The Absence of War

Jake lives in the shadow of his dying grandfather, who was once the town's toughest hard man. Despite their hatred of each other, Jake's sole aim is to be as tough as the old man was. One day in Jake's life, as he drifts, drinks and fights, leads to a bleak realisation.

Star tenor Jonas Kaufmann brings aching intensity and vocal charisma to the tortured title hero of Massenet’s Goethe adaptation. Sophie Koch, in her Met debut, is an appealing and elegant Charlotte, the object of Werther’s passionate affection that will lead to tragedy. Lisette Oropesa as Sophie, David Bižić as Albert, and Jonathan Summers as Le Bailli co-star. Richard Eyre’s atmospheric production is conducted by rising maestro Alain Altinoglu.

Second World War drama - A young woman decides against working in a munitions factory, and lands a post with the signals corps attempting to crack the Enigma code.

A young girl irrevocably changes the course of several lives when she accuses her older sister's lover of a crime he did not commit.

Comedians is a TV movie/play by Trevor Griffiths, set in a Manchester evening class for aspiring working-class comedians.

In 1945, the Carlions assemble at an English country house for a family gathering. During the event, they must determine who is to take over the family brewing empire, since the present head of the business, Sir Frederick, is getting old. The results of the 1945 general election causes a major stir, and some angry farmers occupy a barn.

What are the secrets of our favourite TV shows? Famous names from both sides of the camera reflect on making some of the most popular and influential programs of all time.

The biggest names in writing, acting and directing come together in a series of shorts on Sky1 HD this festive period. Experience a novel Noel with these original, uplifting and highly creative slices of silent cinema that prove actions do speak louder than words. Starring Mackenzie Crook, Bill Nighy, Peter Capaldi, Ross Kemp, and a host of major stars, each of the 10 Minute Tales promises to be a unique and engaging look at life, loss, and love.

A series of British television films featuring William Shakespeare's History Plays.

Series of single made-for-television dramas.

A veteran high school teacher befriends a younger art teacher, who is having an affair with one of her 15-year-old students. However, her intentions with this new "friend" also go well beyond platonic friendship.

Alfredo Germont and the courtesan Violetta Valéry fall in love at a party in Violetta's Paris salon. Alfredo is determined to cure Violetta of her tuberculosis, and the couple leave Paris and begin a contented life in the country. But Violetta's happiness is destroyed when Alfredo's father Giorgio Germont pays her a visit. Richard Eyre's stunning naturalistic production contrasts the superficial glamour of 19th-century Parisian high life with intimate scenes for Violetta with Alfredo and Giorgio Germont, culminating in the heart-breaking final act.

Kristine Opolais is the young woman whose conflicting desires for love and luxury lead to her tragic end, and Roberto Alagna plays the man who falls for her in Puccini’s early hit. Richard Eyre’s elegant production, which sets the action in 1940s occupied France, was one of the highlights of the Met’s 2015–16 season. Massimo Cavalletti as Manon’s brother and Brindley Sherratt as her aging admirer co-star, and Principal Conductor Fabio Luisi is on the podium.

Madame Ranevsky and her daughter Anya return home from Paris to find their beloved family estate and cherry orchard are to be auctioned off to pay debts. Lopahin, a former serf on the estate who is now a wealthy landowner, proposes razing the home and cherry orchard and dividing the estate into plots that could be leased at great profit. The family, however, continues to hold out hope that their beloved home can somehow be saved from destruction.

Having helped his brother King Edward IV take the throne of England, the jealous hunchback Richard, Duke of Gloucester, plots to seize power for himself. Masterfully deceiving and plotting against nearly everyone in the royal court, including his eventual wife, Lady Anne, and his brother George, Duke of Clarence, Richard orchestrates a bloody rise to power before finding all his gains jeopardized by those he betrayed.

In the midst of a marital crisis, a High Court judge must decide if she should order a life-saving blood transfusion for a teen with cancer despite his family's refusal to accept medical treatment for religious reasons.