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29 October 2014
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The Beijing Games on the 91Èȱ¬
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The 2008 Beijing Olympics and Paralympics on the 91Èȱ¬



A selection of China and Olympics-related programmes from across the 91Èȱ¬


Learn Mandarin!

91Èȱ¬ Languages

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Going to Beijing? If you're pushed for time, download (MP3) or print out the Quick Fix: absolutely essential words and phrases. Ranging from "Where's the stadium?" to "I don't speak Chinese", they're ideal for taking with you to Beijing this summer.

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Or learn Real Chinese; this lively introduction to Mandarin Chinese in 10 short parts will help you learn the basics with the help of videos, useful phrases and tips on pronunciation and grammar.

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Chinese Word For Today: For entertainment mixed with learning, play the Chinese tone and character games. See if you can rise to the challenge set by Mandarin Chinese with its unique pronunciation and writing systems. Visit bbc.co.uk/languages/chinese.

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Contact: CD2

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China Topics Website

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Or visit the 91Èȱ¬'s special /topics website which brings together all its rich programming and content around China from News, Sport, Nations & Regions, Audio & Music and 91Èȱ¬ Vision to support the 91Èȱ¬'s year-long Focus On China. Visit: bbc.co.uk/topics/china.

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Contact: KR

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Olympic Dreams

July, 91Èȱ¬ One

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As the London 2012 Olympics draw ever closer, many British athletes will embark on the long journey towards fulfilling their ultimate goal of securing a place on Team GB and winning gold in front of a home crowd. This observational documentary series, filmed in partnership with The Open University, follows the fortunes of rising British stars as they endure the hopes and heartaches, troubles and triumphs on the road to London 2012.

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Building on the success of the first series, aired in 2007, the second, four-part series of Olympic Dreams offers an intimate insight into the British athletes' gruelling training schedules, daily sacrifices, highs of victory, lows of defeat, and the pressure of coping under the weight of growing expectation.

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The British hopefuls who are followed in the series include diver Tom Daley; Team GB judo team; Team GB gymnastics team; Team GB Paralympic wheelchair rugby team; heptathlete Jessica Ennis; table tennis players Paul Drinkhall and Darius Knight; BMX champion Shanaze Reade; Paralympic dressage champion Lee Pearson; Team GB women's rowing team and the elite Team GB men's rowing coxless four.

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During the series the unique relationship between coach and athlete is explored, as well as the role family and friends play in supporting the athletes through their preparation and training, the nerve-wracking rounds of selection and competition and the sacrifices and opportunities they experience in order to earn their place on the 2012 British Olympic Team.

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Contact: ST2

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Olympics – Black Power Salute

Wednesday 9 July, 9.00pm, 91Èȱ¬ Four

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A film about one of the most iconic images of the 20th century, the moment in which the radical spirit of the Sixties upstaged the greatest sporting event in the world. Two men made a courageous gesture that reverberated around the world and changed their lives for ever.

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1968 was a revolutionary year. In Paris students revolted on the street, while in Prague Russian tanks rolled into the city to stop the peaceful revolution. The assassinations of Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King shocked the world. In the United States, the struggle for civil rights had led to a series of bitter and violent confrontations on the streets. There were a number of unforgettable performances at the Mexico City Olympic Games, where many world records were broken. But the enduring image from the 1968 Games didn't take place during a race. African American athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised their gloved, clenched fists in support of the Black Panther movement during the Star Spangled Banner, after receiving gold and bronze medals for their triumph in the 200m sprint.

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They were subsequently banned from the Games for life. What inspired them to make their protest? Why did it carry such a powerful message? And what happened to the unlikely revolutionaries following the Games?

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Contact: EDA

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Chinese Food Made Easy

6 x 30-minute series, Summer 2008, 91Èȱ¬ Two

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One of the brightest young stars in modern Chinese cooking in the UK today, Ching-He Huang, 28, travels the length and breadth of the country to show viewers the modern way of cooking the nation's favourite Chinese dishes. Ching-He Huang's contemporary, youthful and fun attitude is reflected in the new series as we see her journey across Britain – literally with wok in hand – taking our favourite Chinese takeaway dishes, and giving them a contemporary twist with easy-to-buy ingredients and simple practical tips.

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Born in Taiwan and brought up first in South Africa and then in London from the age of 11, Ching draws on the experiences of her family and friends as well as top chefs to introduce healthy Chinese food to the traditional Chinese-takeaway-reliant Brits. With characteristic energy and enthusiasm her distinctive take on cooking our takeaway favourites – sweet and sour pork through to authentic fried rice and chop suey – will emphasise how quick, easy to make and healthy Chinese food really is and how it should actually be eaten.

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Contact: Knowledge Publicity

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Blue Peter – Olympic Special

Wednesday 7 August, 4.35pm, 91Èȱ¬ One

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The Blue Peter team take an in-depth look at the Beijing Olympic and Paralympic Games, uncovering all you need to know about the big events. They highlight which medal hopefuls to watch out for with interviews of top athletes, past and present. They also look ahead to the London 2012 games and visit UK projects already up and running to get everyday kids involved in sport.

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Contact: Front Desk Publicity

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91Èȱ¬ Radio 4

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The Ping Pong Diplomats

Saturday 21 June, 10.30am, 91Èȱ¬ Radio 4

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As the 2008 Beijing Olympics gets under way, Garry Richardson casts a wry eye back to the early Seventies and an unusual sporting exchange which marked the beginning of the end of Chinese isolation. In 1971, table tennis players set out on a sporting adventure and succeeded in relaxing tensions between Beijing and the West.

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Contact: TE

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The Medal Makers

Saturday 4 July, 11.00am, 91Èȱ¬ Radio 4

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Allison Curbishley meets the people whose eagle eyesight and instant decision-making will determine the medal places in Beijing.

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Contact: TE

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Olympic Arts

Saturday 21 July, 11.00am, 91Èȱ¬ Radio 4

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Mark Whitaker discusses how, for the founder of the Modern Olympics, Pierre de Couberton, sport was meaningless without the arts, and at each of the Games between 1912 and 1948 medals were awarded for painting, sculpture, music and literature.

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Contact: TE

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The Dirtiest Race In History

Saturday 2 August, 91Èȱ¬ Radio 4

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Steve Cram looks back at the 1988 Olympic men's 100m final, a race which was forever tainted by bannings, disqualifications and allegations of drug taking.

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91Èȱ¬ Radio 3 Focus On China

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Music Matters

Saturday 21 June, 12.15pm, 91Èȱ¬ Radio 3

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Petroc Trelawny travels to Beijing for Music Matters to examine the state of classical music in modern China. Western classical music has had a chequered history in China. Recently there has been an unprecedented growth in classical music, which has now become a symbol of the burgeoning middle classes. Music Matters looks at the attitudes to classical music, both in the home and the concert hall, talking to musicians, publishers and journalists in Beijing.

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Contact: DL

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World Routes

Saturday 21 June, 3.00pm, 91Èȱ¬ Radio 3

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Lucy Duran explores the music and culture of one of China's most remote regions, Xinjiang, to meet the Uyghur people. She heads to the ancient Silk Road town of Kashgar to record the region's most famous music, Mugam, and onwards into the desert where the music and weather become wilder and wilder.

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Contact: DL

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Hear And Now

Saturday 21 June, 10.30pm, 91Èȱ¬ Radio 3

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In Shanghai Robert Worby explores the growth of electronic music in both the academic confines of the conservatory and the underground "noise" scene. Robert talks to key movers, discovering how the music has developed since the "thaw" after the Cultural Revolution and how composers are combining traditional instruments with electronic sounds. He also experiences the music first-hand at an unofficial underground club.

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Contact: DL

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Sunday Feature – Flowers In The Back Yard

Sunday 22 June, 9.40pm, 91Èȱ¬ Radio 3

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Isabel Hilton reports from China's capital, Beijing, on the country's uneasy relationship with its minority cultures. Isabel talks to writers and academics who have broadened their own understanding of China through ethnic cultures, and meets cultural figures from a variety of ethnic minorities who describe their experiences of living within such a massive majority.

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Contact: DL

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The Essay

Monday 23 to Thursday 26 June, 11.00pm, 91Èȱ¬ Radio 3

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The Essay continues two weeks of China-themed talks,with Nature In China. Nature and travel writer Robert Macfarlane takes four journeys in Beijing and beyond to find what remains of wild China as the country industrialises at an astonishing pace, and its nature is changed for ever.

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Contact: DL

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Performance On 3

Monday 23 & Tuesday 24 June, 7.00pm, 91Èȱ¬ Radio 3

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A concert recorded in Beijing by the China Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Yu Long and two concerts by the 91Èȱ¬ Scottish Symphony Orchestra conducted by Christoph König with Nicola Benedetti on violin, recorded in Beijing and Hangzhou on their 2008 tour of China.

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Contact: DL

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Afternoon On 3

Monday 23 & Tuesday 24 June, 2.00pm, 91Èȱ¬ Radio 3

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Monday's concert is from the 91Èȱ¬ Symphony Orchestra conducted by Muhai Tang with music by Bright Sheng, Tan Dun, Qigang and Musheng Chen, plus a performance by the 91Èȱ¬ Singers with songs by Chen Yi. Tuesday features a concert by the Gu Feng Ensemble conducted by Jason Lai with pianist Jin Ju. Music performed by the 91Èȱ¬ Symphony Orchestra on their tour of China in 2006.

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Contact: DL

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Night Waves

Tuesday 24 & Wednesday 25 June, 9.45pm, 91Èȱ¬ Radio 3

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Philip Dodd speaks to the movers and shakers of the Chinese intelligentsia, and there's a special Night Waves landmark on Chinese literature.

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Contact: DL

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The John Akii-Bua Story

August, 91Èȱ¬ Two

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John Akii-Bua was a Ugandan athlete who won the gold medal in the 400m hurdles at the 1972 Olympics. He beat the favourite, Britain's David Hemery, and broke the world record. A spectator handed him a Ugandan flag, and Akii-Bua accepted it and ran around the track with it unfurled, beginning the now accepted tradition of the victory lap. The government of Uganda did not appreciate the attention the athlete received, however, and, bizarrely, placed him under house arrest. After missing the 1976 Olympics because of the African boycott, police officer Akii-Bua was even arrested. This film tells his story.

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Contact: Front Desk Publicity

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Sprint

August, 91Èȱ¬ Two

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It turns out that the best young 100-metre sprinters in the world right now are mainly British. From around 17 to 19 years old, all these athletes have the potential to be the 100m champion in London 2012. The 91Èȱ¬ follows these hopefuls on their 2012 journey.

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Contact: Front Desk Publicity

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Olympic Concert Live

Sunday 24 August, 91Èȱ¬ One

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Sunday 24 August 2008 marks a significant day in Britain's sporting history – the day that, officially, London becomes the new host city for the next Olympic Games.

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To celebrate this important occasion, the 91Èȱ¬ and the organisers of London 2012 are working together to stage a major live event in central London.

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A landmark live concert, on a specially constructed stage by Buckingham Palace, will air on 91Èȱ¬ One and will feature a line-up of national and international performers – a combination of heritage names and contemporary acts. Also taking part will be the cream of British sport and high-profile special guests.

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The 91Èȱ¬'s Olympic coverage on 24 August will culminate with the closing ceremony of the Beijing Games. Once the China Games have finished, London becomes the new host Olympic City for the next four years – and following a live link from China to London, the celebrations here will kick off in style.

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Great music is at the heart of this special concert, featuring hits and some contemporary sports themes, anthems and songs used in a sporting context, which have had a huge unifying impact on the national consciousness.

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This 90-minute live show on 91Èȱ¬ One will feature around 16 performances, including bands, solo artists and a live orchestra.

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Sport and music are a strong combination. One in three people globally watch the opening of an Olympic Games, demonstrating the interest and appetite for sporting/entertainment events.

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The Olympic Torch Concert in 2004 attracted a great audience and images of the concert were featured in news bulletins around the world.

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On 24 August, the anticipated attendance at this new live event, in front of Buckingham Palace, is 70,000 people.

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This spectacular concert is being produced by 91Èȱ¬ Events (Concert For Diana - peaked at 12.2 million/48% share, Children's Party At The Palace - peaked at 7.63 million/40% share).

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Olympic Concert Live – a headline-grabbing event at the start of the country's run-up to the London 2012 Games.

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Contact: NA

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Please note all programme dates and times are subject to change.

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