Ballrooms & Ballerinas: Dance at the BBC

DANCE AT THE BBC looks at the origins, growth and development of dance-related programs since the mid-Fifties to the dawn of the Noughties. There are some familiar historical landmarks, such as the presence of COME DANCING in the schedules for almost the entire period covered by the documentary, and the evolution of dance troupes from Pan's People to Hot Gossip.

The most intriguing aspect of Andy Hall's documentary is the archive material. We see clips of Victor Sylvester presenting TELEVISION DANCE CLUB, which ran till the mid-Sixties; the camera-work looks stilted, but we have to admire the presenter's enthusiasm as he offers instruction in traditional ballroom dance as well as the twist. There are archive clips of classical ballet productions such as SLEEPING BEAUTY, THE NUTCRACKER and THE RAKE'S PROGRESS featuring luminaries such as Dames Alicia Markova and Margot Fonteyn. And there are clips from archival documentaries focusing on subjects as diverse as the weight of Russian-made compared to British-made dancing shoes and the experience of young boys studying at the Royal Ballet School. John Noakes willingly makes a fool of himself for BLUE PETER, while The Goodies take the mickey out of the couples performing on COME DANCING.

The material from the Seventies and Eighties is perhaps less interesting, if only because the BBC did not seem as interested in dance during those periods as they had been in the past. While there were documentaries covering different forms of dance - disco or break-dancing - the focus seemed more anthropological rather than artistic; viewers were being told why people embraced these forms rather than taking them up for themselves.

Inevitably some of the lazy historical clichés reappeared as part of the narrative. Dance became more sexy in the "Swinging Sixties" as a result of a relaxation in censorship laws, and became more and more raunchy as time progressed. The fact that dances were equally explicit earlier on in the century - for example, in Weimar Berlin - was conveniently overlooked.

In the end the narrative rather petered out, ending with a look at the revival of STRICTLY COME DANCING (2004-), which spawned a renewed interest in ballroom dancing. The fact that ballet continues to be a staple of the BBC's schedules (especially on BBC Four), was conveniently overlooked. Nonetheless director Hall should be congratulated on a fruitful trawl through the archives.