All Episodes 2004 - 2015

Lauren Laverne presents the first of three shows from Edinburgh covering the highlights from the Festival and Fringe. Miranda Sawyer meets Tracey Emin, who is staging her first ever retrospective exhibition at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art. We speak to Steven Berkoff about his new staging of On the Waterfront, a project which has the blessing of the movie's screenwriter Budd Schulberg and we talk to multi-tasking comedians David O'Doherty, Simon Munnery and Rich Hall, all of whom are doing at least two shows during the festival. Roving reporter Tim Samuels samples the weird and the wonderful events happening across Edinburgh, from The Aluminum Show and Falsetto Sock Puppets to Jim Rose and Circus Oz. The show comes from the Pleasance Courtyard, right at the heart of all the Edinburgh action, where comedian and musician Tim Minchin joins us to talk about his new show Ready For This? and French band Nouvelle Vague perform a bossa nova version of the Clash's Guns of Brixton.

Lauren Laverne presents the second of three shows from Edinburgh covering the highlights from the Festival and Fringe. On the show tonight is a preview of 365, the new work by The National Theatre of Scotland. The Edinburgh Festival Show has been following the work through rehearsal stages and tonight's programme features scenes from the play, one of the most hotly anticipated shows of the International Festival. Comedian and political activist Mark Thomas looks at some of the political art at this year's festival, concentrating on Richard Hamilton's show Protest Pictures and Sherman Cymru's documentary drama Deep Cut. Tim Samuels allows himself to be drawn into some of the numerous audience participation shows on offer, including Office Party and Faulty Towers the Dining Experience. Lauren is joined in the Pleasance Courtyard by Chuck Palahniuk, author of Fight Club and Snuff. Another of his novels, Choke, has recently been turned into a movie with Sam Rockwell, Anjelica Huston and Kelly Macdonald. Virtuoso Hungarian violinist Roby Lakatos plays us out with typical exuberance.

Lauren Laverne presents the last in the series of shows covering the Edinburgh Festival and Fringe. Coming from the Pleasance Courtyard, right in the middle of all the Edinburgh action, the programme will be covering the enormous range of shows and performances that hit Edinburgh in August. Joining Lauren at the Pleasance will be the legendary Joan Rivers. Her autobiographical play, a Work in Progress by a Life in Progress, in which she also appears, is set to be one of the most talked about shows on the Fringe and she remains one of the most entertaining, and occassionally shocking, acts on the circuit. Lauren also meets Matthew Bourne, one of the country's most popular choreographers, his new work Dorian Gray, part of the Edinburgh International Festival, is his first new production in three years. One of the most unusual projects on the Fringe, Scavenger Hunt is also featured on this week's show. Scavenger Hunt is a one off event in which teams solve treasure hunt type clues around the city, producing pieces of art work as they go. The programme will be following many of the teams as they race round the Scottish capital and will feature the exhibition produced at the end of the event. In the last of his Festival reports, Tim Samuels will be speaking to some of the acts that haven't quite hit the headlines and will be asking the performers whether it was worth all the blood, sweat, tears and hard cash needed to put on a show in Edinburgh.

Six months on from the death of Michael Jackson, The Culture Show re-evaluates his impact on modern music. Musicians, producers and contemporaries assess Michael Jackson's position within African-American culture, his mainstream appeal and his massive contribution to pop music and culture across the world, as well as telling the stories behind some of Michael's most enduring hits. With contributions from Smokey Robinson, Jermaine Jackson, Martha Reeves and record producer and DJ Questlove.

A special edition of The Culture Show marking the start of a landmark project in which the BBC and the British Museum focus on the span of human history through 100 objects held at the museum. This programme, presented by Mishal Husain from the British Museum, profiles all the elements of the project, which includes one hundred programmes on Radio 4, a massive online factor, as well as programmes on CBBC and coverage from the BBC right across the country.

Presented by Kevin McCloud, this Culture Show Special comes from the Royal Institute of British Architects' annual award ceremony, celebrating the best buildings of 2011. Kicking off with a look at the key trends in new architecture, the programme reveals the winners of three RIBA awards: the Stephen Lawrence Prize, for UK projects costing under £1 million; the Lubetkin Prize, for outstanding buildings outside the EU; and finally the UK's most prestigious prize for architecture, the RIBA Stirling Prize. The six buildings on the Stirling shortlist, explored here by Tom Dyckhoff, range from projects by star architects - including a school by last year's Stirling winner, Zaha Hadid; the Olympic Velodrome by Michael Hopkins; and a museum in Germany by David Chipperfield - through to projects by less well-known names, including an imaginative office building in London, an Irish language cultural centre in Derry and the RSC's newly-revamped theatre in Stratford.

Mark Kermode interviews Steven Spielberg on his 60th birthday

Anish Kapoor and Cecil Balmond's Orbit sculpture is the most spectacular artistic creation of 2012 - a gravity-defying, breathtakingly dynamic scribble of crimson steel. Standing twice the height of Nelson's Column, it now towers over the Olympic Park, and has already inspired strong reactions. It is the biggest piece of public sculpture this country has ever seen - a bold statement of artistic ambition and a giant engineering challenge. In this one-off special, The Culture Show goes behind the scenes to follow it from commission to completion, and discovers just how difficult it is to build a tower for the 21st century. Featuring interviews with Boris Johnson and Lakshmi Mittal along with exclusive access to Kapoor and Balmond as they strive to realise their vision in the face of some Olympian challenges.

Verity Sharp meets the four-piece band Sigur Ros in their native Iceland and on their visit to the UK for the 2007 Electric Proms. They have sold two million albums globally and their haunting music has been used as a soundtrack on trailers for the BBC series Planet Earth. They talk about their unique sound and their film Heima, which chronicles a series of unannounced gigs in Iceland in 2006.

Ford Madox Ford is one of the forgotten greats of British fiction. With Tom Stoppard's dramatisation of Ford's unusual First World War love story Parade's End showing on BBC Two, Alan Yentob reveals Ford to be one of the most likeable characters in literature - humorous, overweight and with a deeply complicated love life that lit the fire under his greatest novels. A radical and a modernist, Ford was friend and collaborator to the great experimenters, Conrad, Lawrence, Pound and Joyce, and he wrote over 80 books including the masterpiece The Good Soldier. Yentob follows Ford through scandal, prison, exile and into the army, where he was injured by an explosion while serving in the Somme. He reveals how the shockwaves from this explosion reverberated through the rest of Ford's life, providing the inspiration for his visceral, unique and spectacular wartime epic Parade's End. Contributors include fans John Simpson, the Booker winner Ben Okri and academic Hermione Lee, as well as eminent chef Rowley Leigh, cooking some of Ford's favourite food.

Lee Child, one of Britain's bestselling authors, explores the phenomenal popularity of his character Jack Reacher - the basis of a new blockbuster movie starring Tom Cruise. In an insightful interview with Andrew Graham-Dixon, he reveals how being made redundant at age 40 pushed him into a life of writing and led him to New York, where he now lives. But despite the American setting of the highly successful Jack Reacher series, it is poignant elements of his childhood in Birmingham that form the basis of his fiction.

Andrew Graham-Dixon travels to Northern Spain to visit some of the world's oldest works of art, hundreds of meters beneath the surface of the earth. In limestone caves he is astonished to find a series of vivid paintings, some of which are over 33,000 years old, which appear to link modern man to our ice age ancestors. Back in London, the British Museum is staging one of its most ambitious exhibitions yet, Ice Age Art: Arrival of the Modern Mind. Andrew gets a behind-the-scenes preview of the extraordinary highlights and discovers that the world's first commissioned artists were producing highly sophisticated work tens of thousands of years before he previously imagined. The programme includes contributions from the British Museum's director, Neil MacGregor, and artist Antony Gormley.

For years, thousands of paintings owned by the British public have been hidden away and inaccessible - until now. Thanks to the work of the Your Paintings project, over 200,000 works in our national collections have been painstakingly uncovered, photographed and put online - some for the very first time - allowing art experts and amateur-sleuths alike to make connections and discoveries that wouldn't have been possible before. Alastair Sooke teams up with art detective Dr Bendor Grosvenor to unearth some hidden gems and find out what our paintings say about us.

One of the hottest talents in Hollywood today, JJ Abrams talks to Mark Kermode about his latest turn at the helm of the Starship Enterprise, his lifelong love of filmmaking and the passion for mystery that lies at the heart of everything he does. New York born Abrams has conquered both television and film, bringing landmark TV series Lost to the small screen while collaborating with film industry royalty Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg for box office hits Mission: Impossible III and Super 8. Self-confessed geek and ultimate fan boy, Jeffrey Jacob Abrams is about to take on the daunting task of directing the new Star Wars film. In this programme JJ takes Mark on an exclusive tour of Bad Robot, the top secret Los Angeles hub of his production company and provides a rare glimpse into where the magic happens.

A topical series featuring the best arts and culture stories of the week. One of the hottest talents in Hollywood today, JJ Abrams talks to Mark Kermode about his latest turn at the helm of the Starship Enterprise, his lifelong love of filmmaking and the passion for mystery that lies at the heart of everything he does. New York born Abrams has conquered both television and film, bringing landmark TV series Lost to the small screen while collaborating with film industry royalty Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg for box office hits Mission: Impossible III and Super 8. Self-confessed geek and ultimate fan boy, Jeffrey Jacob Abrams is about to take on the daunting task of directing the new Star Wars film. In this programme JJ takes Mark on an exclusive tour of Bad Robot, the top secret Los Angeles hub of his production company and provides a rare glimpse into where the magic happens.

When a handful of musical immigrants from the Caribbean islands came to Britain in the 1920s and 30s, it was the beginning of both musical and political change. Leslie Thompson, an innovative musician and trumpeter, and Ken 'Snakehips' Johnson, a brilliant dancer and charismatic band leader, pooled their talents to start the first black British swing band. Clemency Burton-Hill reveals the untold story of the black British swing musicians of the 1930s, whose meteoric rise to fame on London's high society dance floors was cut short by unexpected tragedy at the height of the Blitz.

Alan Yentob talks to South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone about their comedy stage musical The Book of Mormon. Already a huge hit in the US, this irreverent religious satire is now opening in London's West End. Like the rest of Parker and Stone's work, the show is a master class in subversive comedy. In their eyes nothing is off limits and nobody safe from ridicule. This Culture Show Special reflects on the duos extraordinary career and reveals how music has always played a crucial role in their creative output - from early student films through to South Park and Team America: World Police. Alan visits South Park Studios in LA, encounters some real life Mormon missionaries in San Diego, and catches up with Matt and Trey in London as they oversee final rehearsals for the West End run of The Book of Mormon. Along the way he discovers what inspires this relentlessly provocative partnership and how they ended up making a Broadway musical in the first place.

It's 30 years since Manchester four-piece The Smiths changed the face of British pop with their debut single Hand In Glove. In this half-hour Culture Show special, fellow Mancunian and lifelong fan Tim Samuels sets out to find out why The Smiths have such a special place in the hearts of a generation of Brits. The Smiths were only around for five years in the mid-eighties, but to this day the sentiment their music evokes is strong. Samuels pays visits to a variety of dedicated fans including fashion designer Wayne Hemingway, poet Simon Armitage, Labour MP Kerry McCarthy and Oasis songwriter Noel Gallagher to analyse the look, the lyrics, the issues and the riffs that made The Smiths Britain's first, and arguably best ever, indie rock band.

It's a hundred years since DH Lawrence's revolutionary novel, Sons and Lovers, first hit the bookshops - and to celebrate, the writer Geoff Dyer, accompanied by Lawrence scholar, Catherine Brown, retread the Alpine journey that the love-struck Lawrence made when he eloped from England with the sexually liberated Frieda Weekley, in 1912. It was an extraordinary trip that enabled him to complete his first masterpiece and also marked the moment when he decided to risk everything for his writing. As Geoff and Catherine head into the mountains, the film ranges over the globetrotting story of Lawrence's life and work and takes the opportunity to fight back against Lawrence's many critics. With assistance from a clutch of Lawrence admirers - including poet Simon Armitage, novelist Rachel Cusk and the biographer John Worthen - the hikers peel back the stereotype of Lawrence as that earnest, one-track-mind novelist to reveal one of the most adventurous, humane and influential figures of the 20th century.

There are more images of Elizabeth II than any other historical figure, but how to paint a queen is one of the trickiest of artistic challenges. Alastair Sooke looks at the depiction of Britain's female rulers, from Mary Tudor and Elizabeth I to Queen Victoria and our current monarch, and discovers how queenly portraits reveal Britain's changing ideas about women and power.

The story of pop art has been culturally canonised as the preserve of a ground-breaking gang of boys, focusing on the likes of Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol, Peter Blake, Richard Hamilton, or Tom Wesselman. Just like Andy Warhol's soup cans or Lichtenstein's comics, women were simply commodified objects. However back in the day, pop art was not just a boys' club. The scene was full of female artists, tussling with sexuality, violence and consumer culture every bit as much as their male counterparts. Strangely, their work has been consigned to the margins of history - they started out together, shared the same art dealers and were shown in the same exhibitions, but as the boys' prices skyrocketed, the girls' stayed put. By the end of the sixties they had pretty much been erased from the pop narrative. In this Culture Show special, Alistair Sooke tracks down the forgotten women artists of pop, finding many of them are still alive and working, their art and their stories ripe for rediscovery. Artists include Pauline Boty, Marisol, Rosalyn Drexler, Idelle Weber, Letty Lou Eisenhauer and Jann Haworth.

Stonehenge is our most famous prehistoric monument; a powerful symbol of Britain across the globe. But all is not well with the sacred stones. MPs have described the surrounding site as a 'national disgrace' and 'shameful shambles'. Now, after decades of disputes over what should be done, English Heritage has just 12 months to create a setting that this unique monument deserves. But Stonehenge is more than a tourist attraction; it is also a temple. In this hour-long Culture Show special, Alastair Sooke shows that Stonehenge has long been a place of conflict and controversy, and that passions still run high at the monument where druids, archaeologists and scientists all battle for the soul of Stonehenge.

In a major new BBC commission, acclaimed poet Simon Armitage has written seven new poems about World War I that form the centre of his latest television documentary. Armitage visits French beaches, German prison camps, so-called 'thankful' villages and remote corners of the Scottish Highlands as he considers the death of over 700,000 British soldiers in the conflict and tells seven real-life war stories. He learns of those who lived and died through it, those who worked and grieved and cried through it, and even those who tunnelled to freedom beneath its very soil. Each story culminates in a poem inspired by Armitage's research. Featuring readings by both the poet himself and the surviving relatives of those whose stories he tells, this film offers an opportunity to reflect again on that catastrophic loss of life, and to think about how we commemorate the dead for the next 100 years.

The Vikings are famous for their violent raids on Anglo-Saxon monasteries, incredible shipbuilding skills and general brutality. They are less famous, perhaps, for their artistic talents. Yet the precious fragments of art that survive from the Viking Age portray a far more mysterious side to Viking culture. From the so-called 'gripping beast' motif of the Oseberg wood carvings to the abstract animal ornamentation that adorns Viking jewellery, Viking art is defined by beautiful and intricate artistic styles that are distinctly Scandinavian, yet also show the Vikings' interaction with other cultures, culminating in their conversion from paganism to Christianity. To coincide with the first major exhibition on Vikings at the British Museum for over 30 years, Andrew Graham-Dixon invites viewers to explore and admire the splendours of Viking art.

In celebration of the 150th anniversary of London Underground, Alastair Sooke presents a cultural history of the oldest tube network in the world.

To mark the publication of Keith Richards' autobiography, Life, this Culture Show special looks at the life of the man with five strings and nine lives. In a candid interview he chats to Andrew Graham-Dixon about his childhood in Dartford, his passion for music and the decade that catapulted the Rolling Stones from back-room blues boys to one of the greatest rock 'n' roll bands in the world.

A one-hour special on one of the most important and popular British sculptors of the twentieth century, Henry Moore. Presented by Alan Yentob, the programme takes a unique approach to Moore by examining his life on film.

David Attenborough is the winner of Living Icons, a quest to establish the greatest cultural icon in Britain today. Nominations began on 14th October 2006, followed by voting from a Top 10 shortlist which opened on 11th November 2006. The winner was announced on 16th December 2006.

China's antique trade is booming, with records being smashed at auction every week. But why is this market exploding now, and what makes a piece of pottery into a million pound masterpiece? Andrew Graham-Dixon travels to Hong Kong to see how China's super-rich are spending their new-found wealth on purchasing relics from their country's imperial history.

The show focuses on one of the world's biggest bands as Lauren visits them in Dublin to talk about the new album and hear some of the songs live. We also speak to Radio 1 DJ Nemone and writer and critic David Quantick for a frank appraisal of U2's musical career.

As Henry VIII's court painter, Hans Holbein witnessed and recorded the most notorious era in English history. He painted most of the major characters of the age and created the famous image of the king himself that everyone still recognises today. But who really was Holbein? Where did he come from? And what were the dark and unsettling secrets hidden in his art? Waldemar Januszczak looks at the life and work of an artist who became famous for bringing the Tudor age to life, but who could have been so many other things.

Stephen Poliakoff talks to Mark Kermode about the themes he explores and his status as an auteur. With contributions from leading actors including Sir Michael Gambon, David Walliams, Rupert Penry-Jones, Ruth Wilson and Kelly Reilly.

Alastair Sooke presents this Culture Show special from the 243rd Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts. The Summer Exhibition is the visual arts world's largest and longest running open-submission show.

Alastair Sooke goes behind-the-scenes of the Royal Academy's 244th Summer Exhibition, the biggest open-submission contemporary art show in the world.

Jonathan Freedland chairs a discussion on John F Kennedy, while producer Joel Surnow talks about the mini-series The Kennedys and the controversy that engulfed it.

Alastair Sooke explores the often overlooked history of Britain's wartime renaissance. He meets the Blitz survivors and factory workers who became the subject of iconic paintings.

Turner Prize-winning artist Grayson Perry presents from the Frieze Art Fair - now one of the most influential contemporary art fairs. He explores the highlights of the show and some of the specially commissioned artworks based on game shows, mobile phone shops and archaeological digs. The Frieze Art Fair has a huge impact on London itself and all the galleries have new shows opening in the same week; Andrew Graham-Dixon talks to Chinese artist Ai Weiwei about his new installation in Tate Modern's Turbine Hall, and Ben Lewis goes on an art safari around the new up and coming galleries of south and east London to find the art stars of tomorrow.

Not long before the anticipated release of their movie, and after celebrating the 400th episode and 20 years, The Culture Show paid homage to the great success of The Simpsons with this special half-hour documentary about them. Hosted by Lauren Laverne (who co-hosts Culture Show along with the great film critic Mark Kermode), this programme basically looked back from their first appearance on The Tracey Ullman Show in 1987 and episodes gone by to see why everyone loves this cartoon sitcom so much. This included the key and supporting characters, the jokes, the celebrity appearances, the writers, the mocking of everyday things, and much more, a great one-off documentary with plenty of clips, information and opinion to keep you interested. With contributions from creator Matt Groening, Ricky Gervais, Nick Park, Stephen Hawking, Phill Jupitus, Helen Fielding and Johnny Vegas.

Verity Sharp presents an accessible guide to the best exhibitions, books, films and music. As Disney's effects-laden The Incredibles opens in cinemas, The Culture Show considers the future of traditional hand-painted animation. And David Hockney talks to Andrew Marr about his new book Hockney's Pictures.

As the newly expanded Museum of Modern Art in New York reopens, world-renowned art critic Robert Hughes is offered a first look into the building designed by Japanese architect Yoshio Taniguchi. Kwame Kwei-Armah presents the arts round-up.

Dissected livestock, a cast of a house, a painting with elephant dung and an electrical time switch - all past winners of the Turner Prize. Tonight Mariella Frostrup takes a look at this year's shortlist ahead of next week's award ceremony. Plus the most prominent arts and culture stories of the week.

Germaine Greer meets artist Paula Rego and Andrew Graham-Dixon uncovers the secret of Velazquez's 'Lady with a Fan'. Plus reports on animated film 'Valiant' and the death of broadsheet newspapers.

A report on Gateshead's new Sage music centre, which opens tomorrow, plus the rest of the top stories in art and culture. With Charles Hazlewood.

Reports on Charles Saatchi 's rediscovery of painting, the competition to be recognised as Britain's best museum and a close-up look at what makes a great news photograph. Plus a profile of conductor Simon Rattle and an appreciation of the Hammond organ's place in pop music over the past 50 years.

The review of the latest developments on the arts and culture scene includes a report on the Celtic Connections music festival, a 19-day celebration taking place in Glasgow.

London's Abbey Road Studios opens its doors to the public next month for the first time in 20 years. Mariella Frostrup previews the forthcoming festival celebrating 25 years of films scored in Studio One - the world's biggest purpose-built recording studio. Shelley Jofre, meanwhile, talks to author Malcolm Gladwell about his guide to effective decision-making - Blink: the Power of Thinking without Thinking.

Kurt Vonnegut's novel Slaughterhouse Five was inspired by his experiences in Dresden during the devastating Second World War bombing. To mark 60 years since the attack on the German city, Vonnegut gives a rare interview in which he talks about his life and work.

Director Martin Scorsese explains the influence of Caravaggio on his films, particularly with regard to light, shadow and realism. Plus Kazuo Ishiguro on his novel 'Never Let Me Go', and the troubled history of EastEnders as it celebrates its 20th birthday.

A report from Ferryside in Carmarthenshire where a trial for TV's digital switchover is taking place. Plus Liam Neeson on his biopic of controversial sex researcher Alfred Kinsey, and a backstage pass to Kaiser Chiefs' tour.

Woody Allen talks about his latest film Melinda and Melinda, starring Radha Mitchell and Chloe Sevigny, and there's an interview with children's author Jacqueline Wilson. Plus an edifying peek into the secret world of fonts.

As well as an interview with 1960s counter-culture cartoonist Robert Crumb at his house in France, there's analysis of the legacy of the Arts & Crafts movement on the eve of a major exhibition at London's V&A Museum. Plus a fly-on-the-wall report from Brixton Prison as some of the inmates rehearse a production of Shakespeare's Othello.

Damien Hirst, dubbed Britain's most expensive living artist, discusses his recently opened exhibition of paintings in New York. Plus the imminent return of Doctor Who, and the English village that's launched its own book prize.

Composer and Master of the Queen's Music Sir Peter Maxwell Davies talks about his career, there's an interview with maverick architectural talent Zaha Hadid, and a look at the arctic Cape Farewell Expedition, which is all about deriving inspiration from the ice, seas and environment in temperatures of -35°C. Plus Robert Hughes on the latest big art history book.

Sylvie Guillem - widely considered one of the greatest dancers of her generation - is interviewed in the week she and the Ballet Boyz perform An Evening of Work by Russell Maliphant at Sadler's Well in London. Harold Pinter discusses director Lindsay Posner's new staging of his first full-length play, The Birthday Party. And which is the true-life portrait of William Shakespeare? A centuries-old debate could finally be resolved.

Conductor and pianist Daniel Barenboim, director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and music director of the Deutsche Staatsoper in Berlin, discusses the art of playing Johann Sebastian Bach. Plus a look at what makes an "original" work of art - is the art-buying public being misled?

As Tate Modern celebrates its fifth birthday, Charles Hazlewood considers the extent of its cultural impact. Plus, Matthew Sweet on how TV taught us parenting, Nick Hornby on his latest novel, and a preview of Robert Lepage's production of opera Nineteen Eighty-Four.

American crime novelist Ed McBain talks about turning real life into fiction and discusses his battle with cancer. Plus a visit to West Sussex for a display of the best examples of British sculpture, and a mysterious new game that has players around the world competing for clues.

Lawrence Pollard reports on a new approach to public art being trialled in Bristol, with temporary exhibits taking the place of traditional permanent statues. Plus cinematographer Chris Doyle gives a masterclass in movie-making and Kathy Burke discusses her new role as an acclaimed theatre director.

Gillian Ayres discusses her work and Louisa Buck visits two art exhibitions. Lawrence Pollard considers whether 'book towns' such as Hay-on-Wye can halt the decline of second-hand bookshops in the internet age, and there's news on the debate about the siting and design of wind farms.

Germaine Greer and artist Susan Wilson are among the women explaining what Mexican artist Frida Kahlo's work means to them, and singer/songwriter Rufus Wainwright reveals how Verdi's music has influenced his career.

Maverick artists Gilbert and George discuss their work for the British Pavilion at the 51st Venice Biennale. Ewan McGregor talks about his role in stage musical Guys and Dolls, and DJ Annie Mac goes to Glyndebourne to find out how they're trying to appeal to younger audiences.

U2 talk about music, politics and 25 years together, on the eve of the UK leg of their world tour. There's a rare interview with controversial German artist Anselm Kiefer, and leading operatic baritone Bryn Terfel discusses singing Wagner.

A reminder of the genius of 17th century Flemish painter Peter Paul Rubens. Franz Ferdinand reveal the ideas behind their songs, and the homeless stage an opera in Nottingham. Plus the restoration of Bexhill's modernist masterpiece, the De La Warr Pavilion, and Salman Rushdie's gruelling publicity tour of Britain and the United States for his book Shalimar the Clown.

With John Le Carre's novel The Constant Gardener on release as a film, the writer talks about conspiracy theories. Plus sculptor Rachel Whiteread's work for Tate Modern; the search for Britain's best city for music; director Todd Solondz on photographer Diane Arbus's bizarre vision; the boom in guides to modern etiquette; and Britain's new ballet capital - Birmingham.

Comment on the Turner Prize shortlist, while Henri Rousseau's paintings come to the Tate. Director Tim Burton talks about Corpse Bride and the rising musical stars of the F-ire Collective explain how they plan to shake up British jazz. Plus a glimpse of one of the most ambitious pieces of public art since the Angel of the North.

An exclusive encounter with the secretive guerrilla graffiti artist Banksy, a report into the search for an authentic portrait of William Shakespeare, plus a rare interview with composer Karlheinz Stockhausen.

A rare interview with controversial French author Michel Houellebecq on his new book, The Possibility of an Island, Sir Timothy Clifford on 21 years as the head of Scotland's National Galleries, and how the search for a new way of dealing with the visual arts in remote rural areas has thrown up a new musical fusion: knitting and opera.

An exhibition at the Royal Academy titled Three Emperors kicks off a season of China-related cultural events in London. Michael Rosen searches Britain for "suburban utopia" in recognition of 50 years of Ian Nairn's controversial book Counter-attack against Subtopia. Martha Wainwright discusses her music. Tom Hunter talks about photographing modern versions of Old Master paintings. Valery Gergiev reflects on the music of Shostakovitch.

Young soprano Katherine Jenkins is the fastest-selling female opera singer since Maria Callas - we consider the canny marketing of popular classical music. George Michael discusses songwriting. Artists' quest for the perfect shade of white. Annie Mac casts off for a spot of fishing as we ask whether angling can ever become female friendly.

An interview with composer Philip Glass as he returns to Britain with pieces originally scored for Godfrey Reggio's Qats; trilogy of wordless films. Plus, George Michael discusses sex, his musical influences and the industry itself. And as the Christmas panto season gets under way, performers from around the country share dreams, frustrations and tantrums.

Andy Serkis, the British actor who so memorably created the character of Gollum for the Lord of the Rings trilogy, talks of his new role as titular star of Peter Jackson's King Kong. Plus Matthew Sweet reporting on the ways new technology will affect our roles as cultural consumers.

A Culture Show special from the London Film Festival, presented by Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo. They review the festival highlights and talk to actor David Morrissey about his directorial debut, and comedian Michael Palin discusses his life in films and his new book. Toby Young examines the future of the critic and talks to Cosmo Landesman and Peter Bradshaw as he eagerly awaits the first reviews of his latest television film. Miranda Sawyer explores the Frieze contemporary art fair.

Lauren Laverne presents from the Glasgow School of Art, which is celebrating the centenary of the opening of its remarkable home. Matt Collings is in the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, which is showcasing 120 letters and over 300 paintings, drawings and sketches by Van Gogh and other artists. Andrew Graham-Dixon reviews The Sacred Made Real exhibition. Plus there's an interview with Harold Evans, whose new autobiography My Paper Chase: True Stories of Vanished Times is just out.

Andrew Graham-Dixon presents from the Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology in Oxford, which is about to re-open after a multi-million pound makeover. Andrew explores the 39 new galleries, home to the Ashmolean's greatest treasures. Michael Smith takes a wider look at Oxford, exploring the 'town and gown' divide in the city. As a new film about the life of Keats called Bright Star opens, director Jane Campion and Keats biographer Andrew Motion talk about what his poetry means to them.

Lawrence Pollard presents a packed show from Nottingham. When it opens on 14 November, the Nottingham Contemporary will be one of the biggest art centres in the UK. Tom Dyckhoff explores the new building designed by award-winning architects Caruso St John. There's a review of the opening exhibition at the new Nottingham gallery - 60 works by David Hockney from 1960-1968. And in a rare TV interview, crime-fiction writer James Ellroy talks to Miranda Sawyer about his fascination with crime and with 1950s Los Angeles.

Mark Kermode presents from Aardman studios in Bristol to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Wallace and Gromit's first outing. A mix of high profile fans including Terry Wogan, Jonathan Ross and Ian Hislop tell us how and why they fell in love with this one man and his dog. Lauren Laverne also traces the Aardman story and Mark Kermode talks to Nick Park about his creative inspirations.

Lauren Laverne is joined by writers and thinkers for a discussion on the past, present and future of the British pub. Sting visits the Cumberland Arms, the heart of Newcastle's folk scene, and performs from his new album If on a Winter's Night. Carol Ann Duffy performs a special poem for this pub-themed edition. Plus a rare TV interview with John Cale, Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo discussing films with apocalyptic themes, and Martha Wainwright singing a song from her new album.

Tonight's Culture Show, presented by Mishal Husain, comes from the new medieval and Renaissance Galleries at London's Victoria and Albert Museum. Andrew Graham-Dixon picks out his favourites from the collection. He also meets up with John Lydon, who is performing exclusively with the re-formed Public Image Ltd. Plus Josie Long on online comedy, Mark Kermode at a special premiere of Me and Orson Welles and Clemency Burton-Hill talking to opera director Graham Vick about his production of Othello.

This edition of The Culture Show features a rare extended interview with actor Daniel Day Lewis on the release of his latest film Nine. Andrew Graham Dixon also looks back at the highlights of The Culture Show's year including Danny Boyle on the Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire, Robert Carlyle reading Robert Burns on his 250th anniversary, and some of the best performances from the 2009 Manchester and Edinburgh Festivals.

The Culture Show is back and will be featuring many of the highlights from the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad. In this episode, Mark Kermode meets film director David Cronenberg and his lead actor Robert Pattinson to talk about their new movie Cosmopolis. Martin Amis discusses class, character and his latest novel, while Yoko Ono makes a bid to get the whole world smiling. There is a a performance from the acclaimed Pina Bausch dance company, and Andrew Graham-Dixon joins Michael Landy and Bob and Roberta Smith to discover what happens when a gallery is transformed into a classroom and the artists take charge of the lessons.

In this episode, comedian Alexei Sayle joins art critic Andrew Graham-Dixon at Tate Liverpool for an exhibition of later works from three of the greatest painters of the last 150 years: Turner, Monet and Twombly. Mark Kermode interrogates director William Friedkin about his new blackly comic film Killer Joe. Miranda Sawyer travels to the Eden Project in Cornwall to talk Matilda, musicals and megalomania with Tim Minchin. We have an exclusive extract from a lovingly restored print of Alfred Hitchcock's debut feature film with live music specially composed by Daniel Patrick Cohen; and James Runcie meets Richard Ford to explore the borderline between the ordinary and the criminal in his haunting new novel Canada.

This week The Culture Show comes from London's East End, where Andrew Graham-Dixon takes a photo tour of a changing landscape with Newham's famous son and legendary snapper David Bailey. Alan Yentob has a rainy encounter with controversial architect Renzo Piano, the mastermind behind Britain's tallest skyscraper The Shard. Mark Kermode meets the actor with over seventy films to his credit, Willem Dafoe, to talk about his latest movie The Hunter. Ground-breaking all-male dance company Tomorrow's Men perform; and Sarfraz Manzoor tees off with Booker prize-shortlisted author Nicola Barker whose new comic novel The Yips unearths the giddy world of golf.

Mark Kermode is in Bexhill-on-Sea, the setting for a new sculpture from artist Richard Wilson which recreates the final scene in cult movie The Italian Job. Miranda Sawyer meets Plan B to talk about his latest album, and Brooklyn-based choreographer Elizabeth Streb rehearses with her dancers for a pop-up performance around London's landmarks. Tom Dyckhoff takes a tour of London's Olympic architecture, and we join thousands as they witness Stonehenge brought to life by a spectacular installation of fire.

Mark Kermode takes part in a movie marathon of short film screenings, Hansel of Film, a relay race of short film screenings taking place around the UK. Alastair Sooke looks at the transformation of disused oil tanks into a sleek new art space at Tate Modern. Also, Cerys Matthews shares her passion for poetry with Fiona Shaw and gets a sneak preview of Peace Camp, a series of unique living artworks across the UK coastline from Northern Ireland to Cornwall.

Mark Kermode meets Dark Knight director Christopher Nolan to talk about his take on the caped crusader. Blur are back and Damon Albarn and Graham Coxon talk about their new songs and how they feel about headlining at Hyde Park - the closing ceremony for the Olympics. Mat Fraser explores our desire to be Superhuman with a new exhibition at The Wellcome Institute. And, no strings attached - why puppets are back in a very big way.

Sue Perkins presents the first of three Culture Show programmes from The Edinburgh Festival, featuring all the best in theatre, dance, literature, music and comedy from the Fringe, International, Art and Book Festivals. She meets Mark Thomas to discuss his new comedy show Bravo Figaro about his tempestuous relationship with his dad. Clemency Burton-Hill gets in step with brilliant Brazilian movers and shakers the Deborah Colker Dance Company. Harry Hill takes us on a tour of his art exhibition. Alastair Sooke explores the world of Catherine the Great in a major exhibition at the National Museum of Scotland with Miriam Margolyes. Ahead of her concert with the LSO at the Edinburgh International Festival and her appearance at The Last Night of the Proms, Nicola Benedetti performs the Tango Por Una Cabeza by Gardel - best known as the tango from the film Scent of a Woman - especially for The Culture Show.

Sue Perkins presents a second helping of The Culture Show from the Edinburgh Festival and meets author Kirsty Gunn and music legend Nile Rodgers. Also featured tonight, the 25th anniversary of So You Think You're Funny, the Edinburgh comedy competition which has uncovered stars from Dylan Moran to Peter Kay. Artists including David Hockney, Paul Gaugin and Sir Peter Blake swap paint for wool in an exhibition of contemporary tapestries, and we take a look at Speed of Light - a spectacular mass participatory event in which walkers and endurance runners ascend Arthur's Seat and illuminate the iconic mountain.

Sue Perkins presents a final helping of hits from this year's Edinburgh Festival including an interview with Howard Jacobson about his new novel Zoo Time and a look at the art of Dieter Roth.

Andrew Graham-Dixon explores the new Bronze exhibition at the Royal Academy. Clemency Burton-Hill reports on The People Speak, a dramatized book reading curated by Colin Firth and Anthony Arnove, which tells an alternative and inspiring history of Britain and features actors including Juliet Stevenson, Celia Imrie and Rupert Everett. Also, Mark Kermode talks to Oliver Stone about his latest crime thriller Savages.

Harry Potter is one of the most successful publishing phenomena of our time, selling 450 million copies. Its success has transformed author JK Rowling from an impoverished single mother into one of Britain's richest women. Since The Deathly Hallows was published in 2007, Rowling's fans have been desperate to know what she was going to do next. The answer is The Casual Vacancy, a novel for adults with some very grown-up themes. The expectation and pressure are enormous. Although most details are shrouded in secrecy, it is known to be set in the idyllic fictional English town of Pagford, where tensions gather around a local election which follows the death of a parish councillor. James Runcie meets the notoriously private writer in her hometown of Edinburgh, where she finally reveals the exact nature of the novel, with exclusive readings and in-depth discussion about its ideas, characters and inspiration. Rowling also discusses the pressure and pitfalls of following up the biggest literary phenomenon of a generation, describing how she finally moved on from Potter and the challenges of making the leap to writing fiction for adults.

Mark Kermode reviews award-winning French comedy film Untouchable in the company of Goldie. Tim Samuels looks at the odds on this year's Man Booker Prize shortlist and Alastair Sooke surveys the first edition of Frieze Masters - a selection of work, old and new, from over 90 of the world's leading galleries.

The Culture Show catches up with Turner Prize winner Jeremy Deller as he prepares for his Hayward Gallery, London, exhibition; following him as he works on his latest project.

David Hockney chats about his latest exhibition, A Bigger Picture, inspired by East Yorkshire.

The first TV interview for over a decade with reclusive music icon Scott Walker - a hero to both 1960s contemporaries such as David Bowie and modern pop pioneers including Alison Goldfrapp and Jarvis Cocker. What does Walker's first album for over ten years have in store? Plus Matthew Sweet assessing Merchant Ivory's contribution to period film drama, a profile of influential children's author Allan Ahlberg , and an examination of the modernist credentials of the fitted kitchen. With Andrew Graham-Dixon .