The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.

Steve Backshall visits Australia's Great Barrier Reef to discover the conditions that let a tiny coral building block create Earth's largest living structure. Show more

Michael Wood tells the story of King Alfred the Great and his children and grandson. Alfred fights a desperate guerrilla war in the marshes of Somerset. Show more

Documentary series. Simon Schama examines how the Enlightenment brought the ghetto walls crashing down and how this integration ultimately stirred up old prejudices. Show more

Dan Cruickshank charts the arrival of a new style of palace, as British monarchs demanded that architecture proclaim their right to rule. Show more

England, wracked by plague and revolt, loses the upper hand until Henry V, determined to prove his right to be king, turns the tide at the battle of Agincourt.

Francesco da Mosto travels the length and breadth of Italy. He discovers why Rome is the Eternal City and goes head to head with Mussolini, then on to Naples. Show more

Mike Read and Tommy Vance present the pop chart programme, from May 1983. With Modern Romance, Hall & Oates, Hot Chocolate, Galaxy, The Creatures, Men at Work and Spandau Ballet. Show more

Simon Bates and Gary Davies present an edition of the pop chart show from 19 May 1983. Featuring D Train, New Edition, David Grant, Blancmange, The Beat and Wham. Show more

A look at the history of still-life painting, featuring a range of delights from the earliest existing Xenia mural paintings found at Pompeii to the cubist masterpieces of Picasso. Show more