Highlights | December 2011 For further information and images, please contact: UK: Nick Myles Editorial Coordinator BBC Worldwide Channels E-mail: [email protected] Tel.: +44 20 8433 2000 Produced by EBS New Media www.ebs.tv + 44 1462 895 999 Editorial Manager: Paul Talbot [email protected] December 2011 Highlights Who is Kurt Wallander? Monday 5 December at 21.30 Presented by British crime writer John Harvey, this film looks at the publishing phenomenon that is best-selling author Henning Mankell. Following Mankell as he divides his time between Sweden and the Mozambique capital of Maputo where he lives with his wife, the film looks at his work and his beliefs. Kurt Wallander is very different to traditional tough-guy cops. He responds to danger with stooped shoulders and an overwhelming sense that it‟s more than he can handle. But there is more to Mankell‟s work than police procedurals. Mankell explains how he‟s been writing to „unmask‟ society. He uses Wallander to express his views on all the traumatic topics which give rise to the New Right populism: the flow of illegal immigrants, soaring crime and violence, growing unemployment and social insecurity. Mankell sees himself as a man on a crusade to focus on © BBC those who remain in the shadows, on desperate lost existences, on the long and painful decay of the Swedish cradle to grave welfare state. Featuring a visit to Skane in southern Sweden – the home of the fictional character – this film talks to the most recent actor to play Wallander, Kenneth Branagh and includes interviews with American crime novelist Jeffrey Deaver and Swedish agitator Jan Guillou. Who Is Kurt Wallander? offers a unique profile of Henning Mankell as Swedish crime fiction continues to enjoy success around the world, and is an ideal accompaniment to the Wallander drama series. Page 2 December 2011 Highlights Joanna Lumley in the Land of the Northern Lights Thursday 8 December at 21.30 One of the UK‟s best-loved personalities and most successful comedy exports, Joanna Lumley pursues a life-long dream to track down the elusive and beautiful Northern Lights. Comedy icon Joanna grew up in tropical Malaysia, and as a little girl had never seen snow or felt cold. Inspired by fairy tales full of trolls and snow queens, she always longed to make this journey. But she could never have guessed what a challenging, epic, diverse and absorbing Arctic adventure lay ahead of her. Joanna travels north across the Arctic Circle, up through Norway and finally to Svalbard, the most northerly permanently inhabited place on Earth, where she has to cope with temperatures approaching minus 30°C. © Takeaway Media Joanna‟s journey takes her from train to boat and husky sled as she is pulled ever northwards by what she calls „the strongest point of the compass‟. As the anticipation mounts so does Joanna‟s trepidation that her Arctic journey will be in vain and she won‟t get to see the Northern Lights. Learning to ride a snowmobile, Joanna speeds across endless expanses of Lapland tundra with a Sami herdsman in search of his reindeer. On nearing the Arctic Ocean, she spends the night in a hotel made entirely of ice. The fascinating people she meets on her journey north fire Joanna‟s passion to see the Northern Lights still further, telling her about the unique spectacle and power of this true wonder of the world. But will she see it with her own eyes? Page 3 December 2011 Highlights Reindeer Girls Monday 12 December at 21.30 The Sámi people are reindeer herders from the far north, and one of Europe‟s last nomadic people. Embracing two worlds, they live in 21st century Norway, with all of the comforts and technology that brings – but they also follow their traditional lifestyle of herding reindeer across the Arctic tundra. Reindeer are one of the few animals capable of surviving in this harsh environment. As sub-zero specialists, they are well adapted to withstand the cold, with unique hollow hairs of their coats to provide insulation and large splayed hooves to help them travel quickly over snow. Most domestic animals have been bred to look and behave differently from their wild ancestors, but not reindeer. They still need their wild instincts to survive, so have never become truly tame, and the relationship between the Sámi and the reindeer must therefore be one of mutual benefit. Traditionally the Sámi depended on the reindeer for almost everything in their economy including food, clothing and shelter. In return the reindeer got protection from some of their worst enemies. Although times have changed, reindeer remain at the heart of Sámi life. Every spring Elle‟s family take their vast herd across the mountains on one of the longest migrations still made by the Sámi. This documentary follows them through the beautiful and dramatic landscapes of mainland Europe‟s northernmost outpost. Page 4 December 2011 Highlights Michael Palin and the Mystery of Hammershøi Wednesday 21 December at 21.30 Originally shown on the anniversary of the artist‟s death, Michael Palin and the Mystery of Hammershøi is a personal exploration of the painter‟s work. With a passion for art that is rivalled only by his love of travel, Michael Palin combines both in a European journey to discover more about Vilhelm Hammershoi, the enigmatic Danish artist who © BBC has fascinated him for years. Hammershoi painted around the start of the 20th century, and many of his pictures have a distinct coolness and distance about them. Palin, wanting to know more about Hammershoi‟s inspirations and the reason for these mystical pictures, starts his search at the Haywood Gallery in London, before travelling through Rembrandt's Amsterdam, Vermeer's Delft and on to Copenhagen, Stockholm and the surrounding countryside. Along the way, Palin also gains fascinating insights into the Danish people themselves, their cultural heritage, and the extraordinary legacy of Hammershoi, recounted by Palin with his usual passion, detail and wit. Page 5 December 2011 Highlights Lennon Naked Saturday 10 December at 21.00 Thirty years after the death of John Lennon, Christopher Eccleston stars as the enigmatic musician in a drama which charts his transition from Beatle John to an enduring and enigmatic icon. Writer Robert Jones articulates the burden of genius, as well as issues of fatherhood and fame, covering a period of wildly fluctuating fortunes for Lennon from 1967-71. When the Beatles' manager Brian Epstein died unexpectedly in 1967 it was a turning point in Lennon's life, and Lennon Naked focuses on the turbulent and intense period of change that followed, and how John was haunted by his troubled childhood. It also reveals the impact of re-establishing contact with his long-lost father, and the events that led Lennon to shed everything both personally and creatively, including calling time on the Beatles. Meeting Yoko Ono was the catalyst for this new era, and the film explores the development of their extraordinary relationship, their growing disillusionment with Britain and what caused Lennon to abandon the UK to start a new life in America - a process which ultimately led Lennon to record arguably the most powerful solo work of his career. What the press says about Lennon Naked: “This is an object lesson in how to make good television docudrama. Watch it.” Observer “A brilliant performance, in a brilliant film.” Guardian Page 6 December 2011 Highlights The Killing of John Lennon Sunday 11 December at 21.00 “I was nobody until I killed the biggest somebody on Earth.” This documentary is a chilling insight into the mind of Mark David Chapman, the 25-year- old narcissist who gunned down ex- Beatle John Lennon outside his Dakota apartment in New York in 1980. Meticulously researched and filmed on actual locations where events occurred, this is a gritty and imagistic examination of a celebrity stalker‟s mind leading up to the kill and a look into his descent into madness and exorcism. Independently financed and filmed over three years in Hawaii, Decatur Georgia and New York, The Killing of John Lennon provides an insight into what really happened that day and the motives involved in the murder of one of Britain‟s finest singer/songwriters. Page 7 December 2011 Highlights BBC Electric Proms 2007: Paul McCartney Sunday 18 December at 21.00 In the standout performance of the BBC Electric Proms 2007, Sir Paul McCartney performs tracks from his album Memory Almost Full as well as some crowd- pleasing classics. The BBC Electric Proms brings together the best new and established live performers. From massive gigs in the famous Roundhouse to intimate performances in Camden‟s other venues, artists are encouraged to try something original, be it debuting a new project, a collaboration or a performance with an orchestra. A master of melodies, the former Beatle was joined on stage by a special string section for a truly spectacular and memorable performance of some of his solo hits and a large helping of Beatles classics. Page 8 December 2011 Highlights Beatles Biggest Secrets Saturday 17 December at 21.00 Using a combination of new and exclusive interviews, Beatles Biggest Secrets delves into the inside story of the world‟s greatest ever pop group. The film begins with John Lennon‟s death in 1980, but then tracks back to the early 1960s and the group‟s formation and their early days in Liverpool. The story then travels forward through their careers, from learning their craft in dingy strip joints to global domination as the world‟s greatest ever pop icons.