Jump to content

Arena (British TV series): Difference between revisions

Edit links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous edit
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
Reverting edit(s) by 51.6.205.17 (talk) to rev. 1028662082 by Pdebee: Vandalism (RW 16.1)
added runtime
 
(21 intermediate revisions by 16 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{Short description|British television documentary series}}
{{Use British English|date=May 2014}}
{{Use British English|date=May 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2020}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2020}}
{{Infobox television
{{Infobox television
| name = Arena
| image = BBC Arena titles.png
| image = BBC Arena titles.png
| caption = [[Message in a bottle]] title sequence used by ''Arena'' since 1975.
⚫
| alt_name =
| caption = [[Message in a bottle]] title sequence used by ''Arena'' since 1975.
| alt_name =
| genre = [[Documentary film|Documentary]]
| genre = [[Documentary film|Documentary]]
| creator = [[Humphrey Burton]]
| creator = [[Humphrey Burton]]
| based_on =
| based_on =
| developer =
| developer =
| writer = Various
| writer = Various
| director = Various
| director = Various
| creative_director =
| creative_director =
| presenter =
| presenter =
| starring =
| starring =
| voices =
| voices =
| narrated =
⚫
| theme_music_composer =
⚫
| narrated =
| opentheme = "[[Another Green World]]" by [[Brian Eno]]
⚫
| theme_music_composer =
| opentheme = "[[Another Green World]]" by [[Brian Eno]]
| endtheme =
| endtheme =
| composer =
| composer =
| country = United Kingdom
| country = United Kingdom
| language = English
| language = English
| num_seasons = <!-- or num_series -->
| num_seasons = <!-- or num_series -->
| num_episodes = over 600
| num_episodes = over 600
| list_episodes =
| list_episodes =
| executive_producer =
| executive_producer =
| producer =
| producer =
| editor = {{Plainlist|
* Mark Bell (2018–present)
| editor = Mark Bell (2018-)<br>[[Anthony Wall (film-maker)|Anthony Wall]] (1985–2018)<br> [[Anthony Wall (film-maker)|Anthony Wall]] and [[Nigel Finch]] (1985–1995)<br>[[Alan Yentob]] (1979–1985)<br>Leslie Megahey (1977–1978)<br>Various (1975–1977)
* [[Anthony Wall (film-maker)|Anthony Wall]] (1985–2018)
⚫
| location =
* [[Anthony Wall (film-maker)|Anthony Wall]] and [[Nigel Finch]] (1985–1995)
| cinematography =
* [[Alan Yentob]] (1979–1985)
| camera =
* Leslie Megahey (1977–1978)
| runtime =
* Various (1975–1977)
| company = BBC
}}
| distributor =
⚫
| location =
| channel = [[BBC Two]] (1975–2011)<br>[[BBC Four]] (2003–present)
| picture_format =
| cinematography =
| audio_format =
| camera =
| first_run =
| runtime = 60 minutes
| first_aired = {{Start date|df=yes|1975|10|01}}
| company = BBC Arts
| last_aired = present
| channel = [[BBC Two]] (1975–2011)<br>[[BBC Four]] (2003–present)
| preceded_by =
| first_aired = {{Start date|1975|10|01|df=yes}}
| followed_by =
| last_aired = present
| related =
| related =
| website = https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006pn88
| website_title = BBC Four - Arena
| production_website =
| production_website_title =
}}
}}


'''''Arena''''' is a [[Television in the United Kingdom|British]] [[television documentary]] series, made and broadcast by the [[BBC]] since 1 October 1975. Voted by TV executives in [[Broadcast (magazine)|''Broadcast'' magazine]] as one of the top 50 most influential programmes of all time, it has produced over six hundred episodes directed by, among others, [[Frederick Baker]], [[Jana Boková]], [[Jonathan Demme]], [[Nigel Finch]], [[Mary Harron]], [[Vikram Jayanti]], [[Vivian Kubrick]], [[Paul Lee (television executive)|Paul Lee]], Adam Low, [[Bernard MacMahon (filmmaker)|Bernard MacMahon]], [[James Marsh (director)|James Marsh]], [[Leslie Megahey]], [[Volker Schlondorff]], [[Martin Scorsese]], [[Julian Temple]], [[Anthony Wall (film-maker)|Anthony Wall]], [[Leslie Woodhead]], and [[Alan Yentob]].
'''''Arena''''' is a [[Television in the United Kingdom|British]] [[television documentary]] series, made and broadcast by the [[BBC]] since 1 October 1975. Voted by TV executives in [[Broadcast (magazine)|''Broadcast'']] magazine as one of the top 50 most influential programmes of all time, it has produced more than six hundred episodes directed by, among others, [[Frederick Baker]], [[Jana Boková]], [[Jonathan Demme]], [[Nigel Finch]], [[Mary Harron]], [[Vikram Jayanti]], [[Vivian Kubrick]], [[Paul Lee (television executive)|Paul Lee]], Adam Low, [[Bernard MacMahon (filmmaker)|Bernard MacMahon]], [[James Marsh (director)|James Marsh]], [[Leslie Megahey]], [[Volker Schlondorff]], [[Martin Scorsese]], [[Julien Temple]], [[Anthony Wall (film-maker)|Anthony Wall]], [[Leslie Woodhead]], and [[Alan Yentob]].


==History==
==History==


The arts strand ''Arena'' was initially created in 1975<ref>Tise Vahimagi. (2003-12) [http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/1185792/ "Burton, Humphrey (1931-) "]. ''BFI Screen Online". Retrieved 27 June 2013.</ref> by the [[BBC]] Head of Music & Arts at that time, [[Humphrey Burton]], when he founded a magazine named ''Arena'' exploring [[art]], [[design]], [[filmmaking]], and [[theatre]]. In 1977, under producer and director [[Leslie Megahey]], the strand divided into ''Arena Theatre'' and ''Arena Art and Design'', and ''Arena'' became less of a magazine and more a home for short, distinctive and stylish films about mainly British theatre and visual arts. In 1978 Megahey became editor of [[Omnibus (British TV series)|''Omnibus'']] and [[Alan Yentob]], who had been supervising ''Arena Theatre'', took over and the two themes were merged. The series, relaunched in January 1979 and renamed simply ''Arena'', began to adopt a format of single subject essays. It earned great critical acclaim for its enthusiasm for the popular as well as the high arts. During Yentob's time as editor, ''Arena'' had six [[BAFTA]] nominations and three BAFTA awards.
The arts strand ''Arena'' was initially created in 1975<ref>Tise Vahimagi. (2003-12) [http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/1185792/ "Burton, Humphrey (1931-) "]. ''BFI Screen Online". Retrieved 27 June 2013.</ref> by the [[BBC]] Head of Music & Arts at that time, [[Humphrey Burton]], when he founded a magazine named ''Arena'' exploring [[art]], [[design]], [[filmmaking]], and [[theatre]]. In 1977, under producer and director [[Leslie Megahey]], the strand divided into ''Arena Theatre'' and ''Arena Art and Design'', and ''Arena'' became less of a magazine and more a home for short, distinctive and stylish films about mainly British theatre and visual arts. In 1978, Megahey became editor of [[Omnibus (British TV series)|''Omnibus'']] and [[Alan Yentob]], who had been supervising ''Arena Theatre'', took over and the two themes were merged. The series, relaunched in January 1979 and renamed simply ''Arena'', began to adopt a format of single subject essays. It earned great critical acclaim for its enthusiasm for the popular as well as the high arts. During Yentob's time as editor, ''Arena'' had six [[BAFTA]] nominations and three BAFTA awards.


A group of radical directors, notably [[Nigel Finch]] and [[Anthony Wall (film-maker)|Anthony Wall]], gathered around Yentob and ''Arena'', including Nigel Williams and Mary Dickinson. Hits from 1979 included ''Who Is [[Poly Styrene]]?'', ''La Dame Aux Gladiolas'', a portrait of [[Dame Edna Everage|Edna Everage]], and most notably the groundbreaking ''My Way'', an examination of the appeal of the song, by Finch and Wall. It was the first of their collaborations, which developed a new kind of arts film, taking an unlikely subject and building a poetic meditation on its various aspects - further examples include ''The Chelsea Hotel'' (1981), ''The Private Life of the Ford Cortina'' (1982), ''Desert Island Discs'' (1982). Other successes included Megahey's portrait of [[Orson Welles]] (1982), Williams's study of [[George Orwell]] (1982), Yentob's portrait of [[Mel Brooks]] (1981) and Wall's four-part documentary on [[Slim Gaillard]] (1989).
A group of radical directors, notably [[Nigel Finch]] and [[Anthony Wall (film-maker)|Anthony Wall]], gathered around Yentob and ''Arena'', including Nigel Williams and Mary Dickinson. Hits from 1979 included ''Who Is [[Poly Styrene]]?'',<ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/21cfd83bcfa64d10be07b0bc8f097b0e|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=22 January 1979 }}</ref> ''La Dame Aux Gladiolas'',<ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/111003bfaaf24848bf249f7bb44b1327|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=19 March 1979 }}</ref> a portrait of [[Dame Edna Everage|Edna Everage]], and most notably the groundbreaking ''My Way'',<ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/773f102600cb4609a28693cebb5df46d|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=12 March 1979 }}</ref> an examination of the appeal of the song, by Finch and Wall. It was the first of their collaborations, which developed a new kind of arts film, taking an unlikely subject and building a poetic meditation on its various aspects - further examples include ''The Chelsea Hotel'' (1981),<ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/5da1c900b2b6433bb425bf3c18234c39|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=3 January 1981 }}</ref> ''The Private Life of the Ford Cortina'' (1982),<ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/33f8d8c9849c461396cdecb4af4e0abd|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=19 January 1982 }}</ref> ''Desert Island Discs'' (1982).<ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/2107e8e19a83471f91f00b092dcb5ede|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=23 February 1982 }}</ref> Other successes included Megahey's portrait of [[Orson Welles]] (1982),<ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/0bb03c459e5d42f0a36f80cd9c2fbfb2|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=18 May 1982 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/409546baa2544d9687f21191216955cc|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=21 May 1982 }}</ref> Williams's study of [[George Orwell]] (1982),<ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/6ce676dc29af4347923cb45e599c4b91|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=29 December 1983 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/4f5e0cc9b6b746129ff607adbfa7abda|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=30 December 1983 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/c428daa7c9cd42e5944e05ecdec3f576|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=2 January 1984 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/936282b801834ed3b752b7f991cb3ca6|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=4 January 1984 }}</ref> Yentob's portrait of [[Mel Brooks]] (1981)<ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/c6aae62c74154bd79f66cd90d9f3db5e|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=2 October 1981 }}</ref> and Wall's four-part documentary on [[Slim Gaillard]] (1989).<ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/b408218765df4537a17c6781acccd1d8|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=22 October 1989 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/0216e00bc3e345998d03a21932939ceb|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=29 October 1989 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/d7c3588b34384fbbb6c62da339eb89cc|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=5 November 1989 }}</ref>


On Yentob's move to become Head of Music & Arts in 1985, Finch and Wall took over as joint editor of ''Arena'' until Finch's death in 1995. Following a period of uncertainty concerning the future of the arts strand, series editor Wall protected the series in a reshuffle of the BBC. Since then ''Arena'' has been transmitted outside the conventional weekly broadcast strand on [[BBC Two]] and [[BBC Four]], and latterly on [[BBC Four]].
On Yentob's move to become Head of Music & Arts in 1985, Finch and Wall took over as joint editors of ''Arena'' until Finch's death in 1995. Following a period of uncertainty concerning the future of the arts strand, series editor Wall protected the series in a reshuffle of the BBC. Since then ''Arena'' has been transmitted outside the conventional weekly broadcast strand on [[BBC Two]] and [[BBC Four]], and latterly on [[BBC Four]].


Under Wall and Finch, ''Arena'' developed the idea of the themed evening, beginning with ''Blues Night'' (1985), followed by ''Caribbean Nights'' (1986), ''Animal Night'' (1989), ''Food Night'' (1990), ''Texas Saturday Night'' (1991) and ''Stories My Country Told Me'' (1995), a three-and-a-half-hour presentation on [[Nations]] and [[Nationalism]]. Since then ''Arena'' has won numerous awards with regular screenings at the [[BFI Southbank]] and has continued to cover the arts and culture at the highest level, with films on [[Bob Dylan]], [[Harold Pinter]], [[Royal National Theatre|The National Theatre]] and ''[[Spitting Image]]'', to name but a few.
Under Wall and Finch, ''Arena'' developed the idea of the themed evening, beginning with ''Blues Night'' (1985),<ref>{{Cite web|title=Schedule - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/schedules/service_bbc_two_england/1985-07-27#at-20.25|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk}}</ref> followed by ''Caribbean Nights'' (1986),<ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/137d17b9f8f0495392b66cf6661e8d6c|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=14 June 1986 }}</ref> ''Animal Night'' (1989),<ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/3ca6511cb03d4b0ab844c917c4feacea|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=16 December 1989 }}</ref> ''Food Night'' (1990),<ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/82bb692d675d4923a2163009244f0f74|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=15 December 1990 }}</ref> ''Texas Saturday Night'' (1991),<ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/39334d4af78d4763b867bd540f51fcf3|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=24 August 1991 }}</ref> ''Radio Night'' simulcast with [[BBC Radio 4]] (1993)<ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/3a839bae20c64e0f8217f2bcb77da017|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=18 December 1993 }}</ref> and ''Stories My Country Told Me'' (1995),<ref>{{Cite web|title=Broadcast - BBC Programme Index|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/1a85a42e53b3474b825c4f2dbe21893e|access-date=2021-09-02|website=genome.ch.bbc.co.uk|date=14 July 1996 }}</ref> a three-and-a-half-hour presentation on [[Nations]] and [[Nationalism]]. Since then ''Arena'' has won numerous awards with regular screenings at the [[BFI Southbank]] and has continued to cover the arts and culture at the highest level, with films on [[Bob Dylan]], [[Harold Pinter]], [[Royal National Theatre|The National Theatre]] and ''[[Spitting Image]]'', to name but a few.


''Arena'' developed a substantial online presence featuring the [http://www.bbcarenahotel.co.uk ''Arena Hotel''], a site that turns the 600-film ''Arena'' archive into a resource to build an online hotel for the stars. The ''Arena Hotel'' was nominated for a Focal International Award in 2013.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}} [[Werner Herzog]] has praised the series as "the oasis in the sea of insanity that is television".{{citation needed|date=November 2017}}
''Arena'' developed a substantial online presence featuring the [http://www.bbcarenahotel.co.uk ''Arena Hotel''], a site that turns the 600-film ''Arena'' archive into a resource to build an online hotel for the stars. The ''Arena Hotel'' was nominated for a Focal International Award in 2013.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}} [[Werner Herzog]] has praised the series as "the oasis in the sea of insanity that is television".{{citation needed|date=November 2017}}
Line 69: Line 66:
The programme's theme music is taken from the title track of the 1975 album ''[[Another Green World]]'' by [[Brian Eno]], himself the subject of a 2010 ''Arena'' film subtitled ''Another Green World''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcmusic/2010/02/brian_eno_and_the_arena_bottle.html |title=Brian Eno and the Arena Bottle |author=Nigel Smith |date=22 February 2010 |work=BBC Music Blog |publisher=BBC |access-date=6 April 2012}}</ref>
The programme's theme music is taken from the title track of the 1975 album ''[[Another Green World]]'' by [[Brian Eno]], himself the subject of a 2010 ''Arena'' film subtitled ''Another Green World''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcmusic/2010/02/brian_eno_and_the_arena_bottle.html |title=Brian Eno and the Arena Bottle |author=Nigel Smith |date=22 February 2010 |work=BBC Music Blog |publisher=BBC |access-date=6 April 2012}}</ref>


The ''Arena'' opening titles were voted among the "Top 5 Most Influential Opening Titles in the History of Television" by [[Broadcast (magazine)|''Broadcast'' magazine]] in 2004.
The ''Arena'' opening titles were voted among the "Top 5 Most Influential Opening Titles in the History of Television" by [[Broadcast (magazine)|''Broadcast'']] magazine in 2004.


==Series editors==
==Series editors==
[[Anthony Wall (film-maker)|Anthony Wall]], who has edited ''Arena'' since 1985.He joined the series in 1978 and became one of its leading directors.
[[Anthony Wall (film-maker)|Anthony Wall]] edited ''Arena'' since 1985. He joined the series in 1978 and became one of its leading directors.


==Awards and nominations==
==Awards and nominations==
''Arena'' has won a Primetime and International [[Emmy]]s,<ref>International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. (2013) [http://www.iemmys.tv/awards_previous.aspx “International Emmy Awards – Previous Winners 'Arts Programme'”] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071205001705/http://www.iemmys.tv/awards_previous.aspx |date=5 December 2007 }}. ''The International Emmy Awards''. Retrieved 19 June 2013.</ref> a [[Grammy]],<ref>The Recording Academy. (2013) [http://www.grammy.com/nominees/search?artist=&field_nominee_work_value=%22no+direction+home%22&year=2005&genre=18&=Search "GRAMMY.COM Past Winners Search – ‘No Direction Home’"]. ''GRAMMY.COM''. Retrieved 19 June 2013.</ref> nine [[BAFTA]]s,<ref>British Academy of Film and Television Arts. (2013) [http://awards.bafta.org/keyword-search?keywords=arena "BAFTA Awards Search – ‘Arena’"]. ''BAFTA''. Retrieved 19 June 2013.</ref> six [[Royal Television Society]] Awards, a [[Peabody Award|Peabody]] and the [[Prix Italia]]. ''Arena'' also won the [[Sundance Film Festival|Sundance]] Grand Jury Prize for ''Paris is Burning'', the Best Performance Award for [[Lili Taylor]]'s role in ''[[I Shot Andy Warhol]]'' at the [[Sundance Film Festival]], and the [[San Francisco International Film Festival|SFFIF]]'s Mel Novikoff Award.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://sffilm.org/sffilm-to-honor-bbc-portrait-television-series-arene-with-mel-novikoff-award-at-2019-san-francisco-international-film-festival/|title=SFFILM to Honor BBC Portrait Television Series Arena with Mel Novikoff Award at 2019 San Francisco International Film Festival|date=2019-03-20|website=SFFILM|language=en-US|access-date=2020-02-17}}</ref>
''Arena'' has won a Primetime and International [[Emmy]]s,<ref>International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (2013). [http://www.iemmys.tv/awards_previous.aspx "International Emmy Awards – Previous Winners 'Arts Programme{{'"}}] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071205001705/http://www.iemmys.tv/awards_previous.aspx |date=5 December 2007 }}. ''The International Emmy Awards''. Retrieved 19 June 2013.</ref> a [[Grammy]],<ref>The Recording Academy (2013). [http://www.grammy.com/nominees/search?artist=&field_nominee_work_value=%22no+direction+home%22&year=2005&genre=18&=Search "GRAMMY.COM Past Winners Search – 'No Direction Home{{'"}}]. ''GRAMMY.COM''. Retrieved 19 June 2013.</ref> nine [[BAFTA]]s,<ref>British Academy of Film and Television Arts (2013). [http://awards.bafta.org/keyword-search?keywords=arena "BAFTA Awards Search – 'Arena{{'"}}]. ''BAFTA''. Retrieved 19 June 2013.</ref> six [[Royal Television Society]] Awards, a [[Peabody Award|Peabody]] and the [[Prix Italia]]. ''Arena'' also won the [[Sundance Film Festival|Sundance]] Grand Jury Prize for ''[[Paris Is Burning (film)|Paris Is Burning]]'' (1990), the Best Performance Award for [[Lili Taylor]]'s role in ''[[I Shot Andy Warhol]]'' (1996) at the [[Sundance Film Festival]], and the [[San Francisco International Film Festival|SFFIF]]'s Mel Novikoff Award.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://sffilm.org/sffilm-to-honor-bbc-portrait-television-series-arene-with-mel-novikoff-award-at-2019-san-francisco-international-film-festival/|title=SFFILM to Honor BBC Portrait Television Series Arena with Mel Novikoff Award at 2019 San Francisco International Film Festival|date=2019-03-20|website=SFFILM|language=en-US|access-date=2020-02-17}}</ref>


== Selected filmography ==
== Selected filmography ==
Line 85: Line 82:
|-
|-
|1979||
|1979||
''Now and Then - [[Anthony Green (painter)|Anthony Green]]''
⚫
''[[My Way]]''
| Nigel Williams
|-
|1979||
⚫
''My Way''
| Nigel Finch
| Nigel Finch
|-
|-
Line 182: Line 183:
|-
|-
|1991||
|1991||
''The Human Face<ref>{{cite web |title= Radio Times |publisher=BBC |website=BBC Genome |url= https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/1ce78b0b452c4c5abd3fa92ebc89c1cd |access-date= 24 April 2019}}</ref>''
''The Human Face<ref>{{cite web |title= Radio Times |publisher=BBC |website=BBC Genome |date=19 April 1991 |url= https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/1ce78b0b452c4c5abd3fa92ebc89c1cd |access-date= 24 April 2019}}</ref>''
| [[Nichola Bruce]]
| [[Nichola Bruce]]
Michael Coulson
Michael Coulson
Line 417: Line 418:
|Bernard MacMahon
|Bernard MacMahon
|}
|}

==See also==
*[[Storyville (TV series)|Storyville]], a similar documentary series by the BBC


==Sources==
==Sources==
Line 442: Line 446:
[[Category:BBC high definition shows]]
[[Category:BBC high definition shows]]
[[Category:BBC television documentaries]]
[[Category:BBC television documentaries]]
[[Category:English-language television shows]]
[[Category:British English-language television shows]]

Latest revision as of 09:14, 18 April 2024

Arena
Message in a bottle title sequence used by Arena since 1975.
GenreDocumentary
Created byHumphrey Burton
Written byVarious
Directed byVarious
Opening theme"Another Green World" by Brian Eno
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of episodesover 600
Production
Editors
Running time60 minutes
Production companyBBC Arts
Original release
NetworkBBC Two (1975–2011)
BBC Four (2003–present)
Release1 October 1975 (1975-10-01) –
present

Arena is a British television documentary series, made and broadcast by the BBC since 1 October 1975. Voted by TV executives in Broadcast magazine as one of the top 50 most influential programmes of all time, it has produced more than six hundred episodes directed by, among others, Frederick Baker, Jana Boková, Jonathan Demme, Nigel Finch, Mary Harron, Vikram Jayanti, Vivian Kubrick, Paul Lee, Adam Low, Bernard MacMahon, James Marsh, Leslie Megahey, Volker Schlondorff, Martin Scorsese, Julien Temple, Anthony Wall, Leslie Woodhead, and Alan Yentob.

History

[edit]

The arts strand Arena was initially created in 1975[1] by the BBC Head of Music & Arts at that time, Humphrey Burton, when he founded a magazine named Arena exploring art, design, filmmaking, and theatre. In 1977, under producer and director Leslie Megahey, the strand divided into Arena Theatre and Arena Art and Design, and Arena became less of a magazine and more a home for short, distinctive and stylish films about mainly British theatre and visual arts. In 1978, Megahey became editor of Omnibus and Alan Yentob, who had been supervising Arena Theatre, took over and the two themes were merged. The series, relaunched in January 1979 and renamed simply Arena, began to adopt a format of single subject essays. It earned great critical acclaim for its enthusiasm for the popular as well as the high arts. During Yentob's time as editor, Arena had six BAFTA nominations and three BAFTA awards.

A group of radical directors, notably Nigel Finch and Anthony Wall, gathered around Yentob and Arena, including Nigel Williams and Mary Dickinson. Hits from 1979 included Who Is Poly Styrene?,[2] La Dame Aux Gladiolas,[3] a portrait of Edna Everage, and most notably the groundbreaking My Way,[4] an examination of the appeal of the song, by Finch and Wall. It was the first of their collaborations, which developed a new kind of arts film, taking an unlikely subject and building a poetic meditation on its various aspects - further examples include The Chelsea Hotel (1981),[5] The Private Life of the Ford Cortina (1982),[6] Desert Island Discs (1982).[7] Other successes included Megahey's portrait of Orson Welles (1982),[8][9] Williams's study of George Orwell (1982),[10][11][12][13] Yentob's portrait of Mel Brooks (1981)[14] and Wall's four-part documentary on Slim Gaillard (1989).[15][16][17]

On Yentob's move to become Head of Music & Arts in 1985, Finch and Wall took over as joint editors of Arena until Finch's death in 1995. Following a period of uncertainty concerning the future of the arts strand, series editor Wall protected the series in a reshuffle of the BBC. Since then Arena has been transmitted outside the conventional weekly broadcast strand on BBC Two and BBC Four, and latterly on BBC Four.

Under Wall and Finch, Arena developed the idea of the themed evening, beginning with Blues Night (1985),[18] followed by Caribbean Nights (1986),[19] Animal Night (1989),[20] Food Night (1990),[21] Texas Saturday Night (1991),[22] Radio Night simulcast with BBC Radio 4 (1993)[23] and Stories My Country Told Me (1995),[24] a three-and-a-half-hour presentation on Nations and Nationalism. Since then Arena has won numerous awards with regular screenings at the BFI Southbank and has continued to cover the arts and culture at the highest level, with films on Bob Dylan, Harold Pinter, The National Theatre and Spitting Image, to name but a few.

Arena developed a substantial online presence featuring the Arena Hotel, a site that turns the 600-film Arena archive into a resource to build an online hotel for the stars. The Arena Hotel was nominated for a Focal International Award in 2013.[citation needed] Werner Herzog has praised the series as "the oasis in the sea of insanity that is television".[citation needed]

Wall retired in 2018, and the strand is now overseen by commissioning editor Mark Bell.[25]

Branding

[edit]

The programme's theme music is taken from the title track of the 1975 album Another Green World by Brian Eno, himself the subject of a 2010 Arena film subtitled Another Green World.[26]

The Arena opening titles were voted among the "Top 5 Most Influential Opening Titles in the History of Television" by Broadcast magazine in 2004.

Series editors

[edit]

Anthony Wall edited Arena since 1985. He joined the series in 1978 and became one of its leading directors.

Awards and nominations

[edit]

Arena has won a Primetime and International Emmys,[27] a Grammy,[28] nine BAFTAs,[29] six Royal Television Society Awards, a Peabody and the Prix Italia. Arena also won the Sundance Grand Jury Prize for Paris Is Burning (1990), the Best Performance Award for Lili Taylor's role in I Shot Andy Warhol (1996) at the Sundance Film Festival, and the SFFIF's Mel Novikoff Award.[30]

Selected filmography

[edit]
Year Films Director
1979

Now and Then - Anthony Green

Nigel Williams
1979

My Way

Nigel Finch
1980

Making The Shining

Vivian Kubrick
1981

The Comic Strip Hero

Anthony Wall
1981

Chelsea Hotel

Nigel Finch
1981

Brixton to Barbados

Anthony Wall
1982

The Orson Welles Story

Alan Yentob

L. Megahey

1983

Burroughs

H. Brookner
1983

Borges and I

D. Wheatley
1985

Old Kent Road

M. Dickinson
1985

Saint Genet

Nigel Williams

C. Chabot

1986

C. L. R. James' First Cricket XI

C. Pattinson
1987

The Confessions of Robert Crumb

M. Dickinson
1987

Evelyn Waugh Trilogy

Adam Low
1987

Stop Making Sense

Jonathan Demme
1988

Kapuściński

Adam Low
1989

The Other Graham Greene

Nigel Finch
1989

Slim Gaillard's Civilisation (Episode 1) - "A Traveller's Tale"[31]

Anthony Wall
1989

Slim Gaillard's Civilisation (Episode 2) - "How High The Moon"[32]

Anthony Wall
1989

Slim Gaillard's Civilisation (Episode 3) - "My Dinner With Dizzy"[33]

Anthony Wall
1989

Slim Gaillard's Civilisation (Episode 4) - "Everything's OK in the UK"[34]

Anthony Wall
1990

Paris is Burning

J. Livingston

Nigel Finch

1991

Miller Meets Mandela

B. Marcus

Nigel Finch

1991

Kenneth Anger's Hollywood Babylon

Nigel Finch
1991

The Human Face[35]

Nichola Bruce

Michael Coulson

1993

Edward Said

F Hanly

T. May

1993

The Last Soviet Citizen

Leslie Woodhead
1994

Kalashnikov[36]

Paul Lee
1994

Marvin Gaye

J. Marsh
1995

Punk and the Pistols

P. Tickell
1995

Stonewall

Nigel Finch
1996

Stories My Country Told Me: The Meaning of Nationhood - Eric Hobsbawn and Slovakian Nationalism[37]

Frederick Baker
1996

Stories My Country Told Me: The Meaning of Nationhood - Desmond Tutu and the Rainbow Nation[37]

T. May
1996

Stories My Country Told Me: The Meaning of Nationhood - Eqbal Ahmad on the Grand Trunk Road[37]

H. O. Hazareth
1996

The Burger & the King: The Life & Cuisine of Elvis Presley

James Marsh
1996

I Shot Andy Warhol

M. Harron
1997

The Football Men

F. Hanly
1999

Cuba Night

P. Esterson

J. Shinner

1999

Salman Rushdie

M. Dickinson
1999

Looking for the Iron Curtain

Anthony Wall
2000

Wisconsin Death Trip

James Marsh
2000

Clint Eastwood

Anthony Wall

B. Ricker

2001

Salgado: Spectre of Hope

P. Carlin
2002

Kurosawa

Adam Low
2002

Harold Pinter Season at the BBC

Anthony Wall

Nigel Williams Martin Rosenbaum

2003

Imagine Imagine

Frederick Baker
2003

Dylan Thomas: Grave to Cradle

Anthony Wall
2004

Pavarotti: The Last Tenor

Frank Hanly
2004

Shadowing the Third Man

Frederick Baker
2004

Painting the Clouds: A Portrait of Dennis Potter

Martin Rosenbaum

Nigel Williams

2005

Calling Hedy Lamarr

Georg Misch
2005

Bacon's Arena

Adam Low
2005

No Direction Home: Bob Dylan

Martin Scorsese
2005

The Princess and Panorama

Samantha Peters
2006

Pete Doherty

Ashtar Alkhirsan
2007

Underground

Zimena Percival
2007

Bob Marley's Exodus '77

Anthony Wall
2007

Encountering Bergman

David Thompson
2007

Bergman and the Cinema

Marie Nyrerod
2008

V.S. Naipaul: The Strange Luck Of...

Adam Low
2008

Phil Spector

Vikram Jayanti
2009

T. S. Eliot

Adam Low
2010

Brian Eno: Another Green World

Nicola Roberts
2010

Harold: A Celebration

Anthony Wall
2010

Dave Brubeck: In His Own Sweet Way

Bruce Ricker
2011

Produced by George Martin

Frank Hanly
2011

George Harrison: Living in the Material World

Martin Scorsese
2012

Dickens On Film

Anthony Wall
2012

Sonny Rollins: This is Who I Am

Dick Fontaine
2012

The Dreams of William Golding

Adam Low
2012

Jonathan Miller

David Thompson
2012

Amy Winehouse: The Day She Came to Dingle

Maurice Linnane
2012

The Beatles' Magical Mystery Tour Revisited

Frank Hanly
2012

Screen Goddesses

David Thompson
2012

Sister Wendy and the Art of the Gospels

Randall Wright
2013

AKA Norman Parkinson

Nicola Roberts
2013

The National Theatre

Adam Low
2014

Whatever Happened to Spitting Image?

Anthony Wall
2014

The 50 Year Argument: The New York Review of Books

Martin Scorsese

David Tedeschi

2017 The American Epic Sessions Bernard MacMahon
2017 American Epic Bernard MacMahon

See also

[edit]
  • Storyville, a similar documentary series by the BBC

Sources

[edit]
  • Vahimagi, Tise. British Television: An Illustrated Guide. Oxford: Oxford University Press / British Film Institute, 1994. ISBN 0-19-818336-4.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Tise Vahimagi. (2003-12) "Burton, Humphrey (1931-) ". BFI Screen Online". Retrieved 27 June 2013.
  2. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 22 January 1979. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  3. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 19 March 1979. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  4. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 12 March 1979. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  5. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 3 January 1981. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  6. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 19 January 1982. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  7. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 23 February 1982. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  8. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 18 May 1982. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  9. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 21 May 1982. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  10. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 29 December 1983. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  11. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 30 December 1983. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  12. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 2 January 1984. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  13. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 4 January 1984. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  14. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 2 October 1981. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  15. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 22 October 1989. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  16. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 29 October 1989. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  17. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 5 November 1989. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  18. ^ "Schedule - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  19. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 14 June 1986. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  20. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 16 December 1989. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  21. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 15 December 1990. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  22. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 24 August 1991. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  23. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 18 December 1993. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  24. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 14 July 1996. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  25. ^ "Arts Commissioning". BBC Commissioning. Retrieved 17 March 2021.
  26. ^ Nigel Smith (22 February 2010). "Brian Eno and the Arena Bottle". BBC Music Blog. BBC. Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  27. ^ International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (2013). "International Emmy Awards – Previous Winners 'Arts Programme'" Archived 5 December 2007 at the Wayback Machine. The International Emmy Awards. Retrieved 19 June 2013.
  28. ^ The Recording Academy (2013). "GRAMMY.COM Past Winners Search – 'No Direction Home'". GRAMMY.COM. Retrieved 19 June 2013.
  29. ^ British Academy of Film and Television Arts (2013). "BAFTA Awards Search – 'Arena'". BAFTA. Retrieved 19 June 2013.
  30. ^ "SFFILM to Honor BBC Portrait Television Series Arena with Mel Novikoff Award at 2019 San Francisco International Film Festival". SFFILM. 20 March 2019. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  31. ^ Wall, Anthony (22 October 1989). "A Traveller's Tale". An Arena Special:Slim Gaillard's Civilisation. Episode 1. BBC Two. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
  32. ^ Wall, Anthony (29 October 1989). "How High The Moon". An Arena Special:Slim Gaillard's Civilisation. Episode 2. BBC Two. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
  33. ^ Wall, Anthony (5 November 1989). "My Dinner With Dizzy". An Arena Special:Slim Gaillard's Civilisation. Episode 3. BBC Two. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
  34. ^ Wall, Anthony (12 November 1989). "Everything's OK in the UK". An Arena Special:Slim Gaillard's Civilisation. Episode 4. BBC Two. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
  35. ^ "Radio Times". BBC Genome. BBC. 19 April 1991. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
  36. ^ Weprin, Alex (8 March 2008). "Paul Lee: Next-Gen Adventures in Audience-Building". Broadcasting & Cable. Retrieved 15 December 2015.
  37. ^ a b c Stories My Country Told Me: The Meaning of Nationhood. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Arena_(British_TV_series)&oldid=1219530424"