Tag: Toughest Place to be a…

UK TV programmes to watch this week : 23/03/2013

Madness Live: Goodbye Television Centre (BBC HD | 8:30pm to 9:30pm | Saturday 23rd March 2013)

As the BBC makes its exit from the iconic west London site of Television Centre, BBC Four presents a special night of celebration of the building and its 53-year history. To kick start proceedings, the nation’s favourite nutty boys and national treasures Madness take to the stage at the front of BBC Television Centre to perform an hour long concert in front of an assembled audience nine days before TV Centre closes its doors. To help launch this celebration of over 50 years of programme making at TVC Madness treat us to new material and classics alike, such as One Step Beyond, I Never Knew Your Name, Baggy Trousers and Our House.

Toughest Place to be a… (BBC 2/BBC HD | 9:00pm to 10:00pm | Sunday 24th March 2013)

Series in which British workers are challenged to do their job under some of the toughest conditions in the world. Firefighter Neil Fairhall is leaving his fire station in Hayward’s Heath and heading to the Amazon to fight some of the biggest forest fires in the world. While a lot of a British firefighters’ time is spent attending small fires and false alarms, during the dry season in Mato Grosso state, the Jatoba Fire Brigade can work for four days at a time trying to save the forest from fire. As Neil trains and works with fire chief Edimar Dos Santos Abreu and his crew, he learns that the blazes are often started deliberately in order to clear the forest for illegal agriculture and that this now represents the single biggest threat to the Amazon.

Boris Johnson: The Irresistible Rise (BBC 2 | 9:00pm to 10:00pm | Monday 25th March 2013)

Boris Johnson is the biggest star in British politics. Nobody connects to the public like Boris, some even see him as a future Prime Minister. So what really makes him tick and is he a serious contender for the top job? With unprecedented access to Johnson himself, candid interviews and previously unseen archive, Michael Cockerell unlocks the secrets of the real Boris Johnson.

The Last Leg (Channel 4/HD | 9:30pm to 10:00pm | Friday 29th March 2013)

The final show in the current series of the award-winning gang show. Guest Kevin Bridges joins Adam Hills, Josh Widdicombe and Alex Brooker to provide intelligent and alternative commentary on the significant moments of the past seven days, as well as pulling out the hidden gems, and weird and wonderful talking point stories of the week. The Last Leg also incorporates live studio challenges and VTs, including Alex Brooker’s continuing quest to reach the Paralympics in Rio 2016 as a participant. Plus – of course – Is It OK?

All TV guide information taken from DigiGuide — www.getdigiguide.tv/?p=1&r=15119.

UK TV programmes to watch this week : 16/03/2013

Toughest Place to be a… (BBC 2/BBC HD | 9:00pm to 10:00pm | Sunday 17th March 2013)

Series in which British workers are challenged to do their job under some of the toughest conditions in the world. Dairy farmer Richard Gibson is swapping the damp surroundings of Devon to live and work with Samburu tribesmen, who herd their cattle in the parched and desolate mountains of northern Kenya.

The Railway: Keeping Britain on Track (BBC 2/BBC HD | 9:00pm to 10:00pm | Tuesday 19th March 2013)

Documentary series which goes behind the scenes of the rail network, revealing the inner workings of one of Britain’s biggest and oldest institutions. Keeping trains running on Scotland’s rail network is a huge challenge as it passes through some of the UK’s busiest urban commuter routes and stretches on through frozen highland mountains. With winter looming large, the country’s train, station and engineering staff are entering their toughest season. When overhead power lines are ripped down by a freight train, it spells chaos. Yet even without engineering problems, this is a network under constant strain, particularly at Edinburgh’s Waverly station. Yet what really makes Scotland stand-out from the rest of the UK are its vast and remote wilderness railways, such as the West Highland Line. Here, rail engineer Iain MacKinnon spends his days inspecting miles of mountain track on foot, clearing dead stags from the line and tightening every loose bolt that he finds.

Madness Live: Goodbye Television Centre (BBC 4 | 7:30pm to 08:30pm | Friday 22nd March 2013)

As the BBC makes its exit from the iconic west London site of Television Centre, BBC Four presents a special night of celebration of the building and its 53-year history. To kick start proceedings, the nation’s favourite nutty boys and national treasures Madness take to the stage at the front of BBC Television Centre to perform an hour long concert in front of an assembled audience nine days before TV Centre closes its doors. To help launch this celebration of over 50 years of programme making at TVC Madness treat us to new material and classics alike, such as One Step Beyond, I Never Knew Your Name, Baggy Trousers and Our House.

Goodbye Television Centre (BBC 4 | 8:30pm to 10:35pm | Friday 22nd March 2013)

After 53 years Television Centre, the BBC’s TV headquarters, is closing its doors and host Michael Grade gathers together many of its best-loved faces as they stroll down memory lane for the very last time. It was the dream factory, the symbolic home of British television – iconic, eccentric, more than just a building.

Richard Thompson: BBC Four Session – Goodbye Television Centre (BBC 4 | 10:35pm to 11:40pm | Friday 22nd March 2013)

As part of the Goodbye TV Centre celebrations, guitarist, singer and songwriter Richard Thompson plays a one-off concert filmed in TC8. Thompson has been performing in BBC TV studios since 1969, starting on Top of the Pops with Fairport Convention and then making frequent appearances on the Old Grey Whistle Test, The Late Show and Later with Jools Holland as a solo artist and bandleader. Filmed before the opening night of the tour celebrating the Top 20 placing of his album Electric, Thompson leads his current power trio through songs from that album, including Salford Sunday and Stony Ground, alongside classics from his songbook like I Want to See the Bright Lights and Tear Stained Letter. Thompson is joined on a couple of acoustic songs by former Fairport bandmate and master fiddler Dave Swarbrick, frequent collaborator Pete Zorn adds sax to Al Bowlly’s In Heaven and his daughter Kami Thompson harmonises on Waltzing for Dreamers.

The Last Leg (Channel 4/Channel 4 HD | 9:30pm to 10:00pm | Friday 22nd March 2013)

The award-winning live gang show takes a joyful, offbeat take on the week; aiming to celebrate all that is best about Britain. Host Adam Hills, alongside co-hosts Josh Widdicombe and Alex Brooker, provide an intelligent, alternative commentary on the significant moments of the past seven days, as well as pulling out hidden gems, and weird and wonderful talking point stories. In front of a live studio audience, celebrity guest Jo Brand joins Adam, Alex and Josh on The Last Leg sofa, as the gang tackle the issues of the week.

All TV guide information taken from DigiGuide — www.getdigiguide.tv/?p=1&r=15119.