SATURDAY 12 NOVEMBER 2011

SAT 00:00 Midnight News (b016x4wk)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.


SAT 00:30 Book of the Week (b016x42m)
Binyavanga Wainaina - One Day I Will Write About This Place

Episode 5

By Binyavanga Wainaina.

Having felt desperately homesick in South Africa, and not enjoying his university course, Wainaina has lost his way. But finally he gets the call to return home to Kenya and a memorable family reunion.

Read by Freddy Macha. Abridged by Jane Marshall

Produced by Jane Marshall
A Jane Marshall Production for BBC Radio 4.


SAT 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b016x4wm)
The latest shipping forecast.


SAT 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b016x4wp)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service. BBC Radio 4 resumes at 5.20am.


SAT 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b016x4wr)
The latest shipping forecast.


SAT 05:30 News Briefing (b016x4wt)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.


SAT 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b016x4yf)
with Judy Merry.


SAT 05:45 iPM (b016x4yh)
"Einstein's theory has contradictions, mine doesn't." A listener Ronald Pearson challenges scientific convention with a theory about the Big Bang that won someone else a Nobel prize. And the football results legend Tim Gudgin read Your News. With Eddie Mair. iPM@bbc.co.uk.


SAT 06:00 News and Papers (b016x4ww)
The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.


SAT 06:04 Weather (b016x4wy)
The latest weather forecast.


SAT 06:07 Open Country (b016x2k8)
It's been dubbed the foot and mouth of the tree world. Phytophthora ramorum or sudden oak death as its commonly known is ravaging forests across the UK resulting in millions of trees being cut down. The disease has spread from the South West to Wales, the peaks and even as far north as the Isle of Mull. But experts say they are finding fewer and fewer new outbreaks. Today on Open Country, Helen Mark visits The South West, the region that's hardest hit, to find out what impact this disease is continuing to have on the countryside and whether there are signs that we are finally getting on top of it.

Presenter: Helen Mark.
Producer : Anna Varle.


SAT 06:30 Farming Today (b0171x19)
Farming Today This Week

Rural communities could be left behind when it comes to fighting crime according to the Countryside Alliance. With crime in rural areas on the increase according to a leading farmers insurers, Charlotte Smith asks where this will leave farmers and those living in the countryside.

It's estimated that across the UK rural crime cost the farming industry almost £50million in 2010 - an annual rise of 17%. Last year £7.5 million worth of tractors were stolen. Already this year fuel thefts are reported to have doubled, around £5million worth of livestock has been rustled and in Lincolnshire alone there have been more than 1,000 reports of hare coursing.

In the week in which he holds the first policing conference of its kind, Charlotte Smith talks to Chief Inspector Richard Crompton, the Association of Chief Police Officer's spokesperson on rural crime, to find out what is being done to target criminals.

She also hears about the impact crime can have on farmers and those living in rural communities. She visits Jez Emmett a livestock farmer in the West Midlands who has spent thousands of pounds installing sensors across his fields and CCTV to keep the thieves out. The farmer near Solihull also shows Charlotte how anti-social behaviour close to his farm is damaging Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Jez and his wife Jo are also members of the local police Farmwatch community policing scheme which uses emails and text messages to alert farmers to suspected criminals in the area.

Presenter: Charlotte Smith; Producer: Angela Frain.


SAT 06:57 Weather (b016x4x0)
The latest weather forecast.


SAT 07:00 Today (b0171x1c)
Morning news and current affairs, with James Naughtie and Sarah Montague, including:
08:10 Andrew Hosken hears first-hand about some of the clashes that continue in Syria.
08:33 British trade ambassador Sir Victor Blank gives his views on the current eurozone crisis.
08:48 Brian Southall, a former director of EMI, looks at the illustrious history of Abbey Road studios.


SAT 09:00 Saturday Live (b0171x1f)
Michael Ball, Mr Gee, Jim'll Fix It fixer, Mini-Miss Worldwide, Robert Maxwell receiver, John Crowley Inheritance Tracks

Richard Coles with performer Michael Ball, poet Mr Gee, Mini-Miss Worldwide Bethany Jade and her mum Debbie, Peter Phillips who was Robert Maxwell's official receiver, an I Was There feature from Jim'll Fix It with the man who fixed it for Jim, and the Inheritance Tracks of film and theatre director John Crowley.

Producer: JP Devlin.


SAT 10:00 Excess Baggage (b0171x1h)
Responsible Tourism - Cambodia

John McCarthy looks at responsible tourism with journalist Catherine Mack who warns that our water footprint can be as significant as our carbon footprint as ground water is depleted to satisfy holiday activities from swimming pools to ski slopes. John also hears about responsible tourism in Cambodia from author Sue Guiney who returns there to run writing workshops and marine protection leader Pete Raines and citizen scientist Kirsty Brown who are helping map and preserve coral reefs.

Producer: Harry Parker.


SAT 10:30 The Mysterious Mr Mercury (b0171x1k)
Freddie Mercury was a hugely charismatic and dynamic performer who cultivated a flamboyant stage personality, and yet in private he was extremely shy and retiring, and gave very few interviews. To mark the 20th anniversary of his death, Midge Ure goes in search of the real Freddie Mercury.

Freddie Mercury was born Farrokh Bulsara in 1946 to Indian parents in Zanzibar, when it was still part of the British Empire. At the age of 17, he and his family moved to Feltham, Middlesex, and he became a British citizen. After studying at art college, his music career took off in 1970 when he joined up with guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor. Together they became "Queen".

"Queen's" unique brand of stadium rock appealed to audiences across the globe. The band were the first to play in South American stadiums in the 1980s, they stole the show at Live Aid in 1985 and three hundred thousand fans flocked to see Freddie Mercury's final live performance at Knebworth Park in 1986.

Mercury's sexual ambiguity was a particular source of intrigue. In 1969 he began a long-term relationship with Mary Austin. Throughout his life he referred to her as his 'common law wife' and his 'only friend'. Yet the wedding ring Mercury was wearing on his death bed was given to him by his male partner, Jim Hutton.

In the years following his triumph at Live Aid, Freddie Mercury was rarely seen in the public eye. His health became a subject of speculation, even though his colleagues and friends continually denied there was anything wrong with him. Finally, on the day before he died, Freddie made a public statement confirming that he was HIV positive and he had AIDS.

With Freddie's ex-girlfriend Mary Austin, Queen guitarist Brian May, music producers Mike Moran and Reinhold Mack, Queen roadie Peter Hince, and Freddie's personal assistant Peter Freestone.

Producer: Melissa FitzGerald
A Blakeway production for BBC Radio 4.


SAT 11:00 The Week in Westminster (b0171x1m)
Journalist and broadcaster Sue Cameron looks behind the scenes at Westminster.

A week in which parliament flexed its muscles calling cabinet secretaries civil servants and media magnates to account.
Dominic Raab Conservative MP and Jonathan Baume of the senior civil service union FDA on the responsibility for failures at the UK Borders Agency.

Margaret Hodge and Stephen Dorrell, both chair select committees chairs, on how tough can they be in questioning witnesses

And Deborah Mattinson of the research agency BritainThinks looks back over the work of the late Labour strategist Lord Gould with Lord Fowler.

Plus Lord Liddle former adviser to Tony Blair puts the case for Europe.

The editor is Marie Jessel.


SAT 11:30 From Our Own Correspondent (b0171x1p)
"That's nobody's business but the Turks'." A quote from one of several songs which feature Turkey which are in turn quoted by Kevin Connolly as he talks about why the country remains keen to join the EU despite the Union's problems with debt and insecurity. Hugh Sykes is in Rome as prime minister Silvio Berlusconi's reported to be on the verge of resignation - he wonders why a country which does so many things so well, and manufactures so many goods coveted worldwide, can find itself in such trouble. A new property law's just been introduced in Havana - Peter Day's just been there and tries to answer the question: does this mean the strong grip of Castro-style Communism is finally being relaxed? Justin Rowlatt sends a despatch from Varanasi in India where the traditional practice of cremating bodies continues by the River Ganges. And you have to be pretty fit to trek across the Pyrenees. We find out how Edward Stourton got on as he retraced the wartime route of the hundreds who used that route to escape from Nazi-occupied Europe.


SAT 12:00 Money Box (b0171x1r)
Millions face an unexpected tax bill over PPI compensation. Customers who have waited weeks, sometimes months for their money will have to pay tax on the interest they receive. It was agreed with the regulator - the FSA - that victims of PPI mis-selling would receive interest at 8% - but that could come down significantly after the revenue have had their cut.

Landmark ruling on unmarried couples property rights
A landmark judgement raises major questions over unmarried couples property rights. This week the Supreme Court ruled that a man who broke up with his partner is not entitled to half the value of the house they had jointly owned.
So what are the implications for unmarried couples and does the law need clarifying? Paul Lewis is joined by Shashi Sachdeva, partner with Thomas Eggar and specialist in family law.
Links:

Online banking problems
Banking online is becoming increasingly popular. 25 million current account holders now use the internet to manage their money. But according to some HSBC customers that have contacted the programme the process has become a lot more difficult. We hear from one angry customer and Paul talks to Sandra Quinn from UK Payments Council and David Bannister, editor of Banking Technology magazine.

Airmiles
Airmiles are due to change this week meaning they will no longer be redeemable for completely free flights. Customers booking online have until a minute to midnight on Monday to cash them in before they are exchanged for a brand new product, Avios. If you book over the phone you will have until 8pm on 15 December. The new Avios points will only buy you the flight and can't be redeemed for "taxes, fees and charges". Travel journalist Simon Calder will fill us in on all the details.


SAT 12:30 The Now Show (b016x4tk)
Series 35

Episode 1

Since The Now Show was last on air there has been rioting across London, strikes across Europe and demonstrations outside St Paul's Cathedral. So they've finally relented and are coming back for another series.

Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis are back for a new series of The Now Show, with Laura Shavin, John Holmes, Lloyd Langford and Mitch Benn.

Producer: Katie Tyrrell.


SAT 12:57 Weather (b016x4x2)
The latest weather forecast.


SAT 13:00 News (b016x4x4)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


SAT 13:10 Any Questions? (b016x4tr)
Brighton

Jonathan Dimbleby presents a live panel discussion of news and politics from Varndean College, East Sussex, with columnist Toby Young, Secretary of State for International Development, Andrew Mitchell, Shadow Minister for Care and Older People, Liz Kendall, and children's commissioner for England, Maggie Atkinson.

Producer: Victoria Wakely.


SAT 14:00 Any Answers? (b0171ydr)
Your chance to call Jonathan Dimbleby on 03700 100 444 or email any.answers@bbc.co.uk or tweet us at #bbcaq. Topics include: The Eurozone debt crisis, Public sector pensions, Privatisation of Hinchingbrooke NHS Hospital, Standard of care in the NHS and are the new Free Schools better value for money than the state sector?

Producer Lisa Jenkinson

Presenter Jonathan Dimbleby.


SAT 14:30 Saturday Drama (b0171ydt)
Bar Mitzvah Boy

BAR MITZVAH BOY
by Jack Rosenthal, Adapted for radio by Amy Rosenthal

A radio version of Jack Rosenthal's award-winning television play about a boy having his Bar Mitzvah - the ceremony in which a thirteen year old becomes a man in the Jewish faith.

At the tender age of thirteen Eliot Green is about to become a man - in the Jewish religion at least. In synagogue, in front of the whole congregation, he will read and sing in Hebrew from the Torah (the Hebrew scrolls) - this after a year of intensive tuition. Later he will enjoy receiving gifts from relatives and friends as he celebrates with them at his Bar Mitzvah party.
All eyes are on Eliot as he is called up in synagogue for his big moment! But is he ready to become a man?

This play along with many others established the late Jack Rosenthal as one of Britain's best loved television writers. A master at creating characters that you could recognise and empathise with, his plays were always sharp and finely tuned with a rich helping of humour.

This new version of Bar Mitzvah Boy is specially adapted for radio by Jack's daughter, the playwright Amy Rosenthal.

Produced and directed by David Ian Neville.


SAT 15:30 Tales from the Stave (b016wxv7)
Series 7

Berlioz' Symphonie Fantastique

Written when he was still little more than an aspiring composer, driven by the image of a woman with whom he had fallen passionately in love from afar, and breaking new ground in the drama of concert performance, Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique is one of the most important manuscripts held at the Bibliotheque Nationale de France.

With the help of the conductor Nigel Simeone, the Berlioz scholar Professor Peter Bloom and the music curator Cecile Reynaud, Frances Fyfield discovers the youthful energy of the handwritten score that Berlioz kept with him for fourteen years before delivering it to the publishers. In that time there were rewrites, extra parts written in for extraordinary circumstances and all the usual tweaks and refinements you'd expect of a composer working towards his imaginative ambitions. But the score also comes complete with the composer's dedications to Harriet Smithson, the Anglo-Irish actress whose image became the famous 'idee fixe' of the symphony. This simple melody returns again and again throughout the five movements.

There are also printed programme notes created for the first audiences, notes describing the 'story' of a young man taking opium and having a sequence of dreams and imaginings about his love, his jealousy, his death at the scaffold and the witches' sabbath thereafter.

As well as evidence of extraordinary musical imagination the manuscript score also displays bizarre gothic doodles alongside the fourth movement, complete with ravens, chains and helmets. This, the famous March to the Scafford was actually lifted from one of the composer's earlier operas that doesn't survive. To make it work in the symphony, Berlioz felt it needed the inclusion of the 'idee fixe', and there, on the last page, in the dying breath of the hero as he awaits the guillotine's blade, it appears wistfully played by the clarinet.

And just to cap it all there are the many exotic instruments Berlioz called upon, including the magnificent brass ophycleide.

It's all in the last of this series of Tales from the Stave.

Producer Tom Alban
Presenter FRANCES FYFIELD.


SAT 16:00 Woman's Hour (b0171ydw)
Weekend Woman's Hour

Presented by Jane Garvey. Jilly Cooper on marital happiness, Cook the Perfect Christmas Cake, Sue Tollefsen on late motherhood, New Leader of the Scottish Conservatives Ruth Davidson, Should brothels be legalised to protect sex workers? Jodi Bieber, winner of the World Press Photography award, Sarah Raven on the beauty of wild flowers and the enduring appeal of Nancy Mitford?


SAT 17:00 PM (b0171ydy)
Saturday PM

A fresh perspective on the day's news with sports headlines.


SAT 17:30 The Bottom Line (b016x3gz)
Business Bonds

The view from the top of business. Presented by Evan Davis, The Bottom Line cuts through confusion, statistics and spin to present a clearer view of the business world, through discussion with people running leading and emerging companies. The programme is broadcast first on BBC Radio 4 and later on BBC World Service Radio, BBC World News TV and BBC News Channel TV.

After a week of turmoil in the bond markets, Evan and his panel discuss the importance of bonds in business. The boss of Heathrow talks about the trials and tribulations of running one of the world's busiest airports. And the panel swap thoughts on whether a good business manager can run any company of any type.

Joining Evan in the studio are Mark Elborne, president and chief executive of multinational conglomerate GE (UK and Ireland); Alison Carnwath, chairman of property company Land Securities; Colin Matthews, chief executive of airport owner and operator BAA.

Producer: Ben Crighton
Editor: Stephen Chilcott.


SAT 17:54 Shipping Forecast (b016x4x6)
The latest shipping forecast.


SAT 17:57 Weather (b016x4x8)
The latest weather forecast.


SAT 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b016x4xb)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


SAT 18:15 Loose Ends (b0171yjw)
Clive Anderson and guests with an eclectic mix of conversation, music and comedy.

Choreographer Gillian Lynne certainly knows how to pull some dance moves. She was star dancer at the London Palladium, acted opposite Errol Flynn in the movies and danced with all the greats on early TV. Gillian talks about choreographing The Phantom of the Opera which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year with a DVD/CD box set recorded at London's Royal Albert Hall.

Clive has a cup of tea and a chin-wag with Ralf Little about writing and starring in his new Sky 1 sitcom 'The Café'. Acting as the social hub of a seafront town, Cyril's Café sees all walks of life pass through it's doors for a chat and a bacon sarnie. Pass the sugar please Ralf!

The much too young Nikki Bedi will be talking to her very special guest Jerry Dammers about founding 2 Tone Records and ska revival band 'The Specials'. His latest musical venture 'Jerry Dammers Spatial AKA Orchestra' is a mash-up of Sun Ra, Massive Attack, Specials and reggae, all filtered through Dammer's unique musical vision. They're performing at The Barbican as part of London's Jazz Festival on Friday 18th November.

Well known for being one half of Yorkshire detective duo 'Dalziel and Pascoe', Warren Clarke has returned to the stage and behind the doors of Number Ten to perform as the cigar-smoking Winston Churchill in Ben Brown's political drama 'Three Days In May' at The Trafalgar Studios in London.

The beautifully bow-tied French soul sensation Ben l'Oncle Soul performs 'Soulman'. And the comedy-jazz juggernaut that is The Horne Section will be pulling in to perform 'If We Ever Get Any Groupies' from their part improvised, part performance, part party of a West End show.

Producer: Cathie Mahoney.


SAT 19:00 Profile (b0171yjy)
Tom Watson MP

The Labour MP Tom Watson compared James Murdoch with "a Mafia boss" while questioning him about phone hacking this week. He has led the charge in Parliament against News International, and has been forensically campaigning on phone hacking for years.

While many of his Labour colleagues regard him as a hero for his role in taking on the Murdoch empire, Watson wasn't always so popular. A close ally of Gordon Brown, he called for Tony Blair to resign in 2006, although he denied Brown conspired with him to bring down the Prime Minister.

Edward Stourton profiles the pioneer blogger and populist campaigner, who is unafraid to take on powerful figures in and out of politics.

Producer Bill Law.


SAT 19:15 Saturday Review (b0171yk0)
Tom Sutcliffe and his guests playwright Mark Ravenhill, anthropologist Kit Davis and film-maker James Runcie review the week's cultural highlights including Wuthering Heights

Andrea Arnold's film adaptation of Wuthering Heights strips Emily Bronte's novel down to the story of Cathy and Heathcliff and ditches the usual costume drama conventions in favour of a muddy realism.

Ian Rickson's production of Hamlet at the Young Vic in London places Michael Sheen's prince in what appears to be the secure unit of a psychiatric institution. Claudius (James Clyde) looks less like a king than a consultant psychiatrist and Polonius (Michael Gould) uses a dictaphone to record his observations about Hamlet.

Seven Houses in France is the latest novel by Basque author Bernardo Atxaga. Set in a small military outpost in the Belgian Congo in the early 20th century - the arrival of a pious young officer causes a disturbance among his new colleagues who all seem to be involved in various forms of colonial plotting and scheming.

Tabloid is Errol Morris's documentary about former beauty queen Joyce McKinney who hit the headlines in the 1970s amid allegations that she kidnapping a Mormon missionary and held him in a cottage in Devon.

The National Gallery's exhibition Leonardo Da Vinci: Painter at the Court of Milan brings together the largest ever number of Leonardo's rare surviving paintings, including international loans seen for the first time in the UK.

Producer: Torquil MacLeod.


SAT 20:00 Archive on 4 (b0171yk2)
Remembrance

There are now no living survivors of the First World War, yet Remembrance Day has gained a new and powerful significance in the nation's life. Today we not only commemorate the war dead on Remembrance Sunday, we also mark the anniversary of the actual moment in 1918 when the guns stopped firing with a two minute silence.

This custom, which ceased in 1939, was reinstated in 1995, meaning that today we remember the war dead more actively than any previous post war generation, and arguably more than at any time since the First World War itself. As Professor Jay Winter says, Remembrance is "the spinal column that connects 1918 with 2011".

While the ceremonial rituals of Remembrance have remained constant, their social and emotional meaning has changed over the years, mirroring the massive shifts in British society since their creation more than ninety years ago. Remembrance is now pivotal to British identity, as shaped by the collective memories of two great conflicts. The Second World War especially has infused our culture with feelings of pride, moral worth and British exceptionalism. The Remembrance ceremony has become a crucial moment to sustain this sense of ourselves, despite the more controversial legacy of modern wars.

In this programme, Denys Blakeway explores the Act of Remembrance through recordings of the ceremony, and the debates surrounding it, and asks why Remembrance Day has become so important in the life of the modern British nation, despite the relatively few who have fallen in recent conflicts.

With Professor David Cannadine, Professor Jay Winter, Dr. Adrian Gregory, Dr. Dan Todman, author Juliet Nicholson and forces chaplain, Padre Mark Christian.

Producer: Melissa FitzGerald
A Blakeway Production for BBC Radio 4.


SAT 21:00 Classic Serial (b016w0nc)
Elizabeth Bowen - The Heat of the Day

Episode 2

Elizabeth Bowen's wartime novel of betrayal adapted from a screenplay by Harold Pinter. Part love story, part spy thriller, in which the beautiful Stella's allegiances are tested.

Stella has discovered that her lover, Robert, who works for British Intelligence, is suspected of selling classified information to the enemy. Harrison, the man who has tracked Robert down, wants Stella herself as the price for his silence. Caught between these two men, not sure whom to believe, Stella finds her world crumbling as she learns how little we can truly know of those around us.

First published in 1949, The Heat of the Day was Bowen's most successful novel. In it she draws heavily on her affair with Charles Ritchie, a Canadian diplomat, to whom the book is dedicated. The tortuous nature of their affair is reflected in the doubts and uncertainties of Stella's relationship with Robert. Robert and Stella share the same ages (and age difference) as Bowen and Ritchie.

Bowen's preoccupation with the cracks below the surface and the psychology of hurt and betrayal is echoed in Harold Pinter's work. Pinter's style and Bowen's dialogue find a perfect marriage in this adaptation.

The Heat of the Day is directed by Tristram Powell and adapted for radio by Tristram Powell and Honor Borwick.

Cast:
Screenwriter ..... Henry Goodman
Harrison ..... Matthew Marsh
Stella ...... Anna Chancellor
Robert ...... Tom Goodman-Hill
Louie/ Anne/ Mary/Waitress ...... Teresa Gallagher
Roderick ...... Daniel Weyman
Ernestine ...... Honeysuckle Weeks
Mrs Kelway ...... Tina Gray
Donovan ...... Nigel Anthony

Producer: Marilyn Imrie
A Catherine Bailey Production for BBC Radio 4.


SAT 22:00 News and Weather (b016x4xd)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4, followed by weather.


SAT 22:15 Moral Maze (b016x23q)
St Paul's Protest

The Occupy London protest camp outside St Paul's Cathedral shows no signs disappearing anytime soon. The combination of God and Mammon, an idealistic protest group with a well-defined set of grievances, but no clear policies and the resignation of senior churchmen has been a gift for leader writers and columnists. But at the heart of this story are the issues of moral leadership and vision. The prolonged financial crisis has forced us to ask profound questions about the purpose and nature of capitalism and whether the markets have become so powerful that it is us and the politicians who are serving them, rather than the other way around. The Church of England, the Catholic Church and other religious communities have been asking these questions for some time, but protest on the steps of St Paul's, with all its Biblical resonances, has undoubtedly brought the issues more to surface. As a survey commissioned by St Paul's in to the attitude of workers in the City, even some of them are asking the same questions. You might call that prophetic leadership which is long overdue - tackling the issues of financial inequality and injustice, but is it the duty of the Church to criticise the values of today's capitalism, rather than simply championing the poor? And are the protesters a rag-tag army that is hypocritically demonising capitalism, scapegoating bankers, and privileging sentimentality over morality?

Combative, provocative and engaging debate chaired by Michael Buerk with Melanie Phillips, Matthew Taylor, Claire Fox and Clifford Longley.

Witnesses:
Francis Davis - Former adviser to the government on faith communities
Rev'd Prebandary Alan Green - Parish priest of St John on Bethnal Green and Prebendary at St Paul's
Ian Chamberlain - representing OccupyLSX (Occupy London Stock Exchange) and has been sleeping outside St Paul's since 15th October.
Len Shackleton - Economics Fellow at the Institute of Economic affairs and Professor of Economics at the University of Buckingham.


SAT 23:00 Brain of Britain (b016w811)
To herald a new series of 'Brain of Britain' starting next week, the three most recent 'Brain of Britain' champions compete for the prestigious title 'Brain of Brains'. Russell Davies chairs this turbo-charged edition of the evergreen general knowledge quiz, at the BBC Radio Theatre in London.

The competitors are the 2008 champion Geoff Thomas from Northwich in Cheshire; the 2010 champion Dr Ian Bayley from Oxford; and the reigning 'Brain of Britain', Dr Iwan Thomas from Beeston in Notts. It's anyone's guess which of these seasoned quiz champions will emerge victorious.

Producer: Paul Bajoria.


SAT 23:30 Spike Milligan - The Serious Poet (b016w0nh)
Spike Milligan's 3 daughters, Sile, Laura and Jane discuss how their father's serious poetry reflected his life and personality. Milligan's writing was intimate and honest.

Spike Milligan's funny verse is well loved and his poem On The Ning Nang Nong was once voted the UK's favourite comic poem. However, there is a body of serious poetry that Spike Milligan wrote which, although is lesser known, is equally as powerful. A prolific writer, Milligan used his poetry as an outlet for his feelings about everything in his life from his family, to losing friends in the war, to the issues he cared about.

In this personal reflection, Spike's 3 daughters - Sile, Laura and Jane talk about the poems and remember their father. Through this, his most intimate work, they discuss the man they grew up with - the loving and creative hands-on father and the man who would disappear for days to his bed with depression. He often wrote beautiful and moving poetry for his children and mourned the passing of their childhoods. They in turn had a 'magical' childhood with Spike creating imaginary worlds for them and taking time for small things - for example he wrote a poem of the beauty of throwing pebbles into water with Jane.

The daughters recall Spike's affinity to children and animals and the pain he suffered when he witnessed suffering in either. They also remember Spike the husband to three wives. Sile and Laura are daughters from Spike's first marriage to June and Jane's mother was Spike's second wife, Paddy. The poems reveal Spike's love affairs during the marriages and the subsequent turbulent emotional life. Sile was once given a pair of Jade earrings from her father for Christmas. It was only later when she read one of his poems about the earrings that she realised they had been bought for a lover who had left him.

Jane recalls that Spike never stopped writing, even when depressed and that he used his writing to try to heal himself. Some of the poems were written in a psychiatric ward. Laura remembers Spike giving a reading of a poem about lost friends who died in Lauro, Italy in the war, in front of an audience in the last years of his life. He broke down during the reading. It was the war that kick started his poetry writing.

Despite their serious content, Spike's wit is present in some of the poems, but they are a chance to see a different side to this comic genius. Apparently, Spike was immensely proud of the work and was terrified that he'd only be remembered for The Goons.

Producer: Laura Parfitt
A White Pebble Media production for BBC Radio 4.