Director
G Seligman, G Caillat

A special programme that should not be missed by any opera fans.

Maria Callas (1923-77) was the most celebrated diva of the 20th century. This documentary from 1997, much of it expressed in Callas's own words, looks at what made her such a legend. It covers her early years, her success, her retirement, and her tragic destiny - dying alone and miserable in a Paris apartment - through rare archive documents and clips of her best performances.

Those who knew her are also given a chance to speak, whether it be to express admiration or criticism - for instance, Anita Cerquetti, who replaced Callas halfway through Norma in Rome - but Callas always has the last word.

Those interviewed include Georges Prêtre, Barbara Hendricks (a Callas pupil), James Conlon, Catherine Deneuve (a neighbour of Callas in Paris), Callas's sister Jackie Kalogeropoulos, and Elisabeth Schwarzkopf.

Footage from opera performances includes Tosca (1950); Il Trovatore with Di Stefano and Sanzogno (1960); Medea with Vickers and Ghiaurov at La Scala (1961); a concert at Paris Opera (1958); a Hamburg concert with Casta diva; a Covent Garden Concert from (1962); excerpts from Traviata in Lisbon (1958); Tosca from the Met (1965); and a remarkable Medea from Dallas (1959) on amateur video.