SATURDAY 14 DECEMBER 2024

SAT 00:00 Soul Music (b07x2zd2)
Series 23

A Change Is Gonna Come, by Sam Cooke

Sam Cooke's A Change Is Gonna Come has become synonymous with the American Civil Rights Movement.

It was released in December 1964, two weeks after the influential singer was shot dead in Los Angeles.

Contributors include:

Sam Cooke's brother LC, singer Bettye Lavette who sang it for Barack Obama at his inaugural ceremony and civil rights activists from the Freedom Summer of 64, Jennifer Lawson and Mary King.

Producer: Maggie Ayre

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in October 2016.


SAT 00:30 Thelma & Michael: Love In The Cutting Room (b07z6w01)
Nicholas Wapshott tells the story of how film director Martin Scorsese unwittingly acted as cupid in one of cinema's greatest love stories.

While working on Raging Bull in 1980, Scorsese introduced his American film editor Thelma Schoonmaker to his boyhood hero, the celebrated British director Michael Powell.

Despite their 35 year age difference - Powell was 75 - the two fell in love and were married until Powell's death in 1994.

Using clips from some of his best known films and tributes from academics and critics, Nicholas puts Michael Powell's heritage in perspective and, in exclusive interviews with Scorsese and Schoonmaker, explores the brilliance of the two lovers and how their unlikely relationship developed in the cutting room.

Martin Scorsese assesses Powell's work on classic movies like The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp and The Red Shoes, and recalls introducing him to his long time cutting room colleague.

A Trevor Dann's Company production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in October 2016.


SAT 01:00 Unofficial Rosie (b007jlh0)
5. Count Your Blessings

Private-eye Rosie Monaghan is trying to solve her first case, but the demands of love, children and her bank manager are pressing in...

Starring Paula Wilcox.

Alan McDonald's thriller serial about a Merseyside mum turned private eye.

Rosie ...... Paula Wilcox
Margie ...... Elizabeth Estensen
Jerry ...... Christopher Bramwell
Bob ...... Dominic Grounsell
Carol ...... Helen Roberts
Andrew ...... Kim Wall
Mike ...... Steve Hodson
Martin ...... Paul Barber
Bill ...... Dominic Letts
Helen ...... Rachel Atkins
Old Woman ...... Diana Payan
Graham ...... David Thorpe

Music composed by Peter Howell.

Director: Tracey Neale

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 1993.


SAT 01:30 Trueman and Riley (b00j7p9f)
Series 2

5. Love Bytes

With a woman missing, Trueman and Riley are sucked into the virtual world of online role playing.

Starring Robert Daws and Duncan Preston.

Brian B Thompson's ill-matched detective duo.

DI Trueman …... Robert Daws
DS Riley ..…. Duncan Preston
Susan/Lucy Lovestar ..…. Rebecca Manley
Andy …... Matt Addis
Mr Thomas …... Malcolm Tierney
Geoff/Male Voice …... Stephen Critchlow
Male Voice …... Benjamin Askew
Male Voice ..…. Jonathan Tafler
Seductive Female Voice …... Lizzy Watts
Internet Café Owner ..…. Paul Rider

Director: Toby Swift

Made for BBC Radio 7 and first broadcast in March 2009.


SAT 02:00 Up the Garden Path (b0081cjz)
Series 2

A Soft-Hearted Little Thing

More tangles in Izzy's love life, when she and Dick head to dinner with Charles.

Tumbling from one love entanglement to another, 30 something teacher Izzy Comyn has a predilection for inappropriate men.

Imelda Staunton stars as Izzy.

A radio sequel adapted in eight parts from Sue Limb’s 1984 novel.

The second of 3 series which ran from 1987 to 1993. Granada also adapted the series for ITV.

Izzy ...... Imelda Staunton
Dick ...... Mike Grady
Michael ...... Nicholas Le Prevost
Louise ...... Phyllida Nash
Aunt Vinny ...... Rosemary Martin
Charles ...... David Robb
Gwyn ...... Dafydd Hywel
Sooty ...... Zelah Clarke.

Producer: Jonathan James-Moore

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in October 1988.


SAT 02:30 Doctor in the House (b007k4bc)
Our First Baby

Medic Simon Sparrow is thrown in the deep-end on St Swithins' ante-natal ward.

The misadventures of student doctor, Simon Sparrow.

Starring Richard Briers.

Adapted for radio by Ray Cooney from Richard Gordon's 'Doctor in the House' published in 1952.

Simon Sparrow …. Richard Briers
Sir Lancelot Spratt …. Geoffrey Sumner
Tony Benskin …. Ray Cooney
Taffy Evans …. Edward Cast
Vera …. Norma Ronald
Mrs Stevens …. Gwendolyn Watts
Sister/Granny …. Beth Boyd
Porter/Padre …. Brian Haines

Producer: David Hatch

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 1968.


SAT 03:00 The Train at Platform 4 (m001394s)
Series 1

Cat

It's Friday night and everyone's looking forward to their weekend plans.

But the journey home is struck with disaster when a celebrity cat goes missing on the train.

Artemis Montmorency Wolfhandle the Third is potentially the new face of Kitty Krunch Cat Food - but is set to miss a crucial audition if the train crew can't track her down.

Meanwhile, Dev's plans for a hot date are thrown into turmoil when he learns the bitter truth about his receding hairline.

Our heroes are the long-suffering train crew who manage to scrape through every shift like a dysfunctional family.

Comedy legends Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis's sitcom, set in the claustrophobic carriages of a cross-country rail service.

Sam …... Rosie Cavaliero
Gilbert ..…. Kenneth Collard
Dev …... Ali Shahalom
Tasha …... Amy Gledhill
Cat Lady ...... Freya Parker
American ...... Hugh Dennis
Passenger ...... Steve Punt

Producer: James Robinson

A BBC Studios production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in January 2022.


SAT 03:30 Fall: The Mystery of Robert Maxwell by John Preston (m000s3r2)
5. Maxwell's Disappearance

Maxwell is at sea.

His reputation and business empire are in peril.

The life story of the larger-than- life newspaper owner Robert Maxwell, takes us from his birth to his mysterious death at sea.

Maxwell remains an enigma. He was a hugely successful businessman who came from humble beginnings as an Orthodox Jew in Czechoslovakia, and whose father sold animal skins for a living.

Maxwell became a British war-hero, decorated for his heroism, then a Labour MP, all the while amassing a huge fortune as the owner of publishing and newspaper businesses.

But when he fell from his yacht, the Lady Ghislaine, in the middle of the night in 1991, another story was revealed - of debts and unscrupulous dealings.

No-one had ever fallen so far and so quickly.

John Preston's breath-taking biography sets out to give the definitive account of Robert Maxwell's rise and fall.

Underneath this apparent model of society lay an amoral and bloated wreck.

Abridged by Richard Hamilton.

Concluded by Henry Goodman.

Producer: Elizabeth Allard.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2021.


SAT 03:45 Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe (m000mrzm)
5. Fight for Independence

The Christian Missionaries and the British Colonial Officers take ever stronger control over Umuofia.

Will Okonkwo be able to persuade his fellow clan members to fight for their independence?

The tragic concluding episode of Chinua Achebe’s, powerful tale of an Igbo community fighting to retain its identity, tradition and independence in the face of colonial rule.

Dramatised by Biyi Bandele.

Okonkwo ...... Okezie Morro
Obierika ...... Cyril Nri
Ajofia/Head Messenger ...... Sule Rimi
Rev Brown/District Commissioner ...... Andonis Anthony
Nwoye/Interpreter ...... Michael Ajao
Ekwueme ...... Richard Pepple

Director: Nadia Molinari

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 2020.


SAT 04:00 The Unbelievable Truth (m00146ph)
Series 27

Episode 5

David Mitchell hosts the panel game in which four comedians are encouraged to tell lies.

They compete against one another to see how many items of truth they're able to smuggle past their opponents.

The panellists are obliged to talk with deliberate inaccuracy on subjects as varied as cars, Coca-Cola, donkeys and tomatoes.

With:

Pippa Evans
Geoff Norcott
Fern Brady
Simon Evans

Producer: Jon Naismith

A Random Entertainment production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in February 2022.


SAT 04:30 Noel Coward (m0025w4k)
Brief Encounter

"If only it were someone else's story and not mine. As it is you are the only one in the world I can never tell - never - never."

Alec and Laura are both married to other people.

After meeting, they fall passionately in love but find the constraints of decent behaviour an insurmountable obstacle to their love.

Starring Cheryl Campbell and Ian Holm.

Noel Coward's romantic film drama was released in 1945.

Adapted by Walter Hall.

Laura .... Cheryl Campbell
Alec .... Ian Holm
Albert .... Walter Hall
Myrtle .... Shirley Dixon
Beryl .... Rosalind Adams
Dolly .... Miranda Forbes
Fred .... Stephen Thorne

With;

Ray Browne
David Gooderson
Madi Hedd
Crawford Logan
Jean Trend

Director: Dickon Reed

First broadcast on the BBC World Service in October 1982.

**** BBC Radio 4 Extra's collection marking the 125th anniversary of Noel Coward's birth ****


SAT 05:30 All the Young Dudes (b007s74l)
Series 1

Waterloo Sunset

It's the end of the line for Patrick, but Joe and Maria might, just might, have some good news for everyone.

The lives of Patrick and wife Helen as they settle back into the town where he was born.

Comedy drama written by and starring Jim Sweeney.

Patrick …. Jim Sweeney
Helen …. Cathryn Harrison
Billy …. Steve Steen
Moira …. Sadie Shimmin
Joe …. Stephen Frost
Maria …. Flaminia Cinque
Mrs Fleming ...... Jenny Lee

Producer: Steve Doherty

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 2001.


SAT 06:00 Whodunnits (m0005gxl)
Trent's Last Case by EC Bentley

Sigsbee Manderson is both renowned and hated throughout the financial world. One day he's found murdered...

Amateur sleuth Philp Trent heads to the country to investigate. It's a case that will prove to be his last, and one he certainly won't forget...

Starring Martin Jarvis and Helena Breck.

EC Bentley's detective novel, first published in 1913.

Dramatised by Alan Downer.

Philip Trent ...... Martin Jarvis
Mabel Manderson ...... Helena Breck
Marlowe ...... Simon Hewitt
Bonner ...... Brian Hewlett
Cupples ...... Manning Wilson
Inspector Murch ...... Alan Downer
Martin ...... Stephen Thorne
Sir James Molloy ...... Sean Barrett
Mrs Morgan ...... Joanna Wake
Figgis ...... Paul Gregory
Eddison ...... David Goodland
Williams ...... Stuart Organ
Dr Stock ...... Simon Cuff

Director: Gerry Jones.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 1986.


SAT 07:30 The Call of the Wild by Jack London (Omnibus) (m000gf0z)
Jack London's The Call of the Wild is set in Yukon, Canada, during the 1890s Klondike Gold Rush, when strong sled dogs were in high demand.

The central character of the novel is a dog named Buck and the story opens at a ranch in Santa Clara Valley, California.

Buck is stolen from his home and sold into service as a sled dog in Alaska. He becomes progressively feral in the harsh environment, where he is forced to fight to survive and dominate other dogs.

Jack London spent almost a year in the Yukon, and his observations form much of the material for the book.

The story was serialised in The Saturday Evening Post in the summer of 1903 and published as a book a month later. Its great popularity and success made a reputation for London. As early as 1923, the story was adapted for film, and it has seen several more cinematic adaptations since.

It's often thought of as a children's book and indeed the current film has turned it into a story more suitable for the young. But the original writing is fierce, poetic, beautiful and atmospheric. It appeals to the core of everyone's nature. Exciting and moving in equal measure, it's a sublime adventure story.

Omnibus of five parts abridged by Robin Brooks.

Read by Kerry Shale.

Producer: Clive Brill

A Brill production for BBC Radio, 4 first broadcast in March 2020.


SAT 08:45 Inner Voices (m00260n5)
Mr Williams by Curtis Walker

An irascible Jamaican pensioner wiles away an afternoon at his Old People's home.

Wondering why his family don't seem to visit much - it soon becomes apparent why…

Written and performed by Curtis Walker.

Series of character monologues by top UK comics.

Director: Liz Webb

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 2004.


SAT 09:00 Mr Willow's Wife (m000p7c4)
2. Together Again

Felicity Willow decides it’s time that she and her husband Paul do more together.

But does he agree?

Starring Moira Lister and Terence Alexander.

With their twins away at school, Felicity wants to recapture some romantic bliss with husband Paul.

Written by Ray Cooney and John Chapman

Felicity Willow ...... Moira Lister
Paul Willow ...... Terence Alexander
Nanny ...... Doris Hare
Madame Rondeberge ..... Miriam Margolyes
Henri Rodeberge ..... John Chapman
Wolfgang Schmidt ..... Ray Cooney

Producer David Hatch

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 1971.


SAT 09:30 J Kingston Platt's Showbiz Handbook (b007k02m)
Dick Turpin

The veteran of many parts recounts the story of a scheme to make a fortune from flops which puts "the Producers" to shame.

J Kingston Platt is the doyen of British show business.

He's ready to share reminiscences drawn from the wealth and the poverty of his experience from the past 40 years.

Performed and written by Peter Jones.

Producer: Pete Atkin

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 1986.


SAT 10:00 Soul Music Mixtapes (m0009sx0)
2. 'So What' to 'Myfanwy'

Cerys Matthews continues delving into the archives to put together a specially curated mixtape of her favourite stories from across 25 series of the BBC Radio 4's Soul Music.

Each episode of Soul Music takes a different piece of music – it might be a pop song, or a hymn, or a piece of classical music or world music – and looks at why it moves us and what it means to different people.

In the second of three episodes, Cerys's chooses:

Miles Davis: ‘So What’
Kyu Sakamoto: ‘Sukiyaki’
Albinoni/Giazotto: Adagio in G Minor for Organ and Strings
Violeta Parra: ‘Gracias A La Via’
Puccini; ‘Che Gelida Manina’ [‘Your Tiny Hand Is Frozen’]
Ladysmith Black Mambazo: Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika
Dvorak: Symphony No. 9 ‘New World’
Cerys Matthews own rendition of ‘Myfanwy’.

Producer: Mair Bosworth.

Made for BBC Radio 4 Extra and first broadcast in January 2018.


SAT 11:00 Whodunnits (m0005gxl)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]


SAT 12:30 The Call of the Wild by Jack London (Omnibus) (m000gf0z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]


SAT 13:45 Inner Voices (m00260n5)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:45 today]


SAT 14:00 Mr Willow's Wife (m000p7c4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


SAT 14:30 J Kingston Platt's Showbiz Handbook (b007k02m)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 today]


SAT 15:00 Soul Music Mixtapes (m0009sx0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 today]


SAT 16:00 Vampirella by Angela Carter (b06tfv03)
Could finding true love free Count Dracula's daughter from her ‘dreadful wheel of destiny’?

Anna Massey stars as the last-in-line of the undead on the eve of the First World War.

Angela Carter's reimagining of the familiar vampire narrative.

Countess Vampirella/Elizabeth Ba'athory …. Anna Massey
Count Dracula …. David March
Henri Blot …. Sawney Beane
Hero …. Richard O'Callaghan
Mrs. Beane …. Betty Hardy

Angela later rewrote this radio play as a short story 'The Lady in the House of Love'.

Director: Glyn Dearman.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 3 in July 1976.


SAT 17:00 Whodunnits (m0005gxl)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]


SAT 18:30 The Call of the Wild by Jack London (Omnibus) (m000gf0z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]


SAT 19:45 Inner Voices (m00260n5)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:45 today]


SAT 20:00 Mr Willow's Wife (m000p7c4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


SAT 20:30 J Kingston Platt's Showbiz Handbook (b007k02m)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 today]


SAT 21:00 Soul Music Mixtapes (m0009sx0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 today]


SAT 22:00 TEZ Talks (b09qfwt3)
Series 2

3. Once you go Asian...

Comedian Tez Ilyas presents a stand-up show about life as a British Muslim.

In this episode, Tez talks about the assumptions people have about Muslims, especially him and his love life.

Written and performed by Tez Ilyas

Producer: Carl Cooper

A BBC Studios production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in February 2018.


SAT 22:15 The East Coast Listening Post (b09k840j)
Series 1

Talk Man

The East Coast Listening Post was created by Edinburgh Comedy Award-nominated duo Lazy Susan.

Journalist sisters, Jenna and Dana, tour the UK and interview its inhabitants in their quest to reveal something meaningful, inadvertently revealing themselves in the process.

In this episode, Dana and Eric head to the north east of England to spend time with a male therapy group called 'Talk Man', run by a man called Pete.

Written and performed by Celeste Dring and Freya Parker.

With performances from:

David Elms

Producer: Suzy Grant

A BBC Studios Scripted Comedy production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in January 2018.


SAT 22:30 Mitch Benn's Crimes Against Music (b00cl7xl)
Series 2

Money and Music

Mitch is in trouble.

The Inland Revenue have said his Cyberman costume is not a legitimate business expense.

Join him as he explores the world of money and music.

Written by Mitch Benn and Robin Ince.

With:

Professional Morrissey botherer, Robin Ince
Lindisfarne's biggest fan, Alfie Joey
Tasha Baylis
Kirsty Newton

Producer: Adam Bromley

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2005


SAT 23:00 Lemn Sissay's Origin Stories (b07x20c1)
2. Mutatis Mutandis

Batman was an orphan; Lisbeth Salander, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, was an orphan; Superman was an orphan and a foundling. Cinderella was a foster child. Darth Vader - well, they can't all be winners.

Taking a comic and poetic angle, Lemn Sissay compares reality against the treatment of children raised in care, orphans and foster children in popular culture. Because it surely says something about how we view them that we create so many for fiction?

In this episode, Lemn looks at the children at Charles Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters, otherwise known as The X-Men Academy.

More specifically, Rogue and Wolverine, whose dark and tragic origins lie long before either of them reached the School. But there, Xavier - Professor X - sought to teach the children how to control their powers and make the most of them.

Lemn's experiences in children's homes in Wigan was not the same. What difference would it have made if it had been?

Lemn also talks to comedian and care leaver Sophie Willan, who spent most of her childhood in foster care and assisted accommodation.

What superpowers did she discover she had, removed from the security of family?

Written and performed by Lemn Sissay.

Producer: Ed Morrish

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in October 2016.


SAT 23:30 Henry Normal: A Normal... (b0bfxl02)
Imagination

Acclaimed, occasional writer Henry Normal tackles those subjects so big only radio can possibly contain them.

In this episode, Henry looks at imagination, perception and how we express ourselves through art and creativity.

From the first cave paintings through to Henry's own experiences of creating, writing and producing some of Britain's best loved comedies over the years, Henry explores the wonders of the human imagination.

Henry Normal is a multi-award winning writer, producer and poet. Co-writer of award winning TV programmes such as The Royle Family, The Mrs Merton Show, Coogan’s Run and Paul Calf, and producer of, amongst many others, Oscar-Nominated Philomena, Gavin and Stacey and Alan Partridge.

He has published several volumes of poetry, including Travelling Second Class Through Hope, Staring Directly at the Eclipse and his new volume, Raining Upwards. And his memoir, A Normal Family: Everyday adventures with our autistic son.

Producer: Carl Cooper

A BBC Studios production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in August 2018.

SUNDAY 15 DECEMBER 2024

SUN 00:00 Vampirella by Angela Carter (b06tfv03)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:00 on Saturday]


SUN 01:00 Whodunnits (m0005gxl)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 on Saturday]


SUN 02:30 The Call of the Wild by Jack London (Omnibus) (m000gf0z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 on Saturday]


SUN 03:45 Inner Voices (m00260n5)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:45 on Saturday]


SUN 04:00 Mr Willow's Wife (m000p7c4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 on Saturday]


SUN 04:30 J Kingston Platt's Showbiz Handbook (b007k02m)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 on Saturday]


SUN 05:00 Soul Music Mixtapes (m0009sx0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 on Saturday]


SUN 06:00 Desert Island Discs Revisited (b07s3jlr)
Absent Friends 2024

Edna O'Brien

Writer Edna O'Brien is castaway for a second time by Kirsty Young.

She was born and raised in a small village in County Clare, where the only books in the house were prayer books which sat alongside her father's bloodstock magazines. Her mother thought writing was in essence sinful and tried fiercely to stop her becoming an author.

She was living in England when she published her first novel, The Country Girls, in 1960. It was a huge hit and was critically well received - but in Ireland she was decried and her book was burnt in the streets.

Edna lived in London for most of her adult life, but continued to draw on her Irish background for inspiration - she said: "it's in my roots, and when I dream at night it's the place I go".

Edna O'Brien died on 27th July 2024 aged 93.

DISC ONE: The monks of the Benedictine Monastery of Santo Domingo de Silos - Mandatum Novum do Vobis
DISC TWO: Maria Callas - Giacomo Puccini's Donde lieta usci (Mimi's farewell) (from La Bohème)
DISC THREE: Glenn Gould - Johann Sebastian Bach's Goldberg Variations - Variations Nos. 1 & 2
DISC FOUR: The Chieftains & Sinéad O'Connor - The Foggy, Foggy Dew
DISC FIVE: The Pogues (feat. Kirsty MacColl) - Fairytale Of New York
DISC SIX: Michael Olatunji - Drums of Passion
DISC SEVEN: Munich Philharmonic Orchestra with the Chor des Bayerischen Rundfunks, conducted by Christian Thielemann - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Requiem in D minor (Lacrymosa)
DISC EIGHT: Édith Piaf - Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien

CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: The Chieftains & Sinéad O'Connor - The Foggy, Foggy Dew
BOOK CHOICE: Ulysses - James Joyce
LUXURY CHOICE: Vault of a very good white wine

Producer Leanne Buckle

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2007.


SUN 06:45 David Attenborough's Life Stories (b00yrg3g)
Series 2

Kiwi

New Zealand had several species of flightless bird living across the islands, all of which are now extinct, bar one.

The Kiwi has become one of those species iconic of the country, like the Koala to Australia, the Giraffe to Africa and the Alpaca to South America.

Historically, New Zealand didn't have ground predators such as wild cats and stoats - which allowed birds to exploit living on the ground. Being flightless in New Zealand was a good way to be a bird.

Having filmed Kiwis, Sir David Attenborough muses on the niche the Kiwi occupies on the ground. He argues the Kiwi behaves more like a mammal than a bird, but what mammal do you think, in his view, the Kiwi most resembles..?

Producer: Julian Hector

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2011.


SUN 07:00 Poetry Extra (m0026208)
Shuntaro Tanikawa - A Poet's Japan

Poet Daljit Nagra revisits the BBC's poetry archive and selects Shuntaro Tanikawa - A Poet's Japan featuring a rare encounter with Japan's greatest living poet.

And Daljit reads another poem from his Poetry Extra Book of the Month: Collected Poems by Wendy Cope.

Shuntaro Tanikawa is Japan’s most widely read and acclaimed poet and has been called one of the world’s ‘active poetic volcanoes’.

Recorded at the age of 88, he continued to be at the cutting edge of modern poetry in Japan, where he remained ever since his first collection, Two Billion Light-Years of Solitude, was published in 1952.

In the book's prefatory poem, Tanikawa's mentor, Tatsuji Miyoshi, introduced him as a young man who 'has come from a distant land, unexpected … bearing the weight of being alone'. Today, he compares his age to tree rings: ‘No matter how old I grow, the younger me still exists in the centre ring.'

Recorded in 2020, Tanikawa invites us into his world, and talks about his life and work in the company of his friend and translator since 1967, William Elliott, an American poet who has lived in Japan for more than 40 years, and his more recent translators Nishihara Katsumasa and Takako Lento.

Along the way, we peer into the soul of modern Japan and reflect on nearly 90 years of its history.

Readings from Shuntaro Tanikawa: New Selected Poems and The Art of Being Alone.

Featuring music by Kensaku Tanikawa, Toru Takemitsu and Ryuichi Sakamoto, with lyrics by Shuntaro Tanikawa.

Shuntaro Tanikawa died aged 92 on 13th November 2024.

Producer: Eve Streeter

A Greenpoint production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in 2020.


SUN 07:30 Fall: The Mystery of Robert Maxwell by John Preston (Omnibus) (m002620b)
Robert Maxwell remains an enigma.

A hugely successful tycoon who came from humble beginnings as an Orthodox Jew in Czechoslovakia, and whose father sold animal skins for a living, Maxwell became a decorated British war-hero, then a Labour MP, all the while amassing a huge fortune as the owner of publishing and newspaper businesses.

But when he fell from his yacht, the Lady Ghislaine, in the middle of the night in 1991, another story was revealed - of debts and unscrupulous dealings.

No-one had ever fallen so far and so quickly.

John Preston's gripping biography sets out to give the definitive account of Robert Maxwell's rise and fall.

Underneath this apparent model of society lay an amoral and bloated wreck.

Omnibus of five episodes abridged by Richard Hamilton.

Read by Henry Goodman.

Producer: Elizabeth Allard.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2021.


SUN 08:40 Inheritance Tracks (m002620d)
Ian Rankin

Crime-writer Ian Rankin chooses ‘Seven Drunken Nights’ by The Dubliners and ‘Another Man's Rain’ by Jackie Leven.


SUN 08:50 Chinua Achebe - Things Fall Apart (Omnibus) (m002620g)
A neighbouring clan commits an offence against Umuofia.

To avoid war, the offending clan gives Umuofia a young boy, Ikemefuna who is entrusted to Okonkwo.

Chinua Achebe’s classic tale depicting pre-colonial 1890's Igbo village life, centring on the rise and fall of a powerful Igbo clan leader Okonkwo.

Omnibus of five parts dramatised by Biyi Bandele.

Okonkwo .... Okezie Morro
Ikemefuna/Uzowulu .... Clinton Liberty
Chinyere .... Grace Cookey-Gam
Ekwefi/Ezinma .... Marilyn Nnadebe
Obierika .... Cyril Nri
Odukwe/Ezeugu/ Ekwueme .... Richard Pepple
Nwoye/One-Handed Spirit//Interpreter .... Michael Ajao
Rev Brown/District Commissioner.... Andonis Anthony
Mr Kiaga/Enoch/ Ajofia/Head Messenger .... Sule Rimi

Director: Nadia Molinari

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 2020.


SUN 10:00 Beyond Our Ken (b008kmjp)
From 01/10/1958

Kenneth Horne presents 'The Bobby Beamish Story' and 'Hornerama' investigates the world of advertising.

A madcap mix of sketches and songs written by Eric Merriman and Barry Took

Starring:

Kenneth Horne
Kenneth Williams
Hugh Paddick
Betty Marsden
Ron Moody

Music from Pat Lancaster, the Malcolm Mitchell Trio and the BBC Review Orchestra conducted by Paul Fenoulhet.

Announcer: Douglas Smith

Beyond Our Ken hit the airwaves in 1958 and ran to 1964 - featuring regulars like Arthur Fallowfield, Cecil Snaith and Rodney and Charles.

The precursor to 'Round The Horne' - sadly only 13 shows survive from the original run of 21 episodes in Series 1. Audio restored using both home and overseas (BBC Transcription Service) recordings.

Producer: Jacques Brown

First broadcast on the BBC Light Programme in October 1958.


SUN 10:30 The Enchanting World of Hinge and Bracket (m002620j)
Series 2

The Talent Competition

The dear ladies brace themselves for a night of performances showcasing the talents of their village neighbours

Sit through an evening of performances from their neighbours - from juggling plates to Melanie (almost) playing the violin.....

Starring Dr Evadne Hinge and her lifelong companion Dame Hilda Bracket.

Brought to you from the genteel setting of the Suffolk village of Stackton Tressel, where the musical duo reside.

Written by Mike Craig, Lawrie Kinsley and Ron McDonnell

Dame Hilda Bracket ...... Patrick Fyffe
Dr Evadne Hinge ...... George Logan
Maude ...... Daphne Heard
PC George Bolsover ...... Herbert Smith

Three series ran on BBC Radio 4 between 1977 and 1979, with further spin-off seasons on BBC Radio 2 until 1990.

In the early 1980s, they expanded over to BBC TV with the series Dear Ladies.

Producer: James Casey

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 1978.


SUN 11:00 Desert Island Discs Revisited (b07s3jlr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]


SUN 11:45 David Attenborough's Life Stories (b00yrg3g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:45 today]


SUN 12:00 Poetry Extra (m0026208)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]


SUN 12:30 Fall: The Mystery of Robert Maxwell by John Preston (Omnibus) (m002620b)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]


SUN 13:40 Inheritance Tracks (m002620d)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:40 today]


SUN 13:50 Chinua Achebe - Things Fall Apart (Omnibus) (m002620g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:50 today]


SUN 15:00 Beyond Our Ken (b008kmjp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 today]


SUN 15:30 The Enchanting World of Hinge and Bracket (m002620j)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:30 today]


SUN 16:00 The Man in Black (b00zd7gz)
Series 3

Perfect Home by Nick Warburton

A man and a woman meet at a bus stop late at night - but who is fooling who..?

The Man in Black introduces Nick Warburton's chilling tale.

Mark Gatiss stars as the sinister raconteur.

Heron …. Toby Jones
Felice …. Zoe Tapper

More horrifying tales from The Man in Black. Wherever you encounter him, he's eager to pass on his stories. Stories to unsettle and horrify. Stories to haunt you.

Director: Lucy Collingwood.

Made for BBC Radio 4 Extra and first broadcast in March 2011.


SUN 16:30 Lullaby by Francis Turnly (b00d7jh3)
Kate and Patrick have just moved into their newly renovated house.

With an attic perfect for a painting studio, artist Kate soon settles into their new home.

But when she starts hearing unexplained noises; footsteps, children's laughter and, most disturbingly of all the refrain of a haunting lullaby echoing through the walls, Kate is pushed to the very limits of her sanity.

When a mysterious accident leaves Kate's life hanging in the balance, husband Patrick and her sister Hannah delve into the house's sinister history and uncover its disturbing secret.

But can they save Kate?

An atmospheric and haunting story from Francis Turnly.

Kate ...... Tara Flynn
Patrick ...... Hugh Lee
Hannah ...... Jody O'Neill
Ethna Lymes ...... Cathy Belton
Clive & Doctor ...... David Ireland
Jack ...... Darragh Corcoran
Laura ...... Eabha McKeown

Producer: Heather Larmour

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 2008.


SUN 17:00 Desert Island Discs Revisited (b07s3jlr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]


SUN 17:45 David Attenborough's Life Stories (b00yrg3g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:45 today]


SUN 18:00 Poetry Extra (m0026208)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]


SUN 18:30 Fall: The Mystery of Robert Maxwell by John Preston (Omnibus) (m002620b)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]


SUN 19:40 Inheritance Tracks (m002620d)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:40 today]


SUN 19:50 Chinua Achebe - Things Fall Apart (Omnibus) (m002620g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:50 today]


SUN 21:00 Beyond Our Ken (b008kmjp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 today]


SUN 21:30 The Enchanting World of Hinge and Bracket (m002620j)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:30 today]


SUN 22:00 Revolting People (b00wlrp5)
Series 4

Pirates

Samuel, McGurk and the others attempt to flee to England.

But their escape is hindered when they are captured by pirates with very poor people skills.

Sitcom set just before the American War of Independence.

Written by and starring Andy Hamilton and Jay Tarses.

Sgt McGurk …. Andy Hamilton
Svensson …. Hugh Dennis
Samuel .... Jay Tarses
Captain Bloodbath .... Michael Fenton Stevens
Capt Brimshaw …. James Fleet
Mary …. Julia Hills
Frank .... Philip Pope
Joshua .... Tony Maudsley

Producer: Paul Mayhew-Archer

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2006.


SUN 22:30 Stand-Up Specials (m000rm9t)
Jayde Adams: From ASDA to Diva

Jayde Adams is a Bristol born comedian and entertainer who used to work in Asda.

Jayde has shot to stardom due to her innate confidence, cracking singing voice and unique personal take on modern life. With three powerhouse Edinburgh shows behind her and a blossoming presenting career on TV she has shot from the fish counter at ASDA to fully fledged diva and is keen to tell everyone about it.

Jayde has a classic case of "you can take the girl out of Bristol, but can't take Bristol out of her" - she says what she sees and is unapologetic about it. It's part of what's got her where she is today - a working class girl riding high on the often middle class wave of show business.

She's an upstart, she's new money, she's wearing a sequined dress and singing at you while lying across a piano. But beyond all that, she's a (relatively) normal person with a fascinating journey.

In this special, Jayde combines her wit and world class set of pipes with show-stopping music by Olivier Award winner Richard Thomas (Jerry Springer: The Opera).

Jayde will give her unique slant on class, body positivity and being from Bristol. Weaving her hilarious brand of entertaining yet personal stand-up with catchy numbers, Jayde shares how she went from working at ASDA to becoming a fully fledged diva.

Jayde's main aim is to bring out the diva in all of us, not just the few. It's dying to escape, and who are we to stop it?

Producer: Hayley Sterling

A BBC Studios production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in January 2016.


SUN 22:55 The Comedy Club Interviews (m0026cj1)
Red Richardson 1/3

From 10pm until midnight, seven days a week, the Comedy Club has two hours of comedy. Plus Paul Garner chats to stand-up comedian Red Richardson.


SUN 23:00 Life With Lederer (m001knqs)
Series 2

The Interview

Helen reveals her methods for coping with life, by brushing up her interview technique and landing a job.

Written by and starring Helen Lederer.

With:

Malcolm Raeburn
Christopher Campbell
Victoria Finney
Sandra Maitland

Produced at BBC Manchester by Paul Z Jackson.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 1991.


SUN 23:15 Friends Like These (b010m7g6)
Adam and Joe's Famous Guy

"I'm the best at pretending..."

Adam Buxton and Joe Cornish star in the tale of Manthea Shringleton, a journalist sent to interview a reclusive Hollywood star.

Written by Adam Buxton.

Producer: Claudine Toutoungi

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2006.


SUN 23:30 Delve Special (b007k4nj)
Series 2

Double Agent Russell Nicholson

Reporter David Lander interviews notorious double agent Russell Nicholson at his luxury home in Bulgaria.

Presented by David Lander with assistance from Stephen Fry.

Studio production by:

Andrew Sachs
Jack Klaff
Brenda Blethyn
Felicity Montagu

Dramatic reconstruction by:

Robert Bathurst
Tony Robinson

Researched and compiled by Tony Sarchet.

Editor: Paul Mayhew-Archer

Delve Special ran for four series from 1984 to 1987 and later transferred to TV as: This is David Lander.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 1985.

MONDAY 16 DECEMBER 2024

MON 00:00 The Man in Black (b00zd7gz)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:00 on Sunday]


MON 00:30 Lullaby by Francis Turnly (b00d7jh3)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:30 on Sunday]


MON 01:00 Desert Island Discs Revisited (b07s3jlr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 on Sunday]


MON 01:45 David Attenborough's Life Stories (b00yrg3g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:45 on Sunday]


MON 02:00 Poetry Extra (m0026208)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 on Sunday]


MON 02:30 Fall: The Mystery of Robert Maxwell by John Preston (Omnibus) (m002620b)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 on Sunday]


MON 03:40 Inheritance Tracks (m002620d)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:40 on Sunday]


MON 03:50 Chinua Achebe - Things Fall Apart (Omnibus) (m002620g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:50 on Sunday]


MON 05:00 Beyond Our Ken (b008kmjp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 on Sunday]


MON 05:30 The Enchanting World of Hinge and Bracket (m002620j)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:30 on Sunday]


MON 06:00 Unofficial Rosie (b007jlhs)
6. In Dreams

It's time for Merseyside private eye Rosie Monaghan to confront the murderer.

Or is it?

Must she go down these mean streets?

Starring Paula Wilcox.

Conclusion of Alan McDonald's thriller serial.

Rosie ...... Paula Wilcox
Margie ...... Elizabeth Estensen
Jerry ...... Christopher Bramwell
Bob ...... Dominic Grounsell
Carol ...... Helen Roberts
Mike ...... Steve Hodson
Martin ...... Paul Barber
Andrew ...... Kim Wall
Deputy Chief Constable. ...... Dominic Letts
Helen ...... Rachel Atkins
Old Woman ...... Diana Payan
Graham ...... David Thorpe
Dorothy ...... Pauline Yates
Auntie ...... Jillie Meers

Music composed by Peter Howell.

Director: Tracey Neale

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 1993.


MON 06:30 Whodunnits (b011ckhy)
Agatha Raisin - Series 1

1. The Vicious Vet

A handsome vet's arrival in the Cotswold village of Carsely sparks a murder trail for amateur sleuth, Agatha Raisin.

Starring Penelope Keith.

MC Beaton's murder mystery.

Dramatised in six parts by David Semple.

Agatha Raisin …. Penelope Keith
Peter Bladen …. Ewan Bailey
James Lacey …. Malcolm Sinclair
Paul Bladen …. Jon Glover
Mrs Bloxby …. Liza Sadovy
DC Bill Wong …. Ben Crowe
Fred Huntingdon …. Jillie Meers
Mrs Josephs …. Joanna McCullum

Director: Carol Smith

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2004.


MON 07:00 Supermarket Kisses (m0026076)
Carol's birthday proves to be a night to remember.

It's all thanks to security guard Tom, who leads the party on a night raid to the supermarket...

Starring Anita Dobson.

Written by Mark Tuohy.

Carol .... Anita Dobson
Tom .... Paul Bradley
Mel .... Alison Pettitt

Other Supermarket parts played by:

Tilly Gaunt
Elizabeth Conboy
Harry Myers

Director Claire Grove

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 1999.


MON 07:30 The Navy Lark (m0026078)
Series 11

Sub-Lt Phillips to Leave for Dartmouth

The Sub-Lieutenant is shocked to receive an offer to teach at naval college.

Stars Leslie Phillips, Jon Pertwee and Stephen Murray.

Laughs afloat aboard British Royal Navy frigate HMS Troutbridge.

Written by Lawrie Wyman.

The Sub-Lieutenant ...... Leslie Phillips
The Chief Petty Officer ...... Jon Pertwee
The Commanding Officer ...... Stephen Murray
Captain Povey .... Richard Caldicot
WREN Chasen …. Heather Chasen
LS Goldstein …. Tenniel Evans
Rear Admiral Evans …. Michael Bates

The Navy Lark ran for an impressive 13 series between 1959 and 1976.

Producer: Alastair Scott-Johnston

First broadcast on the BBC Radio 2 in April 1970.


MON 08:00 In and Out of the Kitchen (b065vsdx)
Series 4

The Birthday

Damien rents a narrowboat for a weekend cruising around the heart of England with Anthony, his producer friend Marion Duffett, his parents Janet and Dennis, his agent Ian, and his builder Mr Mullaney.

He hopes to relax but also ease tensions between Mr Mullaney and Anthony who aren't getting on well following an Anthony-induced hiccup in their newly formed property business.

But canalling isn't always as easy as it looks...

Sitcom charting the life of cookery writer Damien Trench, who lives in London's Queen's Park with his partner Anthony.

Created by and starring Miles Jupp.

Written by Nick Revell.

Damien Trench ...... Miles Jupp
Anthony ...... Justin Edwards
Ian Frobisher ...... Philip Fox
Mr Mullaney ...... Brendan Dempsey
The Auctioneer/Ivan ...... Mark Edel-Hunt
Livi Hollinshead ...... Alex Tregear
Gavin Colthorpe ...... Stephen Critchlow

Producer: Sam Michell

A BBC Radio Comedy production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in August 2015.


MON 08:30 Will in the World by Stephen Greenblatt (b00lbsx9)
1. The Players are Here

A reconstruction of Shakespeare's life, work and the age he lived in.

As a young schoolboy in Stratford-on-Avon, William studied Latin. Actors visited the family home when Shakespeare was five and in 1575 Queen Elizabeth I stayed for 19 days at Kenilworth with Robert Dudley, the Earl of Leicester.

It's probable that John Shakespeare would have taken his son to see the elaborate shows put on in her honour.

Book written by Stephen Greenblatt, first published in 2004.

Abridged in five parts by Miranda Davies

Read by Toby Stephens

Other extracts read by:

Alice Hart
John Rowe

Producer Emma Harding

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in October 2004.


MON 08:45 The Debrief by Katherine Jakeways (m000l205)
1. Announcement

On their journey home, Hannah and Mark dissect the events of a family meal, at which a potentially life-changing announcement was made.

The debrief is a common phenomenon – that moment when you leave a social event, climb into the car, or the taxi, or onto the bus and start to gossip with your partner about the evening's events.

Hannah and Mark love a debrief, and each episode finds them in the aftermath of an event with lots to get their teeth into.

Written in five parts by Katherine Jakeways.

Hannah …... Rebecca Humphries
Mark …... Tom Basden
Finn …... Milo Robinson
Poppy …... Juno Robinson

Director: James Robinson

A BBC Cymru Wales production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in July 2020.

** Writer Katherine Jakeways has been described by the Radio Times as ‘the next Victoria Wood’. Of her Radio 4 series ‘Where this Service will…’ the Guardian said “Jakeway's writing was sublime. The punchlines, the pacing, the humanity.”


MON 09:00 Yesterday in Parliament (m0020312)
The latest news from Westminster - and beyond.


MON 09:30 A Cause for Caroling (b03lp80w)
6. A Second Golden Age

Choral conductor and scholar Jeremy Summerly continues the story of the Christmas Carol in Britain in this ten-part series.

Jeremy reaches the 19th century and publications of old folk carols from what was thought to be a dying tradition.

However, by mid-century, with the Tracterean movement in the Church of England at its height the carol and the singing of carols was once again hugely popular.

It was the publication of a 'Christmas Carols New and Old by Henry Ramsden Bramley and John Stainer in 1867, that marked the height of another caroling golden age. However, it was now big business and there were reputations at stake when folk carol collectors saw their work hoovered up by the might of Bramley and Stainer.

Jeremy also tells the story of the little 16th century Finnish manual 'Piae Cantiones' that provided a series of memorable re-workings of 15th century words and melodies, including In Dulce Jubilo and Good King Wenceslas.

Producer: Tom Alban

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2013.


MON 09:45 Daily Service (m002607c)
Candles: Joy of The Virgin Mary - The Lord's Servant

A space for spiritual reflection with a Bible reading, prayer and a range of Christian music.

Theme: Candles: Joy of The Virgin Mary - The Lord's Servant
Presenter: Becky Silver
Reading: Luke 1:26-38

Music:
For Mary, mother of the Lord (St Botolph) - Leeds Cathedral Choir
Sing we now of Christmas - DS Carol concert
Nativity Carol (Rutter) - Cambridge Singers


MON 10:00 Dad Made Me Laugh (b007k0n4)
Michael Sellers

Peter Sellers' son Michael chats about the ups and downs of growing up with his legendary, multi-talented dad.

Sally Magnusson hosts the series where the sons and daughters of famous comedians talk about life with their funny fathers.

Producer: Mike Walker

First broadcast on BBC Radio Scotland in September 2005.


MON 10:30 Angels In the North (b016ld4z)
In the early 1970s, five of Britain's leading Artistic Directors had a vision.

Tired of regional theatre-goers being treated as second-class citizens, they wanted to breathe life into the country's cultural landscape.

They wanted to create a theatre outside London with national standards - not another testing ground for West End transfers - but a distinct, individual voice for the regions.

From the humble beginnings of the Century and 69 Theatre Companies, Manchester's Royal Exchange Theatre opened in 1976.

Designer Richard Negri's innovative plans - inspired by the interior of a beehive - took shape in the city's old Cotton Exchange building, a magnificent building in itself, symbolic of Manchester's strength as the power house of the industrial revolution.

A seven-sided, glass-walled module, literally suspended from huge marble pilllars in the Great Hall, its pioneering design broke free of the confinements of the proscenium arch. It remains the world's largest theatre-in-the-round.

Actress Gabrielle Drake chats to founding Artistic Director Braham Murray about the success of the theatre over its 35 year history - the calibre of actors, directors and new work it has attracted, and the effect the theatre has had on the region. We hear how, in 1996, the theatre was badly damaged by an IRA bomb, but carried on producing plays in the city until the fully re-furbished theatre opened two years later.

We trace the roots and development of regional theatre in Britain with The Guardian theatre critic Lyn Gardner, Artistic Director of Manchester's Library Theatre Chris Honer, and Professor of Theatre Tony Jackson.

We look at funding issues in light of the recent biting Arts Council cuts and discuss the way forward for British theatre.

Producer: Elizabeth Foster

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 2011.


MON 11:00 Unofficial Rosie (b007jlhs)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]


MON 11:30 Whodunnits (b011ckhy)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]


MON 12:00 Supermarket Kisses (m0026076)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]


MON 12:30 The Navy Lark (m0026078)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]


MON 13:00 In and Out of the Kitchen (b065vsdx)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]


MON 13:30 Will in the World by Stephen Greenblatt (b00lbsx9)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]


MON 13:45 The Debrief by Katherine Jakeways (m000l205)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:45 today]


MON 14:00 Just a Minute (b00qgz7x)
Series 56

Episode 6

Nicholas Parsons presides over the devious game where panellists are challenged to speak for one minute without hesitation, deviation or repetition.

With:

Paul Merton
Graham Norton
Sue Perkins
Liza Tarbuck

Subjects include: How To Pass The Time If You're Stuck in Traffic, Bikers, The Seven Deadly Sins, My Daily Workout, Valentine's Day, Being House Proud and A Loose Cannon.

Created by Ian Messiter.

Producer: Claire Jones

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2010.


MON 14:30 Noel Coward (m002607f)
Present Laughter

Noel Coward's 1943 provocative comedy about a bohemian world of actors and managers.

Starring Paul Schofield, Patricia Routledge and Miriam Margolyes.

Egomaniac Garry Essendine leads a complicated life as he prepares to go on tour to Africa.

'Every play you appear in is exactly the same. You have a great following and a strong personality, and all you do with your talent is wear dressing-gowns and make witty remarks!'

Daphne Stillington .... Miriam Margolyes
Miss Erikson .... Diana Olsson
Fred .... Timothy Bateson
Monica Reed .... Patricia Routledge
Garry Essendine .... Paul Scofield
Liz Essendine .... Joy Parker
Roland Maule .... David Timson
Henry Lyppiatt .... Alan Rowe
Morris Dixon .... Vernon Joyner
Joanna Lyppiatt .... Fenella Fielding
Lady Saltburn .... Betty Huntley-Wright

Adapted and directed by Ian Cotterell

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 1974

**** BBC Radio 4 Extra's collection marking the 125th anniversary of Noel Coward's birth ****


MON 16:00 Dad Made Me Laugh (b007k0n4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 today]


MON 16:30 Angels In the North (b016ld4z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:30 today]


MON 17:00 Unofficial Rosie (b007jlhs)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]


MON 17:30 Whodunnits (b011ckhy)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]


MON 18:00 Supermarket Kisses (m0026076)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]


MON 18:30 The Navy Lark (m0026078)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]


MON 19:00 In and Out of the Kitchen (b065vsdx)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]


MON 19:30 Will in the World by Stephen Greenblatt (b00lbsx9)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]


MON 19:45 The Debrief by Katherine Jakeways (m000l205)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:45 today]


MON 20:00 Just a Minute (b00qgz7x)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:00 today]


MON 20:30 Noel Coward (m002607f)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:30 today]


MON 22:00 I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue (m0025vq6)
Series 82

Episode 1

Radio 4's multi-award-winning ‘antidote to panel games’ promises yet more quality, desk-based entertainment for all the family.

The series begins at the Great Hall in Exeter where Lee Mack and Miles Jupp are pitched against Tony Hawks and Caroline Quentin, with Jack Dee in the role of reluctant chairman.

Regular listeners will know to expect inspired nonsense, pointless revelry and Colin Sell at the piano.

Producer: Jon Naismith
A Random production for BBC Radio 4


MON 22:30 Alice's Wunderland (b01kkr59)
Series 1

Episode 1

Take a trip round Wunderland, the Poundland of magical realms.

It's a kingdom much like our own, and also nothing like it in the slightest.

Stay a while and meet waifs and strays, wigshops and witches, murderous pensioners and squirrels of this delightful land as they go about their bizarre business.

Sketch show series written and performed by Alice Lowe.

With:

Richard Glover
Simon Greenall
Rachel Stubbings
Clare Thompson
Marcia Warren

Producer: Sam Bryant

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 2012.


MON 22:55 The Comedy Club Interviews (m0026cj3)
Red Richardson 2/3

From 10pm until midnight, seven days a week, the Comedy Club has two hours of comedy. Plus Paul Garner chats again to stand-up comedian Red Richardson.


MON 23:00 The Naked Week (m0025w28)
Series 1

Episode 3: Prisons, Syria and Kemi's Catchphrase.

The team look at the week's news and, while trying understand how rebels took Syria so quickly, a military strategist helps us to take the Warwickshire stronghold of Nuneaton. Plus Rupert the Jorkiepoo helps solve the prison overcrowding crisis.

From The Skewer’s Jon Holmes comes The Naked Week, a fresh way of dressing the week’s news in the altogether and parading it around for everyone to laugh at. Host Andrew Hunter Murray (No Such Thing As A Fish, QI Elf, Private Eye) and chief correspondent Amy Hoggart strip away the curtain and dive into not only the big stories, but also the way in which the news is packaged and presented.

From award-winning writers and a crack team of contemporary satirists - and recorded in front of a live audience - The Naked Week delivers a topical news nude straight to your ears.

Written by:
Jon Holmes
Katie Sayer
Sarah Dempster
Gareth Ceredig
Jason Hazeley
Adam Macqueen
Louis Mian

Partial Nakedness:
March Haynes
Karl Minns

Production Team: Laura Grimshaw, Tony Churnside, Jerry Peal, Katie Sayer, Phoebe Butler.

Produced and Directed by Jon Holmes
Executive Producer: Philip Abrams

An unusual production for BBC Radio 4


MON 23:30 The Confessional (m001h4g7)
Series 3

The Confession of Ben Bailey Smith aka Doc Brown

TV writer, rapper and actor, Ben Bailey Smith takes the hot seat to reveal his tales of shame to Stephen Mangan.

With stories from restaurants, fast food joints and Norwegian comedy clubs.

The comic and intrusive chat show, in which Stephen Mangan interrogates celebrity penitents about their stories of shame, guilt and embarrassment.

Each episode, Stephen entices a different eminent guest into his virtual confessional box to make three confessions of sins, peccadilloes, misdeeds and idiocies - anything really that will make us laugh, shudder, blush or cringe at their expense.

Written and presented by Stephen Mangan.

Additional material by Nick Doody.

Producer: Frank Stirling

A 7digital production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in January 2023.

TUESDAY 17 DECEMBER 2024

TUE 00:00 Dad Made Me Laugh (b007k0n4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 on Monday]


TUE 00:30 Angels In the North (b016ld4z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:30 on Monday]


TUE 01:00 Unofficial Rosie (b007jlhs)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 on Monday]


TUE 01:30 Whodunnits (b011ckhy)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 on Monday]


TUE 02:00 Supermarket Kisses (m0026076)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 on Monday]


TUE 02:30 The Navy Lark (m0026078)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 on Monday]


TUE 03:00 In and Out of the Kitchen (b065vsdx)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 on Monday]


TUE 03:30 Will in the World by Stephen Greenblatt (b00lbsx9)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 on Monday]


TUE 03:45 The Debrief by Katherine Jakeways (m000l205)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:45 on Monday]


TUE 04:00 Just a Minute (b00qgz7x)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:00 on Monday]


TUE 04:30 Noel Coward (m002607f)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:30 on Monday]


TUE 06:00 Peter Pan by JM Barrie (b00sbf7g)
1. Away to Neverland

London,1904: A strange visitor transforms the Darling household one bedtime.

JM Barrie's best-loved classic tale of a free-spirited and mischievous boy who can fly and never grows up.

Dramatised in four parts by Philip Glassborow.

Peter Pan …… Toyah Willcox
Mr Darling / Hook …… Ron Moody
Mrs Darling …… June Whitfield
Smee …… Roy Hudd
Starkey …… Chris Emmett

Producer: Dirk Maggs

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 1995.


TUE 06:30 Whodunnits (b011d9p3)
Agatha Raisin - Series 1

2. The Body in the Bathroom

Hunting the village killer, amateur sleuth Agatha Raisin resorts to barefaced lies, burglary and badger-watching.

Starring Penelope Keith.

MC Beaton's murder mystery.

Dramatised by David Semple.

Agatha Raisin …. Penelope Keith
Peter Bladen …. Ewan Bailey
James Lacey …. Malcolm Sinclair
Mrs Bloxby …. Liza Sadovy
DC Bill Wong …. Ben Crowe
Fred Huntingdon …. Jillie Meers

Director: Carol Smith

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2004.


TUE 07:00 Rent (b065k7zn)
Series 4

Episode 4

Maria and Richard's lives are now being ruled by Eva, the nanny, while Paul and Ruby have to contend with his disreputable cousin, Dave.

Stars Patrick Barlow and Barbara Flynn.

Lucy Flannery's award-winning sitcom about Maria and Richard Reynolds and their lodgers.

Maria …. Barbara Flynn
Richard …. Patrick Barlow
Ruby …. Vivienne Rochester
Paul …. Dave Lamb

With:

Sarah Parkinson
Toby Longworth

Producer: Liz Anstee

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 1998.


TUE 07:30 The Goon Show (b007jt71)
Series 6

The Treasure in the Lake

Neddie discovers he's the heir to a Scottish fortune, but first he must outlive the current Laird.

Groundbreaking, surreal BBC radio comedy written by Spike Milligan.

Starring:

Peter Sellers
Harry Secombe
Spike Milligan

First billed as Crazy People, ten series of The Goon Show were recorded between 1951 and 1960, but sadly many of the earliest shows weren’t kept in the archive.

With the Ray Ellington Quartet and Max Geldray.

Orchestra conducted by Wally Stott.

Announcer: Wallace Greenslade

Producer: Peter Eton

First broadcast on the BBC Home Service in February 1956.


TUE 08:00 Conversations from a Long Marriage (m000rdlm)
Series 2

If You Go Away

Joanna Lumley and Roger Allam play a couple who have been married 'forever'.

Children of the 1960s, they're still free spirits, drawn together by their passion for music and each other. Their recognisable warm and witty conversations dance around everything from health scares, jealousy and confessions, to TV incompatibility and sourdough bread.

In this episode, Joanna has a health scare.

She worries that she's not lived a life of achievement and will never have a blue plaque, or win a Booker Prize. Then they both receive very sad news.

Written for Joanna Lumley and Roger Allam by award-winning comedy writer and journalist Jan Etherington.

Jan has been married for 34 years to Gavin Petrie, with whom she has created many hit Radio 4 Extra and TV series (Second Thoughts, plus Next of Kin, Faith in the Future, The Change),

Producer: Claire Jones

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2021.


TUE 08:30 Will in the World by Stephen Greenblatt (b00lbwgf)
2. Married in Haste

In the summer of 1582, William Shakespeare was 18 when he met 26-year-old Anne Hathaway.

Anne was her own boss. Her father had died, leaving her some money, making her free to make her own decisions. Anne offered Will a compelling dream of pleasure.

They became lovers, later marrying when she fell pregnant with their first child. Twins were to follow.

Yet Shakespeare was to turn his back on them all and made his way to London…

Written by Stephen Greenblatt and abridged by Miranda Davies

Read by Toby Stephens

Excerpts read by:

Alice Hart
John Rowe

Producer Emma Harding

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in October 2004.


TUE 08:45 The Debrief by Katherine Jakeways (m000l0r7)
2. Taxi

After a rare drunken night out on the town, Hannah and Mark clamber into a taxi and dissect the evening’s events.

The debrief is a common phenomenon – that moment when you leave a social event, climb into the car, or the taxi, or onto the bus and start to gossip with your partner about the evening's events.

Hannah and Mark love a debrief, and in each episode, we find them in the aftermath of an event with lots to get their teeth into.

Written by Katherine Jakeways.

Hannah ..…. Rebecca Humphries
Mark …... Tom Basden

Director: James Robinson

A BBC Cymru Wales production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in July 2020.


TUE 09:00 Yesterday in Parliament (m0020241)
The latest news from Westminster - and beyond.


TUE 09:30 A Cause for Caroling (b03lpfx0)
7. Folk Carol Survival and Revival

Jeremy Summerly returns to the Gallery tradition that was squeezed out of 19th century Church worship but steadfastly refused to die.

It's now in rude health in several parts of the country but nowhere is it more energetically sustained than in South Yorkshire and Derbyshire.

With the guidance of Dr Ian Russell who holds folk carol festivals and the enthusiasm of pub carolers who sustain the tradition Jeremy shares a pint and a clutch of fuguing carols which flower happily in the 21st century while having roots in the 18th and 19th.

He also finds out about an American offshoot of the gallery style that's been preserved in the icy blasts of Pennsylvania, USA since it was first seeded there in the middle of the 19th century.

The choral conductor and scholar continues his series tracing the history of the Christmas Carol in Britain.

It's a journey full of song describing the history of a people who needed expression for seasonal joy in the coldest, hardest time of the year.

Producer: Tom Alban

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2013.


TUE 09:45 Daily Service (m0026003)
Candles: Joy of The Virgin Mary - Blessed are You

A space for spiritual reflection with a Bible reading, prayer and a range of Christian music.

Theme: Candles: Joy of The Virgin Mary - Blessed are You
Presenter: Angel Morgan
Reading: Luke 1: 39-45

Music:
Blessed assurance - Rachel John
Blessed are you - Paul Wilbur
Go tell it on the mountain - The Kingdom Choir


TUE 10:00 A Good Read (b09snj94)
Professor Mark Miodownik and Diana Henry

Food writer, Diana Henry and Materials engineer/presenter Mark Miodownik join Harriett Gilbert to discuss favourite books by Gabrielle Hamilton, Flann O'Brien and Elizabeth Taylor.

Blood, Bones & Butter: The Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef by Gabrielle Hamilton
Publisher: Vintage

The Third Policeman by Flann O'Brien
Publisher: Harper Perennial

The Soul of Kindness by Elizabeth Taylor
Publisher: Virago

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2018.


TUE 10:30 The Husky Betty Marsden (m0002s6n)
From Fanny Haddock and Daphne Whitethigh to Judy Coolibar and Dame Celia Molestrangler

Chris Neill looks back at the life and career of versatile comic actress Betty Marsden, best-loved for her memorable roles in classic BBC radio comedies - Beyond Our Ken and Round the Horne.

Producer: Karl Phillips

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2004.


TUE 11:00 Peter Pan by JM Barrie (b00sbf7g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]


TUE 11:30 Whodunnits (b011d9p3)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]


TUE 12:00 Rent (b065k7zn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]


TUE 12:30 The Goon Show (b007jt71)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]


TUE 13:00 Conversations from a Long Marriage (m000rdlm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]


TUE 13:30 Will in the World by Stephen Greenblatt (b00lbwgf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]


TUE 13:45 The Debrief by Katherine Jakeways (m000l0r7)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:45 today]


TUE 14:00 Booked (b0075lq5)
Series 2

Episode 3

Mrs Danvers sneaks into the plot of Noel Coward's Private Lives. The Pilgrim's Progress is re-worked to include a brush with Michael Palin and assorted other media moguls.

Outrageous parody, biting wit and bizarre couplings from:

Dillie Keane
Miles Kington
Mark Thomas
Roger McGough

Ian McMillan chairs the irreverent literary game.

Producer: Marc Jobst

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 1997.


TUE 14:30 Noel Coward (b0081qyf)
This Happy Breed

The inter-war life of the Gibbons family in their new suburban home.

Starring John Moffatt, Rosemary Leach and Doris Hare.

Noel Coward's play covers a 20-year period from June 1919, when the Gibbons family move in to their new home near London’s Clapham Common, to when they moved out in June 1939.

Frank Gibbons …. John Moffatt
Ethel …. Rosemary Leach
Mrs Flint …. Doris Hare
Queenie …. Alice Arnold
Bob …. Robert Lang
Sylvia …. Anna Cropper
Billy …. Michael Maloney
Vi …. Julia Swift
Phyllis …. Elizabeth Mansfield
Reg …. John McAndrew
Sam …. Simon Treves

Written in 1939, This Happy Breed was not staged until 1942.

It was adapted as a film in 1944 directed by David Lean and starring Robert Newton, Celia Johnson and John Mills.

Director: Glyn Dearman

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 1989.


TUE 16:00 A Good Read (b09snj94)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 today]


TUE 16:30 The Husky Betty Marsden (m0002s6n)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:30 today]


TUE 17:00 Peter Pan by JM Barrie (b00sbf7g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]


TUE 17:30 Whodunnits (b011d9p3)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]


TUE 18:00 Rent (b065k7zn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]


TUE 18:30 The Goon Show (b007jt71)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]


TUE 19:00 Conversations from a Long Marriage (m000rdlm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]


TUE 19:30 Will in the World by Stephen Greenblatt (b00lbwgf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]


TUE 19:45 The Debrief by Katherine Jakeways (m000l0r7)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:45 today]


TUE 20:00 Booked (b0075lq5)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:00 today]


TUE 20:30 Noel Coward (b0081qyf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:30 today]


TUE 22:00 Best Medicine (m0025vj1)
Series 2

4. CAR T-cells, Ritual, Water, Crying

Joining Kiri this week are Dr Claire Roddie who retrains cells to fight cancer using revolutionary, game-changing CAR T-cell therapy, and comedian Fatiha El-Ghorri who finds spiritual healing in water. Dr Lindsey Fitzharris takes comfort in rituals both historical and present-day to help her remember her grandmother Dorothy Sissors, and Rev Benjamin Perry explains how crying can be the best medicine.

Best Medicine is your weekly dose of laughter, hope and incredible medicine. Award-winning comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean is joined by a funny and fascinating panel of comedians, doctors, scientists, and historians to celebrate medicine’s inspiring past, present and future.

Each week, Kiri challenges panellists to make a case for what they think is 'the best medicine', and each guest champions anything from world-changing science or an obscure invention, to an everyday treatment, an uplifting worldview, an unsung hero or a futuristic cure.

Whether it’s origami surgical robots, life-changing pineapple UTI vaccines, Victorian scandal mags, denial, sleep, tiny beating organoid hearts, lifesaving stem cell transplants, gold poo donors or even crying - it’s always something worth celebrating.

Hosted by Kiri Pritchard-McLean

Featuring: Fatiha El-Ghorri, Dr Lindsey Fitzharris, Rev Benjamin Perry and Dr Claire Roddie

Written by Laura Claxton, Edward Easton, Mel Owen, Kiri Pritchard-McLean and Ben Rowse

Producers: Tashi Radha and Ben Worsfield

Theme tune composed by Andrew Jones

A Large Time production for BBC Radio 4


TUE 22:30 The Consultants (b007k3fh)
Series 3

Episode 4

The boys of St Battery's get their own back on the school bully.

Cerebral sketch show written by and starring:

Neil Edmond
Justin Edwards
James Rawlings

Producer: Will Saunders

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2005.


TUE 23:00 Trevor's World of Sport (b00gng1x)
Series 1

Episode 2

Sport agent Trevor must grapple with a world of cut-throats - and his son's new friend.

Starring Neil Pearson.

The brave attempts of sports agent Trevor Heslop to swim safely through the shark tank of life.

Andy Hamilton's TV comedy swaps to radio.

Trevor ...... Neil Pearson
Sammy ...... Paul Reynolds
Ralph ...... Michael Fenton Stevens
Theresa ...... Rosalind Ayres
Heidrun ...... Cosima Shaw
Barry ...... Abdul Salis
Meryl ...... Claire Skinner
Toby ...... Matthew Thomas
Gerry ...... Kevin McNally

Written and produced by Andy Hamilton.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 2004.


TUE 23:30 Lionel Nimrod's Inexplicable World (b007v2y5)
Series 2

The Future

What exactly is 'the future' and why is it kept hidden from us? If we knew what it was then at least we'd know if we needed to take a change of underpants...

Cult comedy series that answers the questions which leave the other shows scratching their beards.

Starring Stewart Lee and Richard Herring.

With:

Rebecca Front
Armando Iannucci

And the voice of Tom Baker.

Producer: Sarah Smith

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 1993.

WEDNESDAY 18 DECEMBER 2024

WED 00:00 A Good Read (b09snj94)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 on Tuesday]


WED 00:30 The Husky Betty Marsden (m0002s6n)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:30 on Tuesday]


WED 01:00 Peter Pan by JM Barrie (b00sbf7g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 on Tuesday]


WED 01:30 Whodunnits (b011d9p3)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 on Tuesday]


WED 02:00 Rent (b065k7zn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 on Tuesday]


WED 02:30 The Goon Show (b007jt71)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 on Tuesday]


WED 03:00 Conversations from a Long Marriage (m000rdlm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 on Tuesday]


WED 03:30 Will in the World by Stephen Greenblatt (b00lbwgf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 on Tuesday]


WED 03:45 The Debrief by Katherine Jakeways (m000l0r7)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:45 on Tuesday]


WED 04:00 Booked (b0075lq5)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:00 on Tuesday]


WED 04:30 Noel Coward (b0081qyf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:30 on Tuesday]


WED 06:00 Peter Pan by JM Barrie (b00sbrl0)
2. In the Mermaid's Lagoon

The mischievous boy and the children arrive in Neverland where dangers lurk.

JM Barrie's best-loved classic tale of a free-spirited and mischievous boy who can fly and never grows up.

Peter Pan ….....… Toyah Willcox
Wendy...........................Georgina Cates
Mr Darling / Hook ……Ron Moody
Smee ….........….... Roy Hudd
Starkey …...........… Chris Emmett

Dramatist: Philip Glassborow

Producer: Dirk Maggs

First heard on BBC Radio 4 in 1995


WED 06:30 Whodunnits (b011dg1r)
Agatha Raisin - Series 1

3. The Potted Gardener

Competition for a new garden festival in the village turns nasty, with the Grim Reaper on the prowl.

Penelope Keith stars as amateur sleuth, Agatha Raisin.

MC Beaton's murder mystery.

Dramatised by David Semple.

Agatha Raisin …. Penelope Keith
James Lacey …. Malcolm Sinclair
Roy …. David Holt
Bernard Spott …. Paul Brooke
Mrs Bloxby …. Liza Sadovy
DC Bill Wong …. Ben Crowe

Director: Carol Smith

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 2004.


WED 07:00 Well, At Least It Didn't Rain (b007qq88)
Funerals are supposed to be solemn occasions.

But they can be fraught with disasters - especially when elderly Nell and tropical fish tanks are involved...

Starring Patricia Hayes.

Renny Krupinski’s comedy-drama.

Nell .... Patricia Hayes
Joan .... Rosemary Leach
Maisy .... Mary Wimbush
Angela .... Zelah Clarke
David .... Kim Wall

Director: Janet Whitaker

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 1988.


WED 07:30 The Missing Hancocks (b06rx8jh)
Series 2

A Visit To Russia

Between 1954 and 1959, BBC Radio recorded 102 episodes of Ray Galton and Alan Simpson's comedy classic Hancock's Half Hour. The first modern sitcom, it made stars of Tony Hancock, Sid James and Kenneth Williams, and launched Galton and Simpson on one of the most successful comedy-writing partnerships in history.

Sadly, 20 episodes of the show went missing from the BBC archives, and had not been heard since their original transmission, until this series of faithful re-imaginings. These episodes have been lovingly re-recorded in front of a live audience at the BBC Radio Theatre, featuring a stellar cast,

This episode: With East/West relations in crisis, the Lad takes it upon himself to launch his very own diplomatic mission...

Written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson, and with the classic score newly recorded by the BBC Concert Orchestra. ‘A Visit To Russia’ was first broadcast on the Light Programme on 14th December 1955.

Tony Hancock …. Kevin McNally
Bill Kerr …. Kevin Eldon
Sid James …. Simon Greenall
Kenneth Williams …. Robin Sebastian
Andree Melly …. Susy Kane

Producers: Ed Morrish and Neil Pearson

A BBC Radio Comedy production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in December 2015.


WED 08:00 Tom Wrigglesworth's Hang-Ups (b06r81v3)
Series 3

The Animal Lovers

Mr and Mrs Wrigglesworth think about getting a pet while Tom plans a weekend getaway.

Sitcom where Tom Wrigglesworth phones home for his weekly check-in with his Mum, Dad and Gran, giving listeners a glimpse into his family background and the influences that have shaped his temperament, opinions and hang-ups.

Tom ...... Tom Wrigglesworth
Dad ...... Paul Copley
Mum ...... Kate Anthony
Granny ...... Elizabeth Bennett

Written by Tom Wrigglesworth and James Kettle With Miles Jupp

Producer: Richard Morris

A BBC Radio Comedy production for BBC Radio,4 first broadcast in December 2015.


WED 08:30 Will in the World by Stephen Greenblatt (b00lc4d2)
3. A Fair Youth

Arriving in London in the 1580s, Shakespeare moved to Bankside where whorehouses sat beside theatres.

New works were needed. Shakespeare would have seen Tamburlaine by his contemporary, the university educated Christopher Marlowe. Then audiences flocked to see Shakespeare's own Henry VI's plays. By the time his main literary rivals were dead, Richard III and his comedies were staged. And could the 'young and fantastical' Earl of Southampton have inspired Shakespeare's finest love sonnets?

Written by Stephen Greenblatt

Abridged by Miranda Davies

Read by Toby Stephens, with excerpts read by Alice Hart and John Rowe

Producer Emma Harding

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in October 2004.


WED 08:45 The Debrief by Katherine Jakeways (m000l0j9)
3. Emergency

Driving back from a family barbecue Hannah and Mark dissect events, when four-year-old Finn forces them to take an emergency detour.

The debrief is a common phenomenon – that moment when you leave a social event, climb into the car, or the taxi, or onto the bus and start to gossip with your partner about the evening's events.

Hannah and Mark love a debrief, and each episode finds them in the aftermath of an event with lots to get their teeth into.

Written in five parts by Katherine Jakeways.

Hannah …... Rebecca Humphries
Mark …... Tom Basden
Finn …... Milo Robinson
Poppy …... Juno Robinson

Director: James Robinson

A BBC Cymru Wales production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in July 2020.

** Writer Katherine Jakeways has been described by the Radio Times as ‘the next Victoria Wood’. Of her Radio 4 series ‘Where this Service will…’ the Guardian said “Jakeway's writing was sublime. The punchlines, the pacing, the humanity.”


WED 09:00 Yesterday in Parliament (m002037k)
The latest news from Westminster - and beyond.


WED 09:30 A Cause for Caroling (b03lpjpp)
8. The Birth of Nine Lessons with Carols

In the eighth programme of his series charting the development of the Christmas carol in Britain, Jeremy Summerly reaches the critical moment at which the 19th century enthusiasm for carols sung in church resulted in a vehicle in which they could take a leading role.

It was developed by Bishop Benson of Truro who, in 1880 found himself holding services in a huge wooden shed while a new cathedral was being built next door.

To celebrate the new diocese and capture the enthusiasm he recognised in the nonconformist tradition of carol singing in Cornwall, Benson developed a narrative service running from Adam's original sin to the birth of Christ and the impact of the word made flesh.

Jeremy visits Truro and then follows Benson's service to the moment in 1918 when a war-wearied Dean of King's College Chapel, Cambridge, Erich Milner-White decided to use the service as part of his college's Christmas celebrations. The changes he made survive to this day.

Series Description:

The Christmas carol is as popular now as it was when carolers celebrated the birth of Edward III in 1312. Back then the carol was a generic term for a song with its roots in dance form, nowadays only the strictest scholar would quibble with the fact that a carol is a Christmas song.

But the journey the carol has taken is unique in music history because each shift in the story has been preserved in the carols that we sing today. Go to a carol concert now and you're likely to hear folk, medieval, mid-Victorian and modern music all happily combined. It's hard to imagine that happening in any other situation.

Jeremy Summerly follows the carol journey through the golden age of the medieval carol into the troubled period of Reformation and Puritanism, along the byways of the 17th and 18th century waits and gallery musicians and in to the sudden explosion of interest in the carol in the 19th century. It's a story that sees the carol veer between the sacred and secular even before there was any understanding of those terms. For long periods the church, both catholic and protestant, was uneasy about the virility and homespun nature of carol tunes and texts. Nowadays many people think that church music is defined by the carols they hear from King's College, Cambridge.

He traces the folk carol in and out of church grounds, the carol hymn, the fuguing carol and the many other off-shoots, some of which survive to this day and many others which languish unloved but ready for re-discovery.

It's a journey full of song describing the history of a people who needed expression for seasonal joy in the coldest, hardest time of the year. And however efficient the heating system may be, the carol still generates warmth. Much of that is to do with the positive nostalgia of this music.

That nostalgia is in part due to the fact that carols are one of the first kinds of song children actually sing rather than hear. Many favourite carols were actually written for children; Once in Royal David's City the most familiar example. Another factor is the concentration in the texts on the humanity of nativity with tunes garnered from the uninhibited world of folk song and ballad.

The series title is taken from a Thomas Hardy poem in which he ponders of a Darkling Thrush why it should chose to sing - 'so little cause for carolings of such ecstatic sound' - is the question asked. This series is an attempt to answer why carols remain so popular and familiar to so many. In fact Hardy himself, in his first novel Under The Greenwood Tree, went some way to answering his own question when he described the Mellstock Quire singing at Midnight on Christmas Eve:

'Then passed forth into the quiet night an ancient and time worn hymn, embodying a quaint Christianity in words orally transmitted from father to son through several generations down to the present characters, who sang them out right earnestly."

Jeremy brings the series up to date with the story of the famous Nine Lessons and Carols service broadcast by the BBC since the 1920s but born originally in Truro. It's a service that commands a worldwide audience measured in many millions, but as Jeremy concludes it has left an imbalance in the appreciation of our caroling tradition, one that has always had one foot in the pub and another in the choir stalls.

Producer: Tom Alban

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2013.


WED 09:45 Daily Service (m00261g3)
Candles: Joy of The Virgin Mary - Mary's Song

A space for spiritual reflection with a Bible reading, prayer and a range of Christian music.

Theme: Candles: Joy of The Virgin Mary - Mary's Song
Presenter: Mark Dowd
Reading: Luke 1: 46-55

Music:
Mary did you know - Naomi (Young Chorister 2022)
The Annunciation (Sasha Johnson Manning) - Daily Service Singers recorded at the Daily Service Carol Concert
Magnificat - Taize Community


WED 10:00 Glenn Miller: 70 Years of Mystery (b04ttvh4)
Len Goodman investigates the phenomenon of Bandleader Major Glenn Miller.

He was one of the biggest selling recording artistes between 1939 and 1943 and who years later, still remains one of the top sellers in the world.

Why? Is it because of his romantic music? Or does the mystery that still surrounds his mysterious disappearance on a foggy day 80 years ago in December 1944 draw us like a moth to a flame?

The facts surrounding the meteoric rise and phenomenal success of bandleader Glenn Miller between the years of 1939 and 1944 have been extremely well documented over the years. What is more interesting is why the music of Glenn Miller achieved even greater popularity after World War II and has continued to attract new listeners around the world for the last 80 years.

One hugely important factor has to be the mysterious disappearance of Major Glenn Miller whilst on a routine flight to France across the English Channel on December 15th 1944. He took off and simply vanished into the fog.

A heady cocktail of the romantic Miller music laced with nostalgia and a huge dollop of wide-eyed fascination as to what actually happened in that small aircraft on that fateful foggy afternoon must be key to all of this. Plus, speculation as to what Glenn Miller would have gone on to achieve in music and entertainment had he arrived safely in France and continued his career after the war.

A Ping production for BBC Radio 2, first broadcast in December 2014.


WED 11:00 Peter Pan by JM Barrie (b00sbrl0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]


WED 11:30 Whodunnits (b011dg1r)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]


WED 12:00 Well, At Least It Didn't Rain (b007qq88)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]


WED 12:30 The Missing Hancocks (b06rx8jh)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]


WED 13:00 Tom Wrigglesworth's Hang-Ups (b06r81v3)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]


WED 13:30 Will in the World by Stephen Greenblatt (b00lc4d2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]


WED 13:45 The Debrief by Katherine Jakeways (m000l0j9)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:45 today]


WED 14:00 Counterpoint (b037gyqf)
Series 27

2013 Final

Paul Gambaccini chairs the general knowledge music quiz.

The competitors who have won through the heats and semi-finals of the 2013 Counterpoint series in the preceding months finally have their sights on the 27th Counterpoint title, and the handsome silver trophy that goes with it.

Their final hurdle is the grand final at London's Radio Theatre, with Paul Gambaccini quizzing them on every aspect of music, from Cole Porter to Coldplay, from Rossini to the Rolling Stones.

This trio of competitors battling it out are:

* Wilson Bain from Glasgow
* Alan McLean from Debden, Essex
* Mick Quinn from Bristol

Producer: Paul Bajoria

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 2013.


WED 14:30 Noel Coward (m00261g7)
Blithe Spirit

Writer Charles Condomine lives in wedded bliss with his wife, Ruth, until his former wife, Elvira, returns to haunt them

Starring Paul Eddington, Julia McKenzie, Anna Massey and Peggy Mount.

In Noel Coward's comedy, written in 1941, the scene is the living-room of the Condomines' house in Kent.

Charles Condomine .... Paul Eddington
Ruth Condomine .... Julia McKenzie
Elvira .... Anna Massey
Madame Arcati .... Peggy Mount
Dr Bradman .... Richard Pearson
Mrs Bradman .... Jane Wenham
Edith .... Jill Lidstone

Director: Glyn Dearman

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 1983.


WED 16:00 Glenn Miller: 70 Years of Mystery (b04ttvh4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 today]


WED 17:00 Peter Pan by JM Barrie (b00sbrl0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]


WED 17:30 Whodunnits (b011dg1r)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]


WED 18:00 Well, At Least It Didn't Rain (b007qq88)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]


WED 18:30 The Missing Hancocks (b06rx8jh)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]


WED 19:00 Tom Wrigglesworth's Hang-Ups (b06r81v3)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]


WED 19:30 Will in the World by Stephen Greenblatt (b00lc4d2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]


WED 19:45 The Debrief by Katherine Jakeways (m000l0j9)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:45 today]


WED 20:00 Counterpoint (b037gyqf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:00 today]


WED 20:30 Noel Coward (m00261g7)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:30 today]


WED 22:00 You Heard It Here First (m001ypty)
Series 2

'This is such a good game!'

Chris McCausland asks Lucy Beaumont and Daliso Chaponda to take on Mel Giedroyc and Ben Shephard. Lucy Beaumont believes a game where guests figure out the emotions of dogs just from the sounds they're making, is the best game ever. The teams must figure out what on earth is being advertised on TV, guess what famous objects or locations children are trying to describe.

Producer: Sasha Bobak
Assistant Producer: Becky Carewe-Jeffries
Executive Producer: Richard Morris
Production Coordinator: Dan Marchini

A BBC Studios Production

An EcoAudio certified production


WED 22:30 Justin Moorhouse - The Big Am I (b00h34d9)
About to become a dad for a second time, Manchester's Justin Moorhouse has a nagging doubt he may not have got it right the first time round.

Mixing stand-up and sketches and aided by a great comedy cast, Justin asks himself a big question - am I a good dad?

Written and performed by Justin Moorhouse with additional material by Jim Poyser.

Also featuring John Thomson, Steve Edge and Janice Connolly.

Producer: Ben Walker

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2009.


WED 23:00 Elis James's Pantheon of Heroes (b01pgjbt)
Series 2

Outlaws

Twm Sion Cati, Jesse James and Bartholomew Roberts.

Comedian Elis James compares key figures in Welsh history to determine the ultimate heroes of Wales.

With:

Ben Partridge
Nadia Kamil

Written by Elis James, Gareth Gwyn and Benjamin Partridge.

Producer: Sharif Shahwan

First broadcast on BBC Radio Wales in December 2012.


WED 23:30 Paperback Hell (m000hwpn)
Series 2

The Body Bag

The tale of a coolly beautiful maverick female forensic pathologist, Katie Devlin - in Chapter 15 of the gripping crime procedural novel The Body Bag.

Choice chapters culled from classic novels you've read before. Well, nearly.

Paperback Hell is the series determined to destroy the good name of literature.

Written by Danny Robins and Dan Tetsell.

Starring:

Michael Fenton Stevens
Rebecca Front
Mel Hudson
Alex Lowe
Dan Tetsell

Producer: Lucy Armitage

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 2004.


WED 23:45 The Hauntening (b098n4vm)
Series 1

The Asag Chiller

Tech blogger Tom has acquired a healthy new lifestyle, a shiny new fridge and a terrifying new problem. Second of the series of modern horror stories.

Modern technology is terrifying. The average smartphone carries out 3.36 billion instructions per second. The average person can only carry out one instruction in that time. Stop and think about that for a second. Sorry, that's two instructions - you won't be able to do that.

But what if modern technology was literally terrifying? What if there really was a ghost in the machine?

Travel through the bad gateway in this modern ghost story as writer and performer Tom Neenan discovers what horrors may lurk in our apps and gadgets.

Tom............Tom Neenan
Heidi...........Jenny Bede
Debbi..........Kath Hughes
Reynolds.....Roger Morlidge
Asag...........Ewan Bailey

Written by Tom Neenan

Produced by David Tyler

A Pozzitive production for BBC Radio 4 first broadcast in October 2017.