MGEITF

Dust off your leg warmers and squeeze into your leotards, this year's opening session TV's Got to Dance will see six top telly acts dance it out live on stage for your vote to be crowned the 2010 TV Festival champion.  Join the Got to Dance judging panel Ashley Banjo, Kimberly Wyatt and Adam Garcia for the ultimate dance-off!

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From LIVING's Four Weddings to Bravo's gladiator drama, Spartacus, the last twelve months have bought diverse hits for the LIVING TV Group.  But in an era that sees digital channels fighting for survival, what does the next year hold for this feisty broadcaster?  How will its takeover by BSkyB play out?  And more importantly, just what will Katie Price do next?

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From TV classic to global sensation what's the secret ingredient to MasterChef's success? Moving from BBC Two daytime to BBC One primetime, it has wowed audiences and overtaken the schedule, making it one of the BBC's most versatile and key brands. It doesn't stop there. The number one show in the history of Australian television and in production in 15 countries, MasterChef shows no sign of slowing down.  Join our panel to find out everything you need to know about the global hit and watch as we do the invention test LIVE with some very special guests...

Within the last twenty years gaming has grown from pong to powerhouse. Its biggest franchises are now worth billions of dollars.  We've invited the top brains in games to share their insight, but what they don't know is they are about to hand over the secrets of their success and tell you how to develop the right format for your TV idea, and most importantly what you need to do to make money in games.  Our panel of gaming biggest hitters will outline the missed potential and huge opportunities for a better relationship between the UK's two richest creative industries.

In his first full year at Sky1, Stuart Murphy has embarked on plans to commission fewer programmes - but with a much higher profile.  So how will he reshape the channel's schedule - especially now that two of its biggest shows - Lost and 24 - have ended?  And what will Sky's acquisition of the Virgin Media platforms mean for Stuart, and for all the channels now under the Sky umbrella?

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We have a new politics, but do we need a new media to match? Has news coverage which thrives on the black and white drama of simple conflict been left out-dated by the grey scale of compromise in a Con-Lib coalition?   There's evidence that voters are looking for more out of Westminster than the old ding-dong of opposing politicians at each other's throats, so are journalists guilty of missing the zeitgeist shift from pessimism to optimism which all started with a twitter hash-tag?  One debate not to be missed.

This exclusive screening at the Filmhouse will be followed by a Q&A with Shane Meadows and producer Mark Herbert, chaired by Channel 4's David Abraham, his only appearance at this year's Festival.

1986 - the Mexico World Cup, Top Gun at the cinemas, The Final Countdown at number one and over 3.4 million Brits unemployed.  A memorable year in the national psyche - and the year that Shaun (Thomas Turgoose) is leaving school. Suddenly being young isn't that easy and he's got to find his own way in the world. The gang are back.  Loud and proud, they're looking for love, a laugh, a job and something that resembles a future. For this is no sob sob cut your wrists story - if the glass is half-empty then drink up.., Chris De Burgh is on the radio, but you can always turn the radio off.

This is England '86 is acclaimed British filmmaker Shane Meadows' television debut and the much anticipated follow up to his BAFTA award-winning.  Reuniting the original cast, the four-part drama for Channel 4 is co-written by Meadows and Jack Thorne (The Scouting Book for Boys) and directed by Meadows and Tom Harper (Misfits) and produced by Warp Films.

Screening on Channel 4

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Nobody knows Nothing - things I wish I'd known 25 years ago  

Never one to shy away from saying what he really thinks, this year's Richard Dunn Lecture, delivered by Jimmy Mulville, promises to be provocative and entertaining.

Jimmy Mulville was one of the founders of Hat Trick Productions in 1986 and since then has seen it grow into one of the country's leading producers of comedy, drama and entertainment - regularly bringing distinctive and popular series to the screen, including Outnumbered, Fonejacker, The Kumars at No 42, Drop The Dead Donkey, Whose Line Is It Anyway?, Bodies and of course, Have I Got News For You which Jimmy created in 1990.  Join Jimmy for an inspiring and unmissable keynote.

TV critics remain a guiding light for millions of channel-hopping viewers. But what would our stellar panel of armchair experts from The Sun, Guardian, The Times and News of the World do to improve the nation's telly? What TV do they really love?  What genuinely upsets them?  How often do they go to press with those views?  Do their crafted opinions really influence ratings? And if they could makeover a channel, what would they do? Join us and find out. (Bring own rotten fruit).

Whether it's Stephen Fry exploring Wagner or Timothy Spall going out to sea, BBC Four strives to bring thoughtful, intelligent television to the masses. It has the distinction of perhaps being the only channel in the past year to be guilty of being TOO funny and entertaining - at least that would seem the conclusion as the BBC's Strategic Review found that there should be a refocus with less comedy and entertainment. Now with arts, music, culture and knowledge at its core, controller Richard Klein explains why less is more and what the future has in store.

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One Born Every Minute and Pineapple Dance Studios are two of the most attention-grabbing documentary series of the past year.  They are also among an ever increasing number of documentaries that look decidedly un-documentary like.  In fact some would say they smack of reality television, a genre fashionably loathed by many documentary practitioners.  So is this an important and long overdue evolution of a tired genre?  Is it time to admit reality TV has conquered all?  Or is it just a spreading rot that needs to be urgently excised?  Come along to join the debate.

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It's always had its critics - but now the BBC's in the firing line as never before.  With other public bodies facing savage cuts, does the corporation face a fight for its existence? Here's your chance to decide its future - what would you keep and what would you ditch?  Jeremy Vine invites you to walk a mile in Mark Thompson's shoes - and our advocates will argue for and against some of the most controversial parts of the BBC - from BBC Three, to presenters' pay, to News Online. 

It's the perfect starter - before the main course of Mark Thompson's MacTaggart lecture.

I'm predicting double digit growth - Steve Morrison, All3Media

I'm predicting having to sell the photocopier - Will Macdonald, Monkey

Super Indies are the school yard bullies of TV. Multi million pound global companies whose sole aim is to capture as much of the market as possible. The Big 4 - Endemol, Shine, All3Media and RDF Media - are slowly strangling broadcasters as they aim to gain as much turnover and profit as possible. But what next? With several Indies already going to the wall this year will these leveraged companies ensure that its survival of the fattest? What do we need to do to protect the small companies and do we need legislation to control the excesses of the big boys? All these questions and more, plus clips from disguised producers venting against the current state of affairs.  

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It may have been tough on Peter, but for ITV2 the breakdown of his marriage to Katie turned out to be pretty good news, giving the channel some of its highest ratings for original content.  Likewise, the spin-offs from ITV1 still do fantastically well with Britain's Got More Talent beating ITV1's drama The Prisoner.  So where does Zai Bennett take ITV2 from here?  What's he got planned for ITV3 and ITV4 after a tough year?  And what are ITV2's plans without Katie?

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Come along to see leading British creative development experts from art, brands and advertising (whose projects include the Virgin Galactic Spaceship, Durex sex toys and commissions for the Eden Project) contrast their creative approach with that of TV development.  Ad agencies, brands and artists create ideas in more formal and rigorous ways than in telly, but is it fair to compare? Are TV development teams given the time, training or resources they need? Are TV Commissioners as accountable to their creative briefs as other buyers?  Working on an example TV brief from Sky's Head of Entertainment Duncan Gray, join in the debate to see if the panel's different approaches create better ideas.

"Unaccountable", "dominant", "chilling" - the words James Murdoch used to launch a full-frontal attack on the BBC in last year's agenda-setting MacTaggart lecture.  This year, the Director- General Mark Thompson answers back - making the case for the corporation, and defending himself against accusations that he runs an outdated, bloated and arrogant BBC, that is slowly strangling much of the competition.  With a new government beginning to ask difficult questions that could result in a very different BBC, this year's MacTaggart lecture will be simply unmissable for anyone who cares about the UK media.

Grab a glass of wine and join us to celebrate the first day of the Festival. We’re returning to the Museum of Scotland so mingle with colleagues, as you marvel at priceless relics including the Lewis Chessmen and the Queen Mary Clàrsach.

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