Melvyn Bragg

Jesus Christ Superstar

As played out by a theatre troupe, the last days of Jesus Christ are depicted from the perspective of Judas Iscariot, his betrayer. As Jesus' following increases, Judas begins to worry that Jesus is falling for his own hype, forgetting the principles of his teachings and growing too close to the prostitute Mary Magdalene.

Play Dirty

During World War II in North Africa, a group of British commandos disguised as Italian soldiers must travel behind enemy lines and destroy a vital Nazi oil depot.

Muse of Fire

This unique feature documentary follows two actors, Giles Terera and Dan Poole, as they travel the world to find out everything they can about tackling the greatest writer of them all. Together they have directed and produced an inspiring film that aims to demystify and illuminate Shakespeare’s work for everyone: from actors, directors and students of all disciplines, right through to the "man on the street". Think Shakespeare is boring? Think again!

The Tall Guy

An American actor in England tries to find love and work.

Always on Sunday

Always On Sunday is a bio-pic on Le (Henri) Douanier Rousseau, a French naive painter.

Laurence Olivier: a life

A multi-award winning biography covering the life and career of legendary screen and stage actor/director Laurence Olivier.

David Hockney: A Celebration

An intimate portrait of David Hockney, featuring interviews with the artist - one of Britain's most beloved painters - in London and Normandy, and exclusive new footage of a master at work.

Orion

The world is coming to an end, and the last survivors board a space-ship ready to leave the doomed planet Earth in search of a new world.

Jesus Christ Superstar

As played out by a theatre troupe, the last days of Jesus Christ are depicted from the perspective of Judas Iscariot, his betrayer. As Jesus' following increases, Judas begins to worry that Jesus is falling for his own hype, forgetting the principles of his teachings and growing too close to the prostitute Mary Magdalene.

Play Dirty

During World War II in North Africa, a group of British commandos disguised as Italian soldiers must travel behind enemy lines and destroy a vital Nazi oil depot.

Muse of Fire

This unique feature documentary follows two actors, Giles Terera and Dan Poole, as they travel the world to find out everything they can about tackling the greatest writer of them all. Together they have directed and produced an inspiring film that aims to demystify and illuminate Shakespeare’s work for everyone: from actors, directors and students of all disciplines, right through to the "man on the street". Think Shakespeare is boring? Think again!

The Tall Guy

An American actor in England tries to find love and work.

Always on Sunday

Always On Sunday is a bio-pic on Le (Henri) Douanier Rousseau, a French naive painter.

Laurence Olivier: a life

A multi-award winning biography covering the life and career of legendary screen and stage actor/director Laurence Olivier.

David Hockney: A Celebration

An intimate portrait of David Hockney, featuring interviews with the artist - one of Britain's most beloved painters - in London and Normandy, and exclusive new footage of a master at work.

Orion

The world is coming to an end, and the last survivors board a space-ship ready to leave the doomed planet Earth in search of a new world.

Familiar Spirits

Interview with Italian film director Federico Fellini.

David Hockney: In London

Filmed in his London studio, David Hockney sits down with Melvyn Bragg to discuss his remarkable life and career, illustrated by a wide range of his vibrant and joyous artworks.

David Hockney: In Normandy

The celebrated British artist discusses his life and work with Melvyn Bragg in his Normandy studio, revealing his influences, inspirations and plans to keep on painting.

The Who: The Kids Are Alright

Through concert performances and interviews, this film offers us a comprehensive look at the British pioneer rock group, The Who. It captures their zany craziness and outrageous antics from the initial formation of the group in 1964 to 1978. It notably features the band's last performance with long-term drummer Keith Moon, filmed at Shepperton Studios in May 1978, three months before his death.

The Music Lovers

Composer, conductor and teacher Peter Ilych Tchaikovsky struggles against his homosexual tendencies by marrying, but unfortunately, he chooses wacky nymphomaniac Nina, whom he is unable to satisfy.

Whose Doctor Who

Melvyn Bragg presents this 1977 documentary about Doctor Who from BBC2's 'The Lively Arts' strand, featuring extensive behind-the-scenes coverage of the making of The Talons of Weng-Chiang and looking back at the history of the programme and its psychological impact on the viewers, particularly children.

Toulouse-Lautrec

Scenes from Huston's "Moulin Rouge," archive footage of the original locations, a Lautrec exhibition at London's "Royal Academy" and interviews with artists, critics and collectors provide insights into the artist's life.

Isadora

A biography of the dancer Isadora Duncan, the 1920s dancer who forever changed people's ideas of ballet. Her nude, semi-nude, and pro-Soviet dance projects as well as her attitudes on free love, debt, dress, and lifestyle shocked the public of her time.

Sweet William

William is a dashing and eccentric Scotsman whose charms rapidly overwhelm the sweet and naïve Ann, but she nearly as quickly begins to comprehend that her new beau is anything but a one-woman man. In addition to his two ex-wives, with whom he remains remarkably close, William exhibits a disturbing attraction for nearly any female who crosses his path -- Ann's friends among them.

The Most Dangerous Man in Tudor England

Melvyn Bragg explores the dramatic story of William Tyndale and his mission to translate the Bible into English, which made him a threat to the authority of the church and state.

Naked Making Lunch

A 1992 documentary about the making of Naked Lunch.

Hockney at the Tate

To mark his fiftieth birthday in 1988, London's Tate Gallery staged a major retrospective of his work. Melvyn Bragg joined David Hockney for an exclusive private view of the exhibition and they were filmed discussing pictures from all stages of Hockney's remarkable career.

Norbert Smith: A Life

A mockumentary charting the life and career of the fictitious British actor Sir Norbert Smith.

Tennessee Williams: Orpheus of the American Stage

A study of Tennessee Williams's life and work as a whole, ranging from his youth in Mississippi and in St. Louis to success and acclaim, followed by the final difficult years. Includes some of the most celebrated scenes from film adaptations of Williams' work, among them extracts of A Streetcar Named Desire (1951),Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), Night of the Iguana, The (1964), and Suddenly, Last Summer (1993) (TV). Contains footage of Williams being interviewed, including conversations with David Frost, 'Edward R. Murrow (I)', and Melvyn Bragg, as well as reminiscences from people who knew and worked with him, among them Edward Albee, Gore Vidal, and his lifelong friend, Lady Maria St. Just. Features readings from Elia Kazan's Notebook by Kim Hunter.

Bernard and the Genie

Bernard Bottle, a mild mannered art buyer, is fired by his greedy boss, abandoned by his girlfriend and discovers a genie in an old bottle. The genie immediately embraces the modern world and helps Bernard on the side.

Ingmar Bergman at 60

Documentary about the Swedish film director, produced for the UK television program "The South Bank."

Great Performances

The best in the performing arts from across America and around the world including a diverse programming portfolio of classical music, opera, popular song, musical theater, dance, drama, and performance documentaries.

Have I Got News for You

Hilarious, totally-irreverent, near-slanderous political quiz show, based mainly on news stories from the last week or so, that leaves no party, personality or action unscathed in pursuit of laughs.

The South Bank Show

The South Bank Show is a television arts magazine show produced by ITV between 1978 and 2010. A new series began on Sky Arts from 27 May 2012. Presented by Melvyn Bragg, the show aims to bring both high art and popular culture to a mass audience.

An Audience with...

An Audience with... is a British entertainment television show produced by London Weekend Television, in which a host, usually a singer or comedian, performs for an invited audience of celebrity guests, interspersed with questions from the audience, in a light hearted revue/tribute style.

Believe Nothing

Believe Nothing is a British ITV sitcom starring Rik Mayall as Quadruple Professor Adonis Cnut, the cleverest man in Britain, and Oxford's leading moral philosopher. He is paid huge amounts of money for his views consulted by the government but he's bored and wants adventure so he joins the shadowy organization The Council which controls everything going on in the world. Starring alongside Mayall is Michael Maloney as Brian Albumen, Cnut's faithful servant, and Emily Bruni as Dr. Hannah Awkward who becomes professor of pedantics. The series was written by Maurice Gran and Laurence Marks, who give a twist to many of today's global issues. Although much hyped by ITV, who were hoping to repeat the success of Gran and Marks' previous project with Mayall, the successful The New Statesman, the series failed to catch on, and was dropped after one series.

The Modern World: Ten Great Writers

This documentary series uses drama and commentary to shed light on the lives and works of Joseph Conrad, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, T. S. Eliot, Henrik Ibsen, James Joyce, Franz Kafka, Thomas Mann, Luigi Pirandello, Marcel Proust and Virginia Woolf.

A Time to Dance

A fiftysomething English banker falls for and has an affair with an Irish waif from the wrong side of the tracks, causing him grief both professionally and personally.

Johnny and the Dead

Not many people can see the dead (not many would want to). 12-year-old Johnny Maxwell can. And he's got bad news: the council want to sell the cemetery as a building site. But the dead have learnt a thing or two from Johnny. They're not going to take it lying down... especially since it's Halloween tomorrow.

The Adventure of English

The history of the English language presented by Melvyn Bragg; from its modest beginnings around 500 AD as a minor Germanic dialect to its rise as a global language.

Melvyn Bragg's Travels In Written Britain

Melvyn Bragg travels through the British Isles exploring a rich tradition of literature. Whilst taking in the work of established writers both old and new, Melvyn uncovers a never-before seen body of writing by ordinary people, living on the land and writing about their experiences.