Bath Festival

Ed Balls presents a special edition celebrating the Magic of the Musicals from the Bath Festival. West End stars Hannah Waddingham and Ben Forster join the BBC Concert Orchestra conducted by Bramwell Tovey for a feast of musical theatre.

The city of Bath nestles in the River Avon valley. Legend has it that the ancient king Bladud first discovered the hot springs in 863 BC. He claimed the waters cured his skin rash. But it was those clever, clean Romans a thousand years later who created the daily ritual of bathing and put the Roman city of Aquae Sulis on the UK map. They realised the power of the restorative warm waters, of the caldarium (hot bath), tepidarium (warm bath), frigidarium (cold bath) and a quick rub down with a strigil. Not only was a daily bath an essential part of Roman life - the baths themselves became the place to hear the latest hot Latin gossip.

With the spring bubbling beneath our feet Friday Night is Music Night sets up at the Forum Theatre close by for a programme of hits from the world of musical theatre. The show includes music from Mack 'n' Mabel (Jerry Herman), Fiddler on the Roof (Bock), The King and I (Richard Rodgers), Showboat (Jerome Kern) and The Phantom of the Opera (Andrew Lloyd Webber).

First broadcast in 2019.