The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.
World War I was a railway war. Michael Portillo finds out how the railways helped to precipitate a mechanised war, shaped how it was fought, conveyed millions to the trenches and bore witness to its end. He takes to historic tracks to rediscover the locomotives and wagons of the war that was supposed to end all wars and hears the stories of the gallant men and women who used them in life and in death.
In this final episode, Michael explores the aftermath of this earth-shattering conflict. For four years, the railways had fed the front line with vast numbers of men, munitions and supplies. But even after the armistice had been signed in a railway carriage, the work of the railways was not done. As Britain continued to mourn its dead, the railways played an important part in their remembrance. Michael hears stories of railway war heroes and encounters a remarkable railway wagon used to honour them. He hears how the railways helped give birth to battlefield tourism, and in the cemeteries of Ypres he meets the great-grandchildren of some of the fallen.
More action from Pyeongchang, with extended highlights of the women's halfpipe final in the snowboarding and the men's individual sprint in the cross-country skiing.
The British back garden is a familiar setting, but underneath the peonies and petunias is a much wilder hidden world, a miniature Serengeti, with beauty and brutality in equal measure. In this documentary, Chris Packham and a team of wildlife experts spend an entire year exploring every inch of a series of interlinked back gardens in Welwyn Garden City. They want to answer a fundamental question: how much wildlife lives beyond our back doors? How good for wildlife is the great British garden?
Through all four seasons, Chris reveals a stranger side to some of our more familiar garden residents. In summer he meets a very modern family of foxes - with a single dad in charge - and finds that a single fox litter can have up to five different fathers. In winter he shows that a robin's red breast is actually war paint. And finally, in spring he finds a boiling ball of frisky frogs in a once-in-a-year mating frenzy.
The secret lives of the gardens' smallest residents are even weirder. The team finds male crickets that bribe females with food during sex, spiders that change colour to help catch prey, and life-and-death battles going on under our noses in the compost heap.
So how many different species call our gardens home? How well do our gardens support wildlife? By the end of the year, with the help of a crack team from London's Natural History Museum and some of the country's top naturalists, Chris will find out. He'll also discover which type of garden attracts the most wildlife. The results are not what you might expect... You'll never look at your garden in quite the same way again.
The new A1 class steam engine Tornado tries to achieve 100mph on the main line. The secret speed attempt will be made in the dead of night. If it tops the ton it will be the first time in 50 years that steam has gone this fast. Tornado was built over two decades and financed by enthusiasts who want to show steam has a viable future on Britain's railways.
The Hairy Bikers Dave Myers and Si King take us to New Year's Eve in Beijing, following an extraordinary day in China's capital city. They experience life in the mega-city on this special day, from preparations at the bell tower, which can only ever ring on the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve, to a Beijing family, the Zhangs, who are getting ready for the biggest family get-together of the year. The whole city comes to a halt as everyone gathers round dinner tables to tuck into the traditional reunion dinner.
Jing Lusi goes behind the scenes at what some call the world's most popular television show - CCTV's Chunwan Gala, watched by 800 million viewers. For the performers, this is a make-or-break opportunity. Kate Humble takes part in a huge flower auction in the warmer Yunnan province as bales of flowers - mostly lucky red roses - are sold to hit the shops in time for new year. Ant Anstead discovers how the spirit baijiu is made in 450-year-old pits and learns the subtle etiquette that surrounds its drinking.
A magical and moving archive trip through the universal theme of love, set to a stunning soundtrack by Richard Hawley. It takes us on a journey through the 20th century, exploring love and courtship on screen in a century of unprecedented social upheaval. From the very first kisses ever caught on film, through the disruption of war to the birth of youth culture, gay liberation and free love, we follow courting couples flirting at tea dances, kissing in the back of the movies, shacking up and fighting for the right to love.
This is the celluloid story of love and courtship since the birth of the movie camera, told with spellbinding archive footage and directed by award-winning director Kim Longinotto.
Mike Read presents the hits of 1981, in a show first broadcast on 31 December 1981. Includes appearances from Adam & the Ants, John Lennon, Roxy Music, Aneka, The Police, The Specials, Joe Dolce, Julio Iglesias, Bucks Fizz, Soft Cell and The Human League.
Archaeologist Julian Richards returns to some of his most important digs to discover how science, conservation, and brand new finds have changed our understanding of entire eras of ancient history. Julian goes back to the excavation of two very different Iron Age woman - the possible sacrifice of a teenage girl from the Cotswolds, and the extraordinary chariot queen whose well preserved possessions are leading to some astonishing new conclusions about Iron Age belief, all because of a mirror and its otter-fur bag.
Strike makes a breakthrough. Robin is offered a permanent job in HR but is reluctant to take it.
WEDNESDAY 14 FEBRUARY 2018
WED 19:00 Beyond 100 Days (b09rjx00)
Series 1
14/02/2018
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.
WED 19:30 Secret Knowledge (b01rml7t)
Bolsover Castle
Lucy Worsley tells the story of Bolsover Castle in Derbyshire. Built in the early 17th century, it became the pleasure palace of playboy Cavalier and ambitious courtier William Cavendish.
Guiding us on a tour of the castle and its remarkable collection of artworks, Lucy brings to life the spectacular masque held by Cavendish to win the favour of King Charles I.
And from within the walls of this eccentric architectural gem emerges a colourful tale, capturing the tensions of early 17th-century England that would eventually lead the nation to civil war.
WED 20:00 Winter Olympics Extra (b09s7j40)
Pyeongchang 2018
14/02/2018
Extended highlights of the short programme in the pairs figure skating and the men's snowboard halfpipe final. Presented by Radzi Chinyanganya.
WED 21:00 Queen Victoria's Children (b01pp9dg)
A Domestic Tyrant
Queen Victoria and Prince Albert shared a passionate marriage. Behind closed doors, royal domestic life often seemed like a battlefield.
In a 60-year family saga this new three-part series explores the reign of Victoria through her personal relationships with her husband and her nine children. It is a story of manipulation, conflict, intimidation, emotional blackmail, and fevered attempts by her children to escape the clutches of their domineering and needy mother.
The series uses a wealth of written material and photos left by Victoria, Albert and their children, including letters, diaries, memoirs and journals, to bring the subject and characters to life.
This episode concentrates on Victoria's relationship with her daughters. It looks at how, after Albert's death, Victoria clung to and bullied them and arranged their marriages. In response the princesses fought back, becoming independent women determined to find love and fresh purpose. From sculpture to medicine, the daughters became champions of women for a new era.
WED 22:00 The Birth of Empire: The East India Company (b042vxzx)
Original Series
Episode 2
By 1800 the East India Company had grown from a tiny band of merchants into a colossal trading empire. But scandal and corruption in the 18th century had led to a curtailment of its powers by the British government. The state now controlled the company's affairs in India and, throughout the 19th century, would chip away at its remaining powers and trading privileges.
The company was transformed from a trading enterprise into the rulers of India, and governed vast swathes of the subcontinent on behalf of the British Crown. Its territory expanded enormously and an empire was born.
As the company traded opium to a reluctant Chinese Empire, in India a dangerous chasm opened up between the British rulers and the Indian people. Alienated and disaffected, significant numbers of the company's massive army of Indian soldiers finally revolted and the company's handling of the mutiny was its final undoing. In 1858 British India passed into Queen Victoria's hands and the Raj was born.
WED 23:00 Chinese New Year: The Biggest Celebration on Earth (b071c4qc)
Celebration
Kate Humble and Ant Anstead present the final programme from Hong Kong, looking at what happens right after New Year. This great port city is a strange mix of ultra-modern and traditional. Kate trains with a top dragon-dancing troupe and discovers that not only is it a highly demanding kung fu-based art, it is also taken very seriously as Hong Kong people sincerely embrace the tradition of lucky lions and dragons at New Year.
Meanwhile, the Hairy Bikers are in Beijing at the Temple Fair, where they explore a tradition from imperial China of the emperor starting the new year by renewing his mandate of heaven.
Ant heads to China's frozen north east to Chagan Lake to discover the ancient art of fishing beneath the thick frozen surface. It is an extraordinary scene as the fishermen use centuries-old techniques to catch fish, a key part of any New Year's banquet.
The culmination of the series is all about fireworks. Their loud bangs are believed to ward off evil spirits at this time of year. Ant goes to Liuyang, the city that produces nearly all of China's fireworks and many of those used in displays in British skies too. They even have a temple here to the inventor of fireworks, where workers still pay homage to the monk Li Tian, who started it all. And back in Hong Kong, we experience one of the most extraordinary fireworks displays on the planet as millions of Hong Kong dollars' worth go off in a blaze of light and colour over the famous harbour.
WED 00:00 Love Songs at the BBC: A Valentine's Day Special (b00ymh70)
It's a time for guilty pleasures, for courtship, for declarations of love, for looking someone in the eye and whispering sweet nothings, accompanied by a compilation of some of the greatest and squishiest love songs from the likes of Celine Dion, Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes, Jason and Kylie, 10cc and Lionel Richie, all from the Top of the Pops era. If Hot Chocolate and Chaka Khan don't get the temperatures rising, then nothing will.
WED 01:00 Top of the Pops (b07h0hg5)
Peter Powell presents the pop chart show, first broadcast on 7th January 1982. Includes appearances from Alton Edwards, Mobiles, Shakatak, the Human League, Jon & Vangelis, Meat Loaf and Zoo.
WED 01:30 Top of the Pops (b07h0j5m)
David Jensen presents the pop chart show, first broadcast on 21st January 1982. Includes appearances from Gillan, the Mobiles, XTC, Jon & Vangelis, Phil Lynott, Meat Loaf, OMD, Christopher Cross, Foreigner, Bucks Fizz and Zoo.
WED 02:00 Strike (b094kxgj)
The Cuckoo's Calling
Episode 3
Long-buried secrets are revealed, putting Strike and Robin in danger as they close in the killer.
WED 03:00 Queen Victoria's Children (b01pp9dg)
[Repeat of broadcast at
21:00 today]
THURSDAY 15 FEBRUARY 2018
THU 19:00 Beyond 100 Days (b09rjx05)
Series 1
15/02/2018
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.
THU 19:30 The Sky at Night (b09rvpts)
[Repeat of broadcast at
22:00 on Sunday]
THU 20:00 Winter Olympics Extra (b09s7j8g)
Pyeongchang 2018
15/02/2018
Radzi Chinyanganya presents further highlights from South Korea, including the figure skating pairs free programme, and the men's snowboard cross.
THU 21:00 From Ice to Fire: The Incredible Science of Temperature (b09rzqp3)
Series 1
Frozen Solid
Everything around us - from the tiniest insect on Earth to the most distant stars of the cosmos - exists somewhere on a vast scale from cold to hot. In this series, physicist Dr Helen Czerski explores the extraordinary science of temperature. She unlocks the extremes of the temperature scale, from absolute zero to searing heat of stars - and reveals how temperature works, how deep its influence on our lives is, and why it's the hidden force that has shaped our planet and the entire universe.
In episode one, Helen ventures to the bottom of the temperature scale, revealing how cold has shaped the world around us and why frozen doesn't mean what you might think. She meets the scientists pushing temperature to the very limits of cold, where the normal laws of physics break down and a new world of scientific possibility begins. The extraordinary behaviour of matter at temperatures close to absolute zero is driving the advance of technology, from superconductors to quantum computing.
THU 22:00 Wild Weather with Richard Hammond (b04tqghf)
Original Series
Wind: The Invisible Force
Richard Hammond investigates how wind actually starts. He visits one of the windiest places on the planet, walks into the centre of a man-made tornado and creates a 10-metre high whirlwind - made of fire!
Along the way he is part of a world first when he joins up with American meteorologist Reed Timmer and a bizarre vehicle known as the Dominator III. Their aim is to succeed in doing what no one has ever done before, fire a probe into a tornado to measure its speed where it is at its fastest - right next to the ground. As Reed explains, 'near the base of the tornado is one of the biggest mysteries of tornado science and it's also the most important to understand because those are the wind speeds... that cause all the destruction'. To put that right, Reed and his team take The Dominator into the middle of a real live tornado and attempt to fire a probe into the very heart of it.
Richard also visits one of the few places on the planet capable of duplicating a real-life tornado. The Wind Engineering, Energy and Environment Research Institute (or WindEEE for short) in Ontario in Canada hadn't even opened its doors when Richard asked them to take part in an experiment. The $23 million facility is one of the the world's first hexagonal wind tunnels. As Richard says, 'I've got goosebumps. And that's not just because it's cold in here!'
Richard braves the winds and temperatures of -50 degrees Fahrenheit to take a trip outside on top of Mount Washington in New Hampshire. On April 12th 1934, that station measured one of the highest wind speeds ever measured on land - 231 mph.
THU 23:00 Storm Troupers: The Fight to Forecast the Weather (b07cvg9p)
Episode 1
Alok Jha investigates how weather forecasting was transformed from superstition into science.
At the heart of story is pioneering meteorologist, Robert Fitzroy. Driven to prevent disasters at sea - like the wrecking of a passenger ship off the Anglesey coast in 1859 - Fitzroy issued Britain's first storm warnings and came up with the first weather forecast to be published in a newspaper.
Alok explores the knowledge Fitzroy was building on. He investigates weather folklore, asking if sayings such as 'red sky at night, shepherd's delight' have any merit. He tells the stories of the other heroes of meteorology - people like Evangelista Torricelli, a student of Galileo's, who invented the barometer; Luke Howard, who classified the clouds and Francis Beaufort, who came up with the famous wind scale.
Alok also discovers that public complaints about weather forecasts date back to the very first forecasts.
THU 00:00 How We Got to Now with Steven Johnson (b05n7yzb)
Sound
The ability to transport our voices over long distances has been one of the greatest transformations in how we live our lives. Innovation expert Steven Johnson traces the unsung heroes of sound, like the printer in France who first recorded the human voice, the maverick inventor who made radio possible through a mistake and the Hollywood star who used the keys of the piano to inspire encrypted messages. Together they helped set off a chain reaction of innovations which have shaped the modern world.
THU 01:00 Top of the Pops (b07jbqvh)
Simon Bates presents the pop chart show, first broadcast on 28 January 1982. Includes appearances from Tight Fit, Stiff Little Fingers, Elkie Brooks, Alton Edwards, Haircut 100, Olivia Newton John, The Stranglers and Shakin' Stevens.
THU 01:30 Top of the Pops (b07jkwcr)
John Peel presents the pop chart show, first broadcast on 4 February 1982. Includes appearances from OMD, Jets, Soft Cell, XTC, Christopher Cross, Kraftwerk, Theatre of Hate and Zoo.
THU 02:00 Strike (b0959ppk)
The Silkworm
Episode 1
War veteran turned private investigator Cormoran Strike investigates the disappearance of a provocative author. Robin is caught between Strike and Matthew's hopes.
THU 03:00 Strike (b09608pv)
The Silkworm
Episode 2
Delving deeper into the hidden meanings and concealed secrets of Bombyx Mori, Strike and Robin scour all corners of London's literary world to unmask the killer.
FRIDAY 16 FEBRUARY 2018
FRI 19:00 World News Today (b09rjx0b)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.
FRI 19:30 Top of the Pops (b09rmt82)
John Peel and Janice Long present the pop chart programme, first broadcast on 11 April 1985. Featuring Tears for Fears, The Rah Band, Dream Academy, King and Philip Bailey & Phil Collins.
FRI 20:00 Winter Olympics Extra (b09s7jcq)
Pyeongchang 2018
16/02/2018
Extended highlights of the men's short programme in the figure skating and the women's snowboard cross.
FRI 21:00 The Story of Skinheads with Don Letts (b07yv0qj)
Documentary in which director and DJ Don Letts looks at a very particular and very provocative British subculture - skinhead. He explores how skinhead has become associated with street fighting, trouble on the football terraces and violent racism in the public consciousness in Britain and around the world, but reveals that its origins lie in a cultural coming together that could not be further from its tarnished image.
Don shows in fascinating detail how the roots of skinhead are in a brilliant cultural collision between the young white working-class kids and their Jamaican counterparts in British inner cities, a moment of multicultural harmony. He traces the history of skinhead from the late 60s to the present, looking at the music and styles of skinhead from the reggae-influenced ska to the punk-influenced Oi. Throughout Don meets people who were committed members of various skinhead scenes, and he considers the conflicts and the contradictions that skinhead has attracted over five decades.
FRI 22:00 TOTP2 (b007v15w)
Boogie Fever: A TOTP2 Disco Special
Get your dancing shoes on for a show of disco mania as Steve Wright and the TOTP2 team take you back to the dancefloor for some boogie fever. The Bee Gees are here in all their glory, along with Gloria Gaynor, Liquid Gold, Sylvester, The Village People, The Weather Girls and The Three Degrees.
There's classic dance fodder from Chic, George McCrae, Hi-Tension, Heatwave, The JALN Band, Earth Wind and Fire, Tina Charles, The Gibson Brothers and Edwin Starr, disco pop from Blondie, Yazz, Boney M and Linx, while Sophie Ellis-Bextor and Infernal bring the story up to date.
And then there's the Disco Duck. Sorry...
FRI 23:30 Bruno Mars: Live in Harlem (b09kkxz7)
Bruno Mars is in Harlem, New York, to fulfil a lifelong dream of performing at one of the most iconic music venues in the world, the Apollo Theatre. Bruno and his band, The Hooligans, take to the streets, singing and entertaining the locals, and giving out tickets to the big show. Featuring never-before-seen performances including Uptown Funk, 24k Magic and an electrifying rooftop performance on the Apollo's marquee, Bruno Mars thrills the crowd with his first ever TV special.
FRI 00:15 Top of the Pops (b09rmt82)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:30 today]
FRI 00:50 The Story of Skinheads with Don Letts (b07yv0qj)
[Repeat of broadcast at
21:00 today]
FRI 01:50 TOTP2 (b007v15w)
[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)
... Sings Musicals
00:15 SUN (b019jshd)
Art, Passion & Power: The Story of the Royal Collection
02:15 SUN (b09qrbvd)
Beyond 100 Days
19:00 MON (b09rjwzn)
Beyond 100 Days
19:00 TUE (b09rjwzv)
Beyond 100 Days
19:00 WED (b09rjx00)
Beyond 100 Days
19:00 THU (b09rjx05)
Bruno Mars: Live in Harlem
23:30 FRI (b09kkxz7)
China in Six Easy Pieces
00:00 MON (b036r5cx)
Chinese New Year: The Biggest Celebration on Earth
23:00 MON (b071c3nh)
Chinese New Year: The Biggest Celebration on Earth
23:00 TUE (b071c4dn)
Chinese New Year: The Biggest Celebration on Earth
23:00 WED (b071c4qc)
From Ice to Fire: The Incredible Science of Temperature
21:00 THU (b09rzqp3)
Horizon
21:00 SUN (b09574pc)
Horizon
01:15 SUN (b09574pc)
How We Got to Now with Steven Johnson
00:00 THU (b05n7yzb)
Love Songs at the BBC: A Valentine's Day Special
00:00 WED (b00ymh70)
Mary Beard's Ultimate Rome: Empire Without Limit
22:00 MON (b0797ysr)
Mia Madre
22:30 SUN (b07tb1qz)
Modus
21:00 SAT (b09mktwz)
Modus
21:45 SAT (b09chwwq)
Only Connect
19:00 SUN (b09rdlsd)
Queen Victoria's Children
21:00 WED (b01pp9dg)
Queen Victoria's Children
03:00 WED (b01pp9dg)
Railways of the Great War with Michael Portillo
19:30 MON (b04dbspx)
Railways of the Great War with Michael Portillo
19:30 TUE (b04dbt1w)
Robert Rauschenberg - Pop Art Pioneer
21:00 MON (b085k35h)
Robert Rauschenberg - Pop Art Pioneer
03:00 MON (b085k35h)
Rock 'n' Roll Guns for Hire: The Story of the Sideman
00:35 SAT (b08xdlts)
Secret Knowledge
19:30 WED (b01rml7t)
Sicily: The Wonder of the Mediterranean
19:00 SAT (b08dzx1h)
Sicily: The Wonder of the Mediterranean
02:05 SAT (b08dzx1h)
Stories from the Dark Earth: Meet the Ancestors Revisited
01:50 TUE (b01sgx9m)
Storm Troupers: The Fight to Forecast the Weather
23:00 THU (b07cvg9p)
Storyville
00:00 TUE (b052vb0d)
Strike
02:00 MON (b093vftv)
Strike
02:50 TUE (b093vg07)
Strike
02:00 WED (b094kxgj)
Strike
02:00 THU (b0959ppk)
Strike
03:00 THU (b09608pv)
TOTP2
22:00 FRI (b007v15w)
TOTP2
01:50 FRI (b007v15w)
The Birth of Empire: The East India Company
22:00 WED (b042vxzx)
The British Garden: Life and Death on Your Lawn
21:00 TUE (b08xyqcs)
The Fall: The Wonderful and Frightening World of Mark E Smith
22:30 SAT (b0074r00)
The Sky at Night
22:00 SUN (b09rvpts)
The Sky at Night
19:30 THU (b09rvpts)
The Story of Skinheads with Don Letts
21:00 FRI (b07yv0qj)
The Story of Skinheads with Don Letts
00:50 FRI (b07yv0qj)
Top of the Pops
23:30 SAT (b09qrfrq)
Top of the Pops
00:00 SAT (b09qrggd)
Top of the Pops
01:00 MON (b07g8qs0)
Top of the Pops
01:30 MON (b07g9zmn)
Top of the Pops
01:15 TUE (b07gmrvl)
Top of the Pops
01:00 WED (b07h0hg5)
Top of the Pops
01:30 WED (b07h0j5m)
Top of the Pops
01:00 THU (b07jbqvh)
Top of the Pops
01:30 THU (b07jkwcr)
Top of the Pops
19:30 FRI (b09rmt82)
Top of the Pops
00:15 FRI (b09rmt82)
Tornado - the 100mph Steam Engine
22:30 TUE (b08rb16k)
University Challenge
19:30 SUN (b09rdlsj)
Wild Weather with Richard Hammond
22:00 THU (b04tqghf)
Winter Olympics Extra
20:00 SAT (b09s0q97)
Winter Olympics Extra
20:00 SUN (b09s7hql)
Winter Olympics Extra
20:00 MON (b09s7hvv)
Winter Olympics Extra
20:00 TUE (b09s7hzq)
Winter Olympics Extra
20:00 WED (b09s7j40)
Winter Olympics Extra
20:00 THU (b09s7j8g)
Winter Olympics Extra
20:00 FRI (b09s7jcq)
World News Today
19:00 FRI (b09rjx0b)