The Victorian farm team tackle their biggest project yet: restoring the village blacksmith's forge. First they must make bricks to restore the chimney - a full five day and night process in which the farmer gets no sleep.
As winter marches on and Christmas nears, they must source a yule log: firewood to burn for the Twelve Days of Christmas. At the cottage, Ruth winter-proofs the house, making a paper blanket and remedies for chilblains, rheumatism, coughs and colds.
It is also a chance to begin preparations for the Christmas banquet in earnest - in particular, a very Victorian invention, Christmas crackers. Ruth enlists the help of Christmas cracker historian Peter Kimpton.
A family and their home are stripped of all their modern technology to live a life of decades past.
The family must live through the digital wilderness of the 1980s at a rate of a year per day, starting in 1980. They have their very own technical support team who source and supply them with the vintage technology that would have been available to British households during the decade, including iconic technology such as the Walkman, Game and Watch and the CD player.
For a modern family it is a decade of challenges. In 1980 they attempt to cook a roast dinner in a microwave oven, as consumers of the time were encouraged to do. They are faced with a bewildering choice of home computers in 1982 and the arduous task of finding a rental shop that still supplies films on video cassette for their newly-arrived VHS player.
Dad takes a spin in the most famous technological flop of the decade, the Sinclair C5, but the family do experience an 80s success story when New Wave icons Ultravox pay a surprise visit to demonstrate the synthesiser technology which soundtracked the era.
Illuminating and surprising drama telling the story of arguably the most popular children's storyteller of all, Enid Blyton.
It reveals how Blyton became the writer who would capture more youthful imaginations than anyone else, following her career from ambitious, driven and as yet unpublished young woman to household name and moral guardian, while glimpsing her own childhood - a dark time, far from the carefree, happy idyll portrayed in her books.
Through marriages and children, the roles of Enid the wife (to Hugh and then Kenneth) and mother are portrayed, ones she struggled to fulfil while balancing them with her extraordinary output.
The film also uncovers a strong and resourceful woman; a woman who never really grew up; a woman who rewrote the endings of many chapters of her real life, sometimes with cruel and hurtful results; and a woman whose legacy has often been criticised but whose success cannot be argued with, who gave children the stories they wanted.
One-off period comedy, peeping into the lives of a south Wales family's Christmases across the 1980s, written by comedian Mark Watson and inspired by a Dylan Thomas short story. Christmas in this household may be a less than poetic affair, but it is just as eventful. So much changes across a decade in any family, and yet so much manages to remain the same.
Four-man sketch show packed with surprise and invention. Scenarios include disaffected judges, office bullying via Skype, Russian roulette at the dinner table, a jobseeker aiming to become Mick Hucknall's PA and a dog with a secret - all delivered with a unique brand of joyful deadpan absurdity.
A celebration of Seventies-era axe-men, acoustic virtuosos and thumping riff merchants, in a compilation of guitar-heavy performances from the BBC TV archives.
Guitar gods including Jimi Hendrix, Pete Townshend, Peter Green and Johnny Winter are joined by, among others, flamenco maestro Manitas De Plata, bottleneck bluesman Ry Cooder and straight-up rockers AC/DC and Thin Lizzy.
Everything from Fleetwood Mac's ambient masterpiece Albatross to hits like The Jam's In The City and Free's All Right Now feature along with lesser-known gems like Maid in Heaven by Be Bop Deluxe and Nils Lofgren's Keith Don't Go.
The tracks were recorded in the heyday of BBC shows such as The Old Grey Whistle Test, Top of the Pops and Rock Goes to College.
WEDNESDAY 30 DECEMBER 2009
WED 19:00 Victorian Farm Christmas (b00plmtx)
Episode 3
Christmas is coming to Acton Scott, but first there's a huge amount of preparation to do. Ruth Goodman and food historian Ivan Day try their hand at making a Christmas pudding using the same methods as Bob Cratchit's wife in A Christmas Carol.
Meanwhile, Alex and Peter light the forge for the first time to re-shoe the farm workhorse Clumper - the first time a horse has been shod at this forge in over five decades.
Alex goes in search of a Christmas tree for the banquet, while Ruth and Peter head for the Victorian town of Blists Hill for Christmas shopping. At the cottage, Ruth meets Debbie Bamford to dye an array of colourful Christmas ribbons to decorate the tree and the presents that sit beneath it.
Finally it's time for the Christmas meal in the estate's School Hall. With a rapturous toast to Queen Victoria and a quick trip to the cattle shed to wassail the animals, day turns into night and the drunken Victorian parlour games commence. The next morning it'll be time for the team to bid a fond farewell to Mr Acton as they depart Acton Scott for good.
WED 20:00 Electric Dreams (b00n90xc)
1990s
A family and their home are stripped of all their modern technology to live a life of decades past.
The family must live through the communication and home entertainment revolution of the 1990s, at a rate of a year per day, starting in 1990. They have their own Technical Support Team to source and supply them with the vintage technology that would have been available to British households during the decade.
They attempt to stay in touch using pagers and take a giant mobile phone and a rudimentary digital camera on a day trip to Paris in honour of the opening of the Channel Tunnel in 1994. Workplace technology becomes increasingly portable, but a home without access to the internet proves frustrating and the arrival of the 1990s world wide web is a far cry from what the kids are used to.
The 1990s see a whirlwind of technological progress and the family are inundated with gadgets and upgrades that infiltrate every area of their home. They are left reeling by the pace of change and surprised by the impact of 1990s tech on family life.
WED 21:00 Sounds of the 80s (b0074spn)
A nostalgic look back at some 1980s music.
WED 21:05 Micro Men (b00n5b92)
Affectionately comic drama about the British home computer boom of the early 1980s.
Legendary inventor Clive Sinclair battles it out with ex-employee Chris Curry, founder of Acorn Computers, for dominance in the fledgling market.
The rivalry comes to a head when the BBC announce their Computer Literacy Project, with the stated aim of putting a micro in every school in Britain. When Acorn wins the contract, Sinclair is furious, and determines to outsell the BBC Micro with his ZX Spectrum computer.
Home computing arrives in Britain in a big way, but is the country big enough for both men?
WED 22:30 We Need Answers (b00pl05t)
Series 2
Language
Anarchic comedy game show in which celebrity guests answer questions set by the public.
Mark Watson hosts, Tim Key is in the questionmaster's chair and Alex Horne provides expert analysis from a booth as two celebrities battle it out to be crowned the winner and avoid the shame of donning 'The Clogs of Defeat'.
Former EastEnder and comic actress Tracy-Ann Oberman competes against best-selling author of The Long Firm and He Kills Coppers, Jake Arnott.
The rules are simple - contestants must match their answer to the one given by a text answering service. Questions range from 'How many pints of cider make up one portion of my fruit intake a day?' to 'How long would it take to drink Lake Windermere?'.
In the cunning physical challenge which pits the contestants against each other, Tracey-Ann takes on Jake in composing a sentence using alphabet spaghetti.
WED 23:00 Cowards (b00hd1tw)
Episode 3
Four-man sketch show packed with surprise and invention. Scenarios include disaffected judges, office bullying via Skype, Russian roulette at the dinner table, a jobseeker aiming to become Mick Hucknall's PA and a dog with a secret - all delivered with a unique brand of joyful deadpan absurdity.
The team of Tom Basden, Stefan Golaszewski, Tim Key and Lloyd Woolf have honed their voice over two acclaimed Edinburgh Festival shows, a returning series on Radio 4 and the first online sketch show for BBC3. Their highly-accomplished TV debut is a thrilling new arrival in the comedy landscape.
With top comedy director Steve Bendelack (League of Gentlemen, Little Britain, The Royle Family, Mighty Boosh) at the helm, Cowards is a funny, visually-arresting show performed with skill and subtlety by four of the best young writer-performers around.
WED 23:30 Charlie Brooker's Gameswipe (b00n1j8q)
Charlie Brooker sets his caustic sights on video games. Expect acerbic comment as he looks at the various genres, how they have changed since their early conception and how the media represents games and gamers. Features interviews with Dara O Briain, sitcom scribe Graham Linehan and Rab and Ryan from Consolevania.
WED 00:20 Games Britannia (b00phmrs)
Joystick Generation
Three-part series presented by historian Benjamin Woolley about popular games in Britain from the Iron Age to the Information Age, in which he unravels how an apparently trivial pursuit is a rich and entertaining source of cultural and social history.
In the final part, Woolley explores the journey games have taken from the board to the screen, reflecting the rapidly changing history of modern Britain.
In the 1980s, the power of our imagination was harnessed in early video games like Elite, putting the audience at the heart of a space adventure they could influence. The British boom years of the 90s introduced characters like Lara Croft to a world beyond video games and players were propelled into the internet age.
Woolley's investigation leads to the present day, where he finds our morality tested in the world of Grand Theft Auto and our identity becoming transported to the digital domain with virtual realms like Runescape and World of Warcraft.
WED 01:20 Guitar Heroes at the BBC (b00llh2f)
Part III
Compilation of classic archive performances from the guitar gods of the late 60s and 70s. Status Quo appear playing Pictures of Matchstick Men on Top of the Pops in 1968, The Who perform Long Live Rock in the Old Grey Whistle Test studio, Dire Straits play Tunnel of Love and Lynyrd Skynyrd bring a taste of the Deep South with Sweet Home Alabama. The show also features rare performances from George Benson, Leo Kottke, Link Wray and Tom Petty.
WED 02:20 Electric Dreams (b00n90xc)
[Repeat of broadcast at
20:00 today]
WED 03:20 Micro Men (b00n5b92)
[Repeat of broadcast at
21:05 today]
THURSDAY 31 DECEMBER 2009
THU 19:00 Amazing Gracie: The Gracie Fields Story (b0074qlt)
A look at the legacy of actress, singer and comedienne Gracie Fields who, during her lifetime, was a national institution. Through interviews and some previously unseen archive footage, the programme explores the extraordinary singing voice, comic genius and unique talent that made her arguably the greatest female entertainer Britain has ever produced.
'Our Gracie' was one of the world's first megastars: not so much a person as an event. The secret of her popularity lay in her relationship with her audience, as she goaded them into enjoyment, fed them the kind of cheek that passes for affection and appealed to a shared contempt for pretension.
Her films were sentimental and reassuring, but they also tapped into real social anxieties and reflected the spirit of a troubled pre-war decade. When the press began its lengthy campaign of vilification against her, after she moved to America during World War Two to prevent her Italian husband from being interned, the public, by and large, remained loyal. From her triumphant return to the London stage in the late 1940s until her death some 30 years later, she continued to maintain her place in the nation's heart.
Fields, although still a huge star in many people's living memory, encapsulates the spirit of a bygone age. It is too easy to say we don't make them like that anymore; the truth is, we no longer want to. Our national institutions are built on shakier foundations these days and the sheer uncomplicated pleasure that she delivered for the best part of a century seems a world away. This documentary reminds us of what we have lost.
THU 20:00 Gracie! (b00p1p41)
Singer and comedienne Gracie Fields from Rochdale was the nation's darling. Beginning on the cusp of World War II and at the phenomenal peak of her career, this heart-breaking love story tells of Gracie's relationship with Italian-born Hollywood director Monty Banks and its staggering repercussions.
THU 21:20 Guitar Heroes at the BBC (b00pjk73)
Part IV
Series featuring legendary guitarists treading the boards and trading licks at the BBC studios.
This edition kicks off with big hits from The Rolling Stones and David Bowie before taking things down a notch with the acoustic picking of Michael Chapman and the Irish mysticism of Horslips.
However, it's not long before the likes of Motorhead, Nazareth and straight-up blues rocker George Thorogood turn the volume right back up to 11. A spot of flamenco from Paco De Lucia and a classic track from Strat master Eric Clapton round off the show.
Filmed in the 1970s for shows including Top of the Pops, Parkinson, Rock Goes to College and the Old Grey Whistle Test, these rocking tracks leave viewers wondering why pianos were ever invented.
THU 22:20 Wallander (b00pjk2l)
[Repeat of broadcast at
21:00 on Saturday]
THU 23:50 We Need Answers (b00pl05t)
[Repeat of broadcast at
22:30 on Wednesday]
THU 00:20 Meet the British (b00kv0d0)
Semi-naked women, wurlitzers and prize goats are just a selection of items used by the British government to promote the country's image abroad.
For four decades, the government produced thousands of short films in order to sell an ideal Britain overseas and now, for the first time, they are shown to the country that inspired them.
THU 01:20 The Great British Foreign Holiday (b00k99g2)
Mark Benton has been abroad, he knows all about it: 'The British are an island race - abroad is really abroad, not just across the border but actually over the horizon. It's far away - outlandish, exotic and scary. Frankly, we're terrified of it.'
The Brits, foreign travel and all points in between - how we got there, what we did there and how we got back.
THU 02:20 The Great British Wedding (b00kk4qr)
Mark Benton narrates a step-by-step guide to how the Brits tie the knot. From the stag do to the table plan, from the rings to the first dance, this is a look at how the Brits just about manage to rise to the occasion on one of the most momentous days of our lives - the wedding day.
THU 03:20 The Great British Sunday (b008x370)
Comedian Sean Lock looks at what Sundays always meant to him - from hangovers to Jack Hargreaves, from Sunday school and stately homes to utter boredom.
THU 04:20 Guitar Heroes at the BBC (b00pjk73)
[Repeat of broadcast at
21:20 today]
FRIDAY 01 JANUARY 2010
FRI 19:00 New Year's Day Concert (b00plhz1)
2010 - Highlights
Highlights from the Musikverein in Vienna, where the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra perform their annual celebratory concert of waltzes, polkas and marches, conducted for only the second time in his distinguished career by Georges Prêtre. To accompany some of the works by the Strauss family and other masters of popular Viennese music, there are performances by the Vienna State Opera and Volksoper Ballet. The concert is introduced by Brian Kay.
FRI 21:00 Guitar Heroes at the BBC (b00pjl55)
Part V
Series featuring legendary guitarists treading the boards and trading licks at the BBC studios. Expect riffs, solos and histrionics from the likes of Johnny Thunders of The New York Dolls, Brian May from Queen, Duane Eddy, BB King and Joan Jett, filmed in the 1970s for shows including Top of the Pops and The Old Grey Whistle Test.
Complete line-up:
Alice Cooper - School's Out
New York Dolls - Jet Boy
Peter Green - Heavy Heart
Queen - Killer Queen
Robin Trower - Alethea
Duane Eddy and the Rebelettes - Play Me Like You Play Your Guitar
John Martyn - Discover the Lover
Budgie - Who Do You Want For Your Love
Peter Frampton - Show Me the Way
BB King - When It All Comes Down
Whitesnake - Trouble
Cheap Trick - I Want You to Want Me
Black Sabbath - Never Say Die
The Skids - Into the Valley
Joan Jett - I Love Rock 'n' Roll.
FRI 22:00 Queen: The Legendary 1975 Concert (b00p4hgm)
On Christmas Eve 1975, Queen crowned a glorious year with a special concert at London's Hammersmith Odeon. The show on the final night of their triumphant UK tour was broadcast live on BBC TV and radio, and has become a legendary event in Queen's history.
Featuring stunning renditions of early hits Keep Yourself Alive, Liar and Now I'm Here alongside Brian May's epic guitar showcase Brighton Rock, a rip-roaring version of the then new Bohemian Rhapsody and the crowd-pleasing Rock 'n' Roll Medley, this hour-long concert shows Queen at an early peak and poised to conquer the world.
FRI 22:50 Sounds for Saturday: The Faces (b00phv9k)
Concert by the Faces, including the songs Maybe I'm Amazed, When Will I Be Loved and Miss Judy's Farm.
FRI 23:35 Guitar Heroes at the BBC (b00plj0l)
Part VI
In this sixth and final show to round out the Guitar Heroes series, axe fans get classic riffs from Pete Townshend as The Who play Won't Get Fooled Again, Rod and Ronnie with The Faces doing Miss Judy's Farm at the old BBC TV Theatre, some weird yodel-rock from Dutch prog rockers Focus, folky acoustic numbers from Davey Graham and Ralph McTell, and some flamboyant fretwork from Americans Nils Lofgren and Ted Nugent.
Filmed in the 1970s for shows including Top of the Pops and The Old Grey Whistle Test, these tracks pay tribute to a golden era in rock and to the last of the 70s Guitar Heroes.
Complete line-up:
The Who - Won't Get Fooled Again
The Faces - Miss Judy's Farm
Focus - Hocus Pocus
Man - Day and Night
Chris Spedding - Motor Bikin'
Nils Lofgren - Back It Up
The Cate Brothers - In One Eye and Out the Other
Ralph McTell - Dry Bone Rag
The Runaways - Wasted
The Motors - Dancing the Night Away
Ted Nugent - Free For All
The Buzzcocks - Ever Fallen In Love
Gary Moore - Back on the Streets
Judas Priest - Take on the World
Davey Graham - City and Suburban Blues
ZZ Top - Cheap Sunglasses.
FRI 00:35 Rock Goes to College (b00phv9m)
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
Pete Drummond introduces Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers in concert at Oxford Polytechnic in 1980.
FRI 01:20 Les Paul: Chasing Sound (b00dzzv0)
Documentary profiling the late Les Paul, creator of the solid-body electric guitar, inventor of overdubbing and multi-track recording, king of the 50s pop charts and rock 'n' roll icon.
Les Paul tells his own classic rags-to-riches story, featuring vintage archive and original performance footage of him and his Trio, original interviews with the likes of BB King, Jeff Beck, Jose Feliciano, Tony Bennett and Bonnie Raitt and copious contributions from the genius from Waukesha, Wisconsin, who died in 2009.
Paul was the last of that self-educated, brilliantly innovative generation of musicians and media pioneers who revolutionised popular music in the last century.
FRI 02:50 Peter Green: Man of the World (b00k92x1)
Legendary blues guitarist BB King named Peter Green as one of the greatest exponents of the blues, and the 'only guitar player to make me sweat'. If Green had only written Black Magic Woman, his name would still have a place in blues rock history forever.
His three short years leading Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac saw the band established as one of the biggest-selling groups of the 1960s. Yet at the height of their fame Green left the group, with his life spiralling into turmoil as drug-induced mental health issues took control. Rumours of his demise began to spread, and sightings of him became notorious.
After years battling his mental illness, Green wrote and recorded again. Featuring archive performances and interviews with Carlos Santana, Noel Gallagher, founding members of Fleetwood Mac and Green himself, this film tells the story of one of blues rock's living legends.