On a clear day, Bob Ross creates an almighty mountain captured by a crystal blue sky – another spectacular masterpiece on canvas.
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.
Jane McDonald and the cast of The Cruise look back at the 1998 hit. With 2,000 passengers, Las Vegas-style shows and casinos, onboard romances and exotic locations, a cruise ship was the ideal vehicle for a docusoap. But behind the scenes, there was more real life drama and heartbreak than your average soap opera.
A normally efficient local council is late with some paperwork, and Sir Humphrey wants to make an example of them.
Sitcom. Things are starting to happen in Tom's garden, but Barbara is feeling the effects of the boring and tiring work.
Having achieved a level of fame rarely seen in the literary world, Hemingway settles in Key West with Pauline Pfeiffer and spends his time seeking new conquests in the natural world – marlin fishing in the Gulf Stream and hunting in Africa.
Michael Palin continues to trace Hemingway's journey. He arrives in Key West in time for Hemingway's 100th birthday celebrations, where he is given boxing lessons from 83-year-old Shine Forbes who sparred with Hemingway.
In Uganda, Michael has his hair cut en route up the Nile. At Butiaba, Uganda he visits the site of a plane crash Hemingway was involved in. Finally, Michael reaches Venice in time for the carnival and then tries his hand at duck-hunting in nearby Caorle.
For years, Philadelphia led America in sentencing juveniles to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Krasner and his team want to end a cycle of lifetime imprisonment that destroys lives and families.
They must evaluate each case carefully, recommending new and sometimes more lenient sentences that will give those imprisoned for committing serious crimes a second chance.
The complexities of bringing change are seen through a meeting with the parents of Sultan Ahmad Jr, who was killed as a teenager in 1992. The person who killed their son, Joseph Chamberlain, will soon be released.
By the summer of 2019, a war is waging between Larry Krasner and the Philadelphia police. When Larry supports legal injection clinics to clean up the streets in the poorest parts of Philadelphia, local cops routinely blame Krasner for a spike in crime, but the numbers do not support it.
Council member Maria Quiñones-Sanchez, Krasner’s political mentor, calls a town hall meeting. Publicly frustrated, Krasner calls the cops liars and walks out. But when the council member considers pulling her support, Krasner rethinks his approach.
Science journalist Angela Saini and disability rights activist Adam Pearson, reveal that eugenics - the controversial idea that was a driving force behind the Nazi death camps - originated in the upper echelons of the British scientific community.
The presenters uncover how shocking eugenic beliefs permeated the British establishment and intelligentsia; supporters included figures such as Winston Churchill and Marie Stopes. They see how eugenics influenced the Mental Deficiency Act of 1913, which resulted in thousands of disabled people being locked up for decades. Eugenics shaped immigration law, education policy and even town planning. The documentary uncovers disturbing links between British universities and German race scientists in the first half of the 20th century, and investigates how eugenics fed into the racist ideologies of Nazi Germany.
French sci-fi drama series. Is Komarov the 'unicorn' Earth-bound billionaire Goldstein hunts? Gramat tries a desperate gambit to regain the initiative on Mars.
WEDNESDAY 14 JULY 2021
WED 19:00 The Joy of Painting (m000mf91)
Series 3
Evening Seascape
Feel the cool breeze and admire the beauty of turbulent waves, jagged cliffs and dark night skies. Bob Ross paints a west coast seascape.
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 19:30 Return to... The Cruise (b00d213s)
Episode 3
Jane McDonald and the cast of The Cruise look back at the 1998 hit. With 2,000 passengers, Las Vegas-style shows and casinos, onboard romances and exotic locations, a cruise ship was the ideal vehicle for a docusoap. But behind the scenes, there was more real life drama and heartbreak than your average soap opera.
WED 20:00 Japan: Earth's Enchanted Islands (p02n9v9x)
The Southwest Islands
In the far south west of Japan, there is a chain of islands stretching towards the tropics - a place where all life is influenced by the power of the sea, and where volcanoes and typhoons are forces to be reckoned with.
The journey begins at an island at the top of the chain and travels south, revealing unexpected stories of isolation, unique wildlife and unsolved mysteries.
WED 21:00 Tails You Win: The Science of Chance (p00yh2rc)
Smart and witty, jam-packed with augmented-reality graphics and fascinating history, this film, presented by professor David Spiegelhalter, tries to pin down what chance is and how it works in the real world. For once this really is 'risky' television.
The film follows in the footsteps of The Joy of Stats, which won the prestigious Grierson Award for Best Science/Natural History programme of 2011. Now the same blend of wit and wisdom, animation, graphics and gleeful nerdery is applied to the joys of chance and the mysteries of probability, the vital branch of mathematics that gives us a handle on what might happen in the future. Professor Spiegelhalter is ideally suited to that task, being Winton professor for the public understanding of risk at Cambridge University, as well as being a recent Winter Wipeout contestant on BBC TV.
How can you maximise your chances of living till you're 100? Why do many of us experience so many spooky coincidences? Should I take an umbrella? These are just some of the everyday questions the film tackles as it moves between Cambridge, Las Vegas, San Francisco and... Reading.
Yet the film isn't shy of some rather loftier questions. After all, our lives are pulled about and pushed around by the mysterious workings of chance, fate, luck, call it what you will. But what actually is chance? Is it something fundamental to the fabric of the universe? Or rather, as the French 18th century scientist Pierre Laplace put it, 'merely a measure of our ignorance'.
Along the way Spiegelhalter is thrilled to discover One Million Random Digits, probably the most boring book in the world, but one full of hidden patterns and shapes. He introduces us to the cheery little unit called the micromort (a one-in-a-million chance of dying), taking the rational decision to go sky-diving because doing so only increases his risk of dying this year from 7000 to 7007 micromorts. And in one sequence he uses the latest infographics to demonstrate how life expectancy has increased in his lifetime and how it is affected by our lifestyle choices - drinking, obesity, smoking and exercise.
Did you know that by running regularly for half an hour a day you can expect to extend your life by half an hour a day? So all very well... if you like running.
Ultimately, Tails You Win: The Science of Chance tells the story of how we discovered how chance works, and even to work out the odds for the future; how we tried - but so often failed - to conquer it; and how we may finally be learning to love it, increasingly setting uncertainty itself to work to help crack some of science's more intractable problems.
Other contributors include former England cricketer Ed Smith, whose career was cut down in its prime through a freak, unlucky accident; Las Vegas gambling legend Mike Shackleford, the self-styled 'Wizard of Odds'; and chief economist of the Bank of England, Spencer Dale.
WED 22:00 Storyville (m000xw3j)
Carlos Ghosn: The Last Flight
In December 2019, Carlos Ghosn, former CEO of the Renault-Nissan Alliance, charged with financial crimes, stunned the world by fleeing Japan in a box supposedly containing a priceless cello. It was an audacious Hollywood-worthy escape. With exclusive access to Ghosn himself, this gripping Storyville documentary charts the rise and fall of a superstar CEO from celebrated industry leader to wanted fugitive, exploring themes of corporate greed, ruthlessness, vanity and racism.
Born in Brazil, raised in Lebanon and educated in France, Ghosn personified the globalized free-trade system he built his career on. He came to prominence in 1999, when he led one of the most improbable turnarounds in corporate history and saved Nissan from bankruptcy. The first businessman to serve simultaneously as CEO for two Fortune 500 companies, he attained a level of celebrity status in Japan seldom bestowed on chief executives. Fans asked for autographs, a comic book on his life became a best-seller, he was invited to talk shows, and other businessmen envied his success. But he was also representative of the bloated excesses of corporate CEOs. After his sudden arrest by Japanese authorities, his detractors painted a picture of a visionary leader turned despot who took advantage of his position of power for personal gain.
WED 23:40 The Sky at Night (m000xw3l)
[Repeat of broadcast at
22:00 on Sunday]
WED 00:40 Eugenics: Science's Greatest Scandal (m00095jf)
Series 1
Episode 2
Science journalist Angela Saini and disability rights activist Adam Pearson uncover the shocking story of eugenics, the controversial idea that the human race can be improved by selective breeding. It is commonly thought that eugenics disappeared after the horrors of the Nazi Holocaust, but the presenters discover how eugenic practices, such as the sterilisation of the poor, continued on a global scale for many more years. The presenters meet the victims of this ideology, including a woman who was sterilised.
Angela and Adam also ask if eugenic-style attitudes towards the poor and disabled continue to shape today’s society, and explore if breakthroughs in medicine, such as screening and gene editing, will combine with prejudice against the disabled to bring a form of eugenics back. They weigh the undoubted benefits of modern medicine with the possibility of their misuse in the name of human enhancement. They look into the story of the first attempts to edit the genomes of humans in China and explore the latest science on the issue of what’s more important—nature or nurture.
WED 01:40 Missions (b0b64dqk)
Series 1
Fault
French sci-fi drama series. Fateful past decisions affect Komarov and Jeanne, while the Ulysses crew find themselves under threat from the impatient Z-2 military men.
WED 02:05 Motherland (m000w753)
Series 3
Episode 2
The mums (and dad) join the merry-go-round of secondary school open days as they face the choice of where to send their kids at 11. Julia panics about which catchment area she lives in and even considers a fake religious conversion to beat the system. As Kevin’s divorce progresses, Liz helps him navigate the shark pool of lawyers and makes a worrying discovery about her own situation along the way. Meanwhile, queen bee Amanda struggles with playing second fiddle to Meg’s illness.
WED 02:35 Return to... The Cruise (b00d213s)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:30 today]
THURSDAY 15 JULY 2021
THU 19:00 The Joy of Painting (m000mf8v)
Series 3
Warm Summer Day
Grab a cold lemonade and follow Bob Ross as he leads you through wooded beauty to a hot summer swimming spot.
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 19:30 Return to... The Cruise (b00d2149)
Episode 4
Jane McDonald and the cast of The Cruise look back at the 1998 hit. With 2,000 passengers, Las Vegas-style shows and casinos, onboard romances and exotic locations, a cruise ship was the ideal vehicle for a docusoap. But behind the scenes, there was more real life drama and heartbreak than your average soap opera.
THU 20:00 The Importance of Being Earnest (b0074tp4)
Screen adaptation of Oscar Wilde's celebrated play in which two Victorian gentlemen both adopt a double identity under the name of Ernest and end up in trouble when they both turn up at the same country house one weekend.
THU 21:30 The Importance of Being Oscar (m0004gm6)
A star-studded account of Oscar Wilde’s glittering and controversial career before his trial for homosexual crimes and tragic fall from grace.
Highlights from Oscar’s brilliant comedies such as The Importance of Being Earnest and stories such as The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Canterville Ghost are adapted and performed by a cast including Freddie Fox, Claire Skinner, Anna Chancellor and James Fleet. Wilde enthusiasts and experts, including Stephen Fry, Wilde’s grandson Merlin Holland and his latest biographers, provide revelatory accounts of how his own life informed his work. His Irish roots, his early career, his marriage and the importance of women as well as men in his life all combine in a complex and compelling characterisation and celebration that adds flesh to the bones of a man who is too often caricatured.
THU 22:55 Wilde (b0074nq6)
Poignant dramatisation of Oscar Wilde's life, telling the story of the devoted husband and kind father who also happened to be attracted to men - in particular to the spoilt Alfred Lord Douglas, or 'Bosie'. Their relationship outraged Bosie's father, the maniacal Marquess of Queensberry, and led to a sensational trial which spelled Wilde's downfall, vividly highlighting the brutal homophobia of the Victorian legal system.
THU 00:45 Missions (b0b64dqp)
Series 1
Phoenix
French sci-fi drama series. Jeanne, Simon and Gemma enter the sculpted mountain and discover underground tunnels and artefacts from a long-gone civilisation. On Ulysses, crew members are being threatened by Doisneau and Wayne, but Irene - the ship IA - unexpectedly wakes up.
THU 01:10 Missions (b0b6tvnq)
Series 1
Volodia
Beyond the cavern, Jeanne learns more of what is required of her and becomes the Z2 crew's prime target. On Ulysses, desperate measures take a terrible toll.
THU 01:30 Missions (b0b6tw4s)
Series 1
Storm
The survivors race for Zillion 2, but neither Gemma nor Goldstein, her boss on Earth, have rescue in mind. The mission is far from over...
THU 01:55 Return to... The Cruise (b00d2149)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:30 today]
THU 02:25 Tails You Win: The Science of Chance (p00yh2rc)
[Repeat of broadcast at
21:00 on Wednesday]
FRIDAY 16 JULY 2021
FRI 19:00 Gregory Porter's Popular Voices (p05d3p0d)
Series 1
Showstoppers
Gregory Porter explores 100 years of voices on the brink, those that go one note higher, turn it up to eleven and make the hairs on the back of your neck stand on end.
Starting with the world's first pop star, the legendary Italian tenor Enrico Caruso, Gregory explores the sound and work of his favourite vocal showstoppers - the genius of Ella Fitzgerald, the soul of Mahalia Jackson, the power and stagecraft of Freddie Mercury, the artistry and extravagance of Prince, and the modern melisma of Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. With Dave Grohl, Beck, Adam Lambert, Wendy & Lisa.
FRI 20:00 Top of the Pops (m000xw3q)
Nicky Campbell presents the pop chart programme, first broadcast on 25 April 1991 and featuring EMF, Vic Reeves and Electronic.
FRI 20:30 Top of the Pops (m000xw3v)
Simon Mayo presents the pop chart programme, first broadcast on 2 May 1991 and featuring KLF, Nomad and OMD.
FRI 21:00 Eric Clapton: Life in 12 Bars (b0b95q4f)
Documentary charting the life of Eric Clapton, widely renowned as one of the greatest performers of all time. But behind the scenes lay restlessness and tragedy. The insatiable search to grow his artistic voice left fans surprised as he constantly quit successful bands, from the groundbreaking Yardbirds to 60s supergroup Cream. His isolated pursuit of his craft, and fear of selling out, served as a catalyst for his evolution as an artist.
Stretching from his traumatic childhood living in a 'house of secrets', to his long struggle with drugs and alcohol, and the tragic loss of his son in a heart-breaking accident, Eric Clapton always found an inner strength and healing in music.
Told through his own words and songs, as well as those of his family, friends, musical collaborators, contemporaries and many heroes - including BB King, Jimi Hendrix and George Harrison.
FRI 23:05 Eric Clapton at the BBC: The Rock 'n' Roll Years (b0074r9l)
A journey through Eric Clapton's performing life at the BBC and elsewhere, from his 60s blues days to his noughties blues days. Clapton has been described as the best guitarist in the world and has a life story and career that would make anyone's hair curl.
By way of extensive BBC archive footage, the programme charts his varied and ever-changing career - from the beginnings with The Yardbirds until he left to join the purist blues of John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers, to the dynamism and musical synchronisation with Ginger Baker and Jack Bruce, which produced the turbulent Cream, to Clapton's collaboration with Stevie Winwood that would spawn Blind Faith, to his brief sojourn in the Plastic Ono Band and his unforgettable contribution to Lennon's heroin hell tribute Cold Turkey, to his low-profile spell with rootsy US act Delaney and Bonnie, to the band he formed with Bobby Whitlock, Derek and the Dominoes, that produced one of the most famous unrequited love songs in Layla, and on to his successful solo career since then.
Along the way Clapton has successfully survived heroin and alcohol abuse, been accused of being a racist, stolen his best friend's wife, changed bands as often as his shirt, and lost a son in the most tragic of accidents. Through it all, he has produced some of the best music of the 20th century.
FRI 23:35 Great Guitar Riffs at the BBC (b049mtxy)
Compilation of BBC performances featuring some of the best axe men and women in rock 'n' roll, from Hendrix to The Kinks, Cream to AC/DC, The Smiths to Rage Against the Machine and Radiohead to Foo Fighters. Whether it is The Shadows playing FBI on Crackerjack, Jeff Beck with The Yardbirds, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Cream's Sunshine of Your Love from their final gig, Pixies on the Late Show, AC/DC on Top of the Pops or Fools Gold from The Stone Roses, this compilation is a celebration of rock 'n' roll guitar complete with riffs, fingerstylin', wah-wah pedals and Marshall amps.
FRI 00:35 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.
FRI 01:25 Top of the Pops (m000xw3q)
[Repeat of broadcast at
20:00 today]
FRI 01:55 Top of the Pops (m000xw3v)
[Repeat of broadcast at
20:30 today]
FRI 02:30 Gregory Porter's Popular Voices (p05d3p0d)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 today]