January first showings on BBC HD:
FA Cup
Live sport returns to BBC HD in January with the drama of the FA Cup. Kicking off with third round match Liverpool v Arsenal on Saturday 6 January, BBC HD will simulcast the pick of matches every week of the tournament. Match dates and times TBA. (Simulcast with BBC ONE)
Lilies
Tough, sexy, funny and heartbreaking, Lilies details the lives of Iris, May and Ruby Moss - Catholic sisters coming of age in a dockland terraced house in Liverpool. Set in the years immediately following the First World War, Lilies pulls no punches. It depicts a sensual, vivid and sometimes savage universe - where life is lived on a knife-edge of poverty, fuelled by various kinds of love. All three girls must make their own way in the world. Iris (Catherine Tyldesley) makes chocolates, Ruby (Kerrie Hayes) sells (and sometimes models) corsets, and May (Leanne Rowe) - seduced by the trappings of a world beyond her grasp - earns her living as a parlour maid. (Simulcast with BBC ONE)
After You’ve Gone
Nicholas Lyndhurst makes a return as jack-of-all-trades Jimmy Venables, probably the only man in Britain who gets divorced and ends up sharing a home with his mother-in-law. Weekend dad Jimmy offers to move back into the marital home to look after his two teenagers when his ex-wife volunteers to tend to victims of a natural disaster in Africa. Unfortunately, Jimmy's patrician mother-in-law, Diana (Celia Imrie), views Jimmy as a walking, talking, natural disaster, so she virtually moves in to "help", which generally means undermining Jimmy whenever possible. After You've Gone is created by Fred Barron (My Family). The cast also includes Amanda Abbington as Jimmy's girlfriend and Vincent Ebrahim and Lee Oakes as Jimmy's mates. (Simulcast with BBC ONE)
Judge John Deed
Martin Shaw reprises his ever popular and critically acclaimed role of John Deed, the judge who is not afraid to question the establishment. (Simulcast with BBC ONE)
Party Animals
Like most twenty-somethings, Scott, Danny, Ashika and Kirsty spend much of their day worrying about love, sex, friendship and paying the rent. Unlike most twenty-somethings, the rest of the time they're worrying about running the country...Drawing on a wealth of first-hand research, Party Animals presents Westminster from the ground up - the young researchers and advisors shouldering huge responsibility in a frantic, high-stakes world. It's no wonder their personal lives are so messy. Party Animals is written by Ben Richards (Spooks, No Angels), Robert Jones (The Cops, Ahead of the Class) and Fintan Ryan (Bad Crowd). (Simulcast with BBC TWO)
Rough Diamond
A new drama set in beautiful rural southern Ireland, against the backdrop of the elegant world of horse racing. A man who thinks he has nothing finds a son in need of a father and a horse who just needs a chance. But all three must learn to trust each other if they're to achieve their dreams. Rough Diamond charts the rivalry between a struggling young trainer, Aidan (Conor Mullen), and his millionaire neighbours - Charlie Carrick (Stanley Townsend) and his wife Yolanda (Lorraine Pilkington) - who run the successful Firebrand yard. (Simulcast with BBC ONE)
M.I. High
Threats to British national security are at an all-time high. The old school spies have had their day and high–ranking MI9 agent, Lenny Bicknall (Danny John Jules, Red Dwarf) must find secure and untraceable identities for his officers. His solution: to establish a ring of undercover agents in a place the enemy will never suspect – an inner city high school. Following the success of their last children's series, the Emmy Award-winning The Magician's House, and the Bafta-winning Spooks, comes an original children's series from Kudos Film and Television. (From CBBC).
February first showings on BBC HD:
Euro 2008 Qualifiers
And there’s more football action when BBC HD show all England home friendlies and Euro 2008 qualifiers starting with the Spain friendly on 7th Feb. (Simulcast with BBC ONE)
Six Nations
BBC HD will show all England, Scotland and Wales’ home games, starting in February and through to the final match in mid-March. (Simulcast with BBC ONE)
Hotel Babylon season two
The newly-refurbished Hotel Babylon opens its doors once more, headed up by glamorous manager Rebecca Mitchell (Tamsin Outhwaite), giving viewers a tantalising and seductive insight into the sexy world of the luxury five-star hotel industry – where money not only talks but can also buy just about anything you desire. The hotel staff is delighted to welcome back Charlie (Max Beesley), who is shaken but not stirred from his shooting experience at the end of the first series. Meanwhile Rebecca has her hands full when a prominent MP is forced to hide in the hotel following the news that her husband has had an affair. Based on Imogen Edwards-Jones’ searing expose of life behind the scenes of the luxury hotel industry in London. (Simulcast with BBC ONE)
Nuclear Secrets
There are currently 27,000 nuclear warheads in existence and most are far more powerful than those used at Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Nine countries possess, or are suspected of possessing, nuclear weapons; dozens more have access to nuclear materials and the technology to turn them into weapons. Through five spy thriller programmes, Nuclear Secrets charts the true story of the race for nuclear supremacy – from the creation of the A-Bomb to the present-day market in nuclear secrets across the world. (From BBC TWO)
