Imagine Season 38 Episodes

Episode 1

Imagine... Stephen Frears: Director for Hire

60 mins

Imagine... profiles acclaimed British director Stephen Frears. Despite decades of success across both cinema and television, Frears likes to fly under the radar, subscribing to Billy Wilder's maxim, 'The best director is the one you don't see'. He has helmed an array of critically acclaimed films - My Beautiful Laundrette, The Grifters, Dangerous Liaisons, The Queen and Philomena, to name just a few. Some say he's notoriously grumpy, others that he's mischievous and misunderstood. Now for the first time, Frears opens up about his life and career. What drives this 81-year-old, who has over 70 productions to his name across cinema and television?

Episode 2

Imagine... The Factory: Made in Manchester

60 mins

Episode 3

Russell T Davies: The Doctor and Me

60 mins

Imagine... follows one of Britain's most celebrated TV writers as he prepares to once again return as the showrunner of Doctor Who. Back in 2005, Davies was responsible for relaunching the action-adventure series after many years away from our TV screens. Few could have imagined the phenomenon it became. And now, in the programme's sixtieth anniversary year, he's back - with two Doctors and bigger ambitions. imagine... goes behind the scenes at Cardiff's Bad Wolf Studios to see the adventures of the time-travelling hero being filmed, touring the enormous sound stages and meeting Ncuti Gatwa, the 15th Doctor, ahead of his eagerly anticipated tenure as the Time Lord following the unexpected regeneration of David Tennant. Doctor Who is just one of Russell T Davies's many TV successes, and Alan Yentob traces the evolution of his writing, from his beginnings in BBC children's TV to finding his voice as a queer writer on Channel 4's landmark gay series Queer as Folk and to more recent successes, including 2021's critically acclaimed AIDS drama, It's a Sin. The film also features interviews with David Tennant, Catherine Tate, Ncuti Gatwa, Helena Bonham Carter, Olly Alexander, Sally Wainwright and Caitlin Moran.

Episode 4

French & Saunders: Pointed, Bitchy, Bitter

60 mins