An evening devoted to animals and us.
A series of short films and a live debate from the Royal Institution of Great Britain will examine questions raised about animal rights and other issues concerning them. To present the evening,
Spitting Image has created a team led by Gloria the cat and the Sir Alastair the dog. From the lower decks of Noah's Ark they'll be talking to prawns and anteaters, and asking turkeys about Christmas. This menagerie provides an amusing commentary on the issues under debate.
7.30pm*
Smashing Pigs
Some people see the pig as representing dirt, sloth and obesity; others view it with affection. In this film we see them all: farmyard pigs, performing pigs, pigs as pets, piggy banks, pigs on film - in all its many rotund forms. Film editor POLLY MOSELEY Director KRISTIENE CLARKE
8.15pm*
Sacred Elephant
A film version of Heathcote Williams 's epic poem, an impassioned hymn of praise to one of nature's most magnificent creatures, and a lament at man's folly of hunting it to near extinction. The poem is read by its author, intercut with extraordinary film of elephants, and accompanied by a specially composed soundtrack from the BBC
Radiophonic Workshop. Director JULIAN BIRKETT
9.15pm*
Great Wildlife Presenters
Through the Ages
The animals in wildlife films have always been vying for attention with that eccentric breed - the animal presenter. This medley of classic clips of wildlife films from the last 50 years celebrates the naive enthusiasm of these rare creatures and charts the changing attitudes to animals on television.
Director CHARLIE PATTINSON
9.40pm*
John Daniel the First
In the 1920s a middle-aged spinster went to buy a yard of ribbon and came out with a baby gorilla. He was the first gorilla to survive captivity.
His uncanny intelligence and versatility became legendary, inspiring King Kong stories. But he came to a tragic end when he was shipped to the Barnum and Bailey circus in New York where he pined for his owner and then 'died of a broken heart'.
Film editor STEPHEN EVANS Director NIGEL FINCH
10.10pm*
A Day in the Life of Sam the Dog
What does Sam get up to when he's left on his own all day? This verite portrait looks at an ordinary day in the mysterious life of a very ordinary dog.
Film editor GUY CROSSMAN
Director CATHERINE MEYNELL
10.30pm*
Animals on Trial
Novelist Julian Bames , philosopher
Nicholas Humphrey and French historian Dr Michel Rousseau help to uncover one of the most bizarre chapters in criminal history: the judicial prosecution and capital punishment of animals throughout Europe during the Middle Ages and beyond. Film editor DAVID KITSON Director JAMES MARSH
10.50pm*
The Animal Night Debate Speciesism, vivisection, vegetarianism, farming, sport, zoos, circuses and pets will be some of the topics discussed in a live debate chaired by Donald MacCormick at the Royal Institution of Great Britain. Writer
Germaine Greer and philosophers Tom Regan and Mary Warnock are among the speakers who debate the motion: 'The animal kingdom needs a bill of rights'.
Director RON ISTED
Producer ANDREW EATON For Spitting Image:
Script by IAN HISLOP , NICK NEWMAN , GEOFFREY PERKINS
Puppets by LUCK AND FLAW
Studio director JOHN HENDERSON For Arena:
Producer MARY DICKINSON Editors NIGEL FINCH and ANTHONY WALL
0 FEATURE: page 8
0 WODDIS: page 69