Bbc Arena Movies

Profile of Orson Welles, looking at his life and career in theatre, radio and particularly film.

A documentary about and an interview with Hollywood actress Bette Davis about her life and career from the late 1920s to the 1980s on stage and...

Ike White was a musical prodigy who recorded a funk and soul classic album inside a Californian prison in 1974. Then he disappeared. 30 years later,...

Documentary about the life of Frankie Howerd, with help from friends and colleagues and including highlights from his TV and film career.

Inspired by the book of the same name, film-maker James Marsh relays a tale of tragedy, murder and mayhem that erupted behind the respectable facade...

Arena looks behind the Gioconda smile. The Mona Lisa hangs in the Louvre behind plate glass - an unsigned, undated portrait of a smiling woman. She...

Launched 30 years ago, Loaded magazine epitomised the 90s in its irreverence and appetite for hedonism. But how did it stand up to pressure to put...

In June 2009, a group Britain's leading actors gathered for one night only to perform a celebration of the work of Harold Pinter at the National...

In May 2024, Alan Bennett turned 90. This film celebrates the life and long career of one of Britain's best-loved playwrights. Part frank reflection...

Writer and Director Mike Leigh discusses the techniques used to create his plays.

Phil Spector is a pioneer of American music, a legendary producer to John Lennon and Tina Turner, and, as of April 13th 2009, a convicted murderer....

Documentary on Krzysztof Kieslowski's Dekalog from the BBC Arena series.

Born in 1914, Dylan Thomas was an unruly and undisciplined child who was interested only in English at school and was determined from childhood to...

The remarkable true story of Michael Cohen, a charlatan art dealer who swindled over $50 million from the art establishment before going on the run.

Bernhard, an actress-comedienne whose brassy humor attracts a cult-like following, here offers a semiconfessional view of her life's landscape....

This groundbreaking documentary unlocks the hidden psychology of J.M.W. Turner through his 37,000 private sketches, drawings, and watercolours...

For the first time since his release from 27 years of imprisonment Nelson Mandela opens up about his life and the turbulent times he's faced in this...

A group of gay friends try to live with dignity and self-respect while events build to the opening battle in the major gay rights movement.

Considered one of the best ‘dub’ poets of his time, Mikey Smith is internationally renown for the socially engaged form and content of...

An affectionate look at what goes on behind the scenes of the Limelight Club in Crewe, where for ten years tribute acts to the likes of Jimi Hendrix,...