BBC Four heeft blijkbaar nog veel meer moois in petto dan de documentaire over Michael Rosenberg die een school aan het lezen wil krijgen. Een blik op de programma’s van de komende week (let op, alle tijden zijn Engelse tijd!):

‘Why reading matters’
‘Science writer Rita Carter tells the story of how modern neuroscience has revealed that reading, something most of us take for granted, unlocks remarkable powers. Carter explains how the classic novel Wuthering Heights allows us to step inside other minds and understand the world from different points of view, and she wonders whether the new digital revolution could threaten the values of classic reading.’
 9 Feb 2009 – 21:00 – BBC Four
10 Feb 2009 – 00:00 – BBC Four 
10 Feb 2009 – 03:00 – BBC

When We Were Very Young:
‘Series which reveals the enchanting story of our childhood reading. This opening part looks at our very first books and the picture-book heaven they create for under-fives, exploring the magical interplay of words and pictures and how they begin to shape our childhood imagination. Featuring favourites from The Tale of Peter Rabbit to Charlie and Lola, from Noddy to Thomas the Tank Engine, plus modern classics such as We’re Going on a Bear Hunt and Each Peach Pear Plum. There are also interviews, readings and demonstrations of their art from leading writers and illustrators including Michael Rosen, Shirley Hughes, Alan Ahlberg and Lauren Child.’
09 Feb 2009 – 19:30 – BBC Four
10 Feb 2009 – 01:00 – BBC Four

Now We Are Six:
‘Series telling the enchanting story of children’s books continues by looking at the time we first begin to read, and how the magical interplay of words and images continues to shape our childhood imagination. From the age of six we want books to make sense of the middle years of our childhood as we go to school and make new friendships, a time when we love books full of fantastical worlds, a comforting place of talking animals, but also a frightening one of wild woods and giants. The programme explores over 150 years of classic books, from Alice in Wonderland to The Wind in the Willows, from Winnie the Pooh to The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, and features interviews, readings and demonstrations of their art from leading writers and illustrators such as Philip Pullman, Jacqueline Wilson, Anthony Horowitz, Quentin Blake and Raymond Briggs.’
10 Feb 2009 – 19:30 – BBC Four
11 Feb 2009 – 01:10 – BBC Four

Now We Are Growing Up:
‘Series telling the enchanting story of childhood reading looks at books that help us with the growing pains of our early adolescence and teens.

Though words on the page begin to dominate, we still need strong visual imagery in books to understand darker and more complex worlds, as the magical interplay of words and pictures continues into early adulthood. Books explored here include Treasure Island, Swallows and Amazons, Lord of the Rings, Stig of the Dump, Tracey Beaker, Northern Lights and Artemis Fowl, while there are interviews, readings and demonstrations of their art from leading writers and illustrators including Philip Pullman, Jacqueline Wilson, Eoin Colfer, David Almond, Ralph Steadman and Dave McKean.’

11 Feb 2009 – 19:30 – BBC Four
12 Feb 2009 – 01:00 – BBC Four

Books for Boys: A Mission Impossible:
‘Richard Hammond investigates the art of writing children’s fiction and discovers that it isn’t as easy as he thinks. Contributors include authors Mallory Blackman and Anthony Horowitz, publishers David Elliot and Brad Thompson, novelist John O’Farrell, children’s author Garth Nix and feminist writer Natasha Walter.’

11 Feb 2009 – 20:30 – BBC Four

How Reading Made Us Modern:
‘English literature professor John Mullan explores the dramatic increase in reading which took place in 18th-century Britain, as it went from being the preserve of the rich to the national pastime it is today. In 1695 a tiny amendment to the British constitution allowed for a flood of publications, without which Britain would be almost unrecognisable. This was the era that gave us the first ever magazines, newspapers and perhaps most vitally, the novel. Mullan takes us from raucous, politically-charged coffee houses to the circulating library, the social space of the late 1700s. There is a glimpse inside an 18th century lady’s closet where she hid with her novel, and Mullan also celebrates the hero of the reading revolution, Dr Samuel Johnson.
11 Feb 2009 – 21:00 – BBC Four
12 Feb 2009 – 00:00 – BBC Four
12 Feb 2009 - 03:00 – BBC Four

BBC Four – een van de digitale zenders van de BBC – zit in sommige pakketten digitale televisie. De zender heeft ook een ‘Watch live’-optie op de website.