SATURDAY 02 OCTOBER 2021

SAT 00:00 The Price of Fear (b007jmcf)
Blind Man's Bluff

Vincent Price's tells of an eerie passenger who joins him on a train that's heading west.

Written by William Ingram.

The legendary film actor introduces tales of horror and mystery.

With:

Freddie Jones
Geoffrey Collins

Producer: John Dyas

First broadcast on the BBC World Service in October 1975.


SAT 00:30 Off the Page (b01292v7)
The Games People Play

George Bernard Shaw reckoned that we don't stop playing because we're old, but we grow old because we forget to play.

Putting that idea to test are David Goldblatt, author of ‘The Ball is Round’; Helen Bentley, one of the organisers of Igfest in Bristol - the Interesting Games Festival; and the man behind ‘The Importance of Being Trivial’, Mark Mason.

Are we really as playful as we like to think, and what does our choice of game say about us ?

Presented by Dominic Arkwright.

Producer: Miles Warde

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 2011.


SAT 01:00 The Price of Silence (m00100hb)
9. The Price

Old Petrushka, last of the old guard, is dead. What will Russia do next? Who will win the deadly game of "nuclear poker" ?

And what does General Locke have in store for Maxon and Jaqueline?

Starring Ian Hendry and Toby Robins.

Conclusion of Stephen Barlay's Cold War nuclear thriller.

Maxon .... Ian Hendry
Jacqueline .... Toby Robins
the Nachalnik .... Paul Hardwick
Locke .... Alan Tilvern
Nadia .... Zhivlla Roche
Gloucester/Wennstrom .... Nigel Graham
Reporter ... Brett Usher
Stewardess .... Alex Marshall
Beryov .... Peter Gale
Captain .... Stuart Milligan

Music composed and played by Ed Welch (piano) with Ron Aspery (Sax).

Director: Peter King.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 1983.


SAT 01:30 Raffles (b007jngf)
Series 3

The Knees of the Gods

Raffles and Bunny leave England to fight for queen and country in the South African war. For one of them there will be no return...

Starring Jeremy Clyde and Michael Cochrane.

The adventures of cricketer and gentleman thief, Arthur J Raffles, and his chronicler, Harry ‘Bunny’ Manders.

Written by EW Hornung and dramatised by Olwen Wymark.

AJ Raffles …. Jeremy Clyde
'Bunny' Manders …. Michael Cochrane
Connal …. Sean Barrett
The General …. Peter Penry-Jones
Bellingham …. Eric Allan
Mrs Fisher …. Gudrun Ure
The soldiers were played by Nicholas Murchie, Keith Drinkel, Peter Murphy and John Webb

Signature tune composed by Jim Parker.

Director: Gordon House

A BBC Radio 4/BBC World Service production first broadcast in June 1992.


SAT 02:00 Into the Water by Paula Hawkins (b08pgsx2)
Episode 10

The truth behind the deaths of the women in ‘The Drowning Pool’ is revealed, shattering the lives of Beckford’s residents.

Will the village ever be the same again?

Conclusion of Paula Hawkins' addictive novel of psychological suspense.

Jules ...... Sian Brooke
Lena ...... Lily Loveless
Erin ...... Sarah Ridgeway
Sean ...... Bryan Dick
Helen ...... Natasha Little
Patrick ...... Sean Baker
Louise ...... Elizabeth Berrington
Nickie ...... Lynda Baron

Abridged by Doreen Estall.

Producer: Gemma McMullan

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2017.


SAT 02:15 Amanda Whittington - The Dock, Nuremberg (m00109wh)
Episode 5

In January 1946, aged 68, renowned artist Dame Laura Knight takes a life-changing commission as war artist to the Nuremberg Trials.

In a break from painting the Trial, Dame Laura explores the city of Nuremberg.

She meets citizens who have lost everything in the bombing and visits the stadium where Hitler addressed 500,000 people, now home to a baseball team.

Written by Amanda Whittington - based on the diaries of Dame Laura Knight, whose painting 'The Dock' has become a classic image of the Nazi War Crime Trials.

Dame Laura Knight ...... Diana Quick
Peter Casson ...... Gunnar Cauthery
Penny Ayres ...... Kate Sobey
William Dean ...... Patrick Keeler
French Prosecutor ...... Mark Meadows

Director: Mary Ward-Lowery

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2014.


SAT 02:30 Small Presses, Big Ideas (b008j8vq)
Anyone with a verse and the price of a stamp can rub stanzas with the greats thanks to small-circulation poetry magazines.

Phill Jupitus visits Liverpool starting at the News From Nowhere bookshop and the Manchester Literature Festival, to find out why these have been so important - and what it is that inspires the people who create them.

Producer Geoff Bird

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2007.


SAT 03:00 Charles Dickens (b007k02r)
The Mystery of Edwin Drood

5. Redress

The man who Jasper believes killed Edwin, Neville Landless, has been found stabbed to death.

But Datchery has a plan...

Conclusion of Charles Dickens's unfinished book completed by Leon Garfield.

Starring Ian Holm and Gareth Thomas.

Dramatised by David Buck.

John Jasper …. Ian Holm
Rev. Chrisparkle …. Gareth Thomas
Deputy …. Susan Sheridan
Miss Twinkleton …. Margaret Courtenay
Rosa Bud …. Moir Leslie
Grewgious …. John Gabriel
Sapsea …. Timothy Alock
Durdles …. Gordon Gostelow
1st Constable …. David Goudge
2nd Constable …. Simon Treves
Helena Landless …. Helena Breck
Datchery …. John Moffatt
Mrs Tope …. Anna Cropper
Tartar …. Michael Cochrane
Bazzard …. John Samson
Judge …. David King
Durdles …. Gordon Gostelow
Crisparkle's Mother …. Hilda Kriseman
Sapsea …. Timothy Alcock
Mrs MacSiddons …. Anne Jameson
Doctor …. Michael Cox

Pianist: Nicholas Kok

Director: Gordon House

A BBC Radio 4/BBC World Service co-production first broadcast in June 1990.


SAT 04:00 The Food Quiz (b0076tgx)
Series 3

From 14/09/2005

Journalist and food critic, Jay Rayner puts four gastronomes through their culinary paces.

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, Marguerite Patten, Henrietta Green and Matthew Thorpe get set for a good grilling.

Can they establish: the components of a classic Bouquet Garni?; after whom the pizza Margherita is named?; and which 1980s diet featured an awful lot of pineapple?

Producer: Dixi Stewart

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 2005.


SAT 04:30 Clare in the Community (b008cy0w)
Series 1

Adoption

The social worker gets noisy new neighbours - but what is her rich sister Emma after?

Clare Barker the social worker who has all the right jargon but never a practical solution.

A control freak, Clare likes nothing better than interfering in other people's lives on both a professional and personal basis. Clare is in her 30s, white, middle class and heterosexual, all of which are occasional causes of discomfort to her.

Clare continually struggles to control both her professional and private life

In today's Big Society there are plenty of challenges out there for an involved, caring social worker. Or even Clare.

Written by Harry Venning and David Ramsden.

Starring Sally Phillips and Alex Lowe.

Clare ...... Sally Phillips
Brian ..... Alex Lowe

With:

Richard Lumsden
Gemma Craven
Ellen Thomas
Nina Conti
Andrew Wincott
Nicholas Boulton
Helen Longworth

Producer: Katie Tyrell

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 2004.


SAT 05:00 On the Rocks (b05tkllr)
Series 2

Sirens

It's 1938 and with all this talk of looming war, GPO man Frank Gunwallow returns to see if all is still in order at the St. Martin's Post Office.

The return of Christopher William Hill's comedy set on a remote island of the Isles of Scilly.

War seems inevitable, but the islanders have their own battles to contend with, stuck on a rock flung 27 miles out into the Atlantic with only their natural grit and gallows humour to see them through.

Frank Gunwallow ..... Joseph Kloska
Morwenna-May ..... Alex Tregear
Tommy Trenear ..... Stuart Fox
Ben ..... Alex Palmer
Mary ..... Bec Applebee
Len ..... Ed Gaughan

Director: Mary Peate

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2015.


SAT 05:30 Stand-Up Specials (m00100hd)
Jessica Fostekew: Powerhouse

Absolute powershed Jessica Fostekew explores her big strong strength.

Have you ever watched a feminist try and take ‘hench’ as a compliment? It’s like watching a snake eat, but funny. In this show, Jess extols the joys of weightlifting, decries the pressures put on women by the diet industry and explores the evolutionary advantage of having legs like a prize ham.

Powerhouse is adapted for BBC Radio 4 from Jessica's 2019 Dave's Edinburgh Comedy Award nominated show, Hench.

Written and Performed by Jessica Fostekew
Production Coordinator: Tamara Shilham
Producer: Lyndsay Fenner

Photo credit: Idil Sukan

A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4.


SAT 06:00 Enid Bagnold - The Chalk Garden (b04lt2dr)
Living in the past amid the fading glories of her Sussex garden, Mrs St. Maugham rules a household no less eccentric than herself.

The arrival of a new companion brings order and a degree of sanity to this gently ridiculous entourage, but what secret lurks behind the careful composure of the mysterious Miss Madrigal?

Dame Edith Evans stars in Enid Bagnold comedy-drama.

Dramatised by Margaret Etall.

Mrs St Maugham …. Dame Edith Evans
Miss Madrigal …. Mary Morris
The Judge …. Cecil Parker
Laurel …. Angela Pleasance
Olivia …. Nicolette Bernard
Nurse …. Maureen Beck
Maitland …. Ian Thompson
Narrator …. John Pullen

Author and playwright Enid Bagnold also wrote ‘National Velvet’ and ‘The Amorous Ghost’.

Producer: Archie Campbell

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 1968.


SAT 07:30 Great Lives (b08r1vbd)
Series 42

Peter Williams of Jack Wills chooses Steve Jobs

Peter Williams - founder of British retail chain, Jack Wills - nominates Steve Jobs as his great life.

For Williams, despite the fact that Steve Jobs was an abrasive and difficult person, it was his ability to predict what people wanted. It was his Apple products that have touched the lives of so many people world wide and for Peter it's his gadgets that have changed our attitudes to technology.

To help Peter Williams make his case, he is joined by Luke Dormehl, technology journalist and author of The Apple Revolution.

Presenter: Matthew Parris

Producer: Perminder Khatkar.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2017.


SAT 08:00 The Motion Show (m0007d5h)
Series 5

Episode 2

From life beginning at 50 to banning windows.

Graeme Garden hosts the comedy debating show.

With;

Gyles Brandreth
Miles Jupp
Matthew Taylor
Jo Caulfield

Producer: Jane Berthoud

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 2002.


SAT 08:30 Snap (b013fct0)
Series 3

Episode 6

Molly's surprise pregnancy makes Doug to do something neither of them ever expected...

Conclusion of Paul Mendelson's sitcom about life for a couple after they've split.

Molly …. Rebecca Lacey
Doug …. Paul Venables
Kaz …. Soumaya Keynes
Ryan …. Jessie Sullivan
Annie …. Marlene Sidaway
Dawn …. Robin Weaver
Raymond …. Jonathan Tafler
Ansel ...... Richard Firth

Producer: David Ian Neville

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 2005.


SAT 09:00 Some of Our Archives Were Missing with Stuart Maconie (b0089b35)
Stuart Maconie presents a selection of classic programmes once thought lost forever, but now returned to the BBC's vaults - thanks to attentive radio fans:

* It Sticks Out Half A Mile - PILOT
Starring Arthur Lowe and John Le Mesurier (19/07/1981)

* Hush, Hush, Here Comes The Bolshie Man
Starring Roy Kinnear, James Beck, Joan Hickson, Henry McGee and David Jason (14/03/1971)

* Thirty Minute Theatre: The Green Machine
Starring Tony Robinson (23/04/1975)

* Story Time: Eye Witness Accounts - The Great Fire Of London
With John Gabriel and Peter Pratt (20/01/1970)

* Things Could Be Worse
Starring Harry Worth (15/09/1976)

* The Worst Show On The Wireless
Starring Eddie Braben, Bill Pertwee and Alison Steadman (12/02/1975)

The BBC's Treasure Hunt initiative of the early noughties focussed its efforts on missing radio and TV shows first broadcast prior to 1980.

It was an invitation to collectors, fans and even former BBC staff who might have possessed domestic recordings of missing comedies and dramas. Among other gems, a missing episode of The Likely Lads was returned. An eclectic collection of radio curios made it's way home – some of them shared in this programme.

Producer: Martin Dempsey

Made for BBC 7 and first broadcast in May 2004.


SAT 12:00 The Write Stuff (b0076yq7)
Series 9

Alan Bennett

James Walton quizzes the panel in the literary quiz show.

Team captains Sebastian Faulks and John Walsh welcome guests Michèle Roberts and Harry Ritchie.

Author of the Week and subject for pastiche is Alan Bennett.

Reader: Beth Chalmers.

Producer Katie Marsden

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 2006.


SAT 12:30 Man at the Helm (b07wt9c4)
Episode 1

Nina Stibbe’s comic novel set in 1970s Leicestershire about the madcap schemes of three kids to cheer up their recently divorced mum Elizabeth.

Struggling to cope, she's taken to drinking and compulsive playwriting – neither of which impresses villagers already deeply suspicious of an attractive divorcee. Top of their list is to find her a new man in the hope that it will appease the hostile locals.

Adapted in four-parts by Amanda Whittington.

Lizzie ….. Eloise Webb
Amy….. Fern Deacon
Little Jack ….. Ben Barker
Elizabeth ….. Amanda Hale
Mr Lomax ….. Jason Barnett
Dad ….. James Lailey
Mrs Longlady ….. Elizabeth Bennett
Mrs Worth ….. Adie Allen

Director: Gemma Jenkins

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in October 2016.


SAT 13:00 Pieces of Britney (p09mw62b)
5. Chaotic

Pandora Sykes navigates the media narratives around Britney, once she gets married and has kids.

In this eight-part series for BBC Radio 4, Pandora traces Britney’s incredible life: from her hardscrabble childhood in rural Louisiana, to her coronation as the inaugural pop princess of the internet, navigating an insatiable celebrity gossip complex; through to a young mother on trial by the paparazzi.

Britney is a pop culture phenomenon. Pandora looks behind that mask - and beyond Britney herself - to explore how Britney became the most Googled person in the world, for almost 7 years, and what it says, both then and now, about the entertainment industry, politics, sex and how we see women in the public eye.

Britney’s public struggles saw her placed in a conservatorship, in which she lost the right to control her finances and day to day life. Thirteen years later, and she is in court, pleading for this controversial legal arrangement to end. We look at how Britney has been transformed from girl-next-door teen sensation to pop music’s Rapunzel, trapped in a supposedly rotten system.

Pieces of Britney mixes documentary, archive and interviews to tell Britney’s remarkable story. It also features drama, written by playwright Katie Hims, to bring Britney and her extraordinary world to life.

Pieces of Britney is a sympathetic portrayal of Britney, during a time of cultural reappraisal about how we treat women - famous, or otherwise.

Episode 5 Cast:

Britney . . . . . Samantha Dakin
Kevin . . . . . Joseph Ayre
Lynne . . . . . Laurel Lefkow
Other parts played by Paul Chahidi, Julianna Jennings and Elinor Coleman

Sound design by Peter Ringrose
Produced by Sasha Yevtushenko and Anne Isger


SAT 13:55 Inheritance Tracks (m0010206)
Frankie Bridge

The former Saturdays singer inherits Marvin Gaye's 'I Heard it Through the Grapevine' and passes on Bobby McFerrin's 'Don't Worry Be Happy'.

First broadcast on 'Saturday Live' in August 2021.


SAT 14:00 Alex Horne Presents The Horne Section (b01d51th)
Series 1

With David O'Doherty

Comedian Alex Horne and his 5 piece band give us a latin lesson as they ponder the language that unifies us all.

Guest comedian David O Doherty takes us for a noisy ride in the 'quiet carriage'.

The Band:

Trumpet/banjo .... Joe Auckland
Saxophone/clarinet ....Mark Brown
Double Bass/Bass .... Will Collier
Drums and Percussion .... Ben Reynolds
Piano/keyboard .... Joe Stilgoe

Special guest: David O'Doherty

Producer: Julia McKenzie

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2012.


SAT 14:30 Revolting People (b00w48m7)
Series 4

Ezekiel is Kidnapped

Samuel's pompous son-in-law, Ezekiel, is kidnapped by a rebel militia.

Can anyone be bothered to rescue him?

Sitcom set just before the American War of Independence.

Written by Andy Hamilton and Jay Tarses.

McGurk ...... Andy Hamilton
Samuel ...... Jay Tarses
Joshua ...... Tony Maudsley
Mary ...... Julia Hills
Ezekiel ...... Hugh Dennis
Captain Brimshaw ...... James Fleet

With Philip Pope and Michael Fenton Stevens

Producer: Paul Mayhew-Archer

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2006.


SAT 15:00 The Sofa of Time (b00hwyq7)
There's Gravy in My Locker

Milford and Parker get sacked and as they are clearing out their lockers they fall into the magical world of Gravy...

There Milford is regarded as the chosen one who has come at last to save the people from the emperor warlock Raamen Bod who plans to find the sofa and use it for evil purposes.

The epic and timeless tale of two men and their quest to find "The Sofa of Time", the most magical and powerful item of furniture in the entire universe.

It is said that those who sit on the sofa can be transported to anywhere and anytime.

Written by and starring Nick Frost and Matt King.

Milford ...... Matt King
Parker ...... Nick Frost
Marmite ...... Mark Heap
Raamen Bod ...... Peter Serafinowcz

With Kevin Eldon, Janei Anderson and Daisy Jones

Producer: Mario Stylianides

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in October 2002.


SAT 15:30 Mark Thomas Presents (b0076w2p)
The Firesign Theatre

The Firesign Theatre make their first British appearance for many years at the London Comedy Store.

Since the mid 1960s, the four-man comedy troupe has been one of the best kept secrets in American comedy.

With shades of Monty Python and The Goon Show, they grew out of a free-form radio show in California. The Firesign Theatre went on to produce a series of comedy albums which became cult favourites, in which they combined satire with parodies of popular culture and classic drama.

Expect political comment, a virtuoso range of comic voices, and plenty of verbal ingenuity.

Series in which Mark Thomas introduces iconic American comedy performers.

Producer: Paul Bajoria

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2005.


SAT 16:00 Enid Bagnold - The Chalk Garden (b04lt2dr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]


SAT 17:30 Great Lives (b08r1vbd)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]


SAT 18:00 The Prisoner (m0001x21)
Series 1

2. The Chimes of Big Ben - Part 2/2

Number 6 takes Number 8 to be a kindred spirit and, together, they plan an audacious escape from The Village.

The original seventeen episode TV series of The Prisoner created intrigue and controversy in equal measure when it first aired in the UK in 1967. In a taut psychological spy thriller the main character, dehumanised as ‘Number 6’, has committed no crime, save for having resigned from some unspecified branch of the British Secret Service. His prison is a heavily guarded coastal village.

Under constant surveillance, Number 6 can trust no-one and relentlessly works to establish who his captors are, a seemingly impossible task when the most senior figure he encounters – Number 2 – changes frequently.

Number 6 …. Mark Elstob
Number 2 …. Michael Cochrane
Number 8 …. Kristina Buikaite
The Village Voice …. Helen Goldwyn
Danvers …. Barnaby Edwards
The Conductor …. Nicholas Briggs
Other parts played by members of the cast.

Music: Jamie Robertson

Script Editor: Jamie Anderson.

Written and directed by Nicholas Briggs.

A Big Finish Production - based on the classic ITV series.


SAT 18:40 The Cat Jumps by Elizabeth Bowen (b08dd69z)
Harold and Jocelyn buy Rose Hill.

The last occupier was another Harold - and he murdered his wife...

Anna Massey reads Elizabeth Bowen's short story.

Producer: Duncan Minshull

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 1988.


SAT 19:00 Some of Our Archives Were Missing with Stuart Maconie (b0089b35)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


SAT 22:00 Alex Horne Presents The Horne Section (b01dgh8t)
Series 1

Nick Helm

What is the relationship between man and dog and dinosaurs and puns?

Comedian Alex Horne is joined by his own 5 piece jazz band for music and comedy.

With Edinburgh Comedy Award nominee Nick Helm.

Host .... Alex Horne
Trumpet/banjo .... Joe Auckland
Saxophone/clarinet ....Mark Brown
Double Bass/Bass .... Will Collier
Drums and Percussion .... Ben Reynolds
Piano/keyboard .... Joe Stilgoe
Guest performer ....Nick Helm

Producer: Julia McKenzie

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2012.


SAT 22:30 Elvenquest (b01r9crh)
Series 4

The Great Escape

The Questers discover the Sword of Asnagar but no sooner has Amis had time to wield it than they fall into one of Lord Darkness' evil traps and are marched off to the most escape-proof prison camp in all of Lower Earth.

Meanwhile, with the Sword of Asnagar finally in his hands, Lord Darkness will soon be declared supreme Ruler and commander of the Forces of Evil. But first, he has to organise a festival...

Fantasy-based sitcom set in Lower Earth written by Anil Gupta and Richard Pinto

Sam ...... Stephen Mangan
Vidar ...... Darren Boyd
Dean/Kreech ...... Kevin Eldon
Amis/The Vet/Grunter ...... Dave Lamb
Lord Darkness ...... Alistair McGowan
Penthiselea ...... Ingrid Oliver
Penthiselea's Mother ...... Louise Delamere
Bunny ...... Mike Wozniak

Producer: Sam Michell.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2013.


SAT 23:00 The Curried Goat Show (b007k4h6)
Episode 3

A yuppie new recruit is shown around the company office of share dealers Buxton and Palmer.

And who’s won the 'give up smoking' competition?

Sketch-bonanza written by and starring Dan Gaster, Will Ing and Ben Silburn.

With special guest: Susie Blake

Music from The Big Buzzard Boogie Band.

Producer: Maria Esposito.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 2 in January 1998.


SAT 23:30 Cowards (b00fbkz5)
Series 2

Episode 1

Step inside the strange and happy world of the Cowards.

The return of the sketch comedy with a comic slant on human frailties

Written by and starring:

Tom Basden
Stefan Golaszewski
Tim Key
Lloyd Woolf

Producer: Victoria Lloyd

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 2008.