'Being Indian' voted best BBC World documentary in 2006

Media News

MUMBAI, December 20

The six documentary programmes with the most votes in BBC World’s Best Of The Year: Documentary online poll have today been announced. Throughout November, BBC World viewers have had the opportunity to vote for the most outstanding documentary programme shown on the channel this year, from a selection of 15 documentaries – many of which are award-winning BBC productions.

Voting closed on Monday 4 December, and the six documentary programmes that received the most votes will be shown across two weekends at the end of December.

The winning programmes are:

1 Being Indian with 18.95 per cent of votes

2 The World Uncovered: Sex Crimes And The Vatican with16.36 per cent of votes

3 Kill Or Cure? The Deadly Sleep with 15.04 per cent of votes

4 Africa: Open For Business with 14.86 per cent of votes

5 Hitler's Bunker: The Last Survivor Speaks with 11.61 per cent of votes

6 Facing The Truth with 11.41 per cent of votes

BBC World’s editorial team selected the original shortlist of 15, based on viewer panel research and feedback, spread of subject matter and global availability.

The channel is giving viewers the chance to again enjoy the winning documentaries of 2006 at the following times:

Facing The Truth

Saturday 23rd December at 1330 IST

Repeated: Saturday 23rd at 2030 IST and Sunday 24th at 0630 IST, 1730 and Monday 25th at 0130 IST.

In this powerful and unique programme, victims and perpetrators of Northern Ireland's conflict come face to face with each other for the first time, in the presence of Archbishop Desmond Tutu. The BBC's Foreign Affairs Correspondent Fergal Keane presents the programme, and in this episode, the guests remember 27 August 1979 - the day the greatest numbers of soldiers were killed by the IRA.

Produced by BBC News and Current Affairs, Northern Ireland

Hitler’s Bunker: The Last Survivor Speaks

Saturday 23rd December at 1800 IST

Repeated: Saturday 24th at 0200 IST, 0800 IST, 1400 and 2300 IST.

Bernd Freytag con Loringhoven, a military aide to the German Chief of staff in 1945 and

the only living survivor of Adolf Hitler’s Berlin bunker who was in daily contact with Hitler at the end, speaks exclusively to the BBC’s diplomatic correspondent Brian Hanrahan at his home in Munich.

Produced by the BBC, UK

Africa: Open For Business

Saturday 23rd December at 2000 IST

Repeated: Saturday 24th at 0400 IST, at 1100, 1600 IST and Sunday 25th at 0000 IST

Africa: Open for Business, offers a glimpse of flourishing entrepreneurship in a continent where war, famine, natural and man-made disaster is rife. The series features a variety of small and larger businesses in ten African countries, offering an insight into the continent that is not seen very often by the rest of the world.

Produced by Carol Pineau, USA

Kill Or Cure? The Deadly Sleep

Saturday 31st December at 0200 IST

Repeated: Saturday 30th at 2100 IST and Sunday 31st at 0700 IST, 1800 IST and Monday 1st January 0200 IST.

Sleeping sickness is one of the most deadly of the forgotten diseases. Experts thought it had been eradicated, but it's back with a vengeance and now mobile field teams are out in the bush in the Democratic Republic of Congo, carrying out tests to try to beat the disease.

Produced by Rockhopper Television Production, UK

The World Uncovered: Sex Crimes and the Vatican

Saturday 30th December at 1745 IST

Repeated: Sunday 31st at 0145, at 0745 IST, 1345 and Monday 1st January at 0415 IST

This programme examines a secret document which sets out a procedure for dealing with child sex abuse scandals within the Catholic Church. Crimen Sollicitationis was enforced for 20 years by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger before he became the Pope. It instructs bishops on how to deal with allegations of child abuse against priests and has been seen by few outsiders. Critics say the document has been used to evade prosecution for sex crimes.

Produced by BBC Panorama, UK

Being Indian

Saturday 30th December at 2000 IST

Repeated: Sunday 31st at 0400 IST, at 1100, 1600 and Monday 1st January at 0000 IST.

Being Indian follows the lives of four children from widely differing backgrounds, in a country with a fast moving economy and half its population under the age of 35. The programme delves into what the social change and mobility really means for children of India today. This episode follows Biru Malik, a nine-year-old, who lives with his family in one bedroom. One of his family's main jobs is to prepare funeral pyres and cremate bodies on the banks of the Ganges.

Produced by Rockhopper Television Production, UK

A short extract from each of the thought-provoking winning programmes can be viewed online at bbcworld.com.

For more information, please contact:

Vidhu Aul

BBC World

Tel: +91-11-23412672

E: mail– Vidhu.Aul@bbc.co.uk