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The Bradford Aunties (2024) #1538
DOCUMENTARY
Main
50 mins. BBC One. Tahera, Rubina and Ghazala are charming, opinionated and determined ladies from Yorkshire, with one major thing in common – they‘re all Asian aunties, women who use their lifetimes of experience to impart wisdom, pass judgement and glue their communities together. This engaging and insightful documentary follows this trio of Bradford women as they embark on their latest mission – to ensure their language, food, music and values are handed to the next generation. Aunties Tahera, Rubina and Ghazala believe passionately in the preservation of their culture for their communities' young people. However, in the wake of today’s digital world, they fear this is in danger of being eroded as the next generation of Asian youth adopt more western ways. Rolling up their sleeves, the aunties embark on the biggest challenge of their lives – a unique and bespoke community project looking to bring the young and old of Bradford together. And to cap it all, they’re planning to take everyone on a big coach trip to Blackpool at the end of the project. The aunties’ master plan is to run a series of workshops to teach young people a host of skills and provide a chance for the generations to get to know each other better. From music to poetry, cooking and the importance of family, the aunties look to connect the youth with the old ways and ideals. But along the way, will they discover they have just as much to learn from the young cohort? This isn’t a boot camp for the faint-hearted. And helping them at every step will be their army of trusted, elderly aunties. With their reputation preceding them, our aunties hit the streets of Bradford to recruit young people to their cause – but will they be able to engage a tough crowd? Or is the gap between the generations just too wide to be filled? As the countdown to the coach trip to Blackpool gets under way, the aunties have a lot to organise, with their reputations and culture on the line. Can they connect with today’s youth, or will it be a bumpy ride, with the old ways driving a wedge between them? Exploring community, tradition, love and friendship, this warm, compelling and ultimately moving documentary – with unprecedented access to the UK’s south Asian community – follows aunties Rubina, Ghazala and Tahera attempting to pull out all the stops as they head towards an all-singing, all-dancing coach trip. All in the name of preserving their Asian culture for the next generation. |
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Lee (2023) #1574
FILM
Main
1h 57m The story of American photographer Lee Miller, a fashion model who became an acclaimed war correspondent for Vogue magazine during World War II. |
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Platinum Jubilee Party (2022) #1421
MUSIC
Special
3 hours. BBC. 4th June 2022. Party outside Buckingham Palace to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II's 70 years on the throne. Featuring Paddington Bear and many more. |
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This New Noise (2022) #1458
MUSIC
Main
1 hour. BBC Proms. Prom 58: Public Service Broadcasting – This New Noise BBC Proms2022 Live at the BBC Proms: Retro-futurist rockers Public Service Broadcasting celebrate 100 glorious years of BBC Radio with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and conductor Jules Buckley. Presented by Elizabeth Alker, live from the Royal Albert Hall, London. Public Service Broadcasting: This New Noise (BBC commission: world premiere) Public Service Broadcasting BBC Symphony Orchestra Jules Buckley (conductor) Archive footage, soundscapes, dancing astronauts and a flashing, blinking Sputnik right here in the Royal Albert Hall – when cult ‘retro-futurists’ Public Service Broadcasting brought The Race to Space to the Proms in 2019, it’s safe to say that the results were out of this world. So in the year that the BBC celebrates a century of – well, public-service broadcasting – it makes perfect sense to invite them back with This New Noise: a joyously eclectic, album-length celebration of 100 years of BBC Radio, backed by the BBC Symphony Orchestra and delivered with all the wit and showmanship of a band on an ongoing mission to ‘teach the lessons of the past through the music of the future’. 1. Ripples in the Ether (Towards the Infinite) 2. This New Noise 3. An Unusual Man 4. A Cello Sings in Daventry [ft. Seth Lakeman] 5. Broadcasting House 6. The Microphone (The Fleet is Lit Up) 7. A Candle Which Will Not Be Put Out 8. What of the Future? (In Touch with the Infinite) |
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9/11: Inside the President's War Room (2021) #1374
DOCUMENTARY
Main
90mins. BBC. Twenty years ago, at 9.03am on 11 September 2001, the second of four hijacked planes hit the South Tower of the World Trade Center in New York. America was under attack. President George W Bush was sitting in front of seven-year-olds in a classroom in Florida. Members of the president’s security detail thought the next plane could be aimed at them. A first draft of history and a claustrophobic clock-ticking thriller, this film tells the story of the presidency on arguably the most consequential day in recent history. How should a government deal with a large scale terrorist attack that used four commercial aircraft as missiles? How would they cope with losing their friends? And how could they respond? As the clock ticks, the administration make the greatest decisions of their lives: should they order fighter jets to shoot on American civilians? Should the president declare war or calm a battered nation? How would the leadership of the most powerful nation on earth grapple with the national and international implications? This documentary tells the definitive story of the Bush administration through 12 hours of that momentous day, with first-hand testimony from President Bush, Vice-President Dick Cheney, National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice and other senior staff who had their hands on the levers of power. The events of that day led to two decades of conflict in Afghanistan and Iraq. As America and its allies now withdraw from Afghanistan and the Taliban resume control, this is the story of how it all began. |
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Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini (2021) #1382
MUSIC
Main
Leeds International Piano Competition winner ALIM BEISEMBAYEV plays Rachmaninov. |
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Lee Miller - A Life on the Front Line (2020) #1265
DOCUMENTARY
Main
1 hour. BBC. When Lee Miller returned to New York from Europe in October 1932, newspaper reporters were waiting to greet her as her ship docked. Disembarking in a smart beret and fur-collared coat, she smiled for the journalist from the New York World-Telegram. When he referred to her as 'one of the most photographed girls in Manhattan', she retorted, 'I'd rather take a picture than be one.' Lee Miller is one of the most remarkable female icons of the 20th century. A model turned photographer turned war reporter, Miller chose to live her life by her own rules. This film celebrates a subject who defied anyone who tried to pin her down, put her on a pedestal or pigeonhole her in any way. It tells the story of a trailblazer, often at odds with the morality of the day, who refused to be subjugated by the dominant male figures around her. |
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The Rise of the Murdoch Dynasty (2020) #1301
DOCUMENTARY
Main
With Kate Fleetwood, Andrew Neil, Alastair Campbell, Nigel Farage. The incredible story of Rupert Murdoch's influence on world events. 3x1 hour BBC |
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Lemn Sissay: The Memory of Me (2020) #1313
DOCUMENTARY
Main
70 mins. BBC - Imagine with Alan Yentob. Lemn Sissay's writings are a source of inspiration to huge numbers of people around the world. From poems on the walls and buildings of Manchester and beyond to the contemplative dawn verses published each morning on social media, his words bring solace and light to readers everywhere. Following the publication of his new memoir My Name Is Why, he tells Alan Yentob what it was like to grow up as the only black child in a sleepy market town outside Wigan in the 1970s. Before being catapulted into the broken care system at the dawn of the 1980s, he was separated from his foster family at the tender age of twelve and left to fend for himself. His journey since has been one of discovery: learning not just that his name was Lemn, but that his parents were Ethiopian, a country he returns to for this film to find out more about his roots. Featuring contributions from some of the well-known names Lemn has shared the stage with, such as Steve Coogan, Benjamin Zephaniah, Linton Kwesi Johnson and Julie Hesmondhalgh, as well as his close network of friends and supporters from his years in care, this is the story of the boy whose name meant Why. |
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Pilgrimage (2020) #1354
DOCUMENTARY
Main
Pilgrimage (Series 3) BBC 1 hour The Road to Istanbul Episode 1 of 3 Seven well-known personalities, all with differing faiths and beliefs, put on backpacks and walking boots and, on foot and by road, set out to cover sections of the Sultans Trail - a modern-day, 2,200km pilgrimage across Eastern Europe, which starts in Vienna and ends in the historic city of Istanbul. With only 15 days to complete their pilgrimage, the group begin their adventure in the capital of Serbia, Belgrade. From here, they make their way to Bulgaria, travelling over the mountainous Balkans before arriving in Istanbul. But will this journey of a lifetime change the way they think about themselves and their beliefs? Journalist Adrian Chiles, former politician Edwina Currie, Olympian Fatima Whitbread, comedian Dom Joly, actor Pauline McLynn, broadcaster Mim Shaikh and television presenter Amar Latif live as modern-day pilgrims, staying in basic hotels and often sleeping in shared rooms. Formed just over ten years ago, the Sultans Trail retraces an ancient path taken by the Ottoman armies from late medieval times as they looked to expand their empire into Europe. From their base in Istanbul, armies made it to the city of Vienna twice before being repelled. Now, this former route of war has been turned into a path of peace, designed to promote tolerance between people of all faiths and none. In this first episode, the seven pilgrims arrive in Belgrade, Serbia, and find out for the first time who they are sharing their pilgrim adventure with. Leaving the city behind, they head into the countryside and away from the hustle and bustle. Relying on the Sultans Trail app to help guide them across Europe, Adrian, a converted Catholic, and Mim, a practising Muslim, are the first to plot their way as they look for the fortified Manasija monastery hidden in the hills. As they progress through the Serbian countryside, Amar, who has been blind since the age of 18, leads the pilgrims in the ancient tradition of scrumping. After a 5km hike, they make it to the monastery, which was fortified to protect it from the Ottoman armies. Adrian leads the group in exploring the 15th-century Orthodox Christian church. Inside, Edwina, a non-practising Orthodox Jew, and Mim discuss the existence of God. Meanwhile, outside on the ramparts of the fortress, Dom, an atheist, takes Amar, raised a Muslim, to the very top of the battlements with some nerve-racking moments! They move on and, with the sun setting, the pilgrims arrive at their overnight accommodation, a simple woodland hostel, and, in line with pilgrim tradition, bed down in shared rooms. In the morning, it becomes clear the boys have had a restless night thanks to Dom and Adrian snoring. Mim takes himself off to pray in a field near the hostel before breakfast, where Pauline, an atheist, tells the group about her upbringing as an Irish Catholic. Before they set off, the pilgrims collect their first pilgrim stamp, a record of their journey along the trail. Later that day, the group arrive in the city of Nis, where Dom and Mim explore a 16th-century mosque built during the reign of Sultan Suleiman, after whom the pilgrimage trail is named. Edwina takes Amar and Pauline to a memorial of a more recent conflict, the Crveni Krust concentration camp, a Second World War Nazi camp that held people of Jewish, Romani and Serbian origin. Here, they witness the horrors of religious and cultural persecution. After a challenging day, the group discuss the difficulties with faith and religion in the face of conflict. The next day, the pilgrims head back into rural Serbia, where Fatima, a Christian, takes the lead with the app, but the pilgrims end up lost and separated in a forest as they lose the trail, much to new hiker Mim’s annoyance. After reuniting, the pilgrims pick up the trail again and it brings them to The Church of the Virgin Mary on a special day in the Orthodox Christian calendar, the birth of the Holy Virgin Mary. The Saint’s day is celebrated with a Slava, a day-long festival that comprises of a service and meal. The pilgrims settle into the service but it is not long before Dom decides to leave. Adrian however finds the service comforting, and after it is completed, the group are invited to join the locals’ celebration meal at the priest’s top table. The experience of seeing this local community come together in the name of faith resonates with Amar, while for Mim, being surrounded by people embracing their faith gives him a new outlook on his own. |
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The Unwanted: The Secret Windrush Files (2019) #1200
DOCUMENTARY
Main
1 hour. BBC. David Olusoga opens secret government files to show how the Windrush scandal and the ‘hostile environment’ for black British immigrants has been 70 years in the making. The film features Sarah O’Connor, Anthony Bryan and Judy Griffith. Settled here legally since childhood, they were re-classified as illegal immigrants by new ‘hostile environment’ regulations. Unable to show proof of their nationality status, they lost jobs, savings and their health, facing deportation back to countries they could barely remember. David reveals how today’s scandal is rooted in the secrets of the past. The first Windrush generation were Commonwealth citizens - many of them ex-servicemen - coming to rebuild war-torn Britain. Yet even before arriving, they were seen by the Government with hostility. Civil servants and MPs warned of dire consequences if what they called a ‘coloured element’ was introduced into the UK. PM Clement Attlee even suggested diverting the Windrush passengers to east Africa - to pick peanuts. The same government was actively recruiting tens of thousands of white volunteer workers from Europe - some of them former members of Waffen-SS regiments which stood accused of war crimes on the Eastern Front - for ‘permanent settlement here with a view to their inter-marrying and complete absorption into our own working population’. The files expose how successive British governments spent the next decade trying to devise a way to prevent further Caribbean arrivals without appearing to discriminate against them. PM Winston Churchill, dissatisfied with ministers’ response to what he saw as a serious problem, kept the issue on the cabinet agenda and a special Working Party was set up to gather information to make the political case for immigration controls. Two weeks after the Queen’s coronation as head of the UK and Commonwealth, a secret race survey was undertaken and completed, looking for proof that Commonwealth immigrants were a burden on the Welfare State. Chief constables in major cities were asked if ‘the coloured community as a whole, or particular sections of it, are generally idle or poor workmen’, and if they were ‘addicted to drug-trafficking or other types of crime’. The Working Party found no evidence for the view that the ‘coloured community’ was less law-abiding or hard working than other Brits. When Harold Macmillan’s government introduced the 1962 Immigration Act, its control mechanism was the employment prospects of would-be immigrants. The files show how home secretary ‘Rab’ Butler, described the ‘great merit’ of the scheme was that it ‘can be presented as making no distinction on grounds of race or colour’, but would, in practice, ‘operate on coloured people almost exclusively’. By that time, Caribbean immigration had shrunk to a fraction of earlier levels. But, fearing further restrictions, the Windrush generation now arranged for their children to come. The ‘children of the Windrush' had full legal rights to join their parents in the UK, and many arrived with little paperwork or official record keeping. Successive governments passed new immigration and nationality legislation, often in response to perceived ‘problems’ or ‘crises’. Harold Wilson rushed through the 1968 Immigration Act, in just three days to stop arrivals of thousands of passport-holding British-Indians living in Kenya, whose businesses and livelihoods were threatened by its government. Edward Heath’s 1971 Act tried to restrict the legal definition of ‘Britishness’. It also placed the burden of proof on the claimant should their Britishness be challenged—a fateful clause for the ‘children of the Windrush’. Throughout the multiple changes to immigration and nationality law enacted up to 2014, the nationality status of the ‘children of Windrush’ remained unchanged and unchallenged. As British citizens with full legal rights to live here, they put down roots, pursued careers, raised children and grandchildren and contributed in ways great and small to the creation of modern Britain. But with the introduction of the so-called ‘hostile environment’ legislation of 2014 and 2016, their situation changed. Though they were never the intended targets of the new laws, the hostile environment machine that evolved over the decade wasn’t designed to make allowances. Suddenly required to prove their status (due to the 1971 Act), Sarah, Anthony and Judy found themselves unable to show the levels of proof demanded by the new ‘hostile environment’ regulations. All three lost their jobs for up to two years and ran up debt trying to make ends meet. Anthony was arrested twice by Immigration Officers and held for weeks in detention centres. Then a ticket was bought to deport him to Jamaica, a country hadn’t seen since he left, aged eight, in 1965. ‘They broke me in there’, Anthony says. ‘It was hard’. Judy Griffith, still struggling to repay her debts, says: ‘It makes you question the whole, what is British? What is Britishness?’ |
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World on Fire (2019) #1223
TV DRAMA
Special
With Jonah Hauer-King, Julia Brown, Helen Hunt, Sean Bean. WWII drama centered on the lives of ordinary people affected by the war. BBC. Series 1. 7x1 hour episodes. 1 When war breaks, translator Harry Chase vows to help his Polish lover Kasia flee Warsaw, but how will he explain this to his sweetheart Lois, waiting for him at home in Manchester is the story. 2 A month after the outbreak of war, Warsaw is unrecognizable, while Manchester, on the surface, appears very much the same. Will there be a warm welcome home for Harry? 3 Harry crosses paths with Lois again when she arrives to perform at the BEF base camp in France, while Tom finds himself in the middle of a naval battle in the South Atlantic. 4 Harry and his unit fight for their lives in the city of Leuven in Belgium, where the Allied forces are outnumbered by the Germans. 5 Harry and what's left of his unit try to get to Dunkirk. Where things are getting desperate. 6 Webster begins a campaign of resistance at the American hospital after Paris falls to the Nazis. Mr and Mrs Rossler are arrested in Berlin, and Lois grows closer to Vernon. 7 On a Polish mission as part of the SOE, Harry grasps a second chance at saving Kasia from the horrors of Warsaw, while Lois looks set for happiness with new love, Vernon. |
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The Trial of Christine Keeler (2019) #1238
TV DRAMA
Special
With Sophie Cookson, James Norton, Ellie Bamber, Emilia Fox. Story of Christine Keeler, who found herself at the heart of a political sex scandal that rocked British government in the 1960s. 6x1 hour episodes. BBC. 1/6 In 1960s London, model Christine Keeler deals with an explosive love triangle. 2/6 Christine Keeler tells her story to the press, and a chill wind blows for John Profumo. 3/6 Christine flees to Spain as Profumo publicly denies their affair. 4/6 Christine’s star rises, Profumo faces the music, and Stephen Ward is in the firing line. 5/6 Stephen Ward's trial begins at the Old Bailey. Has Christine forsaken him? 6/6 Stephen's life hangs in the balance as his sentence is decided. |
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The Lion King (2019) #1246
FILM
Main
Directed by Jon Favreau. With Donald Glover, Beyoncé, Seth Rogen, Chiwetel Ejiofor. After the murder of his father, a young lion prince flees his kingdom only to learn the true meaning of responsibility and bravery. |
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Frozen II (2019) #1290
FILM
Main
Directed by Chris Buck, Jennifer Lee. With Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, Josh Gad, Jonathan Groff. Anna, Elsa, Kristoff, Olaf and Sven leave Arendelle to travel to an ancient, autumn-bound forest of an enchanted land. They set out to find the origin of Elsa's powers in order to save their kingdom. |
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A Very British Christmas (2019) #1334
FILM
Main
Directed by Steven Nesbit. With Rachel Shenton, Mark Killeen, Isla Cook, Michele Dotrice. Opera singer Jessica's flight to her concert in Vienna gets delayed and she is stuck in a remote area of England. The only place to stay is a bed-and-breakfast in an enchanting village run by a handsome widower named Andrew. Also billed as 'A Very Yorkshire Christmas' this film stars Knaresborough. |
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When Bridges Collapse: The Genoa Disaster (2019) #1396
DOCUMENTARY
Main
1 hour. BBC. On 14 August 2018, the Polcevera Bridge in Genoa collapsed, sending 27 vehicles plummeting to the valley below. 43 people lost their lives. It was Italy’s worst ever road-bridge disaster. This film tells the story of some of the people on the bridge that day and investigates what caused the bridge to fail so catastrophically. The Polcevera Bridge was an icon of 1960s engineering, built by one of Italy’s most celebrated engineers, and hailed by some as a masterpiece. It formed a vital link in the main motorway between the south of France and Rome. Its failure had a huge impact on the local economy. The debris blocked railway lines for weeks, 600 people who lived under the bridge were forced to flee their homes, and lorry drivers had to make a 115km detour. Ex-professional footballer Davide Capello, who was driving over the bridge when it collapsed, recalls his miraculous escape. "I found myself tumbling into the void. At that moment I let go of the wheel, I placed my hands behind my head, and I thought I was already dead." With many of Europe’s highways built in the same era as the Genoa bridge, this tragedy has raised questions about the maintenance of Europe’s ageing infrastructure. Are our bridges safe? |
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Great British Railway Journeys: York to Frizinghall (2018) #1102
DOCUMENTARY
Main
30 mins. BBC. Series 9. Armed with his Edwardian Bradshaw's guide, Michael Portillo conducts important research in an historic tea room, built by an Edwardian immigrant to the city of York. Research of a more sombre kind leads Michael to the roots of our modern welfare state in the work of an early 20th-century Quaker investigator, whose family manufactured chocolate. Next stop is Leeds, where Michael discovers the city's textile heritage, which relied in Edwardian times on a group of skilled Jewish immigrants to take it forward. Michael learns how some of the big names built their empires in Leeds and measures up to a footballing legend. At Bradford Grammar School, Michael hears the story of a talented Edwardian student who became a famous composer and enjoys one of his works, sung by a music pupil of today. |
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BBC Proms: Folk Prom 2018 (2018) #1123
MUSIC
Main
2 hours. BBC Proms Folk Prom 2018 Traditional music for modern times as the ever-versatile BBC Concert Orchestra and conductor Stephen Bell collaborate with leading musicians in this celebration of the diverse folk scenes and songbooks of the British Isles. The Unthanks, Sam Lee, Julie Fowlis, Jarlath Henderson and ALAW perform stirring songs and driving jigs in a genre that is constantly renewing and reinvigorating itself. From the Outer Hebrides, multi-award-winning singer Julie Fowlis is a torchbearer for her native Gaelic tradition and famously lent her crystalline vocals to the theme song of the Pixar film Brave. Her co-presenter on the Prom is Mercury-nominated singer-songwriter, nightingale whisperer, song collector and traditional music specialist Sam Lee. The innovative, eclectic approach of Northumbria's The Unthanks has won them fans across the musical spectrum, and here the orchestral setting enhances the widescreen drama of their atmospheric epic Mount the Air. Jarlath Henderson from County Tyrone in Northern Ireland is a master of the uilleann pipes and whistles, and in 2003 was the youngest ever BBC Young Folk Musician award winner. Trio ALAW demonstrate their passion for the traditional music of Wales through unearthing and reimagining gems, and creating original tunes. It's an exhilarating musical journey through the evolving folk traditions of our islands, where innovation and tradition intertwine. |
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The Joy of Winning (2018) #1161
DOCUMENTARY
Main
1 hour. BBC. How to have a happier life and a better world all thanks to maths, in this witty, mind-expanding guide to the science of success with Hannah Fry. Following in the footsteps of BBC Four's award-winning maths films The Joy of Stats and The Joy of Data, this latest gleefully nerdy adventure sees mathematician Dr Hannah Fry unlock the essential strategies you'll need to get what you want - to win - more of the time. From how to bag a bargain dinner to how best to stop the kids arguing on a long car journey, maths can give you a winning strategy. And the same rules apply to the world's biggest problems - whether it's avoiding nuclear annihilation or tackling climate change. Deploying 'The Joys Of...' films' trademark mix of playful animation alongside both oddball demos and contributions from the world's biggest brains, Fry shows how this field of maths - known as game theory - is the essential key to help you get your way. She reveals ways to analyse any situation, and methods of calculating the consequences of getting what you want. Expect tips on taking advantage of what your opponents do, but also pleasing proof that cooperation might get you further than conflict. Fry also hails the 20th-century scientists like John von Neumann and John Nash who worked out the science of success. They may not be household names, but they transformed economics, politics, psychology and evolutionary biology in the process - and their work, Hannah demonstrates, could even be shown to prove the existence and advantage of goodness. Along the way the film reveals, amongst other things, what links the rapper Ludacris, a Kentucky sheriff, a Nobel Prize winner and doping in professional cycling. And there's an irresistible chance to revisit the most excruciatingly painful and the most genius scenes ever seen on a TV game show, as Hannah unpacks the maths behind the legendary show Golden Balls and hails Nick Corrigan, the contestant whose cunning gameplay managed to break the supposedly intractable 'Prisoner's Dilemma'. Other contributors to The Joy of Winning include European number one professional female poker player Liv Boeree, Scottish ex-pro cyclist and anti-doping campaigner (banned for 2 years in 2004 for doping) David Millar, Israeli game theory expert Dr Haim Shapira - who shows why it is sometimes rational to be irrational - and top evolutionary game theorist Professor Karl Sigmund from the University of Vienna. |