imagine…

Season 392003

The biggest names from the world of art, film, music, literature and dance. Alan Yentob gets close up with those shaping today's cultural world.

Overview Episodes Photos Download

7 Episodes

E01 The Saatchi Phenomenon

Alan Yentob presents a new seven-part series looking at the power and effect of the arts and their main protagonists. The elusive and intriguing Charles Saatchi has been hugely instrumental in shaping contemporary British art. As he launches his new gallery in London's former County Hall, this behind-the-scenes look reveals Saatchi's hands-on involvement in the collection's presentation, helped by partner Nigella Lawson.

June 11, 2003

E02 Barbara Hepworth: Shapes Out of Feelings

A profile of Barbara Hepworth, the world's first internationally celebrated woman sculptor. Born in Yorkshire in 1903, she had to fight to establish herself in a world dominated by men, and could still wield a chisel in her seventies.

June 18, 2003

E03 The Hip Hop Generation

More than just a musical genre, hip-hop has become a global youth culture. But why does the voice of young black America resonate equally with British teenagers from city high-rises and suburban semis? Alan Yentob embarks on a journey of discovery, encountering both young UK rappers and big US stars.

June 25, 2003

E04 Stella's Story

Gwyneth Paltrow, Kate Moss and Vogue's Anna Wintour contribute to the tale of Stella McCartney's rise from student at St Martins to her big break into the fashion elite. Footage shot by McCartney and dating back to 1985, alongside interviews and archive material, help paint this portrait of the designer.

July 2, 2003

E05 Carlos Acosta: The Reluctant Ballet Dancer

Alan Yentob tells the inspirational story of Carlos Acosta, the gifted dancer who made the leap from the backstreets of Havana to become the first black principal dancer at the Royal Ballet. The film follows Acosta over six months as he embarks on the biggest challenge of his life - producing and choreographing his own show based on his upbringing in Cuba.

July 9, 2003

E06 The Potrait of Omai

Alan Yentob tells the story of Joshua Reynolds’ portrait of Britain’s first non-white celebrity, Omai, which the Tate Gallery is fighting to keep in Britain. One of the artist’s greatest works, and the first ever grand portrait of a non-white subject, the picture captures the image of a man who became an overnight sensation in 18th-century London after being plucked from obscurity in Tahiti.

July 16, 2003

E07 Sir John Mortimer: Owning Up at 80

In the year that the barrister turned bestselling author turns 80, Alan Yentob talks to family and friends about the man widely regarded as a passionate political campaigner, wit, bon viveur and legendary lothario.

July 30, 2003

imagine…

E01 The Saatchi Phenomenon

E02 Barbara Hepworth: Shapes Out of Feelings

E03 The Hip Hop Generation

E04 Stella's Story

E05 Carlos Acosta: The Reluctant Ballet Dancer

E06 The Potrait of Omai

E07 Sir John Mortimer: Owning Up at 80

Elite Short Stories: Nadia Guzmán

SOTUS

Elite Short Stories: Carla Samuel

Black Bird

Autumn of the Heart

1992

NOS4A2

Judging Amy

Touch

Locked Up: The Oasis

War of the Century

The Flash

SKAM Spain

Why Didn't They Ask Evans?

10.5: Apocalypse

Halt and Catch Fire

Physics or Chemistry

Succession

Wizards Beyond Waverly Place

Empire

E01 The Saatchi Phenomenon

E02 Barbara Hepworth: Shapes Out of Feelings

E03 The Hip Hop Generation

E04 Stella's Story

E05 Carlos Acosta: The Reluctant Ballet Dancer

E06 The Potrait of Omai

E07 Sir John Mortimer: Owning Up at 80