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The Best Episodes of imagine…

Every episode of imagine… ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of imagine…!

The Best Episodes of imagine…

The biggest names from the world of art, film, music, literature and dance. Alan Yentob gets close up with those shaping today's cultural world.
  1. Background image for Scrabble: A Night on the Tiles
    8.5/10(28 votes)

    #1 - Scrabble: A Night on the Tiles

    S16:E6

    Scrabble is experiencing a renaissance. The younger generation have rediscovered the game online - through the copyright busting Scrabulous - and they're having night after night on the tiles. LANA BOTNEY sets out to discover why the word game leaves us spellbound, tracing its surprising history, meeting the American tournament Word Freaks, and paying a visit to the SAS-style training camp that the Nigerian government trains their players at. With triple word score contributions from Moby, Richard Herring, Lynn Barber and Noreena Hertz.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  2. Background image for Let There Be Light
    8.4/10(5 votes)

    #2 - Let There Be Light

    S14:E4

    Alan Yentob meets artists who use light as both the source and inspiration for their work, including American James Turrell.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  3. Background image for A Love Story
    8.3/10(10 votes)

    #3 - A Love Story

    S14:E2

    Alan Yentob embarks on a quest to find out what makes a great love story in literature, film or song. Among those offering their help in this labour of love are author Jeffrey Eugenides and lyricist Hal David.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  4. Background image for The Art That Hitler Hated: The Sins of the Fathers
    8.3/10(11 votes)

    #4 - The Art That Hitler Hated: The Sins of the Fathers

    S23:E2

    imagine... tells how the end of the war was only the beginning of another battle. In the art world in Germany, it was business as usual. Many people in museums, galleries and auction houses in Germany remained in their positions when the war was over. So people involved in looting art might now be in charge of deciding whether to return it. For families, often living in exile, it was an uphill struggle. For them the discovery of the Gurlitt hoard has raised new hopes - and repeated some old disappointments.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  5. Background image for A Trip to Asia: on the Road with the Berlin Philharmonic
    8.1/10(16 votes)

    #5 - A Trip to Asia: on the Road with the Berlin Philharmonic

    S13:E4

    This compelling record of the Berlin Philharmonic during a concert tour of Asia proves as much an inner journey as an outer one, as musicans and their conductor Simon Rattle reflect on subjects such as the orchestra's organisation and traditions; its distinctive sound; life on the road; the demands of performance; and the effects of age on technique. As eloquent as these musings are the performances of Richard Strauss 's Ein Heldenleben and Thomas Ades 's Asyla to rapt audiences in Beijing, Seoul, Tokyo and beyond.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  6. Background image for Bette Midler: The Divine Miss M
    8.1/10(10 votes)

    #6 - Bette Midler: The Divine Miss M

    S23:E3

    For five decades the woman they call The Divine Miss M has forged a path which has taken her from a pineapple canning factory in Honolulu to becoming a Hollywood legend. Alan Yentob joins Bette Midler on a journey through the chorus lines of Broadway, the bathhouses and nightclubs of the 1970s, to the very top of the film industry. Her combination of a soulful voice and the raucous wit of Mae West has made her name as an outrageous, but always captivating, all-round entertainer.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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    The 20 WORST Episodes of imagine…

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  8. Background image for Frank Gehry: The Architect Says "Why Can't I?"
    8.1/10(13 votes)

    #7 - Frank Gehry: The Architect Says "Why Can't I?"

    S37:E1

    Arts series. Alan Yentob explores the colourful career of architect Frank Gehry, one of the world's most celebrated and famously provocative creative forces.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  9. Background image for Dame Shirley Bassey: The Girl From Tiger Bay
    8.0/10(1 votes)

    #8 - Dame Shirley Bassey: The Girl From Tiger Bay

    S16:E2

    Alan Yentob gains an insight into the creative world of Dame Shirley Bassey in a programme first shown in 2009. After a triumphant Glastonbury appearance and a major illness at the age of 72, Dame Shirley tentatively re-enters the ring to confront her life in song. Some of the best contemporary songwriters, including Gary Barlow, the Pet Shop Boys, Manic Street Preachers, Rufus Wainwright, Richard Hawley and KT Tunstall, along with James Bond composer John Barry and lyricist Don Black, have interpreted her life through song for an album produced by David Arnold. The songs frame and explore the myth of Shirley Bassey, the girl from Tiger Bay, and the voice and the desire are not found wanting. A backstory profiling Shirley, complete with archive of her greatest performances, tells the story of what makes her the living legend that she is today.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  10. Background image for The Weird Adventures of Eadweard Muybridge
    7.9/10(13 votes)

    #9 - The Weird Adventures of Eadweard Muybridge

    S24:E3

    A portrait of the pioneering forefather of cinema Eadweard Muybridge, whose work astounded audiences worldwide.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  11. Background image for Jeff Koons: Diary of a Seducer
    7.9/10(12 votes)

    #10 - Jeff Koons: Diary of a Seducer

    S37:E2

    As Jeff Koons’ first retrospective takes over the Whitney Museum in New York and the Pompidou in Paris, imagine… asks what lies beneath the shiny surfaces.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  12. Background image for Ai Weiwei - Without Fear or Favour
    7.8/10(6 votes)

    #11 - Ai Weiwei - Without Fear or Favour

    S24:E1

    Arts documentary. Alan Yentob reveals how Chinese artist Ai Weiwei continues to fight for artistic freedom of expression.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  13. Background image for Bruce Springsteen: Darkness Revisited
    7.6/10(30 votes)

    #12 - Bruce Springsteen: Darkness Revisited

    S24:E4

    Bruce Springsteen describes his attempts to create a sequel to one of the most popular albums of all time.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  14. Background image for The Art That Hitler Hated
    7.5/10(22 votes)

    #13 - The Art That Hitler Hated

    S23:E1

    On a train crossing from Switzerland to Germany, an old man was searched by customs officials. They found 9,000 euros in cash. Their suspicions started a journey back in time, to a hoard of art hidden since the Third Reich. It has reignited passions that seemed long spent. These were not old masters but new - works the Nazis labelled 'degenerate', like the Jews themselves. They tried to wipe out both. The father of the old man on the train was a dealer for the Nazis, selling these works abroad and keeping some for himself. In a two-part special, imagine... follows both his story and those of the families who have been fighting to find their lost art.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  15. Background image for Oliver Sacks: Tales of Music and the Brain
    7.4/10(37 votes)

    #14 - Oliver Sacks: Tales of Music and the Brain

    S13:E2

    Alan Yentob meets some of the people with strange musical disorders and powers who feature in Dr Oliver Sack 's book Musicophilia, which explores the extraordinary relationship between music and the brain. Among them are Tony Circoria , who developed an instant passion for playing the piano after he was struck by lightning, and Matt Giordano , who alleviates his Tourette syndrome by drumming.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  16. Background image for The Year Of Anish Kapoor
    7.4/10(7 votes)

    #15 - The Year Of Anish Kapoor

    S16:E1

    Anish Kapoor is one of the most influential sculptors of his generation, known for works of staggering complexity and scale. He now faces his biggest challenge yet as the first living British artist to have a solo show occupying the entire Royal Academy gallery. His response is a series of audacious installations. With exclusive access to his studio, Alan Yentob follows him through a period of intense productivity. Kapoor talks candidly about his childhood in India, his early years as an artist and his creative process. An insight into one of Britain's most accomplished and popular sculptors.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  17. Background image for Own Art
    7.4/10(23 votes)

    #16 - Own Art

    S16:E3

    There is a new breed of art collector on the block. No longer do you need to be fabulously wealthy to afford a Blake, a Banksy or a Hockney over your fireplace. Imagine meets a variety of people who are part of a small revolution in the art world. A factory worker, a pig farmer and a policeman are just some of those whose lives have been changed by an Arts Council scheme called Own Art, which has enabled them to take out an interest free loan to buy contemporary artwork.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  18. Background image for Ben-Hur
    7.2/10(13 votes)

    #17 - Ben-Hur

    S24:E5

    Alan Yentob learns what links Radio 4 soap The Archers with Ben-Hur, one of the most epic Hollywood blockbusters of all time.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  19. Background image for Shylock’s Ghost
    6.9/10(12 votes)

    #18 - Shylock’s Ghost

    S40:E1

    Alan Yentob travels to the ghetto in Venice with award-winning novelist Howard Jacobson as he embarks on a retelling of Shakespeare's most performed play, The Merchant of Venice.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  20. Background image for Anselm Kiefer: Remembering the Future
    6.8/10(44 votes)

    #19 - Anselm Kiefer: Remembering the Future

    S23:E4

    There is no-one quite like Anselm Kiefer. Having achieved fame and notoriety in equal measure in the 1980s, he has become one of the world's most singular and successful artists. Working with themes of history, memory and mythology, Kiefer produces work that is consistently controversial, and monumental in its scale and ambition. In this imagine... Alan Yentob joins the artist at his studios in France and Germany as he prepares for a retrospective at the Royal Academy. In a series of frank interviews set against the backdrop of his awe-inspiring studios, Kiefer discusses the impact of his most significant pieces, installs a selection of new work, and explains why he is as excited and driven by his practice now, at the age of 69, as he was when he began.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  21. Background image for Peter Pan, a Hard Act to Follow
    5.4/10(5 votes)

    #20 - Peter Pan, a Hard Act to Follow

    S9:E1

    To coincide with the publication of upcoming sequel Peter Pan in Scarlet, Alan Yentob presents a documentary which explores why JM Barrie's character has such lasting power and mythical status and looks at the secret behind its eternal appeal. He goes in search of the real JM Barrie, visiting the remote Scottish island of Eilean Shona, his home town of Kirriemuir near Dundee, Black Lake in Surrey where Barrie played, and Kensington Gardens, where Peter Pan was born.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  22. Background image for The Saatchi Phenomenon
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #21 - The Saatchi Phenomenon

    S1:E1

    Alan Yentob presents a new seven-part series looking at the power and effect of the arts and their main protagonists. The elusive and intriguing Charles Saatchi has been hugely instrumental in shaping contemporary British art. As he launches his new gallery in London's former County Hall, this behind-the-scenes look reveals Saatchi's hands-on involvement in the collection's presentation, helped by partner Nigella Lawson.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  23. Background image for Barbara Hepworth: Shapes Out of Feelings
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #22 - Barbara Hepworth: Shapes Out of Feelings

    S1:E2

    A profile of Barbara Hepworth, the world's first internationally celebrated woman sculptor. Born in Yorkshire in 1903, she had to fight to establish herself in a world dominated by men, and could still wield a chisel in her seventies.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  24. Background image for The Hip Hop Generation
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #23 - The Hip Hop Generation

    S1:E3

    More than just a musical genre, hip-hop has become a global youth culture. But why does the voice of young black America resonate equally with British teenagers from city high-rises and suburban semis? Alan Yentob embarks on a journey of discovery, encountering both young UK rappers and big US stars.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  25. Background image for Stella's Story
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #24 - Stella's Story

    S1:E4

    Gwyneth Paltrow, Kate Moss and Vogue's Anna Wintour contribute to the tale of Stella McCartney's rise from student at St Martins to her big break into the fashion elite. Footage shot by McCartney and dating back to 1985, alongside interviews and archive material, help paint this portrait of the designer.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  26. Background image for Carlos Acosta: The Reluctant Ballet Dancer
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #25 - Carlos Acosta: The Reluctant Ballet Dancer

    S1:E5

    Alan Yentob tells the inspirational story of Carlos Acosta, the gifted dancer who made the leap from the backstreets of Havana to become the first black principal dancer at the Royal Ballet. The film follows Acosta over six months as he embarks on the biggest challenge of his life - producing and choreographing his own show based on his upbringing in Cuba.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

Best Episodes Summary

"Scrabble: A Night on the Tiles" is the best rated episode of "imagine…". It scored 8.5/10 based on 28 votes. Directed by Unknown and written by Unknown, it aired on 12/22/2009. This episode scored 0.1 points higher than the second highest rated, "Let There Be Light".