What’s new to watch on BBC iPlayer? June 1st, 2024

31st May 2024

This week on iPlayer (1-7 June) we witness a couple’s magical journey to adoption in new series Lost Boys & Fairies and reflect on the highs and lows of the year which brought Wayne to fame in Rooney 2004: World At His Feet.

There are three new factual documentaries this week. We’re following one of Glasgow’s most prolific scammers in Confessions of A Teenage Fraudster, experiencing one of history’s biggest seaborne invasions in D-Day: The Unheard Tapes and learning the deeply personal story of an innocent man failed by the criminal justice system in The Wrong Man: 17 Years Behind Bars.

Finally, we plunge into the latest discoveries which reveal more about the lives of those who built, sailed and died on one of the most powerfully armed warships of her time in Vasa: The Ghost Ship.

What’s coming new to BBC iPlayer this week?

Lost Boys & Fairies

Lost Boys & Fairies tells the fictional, tender, glittering story of Gabriel, a singer and artiste-extraordinaire at Cardiff’s queer club-space Neverland, his partner Andy and their journey to adoption. But Gabriel has a complex history and he will need to embark upon a journey of self-discovery before he can truly begin to parent 7-year old Jake.

Packed with songs, often used in surprising ways, Lost Boys & Fairies is a ‘coming of middle-age’ story, both bold and deeply heart-wrenching, filled to the brim with humour, redemption, and love.

Watch Lost Boys & Fairies on BBC iPlayer from 6am on Monday 3 June

Rooney 2004: World At His Feet

Told first-hand, 20 years on, Wayne reflects on the highs and lows of Euro 2004 in Portugal, a tournament that saw 18-year-old Rooney catapult himself into international superstardom.

Loved instantly by England fans for his passion and ferocious will to win, Rooney shocked European football from the opening match against France, stunning the likes of Zinedine Zidane and Thierry Henry with his incredible performances.

But against hosts Portugal in the quarter-final disaster struck and Rooney was forced off with a broken foot after 27 minutes. Made to watch his team’s painful exit on penalties from a Portuguese hospital bed, Rooney was devastated as England’s chance of a first major trophy since 1966 ended in heartache.

Rooney 2004: World At His Feet is Wayne Rooney’s definitive coming of age story, told by the man himself.

Watch Rooney 2004: World At His Feet on BBC iPlayer from 1 June

Confessions of A Teenage Fraudster

A cautionary tale of a Glasgow teenager who became one of the UK’s most prolific scammers starts with the beginning of his five-year crime spree.

Testimony from Elliot, officers and investigators who pursued him across the world, along with others who have encountered him throughout his life, is complemented with archive and visual effects, to explore not only how and why a Glasgow teenager became an international fraudster, but how he is now reflecting on his crimes.

Watch on BBC iPlayer Saturday 1 June

D-Day: The Unheard Tapes

The D-Day invasion hangs in the balance, as soldiers battle on the beaches of Normandy.

Hundreds of thousands of Allied troops land on five beaches along the Normandy coast. Powerful interviews with those who were there lead us through their story of the invasion as it unfolds. American soldiers on Omaha face a blood bath, while Royal Marine commandos encounter chaos at Sword Beach. As night draws in, troops finally make it off the sand, but the threats ahead are even greater.

Watch D-Day: The Unheard Tapes on BBC iPlayer from Sunday 2 June

The Wrong Man: 17 Years Behind Bars

This one hour documentary for BBC Two and iPlayer tells the story of Andrew Malkinson and the devastating effect of the years he spent in prison for a crime he didn’t commit.

With exclusive access to Andrew, his family and his legal team, this powerful film tells the extraordinary story of his fight to prove his innocence, from the moment of his arrest to his exoneration at the Court of Appeal twenty years later. Filmed over three years, from the day he walks out of prison, Directors Jemma Gander and Fran Robertson follow Andrew and his legal team as they take on the criminal justice system to overturn his conviction.

Watch The Wrong Man: 17 Years Behind Bars on BBC iPlayer from 6 June

Vasa: The Ghost Ship

The Vasa, one of the most majestic galleons ever to put to sea, sank 18 minutes after leaving Stockholm harbour on her maiden voyage in 1628. The loss of the Vasa was a major setback for Sweden’s ambitions to become a power in the Baltic during a turbulent period of European history. Three centuries later, in 1961, the wreck of the Vasa was raised. Remarkably well preserved by the mud and water in the Baltic Sea, she is a 17th Century time machine.

Following the work of archaeologists, divers and historians, Vasa: The Ghost Ship plunges into Stockholm harbour to make new discoveries and reveal more about the lives of those who built, sailed and died on one of the most powerfully armed warships of her time.