imagine... - Season 23

Salman Rushdie, author of The Satanic Verses, tells for the first time the inside story of how it felt to be condemned to death by the Ayatollah Khomeini in 1989, and to spend the next decade in hiding. To coincide with the publication of Rushdie's new book about that time, Alan Yentob has been given unique access to the author and to the bodyguards who lived with him. Friends and writers like Ian McEwan and Hanif Kureshi speak frankly, as do Rushdie's sister, ex-wife and sons.

Renowned as the bravura front man of one of Britain's greatest rock bands, Freddie Mercury's life outside Queen is rarely celebrated or explored.

In a touching portrait, imagine... charts Mercury's solo projects and interests, including a previously unheard collaboration with Michael Jackson and the triumphant Barcelona project with Dame Montserrat Caballe, as well as the life of a gay man who was not yet publicly out.

Rare interviews reveal a shy man in search of love, and a driven artist living behind the protection of his stage persona.

Britain's most successful crime writer, Ian Rankin, invites imagine... to get up close and personal and follow him as he writes his next novel.

Maverick cop DI John Rebus propelled Rankin to fame as an author,but having retired his most famous creation five years ago, Rankin is now faced with a dilemma: what will he write about next? Through Rankin's own video diary footage, we see him wrestle with his demons and numerous unfolding plots. Will they lead to a dead end?

Alan Yentob and imagine... were there on the first day of writing and on the very day Ian Rankin finished the novel. Tune in to find out the result.

From child prodigy to global phenomenon, Alan Yentob reveals the extraordinary life of Lang Lang, China's classical music superstar.

With sell-out concerts around the world and a growing popularity that reaches far beyond traditional classical audiences, Lang Lang has redefined the idea of the celebrity concert pianist. His ability to connect with a younger generation has played a significant role in inspiring over 40 million Chinese children to take up the piano.

In this feature-length documentary, imagine... explores the compelling personal story behind the Lang Lang phenomenon.

William Klein has lived many lives. One of the world's most influential photographers, he pioneered the art of street photography and created some of the most iconic fashion images of the 20th century. He alsomade over twenty films, including the first ever documentary about Muhammad Ali and a brilliant satire of the fashion world, Who Are You Polly Magoo?

With a major Tate Modern exhibition currently celebrating his work, imagine... spends time with William Klein to discover the irrepressible, charismatic personality behind a remarkable creative life.

Many people turn to music when words are not enough, at funerals and weddings, at times of heartbreak and euphoria. It seems to hold more emotion and go deeper than words.

Musicians as varied as Emeli Sande, who enthralled the world when she sang at the Olympics, opera diva Jessye Norman, dubstep artist Mala and modern classical composer George Benjamin explain how music makes them feel. Alan Yentob also talks to a vicar, a psychologist, a Hollywood composer, an adman and even the people who choose the music played in shopping malls. He sees babies dance to a rhythm, and old people brought forth out of silence by the power of music.

Nearly 30 years after her triumphant debut novel, Oranges are Not the Only Fruit, Jeanette Winterson returns with Alan Yentob to the scenes of her extraordinary childhood in Lancashire. She was adopted and brought up to be a missionary by the larger-than-life Mrs Winterson. But Jeanette followed a different path: she found literature, fell in love with a girl, and escaped to university.

Following her recent memoir Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal, Jeanette Winterson tells the story of her recent breakdown and suicide attempt, her quest to find her birth mother and how the power of books helped her to survive.

Matthew Bourne is Britain's most commercially successful choreographer. A virtuoso storyteller, he famously reimagined the traditional Swan Lake ballet with muscular male swans, instantly creating a worldwide hit. Now he is reinterpreting Tchaikovsky's The Sleeping Beauty.

imagine... and Alan Yentob have exclusive access to the creative process, from first workshops to final rehearsals with set and costumes, and the programme revisits Bourne's many ground-breaking shows to chart his inexorable rise.