The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.
A visit to arguably the most famous archipelago on earth, the Galapagos. It's home to a myriad of bizarre and unique creatures endemic to these islands - but how did they get here and what is the key to these extraordinary islands that allows them to thrive? The programme reveals that this key holds not just the secret to life here, but also to how Darwin was able to leave with the ideas that would revolutionise biology.
Lachlan Goudie traces the story of Mary through the gospels with a personal question - why is the life of the Mother of God barely described in the Bible, but so well-represented in art?
He looks at her role in the story of the Resurrection and the subsequent events up to Pentecost, fifty days after Easter. In Nazareth he visits the well where legend states the teenage Mary was visited by the angel Gabriel, and at one of seventeen Churches of the Annunciation sees the wealth of imagery that has helped secure for Mary a place in the hearts of the faithful. In Bethlehem, the birthplace of Christ, now in a grotto beneath the Church of the Nativity, he watches and draws pilgrims from all over the world.
Lachlan grew up hearing the Easter story from his Catholic mother. Taking his easel with him, he visits the places in the Holy Land most associated with Mary, seeing places and meeting people he knows his mother would enjoy, and carrying religious images drawn by his painter father to the source.
During this journey Lachlan discovers that Mary and her miraculous story are inspiring not just to Christians. Mary the Mother of Jesus is a major figure to Muslims, the only woman named in the Koran.
Part travelogue, part spiritual quest, part artistic exploration, this series transports the viewer visually and emotionally as Lachlan challenges himself to capture the look and feel of the Holy Land and the Bible story.
Dan Snow experiences how the Battle of Britain was fought at the limits of human endurance when he takes flight in a high performance stunt plane. Recreating the spiralling turns of a dogfight, he feels the extraordinary side-effects of the high G forces felt by pilots in this critical battle of World War II.
Using revolutionary graphics, Peter Snow gives a blow-by-blow account of the pivotal moments of the battle and how the RAF held off the might of the German Luftwaffe during the summer of 1940. The future of the entire country was at stake in this, the first great air battle in history.
Brothers Colin and Ewan McGregor follow up their documentary The Battle of Britain with a film exploring Bomber Command, a rarely told story from the Second World War.
The film focuses primarily on the men who fought and died in the skies above occupied Europe, with numerous examples of individual heroism and extraordinary collective spirit, and Colin learns to fly the key aircraft of the campaign - the Lancaster bomber. But this is also the story of a controversy that has lasted almost 70 years.
The programme covers six years of wartime operations, and traces the obstacles and challenges that were overcome as the RAF developed and deployed the awesome fighting force that was Bomber Command.
Passionate flying enthusiast and broadcaster John Sergeant celebrates the plane that some believe won the war - the Lancaster. The film tells the story of this mighty aircraft and the ordinary people whose lives were made extraordinary through their association with it.
John Peel and David Jensen present the weekly look at the pop charts, first broadcast on 13 January 1983. Featuring Incantation, Men at Work, Sharon Redd, Keith Harris and Orville, The Belle Stars, John Williams, Eddy Grant, The Maisonettes, Phil Collins and Donna Summer.
Janice Long and Gary Davies present the weekly look at the pop charts, first broadcast on 20 January 1983. Featuring appearances from Kajagoogoo, Joe Jackson, Echo and the Bunnymen, Melba Moore, U2, Laura Branigan, The Stranglers, Phil Collins and Billy Griffin.
In April 1955 Ruth Ellis shot her lover David Blakely dead. It's a case that shocked the nation and it still fascinates today. It has its place in ushering in the defence of diminished responsibility and the eventual abolishment of capital punishment. We all think we know the story, but why, when it was seemingly such an open-and-shut case, does it still divide opinion on whether Ruth Ellis got the justice she deserved? Film-maker Gillian Pachter wants to find out. The result is a fresh investigation with fascinating true-crime twists and turns that also shines a unique light on attitudes to class, gender and sex in 1950s London.
In this first episode Gillian takes a forensic look at the police investigation launched just after Ruth's arrest. Gillian is all too aware of the femme fatale persona that has stuck with Ruth since 1955. She wants to build Ruth Ellis back up from the evidence, and this means looking carefully at the police documentation from the time. Gillian begins with Ruth's first statement where she confesses to the crime but intriguingly states that she's 'confused'.
As Gillian follows the course of the investigation, she uncovers some worrying assumptions, problematic omissions and missed opportunities. There's a key witness who was never questioned by the police - Ruth's 10-year old son Andre, who tragically took his own life in the 1980s. He left behind an audio cassette that features a recorded conversation where Andre shares his thoughts on his mother's case. Gillian uses this to piece together what the boy knew. Then there's the murder weapon - one of thousands of guns that flooded Britain during the war. Gillian traces its provenance and it leads her to a shocking conclusion.
Experts in policing shed new light on the involvement of a possible accomplice and Gillian tracks down those who met Ruth and David. A picture begins to build of their relationship and lifestyle and it's a unique snapshot of the complex world of post-war Britain that made and then broke Ruth Ellis.
TUESDAY 03 APRIL 2018
TUE 19:00 Beyond 100 Days (b09xyv94)
Series 1
03/04/2018
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.
TUE 19:30 Nature's Microworlds (b01l4906)
Serengeti
A look at one of the most famous habitats on the planet, the Serengeti in east Africa, a vast grassland that is home to some of the greatest concentrations of herbivores on the continent. But what is the key to this exceptional grassland that allows such density and diversity?
TUE 20:00 BBC Young Musician (b09xzsbm)
Forty Years Young
To mark the 40th birthday of BBC Young Musician, a look back at this hugely influential competition, focusing on the soaring careers of the three finalists from 2016, cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason, saxophonist Jess Gillam and French horn player Ben Goldscheider.
From its inception in 1978, BBC Young Musician has been a national institution and performers who've won or taken part amount to a roll call of contemporary British classical music. It's a showcase keenly watched by the music business and an appearance in the final often opens the door to a major career.
Even by the high standards set by the competition, the most recent final in 2016 was very special indeed. The winner Sheku Kanneh-Mason is now Britain's most talked about young musician - he topped the classical charts with his first CD and played twice at the Bafta Awards. His co-finalists Jess Gillam and Ben Goldscheider are also making waves, Jess already featured as a soloist at the Proms and both tipped for stellar careers. This programme follows Sheku, Jess and Ben over the two years since the final, seeing how these young players, all are still in their late teens, are balancing the demands of a blossoming career with their studies at music school.
The pressures faced by Sheku, Jess and Ben are nothing new and alongside telling the stories of the 2016 trio, the programme also meets many former winners and finalists. These include violinist Nicola Benedetti, winner in 2004 and now an ambassador for the competition, cellist Natalie Clein who won in 1994, percussionist Adrian Spillett, victor in 1998, violinist Jennifer Pike who triumphed aged just 12 in 2002, and pianist Martin James Bartlett the winner of the 2014 final. Also interviewed is acclaimed trumpeter Alison Balsom, now a regular presenter of BBC Young Musician, who feels that while she didn't win in 1998, still sees the competition as an important springboard for her career.
The programme interviews Humphrey Burton who co-created the competition and presented it for many years, and oboist Nicholas Daniel, the second winner in 1980, who's since gone on to be one of Britain's most acclaimed classical soloists. Also interviewed is actor Richard Wilson, star of One Foot in the Grave, a long-time fan of the competition, who admits to getting slightly tearful at the sight of young musicians playing with such brilliance.
With contributions from conductor Mark Wigglesworth, music critic Jessica Duchen and principal of the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire Julian Lloyd Webber, the programme celebrates forty years of BBC Young Musician and shows that it's never been a more valued and relevant part of the UK classical music scene.
TUE 21:00 The Story of the Jews (b0398rkj)
In the Beginning
The story of the Jewish experience begins 3,000 years ago with the emergence of a tribal people in a contested land and their extraordinary book, the Hebrew Bible, a chronicle of their stormy relationship with a faceless, formless, jealous God. It was loyalty to this 'God of Words' that defined the distinct identity of the ancient Jews and preserved it despite all that history could throw their way - war, invasion, deportation, enslavement, exile and assimilation.
The story unfolds with a dazzling cast of historical characters: Sigmund Freud dying in exile in London; Victorian evangelicals and explorers following 'in the footsteps' of Moses; Jewish mercenaries living, prospering and intermarrying in the pagan land of Egypt; Messianic Jews dreaming of the Apocalypse; and a Jewish historian, Josephus, who witnessed first-hand the moment when the apocalypse finally came and the Romans destroyed the Jewish High Temple in Jerusalem.
TUE 22:00 Mrs Mandela (b00qbyhn)
Fact-based drama which charts how Winnie Mandela went from innocent country girl to politicised fighter against apartheid, and from an adoring and loving wife to firebrand revolutionary.
In February 1990, Winnie Mandela arrived at Victor Verster prison for the release of her husband Nelson after 27 years' incarceration, a moment of freedom that will be etched on the minds of billions around the world.
But behind her public face of triumphant celebration lay an inner turmoil, based on the realisation that she could no longer play the loyal and faithful wife.
After following Winnie through her years of imprisonment, torture and exile at the hands of the white ruling class, the film comes to a dramatic crescendo as the consequences of her brutalisation by the South African state blur into the madness of the last days of apartheid.
We are left with what this all means for one of the most famous couples in the world - Nelson and Mrs Mandela.
TUE 23:30 Timeshift (p0287mq6)
Series 14
Bullseyes and Beer: When Darts Hit Britain
Timeshift tells the story of how a traditional working-class pub game became a national obsession during the 1970s and 80s, and looks at the key role television played in elevating its larger-than-life players into household names.
Siobhan Finneran narrates a documentary which charts the game's surprising history, its cross-class and cross-gender appeal, and the star players that, for two decades, transformed a pub pastime into a sporting spectacle like no other.
Featuring legendary names such as Alan Evans and Jocky Wilson and including contributions from Eric Bristow, Bobby George, John Lowe and Phil Taylor.
TUE 00:35 Francesco's Italy: Top to Toe (b00791vw)
The Romantic North
Francesco da Mosto gets romantic in Juliet's home town of Verona, witnesses the birth of western art, has a fashion makeover from Giorgio Armani, is invited into a closed convent to see the tomb of the most notorious woman in European history, and goes deep-sea diving in pursuit of a childhood dream.
TUE 01:35 Top of the Pops (b0894ftx)
Simon Bates and Richard Skinner present the weekly look at the pop charts, first broadcast on 27 January 1983. Features Level 42, The Belle Stars, Central Line, The Beatles, China Crisis, Wham!, Bauhaus, Joe Cocker & Jennifer Warnes, Dire Straits and Men at Work.
TUE 02:15 Top of the Pops (b08bqdzj)
John Peel and David Jensen introduce the latest hits from the pop charts, first broadcast on 3 February 1983. Featuring Haysi Fantayzee, Indeep, Tears For Fears, U2 and Men at Work.
TUE 02:45 The Ruth Ellis Files: A Very British Crime Story (b09w3m05)
Series 1
Episode 2
In April 1955 Ruth Ellis shot her lover David Blakely dead. It's a case that shocked the nation and it still fascinates today. It has its place in ushering in the defence of diminished responsibility and the eventual abolishment of capital punishment. We all think we know the story, but why, when it was seemingly such an open and shut case, does it still divide opinion on whether Ruth Ellis got the justice she deserved?
Film-maker Gillian Pachter wants to find out. The result is a fresh investigation with fascinating true-crime twists and turns that also shines a unique light on attitudes to class, gender and sex in 1950s London.
In episode two Gillian turns her attention to Ruth's trial which took just a day and a half. She starts with a tape-recorded conversation from the 1980s between Ruth's son Andre and the barrister who led the prosecution. Andre expresses doubts about his mother's trial, calling into question her state of mind and whether she was a cold-blooded killer.
Gillian is interested to know whether the defence shared these concerns and she turns her attention to Ruth's solicitor. There are immediate and compelling questions about how he was hired, by whom and why. Ultimately it seems he was determined that the jury should look beyond the tabloid stereotype of Ruth to understand her troubled background - that way, they'd be inclined to recommend mercy and save Ruth from execution. But Ruth and her barrister had other ideas - while she refused to play ball he pursued a defence strategy so risky that the judge was forced to put his foot down.
There's the ongoing question of Ruth's alleged accomplice and how much Ruth's defence team knew of his involvement and continuing revelations from the forgotten witness, Ruth's son Andre. Gillian draws on expert opinion from top legal minds who know the case intimately, and they paint a portrait of a woman trapped not only by the constraints of 1950s society but by the narrow parameters of English law.
WEDNESDAY 04 APRIL 2018
WED 19:00 Beyond 100 Days (b09xyv99)
Series 1
04/04/2018
Katty Kay in Washington and Christian Fraser in London return to report on the events that are shaping the world.
WED 19:30 Nature's Microworlds (b01lc6w5)
Amazon
Steve Backshall lifts the lid on an incredible world of intricate relationships and unexpected hardship in the Amazon rainforest, explores the way that the jungle's inhabitants interact, and reveals a hidden secret that might just be what keeps the whole place alive.
WED 20:00 Metalworks! (b01hr877)
The Blacksmith's Tale
In a story where progress meets creative invention, this film looks at how the blacksmith created items in wrought and cast iron that both served and embellished society. From the earliest ornate hinges and doors to magnificent baroque gates and mass-produced street furniture, it reveals the mastery of metalworkers such as Jean Tijou, Robert Bakewell and John Tresilian, the designs of Robert Adam and George Gilbert Scott, and the mass marketers of the Victorian age such as the Saracen foundry.
Treasures are drawn from all corners of the UK in a celebration of the best of British decorative ironwork.
WED 21:00 MAKE! Craft Britain (b09xzsmc)
Series 1
Episode 3
Two new sets of students are introduced to the art of mosaic making and perennial favourite, knitting. Meanwhile, origami artist Sam Tsang is on hand to teach how to make a family of paper penguins.
To inspire our budding mosaic makers, their workshop takes place in a very special village hall in Ford Village, Northumberland. Lady Waterford Hall was once the village school and is decorated with exquisite biblical murals painted by Lady Louisa herself over 21 years after the death of her husband in 1860. She is now regarded as one of the most gifted painters of the pre-Raphaelite era.
Picking up Lady Waterford's mantle is Tamara Froud, renowned mosaicist whose works can be seen in public spaces all over the country, and she welcomes eight students to the beautiful space for her two-day workshop.
The students are here to make plaques for the outside walls of their homes. First, they have to master the tools of the trade, and protective glasses are in order as tiles fly and crockery shatters. But soon a more peaceful air descends as Alison recreates the horns of her new prize ram in terracotta tiles, Paul rebuilds Hadrian's Wall against the backdrop of the Northumbrian flag and Cheryl pays homage to a Lowry painting which features the front steps of her new home.
In London, an altogether different workshop is taking place as six students are charged with knitting their very own bobble hat in a single day. Three are complete novices, while three have some experience of knitting but have been put off along the way. Teachers Jen and Jenny are on hand to make it all look simple.
First to finish is Kirsty with her magnificent stripy pom-pom hat, but Luke the undertaker struggles and mid-afternoon his hat goes into 'special measures'. This makes his pride on finishing all the more heartfelt, along with the two other men in the group, neither of whom had ever picked up a pair of knitting needles in their lives.
WED 22:00 Martin Luther King: The Assassination Tapes (b0395lf7)
4 April 1968, and Martin Luther King is gunned down on the balcony of a hotel in Memphis, Tennessee. The catalyst that would lead to his assassination began three months before his death, when the city's sanitation workers went on strike. Realising that this might be a seminal moment in the civil rights movement, scholars at the University of Memphis started to collect every piece of media they could find - television, radio and print.
Unbelievably, most of this remarkable footage hasn't been seen since 1968. Now, for the first time, it has been chronologically reassembled, bringing to life as never before the tumultuous events surrounding one of the most shocking assassinations in America.
WED 22:45 Martin Luther King and the March on Washington (b039dyn8)
Documentary commemorating the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King's March on Washington, a pivotal moment in the Civil Rights Movement in the United States.
The film tells the story of how the march for jobs and freedom began, speaking to the people who organised and participated in it. Using rarely seen archive footage the film reveals the background stories surrounding the build up to the march as well as the fierce opposition it faced from the JFK administration, J Edgar Hoover's FBI and widespread claims that it would incite racial violence, chaos and disturbance. The film follows the unfolding drama as the march reaches its ultimate triumphs, gaining acceptance from the state, successfully raising funds and in the end, organised and executed peacefully - and creating a landmark moment in the struggle for civil rights and racial equality in the United States.
Including interviews with some of the key actors: members of the inner circles of the core organizational groups such as Jack O'Dell, Clarence B Jones, Julian Bond and Andrew Young; Hollywood supporters and civil rights campaigners including Harry Belafonte, Diahann Carroll and Sidney Poitier; performing artists at the march such as Joan Baez and Peter Yarrow; JFK administration official, Harris Wofford; the CBS Broadcaster who reported from the march, Roger Mudd; Clayborne Carson, the founding director of Stanford's Martin Luther King Jr Research and Education Institute and a participant in the march; as well as those who witnessed the march on TV and were influenced by it, such as Oprah Winfrey, and most of all, the remembrances of the ordinary citizens who joined some 250,000 Americans at the capital on that momentous day.
WED 23:45 Carved with Love: The Genius of British Woodwork (b01q6xrv)
The Divine Craft of Carpentry
This series about the history of British woodworking concludes by looking at the Middle Ages, a golden era. Sponsored by the monarchy and the church, carvers and carpenters created wonders that still astound us today, from the magnificent roof of Westminster Hall to the Coronation Chair, last used by Elizabeth II but created 700 years ago. The film also shows how this precious legacy was nearly destroyed during the fires of the Reformation.
WED 00:45 Top of the Pops (b08bqfct)
Janice Long and Pat Sharp present the weekly look at the pop charts, first broadcast on 10 February 1983. Featuring The Belle Stars, Toto, Level 42, Michael Jackson, Central Line, China Crisis and Men at Work.
WED 01:25 Top of the Pops (b08cgpkf)
Peter Powell and Gary Davies present the weekly chart show, first broadcast on 17 February 1983. Featuring Wham, Tears for Fears, Icehouse, Musical Youth, Madness, Haysi Fantayzee, Fun Boy Three and Kajagoogoo.
WED 01:55 Metalworks! (b01hr877)
[Repeat of broadcast at
20:00 today]
WED 02:55 The Ruth Ellis Files: A Very British Crime Story (b09w8jp0)
Series 1
Episode 3
In April 1955 Ruth Ellis shot her lover David Blakely dead. It's a case that shocked the nation and it still fascinates today. It has its place in ushering in the defence of diminished responsibility and the eventual abolishment of capital punishment. We all think we know the story, but why, when it was seemingly such an open and shut case, does it still divide opinion on whether Ruth Ellis got the justice she deserved?
Film-maker Gillian Pachter wants to find out. The result is a fresh investigation with fascinating true-crime twists and turns that also shines a unique light on attitudes to class, gender and sex in 1950s London.
In episode three Gillian turns her attention to Ruth's execution and the last-minute attempts to save her life even though Ruth herself was determined to die. Despite this Ruth decides to change her solicitor and Gillian is intrigued as to the reasons why. When Ruth does finally admit that someone else was involved in the murder, her new solicitor races to the Home Office in a bid to stop the execution.
He isn't alone in not wanting to see Ruth hanged. Gillian looks at the hundreds of letters that were sent by the British public to the government asking for Ruth to be reprieved. It's a fascinating snapshot of British attitudes in the 1950s: the letters point to Ruth's mental state, the domestic violence she'd suffered and even the trauma experienced by those who'd lived through the Blitz.
The police are sent to track down Ruth's other lover, Desmond Cussen, who Ruth now claims gave her the gun and drove her to the scene of the murder. But they can't find him and won't take Ruth's word for it. The Home Office decides to press on with the execution; they worry that if they don't follow through on such a high-profile murder case that this will accelerate the abolition of capital punishment.
Ruth is hanged and Gillian explores the role of her case in the introduction of the defence of diminished responsibility in England and its place in the eventual abolition of capital punishment in Britain in 1965. But Ruth's personal legacy is much more tragic as Gillian explores the effects of the events of 1955 on Ruth's family. This takes Gillian to a taped conversation recorded by Ruth's son in the 1980s, where his despair at what happened when he was ten is movingly clear; Andre lost his mother and he lost David, whom he loved. He took his own life in the 1980s and today his ashes are close to his mother's in a cemetery in Hertfordshire not far from where David Blakely was buried. Three victims of a truly tragic set of circumstances.
THURSDAY 05 APRIL 2018
THU 19:00 Beyond 100 Days (b09xyv9j)
Series 1
05/04/2018
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.
THU 19:30 Top of the Pops (b09xzvbs)
Peter Powell and Dixie Peach present the pop chart programme, first broadcast on 15 August 1985. Featuring UB40 with Chrissie Hynde, Madonna, The Cars, Kate Bush and Billy Idol.
THU 20:00 Commonwealth Games Extra (b09yccjc)
Gold Coast 2018
Day One - 05/04/18
Further coverage of the 2018 Commonwealth Games from Gold Coast, with extended highlights of the triathlon.
THU 21:00 Putin, Russia and the West (b01b3hkm)
Taking Control
Vladimir Putin began his career as a KGB spy, but when he became president he made himself a valued ally of the west. How did he do it? And what made Washington and London turn against him?
In this four-part series Putin's top colleagues - and the western statesmen who eventually clashed with him - tell the inside story of one of the world's most powerful men.
In this opening episode, George W Bush meets Putin in June 2001 and declares he looked him in the eye and 'got a sense of his soul'. Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice recall their discomfort. But Rice, the only Bush adviser in the private talks, reveals that, three months before 9/11, Putin gave Bush a prophetic warning about Pakistan, Afghanistan and the Taliban. After 9/11, Putin describes how he convinced his shocked colleagues that Russia should align with the West. Sergei Ivanov, Russian's defence minister, tells how the Taliban secretly offered to join forces with Russia against America.
THU 22:00 Inside Porton Down: Britain's Secret Weapons Research Facility (b07hx40t)
Dr Michael Mosley investigates Britain's most secretive and controversial military research base, Porton Down, on its 100th anniversary. He comes face to face with chemical and biological weapons old and new, reveals the truth about shocking animal and human testing, and discovers how the latest science and technology are helping to defend us against terrorist attacks and rogue nations.
THU 23:00 A Timewatch Guide (b083dd1g)
Series 3
Russia: A Century of Suspicion
At the outbreak of war in 1939, wondering whether Russia would join the fight with the Allies, Sir Winston Churchill famously described this nation as 'a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma'. These words have almost come to define Britain's view of Russia ever since: an inscrutable power that always plays by its own rules.
Military historian Saul David draws on classic Timewatch documentaries and a wide range of BBC archive to examine how television has portrayed Russia through the years. From our trusted World War II ally to the red oppressor of the Cold War, from a potential free-market friend when Communism crumbled to a new 21st-century foe under Putin, Russia has swung from friend to foe and back again - either way, we find it incredibly hard to understand her.
This programme explores how arguably Britain's most complex international relationship has played out on television.
THU 00:00 Al Murray's Great British Spy Movies (b04w85jj)
Comedian and history buff Al Murray is joined by former director of MI5 Dame Stella Rimington, political comedian Matt Forde and film expert Matthew Sweet for a fresh look at the great British spy movie. This round-table discussion looks at the films themselves - not to mention the spies that star in them - and uses them as a lens on the British people, our fear of the world and our changing views of espionage over the decades.
As well as discussing the inevitable moral ambiguity, the limited female roles and general distrust of the intelligence community, we also find out what Dame Stella Rimington, the real M, actually thinks about James Bond, what you really say at a party when someone inevitably asks what you do, the spy gadget she'd really like to get her hands on, and the film that was genuinely used as a training movie when she first joined the service.
THU 01:00 Top of the Pops (b09xzvbs)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:30 today]
THU 01:30 Putin, Russia and the West (b01b3hkm)
[Repeat of broadcast at
21:00 today]
THU 02:30 The Story of the Jews (b0398rkj)
[Repeat of broadcast at
21:00 on Tuesday]
FRIDAY 06 APRIL 2018
FRI 19:00 World News Today (b09xyv9r)
The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.
FRI 19:30 BBC Young Musician (b09y22pm)
2018
Strings Category Final
As BBC Young Musician begins its 40th anniversary series, Josie d'Arby is joined by Alison Balsom, herself a finalist in 1998, to present highlights from the first of this year's category finals.
Since it was first held in 1978, the contest has showcased the UK's brightest and best musical talent. This year five exceptional musicians have been selected for the strings final. They are: 19-year-old violinist Elodie Chousmer-Howelles; 17-year-old double bassist Will Duerden; violinist Stephanie Childress who is 18; 17-year-old guitarist Torrin Williams; and cellist Maxim Calver who is 18 years old. The music they perform includes Bach, Brahms and Stravinsky.
Filmed in the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire's brand new concert hall, the programme introduces us to the five strings finalists, takes us behind the scenes to find out what it takes to compete at this level and features extensive highlights of each of the finalist's performances.
On hand to decide the category winner is a panel of leading experts. They are: renowned classical double bass virtuoso Leon Bosch; Milos Karadaglic, the award-winning classical guitarist from Montenegro; one of today's most exciting violinists Jennifer Pike who at 12 was the youngest winner of BBC Young Musician when she won in 2002; and the chair of the jury, composer, performer and writer Kerry Andrew.
Follow the competition over the next five weeks on BBC Four as 25 of the UK's most talented young musicians compete in the strings, percussion, woodwind, brass and keyboard finals. The winners will all take their place in the semi-final and compete for a chance to perform in the Grand Final at Birmingham's Symphony Hall with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra conducted by Mark Wigglesworth. One will be named BBC Young Musician 2018.
FRI 21:00 Forever Young: How Rock 'n' Roll Grew Up (b00sxjls)
Documentary which looks at how rock 'n' roll has had to deal with the unthinkable - namely growing up and growing old, from its roots in the 50s as music made by young people for young people to the 21st-century phenomena of the revival and the comeback.
Despite the mantra of 'live fast, die young', Britain's first rock 'n' roll generations are now enjoying old age. What was once about youth and taking risks is now about longevity, survival, nostalgia and refusing to grow up, give up or shut up. But what happens when the music refuses to die and its performers refuse to leave the stage? What happens when rock's youthful rebelliousness is delivered wrapped in wrinkles?
Featuring Lemmy, Iggy Pop, Peter Noone, Rick Wakeman, Paul Jones, Richard Thompson, Suggs, Eric Burdon, Bruce Welch, Robert Wyatt, Gary Brooker, Joe Brown, Chris Dreja of The Yardbirds, Alison Moyet, Robyn Hitchcock, writers Rosie Boycott and Nick Kent and producer Joe Boyd.
FRI 22:00 Billy Fury: The Sound of Fury (b077x1fk)
Documentary which recounts the story of Billy Fury and the birth of British pop music. His first album, The Sound of Fury (released in 1960), has become a landmark record in British rock 'n' roll history.
Born in Liverpool during the Second World War, Ronnie Wycherley became an overnight sensation in 1958 when he was asked to go on stage and sing a couple of his self-penned songs by showbiz impresario Larry Parnes. Ronnie's knees shook with nerves, but over 2,000 screaming girls welcomed the new star of British rock 'n' roll and the headline in the local newspaper the following day was 'Dingle boy with a hot guitar'.
With more Top 40 hits than The Beatles during the 60s, Billy Fury's major hits included Halfway to Paradise, Wondrous Place, Jealousy, Last Night Was Made For Love and many more.
Aged just 42, Billy died of heart failure after a recording session. But his fans have never forgotten him, and every year on the anniversary of his death they gather to pay their tributes at Mill Hill cemetery. Lord Puttnam sums up Fury's contribution to modern music in the programme by saying that, 'without Billy Fury, I honestly don't think The Beatles would have happened'.
FRI 23:30 It's Only Rock 'n' Roll: Rock 'n' Roll at the BBC (b063m6wy)
A celebration of rock 'n' roll in the shape of a compilation of classic artists and songs, featuring the likes of Jerry Lee Lewis, Dion and Dick Dale who all featured in the Rock 'n' Roll America series, alongside songs that celebrate rock 'n roll itself from artists such as Tom Petty (Anything That's Rock 'n' Roll), Joan Jett (I Love Rock 'n' Roll) and Oasis (Rock 'n' Roll Star).
FRI 00:30 Later... with Jools Holland (b00dwfyy)
Guitar Heroes
Guitar heroes from as far away as Mexico and as close to home as Chiswick have all come to rock the Later studio since 1995. This collection of performances brings together the best of them, from the legendary Buddy Guy to the homegrown guitar superstars he inspired, such as Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck and Pete Townshend. Joining them on the bill are Santana, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, The White Stripes, Radiohead and more.
FRI 01:30 Forever Young: How Rock 'n' Roll Grew Up (b00sxjls)
[Repeat of broadcast at
21:00 today]
FRI 02:30 Billy Fury: The Sound of Fury (b077x1fk)
[Repeat of broadcast at
22:00 today]
LIST OF THIS WEEK'S PROGRAMMES
(Note: the times link back to the details; the pids link to the BBC page, including iPlayer)
A Timewatch Guide
23:00 THU (b083dd1g)
Al Murray's Great British Spy Movies
00:00 THU (b04w85jj)
BBC Young Musician
20:00 TUE (b09xzsbm)
BBC Young Musician
19:30 FRI (b09y22pm)
Battlefield Britain
21:00 MON (b0078s6r)
Battlefield Britain
01:35 MON (b0078s6r)
Below the Surface
21:00 SAT (b0959t9h)
Below the Surface
21:45 SAT (b0959t9k)
Beyond 100 Days
19:00 MON (b09xyv8x)
Beyond 100 Days
19:00 TUE (b09xyv94)
Beyond 100 Days
19:00 WED (b09xyv99)
Beyond 100 Days
19:00 THU (b09xyv9j)
Billy Fury: The Sound of Fury
22:00 FRI (b077x1fk)
Billy Fury: The Sound of Fury
02:30 FRI (b077x1fk)
Bomber Boys
22:00 MON (b01byv2g)
Carved with Love: The Genius of British Woodwork
23:45 WED (b01q6xrv)
Commonwealth Games Extra
20:00 THU (b09yccjc)
Dancing in the Blitz: How World War II Made British Ballet
00:30 SUN (p01s4z2h)
Forever Young: How Rock 'n' Roll Grew Up
21:00 FRI (b00sxjls)
Forever Young: How Rock 'n' Roll Grew Up
01:30 FRI (b00sxjls)
Francesco's Italy: Top to Toe
00:35 TUE (b00791vw)
Inside Porton Down: Britain's Secret Weapons Research Facility
22:00 THU (b07hx40t)
It's Only Rock 'n' Roll: Rock 'n' Roll at the BBC
23:30 FRI (b063m6wy)
Later... with Jools Holland
00:30 FRI (b00dwfyy)
Lost Kingdoms of Central America
19:00 SAT (b04kzrg0)
Lost Kingdoms of Central America
02:25 SAT (b04kzrg0)
MAKE! Craft Britain
21:00 WED (b09xzsmc)
Martin Luther King and the March on Washington
22:45 WED (b039dyn8)
Martin Luther King: The Assassination Tapes
22:00 WED (b0395lf7)
Metalworks!
20:00 WED (b01hr877)
Metalworks!
01:55 WED (b01hr877)
Mrs Mandela
22:00 TUE (b00qbyhn)
Nature's Microworlds
19:30 MON (b01l2s60)
Nature's Microworlds
19:30 TUE (b01l4906)
Nature's Microworlds
19:30 WED (b01lc6w5)
Only Connect
19:00 SUN (b09xv2v0)
Operation Jericho
23:30 SUN (b016n2zz)
Painting the Holy Land
20:00 SUN (b09xvsmj)
Painting the Holy Land
20:00 MON (b09y1vzs)
Putin, Russia and the West
21:00 THU (b01b3hkm)
Putin, Russia and the West
01:30 THU (b01b3hkm)
Revolution and Romance: Musical Masters of the 19th Century
01:30 SUN (b07d9rwv)
Sounds of the Seventies
03:55 SAT (b00c46qg)
The Battle of Britain
22:00 SUN (b00txy2q)
The Highwaymen Live
00:25 SAT (b07dpspl)
The Highwaymen: Friends Till the End
23:30 SAT (b07dnvdt)
The Lancaster: Britain's Flying Past
23:30 MON (b04bwhk8)
The Ruth Ellis Files: A Very British Crime Story
02:35 MON (b09vpgr7)
The Ruth Ellis Files: A Very British Crime Story
02:45 TUE (b09w3m05)
The Ruth Ellis Files: A Very British Crime Story
02:55 WED (b09w8jp0)
The Silk Road
20:00 SAT (p03qb3q4)
The Story of the Jews
21:00 TUE (b0398rkj)
The Story of the Jews
02:30 THU (b0398rkj)
Timeshift
23:30 TUE (p0287mq6)
Timewatch
21:00 SUN (b00jj523)
Timewatch
02:30 SUN (b00jj523)
Top of the Pops
22:30 SAT (b09x5z3q)
Top of the Pops
23:00 SAT (b09x5z6f)
Top of the Pops
03:25 SAT (b09x5z3q)
Top of the Pops
00:30 MON (b0888q6x)
Top of the Pops
01:00 MON (b0894fnq)
Top of the Pops
01:35 TUE (b0894ftx)
Top of the Pops
02:15 TUE (b08bqdzj)
Top of the Pops
00:45 WED (b08bqfct)
Top of the Pops
01:25 WED (b08cgpkf)
Top of the Pops
19:30 THU (b09xzvbs)
Top of the Pops
01:00 THU (b09xzvbs)
University Challenge
19:30 SUN (b09xv2v2)
World News Today
19:00 FRI (b09xyv9r)