Visual Arts
Storyville - Last Days of the Arctic: Capturing the Faces of the North
Sunday 15 May
1:15am - 2:15am
BBC4
Documentary following celebrated photographer Ragnar Alexsson as he endeavours to capture the vanishing lifestyles of people from far northern countries. The film examines his fascination with people who survive in extreme circumstances and the inspiration for his latest work, which is to preserve the cultures of Arctic people who are being affected by climate change.
This Green and Pleasant Land: The Story of British Landscape Painting
Tuesday 17 May
9:00pm - 10:30pm
BBC Four
Artists, critics and academics examine depictions of the British landscape in art. The programme charts the genre's development from the earliest Flemish paintings in the court of Charles I to David Hockney's digital drawings. Featuring contributions by film-maker Nic Roeg, historian Dan Snow and novelist Will Self. Part of the Landscape season.
Show Me the Monet
Monday 16 May – Friday 20th
5:15pm - 6:00pm
BBC2 Northern Ireland
6/10
David Cobley put his reputation on the line when he submits 81 self-portraits for scrutiny by the panel of art critics, in a bid to secure a place in a potentially lucrative exhibition and sale at London's Royal College of Art.
The Mountain That Had to Be Painted
Wednesday 18 May
9:00pm - 10:00pm
BBC4
Documentary exploring the work of artists Augustus John and James Dickson Innes, focusing on the landscape paintings they created while living near the Arenig Valley in Snowdonia, North Wales, between 1910 and 1913. Part of the Landscape season.
The Arts and How They Was Done
Friday 20 May
7:00am - 7:30am
BBC Radio 4 Extra
The Birth of Art and How They Done Cave Paintings
1/6
Desmond Olivier Dingle and his National Theatre of Brent explore some of the earliest art known to man, located in the Lascaux Caves in south-west France. Comedy, with Patrick Barlow, John Ramm and Harriet Walter. First aired in 2007.
Culture
Something Understood
Sunday 15 May
6:05am - 6:35am
BBC Radio 4
Rhythm
Mark Tully investigates mankind's historical fascination with rhythm, and explores its importance in people's daily lives. He also talks to Russell Foster, professor of Ciracadian neuroscience at Oxford University, who believes that many people are excessively determined to overpower their own rhythmic cycles - a course of action that could have disastrous consequences. With readers Samantha Bond, Joseph Kloska and Frank Stirling.
Words and Music
Sunday 15 May
10:15pm - 11:30pm
BBC Radio 3
Brave New Worlds
Works on the theme of the future, including words from Margaret Atwood, Tennyson and Shelley and music by Tallis, Berlioz and Stockhausen. Traditionally the subject has provided artists with the freedom of imagination to envisage new worlds, drive through change and reinvent traditional art forms. These imagined worlds might be places where robots shoulder the burden of manual labour or fear stalks the streets of rain-washed cities. Obsession with the future has also inspired composers to drive through change and reinvent their own art form, pushing the boundaries of composition.
Composer of the Week: George Gershwin
Monday 16 May – Friday 20th
12:00pm - 1:00pm
BBC Radio 3
Tin Pan Alley to Broadway
1/5
Donald Macleod presents an overview of some of the most brilliant works by George Gershwin (1898-1937) from both the concert stage and the world of musicals - showing off his gift for melody, and discussing his often-overlooked originality and daring as a so-called `serious' composer. He also presents a series of numbers from Gershwin's voluminous songbook, in performances and arrangements by artists as diverse as George Martin, André Previn, Ella Fitzgerald, Meat Loaf and the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson, and a number of `lost' and rarely heard works.
The View
Tuesday 17 May
11:20pm - 12:05am
RTE1
Journalist Sinead Gleeson, writer Peter Murphy and politician Alex White join John Kelly to review Thomas McCarthy's drama Win Win, starring Paul Giamatti. They also examine Anne Enright's novel The Forgotten Waltz, Guillem Morales's Spanish thriller Julia's Eyes, and Vanessa Fielding's production of Scottish playwright Rona Munro's Iron.
The Culture Show
Friday 20 May
1:05am - 2:05am
BBC2 Northern Ireland
1/8
Andrew Graham-Dixon presents from London's South Bank at the Festival of Britain's 60th anniversary celebrations. Nancy Durrant talks to Tracey Emin about her retrospective at the Hayward Gallery, while Tom Dyckhoff explores the militarisation of urban architecture. Mark Kermode plays LA Noire, a new video game inspired by film noir, record producer Danger Mouse discusses his latest album Rome, and Alastair Sooke examines this year's shortlist for the Museum of the Year Art Fund Prize.
Psychology / Society
Strangeways
Monday 16 May
9:00pm - 10:00pm
UTV
2/3
The documentary takes a look at the prison's healthcare unit, where staff assess and manage prisoners who may be mentally ill and could pose a threat to themselves or others. Regular visitors to the wing include David Charlton, known as Strangeways' most disruptive inmate, who claims to be disabled. Cameras also capture a prisoner trying to escape from the unit after biting a guard.
All in the Mind
Tuesday 17 May
9:00pm - 9:30pm
BBC Radio 4
5/13
Claudia Hammond investigates the effectiveness of placebo medication, hearing from Harvard University's Ted Kaptchuk about how his research into the unorthodox treatment. He discusses how his work seems to indicate that even sceptical patients undergo a positive reaction when issued pills with no active ingredient, and attributes this result to the ritualistic nature of administering medicine twice a day.
Home Is Where the Heart Is
Tuesday 17 May
9:00pm - 10:00pm
Ulster
2/3
The celebrities focus on improving the situations of their guests before they leave. Colin and Justin encourage Jim to speak to a medical expert about his alcohol dependency, while Alex James arranges for 18-year-old Danny to have an interview at a restaurant. Bobby struggles with his work in one of Aldo Zilli's kitchens, while 23-year-old Bridgette gives Anneka Rice a tour of where she grew up in Birmingham - with surprising results.
True Stories: Dolphin Boy
Tuesday 17 May
10:00pm - 11:40pm
More4
Morad, a 17-year-old Arab-Israeli, sits in a doctor's room, staring blankly ahead and mumbling "Mama, mama". He is suffering from post-traumatic disassociation after a sickeningly brutal and prolonged attack and has withdrawn himself from the world. This tender, heart-warming film follows Morad as he embarks on an unconventional course of treatment - dolphin therapy. The theory is that the dolphins will teach Morad to trust again and be able to communicate with others. But it's a lengthy, costly process and involves Morad living 500 miles away from his village. And it's here that we get to the heart of the film, the story of a father's love for his son, as Morad's father sells almost all he has to finance his son's treatment and camps out under the stars to be near him. By the end you'll be wiping the tears from your eyes.
The Essay
Monday 16 May – Friday 20th
10:45pm - 11:00pm
BBC Radio 3
The Mystical Turn
1/5
Dr Jane Shaw, Dean of Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, explores the revival of interest in mysticism, and religious experience at the end of the 19th and start of the 20th century, beginning by examining the rôle of Anglican priest and academic WR Inge, whose book Christian Mysticism, published in 1899, had a profound influence on Christian thought and gave rise to a deluge of books on the subject, notably William James's Varieties of Religious Experience and Evelyn Underhill's Mysticism.
Science / Nature
Julia Bradbury's Iceland Walk
Sunday 15 May
2:15am - 3:15am
BBC Four
The presenter embarks on a 38-mile journey along Iceland's most famous hiking route. She navigates daunting mountain climbs, red-hot lava fields, freezing river crossings and deadly clouds of sulphuric gas to reach the volcanic crater at the centre of the Eyjafjallajokull glacier.
Secrets of the Superbrands: Technology
Tuesday 17 May
9:00pm - 10:00pm
BBC3
Alex Riley places the spotlight on some of the world's leading technological innovators, revealing how the people responsible for producing popular gadgets manage to maintain consumer loyalty. Along the way, he meets the inventors, technicians and designers responsible for pushing their industries forward, and discovers how powerful companies manage to make their billions.
Inside the Human Body
Thursday 19 May
9:00pm - 10:00pm
BBC1 Northern Ireland
Building Your Brain
3/4, series 1
Michael Mosley traces human development from birth to adulthood, exploring how a newborn makes sense of the world and revealing how many brain connections are lost between the ages of 11 and 20 as an essential part of growing up. Plus, Moken sea gypsy children who train themselves to see clearly underwater and a Vietnamese girl who speaks 11 different languages.
History
The Great Wall of China
Saturday 14 May
10:05pm - 12:20am
More4
Archaeological finds and first-person accounts tell the story of the most ambitious building project ever attempted. More than 3,000 miles in length, the wall was built in just 20 years by a workforce of nearly 50,000 using technology and construction techniques that continue to inspire awe today. The creation of the engineering triumph is told through three individuals - an emperor whose kingdom is under threat, a military hero and a soldier forced to work in harsh conditions.
A History of Christianity
Sunday 15 May
7:00pm - 8:00pm
BBC4
Reformation: The Individual Before God
4/6
Diarmaid MacCulloch examines the religious revolution of the Reformation, and reveals how a faith based on obedience to the clergy gave way to one of individual accountability to God. He explores the ways in which key reformers Martin Luther and Ulrich Zwingli challenged the dominance of the Catholic Church, and sheds light on the compromises that helped form the Church of England.
Great Lives
Tuesday 17 May
4:30pm - 5:00pm
BBC Radio 4
Jack Johnson
7/8
Journalist and broadcaster Matthew Syed nominates boxer Jack Johnson for recogition, exploring his efforts to become the first African-American heavyweight boxing champion. With help from Kasia Boddy, author of Boxing: A Cultural History, Syed details how the Galveston Giant's victory over Tim Jeffries in 1910 struck a blow against white supremacy in the US. Presented by Matthew Parris.
The Country House Revealed
Tuesday 17 May
9:00pm - 10:00pm
BBC2 Northern Ireland
Kinross
2/6, series 1
Dan Cruickshank tours Kinross House, a 17th-century property designed by William Bruce, who introduced the first fully classical house to the Scottish landscape. He reveals how the stately home's history provides an insight into the story of its architect, and his integral role in the restoration of King Charles II as monarch of England, Scotland and Ireland.
Petworth House - The Big Spring Clean
Wednesday 18 May
8:30pm - 9:00pm
BBC4
Waking up the House
6/6, series 1
Andrew Graham-Dixon's winter working at Petworth House in West Sussex draws to a close, as the conservation team prepares to reopen the building to the public. However, before the house's valuable items can have their covers removed, Andrew must tackle a moth invasion in one of the bedrooms. Last in the series.
Barbarians
Thursday 19 May
3:30am - 4:25am
Channel 4
1/3
Richard Rudgley explores the tribes that succeeded the Romans - the Vandals, Goths and Huns - dispelling the myth that these so-called `barbarian' tribes destroyed the civilised society created by their predecessors.
Barbarians
Friday 20 May
3:10am - 4:10am
Channel 4
2/3
Richard Rudgley continues his exploration of the so-called `Barbarians' in Germany, where he investigates two fifth-century tribes, the Angles and the Saxons, who profoundly affected the future of the British Isles. Unearthing the beautiful craftwork left behind on the shores of Britain, Rudgley considers why these people invaded the country.
Irish Interest
Coiscéimeanna
Sunday 15 May
8:15pm - 8:45pm
TG4
3/6, series 1
Harry McGee retraces the tragic journey of the Famine Death Walk of 1849 along Doolough on the Mayo-Connemara border, where hundreds of paupers crossed the mountains in bitter winds searching for food.
What Have the Brits Ever Done for Us?
Sunday 15 May
9:30pm - 10:30pm
RTE1
David McWilliams charts the complex relationship between Ireland and Britain, exploring how Irish social development has been influenced by its nearest neighbour. He talks to academics, economists, writers and comedians as he investigates the links between the two countries, and asks whether the British Empire's impact on life in Ireland needs to be reassessed.
The Story of Ireland
Monday 16 May
7:00pm - 8:00pm
BBC2 Northern Ireland
The Age of Invasions
1/5
Fergal Keane explores Ireland's cultural, economic and social history, documenting its role on the international stage. He begins by revisiting the origins of the Celtic people, detailing the impact of Christianity and monasticism, the emergence of early literature, and the formation of law tracts that provide an insight into the day-to-day life of people nearly 1,500 years ago.
