Mark Kermode's Oscar Winners: A Secrets of Cinema Special – BBC4

(Image credit: Jaap Buitendijk)

Film critic Mark Kermode looks back at past winners of the prestigious Oscar Award, and celebrates some of the most memorable performances

Mark Kermode applies his Secrets of Cinema formula – deep research, sharp scripts, thoughtful views – to the Oscars in this Secrets of Cinema special.

Is there a secret formula that connects Rain Man to Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Rocky to Platoon, Terms of Endearment to 12 Years a Slave (see picture, above), or Darkest Hour to The Hurt Locker?

Or is it more a case, as screenwriter William Goldman once said, that when it comes to picking winners in Hollywood, ‘nobody knows anything’?

Mark Kermode's Oscar Winners: The Hurt Locker — Explosive: The Hurt Locker

With the Oscars just days away, and the far from typical Roma hotly tipped, Mark dips a toe in waters that are very murky indeed.

TV Times rating: ****

As TV Times Highlights Editor I get to hear about all the latest TV shows coming soon. Here at TVT HQ we are in the privileged position of selecting the best programmes from across all the channels and streaming platforms. Our mission is to make it easier for our readers to decide what to watch - and give them lots of choice of genres - all the latest shows, plus some nostalgic choices we call hidden gems, too. My career began with a postgraduate degree in periodical journalism (ahem, yes old school!) in 1991 and I’ve worked in TV media since 2000.