Jimmy Somerville

With his soaring falsetto and magnetic yet understated stage presence, Jimmy Somerville burst onto the 1980s new wave scene, making the world dance to songs rooted in struggle and resilience. From the harsh realities of Glasgow’s working-class neighborhoods to the challenges of growing up gay in a hostile world, and the devastating impact of the AIDS crisis, Somerville transformed pain into anthems of freedom. First with Bronski Beat, then The Communards, and later as a solo artist, he became both rebel and diva—the unmistakable voice of a generation fighting for equality. Through intimate stories from those who have stood by him for four decades, this portrait reveals a rare artist who has never wavered in his convictions.

Musician Oliver Sim is the main guest of a talk-show that soon slides into a surreal journey of love, shame, and blood.

Contains restored promo videos and BBC Top of the Pops performances from 1984 and 1985. This includes: Smalltown Boy (restored promo), 'Why?' (Restored promo), 'It A'int Necessarily So (Restored Promo), 'I Feel Love' featuring Marc Almond (restored promo), 'Smalltown Boy' (BBC Top of the Pops June '84), 'Why?' (BBC Top of the Pops Sept '84), 'It A'int Necessarily So' (BBC Top of the Pops Dec '84), 'I Feel Love' featuring Marc Almond (BBC Top of the Pops April '85) and two TV Adverts from Dec'84 and Jan '85 for 'The Age of Consent'.

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Charting the evolution of public and political attitudes to homosexuality over the last four decades, from decriminalisation in 1967 to today's advances in gay sexual freedom, How Gay Sex Changed the World examines how the gay sexual revolution gathered pace in the face of gradually changing legislation, from the first Gay Pride march to groundbreaking dramas such as Queer as Folk.

England, 1600. Queen Elizabeth I promises Orlando, a young nobleman obsessed with poetry, that she will grant him land and fortune if he agrees to satisfy a very particular request.

This music special is dedicated to dispelling the prejudices associated with the HIV infection and raising money for AIDS research and relief. Some of today's most celebrated recording artists performing their interpretations of the classic songs of Cole Porter.

An LWT South Bank Show, presented by Melvyn Bragg, exploring the phenomenon of countertenor singing. With its unique, soaring beauty, the high male voice is today enjoying a huge resurgence in popularity. Heirs to the celebrated castrati of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, today's countertenors produce their voices by wholly natural means. In this programme international stars Michael Chance, Andreas Scholl and James Bowman, as well as popstar Jimmy Somerville, shed light on the appeal of the male falsetto. Meanwhile, experts such as Michael White place today's countertenors in their historical context. What emerges is a compelling portrayal of an unmistakable vocal style, rooted in church and operatic tradition, yet completely up-to-date, resonating louder today than at any time in the last two hundred years.

Collection of music videos by Jimmy Somerville, both as solo artist as well as with the bands Bronski Beat and The Communards.

A 14-track video compilation featuring songs by the British singer/songwriter Marc Almond as a solo artist and with his partner Dave Ball as the synthpop duo Soft Cell.

The evolution of disco music through interviews and clips - Acid House, House, Disco, Funk, Italo-Disco, Italodance. Interviewed – Baby Ford, Deee-Lite, Frankie Knuckles, Mark Moore, Mel Cheren Featuring 5000 Volts, Amii Stewart, Anita Ward, Baby Ford, Bananarama, Black Box, Cerrone, Communards, The, Deee-Lite, Donna Summer, Eartha Kitt, Edwin Starr, Evelyn Champagne King, Evelyn Thomas, Farm, The, Giorgio Moroder, Gloria Gaynor, Hot Gossip, Hues Corporation, Isaac Hayes, Kool And The Gang, Kylie Minogue, M, Michael Zager, Miguel Brown, Musique, New Order, Odyssey, S'Express, Shannon, Shirley & Co, Sylvester, Three Degrees, Trammps, Van Mccoy, Village People

A statue of 'The Happy Prince' (happy because he had devoted his life to pleasure behind his palace walls) looks out with horror at the destitution of his citizens. He persuades a little swallow to abandon his winter trip to Egypt and be his messenger, a job which entails stripping the statue of its precious jewels and gold to help feed the poor. Winter sets in, the once sparkling statue now looks grey and crumbling.

A black and white, fantasy-like recreation of high-society gay men during the Harlem Renaissance, with archival footage and photographs intercut with a story. A wake is going on, with mourners gathered around a coffin. Downstairs is an elegant bar where tuxedoed men dance and talk. One of them has a dream in which he comes upon Beauty, who seems to reject him, although when he awakes, Beauty is sleeping beside him. His story and his visits to the jazz and dance club are framed by voices reading from the poetry and essays of Hughes and others. The text is rarely explicit, but the freedom of gay Black men in the 1920s in Harlem is suggested and celebrated visually.

Gay and lesbian teenagers interview straight people on the streets of London about their views on homosexuality.

Dancing in Dulias was made by members of Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners (LGSM) and Lesbians Against Pit Closures during and immediate after the 1984/85 minders strike. Like the forthcoming movie, Pride, it documents the interactions between lesbians and gay men and the miners and their families in Dulais in South Wales - only this time it's the real thing. As well as some memorable footage that includes the Blaenant Lodge banner leading the 1985 Lesbian and Gay Pride march and LGSM members struggling with bingo at the local community hall, the film documents the wider political impact of this seemingly unlikely alliance. (cont. http://www.cambridgefilmfestival.org.uk/films/2014/dancing-in-dulais#sthash.HScQCj7E.dpuf)

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Documentary containing interviews and concert footage of the various musicians and bands within the Red Wedge organization on a tour within the UK.