Listen to the chimes of Big Ben stiking midnight at new year, on the stroke of 12 we cheer, embrace and kiss loved ones but when did that actually happen. Well it depends on what device you're listening to. If its over the web or digital radio it could be many seconds in the past; does that matter, what happens to those seconds in between?
Aleks Krotoski mediatates on our urge to converge and how the digital era can throw us in and out of sync with the universe and each other.
BBC Radio 4 presents a selection of news and current affairs, arts and science programmes from the BBC World Service.
Bishop Nicholas Holtam gives thanks for the life of Archbishop Desmond Tutu on the day of his funeral.
Ai-jen Poo argues that we should all value caring, and carers.
Ai-jen, a MacArthur Fellow, is Director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance, an advocacy organisation in the United States representing domestic workers, many of them carers. In this powerful, intimate talk, she tells the story of how two of her grandparents' very different experiences when they needed carer emphasised the importance of valuing caring.
The latest news headlines. Including the weather and a look at the papers.
A wildlife cameraman, a sea swimmer, a poet and a professional tree climber reflect on their relationship with their local landscape; sea, loch, rocky beach and woodland on the cusp of a new year. From a new understanding of home to the discovery of one’s real self, their reflections are inspiring, insightful and powerful.
We look both forward to 2022 and back at 2021, reflecting on the past year’s experiences to consider what might be in store for the UK’s farmers and rural communities over the next 52 weeks.
Joining Charlotte are Sean Spiers, executive director of the environmental think-tank the Green Alliance, president of the National Farmers' Union Minette Batters, and Shanker Singham, chief executive of the trade law and economic consultancy Competere and member of the Trade and Agriculture Commission.
Former secondary school principal, Church of England archdeacon and mother of Nicole Smallman and Bibaa Henry, Mina Smallman, guest-edits the programme.
Mina Smallman looks at the work of Reclaim These Streets and women's safety for her programme. She also explores at the role of chaplains in communities and her programme features a special reading of Maya Angelou's "Still I Rise" by Sophie Okenedo.
Sarah Parish joins Nikki Bedi and Richard Coles. Best known for her work in Mistresses, W1A , Broadchurch and Bancroft, Sarah talks about her career, including her latest project which is a crime thriller, and the charity she co-founded with her husband in memory of their first daughter.
Supriya Nagarajan explains why she gave up a successful banking career to become a musician.
Dr Sabrina Cohen-Hatton talks about being homeless as a teenager and how it inspired her career, she's the chief fire officer at West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service.
Matt Goss shares his Inheritance Tracks: Your Song by Elton John and Piano Man by Billy Joel.
Aldo Kane has been inside an active volcano more than once and met his wife in one too. The former Royal Marines sniper talks about his life and experiences.
Sarah Parish can be seen in Stay Close, which is available on Netflix from the 31st December.
Supriya Nagarajan: Mapping the Music is at The Hepworth Wakefield on 19th February.
The Heat of The Moment by Dr Sabrina Cohen-Hatton is out now.
The Beautiful Unknown by Matt Goss is out in spring 2022.
Lessons From the Edge by Aldo Kane is out now.
Jay Rayner hosts a culinary panel show packed full of tasty titbits. Joining him this week are experts Sue Lawrence, Jordan Bourke, Shelina Permalloo and Dr Annie Gray.
Jay and the panel ring in the New Year by sharing some tasty cooking traditions from around the world. They discuss the best breakfasts to banish even the worst New Year's Day hangover, and debate which marmalade is superior - thin cut or thick?
Philosopher and author James Garvey examines the rise of behavioural science at the heart of our politics and its key role during the pandemic.
There was a large amount of attention paid to the government's slogan during the Covid crisis that politics would 'follow the science'. But not just branches of the natural sciences, like epidemiology, medicine and virology. Our national politics is also being informed to an unprecedented degree by behavioural science – taking advice from experts with a remarkable understanding of human motivation, decision-making and action; how to steer whole populations from one mode of behaviour to another in a crisis, not only for medical purposes but also as a tool for government and social order. The Behavioural Insights Team was called to action and the Independent Scientific Pandemic Insights Group on Behaviours (SPI-B) convened, reporting directly to SAGE who reported to No.10.
James Garvey, who has written on the history of persuasion, explores the deep and ever-more powerful relationship between politics, government and behavioural science. What are the key ideas here and where did this alliance come from - what have been its strengths and weaknesses? James asks whether behavioural science techniques are being used to circumvent more traditional routes of democracy, such as manifestos, public debate and even our political consent. But also how behavioural insight is illuminating problems governments have found difficult or even intractable in the past, upturning older models of the public, benefiting the whole. He explores how online and digital technology might be used to amplify these techniques.
Contributors include Brooke Rogers, chair of the Cabinet Office Behavioural Science Expert Group and co-chair of the Independent Scientific Pandemic Insights Group on Behaviours (SPI-B), behavioural economist Cass Sunstein (who co-authored the bestseller ‘Nudge’), public health psychologist and member of SPI-B Chris Bonell, lawyer Susie Alegre, who specialises on freedom of thought and digital rights, author Peter Pomerantsev, who writes about propaganda and political influence, economist Shaun Hargreaves-Heap, social psychologist and SPI-B advisor Stephen Reicher and David Halpern, Chief Executive of the Behavioural Insights Team.
What are you hoping for in the twelve months ahead? What might you be fearing? These are questions which we often ask ourselves at this time of year, and yet it is hard to imagine a year when they have felt quite so pressing. In this special, New Year’s Day edition of From Our Own Correspondent, we hear about sentiment both optimistic and pessimistic, and about the efforts people are making to rebuild after a year of loss. Plus there is a look at why the majority of people seem to be optimistic, whatever the challenges ahead.
2021 saw terrible, weather-related destruction, which many blamed on climate change. In California, more than eight thousand major fires broke out, their number and intensity a marked increase on what is normally seen there. Justin Rowlatt witnessed the resulting devastation, but says that amidst the burned out ruins, people were still holding out hope of recovery and reconstruction.
There was plenty of destruction in 2021 that did not come from nature, war continuing to take its toll in many parts of the world. Ethiopia and Yemen were perhaps the worst examples, but there were also small-scale conflicts, like the insurgency in Myanmar. Then there were the conflicts which never really went away, like that between Israel and the Palestinians. An exchange of rocket fire with Gaza back in May, along with Israeli airstrikes, left more than two hundred dead, the overwhelming majority on the Palestinian side. When Tom Bateman went to Gaza, he met a woman trying to restart her life as a sculptor.
The Coronavirus has been described as offering a lesson in humility, a challenge to our belief in humanity’s power to control and manage the world around us. This tiny, sub-microscopic string of DNA, has led to death on a scale most will not have experienced in their lifetime. At the same time though, vaccines and anti-viral drugs have been developed in response to Covid, which use new technologies that promise cures for other diseases in future. Rajini Vaidyanathan saw some of the worst of Covid, reporting from India where hundreds of thousands died, perhaps more than a million. But while off duty recently, she found herself struck by the effects of one individual death, in a place very familiar to her.
People often talk about climate change in terms of future trouble ahead: rising sea levels, and crops no longer able to thrive. In the Pacific island nation of Fiji, whole villages have already had to be evacuated, because of current weather conditions, and what that weather is expected to do in the years ahead. Many Fijians traditionally have a strong attachment to the land they live on, so moving from their homes presents a challenge that goes way beyond mere inconvenience. When Megha Mohan visited, she found local people trying hard to retain a sense of connection to their original homes.
Despite Covid, climate change, and all the other challenges which humanity faces, many remain optimistic that normal life can continue or be restored, or perhaps that something new, and better can emerge from the ashes of the old. In fact, according to Marnie Chesterton, most people are predisposed to have an optimistic outlook, and to believe there are solutions to the challenges we face.
Felicity Hannah and guests discuss how to make money from unwanted presents and belongings. And they hear from listeners who sell on, re-gift and rent out.
Andy Zaltzman raids the 2021 archive to remember amongst other things, a man in a horned helmet running around the Capitol Building, the leader of the opposition not being allowed into a pub and Britain's favourite alpaca.
Lyse Doucet asks some of the BBC's top journalists to gaze into their crystal balls and predict what 2022 might have in store. This time last year we were boldly asking what a post-Covid world might look like. Little did we know that 12 months later, world leaders would be trying to deal with the chaos caused by a highly transmissable variant.
Is 2022 the year the whole world gets vaccinated? How will the midterm elections play out in the United States? Can Boris Johnson restore his reputation after a torrid 2021? What impact will Germany's new chancellor Olaf Scholz have? And what fate awaits the people of Afghanistan?
So many big questions, but luckily we have some of the BBC's best minds on hand to provide plenty of answers.
Panel: Faisal Islam, Gabriel Gatehouse, Katya Adler, Laura Trevelyan and Nick Eardley
The world is full of unpopular opinions and unpopular people with opinions. We have those, alongside clips from across the BBC, telling the story of yet another unpredictable and remarkable year.
From the insurgence on the American Capitol on January the Sixth to the newest wave of COVID maintaining a tenacious grip on all our lives. We revisit one of the first cases of internet shaming and examine the impact of online communities.
All our stories tell us something about the past 12 months, but also who is controlling the information we receive.
Join Marianna Spring & Clive Myrie for this year's Pick of the Year.
“This is my favourite book in all the world, though I have never read it”. When Goldman discovers The Princess Bride by S Morgenstern is not the swashbuckling fantasy his father read him as a child, but is in fact a patchy and extensive historical satire, he sets out to create the “Good Parts” version…
A tale of true love and high adventure featuring a fighting giant that loves to rhyme, a swordsman on the ultimate quest for revenge, a pirate in love with a princess, a princess in love with a farm boy and a prince in love with war.
The Best Bits of the Good Parts Version by Stephen Keyworth.
A two-part dramatisation of swashbuckling adventure plus five bitesize backstories which can be enjoyed as stand-alone stories or to enhance your experience of the drama.
With Westley captured and Buttercup on the cusp of marrying the dastardly Prince Humperdinck, there are only two people in the world who can save the day – Inigo and Fezzik. But one of them is lost and the other is drunk.
In this special New Year's Day edition of Political Thinking, Nick Robinson reviews the highlights of the series over the last twelve months.
Trevor Horn, Stewart Lee, Laura Checkley, Mica Paris, Cherise, Michelle McManus, Clive Anderson
Clive Anderson and Michelle McManus are joined by Trevor Horn, Stewart Lee and Laura Checkley for an eclectic mix of conversation, music and comedy. With music from Mica Paris and Cherise.
British curling is looking forward to the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics - and all eyes are on head coach David Murdoch, the man in charge of bringing home some medals.
All three teams - mixed, male and female - have qualified and hopes are high this former World Champion and Olympic silver medallist can inspire the teams to victory.
Mark Coles finds out what makes the Lockerbie-born sports nerd tick.
Since her breakthrough in the 1989 thriller Dead Calm, Nicole Kidman has played a hugely diverse array of roles - in arthouse films like Lars Von Trier’s Dogville and blockbusters including Paddington. She talks to John Wilson about the influence of some of the filmmakers with whom she worked, included Jane Campion who directed her in Portrait Of A Lady, and Stanley Kubrick who became a close friend after she starred, with her ex-husband Tom Cruise, in Eyes Wide Shut. Nicole Kidman recalls the making of Baz Luhrmann's musical Moulin Rouge and The Hours, the film for which she won the best actress Academy Award for her role as Virginia Woolf. She also discusses the excitement and fear she experienced on the London stage in the plays The Blue Room and Photograph 51.
Exploring characters from literature, stage and screen, actor Toby Jones celebrates the mercurial world of the villain.
There are the characters we love, and then there are the characters we love to hate. Some of the most memorable ones in drama and fiction are villains and our relationship with them can be deeper than the characters we’re supposed to be rooting for.
In this programme we tell the tale of this love - hate relationship with the baddie and discover that the villain is more than just a foil for the hero – they are a reflection of us all.
Introducing the story in six chapters from his secret lair actor Toby Jones delves into a the vaults of villainy; from the hideous countenances to deranged governesses, from the dark side to the cads and femme fatales the programme brings into the spotlight a collection of evil doers and assesses whether they deserve sympathy, condemnation or anti-hero status.
We live in the age of the anti-hero; characters which proliferate popular culture that are no longer simply goodies and baddies. They are cherished in critically acclaimed American dramas: Breaking Bad has Walter White and The Sopranos has the eponymous Tony. The anti-hero is a complex character. They can commit truly appalling, villainous acts – but we’re encouraged to see the reasons behind those actions, to sympathise with them, to understand what makes them do what they do and to hope for redemption.
As the Walter White’s and Tony Soprano’s emerge, this programme reconsiders classic villainy and analyses whether the increasingly popular anti-hero is threatening to unseat the villain and resign them to pantomime and comic book stories as serious drama abandons real baddies.
As Toby Jones explores the wicked worlds of our favourite villains their nefarious natures are assessed by Shakespearean scholars Paul Edmondson and Carol Rutter, an academic specialising in Victorian fiction Professor John Sutherland, Comedy and film history Glenn Mitchell and actors Emily Raymond, Michael Roberts and Jonathan Rigby
After reneging on all of his election pledges, newly-elected Prime Minister Julian Quark is alarmed to discover that his right ear is missing. And that's just the start of it. It seems that there's a correlation between his dishonesty and the continual disappearance of body parts. As his own physical being diminishes so do his chances of halting the curse.
Julian Quark . . . . . Toby Jones
Sarah . . . . . Doon Mackichan
Marazion . . . . . Michael Bertenshaw
Nobinson . . . . . Ewan Bailey
Prickett . . . . . Brian Protheroe
Tanya . . . . . Adie Allen
Jeremy . . . . . Nick Underwood
TV Reporter . . . . . Nicola Ferguson
Australian Prime Minister . . . . . James Lailey
Aide . . . . . Sam Rix
Joining Sandi Toksvig in her cosy log cabin today is Channel 4 news anchor and reporter Krishnan Guru-Murthy. Over a mug of warm spiced wine they explore the concept of Hygge and talk about Australian Christmasses, escaping the news, playing music and who he likes to wake up with every morning.
Starring... Sandi Toksvig
The end of one year and the beginning of another can be an obvious moment for people to set goals and reset priorities. The pandemic, from which we are yet to emerge, has put much into perspective and has doubtless prompted many to ask the question: where am I going with my life? What’s it all about? While none of us can truly know the meaning of life, most of us are meaning-seeking creatures who have our own ideas about what gives life meaning – God, nature, the arts, human relationships, good food, scientific progress. Is meaning essential to a life well lived or do we put too much pressure on ourselves in trying to create it? For some, the stories we tell about ourselves are the most powerful way of addressing existential questions like the climate crisis. Yet meaning is subjective, and is often separated by national, cultural, religious and ideological borders. Can our disparate human stories be harnessed as a motivator for collective action on the climate? Or is it hubris to suggest human beings can find a solution, and the story we should be telling instead is one in which the cavalry isn’t coming?
Michael Buerk chairs this special end-of-year debate with guest panellists: Rowan Williams, Alice Roberts, Will Self and Bonnie Greer. With witnesses: Emily Esfahani-Smith, James Tartaglia, Martin Palmer and Charlotte Du Cann.
Producer: Dan Tierney.
The general knowledge music quiz returns for a new season, with Paul Gambaccini in the question-master's chair. To launch the series, the questions facing the three competitors in today's heat have a wintry flavour. From the Gershwins to Kate Bush and from Christmas number ones to 21st century ballet music, there's something to suit every taste.
Isabelle Heward from Goxhill in North Lincolnshire.
The winner will take the first of the semi-final places and another step towards possibly being named the 35th BBC Counterpoint champion.
After young climber Phil’s terrifying night in the Scottish highlands, whatever lurks in the abandoned cottage appears to follow him home to Glasgow. He decides to return to Luibeilt to confront his fears and solve the mystery - but what happens next will haunt Phil for the rest of his life.
Danny digs further into this bizarre and scary case. Does it offer proof that ghosts exist?
SUNDAY 02 JANUARY 2022
SUN 00:00 Midnight News (m001321b)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.
SUN 00:15 Shaking Up the Shanty (m00120vy)
The musical duo The Rheingans Sisters compose a contemporary sea shanty for an unusual cargo boat that has ditched diesel in favour of sails.
Take a look around your home, and it’s likely that 90% of what you’ll see has spent some time on a cargo boat. The shipping industry is massive, and so is its impact on the environment and the climate.
But onboard De Gallant, things are different. This boat transports fair trade cargo around the world on wind power alone.
In some ways, this boat is old fashioned – its glossy wooden hull and seven sails are reminiscent of a pirate ship – but on the other hand, the boat offers a progressive, climate-conscious alternative to commercial shipping.
De Gallant borrows technology from the past to sail toward a more sustainable future and so it seems fitting that the musical duo The Rheingans Sisters should write a song that borrows from traditional shanties to create a contemporary song that sings of the boat’s progressive journey. They set off to understand the shanty genre by speaking to Gerry Smyth, a shanty expert based at Liverpool John Moores University, but then decide to break all the rules!
As the boat makes its way from the Caribbean and then around Europe, Rowan and Anna Rheingans must find creative ways to collaborate and exchange ideas with the boat and each other, using what they have to navigate obstacles thrown up by Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic.
In true shanty tradition, the sisters create musical bricolage that borrows lines of dialogue from De Gallant’s crew, and melodies, rhythms, instruments and lyrics from a whole range of sources.
Produced by Claire Crofton
Additional recording by Louise Cognard
A Boom Shakalaka production for BBC Radio 4
SUN 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m001321d)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.
SUN 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m001321g)
BBC Radio 4 presents a selection of news and current affairs, arts and science programmes from the BBC World Service.
SUN 05:33 Shipping Forecast (m001321j)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.
SUN 05:43 Bells on Sunday (m001321p)
St Peter in Drayton in Oxfordshire
Bells on Sunday comes from the parish church of St Peter in Drayton in Oxfordshire. In 1871, the vicar and accomplished bell-ringer Rev Francis Robinson saw that the six bells were cracked and had them recast as a ring of eight bells by the Mears and Stainbank Foundry of London. The tenor bell weighs nine and a quarter hundredweight and is tuned to the note of F sharp. We hear them ringing Stedman Triples.
SUN 05:45 Profile (m0013212)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Saturday]
SUN 06:00 News Summary (m00132bh)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4
SUN 06:05 Something Understood (b02y0wkx)
Vanishing Point
Writer and broadcaster Jude Rogers explores the desire to run away and disappear. From tumbling down the rabbit hole to riding a train to nowhere, why do we sometimes feel the urge to vanish?
Jude reflects on how removing yourself from the world of other people can offer a certain type of freedom.
Featuring music by Grouper, Radiohead and Tindersticks, alongside the words of Virginia Woolf, D.H. Lawrence and John Updike.
Producer: Eleanor McDowell
A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4
SUN 06:35 Natural Histories (b05w99gj)
Monkeys And Apes
Happy Jerry was a mandrill who found his way to London on a slave ship and ended up smoking a pipe and having dinner with the king. It is a curious tale of humanity in search of itself.
Peering into the eyes of a primate we see a reflection of ourselves and that has been an enduring fascination through time. It was thought in the 18th Century that the only reason chimps didn't talk in front of people was because they were afraid we would enslave them.
From King Kong to the PG Tea chimps, we have exploited their similarity to ourselves to create fear and humour. They are so similar yet so different, so close to our behaviour yet they shock and appal us with their distinctly animal like traits.
In Victorian times gorillas were often presented in museums in a ferocious pose charging towards the observer, a pose more reflecting the fact it was being shot at and defending itself rather than a true likeness of the reality of ape life. Today however they are seen as dignified vegetarians of the forest, huge yet gentle, demanding our hushed respect.
Documentaries on primates are always amongst the most popular as we pick apart their lives for yet ever more detailed clues about how we are alike yet still worlds apart.
SUN 06:57 Weather (m00132bl)
The latest weather reports and forecast
SUN 07:00 News and Papers (m00132bn)
The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.
SUN 07:10 Sunday (m00132bq)
A look at the ethical and religious issues of the week
SUN 07:54 Radio 4 Appeal (m00132bs)
Help Musicians
The percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie makes the BBC Radio 4 Appeal on behalf of the charity Help Musicians.
To Give:
- UK Freephone 0800 404 8144
-You can donate online at bbc.co.uk/appeal/radio4
- Freepost BBC Radio 4 Appeal. (That’s the whole address. Please do not write anything else on the front of the envelope). Mark the back of the envelope ‘Help Musicians’.
- Cheques should be made payable to ‘Help Musicians’.
Please note that Freephone and online donations for this charity close at
23.59 on the Saturday after the Appeal is first broadcast. However the Freepost option can be used at any time.
Registered Charity Number: 228089
SUN 07:57 Weather (m00132bv)
The latest weather reports and forecast
SUN 08:00 News and Papers (m00132bx)
The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.
SUN 08:10 Sunday Worship (m00132bz)
Archbishop Desmond Tutu
A special Sunday Worship marking the life, work and ministry of Desmond Tutu, Nobel Laureate and former Archbishop of Cape Town. The service will feature music from South African churches and the preacher will be the Most Reverend Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury. The service is led by the Dean of St Mary's Cathedral, Johannesburg, Xolani Dlwati.
Producer Andrew Earis.
SUN 08:48 A Point of View (m0012sxf)
On lost souls... and mobile phones
Adam Gopnik on why a visit to get his phone repaired resulted in an unlikely revelation.
Watching those waiting alongside him, Adam comes to the realisation that we have poured ourselves so completely into our phones that the devices, paradoxically, are the one place where we can picture ourselves as selves.
They have become the equivalent of the confession booths of old, or the diary in the 18th century.
"We all need some box to hold our fears and desires as the winds of the world threaten to blow us away," he concludes.
Producer: Adele Armstrong
SUN 08:58 Tweet of the Day (b09kxq2m)
Andy Radford on the Curlew
Professor Andy Radford, a Behavioural Biologist at the University of Bristol recalls how the evocative cries of the Curlews on the Yorkshire Moors first captivated him as a child and inspired his interest in bird vocalisations.
Producer: Sarah Blunt
Photograph: Rachel Walker.
SUN 09:00 Broadcasting House (m00132c1)
The Sunday morning news magazine programme. Presented by Paddy O'Connell
SUN 10:00 The Archers Omnibus (m00132c3)
Writer, Keri Davies
Director, Julie Beckett
Editor, Jeremy Howe
Ruth Archer ….. Felicity Finch
Ben Archer ….. Ben Norris
Jennifer Aldridge ….. Angela Piper
Harrison Burns ….. James Cartwright
Susan Carter ….. Charlotte Martin
Alice Carter ….. Hollie Chapman
Chris Carter ….. Wilf Scolding
Ruairi Donovan ….. Arthur Hughes
Usha Franks ….. Souad Faress
Alan Franks ….. John Telfer
Adam Macy ….. Andrew Wincott
Kirsty Miller ….. Annabelle Dowler
Lynda Snell MBE ….. Carole Boyd
Mike Tucker ….. Terry Molloy
Beth Casey….. Rebecca Fuller
Stella ….. Lucy Speed
SUN 11:00 Desert Island Discs (m0011lnd)
Dame Jo da Silva, engineer
Dame Jo da Silva is a structural engineer and disaster relief specialist. Her humanitarian work has taken her from Sri Lanka in the wake of the Tsunami to Pakistan and Haiti to help with their post-earthquake recovery.
Jo was born in Washington DC where her father was a diplomat. As a child she enjoyed making things including buildings for her brother’s train set. After graduating from Cambridge University she joined design and engineering firm Arup where her first assignment involved working with Lord Norman Foster on a design for bus shelters.
She went on to work on the Ondaatje Wing at the National Portrait Gallery and Hong Kong’s International Airport on the island of Chek Lap Kok.
In 1994 she went to Tanzania where she worked in the refugee camps which had sprung up after the genocide in Rwanda. She devised a road system which transformed the delivery of food, water and medical supplies. After this experience she decided to devote her energies to crisis and disaster projects and in 2007 she founded Arup International Development, a not-for-profit business which designs buildings and infrastructure to help vulnerable and displaced people around the world.
In 2021 she received a Damehood in the New Year’s Honours list for her contribution to humanitarian relief.
DISC ONE: Sound And Vision (Remastered) by David Bowie
DISC TWO: Clarinet Concerto in A, K.622:2 Adagio, composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, performed by Jack Brymer (clarinet), Allegri Quartet (string quartet), London Symphony Orchestra and conducted by Sir Colin Davis
DISC THREE: All The World is Green by Tom Waits
DISC FOUR: Weird Fishes / Arpeggi by Radiohead
DISC FIVE: Shudder / King Of Snake by Underworld
DISC SIX: Big Yellow Taxi by Joni Mitchell
DISC SEVEN: Not Dark Yet by Bob Dylan
DISC EIGHT: Crying Shame by Jack Johnson
BOOK CHOICE: ‘The Boardman Tasker Omnibus’ by Peter Boardman and Joe Tasker
LUXURY ITEM: A charpoi (traditional Indian rope bed)
CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: All The World is Green by Tom Waits
Presenter Lauren Laverne
Producer Paula McGinley
SUN 11:45 New Year Solutions (m0001t9w)
Meat
As global warming threatens the future of our society, Jo Fidgen tackles the ways in which ordinary people can make a difference.
We're often told that we could help the environment by driving less, eating less meat, or using less water.
But in the face of a challenge as significant as global warming, how big a difference can small changes really make? And what would the world look like if we took those solutions to their logical extremes?
The production of meat and animal products takes up a shocking proportion of our planet's land - from feed to farting, livestock are a huge burden on the planet. How far could ditching meat go to solving the climate crisis?
Producer: Robert Nicholson
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4
SUN 12:00 News Summary (m00132dh)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4
SUN 12:04 I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue (m0012sdd)
Series 76
Episode 5
The nation's favourite wireless entertainment pays a visit to the Lyric Theatre in Salford. Jon Culshaw and Milton Jones compete against John Finnemore and Vicki Pepperdine with Jack Dee in the chair. Colin Sell provides piano accompaniment. Producer - Jon Naismith. It is a BBC Studios production.
SUN 12:32 The Food Programme (m001327c)
#FoodTok: Mastering the Art of Cooking in Three Minutes
Jaega Wise and her co-presenters start the New Year having a go on TikTok after #FoodTok raked in billions of views in 2021. What, if anything, can be learned from the app, which dishes up creator-made videos in three-minute-long bursts? The presenters are joined by TikTok Chef Poppy O'Toole, who posts as PoppyCooks to her two million followers.
From turning ordinary cooks into stars, to setting off trends for kitchen gadgets, viral recipes, and #WhatIeatinaday getting millions of views, people using TikTok are going mad for gastronomy.
However unlike other social media sites where picture-perfect images of food are shared, TikTok takes viewers into ordinary kitchens, and seems to celebrate (mostly) the creation of lavish looking dishes with seemingly very little skill or effort.
Food on TikTok has also become tied in with the ASMR genre (Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response) where creators deliberately emphasise the sounds and textures involved in cooking.
So could TikTok be the inspiration for a new generation of cooks? And can the more mature cook learn anything new? Or is the so-called Wild West of the web’s version of cookery too unwieldy to properly inform? Will the hype around influencers and their inevitable marketing tie-ins put an end to any ‘authenticity’ on there? And is the site doing enough to protect those with eating disorders?
Presented by Jaega Wise
Produced in Bristol by Natalie Donovan
SUN 12:57 Weather (m00132c8)
The latest weather forecast
SUN 13:00 The World This Weekend (m00132cb)
Radio 4’s look at the week’s big stories from both home and around the world.
SUN 13:30 The Listening Project (m00132cd)
On the frontline
Fi Glover presents three conversations between strangers.
This week: Police Constable Tim talks to Senior Paramedic Lisa, about the abuse they face as front-line workers; food producers Russ and Thomas discuss cultivated meat; Cat and Jackie chat about marking birthdays and other special days in the calendar.
Producer: Faye Hatcher
SUN 14:00 Gardeners' Question Time (m0012swp)
GQT at Home: New Year's Trees
Kathy Clugston hosts the horticultural programme featuring a group of gardening experts. Matthew Pottage, Christine Walkden and Bob Flowerdew answer the queries ahead of the new year.
This week, our panellists share their gardening resolutions for 2022, and suggest some ideas for a fast growing, thrifty hedge that can withstand bad weather.
Away from the questions, Matt Biggs gives us his ultimate guide to planting trees in winter, and James Wong tells us about a magical tree found both indoors and out, the Strangler Fig.
Producer - Hannah Newton
Assistant Producer - Aniya Das
A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4
SUN 14:45 A Home of Our Own (m0010hpp)
Solva, Pembrokeshire
Lynsey Hanley tells the story of Rachel and Angus, both in their twenties, who live in a caravan in west Wales due to the shortage of affordable homes in the area.
Every home has a story to tell about Britain's housing crisis. Rachel and Angus would like to live where Rachel grew up in the picturesque village of Solva, Pembrokeshire. But only one property has come up for rent in the past year as the area is popular with second home owners and property prices are high. This leaves Rachel and Angus facing the prospect of another cold winter in their caravan.
But Rachel and other local people are looking at solutions to tackle the crisis. They've banded together to form a Community Land Trust which is hoping to build new affordable homes in the area.
Producer: Laurence Grissell
SUN 15:00 The Ambridge Mystery Plays (m00132cg)
Episode 2
2/2 The Passion
Queen of Ambridge amateur theatricals, Lynda Snell, takes charge of this brand new adaptation of the Mediaeval dramas. Join the cast of The Archers for the second part of this unique promenade production around Ambridge, portraying the life of Jesus from baptism through to the Resurrection.
Adapted by Nick Warburton
Director …. Kim Greengrass
Executive Editor …. Jeremy Howe
Technical Producers …. Andy Partington & Vanessa Nuttall
Production Coordinators …. Sally Lloyd & Andrew Smith
Jesus …. James Cartwright
Mary …. Alison Dowling
John the Baptist …. Ian Pepperell
Peter …. Charlotte Martin
John …. Nick Barber
Andrew …. Ryan Kelly
Judas …. Ian Pepperell
Caiaphas …. Paul Copley
Annas …. Katie Redford
Pontius Pilate …. Nick Barber
Malchas …. Alison Dowling
1st Torturer …. Annabelle Dowler
2nd Torturer …. Charlotte Martin
1st Soldier …. Katie Redford
2nd Soldier …. Ian Pepperell
Mary Magdalene …. Annabelle Dowler
Joseph of Arimathea …. Paul Copley
Other parts played by members of the company.
A BBC Audio Drama Birmingham production.
SUN 16:00 Bookclub (m00132cj)
Abir Mukherjee
James Naughtie and Bookclub readers talk to Abir Mukherjee about A Rising Man, the first in his Wyndham and Bannerjee detective series, set in Calcutta during the time of the Raj. Sam Wyndham is new to the police force and new to India. His sergeant, Bannerjee, offers him invaluable help not only with investigating a murder but also with navigating the complex political and social landscape of Calcutta in 1919.
James Naughtie’s next guest on Bookclub will be Stacey Halls, talking about her novel The Foundling. Do send your questions via the website and join the recording.
Image copyright: Nick Tucker
SUN 16:30 Fümmsböwö (or What is the Word) (m001327w)
What exactly is this strange genre called sound poetry? Is it underappreciated and misunderstood? Is it just glorious gobbledygook?
“Fümms bö wö tää zää Uu, pögiff, kwii Ee ...” So opens Ursonate by Kurt Schwitters, the 40 minute work of meaningless noise in four movements - considered by many to be the greatest sound poem of all time.
A century after it was written, it endures, almost like a classic jazz standard or folk tale that experimental vocal performers feel compelled to learn and interpret as a rite of passage.
Jennifer Walshe is one of those daring performers, having recited Ursonate around the world and even “translated” it into Irish. One hundred years on, she wonders what secrets are held within every one of Schwitters’ “zee”, “tee” “wee” and “bee” sounds.
Jennifer’s guests include:
Vocalist Elaine Mitchener, who sees the political power of made-up words
Linguist Marina Yaguello, who speculates on the original, primeval language of mankind
Stand-up comedian Stewart Lee, who reflects on how alternative comedy might owe a debt to Schwitters and the Dada art movement
Composer Tomomi Adachi, who harnesses Artificial Intelligence to imagine new languages
And poet Jaap Blonk, who remembers Ursonate nearly getting him attacked.
Produced by Jack Howson
Mixed by Olga Reed
Photography by Mike Cameron/Wysing Polyphonic
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 4
SUN 17:00 Jeremy Irons Reads TS Eliot (b086l9pb)
The Hollow Men, Ash Wednesday and Ariel Poems
Join us for an extraordinary journey at the turn of the year, as Jeremy Irons reads the complete collection of T.S. Eliot’s English poems, almost in their entirety, across New Year’s Day. This celebration of Eliot’s work comes in five parts, each of which are introduced by Martha Kearney and special guests, including the actress Fiona Shaw, the writer Jeanette Winterson, Rory Stewart MP, and the lawyer Anthony Julius. At the end of a year in which so much that had been taken for granted seemed to fragment, our guests explain why Eliot, himself a poet of fragments, can steady us for a journey into the unknown, and for transformation. Our journey includes the ‘The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock’ with its exquisite depiction of the loneliness of young man, the post-war turmoil of ‘The Waste Land’, the spiritual struggle of poems like ‘Ash-Wednesday’ - and concludes with the lucent imagery of time and possibility in the ‘Four Quartets’; there may be no better preparation for the coming year.
Part Four
Martha Kearney is joined by the acclaimed actress Fiona Shaw, who has performed ‘The Waste Land’, to explore the impact of Eliot’s language on her own life and to consider the imagery and the seductive music of his poems of spiritual struggle.
Jeremy Irons reads:
The Hollow Men
Ash Wednesday
Journey of the Magi
A Song for Simeon
Animula
The Cultivation of Christmas Trees
SUN 17:40 Profile (m0013212)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Saturday]
SUN 17:54 Shipping Forecast (m00132cl)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.
SUN 17:57 Weather (m00132cn)
The latest weather reports and forecast
SUN 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m00132cq)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4
SUN 18:15 Pick of the Week (m00132cs)
Stuart Maconie
And so as we enter that period of reflection between the excesses of Christmas and the brief gym membership of early January, why not enjoy a last indulgent dip into the Pick of the Week selection box dated 'best before' January 2nd. Where else will you find Stanley Tucci, Scrooge and the Poet Laureate alongside some Russian bots, Richard Osman and some cheery undertakers? Go on - you can start the diet next week...
Presenter: Stuart Maconie
Producer: Emmie Hume
Production support: Brigid Harrison- Draper
Studio Manager: Sue Stonestreet
SUN 19:00 The Archers (m0013275)
Chris finds himself confused and the curtain comes down for Kirsty.
SUN 19:15 Henry Normal: A Normal... (m0011ryb)
Ageing
Henry Normal: A Normal... Ageing
"Shove up National Treasures. We need to make room for Henry Normal"
Simon O'Hagan - Radio Times
The eighth instalment in this acclaimed, occasional series in which acclaimed, occasional writer Henry Normal tackles those subjects so big only radio can possibly contain them.
So far Henry has covered ‘Family’, ‘Life’, ‘Love’, ‘Imagination’, ‘Nature’, ‘The Universe’ and ‘Communication; in this new episode, recorded in front of a live audience in Stratford Upon Avon, he will be talking about getting older.
Through poetry, stories, jokes and quotes Henry will be exploring being in the autumn of his life, when things are "going a different colour and dropping off.
Henry Normal is a multi-award winning writer, producer and poet. Co-writer of award winning TV programmes such as The Royle Family, The Mrs Merton Show, Coogan’s Run and Paul Calf, and producer of, amongst many others, Oscar-Nominated Philomena, Gavin and Stacey and Alan Partridge.
Praise for previous episodes in this series:
"It's a rare and lovely thing: half an hour of radio that stops you short, gently demands your attention and then wipes your tears away while you have to have a little sit down"
"It's a real treat to hear a seasoned professional like Henry taking command of this evening comedy spot to deliver a show that's idiosyncratic and effortlessly funny"
"Not heard anything that jumps from hilarious to moving in such an intelligent, subtle way as Henry Normal's show"
Written and performed by Henry Normal
Production Coordinator - Katie Baum
Sound manager - David Thomas
Produced by Carl Cooper
This was a BBC Studios production
SUN 19:45 Gambits (m00132cv)
10: The Scoresheet
Adrian Scarborough reads the final instalment of Eley Williams' short story series set in an Essex village gripped by chess, and where dark secrets lurk behind its closed doors.
Today, in 'The Scoresheet', as the human chess pieces arrange themselves on the village green with Matthew's match against the grandmaster set to begin, things suddenly, and shockingly, come to a head....
Reader: Adrian Scarborough
Writer: Eley Williams
Producer: Justine Willett
SUN 20:00 The Hidden History of the Staircase (m0012scj)
Join Rachel Hurdley as she climbs the staircase to discover a story of steps, status, segregation and grand entrances.
Staircases go back thousands of years to the stepped temples of the ancient world. In this country they developed from simple ladders to the spiral staircases of medieval castles and the imposing stairways of Tudor mansions.
Staircases may seem to be just a way of getting from one floor to another but, over the centuries, they’ve taken on a range of hidden meanings and symbolism.
Rachel travels to Newark Castle to find the truth behind a medieval myth, discovers how the many flights of stairs at Tudor Hardwick Hall were used to impress visitors and visits Kedleston Hall to find out how Georgian landowners used staircases to reinforce their social position.
Along the way, we learn about the Victorian hierarchy that governed who went down the stairs first. And grab the popcorn as we consider the role of the staircase in cinematic history.
Interviewees:
Sonia Solicari, Director of The Museum of the Home
Jonathan Glancey, Architectural Writer and Historian
Imogen Tedbury, Curator of Art, Royal Museums Greenwich speaking at the Queen’s House.
James Wright, Buildings Archaeologist speaking at Newark Castle
Denise Edwards, General Manager of Hardwick Hall
Richard Swinscoe, Assistant Curator, National Trust speaking at Kedleston Hall
Deborah Sugg Ryan, Professor of Design History at Portsmouth University
Karen Krizanovich, Film Journalist
Presenter: Rachel Hurdley
Producer: Louise Adamson
Executive Producer: Samir Shah
A Juniper Connect production for BBC Radio 4
SUN 20:30 Last Word (m0012swt)
Janice Long (pictured), Marvin Hagler, Esther Bejarano, Leslie Bricusse
Julian Worricker on
Janice Long, the pioneering female DJ who was heard on Radios 1 and 2 and was a familiar face on Top of the Pops.
“Marvellous” Marvin Hagler, one of the greatest middleweight boxing champions of all time.
Esther Bejarano, one of the last survivors of the Auschwitz women’s orchestra who devoted her life to campaigning against racism.
Leslie Bricusse OBE, the prolific songwriter behind dozens of hits for stage and screen, including songs for the Bond films, Willy Wonka and Doctor Dolittle.
Producer: Dan Hardoon
Interviewed guest: Annie Nightingale CBE
Interviewed guest: Peter “Hooky” Hook
Interviewed guest: Sugar Ray Leonard
Interviewed guest: John McDonald
Interviewed guest: Antonella Romeo
Interviewed guest: Kutlu Yurtseven
Interviewed guest: Evie Bricusse
Interviewed guest: Dame Joan Collins
Interviewed guest: Craig McLean
Archive clips from: YouTube, Janice Long Radio 2 Presenter on 3-2-1 in 1978; YouTube, Janice Long 1986 interview with Billy Jam 10/09/2020; Top of the Pops, BBC1 07/03/1985; Rob Bonnett interview with Marvin Hagler, BBC TV 11/06/2005; On Side, BBC1 09/03/1998; YouTube, Marvin Hagler vs Alan Minter 1980, Fight Collective 07/03/2021; YouTube, Marvin Hagler vs Sugar Ray Leonard, Top Rank Boxing 06/04/2020; YouTube, Esther Bejarano & Coincidence, ‘Mir Lebn Ejbig’; BBC4, Shooting the War: Women 03/02/2010; YouTube, Kölner Treff - Mit Jeanette Hain und Esther Bejarano 30/03/2019; Esther Bejarano & Microphone Mafia, ‘Avanti Popolo’; BBC Radio 2, Graham Norton 05/11/2017.
SUN 21:00 Money Box (m0013209)
[Repeat of broadcast at
12:04 on Saturday]
SUN 21:25 Radio 4 Appeal (m00132bs)
[Repeat of broadcast at
07:54 today]
SUN 21:30 Rutherford and Fry on Living with AI (m0012q27)
AI: A Future for Humans?
As huge tech companies race to develop ever more powerful AI systems, the creation of super-intelligent machines seems almost inevitable. But what happens when, one day, we set these advanced AIs loose? How can we be sure they’ll have humanity’s best interests in their cold silicon hearts?
Inspired by Stuart Russell’s fourth and final Reith lecture, AI-expert Hannah Fry and AI-curious Adam Rutherford imagine how we might build an artificial mind that knows what’s good for us and always does the right thing.
Can we ‘programme’ machine intelligence to always be aligned with the values of its human creators? Will it be suitably governed by a really, really long list of rules - or will it need a set of broad moral principles to guide its behaviour? If so, whose morals should we pick?
On hand to help Fry and Rutherford unpick the ethical quandaries of our fast-approaching future are Adrian Weller, Programme Director for AI at The Alan Turing Institute, and Brian Christian, author of The Alignment Problem.
Producer - Melanie Brown
Assistant Producer - Ilan Goodman
SUN 22:00 Pick of the Year (m001320h)
[Repeat of broadcast at
14:00 on Saturday]
SUN 23:00 Think with Pinker (m0012s9z)
The Climate Game
How flaws in the way we think make it harder to tackle climate change. In his guide to thinking better, Professor Steven Pinker examines how global warming is also a problem in the psychology of judgement and decision making.
To search for solutions, he’s joined by Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and author of ‘How to Avoid a Climate Disaster’ and by Professor Hannah Fry, senior lecturer at University College London’s Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis, co-presenter of Rutherford and Fry on Radio 4 and author of ‘Hello World: How to be human in the age of the machine.’
What can the game rock, paper scissors teach us about preventing a climate catastrophe?
Producer: Imogen Walford
Editor: Emma Rippon
Think with Pinker is produced in partnership with The Open University.
SUN 23:30 Something Understood (b02y0wkx)
[Repeat of broadcast at
06:05 today]
MONDAY 03 JANUARY 2022
MON 00:00 Midnight News (m00132cx)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.
MON 00:15 Thinking Allowed (m0012qgm)
The Value of Things
The value of things: At a time when many of us are sorting through Christmas presents, both wanted and unwanted, Laurie Taylor explores the value of attachment in a disposable world. Christine Harold, Professor of Communication at the University of Washington, asks why we hang on to certain objects and discard others. How might our emotional investment in things be harnessed to create less wasteful practices? Also, clutter in our homes, from the meaningless to the meaningful. Sophie Woodward, Professor of Sociology at the University of Manchester, challenges the moralistic view of clutter, one which sees it as a sign of individual failure to organise one’s domestic life. Instead, she argues, it is central to the ways we negotiate and manage our intimate relationships.
Producer: Jayne Egerton
MON 00:45 Bells on Sunday (m001321p)
[Repeat of broadcast at
05:43 on Sunday]
MON 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m00132cz)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.
MON 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m00132d1)
BBC Radio 4 presents a selection of news and current affairs, arts and science programmes from the BBC World Service.
MON 05:33 Shipping Forecast (m00132d3)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.
MON 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m00132d7)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Canon Steve Williams.
Good morning.
A good walk can change lives. I think of two twentieth century writers of enormous influence in the realm of imagination and myth - J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, fellow academics at Oxford University. It was on an early morning walk together in 1931 that Tolkien famously introduced Lewis to the insight that would open the door of Christian faith to him. Lewis was fascinated by myths. They moved him deeply. But they disappointed him in the end, because they were clearly untrue - they didn't happen. Tolkien pointed him to a story that exercised the same power of a myth and yet actually did take place in space and time - the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This was to change Lewis's life - and to open a generation of young minds many years later to the world of Narnia.
Today is the 130th birthday of J.R.R. Tolkien. And a good way to mark it this Bank Holiday is to seek out the many walks he made his own as a young man, contemplating the worlds that would become Middle Earth. There are Tolkien Ways in Lancashire, around the Ribble Valley; Staffordshire, in Cannock Chase; and Birmingham, around Moseley, as well as Oxford.
When I walk with someone, I'm off duty, I'm relaxing, the guard comes down. One of the most important walks in the Christian story took place between Jerusalem and Emmaus when Jesus, risen from the dead, drew alongside two of his followers trying to make sense of his death. They don't recognise him at first - and the decisive moments that change their lives come gently as they walk together.
God, walk with us today that we may learn to walk with you.
Amen.
MON 05:45 Farming Today (m00132d9)
Resilience in Farming
On this morning’s Farming Today Mariclare Carey-Jones is finding out why resilience is such a buzzword in farming at the moment. Mariclare will be visiting dairy farmer Lowri Thomas who is farming with nature to help with environmental resilience, and sheep farmer Phil Jones who says his organic system helps his farm stay economically resilient. She’ll also be talking to the Deputy President of the Farmer’s Union of Wales and she be at a farming event in Builth Wells where there’s a focus on the future of farming.
MON 05:56 Weather (m00132dc)
The latest weather forecast for farmers.
MON 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b08tcbrm)
Polly Weston on the Eagle Owl
Polly Weston describes an important encounter with an eagle owl in this Tweet of the Day
Producer Miles Warde.
MON 06:00 Today (m001326h)
Chief Digital Officer and Corporate Vice President at Microsoft US Jacky Wright guest-edits the programme.
Jacky Wright's programme looks at whether we teaching young people the right skills for the jobs of the future. The programme also features Jacky's return to Tottenham in north London and an interview with the creator of CSI Anthony E. Zuiker.
MON 09:00 Rethink (m001326k)
Rethink Population
Is demography destiny?
In a new five-part Rethink series, Amol Rajan and guests challenge some of our long-held assumptions about population change. Are there really too many people in the world - or will some countries actually end up with too few?
GUESTS
Rt Hon. Lord David Willets, President of the Advisory Council and Intergenerational Centre of the Resolution Foundation
Professor Anna Rotkirch, Director, Population Research Institute, Väestöliitto, Finland
Professor Ian Goldin, Professor of Globalisation and Development at the University of Oxford
Poonam Muttreja, Executive Director, Population Foundation of India
Presenter: Amol Rajan
Producer: Rob Walker
Editor: Kirsty Reid
MON 09:45 Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50 (m001326m)
Geoff Dyer - A Photograph by Robert Capa
First broadcast in 1972 on BBC Two, Ways of Seeing was a collaboration between the writer John Berger and director Mike Dibb. Across a series of four half-hour episodes, Berger talked about how we look at art, and why it matters: "The relation between what we see and what we know is never settled ... The way we see things is affected by what we know or what we believe ... Every image embodies a way of seeing. Even a photograph ... Our perception or appreciation of an image depends also upon our own way of seeing". The programmes explored Walter Benjamin's ideas about the work of art in the age of mechanical reproduction; the female nude and the male gaze; oil painting, status and ownership; advertising, art and commerce. The book published to accompany the series has never been out of print and has had a profound influence on popular understanding of art criticism and visual culture.
To mark the fiftieth anniversary of Ways of Seeing, Radio 4 invites five writers to tell us about an image that is important to them, and to reflect on how Ways of Seeing influenced their own ways of looking at - and thinking about - art.
To begin the week, Geoff Dyer chooses a picture by Robert Capa - "I will never love another photograph more" - and remembers his first encounter with Ways of Seeing: "It’s customary to talk about the way that Ways of Seeing opened our eyes, made us see art, paintings and photographs in new ways. And that’s true. It was a revelation. Ways of Seeing, I remember, made boring old paintings of men in ruffs look interesting. And it wasn’t just the paintings. The presenter looked interesting too. Interviewed about his reactions to first seeing the series, the Canadian novelist Michael Ondaatje said he’d never seen anything like… that shirt: Berger’s shirt, as he stepped up and, looking like a first division footballer out for a night on the town, cut a piece out of a sacred art work or grabbed us by the lapels with the seductive and polemical intensity of his gaze."
Geoff Dyer is the author of four novels and nine non-fiction books, most recently See/Saw: Looking at Photographs. He is the author of a critical study of John Berger, Ways of Telling, and is the editor of John Berger: Selected Essays. He currently lives in Los Angeles where he is Writer in Residence at the University of Southern California.
John Berger was a storyteller, a novelist, a painter, a poet, a critic, a screenwriter, a playwright. He died in 2017, at the age of 90.
Produced by Mair Bosworth for BBC Audio
Image © Robert Capa/International Center of Photography/Magnum Photos by kind permission of Magnum Photos
MON 10:00 Woman's Hour (m001326p)
Putting your life on the page with Ann Patchett, Cathy Rentzenbrink, Julia Samuel and Arifa Akbar
Today, Emma and guests explore why so many of us want to put our lives on the page. What stops us, what gets in the way and is it always a good idea? Is getting published the answer or are there are other ways to tell your stories. How different is writing personal essays or a memoir to creating a fictional world? Can writing stand in for therapy? What are the ethical and moral considerations of such sharing? To discuss these and many other questions Emma is joined by prize-winning author Ann Patchett, Sunday Times bestseller Cathy Rentzenbrink, psychotherapist and writer, Julia Samuel and journalist and author Arifa Akbar.
Presenter: Emma Barnett
Producer: Lucinda Montefiore
MON 11:00 Consumed by Desire (m0012qy9)
What we really want is each other
Psychotherapist and writer Philippa Perry attempts to unpick the tangled idea of desire.
We live in a world where we get what we want. Strawberries in January, the instant Uber, new clothes, all the music we could ever want, news in our pocket and constant connection via the digital world. And all to be easy and instant. However, we're also struggling to understand the world in which we live. It's not something we seem to enjoy. Sometimes we say it's 'inhuman'.
It may be that we could benefit from a clearer understanding of desire -- and our desires.
We live in an age of desire, but also an age of discontent. The gap between the urge and its fulfilment is now shorter than ever. But rather than making us more content, this short-circuit seems often to frustrate our capacity to understand and therefore control our desires.
A desire satisfied is often merely a desire reinforced or reinvented: in Freud's phrase, desire is always in excess of any item's ability to satisfy it. In times – technological, political, personal – when we are promised satisfaction, how does the inevitable falling short affect us, and what new and strange desires does it spawn?
Featuring Katherine Angel, Adam Phillips, John Yorke and Emmett.
Readings by Catherine Dyson
Producer: Martin Williams
MON 11:30 Loose Ends (m0013210)
[Repeat of broadcast at
18:15 on Saturday]
MON 12:00 News Summary (m001326s)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4
MON 12:04 15 Minute Drama (m001326v)
Subterranean Homesick Blues - Series 5
Don't Fall Apart On Me Tonight
by A.L. Kennedy
John Black ..... Bill Nighy
Maggie Turner ..... Anna Calder-Marshall
Yuri ..... Michael Begley
Directed by Sally Avens
Comedy about love in later life. Maggie has survived the pandemic and a broken hip and is now a social media 'influencer'. John worries how he can protect her now she is so well-known? Perhaps vetting her phone messages isn't such a good idea.
MON 12:18 You and Yours (m001326x)
High Street Revival
It's a decade since the retail expert Mary Portas was brought in by the Government to save our high streets. Ten years on, research done exclusively for You and Yours by the Local Data Company, reveals that new independent businesses are transforming the way our high streets look and what we use them for.
Presenter Sam Fenwick visits three different towns in England - Stockton-on- Tees, Bedford and Margate - to find out what how their high streets have been revived.
Ten years ago, the towns were really struggling when Mary Portas was brought in to save them. The three towns were part of a select group of 12 picked by the Government in 2012 to become Portas Towns, each benefitting from £100,000 in funding and specialist help in turning them round.
Over the last ten years, You and Yours has been monitoring how the 12 original Portas towns have progressed and how their successes and failures reflect more widely what's been happening in towns across the UK.
In this episode Sam hears from business owners at the heart of the struggle to survive along with leading figures in the towns about what they're doing to make them more vibrant and relevant to their individual local communities.
She also catches up with Mary Portas, ten years on from her High Street review, to hear how she thinks the towns have changed and how they need to adapt to survive the pandemic and plan for the future.
Cathy Parker, Professor of Retail at Enterprise at Manchester Metropolitan University and the research lead on the Government's High Streets Task Force, tells Sam her vision for the High Street and the factors that are most likely to help a town thrive.
Presenter: Sam Fenwick
Producer: Tara Holmes
MON 12:57 Weather (m001326z)
The latest weather forecast
MON 13:00 World at One (m0013271)
Forty-five minutes of news, analysis and comment, with Jonny Dymond.
MON 13:45 Past Forward: A Century of Sound (m0013273)
The Lambeth Walk
Hearing a clip from 1939 about the dance craze of the day, the Lambeth Walk, Greg Jenner turns to Stephen Fry for help in finding out what it was and how it brought happiness to a world in crisis, and talks to choreographer Danielle 'Rhimes' Lecointe about the freedom of collective dance.
Marking the centenary of the BBC, Past Forward uses a random date generator to alight somewhere in the BBC's vast archive over the past 100 years. Public historian Greg Jenner hears an archive clip for the first time at the top of the programme, and uses it as a starting point in a journey towards the present day. The archive captures a century of British life in a unique way - a history of ordinary people’s lives, as well as news of the great events. Greg uncovers connections through people, places and ideas that link the archive fragment to Britain in 2022, pulling in help from experts and those who remember the time – and sometimes the speakers themselves, decades later - along the way. What he discovers are stories, big and small, that reveal how the people we were have shaped the people we have become.
Produced by Megan Jones for BBC Wales.
MON 14:00 The Archers (m0013275)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Sunday]
MON 14:15 United Kingdoms (m0013277)
Laughing
A ground-breaking series capturing contemporary life across the UK with bitesize dramas, monologues, poetry and song. Each episode features five short works by writers from across the UK, and each episode responds to a different theme. In this episode - Laughing.
Llanelli
Is Enfy's dog laughing at her? Or perhaps he knows something she doesn't?
Written by Julie Ma
Performed by Di Botcher
Sound Design by Nigel Lewis
Produced by Emma Harding
Hereford
We follow a queer working class man growing up in rural Herefordshire, and the laughs that teach him what it is to be a man.
Written by 1990s Chris
Performed by 1990s Chris and Charlie Staunton
Sound Design by Lucinda Mason Brown and David Chilton
Produced by Celia de Wolff
Coleraine
If you were asked to sum up your career in eight minutes, what would you talk about? The promotions, the workload, the Christmas do's? Or your friends and the day to day of the job? For this NI police officer, she is doing just that, focusing on the smallest yet most important points of her career in the Police Service of Northern Ireland.
Written by Rachel Wilkinson
Performed by Lloyd Hutchinson and Riona O Connor
Sound design by Lucinda Mason Brown and David Chilton
Produced by Celia de Wolff
Caputh
Farmer and stand-up comedian, Jim Smith, muses on single life in rural Perthshire.
Written and performed by Jim Smith
Produced by Gaynor McFarlane
Digbeth
A man flows about smiling and laughing through the shifts of life, reminding us to take responsibility for choices. A grime rhythm articulating the triumph of pushing through.
Written and performed by RTKal
Music Engineer: Rowan Coleing
Produced by Polly Thomas and Yusra Warsama
Programme illustration by Eleanor Hibbert
Original Music composed by Niroshini Thambar
Curated by Celia de Wolff for Pier Productions, BBC Cymru Wales, BBC Scotland, BBC Northern Ireland, and Naked Productions for BBC Radio 4
MON 15:00 Counterpoint (m0013279)
Series 35
Heat 2, 2022
(2/13)
Paul Gambaccini hosts the second heat of the general knowledge music quiz, with questions and extracts covering a range of music from Handel and Prokofiev to Paul Weller and the Pet Shop Boys. The competitors today will have to prove the breadth of their musical knowledge if they are to win through to the semi-finals and stand a chance of bidding for the Counterpoint champion's title in the spring.
Taking part today are
Andy Cormican from Sheffield
Jo Lawrence from Beckley in East Sussex
Richard Page from Eltham in south-east London.
The contest was recorded in London in front of a socially-distanced audience.
Assistant Producer: Stephen Garner
Producer: Paul Bajoria
MON 15:30 The Food Programme (m001327c)
[Repeat of broadcast at
12:32 on Sunday]
MON 16:00 Faith in Music (m0012s9d)
Ralph Vaughan Williams
Scottish, Catholic composer Sir James MacMillan considers the faith lives of three very different composers. In this programme, he explores Vaughan Williams’ complex faith life as someone who lived through both World Wars and witnessed close up great suffering and destruction.
Over the centuries, composers have created musical masterpieces that many listeners have come to regard as spiritual touchstones. For example, Mozart’s Requiem, Mahler’s 2nd Symphony, Vaughan Williams’ Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis. But what did these composers actually believe about God, faith, judgement, an afterlife and redemption? And do we need to share these beliefs in any way in order to have a spiritual experience as listeners to their music? Answers to these questions are complex, fascinating and challenging.
The son of a Gloucestershire vicar, Vaughan Williams was once described as a Christian Agnostic. He spent the First World War in the Ambulance Corps, picking up bits of bodies blown apart in the trenches. During the Second World War, he cleaned public lavatories and became a rag-and-bone man. Much of his music is a cry of horror at the human condition and yet he was constantly drawn back to the Anglican liturgy, Latin Mass, Bible, Pilgrim's Progress and old hymn tunes.
James talks with scholars and musicologists Em Marshall-Luck, Stephen Johnson and conductor Sir Andrew Davis about Vaughan Williams’ religious upbringing and the experiences of his life which were reflected in his attitude towards faith and religion.
Produced by Rosie Boulton
A Must Try Softer production for BBC Radio 4
Vaughan Williams Music included in this programme:
Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis
Come Down O Love Divine
1st Movement of 6th Symphony
Love Bade Me Welcome from Five Mystical Songs
Valiant for Truth
Last Movement of 9th Symphony
MON 16:30 Beyond Belief (m001327f)
The 5Ks of Sikhism
In 1699, Guru Gobind Singh (the 10th Sikh Guru) formed the Sikh Khalsa and announced that its first five members should wear the 5Ks to demonstrate their devotion to their faith. Today the 5Ks are still symbols of Sikh identity: Kesh (uncut hair), Kanga (a wooden comb), Kara (steel bracelet), Kirpan (sword) and Kachera (cotton underwear). To discuss the importance of the 5Ks, Ernie Rea is joined by Dr Jasjit Singh (Associate Professor in the School of Philosophy, Religion and History of Science at Leeds University), Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour MP for Slough and Shadow Minister for Railways) and by Professor Nikky-Guninder Kaur Singh (Crawford Family Professor of Religion and Chair of the Department of Religious Studies at Colby College in the United States).
Producer: Helen Lee
MON 17:00 PM (m001327h)
Afternoon news and current affairs programme, reporting on breaking stories and summing up the day's headlines.
MON 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m001327k)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
MON 18:30 I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue (m001327m)
Series 76
Episode 6
The antidote to panel games pays a return visit to the Lyric Theatre in Salford. Jon Culshaw and Milton Jones take on John Finnemore and Vicki Pepperdine with Jack Dee in the chair. Colin Sell attempts piano accompaniment. Producer - Jon Naismith. It is a BBC Studios production.
MON 19:00 The Archers (m0013258)
Mike’s got his paintbrush out while Pat glosses over some glitches.
MON 19:15 This Cultural Life (m0011bgr)
Mike Leigh
Film-maker Mike Leigh talks to John Wilson about his cultural influences and some of the moments that have had an impact on his creative life. He reveals how a life-drawing class at art college proved to be a formative influence on his later film-making career. He also discusses the influence of 1960s world cinema, particularly the French new wave, and explores in detail his unique process of film-making in which actors develop their roles through improvisation.
Producer: Edwina Pitman
MON 20:00 The Untold (m0010ncs)
Out of the Red!
James 33 and Courtney 28 were fed up of struggling to make ends meet and decided on a radical solution: they swapped their rented house for a bright orange sprinter van which they’ve converted and affectionately christened DeeDee. Instead of working longer hours, they’ve halved their working week and still think they can pay off their debts and save enough for a place of their own.
Producer Sue Mitchell hears what happens as they put their plan into action and set off on the open road. They made their decision just before covid hit and as many people grappled with remote ways of working, James and Courtney were one step ahead. Their life transformation had entailed reducing their work commitments and ensuring that they could do everything online, with DeeDee’s excellent internet capabilities allowing them to work from the most remote locations.
The move to this lifestyle has brought challenges of its own and particularly with their new travel companion, a Spanish rescue dog called Sally Sausage. Their adventures embrace storms, floods, frantic dog searches and costly breakdowns. But throughout it all their goal keeps them going and as covid restrictions lift they find themselves with difficult decisions to reach. The debts have been paid off and they’ve managed to save, so what will they do next?
Courtney says the lifting of their financial woes has given them both a sense of empowerment: “making the decision to get the van was the catalyst for a complete mindset change, seeing the world is the bigger picture. We were both in full time employment earning a lot more and we couldn’t save. Now we are in part time employment we are able to save 1,000 a month.
“We’ve designed our life around it. The life we had before wasn’t for us and I think the decision now isn’t about going back to that life. The idea of having a base to go back to that’s ours that feels like our home, is one we want. At the moment home is wherever we park our van, so I can see us having that base to put down roots and then we won’t have to carry everything with us. There are decisions ahead but we’ve proved that we don’t need lots of stuff to enjoy life.”
The couple are also recording their travels for their You Tube Channel https://youtube.com/c/CourtsMeeks & Instagram Https://instagram.com/courtsandmeeks, Courts and Meeks, with thousands of followers tuning in to share in their adventures.
MON 20:30 Crossing Continents (m0012s9b)
Peru's left behind children
Peru has been battered by Covid-19. It has the highest known death toll in the world per capita. But behind the figures there’s another hidden pandemic. By the end of April 2021 around 93,000 children had lost a father, mother, grand-parent, or other primary caregiver to the virus - that’s one in every hundred children. For Crossing Continents, Jane Chambers travels to Lima to meet the families struggling to cope. The immediate urgency of the health crisis is masking a much deeper malaise; that of a generation of children mentally and physically scarred by loss and poverty.
Reported and produced by Jane Chambers.
Editor, Bridget Harney
(Image: Jhoana Olinda Antón Silva and her children in their home at the shrine they built for their father who died of Covid-19. Credit: Paola Ugaz)
MON 21:00 Science Stories (b084bpjy)
Series 4
How Much Testosterone Makes You a Man
Testosterone has been claimed as one of the most important drivers of human life – through the agency of sex and aggression. In the 19th century, Charles-Eduoard Brown-Séquard injected himself with extracts from ground-up animal testicles, and made startling claims for its rejuvenating properties and its ability to enhance virility. But the amount of testosterone derived from the injection was actually so small that it could only have been a placebo effect. Today synthesised testosterone is increasingly prescribed for the so-called ‘male menopause’; it’s also regularly used for trans men as they transition, as well as for some women with low libido. In ‘How Much Testosterone Makes You a Man’, Naomi Alderman explores how testosterone had been used and abused in the past. She considers the credits and deficits of its story, and asks what it can tell us about identity and masculinity.
MON 21:30 Pride or Prejudice: How we Read Now (m0010x28)
Reading Novels
Novels have always sparked controversy. Lady Chatterley's Lover, Lolita and American Psycho were all subject to fierce attacks.
But something is happening now that feels different - a rolling boil of social media outrage and news stories that are not about one novel but about the very nature of reading and writing fiction.
As publishers call in sensitivity readers, universities introduce content warnings and authors face charges of cultural appropriation, Abigail Williams, Professor of English at the University of Oxford, looks beyond the outrage to explore the power of the novel.
In this first programme in the series, Abigail considers the novel from the perspective of the reader, immersed in the values and identities of fictional characters and their imaginary worlds.
Contributors include the Booker Prize shortlisted novelist Nadifa Mohamed, writer and actress Sarah Solemani (who recently adapted the novel Ridley Road for BBC One), literary agent Jonny Geller and the novelists Jo Bloom and Sara Collins.
Books featured include Saul Bellow's Herzog and Angie Thomas's The Hate U Give.
Producer: Julia Johnson
Series Producer: Julia Johnson
Executive Producer: Steven Rajam
An Overcoat Media production for BBC Radio 4
MON 22:00 The World Tonight (m001327t)
In depth reporting, intelligent analysis and breaking news from a global perspective
MON 22:45 15 Minute Drama (m001326v)
[Repeat of broadcast at
12:04 today]
MON 23:00 Butch (m000j8qr)
Being 'butch' has always meant being invisible, for good or ill. To be a 'masculine' presenting lesbian has often been a way of evading the male gaze, but it has also meant being off the radar of a culture that's drawn to what shines. Now poet and theatre maker Joelle Taylor celebrates ‘being butch’ in an age of increasingly complex gender identities. She writes: 'Not funny enough to be your best friend love/ the closet is full of clothes we refuse to wear/ not camp enough for your TV show bruv / a woman without makeup is a woman without a face / who knew/ when we cleansed/ we were erasing our whole existence?’.
We follow Joelle as she prepares for her new show, and discovers what reactions 'butch' provokes in 2020. Why do some see the identity as retrograde, whilst others see presenting as butch as more radical than ever? Joelle explores the 'courageous’ distinctiveness of butch culture and community – and what it has meant to her: ‘we are ferocious women/ climbing out of our skins/ and leaving them draped/ like soiled wedding dresses behind us/ as we fall into each other’s mouths. This is love. Furious love.’
MON 23:30 Fümmsböwö (or What is the Word) (m001327w)
[Repeat of broadcast at
16:30 on Sunday]
TUESDAY 04 JANUARY 2022
TUE 00:00 Midnight News (m001327y)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.
TUE 00:30 Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50 (m001326m)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:45 on Monday]
TUE 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m0013280)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.
TUE 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m0013282)
BBC Radio 4 presents a selection of news and current affairs, arts and science programmes from the BBC World Service.
TUE 05:33 Shipping Forecast (m0013284)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.
TUE 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m0013288)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Canon Steve Williams
Good morning.
And on the eleventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me.... eleven pipers piping. I'm not sure I trust any of the many symbolic explanations of this great traditional Christmas carol - but there are some who believe that the eleven pipers piping represent the eleven faithful apostles of Jesus. The Five Gold Rings are the first five books of the Old Testament, by this reckoning, and the three French hens Faith, Hope and Charity.
There are some people who calculate each year how much it would cost to buy each item in the carol. PNC Asset Management in Pittsburgh in the United States have done this for 38 years to measure any changes in the economy. .. and calculate the total cost at nearly £31,000 at current rates of exchange... if you're just buying one set of everything you've sung about. Buy the whole lot afresh each day, and that'll set you back £135,000. The price of ten lords a-leaping has really rocketed up this year.
But I can't place a price on the gifts I truly value. They engage my heart in a way that the market-place can't measure... a wooden box my son made at the age of eight, a painting my sister did of a view that mattered to us all...
The Hebrew scriptures remind us of the dangers of placing a price on beauty that really belongs to God its creator - the Psalm says, "To ransom a soul is too costly: there is no price one could pay for it."
Generous God, you show the value you place on each one of us by sending us your Son - that we may value one another with the love and respect that is beyond price.
Amen
TUE 05:45 Farming Today (m001328b)
04/01/22 - Mental resilience in farming, mapping trees and donkey grazing
"He didn't believe in depression - he thought anyone that suffered with stress, anxiety or depression needed a good kick up the backside." We hear the story of a farmer who had to change his mind about depression when he was hit with it himself. Patrick Joice became severely depressed after getting a diagnosis of terminal cancer...but used his experience to raise awareness within the farming industry and support local charities.
A new app allows people to map individual trees - so what's the idea?
And could donkeys find a new role as conservation grazers?
Presented by Charlotte Smith
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Heather Simons
TUE 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b09ly60c)
Kathy Hinde on the Pink-footed Goose
Audio-visual artist Kathy Hinde enjoys the sounds of a flock of Pink-footed Geese as they take to the air.
Producer: Sarah Blunt
Photograph: Tom Mckibbin.
TUE 06:00 Today (m001324d)
News and current affairs, including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.
TUE 09:00 Rethink (m001324g)
Rethink Population
The Great British Baby Bust
Amol Rajan and guests look at why British birth rates have declined so much. Can we - should we - try to reverse this and how will we pay for the health and care needs of our growing elderly population?
GUESTS
Prof Sarah Harper, Director and Clore Professor of Gerontology, Oxford Institute of Population Ageing
Miatta Fahnbulleh, CEO, New Economics Foundation
Robert Colvile, Director, Centre for Policy Studies
David Runciman - Professor of Politics, University of Cambridge
Presenter: Amol Rajan
Producer: Rob Walker
Editor: Kirsty Reid
TUE 09:45 Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50 (m001324k)
Olivia Laing - A Painting by Giovanni di Paolo
First broadcast in 1972 on BBC Two, Ways of Seeing was a collaboration between the writer John Berger and director Mike Dibb. Across a series of four half-hour episodes, Berger talked about how we look at art, and why it matters: "The relation between what we see and what we know is never settled ... The way we see things is affected by what we know or what we believe ... Every image embodies a way of seeing. Even a photograph ... Our perception or appreciation of an image depends also upon our own way of seeing". The programmes explored Walter Benjamin's ideas about the work of art in the age of mechanical reproduction; the female nude and the male gaze; oil painting, status and ownership; advertising, art and commerce. The book published to accompany the series has never been out of print and has had a profound influence on popular understanding of art criticism and visual culture.
To mark the 50th anniversary of Ways of Seeing, Radio 4 invites five writers to tell us about a work of art that is important to them, and to reflect on how Ways of Seeing influenced their own ways of looking at - and thinking about - art.
In today's episode, we follow Olivia Laing into the National Gallery on a rainy day after the third lockdown, where she is confronted by the first painting she has seen in person since the pandemic began. "It was this room that I’d wanted to be in for months, though I would have been hard pressed to explain why ... The painting’s status as a kind of body that had survived meant something to me at that moment, as a person housed in a newly perilous body, which its replication as a digital image, so freely available, so immaterial, did not."
Olivia Laing is the author of To the River, The Trip to Echo Spring, The Lonely City and a novel, Crudo. Her writing on art and culture appears in the Guardian, Financial Times, and Frieze. She’s written catalogue essays on a variety of contemporary artists, including Andy Warhol, Agnes Martin, Derek Jarman, Wolfgang Tillmans and Chantal Joffe. Her collected essays on art, Funny Weather: Art in an Emergency, were published in 2020. Her most recent book is Everybody: A Book About Freedom.
John Berger was a storyteller, a novelist, a painter, a poet, a critic, a screenwriter, a playwright. He died in 2017, at the age of 90.
Produced by Mair Bosworth for BBC Audio
Saint John the Baptist Returning to the Desert by Giovanni di Paolo is reproduced here by kind permission of The National Gallery
TUE 10:00 Woman's Hour (m001324n)
Women's voices and women's lives - topical conversations to inform, challenge and inspire.
TUE 11:00 The Coming Storm (m001324q)
The Dead Body
QAnon and the plot to break reality...
When a mob storms the Capitol in Washington DC, reporter and presenter Gabriel Gatehouse sees someone he recognises: a man draped in furs with horns on his head. He is known as the Q Shaman.
Gabriel had met him at a Trump rally in Arizona, ranting about a conspiracy theory involving Hillary Clinton and a cabal of satanic paedophiles plotting to steal the 2020 presidential election.
The search for the origins of this strange and twisted tale begins in 1993, when the suicide of a White House aide during Bill Clinton’s presidency reveals the first signs of a new information ecosystem that is starting to spill over into the mainstream. Myths about his murder proliferate on the early internet. But that is just the tip of the iceberg. In Arkansas a parallel reality is forming, in which the Clintons are a corrupt and murderous couple who will stop at nothing in their quest for power.
Producer: Lucy Proctor
TUE 11:30 The Imperilled Adventures of the Adventure Playground (m000zcf5)
“Better a broken bone than a broken spirit.” So runs the mantra for adventure playgrounds - as coined by the woman who did more than anyone to establish them in the UK, Lady Marjory Allen.
In these current days of ours, an increasing aversion to risk means these places designed for children to swing from ropes, jump from trees and generally run free are in trouble. Many of them have been either shut down or re-purposed - a trend only made worse by local authority funding cuts.
Josie Long thinks this is a terrible situation. Adventure playgrounds, she argues, have never played a more important role, with children ushered from bubble to bubble between home and school, after decades in which active and seemingly hazardous play has been undermined. But are adventure playgrounds much safer in their own way than the ‘toyland whimsy’ offered by conventional playground designs where children don’t learn to assess risk?
Josie talks to Michael Rosen about how much more creative the play offered by adventure playgrounds can be, encouraging independence and developing vital social and psychological skills alongside an amazing amount of fun. She spends two days among the children and play workers at the Baltic Street Adventure Playground in the East End of Glasgow, seeing first-hand the incredible and radical difference such a space can offer - not just to the individual children but also the community at large.
Produced by Geoff Bird
A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4
TUE 12:00 News Summary (m001324t)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4
TUE 12:04 15 Minute Drama (m001324w)
Subterranean Homesick Blues - Series 5
Emotionally Yours
by A.L. Kennedy
John Black ..... Bill Nighy
Maggie Turner ..... Anna Calder-Marshall
Jimmy Nails ..... Michael Begley
Directed by Sally Avens
Now Maggie is a social media superstar John is worried about her security, especially as a 'lurker' is on the loose in the village, but his attempts to update their home security don't go to plan.
TUE 12:18 You and Yours (m001324z)
News and discussion of consumer affairs
TUE 12:57 Weather (m0013251)
The latest weather forecast
TUE 13:00 World at One (m0013253)
Forty-five minutes of news, analysis and comment, with Jonny Dymond.
TUE 13:45 Past Forward: A Century of Sound (m0013255)
1984 - Comrade Dad
Public historian Greg Jenner watches a BBC sitcom from the 1980s, Comrade Dad, which imagines that the British government has been taken over by Soviet Communists. He speaks to television producer and historian Taylor Downing and author Naomi Alderman about Cold War panic, Thatcher’s Britain and what fictional dystopias reveal about our concerns – past and present.
Marking the centenary of the BBC, Past Forward uses a random date generator to alight somewhere in the BBC's vast archive over the past 100 years. Public historian Greg Jenner hears an archive clip for the first time at the top of the programme, and uses it as a starting point in a journey towards the present day. The archive captures a century of British life in a unique way - a history of ordinary people’s lives, as well as news of the great events. Greg uncovers connections through people, places and ideas that link the archive fragment to Britain in 2022, pulling in help from experts and those who remember the time – and sometimes the speakers themselves, decades later - along the way. What he discovers are stories, big and small, that reveal how the people we were have shaped the people we have become.
Produced by Eliane Glaser for BBC Wales
TUE 14:00 The Archers (m0013258)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Monday]
TUE 14:15 Isaac Newton: Nemesis (m000b6t0)
Episode 1
By David Ashton. In the late 17th century, England is at war with France and a financial crisis threatens to bring down the Government. As Warden of the Royal Mint, Isaac Newton has an ambitious solution - to recoin the entire currency. But he has a fight on his hands – both with the politicians who hired him and a French secret agent who is orchestrating the criminal gang out to steal the country’s supply of silver.
Isaac Newton ..... WILLIAM GAMINARA
Hopton Haynes ..... GUNNAR CAUTHERY
Catherine Barton ..... LAURA CHRISTY
Charles Montague ..... RICK WARDEN
Elliot Miller ..... SEAN MURRAY
Thomas Carey ..... CLIVE HAYWARD
Belle Russell ..... MELODY GROVE
Jamie Wilde ..... WILL KIRK
Richard Vernon ..... NEIL MCCAUL
Other parts played by the cast.
Producer/Director: Bruce Young
TUE 15:00 The Kitchen Cabinet (m0013203)
[Repeat of broadcast at
10:30 on Saturday]
TUE 15:30 Moving Pictures (m00127y6)
The Feast of Herod by Peter Paul Rubens
Cathy FitzGerald invites you to discover new details in old masterpieces, using your phone, tablet or computer.
Each 30 minute episode of Moving Pictures is devoted to a single artwork - and you're invited to look as well as listen, by following a link to a high-resolution image made by Google Arts & Culture. Zoom in and you can see the pores of the canvas, the sweep of individual brushstrokes, the shimmer of pointillist dots.
We start this series with a masterpiece by Peter Paul Rubens, from the collection of the National Galleries of Scotland. Two metres high by nearly three metres wide, The Feast of Herod is painting on a grand-scale - its figures are almost life-size. The picture depicts an opulent banquet to mark the birthday of the ruler, Herod. His guests are adorned in sumptuous clothes and jewels; servants carry in elaborate dishes.
But beneath the surface of this fancy family dinner, something has gone terrifyingly wrong.
To see the high-resolution image, visit www.bbc.co.uk/movingpictures and follow the link to explore The Feast of Herod.
Interviewees: Tico Seifert, Ben Quash, Leah Kharibian, Betsy Wieseman and Michael Ohajuru.
Producer and presenter: Cathy FitzGerald
Art history consultant: Leah Kharibian
Executive producer: Sarah Cuddon
Engineer: Mike Woolley
A White Stiletto production for BBC Radio 4.
Picture credit: Sir Peter Paul Rubens; The Feast of Herod; (c) National Galleries of Scotland
TUE 16:00 Consumed by Desire (m001325b)
Episode 3
New documentary series from BBC Radio 4
TUE 16:30 Great Lives (m001325d)
William Lever, Lord Leverhulme, founder of Unilever
William Lever was a grocer's son who went on to make a fortune selling soap. Lifebuoy, Lux ... and eventually Unilever are just some of his creations. Picking him for Great Lives is Richard Walker, managing director of Iceland. Joining him is Adam Macqueen, author of The King of Sunlight: How William Lever Cleaned up the The World.
The presenter is Matthew Parris, the producer for BBC audio in Bristol is Miles Warde.
TUE 17:00 PM (m001325g)
Afternoon news and current affairs programme, reporting on breaking stories and summing up the day's headlines.
TUE 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m001325j)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
TUE 18:30 It's a Fair Cop (b0bh8vp2)
Series 4
Office Banter
Another chance to hear this episode from 2018. Serving police officer Alfie Moore with the second episode of the series in which he makes his audience take the policing decisions in a real life case. This week he deals with the subject of sexual misconduct. What is the legal definition and how do you investigate allegations? With stories of cases he's dealt with and audience participation Alfie handles this very sensitive and current issue with skill and empathy.
Writer and presenter ….. Alfie Moore
Script editor ….. Will Ing
Producer ….. Alison Vernon-Smith
A BBC Studios Production
TUE 19:00 The Archers (m001325l)
Alice heads down a dangerous path while Adam gets suited and booted
TUE 19:15 Front Row (m001325n)
Live magazine programme on the worlds of arts, literature, film, media and music
TUE 20:00 Pakistan's Long Game (m001325q)
Owen Bennett-Jones examines the long game Pakistan played in the US defeat in Afghanistan.
In the Radio 4 documentary 'Iran’s Long Game', Owen described how the government in Tehran had outwitted the United States in Iraq. As a result, despite the massive US expenditure there, Tehran now has more influence in Baghdad than Washington.
'Pakistan’s Long Game' examines how Islamabad pulled off much the same trick in relation to Afghanistan. But there was a difference. Whilst Iran was under US sanctions, Pakistan secured its objectives in Afghanistan whilst simultaneously receiving billions of dollars worth of US aid. As one retired Pakistan intelligence chief bragged – the US was helping secure its own defeat.
Drawing on archive and interviews the documentary highlights the occasions on which Pakistan (despite many denials) acknowledged that it did have a relationship with the Afghan Taliban. It describes the nature of that relationship and explains how Pakistan felt it had little choice. Islamabad always realised that Western forces would leave Afghanistan and that it had to prepare for the situation after the withdrawal. Owen speaks to Pakistani and US critics of Pakistan’s policy and asks whether the Pakistani strategy will backfire. It may now be enjoying a degree of control in Afghanistan, but how great is the threat from an emboldened Pakistani Taliban which wants power in Pakistan itself. And most of all how come the most powerful country on earth was outwitted by two regional powers first Iran and then Pakistan.
Presenter: Owen Bennet-Jones
Producer: Zak Brophy
Editor: Bridget Harney
TUE 20:40 In Touch (m001325s)
News, views and information for people who are blind or partially sighted
TUE 21:00 Inside Health (m001325v)
A weekly quest to demystify the health issues that perplex us.
TUE 21:30 Pride or Prejudice: How we Read Now (m001149l)
Teaching Novels
Novels have always sparked controversy. Lady Chatterley's Lover, Lolita and American Psycho were all subject to fierce attacks.
But something is happening now that feels different - a rolling boil of social media outrage and news stories that are not about one novel but about the very nature of reading, studying and writing fiction.
In an era of content warnings, cancel culture and calls to decolonise the curriculum, Abigail Williams, Professor of English at the University of Oxford, asks how today's students are reading the novel.
From Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe to Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 by the way of the television campus comedy The Chair, Abigail finds a path through outrage and offence as she explores new approaches to teaching and studying the novel.
Producer: Julia Johnson
Series Producer: Julia Johnson
Executive Producer: Steven Rajam
An Overcoat Media production for BBC Radio 4
TUE 22:00 The World Tonight (m001325x)
In depth reporting, intelligent analysis and breaking news from a global perspective
TUE 22:45 15 Minute Drama (m001324w)
[Repeat of broadcast at
12:04 today]
TUE 23:00 Fortunately... with Fi and Jane (p07wg99z)
Back at the Brownies with Nigel Slater
This week on Fortunately our guest is food writer, broadcaster and full on national treasure Nigel Slater.
The author of Toast, Tender and Greenfeast joins Fi and Jane for a chat around the kitchen table. The only question is whether Jane will make it Fi's house on time.
Once they're all settled in with cake and coffee, the three of them discuss writing about your own life, who does the washing up, sugar cravings and 'the M4 test'.
TUE 23:30 Compression versus Art (b06tvgp1)
Trevor Cox asks whether compression can detract from our enjoyment of recorded music - does it matter that what we hear may not be the same as what the musicians heard in the studio? How important is high quality reproduction? He looks at attempts to make music recordings sound louder and louder (the so-called Loudness War) and asks whether anything is lost in the process. And he considers whether making audio file sizes smaller, so that they take up less space on portable devices, means that some of the musical detail is lost. He talks to record producer Steve Levine (who produced Culture Club among many others) mastering engineer Ian Shepherd, the musician Steven Wilson, members of the BBC Philharmonic, and Dr Bruno Fazenda, Senior Lecturer in Audio Technology.
WEDNESDAY 05 JANUARY 2022
WED 00:00 Midnight News (m0013261)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.
WED 00:30 Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50 (m001324k)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:45 on Tuesday]
WED 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m0013263)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.
WED 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m0013265)
BBC Radio 4 presents a selection of news and current affairs, arts and science programmes from the BBC World Service.
WED 05:33 Shipping Forecast (m0013267)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.
WED 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m001326c)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Canon Steve Williams
Good morning.
You can sometimes tidy things up too well. I know that my preparations for Christmas 2022 really begin this evening with Twelfth Night. Put everything away, clearly labelled and in the right place, tonight - and I'll be able to put my hands on it easily when I look for it again in eleven months' time. I once lost baby Jesus, made out of beautiful polished sandalwood - the night he was due to be placed in our church's crib to mark his birth at the beginning of Christmas Day.
I'd begun the great Christmas Tidy-Up in our church with baby Jesus in the palm of my hand - but, as I was throwing away gleefully all the old cards and papers that should have been chucked months ago, inexplicably he'd vanished. Had I put him absent-mindedly in one of my safe spaces for him - the choir stall, the book-case? I stretched my hand into the bottom of the paper bin, and there, beside a two-day old fruit sweet and a broken pencil, lay the familiar shape of the small wooden baby Jesus. I'd found him, after throwing him away by complete accident.
This prompts me to ask where I really might find him today without the decorations to remind me. Howard Thurman was a civil rights activist who inspired Martin Luther King - and he prayed:
When the song of the angels is stilled,
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the kings and the princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flocks,
The work of Christmas begins:
To find the lost,
To heal the broken,
To feed the hungry,
To release the prisoner,
To rebuild the nations,
To bring peace among people,
To make music in the heart.
Amen.
WED 05:45 Farming Today (m001326f)
The latest news about food, farming and the countryside.
WED 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b03mzv5m)
Coot
Tweet of the Day is a series of fascinating stories about our British birds inspired by their calls and songs.
Chris Packham presents the story of the Coot. The explosive high-pitched call of the coot is probably a sound most of us associate with our local park lakes. Coot are dumpy, charcoal-coloured birds related to moorhens, though unlike their cousins, they tend to spend more time on open water, often in large flocks in winter.
WED 06:00 Today (m001328d)
News and current affairs, including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.
WED 09:00 Rethink (m001328g)
Rethink Population
Living in a young country
In episode three of the series, Amol Rajan is joined by guests from Africa and the Middle East to look at the challenges and opportunities faced by countries with rapidly growing young populations. Will this mean demographic dividend or disaster for states like Nigeria?
GUESTS
Dr Wangui Kimari, Junior Research Fellow, Institute for Humanities in Africa at the University of Cape Town
Cheta Nwanze, Lead Partner at SBM Intelligence
Meray Maddah, Research Assistant, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
Dr. Paul Morland, Author of ‘The Human Tide: How Population Shaped the Modern World’
Presenter: Amol Rajan
Producer: Ayeisha Thomas-Smith
Editor: Kirsty Reid
WED 09:45 Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50 (m001328j)
Tom Overton - A Self Portrait by John Berger
First broadcast in 1972 on BBC Two, Ways of Seeing was a collaboration between the writer John Berger and director Mike Dibb. Across a series of four half-hour episodes, Berger talked about how we look at art, and why it matters: "The relation between what we see and what we know is never settled ... The way we see things is affected by what we know or what we believe ... Every image embodies a way of seeing. Even a photograph ... Our perception or appreciation of an image depends also upon our own way of seeing". The programmes explored Walter Benjamin's ideas about the work of art in the age of mechanical reproduction; the female nude and the male gaze; oil painting, status and ownership; advertising, art and commerce. The book published to accompany the series has never been out of print and has had a profound influence on popular understanding of art criticism and visual culture.
To mark the 50th anniversary of Ways of Seeing, Radio 4 invites five writers to tell us about a work of art that is important to them, and to reflect on how Ways of Seeing influenced their own ways of looking at - and thinking about - art.
In today's episode, Berger's biographer and archivist Tom Overton looks at a self-portrait made by Berger at the age of 19. "I hope you will consider what I arrange, John Berger says at the end of the first episode of Ways of Seeing. But please, he adds, be sceptical of it. For him, a lifetime looking at art was a lifetime thinking about the power art has over people, and being reminded that it is part of a world in which decisions have consequences, but also alternatives. This is how this picture looks, but it didn’t have to be. This is the government we have, but it doesn’t have to be. This is the way we use technology, but it doesn’t have to be."
Tom Overton is the editor of Portraits: John Berger on Artists (2015) and Landscapes (2016), two volumes of John Berger's writing about art published by Verso Books. He is currently working on Berger's biography, and The Good Archivist, a book on archives and migration. He is a Fellow of the Centre for Life-Writing Research at King’s College London, and a Writer in Residence at Jerwood Visual Arts.
John Berger was a storyteller, a novelist, a painter, a poet, a critic, a screenwriter, a playwright. He died in 2017, at the age of 90.
Produced by Mair Bosworth for BBC Audio
The photograph of Berger's self portrait shown here is by John Christie. The print itself is reproduced here by kind permission of Yves Berger.
WED 10:00 Woman's Hour (m001328l)
Women's voices and women's lives - topical conversations to inform, challenge and inspire.
WED 11:00 The Now Show (b087p2k8)
Now The Twelfth Night Show
The Now Show does Shakespeare!
Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis present their unique take on Shakespeare's comedy, Twelfth Night. One of them has been able to put his degree in English literature to good use in adapting the play. The other has a degree in Geography.
As they've been busy with the Now Show, Punt and Dennis haven't had much time to adapt the play so are presenting it in a totally unique way to the Radio 4 listener through the use of 'archive' extracts from stage, television and radio productions of the play alongside commentary from theatrical and academic experts and some of the greatest Shakespearean actors.
We'll hear a BBC Schools production of the play in which a famous soap actress plays the role of Olivia's maid; a 1994 production where the role of Feste was played by Billy Connolly; an excerpt from the 2002 off-Broadway urban musical version 'The Chick Wears Pants', and the 1948 film noir movie version.
Punt and Dennis will guide us through the play with historical notes and explanations, and they may even get a bit of geography in!
Written by Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis with additional material from Gareth Gwynn and Pippa Evans.
Performed by Steve Punt, Hugh Dennis, Lewis MacLeod, Ronni Acona, Pippa Evans and Simon Dylan-Kane.
Produced by Dawn Ellis
A BBC Studios Production.
WED 12:00 News Summary (m001328q)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4
WED 12:04 15 Minute Drama (m001328v)
Subterranean Homesick Blues - Series 5
Don't Think Twice It's Alright
by A.L. Kennedy
John ..... Bill Nighy
Maggie ..... Anna Calder-Marshall
Mr Seymour ..... Neil McCaul
Mrs Seymour ..... Christine Kavanagh
John & Maggie go to view a flat in a gated community and find themselves at odds with the owners and going head to head with the garden foliage.
WED 12:18 You and Yours (m001328z)
News and discussion of consumer affairs
WED 12:57 Weather (m0013292)
The latest weather forecast
WED 13:00 World at One (m0013294)
Forty-five minutes of news, analysis and comment, with Sarah Montague.
WED 13:45 Past Forward: A Century of Sound (m0013296)
Christmas 1945
Greg hears an archive clip from 24th December 1945 – when people in Trafalgar Square and the East End of London were interviewed on their plans for Christmas that year - for many, the first celebration with their families for several years.
Marking the centenary of the BBC, Past Forward uses a random date generator to alight somewhere in the BBC's vast archive over the past 100 years. Public historian Greg Jenner hears an archive clip for the first time at the top of the programme, and uses it as a starting point in a journey towards the present day. The archive captures a century of British life in a unique way - a history of ordinary people’s lives, as well as news of the great events. Greg uncovers connections through people, places and ideas that link the archive fragment to Britain in 2022, pulling in help from experts and those who remember the time – and sometimes the speakers themselves, decades later - along the way. What he discovers are stories, big and small, that reveal how the people we were have shaped the people we have become.
Produced by Martin Williams for BBC Wales
WED 14:00 The Archers (m001325l)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Tuesday]
WED 14:15 Fake Heiress (m000c9m9)
Episode 1
Reporting by Vicky Baker
Drama by Chloe Moss
Anna Delvey was due to come into a trust fund of $67m on her 26th birthday. She was on her way to establishing the Anna Delvey Foundation, a multi-million dollar visual-arts centre in the heart of New York City. She filled her time with champagne brunches and stays in penthouse suites, as she wined and dined the New York elites to secure investment for her project. It all sounded wonderful.
Except, it was all a lie.
Behind Anna Delvey, the heiress, was Anna Sorokin, the recent magazine intern. Out of nothing, this otherwise unremarkable twenty-something had reinvented herself as a multi-millionaire socialite, conning businesses and friends out of thousands of dollars in the process.
But how? How did she manage to live a life of luxury for so long? How did she make anyone believe her story? How did she get people to trust her enough to give her their money?
Journalist Vicky Baker and playwright Chloe Moss dig deeper into the New York scandal, and mix drama with documentary to tell the story of Anna Delvey's rise and fall.
Anna is played by Bella Dayne
Other parts are played by Chris Lew Kum Hoi, Heather Craney, Will Kirk, Scarlett Courtney, Neil McCaul, Clive Hayward, Ian Conningham, Lucy Reynolds, Adam Courting, Greg Jones, Laura Christy, Jessica Turner, Ikky Elyas, Sinead MacInnes.
Director: Sasha Yevtushenko
Fake Heiress will also be available as an extended six part podcast on BBC Sounds.
WED 15:00 Money Box (m0013298)
Consumer Rights
Pyjamas and jumpers are the most unwanted gifts we receive and in the post-Christmas period about 10% of us return at least one gift to the shops.
Since we spend about £80 billion over Christmas each year returning even a fraction of that involves a huge amount of money, both for shoppers and the shops.
Adam Shaw and guests explore what are our consumer rights. What you can and can’t return? What you need to prove the purchase was made and where a bit of post-Christmas goodwill might help you get a refund and exchange
Joining Adam are experts Jemma Cox from Welsh Trading Standards, Martyn James from the free resolution service Resolver, and Andrew Goodacre, CEO of BIRA, which is the leading trade association for independent retailers in the UK. And they hear from shop owners and customers about their experiences.
Producer Smita Patel
Editor Emma Rippon
WED 15:30 Inside Health (m001325v)
[Repeat of broadcast at
21:00 on Tuesday]
WED 16:00 Thinking Allowed (m001329b)
Food, Identity & Nation
FOOD, IDENTITY AND NATION - At a time when many of us are feeling overstuffed by festive eating, Laurie Taylor asks why food matters. He’s joined by Paul Freedman Chester D. Tripp Professor of History at Yale University, who explores food’s relationship to our sense of self, as well as to inequality and the environment. Joy Fraser, Project Coordinator at the Research Centre for the Study of Music, Media at Memorial University, Newfoundland, Canada, also joins the conversation. She asks why Scottishness has so often been signified, in a derogatory way, through food - from haggis to the deep fried mars bar. Does it say something about the relationship between England and Scotland?
Producer: Jayne Egerton
WED 16:30 The Media Show (m001329d)
Social media, anti-social media, breaking news, faking news: this is the programme about a revolution in media.
WED 17:00 PM (m001329g)
Afternoon news and current affairs programme, reporting on breaking stories and summing up the day's headlines.
WED 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m001329j)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
WED 18:30 Ellie Taylor's Safe Space (m000yg46)
Series 2
Parties
Ellie Taylor welcomes you to "Safe Space", a place where anyone can offload their controversial opinions without fear of judgment,. She talks to members of the public about their gripes and then reveals one of her own - that parties are awful and should be banned. Joining her to prove her point are regular sidekick Robin Morgan (Mock The Week) and special guest Ella Al-Shamahi, author of "The Handshake: A Gripping History".
Written by Ellie Taylor and Robin Morgan
Produced by Sam Michell for BBC Studios
WED 19:00 The Archers (m001329l)
Amy faces an uphill struggle and Tony learns to compromise
WED 19:15 Front Row (m001329n)
Live magazine programme on the worlds of arts, literature, film, media and music
WED 20:00 Breaking History (m001329q)
Cultural historian Nandini Das explores the power of empathy to shape our political worlds, in conversation with author and academic researcher Claire Yorke.
On 28th February 1972, the US President Richard Nixon departed from the People's Republic of China aboard Air Force One. Over seven days of banquets, ballets and visits to national monuments leading figures from the USA and China had got to know each other, engaging in talks for the first time in years. By the end of the so called "week that changed the world", the two countries had issued the Joint Communique of the United States of America and the People's Republic of China, also known as the Shanghai Communique.
The communique was highly unconventional; it essentially sees both sides as agreeing to disagree. However, within its text the two sides agreed that both countries, regardless of their social systems, should conduct their relations on the principles of respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states.
It was an agreement that had far reaching consequences for world history - one that "built a bridge across 16,000 miles" and healed years of division and hostility.
So how exactly did China and the US break with years of hostility? Nandini's guest, Dr. Claire Yorke (Centre for War Studies, University of Southern Denmark) believes that a key part of the answer is empathy.
She and Nandini discuss the different ways that empathy has moulded our political landscape - drawing from examples past and present - as well as exploring in detail the ways in which President Nixon's trip to China and its aftermath provide a fascinating case study in the power of empathy to catalyse breakthroughs in not just diplomacy - but the often tricky relationship between politicians and the public.
WED 20:45 Four Thought (m00127xx)
Prison Sentence
Philippa Greer discusses the imprisonment of people convicted of genocide.
Philippa is a human rights lawyer who has worked around the world. In this powerful talk she tells the story of a visit to West Africa to prepare for the funeral of a man who had recently died in prison. This man had been convicted of genocide, but Philippa reveals that many such prisoners will eventually be released, and what that suggests to her about the use of prison as a response to the most serious crimes against humanity.
Producer: Patrick Cowling.
WED 21:00 The Flipside with Paris Lees (m001329s)
Layers of Language
Paris speaks to a YouTuber who found herself going through therapy in her second language, forcing her to explore the emotional baggage of English and Italian, and a woman who lost her mother tongue after crossing the US border for a new life and is now on a mission to remember the language she loves.
Assistant professor and bilingual Sayuri Hayakawa explores how speaking a second language can affect how we think and behave.
The Flipside is hosted by Paris Lees, and written by Hannah Varrall and Paris Lees.
The Assistant Producer is Lucy Evans.
The Production Manager is Emily Jarvis.
Audio engineering is by Chris Carter and Nick Webb and it is mixed by Mau Loseto.
It’s produced by Hannah Varrall and the Executive Producer is Rubina Pabani.
It’s made by ITN Productions for BBC Radio 4.
WED 21:30 The Media Show (m001329d)
[Repeat of broadcast at
16:30 today]
WED 22:00 The World Tonight (m001329v)
In depth reporting, intelligent analysis and breaking news from a global perspective
WED 22:45 15 Minute Drama (m001328v)
[Repeat of broadcast at
12:04 today]
WED 23:00 Ruby Wax Talking Human (m001329x)
Episode 4
Ruby is joined by neuroscientist Ash Ranpura and Buddhist monk Gelong Thubten to talk honestly and swap experience, with insight and humour, about being happy and being human.
Ruby has done two very funny and wise shows for Radio 4, combining stand up with a conversation about mental health. Now she’s back with her friends Ash and Thubten for four engaging, entertaining, informative and intimate late night conversations about how the mind works, happiness, compassion, self-compassion and how to be human (there's no manual!).
The rollercoaster of the last two years has created soaring stress levels, confronted us with the big realities, including uncertainty and loneliness, redefined our relationship with technology and shown us the value of compassion.
Over four weeks, Ruby, Ash and Thubten discuss all of the above, what they mean for the mind and for us as humans and what their coping strategies have been.
They're all experts in their field. Ruby has a masters in Mindfulness-based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and a glittering comedy career, Thubten has taught mindfulness all over the world from Google to the UN, and Ash is a neuroscientist and clinical neurologist.
Host: Ruby Wax
Guests: Ash Ranpura and Gelong Thubten
Producer: Liz Anstee
A CPL production for BBC Radio 4
WED 23:15 Sophie Willan's Guide to Normality (b09xkrkf)
Series 1
Do Monogamy
Break out comedy star Sophie Willan is coming to Radio 4 with an exciting new stand-up series looking at what it is to be 'normal'. Sophie grew up in and out of the Care System and had an unconventional childhood. In her debut series she will get to grips with - and often challenge - our perception of 'the perfect normal life', shining a light on the reality of the British experience.
In episode three, Sophie looks at monogamous relationships.
Sophie Willan's Guide to Normality was produced by Suzy Grant for BBC Studios.
WED 23:30 Today in Parliament (m001329z)
News, views and features on today's stories in Parliament
THURSDAY 06 JANUARY 2022
THU 00:00 Midnight News (m00132b1)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.
THU 00:30 Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50 (m001328j)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:45 on Wednesday]
THU 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m00132b3)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.
THU 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m00132b5)
BBC Radio 4 presents a selection of news and current affairs, arts and science programmes from the BBC World Service.
THU 05:33 Shipping Forecast (m00132b7)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.
THU 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m00132bc)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Canon Steve Williams
Good morning.
I take my electric light-bulbs too much for granted. One day, the building I run suffered a power-cut just as a club of twenty artists and painters were gathering together to hold their annual general meeting. It was seven o'clock in the evening. Their transport had been booked. I couldn't turn them away. Nor could I let them sit in darkness. I rummaged through every cupboard in the building - and, because it was a church, found a whole stack of candles still in their holders and I presented each artist with their own light. They decided to go ahead with their meeting - and I shall always treasure the memory of the person who took the chair, holding a candle to his face and to his paper agenda, calling them to order like a scene several centuries earlier painted by Rembrandt.
Today is the Christian Feast of the Epiphany. The word Epiphany is taken from the Greek for light that shines forth or shines upon. It's the day for remembering the light that guided Wise Men from the East, the Magi, to the newly born king from among the Jewish people whose message would be of worldwide significance. They may have navigated by lights that we would see differently today - signs in the sky, as different for us as candle-light from electric. But they followed their wisdom to discover the truth to which they recognised they were accountable, by whatever lights they had - and they didn't give up when it led them through some dark places along the way.
O God, who, by the leading of a star, drew to your light those who sought your face, guide us through our darkness to the one who is our Saviour, Hope and Guide, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
THU 05:45 Farming Today (m00132bf)
The latest news about food, farming and the countryside.
THU 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b09nvs2r)
Jane Smith on the Great Northern Diver
Wildlife artist Jane Smith listens in the fog to a Great Northern Diver and is drawn towards the strange eerie call of the bird.
Producer: Sarah Blunt
Photograph: Della Lack.
THU 06:00 Today (m00132tg)
News and current affairs, including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.
THU 09:00 Rethink (m00132tj)
Rethink Population
What Japan can teach us
Amol Rajan and his guests look at Japan where almost a third of the population is aged 65 or over. What does that mean for Japan's economy, and its future? And what can other ageing countries learn from its experiences so far?
GUESTS
Kathy Matsui, partner at venture capital fund MPower
Celia Hatton, Asia-Pacific Editor for the BBC
Bill Emmott, Chairman of the International Institute for Strategic Studies, former Editor of the Economist
Noreena Hertz economist and author of 'The Lonely Century'
Presenter: Amol Rajan
Producer: Lucinda Borrell
Editor: Kirsty Reid
THU 09:45 Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50 (m00132tl)
Sinéad Gleeson - A Performance by Amanda Coogan
First broadcast in 1972 on BBC Two, Ways of Seeing was a collaboration between the writer John Berger and the producer Mike Dibb. Across a series of four half-hour episodes, Berger talked about how we look at art, and why it matters: "The relation between what we see and what we know is never settled ... The way we see things is affected by what we know or what we believe ... Every image embodies a way of seeing. Even a photograph ... Our perception or appreciation of an image depends also upon our own way of seeing". The programmes explored Walter Benjamin's ideas about the work of art in the age of mechanical reproduction; the female nude and the male gaze; oil painting, status and ownership; advertising, art and commerce. The book published to accompany the series has never been out of print and has had a profound influence on popular understanding of art criticism and visual culture.
To mark the 50th anniversary of Ways of Seeing, Radio 4 invites five writers to tell us about a work of art that is important to them, and to reflect on how Ways of Seeing influenced their own ways of looking at - and thinking about - art.
In today's episode, Sinéad Gleeson writes about Yellow, a durational performance by Irish artist Amanda Coogan. "I had known about Yellow for a long time, but it took years to finally see the work - not for reasons of lockdown, or being on loan to another gallery, but because its existence relies on Coogan staging it publicly. It does not have a permanent wall in a specific corner of a gallery. So I wait, and look at two-dimensional reproductions of it online, even though Berger argues that “all reproductions more or less distort ... The lockdown online views were a mere echo of what in-person encounters with art could be. I needed to see the performance, I wanted to see that shade of yellow in person."
Sinéad Gleeson is a writer and broadcaster from Dublin. Her essays have been published by Granta, Winter Papers and Gorse, and broadcast by BBC and RTÉ. Her debut essay collection Constellations: Reflections from Life won Non-Fiction Book of the Year at 2019 Irish Book Awards.
John Berger was a storyteller, a novelist, a painter, a poet, a critic, a screenwriter, a playwright. He died in 2017, at the age of 90.
Produced by Mair Bosworth for BBC Audio
THU 10:00 Woman's Hour (m00132tn)
Women's voices and women's lives - topical conversations to inform, challenge and inspire.
THU 11:00 Crossing Continents (m00132tq)
Turkey's Crazy Project
A giant new canal for the world’s biggest ships is the most ambitious engineering plan yet proposed by Turkey’s President Erdogan, whose massive infrastructure projects have already changed the face of his country. The proposed waterway would slice through Istanbul, creating in effect a second Bosphorus, the busy shipping lane that is now the only outlet from the Black Sea. The president himself has called the project 'crazy'. But he says it would 'save the future of Istanbul', easing traffic in the Bosphorus and reducing the risk of a terrible accident there. The plan has met a storm of opposition. Istanbul’s mayor says it would “murder” the historic city. Critics claim the canal would be an environmental disaster, cost billions of dollars that Turkey can’t afford – and provoke severe tensions with Russia, which is determined to preserve existing rules on traffic into and out of the Black Sea. Tim Whewell reports from a divided city. He sails down the Bosphorus with a pilot who knows all its twists and turns, joins a marine biologist diving for coral in the Sea of Marmara, meets a woman whose Ottoman-era mansion was wrecked by a ship, has tea with a former admiral who was arrested over his opposition to the project, and visits the tranquil forests around the city, now threatened by development. Will the canal still go ahead? Who would lose – and who would benefit?
THU 11:30 The Lotte Berk Technique (m0012ft3)
Barre, a series of minuscule, punishing exercises which mix pilates, ballet, and yoga, is the global fitness phenomenon of the 2020s, but its history is complicated and controversial.
Lotte Berk, a Jewish dancer who fled Nazi Germany for London, found herself out of work and developed the technique to maintain her dancer’s body. In her classes she encouraged women to have better sex, with positions called The Prostitute, Naughty Bottoms and The Sex. Her clientele included Joan Collins, Pru Leith and Edna O'Brien.
Eventually she sold the rights to her workout, and barre evolved into a sanitised and lucrative segment of the fitness industry with its sexual empowerment message diluted.
Musician and broadcaster Nadine Shah, battling a bereavement and gearing up for her first tour in two years, feels the need for exercise and is captivated by the story of Lotte and her Technique.
With the help of her daughter Esther, who still taught her mother's method into her 80s, Nadine goes in search of Barre’s erotic spark, and so begins a story of love, sex, feminism and striving to feel good in your body.
THU 12:00 News Summary (m00132ts)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4
THU 12:04 15 Minute Drama (m00132tv)
Subterranean Homesick Blues - Series 5
End Of The Line
by A.L. Kennedy
John ..... Bill Nighy
Maggie ..... Anna Calder-Marshall
Post Office Carol ..... Jasmine Hyde
Directed by Sally Avens
Maggie has spotted a mystery blonde on their home security system. Could John be having an affair? A fortune teller reveals all to Maggie at the village fete.
THU 12:18 You and Yours (m00132tx)
News and discussion of consumer affairs
THU 12:57 Weather (m00132tz)
The latest weather forecast
THU 13:00 World at One (m00132v1)
Forty-five minutes of news, analysis and comment, with Sarah Montague.
THU 13:45 Past Forward: A Century of Sound (m00132v3)
Mary Whitehouse
Public historian Greg Jenner listens to an archive clip of Mary Whitehouse, the vocal critic of sex on screen, delves into the history of privacy with historian David Vincent, and asks to what extent private space and intimate relationships can be preserved in the digital age with writer and digital journalist Sophia Smith Galer.
Marking the centenary of the BBC, Past Forward uses a random date generator to alight somewhere in the BBC's vast archive over the past 100 years. Public historian Greg Jenner hears an archive clip for the first time at the top of the programme, and uses it as a starting point in a journey towards the present day. The archive captures a century of British life in a unique way - a history of ordinary people’s lives, as well as news of the great events. Greg uncovers connections through people, places and ideas that link the archive fragment to Britain in 2022, pulling in help from experts and those who remember the time – and sometimes the speakers themselves, decades later - along the way. What he discovers are stories, big and small, that reveal how the people we were have shaped the people we have become.
Produced by Eliane Glaser for BBC Wales
THU 14:00 The Archers (m001329l)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Wednesday]
THU 14:15 Drama (m00132v5)
Vital Signs
An original drama inspired by a true story.
Ben suffers from a severe phobia of blood, the heart and medical intervention. In this intimate story, Ben tries to make sense of the fact that, on one normal day in 2018, his greatest fear came true. His heart stopped.
A drama about the stories that fear tells us, and one man’s attempt to take control of his narrative.
Ben..... Joel MacCormack
Ben's Partner..... Rhiannon Neads
The Consultant..... Neil McCaul
The Psychotherapist..... Christine Kavanagh
The Sonographer..... Jasmine Hyde
The Mother..... Grace Cooper Milton
Cath..... Eimear Fearon
Featuring contributions from Dr Boon Lim, Consultant Cardiologist, Head of the Syncope unit at Hammersmith Hospital London, and founder of stopfainting.com
Written by Ben Musgrave
Directed by Anne Isger
Sound Design by Pete Ringrose
THU 15:00 Open Country (m00132v7)
Ancient Dartmoor
Dartmoor is one of the UK's most significant archaeological landscapes. In this episode of Open Country, Ian Marchant explores some of its most interesting sites. He meets the National Park's lead archaeologist and finds out about a new research project being carried out by an academic from Leicester University, who is using cutting-edge new technology to discover structures which may have been left by Dartmoor’s earliest farming communities more than five thousand years ago. Ian also meets a present-day farmer, who tells him what it's like to farm in field systems first laid out by his predecessors from centuries gone by. Meanwhile an artist and ecologist explains how his art is inspired by Dartmoor's landscape and its wildlife, and Ian finds out why Dartmoor hill ponies may be a form of "living archaeology" themselves.
Produced by Sarah Swadling
THU 15:27 Radio 4 Appeal (m00132bs)
[Repeat of broadcast at
07:54 on Sunday]
THU 15:30 Bookclub (m00132cj)
[Repeat of broadcast at
16:00 on Sunday]
THU 16:00 Think with Pinker (m00132v9)
Rational soothsaying
Making predictions can be hard, especially about the future. In his guide to thinking better, Professor Steven Pinker explores the cognitive flaws that hobble us as forecasters.
He’s joined by Barbara Mellers, the George I. Heyman University Professor at the University of Pennsylvania and co-founder of the Good Judgement project, and by Thomas Friedman, foreign affairs columnist for The New York Times and author of “Thank You For Being Late: An optimist’s guide to living in the age of accelerations.’
Together they’ll help you evaluate your ideas, your cognitive blind spots and maybe even think a little more accurately about the future.
Producers: Imogen Walford and Joe Kent
Editor: Emma Rippon
Think with Pinker is produced in partnership with The Open University.
THU 16:30 BBC Inside Science (m00132vc)
A weekly programme that illuminates the mysteries and challenges the controversies behind the science that's changing our world.
THU 17:00 PM (m00132vf)
Afternoon news and current affairs programme, reporting on breaking stories and summing up the day's headlines.
THU 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m00132vh)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
THU 18:30 Fags, Mags and Bags (m000k9r7)
Series 9
Episode 2
More shop based shenanigans and over the counter philosophy, courtesy of Ramesh Mahju and his trusty sidekick Dave.
Set in a Scots-Asian corner and written by and starring Donald Mcleary and Sanjeev Kohli, the award winning Fags, Mags & Bags returns for a 9th series with all the regular characters and some guest appearances along the way.
In this episode Ramesh gets jealous after his fiancé Malcolm gets closer to Lenzie's new Hipster butcher, Nathan Laser (played by Gavin Mitchell) after he sponsors her new Women’s football team.
Join the staff of Fags, Mags and Bags in their tireless quest to bring nice-price custard creams and cans of coke with Arabic writing on them to an ungrateful nation. Ramesh Mahju has built it up over the course of over 30 years and is a firmly entrenched, friendly presence in the local area. He is joined by his shop sidekick Dave.
Then of course there are Ramesh’s sons Sanjay and Alok, both surly and not particularly keen on the old school approach to shopkeeping, but natural successors to the business. Ramesh is keen to pass all his worldly wisdom onto them - whether they like it or not!
Cast:
Ramesh: Sanjeev Kohli
Dave: Donald Mcleary
Sanjay: Omar Raza
Alok: Susheel Kumar
Malcolm: Mina Anwar
Hilly: Kate Brailsford
Nathan Laser: Gavin Mitchell
Thin Elizabeth: Maureen Carr
Bishop Briggs: Michael Redmond
Producer: Gus Beattie for Gusman Productions
A Comedy Unit production for BBC Radio 4
THU 19:00 The Archers (m00132vk)
Writer, Liz John
Director, Peter Leslie Wild
Editor, Jeremy Howe
Pat Archer ….. Patricia Gallimore
Tony Archer ….. David Troughton
Tom Archer ….. William Troughton
Jennifer Aldridge ….. Angela Piper
Lilian Bellamy ….. Sunny Ormonde
Alice Carter ….. Hollie Chapman
Chris Carter ….. Wilf Scolding
Susan Carter ….. Charlotte Martin
Alan Franks ….. John Telfer
Amy Franks ….. Jennifer Daley
Kirsty Miller ….. Annabelle Dowler
Roy Tucker ….. Ian Pepperell
Mike Tucker ….. Terry Molloy
Adam Macy ….. Andrew Wincott
Lynda Snell MBE….. Carole Boyd
Lorraine….. Dru Stephenson
THU 19:15 Front Row (m00132vm)
Live magazine programme on the worlds of arts, literature, film, media and music
THU 20:00 The Briefing Room (m00132vp)
David Aaronovitch presents in-depth explainers on big issues in the news.
THU 20:30 Lights Out (m000zkq4)
Series 4
The Last Taboo
Documentary adventures that encourage you to take a closer listen.
We rarely speak about familial childhood sexual abuse. We should.
Through one woman's story, we hear how the silence surrounding childhood sexual abuse compounds trauma in ways that ripple through survivors' lives, touching and tainting relationships and experiences of parenthood, and leading to problems with mental health and addiction.
If we could talk about familial abuse more openly, could we help survivors, and make it more difficult for perpetrators to hide behind secrecy?
Too often, our mental health systems treat the symptoms of abuse and trauma rather than unlocking the cause. But if we continue to create worlds which permit and encourage silence, are we perpetrators too? Perhaps it's time to speak up.
Featuring extracts from The Flying Child by Sophie Olson, founder of The Flying Child Project, and work by John Slater, co-founder of moMENtum.
Produced by Redzi Bernard and Phoebe McIndoe
A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4
THU 21:00 BBC Inside Science (m00132vc)
[Repeat of broadcast at
16:30 today]
THU 21:30 Pride or Prejudice: How we Read Now (m0011cq3)
Writing Novels
Novels have always sparked controversy. Lady Chatterley's Lover, Lolita and American Psycho were all subject to fierce attacks.
But something is happening now that feels different - a rolling boil of social media outrage and news stories that are not about one novel but about the very nature of reading and writing fiction.
As publishers call in sensitivity readers, universities introduce content warnings and authors face charges of cultural appropriation, Abigail Williams, Professor of English at the University of Oxford, looks beyond the outrage to explore the power of the novel.
In this final episode, Abigail asks how the writing and publishing of novels is changing.
How are novelists, literary agents and publishers navigating today's literary landscape amid concerns about identity, representation and the prejudices of authors past and present?
Contributors include the literary agent Jonny Geller of Curtis Brown, publisher Sharmaine Lovegrove of Dialogue Books, Telegraph journalist Tim Stanley and the novelists Sara Collins, Leaf Arbuthnot and Nadifa Mohamed.
Produced by Julia Johnson and Leo Hornak
Series Producer: Julia Johnson
Executive Producer: Steven Rajam
Readings by Maxine Peake and Viviana Armas
An Overcoat Media production for BBC Radio 4
THU 22:00 The World Tonight (m00132vr)
In depth reporting, intelligent analysis and breaking news from a global perspective
THU 22:45 15 Minute Drama (m00132tv)
[Repeat of broadcast at
12:04 today]
THU 23:00 The Nether Regions (m00132vt)
Series 1
Episode 1
Creators of the hit Radio 4 Sci Fi comedy Quanderhorn, Rob Grant (Son of Cliché, Spitting Image, Red Dwarf) and Andrew Marshall (Burkiss Way, Whoops Apocalypse, 2point4children) invite you back for a deeper glimpse into the steaming primordial swamps of their hideously contorted imaginations, known only as The Nether Regions.
Trapped with them in the dank basements of their fetid minds are sparkling young talents Helen Cripps, Edward Rowett and Holly Morgan.
The Nether Regions is our dystopian present – it’s now, but not now, and then, but now. Not.
Past, present and future merge into one writhing tortured tangle, where the Naked Truth climbs out of the window, because Fake News has come home unexpectedly early.
Continuing the mirth, mayhem and something else beginning with M of the highly acclaimed pilot show. Scream in terror. Then listen to the show. Then scream in terror again, as you witness:
Germany’s most efficient fast food sausage establishment
The recently rediscovered classic, Jane Austen’s Love Island
Thinking dogs for the stupid
The tortured souls who are addicted to being Alan Bennett.
These and other mind-munching experiences await the unwary listener. Make sure you book a return ticket.
Created and Written by Rob Grant and Andrew Marshall
Performed by Rob Grant, Andrew Marshall, Helen Cripps, Edward Rowett and Holly Morgan
Studio Engineered and Edited by Jerry Peal
Original Music Composed by Pete Baikie
Programme Managed by Sarah Tombling
Recorded at The Shaw Theatre, London
Produced and Directed by Gordon Kennedy, Rob Grant and Andrew Marshall
An Absolutely production for BBC Radio 4
THU 23:30 Today in Parliament (m00132vy)
News, views and features on today's stories in Parliament
FRIDAY 07 JANUARY 2022
FRI 00:00 Midnight News (m00132w0)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.
FRI 00:30 Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50 (m00132tl)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:45 on Thursday]
FRI 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m00132w2)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.
FRI 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m00132w4)
BBC Radio 4 presents a selection of news and current affairs, arts and science programmes from the BBC World Service.
FRI 05:33 Shipping Forecast (m00132w6)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.
FRI 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m00132wb)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Canon Steve Williams
Good morning.
It's remarkable just how much damage one small drop of water can inflict. In fact, one steady but hidden drop of water caused so much damage to my bookshelves a few weeks ago that my plumber said, in fifty four years of work, he'd never seen anything like it. Water had dripped from inside the bookshelf and entered within the pages of each book, so that they had swollen from within, jammed together very tightly, and couldn't be moved except with the brute force of a crow-bar. Yet their spines had looked no different, and, until I'd tried to move them, there'd been no sign of anything wrong.
From time to time, I had actually heard the odd dripping noise - but thought nothing of it.
Many of Jesus' parables follow the Jewish tradition of drawing attention to the small but decisive moments of life, like the hidden drop of water, that carry within them the power to hurt or to heal., Moments of joyful obedience like the planting of a tiny mustard seed that grows into a great tree, or like a small amount of yeast that works its way through some dough. But there are other small situations that hurt, like the drop of water that's ignored - and it's important to address them: to seek reconciliation, forgiveness, to not let roots of bitterness grow, and be careful with even the least of our words.
God of love, show us the small but decisive opportunities we have to care, forgive and heal today. Help us to respond to needs around us and within - and keep us safe in the way you have set before us, in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
FRI 05:45 Farming Today (m00132wd)
The latest news about food, farming and the countryside.
FRI 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b09lyhms)
Kathy Hinde on the Barnacle Goose
Migrating Barnacle geese inspire audio-visual artist Kathy Hinde to create an installation in Scotland to celebrate their winter residence.
Producer: Sarah Blunt
Photograph: Eljay Rogers.
FRI 06:00 Today (m00132x9)
News and current affairs, including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.
FRI 09:00 Rethink (m00132xc)
Rethink Population
Getting ready for the 100-year life
Amol Rajan and his guests look for some answers on how to tackle the challenges thrown up by demographic change. From the pressure put on governments by burgeoning populations of young people, to the tactics best adopted by those of us planning to live to a hundred.
GUESTS
Camilla Cavendish, former Director of Policy for Prime Minister David Cameron, Financial Times columnist and author of 'Extra Time: 10 Lessons for an Ageing World'
Professor Andrew Scott, Professor of Economics at London Business School and author of 'The 100-Year Life - Living and Working in an Age of Longevity'
Dr Eliza Filby writer and historian
Professor Ian Goldin, Professor of Globalisation and Development at the University of Oxford and author of 'Is the Planet Full?'
Presenter: Amol Rajan
Producer: Lucinda Borrell
Editor: Kirsty Reid
FRI 09:45 Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50 (m00132xf)
Melissa Chemam - An Installation by Lubaina Himid
First broadcast in 1972 on BBC Two, Ways of Seeing was a collaboration between the writer John Berger and director Mike Dibb. Across a series of four half-hour episodes, Berger talked about how we look at art, and why it matters: "The relation between what we see and what we know is never settled ... The way we see things is affected by what we know or what we believe ... Every image embodies a way of seeing. Even a photograph ... Our perception or appreciation of an image depends also upon our own way of seeing". The programmes explored Walter Benjamin's ideas about the work of art in the age of mechanical reproduction; the female nude and the male gaze; oil painting, status and ownership; advertising, art and commerce. The book published to accompany the series has never been out of print and has had a profound influence on popular understanding of art criticism and visual culture.
To mark the fiftieth anniversary of Ways of Seeing, Radio 4 invites five writers to tell us about a work of art that is important to them, and to reflect on how Ways of Seeing influenced their own ways of looking at - and thinking about - art.
In today's episode, we follow Bristol-based French writer Melissa Chemam to the island of Zanzibar, to the refugee camps of Calais and into galleries back in the UK: "I discovered Himid’s installation ‘Naming The Money’ almost by chance. I came upon it in 2017, at Spike Island, an art gallery here in Bristol. It was part of an exhibition called “Navigation Charts”, which felt fitting for this port city with its complex past, enriched by transatlantic trades… Sugar, tobacco and enslaved people".
Melissa Chemam is a writer and broadcaster. She has reported from the USA, Europe, and East and Central Africa for the BBC World Service, AFP, Reuters, CBC and more. She is the author of a book on Bristol's culture, 'Massive Attack - Out of the Comfort Zone' and has been the writer-in-residence at the Arnolfini Gallery, Bristol, UK since 2019.
John Berger was a storyteller, a novelist, a painter, a poet, a critic, a screenwriter, a playwright. He died in 2017, at the age of 90.
Produced by Mair Bosworth for BBC Audio
IMAGE CREDIT: LUBAINA HIMID, NAMING THE MONEY (2004). INSTALLATION VIEW, SPIKE ISLAND, BRISTOL (2017). COPYRIGHT LUBAINA HIMID. WORK COURTESY HOLLYBUSH GARDENS AND NATIONAL MUSEUMS, LIVERPOOL. IMAGE COPYRIGHT SPIKE ISLAND AND PHOTOGRAPHER STUART WHIPPS
FRI 10:00 Woman's Hour (m00132xj)
Women's voices and women's lives - topical conversations to inform, challenge and inspire.
FRI 11:00 Fungi: The New Frontier (m00132xm)
Down the rabbit hole
It all started with rumours of an 800-meter underground organism hidden under the streets of Cambridge and a plate of mushrooms on toast. With cream. In this three-part series, Tim Hayward falls down a rabbit hole into kingdom (or as some call it queendom) Fungi. Along the way he starts to question pretty much everything he thought he knew about the world, discovering scientists doing pioneering research that’s changing how we understand life on Earth and offering solutions to some of our biggest challenges.
In this first episode, Tim forages, talks truffle sex appeal, travels back to long before the dinosaurs, discovers a 4000-year old mushroom culture in Japan, and heads into a restricted containment level one laboratory to witness an ancient and profound interaction between two very different species of life, all happening right in front of his eyes.
Featuring:
Suzanne Simard, professor of forest ecology
Eugenia Bone, writer and mycologist
Sebastian Schornack, microbe and plant researcher
Mark Williams, wild food teacher and forager
Toshimitsu Fukiharu, curator and mycological researcher
Merlin Sheldrake, biologist and author of Entangled Life.
Presenter: Tim Hayward
Producer and Sound Designer: Richard Ward
Executive Producer: Miranda Hinkley
Image courtesy of Carolina Magnasco
A Loftus Media production for Radio 4
FRI 11:30 The Train at Platform 4 (m00132xq)
Coffee
Comedy legends Punt and Dennis bring a new sitcom to Radio 4, set in the claustrophobic carriages of a cross-country rail service.
It's day one of a new franchise and train manager Sam has high hopes for their maiden voyage, even if the new bosses insist her role is to 'enhance the onboard travel experience'. But the marketing team's offer of free coffee for ALL customers soon threatens to derail the smooth running of the service. Meanwhile passengers struggle to escape the clutches of the automatic toilets....
Our heroes are the long-suffering train crew who manage to scrape through every shift like a dysfunctional family – Train Manager, Sam (Rosie Cavaliero; Inside No. 9) First Class Steward, Gilbert (Kenneth Collard; Cuckoo), Catering Manager, Dev (Ali Shahalom; Muzlamic) and Trolley Operator Tasha (Amy Geldhill; Life). The passengers are made up of a rolling roster of guest stars, which includes the odd cameo from Punt and Dennis themselves.
Sam…. Rosie Cavaliero
Gilbert…. Kenneth Collard
Dev….. Ali Shahalom
Tasha….. Amy Gledhill
Pensioner 1…. Hugh Dennis
Pensioner 2…. Gemma Arrowsmith
Student…. Justice Ritchie
Lawyer…. Steve Punt
Written by....Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis
Producer… James Robinson
A BBC Studios Production
FRI 12:00 News Summary (m00132xt)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4
FRI 12:04 15 Minute Drama (m00132xw)
Subterranean Homesick Blues - Series 5
If Not For You
by A.L. Kennedy
John ..... Bill Nighy
Maggie ..... Anna Calder-Marshall
Jimmy Nails ..... Michael Begley
Villagers ..... Jasmine Hyde, Christine Kavanagh, Neil McCaul
Directed by Sally Avens
John is still mounting nightly patrols to try and catch the village lurker and it's a nasty surprise when their identity is finally revealed.
FRI 12:18 You and Yours (m00132xy)
News and discussion of consumer affairs
FRI 12:57 Weather (m00132y0)
The latest weather forecast
FRI 13:00 World at One (m00132y2)
Forty-five minutes of news, analysis and comment, with Jonny Dymond.
FRI 13:45 Past Forward: A Century of Sound (m00132y4)
Porton Down
Greg Jenner looks at a 1962 clip of the government laboratory Porton Down and asks Guardian journalist Rob Evans whether it tells the whole story, explores the medical ethics of the cold war era with Agnes Arnold-Forster, and looks at how more deferential times helped secrets to be kept for so long
Marking the centenary of the BBC, Past Forward uses a random date generator to alight somewhere in the BBC's vast archive over the past 100 years. Public historian Greg Jenner hears an archive clip for the first time at the top of the programme, and uses it as a starting point in a journey towards the present day. The archive captures a century of British life in a unique way - a history of ordinary people’s lives, as well as news of the great events. Greg uncovers connections through people, places and ideas that link the archive fragment to Britain in 2022, pulling in help from experts and those who remember the time – and sometimes the speakers themselves, decades later - along the way. What he discovers are stories, big and small, that reveal how the people we were have shaped the people we have become.
Produced by Megan Jones for BBC Wales
FRI 14:00 The Archers (m00132vk)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Thursday]
FRI 14:15 Limelight (m00132y6)
SteelHeads
Steelheads – Episode 2: The Conversation
When young British tennis pro, Joleen Kenzie (Jessica Barden), is diagnosed with a rare terminal illness, she has herself cryogenically frozen at an experimental lab in Seattle, in the hope that one day – perhaps hundreds of years into the future - there will be a cure and she can be revived.
She wakes up to a world divided...
From the creators of The Cipher and Passenger List, a chilling new medical thriller inspired by true events starring Jessica Barden.
Cast:
JOLEEN – Jessica Barden
REMI – Khalid Laith
KIT – Symera Jackson
LUTHER – Bruce Lester Johnson
IZZY – Lizzie Stables
LUCINDA/ESME – Annabelle Dowler
WAYNE – Daniel Ryan
PADMA – Jennifer Armour
EARL – Kerry Shale
OSCAR/JAMAR – Jason Forbes
RICHARD – Eric Meyers
ANDREI – Andrew Byron
SUMMER – Gianna Kiehl
DRE – Earl R Perkins
SUE – Laurel Lefkow
GREG – Christopher Ragland
STOLYA – Yanina Hope
Original Theme composed by Pascal Wyse
Written and Created by Brett Neichin and John Scott Dryden
Script Editing by Mike Walker
Sound Design by Steve Bond
Sound Editor: Adam Woodhams
Assistant Producer: Eleanor Mein
Additional casting by Janet Foster
Trails by Jack Soper
Produced by Emma Hearn
Director and Executive Producer: John Scott Dryden
A Goldhawk production for BBC Radio 4
FRI 14:45 New Year Solutions (m0001tz9)
Cars
As global warming threatens the future of our society, Jo Fidgen tackles the ways in which ordinary people can make a difference.
We're often told that we could help the environment by driving less, eating less meat, or using less water.
But in the face of a challenge as significant as global warming, how big a difference can small changes really make? And what would the world look like if we took those solutions to their logical extremes?
Cars are one of the climate's biggest problems, from burning petrol to the carbon cost of manufacture. But they've also revolutionised how we get around and embedded themselves in the way our cities and societies are designed. Can people really be convinced to cut down their time behind the wheel?
Producer: Robert Nicholson
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4
FRI 15:00 Gardeners' Question Time (m00132y8)
GQT From The Archives: Sustainability Special
Peter Gibbs takes a look through the GQT archive for the best tips on sustainability.
Producer - Hannah Newton
Assistant Producer - Bethany Hocken
A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4
FRI 15:45 Short Works (m00132yb)
Because Swiping Made My Grandson Stop Believing in Love
An original short story specially commissioned by BBC Radio 4 from the writer Emily DeDakis. As read by Carol Moore.
Emily DeDakis grew up in the southeast U.S. and now lives in north Belfast. She is a writer, producer and dramaturg currently working with Fighting Words NI (a creative writing centre for young people, where she mentors teen scriptwriting projects). Emily’s writing has appeared in Dead Housekeeping, The Vacuum, Ulster Tatler, Yellow Nib, Of Mouth and Choice Words and been broadcast by Household Belfast, the Lyric Theatre, BBC Radio 3 & BBC Three.
Writer: Emily DeDakis
Reader: Carol Moore.
Producer: Michael Shannon
A BBC Northern Ireland production.
FRI 16:00 Last Word (m00132yd)
Matthew Bannister tells the life stories of people who have recently died, from the rich and famous to unsung but significant.
FRI 16:30 Yorkshire's Cricket Test (m0012tln)
As the scandal surrounding the racist dressing room environment exposed by Azeem Rafiq continues, cricket writer and senior medic Kamran Abbasi considers the roots of Yorkshire County Cricket Club's problems with racism.
Kamran grew up playing cricket in Rotherham, and has first-hand experience of racism in Yorkshire cricket. He was a very good club player but, like many other Asian players, was side-lined by the club system. “We were cricketers of the shadows,” he says.
In this programme, he goes back to Yorkshire to better understand why the sport has failed to diversify at the elite level. How far is the club to blame? Or the sport? How far is cricket just playing out the prejudices that still run deep in British society?
Kamran traces the key moments in Yorkshire County Cricket Club’s history where opportunities to reform have been lost and explores the roots of this unwillingness to change.
He speaks to British Asian players who have felt alienated by the game they love, going back to the 1980s. Until 1992, the “born in Yorkshire rule” excluded many gifted players from migrant backgrounds. And it led to a segregated system where Black and Asian cricketers were ghettoised in their own leagues.
"Growing up in Yorkshire in the 1970s and 1980s was a unique cricketing experience for a migrant. You wouldn't think about playing for a non-Asian team, and the other teams wouldn't try to recruit you however good you were," says Kamran.
When Indian test legend Sachin Tendulkar joined Yorkshire as its first overseas player in 1992, many saw it as a huge moment and an opportunity to open up the club to South Asian players - but, almost 30 years on, many continue to feel unwelcome.
According to an ECB report, 30% of recreational cricket players across England and Wales have South Asian backgrounds, yet just 4% of professional cricketers are British Asian. Yorkshire Cricket Club has only had four non-white Yorkshire-born players in its history.
Why, when cricket could have helped ethnic minority communities integrate in the UK, has it failed to do so?
Kamran is executive editor of the British Medical Journal and was the first British Asian columnist for Wisden cricket monthly. He is the author of Englistan: An Immigrant's Journey on the Turbulent Winds of Pakistan Cricket.
Statistics provided by Paul Dyson, The Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians.
Produced by Eve Streeter
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4
FRI 17:00 PM (m00132yg)
Afternoon news and current affairs programme, reporting on breaking stories and summing up the day's headlines.
FRI 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m00132yj)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
FRI 18:30 The News Quiz (m00132yl)
Series 107
Episode 2
Andy Zaltzman presents a look back at the week's headlines
FRI 19:00 Past Forward: A Century of Sound (m0013273)
[Repeat of broadcast at
13:45 on Monday]
FRI 19:15 Screenshot (m00132yn)
David Bowie on screen
Ellen E Jones and Mark Kermode explore David Bowie's cinematic career.
Bowie would have turned 75 on 8 January. To mark the occasion, the British Film Institute have launched a month-long season celebrating his work in cinema, from The Man Who Fell To Earth to The Prestige.
Mark speaks to Bowie collaborator and long-time fan Tilda Swinton about her memories of working with the star and her favourite performances from his acting career.
And Ellen talks to actor Jennifer Connolly about starring alongside Bowie aged just 16, in the cult family favourite Labyrinth.
Screenshot is Radio 4’s guide to the ever-expanding universe of the moving image. Every episode, Ellen E Jones and Mark Kermode journey through the main streets and back roads connecting film, television and streaming over the last hundred years.
Producer: Jane Long
A Prospect Street production for BBC Radio 4
FRI 20:00 Any Questions? (m00132yq)
Joanna Cherry QC MP, Nigel Farage, Seema Malhotra MP
Chris Mason presents political debate and discussion from Reading Minster with a panel which includes the SNP MP Joanna Cherry QC MP, the President of Reform and GBNews Presenter Nigel Farage and the Shadow Employment Minister Seema Malhotra MP.
Producer: Camellia Sinclair
Lead broadcast engineer: Owen Bartholomew
FRI 20:50 A Point of View (m00132ys)
Weekly reflections on topical issues from a range of contributors.
FRI 21:00 The Northern Bank Job (m000twvd)
Omnibus 1
Omnibus edition of the podcast series in which writer Glenn Patterson explores the background to the biggest bank heist in British and Irish criminal history - the 2004 Northern Bank robbery in which an armed gang, who had taken the loved ones of two Northern Bank officials hostage to force their co-operation, raided its Belfast headquarters and stole £26.5m.
Producer Conor Garrett
FRI 22:00 The World Tonight (m00132yv)
In depth reporting, intelligent analysis and breaking news from a global perspective
FRI 22:45 15 Minute Drama (m00132xw)
[Repeat of broadcast at
12:04 today]
FRI 23:00 Great Lives (m001325d)
[Repeat of broadcast at
16:30 on Tuesday]
FRI 23:30 Today in Parliament (m00132yx)
News, views and features on today's stories in Parliament
LIST OF THIS WEEK'S PROGRAMMES
(Note: the times link back to the details; the pids link to the BBC page, including iPlayer)
15 Minute Drama
12:04 MON (m001326v)
15 Minute Drama
22:45 MON (m001326v)
15 Minute Drama
12:04 TUE (m001324w)
15 Minute Drama
22:45 TUE (m001324w)
15 Minute Drama
12:04 WED (m001328v)
15 Minute Drama
22:45 WED (m001328v)
15 Minute Drama
12:04 THU (m00132tv)
15 Minute Drama
22:45 THU (m00132tv)
15 Minute Drama
12:04 FRI (m00132xw)
15 Minute Drama
22:45 FRI (m00132xw)
A Home of Our Own
14:45 SUN (m0010hpp)
A Point of View
08:48 SUN (m0012sxf)
A Point of View
20:50 FRI (m00132ys)
Any Questions?
20:00 FRI (m00132yq)
Archive on 4
20:00 SAT (b07w5tnh)
BBC Inside Science
16:30 THU (m00132vc)
BBC Inside Science
21:00 THU (m00132vc)
Bells on Sunday
05:43 SUN (m001321p)
Bells on Sunday
00:45 MON (m001321p)
Beyond Belief
16:30 MON (m001327f)
Bookclub
16:00 SUN (m00132cj)
Bookclub
15:30 THU (m00132cj)
Breaking History
20:00 WED (m001329q)
Broadcasting House
09:00 SUN (m00132c1)
Butch
23:00 MON (m000j8qr)
Compression versus Art
23:30 TUE (b06tvgp1)
Consumed by Desire
11:00 MON (m0012qy9)
Consumed by Desire
16:00 TUE (m001325b)
Correspondents' Look Ahead
13:10 SAT (m0012sxc)
Counterpoint
23:00 SAT (m0012sd0)
Counterpoint
15:00 MON (m0013279)
Crossing Continents
20:30 MON (m0012s9b)
Crossing Continents
11:00 THU (m00132tq)
Desert Island Discs
11:00 SUN (m0011lnd)
Drama
21:00 SAT (b0739rfj)
Drama
14:15 THU (m00132v5)
Ellie Taylor's Safe Space
18:30 WED (m000yg46)
Fags, Mags and Bags
18:30 THU (m000k9r7)
Faith in Music
16:00 MON (m0012s9d)
Fake Heiress
14:15 WED (m000c9m9)
Farming Today
06:30 SAT (m00131zv)
Farming Today
05:45 MON (m00132d9)
Farming Today
05:45 TUE (m001328b)
Farming Today
05:45 WED (m001326f)
Farming Today
05:45 THU (m00132bf)
Farming Today
05:45 FRI (m00132wd)
Fortunately... with Fi and Jane
23:00 TUE (p07wg99z)
Four Thought
05:45 SAT (m0012qh4)
Four Thought
20:45 WED (m00127xx)
From Our Own Correspondent
11:30 SAT (m0013205)
Front Row
19:15 TUE (m001325n)
Front Row
19:15 WED (m001329n)
Front Row
19:15 THU (m00132vm)
Fungi: The New Frontier
11:00 FRI (m00132xm)
Fümmsböwö (or What is the Word)
16:30 SUN (m001327w)
Fümmsböwö (or What is the Word)
23:30 MON (m001327w)
Gambits
19:45 SUN (m00132cv)
Gardeners' Question Time
14:00 SUN (m0012swp)
Gardeners' Question Time
15:00 FRI (m00132y8)
Great Lives
16:30 TUE (m001325d)
Great Lives
23:00 FRI (m001325d)
Henry Normal: A Normal...
19:15 SUN (m0011ryb)
I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue
12:04 SUN (m0012sdd)
I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue
18:30 MON (m001327m)
In Touch
20:40 TUE (m001325s)
Inside Health
21:00 TUE (m001325v)
Inside Health
15:30 WED (m001325v)
Isaac Newton: Nemesis
14:15 TUE (m000b6t0)
It's a Fair Cop
18:30 TUE (b0bh8vp2)
Jeremy Irons Reads TS Eliot
17:00 SUN (b086l9pb)
Last Word
20:30 SUN (m0012swt)
Last Word
16:00 FRI (m00132yd)
Lights Out
20:30 THU (m000zkq4)
Limelight
14:15 FRI (m00132y6)
Loose Ends
18:15 SAT (m0013210)
Loose Ends
11:30 MON (m0013210)
Midnight News
00:00 SAT (m0012sxp)
Midnight News
00:00 SUN (m001321b)
Midnight News
00:00 MON (m00132cx)
Midnight News
00:00 TUE (m001327y)
Midnight News
00:00 WED (m0013261)
Midnight News
00:00 THU (m00132b1)
Midnight News
00:00 FRI (m00132w0)
Money Box
12:04 SAT (m0013209)
Money Box
21:00 SUN (m0013209)
Money Box
15:00 WED (m0013298)
Moral Maze
22:15 SAT (m0012qh2)
Moving Pictures
15:30 TUE (m00127y6)
Natural Histories
06:35 SUN (b05w99gj)
New Year Solutions
11:45 SUN (m0001t9w)
New Year Solutions
14:45 FRI (m0001tz9)
News Summary
12:00 SAT (m001321s)
News Summary
06:00 SUN (m00132bh)
News Summary
12:00 SUN (m00132dh)
News Summary
12:00 MON (m001326s)
News Summary
12:00 TUE (m001324t)
News Summary
12:00 WED (m001328q)
News Summary
12:00 THU (m00132ts)
News Summary
12:00 FRI (m00132xt)
News and Papers
06:00 SAT (m00131zs)
News and Papers
07:00 SUN (m00132bn)
News and Papers
08:00 SUN (m00132bx)
News and Weather
13:00 SAT (m001320f)
News
22:00 SAT (m0013216)
Open Country
06:07 SAT (m0012s9x)
Open Country
15:00 THU (m00132v7)
PM
17:00 SAT (m001320p)
PM
17:00 MON (m001327h)
PM
17:00 TUE (m001325g)
PM
17:00 WED (m001329g)
PM
17:00 THU (m00132vf)
PM
17:00 FRI (m00132yg)
Pakistan's Long Game
20:00 TUE (m001325q)
Past Forward: A Century of Sound
13:45 MON (m0013273)
Past Forward: A Century of Sound
13:45 TUE (m0013255)
Past Forward: A Century of Sound
13:45 WED (m0013296)
Past Forward: A Century of Sound
13:45 THU (m00132v3)
Past Forward: A Century of Sound
13:45 FRI (m00132y4)
Past Forward: A Century of Sound
19:00 FRI (m0013273)
Pick of the Week
18:15 SUN (m00132cs)
Pick of the Year
14:00 SAT (m001320h)
Pick of the Year
22:00 SUN (m001320h)
Political Thinking with Nick Robinson
17:30 SAT (m001320r)
Prayer for the Day
05:43 SAT (m0012sy0)
Prayer for the Day
05:43 MON (m00132d7)
Prayer for the Day
05:43 TUE (m0013288)
Prayer for the Day
05:43 WED (m001326c)
Prayer for the Day
05:43 THU (m00132bc)
Prayer for the Day
05:43 FRI (m00132wb)
Pride or Prejudice: How we Read Now
21:30 MON (m0010x28)
Pride or Prejudice: How we Read Now
21:30 TUE (m001149l)
Pride or Prejudice: How we Read Now
21:30 THU (m0011cq3)
Profile
19:00 SAT (m0013212)
Profile
05:45 SUN (m0013212)
Profile
17:40 SUN (m0013212)
Radio 4 Appeal
07:54 SUN (m00132bs)
Radio 4 Appeal
21:25 SUN (m00132bs)
Radio 4 Appeal
15:27 THU (m00132bs)
Rethink
09:00 MON (m001326k)
Rethink
09:00 TUE (m001324g)
Rethink
09:00 WED (m001328g)
Rethink
09:00 THU (m00132tj)
Rethink
09:00 FRI (m00132xc)
Ruby Wax Talking Human
23:00 WED (m001329x)
Rutherford and Fry on Living with AI
21:30 SUN (m0012q27)
Sandi Toksvig's Hygge
21:45 SAT (m0012sdb)
Saturday Live
09:00 SAT (m0013201)
Science Stories
21:00 MON (b084bpjy)
Screenshot
19:15 FRI (m00132yn)
Selection of BBC World Service Programmes
01:00 SAT (m0012sxt)
Selection of BBC World Service Programmes
01:00 SUN (m001321g)
Selection of BBC World Service Programmes
01:00 MON (m00132d1)
Selection of BBC World Service Programmes
01:00 TUE (m0013282)
Selection of BBC World Service Programmes
01:00 WED (m0013265)
Selection of BBC World Service Programmes
01:00 THU (m00132b5)
Selection of BBC World Service Programmes
01:00 FRI (m00132w4)
Shaking Up the Shanty
00:15 SUN (m00120vy)
Shipping Forecast
00:48 SAT (m0012sxr)
Shipping Forecast
05:33 SAT (m0012sxw)
Shipping Forecast
17:54 SAT (m001320t)
Shipping Forecast
00:48 SUN (m001321d)
Shipping Forecast
05:33 SUN (m001321j)
Shipping Forecast
17:54 SUN (m00132cl)
Shipping Forecast
00:48 MON (m00132cz)
Shipping Forecast
05:33 MON (m00132d3)
Shipping Forecast
00:48 TUE (m0013280)
Shipping Forecast
05:33 TUE (m0013284)
Shipping Forecast
00:48 WED (m0013263)
Shipping Forecast
05:33 WED (m0013267)
Shipping Forecast
00:48 THU (m00132b3)
Shipping Forecast
05:33 THU (m00132b7)
Shipping Forecast
00:48 FRI (m00132w2)
Shipping Forecast
05:33 FRI (m00132w6)
Short Works
15:45 FRI (m00132yb)
Six O'Clock News
18:00 SAT (m001320y)
Six O'Clock News
18:00 SUN (m00132cq)
Six O'Clock News
18:00 MON (m001327k)
Six O'Clock News
18:00 TUE (m001325j)
Six O'Clock News
18:00 WED (m001329j)
Six O'Clock News
18:00 THU (m00132vh)
Six O'Clock News
18:00 FRI (m00132yj)
Something Understood
06:05 SUN (b02y0wkx)
Something Understood
23:30 SUN (b02y0wkx)
Sophie Willan's Guide to Normality
23:15 WED (b09xkrkf)
Sunday Worship
08:10 SUN (m00132bz)
Sunday
07:10 SUN (m00132bq)
The Ambridge Mystery Plays
15:00 SUN (m00132cg)
The Archers Omnibus
10:00 SUN (m00132c3)
The Archers
19:00 SUN (m0013275)
The Archers
14:00 MON (m0013275)
The Archers
19:00 MON (m0013258)
The Archers
14:00 TUE (m0013258)
The Archers
19:00 TUE (m001325l)
The Archers
14:00 WED (m001325l)
The Archers
19:00 WED (m001329l)
The Archers
14:00 THU (m001329l)
The Archers
19:00 THU (m00132vk)
The Archers
14:00 FRI (m00132vk)
The Briefing Room
20:00 THU (m00132vp)
The Coming Storm
11:00 TUE (m001324q)
The Digital Human
00:15 SAT (m000gcwh)
The Flipside with Paris Lees
21:00 WED (m001329s)
The Food Programme
12:32 SUN (m001327c)
The Food Programme
15:30 MON (m001327c)
The Hidden History of the Staircase
20:00 SUN (m0012scj)
The Imperilled Adventures of the Adventure Playground
11:30 TUE (m000zcf5)
The Kitchen Cabinet
10:30 SAT (m0013203)
The Kitchen Cabinet
15:00 TUE (m0013203)
The Listening Project
13:30 SUN (m00132cd)
The Lotte Berk Technique
11:30 THU (m0012ft3)
The Media Show
16:30 WED (m001329d)
The Media Show
21:30 WED (m001329d)
The Nether Regions
23:00 THU (m00132vt)
The News Quiz
12:30 SAT (m0012sx4)
The News Quiz
18:30 FRI (m00132yl)
The Northern Bank Job
21:00 FRI (m000twvd)
The Now Show
11:00 WED (b087p2k8)
The Princess Bride
15:00 SAT (m001320k)
The Train at Platform 4
11:30 FRI (m00132xq)
The Untold
20:00 MON (m0010ncs)
The World This Weekend
13:00 SUN (m00132cb)
The World Tonight
22:00 MON (m001327t)
The World Tonight
22:00 TUE (m001325x)
The World Tonight
22:00 WED (m001329v)
The World Tonight
22:00 THU (m00132vr)
The World Tonight
22:00 FRI (m00132yv)
Think with Pinker
23:00 SUN (m0012s9z)
Think with Pinker
16:00 THU (m00132v9)
Thinking Allowed
00:15 MON (m0012qgm)
Thinking Allowed
16:00 WED (m001329b)
This Cultural Life
19:15 SAT (m0013214)
This Cultural Life
19:15 MON (m0011bgr)
Today in Parliament
23:30 WED (m001329z)
Today in Parliament
23:30 THU (m00132vy)
Today in Parliament
23:30 FRI (m00132yx)
Today
07:00 SAT (m00131zz)
Today
06:00 MON (m001326h)
Today
06:00 TUE (m001324d)
Today
06:00 WED (m001328d)
Today
06:00 THU (m00132tg)
Today
06:00 FRI (m00132x9)
Tweet of the Day
08:58 SUN (b09kxq2m)
Tweet of the Day
05:58 MON (b08tcbrm)
Tweet of the Day
05:58 TUE (b09ly60c)
Tweet of the Day
05:58 WED (b03mzv5m)
Tweet of the Day
05:58 THU (b09nvs2r)
Tweet of the Day
05:58 FRI (b09lyhms)
Uncanny
23:30 SAT (m0013218)
Under the Influence
11:00 SAT (m00127zc)
United Kingdoms
14:15 MON (m0013277)
Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50
09:45 MON (m001326m)
Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50
00:30 TUE (m001326m)
Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50
09:45 TUE (m001324k)
Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50
00:30 WED (m001324k)
Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50
09:45 WED (m001328j)
Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50
00:30 THU (m001328j)
Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50
09:45 THU (m00132tl)
Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50
00:30 FRI (m00132tl)
Viewfinders: Ways of Seeing at 50
09:45 FRI (m00132xf)
Weather
06:57 SAT (m00131zx)
Weather
12:57 SAT (m001320c)
Weather
17:57 SAT (m001320w)
Weather
06:57 SUN (m00132bl)
Weather
07:57 SUN (m00132bv)
Weather
12:57 SUN (m00132c8)
Weather
17:57 SUN (m00132cn)
Weather
05:56 MON (m00132dc)
Weather
12:57 MON (m001326z)
Weather
12:57 TUE (m0013251)
Weather
12:57 WED (m0013292)
Weather
12:57 THU (m00132tz)
Weather
12:57 FRI (m00132y0)
Woman's Hour
16:00 SAT (m001320m)
Woman's Hour
10:00 MON (m001326p)
Woman's Hour
10:00 TUE (m001324n)
Woman's Hour
10:00 WED (m001328l)
Woman's Hour
10:00 THU (m00132tn)
Woman's Hour
10:00 FRI (m00132xj)
World at One
13:00 MON (m0013271)
World at One
13:00 TUE (m0013253)
World at One
13:00 WED (m0013294)
World at One
13:00 THU (m00132v1)
World at One
13:00 FRI (m00132y2)
Yorkshire's Cricket Test
16:30 FRI (m0012tln)
You and Yours
12:18 MON (m001326x)
You and Yours
12:18 TUE (m001324z)
You and Yours
12:18 WED (m001328z)
You and Yours
12:18 THU (m00132tx)
You and Yours
12:18 FRI (m00132xy)