'If I hadn't left Cork, I'm quite certain I wouldn't have been the writer I am; but I think that if I hadn't been brought up in a city like this, I wouldn't have been a writer at all...' Frank…

"The throwing up of a ski-slope in Hillingdon has thrown up a lot of disturbing questions..." Martin Young reports from Hillingdon's swanky new plastc ski slope. Hillingdon's rates payers have spent a cool £100,000 on the new amenity, and they're hoping it will be a solid investment. There are rumours though, that the Hillingdon ski slope has been built on rather shaky foundations. Martin goes in search of some answers - and in the process uncovers an extraordinary council document, a "secret report" that details some extremely unorthodox activity at Hillingdon Council. Clip taken from Nationwide, originally broadcast on BBC One, 26 May, 1976. You have now entered the BBC Archive, a time machine that will transport you back to the golden age of TV to educate, entertain and enlighten you with classic clips from the BBC vaults. Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss a single stop on our amazing journey through the BBC Archive - https://www.youtube.com/c/BBCArchive?sub_confirmation=1 You can also dive into plenty more BBC Archive on our website - https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive

"My first impression is that there can't be, really, a great deal of skill in this traditional sport" Scene Around Six reporter David Capper visits Benburb - a small village in County Tyrone near…

"Only in Britain, where sporting success is so often achieved without any official encouragement, would a world-class athlete have to send his wife out to work so he could pursue a strictly amateur sport." John Hitchins reports on the leading British pole vaulter, Keith Stock, who - unable to get sponsorship or Government help - stays home and does housework while his wife Debbie goes out to work to finance his training. Clip taken from Nationwide, originally broadcast on BBC One, 30 July, 1981. You have now entered the BBC Archive, a time machine that will transport you back to the golden age of TV to educate, entertain and enlighten you with classic clips from the BBC vaults. Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss a single stop on our amazing journey through the BBC Archive - https://www.youtube.com/c/BBCArchive?sub_confirmation=1 You can also dive into plenty more BBC Archive on our website - https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive

Many people enjoy being scared and will happily pay for the pleasure of being frightened out of their lives. Tellers of ghost stories have profited from this shadowy side of our natures for…

Gerry Gadsen looks at the people who wish to turn their back on the city and start a new life in the Welsh countryside. It's an appealing and romantic prospect for many; move to a small farm, grow crops, perhaps rear some pigs or chickens, and ultimately become completely self-sufficent. Just how realistic is it though? In spite of appearances, country life in Wales has changed dramatically in recent years - the increase in agricultural mechanisation and the rapid amalgamation of small farms means that there are fewer people living and working in rural areas than ever before. Anybody planning to move to the country needs to be aware of the challenges they're letting themselves in for. Clip taken from In Our Nature: Back to the Land, originally broadcast on BBC One Wales, 17 May, 1978. You have now entered the BBC Archive, a time machine that will transport you back to the golden age of TV to educate, entertain and enlighten you with classic clips from the BBC vaults. Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss a single stop on our amazing journey through the BBC Archive - https://www.youtube.com/c/BBCArchive?sub_confirmation=1 You can also dive into plenty more BBC Archive on our website - https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive

"Is AI really achieveable? When, if ever, will we have genuinely intelligent machines? And how far have we progressed so far? Is AI even desireable?" The Turing Debate: Simon Singh chairs a debate…

As the battle hots up between Eurotunnel and P&O Ferries for cross-Channel business, Modern Times takes a look behind the scenes. The cola war is nothing compared to the Channel Wars. This candid documentary traces the intense rivalry between Eurotunnel and the ferry companies in the run-up to Eurotunnel's application for a car passenger licence. There's certainly no love lost between the bosses - one P&O executive dismisses Eurotunnel's amenties as a "lightbulb and loo," while Eurotunnel maintains that passengers want speed rather than luxurious surroundings. Both P&O and Eurotunnel have enlisted advertising agencies to agressively battle for the hearts and minds of channel crossers - be that by extolling their own virtues, or mocking their rivals weaknesses. It's not just the executives who have their say: opinion is also canvassed from tunnel staff and passengers, including disgruntled lorry drivers complaining about rubbery omelettes and rock-hard croissants, and ferry passengers considering whether to try the train for their cross-channel booze run. Clip taken from Modern Times: Channel War, originally broadcast on BBC Two, 26 April, 1995. You have now entered the BBC Archive, a time machine that will transport you back to the golden age of TV to educate, entertain and enlighten you with classic clips from the BBC vaults. Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss a single stop on our amazing journey through the BBC Archive - https://www.youtube.com/c/BBCArchive?sub_confirmation=1 You can also dive into plenty more BBC Archive on our website - https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive

To the boarding-houses of Blackpool, buffeted by howling winds and high seas, come 700 hopeful couples with one thing in common - a passion for dancing. Competing in the World Ballroom Dancing Championships - the most important ballroom dancing contest of the year - are a 6ft 4in plumber, a 56-year-old gas fitter, a secretary from the Ministry of Defence, two shop assistants from a smart London store, and a teenage couple still at school. They're all tough, fit and determined; prepared to sacrifice everything for a sport that can cost well over £3,000 a year. It is an evening of excitement, tension and humour in which much is at stake, with moments of high drama for couples who, for a whole year, have dreamt about 'winning at Blackpool'. Clip taken from Forty Minutes: Dancing in the Rain, originally broadcast on BBC Two, 16 October, 1986. You have now entered the BBC Archive, a time machine that will transport you back to the golden age of TV to educate, entertain and enlighten you with classic clips from the BBC vaults. Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss a single stop on our amazing journey through the BBC Archive - https://www.youtube.com/c/BBCArchive?sub_confirmation=1 You can also dive into plenty more BBC Archive on our website - https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive

Merry-Go-Round is a schools programme for 7 - 9 year olds. In this edition, primary school children from Hallfield and Thomas Fairchild Schools in London, and St. Chrysostom's and St. Cuthbert's…

Nick Ross hosts Fair Comment - a show in which BBC programme makers reply to viewers' letters and vox pops on a variety of topics. In this edition, Head of BBC TV Documentary Features, Will Wyatt,…

Paul Mason reports from Douglas on the Isle of Man, where the first full-scale consumer trial of 3G mobile phone systems is being piloted by Manx Telecom and MM02. As the meteoric growth in revenue for both voice and SMS messaging begins to tail off, data is seen as the next big thing in mobile communication. It's clear that the communications industry is betting big on 3G technology - in the UK alone, five mobile phone companies have paid 22 billion pounds for the licence to run the 3G network. Less clear is what, exactly, 3G will bring to consumers. While people will technically be able to watch movies and download videogames on their phones, will they want to? How much will they be prepared to pay for it? Will the telecoms companies ever make back the money they spent to obtain licences? Clip taken from Newsnight, originally broadcast on BBC Two, 31 July, 2002. You have now entered the BBC Archive, a time machine that will transport you back to the golden age of TV to educate, entertain and enlighten you with classic clips from the BBC vaults. Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss a single stop on our amazing journey through the BBC Archive - https://www.youtube.com/c/BBCArchive?sub_confirmation=1 You can also dive into plenty more BBC Archive on our website - https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive

"If you don't live every minute of the day to keep fit, and you don't think about the game all the time, then really and truely you shouldn't be in the game. You're an imposter." - Bill…

"If you think about it, all a bollard ever does is get in the way." Nationwide's Bernard Clark reports on Islington Council's fondness for bollards as a protection for footways. Councillor Maurice Perry, the former Chairman of the Islington Planning Commission, is responsible for many of the bollards in the area, and is understandably something of a bollard fan. What do local residents think of all these bollards? Clip taken from Nationwide, originally broadcast on BBC One, 26 May, 1976. You have now entered the BBC Archive, a time machine that will transport you back to the golden age of TV to educate, entertain and enlighten you with classic clips from the BBC vaults. Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss a single stop on our amazing journey through the BBC Archive - https://www.youtube.com/c/BBCArchive?sub_confirmation=1 You can also dive into plenty more BBC Archive on our website - https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive

"Oh yes, there are actually people who live on this wind-blasted strip of shingle, all the time." Julian Pettifer reports from Spurn Point - a narrow, curving sand spit stretching for three and a…

"During the last war the railways alone used 15,000, by 1948 there were only 9,000, by 1958 there were fewer than 50, and now there are just three." Fyfe Robertson meets shire horses Butch and Charlie, two of the three remaining railway horses still working in Britain. Butch and Charlie work as shunting horses at the Newmarket goods station, while another horse works as a draught horse in Stoke. Once those three have retired, it will be the end of an era. What will they do when they retire? Fyfe visits the "retirement farm" in Larling, Norfolk - run by the International League for the Protection of Horses - which has just welcomed some new arrivals, a trio of shunters who have just retired from the hustle and bustle of Camden Market in London. The farm in Larling has a railway running through it, which should help old railway horses like Butch and Charlie adapt to life after work. Clip taken from Tonight, originally broadcast on BBC Television, 13 March, 1964. You have now entered the BBC Archive, a time machine that will transport you back to the golden age of TV to educate, entertain and enlighten you with classic clips from the BBC vaults. Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss a single stop on our amazing journey through the BBC Archive - https://www.youtube.com/c/BBCArchive?sub_confirmation=1 You can also dive into plenty more BBC Archive on our website - https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive

"There's no fun on other car racing, as far as I'm concerned." - Dave Neil Stock car racing has caught on in in Lancashire, and beating the hell out of his 'mod stock' is Dave Neil's idea of a good…

The shortlist for the 1997 Turner prize for art was entirely made up of conceptual artists with no painters featured. Newsnight spoke to Young British Artist Tracey Emin who was not nominated that year but spoke about her own work which uses a variety of mediums and materials, exploring art in new ways. Clip taken from Newsnight originally broadcast on BBC Two, 17 June 1997. You have now entered the BBC Archive, a time machine that will transport you back to the golden age of TV to educate, entertain and enlighten you with classic clips from the BBC vaults. Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss a single stop on our amazing journey through the BBC Archive - https://www.youtube.com/c/BBCArchive?sub_confirmation=1 You can also dive into plenty more BBC Archive on our website - https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive

"Let me tell you, it's not going to be cheap, and it's not going to be easy." How do you get a patent for your new invention, how much does it cost, and how long will it take?Luke Casey visits 25 Southmapton Buildings, London, home of the UK Patent Office, to find out. He peruses the Patent Library, meets one of the dreaded patent examiners, and tots up the final price for a 16 year patent. Finally, Luke visits Clarence, Fred and George - a trio of Black Country friends with a passion for fishing, who have recently invented a new sliding float attachment. They call it the "Depth Master," the Patent Office has given it the rather more prosaic title: Patent Number 1364481: Improvements in Rod and Line Means For Anglers. Clip taken from Nationwide, originally broadcast on BBC One, 22 November, 1976. You have now entered the BBC Archive, a time machine that will transport you back to the golden age of TV to educate, entertain and enlighten you with classic clips from the BBC vaults. Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss a single stop on our amazing journey through the BBC Archive - https://www.youtube.com/c/BBCArchive?sub_confirmation=1 You can also dive into plenty more BBC Archive on our website - https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive

An entertaining documentary film for all those who ski, want to ski, or wouldn't be seen dead near a ski-slope. It follows the fortunes of two sets of skiers - a group of accident-prone beginners in…

Martin Parr, English documentary photographer became famous throughout his lifetime for his iconic brightly coloured photographs of British life which elevated the mundane into works of art and created a unique social history. In 1986 he took part in a project to document and archive life in Salford, and he spoke to the BBC about why capturing images in supermarkets and shops was as important as any other kind of photography. Clip taken from Saturday Review, originally broadcast on BBC Two, 25 January 1986. You have now entered the BBC Archive, a time machine that will transport you back to the golden age of TV to educate, entertain and enlighten you with classic clips from the BBC vaults. Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss a single stop on our amazing journey through the BBC Archive - https://www.youtube.com/c/BBCArchive?sub_confirmation=1 You can also dive into plenty more BBC Archive on our website - https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive

Many older houses across the UK were built without inside toilets or bathrooms. The Corbett family have moved into such a house in Manchester. Rather than embracing chilly trips across the yard and the dubious joys of a tin bath, Mr and Mrs Corbett have decided to convert one of their bedrooms into a modern indoor bathroom. Eric Thompson chats to the Corbetts, about what their ideal bathroom would look like, and what sort of budget they have. To help them, interior deigners David Hicks and Alan Tye have have come up with some modern arrangements to meet both their needs and their budget, while Don Kidman has drawn up some plans. What do Mr and Mrs Corbett make of the designs? Clip taken from In Your Place: Bathroom, originally broadcast on BBC One, Tuesday 28 February 1967. You have now entered the BBC Archive, a time machine that will transport you back to the golden age of TV to educate, entertain and enlighten you with classic clips from the BBC vaults. Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss a single stop on our amazing journey through the BBC Archive - https://www.youtube.com/c/BBCArchive?sub_confirmation=1 You can also dive into plenty more BBC Archive on our website - https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive

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"I don't know what's happened to birding these days - people thinking about food, and wearing trousers..." Bryan Bland. They call them twitchers; birdwatchers who dash from place to place ticking…

Contains Graphic Imagery. The multiples and chain stores have been growing since the beginning of the century, and in the past 15 years they have grown very fast. Today more than a third of all the money spent by shoppers in Britain goes to the multiples - Mothercare, Halfords, H. Samuels, Dorothy Perkins, Timpson Shoes, Marley Tiles, Jackson Suits, Boots, British Home Stores, C&A, Woolworths, Marks & Spencer and the like. This film tells the story of the growth of the multiples, or chain stores, and the way they play the retail game. It shows in detail what goes on behind the scenes of two well-known organisations - Tesco and WH Smith - which have become household names. Many of the multiples have been created by strong individualists, men who have built their empires their own way. Now the personalities of the retail game are being superseded by the calculators and the computers but their methods are usually still those of the street market - buy cheap, sell cheap, put everything you've got on display, and the turnover will pay for the pilfering. It's a thought that has made quite a few millionaires. Clip taken from Tuesday Documentary: The Retail Game, originally broadcast on BBC One, 21 July 1970. 00:00 Introduction 05:05 Tesco 31:11 WH Smith 48:42 End credits You have now entered the BBC Archive, a time machine that will transport you back to the golden age of TV to educate, entertain and enlighten you with classic clips from the BBC vaults. Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss a single stop on our amazing journey through the BBC Archive - https://www.youtube.com/c/BBCArchive?sub_confirmation=1 You can also dive into plenty more BBC Archive on our website - https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive