President Reagan dreams of Star Wars as a perfect defence against nuclear attack. But will his Strategic Defence Initiative be a shield to protect America, as he hopes, or a sword with which to defeat the Soviet Union in nuclear war?

AIDS is now a world-wide disease, from its heartland in Africa the virus has spread across the globe. Panorama reports from three continents on how medical science is facing up to the disease.

As the political parties gear up for the forthcoming General Election, what alternative vision does Labour offer for Britain after 8 years of Thatcher rule? The Leader of the Opposition, The Rt Hon Neil Kinnock , MP, is interviewed.

Michael Cockerell reports on the key role of Colonel Oliver North, US Deputy National Security Adviser, in the Iran-Contra arms scandal.

Labour rescued it by nationalisation. The Conservatives cannot wait to privatise it. What is the truth about Austin Rover's future?

With no end to the violence in sight, Panorama looks at how people have tried to come to terms with their suffering in two of the most afflicted Protestant and Catholic communities and hears about their hopes and their fears.

Ever since a head teacher was suspended on suspicion of having made a racist remark, the London Borough of Brent has been a major political football. The teacher - Maureen McGoldrick - had a proven anti-racist record.

Tonight Panorama premieres a Soviet television documentary called Warning that reveals how ordinary Russian people dealt with the aftermath of the world's biggest nuclear accident.

Britain's inner-city police forces are faced with a crisis. The top priority is no longer fighting crime but stopping public disorder. As the police spend more time on standby to combat civil disturbance, crime is rising unchecked.

John Sweeney investigates the Church of Scientology, endorsed by some major Hollywood celebrities, but which continues to face the criticism that it is less of a religion and more of a cult.

Panorama reports from three cities on the AIDS frontline, Sao Paulo in Brazil, Munich in Germany and Minneapolis in America; and examines contrasting ways of dealing with AIDS sufferers.

With the election campaign now in full swing. Sir Robin Day talks live in the studio to the leaders of the Liberal/SDP Alliance. The Rt Hon Dr David Owen and The Rt Hon David Steel.

With ten days to go before polling, Sir Robin Day talks live in the studio to the Leader of the Labour Party, The Rt Hon Neil Kinnock, about the issues of the campaign.

As the Election Campaign draws to a close. Sir Robin Day talks to the Prime Minister, The Rt Hon Margaret Thatcher , about her bid for a third term at No 10 and about the pledges made in the Conservative manifesto.

On 6 March the Herald of Free Enterprise capsized suddenly just outside Zeebrugge and 188 people lost their lives. Tonight Fred Emery investigates why nothing was done to make ferries less vulnerable.

For years now it's been illegal to refuse someone a job just because they're black. Yet, says the Policy Studies Institute, at least a third of employers do just that. The brutal fact is that, despite the law, discrimination persists.

Waste disposal in Britain is worth £5 billion a year and, in the US, it's said to be the fastest legal way to make a fortune. As environmentalists demand tighter controls, there's a worldwide crisis: no one wants waste in their back yard.

What are your chances of ending up in jail if you are found guilty of committing a petty crime? It depends where you do it. In some parts of the country, you are 4 times more likely to be sentenced to prison by magistrates than in others.

It's not just cheating; it can kill and it's big business. A former British track star is in America facing charges of dealing in counterfeit steroids and there's a multi-million-pound black market in Britain too.

The Labour Party begins its annual conference in Brighton today in sombre mood. After three general election defeats in succession, Labour's level of support has slumped to the position it was in more than 50 years ago.

Tomorrow, on the first day of its conference in Blackpool, the Conservative Party debates a resolution that welcomes the government's commitment and success in the inner cities.

Everyone knows the horror of illegal drugs like heroin. Yet alcohol is killing far more people. Today people drink twice as much as they did 30 years ago, and start drinking very young.

Tom Mangold explains how verification has become the litmus test of superpower relations, and how it has been politically manipulated by each side.

Every man and woman in Great Britain faces having to pay a local government tax: a flat charge per head, varying from council to council. The Government calls it the Community Charge; others, the Poll Tax.

Education is the next priority in Margaret Thatcher 's cultural revolution. State education is poised for its most radical change since the war. There will be more emphasis on 'the three R's.

What future has Britain in space? Is the Government about to surrender Britain's toehold in the space technology of the next century or is it rightly suspicious that it might not be getting value for money from space research?

David Alton's bill to reform the abortion law is now before Parliament. The real battle is about to begin. Over the next two months, MPs must decide for themselves on this highly charged moral and medical debate.

What will be the fallout from the Great Crash in the stock markets this autumn? Does it signal a historic decline in America's status as economic superpower? How vulnerable is Britain to the consequences?

American president Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev are both in political trouble at home and need to do a deal. Next Monday in Washington, they hold a third historic meeting and it should be their most successful.

As the Christmas spending spree reaches its frenzied peak, Richard Lindley reports on a borrowing boom that's left the average British household burdened with a mountain of debt as high as 80 per cent of its income.