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Categories: Factual: Arts, Culture & the Media: Arts

  1. Blondie: One Way or Another

    Documentary about New York band Blondie, with performance footage and interviews.

    BBC One

  2. The Old Grey Whistle Test Story

    Profile of the BBC's first flagship live music programme, The Old Grey Whistle Test.

    BBC Four

  3. Oh Yes I Am

    Mark Ravenhill asks why pantomime still attracts the Christmas crowds.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  4. Mr Pollock's Theatres

    Simon Callow explores the world of cardboard make-believe with a history of toy theatres.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  5. Leading From the Front

    The role of orchestral leader and its relationship with the conductor and fellow players.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  6.

    Trollope on Austen

    Novelist Joanna Trollope explores the work of her favourite author, Jane Austen.

    BBC Radio 4

  7.

    Living with Harry Potter

    Author J K Rowling and Stephen Fry discuss the Harry Potter book series.

    BBC Radio 4

  8. Poets Don't Drive

    Poet Ian McMillan investigates why poets do not seem to like driving.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  9. Why Is the 1812 So Popular?

    Tchaikovsky himself said his overture had 'no artistic merit', so why is it so popular?

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  10. The Last Picture Show

    John Wilson is at Tate Britain and the National Gallery for the closure of two exhibitions

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  11.

    My Wizard

    John Aiziewood investigates the phenomenon known as 'prog rock'.

    BBC Radio 4

  12. The Piano Man

    Philip Pope investigates the story of Paolo Fazioli, who redesigned the grand piano.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  13. Definitely Dusty

    Documentary looking at the life and work of soul and pop diva Dusty Springfield.

    BBC Two

  14. The New Romantics: A Fine Romance

    A look at the movement born from the London club scene at the beginning of the 80s.

    BBC One

  15. Frankenstein: Birth of a Monster

    The true story of Frankenstein's monster and the woman who created him, Mary Shelley.

    BBC Four

  16. Kings of Rock and Roll

    A look back at the 1950s, a decade often seen as having the wildest pop music of all time.

    BBC One

  17. Brothers in Arms

    Documentary about brothers who have formed and fronted rock bands.

    BBC One

  18. Queens of Heartache

    Film about Edith Piaf, Billie Holiday, Judy Garland, Maria Callas and Janis Joplin.

    BBC Two

  19. Kings of 70s Romance

    A look at the unlikely male pin-ups of the 70s music scene, from Barry White to Leo Sayer.

    BBC One

  20. Only Yesterday: The Carpenters Story

    Profile of The Carpenters, one of the biggest-selling pop acts of the 1970s.

    BBC One

  21. Something to Write Home About: Seamus Heaney

    A tribute to Seamus Heaney - exploring his home ground, the boundaries and divisions.

    BBC Four

  22. The Art of Tommy Cooper

    Documentary about the life and work of comedian Tommy Cooper.

    BBC Two Wales

  23. Ian Rankin Investigates: Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

    Writer Ian Rankin looks into Stevenson's novel The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.

    BBC

  24. One of the Three Great Plots of All Literature

    Why do foundlings feature so much in literature? Kate Adie explores Henry Fielding.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  25. The Story of Them

    Documentary profiling Them, the five piece rhythm and blues fronted by Van Morrison.

    BBC Radio Ulster

  26. Respect Yourself: The Stax Records Story

    Documentary about Stax, one of the most influential soul record labels ever.

    BBC Four

  27. Metroland

    John Betjeman's 1973 meditation on the residential suburbs near the Metropolitan Line.

    BBC Two

  28. The Swing Thing

    A film showing how swing music became the first worldwide pop phenomenon.

    BBC Four

  29. Sacred Music: The Story of Allegri's Miserere

    The story behind Allegri's Miserere, one of the most popular pieces of sacred music.

    BBC Four

  30. The Lost Libraries of Timbuktu

    The story of Timbuktu and its long-hidden legacy of thousands of ancient manuscripts.

    BBC Four

  31. 1959: The Year that Changed Jazz

    A look at 1959 albums by Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck, Charles Mingus and Ornette Coleman.

    BBC Four

  32. Seamus Heaney: A Life in Pictures

    A tribute to the late poet Seamus Heaney, using BBC Northern Ireland's television archive.

    BBC One Northern Ireland

  33. The Keskidee

    Alan Dein uncovers the history of the Keskidee, the first black arts centre in Britain.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  34. Bobby Bland: Two Steps from the Blues

    Documentary about the life and music of gospel, jazz and blues singer Bobby 'Blue' Bland.

    BBC Four

  35. Michael Wood on Beowulf

    Focusing on Beowulf, historian Michael Wood traces English poetry back to the Dark Ages.

    BBC Four

  36. Manet: the Man Who Invented Modern Art

    Waldemar Januszczak tells the story of 19th-century French artist Manet's dramatic life.

    BBC Two

  37. Synth Britannia

    How a group of post-punk musicians took the synthesiser to the centre of the pop stage.

    BBC Four

  38. Fleetwood Mac: Don't Stop

    The story of one of the biggest-selling bands of all time, told in their own words.

    BBC One

  39. Creachadh na Clarsaich/Plundering the Harp

    A documentary on the work of Derick Thomson, the renowned Gaelic poet.

    BBC ALBA

  40. Victoria Wood: Seen on TV

    A look back at Victoria Wood's hugely successful television career.

    BBC Two

  41. Skippy: Australia's First Superstar

    The story of Australian TV's crime-busting marsupial, Skippy the bush kangaroo.

    BBC Four

  42. Paul Merton's Weird and Wonderful World of Early Cinema

    Paul Merton looks at the forgotten world of silent cinema in pre-1914 Britain and France.

    BBC Four

  43. Oil City Confidential: Dr Feelgood

    Director Julien Temple celebrates the early Seventies Essex rhythm and blues band.

    BBC Four

  44. Dive, Dive, Dive!

    Robert Llewellyn discovers why submarine movies have gripped us for over a century.

    BBC Four

  45. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: The True Story

    Film using archive footage and interviews to tell the story of the creator of Oz.

    BBC Four

  46. Rick Stein's Taste of Italian Opera

    Rick Stein explores the part food has played in the creation of the Italian opera.

    BBC Four

  47. Steve Winwood: English Soul

    Profile of Steve Winwood, of the Spencer Davis Group, Traffic and Blind Faith.

    BBC Four

  48. Forever Young: How Rock 'n' Roll Grew Up

    Documentary looking at how rock 'n' roll has had to deal with growing up and growing old.

    BBC Four

  49. Penguin, Puffin and the Paperback Revolution

    Michael Morpurgo tells the story of Penguin books founded by his father-in-law Allen Lane.

    BBC Radio 4 Extra

  50. Shelagh Delaney's Salford

    Shelagh Delaney, the author of A Taste of Honey, looks at Salford, where she grew up.

    BBC One

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