met television.

WED 23:30 Storyville (b05psdvz)
My Mother the Secret Baby

In this funny and moving documentary, acclaimed film-maker Daisy Asquith tells the very personal story of her mother's conception after a dance in the 1940s on the remote west coast of Ireland.

By exploring the repercussions of this act, Daisy and her mother embark on a fascinating and emotional adventure in social and sexual morality. Her grandmother, compelled to run away to have her baby in secret, handed the child over to 'the nuns'. Daisy's mum was eventually adopted by English Catholics from Stoke-on-Trent. Her grandmother returned to Ireland and told no-one. The father remained a mystery for another 60 years, until Daisy and her mum decided it was time to find out who he was.

Their attempts to find the truth make raw the fear and shame that Catholicism has wrought on the Irish psyche for centuries. It leads Daisy and her mum to connect with a brand new family living an extraordinarily different life.

WED 00:45 10 Things You Didn't Know About... (b008vrwk)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 today]

WED 01:45 How the Wild West Was Won with Ray Mears (b045nz9q)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 on Monday]

WED 02:45 ArtWorks Scotland (b021ncdh)
The Man Who Collected the World: William Burrell

William Burrell made a fortune out of shipping and spent it on art. Over his long life, he assembled one of the most remarkable private collections of paintings, sculptures, tapestries, ceramics and stained glass in the world and in 1944 he donated it all - over 9,000 objects - to the city of Glasgow. The Burrell Collection finally opened to the public in 1983, but the building that bears his name contains no tribute to Burrell and he never commissioned a portrait of himself.

Kirsty Wark tells the story of the self-effacing collector and tours the highlights of his collection in the company of its curators.

THURSDAY 05 JANUARY 2017

THU 19:00 World News Today (b087c93j)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.

THU 19:30 Secrets of Bones (b03x3zfs)
Into the Air

Ben Garrod finds out how the skeleton has allowed vertebrates to do the most remarkable thing of all - take to the air. He discovers why the humble pigeon is such an exceptional flier, uncovers bony secrets as to how the albatross makes mammoth migrations and finds out why some birds have dense bones. Finally, he reveals which surprising flier is his 'ultimate'.

THU 20:00 Natural World (b03fq319)
2013-2014

Killer Whales: Beneath the Surface

The killer whale was long feared as a sea monster until, in May 1964, one was brought into captivity for the first time. This spawned a journey of discovery into the killer whale's true nature.

It quickly became clear these were not mindless killers - they were, in fact, highly intelligent social creatures. Today, our understanding is deepening still further and the latest revelations are among the most sensational - not only will these top predators 'adopt' and care for injured and abandoned orphans, but it seems there's no longer just the 'killer whale'.

THU 21:00 Sword, Musket & Machine Gun: Britain's Armed History (b087llsj)
Cut & Thrust

In the first of this three-part series, Dr Sam Willis charts the evolution of weaponry in Britain throughout the Middle Ages.

Beginning with the Battle of Ethandun in 878, when the future of Anglo-Saxon England lay in the balance, Sam examines the weapons and tactics used by King Alfred to keep the Viking raiders at bay, and gets hands-on experience as he joins re-enactors behind a shield-wall, used by the Anglo-Saxons en masse as an attacking weapon to drive back and defeat the Vikings.

Sam travels to France to examine the famous Bayeux Tapestry, with its depiction of the huge arsenal massed by William the Conqueror for his invasion of England in 1066. With the Norman mounted knight came innovations in weapon technology, chiefly stronger and lighter swords, and Sam is given a lesson in swordsmanship using the earliest known combat manual.

Sam also visits the Chateaux de Tancarville in Normandy to tell the story of William Marshal, said to be the greatest knight who ever lived, and how he forged his reputation using a new weapon - the lance - in the extreme sport of its day, the tourney. To get a real sense of the tourney, Sam watches a display of its later incarnation - the joust.

The increasing number of castles and sieges brought with it a new age of projectile missile weaponry, principally the crossbow. Holed up in a castle tower, Sam gets to test-fire different crossbows and discovers why they became outlawed by the pope as instruments of the devil. Visiting the battlefield sites of Halidon Hill in Northumberland and Crecy in northern France, and again getting hands-on with the weapon in question, Sam examines how King Edward III strategically deployed the traditional longbow in vast numbers to devastating effect against the Scots and the French, and as such how it came to be regarded as the chief weapon of the Middle Ages.

THU 22:00 The Greatest Knight: William the Marshal (b03z2l6l)
The fascinating story of knighthood, told through the extraordinary life and times of William Marshal, whom many consider the world's greatest knight. From Europe's medieval castles to the holy city of Jerusalem, presenter Thomas Asbridge explores William's incredible life, revealing a rip-roaring adventure story in the spirit of King Arthur's Knights of the Round Table.

In a career that spanned half a century, this English soldier and statesman served some of Christendom's greatest leaders, from Eleanor of Aquitaine to Richard the Lionheart. Marshal fought in battles across Europe, survived court intrigue and exile, put his seal to the Magna Carta and proved to be the best friend a king could have, remaining loyal to those he served through disaster and victory. Then at the age of 70, despite all the odds, he saved England from a French invasion.

THU 23:00 Donald Campbell: Speed King (b01rrk63)
Donald Campbell is world famous for his speed records on land and water and, of course, that fatal crash in Bluebird on Lake Coniston in 1967. His story as one of the last of the great British boffins, his place in the making of modern Britain and his daredevil feats made him a household name. However, the behind-the-scenes story of a man driven by fear of failure, by a desire to keep both himself and his country at the top of their game, has never been told. Until now.

For the first time ever this film goes behind the carefully orchestrated public image Campbell created to reveal a very different man. Backed by exclusive access to extensive new colour archive that covers his whole life (from private and public collections), Campbell's close family and friends describe his quest for success and ultimate transformation from a man at the top to someone struggling for recognition, to myth after the tragic events of 1967.

THU 00:00 Timeshift (b00nrtj6)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 on Tuesday]

THU 01:00 James May: The Reassembler (b087kbc8)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 on Wednesday]

THU 01:30 The Greatest Knight: William the Marshal (b03z2l6l)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:00 today]

THU 02:30 Sword, Musket & Machine Gun: Britain's Armed History (b087llsj)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]

FRIDAY 06 JANUARY 2017

FRI 19:00 World News Today (b087c93p)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.

FRI 19:30 Secrets of Bones (b03xsgwh)
Sensing the World

Ben Garrod delves into the surprising ways in which bone has evolved to help vertebrates sense the world around them. He reveals why predators like the wolf have eyes at the front of their skull whereas prey animals such as sheep usually have eye sockets on the sides of their heads. He finds out how the skull of the great grey owl has helped it develop such extraordinary hearing and uncovers the secret behind one bizarre creature's uniquely flexible nose.

FRI 20:00 The Good Old Days (b087kfj5)
Leonard Sachs presents an edition of the old time music hall programme, first broadcast on 17 February 1977. With Les Dawson, The King's Singers, Patsy Gilland, Peter Gale and members of the Players' Theatre, London.

FRI 20:45 Sounds of the Sixties (b07sx0qm)
Reversions

First Steps 2

Craig Douglas gets lonesome, Joe Brown & the Bruvvers only take a minute, and Peter & Gordon live in a world without love in this swinging sixties archive show.

FRI 20:55 Pop Go the Sixties (b00cyyqt)
Series 2

Sandie Shaw

Pop moments from the BBC's 60s archive. From a rehearsal for a Top of the Pops performance, Sandie gives an accidentally aloof ice-queen rendering of Long Live Love so the cameras can practice their positions. An otherworldly performance of her number 1 hit from 1965.

FRI 21:00 Top of the Pops (b087lmbd)
The Story of 1983

It's 1983, and Top of the Pops reaches a landmark - its 1,000th edition. A time to celebrate, perhaps, but there are signs that the show is going through something of a mid-life crisis. The aristocracy of British New Pop are in the ascendant - Culture Club, Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, Wham! - but the rise of the video starts to threaten the show's unique appeal, which is based on getting the top artists into the studio. So producer Michael Hurll tries out new features - the first regular female presenter, Janice Long; the Top Ten Video Countdown; the European charts (intoned by John Peel in Paris whilst eating a bag of frites), even the South East Asian charts (not that they exist, as David Jensen discovers). And more live shows, to keep the adrenaline flowing - as well as a genuinely live performance by New Order of their anti-song 'Blue Monday'.

1983 is also the year when several great TOTP institutions come to an end. Bands no longer have to rerecord their backing tracks, thanks to an agreement finally being reached between the Musicians' Union and the BBC. And Flick Colby's dance troupe Zoo throw their final pose, killed off by videos and cheerleaders.

In the year that Margaret Thatcher is re-elected with a landslide majority, the mood in the charts is escapism. But 1983 is also a year of musical reinvention. Alongside the rise of indie bands like New Order, and a memorable first appearance of The Smiths with Morrissey swinging his gladioli, other acts who've inhabited the backwaters for years now fine-tune their image and enter the mainstream in a bid for chart success. Thompson Twins slim down to a trio and hit the Top Ten with a new electro-pop sound. Bonnie Tyler reinvigorates her career thanks to Jim Steinman. The Style Council are Paul Weller's unlikely post-The Jam project. Heaven 17 go head to head with former bandmates The Human League, and Spandau Ballet top the charts for the 1,000th episode with the blue-eyed soul of True. But there is also room for shooting stars such as Paul Weller's prodigy Tracie; the meteoric rise and fall of Kajagoogoo; the curious Cajan spice of Haysi Fantayzee; the pout of Marilyn; and the year ends with Yazoo's No 2 hit Only You becoming an acapella Christmas No 1 (as well as Mrs Thatcher's favourite song) for The Flying Pickets.

Featuring original interviews with Bonnie Tyler, Tracie Young, Marilyn and members of New Order, Kajagoogoo, Haysi Fantayzee, Spandau Ballet, The Smiths, The Flying Pickets and Thompson Twins.

FRI 22:00 Top of the Pops (b087lmbg)
1983 - Big Hits

Compilation of some of the biggest hits of 1983 to sit alongside 'The Story of...' documentary that explores the evolution of this great pop institution in that golden year.

Performances celebrate soul, reggae, jazz, new wave and pop. And the big hits are delivered by Wham!, KC and the Sunshine Band, The Police, Culture Club, Siouxsie and The Banshees, UB40, Duran Duran, The Beat and Bananarama amongst others. Big ballads are performed by Elton John and Bonnie Tyler, while Malcolm McLaren's Double Dutch completes the very best of '83, golden hits from 34 years ago.

FRI 23:00 Biggest Band Break Ups and Make Ups (b05q472d)
Mark Radcliffe presents a look at the highs and lows of band life - the creative tension that produces great music and the pressures that come with success and fame, and pull most bands apart. Radcliffe lifts the lid on the main reasons why bands break up and the secrets of bands that manage to stay together.

FRI 00:00 Pop Quiz: The Comeback (b087kbcb)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:30 on Wednesday]

FRI 00:30 Top of the Pops (b087lmbd)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]

FRI 01:30 Top of the Pops (b087lmbg)
[Repeat of broadcast at 22:00 today]

FRI 02:30 Biggest Band Break Ups and Make Ups (b05q472d)
[Repeat of broadcast at 23:00 today]

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

10 Things You Didn't Know About... 20:00 WED (b008vrwk)

10 Things You Didn't Know About... 00:45 WED (b008vrwk)

A Very British Renaissance 00:30 TUE (b03yzjy6)

A Year in the Life of a Year 00:55 SAT (b086twq2)

Albert Nobbs 21:00 MON (b01pzrk5)

ArtWorks Scotland 02:45 WED (b021ncdh)

Ben Building: Mussolini, Monuments and Modernism 22:00 TUE (b07d7nj9)

Biggest Band Break Ups and Make Ups 23:00 FRI (b05q472d)

Biggest Band Break Ups and Make Ups 02:30 FRI (b05q472d)

British Sitcom: 60 Years of Laughing at Ourselves 02:35 SUN (b07vxlnl)

Clara Bow: Hollywood's Lost Screen Goddess 23:45 MON (b01pjn8h)

Dames of Classic Drama at the BBC 22:45 MON (b06nxrv3)

Dawn French Live: 30 Million Minutes 21:00 SAT (b086knj2)

Dawn French Live: 30 Million Minutes 01:25 SAT (b086knj2)

Donald Campbell: Speed King 23:00 THU (b01rrk63)

Flying Scotsman: Sounds from the Footplate 21:00 SUN (b087k5rf)

Forever Young: How Rock 'n' Roll Grew Up 01:35 SUN (b00sxjls)

Horizon 23:30 TUE (b01cywtq)

How the Wild West Was Won with Ray Mears 20:00 MON (b045nz9q)

How the Wild West Was Won with Ray Mears 01:45 WED (b045nz9q)

I'm Not In Love: The Story of 10cc 22:00 SUN (b06r14pr)

James May: The Reassembler 21:00 WED (b087kbc8)

James May: The Reassembler 01:00 THU (b087kbc8)

Natural World 20:00 THU (b03fq319)

New Year's Day Concert 19:00 SUN (b087k5rc)

Pop Charts Britannia: 60 Years of the Top 10 00:05 SUN (b01nwfxs)

Pop Go the Sixties 20:55 SAT (b00crz39)

Pop Go the Sixties 20:55 FRI (b00cyyqt)

Pop Quiz: The Comeback 21:30 WED (b087kbcb)

Pop Quiz: The Comeback 00:00 FRI (b087kbcb)

Premium Bond with Mark Gatiss and Matthew Sweet 00:00 SAT (p02sx893)

Secrets of Bones 19:30 TUE (b03vrtzp)

Secrets of Bones 19:30 WED (b03wct07)

Secrets of Bones 19:30 THU (b03x3zfs)

Secrets of Bones 19:30 FRI (b03xsgwh)

Shakespeare's Mother: The Secret Life of a Tudor Woman 01:45 MON (b05279pq)

Show Boat 19:00 SAT (b025ydw0)

Sounds of the Sixties 20:45 SAT (b072w25j)

Sounds of the Sixties 20:45 FRI (b07sx0qm)

Storyville 23:30 WED (b05psdvz)

Sword, Musket & Machine Gun: Britain's Armed History 21:00 THU (b087llsj)

Sword, Musket & Machine Gun: Britain's Armed History 02:30 THU (b087llsj)

The Good Old Days 20:00 FRI (b087kfj5)

The Greatest Knight: William the Marshal 22:00 THU (b03z2l6l)

The Greatest Knight: William the Marshal 01:30 THU (b03z2l6l)

The King & the Playwright: A Jacobean History 00:45 MON (p00qhsr7)

The Queen Mary: Greatest Ocean Liner 19:00 MON (b07d2wy4)

The Queen Mary: Greatest Ocean Liner 02:45 MON (b07d2wy4)

Timeshift 23:00 SAT (b06l0v9d)

Timeshift 20:00 TUE (b00nrtj6)

Timeshift 02:30 TUE (b00nrtj6)

Timeshift 00:00 THU (b00nrtj6)

Top of the Pops 23:00 SUN (b086xg7z)

Top of the Pops 23:35 SUN (b086xg81)

Top of the Pops 22:00 WED (b00zwrn5)

Top of the Pops 21:00 FRI (b087lmbd)

Top of the Pops 22:00 FRI (b087lmbg)

Top of the Pops 00:30 FRI (b087lmbd)

Top of the Pops 01:30 FRI (b087lmbg)

Why the Industrial Revolution Happened Here 21:00 TUE (b01pz9d6)

Why the Industrial Revolution Happened Here 01:30 TUE (b01pz9d6)

World News Today 19:00 TUE (b087c936)

World News Today 19:00 WED (b087c93c)

World News Today 19:00 THU (b087c93j)

World News Today 19:00 FRI (b087c93p)