BBC Four Collections

BBC Four Collections is a selected variation of factual television episodes and series available on British video-on-demand service BBC iPlayer. The collections themselves primarily involve "experts" like Richard Osman, Janet Street-Porter and David Attenborough selecting various programmes from the BBC Archive to be made available on the iPlayer service. Every programme is marked with a short introduction marking the collection with BBC Four branding. Each collection has a particular theme like modern classical music, the British Army and interviews with famous figures. Some collections were established in 2012, more being added to the service until 2014. As of 2023, most of the content is still available on the iPlayer service, with some becoming unavailable due to rights or other reasons, like the Tim Westwood sexual assault allegations.

List of collections

Only collections with a noted author are included in this list.

Expert	Collection	Year	Programme	Episode Title or Date	Available
Mark Urban	Army: A Very British Institution	1968	Breakaway	5. "My Friends Think I'm Mad"	rowspan="16"
Mark Urban	Army: A Very British Institution	1990	Everyman	"A Game of Soldiers"	-
Mark Urban	Army: A Very British Institution	1977	In Her Majesty's Service	6. Corporal of Horse Christopher Slater, The Life Guards Squadron of the Household Cavalry Regiment	-
Mark Urban	Army: A Very British Institution	1989	In the Highest Tradition	N/A, 6-episode series	-
Mark Urban	Army: A Very British Institution	1989	Inside Out: Ticking with the Crow/The Officers' Mess	N/A	-
Mark Urban	Army: A Very British Institution	1960	Meet the Red Devils: Parachute Regiment	N/A	-
Mark Urban	Army: A Very British Institution	1985	Moment of Truth	Episode 6	-
Mark Urban	Army: A Very British Institution	1969	Omnibus	Makers of the Queen's Music	-
Mark Urban	Army: A Very British Institution	1975	Panorama	Sandhurst	-
Mark Urban	Army: A Very British Institution	1983	The Paras	N/A, 7-episode series	-
Mark Urban	Army: A Very British Institution	1977	The Regiment	N/A	-
Mark Urban	Army: A Very British Institution	1977	Silver Jubilee	Review of the British Army	-
Mark Urban	Army: A Very British Institution	1977	Trooping the Colour	Silver Jubilee	-
Mark Urban	Army: A Very British Institution	1952	Trooping the Colour	1952	-
Mark Urban	Army: A Very British Institution	1974	Tuesday Documentary	The Bomb Disposal Men	-
Mark Urban	Army: A Very British Institution	1968	Tuesday Documentary	Death or Glory	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1987	Open Space	Bad Meaning Good
Simon Jenkins	London	1975	Going Places	12	rowspan="11"
Simon Jenkins	London	1964	A City Crowned with Green	N/A	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1950	The Debate Continues	N/A	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1946	First-Year Flashbacks	N/A	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1999	Inside Story	Fish Tales	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1968	One Pair of Eyes	Georgia Brown: Who are the Cockneys Now?	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1956	Special Enquiry	A Girl Comes to London	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1960	A House in Bayswater	N/A	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1969	How They Dug the Victoria Line	N/A	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1971	Man Alive	Hyde Park	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1969	I Love This Dirty Town	N/A	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1985	Ours to Keep	Incomers
Simon Jenkins	London	1959	After the Battle	London - Ed Murrow Reports	rowspan="16"
Simon Jenkins	London	1957	Eye To Eye	London-New York	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1955	Cities of Europe	London: We Live by the River	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1968	Contrasts	Marble Arch to Edgware	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1976	Inside Story	The Market	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1991	Clive James	Postcard from London	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1985	Just Another Day	Soho	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1985	Just Another Day	The Tower of London	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1996	Modern Times	Streetwise	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1967	Three Swings on a Pendulum	N/A	-
Simon Jenkins	London	1985	To the World's End: Scenes and Characters on a London Bus Route	N/A	-
Clemency Burton-Hill	Modern Classical Music	2005	Boulez at 80	N/A	-
Clemency Burton-Hill	Modern Classical Music	2005	BBC Proms 2005	Michael Berkeley, Ben Britten & Vaughan Williams	-
Clemency Burton-Hill	Modern Classical Music	1964	Celebrity Recital	Benjamin Britten and Peter Pears.	-
Clemency Burton-Hill	Modern Classical Music	2004	John Cage Live at the Barbican	N/A	-
Clemency Burton-Hill	Modern Classical Music	1978	Julian Bream Masterclass	N/A, 5-episode series	-
Clemency Burton-Hill	Modern Classical Music	2001	Music Masters	Stockhausen
Clemency Burton-Hill	Modern Classical Music	2001	Music Masters	John Adams	rowspan="8"
Clemency Burton-Hill	Modern Classical Music	1968	Omnibus	Diaghilev: The Years Abroad	-
Clemency Burton-Hill	Modern Classical Music	2001	Philip Glass Concert: Live at the Barbican	N/A	-
Clemency Burton-Hill	Modern Classical Music	2013	The Sound and the Fury in Concert	N/A, 3 episode series	-
Clemency Burton-Hill	Modern Classical Music	1964	War Requiem	N/A	-
Gary Boyd-Hope	Steam Railways	1968	4472 - Flying Scotsman	N/A	-
Gary Boyd-Hope	Steam Railways	1963	Let's Imagine	A Branch Line Railway with John Betjeman	-
Gary Boyd-Hope	Steam Railways	1975	The World About Us	The Romance of Indian Railways	-
Gary Boyd-Hope	Steam Railways	1986	Steam Days	N/A, 6 episode series
Gary Boyd-Hope	Steam Railways	1979	The Rainhill Story: Stephenson's Rocket	N/A
Gary Boyd-Hope	Steam Railways	1988	The Train Now Departing	N/A, 6 episode series
Gary Boyd-Hope	Steam Railways	1969	Tuesday Documentary	Engines Must Not Enter the Potato Siding	rowspan="87"
Gary Boyd-Hope	Steam Railways	1962	In View	Men of Steam	-
Gary Boyd-Hope	Steam Railways	1980	The Past at Work	Railway Mania	-
Gary Boyd-Hope	Steam Railways	1980	The Great Railway Cavalcade: Rocket 150 at Rainhill	N/A	-
Gary Boyd-Hope	Steam Railways	1977	With a Fine Feeling for Steam	N/A	-
Robin Lane Fox	Archaeology at the BBC	1956	Animal, Vegetable, Mineral?	3 May 1956	-
Robin Lane Fox	Archaeology at the BBC	1958	Animal, Vegetable, Mineral?	1 October 1958	-
Robin Lane Fox	Archaeology at the BBC	1960	The Grandeur That Was Rome	N/A, 3 episode series	-
Robin Lane Fox	Archaeology at the BBC	1958	Armchair Voyage: Hellenic Cruise	N/A, 3 episode series	-
Robin Lane Fox	Archaeology at the BBC	1974	Sir Mortimer and Magnus	N/A, 6 episode series	-
Robin Lane Fox	Archaeology at the BBC	1966	Chronicle	Vikings in North America	-
Robin Lane Fox	Archaeology at the BBC	1966	Chronicle	The Roman Goose March: The Holy Sailors	-
Robin Lane Fox	Archaeology at the BBC	1973	Chronicle	The Ape Man That Never Was	-
Robin Lane Fox	Archaeology at the BBC	1954	Buried Treasure	Stonehenge	-
Robin Lane Fox	Archaeology at the BBC	1956	Buried Treasure	The Walls of Jericho	-
Robin Lane Fox	Archaeology at the BBC	1958	Buried Treasure	King Solomon's Mines	-
Robin Lane Fox	Archaeology at the BBC	1957	Buried Treasure	Mohenjo-daro	-
Robin Lane Fox	Archaeology at the BBC	1954	Buried Treasure	The Peat Bog Murder Mystery	-
Julian Joseph	Blues	1985	Arena	Blues Night	-
Julian Joseph	Blues	1979	The Devil's Music	N/A, 4-episode series	-
Julian Joseph	Blues	1972	Sounding Out	B.B. King	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1986	Architecture at the Crossroads	Doubt and Reassessment	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1986	Architecture at the Crossroads	Stop the Bulldozer	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1986	Architecture at the Crossroads	Houses Fit for People	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1988	Building Sights	Schlumberger Building	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1988	Building Sights	Byker Wall	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1988	Building Sights	Alexander Fleming House	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1989	Building Sights	Janet Street-Porter	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1991	Building Sights	Lloyd's Building	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1991	Building Sights	Trellick Tower	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1991	Building Sights	Boarbank Hall Oratory	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1996	Building Sights	Canary Wharf	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1996	Building Sights	Worsley Medical Building	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1996	Building Sights	Hauer-King House	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1996	Building Sights	Humber Bridge	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1996	Building Sights	Wood Street Police Station	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1996	Building Sights	Alton Estate	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1996	Building Sights	Willis Corroon	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1972	Nairn Across Britain	N/A, 3-episode series	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1969	Omnibus	The More We Are Together	-
Janet Street-Porter	Post-War Architecture	1979	Where We Live Now	New Town, Home Town	-
David Attenborough	The Early Years	2013	David Attenborough: The Early Years	N/A	-
David Attenborough	The Early Years	1963	Adventure	Quest under Capricorn	-
David Attenborough	The Early Years	1965	Adventure	Zambezi	-
David Attenborough	The Early Years	1961	Zoo Quest	To Madagascar	-
David Attenborough	The Early Years	1956	Zoo Quest	for a Dragon	-
David Attenborough	The Early Years	1955	Zoo Quest	to West Africa	-
David Attenborough	The Early Years	1960	The People of Paradise	First 5 episodes of 6	-
David Attenborough	The Early Years	1969	The Miracle of Bali	N/A, 3-episode series	-
David Attenborough	The Early Years	1961	Elsa the Lioness	N/A	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1959	Face to Face	Bertrand Russell	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1959	Face to Face	Dame Edith Sitwell	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1959	Face to Face	Carl Jung	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1960	Face to Face	Stirling Moss	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1960	Face to Face	Evelyn Waugh	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1960	Face to Face	Adam Faith	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1961	Face to Face	Martin Luther King	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1994	Face to Face	Maya Angelou	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1994	Face to Face	Jeanette Winterson	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1995	Face to Face	Lauren Bacall	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1995	Face to Face	Ken Dodd	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1972	Parkinson	David Niven	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1974	Parkinson	Dr Jacob Bronowski	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1998	Parkinson	Billy Connolly & David Attenborough	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1974	The Frost Interview	David Frost interviews Muhammad Ali	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1974	The Frost Interview	Brian Clough	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	2003	Breakfast with Frost	Tony Blair	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	2003	Breakfast with Frost	Dominique de Villepin	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	2004	Breakfast with Frost	Donald Rumsfeld	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1965	Late Night Line-Up	16 October 1965	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1966	Late Night Line-Up	20 November 1966	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1966	Late Night Line-Up	Coco the Clown	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1966	Imtimations	10. John le Carre	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1966	People to Watch	Ronald Reagan	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1960	Monitor	Henry Moore	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1955	In Town Tonight	22 October 1955	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1955	In Town Tonight	29 October 1955	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1955	Panorama	Salvador Dalí	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1955	Panorama	Ed Murrow	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1955	Press Conference	Orson Welles	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1982	Arena	Desert Island Discs	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1963	The Solitary Billionaire: J. Paul Getty	N/A	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1971	Daphne Du Maurier	N/A	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1984	Wogan	18 February 1984	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1984	Wogan	25 December 1984	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1987	Wogan	9 November 1987	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1970	Personal Choice	Jane Fonda	-
Michael Parkinson	Talk	1956	Picture Parade	Joan Crawford	rowspan="2"
Adam Curtis	All American	1972	Alistair Cooke's America	The First Impact	-
Adam Curtis	All American	1981	Arena	Chelsea Hotel	rowspan="10"
Adam Curtis	All American	2004	Arena	Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus	-
Adam Curtis	All American	1999	Close Up	Jackson Pollock: Love and Death on Long Island	-
Adam Curtis	All American	1965	Inside America	13. The Quiet Persuader	-
Adam Curtis	All American	1985	Omnibus	Stud Terkel's Chicago	-
Adam Curtis	All American	1966	Panorama	California 2000	-
Adam Curtis	All American	2001	Timewatch	The Empire State Story	-
Adam Curtis	All American	1967	Whicker's World	Conflict in Kentucky	-
Richard Osman	Classic Game Shows	2000	Friends Like These	18 November 2000	-
Richard Osman	Classic Game Shows	1982	Ask the Family	2 November 1982	-
Richard Osman	Classic Game Shows	2009	The Weakest Link	27 January 2009
Richard Osman	Classic Game Shows	2001	Big Break	19 May 2001	rowspan="2"
Richard Osman	Classic Game Shows	1987	Bob's Full House	19 December 1987	-
Richard Osman	Classic Game Shows	1974	What's My Line?	19 January 1974	rowspan="2"
Richard Osman	Classic Game Shows	1999	Call My Bluff	19 November 1999	-
Richard Osman	Classic Game Shows	1966	Quiz Ball	22 December 1966	rowspan="3"
Richard Osman	Classic Game Shows	1954	Animal, Vegetable, Mineral?''	28 October 1954	-
Max Hastings	The Great War Interviews	1960s	The Great War Interviews	N/A, 13-episode series	-