The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.
Matisse was one of the most celebrated painters of the 20th century. Even in his own lifetime, he enjoyed a level of popularity envied by other artists. But in 1941, after a near-fatal operation for cancer, he decided to give up painting and sought a new way of drawing in colour. Scissors replaced a paintbrush and with the unique skill of a tailor, he set about creating his now famous cut-outs, which have yet to be rivalled for their originality and daring.
To coincide with a major Tate Modern exhibition in April, Alastair Sooke presents a moving and intimate portrait, with contributions from the Tate's Nicholas Serota, biographer Hilary Spurling and Jacqueline Duheme, who worked with Matisse in the late 1940s at this critical turning point in his career.
Simon begins his journey around the Caribbean on the island of Hispaniola and its two very different countries - the Dominican Republic, a tourist hotspot, and Haiti, the poorest country in the western hemisphere. He ends this first leg on Puerto Rico, a Caribbean island that is practically America's 51st state.
From flying boats to drug busts, Simon explores both the light and dark sides of the Dominican Republic, the Caribbean's most popular tourist destination. He joins the police anti-narcotics division on the front line in the war against international drug cartels in Santo Domingo before crossing the border to Haiti, where he visits the notorious tented camps of Cite Soleil. These slums remain home to many of the survivors of the worst earthquake to hit the island in two centuries. From voodoo ceremonies to dolphin watching, Simon also discovers a vibrant, colourful and thriving side to life in Haiti borne out of the country's unique history.
Finally, Simon reaches Puerto Rico, an island with close ties to the USA. He visits the tiny, paradisiacal island of Vieques, billed as the Caribbean's next major tourist destination. However, not everything here is as it seems, as Simon examines the impact six decades of bombing and weapons testing by the US Navy and Army has had on the landscape of this tiny island and on the people who live there.
Series looking at American art. The first episode is set in the Wild West and begins with the sublime art of the Hudson River School, whose 19th-century evocations of the vastness of America did so much to fuel the myth of the promised land. Another huge influence was the mysterious rock art of Native Americans, which set a stirring precedent for non-naturalistic painting. The film culminates in a celebration of Jackson Pollock, born in Cody, Wyoming, who arrived in New York wearing a Stetson and cowboy boots, and whose famous drip paintings were influenced heavily by both the moods of the American west and the example of Native American artists.
Historian David Olusoga explores the enduring relationship between Britain and people whose origins lie in Africa. From the African Romans who guarded Hadrian's Wall in the 3rd century AD to the black trumpeter of the Tudor courts, David uncovers a history that is as surprising as it is revealing.
This programme is based on a film entitled Divided By Race - United in War and Peace, produced by The-Latest.com.
During the Second World War, thousands of men and women from the Caribbean colonies volunteered to come to Britain to join the fight against Hitler. They risked their lives for king and empire, but their contribution has largely been forgotten.
Some of the last surviving Caribbean veterans tell their extraordinary wartime stories - from torpedo attacks by German U-boats and the RAF's blanket-bombing of Germany to the culture shock of Britain's freezing winters and war-torn landscapes. This brave sacrifice confronted the pioneers from the Caribbean with a lifelong challenge - to be treated as equals by the British government and the British people.
In testimony full of wit and charm, the veterans candidly reveal their experiences as some of the only black people in wartime Britain. They remember encounters with a curious British public and confrontation with the prejudices of white American GIs stationed in Britain.
After the war, many veterans returned to the Caribbean where they discovered jobs were scarce. Some came back to Britain to help rebuild its cities. They settled down with jobs and homes, got married and began to integrate their rich heritage into British culture. Now mostly in their 80s and 90s - the oldest is 104 - these pioneers from the Caribbean have helped transform Britain and created an enduring multicultural legacy.
With vivid first-hand testimony, observational documentary and rare archive footage, the programme gives a unique perspective on the Second World War and the history of 20th-century Britain.
The story of the Robert E Lee, one of the most famous Clydebuilt blockade-running paddle steamers. During the American Civil War, Glasgow shipbuilders and captains made a fortune running the supplies of war to the Confederate South and bringing out valuable cotton. To run the blockade of Union warships these paddle steamers had to be fast and their crews fearless. Glasgow provided both but Britain was neutral and these ships shouldn't have been anywhere near someone else's war.
THURSDAY 24 MAY 2018
THU 19:00 Beyond 100 Days (b0b3lmmf)
Series 1
24/05/2018
Katty Kay in Washington and Christian Fraser in London report on the events that are shaping the world.
THU 19:30 Top of the Pops (b0b3lnml)
Janice Long and Dixie Peach present the pop chart programme, first broadcast on 26 September 1985. Featuring Depeche Mode, Billy Idol, Jennifer Rush, The Style Council, Bonnie Tyler and David Bowie & Mick Jagger.
THU 20:00 The Sky at Night (b0b3lnks)
Guides
Galaxies
Galaxies are the building blocks of the universe. Our solar system sits inside a huge galaxy that we call the Milky Way - home to as many as 300 billion stars. But the Milky Way is itself just one of hundreds of billions of galaxies in the observable universe. Over the last 60 years of broadcasting, the Sky at Night has covered every major story of discovery about the galaxies, and in this film presenter Chris Lintott uses this archive to reveal the deepest secrets of galaxies, from their earliest beginnings to their very ends.
From the first galaxy ever discovered through to today's cutting edge attempts to map our own Milky Way, this is a story of incredible ingenuity, extraordinary technology and spectacular discoveries. We'll discover how galaxies work - from the secrets of their spiral arms to the dramatic events that drive their evolution - uncovering a weird and wonderful menagerie of objects along the way. Ultimately, the discovery of the galaxies is also the story of how we found our place in the cosmos, and discovered answers to some of the biggest questions in the Universe.
THU 21:00 Missions (b0b3q6ps)
Series 1
Survivor
French sci-fi drama series. The rescued man is a reminder to Jeanne of her father's interest in space, and Mars.
THU 21:20 Missions (b0b3q6px)
Series 1
Stone
French sci-fi drama series. The crew has a sobering encounter with potential rescuers, and Jeanne tries to hypnotize the enigmatic Komarov.
THU 21:45 Horizon (b09574pc)
2017
Mars - A Traveller's Guide
The dream of sending humans to Mars is closer than ever before. In fact, many scientists think that the first person to set foot on the Red Planet is alive today. But where should the first explorers visit when they get there? Horizon has gathered the world's leading experts on Mars and asked them where they would go if they got the chance - and what would they need to survive?
Using incredible real images and data, Horizon brings these Martian landmarks to life - from vast plains to towering volcanoes, from deep valleys to hidden underground caverns. This film also shows where to land, where to live and even where to hunt for traces of extraterrestrial life.
This is the ultimate traveller's guide to Mars.
THU 22:00 NASA: Triumph and Tragedy (b00lk0jq)
One Giant Leap
In 2009, NASA celebrates the 40th anniversary of the first moon landing. This documentary series offers audiences a unique chance to glimpse an astronaut's view of spaceflight. It is an epic story of heroes and their breathtaking successes as they further humanity's innate desire to explore.
The white-knuckle suspense thriller of Apollo 13's famous near-disaster was only a prelude to darker moments ahead. The launch of the space shuttle programme promised routine trips to earth orbit for many new astronauts, but, just when that promise seemed fulfilled, routine shuttle launches began to bore the public. NASA responded by training a school teacher to fly, in order to teach children lessons from space, but Christa McAuliffe's life was tragically cut short as she and the rest of the crew perished aboard the shuttle Challenger, leading to all missions being halted. Eventually the shuttle returned to orbit, but, after 15 years of successful missions, disaster struck again with the shocking loss of Columbia. It marked the beginning of the end for the space shuttle.
THU 23:00 Pain, Pus and Poison: The Search for Modern Medicines (p01f51z4)
Pain
Pain has a profound effect on our bodies - when we are experiencing it, millions of nerve cells deep within our brains are firing, telling us 'it hurts' - and for centuries the challenge has been to find something that will lessen or even switch off these sensations to bring us relief. Dr Michael Mosley discovers just what pain is, why we want to control it and how we ultimately did it when the discovery of morphine, the world's first pharmaceutical, at the beginning of the 19th century led to a 200-year journey of scientific breakthrough, discovery and self-experimentation.
THU 00:00 Clydebuilt: The Ships that Made the Commonwealth (p01n8dv0)
HMS Hood
In this episode, David Hayman meets some of the men who sailed on HMS Hood. He travels to Scapa Flow to experience what life was like for the hundreds of people working to protect the vital North Atlantic convoys.
In Australia, he uncovers the legacy of her flag-waving visits and he tries his hand at riveting to understand what it took to make this battlecruiser strong and watertight. David also investigates why this 'mighty' ship was flawed from the very day she was launched.
THU 01:05 Top of the Pops (b0b3lnml)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:30 today]
THU 01:35 The Sky at Night (b0b3lnks)
[Repeat of broadcast at
20:00 today]
THU 02:35 NASA: Triumph and Tragedy (b00lk0jq)
[Repeat of broadcast at
22:00 today]
FRIDAY 25 MAY 2018
FRI 19:00 World News Today (b0b3lmml)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.
FRI 19:30 Biggest Weekend (b0b4cm28)
Father John Misty and Courtney Barnett
Lauren Laverne and Colin Murray present coverage of the Biggest Weekend from the Titanic Slipway in Belfast, with highlights of the opening performance of the day from the mercurial Josh Tillman, aka Father John Misty, in a unique collaboration with the Ulster Orchestra, with arrangements of songs from his four albums including the just-released God's Favourite Customer.
Also featuring songs from Melbourne-based garage rocker Courtney Barnett, whose melodic but scuzzy rock 'n' roll blends slacker sentiments with a caustic eye for human folly, and who has just released her second album, Tell Me How You Really Feel, to further widespread acclaim.
FRI 20:00 Biggest Weekend (b0b4czwj)
Manic Street Preachers and The Breeders
Lauren Laverne and Colin Murray host the indie rock royalty summit, featuring a full set from Manic Street Preachers. First formed in 1986 and now a restless institution, the band are celebrating the release of their thirteenth album, the anthemic Resistance Is Futile, with which they have reached the number two spot for the fifth time. They are returning to Belfast, where they have played many times over the years, including a 'legendary' gig at the Limelight in 1990.
Also featuring songs from the set of the reformed Breeders, lead by sisters Kim and Kelley Deal and Josephine Wiggs. After an extended hiatus, they have just released their fifth album, All Nerve. The Breeders are Ohio-based and first formed by Kim Deal as a side project from The Pixies. They released their debut album Pod in 1990.
FRI 21:00 Biggest Weekend (b0b4d7bh)
Beck
Lauren Laverne and Colin Murray host Beck's live set from the 6 Music-curated, Belfast-based opening night of the Biggest Weekend. Beck and band are currently touring his thirteenth studio album, Colors, which finds the LA-based enigma in the funky form that lead to his 1994 breakthrough album Odelay.
FRI 22:00 Biggest Weekend (b0b4d7bk)
Orbital
Lauren Laverne and Colin Murray host a stunning live set from the reformed and rejuvenated Hartnoll brothers, British dance music royalty, with their chiming sonic landscape and stuttering beats. They got back together in 2017 and prepare to hunch over their equipment, wave their iconic torch glasses and bring awe and amazement to Belfast yet again.
FRI 23:30 One-Hit Wonders at the BBC (b05r7nxx)
Compilation of some indelible hits by artists we hardly heard from again, at least in a chart sense. Featuring Peter Sarstedt's Where Do You Go To (My Lovely)? - a number one in 1969 and a hit he never really matched, Trio's 1982 smash Da Da Da, Phyllis Nelson's 1985 lovers rock-style classic Move Closer, and The New Radicals' 1999 hit You Get What You Give.
We travel through the years selecting some of your favourite number ones and a few others that came close, revealing what's happened to the one-off hitmakers since and exploring the unwritten laws that help make sense of the one-hit wonder phenomenon.
FRI 00:30 Agnetha: ABBA and After (b02x9zwc)
In this documentary, the BBC have exclusive access to Agnetha Faltskog, 'The Girl with the Golden Hair' as the song goes, celebrating her extraordinary singing career which began in the mid-60s when she was just 15. Within just two years, she was a singing sensation at the top of the charts in Sweden.
Along came husband Bjorn Ulvaeus and the phenomenal band ABBA that engulfed the world in the 70s, featuring Agnetha's touching voice and striking looks. Agnetha lacked confidence on stage as the global demand for the group grew and grew, while being away from her young children caused her great turmoil.
With special behind-the-scenes access to the making of her comeback album, the film follows this reluctant star - the subject of much tabloid speculation since she retreated from the stage post-ABBA - as she returns to recording aged 63. Included in the film is her first meeting with Gary Barlow, who contributes a duet to the new album.
The programme features interviews with Bjorn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, Gary Barlow, Tony Blackburn, Sir Tim Rice and record producers Peter Nordahl and Jorgen Elofsson.
FRI 01:30 Oh You Pretty Things: The Story of Music and Fashion (b04j1wxw)
Tribes
Just how did Britain become the place where the best music goes with the most eye-catching styles? Lauren Laverne narrates a series about the love affair between our music and fashion, looking at how musicians and designers came up with the coolest and craziest looks and how we emulated our idols.
British pop and rock is our great gift to the world, at the heart of the irrepressible creative brilliance of Britain. But it has never just been about the music. Across the decades we have unleashed a uniquely British talent for fusing the best sounds with stunning style and fashion to dazzling effect.
The series begins in the golden years of the 1960s. Mod legends The Small Faces became the best-dressed band in England, Cilla Black and fashion label BIBA were a perfect fit, while The Beatles and The Stones embraced the foppish hair and frilly shirts of psychedelia. Through rude boys and rockers, the relationship between music and fashion blossomed, becoming intimately entwined in the sound and vision of Roxy Music.
But this isn't just a story of brillant musicians and maverick designers, it's a story that touches us all because, at some point in our lives, we've all delved into the great dressing-up box and joined the pageant that is British music and fashion.
FRI 02:30 Play it Loud: The Story of the Marshall Amp (b04c3l7j)
One iconic black box has probably more than anything else come to define the sound of rock - the Marshall amplifier. It has been, quite literally, behind some of the greatest names in modern music.
It all started in 1962 when drum shop owner Jim Marshall discovered the distinctive growl that gave the electric guitar an exciting new voice. Music got a whole lot louder as young musicians like Clapton, Townshend and Hendrix adopted the revolutionary 'Marshall Sound'. The electric guitar now spoke for a new generation and the genre of rock was born.
Soon Marshall stacks and walls were an essential backdrop of rock 'n' roll. The excesses of rock machismo were gloriously lampooned in the 1984 movie This is Spinal Tap. In an extraordinary piece of reverse irony, it was this comic exposure that rescued the company from financial meltdown.
With contributions from rock legends like Pete Townshend, Lemmy and Slash, plus an interview with the 'Father of Loud' Jim Marshall, this documentary cruises down the rock ages with all the dials set to 'eleven'.
LIST OF THIS WEEK'S PROGRAMMES
(Note: the times link back to the details; the pids link to the BBC page, including iPlayer)
Agnetha: ABBA and After
00:30 FRI (b02x9zwc)
Beyond 100 Days
19:00 MON (b0b3lmlq)
Beyond 100 Days
19:00 TUE (b0b3lmlx)
Beyond 100 Days
19:00 WED (b0b3lmm8)
Beyond 100 Days
19:00 THU (b0b3lmmf)
Big Sky, Big Dreams, Big Art: Made in the USA
21:00 WED (b0b4fz5n)
Big Sky, Big Dreams, Big Art: Made in the USA
03:00 WED (b0b4fz5n)
Biggest Weekend
19:30 FRI (b0b4cm28)
Biggest Weekend
20:00 FRI (b0b4czwj)
Biggest Weekend
21:00 FRI (b0b4d7bh)
Biggest Weekend
22:00 FRI (b0b4d7bk)
Black and British: A Forgotten History
22:00 WED (b082w9p9)
Britain's Treasure Islands
23:50 SAT (b077rl5m)
British Gardens in Time
23:35 SUN (b04092n6)
Caribbean with Simon Reeve
20:00 WED (p02l5269)
Caribbean with Simon Reeve
02:00 WED (p02l5269)
Castles: Britain's Fortified History
22:00 MON (b04t6n19)
Civilisations Stories
19:30 MON (b0b1bhhd)
Clydebuilt: The Ships that Made the Commonwealth
00:00 MON (p01n4kb7)
Clydebuilt: The Ships that Made the Commonwealth
00:00 TUE (p01n8f5d)
Clydebuilt: The Ships that Made the Commonwealth
00:00 WED (p01n8jf6)
Clydebuilt: The Ships that Made the Commonwealth
00:00 THU (p01n8dv0)
Dina
22:00 SUN (b0b49py6)
Fighting for King and Empire: Britain's Caribbean Heroes
23:00 WED (b05v08b7)
Horizon
21:45 THU (b09574pc)
How to Build... a Nuclear Submarine
20:00 SUN (b00syt1w)
How to Build... a Nuclear Submarine
02:35 SUN (b00syt1w)
Inspector Montalbano
21:00 SAT (b0b3tj4f)
Iolo's Snowdonia
19:30 TUE (b09qqnxv)
Kew's Forgotten Queen
01:00 MON (b07xjghp)
Missions
21:00 THU (b0b3q6ps)
Missions
21:20 THU (b0b3q6px)
Mud, Sweat and Tractors: The Story of Agriculture
23:00 TUE (b00jwcb1)
NASA: Triumph and Tragedy
22:00 THU (b00lk0jq)
NASA: Triumph and Tragedy
02:35 THU (b00lk0jq)
Nature's Epic Journeys
19:00 SAT (b07czmbl)
Nature's Epic Journeys
01:20 SAT (b07czmbl)
Oh You Pretty Things: The Story of Music and Fashion
01:30 FRI (b04j1wxw)
One-Hit Wonders at the BBC
23:30 FRI (b05r7nxx)
Pain, Pus and Poison: The Search for Modern Medicines
23:00 THU (p01f51z4)
Play it Loud: The Story of the Marshall Amp
02:30 FRI (b04c3l7j)
Royal Wives at War
21:00 MON (p03bhsd6)
Royal Wives at War
03:00 MON (p03bhsd6)
Science and Islam
00:35 SUN (b00gvg7w)
Secret Knowledge
22:30 TUE (b03z08mv)
Sicily: The Wonder of the Mediterranean
22:50 SAT (b08cwrg9)
Tales from the Royal Bedchamber
20:00 SAT (b0386lxs)
Tales from the Royal Bedchamber
02:20 SAT (b0386lxs)
The Culture Show
19:30 WED (b03xg9wp)
The Greatest Tomb on Earth: Secrets of Ancient China
21:00 SUN (b080396k)
The Greatest Tomb on Earth: Secrets of Ancient China
01:00 WED (b080396k)
The Secret Life of the Motorway
23:00 MON (b007x58q)
The Sky at Night
20:00 THU (b0b3lnks)
The Sky at Night
01:35 THU (b0b3lnks)
The Vikings Uncovered
21:00 TUE (b076r0sr)
The Vikings Uncovered
02:00 TUE (b076r0sr)
Timeshift
01:00 TUE (p01k49cg)
Timewatch
19:00 SUN (b00sl29f)
Timewatch
01:35 SUN (b00sl29f)
Timewatch
20:00 MON (b016ltm0)
Timewatch
02:00 MON (b016ltm0)
Tomorrow's Worlds: The Unearthly History of Science Fiction
20:00 TUE (p026c7jt)
Top of the Pops
00:50 SAT (b0b23fcv)
Top of the Pops
19:30 THU (b0b3lnml)
Top of the Pops
01:05 THU (b0b3lnml)
World News Today
19:00 FRI (b0b3lmml)