SATURDAY 26 MARCH 2011

SAT 19:00 Nature's Great Events (b00j4c6b)
The Great Flood

The great flood in the Okavango turns 4,000 square miles of arid plains into a beautiful wetland. Elephant mothers guide their families on an epic trek across the harsh Kalahari Desert towards it, siphoning fresh water from stagnant pools and facing hungry lions. Hippos battle for territory, as the magical water draws in thousands of buffalo and birds, and vast clouds of dragonflies. Will the young elephant calves survive to reach this grassland paradise?

The experienced mother elephants time their arrival at the delta to coincide with the lush grass produced by the great flood. In a TV first, the programme shows the way they use their trunks to siphon clean water from the surface layers of a stagnant pool, while avoiding stirring up the muddy sediment on the bottom with their feet.

Bull hippos also converge on prime territories formed by the rising floodwater. Two big bulls do bloody battle, at times being lifted out of the water by their rival.

Lechwe swamp deer, zebras, giraffes, crocodiles and numerous fish and thousands of birds arrive in the delta. And, in a phenomenon never before filmed in the Okavango, thousands of dragonflies appear - seemingly from nowhere - within minutes of the flood arrival, mating and laying eggs.

As the flood finally reaches its peak, elephants and buffalo, near the end of their epic trek across the desert, face the final gauntlet of a hungry pride of lions.

In a heartrending sequence, a baby elephant is brought down by a lion in broad daylight.

The diary section - Mission Impassible - shows how the versatility and persistence of cameraman Mike Holding results is some amazing sequences of the flood advancing.


SAT 20:00 Agony & Ecstasy: A Year with English National Ballet (b00zs817)
Episode 3

The final episode offers a raw and revealing insight into English National Ballet, one of the world's premier ballet companies, at the climax of one of its most demanding years. From injury and pain to success and elation, the series exposes the storm behind the calm of big ballet productions.

Wayne Eagling has a highly demanding job as the artistic director of English National Ballet, looking after the 64 dancers that produce eight ballets a year. He has also decided to put his neck on the line by creating his first full length ballet for the company - The Nutcracker. As the company's crucial and lucrative Christmas production, there is no room for error and Wayne must complete the two hour ballet on an extremely tight schedule.

The film follows the creative processes of a choreographer under pressure and a new production fighting against time. With an important audience of critics, donors and government officials expected on opening night, the show must be finished. But with rehearsals running late and severe snow disrupting the making of the sets, it seems the dancers, costume-makers and technical staff are all fighting for stage time right up until the curtain rises.


SAT 21:00 The Killing (b00zwlfg)
Series 1

Episode 19

The hunt for a missing suspect takes an unexpected turn, while the odds well and truly stack up against Sarah. Amidst a new influx of revelations, Troels and Bremer battle it out in a dramatic live TV debate. But back at the Town Hall, Troels no longer knows who to trust. Theis and Pernille are preparing to move into their new house, but something turns out to be very wrong.


SAT 22:00 The Killing (b00zwlfj)
Series 1

Episode 20

Having been taken off the case, and yet more determined than ever, will Sarah succeed in nailing Nanna's murderer? At the Town Hall, Troels is on a downward spiral, until he is given some game-changing information. At the Birk-Larssen home, Pernille and Theis invite friends and family to hold a birthday party for Anton, but the evening takes a dark and unexpected turn.


SAT 23:05 Twenty Twelve (b00zs80d)
Series 1

Episode 2

Comedy series following the personal and professional challenges faced by those responsible for delivering the biggest show on earth, as the Olympic Deliverance team try to get through to the end of the day, the end of the week and the end of the year without all the wheels falling off at once.

A visiting group of dignitaries from Rio (Olympic hosts in 2016) is in London for the week. For Head of Deliverance Ian Fletcher and his team the mission is simple. All they have to do is to meet the Brazilian delegation and take them by coach to the Olympic Stadium where they will meet Head of LOCOG, Lord Sebastian Coe. What can possibly go wrong?

As it turns out, just about everything: from language difficulties through satellite navigation issues to burst water mains and phantom punctures. For the team it's a lesson in the importance of staying positive and focused even when you are literally travelling in completely the wrong direction.


SAT 23:35 Women in Love (b00zpdvr)
Episode 1

Adaptation of DH Lawrence's classic novels The Rainbow and Women in Love, focusing on the lives of two sisters, Ursula and Gudrun Brangwen, as they struggle with love, passion and commitment in the build up to the First World War.


SAT 02:05 New York Rock at the BBC (b007mwcf)
From the streets of New York City to the studios of the BBC comes the cream of the New York rock scene, including classic archive performances from The Ramones, New York Dolls, Television, Blondie, Lou Reed and many more.


SAT 03:05 Agony & Ecstasy: A Year with English National Ballet (b00zs817)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 today]


SAT 04:05 Twenty Twelve (b00zs80d)
[Repeat of broadcast at 23:05 today]