Auction means bargains...

It's that time of year again when WPT becomes a bargain hunters' paradise. Folks in the Madison area that watch WPT on WHA-TV will have the opportunity this week to watch and bid on fabulous items on the WPT Auction. Starting Tuesday night with the annual Art & Antiques Auction, this year's edition of Auction continues each weekday evening and much of the day on Saturday and Sunday, culminating in the WPT Auction Showcase at 7 p.m. Sunday, which is the place to find the biggest deals on the biggest items. The Auction Showcase can also be seen statewide on WPT.

In addition to great bargains on thousands of items throughout the run of Auction, bidders can feel even better about their purchases, since all proceeds benefit WPT programming. So, you'll find great deals on great items and more of the great programming you expect from WPT all year round. That is the best bargain around.

Point your browser to the Auction home page to find out when you can find different theme nights that will feature items for the home, garden or sports enthusiast in your life. An entire photographic listing of art and antiques available for bid Tuesday night can be found here.

New this year -- make your bids quicker and make sure you don't miss out on the item you want with a free Express Bid number. To learn how to get yours, head over here.

And to get the biggest prize -- a new car or big cash -- purchase a raffle ticket to support WPT. Raffle information and rules can be found on this page.

Viewers of the rest of WPT's statewide network stations can find their programming schedule here.

Ten years at No. 10 Downing...

Having just marked his 10th anniversary as England's Prime Minister, Tony Blair is set to step down from his post on June 27, making room at No. 10 Downing St. for his successor Gordon Brown. Blair is the 52nd Prime Minister, following a long line of influential predecessors.

In recognition of his time in office, WNET in New York and UK Channel 4 have partnered to produce The Blair Decade, which airs on WPT at 9 p.m. Wednesday.

If you're interested in learning more about Blair and his career as he prepares to exit the world stage, here is a collection of interesting links.

The Prime Minister's official Web site

A BBC audio program exploring Blair's decade in office

A recent interview with American television

Behind the Doctor...

Doctor Who fans that were excited to hear that WPT was bringing the time-travelling sci-fi favorite back to Wisconsin airwaves will be even happier to find that after each episode, WPT is also airing the 15-minute Doctor Who Confidential documentaries that were a huge hit when they first aired in the United Kingdom.

Episodes of Doctor Who air at 10 p.m. Fridays and 11 p.m. Saturdays on WPT. Each episode runs about 45 minutes. The remainder of the hour is filled with the behind-the-scenes look at the creation and production of each episode of the show.

Mark Cossey, executive producer of the Doctor Who Confidential series was interviewed about the project by the BBC. You can find the interview here.

And, for the real die-hards, this site features 76 short films about the season that is currently airing on WPT.

The real Pocahontas...

In 1995, a Disney animated film -- filled with bright colors, ear-catching music and an inspirational love story -- re-ignited Americans' fascination with Pocahontas.

But, the real story of the Native-American girl didn't quite follow the fairy tale path of the animated film. At 7 p.m. Tuesday, NOVA utilizes the resources of archaeologists, historians and local Virginia Native Americans in an attempt to separate the truth from the mythology of Pocahontas, and to learn more about the real relationship between the settlers and the Native Americans in the area.

At the 400th anniversary of the founding of the Jamestown settlement, "Pocahontas Revealed" will present new information that has arisen about Pocahontas' relationship to John Smith, the young woman's marriage and subsequent use as a marketing tool for a tobacco magnate and her untimely death at just 21 years of age.