Episodes
| Episode | Title | First Broadcast | Repeated | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Breaking News | 20221029 | 20221104 (R4) | The first in a series marking one hundred years of the BBC through the riches to be found in the corporation's broadcast archive. In each programme two leading figures in their field select material that illustrates the unique value of this written, audio and audio-visual record of Britain over the past century. Today veteran broadcaster and news presenter James Naughtie and editor and journalist Helen Lewis demonstrate what the archive can tell us about the gathering and delivering of breaking news, from the careful patrician announcements of the 20s and 30s to the fizzing pace and punchy headlines of instant digital delivery. Their choices include the foibles of an age of deference and the mixed merits of news delivered at speed as opposed to news of momentous events distilled and delivered in tranquillity. It's the story of the way Britain has received its news as a narrow field of broadcasters expanded to the plethora of outlets and the rise of social media that defines our online age. There's space for humour and human stories, and an attempt to make sense of the impact sound and moving images have had on the way we understand our recent history. Producer: Tom Alban A celebration of the stories, style and insights of the BBC archives. |
| 02 | Science | 20221105 | 20221111 (R4) | The second programme in the series celebrating the riches of the BBC's written, audio and audio-visual archives. In this episode the subject area is science and two of Britain's leading figures in the field, Robert Winston, Baron Winston and the Space scientist and broadcaster Maggie Aderin-Pocock select archival material that shows the changing relationship between science, the national broadcaster and the public. The fears of talking down, of over-simplifying, of bewildering and boring the listener and viewer have been with us since the earliest years. The presenters discuss how broadcasters have sought to square that circle, how the attitude to science and scientists has changed over the century and why the constant striving to make scientific endeavour available to the broadest possible audience remains so important. Expect to hear archive from the Space Race, from wonderfully patrician pre-war lectures and triumph of Science at Glastonbury. Producer: Tom Alban A celebration of the BBC archives and what they tell us about science and scientists. |
| 03 | The Arts | 20221112 | 20221118 (R4) | In the third and final programme in the series celebrating a hundred years of the BBC through the written, audio and TV archive, Classicist Mary Beard and critic Louisa Buck rummage around in the archival trove to demonstrate why this material is so important to the arts in Britain. Rather than just recording events and hearing from artists, the archive is rich in unique artistic material specially created for the new audio and TV technologies. Radio and TV dramas, music and the voices of those who created it are at the heart of the programme alongside the valiant attempts to discuss, debate and critique the arts and to accommodate popular culture alongside the high-minded mission statements of the BBC's founders. And with a Classicist presenting there's special emphasis on the impact of discoveries made about the ancient world and re-imaginings of Classical Drama and literature. Producer: Tom Alban A celebration of a hundred years of BBC the archives and their importance to the Arts. |