The BBC has announced that it has a sustainable plan for the future of the BBC Singers, in association with The VOCES8 Foundation.
The threat to reduce the staff of the three English orchestras by 20% has not been lifted, but it is being reconsidered.
See the BBC press release here.

Radio-Lists Home Now on BBC 4 Contact

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



SATURDAY 15 AUGUST 2020

SAT 19:00 Cricket: Today at the Test (m000lwfc)
England v Pakistan 2020

Second Test: Day Three Highlights

Cricket highlights of day three at the second Test match between England and Pakistan.


SAT 20:00 Natural World (b054fn09)
2015-2016

Super Powered Owls

With their charismatic faces and extraordinary head-turning ability, owls are one of our best-loved birds. And yet it's rare to catch more than a glimpse of one in the wild. These mysterious birds haunt our night, floating through the darkness with an eerie silence. But how do they see in the dark? And how do they fly so silently?

Through the eyes of two special barn owl chicks, and with the help of leading scientists, Natural World reveals the magic behind owls' superpowers.


SAT 21:00 The Bridge (b01gmbvb)
Series 1

Episode 1

A woman is found murdered in the middle of Oresund Bridge, exactly on the border between Sweden and Denmark. Saga Noren from Malmo CID and Martin Rohde from the Copenhagen police department are called to the scene. What at first looks like one murder turns out to be two. The bodies have been brutally cut off at the waist and joined together - the torso of a high-profile Swedish politician and the lower body of a Danish prostitute. The Swedish and Danish police need to cooperate in a race against the clock, desperately searching for a murderer determined to go beyond all moral limits to get his message across.

In Swedish and Danish with English subtitles.


SAT 22:00 The Bridge (b01gmbvd)
Series 1

Episode 2

The murderer makes his presence known and chooses sharp-witted tabloid journalist Daniel Ferbe to act as middle man to communicate with the outside world. The murder on the bridge was only the beginning, and the purpose of that heinous act was to draw attention to the unpleasant truths and problems in society that most turn a blind eye to, the first one being that 'we are not all equal before the law'. Saga and Martin now realise they are dealing with a ruthless killer.

In Swedish and Danish with English subtitles.


SAT 23:00 The Bridge (b01h221w)
Series 1

Episode 3

In Copenhagen, several homeless people have been poisoned. The perpetrator wants to draw attention to the problem of the increased number of people falling through the cracks of society. A homeless man is kidnapped and the only thing that can stop the murderer from killing him is a large sum of money from four landlords. So what is the price of a human being after all?

In Swedish and Danish with English subtitles.


SAT 00:00 The Bridge (b01h221y)
Series 1

Episode 4

The homeless man's survival becomes a race against time and depends completely on the four landlords' willingness to pay what the murderer demands. Saga and Martin have understood that they are dealing with someone who has really thought through his crimes, planning them down to the smallest detail. They wonder if they can catch the murderer off balance by doing something he doesn't expect.

In Swedish and Danish with English subtitles.


SAT 01:00 TOTP2 (b01lwbt0)
Summertime Special

TOTP2 once more delves into the archives to brighten up your day with summer sizzlers from John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John, the Undertones, Shaggy, Bananarama, Bobby Goldsboro, Bay City Rollers, Fun Boy Three, the Style Council and Don Henley.

Other scorchers include Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince, the Sundays, Sabrina, Chris Rea, the Barracudas, Zoe, Martha and the Muffins, Bryan Adams, Girls Aloud and ELO.


SAT 02:00 London Songs at the BBC (b01jxzfs)
A collection of performances from the BBC archives, celebrating the sights and sounds and the ups and downs of London through the words and songs through the years - from Petula Clark singing A Foggy Day in London Town in 1965 to Adele performing her love letter to the city in Hometown Glory, filmed in October 2007 on the roof of the BBC car park in Shepherd's Bush. Also featured are the likes of The Jam, Eddy Grant, Tom Paxton and Lily Allen plus many more.


SAT 02:55 Natural World (b054fn09)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 today]



SUNDAY 16 AUGUST 2020

SUN 19:00 Cricket: Today at the Test (m000lwgv)
England v Pakistan 2020

Second Test: Day Four Highlights

Cricket highlights of day four at the second Test match between England and Pakistan.


SUN 20:00 BBC Proms (b07rkvp4)
2016

Barenboim and the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra

Katie Derham introduces another chance to see one of the most memorable Proms from the BBC archive. This week, she is joined by special guest Stephen Fry for one of his favourite concerts of all time, from the 2016 season.

Daniel Barenboim conducts the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra in Liszt’s First Piano Concerto, performed by his childhood friend, legendary pianist Martha Argerich, along with epic orchestral extracts from three different operas by Richard Wagner.


SUN 22:10 Albion (m000lwgy)
Mike Bartlett's play Albion, directed for the stage by Rupert Goold, is a tragicomic drama about national identity, family, passion and the disappointment of personal dreams.

Filmed at London’s Almeida Theatre, the play is set in the garden of an English country house. The house has been bought by successful businesswoman Audrey Walters, who intends to restore the ruined garden to its former glory and create a memorial to the son she recently lost in a foreign war.


SUN 01:00 The Gardeners of Kabul (p05fhqn1)
Five hundred years ago, the Emperor Babur laid out beautiful gardens in the city of Kabul, now the capital of Afghanistan. The lush, green spaces provided a peaceful retreat when he returned from battle. Over the centuries, the emperor's favourite garden was battered by war, but has now been lovingly restored to its former glory. In this film, we meet the gardeners keeping the emperor's legacy alive and we're invited into the private gardens of Afghans who find refuge among their plants and flowers from the stresses of a violent city.


SUN 01:25 EastEnders 2008 (b00bv3fk)
Sean goes to extreme lengths to convince Roxy that he's father material. An encounter with Lucas leaves Chelsea open to temptation and will Bradley's attempts to impress the boss go to plan?


SUN 01:55 EastEnders 2008 (b00bv4kz)
Sean turns over a new leaf, but Roxy has other plans. Patrick attempts to make amends with Chelsea, but she's still in self-destruct mode. Dot wonders if there's more to Jack and Tanya's relationship than meets the eye.


SUN 02:25 EastEnders 2008 (b00bv4vw)
Tanya must confront her feelings for Jack, Ronnie and Roxy prepare to flee Walford, and Jane and Bianca are forced to swallow their pride to get the job done.


SUN 02:55 EastEnders 2008 (b00bv4v9)
Sean catches Ronnie and Roxy just in time, but will he convince them to stay? Tanya's made her choice about Jack, but is she regretting it already? Bradley gets more than he bargained for with his manager.



MONDAY 17 AUGUST 2020

MON 19:00 Handmade in Africa (m000lwds)
Series 1

Dorze House

Filmed in the remote Gamo highlands of southern Ethiopia, this episode tells the story of Dorze house builders as they weave a traditional bamboo home for an elderly woman in their community.

The Dorze are a minority ethnic group who live in the mountains and have retained their distinct culture and dialect. They are renowned as producers of colourful cloth and for their unique houses, which are woven from strips of bamboo.

The film follows village elder Admasu Ourage as he oversees the building of a new house for his friend Dasanshi, whose old house is falling down. The whole process is captured, from the moment Dasanshi’s old house is moved, and the cutting and preparation of the bamboo, to the construction and completion of the new house. Their work is a window on to the significance of Orthodox Christian faith in Ethiopia; each stage of the build is accompanied by blessings and prayers of thanks, led by Admasu.

The film is also a portrait of a community in flux, as more and more Dorze people choose to build their houses with corrugated iron roofs instead of traditional, woven bamboo. For the Dorze, the construction of a new woven house is like ‘a child being born’. It is testament to a thriving community. Once complete, the whole village comes together to sing and dance in celebration.


MON 19:30 The Joy of Painting (m000lwdy)
Series 3

Blue Moon

Breathtaking skies, bending palms and waves that accentuate a cool night breeze. A one-of-a-kind masterpiece by Bob Ross.

American painter Bob Ross offers soothing words of encouragement to viewers and painting hobbyists in an enormously popular series that has captivated audiences worldwide since 1982. Ross is a cult figure, with nearly two million Facebook followers and 3,000 instructors globally. His soothing, nurturing personality is therapy for the weary, and his respect for nature and wildlife helps heighten environmental awareness.

Across the series, Ross demonstrates his unique painting technique, which eliminates the need for each layer of paint to dry. In real time, he creates tranquil scenes taken from nature, including his trademark ‘happy’ clouds, cascading waterfalls, snow-covered forests, serene lakes and distant mountain summits.

Many of Bob’s faithful viewers are not painters at all. They are relaxing and unwinding with Bob’s gentle manner and encouraging words, captivated by the magic taking place on the canvas.


MON 20:00 Africa with Ade Adepitan (m0002fcf)
Series 1

Episode 1

Ade Adepitan embarks on the first leg of his epic four-part journey around Africa. Starting in west Africa, this episode sees Ade travelling from Cape Verde to Senegal and the Ivory Coast, before finishing in Nigeria - the country of his birth.

In Cape Verde - a group of tiny volcanic islands in the Atlantic - Ade visits a community living in the shadow of an active volcano. He also witnesses how solar power is transforming lives by bringing electricity to isolated communities.

Ade's next stop is Senegal. Here he visits Goree Island - a former staging post in the transatlantic slave trade. He then travels down the coast to a fishing village, where he hears that much of Senegal’s catch is being taken by foreign companies and turned into fishmeal to feed western livestock. Making a last stop on his journey through Senegal, Ade visits Lake Retba where he joins the workers who wade through the lake gathering salt, which they sell for less than half a penny a kilogram. Ade’s host has tried to escape poverty by migrating to Europe, but - like so many others - he never got further than the horrors of the camps in Libya.

In the Ivory Coast, Ade meets more people who share the dream of getting to Europe. This time, however, they are footballers training to become professionals in Europe’s big leagues. But it does not always work out, as many are scammed into giving their cash to dodgy football agents.

The final stop is Nigeria. In Lagos he meets some old friends who play para soccer, and he also visits the largest church building on the planet. Travelling out of Lagos, he discovers a country in chaos. Under armed escort, he hears about a conflict that has created hundreds of thousands refugees, but barely been reported in the West. He finishes his journey at Nigeria’s equivalent to Silicon Valley – a company that believes tech can transform the continent.


MON 21:00 African Renaissance: When Art Meets Power (m000lwf2)
Series 1

Ethiopia

In Ethiopia, Afua Hirsch traces a proud 3,000-year history as significant as any civilisation in the west. A beacon for the black diaspora, Ethiopia’s story is one of defiant independence, of kings and communists, of a country that has survived catastrophe but bounced back, underpinned by a culture inspired by an ancient faith and devotion.

At the heart of recent Ethiopian history is the complex reign of Emperor Haile Selassie. One of the most influential world figures of the 20th century, he was the midwife to African liberation and the generator of a global culture in Rastafarianism. Yet ultimately, Haile Selassie was a tragic figure.

With renowned artist Eshetu Tiruneh, Afua explores the impact of the 1974 famine that led to the emperor’s downfall, and she talks to photographer Aida Muluneh about her return from exile to the dynamic new Ethiopia of the 21st century responding to the dark days of the past.


MON 22:00 Africa's Great Civilisations (b0b5b4w8)
Series 1

Origins

The award-winning film-maker and academic Henry Louis Gates Jr travels the length and breadth of Africa to explore the continent's epic history. In this first episode, Gates focuses on the origins of human existence and looks at the anthropological and scientific discoveries that point to Africa as the genetic home of all currently living humanity. He then traces the roots of agriculture, writing, artistic expression and iron working to their birthplaces on the African continent.


MON 22:55 Africa's Great Civilisations (b0b64h37)
Series 1

The Cross and the Crescent

The award-winning film-maker and academic Henry Louis Gates Jr travels the length and breadth of Africa to examine the continent's epic history. This episode charts the emergence of Christianity and Islam and examines how the two religions reshaped Africa between the first and the 12th centuries AD, as well as for centuries thereafter.

Gates also recounts the strategic importance of the Horn of Africa - a meeting place between the Red and Arabian seas that has served as a vital trade corridor between Africa, the Middle East and Europe for millennia.


MON 23:50 Ted Hughes: Stronger Than Death (b06j7pkl)
Ted Hughes is widely recognised as one of Britain's greatest poets. He is also one of the most controversial. The Heathcliff of poetry who 'attracted more scandal than any other literary figure with the exception of Lord Byron' as one contributor notes. Now, for the first time, the events of his life and the breadth and influence of his poetry are the focus of a major documentary.

Featuring the first television interview with Frieda Hughes - poet, artist and daughter of Ted Hughes and Sylvia Path - alongside a rich seam of testimony from family members, friends, fellow poets and writers, this film will illuminate one of the 20th century's most influential cultural figures and show how his compelling life story shaped his vision as a poet.

Hughes's significance is incontrovertible, yet so often during his lifetime, attention was focused on the scandalous events in his personal life. Love and work collided with tragic consequences during his marriage to Sylvia Plath. When she committed suicide, he was forced to weather a storm of speculation and accusation over her death, which gathered momentum after Assia Wevill, his lover, also killed herself.

Hughes's mythic creation Crow proclaims 'But who is stronger than death? Me, evidently', and this film will explore how Hughes's ability to survive the traumas in his own life were bound up in a belief in the power and importance of poetry.

It is a journey in which the passions and preoccupations that informed his unique poetic voice - nature, mythology, death and the occult - became increasingly infused with a more personal tone, culminating in the searing power of his final volume Birthday Letters - his only account of his life with Plath. Nine months later he was dead.


MON 01:20 Romancing the Stone: The Golden Ages of British Sculpture (b00yvsjd)
Children of the Revolution

'Sculpture has changed more in the last hundred years,' says Alastair Sooke, 'than in the previous thirty thousand.' The third and last episode of the series tells the dramatic story of a century of innovation, scandal, shock and creativity.

It begins with the moment at the turn of the 20th century when young sculptors ceased visiting the Elgin Marbles at the British Museum and looked instead at the 'primitive' works of Africa and the Pacific islands. The result was an artistic revolution spearheaded by Eric Gill and Jacob Epstein that would climax in the anti-sculptural gestures of Gilbert & George and Damien Hirst.

Yet for all the provocation and occasional excesses of conceptualism, sculpture has never enjoyed such popularity. From the memorials of World War One to the landmarks of Antony Gormley and Rachel Whiteread, sculpture remains the art form that speaks most directly and powerfully to the nation.

The programme climaxes with a series of encounters between Alastair and leading sculptors Damien Hirst, Rachel Whiteread, Antony Gormley and Anthony Caro.


MON 02:20 The Joy of Painting (m000lwdy)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:30 today]


MON 02:50 African Renaissance: When Art Meets Power (m000lwf2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]



TUESDAY 18 AUGUST 2020

TUE 19:00 Johnny Kingdom: A Year on Exmoor (b00793d7)
Series 1

My Grand Design

Gravedigger Johnny Kingdom presents a look at the wildlife of the moors and woodlands of Exmoor, meeting local characters and capturing rare footage of red deer, Exmoor ponies, fox cubs, wild boar and a whole variety of birdlife.

It's autumn, and Johnny prepares to build a new badger hide - from it he hopes to film badgers and other wildlife. But the badgers have disappeared from his last hide, built on land owned by his old friend Tony Thorne. He's hoping he'll have better luck with this one.


TUE 19:30 The Joy of Painting (m000lwgm)
Series 3

Bubbling Stream

In the midst of a forest flows a stream that splashes and trickles endlessly along – Bob Ross depicts the true beauty of nature.

American painter Bob Ross offers soothing words of encouragement to viewers and painting hobbyists in an enormously popular series that has captivated audiences worldwide since 1982. Ross is a cult figure, with nearly two million Facebook followers and 3,000 instructors globally. His soothing, nurturing personality is therapy for the weary, and his respect for nature and wildlife helps heighten environmental awareness.

Across the series, Ross demonstrates his unique painting technique, which eliminates the need for each layer of paint to dry. In real time, he creates tranquil scenes taken from nature, including his trademark ‘happy’ clouds, cascading waterfalls, snow-covered forests, serene lakes and distant mountain summits.

Many of Bob’s faithful viewers are not painters at all. They are relaxing and unwinding with Bob’s gentle manner and encouraging words, captivated by the magic taking place on the canvas.


TUE 20:00 A303: Highway to the Sun (b0116ly6)
The A303 is the road that passes Stonehenge on the way to the beaches of Devon and Cornwall. On the way, it whisks drivers through 5,000 years of remarkable moments in British history. And it is the star of this film made for armchair travellers and history lovers.

Writer Tom Fort drives its 92-mile length in a lovingly restored Morris Traveller. Along the way he has many adventures - he digs up the 1960s master plan for the A303's dreams of superhighway status, meets up with a Neolithic traveller who knew the road like the back of his hand, gets to know a section of the Roman 303, uncovers a medieval murder mystery and discovers what lies at the end of the Highway to the Sun.


TUE 21:00 The Yorkshire Ripper Files: A Very British Crime Story (m0003m05)
Series 1

Episode 1

Documentary series opening, in 1975, with the first three years of the investigation into finding the Yorkshire Ripper, Peter Sutcliffe. The location of the first two murders in Chapeltown - then well known as Leeds’s main red light district - leads the police to decide that prostitution is the connection between the attacks, but also to them coming up with a neat theory about the killer’s motivation. After the second murder in January 1976, the police announce that they are hunting a ‘prostitute killer’, which had significant implications for how the investigation proceeded.

Speaking to the children of some of the very first murder victims and to police officers who worked on the investigation, as well as to journalists who covered the murders, Liza Williams explores the difference between the way the women were characterised by the investigation and how they are remembered by those who knew and loved them. Meeting a survivor of one of Sutcliffe’s earlier attacks, as well as the daughter of another, Liza finds out how their vital eyewitness evidence was ignored because neither were prostitutes and did not, as a result, fit the victim profile the police had decided upon.

While the police ploughed on with their theory of that the murderer was targeting prostitutes, the killer remained at large. Between February 1977 and May 1978 Peter Sutcliffe murdered seven more women.


TUE 22:00 Blackadder (b00819cc)
Blackadder Goes Forth

Plan C - Major Star

Sitcom set during the Great War. The October Revolution in Moscow produces three appalling results: a ceasefire by Russia, an offensive by Germany and a Charlie Chaplin impression by Baldrick.


TUE 22:30 Blackadder (p00bf6s9)
Blackadder Goes Forth

Plan D - Private Plane

Edmund, George and Baldrick join the Royal Flying Corps. However, Edmund and Baldrick are shot down soon afterwards and are taken prisoner by the Red Baron. George persuades dashing pilot Lord Flashheart to mount a rescue attempt, but when they hear what the Red Baron has planned for them, Blackadder and Baldrick are in no hurry to be saved.


TUE 23:00 Storyville (m0009m7s)
The PM, the Playboy and the Wolf of Wall Street

A Malaysian wealth fund is robbed of US$3.5 billion. It is the world’s biggest white-collar heist involving government corruption at the highest level, an abuse of power and international money laundering.

With little to go on, dogged investigative reporters from The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Hollywood Reporter retrace the dirty money - via real estate deals and movie financing including ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’ - back to the top echelons of the Malaysian government.

Malaysia’s prime minister and his inner circle are implicated, assets are frozen, money is seized, but the Malaysian people fight back.


TUE 00:20 How to Get Ahead (b03xsgwk)
At Medieval Court

Writer, broadcaster and Newsnight arts correspondent Stephen Smith looks back at the Medieval Age to find out what it took to get ahead at the court of Richard II. Richard presided over the first truly sophisticated and artistic court in England. Painters, sculptors, poets, tailors, weavers and builders flocked to court to make their fortunes. But these were dangerous times. Being close to Richard brought many a courtier to a sticky end. Featuring David Tennant and Clarissa Dickson Wright.


TUE 01:20 The Joy of Painting (m000lwgm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:30 today]


TUE 01:50 Bunkers, Brutalism and Bloodymindedness: Concrete Poetry with Jonathan Meades (b03wcsdj)
Episode 2

Second of a two-part documentary in which Jonathan Meades makes the case for 20th-century concrete Brutalist architecture, which is once again being appreciated by a younger generation. Focusing initially on the massive influence of Le Corbusier's post-war work, he reclaims the reputation of buildings that, once much maligned, he argues stood for optimism and grandeur. Delivered in his signature provocative and confrontational manner, Meades's film draws on extraordinary buildings from all over Europe in a lavish, sometimes surreal, visual collage.


TUE 02:50 The Yorkshire Ripper Files: A Very British Crime Story (m0003m05)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]



WEDNESDAY 19 AUGUST 2020

WED 19:00 Johnny Kingdom: A Year on Exmoor (b00793h9)
Series 1

Masters of the Moor

Gravedigger Johnny Kingdom presents a look at the wildlife of the moors and woodlands of Exmoor, meeting local characters and capturing rare footage of red deer, Exmoor ponies, fox cubs, wild boar and a whole variety of birdlife. It's mid-autumn and the time of the red deer's mating season, and Johnny has some unfinished business with one particular old stag he once got too close to. Johnny's friend Tony Thorne is on hand to diagnose a problem with Johnny's big toe.


WED 19:30 The Joy of Painting (m000lwgr)
Series 3

Winter Night

Bob Ross captures the still of cold darkness and rests a cosy little cabin on top of a snow-covered hill – a real black canvas favourite.

American painter Bob Ross offers soothing words of encouragement to viewers and painting hobbyists in an enormously popular series that has captivated audiences worldwide since 1982. Ross is a cult figure, with nearly two million Facebook followers and 3,000 instructors globally. His soothing, nurturing personality is therapy for the weary, and his respect for nature and wildlife helps heighten environmental awareness.

Across the series, Ross demonstrates his unique painting technique, which eliminates the need for each layer of paint to dry. In real time, he creates tranquil scenes taken from nature, including his trademark ‘happy’ clouds, cascading waterfalls, snow-covered forests, serene lakes and distant mountain summits.

Many of Bob’s faithful viewers are not painters at all. They are relaxing and unwinding with Bob’s gentle manner and encouraging words, captivated by the magic taking place on the canvas.


WED 20:00 Monty Don's Japanese Gardens (m0002k0x)
Series 1

Episode 1

Monty Don travels to Japan in spring. Amidst the cherry blossoms, he begins his journey through the iconic gardens of Japan. He visits one of 'the three great gardens of Japan' and the earliest surviving boating garden of the Heian period. He looks at the rolling green moss of a Buddhist garden and learns the secrets of creating a Zen landscape before visiting an unconventional garden created by a modern garden design legend.

Monty continues his travels to learn about the art of Japanese stonemasonry and the famous tea ceremonies and their accompanying gardens, before finally taking a lesson in the delicate art of traditional flower arranging - which turns out to be harder than it looks.


WED 21:00 Japan: Earth's Enchanted Islands (p02n9v33)
Honshu

The central island of Honshu is home to over 100 million people, and its biggest city, Tokyo, is one of the largest urban metropolises on earth. But it has a wild heart - most of Honshu is mountainous.

This wilderness is home to an astonishing range of wildlife - black bears, monkeys, exquisite fireflies and even cow demons. But all across this island, from the mountains to the edge of the sea, people and nature are drawn together in the most unexpected ways.


WED 22:00 The Art of Japanese Life (b08v8gxj)
Series 1

Nature

Dr James Fox journeys through Japan's mountainous forests, marvels at its zen gardens and admires centuries-old bonsai, to explore the connections between Japanese culture and the natural environment. Travelling around Japan's stunning island geography, he examines how the country's two great religions, Shinto and Buddhism, helped shape a creative response to nature often very different to the West. But he also considers modern Japan's changing relationship to the natural world and travels to Naoshima Art Island to see how contemporary artists are finding new ways to engage with nature.


WED 23:00 The Old Grey Whistle Test (b09scfnb)
For One Night Only

Hosted by Bob Harris, this live studio show features music, special guests and rare archive to mark 30 years since the legendary series was last broadcast. Featuring performances from Peter Frampton, Richard Thompson, and Albert Lee among others.

Bob also chats to Whistle Test alumni, including Dave Stewart, Joan Armatrading, Ian Anderson, Chris Difford and Kiki Dee along with fans such as Danny Baker and Al Murray. A night of reminiscence, great music and fun.


WED 02:05 The Joy of Painting (m000lwgr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:30 today]


WED 02:30 Japan: Earth's Enchanted Islands (p02n9v33)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]



THURSDAY 20 AUGUST 2020

THU 19:00 Johnny Kingdom: A Year on Exmoor (b00793lj)
Series 1

The Round Up

Gravedigger Johnny Kingdom presents a look at the wildlife of the moors and woodlands of Exmoor. The Exmoor pony is one of England's rarest breeds and Johnny is busy filming the pony round-up. It happens in October every year and things get very lively as the herd's owners, the Milton family, try to separate the mares and foals from the stallions. Johnny also heads off to see the salmon jumping.


THU 19:30 The Joy of Painting (m000lwf1)
Series 3

Distant Hills

Far, far away rests a mountain nestled in misty clouds and foothills. Bob Ross creates a scene using soft, brilliant colours.

American painter Bob Ross offers soothing words of encouragement to viewers and painting hobbyists in an enormously popular series that has captivated audiences worldwide since 1982. Ross is a cult figure, with nearly two million Facebook followers and 3,000 instructors globally. His soothing, nurturing personality is therapy for the weary, and his respect for nature and wildlife helps heighten environmental awareness.

Across the series, Ross demonstrates his unique painting technique, which eliminates the need for each layer of paint to dry. In real time, he creates tranquil scenes taken from nature, including his trademark ‘happy’ clouds, cascading waterfalls, snow-covered forests, serene lakes and distant mountain summits.

Many of Bob’s faithful viewers are not painters at all. They are relaxing and unwinding with Bob’s gentle manner and encouraging words, captivated by the magic taking place on the canvas.


THU 20:00 Joanna Lumley in the Land of the Northern Lights (b00dhv1n)
An amazing journey in Norway's far North as Joanna Lumley pursues a lifelong dream to track down the elusive, stunningly beautiful Northern Lights - 'the true wonder of the world,' as she puts it.

Joanna grew up in tropical Malaysia, and as a little girl never saw snow or felt cold. Inspired by fairytales and picture books, she always longed to make the journey north. At last she travels north across the Arctic Circle, up through Norway to Svalbard, the most northerly permanently inhabited place on Earth, where she has to cope with temperatures approaching minus 30 degrees centigrade.

With a box of crayons in hand, her journey takes her from train to boat, to husky-sled, to snowmobile, as she is pulled ever northwards by what she calls 'the strongest point of the compass'. She explores the romantic fjords of Lofoten and learns to ride a snowmobile, speeding across endless expanses of Lapland tundra with a Sami herdsman in search of his reindeer. As she reaches the Arctic Ocean, she prepares for bed in a hotel made entirely of ice. Everywhere she goes, she asks about the mysterious Northern Lights.


THU 21:00 Quartet (b03ftm2k)
An opera star arrives at a performers' retirement home amidst fraught preparations for a fundraising concert. Her presence adds to the tension, but it also offers an opportunity to reunite a successful quartet. The diva's one-time husband is upset to see her, while the two other former members relish the challenge.


THU 22:30 Talking Pictures (b04jrvv2)
Maggie Smith

Sylvia Smith narrates a look at the life of one of Britain's best and best-loved actresses, with classic archive footage of her appearances on the BBC demonstrating that when it comes to movie stardom, there really is nothing like a dame.


THU 23:10 African Renaissance: When Art Meets Power (m000lwf2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 on Monday]


THU 00:10 Handmade in Africa (m000lwds)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Monday]


THU 00:40 Museums in Quarantine (m000hqmw)
Series 1

Tate Britain

In times of crisis, people often think that art and culture are luxuries. However, in this episode of Museums in Quarantine, Dr James Fox argues, in difficult times such as these, that we need art more than ever. Taking the viewer on a personal tour of some of the most profound artworks from the Tate Britain’s collection, from a self-portrait by 18th-century artist William Hogarth through to the gallery’s 21st-century installations, Dr Fox shows how art has a unique ability both to depict humanity’s suffering and offer us consolation.

Guiding us through the silent galleries of the temporarily closed Tate Britain, Dr Fox argues that great artists’ renderings of war and disaster remind us that we are not alone. Countless others have also lived through, and triumphed over, adversity.

The paintings, by some of Britain’s foremost landscape artists, present a bucolic vision of Britain – one that is deeply reassuring. And art, of course, also allows us a means of creating other worlds in our imagination and an escape from the confines of our own home.

Ultimately, this uplifting film asserts that art has the power to bring us hope and offer us a glimmer of light in the darkness.


THU 01:10 Museums in Quarantine (m000hqq9)
Series 1

British Museum

Art historian Dr Janina Ramirez has lovingly paced the galleries of the British Museum since she was a child. Now, as the museum’s incomparable collections lie shuttered during the lockdown, she has been given permission to curate a highly personal selection of some of her favourites amongst its many treasures and to guide us on her very own virtual tour of its silent, empty galleries.

For Ramirez, no other collection in the world makes it possible to chart the highs and lows of humans across the world, and across time, in quite the same way. Her tour takes her across many different cultures and periods of history, alighting on objects as varied as a decorated Aztec skull, ancient Egyptian cat mummies and an 18th-century tea set. As she says, ‘Whether they provide a glimpse into enduring notions of love, sex and spirituality or catalogue moments of change, power and achievement, the artefacts in this one building show us the eternal and the ephemeral.’

The film is a personal reflection on the solace, wisdom and sense of perspective that the British Museum’s global collections can bring us in a time of crisis. ‘We all matter,’ Ramirez concludes, ‘we all stitch ourselves, even in the smallest way, onto the tapestry of existence. These artefacts show us that each of us leaves our footprints in the sands of time.'


THU 01:40 The Beauty of Anatomy (b04gvbdt)
Gray's Anatomy

The world's most famous study of the human body is Gray's Anatomy. The accuracy of the descriptions and the stark beauty of the illustrations made it an instant bestseller. Adam Rutherford tells the story of how, in just three years, Dr Henry Gray and Dr Henry Carter put it together based on dissections they personally performed.


THU 02:10 The Joy of Painting (m000lwf1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:30 today]


THU 02:40 Joanna Lumley in the Land of the Northern Lights (b00dhv1n)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 today]



FRIDAY 21 AUGUST 2020

FRI 19:00 Easy Listening Hits at the BBC (b011g943)
Compilation of easy listening tracks that offers the perfect soundtrack for your cocktail party. There's music to please every lounge lizard, with unique performances from the greatest easy listening artists of the 60s and 70s, including Burt Bacharach, Andy Williams, Sergio Mendes & Brasil 66, The Carpenters and many more.


FRI 20:00 Top of the Pops (m000crqz)
Big Hits 1989

As the 80s come to a close, the Top of the Pops vaults open once more to offer up the movers, shakers and chart toppers of 1989.

This compilation looks back at performances by established megastars Tina Turner and Phil Collins, all-conquering funki dreds Soul II Soul, dance queen Paula Abdul, northern soul girl Lisa Stansfield and wry vocal group The Beautiful South.

Madchester favourites Stone Roses and Happy Mondays also put in an appearance along with Stock Aitken and Waterman stalwarts Kylie Minogue, Jason Donovan and Sonia, not forgetting Sydney Youngblood, Mike and The Mechanics, Rebel MC and Double Trouble, plus duets from strange bedfellows Marc Almond and Gene Pitney, and Linda Ronstadt and Aaron Neville.


FRI 21:00 Shirley Bassey at the BBC (b01psct4)
Forever sequinned, stylish and sassy, Dame Shirley Bassey, one of Britain's all-time great voices, turned 76 in January 2013.

She began her rise to fame as a 16-year-old singer in 1953 and 60 years on she is still going as strong as ever. Join us as we celebrate Dame Shirley's birthday and her remarkable career, taking a trip down memory lane to uncover some of her finest performances from the vaults of the BBC.

From early BBC appearances on Show of the Week, The Shirley Bassey Show, via the Royal Albert Hall, Glastonbury 2007 and right up to her recent jaw dropping show at the Electric Proms. This is a compilation of some of Dame Shirley's classic performances, taking in iconic songs such as The Performance of My Life, Goldfinger, Big Spender and Diamonds Are Forever.

Producer: Sam Bridger


FRI 22:00 Electric Proms (b00nn7vx)
2009

Dame Shirley Bassey

Trevor Nelson and Edith Bowman present highlights of Dame Shirley Bassey's special performance for the BBC Electric Proms from London's Roundhouse.

The British icon performs a set packed with classic tracks like Big Spender and Goldfinger and the premieres of songs from her album The Performance, produced by Bond composer David Arnold.

In her first major show after Glastonbury 2007. and her only live show in 2009, Dame Shirley is joined on stage by the BBC Concert Orchestra, with guest appearances by album collaborators David Arnold, James Dean Bradfield from the Manic Street Preachers, singer-songwriter Tom Baxter and Sheffield crooner Richard Hawley.


FRI 23:00 imagine... (b00p36t8)
Winter 2009

Dame Shirley Bassey - The Girl from Tiger Bay

Alan Yentob gains an insight into the creative world of Dame Shirley Bassey in a programme first shown in 2009. After a triumphant Glastonbury appearance and a major illness at the age of 72, Dame Shirley tentatively re-enters the ring to confront her life in song.

Some of the best contemporary songwriters, including Gary Barlow, the Pet Shop Boys, Manic Street Preachers, Rufus Wainwright, Richard Hawley and KT Tunstall, along with James Bond composer John Barry and lyricist Don Black, have interpreted her life through song for an album produced by David Arnold.

The songs frame and explore the myth of Shirley Bassey, the girl from Tiger Bay, and the voice and the desire are not found wanting. A backstory profiling Shirley, complete with archive of her greatest performances, tells the story of what makes her the living legend that she is today.


FRI 23:55 BBC Proms (m0007f48)
2019

Angélique Kidjo

Three-time Grammy Award-winner Angélique Kidjo makes her Proms debut together with her nine-piece band in a late-night tribute to salsa legend Celia Cruz. Clara Amfo explores the links between the music of Cuban diva, Cruz and the traditional Yoruba music that came to America during the slave trade, and how Kidjo has combined these influences with the west African Afrobeat and juju styles.


FRI 01:15 The Defiant Ones (m0002pfb)
Series 1

Episode 6

The Defiant Ones reaches its final part. Jimmy Iovine talks about his worry that his and Dr Dre’s bubble might burst due the emergence of Napster.

Although Jimmy was on a roll with Dre and an enviable list of hot new acts, he also looked to forge partnerships and opportunities to secure their future.

An opportune sit-down between Jimmy and Dre led to the idea of Beats Electronics. This was the speaker-headphone phenomenon that would vault the partners to new heights and pave the way for an historic 2014 deal with Apple.

However, Apple was not just interested in headphones; it was investing in the genius of Jimmy and Dre, who continue to innovate at Apple Music while picking up accolades such as giving back to the communities that fostered their unique talents.

Series directed by Allen Hughes.


FRI 02:00 Flat Pack Pop: Sweden's Music Miracle (m0002k6k)
Flat Pack Pop: Sweden’s Music Miracle charts the remarkable rise of Sweden as a global music superpower. Journalist James Ballardie explores the uniquely Swedish songwriting formula created by record producer Denniz Pop, discovering how the biggest chart hits of the last 30 years have been inspired by the myths and legends of this Land of the Midnight Sun.

In the 1990s, an elite band of unlikely entrepreneur songwriters and producers became responsible for the most dramatic revolution in music since Elvis first shook his hips. What started out as an experiment on the Stockholm underground club scene soon blossomed into an entire genre of its own. These unlikely heroes of bubblegum pop surfed the wave of the dotcom boom, launching the careers of Britney Spears, the Backstreet Boys, Westlife and many, many more. Hundreds of millions of record sales later, today they have a combined net worth of many billions.

Featuring interviews with key Swedish songwriters, plus producers and artists including Katy Perry, Justin Timberlake, Ace of Base and Robyn, James’s search for the real lever-pullers behind today’s top tunes takes him from the icy streets of Stockholm to the barren plains of Kronoberg.

But why should Sweden – of all places – have become such a hotbed for hot tracks? Some say it’s the terrible weather and long months of darkness that created the perfect environment for Swedes to refine their craft. Others praise the stellar state-funded musical education programmes promoted by the socialist governments of the 60s and 70s. A Swedish love for simplistic melodies – harking back to the medieval cattle-herding calls that form the basis of Swedish folk music – is also a key weapon in the Swedish musical juggernaut’s arsenal.

Perhaps most impressive of all about Sweden’s musical miracle is the sheer duration of its success - with a streak of hits that has lasted longer than any of the classic songwriting factories that have defined pop history - from Motown and Tin Pan Alley to the Brill Building, Leiber and Stoller, and the Wall of Sound.

At its heart – Swedish pop sounds effortless and uncomplicated. In reality, it is the most intricate and precise songwriting method of any genre. These are industrial-strength melodies handcrafted to pierce the 21st century’s hubbub - in malls, stadiums, airports, casinos, gyms and the Super Bowl half-time shows.

It is the same ethos that drove IKEA and H&M to become such world-beating brands. Swedes are so successful at exporting their culture because ingrained in the Swedish mindset is a curious knack for appealing to the residents of other countries. Pulling apart the very best ideas from British and American music, and then rearranging them in a more effective and efficient way is the cornerstone of Swedish musical thinking.

As the 1990s drew to a close, the songwriting formula created by Denniz Pop made him and his followers filthy rich, a potential source of embarrassment in equality-obsessed Sweden. In accordance with Swedish ‘Jante Law’ – a social code that promotes the good of the community over the individual – Denniz and his team shunned the limelight, preferring to leave the pressures of fame to the unabashed Brits and Americans who sang their hits. But the dream could not last forever. In 1997 Denniz was diagnosed with stomach cancer. He died a year later at the age of just 35, less than two months before his greatest creation yet – Britney Spears’s Baby One More Time hit record store shelves.

Today, the most successful of Denniz Pop’s motley band of followers is his protégé Max Martin. Max is famously modest about his mixing desk wizardry – but he is responsible for some of the most potent melodies of our time, standing third only to John Lennon and Paul McCartney when it comes to racking up US No 1 hits.

Mysterious Max has turbocharged Denniz’s songwriting formula into a theory he calls ‘Melodic Math’. It is a complex musical algorithm perfect for the digital age. Decoding the secrets of Melodic Math, James will uncover centuries-old Swedish customs and folklore hidden in the unlikely music of One Direction, Nicki Minaj and Justin Bieber.

With its huge hooks, massive drops and unmistakable sense of melancholy, the sound of Swedish pop is in fact the sound of modern pop. In Flat Pack Pop: Sweden’s Music Miracle, BBC Four will uncover how this bizarre brew of influences came to dominate our charts, without us even knowing where it came from.


FRI 03:00 Shirley Bassey at the BBC (b01psct4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]




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

A303: Highway to the Sun 20:00 TUE (b0116ly6)

Africa with Ade Adepitan 20:00 MON (m0002fcf)

Africa's Great Civilisations 22:00 MON (b0b5b4w8)

Africa's Great Civilisations 22:55 MON (b0b64h37)

African Renaissance: When Art Meets Power 21:00 MON (m000lwf2)

African Renaissance: When Art Meets Power 02:50 MON (m000lwf2)

African Renaissance: When Art Meets Power 23:10 THU (m000lwf2)

Albion 22:10 SUN (m000lwgy)

BBC Proms 20:00 SUN (b07rkvp4)

BBC Proms 23:55 FRI (m0007f48)

Blackadder 22:00 TUE (b00819cc)

Blackadder 22:30 TUE (p00bf6s9)

Bunkers, Brutalism and Bloodymindedness: Concrete Poetry with Jonathan Meades 01:50 TUE (b03wcsdj)

Cricket: Today at the Test 19:00 SAT (m000lwfc)

Cricket: Today at the Test 19:00 SUN (m000lwgv)

EastEnders 2008 01:25 SUN (b00bv3fk)

EastEnders 2008 01:55 SUN (b00bv4kz)

EastEnders 2008 02:25 SUN (b00bv4vw)

EastEnders 2008 02:55 SUN (b00bv4v9)

Easy Listening Hits at the BBC 19:00 FRI (b011g943)

Electric Proms 22:00 FRI (b00nn7vx)

Flat Pack Pop: Sweden's Music Miracle 02:00 FRI (m0002k6k)

Handmade in Africa 19:00 MON (m000lwds)

Handmade in Africa 00:10 THU (m000lwds)

How to Get Ahead 00:20 TUE (b03xsgwk)

Japan: Earth's Enchanted Islands 21:00 WED (p02n9v33)

Japan: Earth's Enchanted Islands 02:30 WED (p02n9v33)

Joanna Lumley in the Land of the Northern Lights 20:00 THU (b00dhv1n)

Joanna Lumley in the Land of the Northern Lights 02:40 THU (b00dhv1n)

Johnny Kingdom: A Year on Exmoor 19:00 TUE (b00793d7)

Johnny Kingdom: A Year on Exmoor 19:00 WED (b00793h9)

Johnny Kingdom: A Year on Exmoor 19:00 THU (b00793lj)

London Songs at the BBC 02:00 SAT (b01jxzfs)

Monty Don's Japanese Gardens 20:00 WED (m0002k0x)

Museums in Quarantine 00:40 THU (m000hqmw)

Museums in Quarantine 01:10 THU (m000hqq9)

Natural World 20:00 SAT (b054fn09)

Natural World 02:55 SAT (b054fn09)

Quartet 21:00 THU (b03ftm2k)

Romancing the Stone: The Golden Ages of British Sculpture 01:20 MON (b00yvsjd)

Shirley Bassey at the BBC 21:00 FRI (b01psct4)

Shirley Bassey at the BBC 03:00 FRI (b01psct4)

Storyville 23:00 TUE (m0009m7s)

TOTP2 01:00 SAT (b01lwbt0)

Talking Pictures 22:30 THU (b04jrvv2)

Ted Hughes: Stronger Than Death 23:50 MON (b06j7pkl)

The Art of Japanese Life 22:00 WED (b08v8gxj)

The Beauty of Anatomy 01:40 THU (b04gvbdt)

The Bridge 21:00 SAT (b01gmbvb)

The Bridge 22:00 SAT (b01gmbvd)

The Bridge 23:00 SAT (b01h221w)

The Bridge 00:00 SAT (b01h221y)

The Defiant Ones 01:15 FRI (m0002pfb)

The Gardeners of Kabul 01:00 SUN (p05fhqn1)

The Joy of Painting 19:30 MON (m000lwdy)

The Joy of Painting 02:20 MON (m000lwdy)

The Joy of Painting 19:30 TUE (m000lwgm)

The Joy of Painting 01:20 TUE (m000lwgm)

The Joy of Painting 19:30 WED (m000lwgr)

The Joy of Painting 02:05 WED (m000lwgr)

The Joy of Painting 19:30 THU (m000lwf1)

The Joy of Painting 02:10 THU (m000lwf1)

The Old Grey Whistle Test 23:00 WED (b09scfnb)

The Yorkshire Ripper Files: A Very British Crime Story 21:00 TUE (m0003m05)

The Yorkshire Ripper Files: A Very British Crime Story 02:50 TUE (m0003m05)

Top of the Pops 20:00 FRI (m000crqz)

imagine... 23:00 FRI (b00p36t8)