The latest national and international news, exploring the day's events from a global perspective.
Michael Portillo learns how one man helped bring train travel to the Highlands and hears the remarkable tale of Scotland's Victorian gold rush. Show more
Paul Rose tells the story of the USS Squalus, stranded on the bottom of the Atlantic in 1939 and the first time anyone had been saved from a stricken submarine. Show more
Second World War thriller in which a Bletchley Park codebreaker (Dougray Scott) frantically races against time to crack the Germans' new code. Show more
Simon Heffer looks at war films such as The Dam Busters, The Cruel Sea and The Colditz Story and argues that they have real cinematic merit and a genuine cultural importance. Show more
Lesley Joseph narrates a documentary about the unlikely pin-ups of the 1970s music scene, from Gilbert O'Sullivan and Barry White to Leo Sayer and Demis Roussos. Show more
The story of how the elements were discovered and mapped begins with the alchemists who questioned that the world was made up of earth, air, fire and water. Show more
Alexander Armstrong explores the literature that inspired Michael Palin and Terry Jones's comedy Ripping Yarns, a parody of the Boys' Own books and magazines of their childhood. Show more
Paul Rose tells the story of the USS Squalus, stranded on the bottom of the Atlantic in 1939 and the first time anyone had been saved from a stricken submarine. Show more