The South Bank Show
Season 31
Not Rated
The South Bank Show is a television arts magazine show produced by ITV between 1978 and 2010. A new series began on Sky Arts from 27 May 2012. Presented by Melvyn Bragg, the show aims to bring both high art and popular culture to a mass audience.
Where to Watch The South Bank Show • Season 31
30 Episodes
- JG BallardE2
JG BallardMelvyn Bragg and Ballard discuss his experiences as a medical student (encouraging everyone to spend some time studying anatomy), through to his discovery of science fiction. Ballard talks about the influence of the Surrealist painters on his early novels, which all dealt with natural catastrophe (The Drowned World, The Crystal World, The Drought) and the death of his wife and the effect this had on his fiction. They talk also about Crash, Ballard's most controversial novel, which inspired one publisher's reader to write "This author is beyond psychiatric help. Do not publish" - which Ballard took as a huge compliment! - Damien HirstE14
Damien HirstThis episode of The South Bank Show provides a unique insight into Damien Hirst not as the enfant terrible of an art world but as an art collector and businessman. Known for creating one of the most famous icons of modern art, a 14ft tiger shark suspended in formaldehyde, which shocked the public, he also produces decorative spot and spin paintings. His prolific output and entrepreneurialism have made him one of the world's most expensive living artists, with an estimated fortune of £100 million. One of Hirst's motivations for his growing art collection is Toddington, a dilapidated Gothic Manor house in Gloucestershire, which he purchased in 2005 for £3 million and will one day house his entire collection. Here, he shows Melvyn Bragg around Toddington, outlining his plans for its future. They discuss his art collection, his artistic heroes and the relationship between money and art.
