Hoorah for BBC4!

I've been itching to big up BBC4 for a while now. A station whose schedule began with just a mite too much fibre than flavour has now reached the peaks of my admiration.

Not only has this month alone brought us the triple bounty of single dramas in "Fantabulosa!", "The Chatterley Affair" and "A for Andromeda", but even the channel's repeats are so wonderfully considered and complementary. Quietly residing in the BBC4 listings have been "The Avengers", Our Friends in the North", "Ripping Yarns"and "Yes Minister" as well as themed evenings based on diverse topics such as "Jackanory" and Nigel Kneale. Comedy is also given a refreshing twist in offerings like "The Thick of It" and "The Mark Steel Lectures".

Fridays are also nicely given over to largely musical diversions, with a healthy dose of niche material coalescing around the likes of "Jazz Britannia" and "Folk Britannia", as well as concerts by the likes of Neil Hannon and Cream.

Now I hear that another 'considered repeat' is to be "Life on Mars", which only completed it's first series last month on BBC1. It goes out on Sundays from 2 April. Backing up in true BBC4 fashion is a 1973-themed batch of programmes, which I'm delighted to report include the fondly remembered "Doctor Who" story "The Green Death" - it's the one with Jon Pertwee and a bunch of giant maggots down a mine.

UKTV