The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.
The one man ukulele tour of Great Britain nears its end at the Smoo Cave Hotel in Cape Wrath and as Mark Wallington walks along the beautiful curve of Balnakeil Bay he reflects on his journey. Not only had he learnt a great deal about the music of the British Isles, but people had been really kind and he decided the ukulele really did make them smile.
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service. BBC Radio 4 resumes at
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Sister Gemma Simmonds, of the Congregation of Jesus.
The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.
More of us are being encouraged to explore the British countryside but how many navigation skills should we have before we venture out? Helen Mark travels to Northern Snowdonia to meet the Ogwen Valley Mountain Rescue Organisation who are called out to an incident every 3 days. Some they say are simply avoidable with people venturing out unprepared and lacking the navigation skills to get themselves back on track when lost.
Helen joins a navigation course to test her own skills which she admits may be rusty since her Duke of Edinburgh award to see if the compass is mightier than the GPS. She asks how to ensure people are properly equipped without putting off newcomers from the countryside.
Cashing in on China - Anna Hill discusses how UK farmers could benefit from selling to the fastest growing major world economy. Agriculture Minister Jim Paice is currently on a trade mission to China trying to build links for the UK to export more produce into the country. Former Vice President of the China Britain Business Council, Barclay Forrest OBE, and independent agricultural consultant Andreas Wilkes debate the issue with Anna.
We compare the UK's position in China to other countries. Last year, Ireland exported more than ?200 million worth of food produce to China. Reporter Ruth McDonald speaks with farmers and dairy processors to discover why Ireland's export economy is more successful than the UK's.
Presenter is Anna Hill. Producer is Emma Weatherill.
0810: After Sam Hallam's conviction for murder was overturned by the Appeal Court, Dr Michael Naughton, founder of Innocence Network UK and Richard Foster, chairman of the Criminal Cases Review Commission, debate how best to investigate alleged miscarriages of justice.
0832: The G8 summit is to focus on a responsible approach to fiscal consolidation that is coupled with a strong growth agenda. However, the political debate in this country has often painted growth and austerity as a straight choice. Professor Daniel Keleman from Rutgers University argues that whatever we do, we can expect flat lining growth that will last for years. And the shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna accuses David Cameron of "posturing" on the issue.
0853: Wigan football club chairman Dave Whelan told the Today programme on Friday that Liverpool had no beating heart anymore after noticing an empty directors' box at Anfield. The club was bought by American owners last year. With so many of the Premier League's clubs in foreign hands, is this a sign of the times? Dave Bassett, former manager of Wimbledon and Peter Coates, chairman of Stoke City, analyse if foreign owners are taking the heart out of the English domestic game.
Sian Williams and Richard Coles with chef Angela Hartnett, Jackie Green who had a sex-change operation on her 16th birthday and is now in the running for Miss England, Sandra Jenkins and Mavis Smith who saw their village demolished and their community scattered in the 1970's, and John-Paul Flintoff who set out to change the world by weaving his own underpants from nettles; John McCarthy goes Plane-spotting, there's a Soundsculpture about cicadas, and Paddington Bear creator Michael Bond's Inheritance Tracks.
In 1912 Edgar Rice Burroughs created the character of Tarzan who quickly became a global sensation.
When the books were first adapted for the big screen in 1918, the resulting film was one of the first ever to take over a million dollars at the box office. Way ahead of his time, Burroughs ignored the advice of business 'experts' who told him not to roll out the character across different formats. By doing so, he was one of the true pioneers of the multi-media franchises that have since become the norm.
Tarzan himself has been as troubling as he has been popular - the different characterisations that have appeared in the hundreds of books, films, radio shows, comic books, cartoons etc., make it very hard to pinpoint one single, authentic character. Some critics have derided him for his affirmation of white, colonial assumptions, while others have championed his eco-warrior credentials.
One thing is for sure - with a range of new books and films appearing, the character of Tarzan has lost little of his original appeal.
John Waite talks with, among others, James Sullos of ERB Inc., Desmond Morris to find out about the plausibility of the notion of a baby being raised by apes, and cultural historian Jeffrey Richards.
The senior Conservative David Davis and Labour's Margaret Beckett reflect on the economic threat from the Eurozone and question whether David Cameron was right to offer advice in public on the subject.
Tory backbenchers George Hollingbery and Stewart Jackson lift the veil on the election among Conservative MPs to the 1922 committee.
Labour peer David Lipsey and political writer Paul Richards offer their views on how Ed Miliband could cement his growing lead in the opinion polls.
And the former Lib Dem leader David Steel sounds a gloomy note on his party's ambition to see an elected House of Lords.
Kevin Connolly's in Luxor wondering if the military, which has controlled proceedings in Egypt since 1952, really will hand over power to civilians once the elections, starting next week, are over.
Jonathan Head in Turkey notes that talks about joining the European Union have started up again. But does Turkey really need to join an EU worrying about economic catastrophe?
David Belton's been to a remote part of New York state where the Amish religious sect has taken the question: can God really be wrong to a court for judgement.
Fuchsia Dunlop's been to one part of China where they don't find cheese alien and revolting
And Mary Harper's been mingling with the Somali population in Dubai. And taking a drive, in some style, around the gleaming emirate.
In the week that sixteen Spanish banks and the UK branch of Santander had their credit rating downgraded, Greece plunged further into political and financial turmoil after failing to form a new government, and the governor of the Bank of England, Sir Mervyn King, warned that the UK will not escape unscathed from the crisis in the Eurozone, Money Box asks what this all means for ordinary Britons. How is the euro crisis affecting the UK - from savers to holiday makers, mortgages to investments and annuities? And what about people who own holiday apartments abroad? In a Money Box Euro Special, Paul Lewis and a panel of guests, including banking expert Ralph Silva, economist Vicky Pryce, annuities expert Billy Burrows, pensions expert Ray Boulger and the Independent travel writer, Simon Calder, answer your questions and reflect on the fallout from the latest twists and turns of the euro crisis.
A satirical review of the week's news, chaired by Sandi Toksvig. With Jeremy Hardy, Susan Calman, Bob Mills and Matt Forde.
Jonathan Dimbleby chairs a live discussion of news and politics from Hexham Abbey, Northumberland, with Labour MP Gisela Stuart; Conservative Peer and journalist, Patience Wheatcroft; businessman and chairman of the Institute of Directors, Ian Dormer; and associate editor of the Daily Mirror, Kevin Maguire.
Call Jonathan Dimbleby on 03700 100 444, email any.answers@bbc.co.uk or tweet #bbcaq. Topics from Any Questions:
Will we soon look back at the euro's collapse and decide that it was the slowest train wreck in history?
Growth through export is hard work, as successful exporters know. Was William Hague right to suggest that more businesses should work harder at it, and what support should they be given?
The northeast has the highest unemployment level in the country. What do the panel suggest could be done to improve this?
Is there a correct way to bring up children, and does the state know what it is?
Natalie Walter is pursuing a title and Alistair McGowan plays the seven members of a family standing in her way in a sequel to the famous Edwardian comedy by Roy Horniman.
The action of this new radio sequel to a classic comedy takes place some years after the death of the 10th Earl of Chalfont, a man who has systematically murdered his family in order to inherit his title. The twentieth century rolls on and even against a backdrop of international conflict and revolution,an Earldom is still not to be sniffed at apparently. It is rather to be fought for by fair means and foul. There are at least eight claimants to the Chalfont title, all of them ruthless. The Gascoyne family is a big one, its sense of entitlement enormous, its appetite for violence impressive and the family resemblance at times uncanny. A fresh modern take on a great comic plot, this Saturday Play draws both on the Edwardian novel 'Israel Rank' by Roy Horniman for inspiration. David Spicer's entirely new version of this brilliantly simple story has something to offer both those who know the original and those who come to it for the first time.
When Benjamin Britten was asked to contribute to an educational film about the symphony orchestra, he turned to a theme by that other great British composer, Henry Purcell.
The resulting theme and variations - a 'Young Person's Guide' - has become, over the years, a staple of concerts for young and old alike - such as its appearance in the most recent BBC Last Night of the Proms in 2011.
But the composing manuscript on which Britten worked out his brilliant and buoyant series of instrumental illustrations was given to a young lady working on the projec,t while Britten turned his attention to a full orchestral score.
It's only in the past few months that the manuscript showing the composer at work came to light and was saved from overseas sale by the British Library.
Frances Fyfield is joined by conductor and friend of Benjamin Britten, Steuart Bedford, as well as the young musician and scholar Christopher Milton and hand-writing analyst Ruth Rostron to decipher the composer's working out of a piece - as familiar now as it has ever been.
Rather than a tidy, fair-copy this is the composer in full creative flight. All the more surprising then that it isn't punctuated by the scrubbings and editing of uncertainty. Instead, it's full of confidence and suggests a man at work on a lifelong project - making his music accessible to the ears and minds of the young.
And Frances also gets to meet the lady who looked after the score for half a century, with little idea of what it might be worth.
Actor Chloe Sevigny on her new series Hit and Miss. Germaine Greer on why looks really do matter in you're a woman in the public eye. Does Sweden really live up to its reputation as an egalitarian, feminist utopia.?
The mother who sent her son to be shot in an effort to help him escape the vigilante groups in Londonderry. Could more women than previously thought have autism? Susie Wolff the Formula One Williams "development driver". Plus does social media make it impossible to break free of relationships? And music from Anais Mitchell's folk opera Hadestown.
Clive's on the road with historian Michael Wood, whose BBC Two series 'The Great British Story: A People's History' charts Great Britain's remarkable past, from the perspective of ordinary people. Accompanying the series is a BBC Learning tour, with experts at each event to help interpret historical artefacts and give tips on how they can be preserved. 'The Great British Story: A People's History' starts on Friday 25th May at
Clive Attacks The Block with actress Jodie Whittaker, who's about to perform the title role of Antigone at London's National Theatre. Jodie stars alongside Christopher Eccleston as Creon, who, desperate to gain control over a city ravaged by civil war, condemns his niece Antigone to be buried alive. 'Antigone' is at the Olivier from 30th May until 21st July.
Nikki Bedi has a lousy night out with restaurant critic and broadcaster Jay Rayner, who has a bee in his bonnet about a fly in his soup! Jay's new ebook is a collection of his most scathing and hilarious restaurant reviews. He's eaten there so that you don't have to! 'My Dining Hell: Twenty Ways To Have A Lousy Night Out' is available from 1st June.
Clive's Game On with actor Neil Stuke, who's currently starring in 'Six Actors In Search Of A Director'. Steven Berkoff's latest play sees six actors on a movie set waiting for their call. Until then, they are in limbo, needing the director to bring them to life. 'Six Actors In Search Of A Director' is currently at Charing Cross Theatre until 23rd June. "Action!"
Music comes from folk and ethnic rhythm collective The Imagined Village, who perform 'Winter Singing' and 'The Guvna' from their album 'Bending The Dark'.
With mixed news about audiences and losses in its Annual Report, the creative controller of Channel 4, Jay Hunt, is in the spotlight. Andy Denwood profiles one of the most powerful women in broadcasting.
Since arriving at the publicly owned broadcaster last year, Hunt has promised to take creative risks and bring a sense of mischief. There have been new commissions - The Undateables and Make Bradford British - but changes to the flagship Channel 4 News programme with additional presenters and new reporters has ruffled feathers in the newsroom. The younger audience is falling and Ofcom have asked for its strategy of how to re-engage viewers.
Jay Hunt - who began life in Australia as Jacquiline - had a meteoric rise from a young researcher at the BBC. Despite ructions over her changes to the Six O'Clock News and accusations of dumming down, by the age of 40 she was controller of BBC1 steering the Corporation's premier channel through controversies: the Jonathan Ross affair, the sacking of Carol Thatcher and the charge of ageism against former Countryfile presenter Miriam O'Reilly.
Now at Channel 4 her ability to attract a strong team and build a successful network is being put to the test.
Tom Sutcliffe and his guests writer James Runcie, director of the Serpentine Gallery Julia Peyton-Jones and comedian David Schneider review the week's cultural highlights including the play The Sunshine Boys.
The Sunshine Boys, a play which starts Danny DeVito and Richard Griffiths, features a former Vaudevillian double act who are reunited for a television comedy special, after not speaking to each other for years. Their bitter rivalry is reignited in this comedic battle of two colossal egos, each unwilling to realise he relies on the other.
Emily Perkins' novel The Forrests charts the life of Dorothy Forrest; one of many siblings of an American family living in Auckland who are barely tethered to reality. Dorothy moves through communes, love, marriage, motherhood, revelation, death and joy through Perkins' observant hand.
The Photographers' Gallery's refurbished venue opens in London with colour images from respected Canadian photographer Edward Burtynsky's project 'Oil' for which he has travelled the world, documenting the effect of the extraction, refinement, transportation and use of oil on our lives.
Sacha Baron Cohen's latest film The Dictator tells the satirical tale of an oppressive, democracy-hating dictator and a goatherder (both played by Cohen) whose misadventures in America lead to a series of outrageous culture clashes.
Hit and Miss, created by Paul Abbott, the Bafta-winning writer behind State of Play and Shameless, is a television series with an extraordinary premise. Chloe Sevigny plays Mia, a preoperative male-to-female transsexual contract killer. She is also, she discovers to her shock, a father - a dying girlfriend has nominated Mia as guardian of the boy and his three half-siblings.
Emotion is no longer private. Whether a marital collapse on reality TV or real-time twitter updates on the progress of an abortion, emotions are hung out there for all to witness. Whatever element of self-restraint may exist in our cultural DNA, it's increasingly under siege.
We've come a long way from when the ruling classes saw reticence and fair play as virtues uniquely their own and lamented 'the emotionally-uncontrolled and latently-violent working class'; when English public schools were created specifically to educate boys into showing submission, courtesy and devotion to their superiors; and when there lurked a real fear of the working class 'losing control', rebelling, and giving rise to anarchy.
Louisa Foxe goes on a journey through the archives - sometimes horrifying or amusing, always revealing and perceptive - and reveals how and why the British attitudes towards the expression of emotion have changed; how the nation has swung in and out of its penchant for repression over 600 years; and how that first Victorian stiff upper lip, far from being entrenched, was actually the product of post-Romantic pragmatism, anxiety about manliness and colonial necessity.
Taking their toll on the stiff upper lip, Louisa argues, have been two world wars, the socialist project, the rise of therapy culture, and the demise of the aristocracy's moral influence.
The results? Exclusively positive, some would say. But archive from World War One to Princess Diana, and interviewees including Frank Furedi, Ralph Fiennes, David Starkey, Andrew Motion, Peter Hitchens, and Thomas Dixon suggest that results are mixed at best and that we haven't changed as much as we believe.
Nick has fallen in with the wealthy crowd on Long Island. His neighbour, Gatsby, asks Nick to engineer a meeting with his lost love, Nick's cousin, Daisy.
Conclusion of F Scott Fitzgerald's seminal novel, a portrait of the Jazz Age in all of its decadence and excess, is perhaps the greatest book on the fallibility of the American dream. Dramatised by Robert Forrest.
Nick ..... Bryan Dick
Gatsby ..... Andrew Scott
Tom ..... Andrew Buchan
Daisy ..... Pippa Bennett-Warner
Jordan ..... Melody Grove
Wolfsheim ..... Karl Johnson
Klipspringer/Michaelis ..... Sam Dale
Wilson/Gatz ..... Gerard McDermott
Myrtle ..... Susie Riddell
Alice ..... Amaka Okafor
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4, followed by weather.
Campaigner Martin Cassini argues that our system for managing traffic is overdue for radical reform and should be based on trust in human nature rather than an obsession with controlling it. He says a drastic cut in the number of traffic lights would begin the transformation, saving lives, time and money.
Four Thought is a series of talks with a personal viewpoint recorded in front of an audience at the RSA in London.
In this three part series the BBC is given a rare degree of access to prisons as it accompanies The Rt Revd James Jones, the Church of England's "Bishop for prisons," into the country's jails. Conversations with prisoners and ex-offenders- voices rarely heard on radio - are the centrepieces of these programmes, but the Bishop also talks to prison staff, politicians and opinion-formers about what prison should be for, how prisoners can be helped to become useful citizens and whether community sentences can ever win the public's confidence as a viable alternative to prison.
In the final programme, James Jones meets ex-offenders taking part in a variety of probation initiatives in Merseyside designed to cut re-offending and "pay back" the community for crimes committed. Three men on the Persistent Priority Offender scheme commend the programme for providing the supervision they found lacking on earlier probation orders. In a moving interview a mentor with the service, Lynsey, says probation saved her from prison, crime and alcoholism and her children from life in care. The Bishop visits the North Liverpool Justice Centre, a kind of one-stop-Justice shop which residents say has transformed their community but which the Government considers too expensive to replicate elsewhere.
Which was President John F. Kennedy's favourite musical? And which British orchestra became the first to win a Queen's Award for Exports in the 1990s?
Paul Gambaccini welcomes contestants from Surrey, Essex and the Isle of Wight to the BBC Radio Theatre for the latest heat of the wide-ranging music quiz.
Musicals, film themes, jazz, sixty years of pop music and the classical repertoire are all fair game for question material, and the contestants will have to identify plenty of musical extracts of all kinds.
The first in a new series of Poetry Please. Roger McGough is joined in the studio by Wendy Cope, who reads a selection of her love poems and two requests from her latest collection. The readers are Nigel Anthony, Lucy Briers and Stuart McLoughlin.
SUNDAY 20 MAY 2012
SUN 00:00 Midnight News (b01hw1qt)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.
SUN 00:30 Heidi Amsinck - Danish Noir (b01hw4lx)
The Light from Dead Stars
In these three specially-commissioned tales by Heidi Amsinck, Denmark is a place of twilight and shadows: a mysterious place where strange and often dark things happen.
Detective Viggo Jensen retires today. For the last 28 years he has asked himself the question: who killed Leif Heinemann? A journalist has described this case as the one significant failure of his career. But as he clears his desk, Viggo receives a mysterious phone call which gives him a new lead.
Written by Heidi Amsinck
Read by Tim McInnerny
Producer: Ros Ward
A Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4.
SUN 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b01hw1qw)
The latest shipping forecast.
SUN 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b01hw1qy)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
SUN 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b01hw1r0)
The latest shipping forecast.
SUN 05:30 News Briefing (b01hw1r2)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.
SUN 05:43 Bells on Sunday (b01hw62l)
The bells of St Clement Danes, The Strand, London.
SUN 05:45 Profile (b01hw44t)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Saturday]
SUN 06:00 News Headlines (b01hw1r4)
The latest national and international news.
SUN 06:05 Something Understood (b01hw62n)
Darkness
In Something Understood this week, poet and broadcaster Stewart Henderson celebrates the power of true darkness. With streetlamps dominating our modern industrialised world, few people in Britain now have the chance to experience real darkness, but Stewart believes it can have a transformative effect.
Some people fear darkness, others find it disorienting and confusing. These days, we fill our world with electric light and it's only in the deepest countryside that we find true darkness. Yet when we do immerse ourselves in the dark, it can bring another form of illumination, heightening our physical senses and our sense of self. Our surroundings take on new meaning and significance. And the darkness can be inspirational - as Vincent Van Gogh wrote to his brother Theo in 1888, 'I often think that the night is more alive and more richly coloured than the day'. Other readings come from astronauts, scientists and pilots, all of whom have embraced the dark and found riches and depth within it.
Stewart speaks to Marek Kukula, Public Astronomer at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich. As a child he was fascinated by the natural world, and now his job is to explain the latest discoveries in space to the public. Darkness is essential to Marek's work, but it also has a spiritual dimension for him. As someone who seeks out dark places from which to see the stars, he regrets the light pollution which is driving true darkness out of many places. Marek is a supporter of the International Dark Sky Association which aims to identify and protect those places which still enjoy truly dark skies. Without darkness to heighten our awareness, are we left with a loss of inner sight?
Producer: Jo Coombs
A Loftus production for BBC Radio 4.
SUN 06:35 Living World (b01hw62q)
Lesser Horseshoe Bats
Lesser horseshoe bats live in close proximity to people because their maternity roosts are found almost exclusively in buildings. Since the 1900's their population has declined and now they can only be seen in south west Wales and in parts of south west England.
Sarah Pitt visits the Usk Valley in Wales on the edge of the Brecon Beacons, to talk to Henry Schofield from the Vincent Wildlife Trust. Henry is part of a team leading a number of initiatives to involve the wider community in protecting these bats by building a sustainable bat-friendly environment. In Spring lesser horseshoe bats move from their cooler hibernation sites into their warmer summer or maternity roosts. Visiting a roost offers the opportunity to examine these tiny, delicate bats with their butterfly like flight as they emerge at dusk to forage for insects or pick their prey off foliage.
SUN 06:57 Weather (b01hw1r6)
The latest weather forecast.
SUN 07:00 News and Papers (b01hw1r8)
The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.
SUN 07:10 Sunday (b01hw62s)
Caroline Spelman the Secretary of State talks to us ahead of Rio+20 , next week she is due to meet NGO's about their concerns, Edward will ask her what has been achieved and what needs to be done.
As the Leveson Inquiry continues, the newspaper industry being the latest area of public life to be rocked by a moral crisis, a new centre at Birmingham University has launched dedicated to the renewal of character and values in Britain. Research from the university suggests that there has been an erosion of the language, both religious and secular, of character. Is this what's ailing Britain and what should we do about it?
May is the Month of Mary - traditionally wild flowers were used to decorate her statues, in the past 30 years we have lost a high percentage of our wildflower habitats. Mary Colwell reports.
The UN say that more than half the population of South Sudan are facing food shortages due to the continuing conflict with Sudan. Bishop Macram Max Gassis whose diocese straddles the disputed border between North and South Sudan is visiting the UK this week and updates Edward on the crisis.
The threat of persecution to Christians is growing around the world. This week a rally was held at Westminster Cathedral to highlight the plight of Christians in Pakistan and Egypt. Trevor Barnes reports.
From a 'Praise Bus', to a 'Prayer Relay', to thousands of free Cream Teas - the Bishop of Truro explains why churches are so excited about the start of the Olympics Torch Relay in Cornwall this weekend.
On average, every day-and-a-half, an American soldier dies on the battlefield. But back home, veterans are taking their OWN lives at the astonishing rate of one every eighty minutes. With thousands more active service troops due to come home soon, veterans' families and support groups are wondering how the military's suicide epidemic can really be controlled. Matt Wells reports from Connecticut.
A petition signed by more than 2,200 Anglican women who oppose women bishops will be
presented on Monday to the House of Bishops at the start of their meeting in York. We debate the issue.
SUN 07:55 Radio 4 Appeal (b01hw62v)
Multiple Sclerosis Trust
Chris Jones presents the Radio 4 Appeal on behalf of the Multiple Sclerosis Trust.
Reg Charity: 1088353
To Give:
- Freephone 0800 404 8144
- Freepost BBC Radio 4 Appeal, mark the back of the envelope Multiple Sclerosis Trust.
Give Online www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/appeal.
SUN 07:57 Weather (b01hw1rb)
The latest weather forecast.
SUN 08:00 News and Papers (b01hw1rd)
The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.
SUN 08:10 Sunday Worship (b01hw62x)
Hearts Strangely Warmed
'Hearts strangely warmed' - Live from Methodist Central Hall Westminster on this special day of celebration for Methodists, Aldersgate Sunday. "I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone, for salvation; and an assurance was given me that he had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death (John Wesley); Leader: The Revd Tony Miles; preacher: The Revd Mark Wakelin, President Designate of the Methodist Conference. Director of Music: Andrew Earis; Organ scholar: Jeremy Lloyd; Producer: Philip Billson.
SUN 08:50 A Point of View (b01hl4hj)
Europe and my quadriga-spotting tour
Will Self ponders the future of Europe as he stands by Berlin's Brandenburg gate.
"As in Greek mythology" he writes, "the sun god Apollo Helios drives his chariot across the skies...so the charioteer and four horses that surmount the Brandenburg Gate...embody the idea of contemporary German nationhood".
On his "quadriga-spotting tour", Will weaves his way through the complex history of this symbol and its relevance for the rest of Europe.
In the end, he controversially asks whether "an end to the European Union in its current banjaxed form might allow all of us to experience a new dawn, drawn by a new charioteer".
Producer: Adele Armstrong.
SUN 09:00 Broadcasting House (b01hw62z)
Sunday morning magazine programme with news and conversation about the big stories of the week. Presented by Paddy O'Connell.
SUN 10:00 The Archers Omnibus (b01hw631)
For detailed synopsis, see daily episodes
EDITOR...JOHN YORKE AND VANESSA WHITBURN
WRITER.....TIM STIMPSON
DIRECTOR..... JULIE BECKETT
JILL ARCHER ..... PATRICIA GREENE
KENTON ARCHER..... RICHARD ATTLEE
DAVID ARCHER..... TIMOTHY BENTINCK
RUTH ARCHER..... FELICITY FINCH
PIP ARCHER..... HELEN MONKS
JOSH ARCHER..... CIAN CHEESBROUGH
ELIZABETH PARGETTER..... ALISON DOWLING
TONY ARCHER..... COLIN SKIPP
TOM ARCHER..... TOM GRAHAM
BRIAN ALDRIDGE..... CHARLES COLLINGWOOD
JENNIFER ALDRIDGE..... ANGELA PIPER
ADAM MACY..... ANDREW WINCOTT
IAN CRAIG..... STEPHEN KENNEDY
PEGGY WOOLLEY..... JUNE SPENCER
JOE GRUNDY..... EDWARD KELSEY
CLARRIE GRUNDY..... ROSALIND ADAMS
NIC GRUNDY..... BECKY WRIGHT
EDWARD GRUNDY..... BARRY FARRIMOND
ROY TUCKER..... IAN PEPPERELL
PHOEBE ALDRIDGE..... LUCY MORRIS
LYNDA SNELL..... CAROLE BOYD
JAZZER McCREARY..... RYAN KELLY
ALAN FRANKS..... JOHN TELFER
USHA FRANKS..... SOUAD FARESS
AMY FRANKS..... JENNIFER DALEY
RHYS WILLIAMS..... SCOTT ARTHUR
ELONA MAKEPEACE..... ERI SHUKA
DARRELL MAKEPEACE....DAN HAGLEY.
CALLER..... JOE SIMS.
SUN 11:15 Desert Island Discs (b01hw633)
Peter Ackroyd
Kirsty Young's castaway is the novelist, historian and biographer, Peter Ackroyd.
As a child he used to walk the streets of London with his grandmother - an experience that, he believes, fostered his own love for the city. He was appointed literary editor of The Spectator when he was just 23 and has gone on to write dozens of books since. He has written a biography of London, as well as books about people he calls 'cockney visionaries' such as Charles Dickens, Wilkie Collins and, now, Charlie Chaplin. Yet, of the work he's produced so far, he says: "Every book for me is a chapter in the long book which will finally be closed on the day of my death. So that final book is the one which gives me a sense of achievement."
Producer: Christine Pawlowsky.
SUN 12:00 Just a Minute (b01hjq76)
Series 63
Episode 1
Chairman Nicholas Parsons hosts the classic panel game.
Paul Merton, Julian Clary, Sue Perkins and Greg Proops are challenged to speak on an allocated subject for 60 seconds without hesitation, repetition or deviation.
Subjects range from 'The Importance of Eyebrows' to 'How I Would describe myself on a Dating Website'.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2012.
SUN 12:32 The Food Programme (b01hw635)
The Life of Pie
For many years the symbol of stodgy service station fare, the humble pie is enjoying a renaissance as chefs and public alike discover the joys of a lovingly made pastry containing top quality ingredients.
The Food Programme meets piemakers and connoisseurs at the annual British Pie Awards and hears why top chefs and food writers are extolling the virtues of the pie
Producer: Maggie Ayre.
SUN 12:57 Weather (b01hw1rg)
The latest weather forecast.
SUN 13:00 The World This Weekend (b01hw637)
James Robbins presents the latest national and international news, including an in-depth look at events around the world. Email: wato@bbc.co.uk; twitter: #theworldthisweekend.
SUN 13:30 100 Years of the Royal Flying Corps (b01h5xcq)
After receiving its warrant from King George V, the Royal Flying Corps came into being in May 1912. Peter and Dan Snow look at the centenary of this corps of the British Army and how it advanced from primitive balloons and flimsy biplanes to sophisticated long range bombers.
Dan looks back on the experience of flying in a World War One trainer and Peter explores the aircraft of the Shuttleworth Collection, all working examples of trainers, fighters and bombers. Professor Richard Overy and General Sir Mike Jackson explain how the RFC's pioneering work altered the course of warfare, and documents from the Museum of Army Flying chart the tragic loss of life that went hand in glove with extreme bravery and remarkable technical development. In a few short years the RFC went from being perceived as a fad to a major component of 20th century warfare, and eye witness accounts tell of artillery spotting, photo reconnaissance and the carnage on the Somme.
More importantly, rather than focusing on the RFC as a curtain-raiser to the creation of the Royal Air Force in 1918, the programme looks at the Corps in its own right and what it brought in terms of intelligence, sophisticated mapping and air supremacy to the British Army in the field.
Producer: Alyn Shipton
A Unique Production for BBC Radio 4.
SUN 14:00 Gardeners' Question Time (b01hl4gw)
Thornbury, South Gloucestershire
Bunny Guinness, Chris Beardshaw and Bob Flowerdew answer gardening questions in Thornbury. Eric Robson is in the chair.
How perpetual is perpetual spinach? What makes asparagus spears bend and curl?
In addition, Anne Swithinbank revisits Jenie Eastman as part of our Listeners' Gardens series.
Questions addressed in the programme:
Which unusual veg can we grow to impress the judges in our August produce show? Suggestions included: kohlrabi 'Superschmelz', the scorzonera and the ugly fruit.
How do you avoid getting mildew on greenhouse-grown cucumbers?
Should you remove rhubarb flowers to encourage leaf growth?
My Magnolia Soulagniana only has 3 flowers. Why? When do I prune it?
Prunus incisa : Is it possible to keep these in 12 x 11 inch pots without causing damage?
How perpetual is perpetual spinach?
Im growing identical tulip bulbs in identical pots, either side of front door. Though I am treating them the same, one set of tulips is 6 inches shorter and 2 weeks behind the other. Why is this?
Why do some asparagus spears bend, curl and thin out? In addition, how do I prevent asparagus beetle?
How do I propagate alstroemeria?
What shall I replace my 12ft Leyandii with? I don't like shrubs or flowers.
Suggestions included: Thuja plicata Atrovire, Rosa banksiae lutea and Clematis Jackmanii superba
Produced by Lucy Dichmont.
A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4.
SUN 14:45 The Listening Project (b01hw639)
Sunday Edition
Fi Glover presents the Sunday edition of Radio 4's series capturing the nation in conversation: in today's programme, we meet Ray and his half-sister Joan; their conversation about the father they shared but Ray never knew was recorded by Radio Merseyside. And from Radio Lincolnshire, a conversation between two brothers who have farmed the same piece of land south of Skegness for more than 60 years. While Radio Humberside brings us Jill and Michael, brought together by the loss of a husband and a brother in the 1968 triple trawler disaster in Hull. And we meet David Reeves, the producer who recorded two of the conversations.
The Listening Project is a new initiative for Radio 4 that aims to offer a snapshot of contemporary Britain in which people across the UK volunteer to have a conversation with someone close to them about a subject they've never discussed intimately before. The conversations are being gathered across the UK by teams of producers from local and national radio stations who facilitate each encounter. Every conversation - they're not BBC interviews, and that's an important difference - lasts up to an hour, and is then edited to extract the key moment of connection between the participants. Many of the long conversations are being archived by the British Library which they will use to build up a collection of voices capturing a unique portrait of the UK in the second decade of the millennium. You can upload your own conversations or just learn more about The Listening Project by visiting bbc.co.uk/listeningproject
Producer Marya Burgess.
SUN 15:00 Classic Serial (b01hw63c)
Virginia Woolf - Mrs Dalloway
From Breakfast to Luncheon
Dramatised by Michelene Wandor
Virginia Woolf's classic novel set on a single day in June. Lives interweave on the streets of London as Clarissa Dalloway makes her final preparations for an important party.
1 of 2: From breakfast to luncheon
Mrs Dalloway ..... Fenella Woolgar
Richard ..... Sam Dale
Septimus ..... Paul Ready
Rezia ..... Susie Riddell
Peter ..... Scott Handy
Sally ..... Liza Sadovy
Elizabeth ..... Emerald O'Hanrahan
Lucy ..... Amaka Okafor
Hugh ..... Patrick Brennan,
Dr Holmes ..... Peter Hamilton Dyer,
Miss Brush ..... Christine Absalom
Miss Pym ..... Tracy Wiles
Directed by Marc Beeby
Mrs Dalloway is one of Virginia Woolf's most approachable novels. It's apparently simple structure - taking place over a single day and dovetailing two very different stories - belies its rich textures and the complexity of its beautifully drawn characters. Clarissa Dalloway's party, the climax of the story, is eagerly awaited by all and resolves both stories with wisdom and poignancy.
SUN 16:00 Open Book (b01hw63f)
Orlando Figes on his new book Just Send Me Word
Historian Orlando Figes discusses his book Just send me word, the story of a young Muscovite exiled to a Soviet arctic gulag and his relationship through over one thousand five hundred letters with his wife to be. These letters are the largest ever found about gulag life and give a fascinating insight into conditions there and in 1950s Soviet Russia.
Long summer days, the sound of leather on willow, googlies, ducks and silly mid offs.... the game of cricket has captured the imagination of writers from Dickens, LP Hartley and P. G Wodehouse to Douglas Adams and Joseph O'Neill. Authors Anthony Quinn and Shehan Karunatilaka discuss how the game of cricket has inspired their latest books
Writing Britain; Wastelands to Wonderlands is a new exhibition at the British Library, where they have one hundred and fifty original items exploring how writers view Britain in six literary inspired themes, from Rural Dreams to the Industrial Muse. In today's programme the exhibition's lead curator Jamie Andrews discusses "Cockney Visions," - the role London has played in the literary landscape.
Writing Britain continues at the British Library until the 25th of September.
Producer: Andrea Kidd.
SUN 16:30 Poetry Please (b01hw63h)
Roger McGough presents a selection of listeners' poetry requests read by Seán Gleeson, Barbara Barnes and Samuel West.
Roger kicks things off with a salute to Edward Lear, marking two hundred years since his birth. The poem is 'How Pleasant to Know Mr. Lear'. It was written by Lear himself and describes the poet's visage as hideous and his body as 'perfectly spherical'. Roger makes a plea for requests for Lear poems for a special bicentennial edition planned for later in the year.
The poet Anna Crowe also joins the programme to read her poem 'Punk With Dulcimer' about an unusual encounter with a stranger on a train. A poem by Elizabeth Bishop in honour of her mentor, Marianne Moore, conjures up images of the poet flying over the New York skyline with a 'black capeful of butterfly wings and bon-mots' to offer poetic inspiration to her young protégé. There are also some bird poems, with works by Edward Thomas, Philip Larkin and perhaps the most famous poem about a bird ever written; Samuel West reads Ode to a Nightingale by Keats.
Producer: Sarah Langan.
SUN 17:00 Things Ain't What They Used To Be (b01hjs15)
David Aaronovitch examines the persistent popularity of 'declinism' - the idea that individuals and society are not as good as they used to be. Why are we so drawn to this idea? Is it a purely negative and pessimistic view of the world or does it perform a valuable function?
A self-confessed optimist and progressive, David meets people with views very different from his own as he explores some of the most important contemporary forms of declinism - from concern about the collapse of British manufacturing and the impact of materialism on the planet to unease about immigration and calls for a return to Victorian economic values.
The programme features interviews with ...
Edith Hall, Professor of Classics at Kings College, London
Jeremy Seabrook, author of many books including 'What Went Wrong'
Steven Pinker, Harvard Professor of Psychology and author of 'The Better Angels of Our Nature'
Professor Jim Tomlinson, economic historian at Dundee University
Maria Glot, Salt Walks tour guide in Saltaire Village, Yorkshire
Kevin Dowd, academic economist and author of 'Alchemists of Loss: How Modern Finance and Government Intervention Crashed the Financial System'
Lord Glasman, Labour peer
Jean Twenge, Professor of Psychology at San Diego State University and co-author of The Narcissism Epidemic
Iain McGilchrist, psychiatrist and author of 'The Master and His Emissary'
Dan Gardner, author of 'Future Babble'.
SUN 17:40 Profile (b01hw44t)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Saturday]
SUN 17:54 Shipping Forecast (b01hw1rj)
The latest shipping forecast.
SUN 17:57 Weather (b01hw1rl)
The latest weather forecast.
SUN 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b01hw1rn)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
SUN 18:15 Pick of the Week (b01hw63k)
Ernie Rea makes his selection from the past seven days of BBC Radio
On Pick of the Week, Ernie Rea discovers the answers to some intriguing questions. Why does one piece of Mozart reduce us to tears while another makes us want to jump for joy? Why do the English pride themselves on the stiff upper lip and could that lip be starting to quiver? Whatever happened to composer and singer Bobby Gentry after she wrote the Ode to Billy Joe? Why was the diarist Samuel Pepys consumed by the Green Eyed Monster? And what happened 250 million years ago which very nearly destroyed life on earth?
Archive on 4:The History of the Stiff Upper Lip - Radio 4
The Trouble with Kane - Radio 4
Whatever Happened to Bobby Gentry? - Radio 2
Lives in a Landscape - Radio 4
Poetry Texas - Radio 4
Things Ain't What they Used to Be - Radio 4
Extinct - Radio 4
The Diary of Samuel Pepys ep 3 -Radio 4
Key Matters - Radio 4
Strap In- It's Clever Peter - Radio 4
Follow Up Albums - Radio 4
Today - Radio 4
Tales from the Stave - Radio 4
Email: potw@bbc.co.uk or www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/potw
Producer: Cecile Wright.
SUN 19:00 The Archers (b01hw63m)
Tom's sorry he can't help with the Brookfield silaging. He's way too busy, and reels off a formidable list of Sunday tasks. David's understanding; he's got Oliver and Eddie lined up.
Pat tries gently to persuade Tony it's time to let Tom and Helen have their heads with the business. She's afraid that if they don't they may well lose Tom. Tony softens, and suggests a relief afternoon milker, leaving Tom free to follow up other projects. Relieved Tom thanks Tony, who jokes that he still wants sole use of the big chair in the office.
Ruth's jumpy every time the phone rings, but doesn't want to feel bullied over the anonymous calls. Neither does David, and he assures Ruth he won't let Adam down; he's the only witness to the attack. There's a gathering to celebrate the inauguration of the new slurry tank. It's played its part in saving the Brookfield herd. Bert's downcast about another cricket defeat, but manages to wield the champagne nevertheless, and a bottle of milk is cracked over the tank. Back at the house Ben goes to answer the ringing telephone, to the alarm of Ruth. She grabs the phone from him and braces herself.
SUN 19:15 Tonight (b01hl2bd)
Series 2
Episode 2
Rory Bremner and the team return for another series of Tonight, the topical satire show that digs that bit deeper into national and international politics.
Rory's mantra is that it's as important to make sense out of things as it is to make fun of them. With a team that includes veteran satirists Andy Zaltzman and Nick Doody, and versatile impressionist and character comedian Kate O'Sullivan, Tonight does both.
This is half an hour of stand-up, sketches, and investigative satire. And at the core of the show are Rory's incisively funny interviews with the most informed guest commentators on the current political scene.
More global crises, more political scandal, more jokes with the word fiscal in them and some truly brilliant impressions - a shot in the arm for satire lovers everywhere.
Producers: Simon Jacobs and Frank Stirling
A Unique Production for BBC Radio 4.
SUN 19:45 Heidi Amsinck - Copenhagen Confidential (b01hw63p)
The Climbing Rose
By Heidi Amsinck
Read by Jack Klaff
In these three specially-commissioned tales by Heidi Amsinck, Copenhagen and its surrounds are places of twilight and shadows: mysterious places where strange, occasionally bad things happen.
The Climbing Rose
Postman Brian Larsen has made a nice little side-earner doing odd-jobs for the rich and grateful old ladies of Klampenborg. Mrs Hoffman looks like a promising target - but there is something creepy about the rose in her front garden.
Heidi Amsinck, a writer and journalist born in Copenhagen, has covered Britain for the Danish press since 1992, including a spell as London Correspondent for the broadsheet daily Jyllands-Posten. Heidi has written numerous short stories for radio including, most recently, the three story set Danish Noir (2010), which was also produced by Sweet Talk for BBC Radio 4. A graduate of the MA in Creative Writing at Birkbeck, University of London, Heidi lives in Surrey with her husband and two young sons.
Producer: Jeremy Osborne
A Sweet Talk Production for BBC Radio 4.
SUN 20:00 More or Less (b01hl4h2)
Are 120,000 families responsible for a disproportionate share of society's ills?
Troubled families
The government says it has identified 120,000 troubled families who are responsible for a disproportionate share of society's ills. It's set up a "Troubled Families Team" to deal with them. But in fact the government has counted extremely deprived families and then announced that it has counted extremely disruptive families instead.
Nursing numbers
This week government ministers have been arguing with the Royal College of Nursing about job losses in the NHS in England. It seems they've also been arguing between themselves. We unravel the numbers.
The mathematical consequences of unneutered cats
If one unneutered female cat was allowed to go about her business, how many cats would she and her descendants have created in two years? Would you believe that it was as many as 370,000, as a new advertising campaign claims? Neither would we.
Greek taxis. Again.
The former Greek finance minister has said he thinks the Greek rail system is so inefficient it would be cheaper to send each passenger by taxi. We examined his idea and found it was almost - but not quite - true. But many listeners sent us their thoughts about other ways of looking at the problem. So, this week, we revisit our calculations.
Preenter: Tim Harford
Producer: Richard Knight.
SUN 20:30 Last Word (b01hl4h0)
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Horst Faas, Carlos Fuentes, Lord Glenamara and Donna Summer
Matthew Bannister on
The most-recorded singer of the 20th century, German baritone Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau.
Horst Faas, who won a Pulitzer prize for his combat photography during the Vietnam War.
Lord Glenamara who as the Labour MP Ted Short was the Chief Whip who kept Harold Wilson in power.
The Mexican author Carlos Fuentes, a leading light in the flowering of Latin American literature in the 60s and 70s
And Donna Summer - the disco queen of the 70s who later became a born again Christian.
SUN 21:00 Money Box (b01hw3zf)
[Repeat of broadcast at
12:00 on Saturday]
SUN 21:26 Radio 4 Appeal (b01hw62v)
[Repeat of broadcast at
07:55 today]
SUN 21:30 Analysis (b01bwm1h)
Preparing for Eurogeddon
Europe thinks the unthinkable - what happens if the Eurozone splits. What would happen to the banking sector, how would a new currency be put in place, can contagion be halted, and more fundamentally could the Euro survive? Policymakers across Europe are putting their contingency plans together. We reveal what some of the preparations may be. Reporter Chris Bowlby runs through some of the scenarios of what may happen if a country were to withdraw, and crucially what would happen next.
Contributors: Dawn Holland, National Institute of Economic and Social Research; Aristotle Kallis, Political Scientist; David Marsh, author "The History of the Euro"; David Lascelles, senior fellow of the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation; Mark Crickett De La Rue; and Larry Hatheway, UBS
Producer: Kavita Puri.
SUN 22:00 Westminster Hour (b01hw66q)
Preview of the week's political agenda at Westminster with MPs, experts and commentators. Discussion of the issues politicians are grappling with in the corridors of power.
SUN 22:45 What the Papers Say (b01hw66s)
Episode 104
John Kampfner of The Independent analyses how the newspapers are covering the biggest stories in Westminster and beyond.
SUN 23:00 The Film Programme (b01hl29r)
A celebration of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger's The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, considered by many to be Britain's Citizen Kane. With contributions from director Martin Scorsese, editor Thelma Schoonmaker, and filmmaker Kevin Macdonald. Presented by Francine Stock.
Produced by Craig Smith.
SUN 23:30 Something Understood (b01hw62n)
[Repeat of broadcast at
06:05 today]
MONDAY 21 MAY 2012
MON 00:00 Midnight News (b01hw1sl)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.
MON 00:15 Thinking Allowed (b01hkz2g)
Why Love Hurts
The agony of love is a classic trope of romantic literature and popular journalism. The suffering caused by failures in our personal lives seems timeless. But the sociologist, Eva Illouz, argues that the nature of romantic suffering has changed radically in the modern era. Her book 'Why Love Hurts' argues that the individual misery of the 'broken hearted' should be subjected to scrutiny by social scientists. Failures in our private lives are shaped by social forces much larger than ourselves; they can't be explained by our individual psyches and histories alone. Stephen Frosh, Professor of Psychosocial studies, also joins the discussion. Laurie Taylor puts love under the sociological microscope.
Producer: Jayne Egerton.
MON 00:45 Bells on Sunday (b01hw62l)
[Repeat of broadcast at
05:43 on Sunday]
MON 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b01hw1sn)
The latest shipping forecast.
MON 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b01hw1sq)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
MON 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b01hw1ss)
The latest shipping forecast.
MON 05:30 News Briefing (b01hw1sv)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.
MON 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b01hw6fv)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Sister Gemma Simmonds of the Congregation of Jesus.
MON 05:45 Farming Today (b01hw6fx)
Anna Hill hears how some dairy farmers are being accused of artificially enhancing cow udders to compete in the show ring. The British Veterinary Association speaks out against the practices which threaten animal welfare.
As preparations for RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2012 get underway, the Horticultural Trades Association boasts that Britain is a world leader in plant breeding and flower growing. Sarah Swadling visits a long term medal holder who'll be displaying his daffodils in this years' show.
Presented by Anna Hill. Produced by Clare Freeman in Birmingham.
MON 05:57 Weather (b01hw1sx)
The latest weather forecast for farmers.
MON 06:00 Today (b01hw6fz)
Morning news and current affairs, presented by James Naughtie and Sarah Montague, including:
07:30 Shadow chancellor Ed Balls on the eurozone crisis.
08:10 Should child care be cheaper in the UK?
08:30 DJ Bob Harris reflects on the death of Bee Gees singer Robin Gibb.
MON 09:00 Start the Week (b01hw6g1)
Michael Sandel on Money and Morality
On Start the Week Andrew Marr discusses the relationship between markets and morals with the political philosopher Michael Sandel. In his latest book, What Money Can't Buy, Sandel questions the dominance of the financial markets in our daily lives, in which everything has a price. But the economist Diane Coyle stands up for her much maligned profession, and points to the many benefits of a market economy. The Russian economist Grigory Yavlinksy argues against viewing the world of money as separate from culture and society: he believes the financial crisis was merely a symptom of a wider moral collapse, and that it is time to examine the way we live.
Producer: Katy Hickman.
MON 09:45 Book of the Week (b01hw6g3)
Hedge Britannia
Episode 1
Written by Hugh Barker. Read by Tim Key.
Hugh Barker, a hedge enthusiast, has journeyed across Britain to explore its remarkable variety of hedgerows.
The checkerboard pattern of lowland Britain as seen from the air reveals a history of boundaries and enclosures. The author's childhood weekends were spent contributing to this millennia old obsession for tidy borders by clipping the hedges of his parents suburban garden.
Over the course of his travels he discovers how hedges are amongst our most ancient monuments, meets hedgelaying champions and topiary fanatics, and sees the lengths to which some people will go to annoy the neighbours. Along the way he tells how a connection between paradise and the garden hedge grew up, why the British Army planted a barrier hedge hundreds of miles long in India, and how the notorious enclosures during the Industrial Revolution turned the country upside-down.
Abridged and Produced by Jill Waters
A Waters Company production for BBC Radio 4.
MON 10:00 Woman's Hour (b01hw6g5)
Shirley Manson
Advice from the Alzheimer's Society about talking to children about dementia, Garbage's Shirley Manson on returning to the music industry after a seven year break with a brand new album. Why Nevada brothel owner Dennis Hof wants to open an establishment in London. And a preview of tonight's Radio 4 documentary The Trouble with Kane which examines a programme offering young people family therapy and home drug testing as an alternative to custody.
Producer Jane Thurlow
Presenter Jane Garvey
MON 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b01hw6g7)
In the Van
Episode 1
Written by Clare Bayley.
Recently promoted MI5 agent, Yasmin Zafiri is on her first stake out facing weeks, rather unglamorously, in a van, and with an unexpected supervisor. On Yasmin's first day in the MI5 surveillance van, she discovers her lover Jonathan is also on the case. They begin to eavesdrop on secret lives and test their own relationship.
Yasmin has the same pressures of many young professional women, but she also has the safety of hundreds of ordinary citizens in her hands. She's an MI5 agent making decisions to prevent a terrorist attack while struggling to preserve her relationship with fellow agent Jonathan.
It gives an insight into the pressures and preoccupations of an ordinary woman doing an extraordinary job for MI5. By hearing the conversations she is intercepting, we glimpse the invasion of privacy that phone tapping involves. Increasingly identifying with this loving, resourceful immigrant family, Yasmin's success in MI5 and her future marriage come at the cost of their happiness.
The drama was recorded on location in a flat and a vehicle parked in the streets of north London, creating the believable,tense interior world of one woman in a crisis, living the life of a spy. More real than TV's Spooks, and more movingly up-to-the-minute than Smiley.
Writer Clare Bayley's plays have won Fringe Firsts and and been produced at the National Theatre.
Cast:
Yasmin ....... Amber Agar
Jonathan ...... Matt Rawle
Rachid ........ Nitzan Sharron
Samira ....... Sirine Saba
Bob ...... Felix Dexter
Directed by Marilyn Imrie
A Bona Broadcasting production for BBC Radio 4.
MON 11:00 Camel Country (b01hw6g9)
Camels are the heart and soul of Arabic culture. Even in an age of four-wheel drive and oil-money opulence they're a powerful symbol of wealth.
Field biologist Tessa McGregor travels through the deserts of Oman with one of the last of the frankincense caravans.
For centuries camel trains have climbed from the coastal plain to the high plateau of Dhofar to collect the annual frankincense harvest. The trade has declined as the young Omanis shun the tough world of the desert for the comforts of urban life but even in the cities the camel is still venerated.
Camels are raced, songs are composed in their honour, they're displayed in beauty contests and photos of favourite camels are swapped on mobile phones and Facebook.
In two generations, the people of the Arab peninsula have gone from nomadic poverty when the camel was the difference between life and death to an age of air-conditioned luxury but even today, as Tessa discovers, the camel herders are regarded as princes of the desert.
Producer: Alasdair Cross
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2012.
MON 11:30 With Nobbs On (b01j0zzj)
From Badger to Frost
Written and presented by David Nobbs.
David Nobbs was the comic genius behind Reggie Perrin, The Two Ronnies, Tommy Cooper, Frankie Howerd and Radio 4's The Maltby Collection. In With Nobbs On he presents a three-part series of entertaining, joke-laden, insider observations on his comedy career to a studio audience - along with guest readings, archive material and unpredictable delights.
Episode 1 - From Badgers to Frost
A young David realizes there's more to writing a novel than just the title, and TV fame beckons when cabs are sent to collect David's sketches for an iconic, groundbreaking satirical show.
Featuring Martin Trenaman and Mia Soteriou
Produced by Andrew McGibbon
A Curtains For Radio Production for BBC Radio 4.
MON 12:00 You and Yours (b01hw6gc)
Practical steps to protect children online
How can you stop your children accessing pornography and other inappropriate sites online? Practical advice from a teenager and an online security expert.
The payday loans company Wonga is launching a service for businesses. Are small firms that are unable to get bank loans using Wonga to expand or as a stop-gap?
A report from the Royal Pharmaceutical Society is calling for pharmacists to have more power to review prescriptions in Scotland. Are people in care homes taking medication they don't need?
Does removing the traditional segregation of cars, pedestrians and other road users make using the roads any safer? We discuss the "shared space" approach to street design.
And 12,000 tents were dumped at the end of a music festival last year. We hear from the campaigners who want you to "Love Your Tent".
Presented by Julian Worricker
Produced by Olivia Skinner.
MON 12:57 Weather (b01hw1sz)
The latest weather forecast.
MON 13:00 World at One (b01hw6gf)
Is watering down employee rights 'bonkers', or would it encourage growth? We hear differing opinions.
A mother tells us of her horror on finding out that police kept her baby's brain.
Hugh Sykes reports from Egypt on the presidential elections
Plus we begin our series on education by discussing what makes a good teacher with the NUT and the head of OFSTED. Sir Michael Wilshaw tells us that he may compromise on his plans for no notice inspections.
If you want to discuss the programme on Twitter, you can use the hashtag wato.
MON 13:45 Our Daily Bread (b01hw6gh)
A Half-Baked History
It's the staff of life, the body of Christ, the foundation of Western civilization, the thing we work to put on our table; it's our daily bread.
It was so central to our ancestors that it became a sacred object, a political totem, and infused their language - the difference between feast and famine. Yet now it's almost universally taken for granted.
And because bread was there as a witness to every stage of our transformation, from hunter gatherer to 21st century creatures of the cyber age, it has a lot to tell us.
In Our Daily Bread the journalist and broadcaster Jonathan Kent takes bread as a starting point for an exploration of human history, health, faith, culture and relationships.
A Half-Baked History of the World in Seven Loaves (and a crumb) takes eight slices from twenty five thousand years of bread.
Producer: Jonathan Kent
A Falling Tree Production for BBC Radio 4.
MON 14:00 The Archers (b01hw63m)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Sunday]
MON 14:15 Drama (b00t0qy3)
Ed Harris - Troll
by Ed Harris.
Adult cares mix with childhood fears, in this comic twisted fairytale, which won the Writers' Guild Award for Best Radio Drama of 2011. In the middle of a family crisis, Olivia discovers a troll under her mother's kitchen sink. A troll to whom, in the magic days of childhood, she once promised herself as a meal.
Olivia ..... Rosie Cavaliero
James ..... Ewan Bailey
Troll ..... Jack Klaff
Mum ..... Marcia Warren
Matt ..... Michael Shelford
Produced and directed by Jonquil Panting.
MON 15:00 Counterpoint (b01hw6gk)
Series 26
Episode 5
(5/13)
Which major Russian composer's music was performed at the BBC Proms last summer alongside music by his British-born grandson?
Which performer has most recently won the Mercury Music Prize, becoming the first person to do so twice?
Paul Gambaccini welcomes competitors from London and Reading to the BBC Radio Theatre for the latest heat of the wide-ranging music quiz. They'll be asked these musical teasers and many others besides - with plenty of musical extracts to identify, both familiar and obscure. Today's winner will take another of the places in this summer's semi-finals, and thus be a step closer to the title of Counterpoint champion 2012.
Producer: Paul Bajoria.
MON 15:30 The Food Programme (b01hw635)
[Repeat of broadcast at
12:32 on Sunday]
MON 16:00 Miles Jupp in a Locked Room (b01hw6h8)
1/1
There's a fresh corpse! But that room hasn't been opened for years! Locked Room Mysteries astonished and delighted crime fans in the Golden Age of Detective Fiction. But as Miles Jupp discovers, the Locked Room continues to infuriate and delight, inspiring writers in Japan and France. But how many ingenious solutions can be wrung out of a body, a sealed chamber, and the imagination of a dedicated writer? You'll be surprised...
MON 16:30 The Digital Human (b01hw75k)
Series 1
Conviction
In this weeks edition of The Digital Human Aleks looks at what we believe and why. With a search for God throwing up nearly 2billion hits the claims that the internet would be death of religion seem a little hollow. So why does our web search for answers bring some people to god and turn others away? And why do we invest such faith in the answer we find online anyway? Aleks will look at technology as a force multiplier for religions and discover if we ever need to go to church again to practice a faith.
MON 17:00 PM (b01hw75m)
Carolyn Quinn presents full coverage and analysis of the day's news.
MON 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b01hw1t1)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
MON 18:30 Just a Minute (b01hw75p)
Series 63
Episode 2
Graham Norton, Paul Merton, Gyles Brandreth and Alun Cochrane join Nicholas Parsons who asks them to speak on a subject for 60 seconds without hesitation, repetition or deviation.
This week Graham Norton describes his Favourite Smells; Alun Cochrane talks about Graffiti; Gyles Brandreth declaims on the subject of Wales and Paul Merton explains The Importance of Eyebrows.
MON 19:00 The Archers (b01hw7md)
Alan suggests coffee with Usha to Amy, but Amy pleads tiredness. Later she helps Alice at the farmers' market, although by her own admission isn't much use. Alice offers comfort to Amy over Carl. Amy says it's done her good, spending time with Alice. Alan's hurt that Amy spurned his drink offer in favour of helping Alice. He offers to cook dinner, and eventually Amy demurs.
Alice remarks to Lynda that higher prices means sales are down. When Lynda suggests the dip in sales might be due more to Brian's dairy scheme than the prices, Alice is affronted. She suggests Lynda takes it up with Brian, not her.
Yesterday's phone call to Brookfield was merely Oliver arranging to help on the farm, and David reckons the anonymous call was a one off. He returns to the house during the afternoon for a forgotten item, but when he gets back to his tractor Ruth gets a panic phone call; David's found a carefully placed newspaper on his seat referring to the assault on Adam. Ruth wants to phone the police, but David isn't so sure. Ruth points out that someone's been watching him, waiting not just to spook him, but to warn him.
MON 19:15 Front Row (b01hw7mg)
Moonrise Kingdom, Joanne Harris, artist Richard Wilson
With Kirsty Lang.
Wes Anderson's new film Moonrise Kingdom is set in New England in the summer of 1965. Two 12 year olds fall in love and run away together into the wilderness, with a local search party out to find them. Natalie Haynes reviews the film which stars Bill Murray, Ed Norton, Tilda Swinton and Frances McDormand.
Joanne Harris discusses her new novel Peaches for Monsieur le Curé, which returns to the fictional French village of Lansquenet, first seen in her her best-seller Chocolat, which was also adapted into a feature film.
Richard Wilson, the installation artist, is best known for the work
20:50 - a room half-filled with highly-reflective sump oil. He reveals details of Slipstream, his new sculpture for the 2014 opening of the new Heathrow Terminal 2. Over 70 metres long and weighing 77 tons, the aluminium work will describe the shape carved through space by a stunt plane.
Producer Jerome Weatherald.
MON 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b01hw6g7)
[Repeat of broadcast at
10:45 today]
MON 20:00 The Trouble with Kane (b01hw7mj)
Episode 2
Kane is just twelve when he and thirteen year old friend are arrested in possession of cannabis. His drug use and his temper have spiralled out of control and he is now in trouble with the courts and at school, where he's on the brink of exclusion. He's also causing great upset to his parents, both from Bangladesh, who can't understand why he has gone so far from their control when his older sister has achieved good academic results and is very career focused. But none of this would make his story that unusual - instead we are following Kane because he's one of the first youngsters in Britain to be given intensive family therapy, coupled with home drug testing, as an alternative to custody. This series eavesdrops on the work of therapist Amanda Singh, from the Brandon Centre, as she attempts to change Kane's behaviour over a five month period.
This could well be his last chance to avoid being placed in secure accommodation and although the work going on with him and his family is costly it has been shown to be a very effective way of reducing re-offending by young people on the brink of being taken into custody. It also has the added advantage of stream-lining the various agencies already involved with a young person: Amanda places his parents at the centre of his care and effectively teaches them how to control him. His cannabis use is contributing to violent outbursts at home and at school and everyone - from teachers to parents - expresses dismay at how this once quiet and shy boy has spiralled so quickly out of control
Amanda is one of a team of multi-systemic therapists working under the London based Brandon centre but this approach is now offered in other parts of the country. She visits families three times a week and is contactable 24 hours a day as she sorts out how things have got so bad and tackles the family dynamics involved. This is not counselling - instead it's a mixture of strict parenting coupled with a zero tolerance of drug use. A behaviour contract is introduced - laying down acceptable and non- acceptable behaviour and home drug testing. Kane's compliance is either rewarded with treats and money or punished with the withdrawal of things like internet access, his mobile phone and even his favourite meals.
The power in the home shifts as a result but it isn't an easy transition and Kane's parents have to struggle with increased levels of violence as their son fights against the new order. They agree to the recording continuing because throughout the whole period they maintain some hope that things will work out and that their experiences might help others. Listeners eavesdrop on various aspects of the process - from work going in the home to meetings between teachers, the police and even the parents of other boys involved in drug dealing. Amanda also encounters the cynicism of some police officers who feel that Kane is one of a growing number of boys who have gone too far to be helped.
Kane's family are from Bangladesh and had high hopes that he would do well in school. His teachers trace the start of his troubles to the onset of puberty, when he suddenly shot up in height, towering above friends and feeling awkward about both his body and his racial identity. His head of year is keen to stop him from being permanently excluded but she tells Amanda that she fears what might happen next: "We've got nothing; we've got nothing to hold him. I was just thinking about all the routes, both punitive and non-punitive, that we could go down and I cannot see any of them making any difference to him. There is nothing that touches him - I am worried and I am worried about having him back here. I think it's right that we do take him back but I'm worried something bad will happen."
Amanda Singh is use to such concern but has seen tremendous results with families using this method: "Kane thinks he can threaten them, intimidate them and control the house. They have to not listen to those threats - but when he's being sensible you can see that he does want a different relationship with his parents, he wouldn't be standing in the room if he didn't. And they want a different relationship with him; they just need help to get to it, that's all.
Producer: Sue Mitchell.
MON 20:30 Crossing Continents (b01hl29c)
China: Too Old to Get Rich?
In this week's Crossing Continents, Mukul Devichand tells the stories of Shanghai's rapidly ageing population.
China's natural ageing process has been accelerated by the One Child Policy. Mukul tells the stories of an ageing city and asks whether China's rapid economic growth could be undermined.
Shanghai's image is youthful and contemporary, of a globalised metropolis buying into a new lifestyle at chains like Ikea. But the Ikea Shanghai store is home to a different category -- and age -- of customer. The store canteen has become a meeting point for elderly singles, looking for love and friendship. It's a story repeated across Shanghai: in places you may expect to millions of young people, you'll see the elderly.
Like the rest of urban China, Shanghai is growing old. A quarter of the city's resident population is now retired, putting it in the same demographic league as countries like the UK or Germany. But ageing in China is different. Its fertility rates have dropped at a speed unprecedented in modern history because its "One Child" policy. 30 years after the policy started, the speed of ageing is faster in China than anywhere else. The burden of ageing is not only coming faster, it's also much also harsher here, because China is still a developing country -- with hundreds of millions of poor people to support, as well as hundreds of millions of additional elderly. That has led to a deep seated anxiety in China: will the country grow too old to get rich?
Nestled amid skyscrapers, Mukul tells the stories of the old Shanghai of inner city districts, a place of tumbledown old blocks where the elderly are concentrated. He meets the couples and families struggling with new complaints, such as dementia and alzheimers, under the burden of low incomes and limited welfare. This story of poverty amid plenty symbolises the deeper worry: of the expense of an ageing China in a country where elderly care has traditionally been managed by the family.
In the same city districts, public and private nursing homes are now opening their doors. These cater to a growing demand from families who can't manage the traditional custom of "many generations under one roof" and represent a big cultural change in China. But who will pay for this kind of care nationally? Mukul tells the stories of the rural migrants, caught between the gaps of China's welfare system -- the millions for whom such care is simply not an option.
What can be done? One solution is to encourage more babies in each family. But that is antithetical to China's historically draconian "One Child" family planning, which is now deeply entrenched in the culture. Mukul visits a family planning centre, which now encourages some couples to have more than one -- and finds the couples aren't always listening. He speaks to Shanghai's leading family planning officials to ask if they are changing the "One Child" policy, and how fast.
At its root, the real problem is not just too many elderly. Rather it's a shortage of young workers, threatening China's economic model itself. A lack of willing youth is a huge issue for a country whose entire business model is based on millions of cheap workers. In the industrial zones south of Shanghai, Mukul tells the stories of a crisis in labour. Will China's factory of the world collapse under the burden of ageing?
MON 21:00 Material World (b01hw7ml)
This Week Quentin Cooper looks at why research into the distribution of pollen around Srebrenica forms a key part of the evidence in the Bosnian war crimes tribunals. Tony Brown, now Professor of Geography at Southampton University led a UN sponsored project with the grisly task of examining pollen samples found on many of the bodies disinterred after the conflict.
The number of science advisors is expanding, many government departments now have one, and the number working internationally is also on the increase. But why the sudden rise and what influence can science advisors have over government policy. Anne Glover science advisor to the European Union discusses the issue with James Wilsdon, Professor of science and democracy at Sussex University.
With Munch and Rothko paintings selling for record prices in the past couple of weeks, we return to our So You Want to Be a Scientist experiment on art and emotion.
Dara Djavan Khoshdel, aged 24 from Bournemouth, is hoping to find out if people viewing expensive artworks experience a greater emotional reaction. But to make sure the study is 'blind' none of the participants have been allowed to know the price beforehand. Dara and his mentor, physiologist Andrew Parker from the University of Oxford, gathered their data at Modern Art Oxford's Graham Sutherland exhibition in March.
While Dara is busy crunching the numbers, Quentin is joined by Chris McManus, a Professor of Psychology at UCL and Dara’s other mentor, art historian Prof Martin Kemp. They discuss the science of aesthetics and whether there's reason to believe that expensive art moves us more emotionally.
And finally, subway systems around the world work as self-organising systems says a team of Theoretical physicists from France’s National centre for scientific research. They applied a mathematical analysis to the structure and development of 14 of the world’s biggest major underground railway systems and concluded that no matter how or when they were built they all exhibit the same underlying structure, one that has developed without pre planning and has led to the common mathematical relationships between lines and stations.
Producer: Julian Siddle.
MON 21:30 Start the Week (b01hw6g1)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:00 today]
MON 21:58 Weather (b01hw1t5)
The latest weather forecast.
MON 22:00 The World Tonight (b01hw7mn)
Tensions between the US and Pakistan at the NATO summit in Chicago.
Huge suicide bomb in Yemen - is Al Qaeda likely to be behind it?
Everest climbers die at the weekend - some say there is simply too much 'traffic' on the mountain.
With Ritula Shah.
MON 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b01hw7mq)
Fitzgerald Short Stories
Babylon Revisited: Part 1
By F. Scott Fitzgerald.
Read by Stuart Milligan.
Written in 1930, "Babylon Revisited" is considered to be one of the finest short stories ever written. An intensely personal portrait of a man who has squandered his life (his fortune dissipated, his marriage broken, his young daughter lost to him) it was written in the aftermath of the Wall Street Crash and still resonates deeply.
Part One. American businessman Charles Wales has returned to Paris, the city where his life fell apart, to make the case for regaining custody of his daughter, Honoria. She's being looked after by his dead wife's sister, a woman who will be hard to convince that his life is fully back under control.
Abridged and produced by Kirsteen Cameron.
MON 23:00 Word of Mouth (b00s2ylf)
Michael Rosen on the language used by and about disabled people, and the modern trend in humour of using disability to produce laughs.
With Victoria Wright, Francesca Martinez and Colin Barnes. Also Louise Wallis and Jackie Ryan from the campaign against the "R-word".
Producer Beth O'Dea.
MON 23:30 Today in Parliament (b01hw7nm)
Ministers come under fire from Labour after the Business Secretary, Vince Cable, condemns proposals to make it easier for firms to sack under-performing staff as "the wrong approach".
The Shadow Business Secretary, Chuka Umunna, accuses the Government of jeopardising consumer confidence. But the Business Minister, Mark Prisk, says the aim is to improve competitiveness.
The Home Secretary, Theresa May, faces new pressure over border security and police numbers.
While in the Lords, peers debate the Olympic and Paralympic games and the crisis in the Euro-zone.
Susan Hulme and team report on today's events in Parliament.
TUESDAY 22 MAY 2012
TUE 00:00 Midnight News (b01hw1v4)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.
TUE 00:30 Book of the Week (b01hw6g3)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:45 on Monday]
TUE 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b01hw1v6)
The latest shipping forecast.
TUE 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b01hw1v8)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
TUE 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b01hw1vb)
The latest shipping forecast.
TUE 05:30 News Briefing (b01hw1vd)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.
TUE 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b01hw7yr)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Sister Gemma Simmonds, of the Congregation of Jesus.
TUE 05:45 Farming Today (b01hw7yt)
The future of GM crop trials in the UK is in question after a field trial of GM wheat was damaged a week before a planned protest by activists. The attack on the 400 acre site at Rothamsted Research Centre in Hertfordshire was carried out on Sunday. It happened despite pleas from the scientists to respect the benefits of these second generation GM crops. Vicky Ford, the MEP for East of England, believes that the action has wider implications.
Chelsea Flower Show begins today. Our reporter Sarah Swadling met Nick Hamilton at Barnsdale Gardens in Rutland as he picked his flowers to take to the show. Professor David Pink from Harper Adams University College believes that the UK is falling behind other countries, and we need to take a more strategic approach to horticulture.
And the mixed weather through March and April is causing problems for sugar beet growers in Norfolk.
Presenter is Anna Hill. Producer is Emma Weatherill.
TUE 06:00 Today (b01hw7yw)
Morning news and current affairs, presented by John Humphrys and Sarah Montague, including:
07:30 New Nice rules on IVF.
07:50 What should replace the ASBO?
08:10 Is the government offering a subsidy to new nuclear?
08:20 Paul Simon on Graceland at 25.
08:30 Everest climber on congestion in the "death zone".
TUE 09:00 The Life Scientific (b01hw7yy)
Lloyd Peck
Jim Al-Khalili meets British Antarctic Survey scientist Lloyd Peck and discovers giant sea spiders. They and other small animals grow far bigger than usual in the extreme cold. Diving is an important part of Lloyd's job and we hear what it's like to play football under the ice. Studies suggest that the sea temperature is rising, and Lloyd investigates whether the animals he researches will be able to adapt and survive.
Producer: Geraldine Fitzgerald.
TUE 09:30 One to One (b01hwcw8)
Fi Glover talks to Tom Allason
As a resident of Hackney, Fi Glover has been fascinated by the way her home patch is being turned into one of the world's most important internet start up centres. Old Street Roundabout has been renamed Silicon Roundabout. In this series of One to One she talks to the men and women responsible for this boom. She wants to know more about this generation of tech gurus, as part of our economic future lies in their hands and in their dreams. In this final programme in her series she talks to Tom Allason, chief executive of Shutl, a courier business that's grown 50% month on month since it started two years ago. Tom explains that it's his past failures that have led to his present success. Fi begs an invite to his exit event.
Producer: Lucy Lunt.
TUE 09:45 Book of the Week (b01j6qs0)
Hedge Britannia
Episode 2
Written by Hugh Barker. Read by Tim Key.
Hugh Barker, a hedge enthusiast, has journeyed across Britain to explore its remarkable variety of hedgerows.
Our Neolithic ancestors figured out how to bend trees to their will and developed the art of coppicing. A skill that is renewing itself in 21st century competitions.
Over the course of his travels he discovers how hedges are amongst our most ancient monuments, meets hedgelaying champions and topiary fanatics, and sees the lengths to which some people will go to annoy the neighbours. Along the way he tells how a connection between paradise and the garden hedge grew up, why the British Army planted a barrier hedge hundreds of miles long in India, and how the notorious enclosures during the Industrial Revolution turned the country upside-down.
Abridged and Produced by Jill Waters
A Waters Company production for BBC Radio 4.
TUE 10:00 Woman's Hour (b01hwcwb)
Do men want to be the principal breadwinner in a relationship? Writer Tony Parsons thinks so, and joins Jane to discuss. The Chelsea flower show is open to the public today - while the designs exhibited may be beautiful, how environmentally friendly are they? Should we even be concerned about how green gardening is, or should we just enjoy the showcase of talent? Should schools take parent's views into account when deciding how to teach potentially controversial subjects? And the historian Lucy Worsley on her new TV series, a 17th Century History for Girls. Presented by Jane Garvey.
TUE 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b01j10h2)
In the Van
Episode 2
MI5 agents Yasmin and her fiance Jonathan are on surveillance of suspected terrorists in a van in North London. They continue eavesdropping on targets Rachid and Samira, probing their daily lives and questioning their own. Are they onto something big? Have they really stumbled across bomb making supplies being collected from the party balloon suppliers?
Cast:
Yasmin ....... Amber Agar
Jonathan ...... Matt Rawle
Rachid ........ Nitzan Sharron
Samira ....... Sirine Saba
Bob ...... Felix Dexter
Directed by Marilyn Imrie
A Bona Broadcasting production for BBC Radio 4.
TUE 11:00 Extinct! (b01hwcwd)
Episode 2
There have been five great mass extinction events in the geological history, when at least three quarters of all species of animal on the planet became extinct suddenly (geologically speaking). Many conservation biologists claim that hunting, habitat destruction and climate change have launched a sixth great mass extinction event. This one would be quite different from the previous global mega-death episodes in that the past ones were caused by crash-landing astronomical objects or colossal volcanic eruptions. The current crisis is caused by a single species of creature.
But is the great sixth extinction really happening? Where are we on the trajectory towards 75% global species loss and if we are, can we get off it.
One of the greatest difficulties in assessing these questions is that measuring species extinction is a hard thing to do, even with relatively large sized animals. The programme visits a project in India which is monitoring one of the few surviving populations of the Ganges River Dolphin. The project is a partnership between the Indian conversation group Aaranyak and the Zoological Society of London. This dolphin's closest relative - the Yangtze River Dolphin - was one of the most recent mammals declared extinct. The Ganges species itself is endangered, down to an estimated 2,000 individuals. A few decades ago these freshwater dolphins were a common sight in the Ganges and Brahmaputra. Today you are lucky to find one.
But assessing the extinction risk and statistics of large animals such as dolphins is easy compared to doing that for the vastly more numerous species of smaller creatures in the rainforests and coral reefs. Exactly how many species are being lost today has become a contentious issue even among ecologists, as Adam Rutherford hears - although the debate does boil down to whether the situation is really bad or extremely bad.
Aside from the slippery figures, what should the conservation priorities be? Should conservation agencies and organisations be spending resources on saving individual endangered species such as the Ganges River Dolphin, the Tiger and the Black Rhino? Or does the science suggest that more species will be saved and more good done by focusing funds and effort on less charismatic organisms and, if needs be, letting the river dolphins and the big cats go the way of the dinosaurs?
Producer: Andrew Luck-Baker.
TUE 11:30 Tales from the Stave (b01hwfnd)
Series 8
Hummel's Trumpet Concerto
Johann Hummel was a hugely important figure in the musical landscape of the early 19th century. He worked alongside Haydn, Mozart, Schubert, had a love-hate relationship with Beethoven. He taught and inspired the likes of Felix Mendelssohn and was both a celebrated pianist and composer. But today he's best known for composing one of the two great trumpet concertos of the Classical age. Along with the Haydn, composed a couple of years earlier in 1801, Hummel's Trumpet concerto was a response to the new technology being pioneered by the instrument designer and player Anton Weidinger.
There are many challenges throughout the modern trumpet repertoire but the Hummel is still a proving ground and Alison Balsom is one of those to have mastered it. She joins Frances Fyfield and the musicologist Thomas Schmidt to find out how the original manuscript differs from the version performed today which benefits from the later development of the valved, rather than the keyed, trumpet.
Nicolas Bell of the British Library reveals how Hummel's concerto came to be housed here and, with her trumpet on hand to illustrate, Alison Balsom explains the finer points of 'double-tonguing' a technique vital to the performance of the concerto's dazzling third movement.
Above all else the easy, dancing music Hummel created for the newly versatile Trumpet of the 19th century is given a welcome celebration.
Producer: Tom Alban.
TUE 12:00 You and Yours (b01hwfng)
Call You and Yours
On Call You & Yours we'll be asking could the cost of childcare be reduced?
The average family it seems spends just over a quarter of their income on childcare but could it be made more affordable?
The think tank Centre Forum is calling for a change in the child care regime, saying that Britain does not have a clear system of regulation but a system of duplication, where by "a lot of money gets leaked away". They say that the "childcare system needs to be simpler and more attractive". But critics ask how will simplifying the funding system address the costs of child care?
What do you think?
We'd like to hear your thoughts on whether the cost of childcare can be cut. What's your experience of the current system.....how it works, what the obstacles are, what would improve it.
If you're a parent, a childminder, or a nursery worker, get in touch. Maybe you've experienced systems of childcare in other parts of the world?
Give us a call on 03700 100 444, or you can e-mail via the Radio 4 website OR TEXT US on 84844 and we might call you back.
Presented by Julian Worricker
Produced by Maire Devine.
TUE 12:57 Weather (b01hw1vg)
The latest weather forecast.
TUE 13:00 World at One (b01hwfnj)
Martha Kearney presents the national and international news. Listeners can share their views via email: wato@bbc.co.uk or on twitter: #wato.
TUE 13:45 Our Daily Bread (b01hzn5z)
Bread Kills
'Bread Kills' considers the impact food has on human health by looking at two deadly loaves from history. It unveils groundbreaking new research and sets 'real bread' campaigners against the food industry to thrash out the case for and against modern industrialised bread.
Producer: Jonathan Kent
A Falling Tree Production for BBC Radio 4.
TUE 14:00 The Archers (b01hw7md)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Monday]
TUE 14:15 Drama (b01hwfnl)
The Eggy Doylers
by Jane Purcell
A saucy comedy about the pre-PC age. It's 1979, before the National Curriculum, lesson plans or risk assessment forms. In those heady days, when flares were still fashion items rather than emergency equipment, child-hating PE teacher Peter Gunn finds himself leading a school biology field trip which veers a long way from the straight and narrow educational path.
Peter Gunn ..... Ralph Ineson
Maggie Beecham ..... Lydia Leonard
Ferret ..... Joseph Drake
Ellen ..... Amaka Okafor
Linda ..... Louise Brealey
Wayne ..... Alex Lanipekun
with Sam Alexander, Robert Blythe, Guy Rudin and Joe Sims.
Producer/Director Jonquil Panting.
TUE 15:00 Making History (b01hwfnn)
Tom Holland presents Radio 4's popular history programme in which listener's questions and research help offer new insights into the past.
Today: the evacuees who didn't go home. Making History listener Barbara Jones brings us the story of her mother who was evacuated from Birkenhead to Wales and didn't return. Tom talks to the author of "When the Children Came Home" Julie Summers.
Cade's Rebellion: Helen Castor joins Dr John Watts of Oxford University on a stroll over London Bridge to find out more about the Occupy movement of 1450 - John Cade's Kentish Rebellion.
Convoys: Listener Jonathan Bridge picks up on last week's story about the Atlantic convoys of 1812 and asks whether the Admiralty forgot the lessons of the war with the United States in the years leading up to the First World War? Pieter van der Merwe, General Editor at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich explains all.
Synchronised swimming: Professor Fred Gray joins Tom on Brighton sea-front to explain the unlikely beginnings of an unlikely Olympic sport.
Lilly Parr: Dr Jean Williams shines a light on some forgotten sporting women, such as footballer Lilly Parr, who the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography are to feature in this Olympic year.
Producer: Nick Patrick
A Pier Production for BBC Radio 4.
TUE 15:30 Costing the Earth (b01hwfnq)
Jellyfish Invasion!
Jellyfish are taking over the world's oceans, eating baby fish and driving marine ecosystems back to the primitive Cambrian era. Or are they? Although incidents of human-jellyfish interaction are on the increase, it's hard to be sure that the jellies are really increasing in number over the long term. But then again, if we wait till we are sure, won't it be too late? Miranda Krestovnikoff investigates.
Producer: Jolyon Jenkins.
TUE 16:00 Reading between the Lines (b01hxh6w)
Easy as ABC?
Michael Morpurgo explores how the seminal experience of learning to read has changed over the last 70 years.
In June 2012, all Year One children in English primary schools will sit a compulsory new "Phonics Screening Check".
Meanwhile, authoritative studies show British ten year olds performing less well and expressing less enthusiasm for reading than many of their international peers.
Michael Morpurgo - hugely popular children's author, former Children's Laureate and passionate advocate for children's reading - explores how the experience of learning to read has changed since the 1944 Butler Education Act. Michael's starting point is a passionate interest in the subject, forged over decades as a father, grandfather, teacher and writer.
1. Easy as ABC?
In the first of two programmes, Michael finds out just what Systematic Synthetic Phonics are and why some, not least Nick Gibb, the Minister for Schools in the Coalition Government, are so keen on them - while others, in the educational establishment and the world of children's books, are less enthusiastic.
He talks to the Minister, and to phonics expert Ruth Miskin, and hears from writers Philip Pullman, Michael Rosen and Julia Donaldson. He visits a primary school in South London, rated 'Outstanding' by Ofsted, which has embraced the new system, and talks with pupils and teachers.
Ultimately, Michael Morpurgo tries to square the circle between getting children reading and getting them to love reading - not only because this is a widely recognised prerequisite for success in secondary education, but also because of the pleasure and fulfilment it brings children everywhere.
Producer : Beaty Rubens.
TUE 16:30 Great Lives (b01hxh6y)
Series 27
Sebastian Walker
Lynn Barber first met Sebastian Walker at Oxford. "He was the first person I'd ever met who was gay...quite funny looking with a big adam's apple and bespeckled face...he dressed in a very dandy way."
He formed Walker Books in 1978 which, in Lynn's words, "launched a whole new era of children's book publishing." He took every opportunity to reinvent the rules of publishing - he paid the illustrators more money than anyone else, befriending the likes of Maurice Sendak and Helen Oxenbury till they agreed to work for him. He struck a deal to sell books through Sainsbury's supermarkets and justified it in the name of child literacy. Titles like 'We're Going on a Bear Hunt' and 'Where's Wally? would establish Walker Books as a major player in children's book publishing. Walker would describe the financial side of business as a "bore" preferring to spend his money on lavish parties for his friends.
Lynn Barber talks to Matthew Parris about why Sebastian Walker remains such a memorable friend. They're joined by Walker's sister and biographer Mirabel Cecil who says her brother "..had very little sense of his own identity", and that his one true love was really the piano.
Producer: Toby Field
First broadcast on Radio 4 in 2012.
TUE 17:00 PM (b01hxh70)
Eddie Mair presents full coverage and analysis of the day's news.
TUE 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b01hw1vl)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
TUE 18:30 Cabin Pressure (b01293c9)
Series 3
Paris
When a bottle of highly expensive whisky goes missing, Martin becomes the Miss Marple of MJN Air with Arthur assisting as his trusty Doctor Watson and Douglas hindering as his untrusty prime suspect.
John Finnemore's sitcom about the pilots of a tiny charter airline for whom no job is too small and many jobs are too difficult.
Carolyn Knapp-Shappey ..... Stephanie Cole
1st Officer Douglas Richardson ..... Roger Allam
Capt. Martin Crieff ..... Benedict Cumberbatch
Arthur Shappey ..... John Finnemore
Mr Birling ..... Geoffrey Whitehead
Mrs Birling ..... Flip Webster
Phil ...... Ewan Bailey
Producer/Director: David Tyler
A Pozzitive production for BBC Radio 4 first broadcast in July 2011.
TUE 19:00 The Archers (b01hxh72)
Adam's enjoying a little light gardening; he wants to do well in Britain in Bloom. Ian teases that he's turned into Lynda! They spot Keith Horrobin driving past, and Ian's less than complimentary. Adam says Keith's OK. Later they shop for plants and have lunch at the garden centre. Whilst admitting to feeling weary by the afternoon, Adam's looking forward to their trip to the Test match on Friday. He's really missing cricket.
Keith arrives with gifts for Tracy's children: a hamster and a rat. Tracy admires them; the kids will be made up. But when she mentions the attack on Adam, Keith drops the rat and it makes its escape behind the sofa. Early efforts to tempt it out are in vain, so while they wait Keith shows Tracy some swatches for Chelsea's bridesmaid dress. Despite lamenting the expense of the wedding he promises he's still paying for the dress.
Alan's shopping for his special curry supper, with Usha's help. She discovers Amy doesn't know it'll be the three of them for dinner, and urges Alan to tell Amy. He leaves her a message, and Amy is a no show for dinner. She's gone to Alice's.
TUE 19:15 Front Row (b01hxh74)
Actor John Simm, author George RR Martin
With Mark Lawson
John Simm, star of the TV series Life on Mars, reflects on his return to the stage in Sheffield in Betrayal, Harold Pinter's drama of marital infidelity told backwards.
Engelbert Humperdinck is aiming for UK Eurovision success with Love Will Set You Free at the contest's final on Saturday. But what about the competition? David Hepworth and Rosie Swash, our Eurovision Jukebox Jury, identify this year's hits and misses.
Writer George R.R. Martin discusses his bestselling fantasy series A Song of Ice and Fire, which is the source of the television series Game of Thrones. He admits that the scale of the books has led to some continuity errors, and reveals how far some of his fans are prepared to go when expressing their enthusiasm.
Producer Claire Bartleet.
TUE 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b01j10h2)
[Repeat of broadcast at
10:45 today]
TUE 20:00 The End of Drug Discovery (b01hxh76)
We are in desperate need of new medicines for the major diseases facing us in the 21st century such as Alzheimer's and obesity. And we are running out of antibiotics that are effective against bacteria that are now resistant to many old varieties. As bringing new and improved drugs to patients becomes more difficult and more expensive - it can take twenty years and around $1 billion to bring a medicine to market - Geoff Watts asks what's gone wrong and what can be done to get new pharmaceutical treatments to patients.
Geoff talks to a number of researchers who have worked both within the pharmaceutical industry and publicly funded laboratories to get their views on why the source of drugs has dried up. These include Dr Patrick Vallance, of global pharmaceutical giant GSK, Professor Paul Workman of the Institute of Cancer Research, Professor Chas Bountra of Oxford University's Structural Genomics Consortium, and Dr Mike Dawson of biotech company Novacta Biosystems.
They argue that the age of the blockbuster drug which can treat millions of patients is over and that we don't know enough science to be able to find treatments for conditions like Alzheimer's disease. The industry is risk averse and regulations to ensure that drugs are safe and effective are burdensome. Tilli Tansey, Professor of the History of Modern Medical Science at Queen Mary University in London puts the state of drug discovery in its historical context.
Geoff finds out that these experts believe that there needs to be a fundamental change in the drug development process, and the key ingredient is collaboration - between industry and academia and between different drug companies. He also discovers that the medical charity, the Wellcome Trust, is putting money into the development of antibiotics, a field not of interest to many pharmaceutical companies.
Editor: Deborah Cohen.
TUE 20:40 In Touch (b01hxh78)
We speak to Fred Reid, who was at the forefront for the campaign for Disability Living Allowance at its implementation in 1992 about his views on the Government's current proposal for welfare reform. We also speak to Matt Davies from the RNIB about the current status of the proposed reforms and what happens next; and to a DLA recipient, and how he may be affected.
Also on the programme, one of the first visually impaired Olympic torchbearers Rachel Nafzger, who carried the torch in Devonport Cornwall, on the first day of its route around the UK.
TUE 21:00 All in the Mind (b01hxh7b)
Airport Scanners to help with Distorted Body Image
People with eating disorders often have a distorted view of their own bodies. Researchers at Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen are now using 3-D body scanners to test whether giving this accurate feedback of body shape could help in the treatment of life-threatening illnesses like anorexia and bulimia.
Chit-Lit, Scandi-Lit...now Neuro-Lit !
Why neuroscience is taking a leading role in the modern novel. Claudia Hammond talks to science writer, Jonah Lehrer, and to academic psychologist and writer, Charles Fernyhough, about the emergence of brain science in literature and considers whether new understanding of the brain can enrich fiction in the same way that Darwinism or Psychoanalysis did.
Teenagers' Brains and Social Rejection
It's long been known that adolescents are particularly vulnerable to being left out. They get hurt and feel the rejection very keenly. Research by Dr Catherine Sebastian at the Developmental Risk and Resilience Unit at University College London suggests this response could be explained by the developing teenage brain.
Producer: Fiona Hill.
TUE 21:30 The Life Scientific (b01hw7yy)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:00 today]
TUE 21:58 Weather (b01hw1vn)
The latest weather forecast.
TUE 22:00 The World Tonight (b01hxh7d)
As Eurozone ministers prepare for tomorrow's key summit, what impact will the eurozone's troubles have on the global economy?
Egypt prepares to vote for its first President in elections tomorrow.
And should space travel be commercialised?
With Ritula Shah.
TUE 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b01j0y5j)
Fitzgerald Short Stories
Babylon Revisited: Part 2
By F. Scott Fitzgerald.
Read by Stuart Milligan.
Written in 1930, "Babylon Revisited" is considered to be one of the finest short stories ever written. An intensely personal portrait of a man who has squandered his life (his fortune dissipated, his marriage broken, his young daughter lost to him) it was written in the aftermath of the Wall Street Crash and still resonates deeply.
Part Two. Charles Wales has returned to Paris, the city where his life fell apart, to meet with his dead wife's family. He needs to persuade his sister-in-law that he's fit once more to take custody of his daughter, Honoria.
Abridged and produced by Kirsteen Cameron.
TUE 23:00 The Pickerskill Reports (b012r6tw)
Series 2
Paul Whitney Beauchamp
Retired English Master Dr Henry Pickerskill recalls a bullied day boy and his mother. Stars Ian McDiarmid. From July 2011.
TUE 23:30 Today in Parliament (b01hxkfd)
Sean Curran reports on events at Westminster.
WEDNESDAY 23 MAY 2012
WED 00:00 Midnight News (b01hw1wh)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.
WED 00:30 Book of the Week (b01j6qs0)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:45 on Tuesday]
WED 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b01hw1wk)
The latest shipping forecast.
WED 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b01hw1wm)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
WED 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b01hw1wp)
The latest shipping forecast.
WED 05:30 News Briefing (b01hw1wr)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.
WED 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b01hxmvh)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Sister Gemma Simmonds of the Congregation of Jesus.
WED 05:45 Farming Today (b01hxmvm)
A merger of two dairy co-ops could mean better milk prices for some UK dairy farmers. Anna Hill asks Milk Link's CEO if it'll also spell longer term security for contract prices.
Bovine TB in cattle could be much more prevalent than we think, according to new research from the University of Liverpool. Researchers suggest that the common parasite, liver fluke, could be masking the results of skin tests.
Have you ever 'pimped your pavement'? It's a catchy slogan for creating colour on any patch of urban land. Sarah Falkingham meets guerrilla gardeners at the Chelsea Flower show.
And Clare Freeman meets farmer Martin Powell Tuck as he ponders grubbing 10 acres of his Herefordshire hops because of price drops on the world market.
Presented by Anna Hill. Produced by Clare Freeman in Birmingham.
WED 06:00 Today (b01hxmvp)
Morning news and current affairs, presented by John Humphrys and Evan Davis, including:
0742
The inventor of the first TV remote control, Eugene Polley, died yesterday at the age of 96, That was back in 1955 but it took another two or three decades to arrive into our homes. Inventor Trevor Baylis and Guardian columnist Zoe Williams reflect on the power of invention and the gadget which created the couch potato.
0750
More than 80,000 racist incidents have been recorded in schools across the country in the last four years, a BBC investigation has found. Natalie, a 15 year-old victim of racism, Sarah Soyei of Show Racism the Red Card, and Brian Lightman, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, discuss whether there is a rise in racism in schools.
0810
As a second round of negotiations begins today on Iran's nuclear programme between Tehran and the members of the UN security council, how real is the threat of of a conflict between Israel and Iran? Mohammad Marandi, a professor at Tehran University and Dan Meridor, Israel's minister of intelligence and atomic energy, debate the prospects of conflict occurring.
WED 09:00 Midweek (b01hxmvs)
Omid Djalili, Chyna, Brian Jackman, Tim Edey
Libby Purves is joined by actor and comedian Omid Djalili, former girl gang member, Chyna, travel journalist and writer Brian Jackman and folk musician Tim Edey.
Omid Djalili is an award-winning British-Iranian actor and comedian. He is currently starring in Joe Orton's play 'What the Butler Saw'. Omid has appeared in films including The Mummy, Gladiator, and The Infidel and on stage played the role of Fagin in Oliver! What the Butler Saw is at London's Vaudeville Theatre.
Writing under the pseudonym 'Chyna', the author gives a graphic account of life in a girl gang which she joined at the age of 12. Her gang of ten members operated in the estates of south London fighting, stealing and dealing drugs. Now 24, Chyna has turned her life around and works for the community charity 'foundation4 life' which helps young people extricate themselves from the grip of local gangs. 'How I escaped a Girl Gang' is published by Coronet.
Brian Jackman is a travel journalist and writer. He is the author, with Jonathan and Angie Scott, of 'The Marsh Lions,' which was originally published thirty years ago and has just been reissued. For five years the authors followed the Marsh pride of lions of the Masai Mara, painstakingly recording the daily drama of life and death on the African plains. The Marsh Lions - The Story of an African Pride is published by Bradt.
Tim Edey is a folk musician who started playing Irish folk music at the age of four. At this year's Radio 2 Folk Awards Tim won Musician of the Year and Best Duo (with Brendon Power) and is touring with the Chieftains later this year.
Producer: Paula McGinley.
WED 09:45 Book of the Week (b01j6qth)
Hedge Britannia
Episode 3
Written by Hugh Barker. Read by Tim Key.
Hugh Barker, a hedge enthusiast, has journeyed across Britain to explore its remarkable variety of hedgerows.
Topiary - was probably brought to these islands by the Romans, the controversy lingers on.
Over the course of his travels he discovers how hedges are amongst our most ancient monuments, meets hedgelaying champions and topiary fanatics, and sees the lengths to which some people will go to annoy the neighbours. Along the way he tells how a connection between paradise and the garden hedge grew up, why the British Army planted a barrier hedge hundreds of miles long in India, and how the notorious enclosures during the Industrial Revolution turned the country upside-down.
Abridged and Produced by Jill Waters
A Waters Company production for BBC Radio 4.
WED 10:00 Woman's Hour (b01hxmvx)
Margaret Byrne, CEO of Sunderland AFC, on being female in football; Egg donation - who gets paid for egg donation? Olympic hopeful Natasha Perdue on her weightlifting career; Journalist Kathleen MacMahon on her first novel; Music from Melody Gardot. Presented by Jenni Murray.
WED 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b01j116p)
In the Van
Episode 3
Written by Clare Bayley.
Yasmin Zafiri, and her supervisor and fiance Jonathan, are getting frustrated both with the lack of progress on their stake out and with each other. Yasmin discovers Jonathan's parents and their boss know nothing of their relationship. But the suspects they are following are expecting a visitor from abroad which will change everything. A breakthrough is just around the corner.
Cast:
Yasmin ....... Amber Agar
Jonathan ...... Matt Rawle
Rachid ........ Nitzan Sharron
Samira ....... Sirine Saba
Bob ...... Felix Dexter
Directed by Marilyn Imrie
A Bona Broadcasting production for BBC Radio 4.
WED 11:00 Lives in a Landscape (b01hxmw1)
Series 10
Steel Spring
Steel Spring. In 1990 Alan Dein travelled the length and breadth of Britain to document lives in steel- already an industry in decline. His then employer British Steel is, itself, now history. Decline, closure and layoffs have been the depressingly familiar litany of modern British industry. When they mothballed the blast furnace at Redcar, on the iron coast of Teesside, in 2010 it felt like just another death. "Like killing a creature" one worker says but this Easter Redcar witnessed a remarkable and fiery resurrection. A billion and a half dollars from Thailand brought back steel making and now the new blast furnace belches smoke and fire as the grey waves crash against the sands of Redcar. Alan Dein returns to a landscape he hasn't visited for a quarter of a century to journey from the iron shore where dark grey waves complement the coils of pale smoke beyond before trailing the black path to the steelworks and its fiery heart, the blast furnace. Dein picks his way through the vast metal realm of 'Queen Bess' vomiting sparks, smoke and flame to hear from new and old lives in steel, from those who forever left behind a world of generational toil and from those reborn in the shadow of the fire.
Producer Mark Burman.
WED 11:30 Believe It! (b01hxmw4)
Series 1
Boots
Celebrity autobiographies are everywhere. Richard Wilson has always said he'd never write one.
Based on glimmers of truth, Believe It is the hilarious, bizarre, revealing (and, most importantly, untrue) celebrity radiography of Richard Wilson.
He narrates the series, weaving in and out of dramatised scenes from his fictional life-story. He plays a heavily exaggerated version of himself: a Scots actor and national treasure, unmarried, private, passionate about politics, theatre and Manchester United (all true), who's a confidant of the powerful and has survived childhood poverty, a drunken father, years of fruitless grind, too much success, monstrosity, addiction, charity work, secret work for governments and fierce rivalry with Sean Connery (not true).
All the melodramatic staples of celebrity-autobiography are wonderfully undercut by Richard's deadpan delivery.
(The title - in case you hadn't spotted - is an unashamed reference to his famous catchphrase.)
Richard is supported by a small core cast viz
David Tennant
John Sessions
Lewis Macleod
Arabella Weir
and Jane Slavin
who play anyone and everyone!
Ghost written by Jon Canter
Produced by Clive Brill
A Pacificus Production for BBC Radio 4.
WED 12:00 You and Yours (b01hxmw6)
Flood insurance, driving with 12 points, Swedes on Twitter, and accessing your medical records online
Why are more than 10% of motorists who have the maximum 12 points on their driving licence still on the road?
The government wants all of us to be able to access our GP records online by 2015 - we'll look at the pros and cons of their strategy.
How rail passengers who make a genuine mistake are being threatened with big fines. The watchdog Passenger Focus has heard nearly 400 complaints, but they believe it's the tip of the iceberg.
Why the Swedish government asks citizens to tweet on their account.
Also, a voluntary agreement between the government and the insurance industry- which ensures people in high risk flood areas can get affordable insurance - runs out in June 2013. So what will take its place? And why is it taking so long?
Presenter - Winifred Robinson
Producer - Vibeke Venema.
WED 12:57 Weather (b01hw1wt)
The latest weather forecast.
WED 13:00 World at One (b01hxmwb)
At Prime Minister's Questions, there's a clash over the economy and David Cameron calls Ed Balls a 'muttering idiot'. Jonty Bloom explains eurobonds in 60 seconds. Plus Hugh Sykes reports from Egypt's Presidential elections and we in our education series we report on academy schools and hear from England's Children's Commissioner.
If you want to join others in discussing the programme, you can do so on twitter using the # wato.
WED 13:45 Our Daily Bread (b01j0srq)
The Bread of Life
Today's episode brings together a bishop, an imam and a rabbi for an interfaith bake-in and a chance not just to talk about what bread means to their respective religions but, through small moments of mutual recognition, to find out how much they have in common.
Producer: Jonathan Kent
A Falling Tree Production for BBC Radio 4.
WED 14:00 The Archers (b01hxh72)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Tuesday]
WED 14:15 Drama (b00t0fzn)
Alex Shearer - The Diabolical Gourmet
Death by fine dining: the true story of Pere Gourier and his string of perfectly legal murders in the finest restaurants of 1790s Paris.
Bored with his wife and home life, the well-off landowner begins to amuse himself by taking hard-up acquaintances every day to the best restaurants in Paris and dining them to death. Everyone knows about it but - as he isn't doing anything against the law - no one can stop him.
Dealing with a succulent batch of topics - food, wine, fine dining, the effects of over-indulgence, a loophole in the law and a murderer who can't be stopped - this true story unfolds from the perspective of Ameline, the executioner's assistant who volunteers to take on the murdering bon vivant Gourier at his own game in the richest restaurants in Paris.
The intensity and opulence of Gourier's deadly feasts (he would order 15 steaks at a sitting, trying to kill off his fellow diner) lead to a final dining-room confrontation between him and Ameline, the table groaning under the weight of course after course of rich, deadly food - the murder weapon of a rich, deadly gourmet.
Historical drama, written by Alex Shearer.
Ameline ..... Mark Benton
Gourier ..... Ian McNeice
Chavette ..... Royce Mills
Gaston/Bayard/Antoine/Victor/Hubert/Henri/Charles ..... Jon Glover
Widow/Magdalene/Madame Cambertin ..... Rachel Atkins
Director: Neil Cargill
A Pier production for BBC Radio 4.
WED 15:00 Money Box Live (b01hxmwf)
Student finance: If you're planning to go to university this Autumn, now is the time to apply for funding. The cost of studying in the UK is rising: From September 2012, universities in England are raising tuition fees to a maximum £9,000 a year. Universities in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are also increasing their fees to a similar level, but their home students won't be affected. So how to fund your studies? Who is eligible for a student loan and what does it cover? Where can you find more information about grants, bursaries and scholarships? Whatever your question on paying for university, you can contact Money Box Live. Paul Lewis and a panel of experts will answer your calls and emails on student finance.
Email moneybox@bbc.co.uk or call 03700 100 444 (lines open at
1pm, Wednesday)
Producer Sally Abrahams.
WED 15:30 All in the Mind (b01hxh7b)
[Repeat of broadcast at
21:00 on Tuesday]
WED 16:00 Thinking Allowed (b01hxmwh)
Wine tasting; US philanthropy
Philanthropy is most often associated with the fight against poverty and disease. But a new book claims that the philanthropic foundations established by the major American industrialists - Rockefeller, Carnegie and Ford - have also promoted American values across the world. From Chile to Indonesia, they've invested in the creation of intellectual elites with a neo liberal agenda. And, it's claimed, they've had a significant role on the international stage, transforming America from a parochial nation into a global leader. Professor Inderjeet Parmar explores the power of US philanthropy with Laurie Taylor. Also, what does the language of wine tell us about civilisation? Professor Steven Shapin charts the cultural and chemical evolution of wine tasting.
Producer: Jayne Egerton.
WED 16:30 The Media Show (b01hxmwm)
Eurovision's Azerbaijan controversy
On The Media Show with Steve Hewlett:
The organisers of the Eurovision song contest have been criticised by human rights campaigners for allowing the event to be held in Azerbaijan, despite concerns about lack of press freedom. The director general of the European Broadcasting Union, Ingrid Deltenre, defends the EBU against these criticisms and explains what it is doing to support public service broadcasting.
Tessa Jowell MP has been giving evidence to the Leveson Inquiry this week. She tells Steve how she felt when she was first told her phone had been hacked - and why she accepted the claim at the time that this was the work of one rogue reporter.
And David Elstein and Claire Enders discuss today's announcement that Sky faces no action over its strong position in the TV film market, despite the complaints of rivals. They also look ahead to tomorrow's Leveson evidence from Adam Smith, the special adviser to media secretary of state Jeremy Hunt.
The producer is Simon Tillotson.
WED 17:00 PM (b01hxmwp)
Eddie Mair presents coverage and analysis of the day's news.
WED 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b01hw1ww)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
WED 18:30 So Wrong It's Right (b01hxmws)
Series 3
Episode 2
Presented by Charlie Brooker, 'So Wrong It's Right' is a competitive game of failure where coming up with the wrong answer is the right thing to do.
Over a series of rounds, Charlie asks three guests a number of questions to rummage through their pasts and test their creativity. So Wrong It's Right celebrates the pungent taste of disappointment by turning embarrassing mistakes into perverse triumphs.
In this episode, the guests joining him to try and out-wrong each other are comedians Lee Mack, Holly Walsh and panel show legend Barry Cryer.
The panel's worst experiences at school and the best ideas for the worst TV News gimmicks are put to the panel. Will anyone surpass Barry Cryer's suggestion of a revamped 'Newsnight' presented by tabloid darling and reality TV superstar Katie Price?
The host of So Wrong It's Right, Charlie Brooker, also presents BBC2's How TV Ruined Your Life, Channel 4's You Have Been Watching and 10 O'Clock Live, and writes for The Guardian. He won Columnist of the Year at the 2009 British Press Awards and Best Newcomer at the British Comedy Awards 2009.
Produced by Aled Evans
A Zeppotron Production for BBC Radio 4.
WED 19:00 The Archers (b01hxmwx)
Will and Chris hope Iftikar's cricket coaching can help stop their run of recent defeats. They tease Rhys about his poor showing, and Rhys hopes he can stay on the team. At nets Will has to make his apologies and leave early. Iftikar makes it clear, albeit politely, that he expects commitment if the team's going to improve. He proceeds to give constructive tips to the others, keeping them on their toes.
Helen's in Borchester looking after Rowan along with Henry. Fortunately she's bumped into Nic in a café, who's helped her out and settled the two children. Nic says she's in town to drop off some of Mia's outgrown clothes at a charity shop, but she couldn't park so has abandoned the idea. Later she admits to Clarrie that this was a white lie. She couldn't face parting with the clothes; they're her last link with Mia being tiny. She doesn't know what she's going to tell Will. Clarrie advises the truth; that maybe it's just not the right time. Later Nic admits to Will that she can't fight what she's feeling - she wants them to have a baby together. But just one! Will's delighted; one's perfect, he beams.
WED 19:15 Front Row (b01hxmwz)
Chariots of Fire on stage; Henry Moore indoors.
With Mark Lawson.
The Oscar-winning film Chariots of Fire now arrives on stage, with the Hampstead Theatre turned into the arena of the 1924 Paris Olympics. And the new cinema documentary Personal Best has followed young British sprinters over the last four years, on the road to London 2012. Sports presenter Eleanor Oldroyd compares these stories of athletic dedication.
Henry Moore: Large Late Forms is a new exhibition for which a series of the artist's giant bronze sculptures have been transported from their usual place in the fields outside Moore's home in Hertfordshire to a central London gallery on the back of a vast flatbed truck. Curator Anita Feldman discusses the logistical challenge of bringing these enormous artworks indoors.
Canadian photographer Edward Burtynsky talks about his fascination with the environment, in the light of two new exhibitions. Burtynsky: Oil considers the mechanics, distribution and use of some of the world's most highly contested resources, while Monegros - Dryland Farming depicts the semi-arid terrain of the agricultural region in Spain, which has created a vast lattice-work of patterns which he observes from the air.
After 17 years the Orange Prize for Fiction has lost its sponsor, and now needs to find new investors. Changing circumstances have also led to the re-branding of the Man Booker Prize and the Costa Book Awards. Graham Hales, from the consultancy firm Interbrand, considers the links between sponsors and arts awards.
Producer Nicki Paxman.
WED 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b01j116p)
[Repeat of broadcast at
10:45 today]
WED 20:00 Decision Time (b01hxmx1)
The BBC's Political Editor Nick Robinson shines a light on the process by which controversial decisions are reached behind closed doors in Whitehall.
This week, he and his panel consider how to avoid a war in the Middle East - a war which could follow an Israeli attack on Iran's nuclear facilities designed to stop any plans they might have to develop a nuclear bomb. How real is the prospect, and how can Britain and America work to avoid it, with all the incalculable consequences.
Nick is joined by:
Sir Nigel Sheinwald, former British Ambassador to Washington who was, before that, Tony Blair's foreign and defence policy adviser.
Baroness Liz Symons, former Labour Foreign Office Minister and Middle East envoy who maintains close contacts in the region.
Peter Jenkins, former British Ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna
James Steinberg, former Deputy Secretary of State in President Obama's government, and previously Deputy National Security Adviser in Bill Clinton's White House
Bronwen Maddox, Editor of Prospect magazine and previously Foreign Editor of The Times.
Producer: Giles Edwards.
WED 20:45 Four Thought (b01hxmx5)
Series 3
Kate Smurthwaite: Stop Laughing at Sexism
Comedian Kate Smurthwaite argues it's time to stop laughing at sexism and time to stop prejudice against women comedians, because comedy is a key part of UK culture, affecting our opinions and values.
Four Thought is a series of talks with a personal viewpoint recorded in front of an audience at the RSA in London.
Producer: Sheila Cook.
WED 21:00 Costing the Earth (b01hwfnq)
[Repeat of broadcast at
15:30 on Tuesday]
WED 21:30 Midweek (b01hxmvs)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:00 today]
WED 21:58 Weather (b01hw1wy)
The latest weather forecast.
WED 22:00 The World Tonight (b01hxmxf)
EU leaders meet to consider growth measures. We hear from Ireland about hopes there for an alternative to austerity. And a former president of the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development tells us the euro cannot survive without greater political union.
We'll hear from voters taking part in Egypt's historic presidential elections.
And as donors pledge $4bn to stabilise Yemen, the Foreign Office minister tells us why it's money well spent.
With Robin Lustig.
WED 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b01j0y6h)
Fitzgerald Short Stories
Babylon Revisited: Part 3
By F. Scott Fitzgerald.
Read by Stuart Milligan.
Written in 1930, "Babylon Revisited" is one of Fitzgerald's finest short stories. Written in the aftermath of the Wall Street Crash, it's an intensely personal portrait of a man who has squandered his life: his fortune dissipated, his marriage broken, his child lost to him.
Part Three. Charles waits to hear whether he has done enough to convince his sister-in-law that he's fit to regain custody of his daughter, Honoria.
Abridged and produced by Kirsteen Cameron.
WED 23:00 Helen Keen's It Is Rocket Science (b01hxmxk)
Series 2
Episode 2
This comic but informative look at the history of space exploration looks this week at the role that leaps of the imagination have played in the science of rocketry, including the strange story of Russian Cosmism, and how their mission to bring back to life everyone who has ever lived produced pioneering work on multi-stage rockets: and the even stranger story of a plan in the 1950s for a giant spaceship capable of carrying a hundred and fifty people that could have been built using existing technology - Project Orion. There was just one snag - it was to be fuelled by nuclear bombs.
Starring Helen Keen, Peter Serafinowicz and Susy Kane
Written by Helen Keen and Miriam Underhill
Produced by Gareth Edwards.
WED 23:15 Strap In - It's Clever Peter (b01hxmxt)
Barry
Strap in for fifteen minutes of rip-roaring comedy as Clever Peter bring you a Health & Safety blowdart, a killer whale and a soufflé.
Clever Peter - the wild and brilliantly funny award-winning sketch team get their own Radio 4 show.
From the team that brought you Cabin Pressure and Another Case Of Milton Jones comes the massively bonkers and funny Clever Peter, hot off the Edinburgh Fringe and wearers of tri-coloured jerseys.
"If they don't go very far very soon there is no such thing as British justice" - Daily Telegraph
"A masterclass in original sketch comedy" - Metro
"Pretty much top of the class" - The Scotsman
So -
Why "Clever"?
Dunno
Why "Peter"?
Not a clue mate
Should I listen to the show?
Yes, of course! Derrr.
Starring Richard Bond, Edward Eales-White, William Hartley
and special guest Catriona Knox
Written by Richard Bond, Edward Eales-White, William Hartley & Dominic Stone
Produced & directed by David Tyler
A Pozzitive Television Ltd Production for BBC Radio 4.
WED 23:30 Today in Parliament (b01hxmxy)
Susan Hulme with the day's top news stories from Westminster .
Mps discuss the economy..and plans to change workers' rights.
During bad tempered exchanges at Prime Minister's questions David Cameron calls Labour's Shadow Chancellor, Ed Balls a muttering idiot. The Labour leader Ed Miliband says the Conservatives have returned to being the nasty party.
THURSDAY 24 MAY 2012
THU 00:00 Midnight News (b01hw1xv)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.
THU 00:30 Book of the Week (b01j6qth)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:45 on Wednesday]
THU 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b01hw1xx)
The latest shipping forecast.
THU 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b01hw1xz)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
THU 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b01hw1y1)
The latest shipping forecast.
THU 05:30 News Briefing (b01hw1y3)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.
THU 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b01hxpx9)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Sister Gemma Simmonds, Congregation of Jesus.
THU 05:45 Farming Today (b01hxpxc)
Anna Hill asks the Chief Executive of the biosciences research funding body, the BBSRC, how much of a new round of Government investment will be spent on GM? And, the Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Agriculture and Science explains why he thinks GM deserves ministerial and public support. Plus, the fish DNA test which scientists hope will stop illegal trawling. And why Sunshine and Patience are watchwords for dairy farmers at the moment.
Presenter: Anna Hill
Producer: Sarah Swadling.
THU 06:00 Today (b01hxpxf)
Morning news and current affairs, presented by John Humphrys and James Naughtie, including:
07:30 Is Ken Clarke right blame the popular press for putting thousands of criminals in jail who do not need to be there?
07:50 Should free personal banking end?
08:10 What should we make of the latest euro summit?
THU 09:00 In Our Time (b01hxpxh)
Marco Polo
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the celebrated Venetian explorer Marco Polo. In 1271 Polo set off on an epic journey through Asia. He was away for more than twenty years, and when he returned to Venice he told extraordinary tales of his adventures. He had visited the court of the Mongol Emperor Kublai Khan, and acted as his emissary, travelling through many of the remote territories of the Far East. An account of Marco Polo's travels was written down by his contemporary Rustichello da Pisa, a romance writer he met after being imprisoned during a war against the neighbouring Genoese.The Travels of Marco Polo was one of the most popular books produced in the age before printing. It was widely translated, and many beautifully illustrated editions made their way to the collections of the rich and educated. It was much read by later travellers, and Polo's devotees included Christopher Columbus and Henry the Navigator. For centuries it was seen as the first and best account of life in the mysterious East; but today the accuracy and even truth of Marco Polo's work is often disputed.With:Frances WoodLead Curator of Chinese Collections at the British LibraryJoan Pau RubiesReader in International History at the London School of Economics and Political ScienceDebra Higgs StricklandSenior Lecturer in the History of Art at the University of GlasgowProducer: Thomas Morris.
THU 09:45 Book of the Week (b01j6qvz)
Hedge Britannia
Episode 4
Written by Hugh Barker. Read by Tim Key.
Hugh Barker, a hedge enthusiast, has journeyed across Britain to explore its remarkable variety of hedgerows.
An enthusiast's account of how Britain's history has been mapped by hedges. Today we hear about Captain Leyland's legacy.
Over the course of his travels he discovers how hedges are amongst our most ancient monuments, meets hedgelaying champions and topiary fanatics, and sees the lengths to which some people will go to annoy the neighbours. Along the way he tells how a connection between paradise and the garden hedge grew up, why the British Army planted a barrier hedge hundreds of miles long in India, and how the notorious enclosures during the Industrial Revolution turned the country upside-down.
Abridged and Produced by Jill Waters
A Waters Company production for BBC Radio 4.
THU 10:00 Woman's Hour (b01hxpxk)
Hilary Devey from Dragons' Den talks to Jenni about her autobiography 'Bold as Brass, My Story' which chronicles her rise to the top of the profession and her personal struggles along the way. Winner of the Great British Bake Off Jo Wheatley Cooks the Perfect pancakes. Is it time to set a living wage rather than a minimum wage. Plus, why are only a quarter of the names on the New Elizabethan list women? Does it reflect the contribution women have made over the past 60 years to British society.
Presenter Jenni Murray
Producer Sarah Johnstone.
THU 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b01j0z63)
In the Van
Episode 4
Written by Clare Bayley.
MI5 officer Yasmin finds her sympathy for her suspects growing - but an unwanted guest forces Rachid to jeopardise everything he loves and brings the Yasmin's new career into harsh reality.
Cast:
Yasmin ....... Amber Agar
Jonathan ...... Matt Rawle
Rachid ........ Nitzan Sharron
Samira ....... Sirine Saba
Bob ...... Felix Dexter
Directed by Marilyn Imrie
A Bona Broadcasting production for BBC Radio 4.
THU 11:00 From Our Own Correspondent (b01hxpxm)
Portia Walker on how optimism in Yemen after the overthrow of an unpopular president was punctured this week by a devastating bomb blast in the capital.
Alan Johnston on how a state funeral's being held in Sicily to honour a man who dared to take on the Mafia -- and paid the ultimate price.
Laura Trevelyan's been to a town in Mexico which has grown rich on the profits of sex trafficking.
Matthew Teller has been finding out how the authorities in the Saudi capital Riyadh transformed a public rubbish tip into lush parkland complete with lakes and walkways.
and Bethany Bell examines why the people of Vienna, who live in one of the world's most desirable capital cities, still seem to have plenty to moan about.
THU 11:30 Follow-Up Albums (b01hxpxp)
Fleetwood Mac - Tusk
Music critic Pete Paphides tells the story behind three 'follow-up' albums - from Dexys Midnight Runners, Fleetwood Mac and Suede - with tales of musical pressure, creative differences, personal politics and mixed results.
How many bands have found themselves with a massive and often unexpected hit album, only to struggle with the creation of their next opus? Sometimes the follow-up exceeds the first album, but often nerves kick in and bands are removed from the very stimulus that created their magic in the first place, finding themselves in a world of creative confusion, sycophants and accountants.
Pete Paphides talks to musicians, producers, and critics to explore the stories of follow-up albums with the same expert knowledge he brought to Lost Albums.
Programme 2: Fleetwood Mac - Tusk
How do you follow a record that sells 21 million copies worldwide and spends over 30 weeks at number one in the US album chart?
The answer is Tusk - the album Fleetwood Mac recorded in the wake of 1976's Rumours.
Despite joining the band just three years previously, this was the record that saw Lindsey Buckingham impose his will on Fleetwood Mac using the studio as a crucible in which he shovelled intra-band infidelities and his new-found love of punk.
In 1979 it was deemed a failure, nicknamed "Lindsey's folly" from industry insiders. After 35 years, it has been reappraised as their boldest, most forward-looking release, "a peerless piece of pop art", influencing Radiohead and REM.
Produced by Laura Parfitt
A White Pebble Media Production for BBC Radio 4
THU 12:00 You and Yours (b01hxpxr)
Trendy topiary, Olympic transport, and low energy light bulbs
Topiary has triumphed at this year's Chelsea. We commission our own unique design, and find out what's behind the return to form of sculptured shrubs.
Transport & the Olympics - smooth and efficient and for whom? We hear from the Transport Committee meeting with key stakeholders this week.
Incandescent light bulbs will stop being available from September. Many people don't like alternative low energy replacements, but we hear from the people who say they are causing them health problems.
Cloud storage is marketed as an efficient way to store your digital data off site, so it's accessible from anywhere with an internet connection, and doesn't clog up your hard drive. So how well is it working, and who does the data belong to?
And we hear from the law firms offering cash incentives to bring your claims to them - a way to get round the forthcoming ban on referral fees, or a legitimate marketing strategy?
Presenter: Winifred Robinson
Producer: Rebecca Moore.
THU 12:57 Weather (b01hw1y5)
The latest weather forecast.
THU 13:00 World at One (b01hxpxt)
Martha Kearney presents the national and international news. Listeners can share their views via email: wato@bbc.co.uk or on twitter: #wato.
THU 13:45 Our Daily Bread (b01j0v4w)
The Bread of Nations
'The Bread of Nations' takes us on a journey across the northern European plain, from Paris via Cologne to Krakow, to discover what bread has to tell us about three great European peoples.
Producer: Jonathan Kent
A Falling Tree Production for BBC Radio 4.
THU 14:00 The Archers (b01hxmwx)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Wednesday]
THU 14:15 Drama (b01hxpxw)
James Graham - The Grudge
A wry political comedy from James Graham. The only British prime minister ever to be assassinated was shot as he entered the House of Commons. Two centuries later, as the turbulent elections of 1997 loom, could that event change the political landscape of a sleepy rural constituency, its settled incumbent and unwitting electorate?
Director ..... Peter Kavanagh.
THU 15:00 Ramblings (b01hxpxy)
Series 21
Flamborough Head to Bridlington
Clare Balding is walking with dogs (and their owners) in this new series of Ramblings.
Programme 1: Flamborough Head to Bridlington with Stuart Jessup, Kate Atkin and Poppy the springer spaniel.
Stuart Jessup and his springer spaniel, Poppy, started an 8 month, 2,500 mile walk around the English coast in October 2011. Occasionally joined by Stuart's wife, Kate, Stuart is walking as part of a campaign to reduce the stigma associated with mental illness, and to raise money for Sane and Anxiety UK. Clare Balding joined Stuart, Kate and Poppy for a stretch of the walk from Flamborough Head to Bridlington on the Yorkshire Coast, to hear more about his adventures. Poppy has been central to the success of the walk; her friendliness encourages conversations between Stuart and other walkers, who often reveal their own problems with depression - both parties leaving the encounter enriched.
Producer Karen Gregor.
THU 15:27 Radio 4 Appeal (b01hw62v)
[Repeat of broadcast at
07:55 on Sunday]
THU 15:30 Open Book (b01hw63f)
[Repeat of broadcast at
16:00 on Sunday]
THU 16:00 The Film Programme (b01hxpy0)
Francine Stock reports from the 65th Cannes Film Festival, speaking to jury member Alexander Payne, director of Moonrise Kingdom Wes Anderson, and Ken Loach whose latest, The Angels' Share, is his 11th film in competition for The Palme d'Or. In this updated repeat of Thursday's programme, we hear about the winners of the much coveted prizes.
Producer: Craig Smith.
THU 16:30 Material World (b01hxpy2)
In this week's programme Angela Saini asks whether the UK government's plans for future energy provisions live up to public expectations. New research shows the public generally favour renewable technologies over fossil fuels, but can the reality of our energy needs be squared with the public's wishes? We discuss this with public perception and energy policy experts Professors Nick Pidgeon from Cardiff University and Jim Watson from Sussex University.
We also look at how street lighting is affecting micro environments. Insects and arachnids seem to grow and multiply under new whiter brighter street lights. We discuss the consequences of this with researcher Thomas Davies from Exeter University.
Silicon chips are a key component of computers, but now a new type of chip with moveable silicon offers the chance of much faster operation and the preservation of huge amounts of data without the need to power the chips. Tony Kenyon form the University College London's Photonic Materials lab heads the team behind the new invention.
We also look at earthquake prediction and ask why it is currently impossible so say exactly when and where earthquakes will occur.
Producer: Julian Siddle.
THU 17:00 PM (b01hxpy4)
Full coverage and analysis of the day's news.
THU 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b01hw1y7)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
THU 18:30 Tom Wrigglesworth's Open Letters (b01hxpy6)
Series 2
Junk Mail
Sony Award-winning comic Tom Wrigglesworth performs the last in his series of open letters.
Now he's taking issue with his local curry house and their addiction to junk mail.
Tom also tracks the development of advertising and marketing - a development trajectory which has now led us to the rather ridiculous stage where we can be "Facebook friends" with Jacob's Crackers.
Written by Tom Wrigglesworth, James Kettle and Miles Jupp.
Producer: Simon Mayhew-Archer
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2012.
THU 19:00 The Archers (b01hxpy8)
Darrell thinks Elona risks being a doormat offering to trim Tom and Brenda's hedge. Elona reminds him that what you give, you get back. And after all, he helped Neil with Tracy's bathroom for no reward. Point taken, admits Darrell. Elona's dismayed Matt's still paying Darrell in cash. Darrell's reluctant to rock the boat, but Elona insists he asks Matt to make the wages official. Impatient Matt says he'll think about it. Lilian can see this is just a line, and berates Matt. She can't see why he won't do it. Darrell's good, and one has to pay for quality. Matt says simply that it's not the right time. Lilian warns the conversation isn't over.
David has an NFU meeting, leaving Ruth alone. He tries to convince her that the newspaper incident, like the phone call, was a one off. She points out he's changed his tune since he discovered it. She feels she's looking over her shoulder all the time now. All is well until David's return, when he notices the glass is blown in the security lights. It looks like an airgun has done the damage. Ruth's horrified; it's right below Ben's room. She begs David to report it.
THU 19:15 Front Row (b01hxpyb)
Tom Phillips, writing final TV episodes, Arnold Wesker at 80
With Mark Lawson.
The artist Tom Phillips is celebrating his 75th birthday today. To mark this, his classic book A Humument is being reprinted which he first embarked on in 1966, and there is a new exhibition of his recent and early art works. Phillips discusses his constantly-evolving book, and his long-term artistic projects, including The Seven Ages of Man, which takes the form of a series of tennis balls covered in the artist's own hair.
The last episode of the award-winning medical drama House is being broadcast tonight. As Hugh Laurie says goodbye to his maverick role, the writers are playing with viewer expectations by titling the finale 'Everybody Dies'. Writers Sam Vincent, Stephen Churchett and Matthew Graham, who were behind the final episodes of Spooks, Inspector Morse, Ashes to Ashes and Life on Mars, discuss the challenges of wrapping up a hit series.
On the day Arnold Wesker celebrates his 80th birthday, young playwrights Ryan Craig and Amy Rosenthal discuss the influence of Wesker's plays on their own work and whether he has changed the course of British theatre.
Producer Jerome Weatherald.
THU 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b01j0z63)
[Repeat of broadcast at
10:45 today]
THU 20:00 The Report (b01hxpyd)
Gareth Williams: Death of an MI6 Officer
Gareth Williams was found dead in his central London flat, inside a locked holdall, in August 2010. The 31-year old had been seconded from his full-time job at Government listening post GCHQ to MI6.
An inquest earlier this month concluded that 'on the balance of probabilities' Mr Williams was unlawfully killed and that it was unlikely he got into the bag by himself.
However, the Coroner in charge, Dr Fiona Wilcox, expressed doubt that Gareth Williams' death would ever be explained. His body was so badly decomposed when it was discovered that subsequent pathology reports proved inconclusive.
This week, The Report asks whether the investigation into what happened two years ago was hampered by mistakes from the outset.
Reporter Phil Kemp questions whether the police ruled out legitimate lines of inquiry too early. He explores the role of MI6 and the impact their delay in notifying anyone of his disappearance subsequently had on forensic testing.
Producer: Hannah Barnes.
THU 20:30 In Business (b01hxpyg)
Called to Account
The global Big Four accountancy groups are under sharp scrutiny from the authorities in Britain, Europe and the USA. Peter Day finds out why they are getting such close official attention..and why it matters to the rest of us.
Producer: Caroline Bayley.
THU 21:00 Extinct! (b01hwcwd)
[Repeat of broadcast at
11:00 on Tuesday]
THU 21:30 In Our Time (b01hxpxh)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:00 today]
THU 21:58 Weather (b01hw1y9)
The latest weather forecast.
THU 22:00 The World Tonight (b01hxr10)
Robin Lustig presents national and international news and analysis.
THU 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b01j0z65)
Fitzgerald Short Stories
The Sensible Thing: Part 1
By F. Scott Fitzgerald.
Read by Stuart Milligan.
First published in 1924, Fitzgerald's beautifully observed short story explores the changing nature of love.
An ambitious young man is desperate to get on with his career, so that he can gain the status and money to win the hand of the girl he loves.
Abridged and produced by Kirsteen Cameron.
THU 23:00 Tonight (b01hxr12)
Series 2
Episode 3
Rory Bremner and the team return for another series of Tonight, the topical satire show that digs that bit deeper into national and international politics.
Rory's mantra is that it's as important to make sense out of things as it is to make fun of them. With a team that includes veteran satirists Andy Zaltzman and Nick Doody and versatile impressionist and character comedian Kate O'Sullivan, Tonight promises to do both. This is half an hour of stand-up, sketches, and investigative satire. And at the core of the show are Rory's incisively funny interviews with the most informed guest commentators on the current political scene.
More global crises, more political scandal, more jokes with the word fiscal in them - and some truly brilliant impressions: a shot in the arm for satire lovers everywhere.
Producers: Simon Jacobs & Frank Stirling
A Unique Production for BBC Radio 4.
THU 23:30 Today in Parliament (b01hxr14)
Sean Curran reports on events at Westminster..
Tonight:
Labour says the latest economic figures show that this is a no growth government with its head in the sand -- But minister's defend the coalition, arguing it inherited an economy which had been hit by a major financial crisis.
FRIDAY 25 MAY 2012
FRI 00:00 Midnight News (b01hw1zj)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.
FRI 00:30 Book of the Week (b01j6qvz)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:45 on Thursday]
FRI 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b01hw1zl)
The latest shipping forecast.
FRI 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b01hw1zn)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
FRI 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b01hw1zq)
The latest shipping forecast.
FRI 05:30 News Briefing (b01hw1zs)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.
FRI 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b01hxt5d)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Sister Gemma Simmonds, Congregation of Jesus.
FRI 05:45 Farming Today (b01hxt5g)
France's ban on growing GM Maize has been rejected by the European Food Safety Authority. The European Commission tells us the rules may change rather than France, and 5 other countries, being forced to drop their bans. After closing 2 milk processing plants, losing a supermarket contract, and cutting prices to farmers. Dairy Crest has posted an overall loss of £10m for the last financial year. Much of the loss has come from the company writing off £80m from the value of its dairies division. An asparagus grower and wheat farmer share their experiences of the stop-start spring. And, the warm weather is bringing on the blooms in traditional hay meadows, which are now a rare habitat.
Presenter: Charlotte Smith
Producer: Sarah Swadling.
FRI 06:00 Today (b01hxt5j)
Presented by John Humphrys and Evan Davis. Including Sports Desk; Yesterday in Parliament; Weather; Thought for the Day.
FRI 09:00 Desert Island Discs (b01hw633)
[Repeat of broadcast at
11:15 on Sunday]
FRI 09:45 Book of the Week (b01j6qz4)
Hedge Britannia
Episode 5
Written by Hugh Barker. Read by Tim Key.
Hugh Barker, a hedge enthusiast, has journeyed across Britain to explore its remarkable variety of hedgerows.
Hedge People - from those who created the extravagantly absurd hedges of stately homes to those who campaign today for the preservation of our living margins.
Over the course of his travels he discovers how hedges are amongst our most ancient monuments, meets hedgelaying champions and topiary fanatics, and sees the lengths to which some people will go to annoy the neighbours. Along the way he tells how a connection between paradise and the garden hedge grew up, why the British Army planted a barrier hedge hundreds of miles long in India, and how the notorious enclosures during the Industrial Revolution turned the country upside-down.
Abridged and Produced by Jill Waters
A Waters Company production for BBC Radio 4.
FRI 10:00 Woman's Hour (b01hxt5l)
In 2006, Joanne Binns was punched in the stomach by local thugs when she was eight months pregnant. She has now won awards for her work to prevent anti-social behaviour. She joins Jenni to talk about the year-long intimidation and violence she suffered at the hands of youngsters in her community and gives her opinion of the government's plans to get rid of ASBOs.
In 1928, the distinguished music critic Cecil Gray wrote that a "woman's composing is like a dog walking on its back legs ... it is not done well, but you are surprised to find it done at all!" It was a statement that, even as it was being written, was being disproved because in 1928 Elisabeth Lutyens, Elizabeth Maconchy and Grace Williams were all studying to become composers at the Royal College of Music. Dr Rhiannon Matthias has written a book about these women - called 'Blest Trio of Sirens' - she tells Jenni about their impact on British music in the 20th century.
What can you do with unwanted clothes? Charity shops were once a popular dumping ground but nowadays they are seeing a decline in donations as car boot sales and websites like Ebay give us a place to sell our cast-offs and make a little cash at the same time. When it comes to clearing out the wardrobe, should we choose philanthropy or personal profit?
'I am Nasrine' has been written, directed and produced by Iranian film maker Tina Gharavi. It's the story of a young girl forced to leave a comfortable middle-class home in Iran to live on a council estate in the North East. The opening scenes were shot illegally on the streets of Tehran and Gharavi then had to smuggle the film out of the country at great personal danger. She describes the struggle to make 'I am Nasrine' and what it is like to be an asylum seeker in the UK.
FRI 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b01j0xm8)
In the Van
Episode 5
Written by Clare Bayley.
MI5 officer, Yasmin, on her fist stake out, is deeply compromised. Acceptance in MI5 and her future marriage to Jonathan come at the cost of suspects Rachid and Samira's happiness. Can Yasmin bring herself to carry out the decisive move?
Cast:
Yasmin ....... Amber Agar
Jonathan ...... Matt Rawle
Rachid ........ Nitzan Sharron
Samira ....... Sirine Saba
Bob ...... Felix Dexter
Directed by Marilyn Imrie
A Bona Broadcasting production for BBC Radio 4.
FRI 11:00 Mapping Britain's Underworld (b01hxt5n)
Four million holes are dug every year in the UK. Five billion pounds are lost through the economic effects of disruption and traffic hold ups, while hitting a utility pipe or cable can prove fatal for those working on the road. Adam Hart- Davies reports on a major research project which is trying to solve the problems.
He takes us underground from his ancient ice house at the bottom of his Devon garden to report on Mapping the Underworld, the £3.5m programme involving universities throughout Britain. The aim is to improve how we locate the increasingly confusing and complex array of pipes, cables and sewers beneath our streets, and assess their condition - as well as ultimately providing a better map of what is beneath our cities to improve planning both above and below ground.
At the moment it's often difficult to know where such utilities are - an estimated one in four of all holes are dug in the wrong place. Maps may not be accurate because original records of where the pipes and cables are located often use reference points on the surface which have long since gone.
Existing sensors may have problems finding what is underground because of soil or weather conditions, while modern materials such as plastic or fibre optics pose a challenge to existing technologies.
Adam Hart-Davies tries out the prototype of a multi-sensor cart where four different sensors operate together to produce an all-in-one solution, so if one technology doesn't work well in certain conditions and with particular materials, another one will.
It is not an easy undertaking for the research teams or, as it turns out, for Adam testing the multi-sensor cart.
Producer: Sara Parker
A Unique production for BBC Radio 4 first broadcast in May 2012.
FRI 11:30 Births, Deaths and Marriages (b01hxt9l)
Series 1
Episode 1
Chief registrar Malcolm Fox is a stickler for regulations at Woodborough Register Office. Sitcom set in a local registry office, starring David Schneider. From May 2012.
FRI 12:00 You and Yours (b01hxt9n)
Trojan mobile apps, studying abroad, cruises from Liverpool, exporting to China
Did you know your mobile phone can be hi-jacked by criminals to send text messages to premium lines and run up huge bills without you ever knowing? We reveal how, and how to avoid it happening to you.
If you're going to get your summer holiday cash then the area you live in might affect how many Euros you get for your pounds. Which? found the same companies offering different rates on different high streets which they say is unfair.
As the BBC's security correspondent Frank Gardener has to fly more than most, as a wheelchair user he has to plan it more than most too. He tells us about his 'worst experience ever on an airline' - a recent flight with Kenya Airways
We hear about the foreign universities who are running courses in English to attract international students. Peter White speaks to the rector of the Politecnico di Milano and former Higher Education Minister and deputy-vice-Chancellor of Plymouth University Bill Rammell.
We also hear from Tyrells one of the many British companies trying to boost their exports to China, and from a government minister on what they are doing to help boost oyr exports.
Plus why the first cruise ship will be departing from Liverpool's docks next week for the first time in several decades.
And Britain's holiday accommodation is better rated now that at any other time in the past decade, so says Tripadvisor. The online review site has been crunching the data created by all the reviews posted on its website since it began. They tells us what they found and Rough Guide's Claire Currie explains whether the professional reviewers would agree.
Presenter: Peter White
Producer: Joe Kent.
FRI 12:52 The Listening Project (b01hxt9q)
Arranged Marital Bliss: Jasmit and Jaswant
Fi Glover introduces a conversation between Jasmit and Jaswant from Lincolnshire about their 34 year-long arranged marriage which is still going strong, proving again that it's surprising what you hear when you listen.
The Listening Project offers a snapshot of contemporary Britain in which people across the UK volunteer to have a conversation with someone close to them about a subject they've never discussed intimately before. The conversations are being gathered across the UK by teams of producers from local and national radio stations who facilitate each encounter. Every conversation - they're not BBC interviews, and that's an important difference - lasts up to an hour, and is then edited to extract the key moment of connection between the participants. Many of the long conversations are being archived by the British Library which they will use to build up a collection of voices capturing a unique portrait of the UK in the second decade of the millennium. You can upload your own conversations or just learn more about The Listening Project by visiting bbc.co.uk/listeningproject
Producer Marya Burgess.
FRI 12:57 Weather (b01hw1zv)
The latest weather forecast.
FRI 13:00 World at One (b01hxt9s)
At the end of a week which revealed the economic slump is worse than feared, and after the IMF urged Britain to review interest rates and pump more money into the economy, Shaun Ley talks to one of those who makes such decisions - Martin Weale of the Monetary Policy Committee and to the chief executive of Balfour Beatty on the troubled construction industry.
As David Cameron again backs Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt over his handling of the BSkyB takeover bid, a former senior civil servant tells the programme it was a surprise to hear that a special adviser was the main link between News International and the Government.
Hugh Sykes reports on early returns in Egypt's first free presidential election; analysis of tensions between the US and Pakistan, and the launch of the campaign in favour of Scottish independence.
Plus more from Education Secretary Michael Gove on teacher morale, the curriculum and his plan to distribute bibles to every school in England.
FRI 13:45 Our Daily Bread (b01j0w2h)
Companionship
In 'Companionship' Jonathan looks at how bread works as a lingua franca of human relations - a universal, and nurturing meeting place for people building communities, friendships and wellbeing.
Producer: Jonathan Kent
A Falling Tree Production for BBC Radio 4.
FRI 14:00 The Archers (b01hxpy8)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Thursday]
FRI 14:15 Drama (b00sm8tv)
Gary Brown - Prospero, Ariel, Reith and Gill
Gary Brown's comedy about artist Eric Gill's clash with the BBC over his famous sculpture of Prospero and Ariel stars Anton Lesser as the artist and Tim McInnerny as Sir John Reith, the first Director General of the Corporation. Inspired by real events, the play charts a clash between the BBC's Governors and the artist over the propriety of the sculpture's appearance.
Gill became quite a celebrity as he carved the statue in situ on scaffolding in front of Broadcasting House. In his trademark smock and beret, he drew the attention of the tabloid papers and became known as the "Married Monk". The play imagines conversations between Sir John and the artist as he passes him on his way into Broadcasting House each morning.
Framed with a period newsreel-style commentary, the comedy playfully deals with the perennial tension between the Establishment and the Artist. The strange and mysterious Gill contrasts with the authoritarian but often troubled figure of Reith, but in the end the sculpture focuses their thoughts about the role of Art in the life of mankind. While this is a comedy, the play touches a little on the well-documented darker side of both men's nature, and offers an insight into one of the more celebrated events of early BBC history.
Brown's play speculates on how Reith struggled with the Governors and with his own psyche in dealing with one of the trickier events in the early days of the BBC. It also looks at how Gill, the artist, struggled with reconciling his unusual beliefs and lifestyle with a major commission from the heart of the Establishment.
The cast is completed by Jon Glover as the Newsreel Reporter, David Seddon as Charlie, Stephen Darcy as Father Sean, Tina Gray as Lady Snowden and Alison Pettitt as the Nanny.
Written by Gary Brown.
Eric Gill . . . . . Anton Lesser
John Reith . . . . . Tim McInnerny
Newsreel Reporter . . . . . Jon Glover
Lady Snowden . . . . . Tina Gray
Charlie . . . . . David Seddon
Father Sean . . . . . Stephen Darcy
Nanny . . . . . Alison Pettitt
Producer/Director . . . . . Peter Leslie Wild.
FRI 15:00 Gardeners' Question Time (b01hxtmh)
RHS Chelsea Flower Show
Eric Robson chairs the programme from the biggest gardening event of the year - The Chelsea Flower Show. Joining him on the panel are Matthew Wilson, Anne Swithinbank and Bob Flowerdew.
Questions addressed in the programme include the problem of plane fuel ending up in your water butt, what to do with tulips after flowering and fitting hanging baskets to a trampoline!
Produced by Lucy Dichmont and Howard Shannon
A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4.
FRI 15:45 Half-Light (b01hxtmk)
The White Hour
By Neil M. Gunn, first published in 1924.
Read by Ann Louise Ross.
An elderly Highland woman is comforted in her final hours by the companionable nearness of her beloved granddaughter and the young woman's lover.
Second in a series of three short stories by one of Scotland's finest writers, Neil M. Gunn (best known for his 1941 novel, The Silver Darlings). Gunn was born in 1891, in the coastal village of Dunbeath, in Caithness, and wrote prolifically over a period that spanned the recession of the 1920s through to the aftermath of the Second World War. He died in 1973.
The stories in this series are taken from Half-Light, a new collection of Gunn's short fiction compiled by his nephew Dairmid Gunn and published by Caithness-based Whittles Publishing.
Abridged and produced by Kirsteen Cameron.
FRI 16:00 Last Word (b01hxtmm)
Robin Gibb, Eric James, Alan Oakley, David Ellis and Eugene Polley
Matthew Bannister on
Robin Gibb of the Bee Gees who, with his brothers Barry and Maurice, created scores of hit records. We hear about his rivalry with Barry for the lead vocal spot and his obsession with the Titanic.
Also: the left wing Anglican Canon Eric James, a regular on Radio 4's Thought For The Day,
Alan Oakley who invented the Chopper bicycle, much coveted by schoolboys of the seventies,
David Ellis - the dancer and doctor who married into the Ballet Rambert and played a leading role in the company's development.
And Eugene Polley who launched a million couch potatoes by pioneering the TV remote control. Elvis McGonagall pays tribute in verse from his sofa.
FRI 16:30 More or Less (b01hxtmp)
Would firing staff 'at will' boost the economy?
In this week's programme:
Fire "at will"?
The Beecroft Report has been stirring up controversy all week. But is there any evidence that the economy would be boosted if employers could fire their staff "at will", as Adrian Beecroft recommends? Professor John Van Reenan - director of the Centre for Economic Performance at the London School of Economics - can't find much.
Hard-working Greeks
One version of the Euro crisis story has it that hard-working Germans are bailing out lazy Greeks. But in fact Greek workers put in far longer hours than their German counterparts.
The maths of infidelity
It's a very commonly-held belief that men are less faithful than women. But it takes two to tango. So can this be mathematically possible?
Publication bias
If we on More or Less were only to report statistical errors, and never statistical triumphs, you could be forgiven for concluding that the world is full of numerical lies. That's "publication bias" - and it's a big problem in science, as Ben Goldacre explains.
Presenter: Tim Harford
Producer: Richard Knight.
FRI 16:55 The Listening Project (b01hxtmr)
Farewell to the Herd: Michael and Don
Fi Glover presents Radio 4's series capturing the nation in conversation: today Berkshire farmers Mike and Don, friends since they first met at Young Farmers, share their thoughts on giving up their dairy herds. Mike has already sent his cows to market. Now Don must decide whether or not to follow suit.
The Listening Project is a new initiative for Radio 4 that aims to offer a snapshot of contemporary Britain in which people across the UK volunteer to have a conversation with someone close to them about a subject they've never discussed intimately before. The conversations are being gathered across the UK by teams of producers from local and national radio stations who facilitate each encounter. Every conversation - they're not BBC interviews, and that's an important difference - lasts up to an hour, and is then edited to extract the key moment of connection between the participants. Many of the long conversations are being archived by the British Library which they will use to build up a collection of voices capturing a unique portrait of the UK in the second decade of the millennium. You can upload your own conversations or just learn more about The Listening Project by visiting bbc.co.uk/listeningproject
Producer Marya Burgess.
FRI 17:00 PM (b01hxtmt)
Eddie Mair presents coverage and analysis of the day's news.
FRI 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b01hw1zx)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
FRI 18:30 The News Quiz (b01hxtmw)
Series 77
Episode 8
A satirical review of the week's news, chaired by Sandi Toksvig. With Jeremy Hardy, Phill Jupitus and Ed Byrne.
Produced by Sam Bryant.
FRI 19:00 The Archers (b01hxtn0)
Amy agrees reluctantly to go out with Alice and Chris. She warns Alice not to expect her to sparkle. Alan wishes he could make it easier for Amy, but she says he can't change what's happened. He wishes Amy could forgive Usha, but emotional Amy can't talk to him about it. She tells Alice she's still angry with Usha. They were so close; Usha was like a mum to her. How could she have kept quiet about Carl? Amy doesn't know how she can trust Usha now.
Alan finds Ruth clearing up glass on the yard. They discuss Amy, and Ruth tells him that it won't work to pressure Amy. She'll just need time to work it out. Alan thanks Ruth for her advice. He mentions that he spotted one of the farm gates open earlier, so he closed it. Ruth's grateful. When Alan's gone David tells Ruth the police are sending someone over. They agree they don't want the children knowing anything of the situation. Ruth feels happier once the police know everything, and David reminds her they need to get things in perspective. In lighter mood Ruth answers the phone. It's another anonymous call.
FRI 19:15 Front Row (b01hxtn2)
Tracey Emin in Margate; Cannes Film Festival
With Kirsty Lang.
Tracey Emin discusses how she feels about returning to her home town of Margate with an exhibition including new works conceived specially for Margate and exploring themes of love, sex and eroticism.
In January 1937 in Peking the body of a teenage British girl was discovered, with her heart removed. She was the daughter of an ex-British consul and the crime, which shook both the Chinese and western community, was never solved. Writer and historian Paul French explains why he became obsessed by the story and how, 75 years on, he has come up with a solution to the mystery.
Jason Solomons brings news from the Cannes Film Festival, as the jury prepares to announce the winners of the main prizes.
Music and speech played an important role in the 1960s Black Power movement in America. Writer Pat Thomas has spent years tracking down rare recordings, which include spoken word discs from Motown's Black Power imprint. Music writer Kevin LeGendre joins Pat to consider how musicians and performers responded to political change.
Producer Philippa Ritchie.
FRI 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b01j0xm8)
[Repeat of broadcast at
10:45 today]
FRI 20:00 Any Questions? (b01hxtn4)
Rugby
Jonathan Dimbleby presents the panel discussion of news and politics from Rugby High School, one of the winning schools in the BBC's nationwide Schools Questions and Answers challenge. The students will be helping Jonathan put the programme together and will be involved in the production from start to finish.
His guests, schools minister Nick Gibb; shadow work and pensions secretary Liam Byrne; Times columnist Camilla Cavendish; and chief executive of the Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations, Sir Stephen Bubb.
So join Jonathan and the panel for tonight's special edition of Any Questions? from Rugby High School.
Producer: Victoria Wakely.
FRI 20:50 A Point of View (b01hxvnk)
Will Self: A right loyal toast
Will Self reflects on the historical tradition of the Loyal Toast. A week before the Jubilee celebrations get underway, he muses on where deference is properly due.
"I have never risen for the Loyal Toast, and unless some apoplectic patriot holds a gun to my head I doubt I ever will" he writes.
He suggests we should turn our thoughts to who else we might raise a toast to....personally, he believes it should be his postwoman. In that case, he says "I'd be on my hind legs before you could scream 'Treason!'"
Producer: Adele Armstrong.
FRI 21:00 Friday Drama (b00qx5rk)
After the Accident
By Julian Armitstead. A couple's young daughter is killed in a head-on car crash. Four years later the parents summon the courage to meet the young lad responsible.
Leon ...... Jack O'Connell
Petra ...... Lia Williams
Jimmy ...... Russell Boulter
Mr E ...... Duncan Bonner
Leon's Mum ...... Amanda Horlock
Directed by Mark Smalley.
FRI 21:58 Weather (b01hw1zz)
The latest weather forecast.
FRI 22:00 The World Tonight (b01hxvnm)
National and international news and analysis with Ritula Shah.
FRI 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b01j0zd5)
Fitzgerald Short Stories
The Sensible Thing - Part 2
By F. Scott Fitzgerald.
Read by Stuart Milligan.
First published in 1924, Fitzgerald's beautifully observed short story explores the changing nature of love.
One year on from Jonquil's rejection, George returns to Tennessee as a much improved man: a man with prospects.
Abridged and produced by Kirsteen Cameron.
FRI 23:00 Great Lives (b01hxh6y)
[Repeat of broadcast at
16:30 on Tuesday]
FRI 23:30 Today in Parliament (b01hxvnp)
Mark D'Arcy reports on events at Westminster.
FRI 23:55 The Listening Project (b01hxvnr)
Coming Clean: Lily and Francis
Fi Glover presents Radio 4's series capturing the nation in conversation: in today's last visit Francis and Lily from Glasgow remember the years of Francis' addiction to heroin and its terrible consequences. Throughout everything - even prison - his mum, Lily, remained constant and supplied the strength to pull him through. Recorded by Radio Scotland, this is Francis' opportunity to say thankyou.
The Listening Project is a new initiative for Radio 4 that aims to offer a snapshot of contemporary Britain in which people across the UK volunteer to have a conversation with someone close to them about a subject they've never discussed intimately before. The conversations are being gathered across the UK by teams of producers from local and national radio stations who facilitate each encounter. Every conversation - they're not BBC interviews, and that's an important difference - lasts up to an hour, and is then edited to extract the key moment of connection between the participants. Many of the long conversations are being archived by the British Library which they will use to build up a collection of voices capturing a unique portrait of the UK in the second decade of the millennium. You can upload your own conversations or just learn more about The Listening Project by visiting bbc.co.uk/listeningproject
Producer Marya Burgess.