Lauren Laverne and Mark Kermode return to present a new run of the arts show, which this week joins Ricky Gervais on set in America as he directs his first feature film This Side of the Truth. Meanwhile art critic Andrew Graham-Dixon is in…

Lauren Laverne and Mark Kermode host the arts show, tonight featuring 27-year-old Venezuelan conductor Gustavo Dudamel , some striking land art along the M8 motorway in Scotland, and more from Mark Pilkington on the set of Ricky Gervais 's…

Vic Reeves visits Folkestone to find out whether its inaugural triennial, previewing new works by artists like Tracey Emin and Mark Wallinger , can breathe new life into the town. The BBC Big Band and blues singer Beth Rowley perform at th…

Mark Kermode interviews film director Nick Roeg, who turns 80 in August, and whose new film Puffball, based on the novel by Fay Weldon , has so far been panned by critics in advance of its release next month. Plus Peep Show writers Sam Bain…

London. In the spirit of Orwellian dread, ex-Celebrity Big Brother housemate Germaine Greer chairs a book group comprising former Big Brother contestants to consider George Orwell 's novel 7984, 60 years after its publication. Plus, DJ Bis…

Former Baltimore police reporter David Simon , creator of acclaimed US cop show The Wire, accounts for its impact. With the upcoming Proms featuring many of Vaughan Williams 's key works, Verity Sharp explores his musical legacy on the 50t…

Lauren Laverne interviews David Simon, creator of the acclaimed US cop show The Wire on why he breaks all the rules of television writing. Art critic Andrew Graham-Dixon risks a stiff neck in Rome to marvel at and decipher Michelangelo's v…

Mark Kermode accompanies film director Terence Davies back to his native Liverpool, and Lauren Laverne gets a tutorial in Afrobeat from Nigerian drummer Tony Allen. Andrew Graham -Dixon continues his aerial survey of British land art with a…

Lauren Laverne quizzes mod father Paul Weller about his new album and turning 50; Andrew Graham-Dixon gains privileged access to the Vasari Corridor in Florence, which is 1km long and home to a collection of self-portraits of artists includ…

Verity Sharp goes behind the scenes of Metallica's tour of Norway, and Andrew Graham-Dixon gets a rare opportunity to view Florence's Vasari Corridor and its huge collection of self-portraits dating back over 400 years. Elsewhere, Tim Frank…

Lauren Laverne presents the first of three shows from Edinburgh covering the highlights from the Festival and Fringe. The show comes from the Pleasance Courtyard, right at the heart of all the Edinburgh action, where comedian and musician …

Lauren Laverne presents the second of three shows from Edinburgh covering the highlights from the Festival and Fringe. On the show tonight is a preview of 365, the new work by The National Theatre of Scotland. The Edinburgh Festival Show h…

Lauren Laverne presents the last in the series of shows covering the Edinburgh Festival and Fringe. Coming from the Pleasance Courtyard, right in the middle of all the Edinburgh action, the programme will be covering the enormous range of s…