TV programmes 1. Warship: Life at Sea SERIES TX: 26/11/2018 Dur: 60'00" Broadcaster: Channel 5 Production Company: Artlab Films ‘Warship: Life at Sea’ documents everyday life on board HMS Duncan, one of the most advanced warships in the world. With unprecedented access to the Royal Navy’s £1bn Destroyer, our cameras capture the most dramatic moments in the ship’s short history, over seven months in 2018. The series follows the ups and downs of life for Duncan’s crew of 280 men and women and reveals the intimate details of daily life on board including the tense days when they suddenly find themselves at the centre of some of the most sensitive military operations in recent history. This series documents the moment the crew go face-to-face with Russian military aggression, and revels the untold story of how HMS Duncan played a vital role in the 2018 Syrian airstrikes. 2. The Secrets of the Masons SINGLE PROG. TX: 19/03/2018 Dur: 59’00” Broadcaster: BBC 2 Scotland Production Company: Matchlight In Secrets of the Masons, cameras for the first time go behind the doors of the Grand Masonic Lodge of Scotland in Edinburgh, the home of Freemasonry, and lift the veil on the inner secrets of this normally closed world. With exclusive access to its 400 year old archive, its members around the country, and its Grand Master, who presides over 1,000 lodges and 100,000 Scottish Freemasons worldwide, we film at lodge meetings, the selection of new candidates, and the installation of Grand Masters here and in America. This documentary explores the truth about an organisation characterised by many for funny handshakes and rolled trouser legs, and by others as a dangerous, secret society, “the hidden hand that’s shaped Scotland”. We discover famous Scots whose careers have been “helped” by being masons, including Robert Burns and leading light in the Scottish Enlightenment, James Watt. Deputy Scottish Grandmaster Ramsay McGee, ex assistant chief constable of Northern Constabulary, remembers when, in the 1970’s, 50% of the force under him were masons. But he defends the close links between Freemasonry and the Police, “I could argue all policemen should be masons, it would make them much better men!” In the bomb proof safes below the Grand Lodge in Edinburgh’s George Street, archivist Robert Cooper, in white gloves, finds the original minutes of the first lodge meeting in 1598. We trace how this organisation grew from stonemasons to freemasons, became enshrined in America, where 40% of Presidents have been masons, was banned by the Pope and Hitler, and “done in” ,in Robert Cooper’s words, by Dan Brown. And we ask if its lasting legacy is less its influence and more its secrecy. 3. My Dad, the Peace Deal and Me SINGLE PROG. TX: 04/04/2018 Dur: 01:02: 14 Broadcaster: BBC 1 Production Company: Dragonfly Film and Television Productions My Dad, the Peace Deal and Me aimed to take complex, contentious subjects - the decades of conflict in Northern Ireland, the history of The Good Friday agreement, and the implications of Brexit for the peace deal - and built a documentary about them in a way that would work for a mainstream, primetime BBC1 audience. At the heart of the film was Patrick Kielty’s personal story of his father’s murder by paramilitary gunmen – a subject he had not previously spoken about publicly in detail. By exploring how Jack Kielty’s death interlinked with the wider themes of conflict, loss, and reconciliation, Patrick brought a broad audience to a profound examination of Northern Ireland’s history. Rather than over- simplifying, his warm and even-handed approach meant the film managed to encompass radically opposed views from each side of the conflict, as well as some subtle differences of perspective amongst those who have lived through it. 4. Gangs, Drill & Prayer SINGLE PROG. TX: 14/05/2018 Dur: 42’00” Broadcaster: BBC iPlayer / 1Xtra Youtube Production Company: BBC How young Christians are using rap & drill music to lure gang members away from streets & towards God. We join Enrique on his extraordinary journey from south London gangster rapper, to Pastor at just 21 years old. We meet the artists whose music is reaching out to youths & inspiring change, artists like Hope Dealers, who spit holy bars over the hardest of beats, drill. These movements, however, do not come without controversy; wearing balaclavas in church, accusations of being a cult & the large sums of money involved, have prompted some to question their holy intentions. 5. Journey In The Danger Zone: Iraq – Episode 2 SINGLE EPISODE from a longer series or strand TX: 10/06/2018 Dur: 60’00” Broadcaster: BBC 2 Production Company: October Films Ltd. Adnan Sarwar initially viewed his mission in Iraq as liberating the country’s people from Saddam Hussein. But when parts of the population turned against the allied forces, Adnan saw first-hand how driving Saddam from power led to more violence and ultimately the creation of ISIS. Now, with ISIS gone, he is travelling back to Iraq to discover the country afresh, beyond the headlines and wars to meet everyday people rebuilding their lives. On a journey from Mosul to Basra, from snowy peaks to arid deserts, Adnan ventures through ancient hilltop villages, ISIS tunnels, and magnificent gorges. He experiences the danger of the mine clearing teams in Mosul, where people are returning to their homes, and joins wildlife conservationists releasing bears near one of Saddam Hussein’s old palaces. He meets pop-singers, all-female fighting units, archaeologists, oil-workers, LGBT activists and ordinary Iraqis from all walks of life. But with sectarian violence, ISIS sleeper cells and deadly bomb attacks still a daily reality, Adnan explores whether the country can break its cycle of violence and forge a better future. 6. George Shelley: Learning To Grieve SINGLE PROG. TX: 30/09/2018 Dur: 54’00” Broadcaster: BBC 3 Production Company: BBC 3 In May 2017, the musician and presenter George Shelley tragically lost his sister in a sudden accident. Harriet Shelley was 21 and her brother's closest confidante. In his first documentary, George courageously opens up about his struggles with grief. Having spent the last 12 months struggling to talk about his loss and to deal with it, George embarks on a series of extraordinarily candid and raw discussions with his parents and best friend in a bid to help him cope with, and better understand, the process of grieving. He opens up to them in ways he has never done before and, for the first time, also speaks to other young people who have suffered the loss of a sibling, and to others from his generation who can share advice and guidance about coping mechanisms. Research suggests that bereavement is linked to high rates of suicide and mental health problems among young people. Bereavement is an extremely important issue because of the enormous and serious impact it has on wider society, especially with people under 30 being renowned for not talking about grief. George explores the relationship between his own grief and mental health. He spiralled into a deep depression when his sister died and discusses some of the revelations he has subsequently discovered about himself following conversations he has had with medical professionals 7. Earth's Natural Wonders: Surviving Against the Odds" (Series 2 Episode 3 of 3) SINGLE EPISODE from a longer series or strand TX: 07/03/2018 Dur: 60’00” Broadcaster: BBC One Production Company: BBC Studios Earth’s Natural Wonders is a spectacular celebration of our planet’s most breath-taking places: yet these places pose the most astonishing challenges to the people that call them home. Vast mountain ranges, impenetrable rainforests, baking deserts and vast ice-worlds. In some of the world's most extraordinary natural wonders, people must push themselves to the limit in order to survive. In the heart of the Amazon jungle, the Kamayura people believe they must perform a complex ceremony each year to appease the spirits, if the tribe is to remain in good health. In Ethiopia, new mothers risk their lives, to give their babies the best chance in life, climbing to churches built on top of towering sandstone mountains to be baptised just 40 days after giving birth. From clearing bombs dropped in Laos during the Vietnam war, still causing injury and death over 40 years later, to collecting eggs from the sheer cliff faces of the Faroe Islands - for the people who call these extraordinary natural wonders home, survival requires skill, ingenuity and bravery. 8. Pilgrimage: The Road to Santiago SINGLE EPISODE from a longer series or strand TX: 16/03/2018 Dur: 59’30” Broadcaster: BBC Two Production Company: CTVC Ltd. With the appetite for established religion in rapid decline, why is walking an ancient pilgrimage undergoing a revival? An all-star cast, including Neil Morrissey, Debbie McGee and Heather Small, make a spiritual journey of a lifetime to find out. This three-part series puts questions of faith at its heart as seven famous faces attempt the gruelling 800km medieval pilgrimage across northern Spain to Santiago de Compostela and the shrine of St James the apostle. Stripped of their everyday comforts, the group – made up of a variety of faiths and beliefs, including Christian, Atheist and Humanist – live as simple pilgrims. Staying in basic hostels and carrying everything they need on their backs, they travel through stunning landscapes and visit historic landmarks whilst exploring the religious meaning of this ancient route. With the physical challenge proving too much for some, the group bonds over the hardships and experiences that come with such a test, and there’s both humour and personal revelations as they have the chance to contemplate their faith, or lack of it, while discovering new insights into themselves.