MONDAY 03 MAY 2021

MON 00:00 Midnight News (m000vp1m)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.


MON 00:15 Thinking Allowed (m000vh5d)
The Rural Idyll?

The Rural Idyll? Last year the National Trust produced a controversial report which revealed that 93 of its properties have direct links to colonialism and slavery. In this programme, Laurie Taylor talks to Corinne Fowler, Professor of Post Colonial Literature at the University of Leicester, whose new study engages directly with this painful history, uncovering the countryside’s repressed colonial past and its relationship to notions of Englishness. How have pastoral mythologies in English literature served to erase the story of Empire? In what ways do contemporary writers of colour offer a challenge to uncritical celebrations of our 'green and pleasant' land? They’re joined by Paul Readman, Professor of Modern British History at King's College London, whose recent research considers the relationship between landscape and English national identity, from the rural to the urban. Thinking Allowed is produced in partnership with the Open University.

Producer: Jayne Egerton


MON 00:45 Bells on Sunday (m000vp1p)
[Repeat of broadcast at 05:43 on Sunday]


MON 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m000vp1r)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


MON 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m000vp1t)
BBC Radio 4 presents a selection of news and current affairs, arts and science programmes from the BBC World Service.


MON 05:20 Shipping Forecast (m000vp1w)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


MON 05:30 News Briefing (m000vp1y)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4


MON 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m000vp20)
Spiritual reflection to start the day with Fiona Stewart, a writer who runs a Christian arts charity


MON 05:45 Farming Today (m000vp22)
The National Botanic Garden of Wales

Last year marked the 20th anniversary the National Botanic Garden of Wales but there were no celebrations because of the coronavirus lockdown. Now that restrictions are easing the site is open once again. In this special bank holiday programme, Mariclare Carey-Jones looks back at the history of the garden, and finds out what it takes to run the onsite farm. She’ll also be talking to the Curator of Horticulture about the Great Glasshouse, and she’ll be finding out about the garden’s new Pollinators Assurance Scheme.

Producer/Presenter: Mariclare Carey Jones


MON 05:56 Weather (m000vp24)
The latest weather forecast for farmers.


MON 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b041yd42)
Heather Moorland Dawn Chorus

Tweet of the Day is a series of fascinating stories about British birds inspired by their calls and songs.

David Attenborough presents the second of four recordings marking the dawn chorus, this time the heather moors of Allendale in Northumberland. Songs featured are that of the curlew, skylark, golden plover and redshank.


MON 06:00 Today (m000vq70)
News and current affairs, including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


MON 09:00 Start the Week (m000vq72)
Art - plunder, power and prestige

The looting of art in war time is nothing new, but Napoleon took it to new heights: demanding of his defeated enemies across Italy their most valuable statues and paintings. Cynthia Saltzman’s Napoleon’s Plunder tells the story of how the most magnificent works of the High Renaissance – by Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Titian and Veronese – went on triumphant display in the Louvre. She tells Andrew Marr how Paris was transformed during this period into the art capital of Europe, and the role art played in cementing the power of the new regime after the French Revolution.

One of the most extraordinary paintings taken during this time was Veronese’s Wedding Feast at Cana, stripped from the monastery of San Giorgio Maggiore, on an island in Venice in 1797. The Italian architect and presenter Francesco da Mosto considers what this theft meant to Venice’s political and cultural authority at the time. While many paintings were returned after Napoleon’s defeat at Waterloo, The Wedding Feast at Cana remains in Paris to this day, hanging directly across from the Mona Lisa. But Da Mosto looks at whether a 21st century solution – a digital facsimile – installed in the original monastery means that Venice can claim to have its Veronese back home.

As the former Director of three major British institutions, including the National Gallery, Charles Saumarez Smith understands the importance and prestige of a country’s national collections. In The Art Museum In Modern Times he explores the changes that have taken place in the past century – from the architecture of the buildings to the expectation of the visitors. Where once was a mission to instruct, educate and amaze, now the emphasis is on contemplation and individual experience.

Producer: Katy Hickman


MON 09:45 The King's Painter: The Life and Times of Hans Holbein by Franny Moyle (m000vq74)
Episode 1

Hans Holbein the Younger became court painter to Henry VIII and was regarded as a phenomenon in his day for his ability to bring the characters he painted to life.

His famous portrait of the Tudor King was so life like spectators fully expected arms and legs to move. One of his paintings of the dead Christ was so alarming that, when the Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky saw it in 1867, he was so troubled by it that his wife had to drag him away fearing he might have an epileptic fit.

Holbein observed the extraordinary events of his century up close and painted the movers and shakers of the age including Desiderius Erasmus, Thomas More, Thomas Cromwell, Henry VIII, as well as the various women lined up to become the wives of the king, such as Anne of Cleves.

He was a contributor to the history of book design as well as designing jewellery, and elaborate weaponry. With a family in Basel and another in London, his life was as colourful as the times he lived through.

Author: Franny Moyle
Abridger: Libby Spurrier
Reader: Sir Simon Russell Beale
Producer: Celia de Wolff

A Pier production for BBC Radio 4


MON 10:00 Woman's Hour (m000vq76)
Breaking barriers to cycling for women

Have you always wanted to get on a bike, but something is holding you back? This is the programme for you, presented by Melanie Abbott. If you're completely new to cycling, there's no doubt it's intimidating on the roads. It's definitely worth sharpening up your road sense and many local councils now offer bike training courses. In East London, Bikeworks run cycling for wellbeing sessions for women returning to their bikes, after a long break. Melanie goes out with a group who've been cycling together now for a few weeks.

Cycling is still, predominantly a male, middle class sport. Getting more women involved isn't easy, especially for women of colour. British Cycling, which covers everything from elite sport to grass roots, has set up its first ever diversity programme. and will be publishing its strategy in the coming months. Aneela McKenna is co chair of their diversity and inclusion advisory group. She joins Melanie along with Iffat Tejani, founder of Evolve, a cycling club for Muslim women and Victoria Hazeal from the charity Cycling UK, who is a trustee of the Women of Colour in Cycling Collective.

Many disabled women find accessing sport particularly difficult and cycling can seem completely off limits and/or too expensive. But there are inclusive cycle groups all over the country offering weekly sessions on a huge range of adapted bikes. Others arrange rentals and ‘try before you buy’. Our Disability Affairs reporter Carolyn Atkinson goes to Herne Hill Velodrome in South London where a charity called Wheels for Wellbeing runs sessions for disabled cyclists.

Tracy Moseley has won countless mountain biking trophies, including the World Cup downhill in 2006. She officially retired six years ago, and had her little boy Toby three years ago. Like many keen cyclists who have children, life has changed a lot since then. Melanie gets her tips on teaching children to ride, and her views on racing with e-bikes.

Even if you are not entering races you may still be keen to "Strava your ride". It's one of the apps you can use to record your speeds and compare them with others. It's traditionally used by men, competing for the 'king of the mountain' crown, to be the fastest up a hill. But last year the company says there was a surge in the number of women using it and it seems they are just as keen to get a queen of the mountain accolade. Cyclist Sally Owens agreed to record her ride for us, up a tough hill near her home in Nottingham.


MON 10:45 Hardy's Women (m000vq78)
The Woodlanders

Episode 1

Marty South tells no one of her love for Giles Winterbourne in Thomas Hardy's story of ambition, money and missed chances. Dramatised by Ayeesha Menon.

Marty South.....Katy Sobey
Giles Winterbourne.....Oliver Hembrough
Grace Melbury.....Holli Dempsey
Edred Fitzpiers.....Sacha Dhawan
George Melbury.....Nicholas Murchie
Lucy Melbury.....Jane Slavin
Barber Percomb.....Joshua Riley
Felice Charmond.....Marilyn Nnadebe
Grammer Oliver.....Jessica Turner
Suke Damson.....Elinor Coleman
Timothy Tangs.....Stewart Campbell
John South.....Tony Turner

Production Co-ordinator.....Maggie Olgiati
Sound Design.....Peter Ringrose
Directed by Emma Harding


MON 11:00 The Untold (m000vq7b)
The Real Marigold Hotel

As covid continues its relentless rise through India many in the UK are wondering what they can do to help. It’s a question that is particularly important to Christopher and Phillida Purvis, who have spent the past five years setting up a unique volunteer program in the Nilgiri Mountains

The couple hit on the idea of establishing their own kind of ‘Marigold Hotel,’ which would give retired volunteers the chance to spend weeks at a time helping Adivasi villagers on a whole range of different projects, from gardening and bee keeping, through to teaching and innovation hubs.

In 2017 they started building the PLENTI guest house and over the next couple of years a steady stream of UK volunteers have used their skills and interests to help in different ways. The youngest volunteer was 52, and the oldest was in his 80’s, with people bonding in the evenings over meals and shared stories of their adventures.

That was pre-covid. Last March as the pandemic took hold, the guest house volunteers had to leave. And since then they have little idea of when they might be able to return. Some, like retired teacher Elayne Wehrlin, have been able to maintain their involvement. She holds English classes via zoom for people in the community that she’s got to know and care about:

She believes she has got as much from the volunteering as those she has been helping: “I’m so lucky to have found something this rewarding to do in my old age. There are many inspiring projects going on there and I am hoping people are alright during this terrible time and that we can be with them again later this year.”

The idea for the guest house came after a chance encounter between Christopher and Phillida and the community leader Stan Thekaekara. He and his wife, Mari, have been alongside the Adivasi community in the Nilgiri Hills for more than three decades, setting up businesses, a school and a hospital, for tribals living in more than 300 villages and settlements.

An original Untold programme on the early days of the PLENTI project attracted a number of radio 4 listeners keen to volunteer, including Nick and Helen Moore, who run a guest house in Greece. They’ve not only helped train the hotel staff, they’ve also helped improve the way meals are prepared in the Adivasi hospital. Helen says it’s been enormously rewarding:

“What’s been nice about the project is the way that Christopher and Phillida didn’t set things up from scratch - all of the community groups are there and what we are able to do is really unite with people and to work together. We are so privileged in the West and this is something we can help with that really makes a difference.”

Another volunteer, Jack Daniels, has been involved in training some of the Adivasi nurses, particularly in patient interactions. He is in his 80’s and says that age is no barrier when it comes to helping out: “I go for five weeks at a time and always love it, sometimes I fit in a week of travelling by Indian rail at the end and alongside my work in the hospital I always do some poetry sessions because they’re very popular.

“In the guest house people meet at the end of the day and exchange their experiences, which is super. I love hearing about things like the Innovation Hub – Christopher is a man of many ideas and he believes that volunteers with any skills can find something there. I am anxious about what might happen in the community and keeping a close eye as things develop.”

PLENTI: http://www.plentiproject.org/
The programme is produced by Sue Mitchell


MON 11:30 Loose Ends (m000vpyb)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:15 on Saturday]


MON 12:00 News Summary (m000vq7f)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4


MON 12:04 Lean, Fall, Stand by Jon McGregor (m000vq7h)
1: Storm

Indira Varma reads the electrifying and heart-rending new novel from the Costa award-winning, and three-times Booker-longlisted author of Reservoir 13.

When an Antarctic research expedition goes horrifically wrong, the consequences are far-reaching - for the men involved and for their families back home.

Robert 'Doc' Wright, a veteran of Antarctic field work, holds the clues to what happened, but he is no longer able to communicate them. While his wife navigates the sharp contours of her new life as a carer, Robert is forced to learn a whole new way to be in the world.

Episode 1: as a storm hits suddenly, three Antarctic researchers find themselves separated....

'Lean Fall Stand is a beautiful piece of work and should win a roomful of prizes. Jon McGregor writes plainly and exactly, like a poet, and the precision of his writing makes every heartbeat register. The quality of his attention is a flicker of light around the fragile human condition, and it leaves the reader moved and subtly changed, as if she had become part of the story,' Hilary Mantel

Author: Jon McGregor is an award-winning novelist and short-story writer, who has been longlisted for the Booker Prize three times, and won the 2017 Costa Award.
Reader: Indira Varma
Producer: Justine Willett
Abridger: Katrin Williams


MON 12:18 You and Yours (m000vq7k)
News and discussion of consumer affairs.


MON 12:57 Weather (m000vq7m)
The latest weather forecast


MON 13:00 World at One (m000vq7p)
Forty-five minutes of news, analysis and comment, with Jonny Dymond.


MON 13:45 Laws That Aren't Laws (m000ltkj)
Murphy's Law

Comedian Robin Ince explores the laws that govern our lives that really aren’t, but still somehow are true. We all know how we live in a deterministic universe governed by carefully described quantifiable scientific laws and principles but, then in a practical sense, we really don’t. These laws are the hidden truths which really preside over our lives – quirky, useful or entertaining rules, which, if they are well known, crop up without explanation or, if confined to specialist circles, deserve to be more widely understood and appreciated.

From Murphy’s Law (anything that might go wrong does so), to Betteridge’s Law ( any headline that ends in a question mark can be answered by the word “no”) via Parkinson’s fundamental law of bureaucracy ( work expands to fill the time available) and the Peter Principle (employees rise to their own level of incompetence) Robin Ince examines five laws that aren’t laws in the legal sense, or in the physical sense but asks how did these so called “laws” evolve, why do we like them and what scientific evidence is there that they really work?

Episode 1 Murphy’s Law:

“If anything can go wrong, it will go wrong.” Murphy’s Law is now a part of our culture, used to describe wrong outcomes of every sort, from how buttered toast falls to the way catastrophes strike.

People have uttered similar laments since time immemorial. But the modern origin of the phrase traces back to two men on one fateful day in 1949 at Edwards Air Force Base in California: Colonel John Stapp whose work would later save countless lives in safer cars and airplanes and Captain Ed Murphy whose contributions would lead to safer cockpit controls and foretell the development of better computers and software.

Robin Ince uncovers their tangled tale which sprang from a series of mishaps when what could go wrong did go wrong, risking life and limb for the rider, and how, ironically, the origin of Murphy’s Law went unnoticed by Murphy himself.

But does this law simply tap into our tendency to dwell on the negative and overlook the positive? Or are the rules of probability - the mathematical likeliness that something will occur - sufficient to support it? We hear how the mathematician whose car’s clutch ceased to function 100km from home, at night in the middle of a rainstorm with no phone and a flooded tool kit, came up with the definitive equation to predict how often things really do go wrong for no good reason.

Producer: Adrian Washbourne


MON 14:00 Ayeesha Menon - Undercover Mumbai (b039yp0r)
One Last Sacrifice

As India's general elections draw near, and the world's largest democracy decides its future, A murder and a political scandal leads Police Inspector Alia Khan to unravelling the truth about her policeman father's death. A climactic hour-long final episode of the police detective serial set in Mumbai.

Set and recorded on location in Mumbai, this six-part police detective serial stars Alia Khan, as a young woman officer in the Bandra Division of the Mumbai Police Force, who attempts to solve a series of crimes as she tries to make sense of her troubled past and cope with being a woman in a male dominated and chauvinistic police force. Written by Ayeesha Menon and directed by John Dryden.

PRODUCTION
Sound Recordist - Hitesh Chaurasia
Sound Design - Steve Bond
Editing Assistants - Andrew Lewis & Aditya Khanna.
Script Editor - Mike Walker
Assistant Producer - Toral Shah
Producer - Nadir Khan
Music - Sacha Putnam
Writer - Ayeesha Menon

Director - John Dryden
A Goldhawk Production for BBC Radio 4

www.goldhawk.eu.


MON 15:00 Round Britain Quiz (m000vq7r)
Programme 9, 2021

(9/12)
Why might Henry VIII's sister, Cameron's best picture and the Roman province of Portugal all find themselves in a play by Terence Rattigan?

This and other cryptic puzzles are faced by the teams in the latest match of the series, with Tom Sutcliffe in the questionmaster's chair. Val McDermid and Alan McCredie play for Scotland, against Elizabeth-Jane Burnett and Stephen Maddock for the Midlands. Last time these pairs met, it resulted in a victory for the Midlands: can Scotland overturn that result today?

As usual, there are also musical clues with a fiendish connection which the teams will have to identify. Several of the questions have been suggested by RBQ listeners, and there'll also be a teaser puzzle for you to think about between now and next week's edition.

Producer: Paul Bajoria


MON 15:30 The Food Programme (m000vp0f)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:32 on Sunday]


MON 16:00 Dancers at Dawn (m000vhkf)
On the 1st May 1987 Martin Green’s dad takes him Morris dancing before dawn on Wandlebury Hill outside Cambridgeshire. Many years later, at sunrise on his twenty-third birthday, he walks home from a rave over this same hill.

This uncanny coincidence has got him thinking. To most people, Morris dancing and [raving] rave culture seem so far apart. We like to think we know what sorts of people do what. So, what do these two groups have in common that drives them out into the fields to dance at dawn?

As an accordionist, producer and storyteller, Martin’s own work lives somewhere between traditional music, electronic music and theatre. In 2020 he made a piece of audio theatre that linked the ancient traditions of English dancing to the birth of rave in the 1980s, which led him to draw on events from his own life, of dawn Morris dancing and sunrise raves. This documentary explores those themes. Why do we dance at dawn? Is there an innate desire to do so?

Recollecting his experiences with his father and rave friend Becky, Martin uncovers the traditions and rituals surrounding each activity. He speaks to others who have danced at dawn and seeks expert advice from [the] DJ Lee Burridge, who’s famous for his full moon parties in Thailand and sunrise sets at Burning Man festival.

Taking all this experience on board, Martin undertakes a solo experiment. Removing all people and connections he drives on his own, in the dark to a remote field near his house with a mission. He wants to find out what it is about the music, the dancing and the surroundings that makes dancing at dawn truly special.

Produced by Rebecca Gaskell
Photography by Sandy Butler
A Sparklab production for BBC Radio 4


MON 16:30 Beyond Belief (m000vq7v)
Myanmar

On February 1st, the government in Myanmar was overthrown in a military coup. Aung San Suu Kyi is now being held in prison and hundreds of protestors have been shot on the streets. For many decades, Christians and Muslims have been at the hard end of military oppression. Now the Buddhist majority are feeling the crack of the whip. To discuss Myanmar’s turbulent history and the current crisis, Ernie Rea is joined by Soe Win Than (Editor of the BBC Burmese Service), Khin Ohmar (a democracy and human rights activist noted for her leadership in the 1988 uprising in Myanmar) and by Benedict Rogers (Senior Analyst for East Asia at Christian Solidarity Worldwide).

Producer: Helen Lee


MON 17:00 PM (m000vq7x)
Afternoon news and current affairs programme, reporting on breaking stories and summing up the day's headlines.


MON 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m000vq7z)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


MON 18:30 Nature Table (m000vq81)
Series 2

Episode 1

Nature Table is comedian, broadcaster and writer Sue Perkins’ new comedy ‘Show & Tell’ series celebrating the natural world and all its funny eccentricities.
Taking the simple format of a ‘Show & Tell’, each episode Sue is joined by celebrity guests from the worlds of comedy and natural history. Each of the natural history guests brings an item linked to the wild world to share with the audience, be it an amazing fact or funny personal anecdote. Each item is a springboard for an enlightening and funny discussion, alongside fun games and challenges revealing more astonishing facts. We also hear from some of the London Zoo, as they bring us their own natural history ‘show and tells’ for Sue and the guests to discuss.
Nature Table has a simple clear brief: to positively celebrate and promote the importance of all our planet’s wonderfully wild flora and fauna in an fun and easily grasped way... whilst at the same time having a giggle.
Note: Series 2 was recorded in November 2020, during lockdown conditions, so this time round there is no studio audience. The host, panel and guest zookeepers recorded the series at ZSL London Zoo, socially distanced.

Episode 1
Recorded at London Zoo, this week Sue Perkins is joined by special guests:
Chris Packham (Naturalist, writer, presenter), Michaela Strachan (Wildlife Presenter) and comedian Desiree Burch

Written by: Catherine Brinkworth, Kat Sadler & Jon Hunter
Researcher: Catherine Beazley
Music by Ben Mirin. Additional sounds were provided by The Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
Produced by: Simon Nicholls
A BBC Studios Production


MON 19:00 The Archers (m000vp3r)
Lee is confronted with the naked truth while Brian slams the door for Adam.


MON 19:15 Front Row (m000vq84)
Live magazine programme on the worlds of arts, literature, film, media and music.


MON 19:45 Hardy's Women (m000vq78)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:45 today]


MON 20:00 Tricky (p09f99np)
Does Your Vote Matter?

Tricky is the place to discuss difficult questions away from the bear pit of social media.

Politics students and commentators Dominique Samuels and Emily Hewertson discuss the importance of voting with writer Alasdair Heather and creative director David Chukwujekwu.

In simple numerical terms your vote always counts but what if the party you favour have no chance of getting in or you can’t find anyone you can bring yourself to vote for? Is it worth casting your ballot?

Producers: Myles Bonnar and Peter McManus
Editor: Anthony Browne
A BBC Scotland production for Radio 4


MON 20:30 Crossing Continents (m000vhkc)
Drug Free in Norway

Can Norwegians with psychosis benefit from radical, drug-free treatment? In a challenge to the foundations of western psychiatry, a handful of Norway’s mental health facilities are offering medication-free treatment to people with serious psychiatric conditions. But five years after the scheme began it is still being questioned by the health establishment. For Crossing Continents, Lucy Proctor hears the testimony of Norwegian psychiatric patients, and the doctors who have aligned themselves on either side of the debate. Why is this happening in Norway? And how much power should people with debilitating psychosis have over their own lives?

Presenter: Lucy Proctor
Producer: Linda Pressly
Editor: Bridget Harney

(Image: Artwork depicting a young woman, with her head in her hands. Credit: Malin Rossi)


MON 21:00 Dare to Repair (m000vgh8)
How We Broke the Future

We love our electronic gadgets, gizmos and appliances. But when it comes to repairing and caring for them, UK citizens are second only to Norway when it comes to producing electronic waste. We have a culture of buying single-use, throwaway, cheaper-the-better, irreparable electronic goods. But the Age of Consumerism is over. If the kettles, toasters, phones and fridges we buy aren’t made to be repairable, and aren’t repaired, we are going to run out of things to buy, stuff to make them from and money to buy them with. Dare to Repair explores how we got to this unsustainable state, explores the fightback, whether it’s through global legislation or individual groups, and empowers listeners to prolong the life of their electronics and mechanical goods by fixing them.

Episode 1- How We Broke the Future

Materials scientist Professor Mark Miodownik of UCL looks back to the start of the electronics revolution to find out why our electronic gadgets and household goods are less durable and harder to repair now. As he attempts to fix his digital clock radio, he reveals that the drive for cheaper stuff and advances in design and manufacturing have left us with a culture of throwaway technology and mountains of electronic waste.

Presenter - Mark Miodownik
Producer - Fiona Roberts


MON 21:30 Start the Week (m000vq72)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


MON 22:00 The World Tonight (m000vq87)
In-depth reporting, intelligent analysis and breaking news from a global perspective.


MON 22:45 Lean, Fall, Stand by Jon McGregor (m000vq7h)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:04 today]


MON 23:00 Word of Mouth (m000vghw)
Coinages

Michael talks to Ralph Keyes about some of the unusual circumstances in which words and phrases are coined

Producer for BBC Audio in Bristol : Sally Heaven


MON 23:30 The Prime Minister at 300 (m000tp7p)
The liminal premiership

It's 300 years since Sir Robert Walpole took office as the first recognisable office holder of Prime Minister. To mark the anniversary, the historian and biographer Sir Anthony Seldon, examines how the role came about and why it has survived despite various crises and periods of change in the life of the nation. What do Walpole and Boris Johnson, the 55th occupant of the office, have in common?

Former Prime Ministers, Foreign Secretaries, Cabinet Secretaries and others at the heart of government talk about the pressures on the modern office and the responsibilities that come with it. Has the job become too difficult to perform effectively and what could be done to enhance the role of Prime Minister?

The first programme explores the origins of the office and how it was shaped by two of the longest serving Prime Ministers, Sir Robert Walpole and William Pitt the Younger.

Producer: Peter Snowdon