ABC2's blog

8:30pm – Saturday, April 3 on ABC2

In an 18th century European city besieged by the Turkish army, a theatrical performance of The Adventures of Baron Munchausen is interrupted by an old man who claims to be the Baron himself. No one believes him except for 10-year-old Sally, who joins him on a quest to prove his claims and save the city from the Turks.

The Baron and Sally set sail in a hot air balloon in search of the Baron’ s four closest friends: Albrecht, the strongest man on Earth; Berthold, the fastest man alive; Adolphus, who can see farther than a telescope; and Gustavus, who can blow harder than a hurricane.

Their journey takes them to the moon, to Venus and Vulcan, and lands in the belly of a giant sea monster, and that’s just the beginning.

Directed by Terry Gilliam, The Adventures Of Baron Munchausen stars John Neville (Baron Munchausen), Sarah Polley (Sally); Winston Dennis (Albrecht), Eric Idle (Berthold), Charles McKeown (Adolphus); and Jack Purvis (Gustavus).

6:30pm – Saturday, April 3 on ABC2

Danny (Stephen Tompkinson) and Alice (Dawn Steele) are concerned about a missing male giraffe but Du Plessis (Deon Stewardson) is confident he can find him. He’s as good as his word but they’re upset to discover Mara lions have killed the giraffe. Alice is annoyed with Vanessa (Mary-Anne Barlow) for not looking after her fences but Danny is more forgiving, Vanessa’s got a lot on her mind – her first guests arrive tomorrow.

Later that day, the family arrive at a game auction. It’s a chance for them to restock on wildebeest and replace their male giraffe. There is only one old and unsuitable giraffe left and Danny instructs Alice not to buy him. However, when Danny gets called away by Vanessa, Alice completely falls for the giraffe.

After helping Vanessa with one of her leopards, Danny is surprised when she kisses him. In the meantime a storm is coming and Alice and Du Plessis try to prepare for it, but when Danny comes back and tells Du Plessis about the kiss Alice overhears and is devastated. However, with the elements against them they must all focus on keeping the animals safe…

Can they weather the storm, and will Alice get over the revelation from Danny…?

10:30pm – Friday, April 2 on ABC2

Award-winning singer Michael Buble completes his two-year world tour with a stunning, sell-out concert at Madison Square Garden New York.

It is the culmination of a dream that began six years before with his first gig in the city, at the Blue Note Jazz Club.

Forty countries and two million album sales later, he is the toast of the town and this film captures all the emotion leading to his breathtaking finale at the Big Apple’s most prestigious venue.

It shows footage of Buble’s visit to the Blue Note, some backstage action at the Garden with his band and some heartfelt moments with his family.

Highlights include his singing Leonard Cohen’s I’m Your Man, the classic romance song Me and Mrs Jones, the swinging Crazy Little Thing Called Love and his own haunting love letter Home.

9:30pm – Thursday, April 1 on ABC2

The wedding day has arrived for Gavin and Stacey and the Shipmans and the Wests are beside themselves. Smithy’s attempt to deliver the best man’s speech doesn’t quite go to plan and Uncle Bryn is still acting strangely around Stacey’s brother Jordan.

In the wedding car on the way to the church Uncle Bryn has a startling surprise for Stacey which brings her to tears.

Gavin’s mum and dad prove hot shots on the microphone at the reception and guests break the ice very quickly. But Pam cannot resist telling people who footed the bill for the proceedings.

Nessa and Smithy, however, are awkward around each other and Nessa is particularly disturbed with a discovery she has made.

http://abc.net.au/iview/

9:30pm – Wednesday, March 31 on ABC2

The late 1970s appear to be the peak of sexual lunacy. Sex clubs begin spreading. By 1978, New York has at least a dozen where on any given night the floorshow is an all out orgy. And then there’s the notorious Studio 54, where cocaine and quaaludes were as prevalent as the disco music that provided the soundtrack.

As the public’s tolerance for raunchy sex seems to be growing, Playboy now finds itself competing with Penthouse and Larry Flynt’s Hustler, which was described as ‘vulgar to the extreme’. Irate feminists form ‘Women Against Pornography’ and defiantly march on the streets of Times Square. But the biggest backlash comes from conservative America, the religious right, and the new President of the United States, Ronald Reagan. As the 80s roll in, the sexual revolution itself is running out of steam, suffering from burnout.

By 1982 AIDS slams into gay communities all over the country. The epidemic becomes a defining moment, perhaps the single most critical factor in shaping gay identity during the 80s and beyond. Media hysteria and fear mongering hit a peak with the death of Rock Hudson. Finally Ronald Reagan acknowledges the disease and acts to control it. The end of the Sexual Revolution seems near.

http://abc.net.au/iview/

8:30pm – Wednesday, March 31 on ABC2

Alex: A Passion For Life continues the story of inspirational, cystic fibrosis sufferer Alex Stobbs. Alex is now 18, and the incurable lung disease he has suffered since childhood, is steadily getting worse. But against incredible odds Alex has achieved his ambition to study music at King’s College in Cambridge University, where he also sings as a choral scholar in one of the most celebrated choirs in the world.

Despite requiring huge amounts of medication and daily oxygen, being deaf to high notes and suffering from osteoporosis, Alex still has a beautiful voice and continues to astonish everybody with his extraordinary talents as pianist, organist and conductor.

Determined to live as normal a student life as possible, complete with girlfriends, late nights and major socialising, Alex is also set on fulfilling a new musical dream, to conduct one of the world’s most famous choral works, Bach’s St. Matthew Passion. At his disposal is a professional orchestra, some of Britain’s best singers and one of London’s top concert halls.

Over a thousand people will be there to watch him as he takes on the three-hour epic. It will be as much an endurance test as the biggest musical challenge of his life. Determined and driven, nothing will stop Alex from getting there. But by pushing himself to the limit Alex risks getting an infection that could be his last.

http://abc.net.au/iview/

8:00pm – Tuesday, March 30 on ABC2

There’s nothing quite like The Young Ones.

Often described as a sit-com with a difference the landmark British comedy series features the lunatic exploits of four college students: Vyv, the punk (Adrian Edmonson); ‘socially aware’ and ‘politically conscious’ Rick (Rik Mayall); Neil, the hippy (Nigel Planer); and Mike, the well-dressed smoothie (Christopher Ryan).

They share a dilapidated house in North London owned by their dodgy landlord Jerzy Balowski (Alexei Sayle). They are the least compatible house-mates it is possible to imagine and, when they are not tearing pieces out of each other, they manage to get involved in the most bizarre of comic escapades.

Vyvyan is a medical student with spiky red hair and four metal stars across his forehead. The regular target of his rage is Rick, an arrogant little poseur who sees himself as a real anarchist, but is in fact a cowardly Cliff Richard obsessive.

The only common ground that Rik and Vyv share is their mutual loathing of Neil, a refugee from the hippy era whose flower power is definitely wilting. Of course, in amongst this bunch of misfits Mike sees himself as the house cool guy. He’s a well dressed, coiffured smoothie who thinks he always has the situation under control.

In tonight’s final episode of series one, a flood hits London. It starts as spitting, but soon it’s pissin’ cats and dogs and The Young Ones are trapped in the house.

To beat the boredom they embark on a game of hide-and-seek to pass the time. Mike finds a lion tamer in his bedroom and Vyvyan hides in a wardrobe and enters Narnia. But the sharks at the window and the arson attack on Rik’s bedroom pale into insignificance when their landlord Jerzy Balowski turns into a homicidal, axe-wielding maniac.

http://abc.net.au/iview/

9:05pm – Monday, March 29 on ABC2

Russell is on a high, securing a big assignment to interview Lupe Fiasco but his world unravels when he asks a controversial question and is requested by the artist to be removed from the assignment. His mentor is unimpressed by his new briefcase advising him to A) show up on time and B) finish an article.

Meanwhile, Krish takes the opportunity to snag every available Rolling Stone writing gig and creates a golden pitch on new artist Cassie, who just got signed on the back of her hugely popular MySpace page. She’s thrilled when the editors share her excitement.

Krystal does the opposite and takes every opportunity to go shopping, enjoying the red carpet rather than reporting from its front line. The thrill of seeing her blog posted online is killed when she notices that her real name, Krystal Simpson is used, rather than ‘Krystal Jagger’, which she insists has always been her nom de plume. Joe points out that he would not allow someone to publish under the assumed name of ‘Cobain’ or ‘Springsteen’ but Krystal refuses to consider his opinion and goes shopping … again.

http://abc.net.au/iview/

8:30pm – Sunday, March 28 on ABC2

A stunning and sumptuous celebration of the 225th anniversary of the world famous Russian Mariinsky Theatre contains archival material seen for the first time on screen. It provides a unique insight into how the arts have flourished in Russia under many different regimes.

Filmmakers were given amazing access to the Mariinsky artists, to the labyrinthine underground passages full of extraordinary props, scenery and costumes, which were moved and hidden during the siege of Leningrad.

The Mariinsky’s history is a microcosm of Russian history, where the arts and music have continued to be celebrated, nurtured and championed despite the massive political changes that have taken place there over the past 200 years.

Among those linked to the majestic Mariinsky are Tchaikovsky, Pavlova, Borodin, Balanchine, Mussorgsky, Nureyev, Glinka, Stravinsky, Prokofiev and Rachmaninov.

Mariinsky Theatre 1783 – 2008 will be repeated on ABC1 – Sunday April 04, 4.30pm.

http://abc.net.au/iview/

7:30pm – Sunday, March 28 on ABC2

In 1789 French painter Jacques-Louis David, who had been treated well by King Louis XVII and the aristocrats, decrees that Art must no longer be the amusement of the mighty and the leisured; it has an altogether higher calling. It must make Citizens of mere people; it must shock, inspire and educate. It should make everyone Better.

David’s pictures are speeches in form and colour, and this is the only way he can speak, because in his youth he had been wounded in a fencing match by a slash to the cheek that never properly healed, leaving him with a benign tumour on his face. He was referred to as ‘David of the swoll’n cheek’, and on a very important occasion when he needed to be witty and articulate, David could only mumble. As a result he declares war on wit, banter and gossip, and shrouds his pictures in virtue, and he reinvents image-making as political propaganda.

He becomes a member of the Committee of General Security, the police arm of the revolutionary government and signs orders for arrests, trials and tribulations.

When the journalist Jean-Paul Marat, the ‘friend of the people’, is stabbed to death in his bath in July 1793 by a young woman, Charlotte Corday, a traumatised David suddenly finds his voice, promising to make an image of the martyr, for France and for the world. And so he creates an altarpiece for the new church of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity. The painting is seen by tens of thousands, but the image (reproduced in print) is seen by millions.

Simon Schama’s Power Of Art: David will be repeated on ABC1 – Sunday, April 04 at 3:30pm