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Transmission details in the Network TV Programme Information 7-day print version are not updated after publication. For updates, please see individual day pages.
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| BBC ONE Unplaced Week 31 |
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Lost Land of the Jaguar: Steve
Backshall prepares to descend
over Kaieteur Falls On the north coast of South America, between Venezuela and Brazil, is the country of Guyana. This former British colony is the size of Great Britain but has a population of just 800,000. The towns are mainly on the fertile coastal strip – travel south and there is rainforest for hundreds and hundreds of miles.
Lost Land Of The Jaguar, a new, three-part series for BBC One, brings an international team of scientists, climbers and wildlife film-makers to the Guyanese rainforest to search for the extraordinary animals that live there.
They will spend a month exploring the unknown, unexplored and untouched forests of Guyana to show that this forgotten forest is truly unique and should be saved, for ever.
In this first programme, wildlife cameraman Gordon Buchanan goes in search of the rare giant otters and soon discovers their tracks – they are almost as large as he is. The remote camera he sets to trace the otters unexpectedly captures the elusive jaguar – South America's biggest cat.
Meanwhile, canopy expert Justine Evans and the climbing team build a platform high in a tree-top. After a long week of waiting, Justine finds and films a family of red howler monkeys.
Insect expert Dr George McGavin crawls into a giant fallen log and soon discovers not only crickets but also their predator – whipspiders – perfectly adapted for hunting in darkness.
Climber and biologist Steve Backshall sets off to explore a giant waterfall that lays to the west of the country – Kaieteur Falls. His aim is to abseil the 240m to the plunge pool and be the first naturalist to explore this habitat. At the bottom, he is pummelled by the spray but finds a perfect habitat for species of frogs and freshwater crabs, which co-exist in a habitat of wild vegetation.
DB2
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| BBC TWO Unplaced Week 31 |
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Igal Naor plays the ruthless
dictator in House of Saddam Igal Naor plays the ruthless dictator Saddam Hussein in a gripping, new, four-part drama series that charts the rise and fall of one of the most significant political figures in recent history.
It's March 2003 and, in the opulent presidential palace of Baghdad, Saddam Hussein watches, defiantly, as President Bush declares in a televised address to the Iraqi people that "the tyrant will soon be gone". The sound of bombs are heard in the distance.
Back to July 1979, again in Baghdad, during the seventh birthday party celebrations of his daughter, Hala, Deputy President Saddam and his allies force the intimidated President Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr to resign.
Convening his first governmental congress of the Ba'ath party, Saddam exposes supposed detractors of his new leadership who are led from the courtroom and forced to "confess" to an attempted coup. Blindfolded and terrified, they are lined up against a wall and executed by members of Saddam's party in the ultimate test of loyalty to their new leader.
The personality of the new president permeates Iraq: the image of a heroic and popular leader is projected to the people. When terrorist attacks tear through Baghdad, Saddam orders a full military rebuttal against the perpetrators, leading to the Iran-Iraq conflict.
As war wages, Saddam faces troubles at home; the death of his domineering mother; the youthful nonchalance of his son and heir, Uday; and the deterioration of alliances with Barzan Ibrahim, his half-brother and former deputy. Saddam finds solace in the beautiful, married, Samira Shahbandar, who becomes his mistress much to the chagrin of his glamorous wife – Sajida.
Saddam's family and closest friends gather for a lavish ceremony to celebrate daughter Raghad's marriage to Hussein Kamel, Saddam's cousin and increasingly close ally. Amidst the celebrations, a feeling of underlying tension mounts – as jealousy, rivalry and paranoia threaten to test loyalties to the limit.
House Of Saddam stars Igal Naor as Saddam Hussein, Said Taghmaoui as Barzan Ibrahim, Shohreh Aghdashloo as Sajida and Christine Stephen-Daly as Samira Shahbandar.
LH2/NF
Dr
Alice Roberts – Don't Die Young Ep
1/8
Unplaced
Day and time to be confirmed BBC TWO
 Feature
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Dr Alice Roberts begins a
second series of Don't Die
Young Taking viewers on a tour of the human body, anatomist Dr Alice Roberts returns to BBC Two for a second series of Don't Die Young.
In this first episode, Dr Alice gets to grips with the bits most men don't like to mention to doctors – their reproductive organs. She offers a no-nonsense guide to how male anatomy works and practical advice about keeping healthy. Ten thousand men in the UK die from prostate cancer every year. Yet, if detected early enough, prostate cancer is a condition which is almost always curable.
Dr Alice is joined by Mark Smallman, a 30-year-old, Birmingham-based events manager. Mark meets urologist Alan Doherty to discover how to self-examine for lumps and to see his own testes scanned on ultrasound.
Mark watches Doherty carry out a pioneering operation on prostate cancer sufferer Ian Roberts. A Coventry police officer in his early fifties, Ian has the cancer removed using keyhole surgery. He explains his symptoms and why it is important for men to have regular check-ups with their doctor.
Dr Alice also uses cross-country athletes to follow the journey of the sperm from the testes to the womb and a fuzzy-felt game to test knowledge of the male anatomy.
RF
Battle
Of The Brains
Unplaced
Day and time to be confirmed BBC TWO
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The sharpest brains from across the land are about to do battle in the TV quiz event of 2008.
Battle Of The Brains gives top quiz teams from across the UK the chance to go head-to-head and compete for the right to be recognised as the smartest collective minds in the country.
Two teams, comprising a captain and six team members, compete over two rounds in a game of intellect, nerve, strategy and skill. For the captains, it's not what they know but who they know as the winning team gains a place in the final where they will have 90 seconds to correctly answer six consecutive questions and win £2,000. But will the captain select the right players and, more importantly, can they correctly answer the captain's question to win the chance to defend their title on the next show?
CM2
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| BBC ONE Saturday 26 July 2008 |
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Rugby
League – Challenge Cup Semi Final
Saturday
26 July
12.10-2.30pm BBC ONE
www.bbc.co.uk/sport
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Clare Balding presents live coverage from Huddersfield's Galpharm Stadium of the first Carnegie Challenge Cup semi-final between holders St Helens and Super League Grand Final winners Leeds Rhinos (the second semi-final between Wakefield and Hull is live on BBC Two on Sunday, 27 July).
Leeds have lifted the trophy on 12 occasions but haven't won it since 1999, while St Helens, with 11 Challenge Cup wins, will be hoping the Galpharm Stadium proves a happy hunting ground once again after beating Bradford Bulls there in last season's semi-finals.
CI
With the Beijing Olympics just a fortnight away, BBC One offers viewers an opportunity to check out the final preparations of some of the world's finest athletes with live coverage of the London Grand Prix from Crystal Palace. For the first time since 1985, the event goes into a second day, the highlight of which will be Olympic and World 10,000m Champion Kenenisa Bekele's attempt on Haile Gebrselassie's 5,000m stadium record.
Britain's Andy Baddeley will take on reigning World Champion Bernard Lagat and World and Commonwealth medallist Craig Mottram in the historic Emsley Carr Mile, while heptathlete Kelly Sotherton competes in a four-event challenge.
SB4
Myleene Klass continues the
search for Britain’s favourite
choir Myleene Klass and Nick Knowles continue the search for the nation's favourite choir as five more choirs perform for the judges' vote in the hope of being crowned the Last Choir Standing.
Judges Russell Watson, Sharon D Clarke and Suzi Digby will select two of the five choirs to go through to the live studio shows where the final six choirs will eventually face a public vote.
KH
Suspicious of Snezana's recent behaviour, Jeff decides to follow her and ends up at a settler's camp full of illegal Serbian immigrants, in this week's edition of the medical drama. A shocked Jeff discovers that Snezana has been treating the entire community, and decides he can't stand by and watch her put herself and the immigrants in danger.
Lucas, meanwhile, has regained consciousness and a delighted Adam goes to tell Jessica the good news. He declares his love for her, but she pulls away saying that she wants to stay with Sean – family must come first.
Branka, a cleaner in a residential care home, confronts her son about his suspicious behaviour. She finds an air pistol in his bag and, in a struggle between them, Branka gets shot and a care patient is knocked to the floor. Afraid that the police will catch up with them, Branka and Goran head for the settler's camp that Snezana has been helping. Branka collapses but Jeff manages to save her by improvising with Snezana's illegal supplies. Jeff and Snezana argue and she reveals that she has a 12-year-old daughter back in Serbia. Jeff makes a pact with Snezana to keep her secret – if she destroys all of the medicine.
Elsewhere, Marilyn asks Zoe to lie on oath when Maggie's case goes to court. She attempts to bribe Zoe with a career proposition but Zoe declines. Later, Marilyn spies Zoe flirting with Sean and puts two and two together. She threatens to disclose their affair to the board if Zoe doesn't co-operate. Backed into a corner, Zoe is forced to agree to lie in court.
Snezana is played by Ivana Basic, Jeff by Matt Bardock, Adam by Tristan Gemmill, Jessica by Gillian Kearney, Sean by Richard Dillane, Marilyn by Caroline Langrishe and Zoe by Sunetra Sarker.
JM3
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| BBC TWO Saturday 26 July 2008 |
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Maverick violinist Nigel Kennedy makes his first Proms appearance for 21 years as BBC Two begins its regular Saturday night broadcasts from the Royal Albert Hall.
Charles Hazlewood and Suzy Klein present a programme which shows off diverse aspects of the musical talents of a man who once said: "People can say I'm a classical violinist if they want to, but I've always viewed myself as a musician who plays music and not just a certain part of it."
The programme includes highlights from Kennedy's two recent Proms performances, including Elgar's Violin Concerto, and a selection from his Late Night Jazz Prom with the Nigel Kennedy Quintet. Kennedy also talks about his life and career.
Elgar said of his Violin Concerto: "It's good! Awfully emotional! Too emotional, but I love it." It was Kennedy's recording of the work in 1984 which first put him on the musical map, critics praised him as having the spirit of Elgar in his blood.
Accompanying Kennedy are the BBC Concert Orchestra and conductor Paul Daniel. Kennedy then swaps his priceless traditional violin for an electric version to join the Nigel Kennedy Quintet to perform some of his latest compositions from his new jazz CD, A Very Nice Album, his first original album for nearly 10 years
For the past few years Kennedy has been living in Poland, exploring the country's rich musical heritage, and he teamed up with some of Poland's finest jazz musicians to form the NKQ.
Digital viewers can press the Red button on their remote control for programme notes during the performance.
VB
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| BBC FOUR Saturday 26 July 2008 |
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Cab driver Len Fox found
himself hating the 9m
Londoners he served Arena's London Transport Trilogy continues this week with an exploration of the soul of the London Cabbie, part of BBC Four's Cab Night
Robert Elms presents this specially commissioned documentary, which is the centrepiece of an evening of comedy, drama and news archive.
Unsurpassed in the world's taxi pecking order, London cabbies carry a photographic memory of the city's layout following years on the notoriously gruelling Knowledge. They drive the most iconic cab in the world, yet they are also among the most maligned characters on our city's streets.
By eavesdropping on the cabman's shelter in Russell Square and exploring the stories of five extraordinary cabbies, whose experience spans 70 years, tonight's programme reveals the soul of the London cab driver.
The drivers featured include Roy Perkins, 91, who took his first fare in 1938 and served as a London cabbie through the war; Len Fox (first fare 1974) who, after 20 years on the job, found himself in a group therapy session just off the M1 recounting his hatred for the nine million Londoners he served; and Harry Harris (first fare 1988) who after a cashed-up, champagne-fuelled Eighties driving his cab, went travelling round the world – only to return to a major recession in London.
LG
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| BBC TWO Sunday 27 July 2008 |
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Clare Balding presents live coverage of the second Carnegie Challenge Cup semi-final from the Keepmoat Stadium, Doncaster, between outsiders Wakefield Wildcats and Hull FC.
It's been 45 long years since Wakefield last won the Challenge Cup. Their coach, John Kear, however, has twice taken "unfancied" teams to the final in the last decade, going on to lift the trophy on both occasions. He was the man in charge of opponents Hull FC when they defeated Leeds in the 2005 final, one of three successes for the Humberside outfit.
CH2/CI
Tribal Wives – Mentawai Tribe In Indonesia Ep 6/6
Sunday 27 July
10.00-11.00pm BBC TWO
(Schedule addition Thursday 10 July) |
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Andy joins the Mentawai tribe
in the last programme of the
series
The series in which six modern Western women live for nearly a month with six different tribes all over the world concludes with doctor Andrea's visit to an Indonesian island.
The Mentawai live deep in the jungle on a remote island off the coast of Indonesia. They are a monogamous tribe where the women are tattooed and sharpen their teeth. Their lives are dominated by the spirit world and male "sikerei", or witch doctors, watch over the village.
Living with them for nearly a month is 38-year-old Andrea, known as "Andy".
Andy is deeply driven. She is a doctor specialising in dental sedation. She has run marathons, rowed for her university and fenced for Britain. But in her cluttered and successful world, she seems to have forgotten herself.
Among the Mentawai, high-flying Andy is adopted as a daughter of the tribe. Fascinated by their views on medicine and their profound connection to the spirit world, Andy throws herself into life as a Mentawai woman and is forced to revaluate what success means.
Please note: This episode of Tribal Wives was originally billed in Week 30 Programme Information on Wednesday 23 July at 9pm.
RF
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| BBC THREE Sunday 27 July 2008 |
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Trexx
& Flipside
Sunday 27 July
10.45-11.15pm BBC THREE
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It's time for the BRAs – the British Rap Awards – and the hot ticket event of the year for any self-respecting, hip-hop wannabe. Trexx and Flipside are going to be there and it's their time to hog some limelight, as the comedy continues. Ollie and Brilliance have it all planned – the boys can get "papped" by popping up behind the real rap stars as they arrive.
B-ICE decides wearing "street" isn't cool enough for this year's event. So, despite Chinaza's advice to the contrary, he decides to go "gutter". The clothes he swaps with a "street brother", down on his luck, have the sweet smell of success. Well, they certainly have something about them that doesn't smell right.
Trexx and Flip decide to arrive in style and set off in a limo. The only problem is that budget issues mean it's shared with a particularly rowdy hen party.
Later, abandoned on the streets, they find themselves with no clothes and no tickets to the BRAs. Have they missed their chance of fame?
AC2
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| BBC FOUR Sunday 27 July 2008 |
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BBC Four's Proms coverage continues with Olivier Messaien's monumental La Transfiguration de Notre Seigneur Jésus-Christ.
Composed in the mid-Sixties, it marked Messiaen's return to writing for voices after a break of 17 years.
The work is inspired by Christ's transfiguration as reported in the gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke: the moment when he is suffused with light, speaks with Moses and Elijah and is named the Son of God. The huge score, with seven instrumental soloists, a choir of 200 and a vast orchestra, is one of Messiaen's most imposing and powerful creations, a fervent expression of his passionately held Roman Catholic faith – and a highlight of this year's Proms Messiaen Centenary celebrations.
Presenter Suzy Klein is joined to discuss the work by composer Robert Saxton, who was present at its UK premiére.
Thierry Fischer conducts the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, the BBC Symphony Chorus, the BBC National Chorus of Wales and Philharmonia Voices with soloists Dénes Várjon (piano), Adam Walker (flute), Julian Bliss (clarinet), Sonia Wider-Atherton (cello), Colin Currie (xylophone), Adrian Spillett (marimba) and Richard Benjafield (vibraphone).
Digital viewers can press the Red button for programme notes during the performance.
VB
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| BBC ONE Monday 28 July 2008 |
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Julia is back at work and asks Michelle to go and see a lady who has sent them a cheque as a thank you for the help the old campus team gave her with her dying father, in the first visit of the week to the Midlands-based drama.
Michelle clashes with the lady, however, and when she questions how she is living her life the lady takes the cheque back. Later, she returns to the surgery with a larger sum of money, and says she is grateful for what Michelle said to her.
Eva, meanwhile, is called to a burglary. The victim, Mary, an elderly lady, is in a coma and Eva tells Jimmi she has been raped and asks if he can examine her. Jimmi becomes distressed, especially when he notices the same slashes on her arm – which are similar to Vivien's.
Elsewhere, Vivien is waiting at the bus stop when a man bumps into her – making her jump. When he later turns up at the surgery she automatically assumes he's following her, but Michelle tells her it was probably an accident as the man is almost blind.
Julia is played by Diane Keen, Michelle by Donnaleigh Bailey, Eva by Angela Lonsdale, Jimmi by Adrian Lewis Morgan, and Vivien by Anita Carey.
SD2
Dawn is concerned about Jase's whereabouts and calls the hospital, in the first visit of the week to Albert Square. She becomes increasingly panicked, however, as the realisation of what's happened sinks in.
Elsewhere, Jean excitedly prepares for a picnic date with Ted and wears her new dress. Sean, meanwhile, seems to be in an exceptionally good mood, but Stacey is less than impressed.
Dawn is played by Kara Tointon, Jase by Stephen Lord, Jean by Gillian Wright, Ted by Richard Hope, Sean by Rob Kazinsky and Stacey by Lacey Turner.
JM3
Dennis Waterman as Gerry
Standing and Amanda Redman
as Sandra Pullman in New
Tricks Gerry Standing meets his heroes, Seventies rock band Bad Faith, when the UCOS team reinvestigate the death of lead guitarist Andy Fletcher, as the crime drama continues. Originally ruled as suicide, the deathbed confession of a witness, die-hard fan Lori Slade, that Fletcher wasn't alone in his house the night he is supposed to have killed himself, prompts the team to reopen the case.
Brian, meanwhile, has more pressing matters on his mind. In a touching reunion he tracks down Jack and, with the aid of an ice lolly and a bit of tough love, he finally persuades his friend and colleague to return to UCOS.
Reunited, the team immerse themselves in the rock 'n' roll world of Bad Faith. Formed in 1974, the group disbanded after Fletcher's death in 1975, having only released one album, but were hailed as rock gods in that short time. Gerry behaves like an overexcited puppy at the prospect of meeting his idols, but 30 years is a long time and the remaining band members don't quite live up to the legends he remembers. Suspicious, paranoid and wrecked by drugs, bass guitarist Danny Jones takes an instant disliking to Gerry and refuses to speak to him; cocky and arrogant lead singer Dave Dalston struggles to disguise his bitterness that, in death, Fletcher has gained hero status; and, on the Shamhana Retreat, drummer Charlie Webber has found religion and now only answers to the name T'An Shin Wangdu.
A visit to Fletcher's mother, however, helps Jack reconnect with his desire to get justice for the victims. Gail Fletcher hands over the precious notebooks her son had sent her containing handwritten lyrics together with a bank statement revealing that Andy withdrew more than £12,000 on the day he died. It also becomes clear that she has never received any of the royalties owed to her son since his death.
The most alarming discovery is that DAC Strickland is not only a fan of Bad Faith, but he is also something of a musician and, to Gerry's horror, he finds himself seconded to Strickland's band as a singer.
Dennis Waterman plays Gerry Standing, Amanda Redman plays Detective Superintendent Sandra Pullman, Alun Armstrong plays Brian Lane, James Bolam plays Jack Halford, Roger Lloyd Pack plays Danny Jones, George Costigan plays Dave Dalston, Peter Guiness plays Charlie Webber, June Watson plays Gail Fletcher and Anthony Calf plays DAC Strickland.
AC
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| BBC TWO Monday 28 July 2008 |
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Chinese
Food Made Easy –
Noodles And Dim Sum Ep 4/6
Monday 28 July
8.30-9.00pm BBC TWO
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Ching-He Huang visits a London
fashion house where she
prepares the ingredients for
spiced skewered lamb In an attempt to bring fresh, easy and healthy Chinese food to the UK, Ching-He Huang, the rising star of Chinese cooking, this week explores the fashionable world of noodles, dim sum and dumplings. She tries her recipes out in the health-conscious world of London fashion and on the dancers of the English National Ballet.
Ching creates her own simple and healthy hot and sour noodle soup, which she tests on the ballet dancers before learning the secrets of one of the leading dim sum master chefs in London.
Ching shows Shaun Sellings, owner of a London fashion house, how dim sum can be healthy and easy to make at home. He tries out prawn and pork dumplings and chicken and vegetable spring rolls on his health-conscious customers along with radish and sesame soy noodle salad and spicy skewered lamb. Ching also demonstrates how to create an authentic, but quick and healthy version of the perennially-popular takeaway dish Singapore-style noodles.
SM4
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| BBC FOUR Monday 28 July 2008 |
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BBC PROMS
2008
Beethoven And Elliott Carter –
BBC Symphony Orchestra/David Robertson
Monday
28 July
7.30-9.15pm BBC FOUR
www.bbc.co.uk/proms
Press pack
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Celebrating the 100th birthday of the American composer Elliott Carter, BBC Four continues its Proms coverage with a concert by the BBC Symphony Orchestra and its principal guest conductor, David Robertson, which includes Beethoven's Fifth Symphony and Carter's Oboe Concerto with soloist Nicholas Daniel.
Carter says: "The soloist is accompanied in its widely varying, mercurial moods by a percussionist and four violas. The main orchestra opposes their flighty changes with a more regular series of ideas, usually on the serious side, sometimes bursting out dramatically. Each of the two groups uses different musical materials which they develop throughout the work."
It is coupled with two of Beethoven's best-loved works, the Fifth Symphony and the muscular Grosse Fuge.
Robertson feels today's audiences have "lost the sense of how radical Beethoven's Fifth Symphony really is. At the time it seemed completely incomprehensible to the public because of the enormous sense of forward movement in the very opening. Then it suddenly stops! Then it starts again, like some teenager trying to learn to drive, letting out the clutch too quickly and ramming into the wall."
The Symphony was premièred 200 years ago in 1808, in a mammoth concert staged by Beethoven at the Theater an der Wein. It lasted more than four hours and included the première of his Sixth Symphony and his Fourth Piano Concerto.
Tonight's concert adds a full-string version of the Grosse Fuge, written when the composer was completely deaf. Igor Stravinsky called it "an absolutely contemporary piece of music that will be contemporary for ever."
Presenter Suzy Klein is joined by cellist Gabriella Swallow and double-bassist Dominic Seldis to discuss the music, and soloist Nicholas Daniel and conductor David Robertson talk about the concert in the interval.
Digital viewers can press the Red button on their remote for programme notes during the performance.
VB
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| BBC ONE Tuesday 29 July 2008 |
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Ronnie discovers a woman has faked her husband's death in order to receive an insurance pay-out, in today's helping of the medical drama. Peter Tasker has been hiding out next door but is unaware that his wife, Barbara, is intent on leaving him as soon as she has the money. When their daughter, Abigail, who has grieved for Peter discovers the shocking truth, she disowns both of her parents.
Jimmi, meanwhile, tries to speak to Vivien all day about the other rape case but can't summon the courage to do it. He is reluctant to go on his police course but, when Vivien assures him she's doing OK, he goes.
Elsewhere, Daniel and Kay get up to no good in the launderette and Kay leaves Daniel in nothing but his boxers as his clothes are washing. He later gets his revenge in the Icon, leaving Kay having to walk through the bar in her underwear!
Ronnie is played by Sean Gleeson, Peter Tasker by Steven Pinder, Barbara Tasker by Lynda Rooke, Abigail Tasker by Caroline Williamson, Jimmi by Adrian Lewis Morgan, Vivien by Anita Carey, Daniel by Matthew Chambers and Kay by Clare Calbraith.
SD2
Max and Jack are at loggerheads, in tonight's visit to Albert Square, while Sean and Roxy want to keep their wedding plans quiet. However, when the parrot escapes, things change.
Billy, meanwhile, wants to get his business up and running, but Honey is offered a job.
Max is played by Jake Wood, Jack by Scott Maslen, Sean by Rob Kazinsky, Roxy by Rita Simons, Billy by Perry Fenwick and Honey by Emma Barton.
JM3
Abra continues to have flashbacks from his time in the Congo, as the medical drama continues. Ric's promotion is on the line if Abra doesn't straighten himself out, but he is pushed to the limit when Carl Webster, the "patient from hell", makes a visit to Holby with his daughter.
Maddy, meanwhile, gets the result she wants when she finds out that Linden wasn't responsible for Liam Harris's death.
Abra later loses his temper with Webster's daughter, but his mind starts to play tricks on him and he ends up accidentally attacking Ric with a scalpel.
Abra is played by Adrian Edmondson, Ric by Hugh Quarshie and Maddy by Nadine Lewington.
JM3
Hugh Bonneville as Professor
Gregory Parton and Silas
Carson as Kahmil
The looting of Babylonian relics from the Iraq war starts a trail that intertwines with the destiny of the Middle East, as the drama continues.
Opportunistic war-zone journalist Jimmy Paul attempts to flog a Babylonian necklace and sacred tablet to dodgy antiquities dealer Max Garris, while Kahmil Hammadi, an Iraqi archaeologist and Gillian's ex-lover, arrives in Bath with a cultural delegation.
Gillian is suspicious of Kahmil's story to reclaim a looted brick from the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and, when Garris is found murdered, she knows there's more at stake than an ancient brick. The looted necklace, etched with a snake image of the Babylonian goddess of evil, Tiamet, leads the team to the writings of ancient gods. Kahmil is looking for The Tablet of Destinies, a sacred object which is inscribed with prophecies and has remained hidden since Alexander entered Babylon. He believes that it will bring hope to Iraq, but his brother is concerned that it will draw out occultists who follow Tiamet and Gillian fears that Kahmil is after glory – is he behind Garris's murder?
Photographic evidence locates the Tablet but the team is attacked by a venomous snake and they witness the grotesque death of Jimmy Paul. Are the followers of Tiamet behind this? Could Ali, the security guard who is looking after Khanna, a child chess genius from Iraq, be responsible or Rachel Highgrove, who is organising the cultural delegation?
The team must decipher the ancient cuneiform inscriptions of the Tablet that predict the name of "The Gate" – a person who will rise up and bring peace, unification and hope to Iraq.
Julie Graham stars as Professor Gillian Magwilde, Hugh Bonneville as Professor Gregory Parton, Adrian Lester as Doctor Ben Ergha, Gugu Mbatha Raw as Viv Davis and Michael Maloney as Professor Daniel Mastiff.
Guest stars in this week's episode include: Silas Carson as Kahmil, Darrell D'Silva as Anwar, Vicky Hall as Nurse Strong, Matt Rippy as Jimmy Paul, David Ryall as Max Garris, Nina Sosanya as Rachel and Frances Tomelty as Karen Magwilde.
GJ
If you broke your neck would you play a violent sport in which you risked breaking it again? This dilemma is faced by the 18 members of the Great Britain wheelchair rugby squad, who are all desperate for the chance to win gold in Beijing, in tonight's penultimate edition of Olympic Dreams.
Only 12 players will make the final squad and this film follows the sacrifices, conflicts and dramas of the players and coaches involved in this selection process. Meanwhile, the coaches of the GB table tennis squad face a very different challenge. Their hopes of bringing home an elusive Olympic medal lie in the hands of two unpredictable but highly talented teenagers, Paul Drinkhall and Darius Knight.
ST2
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| BBC THREE Tuesday 29 July 2008 |
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It's the make-or-break final week as the search for Britain's Missing Top Model concludes. The three remaining models are about to face their most demanding and daunting challenge. The girls get their first taste of shooting on location at an East London housing estate.
In an unforgiving environment, and exposed to the elements, they must meet the demands of Amelia Troubridge, a photographer who has shot for Tatler, Vogue and Esquire. Amelia has high expectations and a need for energetic performances from all three girls. It's a genuine test of their stamina and will to win. The resulting photographs will see one of the women eliminated, as only two will go through to the final stage of the competition and tackle the most challenging assignment any would-be model could imagine – a nude shoot.
The competition reaches a nail-biting finale as the judges wrangle over who they believe is the deserving winner. The casting vote weighs heavy on the shoulders of one of the panel members, who has the responsibility of making one of the girls' dreams come true and leaving the other devastated.
Next week's show follows the winner's incredible photoshoot for Marie Claire, photographed by Rankin.
KA
The curtain rises on Mr G – The Musical: An Arena Spectacular, in tonight's final edition of the award-winning mockumentary-style comedy written by and starring comedian Chris Lilley, set in an Australian high school.
Ja'mie, meanwhile, is dumped by her date and Jonah is forced to face the Principal in a meeting that changes his future for ever.
AC2
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| CBEEBIES Tuesday 29 July 2008 |
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Tempers fray and feathers fly on 3rd & Bird this week, as Rudy and Samuel cannot agree on a game they both want to play together.
When Mr Beakman, the boy's toucan teacher, finds the boys arguing he tries to resolve the friends' dispute. Surely there must be some game they both want to play? Samuel's little sister Muffin, meanwhile, saves the day by taking them to glamorous Missy's pear-shaped house where everyone agrees on a game of dress up.
VT
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| BBC ONE Wednesday 30 July 2008 |
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Melody becomes a medical advisor for the local paper and helps Amanda Prior, a young journalist, stand up to her editor, Les Robson, as the medical drama continues.
Nick, meanwhile, helps alien-hunter Walter to accept that his recent major heart surgery will prevent him from going on his planned long expedition.
In between these two patients, the surgery is full of hay fever sufferers with only Nick and Melody on duty and Julia holding the fort.
Melody is played by Elizabeth Bower, Amanda Prior by guest star Kelly Adams, Les Robson by guest star John McArdle, Nick by Michael McKell and Julia by Diane Keen.
SD2
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| BBC THREE Wednesday 30 July 2008 |
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Presenter George Lamb
prepares an ambush in a kebab
shop in Make My Body Younger Phil is a 28-year-old junk food lover who's carrying six stone in extra weight. He'd like to get into shape for his wedding to fiancée Gemma but needs some guidance. Phil would also like to become a professional football referee, but has failed a fitness test three times.
Presenter George Lamb surprises Phil at one of his favourite haunts, the local kebab shop, and offers him a "living autopsy", which uses state-of-the-art technology to reveal what his over-eating, binge drinking and smoking has been doing to his body.
Phil is shocked to discover that he has the lungs of a 36-year-old and his excess weight has been putting his bones and joints under great strain equivalent to a man of 45. To help reverse the damage, Dr Leanne Hayward moves in to help Phil review his lifestyle and make changes.
This series is part of BBC Headroom, a new multi-platform campaign from BBC Learning. To find out more viewers can visit www.bbc.co.uk/headroom where the doctors in the series offer tips on controlling alcohol, drugs and diet.
NH
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| BBC FOUR Wednesday 30 July 2008 |
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The
Thirties In Colour –
Adventures In The Americas Ep 3/4
Wednesday 30 July
9.00-10.00pm BBC FOUR
www.bbc.co.uk/bbcfour
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American film collector Harry
Wright with the indigenous
people of Mexico whose lives
he documented in the 1930s Wealthy American industrialist and film enthusiast Harry Wright's amazing colour film archive is the subject of the penultimate episode of The Thirties In Colour.
Of the 2,000 films in the collection, around 44 were filmed on Kodachrome. Wright proudly exhibited them to distinguished guests, who would gather at the private cinema he had built in his home in Mexico City.
After these soirées, visitors recorded their impressions of Harry's films in the cinema's guestbook. Many were particularly impressed by the intimacy of the films, especially his so-called "ethnographic series", a collection of anthropological films showing the everyday life of the indigenous peoples of Mexico.
The films show men roofing their homes with straw, and women washing clothes in running streams. In some scenes, the great Mexican warrior tradition is acted out, as the men dance and fight at ceremonies and rituals. Unquestionably among the most important anthropological documentary films of traditional Mexican society in existence, these films are probably the only ones from the period in colour.
Many of these films were shot by the cinematographer, anthropologist and adventurer Ed Myers. Among the most intriguing of his subjects were the indigenous Tzeltal people of Chiapas and the Amuzgo people of Oaxaca – communities that had rarely been filmed and who seldom granted access to outsiders.
At the time Myers entered their world, anthropologists feared that many of these peoples – whose cultures represented the last vestiges of the pre-Columbian traditions and belief systems of the ancient civilisations of Central America – were doomed to extinction.
By the end of the decade, Wright was in his mid-sixties, but his passion for film was undiminished. In 1945, he collaborated in the establishment of the Churubusco Studios, which would become the centre of home-grown film production in the Golden Age of Mexican Cinema. It remains the most important studios in Central America. After a lifetime dedicated to travel and cinematography, Wright died in 1954 – but, in Mexico, he is still celebrated for his contribution to the country and acknowledged as one of the founding fathers of its cinematic tradition.
EF/RI
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| BBC ONE Thursday 31 July 2008 |
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George and Ronnie are having a day off together when a pregnant woman, Polly, asks them to be emergency witnesses at her wedding, as the Midlands medical drama continues. She's marrying her Ukranian builder, who is working on her loft extension, so that he can stay in the country and finish the job.
Giles – the baby's father – also turns up at the wedding. Part-way through the ceremony, Polly's waters break and George and Ronnie end up delivering the baby in an unusual location.
Vivien, meanwhile, sees the front page of the paper and is devastated to learn of another rape victim. Later, she's pleasantly surprised to see Joe, who tells her things are going well in Boston.
Elsewhere, Daniel gets up to mischief again with Kay and they are both questioned at the police station. Joe is angry to discover Daniel in trouble again.
George is played by Stirling Gallacher, Ronnie by Sean Gleeson, Vivien by Anita Carey, Joe by Stephen Boxer and Daniel by Matthew Chambers. Kay is played by guest star Clare Calbraith, Polly by guest star Claudia Elmhirst and Giles by guest star Rufus Jones.
SD2
It's Sean and Roxy's big day, in the latest visit to Albert Square. But, worryingly, the groom is nowhere to be seen.
Ben, meanwhile, is determined to make his dancing debut at the Community Centre, while Billy is running out of time to raise the cash to buy the stall from Ian.
Sean is played by Rob Kazinsky, Roxy by Rita Simons, Ben by Charlie Jones, Billy by Perry Fenwick and Ian by Adam Woodyatt.
JM3
 Colin Jackson BBC One's brand-new science programme continues with 110m hurdles world-record holder Colin Jackson embarking on a journey of self-discovery to find out what made him so fast.
This is the second programme in a series where three celebrities go on a mission to discover the science behind a defining characteristic, talent or trait. With the help of scientific testing, the latest psychology techniques, brain science and genetics, they attempt to answer a question that affects everyone. How do nature and nurture shape us?
Colin was walking by the age of nine months and started running a few months later – and he didn't stop running for the next 35 years. By the time he retired from professional competition, he had amassed two world records and 10 international gold medals. Despite his success, he's left asking himself: "Was I good or did I just work hard?" In this programme, Colin hopes to find some answers.
Scientists extract chunks of Colin's muscle to find out whether he has a genetic advantage, and Colin decides how far to go with controversial genetic testing. He undergoes a brain scan to determine how tough he is in the face of extraordinary images and takes a stress test while waiting to do his first parachute jump. He also meets up with his friends and family, Strictly Come Dancing partner Erin Broagh and fellow athlete Kriss Akabusi, who offer their thoughts on what makes him a great competitor.
Along the way, Colin discovers how apparently random factors like the month you are born may affect your chances of becoming a top athlete.
TM
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| BBC TWO Thursday 31 July 2008 |
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Viewers can enjoy live coverage of the opening round of the Women's British Open at Sunningdale.
Defending champion and world No.1 Lorena Ochoa looks to defend the title she won at St Andrews 12 months ago. She won her first major in convincing fashion, leading from start to finish and ending four shots clear of her nearest rivals.
However, the Mexican faces stiff competition from a strong field at Sunningdale, including world number two Annika Sorenstam, who will be desperate to recapture the title she won in 2003.
CH2/CI
Lab
Rats – A Bee Ep 4/6
Thursday 31 July
9.30-10.00pm BBC TWO
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Convinced that his great rival, Dr Vaabit, has deliberately sabotaged his avocado plants, the Professor pursues a vendetta as the comedy continues. Alex and Cara, meanwhile, get into trouble trying to communicate with some of Dr Vaabit's bees – which they have been secretly farming in a filing cabinet.
Lab Rats is a big, daft, cartoony sitcom. Although set in a laboratory, the show is less about science and more about using its setting as an excuse for stupid jokes, endearingly chaotic characters and fast-paced, farcical plots.
Lab Rats is written by Chris Addison and Carl Cooper and co-created by Chris Addison, Carl Cooper and Simon Nicholls.
The regular cast includes Chris Addison as Dr Alex Beenyman, Geoff McGivern as Professor John Mycroft, Jo Enright as Cara McIlvenny, Dan Tetsell as Brian Lalumaca, Selina Cadell as Dean Mieke Miedema and Helen Moon as Minty Clapper. Tonight's episode guest stars Mike McShane as Dr Vaabit.
JD/PA
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| BBC THREE Thursday 31 July 2008 |
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Bafta-winning comedian Karen Taylor tells it like it is this week and brings viewers another comic dose of no-nonsense sketches.
Valerie Denton shows viewers how to create inner cleanliness for under 50 quid with a DIY colonic. "Faux-mos" Kaz and Jen turn up the heat as the boys prepare for a stag do. Joanna Smithson invites the cameras in to celebrate her and baby's first anniversary and Glamorama urges "less fatness, more hotness" when it asks some big questions.
Karen is joined by Anna Crilly (Lead Balloon), Jalaal Hartley (Pulling), Clare Warde and Lawry Lewin (The Life And Times Of Vivienne Vyle).
JC2/DL2
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| BBC ONE Friday 1 August 2008 |
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Archie collides with a fellow cyclist and gets caught between her and a jealous boyfriend, as the medical drama continues. When he tries to help, he discovers that she's set the whole thing up to make her boyfriend jealous.
Eva comes into the surgery asking to talk to Vivien, who reluctantly tells her a few more minor details about the burglars' appearance. But, as she can't confess what happened to her, Vivien isn't able to satisfy Eva's questions.
Joe, meanwhile, is worried about Vivien but has Daniel to deal with. He covers for Daniel at work and collects him from the police station where he's being held. Joe is furious and says his behaviour needs to stop. Daniel realises this and promises to finish with Kay.
Archie is played by Matt Kennard, Eva by Angela Lonsdale, Vivien by Anita Carey, Joe by Stephen Boxer and Daniel by Matthew Chambers. Kay is played by guest star Clare Calbraith.
SD2
A love match for Sean and
Roxy? Not if Ronnie has
anything to do with it... Sean and Roxy attempt to tie the knot in the final visit of the week to Albert Square, but Ronnie tries to put a stop to the nuptials.
Meanwhile, Shirley and Phil are growing closer as she tries to convince him to support Ben at his dance show.
Sean is played by Rob Kazinsky, Roxy by Rita Simons, Ronnie by Sam Janus, Shirley by Linda Henry, Phil by Steve McFadden and Ben by Charlie Jones.
JM3
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| BBC TWO Friday 1 August 2008 |
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BBC Two presents live coverage of the Women's British Open, the only one of the women's majors to take place outside the USA. The home crowd at Sunningdale will be hoping to see British representation at the top of the leader board. England's Karen Stupples was the last home-grown winner in 2004, while Scottish stars Catriona Matthew and Mhairi McKay can also expect plenty of support. Other names to watch out for are South Korea's Inbee Park and Taiwan's Yani Tseng, who won the first two majors of 2008.
CH2/CI
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| BBC FOUR Friday 1 August 2008 |
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Neil Diamond performs at
Glastonbury BBC Four presents the first of three consecutive Friday nights of exclusive performances from this year's Glastonbury Festival, which took place in June at Worthy Farm in Somerset.
Tonight's show, from the largest greenfield music and performing arts festival in the world, sees legendary American singer-songwriter Neil Diamond performing on the Pyramid stage.
IV
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