Monday 6th
BBC1 - The Case for God - "With religion coming under increasing attack from atheists and sceptics, The Chief Rabbi, Lord Jonathan Sacks, goes into the lion's den, putting his faith publicly on the line by debating with some of the sharpest critics of his faith. Howard Jacobson believes ritual demeans religion, Alain de Botton doubts that any one faith has the truth, Professor Colin Blakemore thinks science makes religion redundant, and Professor Lisa Jardine questions why God allows evil and suffering in this world."
Tuesday 7th
Yesterday - The First Day of the Blitz - "On that early September day, Britain was basking in the middle of an Indian summer with temperatures reaching a sweltering 90 degrees in London. Although the war had started the year before, Londoners hadn’t yet encountered disaster. But at 4.14pm on that gorgeous late summer’s day, 348 bombers and 617 Messerschmitt fighters crossed the English Channel into English airspace forming a block 20 miles wide, filling 800 square miles of sky. They only had one thing on their mind – to destroy the capital and break the British spirit. It was the day the war finally hit home. Using intimate first-person testimony along with authentic archive, photographs and bomb maps, The First Day Of The Blitz details the horror and the heroics of a concentrated nine-month attack that started on a warm day in September and continued for nine, long months. The film, the latest in Yesterday’s year-long Spirit Of 1940 strand, is a tribute to the survivors of the attacks and to the spirit shown by ordinary Londoners as their city burned around them. It’s also a film of remembrance, honouring those who lost their lives on one of the most traumatic days in the nation’s history."
Wednesday 8th
ITV1 - Words of the Blitz - "In the late summer of 1940 London came under fire as German bombers brought death and devastation to the City, night after night, week after week and month after month. Many cities were bombed but London suffered the most. This new documentary, Words of the Blitz, tells the powerful stories of those affected by the bombings, in their own words. A cast of actors including Dominic West, Romola Garai, Sheila Hancock, Russell Tovey, Alex Jennings, Joseph Beattie and Steven Berkoff read the diaries and letters of men and women from teenagers to fire-fighters, nurses and senior government officials, offering a rich insight into how the impact of the Blitz was felt on a deeply personal level, but also evoking how it affected all levels of society. They are joined by readers with a contemporary connection to the subject including a Bomb Disposal Officer just back from Afghanistan, and by Blitz survivors reading their own accounts. Along with archive footage as well as film of affected areas of London as they are today, their personal testimonies combine to create a compelling, surprising, and often deeply moving commemoration of the Blitz, brought vividly and poignantly to life in this powerful documentary. The Luftwaffe launched the biggest air raid in history in September as 350 bombers accompanied by 600 fighters headed towards London... "
Thursday 9th
BBC2 - Gareth Malone's Extraoridnary School for Boys - "Gareth Malone has never been one to shy away from a challenge. He made his name on TV as the choirmaster in BBC Two's The Choir, a series which saw him bring together people from all walks of life and turn them into accomplished singers, and, earlier this year, he took on the challenge of helping to put together a group of young people to perform at Glyndebourne, one of the world's most celebrated opera houses.
Back in April, though, Gareth took on one of his most ambitious challenges to date that saw him becoming an educator for a term when he agreed to take on a group of 39 boys from an Essex school to help them try to re-engage with their schoolwork. Many of the boys weren't fulfilling their potential at school and, like others across Britain, lagged behind their female peers in literacy. The result is Gareth Malone's Extraordinary School For Boys – a three-part series for BBC Two that forms part of the channel's School Season (a range of programming encompassing documentary, drama and debate, focusing on schools, the tough choices parents have to make and exploring innovations in teaching).
The school in question is Pear Tree Mead in Harlow, Essex, which was chosen from the many that were keen to take part in the project. "It's typical statistically," says Gareth. "It represents the national picture when talking about literacy and the discrepancy between boys and girls, so it felt like the right place to go."
With the head teacher's full consent and involvement, Gareth was challenged to "show there has been an improvement with the majority of boys, increasing their reading age by six months in just eight weeks". The reading ages of the boys were assessed both before and after he spent time at the school so there was a clear way to assess whether his efforts had been successful... "
Saturday 11th
Channel 4 - 9/11: State of Emegency - "This feature-length drama-documentary tells the story of 9/11 in the words of key political and military leaders as well as ordinary people who suddenly found themselves on the frontlines of a new kind of war.
In the chaos of the day, many people faced split-second decisions that they had never expected or planned for - and their actions could make the difference between life and death. Through a minute-by-minute investigation, this film tells the story of those whose choices would help shape the outcome of that fateful day.
A range of people - some very famous, some very private - whose decisions would turn out to be key, discuss what they did and why as they reflect on how they responded to the extraordinary test that was 9/11.
Top government officials speak candidly for the first time on camera of their frustration and confusion; from political leaders to generals and cabinet members struggling to keep up with what was unfolding.
The film also reveals the emotional stories of ordinary men and women - air force pilots, fire chiefs and relatives of hijacked passengers - who also faced unprecedented challenges such as finding the right phone number for the FBI to report that a plane had been hijacked.
9/11 is treated as a whole; a single event. Interweaving exclusive stories from key players and archive and original footage, this intense and insightful film explores America's greatest test of the modern age.
The film features interviews with Condoleeza Rice, Donald Rumsfeld, Andrew Card (Chief of Staff to President Bush), air traffic controllers, F-16 pilots, family members of the Flight 93 passengers, and survivors and rescuers from the World Trade Center and Pentagon attacks."
Monday 13th
BBC4 - Storyville: The Trouble with Pirates - "There are currently seventeen ships being held by pirates, and the piracy season is starting again. This is the story of the piracy explosion, with unique access to the coastal towns of war-torn Somalia, the boardrooms of the City of London, the operation hubs on board warships in the Gulf of Aden and the heartbreak of a hostage situation gone wrong."
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