SATURDAY 18 APRIL 2026
SAT 19:00 Snooker: World Championship (m002vfx2)
2026
Day 1, Evening Session
Catrin Heledd introduces live coverage from the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, where defending champion Zhao Xintong plays his first-round match to a conclusion.
SAT 22:00 The Crucible: 40 Golden Snooker Years (b08nt19b)
Steve Davis goes back to the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield to celebrate 40 years of the World Snooker Championship.
If the walls of this famous regional theatre could talk, they would tell tales of tears, triumphs, occasional debauchery, laughter and top-class sport.
With contributions from snooker legends Dennis Taylor, Stephen Hendry, Jimmy White and super-fans Stephen Fry and Richard Osman.
SAT 23:00 On Cue with Steve Davis: 1985 World Championship Final (m002blmz)
Steve Davis looks back on the memorable 1985 World Snooker Championship final between himself and Dennis Taylor.
SAT 23:35 The Promised Land (m0022f75)
Denmark, 1755. Retired army captain Ludvig Kahlen battles the elements, the prejudice of naysayers and the hostility of the local nobility when he resolves to settle on the remote peninsula of Jutland and cultivate its uninhabitable heathland, from which many have failed to yield crops for centuries.
Having obtained official backing from the king, Kahlen is promised a noble title if he should succeed. With no allies other than a young priest, no money other than his meagre army pension and no workers to toil the unforgiving land, Kahlen sets out on his seemingly impossible project regardless.
From Bafta-nominated writer and director Nikolaj Arcel (A Royal Affair, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) comes a powerful Nordic epic starring Mads Mikkelsen (The Hunt, Another Round).
In Danish, Swedish, Norwegian and German, with English subtitles.
SAT 01:35 Keeping Up Appearances (b0077kb8)
Series 2
The Candlelight Supper
Hyacinth has arranged one of her candlelight suppers, planning to impress Emmet, the director of the local amateur operatic society, with her singing. But circumstances beyond her control soon take over the proceedings.
SAT 02:05 Sorry! (p00xcgz2)
Series 2
Cromer or Bust
When Timothy's parents go on a second honeymoon, he plans to hold a party - with the intention of seducing Veronica Straddles.
SAT 02:40 The Crucible: 40 Golden Snooker Years (b08nt19b)
[Repeat of broadcast at
22:00 today]
SUNDAY 19 APRIL 2026
SUN 19:00 Snooker: World Championship (m002vfxb)
2026
Day 2, Evening Session
Coverage of day 2 of the World Snooker Championship at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield.
SUN 22:00 BBC Proms (m001q211)
2023
Northern Soul at the Proms
The roof of the Royal Albert Hall nearly comes off in this special Prom dedicated to northern soul, curated by Wigan’s Stuart Maconie and Manchester’s Joe Duddell.
A celebration of raw, rare American soul music that first obsessed young people across the north and the Midlands in the 1960s and 70s, inspiring an all-night dance culture.
Epic new arrangements of northern soul anthems are performed by the BBC Concert Orchestra, conducted by a dancing Edwin Outwater, and featuring the vocals of six incredible singers led by Vula Malinga of Basement Jaxx fame.
A night of freedom, passion and euphoria presented by Andi Oliver, with special guests Clarke Peters and PP Arnold.
SUN 23:30 The Riviera: A History in Pictures (b01ps9jr)
Painting Paradise
Two-part series in which Richard E Grant follows in the footsteps of artists who have lived, loved and painted on France's glorious Cote d'Azur.
Revealing the intertwined relationship between modern art and the development of the French Riviera as an international tourist haven, Grant explores how impressionist painters Cezanne, Monet and Renoir first discovered the region in the 19th century, when the newly built railway arrived there.
Captivated by the light and colour of this undiscovered landscape, the painters immortalised its shores on canvas, and in doing so advertised the savage beauty of the region. For neo-impressionists Paul Signac and Henri-Edmond Cross, the region provided a vision of utopia, while for Henri Matisse, the vivid colours of the area inspired him to adopt a new palette, and in doing so set modern art en route to abstraction.
With visits to L'Estaque, St Tropez and Nice, Grant maps the progress of the region from cultural backwater to bohemian hotspot.
SUN 00:30 Discovering the Music of Antiquity (m001x1vb)
When a music score is uncovered deep within the storerooms of the Louvre, musical historians scramble to realise the potential of this piece of papyrus. The text's grammatical features give us a clue to the composer's identity: Carcinus, an author cited by Aristotle in his Rhetoric. His name is engraved on a wall in the Parthenon, and the story of his life offers an insight into the history of Greek musicians, who were revered like gods and welcomed across the Mediterranean to take part in competitions modelled on the Olympic Games.
The discovery of the papyrus, more specifically an ancient version of the tragedy entitled Medea, throws open a new mission by researchers to hear the music sung through modern arrangement. But to listen to the Medea as it was heard by the Greeks 2,400 years ago, it still has to be played on period instruments.
From the Greek cities of Anatolia to the Ptolemies’ Egypt, from the mythical site of Delphi to the discoveries made in Pompeii, relive this voyage along the Mediterranean coast, where archaeological excavations have unearthed instrument remains.
SUN 01:30 Genius of the Ancient World (b064jf28)
Buddha
Historian Bettany Hughes embarks on an expedition to India, Greece and China on the trail of three giants of ancient philosophy: Buddha, Socrates and Confucius. All three physically travelled great distances philosophising as they went and drawing conclusions from their journeys. With Bettany as our guide, she gets under the skin of these three great minds and shines a light on the overlooked significance of the 5th century BC in shaping modern thought across the world. In this first episode, Bettany investigates the revolutionary ideas of the Buddha.
SUN 02:30 The Riviera: A History in Pictures (b01ps9jr)
[Repeat of broadcast at
23:30 today]
MONDAY 20 APRIL 2026
MON 19:00 Snooker: World Championship (m002vfx0)
2026
Day 3, Evening Session
Coverage of day 3 of the World Snooker Championship at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield.
MON 22:00 Scotland: Rome's Final Frontier (b01p66rv)
Were the ancient Scottish tribes too much for the Roman Empire? Or was Scotland simply not worth conquering? Archaeologist Dr Fraser Hunter looks back on three centuries of contact and conflict with Scotland’s Roman invaders. The first Tay Bridge, the first depiction of tartan and forgotten Roman camps that once held thirty-five thousand men. A story of a superpower pitted against tribesmen and warlords, and one with fascinating modern parallels.
MON 23:00 Tutankhamun: The Truth Uncovered (b04n6scp)
What killed King Tutankhamun? Ever since his spectacular tomb was discovered, the boy king has been the most famous pharaoh of all ancient Egypt. But his mysterious death, at just 19 years old, has never been explained.
Dallas Campbell reports on new scientific research being carried out on his fragile remains in an attempt to get to the truth. Using CT scan data, the programme creates the first scientifically accurate image of the king's corpse. DNA analysis uncovers a secret about Tutankhamun's family background, and the genetic trail of clues leads to a new theory to explain his death.
This is an epic detective story that uncovers the extraordinary truth of the boy behind the golden mask.
MON 00:00 Art That Made Us (p0bvgz00)
Series 1
Queens, Feuds and Faith
In the 16th century, the British Isles experienced a religious revolution, as the kingdoms of England and then Scotland turned Protestant. Artists and experts today reveal how, during the reign of Elizabeth I, Protestants and Catholics used art, language and new technology to wage a battle for power in the Isles, creating surprising and often radical works.
Author Stephanie Merritt reassesses John Foxe’s grisly Book of Martyrs as a work of history and nationalist propaganda, with passages performed by actress Morfydd Clark, and we meet the indefatigable William Morgan, who undertook the ten-year task of translating and publishing the Bible in Welsh in 1588.
We discover how England’s emblem was the queen herself, with textiles artist James Merry exploring the mysterious Bacton Altar Cloth, now believed to be a fragment of one of Elizabeth’s power dresses seen in one of her many portraits. Elizabeth’s court swirls with religious intrigue, and the Ora Singers perform the daring, subversive Mass for Four Voices, a Catholic work created by William Byrd, a composer of the Royal Chapel and favourite of Elizabeth.
The queen also had a dangerous rival in Mary Queen of Scots. Jewellery designer Shaun Leane examines how Mary promoted her brand through jewels and fine Scottish gold work, while artist Alice Kettle assesses Mary’s embroideries and the coded messages in them that would contribute to her downfall. As Elizabeth expands exploration and empire in the 1590s, theatre, an explosive entertainment for the people, fed off the stories of distant lands coming back to the Isles. Artist Phoebe Boswell analyses Shakespeare’s attitude to race in his play Othello, supported by performances from actor Martins Imhangbe.
MON 01:00 An Art Lovers' Guide (b08nz05n)
Series 1
Amsterdam
With sumptuous palaces, exquisite artworks and stunning architecture, every great city offers a dizzying multitude of artistic highlights. In this series, art historians Dr Janina Ramirez and Alastair Sooke take viewers on three cultural city breaks, hunting for off-the-beaten-track artistic treats and finding new ways of enjoying some very famous sights.
In this opening episode, they head to Amsterdam, a city that pioneered so much of modern life, from multinational trade to the way we design our homes. To find out how, Alastair and Janina take us on a fast-paced tour of the city's cultural hotspots. Picking their way through the crowds queuing to see Rembrandt at the Rijksmuseum, they also introduce us to the paintings of Jan Steen, a Dutch legend whose paintings capture the city's freewheeling lifestyle.
They take us on an entertaining tour of the canals that helped build Amsterdam and explore the city's reputation for tolerance in the oldest surviving Jewish library in the world. Along the way, Alastair and Janina discover how art and culture reflect the liberal attitudes, appetite for global trade and love of home comforts that helped shape the character of this trailblazing city.
MON 02:00 Tutankhamun: The Truth Uncovered (b04n6scp)
[Repeat of broadcast at
23:00 today]
MON 03:00 Art That Made Us (p0bvgz00)
[Repeat of broadcast at
00:00 today]
TUESDAY 21 APRIL 2026
TUE 19:00 Snooker: World Championship (m002vfx4)
2026
Day 4, Evening Session
Coverage of day 4 of the World Snooker Championship at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield.
TUE 22:00 Storyville (m002v2w8)
Speechless
The Pendulum Swings
This two-part documentary is a personal journey by award-winning film-maker Ric Esther Bienstock that delves into the heart of the culture wars and freedom of speech conversations that have exploded on US campuses over the last ten years. Bienstock argues that the liberal ideals of open debate and diversity of thought are under siege.
To begin with, campuses became front lines in a new moral conflict, where questions of race, gender and identity shaped not only what could be said, but who could speak, and at what cost. Then the pendulum swung. The backlash did not restore balance, it escalated the fight. Protests were curtailed, institutions seized, and free speech itself was turned into a political weapon.
TUE 23:30 Britain's Nuclear Secrets: Inside Sellafield (b065x080)
Lying on the remote north west coast of England is one of the most secret places in the country - Sellafield, the most controversial nuclear facility in Britain. Now, Sellafield are letting nuclear physicist Professor Jim Al-Khalili and the television cameras in to discover the real story. Inside, Jim encounters some of the most dangerous substances on earth, reveals the nature of radiation and even attempts to split the atom. He sees inside a nuclear reactor, glimpses one of the rarest elements in the world - radioactive plutonium - and even subjects living tissue to deadly radiation. Ultimately, the film reveals Britain's attempts - past, present and future - to harness the almost limitless power of the atom.
TUE 00:30 Horizon (b08ry9l9)
2017
Volcanoes of the Solar System
Volcanoes have long helped shape the Earth. But what is less well known is that there are volcanoes on other planets and moons that are even more extraordinary than those on our own home planet.
Horizon follows an international team of volcanologists in Iceland as they draw fascinating parallels between the volcanoes on Earth and those elsewhere in the solar system. Through the team's research, we discover that the largest volcano in the solar system - Olympus Mons on Mars - has been formed in a similar way to those of Iceland, how a small moon of Jupiter - Io - has the most violent eruptions anywhere, and that a moon of Saturn called Enceladus erupts icy geysers from a hidden ocean. Computer graphics combined with original Nasa material reveal the spectacular sights of these amazing volcanoes.
Along the way, we learn that volcanoes are not just a destructive force but have been essential to the formation of atmospheres and even life. And through these volcanoes of the solar system, scientists have discovered far more about our own planet - what it was like when Earth first formed, and even what will happen to it in the future.
TUE 01:30 Timewatch (m001xqqn)
2000-2001
The Houdini Myth
Escapologist Harry Houdini was one of the icons of the early 20th century. Restored archive footage and interviews with historians and illusionists recall his extraordinary impact on audiences and reveal the secrets behind some of his most amazing escapes.
TUE 02:20 Britain's Nuclear Secrets: Inside Sellafield (b065x080)
[Repeat of broadcast at
23:30 today]
WEDNESDAY 22 APRIL 2026
WED 19:00 Snooker: World Championship (m002vfx8)
2026
Day 5, Evening Session
Coverage of day 5 of the World Snooker Championship at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield.
WED 22:00 This Life (b007808h)
Series 1
Let's Get It On
Tensions mount as jealousy, lust, shame and over-age clubbing combine to test the five flatmates.
Milly is feeling let down and confused, Egg is sure that he has been two-timed, Anna has to decide between youth and experience, and Warren discovers that alcohol doesn't help one's powers of persuasion.
WED 22:40 Concorde: A Supersonic Story (b097tvt3)
The life of the most glamorous plane ever built, told by the people whose lives she touched. We uncover rare footage telling the forgotten row between the French and British governments over the name of Concorde that threatened to derail the whole project. On the eve of the opening of Bristol's multi-million-pound aerospace museum, a cast of engineers, flight technicians and frequent fliers tell the supersonic story aided by Lord Heseltine and Dame Joan Collins - and we meet the passenger who shared an intimate moment with The Rolling Stones.
Narrated by Sophie Okonedo.
WED 23:40 Shark (b05wdbyk)
Episode 3
A look at how an international team of scientists is trying to change people's perceptions of sharks. Their research is revealing that sharks can be sociable and intelligent, and they could even help solve some of the toughest medical challenges of the 21st century. However, the breakthroughs come at a time when many sharks face extinction. Science may now be the only way to save them.
WED 00:40 Horizon (b08ry9l9)
[Repeat of broadcast at
00:30 on Tuesday]
WED 01:40 Concorde: A Supersonic Story (b097tvt3)
[Repeat of broadcast at
22:40 today]
THURSDAY 23 APRIL 2026
THU 19:00 Snooker: World Championship (m002vfxd)
2026
Day 6, Evening Session
Coverage of day 6 of the World Snooker Championship at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield.
THU 22:00 The Wicker Man (m001t443)
A puritan police sergeant arrives on a Scottish island in search of a missing girl, who the Pagan locals claim never existed.
THU 23:30 Ex-S: The Wicker Man (m001t449)
Documentary about cult British horror film The Wicker Man. Featuring actors Christopher Lee, Edward Woodward and Ingrid Pitt and director Robin Hardy.
THU 00:00 Why the Industrial Revolution Happened Here (b01pz9d6)
Professor Jeremy Black examines one of the most extraordinary periods in British history: the Industrial Revolution. He explains the unique economic, social and political conditions that by the 19th century, led to Britain becoming the richest, most powerful nation on Earth. It was a time that transformed the way people think, work and play forever.
He traces the unprecedented explosion of new ideas and technological inventions that transformed Britain's agricultural society into an increasingly industrial and urbanised one. The documentary explores two fascinating questions - why did the industrial revolution happen when it did, and why did it happen in Britain?
Professor Black discusses the reasons behind this transformation - from Britain's coal reserves, which gave it a seemingly inexhaustible source of power, to the ascendancy of political liberalism, with engineers and industrialists able to meet and share ideas and inventions. He explains the influence that geniuses like Josiah Wedgewood had on the consumer revolution and travels to Antigua to examine the impact Britain's empire had on this extraordinary period of growth.
THU 01:00 Scotland: Rome's Final Frontier (b01p66rv)
[Repeat of broadcast at
22:00 on Monday]
THU 02:00 Shark (b05wdbyk)
[Repeat of broadcast at
23:40 on Wednesday]
FRIDAY 24 APRIL 2026
FRI 19:00 Snooker: World Championship (m002vfxh)
2026
Day 7, Evening Session
Coverage of day 7 of the World Snooker Championship at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield.
FRI 22:00 Top of the Pops (m0002pfn)
Gary Davies presents the pop chart programme, first broadcast on 23 April 1987, featuring Five Star, The Smiths, Kim Wilde & Junior, Judy Boucher, Starship, Tom Jones, Glenn & Chris, Madonna and Terence Trent D'Arby.
FRI 22:30 Top of the Pops (m000pr1z)
Jakki Brambles presents the pop chart programme, first broadcast on 19 April 1990 and featuring Sonia, Faith No More and Adamski.
FRI 23:00 Roy Orbison at the BBC (m001hz0s)
A deep dive into the BBC’s archives to celebrate the great Roy Orbison – full-time rock 'n’ roll legend, part-time Traveling Wilbury and the man Elvis famously described as ‘the best singer in the world’.
The Big O’s story was in many ways a sad one, full of family tragedies and heartbreak, and his extraordinary voice captured all those emotions and more, bringing a new dimension to popular music. This programme features some of the hits that had fans enraptured and fellow music superstars singing his praises, with performances from his many visits to the UK including Only the Lonely, Crying and Oh Pretty Woman.
FRI 23:35 Roy Orbison and Friends: A Black and White Night (b00g6349)
This TV concert classic features Roy Orbison performing his greatest hits with friends Bruce Springsteen, Tom Waits, Elvis Costello, Jackson Browne, kd lang, Jennifer Warnes and Bonnie Raitt.
The TCB Band, which backs all the featured artists, was Elvis Presley's band until his death in 1977 and includes James Burton, Glen D Hardin, Jerry Scheff and Ronnie Tutt, with musical director T Bone Burnett.
Filmed at the Coconut Grove nightclub in Los Angeles, in black and white (hence the title!), the show was first broadcast on HBO in 1988, the year of Roy Orbison's death.
FRI 00:35 Roy Sings Orbison (b00g20wx)
Roy Orbison sings some of his greatest hits, including Only the Lonely, Crying, Penny Arcade, Blue Bayou, Running Scared, Candy Man, In Dreams, Mean Woman Blues, It's Over and Oh, Pretty Woman.
FRI 01:05 Top of the Pops (m0002pfn)
[Repeat of broadcast at
22:00 today]
FRI 01:35 Top of the Pops (m000pr1z)
[Repeat of broadcast at
22:30 today]
FRI 02:05 Roy Orbison at the BBC (m001hz0s)
[Repeat of broadcast at
23:00 today]