Please be aware that there have been some changes to the upcoming editions of The Documentary (Wednesday) and The Documentary (Tuesday). Should you have promoted these programs to stations please be aware of the impact on broadcast dates:
- The Documentary (Wednesday): Blind Man Roams the Globe, on Wednesday, September 7, was originally promoted as a 3 part program in What’s On. This will now be 2 episodes only focusing on Washington and Nairobi. They are no longer visiting Rio.
- The Documentary (Tuesday) – The programs for the next three weeks are changing as follows:
- Tuesday, September 6 : Leaving the Fold (originally due to be broadcast on September 13)
- Tuesday, September 13: Island of Love (originally due to be broadcast on September 6)
- Tuesday, September 20: How Do You Debate Donald Trump? (Title to be confirmed -This replaces Dalida: A Life Unbearable which will be rescheduled for a later date)
This does not affect the program clock, which will be maintained. Full program information is listed below.
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The Documentary (Wednesday): Blind Man Roams the Globe
First aired: Wednesday September 7, 2016
Broadcast window: Episode One: September 7 – 13, 2016 / Episode Two: September 14 – 20, 2016
Number of episodes: 2
Program duration: 26 minutes 30 seconds (30 minutes including the News Update, billboard & promo)
Download availability on www.bbc.co.uk/partners: from Wednesday 7 & 14 September 03:30 GMT for 7 days
Program description: When Peter White jets, sails or walks into a new city, it’s the sounds, not the sights, which assail him: Blind Man Roams the Globe shows you the world as you would hear it, rather than see it, as he explores Nairobi and Washington DC, through the sounds of the city.
His job as a broadcaster has taken him all over the world. At first he thought that he was missing out – being unable to see the standard tourist monuments – but when he travels now he has an arsenal of strategies to get to know a place. He listens to local radio, he takes in the sounds of restaurants, travel systems and the voices of the local people. In this two part series he travels to Kenya and to America and explains what he discovers about these cities.
In episode one he heads to Washington and finds a city struggling to develop a transport system which properly caters for all communities and he explores the gulf between the upper and lower classes. In episode two he heads to Nairobi and finds a city struggling to reconcile expansion and commercialization with the hit and miss access to disabled facilities and the worries about safety around the city. He is forced to navigate a strange environment without being able to see his way around: “Having been born blind, I’ve always travelled blind – and for me, sightseeing is more a case of ‘sound-hearing.”
As listeners will discover, Peter rarely goes on formal guided tours: instead he boards the busses and joins in with those chatting on board. He goes to sports games and wanders round chatting to families and other disabled people: “People all over the world like to help and particularly like to share the places they love with visitors. You have to wear your vulnerability with pride, never be afraid to ask. Don’t judge and you’ll be welcomed wherever you go!”
BBC broadcast times:
APM | Wed 11:32-11:59 rpt 14:32-14:59; Sat 09:32-09:59 ET
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The Documentary (Tuesday): Leaving the Fold
First aired: Tuesday, September 6
Broadcast window: September 6 – 12, 2016
Number of episodes: 1
Program duration: 23 minutes or 26 mins 30 secs (or 30 mins including the News Update, billboard & promo)
Download availability on www.bbc.co.uk/partners: from Tuesday September 6 03:30 GMT for 7 days
Three personal testimonies exploring the often difficult journey from religious faith to atheism – redefining morality in a world without God.
What does it take for someone to turn their back on their religious upbringing? And what effect does that decision ultimately have on them and those around them? A young ex-Muslim, a middle-aged ex-Hindu, and an ex-born again Christian, each recount what their lives were like growing up in devout religious families and what motivated them to renounce their faiths.
We trace the moments that defined their journeys. What did removing the hijab in public for the first-time represent? How did a religiously motivated bomb attack in India affect understanding of the faith? How did they learn to live in a world without morals and rules defined by God?
Leaving the Fold explores the difficult and often traumatic experiences of those who consciously set out to become atheists.
BBC broadcast times:
Tue 11:32-11:59 rpt 14:32-14:59; Sat 09:06-09:29, 17:06-17:29; Sun 05:06-05:29 ET
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The Documentary (Tuesday): Island of Love
First aired: Tuesday, September 13
Broadcast window: September 13 – 19, 2016
Number of episodes: 1
Program duration: 23 minutes or 26 mins 30 secs (or 30 mins including the News Update, billboard & promo)
Download availability on www.bbc.co.uk/partners: from Tuesday September 13 03:30 GMT for 7 days
We explore why thousands of couples from across the Middle East are travelling to Cyprus to get married.
Cyprus promotes itself as the birthplace of Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love, but its popularity as a wedding destination is much more prosaic: it offers civil marriages.
Across the Arab world and Israel this concept is virtually non-existent; only religious weddings are allowed.
In Lebanon, a tiny country with 18 different sects, many fall in love with someone from a different religion. The story of Abdul Kader and Rachel is typical – he is Muslim and she is Christian. Neither wants to convert. We meet them as they marry alone at Larnaca townhall in Cyprus.
Another Lebanese couple, Georges and Melissa, could easily marry in church, but are part of a growing trend opting for a simple, secular ceremony.
Along the coast in Pathos, Israelis, Raz and Or, have also chosen to exchange their vows in a civil service. Their supportive families have joined them here. But other Israelis have been forced to come to Cyprus because they cannot wed legally at home. We meet a bride who is one of over 360,000 Russian-Israelis whose Jewish identity is not recognised by the strict rules of the chief rabbinate.
With marriage tourism booming, specialist florists, event planners and photographers help to make wedding days extra special. Many Middle Easterners hope for reforms back home that will allow civil weddings. In the meantime, they head to the Island of Love.
BBC broadcast times:
Tue 11:32-11:59 rpt 14:32-14:59; Sat 09:06-09:29, 17:06-17:29; Sun 05:06-05:29 ET
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The Documentary (Tuesday): How do you debate with Donald Trump? (Title to be confirmed)
First aired: Tuesday, September 20
Broadcast window: September 20 – 26, 2016
Number of episodes: 1
Programme duration: 23 minutes or 26 mins 30 secs (or 30 mins including the News Update, billboard & promo)
Download availability on www.bbc.co.uk/partners: from Tuesday September 20 03:30 GMT for 7 days
How are Clinton and Trump preparing for the crucial first Presidential Debate?
Katty Kay reports from Washington ahead of the much anticipated face-to-face encounter between Hilary Clinton and Donald Trump in the crucial first Presidential Debate on September 26.
Katty Kay has covered US presidential election campaigns and debates since 2004 – in this documentary she explores the business of preparing candidates for their make-or-break one-on-one confrontations. She considers how this year’s debates may differ from previous campaigns and whether the debates could decide who will be elected President in November.
We hear the challenges Hilary Clinton faces in preparing to debate with Donald Trump. How will she prepare to debate with a seasoned TV performer who favors spontaneous remarks and personal attacks? And can Trump depend on his TV experience to connect with the audience, or will he risk slipping up against a better briefed opponent? We hear about what debate preparation entails, from advisers and strategists who have taken part in previous debate preparation. And we look at how the role of debate preparation has changed over the years, from the very first Presidential debate in 1960 through Obama, to see what lessons there may be for the two candidates taking part in 2016.
BBC broadcast times:
Tue 11:32-11:59 rpt 14:32-14:59; Sat 09:06-09:29, 17:06-17:29; Sun 05:06-05:29 ET