Saturday 12th May 2012
| There is Business Like Show Business |
Some of the most lavish and expensive musicals ever staged were in praise of photocopiers, kitchen appliances, insurance salesmen and even tractors...They were made in the 50s, 60s and later by companies to motivate their staff. The people who wrote them were huge Broadway names including Sheldon Harnick and Jerry Bock the men who gave us Fiddler on the Roof. They were private performances staged at sales conventions and the music was never made available to the public. They were a hidden part of the business world and the only reason we now know about them is that some shows were recorded as souvenirs for the employees - and these have been discovered by a couple of enthusiastic record collectors, Steve Young and Jonathan Ward. They tell Will Young about their favourite shows - Detroit Diesel's "Diesel Dazzle" and "A Musical Introduction to 1958 - The Shape of Tomorrow" from Westinghouse Appliances.
There were also industrial shows in the UK. We speak to choreographer and director Gillian Lynne who produced the Lyon's Maid musical "With Lyon's Maid, You're Laughing!" in 1973. And Herb Kanzell who, following his triumph with The Westinghouse Appliances show of 1958 wrote musical shows for British Rail, Oxo and British Airways.
Music played in the programme:
Somewhere over the Rainbow - Judy Garland from "The Wizard of Oz" soundtrack
"Tractor Drivin' Man" by Hank Beebe and performed by Bill Shirley - who also sang "On the Street Where You Live" on the "My Fair Lady" soundtrack and provided the voice for Prince Phillip in Disney's "Sleeping Beauty". Tractor Drivin' Man was used in several Ford Tractor Shows in the 1960s.
"My Insurance Man" from the Continental Assurance Company 1968 show. Written by Arnold Midlash and Robert WeDyck. Performed by Beverly Lacek.
"Golden Harvest" from the Ford Tractor Show 1959 "Ford-i-f-y Your Future" written by Sheldon Harnick and Jerry Bock.
"Big and Beautiful" from the 1966 American Motors show "Music from AM Route 66" written by Hank Beebe and Bill Heyer, performed by Chuck Green.
"Tomorrow, Today" from "the shape of tomorrow, a musical introduction to 1958" from Westinghouse Appliances, written by Herb Kanzell and John Wyman, performed by Marilyn Ross.
"Nightmare", also from "the shape of tomorrow", written by Herb Kanzell and John Wyman performed by Martin Green.
"Oh What a Beautiful Morning" from Oklahoma! written by Rodgers and Hammerstein.
"Monroe Man" from the Monroe Calculator Show 1969, music written by Sonny Kippe, lyrics by Joe Lapidos & Glenn Moore, performed by Diane Findlay.
"Tele op blues" from the Lyon's Maid 1973 show, "With Lyon's Maid You're Laughing" written by Denis Norden and Malcolm Mitchell and performed by Julia Sutton.
"The Latest" from Cole National Annual Sales Meeting Show "A Fairy Tale" 1965, performed by Liz Seneff
"I Never Enjoyed my Operation More" from the Converters Inc show "The Spirit of '78". No composition credits. Cast: Carol Steffen, Renee Kalen, Alice Dodd, Lee Pelty, and Mike Arquette
"We Were There" from the Detroit Diesel 1966 show "Diesel Dazzle" written by Hank Beebe and Bill Heyer.
"The Answer" from General Electric's Silicon Division's 1973 show "Got to Investigate Silicones" written by Hank Beebe and Bill Heyer, performed by Ron Young, Paul Eichel, & Joy Garrett. Special cameo vocal appearance by lyricist Bill Heyer.
| Archive on 4: The Great Listener |
Tony Parker was a ground-breaking writer and oral historian - the master of the tape-recorded interview. Whether talking to convicted murderers, the homeless, impotent men or unmarried mothers, his enigmatic quiet empathy meant that people opened up to him with immense honesty and trust. He was the Great Listener.
The result was a unique and expansive body of work, in which he shaped these real-life stories into compelling thematic narratives. By the time of his death in 1996, he had published scores of books, made documentaries for radio and television, and pioneered the genre of verbatim drama.
Although his work was always based on real people in real places, Parker gave all his interviewees and their locations pseudonyms, and he scrupulously destroyed all traces of the interviews-the tapes and the transcripts-once the books were published.
Alan Dein traces the story of Tony Parker through the archive that remains and along the way tries to get behind the pseudonyms and obfuscation and track down some of Tony Parker's interviewees to find out what it was like to open up to the Great Listener.
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Sunday 13th May 2012
| Grand Prix: The Killer Years |
In the 60s and early 70s it was common for Grand Prix drivers to be killed while racing, often televised for millions to see. Mechanical failure, lethal track design, fire and incompetence snuffed out dozens of young drivers. They had become almost expendable as eager young wannabes queued up at the top teams' gates waiting to take their place.
This is the story of when Grand Prix was out of control.
Featuring many famous drivers including three times world champion Sir Jackie Stewart OBE, twice world champion Emerson Fittipaldi and John Surtees OBE, this exciting but shocking film explores how Grand Prix drivers grew sick of their closest friends being killed and finally took control of their destiny.
After much waste of life, the prestigious Belgian and German Grands Prix would be boycotted, with drivers insisting that safety be put first. But it would be a long and painful time before anything would change, and a lot of talented young men would be cut down in their prime.
This is their story.
'Something was terribly wrong. I loved the sport, but it was wrong. I prayed to God whether or not to continue.' - Emerson Fittipaldi
'It made me angry. The sport was way wrong.' - Sir Jackie Stewart OBE.
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Monday 14th May 2012
| The Digital Human (3/7) |
What is the biggest threat to our privacy: governments, corporate entities or our friends? And do people have different attitudes towards privacy depending on their culture?
| Inside Facebook: Zuckerberg's $100 Billion Gamble |
As Facebook heads for its 100 billion dollar flotation, Emily Maitlis updates her recent documentary on the prospects for Mark Zuckerberg's social network phenomenon.
She examines how Facebook, now with 900 million users, plans to earn the billions its new investors will expect from it. With exclusive access to Mark Zuckerberg and senior executives, Emily tells the Facebook story, and reports on its challenge - to build its advertising business from the personal information its users provide, without losing their trust.
| Watching the Detectives |
...Channel 4 Dispatches: A year-long investigation into the black market in personal information reveals how the 'secure' databases that hold our personal secrets are open to exploitation.
| Panorama: The Truth About Tax |
Aggressive tax avoidance was branded 'morally repugnant' by the chancellor in the last budget. But what does he mean? Panorama investigates how some of the UK's most famous companies are using a tax haven at the heart of Europe to save millions in tax.
Armed with a cache of secret documents, the programme reveals how global names have received big tax breaks on billion-pound transactions in the tiny country of Luxembourg. They say legal tax efficiency is good news for shareholders. In these austere times, Darragh MacIntyre asks: is big business paying its fair share?
| The 70s (4/4) |
In the final episode of the series, historian Dominic Sandbrook looks at the closing years of the 70s. He encounters a nation arguing about the future of education and watching Grange Hill, debating the impact of multiculturalism and enjoying The Specials. We were also anxious over youth crime and fiercely arguing about who should pay for austerity in economically troubled times. With the help of vivid archive and an evocative soundtrack, Dominic reveals that the final years of this tumultuous decade were marked by concerns that appear startlingly current.
| A Gun For George |
(2011) Revenge Season: Short, violent crime thriller about a pulp fiction writer who decides to avenge his brother's death at the hands of gangsters. Starring Edward Halsted.
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Tuesday 15th May 2012
| Costing the Earth: Pushing Water |
There's a drought in most of England but plenty of water elsewhere. Why not move it? Yes, water is heavy, but it's also slippery and moves down hill. Tom Heap investigates why water companies seem so reluctant to trade with each other. Some suggest it's because they make their profits by pouring concrete in their own patch, rather than by doing deals with their neighbours. Others think it's because they don't pay a realistic price for the water they take out of rivers in the first place. So are the problems of water shortage as much to do with the economics of the industry as with the lack of rain?
| The Town Taking on China (2/2) |
Tony Caldeira's experiment to bring jobs back to Britain from China is hanging by a thread. At his cushion factory in Merseyside, orders are up but a third of his new staff have jumped ship. Time is starting to run out for Tony and his trusted team to prove that British manufacturing can compete with China. At the world's biggest cushion trade fair in Frankfurt, they must win enough orders to help secure the factory's future. Then they must recruit new staff and expand the sewing floor in order to meet demand. With the experiment reaching a critical phase, experienced machinists Joanne and Sharon fly out to the Chinese factory to see the competition face to face. It's a huge culture shock as they witness first hand how their fellow employees both work and live at the factory. The experiment concludes with a direct competition between the two workforces - before Tony makes his final decision about whether to move jobs back to Britain permanently.
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Wednesday 16th May 2012
| Leader Conference (3/3) |
Andrew Rawnsley returns to chair a new series of the live discussion programme featuring top journalists who debate what should be said in three newspaper-style leading articles about the key stories of the moment. The contributors reflect the newspaper industry in London and elsewhere in the UK, the broadsheet and tabloid press and the differing political and other perspectives.
The programme follows a simple format. After Andrew Rawnsley's introduction, all the contributors debate which of the news stories of the day merit a leading article. The first they choose to discuss in detail is usually the key British issue of the moment. They then move on to another major talking point - which may be an international story - and decide what the following day's newspaper should say about it. The final leader strikes a lighter note being about the week's offbeat, whimsical or peculiar story or an issue in the arts, science, entertainment or sport.
All journalists contribute to each of the three subjects under discussion and one of them is nominated by Andrew to sum up the debate and set out for listeners what the main points of the leading article will be in each case. The leading article is later published on the Radio 4 website.
Listeners are invited to contribute their views in advance and throughout the live programme via Twitter and the Radio 4 website. In particular, they are encouraged to say what the main front-page headline for the next morning should be. The panel offers its thoughts on these ideas at the end of the programme.
The panel this week is: Kamal Ahmed of the "Sunday Telegraph"; Anne Johnstone of "The Herald"; Joe Watts of the "Eastern Daily Press"; Kevin Maguire of the "Daily Mirror" and Anushka Asthana of "The Times".
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Thursday 17th May 2012
| Follow-up Albums (1/3) |
Music critic Pete Paphides tells the story behind three 'follow-up' albums - from Dexys Midnight Runners, Fleetwood Mac and Suede - with tales of musical pressure, creative differences, personal politics and mixed results.
How many bands have found themselves with a massive and often unexpected hit album, only to struggle with the creation of their next opus? Sometimes the follow-up exceeds the first album, but often nerves kick in and bands are removed from the very stimulus that created their magic in the first place, finding themselves in a world of creative confusion, sycophants and accountants.
Pete Paphides talks to musicians, producers, and critics to explore the stories of follow-up albums with the same expert knowledge he brought to Lost Albums.
Programme 1: Dexys Midnight Runners - Don't Stand Me Down.
Kevin Rowland and Helen O'Hara give rare interviews about a pivotal time in Dexys Midnight Runners' history. Having been the best selling UK band of 1982 with their massive hit single Come On Eileen and the hugely popular album Too-Rye-ay, Dexys took some time to consider what to do next.
Don't Stand Me Down was brave and different to Too-Rye-Ay. Rowland had a clear vision and went to great lengths to record and mix it to his own specifications.
His interest in his Irish roots and Irish politics was one of the themes of the record. Misunderstood in its day, it received poor reviews but has since gone on to receive critical acclaim.
| The Great Euro Crash with Robert Peston |
For more than two years Europe has teetered on the edge of an economic precipice - one of the factors that has pushed Britain back into recession. How exactly did Europe get itself into the current financial mess? Talking to historians, economists and politicians, BBC business editor Robert Peston takes a long view of the euro - from Churchill's vision of a United States of Europe to the bail-outs of Greece, Portugal and Ireland. Meeting a property developer in Ireland, a taxi driver in Rome and a German manufacturing worker, the film exposes the high cost being paid by European workers today for the dream of monetary union - and how close Europe came to a complete banking meltdown. The crisis could yet claim another victim - Britain, with its vast financial sector, would be dragged down by the collapse of the euro. The cost for saving the euro may be high, but the alternative would be a return to the economic mayhem of the 1930s.
| Tales of Television Centre |
Documentary which recalls the heyday of one of Britain's most iconic buildings, BBC Television Centre, through the memories of stars and staff. A rich variety of archive includes moments from studio recordings of classic programmes and vintage behind-the-scenes footage from the home of many of the most celebrated programmes in British TV history.
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Friday 18th May 2012
Team America: World Police
Channel 4, 11.55pm - 1.40am
(2004) A group of irreverent, violent puppets battle to save the world from an evil terrorist plot hatched by North Korean leader Kim Jong II. Strong language/sexual scenes.
