Season 8

2008 · 8 episodes

Episodes

1How to Be a Good PresidentHelped by contributors including Shirley Williams, Douglas Hurd and Simon Hoggart, journalist Jonathan Freedland attempts to define the qualities which make a great US president.
2Between the Lines - Railways in Fiction and FilmNovelist Andrew Martin presents a documentary examining how the train came to shape the work of writers and film-makers, from Wordsworth and Dickens to The Railway Children.
3Last Days of SteamDocumentary that tells the surprising story of how Britain entered a new age of steam railways after the Second World War and why it quickly came to an end.
4How to Write a Mills and BoonTo mark 100 years of romance publishers Mills and Boon, literary novelist Stella Duffy takes on the challenge of writing for them, a task that ends up being harder than it looks.
5How to Solve a Cryptic CrosswordDon Manley reveals the tricks that compilers use to bamboozle and entertain cryptic crossword solvers, while fans including Prunella Scales explain why they enjoy them.
6The Comic SongbookDocumentary which celebrates Britain's tradition of comic songs, from Noel Coward's Mad Dogs and Englishmen to Benny Hill's Ernie, and reveals the skill involved in creating them.
7Fashion versus the BBCA team of fashion writers and commentators including Peter York, Colin McDowell, Ted Polhemus and Hilary Alexander looks at the relationship between British fashion and the BBC.
8The North-South DivideJournalist John Harris travels around England to find out why the north-south divide is still an economic reality following the decline of industry, and if it can be closed.