A journey into art, madness and the unconscious. An exploration of visionary artists and the creative impulse, from the Flemish Masters of the Renaissance to the avant-garde movement of Surrealism and the unsung geniuses of Art Brut and Outsider Art.

Jacques Peretti goes back to Jackson’s beginnings, charting his rise and fall and seeking a fuller picture of this complex, contradictory character by exploring the clues that were missed.

Comedian Rik Mayall died suddenly on 9 June 2014. Mayall’s blend of rocket-fuelled physical comedy, surrealism, subversive satire and pompous punk wit left a body of work that spanned four decades. Mayall’s characters include the Black Country’s investigative nerd Kevin Turvey, Felicity Kendal-adoring student and ‘People’s Poet’ Rik in The Young Ones, ruthless MP Alan B’Stard in The New Statesman, seedy loser Richie in Bottom and larger-than-life characters Robin Hood and flying ace Lord Flashheart from Blackadder. Narrated by Simon Callow, this programme salutes Rik Mayall and celebrates his part in the UK’s comedy history using rare and unseen archive footage. It also features contributions from people who knew or admired him, including Michael Palin, Simon Pegg, Lenny Henry, Ben Elton, Alexei Sayle, Christopher Ryan, Tim McInnerny, Jools Holland, Ruby Wax and Greg Davies.

A woman in Oregon opens a box of Halloween decorations and finds a distressing letter written by a political prisoner from inside a Chinese labour camp.

The sacrifice of self, the acclaim, the adoring crowds — classical pianist Marika Bournaki fits the role. But the title of Bobbi Jo Hart’s award-winning biographical documentary, I am Not a Rock Star, speaks to the contradictions of Bournaki’s life. Shot over a span of eight years – following the pianist from 12 to 20 years of age – Hart’s film amounts to a front row seat in the unfolding of a life and the forming of a personality. Shot in verité style in concert halls, hotels and airports around the world and featuring stunning piano performances, the film turns Bournaki’s life into a visual narrative, revealing both the rewards and costs of a life dedicated to music

God Save My Shoes is the first documentary film to explore the intimate relationship between women and shoes, questioning why shoes are the most addictive item in a woman’s closet and how shoes have become a totem object.

(In)Visible Portraits shatters the too-often invisible otherizing of Black women in America and reclaims the true narrative as told in their own words.

When a young drug researcher is hired by a tobacco company, Victor DeNoble unexpectedly discovers the ingredients of addiction and fuels a national campaign to have it regulated.

The radical honesty of the books by young adult fiction pioneer Judy Blume changed the way millions of readers understood themselves, their sexuality, and what it meant to grow up, but also led to critical battles against book banning and censorship.

About the life and work of controversial American Jewish academic Norman Finkelstein.

With dazzling nature photography, Academy Award®–nominated director Markus Imhoof (The Boat Is Full) takes a global examination of endangered honeybees — spanning California, Switzerland, China and Australia — more ambitious than any previous work on the topic.

Picture a land of boulder-strewn shorelines, isolated mountaintops, and golden prairies. Here, packs of wolves stalk herds of ancient mustangs and tree-climbing carnivores keep entire forests on edge. Meanwhile, high above the crashing surf, a pair of storks attempts to raise a family on a narrow ledge atop a towering cliff. EUROPE’S WILD WEST is a place where survival is reserved for those with the keenest senses… and the quickest draw.