Former Labour MP and Strictly Come Dancing Star Ed Balls will be getting close to Donald Trump supporters in America’s southern states for a new documentary.

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Called Ed Balls: My Deep South Road Trip, the BBC show will see Balls meeting those who voted for the current Republican president – and if their feelings for Trump have changed since his election.

Balls said: “It's one thing to swap being a politician for reality TV and embarrass your family in the process. It's quite another thing to swap reality TV for the US Presidency and turn the world upside down.

“I've always loved visiting the American south - the food and the music are fabulous and there's so much to learn from its history. But I was as shocked as anyone else by the way the south helped sweep Trump to victory.

“I'm looking forward to visiting the communities at the heart of the Trump revolution, getting to know the voters who elected him and finding out what they think of him one year on.”

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Ball’s new documentary is one of a string of factual commissions announced by the BBC today. In a two-part show called Vicky McClure: My Dementia Choir, the Line of Duty star will explore music’s power in fighting dementia. And it’s set to be a personal journey for McClure after her grandmother, Iris, died from the disease in 2015.

Vicky McClure (Getty, TL)
Vicky McClure (Getty, TL)

Other shows include Lenny Henry’s one-off special Lenny Henry: Commonwealth Kid. This show will follow the comedian’s journey across the Caribbean – including his parent’s home in Jamaica – to find out more about the deep-rooted relationship between the crown and the Commonwealth.

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Plus, Lucy Worsley is set to mark 100 years of women receiving the vote in the UK in special BBC1 film How Women Won The Vote, and historian David Olusoga will examine the history of a single Georgian townhouse in four-part BBC4 series The House.

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