The 1970s-themed programming includes shows about the Anthony Blunt spy scandal and how Britain went decimal

5 has launched a slate of programming dedicated to the 1970s with content spread across various April tx dates

The Queen and the Traitor: A Great British Scandal is a feature-length documentary exploring the scandal of 1979 when the Queen’s courtier and insider, Anthony Blunt, was exposed as a Russian spy. The show is produced by Mentorn and executive produced by Tayte Simpson. The senior producer/director is Kim Lomax.

Production company Content Kings is behind The Cancellation of Benny Hill, a 90-minute exploration of how the comedian, once considered the hottest star on British telly, would not be acceptable by today’s standards. The executive producer is Jonathan Levi; the series producer is Malcolm Donkin.

Another former TV star, Paul Daniels, is the subject of Paul Daniels – You’ll Like This, from Transistor Films and executive producer Danny Tipping. The feature-length biography looks back at the magician’s life and legacy.

Other shows include Sally Lindsay’s 70s’ Quiz Night in which Lindsay will host two teams – captained by John Thompson and Shaparak Khorsandi – in a competitive format all about the decade. The 90-minute show is produced by Saffron Cherry Productions; executive produced by Gareth Collett and Caroline Roberts-Cherry; produced by Kate Staples and directed by Julian Smith.

The previously-announced social experiment, The 1970s Diet (w/t), hosted by Josie Gibson is also part of the themed content, as the presenter immerses herself for two weeks in the food, drink and health culture of the decade. The 2 x 60’ episodes are executive produced by Clare Mottershead for Orchard Studios

Orchard Studios has also produced The 70s Big Night In, exec’d by Mottershead and produced by Sam Gunasekera, in which three modern families are filmed watching TV from the so-called ‘Golden Age’ of Saturday night viewing. The director of the feature-length show is Tom Whitter.  

1970s School Disco (1 x 90’) is a talking-heads doc that looks back at the rite-of-passage event that so many kids experienced, with views from historians and former pupils. It is made by Coming Up Roses and executive produced by Harriet Scott and Oliver Wright.

That same company has also produced 1971: When Britain Went Decimal, an hour-long account of the biggest change in UK monetary history – the decimalisation of British currency. The programme examines the vast scale of the operation and how the public had to get to grips with the drastically-different new system. Oliver Wright is executive producer.

The themed programming will tx this month on 5.