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 21 OCTOBER 2017

SAT 19:00 The Incredible Human Journey (b00l7pmr)
The Americas

For Stone Age people, reaching North and South America seems impossible - on each side vast oceans, and to the north an impenetrable ice sheet that covered the whole of Canada. So how did the first Americans get there?

Dr Alice Roberts discovers evidence for an ancient corridor through the Canadian ice sheet that may have allowed those first people through. But there are problems - in particular some very ancient finds in southern Chile seem to suggest a very different way in to the Americas. Amazingly, an ancient human skull discovered in Brazil even points to an Australasian origin of the Americans. Could a route from Australia across the Pacific have been possible? A surprising answer to the problem eventually comes from a Canadian forensic scientist more used to solving murder cases.


SAT 20:00 Wild China (b00c5n6g)
Land of the Panda

China's heartland is the centre of a 5,000-year-old civilization and is home to the giant panda, the golden snub-nosed monkey and the golden takin. China faces environmental problems, but the relationship the Chinese have with their environment is deep and extraordinary. We will understand what this means for the future of China.


SAT 21:00 Beck (b06cstqn)
The Family

When a well-known crime boss is murdered by a sniper in front of his family, Beck and his team are challenged to discover which one of his many enemies could be responsible for the crime.


SAT 22:30 Beck (b06gxv0m)
The Invasion

The bodies of two men are found buried in the woods and, despite persistent attempts, they cannot be identified. When another man is murdered the police discover new evidence which they believe links the murders to an Islamist terrorist cell.

In Swedish with English subtitles.


SAT 00:00 Top of the Pops (b099tcd1)
Simon Bates and Richard Skinner present the pop chart programme, first broadcast on 4 October 1984. Featuring The Cars, Culture Club, The Stranglers, Adam Ant and Stevie Wonder.


SAT 00:40 Top of the Pops (b09b0ksf)
Mike Read and Tommy Vance present the pop chart programme, first broadcast on 11 October 1984. Featuring Kim Wilde, Sade, Paul Young, Alison Moyet, the Style Council and Stevie Wonder.


SAT 01:20 Sound of Cinema: The Music That Made the Movies (b03b45h4)
The Big Score

In a series celebrating the art of the cinema soundtrack, Neil Brand explores the work of the great movie composers and demonstrates their techniques. Neil begins by looking at how the classic orchestral film score emerged and why it's still going strong today.

Neil traces how in the 1930s, European-born composers such as Max Steiner and Erich Wolfgang Korngold brought their Viennese training to play in stirring, romantic scores for Hollywood masterpieces like King Kong and The Adventures of Robin Hood. But it took a home-grown American talent, Bernard Herrmann, to bring a darker, more modern sound to some of cinema's finest films, with his scores for Citizen Kane, Psycho and Taxi Driver.

Among those Neil meets are leading film-makers and composers who discuss their work, including Martin Scorsese and Hans Zimmer, composer of blockbusters like Gladiator and Inception.


SAT 02:20 Wild China (b00c5n6g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 today]



SUNDAY 22 OCTOBER 2017

SUN 19:00 Only Connect (b09b7jcx)
Series 13

Vikings v Parishioners

Victoria Coren Mitchell hosts the series where knowledge will only take you so far. Patience and lateral thinking are also vital.

Two teams of round-one winners return in this game. They compete to draw together the connections between things which, at first glance, seem utterly random. So join Victoria if you want to know what connects Comedian, Identical Twin, Private Life and History Boy.


SUN 19:30 University Challenge (b09bbp07)
2017/18

Episode 13

In the penultimate first-round match of the student quiz, Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, clashes with St Anne's College, Oxford.

Jeremy Paxman asks the questions.


SUN 20:00 Jacqueline du Pre: A Gift Beyond Words (b09bdyfz)
Jacqueline du Pre was one of the greatest performing musicians that Britain has ever produced. She stopped playing the cello at the age of 28, a victim of multiple sclerosis, and she died at 42 on 19 October 1987. This film, compiled by Christopher Nupen from the five prize-winning films he made during her lifetime, pays tribute to her on the 30th anniversary of her death.


SUN 21:00 Hamlet from Glyndebourne (b09bxg0p)
Composer Brett Dean's opera based on Shakespeare's best-known tragedy.

Act I
Elsinore, Denmark. King Hamlet has died, mourned by his son, Prince Hamlet of Denmark. The king's funeral is followed fast upon by the marriage of his widow Gertrude to his brother Claudius. Hamlet is deeply disturbed by his father's untimely death and his mother's 'o'er hasty marriage', a state aggravated by the appearance of King Hamlet's ghost, informing Hamlet that he was in fact murdered by his brother, now husband to Gertrude and king of Denmark. The dead king asks that his son revenge his death by killing Claudius.

Unsure as to what to do whilst adopting erratic behaviour, Hamlet rejects his soul-mate and lover Ophelia, and dismisses his former classmates, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, summoned by Claudius to Elsinore to help discover the cause of Hamlet's apparent madness. A group of players arrive in Elsinore. Hamlet asks them to perform a scene mimicking the murder of King Hamlet by his brother. Claudius reacts violently to the performance, proof in Hamlet's eyes of his stepfather's guilt. Called to his mother's chamber to explain his actions, Hamlet comes upon Claudius deep in prayer, yet finds himself unable to kill him. Discovering Polonius, Ophelia's father, spying on him in his mother's chamber, Hamlet kills him, proceeding then to berate his mother for her shamelessness and debauchery. His father's ghost appears, reminding Hamlet of his initial mission to revenge his death.

Act II
Laertes, Polonius's son, returns to Elsinore to avenge his father's death, threatening Claudius and his kingship. Claudius manages to allay Laertes' violence by convincing him that Hamlet is the guilty one: together, Claudius and Laertes conspire to kill him. Ophelia appears, apparently driven mad by Hamlet's rejection and the death of her father. This only serves to harden Laertes' resolve for
vengeance, as does, moments later, Ophelia's death - she has drowned in a nearby stream.

Hamlet and friend Horatio turn up unwittingly at Ophelia's funeral, and upon learning of her death, Hamlet provokes Laertes. Through the intermediary of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, and according to the plan concocted with Claudius, Laertes challenges Hamlet to a
duel. Hamlet accepts the challenge. Many deaths ensue.


SUN 23:50 Jacqueline du Pre Plays Dvorak's Cello Concerto (b09bdyg1)
Only recently re-discovered, a performance of Dvorak's Cello Concerto filmed in September 1968 by Jacqueline du Pre at the very height of her musical powers. The Dvorak Cello Concerto is a work du Pre particularly loved, and this rare recording, which was believed to have been lost, hasn't been seen in over 30 years.

The hastily organised concert at London's Royal Albert Hall was staged and conducted by du Pre's husband Daniel Barenboim, in tribute to the people of Czechoslovakia, just a few days after the country had been invaded by the Soviet Union.

Daniel Barenboim: "It was an unforgettable concert and I cannot tell you how happy, how thrilled I am that the video of this concert still exists. Jacqueline du Pre had a very, very special relationship with the Dvorak Cello Concerto, and simply adored playing it.".


SUN 00:40 Classic Cellists at the BBC (b084nscd)
Julian Lloyd Webber takes an extraordinary musical journey through the BBC archives from the 1950s to the present to celebrate the world of the cello through some of its greatest interpreters. From dazzling performances by legendary masters such as Paul Tortelier, Jacqueline du Pre and Mstislav Rostropovich to some of today's leading interpreters including Yo Yo Ma, Steven Isserlis and Mischa Maisky, Julian gives us a cellist's perspective on an extraordinary virtuoso tradition.


SUN 01:40 The Brontes at the BBC (b075dwrd)
An exploration of the BBC's long love affair with the lives and works of the Bronte sisters - Charlotte, Emily and Anne. For over half a century, the ill-fated literary dynasty has proved irresistible to drama and documentary makers alike, keen to reinvent their novels for new audiences. So we get Bronte heroines reimagined for each emerging generation, first as classic 1950s housewife material, then wild child '60s 'chicks', Gothic waifs and, finally, empowered modern women. The Bronte males, meanwhile, are restyled as assorted prigs, wife-beaters, even brooding prog rockers and, of course, wouldn't you know it, new men. Wonderful stuff.


SUN 02:40 The Story of Scottish Art (b06jdnnd)
Episode 2

The 18th century heralded the greatest blossoming of Scottish artistry in its history. The most powerful and influential figures in Britain clamoured to have their portraits painted by Allan Ramsey and Henry Raeburn and their houses designed by Robert Adam; they stood in awe at the epic Highland landscapes of Horatio McCulloch and wept at the sensitive genre paintings of David Wilkie.

Scots artist Lachlan Goudie explores how the intellectual revolution of the Enlightenment and the classical influence of the continent gave these artists the confidence and the inspiration to forge a whole new artistic landscape.

From dusty storerooms of Edinburgh to the dazzling antiquities of ancient Rome this is a journey of startling contrasts - between the past and the future, between the forces of reason and romance, between Presbyterian restraint and unfettered emotion. Out of the ashes of the Reformation a new culture identity was beginning to emerge and it was built on art.



MONDAY 23 OCTOBER 2017

MON 19:00 Beyond 100 Days (b09bctzn)
Series 1

23/10/2017

The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


MON 19:30 Oak Tree: Nature's Greatest Survivor (b06fq03t)
George McGavin investigates the highly varied and dramatic life of oak tree. Part science documentary, part historical investigation, this film is a celebration of one of the most iconic trees in the British countryside. It aims to give viewers a sense of what an extraordinary species the oak is and provide an insight into how this venerable tree experiences life.

Filmed over a year, George uncovers the extraordinary transformations the oak goes through to meet the challenges of four very different seasons.

In autumn, George goes underground, digging below an oak tree to see how its roots extract precious resources from the soil. And he sees why the oak's superstrong wood made it the perfect material for building some the most famous ships in naval history, including Nelson's flagship The Victory.

In winter, George discovers the sophisticated strategies the tree uses to survive gales and bitter frosts. He finds out about the oak's vital role in architecture, showing how some very familiar sights, such as the tower of Salisbury Cathedral, are in fact giant oak structures.

In spring, George investigates how the oak procreates, spreading its pollen through the countryside. He discovers the incredibly sophisticated strategies it uses to withstand savage onslaughts from predators hellbent on eating it alive.

In summer, George uses a high-powered microscope to see the hundreds of species that regard the oak as their home. Humans too rely on the oak for their own form of 'sustenance'. Whisky gets its unique flavours from the oak wood barrels in which it's matured.


MON 21:00 A Year in an English Garden: Flicker and Pulse (b09bdyrh)
A striking and poignant portrayal of time passing in a beautiful Sussex walled garden. Using real-time and time-lapse footage, the film explores the relationship between the seasons and the plants and people who work within the walls of the garden. Locked into the clock of the solar system, the garden performs its annual display, guided by those passionately engaged with its soil.


MON 22:00 The Vietnam War (b09bdyrl)
Series 1

Fratricide (May 1970-March 1973)

South Vietnamese forces fighting on their own in Laos suffer a terrible defeat. Massive US airpower makes the difference in halting an unprecedented North Vietnamese offensive. After being re-elected in a landslide, Nixon announces that Hanoi has agreed to a peace deal. American prisoners of war will finally come home - to a bitterly divided country.


MON 22:55 The Vietnam War (b09bdyrp)
Series 1

The Weight of Memory (March 1973-Onward)

While the Watergate scandal rivets Americans' attention and forces President Nixon to resign, the Vietnamese continue to savage one another in a brutal civil war. When hundreds of thousands of North Vietnamese troops pour into the South, Saigon descends rapidly into chaos and collapses. For the next 40 years, Americans and Vietnamese from all sides search for healing and reconciliation.


MON 23:50 Lost Kingdoms of Central America (b04j8st0)
The People Who Greeted Columbus

The Taino people of the Caribbean were the first people of the Americas to greet Christopher Columbus. But, as Dr Jago Cooper reveals, they had a multicultural society complete with drug-infused rituals, strange skulls and amazing navigation. In deep caverns and turquoise seas, Jago uncovers their hidden history.


MON 00:50 Dan Cruickshank's Adventures in Architecture (b009s0kr)
Beauty

Dan Cruickshank explores how humanity has created beauty through architecture. He travels to Greenland to build an igloo, creating an architectural form that is under threat due to climate change. In China he scales the world's biggest Buddha and deciphers a temple in India rich with erotic images. He visits the Catherine Palace, a hot-blooded baroque masterpiece in the middle of snowy Russia. Finally, he uncovers the dark tale of Albi Cathedral, a building originally designed to suppress the local population but now an object of beauty and wonder.


MON 01:50 I Know Who You Are (b08yrc78)
Series 1

Episode 1

An injured and disorientated man arrives on foot at a petrol station, claiming to have no memory of who he is or how he got there. In hospital he is visited by his wife, who informs him that he is a prestigious lawyer, but far more ominously, that their 22-year-old niece Ana is missing and that her blood has been found in his car.

In Spanish with English subtitles.



TUESDAY 24 OCTOBER 2017

TUE 19:00 Beyond 100 Days (b09bctzt)
Series 1

24/10/2017

Katty Kay in Washington and Christian Fraser in London return to report on the events that are shaping the world.


TUE 19:30 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.


TUE 20:00 Handmade (b05tpv83)
Glass

The first episode in the Handmade series, part of BBC Four Goes Slow, is a filmed portrait of the making of a simple glass jug.

Filmed in real time and without voiceover or music, the focus is entirely on the craft process, an absorbing, repetitive process of blowing and rolling as glass designer Michael Ruh delicately teases and manipulates the molten glass into shape.

Ruh is a designer of contemporary glass objects, but the method by which he creates them is essentially ancient.

Glass is heated in a crucible until it becomes liquid. Ruh's task, shared with his assistant, is to keep the glass hot and in constant motion as he breathes into it and gradually shapes the expanding globe into the form of a jug.


TUE 20:30 Handmade on the Silk Road (b079cgml)
The Weaver

The Uyghur community in north west China have been making atlas silk for thousands of years. Mattursun Islam and his family are continuing the tradition, using a combination of handmade techniques and mechanised looms. From designing the patterns to colouring, dyeing and weaving the thread, this film follows each stage in absorbing detail. We also get an engaging glimpse into how their family and working life are closely connected. With rival companies often copying his designs, Mattursan is proud of his reputation. But he and his wife also enjoy a good-natured rivalry over who really runs things.


TUE 21:00 Retreat: Meditations from a Monastery (b09bdzpf)
Series 1

Downside Abbey

The first film is set in Downside, a spectacular neo-gothic monastery set in the beautiful valleys of Somerset. It is home to fourteen Benedictine monks who live according to the 6th-century Rule of St Benedict. We follow two of the monks over the course of a typical, quiet monastic day, as they engage with carpentry and baking, religious services and moments of private prayer in the monastery gardens.

The pattern of the monks' day has changed little over hundreds of years and this programme encourages us to slow down to their pace, share their silence and eavesdrop on their rituals. Father Michael has been designing and making extraordinary pieces of furniture in his workshop for the past 48 years. He picked up his passion for woodwork from his father - but found when he joined the abbey in his early twenties that it was a role he could embrace and nurture. He's now a master craftsman and is on hand should the abbey need repairs, restorations or any new items of furniture. We watch him working on prie-dieu (a traditional prayer desk), carving, whittling and sawing until it's finished and we watch him use it in private prayer. 'Ora et labora' (prayer and work) is the Benedictine motto.

Father Christopher originally came from Malta where he developed his love of food and in particular bread. He first joined Downside Abbey when he was 24, but stayed only five years. Aged 60, he decided to become a monk again and joined the community for good. We watch him bake a loaf of sourdough bread for lunch, mixing, kneading and baking the dough. He also collects wild garlic from the monastery meadows and makes a garlic butter dish to serve alongside the bread.

Filmed with an eye to the beauty and peace of the ancient surroundings, the film has a painterly quality that creates a feeling of restfulness and quiet contemplation. And by focusing on the natural sounds of nature and the peace of the abbey we have created a meditative soundtrack that adds to this unique experience.


TUE 22:00 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.


TUE 23:00 The Art of Fly Fishing: Kiss the Water (b03fgs1r)
In a cottage in northern Scotland, Megan Boyd twirled bits of feather, fur, silver and gold into elaborate fishing flies - at once miniature works of art and absolutely lethal. Wherever men and women cast their lines for the mighty Atlantic salmon, her name is whispered in mythic reverence and stories about her surface and swirl like fairy tales.

With breathtaking cinematography and expressive, hand-painted animation, this film both adheres to and escapes from traditional documentary form, spinning the facts and fictions of one woman's life into a stunning meditation on solitude, love, and its illusions.


TUE 00:00 All Aboard! The Country Bus (b07r2s1r)
Following the success of previous BBC Four 'slow TV' programmes, including All Aboard! The Sleigh Ride & Canal Trip, and Slow Week, BBC4 is inviting viewers aboard for a very special journey through one of the most spectacular and beautiful bus routes in Britain.

The 'Northern Dalesman', as the bus on the route is called, has been rigged with specialist cameras as it travels on its journey, snaking across the iconic landscape of the Yorkshire Dales. Filmed in real time, the cameras capture the road unfurling, the passing scenery and the occasional chatter of local passengers.

The bus route begins in Richmond in North Yorkshire and takes viewers on a lush and varied ride, along a river valley thronged by blossoming hawthorn trees, through ancient mining villages and wild flower-filled meadows.

The bus climbs high into the Dales, vast and peaceful. As it slows down to allow sheep and their lambs to cross the road, the only sounds are the wind and the cry of curlews. And then the final stretch across cotton-grass covered moorland. With the mountain range known as the Three Peaks in the distance, the bus descends towards the striking 24-arch Ribblehead viaduct, one of the great engineering achievements of the 19th century.

The programme features captions integrated into the landscape to provide details about the dramatic countryside through which the bus is passing - from aspects of the natural or geological environment to specific highlights of Britain's agricultural or industrial heritage, from the ancient stone hay barns that dot the landscape to the scars left behind by the lead mining of previous centuries.


TUE 02:00 I Know Who You Are (b08yw575)
Series 1

Episode 2

Aware that their previous relationship will compromise her ability to prosecute the case brought against Juan Elias by his brother-in-law Ramon Saura, Eva retreats to her grandmother's rural home. Eva's colleague David, aware that he is breaking a confidence, tells Marta Hess of the visit and demands that Eva is formally summoned before the court. No-one is completely convinced of Juan's amnesia, including his partner Ricardo Heredia, who suggests that they try to unwind at Juan's vegetable allotment, but their downtime is abruptly curtailed by an urgent phone call.

In Spanish with English subtitles.


TUE 03:10 The Gardeners of Kabul (p05fhqn1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:30 today]



WEDNESDAY 25 OCTOBER 2017

WED 19:00 Beyond 100 Days (b09bctzz)
Series 1

25/10/2017

The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


WED 19:30 Great Continental Railway Journeys (b05nxcrf)
Series 3 - Reversions

Rome to Taormina - Part 1

Michael Portillo takes the train down the spine of Italy from Rome to Sicily.

Braving the traffic, Michael begins his Roman holiday by weaving among the capital city's magnificent landmarks on the back of a 1950s Vespa. Following in the footsteps of early 20th-century British tourists, he pays homage to the romantic poets at the foot of the Spanish Steps before boarding the train south.

Arriving in Naples, Michael savours spectacular views across the bay. He finds out about the first railway to be built in the country, from Naples to Portici, around the base of Vesuvius and then plucks up his courage to venture into the mighty volcano's crater.

From Naples, pausing only to pick up a pizza, Michael boards a ferry to travel to the beautiful island of Capri, a magnet for the writers and artists of Europe at the time of his guidebook.

Heading south again on the long journey to Reggio Calabria, Michael shares lunch on board with fellow British travellers before their train is loaded onto a ferry for the short sail to Sicily.

On the island, Michael finds out about apocalyptic scenes at Messina only five years prior to the publication of his guidebook and marvels at the survival - and beauty - of the ancient hilltop town of Taormina, in the shadow of Mount Etna.


WED 20:00 Handmade (b05tpx1l)
Wood

As part of BBC Four Goes Slow, this programme follows the slow and painstaking process of making a classic Windsor chair.

A beautifully simple object, it is in fact anything but. Filmed over five days, the film reveals the complex, time-consuming processes involved in creating the chair, made by Jim Steele in his Warwickshire workshop.

This traditional design features woods chosen for their different qualities - ash, elm and hard-to-source yew.

Jim makes just 12 such chairs each year, using traditional techniques and aided by few modern tools. There are just two screws in the finished chair. From the steam bending of the back to the turning of spindles, the carving of the seat to the planing of the arms, it's a remarkable process to observe.

The bold style of the film, making use of long, static shots with no music or commentary allows the viewer to admire in exquisite detail the painstaking craftsmanship.


WED 20:30 Handmade on the Silk Road (b079zyb8)
The Wood Carver

Shavkat Jumanijozov has been working with wood for over 30 years. In his workshop in Khiva in Uzbekistan, he makes doors, chests and impressive wooden columns. Trained by the grandson of a famous 19th-century carver, Shavkat is a proud master of his craft and oversees a team of brothers, sons and nephews, passing on his expertise to the next generation.

In this beautifully filmed portrait of a traditional craftsman at work, we follow the painstaking carving of a wooden pillar, from the first cuts into the wood to its sanding, shaping and varnishing, each stage captured in absorbing detail.


WED 21:00 Retreat: Meditations from a Monastery (b09cbc3w)
Series 1

Pluscarden Abbey

Pluscarden Abbey is a remote Benedictine monastery on the edge of the Scottish Highlands in Moray and is home to 21 monks. It is the oldest practising monastery in the United Kingdom, dating back to the medieval era. The monks live by the 6th-century Rule of St Benedict and life has changed little in hundreds of years.

Given its isolated and weather-beaten position, the abbey is almost entirely self-sufficient. The monks grow their own crops, make their own clothes and have little contact with the outside world. Unlike most Benedictine monks who wear a black habit, the monks at Pluscarden Abbey wear white, a symbol of their austerity and strict interpretation of monastic life.

We follow a typical day in the life at Pluscarden Abbey - from the moment one monk knocks on the doors of the brethren and chants in Latin to wake them up for the first service of the day at 4.15am right up to compline, the final service of the day before the monks retire to bed.

Brother Michael is Pluscarden Abbey's resident tailor and weaver. Creating garments is his passion and we watch as he makes a distinctive white habit for another monk - measuring and cutting the material, hand stitching the design on an old sewing machine and finally washing it and presenting it to another monk. He also weaves a striking purple and white stole, a vestment worn around the neck by priests when giving confession, on an antique braid loom housed in one of the abbey's workshops.

Father Benedict served in the British army before becoming a monk at the age of 25. He is Pluscarden Abbey's beekeeper and when he's not attending one of the nine services the monks conduct throughout the day, he can be found at one of the many beehives scattered around the monastery grounds. We follow him as he collects a frame filled with honey from one of the hives and then processes it in his 'honeyhouse' by melting it down and sieving it into jars ready to serve to the other monks at supper. 'Monotonous tasks like going through a beehive are entirely compatible with being in a state of constant prayer.' (Father Benedict)

Filmed with an eye to the beauty and peace of the ancient surroundings, the film has a painterly quality that creates a feeling of restfulness and quiet contemplation. And by focusing on the natural sounds of nature and the peace of the abbey we have created a meditative soundtrack that adds to this unique experience.


WED 22:00 Genius of the Ancient World (b065gv2m)
Socrates

Historian Bettany Hughes is in Greece, on the trail of the hugely influential maverick thinker Socrates, who was executed for his beliefs.


WED 23:00 All Aboard! The Canal Trip (b05t7kc1)
A two-hour, real-time canal boat journey down one of Britain's most historic waterways, the Kennet and Avon Canal, from Top Lock in Bath to the Dundas Aqueduct. Using an uninterrupted single shot, the film is a rich and absorbing antidote to the frenetic pace and white noise of modern life.

Taking in the images and sounds of the British countryside, underpinned by the natural soundscape of water lapping, surrounding birdsong and the noise of the chugging engine, this is a chance to spot wildlife and glimpse life on the towpath while being lulled by the comforting rhythm of a bygone era.

Along the journey, graphics and archive stills embedded into the passing landscape deliver salient facts about the canal and its social history.


WED 01:00 Virtuoso Violinists at the BBC (b072x1qh)
Violinist Nicola Benedetti explores 60 years of BBC archive to celebrate the world of the violin and its most outstanding performers. From Nathan Milstein, Mischa Elman and Isaac Stern to Yehudi Menuhin, Itzhak Perlman and Nigel Kennedy, Nicola gives us a violinist's perspective on what makes a great performance in a tradition which stretches back to the 19th-century virtuoso Paganini. Filmed at the Royal Academy of Music Museum, London.


WED 02:00 I Know Who You Are (b08yzzsn)
Series 1

Episode 3

Juan Elias finds a phone number in his office and rings it. A prostitute answers and invites him to a hotel where he learns that they have met regularly for over two years. Giralt and Hess are shown a video of Elias at the eve-of-election party in which he appears to be under the influence of drugs. Alicia resigns from the bench temporarily until her niece has been found.

In Spanish with English subtitles.


WED 03:10 Great Continental Railway Journeys (b05nxcrf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:30 today]



THURSDAY 26 OCTOBER 2017

THU 19:00 Beyond 100 Days (b09bcv05)
Series 1

26/10/2017

The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


THU 19:30 Great Continental Railway Journeys (b05nxctg)
Series 3 - Reversions

Rome to Taormina - Part 2

Michael Portillo takes the train down the spine of Italy from Rome to Sicily.

Braving the traffic, Michael begins his Roman holiday by weaving among the capital city's magnificent landmarks on the back of a 1950s Vespa. Following in the footsteps of early 20th-century British tourists, he pays homage to the romantic poets at the foot of the Spanish Steps before boarding the train south.

Arriving in Naples, Michael savours spectacular views across the bay. He finds out about the first railway to be built in the country, from Naples to Portici, around the base of Vesuvius and then plucks up his courage to venture into the mighty volcano's crater.

From Naples, pausing only to pick up a pizza, Michael boards a ferry to travel to the beautiful island of Capri, a magnet for the writers and artists of Europe at the time of his guidebook.

Heading south again on the long journey to Reggio Calabria, Michael shares lunch on board with fellow British travellers before their train is loaded onto a ferry for the short sail to Sicily.

On the island, Michael finds out about apocalyptic scenes at Messina only five years prior to publication of his guidebook and marvels at the survival - and beauty - of the ancient hilltop town of Taormina, in the shadow of Mount Etna.


THU 20:00 Handmade (b05tpw1j)
Metal

As part of BBC Four Goes Slow, this programme follows the forging of a steel knife. From the slow stoking of the fire to the hammering, welding and etching of the metal, the film is an absorbing portrait of the complex processes behind the making of the knife.

Forged in a spectacular industrial space, bladesmith Owen Bush uses a combination of modern and traditional techniques, some of which date to ancient times.

The most time-consuming element of the process is the shaping and blending of a sandwich of steels into a blade which, after polishing, is placed in a bath of acids, revealing an intricate pattern - a technique used by the Vikings and Saxons.

The bold style of the film-making, making use of long, static shots and with no music or commentary, allows the viewer to simply enjoy watching the painstaking and highly skilled craftsmanship.


THU 20:30 Handmade on the Silk Road (b07blsjw)
The Potter

The desert city of Meybod in southern Iran is famous for its ceramics and Abdol Reza Aghaei's family have been potters there for generations. This beautifully observed film follows Abdol and his father making a simple decorated water jug. Competing with cheap Chinese imports, they sometimes struggle to make a living, but share a dedication to keeping their traditions alive. And with Abdol's father teasing his son about who makes the best pots, the film also offers a touching, intimate portrait of two master craftsmen at work.


THU 21:00 Retreat: Meditations from a Monastery (b09cbcfm)
Series 1

Belmont Abbey

Belmont Abbey is a Benedictine monastery in Herefordshire on the Welsh border. The monastery itself has a warm and inviting feel which is amplified by the colourful, 19th-century decor inside the building. The monks that we follow at Belmont are true craftsmen - one is a renowned iconographer and one of the best in the western world, while the other creates manuscripts and rosaries.

We follow renowned iconographer Father Alex who travels to Belmont from his native Peru every year to teach his skills. He is the superior of Belmont Abbey's sister monastery in Peru. He uses centuries-old techniques - mixing his own egg tempera paints, using pigments made from semi-precious stones and burnishing gold leaf - to create a striking icon of Archangel Michael, the patron saint of Belmont Abbey.

We also meet Brother Bernard who makes rosaries - a devotional string of beads used in prayer. He uses pliers to link the beads, intricately threading them together to form the set of rosary beads which he then uses in private prayer.

Belmont Abbey's abbot, Father Paul, is responsible for the day-to-day running of the monastery. The majority of his duties are pastoral and religious, including running the services which take place throughout the day, leading the silent meals and creating an environment in which the monks can live and work in peace. He's also a dog lover and can often be seen walking his dog Toby through the monastery grounds. 'A wise man is known by the fewness of his words.' (Rule of St Benedict)

Filmed with an eye to the beauty and peace of the ancient surroundings, the film has a painterly quality that creates a feeling of restfulness and quiet contemplation. And by focusing on the natural sounds of nature and the peace of the abbey we have created a meditative soundtrack that adds to this unique experience.


THU 22:00 Genius of the Ancient World (b066d0v5)
Confucius

In the final episode, Bettany travels to China on the trail of Confucius, a great sage of Chinese history whose ideas have fundamentally shaped the country of his birth for around 2,500 years.


THU 23:00 Storyville (b09c1rch)
The Work: Four Days to Redemption

Set inside one room in Folsom Prison in California, this film follows three men from outside as they take part in a four-day group therapy retreat with convicts serving long sentences for violent or gang-related crimes including murder, assault and robbery.

Over four days, each man takes his turn at delving into his past. This experience exceeds their expectations, ripping them out of their comfort zones and forcing them to see themselves and the prisoners in unexpected ways. This film reveals a radical process of redemption and rehabilitation.


THU 00:25 Pavlopetri - The City Beneath the Waves (b015yh6f)
Just off the southern coast of mainland Greece lies the oldest submerged city in the world. It thrived for 2,000 years during the time that saw the birth of western civilisation.

An international team of experts uses cutting-edge technology to prise age-old secrets from the complex of streets and stone buildings that lie less than five metres below the surface of the ocean. State-of-the-art CGI helps to raise the city from the seabed, revealing for the first time in 3,500 years how Pavlopetri would once have looked and operated.

Underwater archaeologist Dr Jon Henderson leads the project in collaboration with Nic Flemming, the man whose hunch led to the discovery of Pavlopetri in 1967, and a team from the Hellenic Ministry of Culture. Working alongside the archaeologists are a team from the Australian Centre for Field Robotics.

The teams scour the ocean floor, looking for artefacts. The site is littered with thousands of fragments, each providing valuable clues about the everyday lives of the people of Pavlopetri. From the buildings to the trade goods to the everyday tableware, each artefact provides a window into a forgotten world.

Together these precious relics provide us with a window to a time when Pavlopetri would have been at its height, showing us what life was like in this distant age and revealing how this city marks the start of western civilisation.


THU 01:25 I Know Who You Are (b08zb5bf)
Series 1

Episode 4

Juan Elias continues to show the confusion associated with amnesia, but also continues to act suspiciously. A lead found at the scene of his accident takes him to a prison where he meets with his father-in-law Hector Castro who, as a price for his assistance in finding Ana, asks that Juan brings his grandson Pol to see him.

In Spanish with English subtitles.


THU 02:45 Great Continental Railway Journeys (b05nxctg)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:30 today]



FRIDAY 27 OCTOBER 2017

FRI 19:00 World News Today (b09bcv0h)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.


FRI 19:30 The Good Old Days (b09bhb8x)
Leonard Sachs chairs the old-time music hall programme, first broadcast on 5 April 1979. Featuring Roy Hudd, Jenny Till, Pat Mooney, Peter Gale, Terri Rogers, Chaz Chase, Gerard Edon and members of the Players' Theatre. Also featuring guest artist Barbara Windsor.


FRI 20:30 Top of the Pops (b09bklkn)
Gary Davies and Janice Long present the pop chart programme, first broadcast on 18 October 1984. Featuring Spandau Ballet, Chaka Khan, Julian Lennon, John Waite, Meat Loaf, Ultravox and Wham.


FRI 21:00 Top of the Pops (b018zv8d)
1977 - Big Hits

The celebration of Top of the Pops 1977 continues with a selection of outstanding complete archive performances from Britain's silver jubilee year. 1977 was dominated by funk and punk, with Heatwave's Boogie Nights and The Stranglers' No More Heroes in the top ten. Classic top of the charts hits included Baccara's Yes Sir, I Can Boogie and Angelo by Brotherhood of Man. Some of the enduring heroes to take to the stage that year were David Bowie, Rod Stewart, Queen and Elvis Costello, with rare studio performances from The Jacksons and Bob Marley & The Wailers.


FRI 22:00 Punk Britannia at the BBC (b01jmwjg)
An archive celebration of studio performances from the British bands that broke through courtesy of punk between 1975 and 1982. Starting with Dr Feelgood and Eddie and the Hot Rods and culminating in Gang of Four, with performances from Top of the Pops, The Old Grey Whistle Test, Something Else and other shows by The Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Buzzcocks, The Damned, Joy Division, Siouxsie and the Banshees and many more. Hey ho, let's go!


FRI 23:30 Christmas '77 with the Sex Pistols (b03ncggy)
Looking back to Christmas 1977 with an irreverent portrait of the times, featuring unseen footage of The Sex Pistols. Director Julien Temple presents a unique insight into the tradition and transgression of Christmas. Featuring interviews and 70s archive, framing The Sex Pistols' last UK concert with Sid Vicious, for the children of striking firemen in Huddersfield on Christmas Day 1977.


FRI 00:30 Top of the Pops (b09bklkn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:30 today]


FRI 01:10 Top of the Pops (b018zv8d)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 today]


FRI 02:10 I Know Who You Are (b08zn41x)
Series 1

Episode 5

Eleven days before she disappeared, Ana met with Alicia who informs her that she knows of her pregnancy, but Ana surprises Alicia by naming the father. Juan Elias is undergoing therapy to help him to regain his memory, but his session is being secretly watched by Eva Duran and David Vila. Fulfilling his bargain, Juan takes Pol to visit his grandfather in prison where Pol learns a painful family secret. Marc Castro willingly undergoes a re-enactment of his last moments with Ana.

In Spanish with English subtitles.




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

A Year in an English Garden: Flicker and Pulse 21:00 MON (b09bdyrh)

All Aboard! The Canal Trip 23:00 WED (b05t7kc1)

All Aboard! The Country Bus 00:00 TUE (b07r2s1r)

Beck 21:00 SAT (b06cstqn)

Beck 22:30 SAT (b06gxv0m)

Beyond 100 Days 19:00 MON (b09bctzn)

Beyond 100 Days 19:00 TUE (b09bctzt)

Beyond 100 Days 19:00 WED (b09bctzz)

Beyond 100 Days 19:00 THU (b09bcv05)

Christmas '77 with the Sex Pistols 23:30 FRI (b03ncggy)

Classic Cellists at the BBC 00:40 SUN (b084nscd)

Dan Cruickshank's Adventures in Architecture 00:50 MON (b009s0kr)

Genius of the Ancient World 22:00 TUE (b064jf28)

Genius of the Ancient World 22:00 WED (b065gv2m)

Genius of the Ancient World 22:00 THU (b066d0v5)

Great Continental Railway Journeys 19:30 WED (b05nxcrf)

Great Continental Railway Journeys 03:10 WED (b05nxcrf)

Great Continental Railway Journeys 19:30 THU (b05nxctg)

Great Continental Railway Journeys 02:45 THU (b05nxctg)

Hamlet from Glyndebourne 21:00 SUN (b09bxg0p)

Handmade on the Silk Road 20:30 TUE (b079cgml)

Handmade on the Silk Road 20:30 WED (b079zyb8)

Handmade on the Silk Road 20:30 THU (b07blsjw)

Handmade 20:00 TUE (b05tpv83)

Handmade 20:00 WED (b05tpx1l)

Handmade 20:00 THU (b05tpw1j)

I Know Who You Are 01:50 MON (b08yrc78)

I Know Who You Are 02:00 TUE (b08yw575)

I Know Who You Are 02:00 WED (b08yzzsn)

I Know Who You Are 01:25 THU (b08zb5bf)

I Know Who You Are 02:10 FRI (b08zn41x)

Jacqueline du Pre Plays Dvorak's Cello Concerto 23:50 SUN (b09bdyg1)

Jacqueline du Pre: A Gift Beyond Words 20:00 SUN (b09bdyfz)

Lost Kingdoms of Central America 23:50 MON (b04j8st0)

Oak Tree: Nature's Greatest Survivor 19:30 MON (b06fq03t)

Only Connect 19:00 SUN (b09b7jcx)

Pavlopetri - The City Beneath the Waves 00:25 THU (b015yh6f)

Punk Britannia at the BBC 22:00 FRI (b01jmwjg)

Retreat: Meditations from a Monastery 21:00 TUE (b09bdzpf)

Retreat: Meditations from a Monastery 21:00 WED (b09cbc3w)

Retreat: Meditations from a Monastery 21:00 THU (b09cbcfm)

Sound of Cinema: The Music That Made the Movies 01:20 SAT (b03b45h4)

Storyville 23:00 THU (b09c1rch)

The Art of Fly Fishing: Kiss the Water 23:00 TUE (b03fgs1r)

The Brontes at the BBC 01:40 SUN (b075dwrd)

The Gardeners of Kabul 19:30 TUE (p05fhqn1)

The Gardeners of Kabul 03:10 TUE (p05fhqn1)

The Good Old Days 19:30 FRI (b09bhb8x)

The Incredible Human Journey 19:00 SAT (b00l7pmr)

The Story of Scottish Art 02:40 SUN (b06jdnnd)

The Vietnam War 22:00 MON (b09bdyrl)

The Vietnam War 22:55 MON (b09bdyrp)

Top of the Pops 00:00 SAT (b099tcd1)

Top of the Pops 00:40 SAT (b09b0ksf)

Top of the Pops 20:30 FRI (b09bklkn)

Top of the Pops 21:00 FRI (b018zv8d)

Top of the Pops 00:30 FRI (b09bklkn)

Top of the Pops 01:10 FRI (b018zv8d)

University Challenge 19:30 SUN (b09bbp07)

Virtuoso Violinists at the BBC 01:00 WED (b072x1qh)

Wild China 20:00 SAT (b00c5n6g)

Wild China 02:20 SAT (b00c5n6g)

World News Today 19:00 FRI (b09bcv0h)