Norouz 2017 on BBC Persian TV

Taking off at 8am GMT (11.30am Tehran Time, 12.30pm Kabul Time, 4am ET) on Monday 20 March, the BBC Persian festive programming starts with the Norouz Show which will simultaneously run on the biggest Iranian music website, the BBC Persian partner station, Radio Javan, and, for the first time, will be rebroadcast by Afghanistan’s Yak TV. Prerecorded in London, the 150-minute gala features:

• Persian pop legend, king of stage Ebi, singing live – following his announcement that his 50th anniversary this year will be the last for live performances. In addition to his live appearance on the Norouz show, Ebi also has granted the BBC exclusive rights to broadcast one of his latest concerts at in the Microsoft Theatre in LA. The beautifully produced three-hour concert is a rare opportunity for millions of fans in Iran to experience the concert atmosphere - a chance they might not have had in nearly four decades Ebi has been performing outside the country (to air after the Norouz Show, at 10.30am GMT)
• Afghan pop diva, singer and songwriter - and one of the judges on the country’s equivalent of Pop Idol, Afghani Star - Aryana Sayeed who urges women with her lyrics to be strong and not to give up fighting for a better future
• Mamak Khadem, singer and composer, is known for bringing together folk music from around the world in her own, unique style. This time she introduces her interpretations of music from Macedonian gypsies as well as Iranian Kurdish and Gilaki pieces
• Sami Beigi, the hugely popular Iranian pop sensation performs
• Send To All - a game in which the smart in smartphones takes on a whole new meaning as the Iranian showman, Sina Valiollah, sends a funny text to all his celebrity contacts and then reads some of the most extraordinary responses. Using the same trick, BBC Persian presenter Behzad gets some amazing replies, too
• Norouz Xrunner, gives the audience an opportunity to see the team of 12 BBC Persian journalists well out of their comfort zone, taking a mud challenge with some gruelling obstacles at Holme Pierrepont Country Park, home of UK’s National Water Sports Centre.
• At 5.40pm GMT (9.10pm Tehran Time, 10.10pm Kabul Time, 1.40pm ET) on the same day, 20 March, BBC Persian will premiere the documentary, My Little Iran. Directed and presented by BBC Persian’s Hassan Solhjoo, the film brings the stories of seven Iranian New Yorkers as, on 17 April every year, they join the Persian Parade on Madison Avenue – a celebration of their culture and traditions in the heart of NYC, that attracts around 150,000 people.

On Wednesday 22 March, BBC Persian will bring its audiences a new two-hour ballet production from Tajikistan, Zaal and Roudabeh. An epic love story based on Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh (Book Of Kings) - the Persian heritage shared by Afghans, Iranians and Tajiks - it is given life in a new medium through the Tajikistan ballet performance for BBC Persian TV.

As the Norouz celebrations wrap up on Sunday 2 April, the BBC Persian TV audience will be treated to another premiere, The girl who fell in love with a wolf - a fairy tale, written and directed by the BBC Persian’s Alireza Mirasadullah. With string puppets and shadow puppets played by MA students of London’s Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, this visually ravishing show will charm audiences with its gentle narrative - and some dark humour.

Broadcast on BBC Persian TV, the Norouz programming between 20 March and 3 April will be available on demand via bbc.com/persian and channelled via the BBC Persian social-media platforms: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Telegram messenger service.

BBC Persian is part of BBC World Service.

LN