ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ FOUR - Winter highlights 2005
Janice Hadlow, Controller,
ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ FOUR
Welcome to ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ FOUR's Winter 2005 season.
Media is at the top of our agenda this season: in TV
On Trial we invite viewers, critics, commentators and media
pundits to take part in a major interactive event to debate when British
TV enjoyed its Golden Age.
From January, media fans can also enjoy a regular weekly
fix as we launch The Desk. Presented
by Tyler Brûlé, The Desk promises an exciting take
on the media world going beyond a purely domestic agenda to cast its
eye across the global landscape.
While The Desk brings an international perspective to
the channel's coverage of media, ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ FOUR also celebrates British identity.
Jazz Britannia is
a season of music, film and documentary exploring British jazz.
The centre-piece of the season is a fascinating new
three-part series exploring the evolution of the British jazz scene
with contributions from some of the greatest names in the field.
Comedy on ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ FOUR has focused on American series in
the past few seasons - this winter, we have some new and exciting home-grown
pieces: Don't Watch That Watch This a
topical, news-based satire, uses re-syncing, judicious editing and overdubbing
to offer a unique vision of the world; and Armando Iannucci's The
Thick Of It, a new political comedy featuring an ensemble of
some of the best of British comedy writing - and performing - talent.
Last winter, The Alan Clark Diaries was a great success
for the channel; this winter, we have a new drama about an equally charismatic
and controversial figure - Kenneth Tynan.
Written and directed especially for the channel by Chris
Durlacher, this feature-length drama explores the personal and professional
life of this larger-than-life man of words - and ideas.
Enquiring, informed and thought-provoking documentaries
have always been a major part of ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ FOUR's output and this season is
no exception.
Churchill's Forgotten Years
explores the time after the Second World War when Winston Churchill
battled against the odds to reinvent himself as a man of peace.
In Europe - A Natural History,
the incredible span of Europe's landscapes are brought to life.
And travelling further afield, Baghdad
Or Bust follows the experiences of Ken O'Keefe, a former US
marine, who led 60 volunteers in three double-decker buses on a 3,000-mile
journey from London to Baghdad.
As we approach our third anniversary, ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ FOUR, the
winner of the Non-Terrestrial Channel of the Year at the 2004 Media
Guardian Edinburgh International Television Festival, continues to offer
its unique blend of world cinema, news, talk and debate.
Janice Hadlow
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