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| BBC ONE Unplaced Week 41 |
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Imagine
– The Story Of The Guitar Ep 1/3
Sunday 5 October
10.20-11.20pm BBC ONE
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Alan Yentob with one of the early guitar
heroes, Bert Weedon The Story Of The Guitar explores the history and culture surrounding the world's favourite instrument and the personal stories of those who have dedicated their lives to it. The series, presented by Alan Yentob, features interviews with some of the greatest living guitar players, including John Williams, Paco Peña, Les Paul, Pete Townshend and BB King.
Since the Fifties, the guitar has been a symbol of sexiness, freedom, adventure, youth and individuality. Those who master this six-stringed wonder are regarded as guitar heroes, or even gods. It has always been a popular instrument, as opposed to its courtly cousin, the lute, but it was only in the Fifties, with the coming of rock 'n' roll, and the Sixties, in the wake of The Beatles, that it has captured the popular imagination. The guitar has been the agent of social change and juvenile delinquency, anti-war protest and anarchy, peace and love and violence.
In the first programme, In The Beginning, Alan embarks on a personal journey. He is fascinated by both the sound of the oud, an ancient Middle Eastern ancestor of the lute, and the iconic guitar. Through his travels he follows the evolution of the guitar, from Hittite carvings from 3400BC to the fuzz boxes, effect pedals and signal processors of the 21st century.
Alan's research takes in strange and wonderful dramatic reconstructions and the odd detour to meet eccentric but passionate fans of the instrument. As he delves into the guitar's complicated origins, a theme begins to emerge of the guitar as an instrument of desire, with a bit of a bad reputation, often looked down upon by the musical establishment and blown up by the winds of fashion. It is America that has taken the instrument to its heart and where it dominates popular music today.
Featuring key interviews with John Williams, Paco Peña, Pete Townshend, Bert Weedon, Jack Black, Bill Bailey, Michael Tyack and Xue Fei Yang, the first programme ends with the genius of the jazz guitar and the instrument on the brink of transformation… it is about to turn electric.
Please note: Next week's Programme Information will have an interview with Alan Yentob about the series.
TM
Sunshine
Ep 1/3
Tuesday 7 October
9.00-10.00pm BBC ONE
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Steve Coogan (I'm Alan Partridge, Saxondale), Bernard Hill (Lord Of The Rings) and Lisa Millett (Drop Dead Gorgeous, Blackpool), star in Sunshine, a new, three-part drama co-written by Craig Cash and Phil Mealey, the team behind the BBC's hit comedy Early Doors and co-writers of the Bafta award-winning The Royle Family – Queen Of Sheba.
Sunshine is a bittersweet story of three generations of the Crosby family. Bob (Bing) Crosby grew up to be one of the most likeable people around, and his natural wit and optimism were infectious to those around him. The only negative trait in Bing's life was his inability to resist gambling a few quid on the occasional bet.
Bernadette, his childhood sweetheart and mother of their son, Joe, loves Bing for the person she's known all her life and, although she doesn't approve of and is often infuriated by his casual betting, she always reluctantly forgives him.
Bing's dad, George, knows that he shares a special bond with his grandson, Joe, and even though Joe is too young to realise this, he certainly feels it in his heart.
When Bing's gambling develops into something more serious than the occasional bet and the risks he takes become greater, it's no longer just a few quid that Bing stands to lose – potentially, it's everything.
Steve Coogan plays Bing Crosby, Bernard Hill plays George Crosby, Lisa Millet plays Bernadette and Dominic Senior plays Joe.
Sunshine is directed by Craig Cash.
JP2
Some cheetah cubs pictured in
2007 One of the BBC Natural History Unit's most ambitious live projects is coming to BBC One and BBC Two. Big Cat Live is a one-week live TV event set to explore the hidden side of Kenya's Masai Mara Reserve – its wildlife, its secrets and the perils of the dark. With cutting-edge filming techniques and live communications, Big Cat Live brings viewers all the danger and exhilaration of being out on the African plains, 24/7.
Kate Silverton and local Masai guide Jackson Looseyia join Simon King and Jonathan Scott at their camp, in the heart of Africa's most famous reserve. Camping next to the Mara River, in the middle of lion territory, the team will be surrounded by African wildlife, including elephants, buffalo, crocodiles, zebras and over one million migrating wildebeest in a landscape where anything can happen.
By day, the team follows the life-and-death fortunes of the lion, cheetah and leopard families. Nightly transmissions bring the latest news from the previous 24 hours as well as live images of the nocturnal life in the reserve, using specially designed remote cameras capable of broadcasting live action as it happens in the dark. The team also reveals the bigger story of the Masai Mara neighbourhood – uncovering the day-to-day activities of a whole range of animals, from hyenas to baboons, elephants to aardvarks.
The Big Cat Live experience on bbc.co.uk begins with the launch of a fully interactive website, two weeks before the series goes on air. From the heart of Africa to the desktop, the site enables Big Cat fans to monitor live activity as it happens on the Reserve. Through the multiple live streaming webcams set up around the Mara Reserve, this unprecedented three-week event features updates on the lives of the cat stars and the thrum of African wildlife at night.
DB2
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| BBC TWO Unplaced Week 41 |
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This new series looks at what makes
British fashion and style so distinctive
"The British do have a style genius. I think we have some of the best designers in the world. We changed the way fashion was in the Sixties. We have some of the best High Street stores in the world. And there should be a programme celebrating it." (Twiggy).
BBC Two flies the flag for British fashion design in a major new five-part documentary series which takes a look at what makes British fashion and style so distinctive and so influential.
British Style Genius begins by telling the story of the High Street look, in which fashion icon Kate Moss makes a rare TV appearance whilst working on her new line of clothes for the British High Street retailer Topshop.
Moss launched her first clothes collection in 2007. It was an immediate success and a perfect example of fashion "democracy" at work – making top end "supermodel" style at High Street prices – something that is unique to the British High Street.
Moss followed in the footsteps of Twiggy, who had launched her own range of clothes in the late Sixties. Before then, high fashion was the preserve of the elite, with young girls aspiring to look more like their mums than supermodels.
The programme speaks to Mary Quant, the trail-blazing designer who broke the fashion mould by making clothes for young people. Designer Barbara Hulinicki, who founded Biba in 1964, added to the mix by making youth fashion affordable.
Thanks to chains including M&S and Topshop, the gap between high fashion and High Street has never been smaller.
British Style Genius shows how, with the help of high-profile icons such as Kate Moss and a slew of designers, the British High Street is today the envy of the international fashion industry.
Other contributors to the film include: Philip Green; Jane Sheperdson; Celia Birtwell; Jonathan Saunders; Christopher Kate; Paula Reid; Twiggy; Stuart Rose; George Davies; and Anna Wintour.
TM
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