What's currently good on the BBC iPlayer?

[Elpenor]

I’m enjoying “the 80s with Dominic Sandbrook”, albeit I am watching it live

Episode 2 was good as well, touching on the “loony left” as described in the contemporary media, computer games, the miners strike, the Falklands war and Mary Whitehouse amongst other topics. Switched over the rugby before it focussed on Thatch and Brighton bomb.

 

[stavros]

I watched the first episode last night of this documentary following a professional video game team. Strangely interesting from a human level, even if I had no idea what they were doing in their actual games.

 

[belboid]

The 2017 episode of imagine... with Nawal el Saadawi was repeated last night. A great episode about a great writer and amazing woman - BBC One - imagine..., Winter 2017, She Spoke the Unspeakable

 

[kittyP]

I really like seeing Jared Harris in things - took a while for him to grow on me but now if I see he is in something that is likely to persuade me to give it a go

I am totally in love with Jared Harris

 

[Mrs Miggins]

I, too, adore Jared Harris. He's just brilliant.

 

[Bus Honeygun]

The Mole - Infiltrating North Korea

Gripping, disturbing and pretty insane. I think if someone had told me the story I would have dismissed much of it as too far-fetched.

 

[Part 2]

Another mole here. A recently bereaved Chilean widower goes undercover in a nursing home. I don't often use the word delightful but it's just that.

BBC Four - Storyville, Undercover OAP: The Mole Agent

An 83-year-old widower is recruited to go undercover in a Chilean nursing home.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Part 2]

The Mole - Infiltrating North Korea

Gripping, disturbing and pretty insane. I think if someone had told me the story I would have dismissed much of it as too far-fetched.

Just watched the first episode. It's the same film maker as this. Highly recommended.

BBC Four - Storyville, Murder in the Bush: Cold Case Hammarskjöld

A search for the truth behind the plane crash that killed a UN secretary-general in 1961.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[passenger]

Very heavy and powerful police documentary about Manchester gangs.

Millions watch BBC documentary on capture of Manchester kidnapping gang

It's gripped the nation.

themanc.com

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

Shane McGowan doc, crock of something or other. Most enjoyable. . . But man he looks ropey as fuck.
Looks like they had to film him a million times to get anything out of him, but then got most of it from archive interviews.

 

[sparkybird]

Watched Beats last night. Thanks for the recommendation, really enjoyed it. Apparently the total budget was £25k even more amazing!

 

[bmd]

Very heavy and powerful police documentary about Manchester gangs.

Millions watch BBC documentary on capture of Manchester kidnapping gang

It's gripped the nation.

themanc.com

I loved this! It's mad how the police are just like "yeah, he imports coke." Every street seems to have one.

 

[moody]

watched the Shane MacGowan thing on bbc4. was really impressed and thats from someone who isn't really into the Pogues.

I think it's the style of doc, they employed it with the Guns & Roses & Ginger Baker efforts, they were both real good.

BBC Four - Crock of Gold: A Few Rounds with Shane MacGowan

Definitive documentary on musical icon Shane MacGowan, Ireland’s most beloved punk poet.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Orang Utan]

Collectiv is up there now. Fantastic stuff though very grim. It's a fly on the wall documentary in which two journalists, a victim and an inexperienced politician examine the aftermath of a nightclub fire that killed many young people, most of the victims dying in hospital because of inadequate hygiene in hospitals. They discover corruption everywhere and it makes a fitting watch after seeing the debacle of PPE contracts and other outsourcing fiascos. It’ll make you furious but I can’t recommend it highly enough

 

[sojourner]

'Empire of the Sun' and 'Apocalypse Now' are both on there. Old films but well worth a watch. We enjoyed both last weekend. Actually helped watching AN after a space cake, made much more sense of the middle section

 

[stavros]

I started watching The Disappearance today, a French drama about a missing teenage girl in Lyon. Some predictable parts to it, but it's shaping up reasonably well.

dfm ought to give a go as a replacement for Spiral.

 

[MBV]

stavros - thank you. I'll have a look.

 

[miss direct]

The syndicate

 

[Maltin]

The documentary, Finding Jack Charlton, was on recently and is now on iPlayer. A very good documentary but was also very sad to see him with dementia.

 

[stavros]

Fatal Attraction, up there for the next three weeks.

 

[oryx]

The documentary, Finding Jack Charlton, was on recently and is now on iPlayer. A very good documentary but was also very sad to see him with dementia.

Saw this last night - excellent and yes, sad.

But there are also some uplifting bits, like Ireland's win against Romania with a background of folk music and crowd scenes.

Recommended.

 

[stavros]

Louis Theroux: Shooting Joe Exotic. His best thing for a while, I thought.

 

[stavros]

Match of the Day have started their Top 10 series again, this time in the blue room face to face. Lineker and Shearer are back, with Richards replacing Wright. I'm not sure that's the wisest move, because in the first show, worst grounds to play at, he had no idea where the Dell or Roker Park were. Jenas, Keown or Dublin might've been better bets.

 

[stavros]

I started watching The Disappearance today, a French drama about a missing teenage girl in Lyon. Some predictable parts to it, but it's shaping up reasonably well.

dfm ought to give a go as a replacement for Spiral.

I want to bump this, because I finished it last night. Excellent stuff, with twists at the end of every episode and keeping you hooked 'til the end.

 

[oryx]

I want to bump this, because I finished it last night. Excellent stuff, with twists at the end of every episode and keeping you hooked 'til the end.

Thanks for this recommendation - we watched the first episode and it's very good. Good and realistic storyline, well-acted and shot.

(It helped to assuage our anger at the Masterchef final being cancelled in favour of non-stop nauseating toadying coverage of Price Phillip. )

 

[D'wards]

I'm velly much enjoying Bates Motel- its quite binge worthy and all series are on there.

 

[stavros]

(It helped to assuage our anger at the Masterchef final being cancelled in favour of non-stop nauseating toadying coverage of Price Phillip. )

Coincidentally, he makes a cameo in episode seven as one of the suspects.

 

[Babe Rainbow]

Watched this yesterday. Seen the hotel mentioned online before but this is brilliant.

BBC Two - Amazing Hotels: Life Beyond the Lobby, Series 1, Giraffe Manor, Kenya

Giles and Monica discover a unique hotel where giraffes, staff and guests all coexist.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[stavros]

They seem to have put a gigatonne of MMA fights up there this weekend. I'd not watched it before, despite training in kickboxing myself, so I quite enjoyed my first taste.

 

[Mrs Miggins]

I didn't know where to put this as it's on ITV2 but this thread felt best as it's a terrestrial channel....

Zomboat
A series about a group of young people trying to (very slowly) escape a zombie apocalypse in Birmingham by taking a narrowboat on the canal to London.

It's really good fun. Fairly low key and low budget. Great Saturday afternoon lockdown viewing.