for the B B C FOUR
Handmade in Britain season*
Lars Tharp presents
Treasures
of Chinese Porcelain
Tuesday 11 October, 9-10pm, BBC FOUR
Filmed in China and England earlier in 2011, I follow the trail of Chinese porcelain manufacture: from the sourcing of china clay and china stone in the mountains of Jiangxi; to its transformation into tablewares and art objects in the city of Jingdezhen; its 500 mile-long route along rivers, over lakes and across a mountain, all by human porterage down to Canton (Guangzhou) from where the next leg of the China trade to Europe - another 9000 miles by sea – began.
Accompanied on board ship by all the other goods of the China Trade (notably tea, silks, lacquer ware, fans, furniture and wallpapers) these exotic luxuries, charged with sumptuous images of the Far East gave western consumers -the growing merchant class as well as the established aristocracy- their first glimpses into the Celestial Empire, and changed forever our domestic interiors -as well as establishing that oh-so-English habit of Tea. Come on the journey.
above LT with the late 16thC Chinese porcelain bowl whose story links Sir Francis Drake with Elizabeth I and Sir Walter Raleigh (courtesy of the Trustees of Burghley House, Lincs, 2011) / right in Jingdezhen with a modern copy of a Qianlong period (1736-1795) vase which reached £43 million at auction in London in 2010
Director: Ian Denyer Camera (China): Colin Fox / BLAST! films for BBC FOUR__________________
Handmade in Britain In a major new partnership, the V&A and .B B C FOUR present Handmade in Britain, an ambitious year-long season exploring the history of British decorative arts. The season begins this autumn with a three-part series on British ceramics. From the history of domestic pottery to the heart of Britain’s ceramic empire in Stoke-on-Trent to the studio potters of the 20th and 21st centuries, Ceramics: A Fragile History reveals why, throughout the nation’s history, makers have created objects that are beautiful as well as functional. LT joins the "talking heads" in the series.
Treasures of Chinese Porcelain accompanies the series
After a three-year restoration, William Hogarth's charming country retreat in Chiswick is once more open to the public (Tuesday-Sunday, noon-5pm). The project was steered by Val Bott of The William Hogarth Trust ( http://williamhogarthtrust.org.uk/?page_id=16 ). Chiswick resident, satirist and confessed Hogarth "nut", Dara O'Brian (above, right) officially opened the house on Monday 7th November, three days before Hogarth's 314th birthday. Guests were treated to miniature mulberry pies made from the fruits of the very tree which has borne fruit in the garden since before the Hogarths moved in in 1749. 
The 2011 Scandinavian Show, 
For ceramics expert Lars Tharp it was a choice between studying the ‘cello or archaeology. To the benefit of Antiques Road Show viewers, and to the Eternal loss of the music audience, he chose archaeology
Over the years there have been several Antiques spin-offs. One was my own China on a Plate for BBC Radio 4 (2007). Following on, earlier in 2011, BBC 4 (TV) commissioned me to make a one-hour documentary on the historic China Trade, revisiting China to film much of the material covered in the earlier radio programme, but with a few extra twists. My director is Ian Denyer, cameraman Colin Fox and our production company is Blast! Films of London. Expected transmission, sometime in September/October.
...The British Museum!
