sat 26/04/2025

tv

Arena: Night and Day, BBC Four

Marina Vaizey

Arena is the longest-running arts documentary programme for television at the BBC, and perhaps the world: as the BBC itself phrases it, this compendium celebration presented 24 hours in 90 minutes for 40 years, marking the show's latest anniversary. Conceived by the ever-creative and energetic Humphrey Burton all that while ago, Arena has made over 600 films, looking at high and low culture with equal curiosity, alacrity and even audacity.

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Prom 2: The Doctor Who Prom in Pictures

theartsdesk

There's the First Night and there's the Last Night. Nowadays among the staples of the two-month world-famous festival of music at the Royal Albert Hall, there is also the Doctor Who Prom. Last night, to mark the 50th anniversary of the resurgent TV sci-fi show, a celebration was laid on featuring Murray Gold's music from the last eight years of Doctor Who.

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TV Gallery: Frozen Planet

Jasper Rees

What we're used to seeing whenever the BBC launches on one of its epic explorations of the natural world is moving pictures. But as well as training film cameras at their subects, from the largest mountains and glaciers to the smallest organisms, the hardy modern-day adventurers armed with their phenomenal hi-tech kit also train still cameras at everything they encounter.

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TV Gallery: Downton Abbey

theartsdesk

  1. Maggie Smith Violet, Dowager Countress of Grantham
  2. Hugh Bonneville Robert, Earl of Grantham
  3. Penelope Wilton Mrs Isobel Crawley
  4. Dan Stevens Matthew Crawley
  5. Michelle Dockery Lady Mary Crawley
  6. Theo James Kemal Pamuk
  7. Jim Carter Mr Carson
  8. Brendan Coyle Mr Bates
  9. Rob James-Collier Thomas
  10. Thomas Howes William
  11. Joanne...

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TV Gallery: Cranford's Bonnets

Jasper Rees

It's sometimes referred to, just a bit dismissively, as bonnet drama. Whenever television visits the 19th century, the headwear of the female characters does indeed play its part. Of no adaptation of Victorian fiction is that truer than Cranford. The actresses wearing the bonnets are fairly resplendent too.

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It all started on 09/09/09. That memorable date, September 9 2009, marked the debut of theartsdesk.com.

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