Mark Lawson talks to novelists who have taken on another writer's characters, including P D James, who wrote a Pride and Prejudice sequel, Anthony Horowitz, creator of a new Sherlock Holmes story, Jeffery Deaver, author of the latest James Bond book, and Frank Cottrell Boyce, who took on another of Ian Fleming's creations - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

And what happens to a novel left unfinished when a writer dies? Incomplete manuscripts left by British novelist Beryl Bainbridge and American writer Michael Crichton were posthumously brought to publication this year, with the help of editor Brendan King and scientific journalist Richard Preston respectively. They discuss how they approached this poignant task, and A N Wilson, writer and friend of Beryl Bainbridge, reflects on the process.

Producer Katie Langton.

John Wilson talks to singers Tony Bennett, Johnny Mathis, Jack Jones and Bruce Forsyth, whose careers began before rock and roll, and whose combined performing experience totals over 200 years. They reflect on the art of 'intimate singing', their inspirations, and the art of sustaining a career in a business which has changed radically over seven decades.

Producer Jerome Weatherald.

Kirsty Lang examines how writers from India and Pakistan are tackling social and political shifts, with Booker-winner Aravind Adiga, Aatish Taseer, Mohammed Hanif and Moni Mohsin.

All have published fiction in the past year with a focus on complex current issues in their respective countries, including terrorism in Pakistan and the huge social changes brought about by India's economic boom.

They also reflect on the differences between readers in the Indian subcontinent and those who live outside it, and discuss how - as Aravind Adiga reveals - a warm critical reception in the UK is no guarantee of critical praise at home.

Producer Rebecca Nicholson.

Mark Lawson talks to three tenors and a counter-tenor: Joseph Calleja (pictured), Ian Bostridge, Mark Padmore and Iestyn Davies reflect on repertoire, singing teachers and the perils of phlegm.

Producer Georgia Mann.

Mark Lawson unwraps a further selection of new interviews with arts headline makers of 2011.

Stage and screen actor Dominic West discusses playing serial murderer Fred West, Shakespeare's Iago, and upper-class anchorman Hector Madden in The Hour.

Tracey Emin, newly-appointed Professor of Drawing at the Royal Academy, reflects on opening the new Turner Contemporary gallery in her home town of Margate, her solo show at the Hayward Gallery, London, and her art-work for 10 Downing Street.

Director Tom Hooper considers the success of his Oscar-winning film The King's Speech, and how almost a year after its release it is still winning awards.

Another British film The Inbetweeners, based on the TV comedy, has taken more than £45 million at the UK box office and is the biggest-selling DVD this Christmas. Writers Iain Morris and Damon Beesley reveal how far they are prepared to push the cast.

And Mark meets Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood, judges on The Great British Bake Off, one of the year's unexpected TV hits. They discuss their approach to cake-tasting, and the art of judging the perfect bake.

Producer Lisa Davis.

Mark Lawson unwraps a selection of new interviews with arts headline makers of 2011.

Booker Prize winner Julian Barnes explains why he no longer refuses to read his reviews, and poet Jo Shapcott, winner of the Costa Prize for her collection Of Mutability, discusses why the book's subject, her cancer, is never referred to explicitly.

Director Nicholas Hytner and writer Richard Bean reflect on the success of their hit play One Man, Two Guvnors, which will make its way to Broadway after a sell-out UK tour and London run.

Film-maker Andrea Arnold is best known for contemporary dramas such as Red Road and Fish Tank, but her 2011 version of Wuthering Heights won wide acclaim. She reveals why her next film won't be an adaptation.

Architect Sir David Chipperfield received the RIBA Royal Gold Medal this year, as well as completing the Turner Contemporary in Margate and the Hepworth in Wakefield. He discusses how the current wranglings in Europe could affect his profession.

Producer Ellie Bury.

With John Wilson.

Paul Merton reviews the new silent film The Artist, which with six Golden Globe nominations is already the surprise hit of this year's Hollywood awards season.

Adele's producer Paul Epworth discusses his part in creating this year's biggest album, 21, for which he has received four Grammy nominations, and how he and Adele came up with the hit song Rolling in the Deep.

It's almost a century since a Parisian barber's shop began the urban romance with neon when it put up the first commercial neon sign. Although neon has fallen out of commercial favour, artists are breathing new life into the medium. John went to the Neon Workshops in Wakefield, Yorkshire, to learn how to make his own neon artwork.

The neon art is now installed at the BBC's building in Salford. The graphic designer Peter Saville, famed for his record sleeves for the likes of New Order, Joy Division, Roxy Music and Pulp - and a huge neon fan - joins John, along with the Junior Royal Northern College Brass Quintet and the BBC North Staff Choir, to switch on the first Front Row artwork.

Producer Ekene Akalawu.

With John Wilson.

Michelle Yeoh, star of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon and Tomorrow Never Dies, on playing Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi in The Lady. Luc Besson's film tells the extraordinary story of the Nobel Peace Prize winner, who sacrificed her personal life for her people, remaining under house arrest in Burma even when her Oxford-based husband Michael Aris was dying of cancer.

Radio 1 DJ Scott Mills; BBC Proms presenter Suzy Klein; and writer and critic David Hepworth nominate their album of the year for 2011.

And - Julian Barnes thanked his book jacket designer in his Booker acceptance speech this year and emphasised the importance of books as beautiful objects. At a time when e-readers are changing the publishing landscape, Barnes' designer Suzanne Dean and art director at Harper Collins Alice Moore reflect on how the role of the cover designer might evolve.

Producer Lisa Davis.

With Mark Lawson.

Jennifer Saunders reflects on the return of Absolutely Fabulous, 20 years after Patsy and Eddy first staggered onto our screens.

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol is the latest instalment of the action-packed franchise. The film sees Tom Cruise return as undercover operative Ethan Hunt, trotting the globe in an attempt to clear his name of terrorism charges and prevent a nuclear attack. Naomi Alderman gives her verdict.

Television is as much part of a traditional Christmas as turkey, with programmes including Downton Abbey, Doctor Who and Great Expectations on offer this year. Sarah Crompton makes her selection.

And a tribute to Vaclav Havel, the playwright and former Czech President who died this weekend, from his friend and translator Paul Wilson.

Producer Katie Langton Presenter Mark Lawson.

With Mark Lawson.

Former Monty Python star Terry Jones has now written 26 books. His latest, Evil Machines, is a collection of 13 short stories which explore what happens when everyday objects take on a life of their own. He discusses the inspiration for the book, life as a Python and his relationship with the group now.

The young lives of James Herriot and Inspector Morse will soon arrive on our TV screens. Glasgow in the 1930s is the setting for the adventures of James Herriot as an idealistic student vet; and Endeavour turns the clock back to 1965, when the young Morse is in Oxford to hunt for a missing schoolgirl. Rebecca Nicholson and Chris Dunkley assess the new portrayals of two much-loved TV characters.

And conductor Jeremy Summerly gives an illustrated guide at the keyboard to those underrated Christmas carols which deserve to be better known.

Producer Jerome Weatherald.

With Mark Lawson.

David Fincher's directing credits include The Social Network, Fight Club, Se7en and Alien3, and his latest film is an adaptation of Stieg Larsson's book The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, starring Daniel Craig. Fincher discusses his approach to filming a book that has already sold 65 million copies worldwide and been made into a successful trilogy of movies in Swedish.

Mark Lawson and Jeff Park make their selection of crime books for Christmas including works by P D James, Umberto Eco and Anthony Horowitz.

Vikram Seth is best known for his novel A Suitable Boy, but he's also written a series of opera libretti, as part of a collaboration with composer Alec Roth, and now published as The Rivered Earth. Vikram Seth discusses the working process and how a former owner of his house made a mark on the project.

Producer Nicki Paxman.

With John Wilson.

Historian Simon Schama has selected his pick of works from the Government Art Collection for an exhibition at the Whitechapel Gallery. While hanging the exhibition, he reveals how his choices were inspired by the British romance with travelling.

Dame Edna Everage, Ann Widdecombe and Vanilla Ice are all making their pantomime debuts this year. Danny Robins has seen all three and considers the qualities needed for panto success.

A large crane has been lowering a new art project onto the roof of the Queen Elizabeth Hall on London's South Bank today. Created by artist Fiona Banner and architect David Kohn, A Room for London is designed to look like a boat, and is going to be available for people to live and sleep in for a night. The Artangel/Living Architecture project will be there for the whole of 2012. John reports from the site.

Producer Philippa Ritchie.

With Mark Lawson

Two decades after the last series of Only Fools and Horses, Sir David Jason returns to BBC One as the star of a new comedy series. He discusses his role as the incompetent bodyguard of the Queen, his close relationship with Ronnie Barker, and whether he can predict which lines will get the best laugh.

Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law have joined forces again for a second Sherlock Holmes film, directed by Guy Ritchie. In A Game of Shadows, Holmes and Dr. Watson take on their fiercest adversary, Professor Moriarty. Crime writer Natasha Cooper reviews.

Hit or miss? The Front Row Jukebox Jury delivers its verdict on a sackful of this year's festive releases. Music critics David Hepworth and Rosie Swash discuss songs from Mariah Carey and Justin Bieber, the cast of The Only Way Is Essex, Michael Buble, The Killers and many more.

Producer Claire Bartleet.

With Kirsty Lang.

Meryl Streep is hotly tipped for Oscar success for her performance as Margaret Thatcher in the forthcoming film The Iron Lady. She discusses how she mastered Thatcher's famous voice, why she decided to donate her fee for the film to charity and how she feels about her daughters following her into the acting profession.

Director Shane Meadows continues the story of a group of young skinheads who first appeared in his film This is England, set in 1983. This is England 88 is the second in a series of television sequels, and stars Vicky McClure as Lol, now struggling to cope with life as a single mother. Dreda Say Mitchell reviews.

Reviewers Georgia Coleridge and Damian Kelleher offer their pick of the year's children's books, ranging from picture books to teenage fiction.

Producer Nicki Paxman.

With Kirsty Lang.

Lee Evans, Peter Kay, Ross Noble, Sarah Millican, Alan Carr and Milton Jones are among the host of comedians releasing new DVDs aimed at Christmas shoppers. Comedy critic Stephen Armstrong discusses the stand-up boom, and whether any of the DVDs is worth a second viewing.

Sophie Okonedo and Ben Daniels star in Haunted Child, a new play by Joe Penhall. A small boy and his mother struggle to understand why the father abandoned them to join a religious cult, and his motives for returning to the family home. Julie Myerson reviews.

The artist Graham Sutherland is the focus of a new exhibition curated by Turner Prize nominee George Shaw. Sutherland, who died in 1980, produced a wide range of work, including landscapes, images of the Blitz and portraits, including one of Winston Churchill, which was loathed by Churchill's wife. Writer Alexandra Harris and art critic Richard Cork reflect on Sutherland's current reputation.

Composer Joshua Cody was diagnosed with an aggressive cancer when in his early thirties. He charts his experience of treatment and his reaction to the diagnosis, whilst aiming to avoid what he describes as the classic cancer memoir. Instead, he describes his morphine delusions, and the comfort he found in writers, poets and artists.

Crime writer Mark Billingham loves a good narrative. And particularly in pop songs. He raises a glass to Two Little Boys, Copacabana and Bohemian Rhapsody, as there's nothing better than a good yarn with a beginning, a middle and an end set to music.

Producer Katie Langton.

With Kirsty Lang.

Singer Annie Lennox reflects on a career which has seen her push boundaries in both music and fashion, as she releases an album of Christmas songs and sees her V&A exhibition, The House Of Annie Lennox, go on tour early next year.

The Ladykillers, the classic Ealing comedy film, now arrives on stage in a new adaptation by Graham Linehan, with a cast including Peter Capaldi, Ben Miller and James Fleet. Writer Iain Sinclair reviews.

Wallace and Gromit creator Nick Park makes a foray into live action directing with a music video for the band Native and the Name. He explains why the song in question had such resonance and how he persuaded 50 members of the Aardman staff to donate their time to help.

In the film Another Earth, a young woman's life is changed forever by the discovery of an identical Earth, moving ever closer to ours. Roger Luckhurst reviews this debut feature from screen-writer and actress Brit Marling.

The musical 42nd Street features a young unknown chorus-line dancer who's forced to step into the starring role when the leading lady can't go on. This actually happened in the opening night of a new production in Leicester. Understudy Lucinda Lawrence reveals what it was like to "come back a star".

Producer Rebecca Nicholson.

With Mark Lawson.

Singer and songwriter Carole King enjoyed her first hit fifty years ago, and released her landmark album Tapestry four decades ago. She discusses her career so far and her first-ever seasonal album, A Christmas Carole, including a Chanukah Prayer recorded with her daughter and grandson.

Eddie Redmayne takes the title role in a new staging of Shakespeare's Richard II, directed by Michael Grandage. Adam Mars-Jones gives his verdict.

Don DeLillo, whose novels include the epic Underworld, talks about his new collection of short stories, The Angel Esmeralda, and reflects on his approach to writing and the depictions of time and history shown in his work.

Two films out this week make visual references to other films from the same production team. Mark Eccleston discusses the art of inter-film referencing, undertaken by directors including Tim Burton and Stanley Kubrick.

Producer Georgia Mann.

With Mark Lawson.

Amy Winehouse's posthumous album Lioness: Hidden Treasures was released yesterday and is already topping the midweek charts. Editor of NME magazine Krissi Murison gives her critical verdict on the disc, and considers the issues surrounding the release of recordings after an artist's death.

The acerbic art reviewer Brian Sewell reflects on his experience as a student at the Courtauld Institute with Anthony Blunt, his life as a critic and 21st century attitudes to art.

New Year's Eve is a seasonal romantic comedy, with an ensemble cast including Hilary Swank, Sarah Jessica Parker, Halle Berry and Robert De Niro. Jason Solomons reviews.

Producer Ellie Bury.

With Mark Lawson.

Writer and comedy performer John Cleese reflects on his career, including the rivalries between the Monty Python team, the creation of Fawlty Towers and the film A Fish Called Wanda. He also discusses breaking taboos, morality in comedy and the multi-million dollar divorce settlement which led to his recent show The Alimony Tour.

Producer Claire Bartleet.

The Heart of Robin Hood is the new family show at the RSC. But it's the Robin Hood story with a twist. The production is directed by Gisli Örn Gardarsson, who has a reputation for challenging staging. Andrew Dickson reviews.

Novelists Joanna Trollope and Tracy Chevalier discuss how a selection of Tudor portraits of unknown people at the National Portrait Gallery in London inspired them to invent fictional biographies for the mystery portrait sitters.

Professional double-bass player Andy Wood and percussion instrument maker Paul Jefferies discuss making music out of scrap, and perform with instruments including a boiler double bass and tea urn snare drum. The challenge, to be shown in a BBC4 documentary, was to build a Scrapheap Orchestra in 11 weeks and perform Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture at the 2011 Proms.

And John Wilson concludes his reports on the Turner-Prize-shortlisted artists when he meets painter George Shaw, whose landscapes feature the area of Coventry where he grew up.

Producer Jerome Weatherald.

With Kirsty Lang.

Kirsty meets Broadway composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz, whose hugely successful musicals include Godspell and Wicked, and whose 1972 show Pippin now receives a new British production.

Steve Martin, Owen Wilson and Jack Black star in the film The Big Year, in which they compete to see who can spot the most species of birds in North America in one year. Comedian Alex Horne spent a year following his bird watching father and discusses whether the passion and paranoia on screen accurately represent the real world of birding.

Arts Council England has just published Internships in the Arts, which suggests that arts organizations should pay young people working as interns. Martin Bright, founder of New Deal of the Mind, and Richard Mantle, General Director of Opera North, discuss whether theatres and galleries can afford to pay interns in these cash-strapped times.

John Wilson talks to the artist Hilary Lloyd in his latest report on this year's Turner Prize nominees.

Producer Philippa Ritchie.

Lenny Henry was acclaimed when he made his stage debut as Othello, and now he returns to Shakespeare as Antipholus of Syracuse in The Comedy of Errors, in a new production at the National Theatre. Rachel Cooke reviews.

Comedy performer and actor Rob Brydon reflects on his career so far, including his first appearance in a play, starring alongside Kenneth Branagh in Belfast earlier this year. He also recalls an awkward encounter with Harold Pinter.

Charlie Brooker's latest project is Black Mirror, described as a dark trilogy of twisted tales about the power of technology in the 21st century. In the first episode of the TV drama, The National Anthem, written by Brooker, the Prime Minister finds himself forced to consider how far he would go for his country. Matt Thorne gives his verdict.

And John Wilson talks to the artist Martin Boyce in his latest report on Turner Prize nominees.

Producer Jerome Weatherald.

With Mark Lawson.

Ricky Gervais discusses the response to his TV comedy series Life's Too Short, which stars Warwick Davies as a "showbiz dwarf", and his return as host of the Golden Globes, following this year's insult-packed ceremony.

Choreographer Wayne McGregor and composer Mark-Anthony Turnage discuss their new collaboration, Undance, inspired by the 19th Century photographer Eadweard Muybridge.

Wealth-creation gurus are the focus of a new three-part documentary series Money by the film-maker Vanessa Engle. Lucy Kellaway of the Financial Times reviews the series alongside Channel 4's documentary The Ultimate Guide to Penny Pinching, about the UK's thriftiest people.

And in the first of a series of interviews with the four artists contending for this year's Turner Prize, John Wilson meets sculptor Karla Black.

Producer Timothy Prosser.

Martin Scorsese has directed his first film in 3D. Adapted from the book The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick, Hugo is the tale of a boy who lives in a Paris railway station in the 1930s, and features Ben Kingsley, Jude Law and Sacha Baron Cohen. Naomi Alderman reviews.

The winner of the William Hill Sports Book of the Year 2011 is announced today. Mark interviews all seven shortlisted authors, whose books cover a range of sports including football, rugby, cycling, running and bullfighting, and the winner of the £27,500 prize responds to the judges' verdict.

The death of the film-maker Ken Russell was announced today. He was 84. Critic Mark Kermode reflects on Russell's life and career, and there's another chance to hear Ken Russell himself discussing his home movies and his opinions on the film industry, from a Front Row interview recorded in 2008.

Producer Nicki Paxman.

With Kirsty Lang.

Shakespeare scholar Eric Rasmussen has spent the last decade tracking down every extant copy of one of the world's most sought-after books: Shakespeare's First Folio. With fewer than 750 printed in 1623, the first edition of Shakespeare's collected works has proved a magnet for thieves, forgers and eccentric collectors ever since. Eric Rasmussen discusses what his quest revealed.

Essex, Chelsea and Newcastle have all been settings for so-called scripted reality TV shows in recent months. The latest place to get the reality treatment is Liverpool, with two planned series about Merseyside life. The first is E4's Desperate Scousewives which follows the blingtastic lives of Liverpool's most glamorous residents. Boyd Hilton reviews the programme and reflects on the scripted reality phenomenon.

A new generation of book events is attracting new and younger audiences to hear novelists read their work. Organisers of events in London, Glasgow and Cornwall, as well as best-selling writer David Nicholls, discuss how these literary night clubs are changing attitudes to books and driving sales during a tough period for the publishing industry.

Fyfe Dangerfield is best known as the lead singer of the band The Guillemots. Now he's creating the score for a stage version of Howl's Moving Castle. He explains how he captured the eerie mood of the book and why he never set out to be a singer.

Producer Katie Langton.

With Kirsty Lang.

Film-maker Terence Davies has adapted and directed The Deep Blue Sea, based on the play by Terence Rattigan. It stars Rachel Weisz as a woman who walks out on her husband and her comfortable life, to move in with a young former RAF pilot. Peter Kemp give his verdict.

As piano duo Katia and Marielle Labèque embark on a three day festival celebrating minimalist music, they discuss whether sisterhood is useful when sharing a piano, and why minimalism has a lot in common with rock and roll.

To mark four decades of Newsround, the children's news programme will receive a special Children's BAFTA award this weekend. John Craven, its original presenter, reflects on it covering difficult events such as the Challenger shuttle disaster and the arrest of murderer Fred West.

Pixie Lott's new album has a track which includes a harmonica solo by Stevie Wonder. It's the first time the two artists have worked together, though Stevie Wonder's distinctive harmonica-playing has featured in a host of songs by other musicians. David Quantick considers the art of the harmonica solo.

Producer Rebecca Nicholson.

With John Wilson

As he releases an album of his favourite songs, Sir Bruce Forsyth reflects on seven decades in show business, from duetting with Nat King Cole at the Palladium to his pre-show nerves at last weekend's Wembley Arena edition of Strictly Come Dancing.

Brad Pitt stars in Moneyball, a new film written by West Wing creator Aaron Sorkin. Pitt plays the manager of a low-budget baseball team who uses computer data to identify the best players. Eleanor Oldroyd reviews.

The Ashmolean Museum in Oxford is about to open six new galleries for its collections from Ancient Egypt and Nubia. The new displays more than double the number of mummies and coffins on show, bringing to light items kept in the stores for more than half a century. John takes a tour of the new galleries with the project's curator Liam McNamara.

Producer Ellie Bury.

With John Wilson.

Kate Bush talks about 50 Words for Snow, her first album of brand new material for six years. She discusses her fears about the demise of the album as a format, and reveals that she is already working on new songs.

The film My Week With Marilyn stars Michelle Williams as Marilyn Monroe and Kenneth Branagh as Laurence Olivier. It tells the story of Colin Clark's experiences working in a lowly position on the set of The Prince And The Showgirl, which disastrously paired Monroe and Olivier. Antonia Quirke gives her verdict.

This week sees the publication of what's billed as Jack Kerouac's 'lost' novel, The Sea Is My Brother. 2011 has also seen 'lost' works by C S Forester, Daphne du Maurier and Arthur Conan Doyle arrive in our bookshops. Benedicte Page, associate editor of The Bookseller, explains why publishers are so keen on tracking down missing texts.

Producer Georgia Mann.

With Kirsty Lang

The Riots, a new play by Gillian Slovo, draws on 55 hours of interviews with people who were involved in the disturbances earlier this year, ranging from policemen to the rioters themselves. She reflects on whether theatre can help to uncover the truth behind the unrest.

A sound designer won the prize for Best Design at last night's Evening Standard Theatre Awards, winning against three set designers. Adam Cork discusses the soundscapes he created for productions including Derek Jacobi's King Lear.

Resistance is a new film based on a novel by Owen Sheers, which imagines that Britain is under Nazi occupation. In a Welsh valley, the farmers' wives wake up one morning in 1944 to discover that all their men have disappeared. Mark Eccleston reviews.

Oliver Messel was perhaps the most celebrated theatrical designer Britain has ever produced. His white-on-white design in 1932 for Helen, an updating of Offenbach's operetta, caused a sensation not just on stage but in the world of fashionable society, when people began painting their walls white - a previously unused colour in interior design. Thomas Messel, Oliver's nephew, has edited the first-ever study of Messel's complete work and explains why his uncle's approach was so new.

Producer: Lisa Davis.

With Kirsty Lang.

Tim Minchin describes himself as an Australian musician, composer, songwriter, actor, comedian and writer. He wrote the songs for Matilda: The Musical, the RSC's acclaimed adaptation of Roald Dahl's book about a girl with special powers. He discusses how he writes, and reveals how he fell into comedy by chance.

Rihanna is releasing her sixth album in six years next week, while continuing her world tour. Her manager argues that her fans demand new material, amidst reports of unhappy arena audiences and criticisms of raunchy routines. Rosie Swash considers how stars can best sustain a career.

Nigeria's Nollywood has the second largest film industry in the world by volume - yet very few African films make it into mainstream British cinemas. Gaylene Gould looks at why films such as District 9 from South Africa and Congolese gangster movie Viva Riva! have been successful internationally, whilst many critically-acclaimed African films only make it to art-house cinemas and film festivals.

Gershwin's classic song Someone To Watch Over Me features on the new albums from Susan Boyle, Twiggy and Alfie Boe. It also appears every night in the musical Crazy For You, currently running in London. Gareth Valentine, musical supervisor of the show, analyses why the song is still popular 85 years after it was written.

Producer: Philippa Ritchie.

With Kirsty Lang.

The first series of The Killing, the 20 part Danish crime drama, was widely acclaimed as a TV highlight of the year. Now Detective Inspector Sarah Lund returns with a new investigation. With a double-bill of the first two episodes of the second series being screened this weekend, writer John Harvey reflects on the appeal of this crime marathon.

Perrier Award-winner Sean Hughes reveals why he decided to discuss his father's death in his new stand-up show. The comedian, writer and former Never Mind The Buzzcocks captain considers our reactions to death, and recalls his original route into comedy.

The AIDS epidemic of the early 80s in San Francisco is the subject of a new documentary by the film-maker David Weissman. Five individuals who lived through it look back at a period when thousands of their friends were dying of a disturbing and unfamiliar illness. David Weissman discusses why he felt now was the right time to make his film We Were Here.

A new bargain box set of music by jazz saxophonist Joe Harriott places him back in the spotlight, almost four decades after his death. Jamaican-born Harriott made Britain his home, and argued strongly that musicians here should not feel overshadowed by American stars. Kevin LeGendre looks back at his career.

Producer Claire Bartleet.

With Mark Lawson.

Joanna Lumley and Robert Lindsay star in Trevor Nunn's new production of The Lion in Winter, taking the roles made famous by Katharine Hepburn and Peter O'Toole in the 1968 film, the tale of a dysfunctional family Christmas with the Plantaganets. Kathryn Hughes reviews.

America Ferrera, the star of TV show Ugly Betty, discusses making her British stage debut as the alluring publicity-seeker Roxy Hart in the musical Chicago. She also reflects on her famous TV role, and how she prepared for it.

Welsh composer Paul Mealor received an unexpected boost to his career when his choral piece Ubi Caritas was chosen to be performed at the Royal Wedding earlier this year. He discusses how Ubi Caritas started life as a secular rather than a sacred piece, and why he wasn't in Westminster Abbey on day itself, despite receiving a much-coveted invitation.

Producer Jerome Weatherald.

With Mark Lawson.

Sir Terence Conran, designer, restaurateur and founder of the Habitat chain, celebrated his 80th birthday last month, and tomorrow sees the opening of a major retrospective at the Design Museum in London. The Way We Live Now explores Conran's impact, legacy and approach to design. He discusses his career from post-war austerity through to the present day, and the moment he first realised British design needed an urgent overhaul.

Front Row announces the shortlists for the 2011 Costa Book Awards. The awards recognise the 'most enjoyable' books in five categories - First Novel, Novel, Biography, Poetry and Children's Book - published in the last year by writers based in the UK and Ireland. Gaby Wood of The Daily Telegraph and Alex Clark of The Observer give their response to the shortlisted books and writers.

The independent American film Welcome to the Rileys boasts a cast including Oscar winner Melissa Leo, James Gandolfini from The Sopranos, and Kristen Stewart from the Twilight films. She plays a New Orleans stripper befriended by a grieving Gandolfini. Matt Thorne reviews.

Producer Claire Bartleet.

With Mark Lawson.

Playwright and film director Neil LaBute discusses his new play Reasons to be Pretty, starring Billie Piper, which asks if conventional beauty can be a curse.

Writer Ian Rankin reviews two new TV shows which focus on undercover operators: Confessions of an Undercover Cop, and Double Agent: The Eddie Chapman Story.

In his new film Justice, Nicolas Cage plays a man who enlists the services of a vigilante group to settle the score after his wife is assaulted. Dreda Say Mitchell reviews.

Although the sales of vinyl records are rising again, the days when every high street boasted a shop filled with LPs and singles are long gone. David Hepworth recalls the vanishing pleasures offered by record shops.

Producer Jerome Weatherald.

With Kirsty Lang.

Pan Am, a new American TV drama, lands on BBC Two next week. The series follows the lives and loves of a group of air hostesses in the early 1960s, who are apparently empowered by their new profession. Janet Street Porter reviews.

Songs of War is a new disc by award-winning British baritone Simon Keenlyside, featuring his personal selection of music by composers including Ralph Vaughan Williams, George Butterworth and Kurt Weill. He explains why some of his choices may come as a surprise.

Remembrance Day is a fitting release-date for new British horror film The Awakening, starring Rebecca Hall and Dominic West. It's set in the years immediately after the First World War, when many of the bereaved sought solace in spiritualism. Professor Steven Connor gives his verdict.

A photograph of the Rhine by Andreas Gursky has fetched $4.3m (£2.7m) in an auction, setting a new world record for photography. Art market watcher Sarah Thornton explains why photographs are becoming the art market's hottest property.

The Caine Prize-winning Kenyan author Binyavanga Wainaina has published One Day I Will Write About This Place, a memoir of his middle-class childhood in Kenya. He reflects on growing up in a country whose literature was, he argues, stuck in a colonial time-warp.

Producer Georgia Mann.

With Mark Lawson.

Michael Sheen stars in the Young Vic's new production of Hamlet. Director Ian Rickson sets the play in the Elsinore Mental Asylum, an institution the audience must also check in to. Hermione Lee reviews.

Kelvin Mackenzie, former editor of The Sun, gives the critical verdict on Tabloid: a new documentary charting the way British newspapers covered the extraordinary tale of Joyce McKinney, a US beauty queen accused of imprisoning a young Mormon missionary in 1977.

Jeffrey Eugenides, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Virgin Suicides and Middlesex, talks about his long- awaited third novel: The Marriage Plot. He discusses how this novel is born of a previous abandoned book, and how a friendly competition with fellow American author Jonathan Franzen has spurred him on throughout his career.

The British Library's collection of medieval and Renaissance illuminated manuscripts are on display together for the first time. The manuscripts were collected over 800 years by Kings and Queens of England. Writer A N Wilson reviews the exhibition.

Producer Ellie Bury.

With John Wilson.

Johnny Depp's latest cinematic tribute to Hunter S Thompson, The Rum Diary, is based on the late journalist's novel of the same name. The semi-autobiographical story follows the boozy and increasingly unhinged exploits of a young American reporter in Puerto Rico in the late 1950s. Iain Sinclair reviews.

Musician, songwriter and producer Nile Rodgers first found fame with his band Chic, before working with Diana Ross, David Bowie, Madonna and many more. He reflects on his unconventional childhood and the unexpected starting points for some of his most popular songs.

Viking gods, murderous giants, monsters and magical transformations provide the raw material for the new novels by Horrid Henry author Francesca Simon and by Joanne Harris, the writer of the bestselling Chocolat. They discuss why Norse mythology still inspires 21st century writers.

Producer LISA DAVIS Presenter JOHN WILSON.

With Mark Lawson.

As queues form for the largest-ever show of Leonardo da Vinci's paintings at the National Gallery, artist Tom Phillips reviews and considers whether the exhibition justifies the hype.

At just 33, Maltese singer Joseph Calleja is tipped as one of the most promising tenors of the 21st century. He talks about his new album and his singing ambitions.

Linguistics specialist David Crystal has selected 100 words which he feels best illustrate the huge variety of sources and events which have shaped the English language. He elaborates on some of his choices, showing how, for example, hello is a relatively new invention - whereas unfriend is nothing like as modern as we think.

Producer Lisa Davis.

With Mark Lawson.

Andrea Arnold's latest film is a re-telling of Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte. The director of Red Road and Fish Tank cast mainly non-professional actors in the film, which aims to escape the conventions of a costume drama. Sarah Crompton reviews.

Oscar-nominated screenwriter Peter Morgan returns to TV with a second series of the legal drama The Jury, nine years after the original series was aired. Morgan, whose credits include The Queen and Frost/Nixon, discusses why he favours writing for TV over cinema, the pressures of writing about living people and a letter he received from Tony Blair.

The Royal Artillery Memorial at Hyde Park Corner, created by Charles Sargeant Jagger, was unveiled in 1925 and features a larger-than-life howitzer carved from Portland stone, standing on a large plinth surrounded by four bronze figures of artillery men. Richard Cork visits the newly-restored memorial ahead of Remembrance Sunday, and re-assesses the power of Jagger's work.

Best-selling crime novelist Peter James talks about his latest book, Perfect People, a thriller set in the pioneering world of gene manipulation. As he explains, though this may sound like science-fiction, genetic planning is already possible to some extent - and so his book also explores the ethics of creating designer babies.

Producer Katie Langton.

With Kirsty Lang.

Singer Michael Stipe and bassist Mike Mills from the band REM discuss what it feels like to 'call it a day as a band' after 30 years, 15 studio albums and 85 million albums sold. They reflect on their career in the light of a new retrospective double album called REM, Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage, 1982-2011.

Artists including Tracey Emin, Rachel Whiteread, Howard Hodgkin and Martin Creed have created posters for the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics, unveiled today. Three of the artists reveal their inspirations, and Waldemar Januszczak discusses whether the new posters are winners.

In a time of austerity, the TV schedules still find space for programmes about the super-rich. Boyd Hilton assesses the appeal of shows such as Billion $$ Girl, about the daughter of F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone, and Keeping Up With The Kardashians.

Producer Philippa Ritchie.

With Mark Lawson.

Anthony Horowitz, author of the Alex Ryder spy series, has written a new Sherlock Holmes novel. He discusses how he has approached the distinctive narrative voice, and reflects on the potential pitfalls in taking on such well-loved characters.

Alice in Wonderland, an exhibition at Tate Liverpool, examines how Lewis Carroll's classic books have inspired a wide range of art, from Victorian paintings to videos. Children's author and illustrator Chris Mould reviews.

Dramatist David Edgar talks about his new play Written on the Heart, which marks the 400th anniversary of the publication of the King James Bible. The play explores the different fates of the two translators: death at the stake for one, and for the other the possibility of an archbishop's mitre.

The next James Bond film will be called Skyfall - which is not one of Ian Fleming's original titles. Language expert David Crystal reflects on the possible sources of the word skyfall, and film critic Mark Eccleston discusses what makes a great Bond title.

Producer: Georgia Mann.

With Mark Lawson.

At the age of 91, P D James has published a new crime novel, which is a sequel to Pride and Prejudice. Death Comes To Pemberley is set in Mr Darcy's ancestral home, where he and Elizabeth Bennet are living in marital bliss, which is suddenly ruptured by a brutal murder on the estate. P D James discusses her passion for Jane Austen and the challenge of living up to the great writer.

Collaborators is a new play by John Hodge, whose film scripts include Trainspotting and Shallow Grave. It's set in Moscow in 1938, where writer Mikhail Bulgakov, played by Alex Jennings, accepts a tricky commission: to write a play celebrating the 60th birthday of Stalin, played by Simon Russell Beale. Michael Berkeley reviews.

Cellist Steven Isserlis believes that the cello is closest of all instruments to the human voice, and his forthcoming concerts at the Wigmore Hall in London investigate the repertoire for voice and strings. Tenor Mark Padmore joins Steven Isserlis to discuss the tensions between singer and player in attempting to create the perfect balance of voice and music.

Producer Jerome Weatherald.

With John Wilson.

Justin Timberlake stars in the sci-fi thriller In Time, set in a world where you die after your 25th birthday unless you can afford to buy more time. Timberlake teams up with a young heiress, played by Amanda Seyfried, to try to destroy the system. Natalie Haynes reviews.

David Bowie's influence in the 1970s, his most productive decade, is the focus of a new book by Peter Doggett. He charts how the music developed through the decade, and reflects on why Bowie's difficult background, including the shadow of a 'family curse' of madness, led to pioneering and experimental personas.

Singer Adele has had to cancel her tour, after the discovery of a haemorrhage on her vocal cords. It's also the time of year when singers live in terror of getting a cold and being forced to cancel performances. Consultant laryngologist John Rubin, voice coach Mary King and soprano Elizabeth Watts discuss the problems singers face, and how they can avoid them.

Two British sit-coms are back for second series. BBC Three's Him and Her, the channel's most successful ever sitcom, returns with unemployed couple Becky (Sarah Solemani) and Steve (Russell Tovey) together in a bedsit. Also returning is E4's PhoneShop, where the staff are determined to beat the downturn. Rebecca Nicholson gives her verdict.

Producer Claire Bartleet.

With John Wilson, including an interview with novelist and screenwriter Ronan Bennett, whose new TV drama series Top Boy focuses on young drug dealers in Hackney, London.

Andrew Lloyd Webber reveals the winners of the first English Heritage Angel Awards, which he founded earlier this year to celebrate the efforts of people attempting to rescue historic buildings or places. He discusses the future funding of restoration projects with Simon Thurley, Chief Executive of English Heritage.

Jack Goes Boating is the directorial debut of the actor Philip Seymour Hoffman. He also stars in the film as a shy and awkward limousine driver who is set up on a blind date. Andrew Collins reviews.

And to mark Halloween, Jeremy Summerly - conductor and lecturer at the Royal Academy of Music - explains how composers create spooky and scary effects in classical music and film scores.

Producer Claire Bartleet.

With Kirsty Lang.

Emma Donoghue is the bestselling author of Room, the Booker-nominated novel inspired by the real life Josef Fritzl case. Her latest book is The Sealed Letter, a historical romp that deals with a scandalous 19th Century divorce case. She talks to Kirsty about why she always avoids taking sides among her characters.

Music critic Caspar Llewellyn Smith reviews a selection of new albums - including Coldplay's recent Mylo Xyloto; Tom Waits' long-awaited Bad As Me; and Parisienne singer Camille's bilingual Ilo Veyou.

Johnny Hallyday has announced he will play his first British concert at the Royal Albert Hall next year. French journalist Agnes Poirier explains the enduring appeal of the Gallic rocker.

Martin Sixsmith reviews a new exhibition of Soviet art and architecture at the Royal Academy in London, which explores how the Russian avant-garde aesthetic reflected the energy and optimism of the new Soviet Socialist State

Plus: America's most famous cellist, Yo-Yo Ma, is renowned for performing works which range far beyond the standard classical repertoire. His latest CD, The Goat Rodeo Sessions, is a collaboration with three string virtuosos: a bluegrass fiddler, a mandolin wizard, and a bassist. Ma talks about his attitude to improvisation - and explains what a goat rodeo is.

Producer Ellie Bury.

With Kirsty Lang.

The enduring fascination with Wallis Simpson continues in The Last of the Duchess, a new play by Nicholas Wright. Juliet Gardiner reviews Richard Eyre's production, and considers Simpson's recent popularity in film, television and literature.

Gerard Butler discusses his role in the film Machine Gun Preacher, based on the true story of a drug dealer who becomes a crusader for children caught up in conflict in Africa.

Kate Prince is the founder and creative director of Zoo Nation, an award winning dance and theatre company. Their show Into The Hoods became both the first ever hip-hop dance show to open in the West End and the longest running dance show in the West End's history. She tells Kirsty how she's trying to change hip hop's violent image.

Space Age technology and ancient Sufi poetry are fused in a new sound installation at Jodrell Bank in Cheshire. Artists Tasawar Bashir and Brian Duffy and astrophysicist Tim O'Brien discuss a work featuring the voice of the celebrated Pakistani musician Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan alongside the sounds of the cosmos.

Producer Lisa Davis.

With Mark Lawson.

George Clooney directs and stars in The Ides of March, a political drama set on the US primary campaign trail. Ryan Gosling plays an up and coming political strategist, whose idealism is threatened by the discovery of a dirty secret. Baroness Shirley Williams reviews.

Jeanette Winterson made her literary debut with Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit, a novel with strong autobiographical references to her troubled childhood. She talks about her new memoir, Why Be Happy When You Can Be Normal?, which promises the true story of her upbringing.

As David Attenborough's latest series Frozen Planet starts on BBC One, he discusses how making programmes about the natural world has changed during his career - and why it's now impossible to ignore climate change when filming.

As protesters remain camped outside St Paul's Cathedral, Mike Bartlett's new play 13 opens at the National Theatre and explores political and social unrest in contemporary London. Andrew Rawnsley gives his verdict.

Producer Georgia Mann.

Kirsty Lang meets Italian intellectual and novelist Umberto Eco, now nearly 80, at his home in Milan. The writer looks back at the surprise success of his first novel The Name of the Rose, published when he was 48, which has sold 50 million copies.

Following successes with subsequent novels including Foucault's Pendulum and Baudolino, Umberto Eco's sixth novel is published in the UK next week. The Prague Cemetery is a controversial novel set in 19th Century Europe, which focuses on the birth of modern-day anti-semitism. The book has already sold one million copies and abounds with conspiracy theories, forgery and deceit. In a rare interview Umberto Eco, a professor in semiotics, reflects on his fascination for language and the way it is used to deceive, which lies at the heart of much of his writing.

Producer Jerome Weatherald.

With Mark Lawson.

Anonymous, directed by Roland Emmerich, claims Shakespeare didn't write any plays or sonnets: the real author was the Earl of Oxford - played by Rhys Ifans - who wrote them all in secret. Ryan Gilbey reviews.

Stephan Solzhenitsyn, son of the Nobel Prize-winning writer Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, reflects on his father's life and legacy, as a new collection of his short stories is published in English for the first time.

Oscar-nominated actress Viola Davis talks to Mark about her new film The Help. She reflects on the differences between acting in Hollywood and on stage, and the roles she is offered as an African-American actress.

Producer Georgia Mann.

With John Wilson.

Brian Wilson and Bruce Johnston of The Beach Boys reflect on their never-released album Smile, recorded in 1966 and 1967 and now made available for the first time. Brian Wilson remembers the destructive role drugs played in the creation of this legendary 'lost' album, and music broadcaster Paul Gambaccini assesses how it sounds four decades on.

Steven Spielberg's new film is an adaptation of the Tintin comic series using motion-captured CGI with Jamie Bell in the leading role of the intrepid boy reporter. Naomi Alderman considers how well the Hergé characters translate into film.

Peter Brook's 1964 production of Marat/Sade for the Royal Shakespeare Company caused huge controversy and public outcry. Now, as part of their 50th anniversary season, the RSC are restaging it. Has it retained its shock value? Andrew Dickson has the verdict.

Producer: Philippa Ritchie.

With John Wilson.

Peter Gabriel's latest project was inspired by his 2010 CD Scratch My Back, in which he gave an orchestral treatment to some of his favourite artists' songs. The former Genesis frontman discusses his new album New Blood, in which he gives highlights from his own solo back-catalogue a similar makeover, including Don't Give Up and Solsbury Hill.

Doctor Who's Karen Gillan makes her professional stage debut in a new production of John Osborne's Inadmissible Evidence, which stars the Olivier and Tony award-winning actor Douglas Hodge in the massive central role of a disintegrating middle-aged lawyer, clinging to the human wreckage he's left in his wake. Sarah Churchwell reviews.

The first major show for over 25 years of the work of surrealist painter Edward Burra opens this weekend. Despite suffering with acute arthritis so that his hands could hardly hold the brush, Burra is one of the most original 20th century British artists, fascinated by the seedy side of life, and inspired by a mixture of old masters and the pop culture of jazz and Hollywood films. John reports from Pallant House Gallery, Chichester.

Gus Van Sant, whose films include Good Will Hunting and Milk, has now directed Restless, the tale of a terminally-ill girl who befriends a funeral gate-crashing drop-out. Starring Mia Wasikowska and Henry Hopper, the film has divided critics in America. Antonia Quirke gives her verdict.

Producer Nicki Paxman.

With Mark Lawson,

The actress Thandie Newton has set herself a challenge for her first ever stage role. Taking time out from her film career - she won a Best Supporting Actress BAFTA for Paul Haggis's Crash - she discusses playing the role of Paulina Salas, a former political prisoner in a Latin American country who was incarcerated and raped by her captors, in Ariel Dorfman's play Death and the Maiden.

Romola Garai, star of The Hour and Atonement, reviews a new exhibition of historical actress portraits depicting such superstars of their time as Nell Gwyn, mistress of Charles II, and Dorothy Jordan who had 10 illegitimate children with William IV. The exhibition includes Joshua Reynolds's depiction of Sarah Siddons as a noble Tragic Muse, and a full frontal portrait of a bare-breasted Nell Gwyn.

The Slap is a new TV drama series starting on BBC Four, based on Christos Tsiolkas' best-selling novel. At a summer barbecue, a man slaps a child who is not his son and the story traces the repercussions of a single event upon a group of family and friends. Rachel Cooke reviews.

We Need to Talk About Kevin is a best-selling book and now an acclaimed film, and its title is being widely re-worked by headline writers, authors and organisations. Comedian Danny Robins assesses why some titles prove so alluring.

Producer Claire Bartleet

Presenter Mark Lawson.

With Mark Lawson.

In the new film Contagion, an untreatable deadly virus is threatening the world's population. Kate Winslet, Gwyneth Paltrow, Matt Damon and Jude Law head the cast, directed by Steven Soderbergh. Matt Thorne reviews.

As the hit play Jerusalem returns to the London stage after great success on Broadway, Mark Rylance discusses the role that won him his second Best Actor Tony Award. He describes the subtle changes made to the very English play for the benefit of American audiences and why after more than 250 appearances as Johnny Byron, he still looks forward to every performance.

Sir Terry Pratchett reflects on his career as he publishes Snuff, his 50th book and part of the bestselling Discworld series, which began in 1983. He reveals the inspiration behind his latest novel, which centres on a policeman investigating a brutal murder, and discusses the impact of living with Alzheimer's since his diagnosis in 2007.

Producer Jerome Weatherald.

With Mark Lawson.

Director Lynne Ramsay's new film We Need to Talk About Kevin won considerable acclaim at this year's Cannes festival. She discusses adapting Lionel Shriver's Orange Prize-winning novel for the cinema, where Tilda Swinton plays the tortured mother of Kevin, who goes on a horrific rampage two days before his 16th birthday.

Theatre producer Cameron Mackintosh is 65 today. He discusses his four decades in the business, in which he has defied critics with international successes including The Phantom of the Opera and Les Misérables, which is now set to become a film staring Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe. He also reflects on working with Andrew Lloyd Webber and finding talent via TV audition shows.

Writer Haruki Murakami is a literary superstar in his native Japan, and his books have been translated into dozens of languages. His latest title 1Q84 sold a million copies in one month in his homeland, and is published in English for the first time this week, as three books in two volumes. Novelist Toby Litt reviews.

Producer Nicki Paxman.

With Kirsty Lang.

Tamsin Greig, who plays Debbie in The Archers, returns to the stage in Jumpy, a new play by April De Angelis which focuses on the relationship between a mother and her difficult teenaged daughter. Tamsin discusses why she doesn't see herself as a comic actress, and reflects on the uncertainties of the actor's life.

In 1979, Monty Python's film Life Of Brian caused outrage around the world. Michael Palin and John Cleese took part in a televised debate with Malcolm Muggeridge and the Bishop of Southwark, to defend their film against charges of blasphemy. A new TV drama, Holy Flying Circus, tells the story of this encounter. Writer Peter Stanford reviews.

Former Python turned director Terry Gilliam has made a short film which was wholly financed by an Italian pasta company. Wholly Family is being screened as part of the BFI London Film Festival. He talks about the making of the film - and why he feels he wasn't selling out.

A new documentary Blood In The Mobile examines how minerals commonly used in mobile phones are extracted in illegal mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and could fund the conflict there. The film's director Frank Poulsen, who appears on screen, discusses his approach to this difficult subject.

Producer Rebecca Nicholson.

With Mark Lawson.

As the band Manic Street Preachers release a compilation of their singles and a volume of Polaroids charting their story, band member Nicky Wire reflects on their career, the loss of Richey Edwards and their continuing belief in singles and albums in a digital age.

In the wake of a bomb explosion outside the City of Culture offices in Londonderry, Shona McCarthy, Chief Executive of Culture Company 2013, discusses how this event might affect her plans and preparations.

As a Dance Marathon begins at the Barbican, London, and the Bush Theatre plans to re-open with a 24 hour continuous performance of 66 new plays, Mark reports on the demands and perils of the marathon show, with Mark Watson, the comedian who managed three stand-up shows lasting 24 hours and more ; DJ Simon Mayo, former world-record holder for the longest radio broadcast ever; theatre critic Michael Coveney, who experienced Ken Campbell's 22 hour play The Warp, and Dr Sarah Jarvis, who offers health warnings.

Producer: Lisa Davis.

With John Wilson.

Singer-songwriter Noel Gallagher dominated the musical landscape of the 1990s in the band Oasis, alongside his brother Liam. After a final acrimonious split with the band, Gallagher is set to release his first solo album: High Flying Birds. He talks about how the modern music industry baffles him, and why he had to say no to Simon Cowell.

Is the art market impervious to the current economic turmoil? As wealthy collectors gather at the Frieze Art Fair in London, art market watchers Godfrey Barker and Sarah Thornton attempt to follow the money.

The war photography of Don McCullin is the subject of a new exhibition at the Imperial War Museum in London. Shaped by War brings together McCullin's frontline work from across the world, including East and West Berlin, the Middle East, Northern Ireland, Biafra, and his classic images from the wars in Vietnam and Cambodia. Don McCullin discusses his 50 years avoiding bullets in search of the picture that captures the story in a fraction of a second.

Producer Georgia Mann.

With Mark Lawson.

Steve Coogan has returned to the character that made him a household name, publishing Alan Partridge's autobiography. He discusses the way Partridge has evolved over the years and whether he's ever considered killing him off.

The Comic Strip returns to Channel 4 this week with The Hunt for Tony Blair, in which the former Prime Minister is a 1950s fugitive, on the run for mass murder. Political commentators Quentin Letts and Andrew Rawnsley review.

The new Australian film Sleeping Beauty - the debut from writer and director Julia Leigh - tells the story of a university student who signs up for a series of sessions in which her unconscious body is used by men for their erotic fantasies. Author and critic Kate Saunders gives her verdict.

Producer Georgia Mann.

With Mark Lawson.

Turner Prize nominee Tacita Dean unveils her newly commissioned work in Tate Modern's Turbine Hall. Her silent film is displayed on a giant screen which stretches from the floor to the ceiling of the gigantic space.

Fim-maker Morgan Spurlock, Oscar-nonimated for his documentary Super Size Me, has turned his attention to product placement, marketing and advertising in movies and TV shows for his new film The Greatest Movie Ever Sold. Wearing a suit embroidered with the names of the sponsors he got on board for the film, Morgan Spurlock discusses the challenge of getting corporations to commit substantial sums to finance his project.

Real Steel is a science-fiction action film starring Hugh Jackman, set in the year 2020 when humans have been replaced by robots in the boxing ring. Jackman plays a debt-ridden former boxer, who attempts to profit from illegal robot fights. Mark Eccleston reviews.

And as Channel 4 announce that they are putting their popular property series Relocation, Relocation 'on ice' due to the 'current climate', and American children's TV show Sesame Street introduces a character living on the breadline - Mark talks to TV critic Stephen Armstrong about how broadcasters are responding to the recession era.

Producer Georgia Mann.

With Kirsty Lang.

Vermeer's Women, a new exhibition at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, features four works by the Dutch master, including The Lacemaker from the Louvre in Paris, on show in the UK for the first time. Tracy Chevalier, whose novel Girl With A Pearl Earring was inspired by a Vermeer painting, reviews the show.

The actor Paddy Considine, known for films including In America, Dead Man's Shoes and Hot Fuzz, has written and directed his first feature film. Tyrannosaur is loosely based on Considine's own father, and stars Peter Mullan as a man plagued by violence and rage, whose life changes when he meets a religious charity shop worker. Paddy Considine discusses the film and the difficulties he faces coping with Asperger's Syndrome, diagnosed last year.

Mohammed Hanif, Pakistan-born journalist and writer of the prize-winning A Case of Exploding Mangoes, talks about his new novel Our Lady of Alice Bhatti, the story of a junior nurse in downtown Karachi. He explains the art of being a sit-down comedian, and why Pakistan's secret service asked him to name his sources.

Orlando Bloom, star of three Pirates of the Caribbean films, reprises his swashbuckling skills as the villainous Duke of Buckingham in a new 3D film of The Three Musketeers. He reflects on his experiences in major film franchises, and the perils of too many swords and sandals roles.

Producer Philippa Ritchie.

With Mark Lawson.

Vanessa Redgrave and James Earl Jones star in a new stage production of Driving Miss Daisy, the Pulitzer prize-winning play which inspired an Oscar-winning film. Peter Kemp reports from the opening night.

Des O'Connor has worked as an entertainer for over 45 years, including over 1000 appearances on the London Palladium stage. Now - at the age of 79 - he is making his debut in a West End musical, in Dreamboats and Petticoats. He reflects on his career, including the jokes made by Morecambe and Wise.

Frank Cottrell Boyce has written sequels to Ian Fleming's children's adventure Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, with the blessing of the Fleming Estate. He discusses the challenges of continuing a children's classic.

The Swedish poet Tomas Transtroemer has won the 2011 Nobel Prize for Literature. Writer Anders Roslund reflects on how the news has been received in Sweden.

Producer Jerome Weatherald.

Actor and director Kenneth Branagh returns to the stage in his native Belfast this week in Sean Foley's adaptation of the French farce The Painkillers, alongside Rob Brydon.

In this Front Row special, Kenneth Branagh reflects on returning to Belfast, and looks back over his extensive career on stage, film and TV, which has featured Shakespeare, Chekhov, John Osborne, Hollywood movies and the role of the weary police inspector in the British TV adaptation of Henning Mankell's best-selling Wallander crime novels.

Producer Jerome Weatherald.

With John Wilson

In a rare interview, singer Johnny Mathis talks about his 55 year career, during which he has sold 350m records. Mathis talks about his operatic vocal training, reveals why he chose music over Olympic high-jumping, and recalls working with the band Chic on a disco album that has never been released.

Ewan McGregor and Eva Green star in Perfect Sense, a new film by David Mackenzie, in which a global epidemic begins to deprive people of their sensory perceptions. Critic Kate Muir reviews.

Gerhard Richter's work is being exhibited at Tate Modern, in the first major retrospective of the leading German artist in London for over 20 years. The collection spans nearly five decades and coincides with the artist's 80th birthday. Rachel Cooke reviews.

Photographer David Bailey revisits the East End of his childhood for his new mixed-media exhibition Hitler Killed The Duck. Bailey has been creating works which mix painting and photography for many decades and these works will be shown in public for the first time. Bailey discusses his passion for paint and those early trips to the local picture house during the war.

Producer Claire Bartleet.

With Mark Lawson.

The acclaimed literary biographer Claire Tomalin publishes a new life of Dickens this week, ahead of the bicentenary of his birth next year. She discusses the author's contradictions and insecurities and whether they were an essential part of his genius.

Rowan Atkinson returns to his role as the spy with no sense of fear but plenty of gadgets, in the film Johnny English Reborn. He talks about the similarities between Johnny English and Mr Bean, the art of pulling faces and the importance of cars in his work.

Artist Grayson Perry pays homage to thousands of forgotten and anonymous craftsmen by picking 200 objects from the British Museum's collection to display in his exhibition The Tomb of the Unknown Craftsman. At the centre of the show is a decorated cast iron coffin ship, made by Perry himself. Natalie Haynes reviews.

Producer: Nicki Paxman.

Mark Lawson meets the Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy, as she publishes The Bees - her new collection of poems.

They discuss her love of the book as a physical object, how she writes from the body, and why now, when she starts to write a poem she always finishes it.

She reflects on the role of the Poet Laureate, and describes the impossibility of writing poetry after the death of her mother and the poem that resurrected her poetic ability.

She also talks about her love of football and the deal she's struck with David Beckham. Finally she explodes the myth of the Poet Laureate's "butt of sack".

Producer Ekene Akalawu.

With Mark Lawson.

Actor and writer James Corden reflects on his career so far, and admits that some of the work he produced after his initial successes was sub-standard. Corden has just published an autobiography, and is touring in the acclaimed National Theatre production One Man, Two Guvnors.

Justin Lee Collins and X Factor winner Shayne Ward star in Rock of Ages, a new musical touted as 'Mamma Mia! for men'. The show weaves a narrative around 80s rock anthems. David Quantick reviews.

Leeds enjoys a special place in the history of British cinema: it was once the centre for the manufacture of film projectors. This has inspired a new work from Turner Prize nominee Lucy Skaer. She and cinema projectionist Alan Foster give Mark a guided tour in the Lyric Picture House, Armley, Leeds,

Producer Georgia Mann.

With Mark Lawson.

Film director Lars von Trier hit the headlines with his provocative remarks about Hitler and Nazism at the Cannes Film festival, while promoting his new film Melancholia. It stars Kirsten Dunst and Charlotte Gainsbourg as two sisters reacting to the news that the earth is on a collision course with another planet, called Melancholia. Jenny McCartney reviews.

The latest novel in Lee Child's best-selling Jack Reacher series arrives in bookshops tomorrow. This is the 16th thriller following the life of former military policeman Reacher, and Lee Child reflects on why he keeps returning to his grizzled hero.

Steven Spielberg's latest project is the multi-million dollar television drama Terra Nova. The action takes place 85 million years ago in a prehistoric alternate reality. Naomi Alderman reviews.

Paratrooper turned artist Derek Eland asked front-line soldiers in Afghanistan to write about their experiences. The notes are on display in a new installation at the Imperial War Museum North. Eland discusses how the soldiers felt about sharing their feelings.

As the source of the catchphrase 'Fire up the Quattro' from Ashes to Ashes becomes a matter of dispute between the actor and the writer, Michael Simkins reflects on the complex relationship between performers and script-writers.

Producer Georgia Mann.

With Mark Lawson, who talks to actor Tim Pigott-Smith as he takes the title role in King Lear at the West Yorkshire Playhouse in Leeds.

Cultural Historian and Pre-Raphaelite biographer Fiona MacCarthy reviews the new Ford Madox Brown retrospective at Manchester Art Gallery.

And novelist Nicholas Royle reviews Hidden, a new BBC One conspiracy thriller starring Philip Glenister.

Producer Ekene Akalawu.

With John Wilson, who presents live from the BBC National Short Story Award ceremony, with news of this year's winner of the £15,000 prize, announced by the chair of judges Sue MacGregor.

Pink Floyd's drummer Nick Mason reveals some of the untold stories behind previously-unheard tracks by the band, now released for the first time. Jazz violinist Stephane Grappelli played on a version of Wish You Were Here (Yehudi Menuhin declined the invitation), and you can hear the results on tonight's progamme.

Helen Mirren stars as a former Mossad agent, brought out of retirement to catch an elderly Nazi, in the new film thriller The Debt. Mark Eccleston reviews.

Producer Rebecca Nicholson.

With Kirsty Lang.

Martin Scorsese's latest music documentary focuses on the 'quiet Beatle' George Harrison, with contributors including Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, Pattie Boyd and Phil Spector. Beatles fan David Hepworth gives his verdict.

In February this year a Cultural Olympiad project invited people to contribute a piece of wood with a personal significance to create a 30-foot modern sailing boat. The resulting 7-man boat will sail to the site of the London Olympics next year, and will be a living archive of people's stories and lives. Olympic silver-medalist sailor and boat builder Mark Covell and Gary Winters, the co-founder of the team behind The Boat Project, take Kirsty round the boatyard to see how far the vessel is progressing.

Shirley Bassey's rise from poverty to international stardom has been dramatised for BBC Two. The title role is played by rising star Ruth Negga, best known for her role in Misfits, with Lesley Sharp playing Shirley's mother. Music writer Jacqueline Springer assesses this portrayal of the legendary singer.

Bridget Nicholls, artist-in-residence at London Zoo, refers to herself as a dating agent: bringing artists and scientists together to work on insect-related projects, such as the Ant Ballet which can be seen at London Zoo next month. Bridget explains how much we have to learn from insects, both scientifically and artistically.

Producer Claire Bartleet.

With Mark Lawson.

Mike Leigh's new play at the National Theatre, Grief, didn't have a title until two weeks ago, but it still sold out months ago, such is the anticipation around a new Mike Leigh work. Secrecy surrounded the project and the cast, including Lesley Manville, Leigh's long-term collaborator, were forbidden to give interviews about it. Will it live up to expectations? Gaylene Gould reviews.

Booker prize-winning author A S Byatt describes her life-long fascination with Ragnarok, the Norse mythological story of Armageddon, and explains her approach to re-working ancient gods for modern readers.

Nirvana's Nevermind, Primal Scream's Screamadelica and Simply Red's Stars were all released in September 1991. All three albums made a huge impact in the 1990s, but two decades on have they stood the test of time? Caspar Llewellyn Smith and Rebecca Nicholson, music writers from different generations, give their verdict.

What does postmodernism mean, and where did it come from? These questions are explored by the V&A's new exhibition, Postmodernism: Style and Subversion 1970-1990. Author Lawrence Norfolk reviews.

Producer: Philippa Ritchie.

With Mark Lawson.

Page One: A Year Inside the New York Times is a new cinema documentary in which the film-makers were given unprecedented access to the newsroom for a year, at a time when this American institution was undergoing a period of great change. Former newspaper editors Kelvin MacKenzie and Andreas Whittam Smith review.

Tom Stoppard discusses a revival of his classic comedy Travesties, which depicts a fictional meeting between James Joyce, Lenin and Tristan Tzara. Over 30 years after its original performance, the playwright reflects on which of the jokes are lost to a modern audience.

Sam Bain and Jesse Armstrong, the writers behind Peep Show, discuss their new TV comedy series Fresh Meat. It follows six ill-assorted student house-mates starting out at university, with a cast including stand-up comic Jack Whitehall.

Producer Philippa Ritchie Presenter Mark Lawson.

With Mark Lawson.

Tom Hardy, Joel Edgerton and Nick Nolte star in Warrior, a new film in which two brothers take each other on in a brutal competition of Mixed Martial Arts fighting. BBC sports correspondent Eleanor Oldroyd reviews.

Frank Oz worked on Sesame Street before creating his own animation series The Muppet Show, providing the voice for Miss Piggy and Fozzie Bear. He moved on to voice Yoda in Star Wars. As he puts the finishing touches to directing Saul Rubinek's stage play Terrible Advice, Frank Oz looks back over his varied career.

Tenor Ian Bostridge talks about his new book A Singer's Notebook - a collection of diary entries, essays and reviews written about the world of classical music, where he has spent two decades working with many leading conductors and specialising in music by Britten, Janacek, Schubert and Weill.

Producer Jerome Weatherald.

With John Wilson. Ryan Gosling stars in two contrasting films in cinemas from Friday. In Drive, a thriller based on the cult novel by James Sallis, he plays a Hollywood stunt driver moonlighting as a getaway driver in the criminal underworld of Los Angeles. In the rom-com Crazy, Stupid, Love, he plays a handsome lothario acting as wingman for an older guy returning to the singles scene. Antonia Quirke reviews and discusses Ryan Gosling's career.

Mike Scott of the band The Waterboys explains how the Nobel-winning Irish poet W B Yeats has become co-writer on his new album. A selection of Yeats' poems - including September 1913 and An Irish Airman Forsees His Death - have been set to music by Scott on the Waterboys' record An Appointment With Mr Yeats.

John Wilson takes a tour of 'Firstsite', the new £28m art gallery in Colchester, Essex, designed by Uruguayan-born Rafael Vinoly. The architect explains how Roman archeaological remains beneath Colchester dictated the form of the single-storey, crescent-shaped building - dubbed the 'golden banana'. Architect Rafael Viñoly shows John around the Firstsite art centre in Colchester.

Andrew O'Hagan's debut book, The Missing, was a meditation on people who disappear from their lives- and the families they leave behind. Inspired by his own experience as a reporter camped outside Fred and Rosemary West's home while the bodies of their victims were being discovered, and acclaimed as a portrait of mid-1990s Britain, it was shortlisted for three major literary awards. Now O'Hagan, together with director John Tiffany (Black Watch), has adapted his book into a new production for Glasgow's Tramway theatre. Critic Mark Brown reviews.

Kirsty Lang talks to actors Dominic West and Clarke Peters about working together on the TV series The Wire and appearing in Othello in Sheffield.

Also Jocelyn Jee Esien discusses moving from comedy on TV, in her series Little Miss Jocelyn, to performing in the European premiere of Don Evans' stage comedy One Monkey Don't Stop No Show, which tours to Sheffield, London, Ipswich, Manchester and Leeds.

And we hear from a group of artists who came together when Britain was suffering widespread racial tensions in the 1980s. Claudette Johnson, Keith Piper and Marlene Smith remember the formation of the Blk Art Group, as the Graves Art Gallery in Sheffield stages a retrospective.

Producer Ekene Akalawu.

With Mark Lawson.

Pam Ayres won Opportunity Knocks in 1975 and has been working as a writer, broadcaster and entertainer ever since. Best known for her comic poems about everyday life, Pam discusses life before and after fame, as she publishes a memoir.

Stephen Merchant, the co-creator with Ricky Gervais of The Office and Extras, has just embarked on his first ever stand-up comedy tour. Detached from his better-known partner and live on stage, how will Merchant fare? Stephen Armstrong saw the show last night and gives his verdict.

The Go-Between, L P Hartley's classic novel of a boy caught up in a web of deception, has been set to music in a new adaptation which receives its world premiere at the West Yorkshire Playhouse. Novelist Jane Rogers reviews.

Canadian author D W Wilson talks about his short story The Dead Roads, in which two old school friends compete for the affection of a free-spirited girl, whilst on a road-trip. The story is one of five shortlisted for this year's BBC National Short Story Award. The winning author, to be announced live on Front Row on Monday 26 September, receives £15,000.

Producer: Serena Field.

With Mark Lawson.

Jermaine Jackson discusses setting the record straight with You Are Not Alone, his memoir about his brother Michael.

Comedian Steve Punt reviews No Naughty Bits, a new play about the Pythons' landmark 1975 court struggle to reinstate material censored by a US TV network.

And KJ Orr discusses her short story The Human Circadian Pacemaker, in which a married couple adjust to the shift in their relationship after the astronaut-husband returns from a space trip. This is one of five shortlisted for this year's BBC National Short Story Award. The winning author will be announced live on Front Row on Monday 26 September.

Producer Philippa Ritchie.

With John Wilson.

A new film of John le Carre's classic novel Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy stars Gary Oldman as George Smiley, with John Hurt, Colin Firth and Benedict Cumberbatch as fellow spies. Bridget Kendall, BBC diplomatic correspondent and former Moscow correspondent, gives her verdict. A re-print of John le Carre's book has also been brought out - and is available now.

We pay tribute to artist Richard Hamilton, whose death at the age of 89 was announced today.

Royal Ballet star Lauren Cuthbertson visits the Royal Academy's new exhibition Degas and the Ballet: Picturing Movement. She reflects on whether a 21st century ballerina has anything in common with Degas' 19th century depictions.

Musician Laura Marling discusses about her new album and its literary influences, and performs in the Front Row studio.

Jon McGregor talks about his short story, Wires, one of the five shortlisted for this year's BBC National Short Story Award. The award celebrates the best of contemporary British short fiction. The winning author, to be announced live on Front Row on Monday 26 September, receives £15,000

Producer Rebecca Nicholson.

Mark Lawson talks to Roger Moore as the 70s TV series The Persuaders is released on Blu-ray and DVD. The release marks the 40th anniversary of the cult show, in which Moore starred alongside Tony Curtis.

Alison MacLeod discusses her entry for this year's BBC National Short Story Award, as Front Row continues to talk to each of the five authors shortlisted for the 2011 prize, worth £15,000.

Oscar-winning writer Christopher Hampton reflects on his very first play, When Did You Last See My Mother?, in the light of a new staging. It first received a West End production more than four decades ago, when Hampton was just 20.

Producer: Jack Soper.

Rupert Goold's Headlong Theatre Company, the people who created Enron, have devised Decade - an immersive theatrical experience reflecting on the legacy of 9/11 ten years on. The site-specific production takes place in an old trading hall at St Katherine's Dock in London and is written by a team of authors including Abi Morgan, Alecky Blythe and Mike Bartlett. Jonathan Freedland reviews.

Sue MacGregor, chair of the judges for this year's BBC National Short Story Award, announces the shortlisted writers live on Front Row tonight. Following the announcement, Kirsty Lang will interview the first of the successful authors, with the other four writers being interviewed on Front Row next week. The winner of the £15,000 award will be announced live on Front Row on Monday 26 September.

Singer-songwriter Mara Carlyle has had an eventful musical career. After being dropped by her record company, her independently-released latest album Floreat, seven years after her critically acclaimed debut, was destroyed in a warehouse fire during the recent riots. Mara explains the numerous re-namings of her album as bad luck kept striking and how her fortunes changed thanks to a furniture company.

Producer Jerome Weatherald.

Mark Lawson talks to playwright Arnold Wesker as the National Theatre revives his 1959 play The Kitchen, which is set in a West End restaurant where many nationalities work together. The 79 year old playwright reflects on his career and expresses his frustration that despite constant revivals of his famous plays, such as Roots and Chicken Soup with Barley, nobody will produce his new work.

Norwegian mockumentary Troll Hunter plays with fairy-tale myths and explores what happens when three student film-makers accidentally come across the last remaining Troll Hunter. Writer Tibor Fischer reviews.

Crime novelist Val McDermid discusses the twists and turns in the relationship between criminal profiler Tony Hill and DCI Carol Jordan in her 25th novel The Retribution. In this book chilling serial killer Jacko Vance is out of prison and desperately seeking revenge.

When Edward Gardner picks up the baton at the Albert Hall this Saturday night, he will be the youngest conductor since Henry Wood himself to conduct the Last Night of the Proms. He discusses the programme and what preparations he's making for the event.

Producer Claire Bartleet.

With Mark Lawson.

David Hockney this morning announced a major new exhibition of his landscape works, which will open at the Royal Academy next January. The show will focus on his home county of Yorkshire, where he has recently spent six years painting, photographing, filming and creating artworks on his computer tablet. Hockney discusses his love of nature and the landscape in Yorkshire and Los Angeles where he also lives.

Mark Kermode is known for his straight-talking approach to films and the way the film industry operates and this forms the basis of his new book The Good, the Bad and the Multiplex: What's Wrong With Modern Movies? He's live in the studio to discuss the latest cinematic bêtes-noires.

Too Big To Fail is a new TV drama about the 2008 financial meltdown in the US, based on the book by Andrew Ross Sorkin, and starring James Woods, William Hurt and Cynthia Nixon. The BBC's economics editor Stephanie Flanders discusses the art of creating drama from a crisis.

Producer Claire Bartleet.

With Mark Lawson.

Stella Rimington, chair of judges for the Man Booker Prize 2011, discusses this year's shortlist of contenders: Julian Barnes, Carol Birch, Patrick deWitt, Esi Edugyan, Stephen Kelman and A D Miller.

Leading British film maker Ken Loach celebrated his 75th birthday this year. His first film Kes is re-released in cinemas this week and the British Film Institute is celebrating with a season of his films, including Cathy Come Home, Land and Freedom and Looking For Eric. Ken Loach talks to Mark about film, censorship and having his children follow in his footsteps.

The latest play by the award-winning debbie tucker green is inspired by the process of truth and reconciliation in countries from South Africa to Bosnia and Northern Ireland. Writer Kamila Shamsie reviews.

Producer Nicki Paxman.

With John Wilson.

Mia Wasikowska and Michael Fassbender star in a new film version of Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte's much-adapted book. Kathryn Hughes reviews.

Alexander Masters, author of the award-winning Stuart: A Life Backwards, explains how he found the subject of his second book living directly below him. The Genius in My Basement focuses on the mathematical genius Simon P Norton, who collects bus timetables and lives on a diet of tinned fish.

Damon Albarn recently led a group of British music producers to the Democratic Republic of Congo to make an album with Congolese musicians in Kinshasa. Damon came to Front Row along with two of his musical collaborators in the Congo, producers Kwes and Orlando Higginbottom, aka TEED.

Can contemporary art help ease Ireland's economic woes? As the first ever Dublin Contemporary festival is launched, John asks Jimmy Deenihan - Arts and Heritage Minister in the Irish government - what he hopes to get in return for 2 million Euros of taxpayers money invested in the project at a time when the country has just received a massive bailout package. John also talks to veteran Irish conceptual artist Brian O'Doherty who now works in New York, but who is returning to create new work for Dublin Contemporary 2011.

Producer: Philippa Ritchie.