Faulks on Fiction
Saturday 05 February
9:00pm - 10:00pm
BBC2 Northern Ireland
The Hero
1/4
Author Sebastian Faulks examines the British novel and how it shaped the national identity through some of its best-known characters. In the first episode, he looks at heroes and how the idea of heroism in books has evolved in the past 300 years, from Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe to Martin Amis's John Self. Featuring contributions from Simon Armitage, Brian Keenan, Boris Johnson and Ruth Rendell.
Sunday Feature
Sunday 06 February
9:30pm - 10:15pm
BBC Radio 3
Endnotes: David Foster Wallace
Professor Geoff Ward assesses the legacy, themes and preoccupations of American author David Foster Wallace, who hanged himself in 2008 at the age of 40. He also talks to Wallace's publisher and editor Michael Pietsch about the difficult task of assembling the writer's final novel The Pale King, which is set to be published in April 2011.
Words and Music
Sunday 06 February
10:15pm - 11:30pm
BBC Radio 3
Nocturne
Sian Thomas and William Hope read poetry and prose inspired by the night, including work by Neruda, Shakespeare, Emily Dickinson, John Burnside, Jackie Kay, AE Housman and Rachel Carson. Music includes pieces by Mozart, Stephen, Schumann, John Adams and Samuel Barber.
Imaginary Friends
Monday 07 February
2:30pm - 3:00pm
BBC Radio 7
Documentary examining the world of imaginary friends. Children aged between five and 10 record their conversations with their unseen companions and talk about what they get up to together, while polar explorer Dave Mill discusses creating his own as an adult to preserve his sanity on expeditions. Writer Julia Donaldson reveals how she joined in with her son's pretend adventures, which later inspired a series of stories.
On Your Bike
Monday 07 February
3:45pm - 4:00pm
BBC Radio 4
1/10
Martin Ellis presents the history of the bicycle in Britain, exploring how it contributes to the national identity, how it has inspired generations of artists, thinkers and politicians, and its pivotal role in bringing an affordable and easy-to-use means of transport for the masses. In the first episode, the presenter examines 19th-century velocipedes.
The Beauty of Books
Monday 07 February
8:30pm - 9:00pm
BBC Four
Ancient Bibles
1/4
The appeal and importance of books, from early texts to paperbacks in the present day. The first episode focuses on the Codex Sinaiticus, the world's oldest surviving bible, which provides an insight into the efforts of early Christians to find a single version of the text that could be accepted by everyone. The programme also looks at another edition of the text produced in Winchester in the 12th century, which reflects a time of struggle between the Church and State for authority.
Birth of the British Novel
Monday 07 February
9:00pm - 10:00pm
BBC Four
Author and critic Henry Hitchings explores the evolution of the novel in 18th-century Britain, and offers his view that it was a time of cultural revolution. He examines the social and political history of the period, uses paintings by great artists to illustrate scenes from key novels, and explains how major genres from light entertainment for female readers to political thrillers were perfected. Along the way, he also meets authors including Martin Amis, Will Self, Tom McCarthy and Jenny Uglow.
Horizon: How to Survive a Car Crash
Monday 07 February
9:00pm - 10:00pm
BBC2 Northern Ireland
5/8
Exploring how the latest advances in trauma medicine, psychology and extreme sport are improving people's chances of surviving car crashes. The programme also reveals how researchers are creating a new virtual crash-test dummy that could change how cars are designed forever.
Would You Believe
Monday 07 February
10:35pm - 11:05pm
RTE1
The Coldest Night
The story of Carol Anne Milton, who has been working with young people for nearly 20 years to combat their depression and suicidal thoughts through spirituality workshops. Her theory and personal faith were dealt a blow when her son took his life eight years ago, but since then, she has become even more determined to carry on her work.
Out of the Vortex
Monday 07 February
11:00pm - 11:30pm
BBC Radio 4
In light of a study by Kay Redfield Jamison that suggests poets may be 30 times more likely to undergo a depressive illness that the rest of the population, writer Matthew Sweeney explores pieces of literature that speak to him. Plus, Kit Wright and Jean Binta Breeze read their own work.
The Essay
Monday 07 February
11:00pm - 11:15pm
BBC Radio 3
Meanings of Mountains
1/5
A week of essays exploring how societies and countries around the world view their mountains, beginning as writer and artist Stephen Gill, who has lived and worked for many years in Japan, delves into the complex feelings surrounding Mount Ogura. Although it is only 1,000 feet high, Ogura rises very steeply, with a gorge snaking round two of its sides, and has attracted courtiers, priests and poets to its slopes in such numbers that Japan's most famous poetry collection, Ogura Hyakunin Isshu (One Hundred Poets, One Poem Each), bears its name. Yet on its northern flank it has an enormous illegal rubbish-tip. When its secret was exposed a few years ago it caused national consternation. Work is going on now to clear the dump and over the past few years many tons of rubbish has been collected, as have hundreds of short poems about the famous mountain. These unite classical images of autumn leaves, summer wind and frogs singing with car batteries, empty bottles and broken fridges.
On Your Bike
Tuesday 08 February
3:45pm - 4:00pm
BBC Radio 4
2/10
Martin Ellis reveals how Victorian ingenuity and the budding engineering industry helped to develop hobby horses, velocipedes and penny farthings that would eventually evolve into the modern bicycle.
In Their Own Words: British Novelists
Tuesday 08 February
12:55am - 1:55am
BBC Four
Among the Ruins (1919-1939)
1/3
The story of the British novel in the 20th century told by the authors themselves who discuss their work in footage from the BBC archives. This episode examines the impact of the First World War on the novel as the country contemplated the devastation caused by the conflict and the demise of the Empire. Narrated by Rebecca Front.
The Music That Melted
Tuesday 08 February
1:30pm - 2:00pm
BBC Radio 4
Former Communards keyboard player Richard Coles investigates a Norwegian tradition that sees ambitious musicians congregating at a frozen fjord to perform using instruments made from ice. He meets veteran sculptor Bill Covitz, who creates a different range of instruments for each year, and lends a hand with the preparations for the festival.
The Story of Ireland
Tuesday 08 February
10:15pm - 11:25pm
RTE1
The Age of Invasions
1/5
Fergal Keane explores the country's cultural, economic and social history, documenting its role on the international stage, in an adaptation of Neil Hegarty's book of the same name.
The Essay
Tuesday 08 February
11:00pm - 11:15pm
BBC Radio 3
Meanings of Mountains
2/5
Howard Zhang of the BBC's Chinese Service considers the way that mountains in China have been sacred to Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism - and sometimes even revered by devotees of all three at the same time.
The Secret History of Social Networking
Wednesday 09 February
11:00am - 11:30am
BBC Radio 4
3/3
Rory Cellan-Jones questions what the future may hold for the social networking phenomenon. The technology correspondent visits the Twitter headquarters to learn how new ways of sharing information are being developed, and meets new entrepreneurs looking for a share of the market, as well as the 1970s and 1980s pioneers who provide their opinion on how it all turned out. Last in the series.
On Your Bike
Wednesday 09 February
3:45pm - 4:00pm
BBC Radio 4
3/10
Martin Ellis examines how, in the late 19th century, the use of the bicycle became popular for the wealthier middle classes thanks to the development of safety features and pneumatic tyres.
Trafalgar Square: Carry on Plinthing
Wednesday 09 February
8:00pm - 8:30pm
BBC Four
Ben Lewis interviews the artists who were vying to have their sculptures displayed on the vacant fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square. Alison Lapper Pregnant by Marc Quinn and Hotel for the Birds by Thomas Schutte beat four other nominations, and the winners will see their work displayed for up to 18 months each from spring 2005. With contributions from the losing nominees Chris Burden, Sarah Lucas, Stefan Gec, Sokari Douglas Camp, art critic Brian Sewell, Sandy Nairne from the National Portrait Gallery and Michaela Crimmin from the Royal Society of Arts. Part of the Focus on Sculpture season.
Romancing the Stone: The Golden Ages of British Sculpture
Wednesday 09 February
9:00pm - 10:00pm
BBC Four
1/3
Alastair Sooke examines the three `golden ages' of British sculpture and the technical breakthroughs that made them possible. He begins with a look at the Norman ecclesiastical building programme and the masterworks created by anonymous medieval masons and artisans to the glory of God - until Henry VIII's Reformation brought wholesale destruction. Part of the Focus on Sculpture season.
Civilisation
Wednesday 09 February
10:00pm - 10:50pm
BBC HD
Art historian Kenneth Clark explores the ideas and values that have shaped Western civilisation.
Mark Lawson Talks to Anthony Caro
Wednesday 09 February
10:00pm - 11:00pm
BBC Four
The sculptor talks to Mark Lawson about his life and career in art, reflecting on his time as Henry Moore's assistant, his shift from figurative to abstract sculpture and sharing his views on public art. Since his show at the Whitechapel London Gallery in 1963, Anthony Caro has gained recognition for his innovative approach to scale, form and materials. Part of the Focus on Sculpture season.
The Essay
Wednesday 09 February
11:00pm - 11:15pm
BBC Radio 3
Meanings of Mountains
3/5
Matej Zatonjsek, cultural attache at the Slovenian Embassy in London, explains how his people are a nation of mountaineers, with three-quarters of the population climbing in the Julian Alps every year.
I Heart Milton Glaser
Thursday 10 February
11:30am - 12:00pm
BBC Radio 4
Alastair Sooke meets graphic designer Milton Glaser, who created the well-known I (Heart) NY logo in 1977, when New York needed a new ad campaign to revive tourism. Though Glaser has designed everything from a 1967 Bob Dylan Greatest Hits Album cover to the DC Bullet adorning every DC comic for nearly 25 years, Sooke discovers why he is best remembered for his simple `back of a taxi doodle'.
On Your Bike
Thursday 10 February
3:45pm - 4:00pm
BBC Radio 4
4/10
Martin Ellis discovers how cycling, suffragettes and socialism became the new political pioneers of the open road as freedom of movement brought freedom and the ability to campaign for a cause.
The Culture Show
Thursday 10 February
11:20pm - 12:20am
BBC2 Northern Ireland
1/5
Andrew Graham-Dixon takes a tour of Westminster Abbey, which is currently undergoing restoration in preparation for this year's royal wedding. Alain de Botton delivers his philosophy on contemporary romance in the run-up to Valentine's Day and Miranda Sawyer meets PJ Harvey to discuss her new album Let England Shake. Plus, Alastair Sooke talks to Turner Prize-winning artist Simon Starling about his latest exhibition at Tate St Ives.
Fig Leaf: The Biggest Cover-up in History
Thursday 10 February
9:00pm - 10:00pm
BBC Four
Writer and broadcaster Stephen Smith explores the history of the fig leaf's use throughout 2,000 years of Western art and ethics. He explains how the work of Michelangelo fuelled the Fig Leaf Campaign censorship effort, how Bernini created a new form of erotica with his use of the slipping gauze, and how Rodin brought depictions of nudity back to the public's attention. The presenter argues that Victorians had a more sophisticated and mature attitude to sexuality than is found today, and offers his view that modern art could be redeemed from cheap sensation by the return of the fig leaf. Part of the Focus on Sculpture season.
The Essay
Thursday 10 February
11:00pm - 11:15pm
BBC Radio 3
Meanings of Mountains
4/5
Kenneth Steven explains how he gradually came to share the love of Scotland's Munros (mountains more than 3,000ft high) that such writers as Sorley MacLean and Norman MacCaig expressed in their work.
Omnibus
Friday 11 February
1:00am - 1:45am
BBC Four
Antony Gormley - The Iron Man
Documentary, first shown in March 2000, following Antony Gormley - creator of the Angel of the North outside Gateshead - as he prepares to unveil an even larger work in the form of Quantum Cloud, overlooking the Thames in London.
On Your Bike
Friday 11 February
3:45pm - 4:00pm
BBC Radio 4
5/10
Martin Ellis discovers how people including composer Ralph Vaughan Williams and writer Arthur Conan Doyle were influenced by bicycles, and explores a new craze that is inspiring another generation of artists, musicians, sportsmen and gamblers.
The Essay
Friday 11 February
11:00pm - 11:15pm
BBC Radio 3
Meanings of Mountains
5/5
Javier Lizarzaburu, a journalist living in Lima, considers how the shrine at Pariacaca, the mountain site of an important Inca oracle in Peru, was suppressed by Jesuits 400 years ago, with the destruction of thousands of images and the exile of its priests.
