SATURDAY 19 AUGUST 2023

SAT 00:00 Midnight News (m001pmvg)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.


SAT 00:30 Wifedom - Mrs Orwell's Invisible Life by Anna Funder (m001pmnj)
Book of the Week: Episode 5 - Animal Farm

Anna Funder's tender portrait of a literary marriage concludes. Eileen, George Orwell's forgotten first wife, influences and shapes the novel Animal Farm. Lastly, she writes her husband a sequence of letters. Fenella Woolgar reads.

The award-winning writer, Anna Funder, best known for Stasiland and All that I Am, has immersed herself in the scholarship on George Orwell to write Wifedom. Here Funder shines a light on Eileen, Orwell's extraordinary wife. Using newly discovered letters written by Eileen, Funder paints an intimate portrait of a forgotten woman, and one of the twentieth century's most significant literary marriages. She also illuminates the social and cultural values that kept Eileen in the shadows, and continue to shape how the world regards the unsung work of wives everywhere.

Abridged by Katrin Williams
Produced by Elizabeth Allard


SAT 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m001pmvj)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping


SAT 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m001pmvl)
World Service

BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.


SAT 05:20 Shipping Forecast (m001pmvq)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping


SAT 05:30 News Briefing (m001pmvv)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4


SAT 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m001pmvz)
Spiritual reflection to start the day with Rev Neil Gardner of Canongate Kirk, Edinburgh


SAT 05:45 Witness (b01pz59f)
The Biafran war

The Biafran war ended in January 1970. It had lasted for almost 3 years and split Nigeria. The word Biafra had become synonymous with famine and suffering. Ben Okafor was 12 years old when the fighting started. He fled his hometown with his family, worked in a refugee camp and even volunteered as a child soldier. Hear his memories of the failed bid for Biafran independence.
Photo: Ben Okafor - credit Harald Haugan.


SAT 06:00 News and Papers (m001pshk)
The latest news headlines. Including the weather and a look at the papers.


SAT 06:07 Open Country (m001pmrd)
Sound and Light at Dungeness

The landscape of Dungeness, at the south-eastern tip of England, is an unusual one. In this programme, Helen Mark finds out about stories surrounding sound and light on this peninsula which juts out into the English Channel. She visits the huge concrete "sound mirrors" - built in the 1920s as an early detection system for incoming enemy planes. Their technology became obsolete as aircraft speeds increased and radar was invented. They still stand today, but are now part of a nature reserve. Helen finds out how they worked, and experiences for herself their eerie sound projection abilities. She also learns about the wildlife which now thrives around them.

A few miles further south, Helen visits the old lighthouse - one of five lighthouses which Dungeness has had in its time. The area stands on vast ever-shifting banks of shingle, which have expanded seawards over the years, leaving previous lighthouses stranded too far from the sea. The construction of a nuclear power station in the 1950s also obscured the lighthouse then in use, so it was decommissioned in 1960 and is now a tourist attraction. Helen walks up its 169 steps to the top and talks to the current owner, whose father bought it on a whim at an auction.

In this programme Helen experiences the distinctive sounds of Dungeness - from the magic of the sound mirrors and the whistle of the tourist steam train to the ever-present crunch and rattle of the shingle underfoot. In this pancake flat landscape, sound and light both seem to move in mysterious ways.

Produced by Emma Campbell


SAT 06:30 Farming Today (m001pshp)
19/09/23 Farming Today This Week: Petrol prices in rural areas, River Wye pollution, hedgerows

The price of petrol in rural areas: supermarkets charge up to 15p more per litre if you live in the countryside.
The Climate Change Committee has called for a 40% increase in hedgerows in the UK by 2050 to help tackle global heating. Defra says it wants to create or restore 45 thousand miles of hedges in England by 2050, and is asking farmers how it can support them to achieve that goal. It’s a far cry from the post-war farming policies that led to hundreds of thousands of miles of hedges being ripped out.
And can the River Wye look forward to a cleaner future?

Presented by Caz Graham and produced by Beatrice Fenton.


SAT 06:57 Weather (m001psht)
The latest weather reports and forecast


SAT 07:00 Today (m001pshy)
Including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


SAT 09:00 Saturday Live (m001psj2)
Angela Barnes, Hanan Issa, Richard Essien (aka Magical Bones), Lou Sanders, Jason Williams...in nature

Angela Barnes was brought up on comedy. She and her dad Derek would go to stand-up shows together and when they listened to comedians on the radio he would say “Why don’t you have a go at that?, Angela. Why don’t you give comedy a try?”. For a long time, she felt she couldn’t. But when Derek died suddenly at the age of 60 Angela remembered his words and today she appears on the very shows she used to listen to with her dad.

The National Poet of Wales, Hanan Issa, has that wonderful advantage of being able to see the world via a bi-cultural lens; she’s Welsh-Iraqi. Hanan’s also a filmmaker and scriptwriter and her monologue 'With Her Back Straight' was performed as part of The Hijabi Monologues at the Bush Theatre in London and she worked on the much loved and lauded Channel 4 comedy series We Are Lady Parts.

If you watch Britain’s Got Talent, the chances are you saw Richard Essien introduce himself as the street magician Magical Bones. His shows combine magic, illusions and street-dance culture and before he fully committed to his magic career, he was a hip-hop dancer working with huge music acts; form The Black-Eyed Peas to Alicia Keys and even private events for Madonna.

All that plus The Inheritance Tracks of comedian Lou Sanders - and we join Jason Williams ...In Nature.

Presenters: Nikki Bedi and Jon Kay
Producer: Ben Mitchell


SAT 10:00 You're Dead to Me (p0fcx5lm)
Atlantis

Greg Jenner is joined by Dr Stephen Kershaw and comedian Sophie Duker to dive into the myth of Atlantis. The Atlantean story has its origins in the writings of the ancient Greek philosopher Plato. And literally nowhere else. Yet the enduring appeal of this mythical city and a sophisticated civilisation lost beneath the waves has lasted for thousands of years. It has inspired a huge number of stories and some very ropey documentaries. The myth also has a darker side, as the allegory of Atlantis has been used to try and justify racist philosophies and policies during some of the darkest events in history.


SAT 10:30 The Kitchen Cabinet (m001psj6)
Series 41

Wrexham

Jay Rayner and his panel of culinary connoisseurs are in the football town of Wrexham for this week’s episode of The Kitchen Cabinet.

Joining Jay on the pitch are materials expert Zoe Laughlin, self-described ‘chef and part-time pirate’ Rob Owen Brown, food journalist, Fliss Freeborn and renowned chef, Angela Gray.

From giant lasagnes to breakfasts you’d eat in secret, the panel discusses a variety of left field recipes. Whether it be alternative uses of cereal, or the best low-effort feast for a dinner party, Jay and his squad tackle a range of culinary questions. Amongst the talk of tinned fish and football feasts, Jay and his team of food referees deliberate over the sandwich fillings worthy of a red card.

Amongst the quick-fire Q and A, Jay has a half-time chat with local Salford Friendly Anglers Society, Michael Duddy, who explains the process of freshwater fishing.

Assistant Producer: Rahnee Prescod
Senior Producer: Dom Tyerman
Executive Producer: Hannah Newton

A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4


SAT 11:00 The Briefing Room (m001pmp6)
The UK and the European Convention on Human Rights

What is the European Convention on Human Rights, how does it impact what the UK government can do and what would the ramifications be if the UK left it?

Joining David Aaronovitch in The Briefing Room:

Dr. Ed Bates, Associate Professor, University of Leicester School of Law. Author of The Evolution of the European Convention on Human Rights.
Robert Spano, Partner at Gibson Dunn, Former President of the European Court of Human Rights.
Dr Joelle Grogan, Head of Research, UK in a Changing Europe.
Tom Hickman, Professor of Public Law, University College London.

Production: Ben Carter, Kirsteen Knight and Diane Richardson
Production co-ordinator: Sabine Schereck
Sound: Graham Puddifoot
Editor: Richard Vadon


SAT 11:30 From Our Own Correspondent (m001psjb)
The Sudanese refugees sheltering in Chad

Kate Adie introduces correspondents' and writers' stories from the Chad/Sudan border, Hawaii's Maui island, Belize, Portugal and Azerbaijan

More than a million people have fled violence in Sudan for relative safety over the border in Chad - but conditions there are harsh, and medical help running desperately short. Mercy Juma spent a week near the refugee camp in Adre hearing stories of what had driven so many from their homes in Darfur.

Maui island is still reeling in shock and grief after the wildfires, fanned up by strong winds, which have ripped across it and burned the town of Lahaina to the ground. John Sudworth reflects on the anger and concern - as well as the resilience - he's heard expressed by Hawaiians over their state's emergency response.

How can one of the Western Hemisphere's smallest countries, Belize, take care of one of its longest barrier reefs? In a heavily indebted nation of under half a million people that's also highly vulnerable to climate change, NGOs must often step in where the state can't enforce conservation measures. Linda Pressly took took a boat to a speck in the Caribbean called Laughing Bird Caye, to hear of the threats from fishing boats, tourists - and even drug smugglers - in these waters.

Portugal's government has drawn up a plan promising the nation "More Housing" - trying to address a runaway property boom and a sense that a decent home is now out of reach for far too many people. But as Alison Roberts explains, rebalancing both rental and buyers' markets will not be easy.

And in the cities of Baku and Shusha, Simon Broughton pays close attention to sounds from Azerbaijan's own classical music tradition: the genre called mugham, which mixes delicate instrumentation with poetic vocals - and deep human feeling.

Producer: Polly Hope
Editor: Bridget Harney
Production Co-Ordinator: Gemma Ashman


SAT 12:00 News Summary (m001psvh)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


SAT 12:04 Money Box (m001psjl)
Surviving or Thriving? School

Schools are dealing with their own rising costs, but they are also coping with the impact of the cost-of-living on their pupils and their families. One primary school tells us how they’re facing up to the challenge. Can they thrive in tricky economic times?

Felicity Hannah spends a day at school with Sally Herbert, Principal at Oasis Academy Harpur Mount, primary school in Manchester. She meets staff, parents and pupils to hear how the cost of living is impacting on their children’s education.

The Programme also talks to education expert Laura McInErney, co-founder of Teacher Tapp, to ask what does the future look like for schools.

Series Producer Smita Patel
Editor Clare Fordham
Studio mixed by Rod Farquhar


SAT 12:30 The United Nations of News (m001pmtj)
The fourth of our satirical specials this summer. Ria Lina heads up a crack team of international comics including: Daliso Chaponda, Heidi Regan, Urooj Ashfaq and Ignacio Lopez to discuss the big stories making the news at home and around the world. You'll get an outsider's view on the news affecting you and also a peek behind the headlines from our comedians' homelands. We show them ours and then they show us theirs. The United Nations of News: proof that comedy really is universal.
Produced by Lauren Mackay
Additional Material by Rebecca Bain, Alex Garrick-Wright, Gregor Paton & Jennifer Walker


SAT 12:57 Weather (m001psjq)
The latest weather forecast


SAT 13:00 News and Weather (m001psjv)
The latest national and international news and weather reports from BBC Radio 4


SAT 13:10 Any Questions? (m001pmtx)
Wendy Chamberlain MP, Stella Creasy MP, Iain Dale, Nick Gibb MP

Alex Forsyth presents political discussion from St John's Church in Southend-on-Sea with the Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Work and Pensions Wendy Chamberlain MP, the Labour MP Stella Creasy, the LBC presenter and Telegraph columnist Iain Dale, the Schools Minister Nick Gibb MP.
Producer: Camellia Sinclair
Lead broadcast engineer: Richard Earle


SAT 14:00 Any Answers? (m001psjz)
Call Any Answers? to have your say on the big issues in the news this week


SAT 14:45 The Museums That Make Us (m0016h3g)
The National Museum of NI, Belfast

Neil MacGregor presents a new series for BBC Radio Four celebrating the role and ambition of museums the length and breadth of the country, and in the process he'll be finding answers to the question ‘What are Museums For in 2022’.

Today he's in Northern Ireland, where the National Museum have chosen an object that illustrates both the country's resurgent film and television industry and the way wit and comedy can undercut division. It's a blackboard from the Channel 4 comedy series Derry Girls. The board was used in an episode in which the eponymous girls were attending a 'peace camp' with boys from a nearby Protestant School. When invited to fill two blackboards, one with similarities and the other with differences between Protestants and Catholics, the similarities board remains almost entirely empty. But the differences board, now in the Museum, is completely covered with ideas ranging from the quietly perceptive to the utterly ludicrous. Do Protestants really keep their toasters in the cupboard? The BBC's former Northern Ireland correspondent Denis Murray is on hand to guide Neil through the comedy and tragedy.

Museums have always been telescopes trained on the past to help locate a sense of place in the present. Neil believes that role is an active one, responding to changes in the people museums serve and the shifting social and cultural landscape they inhabit. After spending much of his life at the centre of our national Museum life in London, Neil is taking to the road to discover more about the extraordinary work being done in Museums outside the capital, from Stornoway to Stowmarket, and Belfast to Birmingham.

In each episode he visits a single museum, inviting them to choose an object from their collections which they feel best illustrates their civic role, and the way they relate and want to relate to their local audience. Very rarely have they chosen a crown jewel from their often priceless collections. More often it's an object with a particular local resonance, or which helps tackle episodes from the past which are being viewed very differently by citizens in the 21st century.

He’ll be visiting the great national museums of Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland, as well as major city institutions in Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool and elsewhere. And in spite of the challenges of the last two years, everywhere he meets passionate teams who are dedicated to providing a unique experience for both local audiences and visitors from further afield.

Neil writes: “What’s going on in our museums is at once challenging and exciting and it can only really be understood by visiting as many as possible and finding out how they have approached what is a vital role in providing a sense of local, regional and national identity.”


SAT 15:00 Hardy's Women (m000sgvx)
Tess of the D'Urbervilles

Episode 2

Dramatisation of Hardy's novel about Tess Durbeyfield, a beautiful, poor young Dorset woman. In today's episode, Tess tries to make a clean break with her past by going to work at Talbothay's Dairy, a world away in a different vale.

Cast:
TESS ..... Faye Marsay
ANGEL ..... Matthew Tennyson
CRICK ..... John Dougall
IZZY ..... Kathleen Cranham
MARIAN ..... Bettrys Jones
RETTY ..... Ell Potter
CHARWOMAN ..... Alex Tregear
JOAN DURBEYFIELD ..... Maggie Service
MRS CRICK ..... Elizabeth Counsell
MAN at the Inn ..... Hasan Dixon
FARMER ..... John Lightbody
STRANGER ..... Chris Lew Kum Hoi
JONATHAN ..... David Seddon

Author, Thomas Hardy
Dramatist, Katie Hims
Director, Mary Peate


SAT 16:00 Woman's Hour (m001psk3)
Women's World Cup final, Surviving a WWII Japanese prison camp, Care leavers, 'Older-age orphans', Nasa astronaut Christina Koch

Former Lioness and England's top female goal scorer, Ellen White, on England reaching the Fifa Women's World Cup final.

VJ day was on Tuesday, marking the anniversary of Japan's surrender, and the end of World War Two. Olga Henderson was 13 in 1945, starving in a camp in Singapore alongside other young internees. Now 91, Olga talks about her time in the camps recalled in her new – and first - book, In the Shadow of the Rising Sun.

A survey of 10,000 university students found that only 14% of pupils who had been in the care system progressed to higher education by age 19, compared to 47% of all other pupils. Kim Emenike, who was in care as a child, and Katharine Sacks-Jones, Chief Executive of the charity Become, which supports young care leavers, discuss the challenges they face.

Many baby boomers are experiencing the death of their parents much later than previous generations. The journalist Helen Bullough and clinical psychologist Dr Linda Blair discuss the impact of being parentless in older age.

Imagine being the first woman to travel to the Moon. The Nasa astronaut Christina Koch has been chosen as one of the four crew members who will orbit the Moon in the spacecraft Orion, as part of Nasa’s Artemis II mission in November next year.

TV presenter Sarah Greene, most well-known for her work on Blue Peter and Going Live is back on our screens with a brand-new BBC 1 quiz show, The Finish Line. She reflects on her career and tells us all about her new role.

Presenter: Anita Rani
Producer: Dianne McGregor


SAT 17:00 PM (m001psk7)
Full coverage of the day's news


SAT 17:30 All Consuming (m001pmpr)
Manicures

Amit Katwala and Charlotte Stavrou explore our unending appetite for manicures and find out that it's much more than just a buff and cuticle pushback.

Gel, acrylics, French tips - there's a seemingly endless list of services that can be applied to our fingertips. But some salons have taken nail art to the next level as Charlotte found out when she visited NUKA nails in West London.

While manicures seem to be enjoying a heyday, nail treatments aren't a modern phenomenon as writer Suzanne E Shapiro explains as she takes us on a journey from Ancient Egypt to the French Riveria of the 1920s.

Consultant dermatologist Dr Deirdre Buckley is also on hand to warn us about the emergence of plastic allergies in manicure lovers and we also uncover the dark underside of the industry when it comes to trafficked salon workers.

Producer: Emily Uchida Finch
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4


SAT 17:54 Shipping Forecast (m001pskc)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping


SAT 17:57 Weather (m001pskh)
The latest weather forecast


SAT 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m001pskm)
The nurse was found guilty of murdering seven babies and attempting to kill six others


SAT 18:15 Loose Ends (m001pskr)
Josie Long, Darren Harriott, Ria Lina, David O'Doherty, Kitti, Anneka Rice, Clive Anderson

Clive Anderson and Anneka Rice are joined by by comedians Josie Long, Darren Harriott, David O'Doherty and Ria Lina for an eclectic mix of conversation, music and comedy. With music from Kitti and David O'Doherty.


SAT 19:00 Reith Revisited (b096g0x4)
Series 1

Anand Menon on Robert Birley

Robert Birley's 1949 Reith lecture series, "Britain in Europe", remain urgently topical today. Sarah Montague discusses the lectures with Professor Anand Menon. The Reith Lectures began in 1948 on the Home Service, subsequently moving to Radio 4 and becoming a major national occasion for intellectual debate. As part of the celebrations of Radio 4's 50th anniversary, the network looks back at the first 10 years of the Reith Lectures to explore how they reflect the times in which they were delivered and how well they stand up now. Birley was headmaster of Eton who had worked in postwar Germany. In his lectures, he looked forward to what he described as a European Union and discussed how far Britain would become integrated in it. Sarah assesses his lectures with the help of Anand Menon, who heads The UK In A Changing Europe thinktank.
Producer: Neil Koenig
Researcher: Josephine Casserley.


SAT 19:15 This Cultural Life (m001pskw)
Sally Potter

Sally Potter is a ground-breaking film-maker, best known for her bold 1992 adaptation of Virginia Woolf’s novel Orlando. Starring Tilda Swinton, it was nominated for two Academy Awards and won more than 25 international film prizes. With her 1983 debut feature The Gold Diggers, which starred Julie Christie, Sally Potter led an all-female cast and crew, establishing herself as a trailblazing figure within independent cinema. She is renowned for her radical and experimental approach to film-making. Her 2004 love story Yes was scripted entirely in iambic pentameter; Rage in 2009, set backstage at a fashion show and starring Jude Law, Steve Buscemi and Judi Dench, became the world’s first movie to premier directly on mobile phones. A multitasking filmmaker, Sally Potter’s screen credits also include actor, editor, choreographer and composer. She has written and directed nine feature films including The Party and The Roads Not Taken.

Sally Potter tells John Wilson about her upbringing in a liberal, creative household in London. She recalls how she was given a 8mm cine camera by the artist Sandy Daley when she was 14, the start of her fascination with film-making. After learning more about the craft of cinematography, processing and editing film at the London Film Cooperative, she studied dance and choreography at The Place, an experience that later inspired her 1997 film the Tango Lesson. Having recently released an album of songs, she talks about the creative impulse that inspired them. She also discusses reading Virginia Woolf’s Orlando and the struggle to make her screen adaptation in the face of warnings from film producers that the book was ‘unfilmable’.

Producer: Edwina Pitman


SAT 20:00 Archive on 4 (m001psl0)
Scoop

From the disputed origins in the 1920s of the name 99, via the turf wars between ice cream van men in the 1980s, to the persistent myth that Margaret Thatcher helped to invent Mr Whippy soft-serve ice cream, Scoop offers a creamy, nutty, fruity knickerbocker glory of history, personal testimony and unexpected twists,

With James Sinclair of Rossi in Southend, whose job is to "sell happiness" - he tours his ice cream factory and the Rossi seafront parlour; Leyla Dervish of Magic Foods, a third generation ice cream seller in south-east London, who shares the magical send-off her father received from his fellow ice cream van men; food historian Dr Annie Gray; the composer of the mobile sound creation Music for Seven Ice Cream Vans, Dan Jones, and ice cream vendor Akan driving the streets of south-east London.

With archive from Radio 4's The Food Programme, featuring Dan Saladino and his ice cream van Dad, Bobo; coverage of the 'Glasgow ice cream wars' of the 1980s; Jim Carey's documentary, The Ice Cream Van Cometh, that includes Francis Rossi and Banksy (courtesy of Jim Carey and Loftus Media) and a special recording from an ice cream van man's funeral.

Produced by Alan Hall
A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4
(Image of Leyla Dervish's Mum, Sheree, courtesy of the Dervish family.)


SAT 21:00 GF Newman's The Corrupted (m000hn5k)
Series 5

Episode 8

It's the 1990s and Brian Oldman is still in jail for a crime he didn't commit.

He found a man in jail able to prove his innocence - but that man was soon found dead in his cell. He suspects that Joseph Oldman, now Sir Joseph Olinska MP, organised the killing.

GF Newman's The Corrupted weaves fiction with real characters from history, following the fortunes of the Oldman/Olinska family - from small-time business and opportunistic petty crime, through gang rivalries, to their entanglement in the highest echelons of society. It's a tale revealing a nexus of crime, business and politics that’s woven through the fabric of 20th century greed, as even those with hitherto good intentions are sucked into a web of corruption.

Joey Oldman, an uneducated Jewish child immigrant from Russia, has a natural instinct for business and a love of money - coupled with a knack for acquiring it. His wife Cath is as ruthless in both the pursuit of money and the protection of her son, Brian. Joey built his empire with the help of a corrupt bank manager in the 1950s, starting with small greengrocer shops before moving into tertiary banking and property development, dealing with many corrupt policemen on the way - and befriending both Lord Goodman and Margaret Thatcher. Now ennobled and on the board of Lehman Brothers, Joseph intends to extend his business interests into Russia with the help of Boris Yeltsin and his cronies.

The characters are based on GF Newman's novels.

CAST
Joseph Oldman Toby Jones
Brian Oldman Joe Armstrong
Tony Wednesday Alec Newman
Brian Perry/DAC Henderson Nicholas Murchie
Leah Cohen Jasmine Hyde
Lord Carson Jamie Newall
Chuck Haley Matt Rippy
Detective Albright Nigel Pivaro
Julian Tyrwhitt Jonathan Tafler
Margaret Olinska Flora Montgomery
Sir Ralph Courtney Nick Sampson
Tim Listfield Charles Davies
Inspector Vallins John Hastings
Prison Doctor Kieron Jechinnis
Rita and Audrey Sarah Lambie

Produced and directed by Clive Brill
A Brill production for BBC Radio 4


SAT 21:45 Short Works (m001pmsl)
Mister Derek by Alice Malseed

An original short story commissioned by BBC Radio 4 from Northern Irish writer Alice Malseed. Read by Ruby Campbell.

Alice Malseed is a writer and theatre maker based in Belfast. She has been writing and producing since 2014. Her work has appeared across the UK, Ireland, in Sri Lanka and New York. Alice was part of BBC Writersroom Belfast Voices group 2018-2019 and Lyric New Playwrights Programme 2018. She was awarded a Jerwood New Work Fund in 2019 and received the Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival Theatre Award in 2021.

Writer: Alice Malseed
Reader: Ruby Campbell
Producer: Michael Shannon
Editor: Andy Martin

A BBC Northern Ireland production.


SAT 22:00 News (m001psl2)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4


SAT 22:15 Screenshot (m001pmts)
Latitude Festival 2023

Latitude Festival boasts the biggest comedy lineup in the UK, so Ellen and Mark take a visit to discuss the best and worst of stand-up comedy on screen.

Ellen and Mark and joined by three of the UK's biggest and brightest comedy stars from Latitude’s 2023 comedy line-up - Ania Magliano, Olga Koch and Romesh Ranganathan.

Ania Magliano is an up and coming talent in the British comedy scene who, aside from selling out shows at Edinburgh Fringe and Soho Theatre, writes for the viral YouTube hit Chicken Shop Date with Amelia Dimoldenberg, Frankie Boyle’s New World Order and Newsjack on Radio 4. She shares with Ellen and Mark the fictional comic who makes her feel most seen.

Olga Koch is another rising star in the UK comedy scene who has appeared on Mock the Week, Pls Like, Pointless Celebrities and QI. She's written and starred in several award winning Radio 4 shows, including last year’s Olga Koch: Fight and Olga Koch: OK Computer. She tells Ellen and Mark which stand-up comedy scenes make her cringe the most.

Romesh Ranganathan is a familiar face on British television, as host of shows like The Ranganation and The Weakest Link, and as a regular panellist on A League of Their Own. He hosts For The Love of Hip Hop on Radio 2 and co-hosts the hit podcast The Wolf And Owl with fellow comedian Tom Davis. Romesh explains to Ellen and Mark why stand-up on screen can go out of fashion fast.

Finally, comedian Greg Proops joins us for a viewing note, revealing his favourite stand-up scene.

Producer: Tom Whalley
A Prospect Street production for BBC Radio 4


SAT 23:00 Brain of Britain (m001pmcp)
Heat 1, 2023

(1/17)
The first four competitors of the new season join Russell Davies at the Radio Theatre in London, for the opening heat of the 2023 general knowledge tournament. 48 competitors this year from all around the UK will be whittled down to just four Finalists in December. Could the eventual Brain of Britain champion be among the contenders today?

The competitors in the first heat are Jason Butler from Kent, Jude Child from Hampshire, Susannah Croft from Essex and Akin Yilmaz from London.

The programme includes 'Beat the Brains', in which a listener gets the opportunity to win a prize by stumping the Brains with questions he or she has devised.

Producer: Paul Bajoria


SAT 23:30 Yeti (p0fxt8p5)
8. Yeti Chasers will Never Find Them

Having decided to visit the official yeti sanctuary in the far east of Bhutan, Andy and Richard fly to the town of Bumthang.

Here they visit the ancestral home of a Bhutanese historian who is an expert in yeti folklore. She tells them about the importance of the yeti in Bhutanese myth and legend, warning them that yeti chasers will never find them.

But determined to see this search to the end, Andy and Richard continue on, heading towards Bhutan’s official yeti sanctuary.

In this 10-part documentary series, Andrew Benfield and Richard Horsey travel through India, Myanmar, Nepal and Bhutan in search of stories of yeti sightings and encounters. They hear from villagers, yak herders, sherpas and mountaineers, who give surprisingly consistent descriptions of a mysterious, large, hairy creature. This series takes us on a journey deep into Himalayan culture as the presenters grapple with their own inner demons to try to make sense of the yeti myth.

Producer: Joanna Jolly.
Executive Producer: Kirsten Lass.
Sound designers: Peregrine Andrews and Dan King.
Composer of original music: Marisa Cornford.
Assistant Producer Maia Miller- Lewis.
A Loftus Media production for BBC Radio 4.

SUNDAY 20 AUGUST 2023

SUN 00:00 Midnight News (m001psl5)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.


SUN 00:15 Out of Abandonment (m001pm7s)
Radio 4 throws down a challenge to poet Kim Moore: to create a poem inspired by one of the UK's many abandoned buildings. She visits a vast Victorian edifice she has never seen before in Newsham Park, Liverpool which was the Seamen’s Orphanage, later became an NHS hospital for people suffering with mental illness and is now a site for ghost tours.

Kim explores the Grade II listed building with local historian Steve Corcoran, discovering that it was originally designed by Alfred Waterhouse, the architect of the Natural History Museum. A group of Liverpool ship owners got together to finance the construction, when Liverpool was the second biggest port in the British Empire and life at sea was a precarious occupation.

Kim explores the now empty dining room, old staircases covered in anti-suicide grills, dormitories and wards with peeling paint and hears from people who have lived and worked there. As well as seeking inspiration for her poem, she sounds her trumpet where the orphanage's brass band used to play and ponders what the future may hold for this uncanny, derelict site.


SUN 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m001psl7)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping


SUN 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m001psl9)
World Service

BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.


SUN 05:20 Shipping Forecast (m001pslc)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping


SUN 05:30 News Briefing (m001pslf)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4


SUN 05:43 Bells on Sunday (m001pslh)
St. Andrew's Church in Stratton, North Cornwall.

Bells on Sunday comes from St. Andrew's Church in Stratton, North Cornwall. St Andrews is a Grade I listed building dating from the mid-14th century with a 15th century tower. There are eight bells all cast by John Taylor and Company of Loughborough in 1911. The Tenor bell weighs twenty one and three quarter hundredweight and is tuned to E flat. We hear them ringing Stedman Triples.


SUN 05:45 Reith Revisited (b096g0x4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Saturday]


SUN 06:00 News Summary (m001psyt)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4


SUN 06:05 Something Understood (m000202v)
Slowing Down

Writer and priest Malcolm Doney ponders how his move from a busy, city working life to the peaceful countryside has brought about a new, slower pace that’s changed many aspects of his daily life and outlook.

Malcolm explores the pitfalls of our fast, “roadrunner” culture - from not having time to nurture important relationships to our tendency to lack patience. Malcolm learns of the ‘slow movement’, an organised resistance to our culture of speed that spans several decades, driven by those producing ‘slow’ cinema, cooking and fashion. He examines the ‘slow art’ and ‘slow music’ of James Turrell, Brian Eno and Danny Hills.

Waiting, doing nothing - although going against the norms of our culture - has its virtues, given that God doesn’t work to human beings’ impatient timetable or on demand. So how can we best slow down and be patient, especially during life’s more chaotic and stressful moments? Malcolm takes tips from Michael Palin on finding peace, and free-diver Kimi Werner on resisting panic.

Malcolm concludes that slowing down allows us to place value on everyday moments, even small things like drinking tea, and encourages us to give slowness a go.

Presenter: Malcolm Doney
Producer: Sera Baker
A TBI production for BBC Radio 4


SUN 06:35 On Your Farm (m001psz8)
Bristol's last working farm

Sarah Swadling meets Catherine Withers at Yew Tree Farm, the last working farm within the boundaries of Bristol. It’s a mixed farm producing organic pork and beef, as well as turkeys, chickens, fruit and vegetables. Catherine is a third generation farmer, but the land has been in production for centuries. It’s been designated a Site of Nature Conservation Interest because of the amount of wildlife it provides habitats for, and because of its ancient hedgerows and meadows. The Sustainable Food Trust and the University of Bristol run ‘social prescribing’ courses on the farm to boost health and wellbeing. But the farm is threatened by development on two parcels of land that Catherine rents – one earmarked for housing, the other as an extension to the council-owned crematorium next door. Housing and burial space are both much needed in Bristol, but Catherine says without these acres, the business will become untenable. How do we balance the competing demands for limited land?

Produced for BBC Audio Bristol by Sally Challoner


SUN 06:57 Weather (m001pszr)
The latest weather reports and forecast


SUN 07:00 News and Papers (m001pt04)
The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.


SUN 07:10 Sunday (m001pt0g)
The Catholic seal of confession

If priests were required by law to report child sex abuse, what would it mean for the Catholic seal of confession? Priests can never disclose anything they hear during the sacrament of confession. But a proposed new law could legally require people to report cases of child sex abuse. If a priest were to hear such evidence during confession, how should he respond? How could he, and the Church reconcile Church teaching with his need to obey the law, and protect the safety of children? We examine the arguments on both sides of the debate.

What is it like if you and your partner have different faiths? Almost 300,000 households in the UK contain people of different faiths living under the same roof. It may sound like the stuff of sitcoms, but it can cause friction and division within families. How do you navigate the differences between your beliefs and practices? Is there a way of bringing two faiths together that can enrich your domestic life? We speak to a man who was brought up as an Orthodox Jew and is now married to a practising Christian.

Few people say grace before meals these days. But Lincoln’s Inn, the largest of London’s Inns of Court, founded in 1422 and the haunt of senior barristers and judges, still raised a few eyebrows this month when it announced that – for the sake of ‘inclusiveness’ - there would no longer be Christian grace before meals. The writer Quentin Letts takes a dim view of the decision.

Producers: Jonathan Hallewell and Linda Walker
Presenter: Emily Buchanan
Editor: Helen Grady
Studio Managers: Colin Sutton and Sharon Hughes
Production co-ordinator: David Baguley


SUN 07:54 Radio 4 Appeal (m001pt0s)
Spinal Muscular Atrophy UK

Journalist Matt Chorley makes the Radio 4 Appeal on behalf of Spinal Muscular Atrophy UK

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 ‘Spinal Muscular Atrophy UK’.
- Cheques should be made payable to ‘Spinal Muscular Atrophy UK’.
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: 1106815


SUN 07:57 Weather (m001pt0x)
The latest weather forecast


SUN 08:00 News and Papers (m001pt0z)
The latest news headlines. Including a look at the Sunday papers.


SUN 08:10 Sunday Worship (m001pt11)
A Place of Welcome

The Very Rev Henry Hull, the Dean of Down, reflects on the theme of Welcome- how God welcomes us, how we should welcome Him ad the welcome we should give each other.
Hebrews 13:1-8
Luke 15:11-24
Céad míle fáilte romhat, a Íosa (Irish traditional¬)
God is here, as we his people (ABBOT’S LEIGH)
Psalm 67
Go forth into the world in peace (Rutter)
Father, hear the prayer we offer (SUSSEX)
Thy hand, O God has guided (THORNBURY)
From Down Cathedral, Downpatrick
Led by the Revd Adrian Dorrian
Director of Music: Michael McCracken
Organist: Stephen Hamill
Producer: Bert Tosh


SUN 08:48 A Point of View (m001pmv1)
The Rationality of Monarchy

John Gray puts the case for the monarchy in modern Britain.
'Those who campaign for the abolition of a royal head of state in Britain,' he says, 'seem to me to be in thrall to a simple-minded idea of reason, and fail to grasp the subtler rationality embodied in monarchy.'

Producer: Adele Armstrong
Sound: Rod Farquhar
Production coordinator: Gemma Ashman
Editor: Bridget Harney


SUN 08:58 Tweet of the Day (b04mlvwz)
Purple Martin

Tweet of the Day is the voice of birds and our relationship with them, from around the world.

Chris Packham presents the purple martin from eastern North America. Every spring, across the land from Chicago to St Louis, you can hear couples squabbling over the best real estate. But these aren't human house-buyers, they're purple martins. Purple Martins are the largest North American swallow, glossy blue-black rather than purple and much chunkier than the well-known barn swallow. They spend the winter in insect-rich places in South America and return to their North American breeding colonies each spring. In the west, they nest in holes in trees or even in giant saguaro cacti, but in the east where they're much more common, they almost exclusively rely on people to provide them with nest-sites. Visit almost any city, town or homestead and you'll see multi-story nest-boxes, the home of a score of purple martin families. Around 1 million people are thought to erect housing each year. Their human landlords take a personal pride in their martin colonies, listening each spring for those first pebbly calls which are a sign that their protégés have made it back from the tropics, once again.

Producer : Andrew Dawes


SUN 09:00 Broadcasting House (m001pt13)
The Sunday morning news magazine programme. Presented by Paddy O'Connell


SUN 10:00 The Archers Omnibus (m001pt15)
Writer, Liz John
Director, Jess Bunch
Editor, Jeremy Howe

Ben Archer ….. Ben Norris
David Archer ….. Timothy Bentinck
Helen Archer ….. Louiza Patikas
Henry Archer ….. Blayke Darby
Pip Archer ….. Daisy Badger
Ruth Archer ….. Felicity Finch
Ian Craig ….. Stephen Kennedy
Eddie Grundy ….. Trevor Harrison
Emma Grundy ….. Emerald O'Hanrahan
George Grundy ….. Angus Stobie
Tracy Horrobin ….. Susie Riddell
Kirsty Miller ….. Annabelle Dowler
Stella Pryor ….. Lucy Speed
Adil Shah ….. Ronny Jhutti
Lynda Snell ….. Carole Boyd
Oliver Sterling ….. Michael Cochrane
Rob Titchener ….. Timothy Watson
Announcer ….. Jack Ashton
Lottie ….. Bonnie Baddoo


SUN 11:15 The Reunion (m001pt17)
The Lockerbie Bombing

Not a single person in Lockerbie forgets where they were on 21 December 1988 – the day which shattered their community.

Shortly after 7pm, while Pan Am Flight 103 was in flight over the Scottish town, it was destroyed by a bomb that had been planted on board, killing all 243 passengers and 16 crew.

Large sections of the aircraft crashed onto the town below, killing 11 residents. With a total of 270 fatalities, it is the deadliest terror attack in the history of the United Kingdom, as well as the UK's deadliest aviation disaster ever.

The bombing sparked international outrage. In response the families of the victims campaigned for the perpetrators to be prosecuted.

In 2003, leader Muammar Gaddafi accepted Libya's responsibility for the Lockerbie bombing and paid compensation to the families of the victims, although he maintained that he had never given the order for the attack. But doubts about the perpetrator of the crime persist today.

Kirsty Wark was one of the first reporters on the scene in 1988. In an emotional episode of The Reunion, Kirsty brings together the families and emergency workers who were caught up in the tragic events of the Lockerbie bombing.

We hear from Colin Dorrance, who was an eighteen-year-old officer with the Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary and was one of the first officers on the scene, and Les Gracie, who was a firefighter with Dumfries and Galloway Brigade. Also on the programme are Marjorie McQueen, a local Lockerbie resident, Annie Lareau, a former student at Syracuse University, whose friends were on flight Pan Am 103, and David Wilson, a Lockerbie resident who was a member of the local Council in 1988.

Producer: Charlotte North
Series Producer: David Prest
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4


SUN 12:00 News Summary (m001pt1w)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


SUN 12:04 I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue (m001pmdh)
Series 79

Episode 6

The antidote to panel games pays a return visit to Northampton’s Royal & Derngate Theatre. Rachel Parris and Milton Jones take on Fred Macaulay and Sandi Toksvig with Jack Dee in the chair. Colin Sell attempts piano accompaniment.

Producer - Jon Naismith.

It is a BBC Studios production.


SUN 12:32 The Food Programme (m001psqy)
Wedding Food

Wedding food is one of the biggest costs on the big day but the sit-down three-course dinner is making way for food trucks and festival-style take-aways. We explore how the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis have affected couples and caterers. We find out why it's called "a wedding breakfast" - even though the reception's rarely in the morning and ask what's happened to the traditional wedding cake. We also meet a chef who's campaigning to stop food waste and caters for weddings with food that would have been thrown in the bin.

Presenter = Jaega Wise
Producer = Rebecca Rooney


SUN 12:57 Weather (m001pt1d)
The latest weather forecast


SUN 13:00 The World This Weekend (m001pt1g)
Radio 4's look at the week's big stories from both home and around the world


SUN 13:30 The Battle for Liberal Democracy (m001kh0l)
Justice

Tom Fletcher concludes his series looking at what future historians may well regard as the most fundamental issue of the 2020s: the complex, multi-faceted and far-reaching international contest between liberal democracy and its enemies. In this final episode, Tom looks at which system better delivers justice for its people. Is the world split according to values, as President Biden has asserted, and if so how should we think about countries which are democratic but not liberal? How should we balance security, opportunity and justice?

Tom, a former diplomat and adviser to three British prime ministers, will draw on his own experiences and, in conversation with people he encountered along the way – people who rose to the very top – he will examine the state of liberal democracy, ask where it succeeds and where it fails, and make the case for its urgent renewal. With extraordinary stories from around the world, he’ll look at how the world’s democracies can confront autocratic regimes, how they make liberal democracy more ‘magnetic’ to democratic backsliders, and how they can put their own houses in order.

Producer: Giles Edwards.


SUN 14:00 Gardeners' Question Time (m001pmsd)
From The Archives: Hot & Dry

Kathy Clugston looks back over 76 years of hot and dry weather advice on this special archive edition of GQT.

Summer is upon us once again and gardeners all over the country have been finding various ways to adapt their gardens to the hot and dry conditions. The GQT team have sorted through the archives in search for some questions and answers from our horticultural experts over various episodes.

They share their knowledge on how to water a garden without wasting too much water, what perennial flowers can survive dry conditions and require low maintenance, and how you can create a drought-resistant garden that supports wildlife and biodiversity.

And later we listen back to when Matthew Wilson visited the Beth Chatto Garden in Essex - to see how they adapt to the hot & dry summers

Producer: Daniel Cocker

Assistant Producer: Rahnee Prescod

Executive Producer: Hannah Newton

A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4


SUN 14:45 The Museums That Make Us (m0016h9r)
The National Museums of Wales, Cardiff

Neil MacGregor presents a new series for BBC Radio Four celebrating the role and ambition of museums the length and breadth of the country, and in the process he'll be finding answers to the question ‘What are Museums For in 2022’.

Today Neil is the guest of the National Museum of Wales, and more particularly the St Fagans museum, where the Oral Archive is housed. Neil gets to hear a range of examples from early Welsh language speakers to choirs and the more recent recordings of senior figures from the country's Windrush generation. He talks to Mrs Vernesta Cyril OBE, a celebrated midwife, who explains the sense of belonging that arises from being a part of the Oral archive.

Museums have always been telescopes trained on the past to help locate a sense of place in the present. Neil believes that role is an active one, responding to changes in the people museums serve and the shifting social and cultural landscape they inhabit. After spending much of his life at the centre of our national Museum life in London, Neil is taking to the road to discover more about the extraordinary work being done in Museums outside the capital, from Stornoway to Stowmarket, and Belfast to Birmingham.

In each episode he visits a single museum, inviting them to choose an object from their collections which they feel best illustrates their civic role, and the way they relate and want to relate to their local audience. Very rarely have they chosen a crown jewel from their often priceless collections. More often it's an object with a particular local resonance, or which helps tackle episodes from the past which are being viewed very differently by citizens in the 21st century.

He’ll be visiting the great national museums of Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland, as well as major city institutions in Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool and elsewhere. And in spite of the challenges of the last two years, everywhere he meets passionate teams who are dedicated to providing a unique experience for both local audiences and visitors from further afield.

Neil writes: “What’s going on in our museums is at once challenging and exciting and it can only really be understood by visiting as many as possible and finding out how they have approached what is a vital role in providing a sense of local, regional and national identity.”


SUN 15:00 Drama on 4 (m001pt1j)
Lines in the Sand: The Journeys of Gertrude Bell (Part 2)

Adapted and dramatised by Mary Cooper
Based on the book, 'Queen of the Desert' by Georgina Howell

Part Two:

It is 1917 and Gertrude has taken a posting in Baghdad as Oriental Secretary. Her dream of Arab self determination hangs in the balance.

Gertrude Bell was the daughter of one of Britain’s richest industrialists. She became the first woman to be commissioned in British Military Intelligence, and the only woman to join British occupying forces in Baghdad in April, 1917. She defied family ambitions of an aristocratic marriage to become a linguist, explorer, writer, diplomat and ally to Arab leaders.

This compelling portrait draws on letters to her family in Yorkshire, and her lost lover to reveal the human struggles of her pioneering life.

Cast:

Gertrude ..... Fenella Woolgar
A.T Wilson/Brown ..... Ian Bartholomew
Haji Naji ..... Ali Gadema
Faisal/Sheikh Jabir ..... Raad Rawi
Hugh ..... Malcolm Raeburn
Florence ..... Alexandra Mathie
T.E Lawrence ..... Rupert Hill
Percy Cox ..... Jonathan Keeble
Mikhail/Gardener/Porter ..... Naithan Ariane
Marie ..... Emma Gregory

Sound design by Sharon Hughes
Produced and directed by Jessica Mitic

A BBC Audio Drama North production

With thanks to Ali Refaie, Basheer Al-Zaidi and the Gertrude Bell Archive at Newcastle University
Image copyright: Gertrude Bell Archive


SUN 16:00 Open Book (m001pt1l)
Ayelet Gundar-Goshen

Award-winning Israeli author Ayelet Gundar-Goshen talks to Johny Pitts about her latest novel The Wolf Hunt, a suspenseful exploration of the fault lines in a community, a school, and a family, as a mother begins to suspect her teenage son of committing a terrible crime. Ayelet Gundar-Goshen is a clinical psychologist and writer, and discusses the links between her two worlds, as well as what it means to be a parent when you fear that your child may be the perpetrator and not the victim.
Sunday Times fiction critic, Peter Kemp, has been writing literary criticism for over forty years and in his latest book, Retroland, he brings much of his immersion to the page. Retroland proposes that since 1970, fiction in English has never been more diverse but also displays a broad continuity - it has been looking to the past to make sense of our present. Peter and Johny discuss what that’s meant for our reading.
And writer Christine Mangan, author of The Continental Affair, takes us on a ride as she tells us about her favourite novels set on long train journeys.

Book List – Sunday 20 August and Thursday 24 August

The Wolf Hunt by Ayelet Gundar-Goshen
Liar by Ayelet Gundar-Goshen
Waking Lions by Ayelet Gundar-Goshen
One Night, Markovitch by Ayelet Gundar-Goshen
Retroland by Peter Kemp
Bleak House by Charles Dickens
Middlemarch by George Eliot
The Raj Quartet by Paul Scott
Midnight’s Children by Salman Rushdie
A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth
Regeneration by Pat Barker
The Eye in the Door by Pat Barker
The Ghost Road by Pat Barker
King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror and Heroism in Colonial Africa by Adam Hochschild
Enemies of Promise by Cyril Connolly
The Lady Vanishes by Agatha Christie
The 6:41 to Paris, by Jean-Philippe Blondel
The Sleeping Car Murders by Sébastien Japriso
Murder on the Ballarat Train by Kerry Greenwood
The Continental Affair by Christine Mangan


SUN 16:30 Four Sides of Seamus Heaney (m001pt1n)
Seamus Heaney - Poet of Place

Seamus Heaney, Nobel Prize winner and one of the most famous, and finest, poets writing in English, died in August 2013. BBC Radio 4 is marking this with Four Sides of Seamus Heaney, four programmes, each focusing on a different aspect of his work, each with a different presenter with personal knowledge of the poet.

In the first programme John Kelly, poet and broadcaster with RTE, visits the village of Bellaghy in Country Derry, where Heaney was born, lived on a farm until he went to secondary school, and where he is buried. Though he spent most of his life in the Republic of Ireland, taught in America and travelled all over the world, much of Heaney's poetry is rooted in his homeplace, the landscape, its people and their work, and their language. One his earliest poems describes ploughing, one of his last a baler. "He never really left the parish," says Dan Heaney, one of Seamus's brothers.

Dan takes John to the sculpture of a turf digger and shares something few know about the genesis of the famous poem, 'Digging'. They go to the Strand at Lough Beg where in the poem of that name Seamus imagines meeting his cousin, murdered in the Troubles. And they visit the family's farmyard.

The old police station in Bellaghy is now the Seamus Heaney HomePlace, a library and performance space where the 'Word Hoard' displays the local vocabulary Heaney employs. Maura Johnston explains how its riches lie in Shakespeare's English, in Irish and Ulster Scots. She and Bernard O'Donoghue, specialist in Medieval Literature and Modern Irish Poetry, read closely, to reveal how Heaney asserts his Irish identity through English, subtly, inclusively decolonising the language.

And from the archive and recordings we hear Heaney reading his work.

Producer: Julian May


SUN 17:00 File on 4 (m001pf8q)
Escaping Anna

A group of women turned to a private specialist eating disorder clinic in Bath hoping they would receive life-changing treatment.

They say their mental and physical health deteriorated while the psychologist in charge subjected them to psychological abuse. The clinic has since closed its doors, but the former patients say they have been left with life-long scars

Reporter: Divya Talwar
Producer: Ellie Layhe


SUN 17:40 Reith Revisited (b096g0x4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Saturday]


SUN 17:54 Shipping Forecast (m001pt1t)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping


SUN 17:57 Weather (m001pt20)
The latest weather forecast


SUN 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m001pt24)
England suffer a narrow -- but agonising -- defeat in their first World Cup final since 1966


SUN 18:15 Pick of the Week (m001pt2b)
Ian McMillan

Ian McMillan does most of his listening while he's on one of his daily strolls, so this week we're out and about; following Ian on his Pick of the Week stroll as he brings us the highlights from his listening and tells us how they resonate with the world around him as he walks. As we wander we hear conversations on trains, bells ringing the changes, stories from surreal nights in the pub and poems growing from abandoned buildings. Walking and listening: what other pleasures could there possibly be?

Presenter: Ian McMillan
Producer: Jessica Treen
Production Coordinator: Lydia Depledge-Miller

Photo credit: Adrian Mealing


SUN 19:00 The Archers (m001psqk)
Pip apologises to Stella for being tetchy at the roller skating the other day – she’s just feeling a bit confused. Stella says their kiss was a stupid, drunken moment and didn’t mean anything. They agree not to let it ruin their friendship and head to the Tearoom.
Helen worries about how she tore into Henry on Friday. She just wanted Henry to understand that Rob only cares about himself. Pat points out that Henry never wants to see Rob again and that whatever game Rob was playing has backfired. But Helen thinks it’s part of his plan; Rob wants Helen to know that if he can get to Henry, he can get to Jack too. Helen’s surprised when Pat reveals that Henry opened up to her about why he contacted Rob. He wanted to Rob to leave them alone, but then Rob got his hooks into him, saying Helen was unhinged when she was pregnant with Jack. Henry’s cross with himself for being taken in. Pat adds that Henry didn’t arrange the meeting by himself; George helped Henry contact Rob. Helen’s furious and storms over to the Tearoom where she confronts George. He retaliates with a stream of vitriol, and then starts filming Helen as she loses control and calls him crazy. When Helen says she hopes Emma’s proud of George, Emma demands she leaves and as she does so, Helen tells George to stay away from Henry. Afterwards, sobbing Helen tells Pat what happened in front of the whole Tearoom. Now everyone will know about Rob. Why can’t she ever escape?


SUN 19:15 Henry Normal: A Normal... (m001g987)
Home

"Shove up National Treasures. We need to make room for Henry Normal" Simon O'Hagan - Radio Times

Join Henry Normal for the tenth instalment of his acclaimed, occasional series in which the acclaimed, occasional writer tackles those subjects so big only radio can possibly contain them.

So far Henry has covered ‘Family’, ‘Life’, ‘Love’, ‘Imagination’, ‘Nature’, ‘The Universe’, ‘Communication’ ‘Ageing’ and ‘Community’; and this latest episode is all about ‘Home’. Through poetry, stories, jokes and quotes, he will be examining how 'home' is more than just a place and talking about what it really means to us.

Recorded in Rye, East Sussex, where Henry now calls home.

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.

He’s published eight collections of poetry including his most recent ‘The Beauty Within Shadow’. Plus his memoir written with Angela Pell ‘A Normal Family: Everyday adventures with our autistic son'.

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 - Jerry Peal
Produced by Carl Cooper

A BBC Studios production for BBC Radio 4


SUN 19:45 Invasive Species (m001ptrp)
Episode 1

As global temperatures rise, something is stirring in the undergrowth around an affluent village.
Helen McAlpine reads a new serial from Rachelle Atalla, set in a near future which is uncomfortably close to our present.
Producer: Eilidh McCreadie

Rachelle Atalla is an award-winning Scottish-Egyptian novelist, short story writer and screenwriter based in Glasgow. Her debut novel The Pharmacist was shortlisted for Best Fiction at the Scottish National Book Awards. In March, she published her climate-focused second novel Thirsty Animals. Her short stories have been published widely and she is the recipient of a Scottish Book Trust New Writers Award. In screenwriting, her first feature was developed with BBC Film and she is developing an adaption of The Pharmacist with Compact Pictures.


SUN 20:00 Feedback (m001pmt2)
Today presenter, Justin Webb, and Senior News Editor for BBC News Podcasts, Jonathan Aspinwall, join Andrea Catherwood to discuss the trials and tribulations of American politics and answer your comments on BBC Sounds and Radio 4’s Americast.

In response to last week’s programme, we hear what more listeners have to say about the BBC’s plans for the future of Long Wave.

6 Music listeners share their thoughts on the changes to the station’s evening schedule and in the Vox Box, Steven Jones and his son Elliott tell us why they’re tuned into 6 Music.

Presented by Andrea Catherwood
Produced by Gill Davies
A Whistledown Scotland production for BBC Radio 4


SUN 20:30 Last Word (m001pmss)
Nick Kaiser, Angela Flowers, Robbie Shepherd, Doreen Mantle.

Kirsty Lang on:

Nick Kaiser, an internationally renowned British scientist who reached not just for the stars but the entire cosmos....

A gallerist who championed British contemporary art: Angela Flowers opened her first exhibition space in a Soho attic in 1970

A fixture of Scottish cultural life, the legendary broadcaster Robbie Shepherd, who presented BBC Scotland’s Dance music programme, Take the Floor, for 35 years

The actress, Doreen Mantle - best remembered for her role in the popular 1990s sitcom, One Foot in the Grave

Producer: Ed Prendeville

Archive used:
Robbie Shepherd, Braemar Gathering commentary, BBC Scotland; Take the Floor - Robbie Shepherd Intro, June 2015; Music of Spey–poem, BBC Scotland; Robbie Shepherd interview, BBC Scotland 2016; Wonders of the Solar System (Ep: Dead or Alive), BBCHD, 28/Mar/2010; Midweek, BBC Radio 4, 04/05/2011; One Foot in the Grave: The Futility of the Fly, BBC1, 30/10/2000; One Foot in the Grave: The Beast in the Cage, BBC1, 23/02/1992


SUN 21:00 Money Box (m001psjl)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:04 on Saturday]


SUN 21:25 Radio 4 Appeal (m001pt0s)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:54 today]


SUN 21:30 Loose Ends (m001pskr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:15 on Saturday]


SUN 22:00 Westminster Hour (m001pt2m)
Ben Wright is joined by MPs Anthony Browne and Rosie Duffield, the political strategist Jo Tanner and the I newspaper's Hugo Gye.


SUN 23:00 Life Changing (m001l262)
The box under the bed

Growing up Joe Jaquest Oteng knew very little about his Dad; they struggled to find much common ground. Joe’s Dad, Peter, was guarded about his early life in Ghana and the family he had left behind when he emigrated to the UK in the 1960s. When Peter died Joe was left to sort through his belongings. He discovered bundles of documents, letters and photos which revealed new and shocking information which didn’t match the life story Joe had been told.

Dr Sian Williams hears how Joe set out to find the truth about Peter and how along the way made some joyful discoveries for himself.


SUN 23:30 Beyond Belief (m001pmcs)
The God Desire

Do we have a desire for God?

In the first of a new series, Aleem Maqbool speaks to David Baddiel about his book "The God Desire".

Aleem is joined on stage at The Hay Festival by the panel to explore what it means to have a desire for God, where this desire might come from and whether it's driven by fear of death.

Aleem is joined by:

Fergus Butler-Gallie – Priest in the Church of England and author of "Touching Cloth"
Osman Yousefzada – Multidisciplinary artist and author of "The Go Between"
Dr Carissa Sharp - Assistant Professor in Psychology of Religion at Birmingham University

Recorded at The Hay Festival in front of a live audience.

Producers: Katharine Longworth and Linda Walker
Editor: Tim Pemberton

MONDAY 21 AUGUST 2023

MON 00:00 Midnight News (m001pt2r)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.


MON 00:15 BFFs: A Life built on Friendship (m001pmlr)
Emily Knight lives with five housemates. One of them is her partner. But this isn't a student house-share. They are all in their 30s, have no plans to break up the group, and Emily can't imagine life without them all. So could the rest of her life be built on these friendships?
Traditionally life's big chapters - housebuying, raising kids, retiring - are seen as things you probably do with a romantic partner.
In BFFs, Emily meets people from across the UK doing things differently, and asks if a life built on friendship can really work.
In Greater Manchester she meets Sam and Sean, renovating the three-bedroom house they bought together last year.
Sandra and Lisa reflect on raising their daughters as two single mums together in Hull.
In Colchester, Andy, Anne and Barbara are three members of a bigger group of friends living in a co-housing settlement. For them, friendship is a way of guarding against loneliness as they get older.
And from the United States, Emily hears about the developing concept of "platonic co-parenting", while writer Rhaina Cohen explains why she feels deep friendships can be unappreciated and misunderstood.

Producers: Paul Martin & Emily Knight
A BBC Audio Wales Production for Radio 4


MON 00:45 Bells on Sunday (m001pslh)
[Repeat of broadcast at 05:43 on Sunday]


MON 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m001pt2w)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping


MON 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m001pt31)
World Service

BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.


MON 05:20 Shipping Forecast (m001pt34)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping


MON 05:30 News Briefing (m001pt36)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4


MON 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m001pt3b)
Spiritual reflection to start the day with Rev Neil Gardner of Canongate Kirk, Edinburgh


MON 05:45 Farming Today (m001pt3g)
21/08/23 Water shortages; lapwings return; salad production

Water shortages in Suffolk have lead one water company to refuse connecting up new businesses who use a lot of water, or allowing more use of water of expanding business who also use a lot of water.

Two lapwing breeding pairs and chicks have been found on a farm in Northern Ireland; it is the first time the endangered birds have been seen in the area for several years.

And an expert in crop and environmental science shares his thoughts on the state of salad production in the UK this year.

Presented by Caz Graham and produced by Rhiannon Fitz-Gerald.


MON 05:56 Weather (m001pt3l)
The latest weather forecast for farmers.


MON 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b08rr9g7)
Chris Jones on the Raven

Chris Jones from Worcestershire has been fascinated by the corvid family from childhood. For years he has been rescuing sick and injured birds. Here he tells the story of one of his favourite rescue ravens.

Producer Maggie Ayre.


MON 06:00 Today (m001psnz)
News and current affairs, including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


MON 09:00 Is Psychiatry Working? (m001hp48)
Diagnosis

Although psychiatry helped writer Horatio Clare when he was in crisis, some people in difficulty, their families, clinicians, psychologists and psychiatrists themselves will tell you there are serious questions about the ways psychiatry understands and treats some people in trouble. And so this series asks a simple question: is psychiatry working? In the following series, accompanied by the psychiatrist Femi Oyebode, Horatio traces a journey through crisis, detention, diagnosis, therapy, and recovery. In this episode, they consider the role and place of diagnosis in psychiatry.

If you need support with mental health or feelings of despair, a list of organisations that can help is available at BBC Action Line support:

Mental health & self-harm: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/1NGvFrTqWChr03LrYlw2Hkk/information-and-support-mental-health-self-harm
Suicide/Emotional distress: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/4WLs5NlwrySXJR2n8Snszdg/information-and-support-suicide-emotional-distress

or you can call for free to hear recorded information on 0800 066 066.

Presenters: Horatio Clare and Femi Oyebode
Producer: Emma Close
Editor: Clare Fordham
Sound Mix: James Beard


MON 09:30 Shock and War: Iraq 20 Years On (m001k7vk)
7. Terror

The invasion of Iraq was supposed to be about dealing with security threats but the chaos would turbo-charge extremism both within Iraq and in the UK. How far did Iraq make the threats worse and were warnings ignored?

Presenter: Gordon Corera
Series Producer: John Murphy
Producers: Ellie House, Claire Bowes
Sound Designer: Eloise Whitmore, Naked Productions
Production coordinators: Janet Staples, Brenda Brown
Series Editor: Penny Murphy


MON 09:45 What We Fear Most: Reflections on a Life in Forensic Psychiatry by Dr Ben Cave (m001psp3)
Book of the Week: Episode 1 - Dr Cave finds his vocation.

Adrian Scarborough reads Dr Ben Cave's compassionate memoir about his career in forensic psychiatry, treating some of society's most troubled men and women.

In What We Fear Most Dr Ben Cave reflects on his decades on the front-line of forensic psychiatry where he has seen the extremes of mental illness. He tells the human stories behind the headlines and introduces us to some of the people he has treated. Fear, violence, and sadness but most of all humanity are the hallmarks of each. What emerges is compassion, understanding and for many of his patients, hope and the potential for a brighter future. We also discover how Cave has been shaped by all the many cases that have been his life's work.

Abridged by Richard Hamilton
Produced by Elizabeth Allard


MON 10:00 Woman's Hour (m001psp9)
Listener Week: Women's World Cup final, Shoplifting, Heavy metal

For listener week you, our listeners, decide what we cover on the programme.

It might not have been World Cup glory for England's Lionesses but they still made history and have inspired many along the way. To take a look back at that history, Nuala is joined by two listeners: Sue Whyatt, who played for England in 1972, and successfully got her international cap following an email to us at Woman’s Hour, and Jo Clark, co-founder of Baller FC.

A listener speaks to Nuala about her addiction to shoplifting - fully aware that it's a criminal offence and not something that should be condoned, she wanted to highlight her story on the programme.

Listener Laura wanted us to look at heavy metal and the role women play in the scene. Nuala speaks to Lindsay Bishop, who conducted 10 years of field work for her PhD on the subject and Becky Baldwin, a bassist from the band Fury.

Sue Stewart explains why she got in touch with Woman’s Hour to tell us about the impact on her of the book Matrescence by Lucy Jones. Matrescence is the time during pregnancy, childbirth and early motherhood when women undergo far-reaching changes which Lucy Jones argues are more profound, wild and long lasting than we have ever been led to believe. We speak to Lucy and to Sue.

Presenter: Nuala McGovern
Producer: Emma Pearce

00:00 Opener
02:35 Football
16:53 Kleptomania
34:43 Mid trail
35:53 Heavy Metal
47:06 Mastresence


MON 11:00 Black Music in Europe: A Hidden History (m000yldw)
Series 4

1979-1991

Clarke Peters' concluding three-part series reveals stories from the history of black music in Europe over the last four decades.

From the collapse of the Eastern Bloc to the rise of multiculturalism, this was a time that saw old walls come tumbling down, while new forms of technology and new styles of music were all emerging at a rapid pace.

In this episode, Clarke explores a variety of different scenes in the late 1970s and early 1980s. We hear from Alex Wheatle on sound systems in London and Pat Thomas on Burger Highlife in Berlin. We also explore the music of Carte de Sejour in France and hear how singer Marie Daulne escaped conflict in Africa for a new life in Belgium.

Produced by Tom Woolfenden
A Loftus Media production for BBC Radio 4


MON 11:30 Analysis (m001msv9)
What are companies for?

Ruth Sunderland, the group business editor of the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday, asks industry leaders and thinkers about the purpose of companies. Should they be organisations designed to generate profits for the benefit of shareholders, or do they have a bigger role to play in society? What part do they play in environmental policy? Ruth investigates ESG investments, which claim to promote environmental, social and corporate governance best practice, and have become a trillion pound industry. Why has ESG become a flashpoint in the US political culture wars and could the same happen in the UK?

Presenter: Ruth Sunderland
Producer: Farhana Haider
Editor: Clare Fordham
Sound Engineer: Nicky Edwards
Production Coordinator: Maria Ogundele

Contributors:
Mark Goyder Founder, Tomorrows Company
Euan Munro, Chief Executive, Newton Investment Management
Merryn Somerset Webb, Senior Columnist at Bloomberg.
Philip Gill, small Investor
Giulia Chierchia, Executive Vice President for Strategy, Sustainability, and Ventures at BP
Louise Oliver, Co-Founder, Piercefield Oliver Chartered Financial Planners
Rachel, Small investor
Dr Nina Seega, Director for the Centre for Sustainable Finance at the Cambridge Institute of Sustainability Leadership
Tariq Fancy, Former Chief Investment officer for Sustainability Investing at BlackRock
Witold Henisz, Vice Dean and faculty director of the ESG initiative at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania


MON 12:00 News Summary (m001pspg)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


MON 12:04 You and Yours (m001pspm)
Potholes, Airport Parking and Property Service Charges

More cars are being damaged by potholes - latest figures suggest a 20% year on year rise in incidents - why is this happening and what can be done about it?

Last week on You & Yours a government minister's advice on recycling take away food trays provoked a response from listeners who claim she got it wrong. This week Suez, one of the UK's biggest waste companies, will give us their take.

There's just over a week to go before the Rail Delivery Group's consultation on closing ticket offices winds up, our reporter Bob Walker spends a morning talking to travellers at Sleaford Railway Station in Lincolnshire.

Retailers are increasingly moving their marketing budgets away from the likes of Facebook and Instagram to Tik-Tok where a new breed of influencers is operating. They aren't bothered about attracting millions of followers just thousands who take their advice and buy the products that they are paid to promote.

Police warn motorists to check out off site airport car parks before entrusting their vehicles it follows a holiday season where more people have found they've literally been taken for a ride by unscrupulous operators ..and anyway there are some cheap parking bargains to be had at airports if you book in advance. Which? travel editor Rory Boland explains.

Some owners of retirement flats are being trapped in a spiral of falling prices unable to sell up because huge service fees are putting off potential buyers. We hear one man's story.

PRESENTER - FELICITY HANNAH

PRODUCER: KEVIN MOUSLEY


MON 12:57 Weather (m001pspt)
The latest weather forecast


MON 13:00 World at One (m001psq0)
Forty-five minutes of news, analysis and comment, with Sarah Montague.


MON 13:45 Hoax (m001psq6)
The Planted Plants of Rum

Mysterious plants appear on the Isle of Rum. Do they prove the island miraculously escaped the Ice Age? And what extraordinary lengths would one scientist go to in order to prove that it did? Dr Tori Herridge investigates.

Produced for BBC Audio Bristol by Beth Sagar-Fenton


MON 14:00 The Archers (m001psqk)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Sunday]


MON 14:15 This Cultural Life (m001pskw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:15 on Saturday]


MON 15:00 Brain of Britain (m001psqr)
Heat 2, 2023

2/17

Another four contenders join Russell Davies to launch their bids to become Brain of Britain 2023. Today's winner will go through to the semi-finals in the autumn.

Taking part in the second heat are Peter Almond from Bristol, Sue Brearley from London, Leigh Haggar from Hampshire and George Scratcherd from Essex.

The programme includes 'Beat the Brains', which gives a listener a chance to win a prize by stumping the Brains with questions of his or her own.

Producer: Paul Bajoria


MON 15:30 The Food Programme (m001psqy)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:32 on Sunday]


MON 16:00 History's Secret Heroes (m001mcbk)
1. Virginia Hall’s Great Escape

How did the American spy Virginia Hall mastermind an astonishing prison break, leading her to become the Gestapo’s most wanted target?

Helena Bonham Carter shines a light on extraordinary stories from World War Two. Join her for incredible tales of deception, acts of resistance and courage.

A BBC Studios Podcast production for BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds.

Producer: Amie Liebowitz
Executive Producer: Paul Smith
Written by Alex von Tunzelmann


MON 16:30 Beyond Belief (m001psr2)
Taking a Stand

Revd Hilary Bond is a priest in the Church of England in Wareham in Dorset. She's also bee arrested five times at climate change protests and now has two convictions to her name.

Aleem Maqbool speaks with Hilary about her choice to take a direct approach by blocking roads during climate change protests. They discuss her reasons, how she feels called to do this because of her faith and what her limits are.

Her reflections lead to a discussion on the place of protest and direct action for people of faith and faith leaders with Rabbi Jonathan Wittenberg, senior rabbi in Masorti Judaism, Gavin Ashenden, Associate Editor of the Catholic Herald and writer and activist, Shaista Aziz.

Producers: Katharine Longworth and Linda Walker
Editor: Tim Pemberton


MON 17:00 PM (m001psr7)
Afternoon news and current affairs programme, reporting on breaking stories and summing up the day's headlines


MON 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m001psrf)
Letby murdered seven babies and attempting to kill six others at a hospital in Chester


MON 18:30 Just a Minute (m001psrm)
Edinburgh Festival 2023

1. Brandreth, Godley, Smith and Ashfaq

In this the first of two specials recorded at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Sue Perkins challenges guests including Gyles Brandreth, Janey Godley, Ian Smith and Urooj Ashfaq to speak for 60 seconds without repetition, deviation or hesitation.

Production coordinator: Caroline Barlow
Producer: Rajiv Karia

A BBC Studios Production for Radio 4


MON 19:00 The Archers (m001psrz)
Toby and Rex take Rosie for a walk in the rewilding meadow, where Toby tells Rex he’s done with the playboy thing. He’s now looking for long-term commitment. But Pip went a bit weird when Toby showed her his dating site and asked her which woman she’d choose.
Pat explains to Susan that Helen’s not up to working at the dairy. Susan broaches Helen’s outburst in the Tearoom, saying that George only did what Henry asked him to do. Tearful Pat concedes that Helen may’ve over-reacted but what if Henry had been persuaded to bring Jack with him? Rob might’ve tried to kidnap Jack again. Later Emma tells Susan it says it all that Helen’s not shown her face at work, after the scene she made. And George has gone off sick from Bridge Farm, so he doesn’t risk getting another mouthful. She hopes Susan asked for an apology from Pat.
Later while sorting through things for the car boot, Emma comes across Susan’s copy of Lark Rise to Candleford. Emma’s always wished she had more time to lose herself in a good book. Talk turns back to Helen and George, and Susan counsels that Helen deserves a little understanding after what Rob did to her and how he tried to kidnap Jack. Imagine if it was the other way round with Emma’s children and someone had put them in danger. How would Emma feel? Susan understands why Emma wants to defend George, but sometimes Emma needs to stop turning a blind eye to him.


MON 19:15 Front Row (m001pss6)
Corinne Bailey Rae, playwright Peter Arnott, new short story collections

Musician Corinne Bailey Rae performs live in the studio and discusses the inspiration for her new album, Black Rainbows.

Writer Peter Arnott on his new play about the 2014 Scottish Independence Referendum, Group Portrait In A Summer Landscape, opening at Pitlochry Festival Theatre on Friday.

Plus short stories: critics Stephanie Merritt and Suzi Feay on two new collections - by Kate Atkinson and by US 'flash fiction' writer Diane Williams.

Presenter: Tom Sutcliffe
Producer: Emma Wallace


MON 20:00 The Murder of Kelso Cochrane (m001pssj)
When a gang of youths attacked and killed an Antiguan man in 1959, it sparked uproar in the local community, in the press, and even drew the attention of politicians. Like Stephen Lawrence, Kelso Cochrane was a black man stabbed to death by a white gang on a London street. His death brought the local community together, black and white - it helped lead to laws against discrimination, and the annual Carnival in the streets of Notting Hill. But no-one was ever prosecuted for the murder, and questions linger about the approach of the Metropolitan Police. Their investigation files have been sent to the National Archives but are closed for another 30 years. As Sanchia Berg discovers, Kelso Cochrane’s family are embarking on legal action to try to get them open.

Producer: Charlotte McDonald
Researcher: Paige Neal-Holder
Production Co-ordinators: Debbie Richford, Sophie Hill and Maria Ogundele
Editor: Clare Fordham


MON 20:30 Crossing Continents (m001pmnv)
Zimbabwe's worker exodus

Tens of thousands of Zimbabweans are fleeing their country, looking for work in the West, especially in the United Kingdom.

Last year Zimbabwe was the third largest source of foreign workers for the UK, behind India and Nigeria, and ahead of the Philippines and Pakistan, which have much larger populations.

A popular social media post reads: “the Zimbabwean dream is to leave Zimbabwe.”

Many of those leaving their country are highly qualified. They’re taking jobs in the British care sector, where there is a huge shortage of workers. They send much of what they earn back to their families in Zimbabwe. For those back home it’s often the only way to survive in a country with hyper-inflation.

Zimbabwe is about to go to the polls but few expect things to change. The economy is in dire straits and the opposition hasn’t been allowed to campaign freely. Some activists have been imprisoned or even killed. The ruling ZANU PF party, which has been in power since independence in 1980, shows little sign of losing control.

Earlier this year the UK gave Zimbabwean teachers “Qualified Teacher” status, allowing them to work long-term in the UK. Zimbabwean parents fear their children’s teachers will be the next to leave.

Zimbabwe’s latest skills exodus could break the country’s healthcare and education systems, which are already crumbling after decades of under-investment and corruption. Charlotte Ashton hears from Zimbabweans who’ve left, Zimbabweans who want to leave and Zimbabweans who say they can only dream of leaving.

Presenter: Charlotte Ashton
Producer: John Murphy
Studio Mix by Rod Farquhar
Production Coordinator: Gemma Ashman
Series Editor: Penny Murphy


MON 21:00 Bug in the System: The Past, Present and Future of Cancer (m001pmhq)
Moths and Miracles

Dr Kat Arney hears from those at the cutting edge of the science of fighting cancer, and asks - will we ever defeat it altogether?

We discover how researchers are taking fresh approaches drawn from the worlds of evolutionary biology, game theory and even pest control to devise strategies to finally find a cure and drive cancer to extinction.

Featuring interviews with:

Nobel Prize winner Jim Allison, Chair of Immunology at the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas
Caroline Dive, Director of the Cancer Biomarkers Centre at the Cancer Research UK Manchester Research Institute
Bob Gatenby, Associate Professor at the Moffitt Cancer Center at the University of South Florida in Tampa
Crispian Jago

Produced for BBC Audio Bristol by Beth Sagar-Fenton.


MON 21:30 Is Psychiatry Working? (m001hp48)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


MON 22:00 The World Tonight (m001pssq)
Lucy Letby to spend rest of her life behind bars

Lucy Letby sentenced to life

Saudi guards accused of killing hundreds of migrants at Yemen border

Spanish football federation president apologises for kissing Spanish player


MON 22:45 Memory Wall by Anthony Doerr (m001pssy)
Episode 1

Cape Town, the near future.

The memory clinic cannot cure Alma Konachek’s dementia, but it can slow it down and give her some of her memories back, captured on a series of cartridges and then retrieved on a device called a ‘remote memory simulator'.

At home, Alma has a memory wall covered with these cartridges, along with hand-written notes and a photograph of her late husband, Harold, who was a keen fossil-hunter.

But Alma’s memories are not just of interest to her.

Episode One
Alma’s dementia may be getting worse, but she is convinced she has seen a tall, strange man in her yard.

Anthony Doerr is an American author of novels and short stories. He gained widespread recognition for his 2014 novel All The Light We Cannot See which won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. Memory Wall is the title story from his 2010 collection.

Writer: Anthony Doerr
Reader: Rakie Ayola
Abridger: Jeremy Osborne
Producer: Jeremy Osborne

A Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4


MON 23:00 Word of Mouth (m001pmjk)
Therapy Speak

Susie Orbach talks to Michael Rosen about the use and misuse of “therapy speak”. With the rise of mental health awareness, it seems to have leaked out of the therapist’s office and into our homes. Instead of saying someone’s getting on our nerves, we talk about “boundaries”; instead of accusing someone of lying, we call them a “gaslighter”; instead of telling someone we’re listening, we say we’re “holding space”.
But do these words mean what we think they do? And do they help or heighten the issues we are trying to discuss?

Producer: Alice McKee, BBC Audio Bristol


MON 23:30 Don't Log Off (m001jkjs)
Good Vibes

Lilhe was a teenager when her mum left the family home in Soweto - but then a local community theatre group helped Lilhe discover a sense of togetherness and belonging.

In the icy wilderness of the Yukon territory in northwest Canada, Gurdeep is spreading messages of joy by making Punjabi dance videos in the snow and posting them on social media.

In Nigeria, Ihuoma is struggling to pay his mum's medical bills - but finds fulfilment caring for others through his work as a psychiatric nurse.

When Adria packed in his sales job in Barcelona, a chance conversation with a stranger would inspire him to make a life changing decision.

Alan Dein uses social media to connect with people spreading good vibrations and discovering a positive outlook on life.

Producer: Conor Garrett

TUESDAY 22 AUGUST 2023

TUE 00:00 Midnight News (m001pst7)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.


TUE 00:30 What We Fear Most: Reflections on a Life in Forensic Psychiatry by Dr Ben Cave (m001psp3)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Monday]


TUE 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m001pstk)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping


TUE 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m001psv0)
World Service

BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.


TUE 05:20 Shipping Forecast (m001psvj)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping


TUE 05:30 News Briefing (m001psvz)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4


TUE 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m001psw9)
Spiritual reflection to start the day with Rev Neil Gardner of Canongate Kirk, Edinburgh


TUE 05:45 Farming Today (m001pswm)
22/08/23 Building water pipes; switching salad crops; Cornish hedges

A water company in the east of England is to build a pipe "longer than the M1" to bring water from the Humber to counties further south, in an attempt to tackle water shortages and meet future water demand.

Why some salad producers are switching from growing cucumbers to aubergines.

And building Cornish hedges has been put on a red list of endangered skills.

Presented by Steffan Messenger and produced by Rhiannon Fitz-Gerald.


TUE 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b04sylr1)
Red-crowned Crane

Tweet of the Day is the voice of birds and our relationship with them, from around the world.

Liz Bonnin presents the red-crowned crane from Japan and Asia. Backlit by a Japanese winter sun, huge black and white birds dance for an audience. Their plumage mirrors the dazzling snow and dark tree-trunks. The only spots of colour are crimson - the caps of these Red-crowned Cranes. Red-crowned Cranes breed only in far-eastern Russia. Tall, majestic and very vocal, red-crowned cranes gather in groups to reinforce pair-bonds, by leaping into the air and fluttering their 2.5 metre wings, sometimes holding sticks or twigs in their long bills. During winter months, the cranes are fed with grain, and receive a stream of captivated visitors. In front of a wall of clicking camera shutters, the cranes perform their elaborate dance, to delight their captivated audience.

Producer : Andrew Dawes


TUE 06:00 Today (m001pt5n)
News and current affairs, including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


TUE 09:00 The Life Scientific (m001pt5z)
Chris Barratt on head-banging sperm and a future male contraceptive pill

Reproductive science has come a long way in recent years, but there's still plenty we don't understand - particularly around male fertility.
The reliability and availability of data in this field has become more of a concern in light of a study published this year, suggesting that sperm counts worldwide have dropped 62% in the past 50 years. As yet there is no clear answer as to why that is.
Professor Chris Barratt is one of the scientists working to change that. He's the Head of Reproductive Medicine at Ninewells Hospital and the University of Dundee Medical School, and has dedicated his career to better understanding male infertility; driving breakthroughs in how to study sperm dysfunctions – and most recently spearheading advances in developing a male contraceptive pill.
Chris talks to Professor Jim Al-Khalili about his academic struggles as a youngster, the lecture that changed his life, his research into 'head-banging sperm' and why he believes a new male contraceptive could be a game-changer.

Produced by Lucy Taylor.


TUE 09:30 One to One (m001pt6d)
Rosamund Pike on Marie Curie, Marie Colvin and Amy Dunne

Paul Conroy met Rosamund Pike during the filming of A Private War, the biographical war drama about the journalist Marie Colvin. Here he talks to Rosamund Pike about playing Marie Colvin - whom he knew and worked with - and explains his own role in the making of the film. What does it take to play a real character? Rosamund Pike also talks her role as Marie Curie, plus as the fictional Amy Dunne in Gone Girl, for which she was nominated for an Oscar. Contains extraordinary tale of slicing up a pig.

The producer in Bristol is miles Warde


TUE 09:45 What We Fear Most: Reflections on a Life in Forensic Psychiatry by Dr Ben Cave (m001pt6v)
Book of the Week: Episode 2 - On delusions

Dr Ben Cave's memoir about his career in forensic psychiatry continues as he recalls a patient suffering from persistent delusions. He also reflects on his days as a student and getting into a lather over his final exams. Adrian Scarborough reads.

In What We Fear Most Dr Ben Cave reflects on his decades on the frontline of forensic psychiatry where he has seen the extremes of mental illness. He tells the human stories behind the headlines and introduces us to some of the people he has treated. Fear, violence, and sadness but most of all humanity are the hallmarks of each. What emerges is compassion, understanding and for many of his patients, hope and the potential for a brighter future. We also discover how Cave has been shaped by all the many cases that have been his life's work.

Abridged by Richard Hamilton
Produced by Elizabeth Allard


TUE 10:00 Woman's Hour (m001pt7f)
Listener Week: Ukrainian women soldiers, Long lost families, Strong women, Refugees, Eating Alone

For listener week, you, our listeners, decide what we cover on the programme.

Listener Liz got in touch to say she wanted to know more about the women fighting on the front line in Ukraine. Nuala McGovern is joined by BBC journalist and reporter Olga Malchevska, whose home in Kyiv was bombed at the start of the war. She’s been back to Ukraine to meet three women who are fighting for their country – we’ll hear from one of them who was severely injured when the car she was in drove over a landmine.

As a child Julie De’Ath always wished she had an older brother, ‘an easy pass to get a boyfriend’, she said. Two years ago at the age of 67, she finally got one when she received a message on Facebook from a man claiming to be that brother. Her mother had given birth to a baby boy in the 1940s but being unmarried at the time, gave him up for adoption. It was a secret her mother took to her grave. Julie contacted Woman’s Hour as part of Listener week to share her story for the first time. We also speak to her long-lost half-brother, Tom, and to Miriam Silver, Consultant Clinical Psychologist, who specialises in parenting and children who have been adopted. 

Victorian strongwoman Vulcana was known for her jaw-dropping feats of strength and her breathtaking beauty. Listener Eric suggested her story to us. He asked that we talk to author Rebecca F John, whose historical novel, Vulcana, fictionalises her life. She tells Nuala about the remarkable, and trailblazing, performer. Plus, Sam Taylor, Britain’s Strongest Woman 2020, tells us what it’s like being a modern-day strongwoman.

Franceska Murati is a 27-year-old businesswoman and this year’s Miss London. But there’s more to this beauty queen that meets the eye. At 4 years old, she arrived in the UK alongside her parents and older sister. They had escaped war-torn Kosovo, smuggling themselves on the back of a lorry. She shares her story.

It’s something we’ve all probably done at one point or another - eating alone. Whether that’s taking yourself out to a restaurant you’ve always wanted to go to, grabbing a meal while you’re on a solo trip, or cooking for just yourself at home. But despite how common eating alone is - given that in 2022 the Office of National Statistics showed almost one in three households in the UK were people living alone - some might say there’s still a stigma around it. So how do we get around it? Nuala talks to Woman’s Hour listener Julia Georgallis and food writer Clare Finney.

Presenter: Nuala McGovern
Producer: Kirsty Starkey

00:00 Opener
01:34 Ukraine Female Soldiers
16:08 Long Lost Family
30:05 Strong Women
39:19 Franceska Murati
49:42 Eating Alone


TUE 11:00 The Archbishop Interviews (m001mm25)
John Cleese

In this series, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has conversations with public figures about their inner lives. What do they believe? How does that shape their values and actions?

This week's guest is the comedy writer and actor, John Cleese.

Producer: Dan Tierney.


TUE 11:30 Everything Is Everything: The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill at 25 (m001pt7v)
There are lots of reasons to celebrate Lauryn Hill’s debut solo album on its 25th anniversary. The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill was critically acclaimed, sold millions of copies worldwide - 10 million in the US alone - and won 5 Grammy Awards, making Ms Hill the first woman to win that many Grammys in a single night. But as well as breaking records and being one of the best-selling albums of all time, it has had a profound influence on music artists, and others, since its release in 1998.

Award-winning singer and songwriter Laura Mvula is one of those artists. Like many other 21st century music stars including Beyonce, Adele and Janelle Monae, Laura cites The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill as a major influence.

In this programme, Laura takes a very personal look at Lauryn Hill’s debut album. From buying it as a teenager in Birmingham, through her career in music and to the present day, Laura reflects on the impact it has had on her, both personally and as an artist.

As well as the album’s hit singles Doo Wop (That Thing), Ex-Factor and Everything Is Everything, Laura digs into some of her personal favourite tracks and the album’s interludes. Laura discusses the themes, meanings and feminist readings of Lauryn Hill’s music with experts and scholars including professors Lauren Leigh Kelly and Alexis McGee.

She chats to her friend and fellow musician and performer Lianne La Havas about the album’s influence. Laura also hears from composer, producer and DJ Afrodeutsche and music journalist Jasmine Dotiwala as she builds a deeper understanding of how and why ‘The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill’ has been such a powerful force in music, culture and Laura’s own life.

Dr. Lauren Leigh Kelly is Associate Professor of Urban Social Justice Teacher Education at Rutgers University in New Jersey. She is a contributor to the book Celebrating Twenty Years of Black Girlhood: The Lauryn Hill Reader.

Susana Morris is Associate Professor of Literature, Media and Communication at the Georgia Institute for Technology in Atlanta, Georgia.

Alexis McGee is Assistant Professor of Research in the school of Journalism, Writing and Media Studies at the University of British Columbia. She is also a contributor to the book Celebrating Twenty Years of Black Girlhood: The Lauryn Hill Reader.

Presenter: Laura Mvula
Producer: Lorna Skingley

A 7digital production for BBC Radio 4


TUE 12:00 News Summary (m001pt8f)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


TUE 12:04 You and Yours (m001pt8x)
Call You & Yours: What impact are low emission zones having on you?

On our phone in today we're asking: What impact are low emission zones having on you?

These zones are being rolled out in many cities and towns now help to lower air pollution.

But the expansion of the ULEZ scheme in London has been particularly controversial - and the one in Manchester has been postponed.

So has a low emission zone improved the air quality where you live? Are you a motorist who's considering changing your car using a scrappage scheme?

What impact are low emission zones having on you?

Our phone lines open at 11am and you can call 03700 100 444.

Or email youandyours@bbc.co.uk

PRESENTER: WINIFRED ROBINSON
PRODUCER: LYDIA THOMAS


TUE 12:57 Weather (m001pt9g)
The latest weather forecast


TUE 13:00 World at One (m001pt9v)
Forty-five minutes of news, analysis and comment, with Sarah Montague.


TUE 13:45 Hoax (m001ptb5)
The Wizard of Sussex

Like all great mysteries, this story starts with the discovery of a body – in this case one that was claimed to be hundreds of thousands of years old.

Did an eccentric solicitor really convince the world that early humans had evolved in the heart of England? Dr Tori Herridge investigates.

Produced for BBC Audio Bristol by Beth Sagar-Fenton


TUE 14:00 The Archers (m001psrz)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Monday]


TUE 14:15 This Thing of Darkness (m0011lsq)
Series 2

Part 2

The winner of the British Podcast Award for Best Fiction 2021 returns with a gripping drama about trauma, obsession and why we harm the things we love.

Part 2 of 7

Written by Lucia Haynes with monologues by Eileen Horne.

Dr Alex Bridges is an expert forensic psychiatrist and psychotherapist, assessing and treating perpetrators of violent crime.

With Sarah out of prison, Paul begins to feel less and less safe and turns to a trauma therapy group for support.

And so, Alex finds herself treating both the perpetrator of a violent crime and her victim.

Alex … Lolita Chakrabarti
Ros ….. Lois Chimimba
Sarah ….. Melody Grove
Paul ….. Robert Jack
Dawn ….. Neshla Caplan
Kelly ….. Veronica Leer
Malcolm ….. Michael Nardone
Rowena ….. Wendy Seager

Series created by Lucia Haynes, Eileen Horne, Gaynor Macfarlane, Anita Vettesse and Kirsty Williams.
Series consultant: Dr Gwen Adshead
Produced by Kirsty Williams and Gaynor Macfarlane

A BBC Scotland Production directed by Kirsty Williams


TUE 15:00 The Kitchen Cabinet (m001psj6)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:30 on Saturday]


TUE 15:30 A Very British Cult (p0fdl5d6)
7. Us and Them

The people inside cults aren’t the only ones whose lives are transformed. There’s also the family members and friends, who are left behind.

When Jeff left Lighthouse, he quickly found there was a whole community with loved ones still part of the organisation. Catrin meets a father who says it feels like his daughter is dead. Meanwhile there is an unexpected twist. There’s been another investigation, in secret, and parallel to ours.

What happens when a life coach takes over your life? Catrin Nye and her team expose control, intimidation and fear at a sinister life coaching company.

Reporter: Catrin Nye
Written by: Jamie Bartlett and Catrin Nye
Producers: Osman Iqbal, Natalie Truswell, Ed Main & Jo Adnitt
Researcher: Aisha Doherty
Executive Producer: Ravin Sampat
Sound Mixing: James Bradshaw
Original Music by: Phil Channell
Commissioner: Rhian Roberts


TUE 16:00 Word of Mouth (m001ptbg)
Everyday Shakespeare

Michael Rosen talks to Ben and David Crystal about the Shakespeare quotes we use every day, without even realising.

We’ve all heard someone roll their eyes and say “the lady doth protest too much, me thinks” - or head back to their desk muttering “once more unto the breach!” Shakespeare had a way with words that makes his writing extremely relatable, even today. Ben and David Crystal tell Michael why so many of the bard’s sayings have slipped into our everyday chat.

Producer: Alice McKee, BBC Audio Bristol


TUE 16:30 Great Lives (m001pt9w)
Kate Raworth on Donella Meadows

Born in Illinois in 1941, Dana Meadows studied Chemistry and Molecular Biology, before turning her back on a post doc position at Harvard, to pursue environmentalism.

She joined her husband Dennis Meadows as part of the team working on Professor Jay Forester's World3 computer model of the world economy at MIT and wrote the report on the results of that model, which predicted overshoot and collapse if economic growth were not curbed. The report, called Limits to Growth, was published in 1972 to much publicity, alarm and ridicule.

Donella said "We were at MIT. We had been trained in science. The way we thought about the future was utterly logical: if you tell people there’s a disaster ahead, they will change course. If you give them a choice between a good future and a bad one, they will pick the good. They might even be grateful. Naive, weren’t we?"

Following the publication of Limits to Growth, Dana dedicated her life to living by the principles of sustainability (a word coined by the Limits to Growth team) and to teaching the principles of 'systems' thinking, which she believed could help people understand and live more harmoniously with the planet.

Choosing Dana is Economist Kate Raworth, who believes that economics needs a broader, more holistic model to be fit for the 21st century. To this end, she founded the Doughnut Economics Action Lab, which champions regenerative and distributive economics, that can meet the needs of people within the means of the living planet. Kate never met Dana, but felt an immediate kinship when she picked up her book, Thinking in Systems, and now believes that all children should be taught to think about the balancing and reinforcing loops of systems.

Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Ellie Richold.


TUE 17:00 PM (m001ptbv)
Afternoon news and current affairs programme, reporting on breaking stories and summing up the day's headlines


TUE 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m001ptc5)
The BBC has seen correspondence showing the museum was alerted two years ago


TUE 18:30 The Ultimate Choice (m001kgr7)
Series 1

Episode 5: Ancient Rome v Space Station

Steph McGovern is in Leeds to ask some seriously funny minds for their definitive answers to the great questions of our age. Or not. Welcome to the world's most devious game of Would You Rather? With guests Chris Cantrill and Kiri Pritchard-McLean.

Host: Steph McGovern
Guests: Chris Cantrill and Kiri Pritchard-McLean
Devised and written by Jon Harvey & Joseph Morpurgo
With additional material from Laura Major
Researcher: Leah Marks
Recorded and mixed by David Thomas
Producer: Jon Harvey
Executive Producers: Ed Morrish and Polly Thomas

Photo: Carolyn Mendelsohn

A Naked production for BBC Radio 4


TUE 19:00 The Archers (m001ptcg)
When Tom remarks that Natasha’s brave going to the Tea Room, Natasha explains that although what George did was bad, having a cold war with the Grundys isn’t going to help. The only true villain is Rob Titchener. When Helen appears, Tom congratulates her for showing her face on the farm. He wonders about having George back to work on the farm, as they’re so short-staffed. Otherwise, it feels like it’s just another way that Rob is making things difficult. Helen agrees to think about it.
Emma’s tearful at the Tea Room, and tells Natasha that on top of everything going wrong, the water heater’s now packed up. Emma was shocked when Helen stormed in and tore into George and admits they’ve also been having difficulties with George recently. Natasha counsels that they all need to pull together and then offers to lend a hand at the Tea Room. When Natasha has a few ideas for making the Tea Room more productive, Emma says it would be Fallon’s call. Natasha wonders what employment’s Emma’s had in the past and tells Emma to believe in herself more. Later, Tom and Natasha are stopped in their tracks when they spot a meme of Helen’s outburst that George has posted online. Emma also sees it and tells George that Hannah was right about his attitude to women. He must get it from the influencer he watches online. They’re interrupted by furious Tom hammering at the door. He wonders to Emma whether George enjoys doing Rob’s work for him. He doesn’t want George on the farm ever again.


TUE 19:15 Front Row (m001ptcn)
Louise Doughty, sign language at music festivals, The Missing Madonna podcast

Author Louise Doughty talks to Samira Ahmed about her new novel, A Bird in Winter. A fast-paced thriller set in the world of espionage, it follows a woman on the run who must work out who is on her trail.

This summer for the first time British Sign Language interpretations were streamed live for all acts on the Glastonbury Pyramid Stage. Samira speaks to professional BSL music performance interpreters Stephanie Raper - who has signed for Stormzy and Eminem - and @Fletch, who is deaf and has signed for Ed Sheeran and P!nk. We also hear from deaf music lover William Ogden, who pushes for more interpretation at music events.

New BBC Sounds podcast The Missing Madonna features the daughter of a Liverpool publican who played a key role in recovering a stolen Da Vinci masterpiece – and the Dutch “art detective” Arthur Brand who traces stolen art for a living.

Presenter: Samira Ahmed
Producer: Paula McGrath


TUE 20:00 Today (m001ptcw)
The Today Debate: Are we ready to ditch our cars?

The Today Debate is about taking a subject and pulling it apart with more time than we could ever have in the morning.

The government is currently sticking to its plan, supported by Labour, to ban sales of new petrol and diesel cars from 2030. Sales of hybrid cars will be stopped from 2035. This policy demanded by climate and clean air objectives is not just about drivers swapping to electric cars however, it is about us driving less or not at all in the future, less car ownership, less private vehicle traffic leading to better air and lower emissions.

Join Today presenter Mishal Husain for Today Debate where in front an audience in the BBC's Radio Theatre we ask a panel of guests whether we are ready to ditch our cars?

On the panel Dame Julia King, a member of the Committee on Climate Change; James May, co-host of The Grand Tour; Karl McCartney, Conservative MP for Lincoln and a member of the Transport Select Committee; Andy Palmer, former chief executive of Aston Martin, former chief operating officer of Nissan, and the current chairman of electric vehicle battery developer InoBat and Graeme Potts, CEO of Eden Motors.


TUE 20:40 In Touch (m001ptd4)
A Treatment for Two Eye Diseases; Tactile Breast Examinations

Faricimab, or as it is commercially known Vabysmo, is a drug that has recently been approved for use by the NHS to treat two eye diseases: diabetic macular oedema (DMO) and age-related macular degeneration (AMD), with fewer injections. Both conditions result in vision loss caused by swelling behind the eye, which can now be slowed or halted by injections. Robin Hamilton is an Ophthalmic Surgeon at Moorfield’s Eye Hospital and he provides details of how this drug works and Bernie Warren tells us about its prospects from a DMO patient perspective. Bernie was also on a National Institute for Health and Care Excellence panel, that helped approve the drug for NHS use.

Discovering Hands is a project in Germany that trains visually impaired women to perform breast examinations. The project involves using touch to locate early indications of breast cancer. Elvira Häußler is one of the women who is employed to perform them and she, along with gynaecologist Dr. Frank Hoffmann who came up with the idea, tell us more about it and whether it may one day come to the UK.

Presenter: Peter White
Producer: Beth Hemmings
Production Coordinator: Liz Poole
Website image description: Peter White sits smiling in the centre of the image, wearing a dark green jumper. Above Peter's head is the BBC logo (three individual white squares house each of the three letters). Bottom centre and overlaying the image are the words "In Touch" and the Radio 4 logo (the word Radio in a bold white font, with the number 4 inside a white circle). The background is a bright mid-blue with two rectangles angled diagonally to the right. Both are behind Peter, one of a darker blue and the other is a lighter blue.


TUE 21:00 Political Animals (m0014gt8)
Sex, Monkeys and the 'Coy Female' Myth

Zoologist Lucy Cooke is on a mission: to break down the 'sexist stereotype' she believes has permeated our understanding of the natural world...

In Political Animals, she sets out to prove that females of the species can be just as feisty, ardent, manipulative, aggressive, varied, strategic and political as males - questioning some of the theories laid out by the 'father of evolution', Charles Darwin, and hearing from pioneering scientists moving evolutionary biology beyond a male-centric narrative.

For the opening episode, Lucy focuses on sex: uncovering stories of the female animals defying Darwin’s “coy” label, and using sexual strategies to further their own evolutionary influence.

This takes her on a journey from soliciting Capuchin monkeys in the forests of Costa Rica, to studies of promiscuous fruit flies, to the Northern Jacana bird in Nicaragua, which relies on a harem of males to raise her chicks. Lucy also hears from scientists and specialists including Megan Mah, Joe Cain, Sarah Blaffer Hrdy, Patricia Gowaty, Robert Trivers and Salvador Mirales.

Featuring excerpts from ‘The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex’ by Charles Darwin, read by Derek Frood.

Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Lucy Taylor.


TUE 21:30 The Life Scientific (m001pt5z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


TUE 22:00 The World Tonight (m001ptdd)
Pakistan: Children rescued from suspended cable car

Also on the programme: Stolen items from the British museum trigger international concern, we hear from the Director of the Association of Greek Archaeologists; and can India become the fourth country to land on the moon?


TUE 22:45 Memory Wall by Anthony Doerr (m001ptdn)
Episode 2

Cape Town, the near future.

The memory clinic cannot cure Alma Konachek’s dementia, but it can slow it down and give her some of her memories back, captured on a series of cartridges and then retrieved on a device called a ‘remote memory simulator'.

At home, Alma has a memory wall covered with these cartridges, along with hand-written notes and a photograph of her late husband, Harold, who was a keen fossil-hunter.

But Alma’s memories are not just of interest to her.

Episode Two
Not for the first time, Roger and Luvo break into Alma’s house. But what are they looking for?

Anthony Doerr is an American author of novels and short stories. He gained widespread recognition for his 2014 novel 'All The Light We Cannot See' which won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. Memory Wall is the title story from his 2010 collection.

Writer: Anthony Doerr
Reader: Rakie Ayola
Abridger: Jeremy Osborne
Producer: Jeremy Osborne

A Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4


TUE 23:00 Witch (p0fpbx1k)
13. Legacy

The witch has held a place firmly in our imagination for centuries – from whispered warnings in folklore to pop-culture driven heights. But what does it mean to be a witch now?

Presenter India Rakusen, creator of the podcast 28ish Days Later, is on a journey to find out.

It's clear that the witch hunts still cast a shadow over our lives. India hears from some of the guests in the series on the legacies of the witch hunts, and how witches today might be a powerful way of resisting and addressing the damage of the past.

Guests: Bones Tan Jones, Mona Chollet, Prof Ronald Hutton, Dr Eleanor Janega

Scored with original music by The Big Moon

Presenter: India Rakusen
Executive Producer: Alex Hollands
Producer: Lucy Dearlove
Producer: Elle Scott
AP: Tatum Swithenbank
Production Manager: Kerry Luter
Sound Design: Olga Reed

A Storyglass production for BBC Radio 4


TUE 23:30 Mark Watson Talks a Bit About Life (m000g451)
Series 3

Summer

Multi-award winning comedian and author Mark Watson continues his probably doomed quest to make sense of the human experience. This time, he is aided by the sardonic musical brilliance of Flo and Joan, and by a different comedy friend in each programme. This week, it's Sofie Hagen.

This new series examines the four seasons of the year and the seasons of a human life, as Mark - at the halfway point of his expected lifespan - considers what might come next. This week, Mark and his guests look at Summer - the prime of life, the highpoint of the year, and soon to be the only season we’ll have!

As always, there's a huge number of jokes, some songs, and an awful lot of other stuff crammed into each show as the much-loved comic and his team make their way through life at dizzying speed.

Produced by Lianne Coop.
An Impatient production for BBC Radio 4

WEDNESDAY 23 AUGUST 2023

WED 00:00 Midnight News (m001ptdx)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.


WED 00:30 What We Fear Most: Reflections on a Life in Forensic Psychiatry by Dr Ben Cave (m001pt6v)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Tuesday]


WED 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m001ptf3)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping


WED 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m001ptfb)
World Service

BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.


WED 05:20 Shipping Forecast (m001ptfh)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping


WED 05:30 News Briefing (m001ptfp)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4


WED 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m001ptfy)
Spiritual reflection to start the day with Rev Neil Gardner of Canongate Kirk, Edinburgh


WED 05:45 Farming Today (m001ptg9)
23/08/23 The Countryside Code; sugar shortages; vertical farming for salads

Farmers share their experiences of having their crops damaged, their livestock scared, and signs on footpaths being discarded by the general public accessing their land. What should be done to ensure the Countryside Code is followed?

A sugar shortage in the UK sees supplies imported from Central and South America.

And how a warehouse in Kent is growing salad crops, vertically.

Presented by Steffan Messenger and produced by Rhiannon Fitz-Gerald.


WED 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b038qkfw)
Serin

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

Brett Westwood presents the serin. Serins breed just across the English Channel but they are small finches that continue to tantalize ornithologists here in the UK. Hopes were raised that this Continental finch would settle here to breed, especially if our climate became warmer. However, something about our islands doesn't suit them. They do like large parks and gardens, so keep an ear out for the song of this visitor....a cross between a goldfinch and a goldcrest, and you may be rewarded.


WED 06:00 Today (m001ptd3)
News and current affairs, including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


WED 09:00 Reflections (m001ptdc)
Norman Fowler

Lord Norman Fowler talks to James Naughtie about battling to convince Margaret Thatcher on the importance of tackling the Aids crisis in the 80s and the failure of successive governments to reform the House of Lords.

Producer: Daniel Kraemer


WED 09:30 Life Support (m001j450)
Anaesthetists

Two people at different stages of their careers, meet for the first time to share and contrast their experiences of working in the health service. Revealing and surprising insights emerge as the participants compare the pressures of the past with those we hear so much about today. In this episode we hear from two anaesthetists. The profession is largest group of doctors working in hospitals. As well as putting patients to sleep during operations, you’ll find them working in intensive care units, in accident and emergency and administering epidural pain relief for mothers in labour wards. Mike, a semi-retired consultant anaesthetist, talks about what he describes as the dangerously long hours he used to do as a junior doctor working non-stop from Friday evening to Monday morning. Registrar anaesthetist Giovanna is pleased those extended on call weekend shifts are a thing of the past. However, she shares her frustrations as she feels hospitals are struggling to make progress dealing with the huge surgical waiting lists, built up during the pandemic.

Produced by Matt Toulson and Nick Holland
Editor: Clare Fordham
Sound: Graham Puddifoot
Production Coordinators Sabine Schereck and Maria Ogundele


WED 09:45 What We Fear Most: Reflections on a Life in Forensic Psychiatry by Dr Ben Cave (m001ptdm)
Book of the Week: Ep 3 - On insight, despair and hope.

Dr Ben Cave's compassionate memoir on his career in forensic psychiatry continues. He recalls two patients who gave him profound lessons on insight, despair and hope. Adrian Scarborough reads.

In What We Fear Most Dr Ben Cave reflects on his decades on the frontline of forensic psychiatry where he has seen the extremes of mental illness. He tells the human stories behind the headlines and introduces us to some of the people he has treated. Fear, violence, and sadness but most of all humanity are the hallmarks of each. What emerges is compassion, understanding and for many of his patients, hope and the potential for a brighter future. We also discover how Cave has been shaped by all the many cases that have been his life's work.

Details of organisations offering information and support with mental health or feelings of despair are available at bbc.co.uk/actionline.

Abridged by Richard Hamilton
Produced by Elizabeth Allard


WED 10:00 Woman's Hour (m001ptdv)
Listener Week: Is it ever good to give up on dreams? Working class women & university, Living funerals

For Woman's Hour's Listener Week, you, our listeners, decide what we cover on the programme.

Nuala McGovern is joined by Monica and chartered psychologist Catherine Hallissey to discuss when it might be the right decision to give up on your dream. We'd like to hear your views on the issue. Have you decided to change course or realised a goal isn’t meant to be?

Earlier this month, we heard the experiences of young people who are opting to live at home while they study at university because of the cost of living. That prompted a listener, Dr Pam Woolner from Newcastle University, to get in touch to tell us about the latest research by her colleague Dr Sam Shields. It looks into the experiences of working class women going to university and the challenges they face. Sam is senior lecturer in Education at Newcastle University and joins Nuala along with the writer Jessica Andrews who was the first in her family to go to university, leaving her home in the north-east of England to study in London.    

One of our listeners got in touch to tell us that his daughter had discovered a previously unseen poem by Georgiana the Duchess of Devonshire, who you may know about from the Keira Knightley film, The Duchess. We’ll be bringing you that poem and discussing why the duchess was such an influential political figure in her day.

And Nelly has asked us to talk about living funerals. She was inspired by Kris Hallenga, the founder of the CoppaFeel breast cancer awareness charity, who has stage 4 breast cancer and who held a living funeral for herself.

Presenter: Nuala McGovern
Producer: Lisa Jenkinson
Studio Manager: Andrew Garratt

00:00 OPENER
01:43 LIVING FUNERALS
22.46 WORKING CLASS ACADEMICS
35.45 DUCHESS POEM
46.57 GIVING UP ON DREAMS
5439 CLOSE


WED 11:00 The Murder of Kelso Cochrane (m001pssj)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 on Monday]


WED 11:30 Director of Me (m001p1ny)
Ria

How do you manage your mental health when you cannot control the direction of your mind?

Director of Me follows three people with diagnosed mental health conditions through a month in their lives. Each episode pivots around self-recorded audio diaries as they reflect on what it's like to inhabit and manage their minds. .

The programmes incorporate specially composed music, worked up in collaboration with each person to illustrate how they experience their mental health conditions.

In this second episode, we meet Ria, who's in her 20s. She’s an actor, director, playwright; a friend, girlfriend and daughter. Ria also lives with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), after being diagnosed at 25.

“I got diagnosed at 25, after I’d already written a play about it. So, that was a relief.”

This episode was recorded by Ria.

Producer: Catherine Carr
Assistant Producer and Composer: Maia Miller-Lewis.
Executive Producer: Jo Rowntree.

With thanks to OCD Action for their support.


WED 12:00 News Summary (m001ptf1)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


WED 12:04 You and Yours (m001ptf8)
Energy Price cap, Sugar Inflation, Mortgage Pressures

The new energy price cap will be announced by the regulator, Ofgem, on Friday. It's predicted to be around £1,925 per year on average for the typical household, meaning energy bills are likely to fall from £2,074 in October. We speak to Richard Neudegg of Uswitch about the impact on fixed deals and if we're better off staying on a standard variable tariff.

Planning a wedding can be a tricky thing. We look at what's involved if you and your guests use a wheelchair. We hear from Eliza Rain who's been writing about her experience online and Simon Sansome who created an App called Snowball.

Our reporter, Melanie Abbott, looks at sugar inflation and how it's affecting the production of drinks, biscuits and processed food as well as causing costs to double.

We take another look at the uncertainties involved with recycling and ask if our individual efforts really make much of a difference. We speak to Oliver Franklin-Wallis about his new book, Wasteland, which lifts the lid on what happens to the stuff we throw away.

There was a time, not very long ago, that we drank a lot of German wine - Riesling in particular. It fell out of fashion when a bigger range of wines became available but it now seems to be making a comeback. We hear from people on a night out in a wine bar and also speak to Aleesha Hansel, a wine writer, presenter and judge.

High mortgage interest rates are forcing some people to sell up. Research from Zoopla has found that more people say they're selling because they need to, rather than because they want to move to a different area or type of home. We hear from a homeowner who's faced this problem and Richard Donnell from Zoopla.

Presenter: Winifred Robinson
Producer: Tara Holmes


WED 12:57 Weather (m001ptfg)
The latest weather forecast


WED 13:00 World at One (m001ptfn)
Forty-five minutes of news, analysis and comment, with Sarah Montague.


WED 13:45 Hoax (m001ptfw)
The Toad Kisser

How did a bohemian, music-loving scientist - and his toad collection - end up caught at the centre of a worldwide scientific culture war? Dr Tori Herridge investigates.

Produced for BBC Audio Bristol by Beth Sagar-Fenton


WED 14:00 The Archers (m001ptcg)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Tuesday]


WED 14:15 Drama on 4 (m0015lqf)
Norman Bows Out

A poignant moving drama, by Helen Kluger and starring Jim Broadbent, about a fading pantomime star nearing the final curtain.

Norman Monk is a legendary comedian and panto star, most famous for his ventriloquist act. Aware that he is about to embark on what will be his final tour, Norman decides to give his dummy, Willy, a final outing. Unfortunately, he collapses on stage during rehearsals and is rushed to hospital where his director is informed of the worst news and left with no choice but to re-cast Norman.

Luckily, his theatrical landlady Betty decides to let him stay with her, in the knowledge that he has nowhere else to go. They shore up a bond and share stories of abandonment and betrayal. But things take a darker turn when Norman is visited by his threatening ex-army young lover Kenny.

The show must go on ……..but can it ? A poignant moving drama about a fading pantomime star nearing the final curtain.

Cast:
Norman Monk .......... Jim Broadbent
Lyle Toastman .......... Michael Simkins
Betty Conway .......... Christine Kavanagh
Kenny .......... Tom Glenister.

Written by Helen Kluger

Directed by Celia de Wolff

A Pier production for BBC Radio 4


WED 15:00 Money Box (m001psjl)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:04 on Saturday]


WED 15:30 Political Animals (m0014gt8)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 on Tuesday]


WED 16:00 The Boy in the Peking Hotel (m001mc2q)
When 8 year old Kim Gordon set off for China in 1965, it set in train a tale of passion, imagination and still unanswered questions. Kim’s parents were committed communists in the thick of Mao’s cultural revolution. Kim became a Red Guard, one of an army of children and teenagers marshalled in support of Mao and he had a ringside view of the vast rallies in Tiananmen Square. But when the political tide turned against foreigners, the family was imprisoned for two years in a tiny hotel room, Room 421.

The Gordon family had no contact with the outside world for two years and their families back in Britain had no idea where they were. With only a block of paper and a wild imagination for company Kim passed the time by writing letters that could never be sent, and thrilling plays which he’d act aloud playing all the parts himself. His story reveals much about families and loyalties; on the grip of ideology; and the ingenuity of a child shut in an empty room. A rich and strange reminiscence not just of China but of the human heart.

Charlie Brand plays young Kim in this dramatic, intimate documentary.

Producer: Monica Whitlock

Photo by Eric Gordon. 'Kim Gordon in Peking, 1966'


WED 16:30 The Media Show (m001ptgc)
Reporting the Lucy Letby Trial

The murder trial of Lucy Letby lasted 10 months and came to its conclusion this week, with the former nurse being sentenced to a whole life prison sentence. For journalists covering the trial, their work was complicated by strict reporting restrictions the judge had imposed from the outset. Also in the programme, a new Channel 4 documentary tells the story of the Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta and its Nobel Peace prize winning editor Dmitry Muratov.

Guests: Judith Moritz, North of England Correspondent, BBC News; Steve Ford, Editor, Nursing Times; Marc Waddington, Senior Editor, Cheshire Live; Patrick Forbes, Director, The Price of Truth; Kirill Martynov, Editor in Chief, Novaya Gazeta Europe

Producer: Simon Richardson

Presenter: Ros Atkins


WED 17:00 PM (m001ptgq)
Afternoon news and current affairs programme, reporting on breaking stories and summing up the day's headlines


WED 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m001ptgy)
The country's Prime Minister described the touchdown as a victory cry of a new India


WED 18:30 John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme (m0006776)
Series 8

Episode 6

John Finnemore returns to Radio 4 with an eighth series of his multi-award-winning sketch show, joined by his regular ensemble cast of Margaret Cabourn-Smith, Simon Kane, Lawry Lewin and Carrie Quinlan.

In this clinically efficient episode, John does the voice, and we also hear what sort of song he could have had on the show if he'd wanted. And, well... since you ask him for a story of a breakneck race against time...

John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme was described by The Radio Times as "the best sketch show in years, on television or radio", and by The Daily Telegraph as "funny enough to make even the surliest cat laugh". Already the winner of a Radio Academy Silver Award and a Broadcasting Press Guild award, this year Souvenir Programme won its second BBC Audio Drama award.

Written by & starring ... John Finnemore
Cast ... Margaret Cabourn-Smith
Cast ... Simon Kane
Cast ... Lawry Lewin
Cast ... Carrie Quinlan

Original music & piano ... Susannah Pearse
Cello ... Sally Stares
Additional musical arrangement ... Rich Evans

Production Coordinator ... Beverly Tagg
Producer ... Ed Morrish
A BBC Studios production


WED 19:00 The Archers (m001ptcx)
Toby enjoys helping Ruth collect honey from Jill’s hives and Ruth invites him for dinner with the family later in the week.
Will tells George that both he and Emma are very concerned that George thought it was ok to post the video of Helen’s outburst. George knows what Rob did to Helen, so he must understand why she freaked out about George helping Henry to meet Rob. Will’s looked up some of the influencers George has been watching. He can see the appeal of all the money, flash cars and girlfriends, but it’s not the real world. George counters he doesn’t agree with everything that the influencers say, but he likes the stuff about it not being a crime to be a man. Will says if he’d put his anger and bruised ego above everything else when Emma chose Ed over him, he’d not only have still lost Emma, but probably George and his family too. Unrepentant George says he’s not going to grovel to Helen.
Later Emma explains to George that a lot of what he’s said recently shows how he feels about women in general. And the other person who thinks like that is Rob Titchener. When George admits he saw how Rob was with Henry, Emma wonders why George would want to be a misogynist like him. Emma and George reconcile, but Emma points out that she’s not the only person he’s hurt. Later George goes round to apologise to Helen, but Helen can’t forget about what George did and asks him to leave.


WED 19:15 Front Row (m001pth6)
Authors Helen Macdonald and Sin Blaché, Stewart Lee on Macbeth, musician Connie Converse rediscovered

Authors Helen Macdonald and Sin Blaché are live in the studio to discuss their new queer sci-fi thriller Prophet.

Theatre director Wils Wilson has invited the comedian Stewart Lee to rewrite the Porter’s scene in a new RSC production of Macbeth. Wils and Stewart join Samira Ahmed to discuss drawing on stand-up comedy, pantomime and the politics of today to refresh Shakespeare's comic relief.

And we rediscover the American singer-songwriter Connie Converse, fifty years after she disappeared without trace. Samira speaks to Howard Fishman – writer, songwriter, bandleader, producer of Connie’s Piano Songs, and author of To Anyone Who Ever Asks: The Life, Music, and Mystery of Connie Converse.

PRESENTER: Samira Ahmed
PRODUCER: Olivia Skinner


WED 20:00 AntiSocial (m001pmq4)
'Queering' museums

The debate sparked by reviewing historic collections through a queer or LGBT lens.

A “queering the collection” blogpost from the Mary Rose Museum in Portsmouth was criticised for making what some saw as tenuous links between historic objects from the ship and the experience of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people. Supporters of “queering” museums and galleries say it’s needed to redress a traditional approach to history that has often ignored non-heterosexual people or stories. But it’s led to controversy and criticism that some institutions have gone too far by focusing on the LGBT angle at the expense of others or imposing a modern interpretation that wouldn’t have made sense at the time.

Guests:
Dominique Bouchard, Head of Learning and Interpretation at English Heritage
Mary Harrington, Contributing Editor at UnHerd
Jackie Stacey, Professor of Media and Cultural Studies at the University of Manchester.
Josh Adair, Professor of English at Murray State University


WED 20:45 Just One Thing - with Michael Mosley (m001hp70)
Choose Red Wine

All alcohol is bad for you but if you’re already a drinker, switching out your usual drink for a small glass of red wine could bring surprising benefits to your health - improving blood sugar and fat levels and reducing the risk of diabetes. In this episode, Michael Mosley speaks to Dr Tim Spector, Professor of Epidemiology at King’s College London to find out about the secret ingredient in red wine. He reveals why red wine is rich in chemicals called polyphenols. They raise a (metaphorical) glass to celebrate the effects of red wine on the diversity of our gut bacteria!


WED 21:00 A Very British Cult (p0fdl5d6)
[Repeat of broadcast at 15:30 on Tuesday]


WED 21:30 The Media Show (m001ptgc)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:30 today]


WED 22:00 The World Tonight (m001pthp)
Wagner chief presumed dead in plane crash

Latest reaction and analysis to reports of Prigozhin's death in plane crash

Special educational needs provision in England

India's successful moon landing


WED 22:45 Memory Wall by Anthony Doerr (m001ptj2)
Episode 3

Cape Town, the near future.

The memory clinic cannot cure Alma Konachek’s dementia, but it can slow it down and give her some of her memories back, captured on a series of cartridges and then retrieved on a device called a ‘remote memory simulator'.

At home, Alma has a memory wall covered with these cartridges, along with hand-written notes and a photograph of her late husband, Harold, who was a keen fossil-hunter.

But Alma’s memories are not just of interest to her.

Episode Three
With time running out before Alma’s house is sold, Roger and Luvo make a breakthrough discovery.

Anthony Doerr is an American author of novels and short stories. He gained widespread recognition for his 2014 novel 'All The Light We Cannot See' which won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. 'Memory Wall' is the title story from his 2010 collection.

Writer: Anthony Doerr
Reader: Rakie Ayola
Abridger: Jeremy Osborne
Producer: Jeremy Osborne

A Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4


WED 23:00 Bunk Bed (m001ptjg)
Series 10

with Peter Curran, Patrick Marber and Sir Richard Eyre

Late at night, in the dark and in a bunk bed, your tired mind can wander through strange territory before you drift off.

The semi-delirious talk show returns with a dozy and chucklesome vengeance. Special guests this season include British Arts collossus Sir Richard Eyre, and the return to the pull-out mattress of comic heroes Kathy Burke and Jane Horrocks.

'Bunk Bed is funny, strange, enchanting, and beautifully put together.' - The Observer

'Bunk Bed is beloved by broadsheet critics, but don't let that put you off....' - Metro

Produced by Peter Curran

A Foghorn production for BBC Radio 4


WED 23:15 Sarah Keyworth - Are You a Boy or a Girl? (m001ptjv)
Series 2

2: 'Think of the children'

Award-winning comedian Sarah Keyworth returns with their Radio 4 series Are You a Boy or a Girl?. Since the first series aired in 2020, the debate around gender has exploded and taken on a life of its own, all culminating with one question ‘should I be allowed to decide who I am?’. Sarah has recently come out as non-binary (a subtle soft-launch in The Guardian newspaper) and is ready to share some more of their own brand of mx-information. That’s gender non-conforming information, the cool non-binary cousin of misinformation.

In this episode, Sarah discusses why our brain's initial response to a new person is to instinctively work out what gender they are. Is this because we are taught to do it as children? To help Sarah analyse why they think this is the case, they look back on their own childhood which includes a vivid memory of being on a beach in France with a man selling donuts - the baked goods, not the inflatable rings.


Written by and starring Sarah Keyworth with additional material from Ruby Clyde.

Producer: Georgia Keating
Executive Producer: James Robinson
Production Coordinator: Becky Carewe-Jeffries
Sound Engineer: Paul Brogden
Editor: Joshan Chana
Photo credit: Matt Crockett

A BBC Studios Production for Radio 4


WED 23:30 What's Funny About ... (m0010f7z)
Series 2

4. Pamela Stephenson & John Lloyd on Not The Nine O’Clock News

John Lloyd and Dr Pamela Stephenson talk about their pioneering BBC TV sketch show Not The Nine O’Clock News

The duo share the inside story with TV veterans Peter Fincham and Jon Plowman.

Over 17 million viewers tuned in over 4 series to watch Pamela alongside Rowan Atkinson, Griff Rhys Jones, Mel Smith, and Chris Langham perform scripts written by some of the cream of British comedy talent – Richard Curtis, Andy Hamilton, and even a (then undergraduate!) Stephen Fry.

John Lloyd recalls how the NTNON team was put together, and how a chance meeting with Pamela at a party led to her becoming the one of the most recognisable faces on British television.

They talk us through some of their favourite sketches and reveal how they created their vast array of characters, from Gerald the Gorilla to Janet Street-Porter (and in particular, the interview that Pamela’s Janet did with Billy Connolly that would change both of their lives).

And John and Pamela discuss the perks and perils of commercial success in the world of comedy, when the business of books, albums, and movies come calling, and how it eventually led to the end of Not The Nine O’Clock News.

With Peter and Jon as our guides, we’ll take the opportunity to ask quite how they went about making a great bit of TV comedy. Who came up with it? How did it get written? We’ll talk about the commissioning, the casting, and the reception the show received when it first aired.

We’ll do our very best to winkle out some backstage secrets straight from the horse’s mouth, as we hear the unvarnished truth from the people who were there, and who put these iconic shows on the telly.

Producer: Owen Braben

Made for BBC Radio 4 Extra by Expectation Productions, and first broadcast October 2021.

THURSDAY 24 AUGUST 2023

THU 00:00 Midnight News (m001ptk5)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.


THU 00:30 What We Fear Most: Reflections on a Life in Forensic Psychiatry by Dr Ben Cave (m001ptdm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Wednesday]


THU 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m001ptkn)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping


THU 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m001ptl0)
World Service

BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.


THU 05:20 Shipping Forecast (m001ptlc)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping


THU 05:30 News Briefing (m001ptlr)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4


THU 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m001ptm2)
Spiritual reflection to start the day with Rev Neil Gardner of Canongate Kirk, Edinburgh


THU 05:45 Farming Today (m001ptmd)
24/08/23 Sheep embryos to USA, salad robots

The first ever shipment of UK sheep embryos has just arrived in the United States. We ask how significant the trade could be and hear from one of the farmers exporting his flock’s genetics.
This week we're talking about salad. The University of Warwick has been awarded £1.4million by the Government to carry out research into the use of robotics in horticulture. Scientists and engineers are working with a large salad grower experimenting with new technology.

Presented by Caz Graham and produced by Beatrice Fenton.


THU 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b04hkyn2)
Snow Goose

Tweet of the Day is the voice of birds and our relationship with them, from around the world.

Miranda Krestovnikoff presents the snow goose found breeding across Canada and Alaska. Although most snow geese are all-white with black wing-tips, some known as blue geese are blue-ish grey with white heads. Snow geese breed in the tundra region with goslings hatching at a time to make the most of rich supply of insect larvae and berries in the short Arctic summer. As autumn approaches though, the geese depart and head south before temperatures plummet, and the tundra becomes sealed by snow and ice. As they head for areas rich in grain and nutritious roots hundreds of thousands of snow geese fill the sky with their urgent clamour providing one of the greatest wildfowl spectacles in the world.

Producer : Andrew Dawes


THU 06:00 Today (m001pt7b)
News and current affairs, including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


THU 09:00 The Patch (m001pt7w)
Farnborough

The first in a new series of The Patch. One random postcode and a story you probably haven't heard before. Today's episode takes producer Polly Weston to Farnborough Airport - the only airport in the UK dedicated to private jets. Known as "the birthplace of British aviation", the postcode is dominated by the airport - it's an area filled with aviation-related businesses, and motorcades carrying important people are a fairly common occurrence on the streets. Yet, it is largely hidden from view, even from locals...

Produced/presented by Polly Weston
Editor: Chris Ledgard
Mixed by Michael Harrison and Suzy Robins


THU 09:30 Inside Pages (m001h41r)
Stone

Journalist Ian Wylie journeys to some of the hidden corners of Britain to view small towns through the lens of the people who don’t ignore them - their local reporters.

Some of the towns are struggling, others are thriving. The one thing they have in common is they’re pretty much invisible in the eyes of the national media, even though they are home to tens of thousands of people. They don’t have football teams. They’re not pretty resorts that attract tourists. They can’t even claim to be a contested marginal seat that will determine the outcome of a general election. Our guides are the passionate people who remain committed to telling the stories of what’s happening in their small towns. Through their newspapers, websites and social media posts they refuse to turn the page on local news reporting - often at some personal cost.

Ian visits Stone in Staffordshire to meet Jon Cook, editor of a local news website.

Produced and presented by Ian Wylie
Executive producer: Ian Bent
Sound designer: John Scott
A Sparklab production for BBC Radio 4


THU 09:45 What We Fear Most: Reflections on a Life in Forensic Psychiatry by Dr Ben Cave (m001pt8j)
Book of the Week: Ep 4 - When things go wrong

Dr Ben Cave's compassionate memoir on his career in forensic psychiatry continues. In today's episode, he recalls a dangerous encounter with a patient that left him shaken, and a tragic case where things went wrong, and lessons were learned. Adrian Scarborough reads.

In What We Fear Most, Dr Ben Cave reflects on his decades on the frontline of forensic psychiatry, where he has seen the extremes of mental illness. He tells the human stories behind the headlines and introduces us to some of the people he has treated. Fear, violence, and sadness but most of all humanity are the hallmarks of each. What emerges is compassion, understanding and for many of his patients, hope and the potential for a brighter future. We also discover how Cave has been shaped by all the many cases that have been his life's work.

Details of organisations offering information and support with mental health are available at bbc.co.uk/actionline.

Abridged by Richard Hamilton
Produced by Elizabeth Allard


THU 10:00 Woman's Hour (m001pt8z)
Listener Week: Psychedelics, Peripheral friendship, Posthumous conception, Beach Guardian

For Listener Week, you, our listeners, decide what we cover on the programme.

Listener Rachel asked Woman's Hour to explore the potential of using psychedelic drugs in medicine and whether these drugs might affect women differently to men. Academics have been researching psilocybin as a possible new treatment for depression, PTSD and anorexia, when used in conjunction with therapy. Anita Rani is joined by Professor David Nutt, Professor of Neuropsychopharmacology at Imperial College London; and Catherine Bird, Senior Clinical Trials Manager at the Centre for Affective Disorders at Kings College London.

Helen, a listener, wanted Woman's Hour to highlight the importance of peripheral friendships. These are casual acquaintance relationships; the people in your life that you don’t see often, or your co-workers who give you joy, or kindness, but aren’t your close family. Anita meets Helen and they talk to Dr Gillian Sandstrom, a senior lecturer in the Psychology of Kindness at Sussex University, who has studied these relationships

Posthumous conception is when assisted reproductive technology is used to establish a pregnancy and produce genetic offspring following the death of a parent. Listener, Lauren McGregor, wrote to Woman's Hour wanting to discuss the importance of having the legal paperwork properly completed and signed should you ever find yourself in a situation when you have to consider this. Anita is joined by Lauren and a family lawyer, who has experience of working with fertility law, Louisa Gheveart.

Earlier this year, research from the University of Portsmouth showed there are 100 times more microplastics in the coast around the UK than there were six years ago. Anita talks to the marine biologist and PhD student Emily Stevenson who is on a mission to clean up the patch of Cornwall’s north coast where she grew up. Emily founded Beach Guardian in 2017 with her dad to try to empower local communities to combat plastic waste along the coastline.

Presenter: Anita Rani
Producer: Rebecca Myatt
Studio manager: Giles Aspen

00:00 Opener
02:28 Psychedlics
17:12 Peripheral Friendship
30:45 Posthumous Conception
46:18 Beach Conservation


THU 11:00 Crossing Continents (m001pt9h)
Belize's Blue Bond

In 2020 Belize was broke. Again. This small, climate-vulnerable, Central American nation is home to the western hemisphere’s longest barrier reef. And it was about to default on a debt of over half a billion dollars. Enter an American NGO... The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is the world’s largest conservation charity. TNC made an offer to the government of Belize: it would help restructure the debt, if Belize would channel the savings made into its precious coastal resources. In 2021, the deal became reality – creditors were paid off, and investors found for the new, so-called ‘blue bond.’ Belize’s debt shrank by 12% overnight. A win-win, right?

But as Linda Pressly finds on a trip to Belize, the ‘blue bond’ hasn’t been universally welcomed. There are concerns about an international NGO having influence in a poor nation, and arguments about which Belizean marine organisations have benefitted from the new investment. And there is one unresolved question: what does the ‘blue bond’ agreement mean for the potential future exploration of offshore oil in Belizean waters?

Presented and produced by Linda Pressly
Sound engineer: Neil Churchill
Series Editor: Penny Murphy


THU 11:30 Great Lives (m001pt9w)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:30 on Tuesday]


THU 12:00 News Summary (m001ptb6)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


THU 12:04 All Consuming (m001ptbs)
Cameras

With over 90% of our photos now captured on phones, Charlotte Stavrou and Amit Katwala go in search of what cameras mean today and how they have evolved since their origins in the 19th century.

Ruth Quinn, curator of photography and photographic technology at the National Science and Media Museum in Bradford, shines a light on how photographic cameras were born out of a Victorian fascination with chemistry and optics.

Long-time Kodak employee, Steve Sasson, reveals how a brief to play with a new bit of kit in the 1970s led to his invention of the digital camera.

Meanwhile, Dr Alix Barasch, Associate Professor of Marketing at the University of Colorado, discusses the ways phone cameras and image-sharing apps are not only changing how we process our environment but also what we do.

And Charlotte takes a trip into the dark room with photographer Alia Romagnoli to develop a portrait taken on a film camera for a recent series on queer men and masculinity and discusses why these old manual devices are back in fashion with Gen Z.


Producer: Ruth Abrahams
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4


THU 12:29 You and Yours (m001ptbk)
Gap Finders: Toby McCartney from MacRebur

Toby McCartney has always had an entrepreneurial streak.

As a schoolboy, he used to sell sweets his grandfather had given him to other kids in the yard - a venture so successful, it put the school tuck shop out of business and led to him being suspended. As a young man, he built websites and sold advertising space online.

In 2016, together with friends Gordon Reid and Nick Burnett, Toby founded MacRebur - The Plastic Road Company.

MacRebur is a world-first: road surfaces made from waste plastic.

They take waste plastic destined for landfill and turn it into a polymer that can be added to asphalt to enhance road surfaces and potholes. With each km of road laid using their innovative product, the equivalent weight of 684,000 bottles or 1.8 million single-use plastic bags are used. To date, MacRebur has laid more than 100,000km of road with MacRebur product - that’s the equivalent of 200 million plastic bottles diverted from landfill.

In today’s episode of Gap Finders, Winifred finds out what inspired the company and just how Toby McCartney went from leaving school with barely any qualifications, to heading up an award-winning construction company.

PRESENTER: Winifred Robinson
PRODUCER: James Leesley


THU 12:57 Weather (m001ptc6)
The latest weather forecast


THU 13:00 World at One (m001ptcf)
Forty-five minutes of news, analysis and comment, with Sarah Montague.


THU 13:45 Hoax (m001ptcq)
The Forever Fly

How did a single specimen undermine everything scientists thought they knew about evolution? And what happens when the evidence falls apart before your eyes? Dr Tori Herridge investigates.

Produced for BBC Audio Bristol by Beth Sagar-Fenton


THU 14:00 The Archers (m001ptcx)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Wednesday]


THU 14:15 Drama on 4 (m001ptd5)
A Dog in the Fight

Neutrality is an issue of almost sacred importance in the Irish Republic. From the foundation of the state, Ireland has prided itself on being militarily non-aligned, remaining at arm’s length from other people’s conflicts.

But now, more than at any time in the nation’s history, neutrality is under review. The Irish people are starting to realise that successive governments have been less than entirely honest about some of the alliances they have entered into, behind closed doors – not least the recently revealed arrangement with the UK and RAF. And the truth, as it is gradually revealed, has implications not just for how Irish people see themselves today, but for how relations with London, Washington and Brussels may play out in the future.

So, in this new drama by Hugh Costello, when an Orlan-10 Russian spy drone strays in off the Atlantic coast and crashes, a notionally neutral Irish government struggles to find a discreet way to let NATO analysts have first dibs at examining the device, without revealing the full extent of its collaboration with NATO.

Cast:
Annie - Simone Kirby
Michael - Jonathan Forbes
Paula - Frances Tomelty
Kevin - Stephen Hogan
Fintan - Mark Lambert

Written by Hugh Costello
Produced and directed by Eoin O'Callaghan
A Big Fish Radio production for BBC Radio 4


THU 15:00 Open Country (m001ptdf)
Highlands with Horses

Mary-Ann Ochota joins a group of walkers, riders and horses as in the Scottish Highlands as they follow St Columba’s Way, a pilgrim route from St Andrew’s to Iona. Starting at the village of Killin, eleven people and four horses – Istia, Kirsty, Moy and Sasha - follow the old ways through Glen Lochay and Glen Lyon to the Bridge of Orchy. It's a trip organised by The Big Hoof, a group which promotes adventure and wellbeing through long journeys travelling with horses, on both new routes and ancient ones. Participants join the journey for as long as they want - on foot, horseback or bicycle. Mary-Ann meets the people who have decided to take part in this secular pilgrimage, discovers the healing power of walking with horses and strangers, learns why it’s not about simply riding horses but travelling with them as companions, and hears more about the Venture Trust, the charity the group is raising money for.

Produced and presented by Mary-Ann Ochota


THU 15:27 Radio 4 Appeal (m001pt0s)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:54 on Sunday]


THU 15:30 Open Book (m001pt1l)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:00 on Sunday]


THU 16:00 Walt Disney: A Life in Films (p0fxbtvs)
9. Mary Poppins

Through the stories of ten of his greatest works, Mel Giedroyc examines the life of Walt Disney, a much mythologised genius. A man to whom storytelling was an escape from an oppressive father and a respite from periods of depression.

His name is truly iconic, but how much do we really know about this titan of the entertainment industry? Who was the real Walt and why did a man who moulded Western pop culture in his image end up on his deathbed, afraid that he’d be forgotten?

In this episode, the “practically perfect in every way” Mel descends from the clouds to tell the tale of Mary Poppins. The film is a colourful, joy filled romp, but its creation was far from a jolly holiday for Walt Disney. Mel reveals the lengths Disney went to secure the rights to Mary Poppins and the highly antagonistic relationship he had with the author of the original book upon which his iconic film is based.

A Novel production for BBC Radio 4


THU 16:30 BBC Inside Science (m001ptds)
What makes a healthy river?

River health has captured the public imagination, particularly as overspills from sewers have been getting more attention in the media. But the condition of a river is so much more complicated than what flows into it from our water treatment systems. Agriculture, roads, how we use our drains, what we buy and even the medicines and drugs we take can all have an impact on our rivers and the plants and animals that call them home.

So how are UK rivers doing? And what needs to happen to help those waterways that are drowning in pollution?

Joining the BBC's Marnie Chesterton on stage at Green Man Festival in Wales to discuss all this is:

Dave Johnston, team leader of environmental reporting at Natural Resources Wales, whose responsibility it is to monitor Welsh rivers.

Joanne Cable, head of organisms and environment division at Cardiff University, whose focus is on biodiversity and what we at home can do to support our rivers.

Simon Evans, chief executive of The Wye and Usk Foundation, who runs citizen science projects to support these two rivers local to the festival.

Christian Dunn, wetland biologist at Bangor University, who is keen to explain the power of wetlands and has also done some surprising research into the river near Glastonbury Festival.

Presenter: Marnie Chesterton
Producers: Harrison Lewis and Hannah Robins
Research: Liam Collins-Jones
Studio Managers: Mike Cox and Duncan Hannant
Editor: Richard Collings


THU 17:00 PM (m001ptdz)
Afternoon news and current affairs programme, reporting on breaking stories and summing up the day's headlines


THU 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m001ptf4)
Authorities say all 10 people on the plane were killed when it crashed near Moscow


THU 18:30 Fresh from the Fringe (m001ptf9)
2023, Part 1

Radio 4 brings you a live showcase spotlighting some of the best comedy acts at the Edinburgh Fringe this August. Hosted by David O'Doherty with performances from Dan Rath, Kuan-wen Huang, Micky Overman, Pierre Novellie, Lou Wall and Adam Rowe.

Produced by Sasha Bobak
Production Coordinator: Becky Carewe-Jeffries

A BBC Studios Production for Radio 4.


THU 19:00 The Archers (m001ptfj)
Tom’s shattered and Natasha thinks he should think about asking George back to help on the farm. She’s spoken to Emma who thinks George is genuinely sorry about the video. And Emma and Will have both had words with him. Tom thinks it’s up to Helen. They talk about Helen’s solicitor who’s clarified that Rob didn’t break his non-molestation order at the Leisure Centre, because he was in a public space when Helen saw him. Talk turns to the Tearoom and Natasha says it’s been an eye-opener helping there. She doesn’t think Fallon’s making the most of its potential. Natasha outlines things she would do to improve it, including using more of Bridge Farm’s products. Natasha doesn’t want to barge in and start telling Fallon how to run her business, but the Tearoom is an integral part of the wider Bridge Farm offer. It’s food for thought.
Toby tells Pip he’s enjoyed the last few days in Ambridge. They bump into Stella and without checking with Pip, Toby invites Stella to a barbecue with them and Rex. Toby reminisces about his early days in Ambridge working with Rex and how he and Pip first got together. The wine is flowing and Toby and Pip banter about their relationship. Before heading off, Stella hugs Pip and says she guesses they’ve put the last couple of weeks behind them. Toby stays behind to put Rosie to bed. Later Pip and Toby relax on the sofa and things become flirtatious. They end up in a passionate embrace.


THU 19:15 Front Row (m001ptfr)
Front Row reviews new British film Scrapper, French writer director Louis Garrel

Larushka Ivan-Zadeh and Mickey-Jo Boucher discuss A Mirror, a new play by Sam Holcroft about staging a drama in a country where state censorship controls the arts. It stars Trainspotting's Jonny Lee Miller. They’ll also look at Charlotte Regan’s film Scrapper about a young girl who is left living alone after her mother dies, then her father turns up. What happens next?

Many will know Louis Garrel from his role as Professor Bhaer in Greta Gerwig’s film Little Women but he is also an accomplished filmmaker in his own right. As his new film, The Innocent, opens in the UK, after multiple César Award nominations and wins for Best Original Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress, he discusses what it’s like to move from writing, directing and starring in his own films to acting in films by other directors.

01:42 A Mirror Review
12:57 Louis Garrel Interview
28:55 Scrapper Review


THU 20:00 The Briefing Room (m001ptg2)
How much trouble is Donald Trump in?

Former US President Donald Trump now faces multiple criminal and civil cases. Which are the most serious, what do they mean for his presidential campaign and could the US constitution prevent him from taking office if he wins the 2024 election?

David Aaronovitch speaks to:

Sarah Smith, BBC North America Editor
Renato Mariotti, Legal Affairs Columnist for POLITICO Magazine, former federal prosecutor and co-host of the “It’s Complicated” podcast
Kermit Roosevelt III, professor of constitutional law at the University of Pennsylvania Carey School of Law, author of The Nation that Never Was: Reconstructing America’s Story.

Production: Ben Carter, Kirsteen Knight and Diane Richardson
Production co-ordinator: Sophie Hill and Debbie Richford
Sound: James Beard
Editor: Richard Vadon


THU 20:30 Blood on the Dance Floor (p0fhqxb6)
3. Glitter in the Chips

The untold story of the murder of a gay police officer in Northern Ireland in 1997
Belfast 1997. But not just any part of Belfast, gay Belfast. A place you've probably never heard of before. Cigarette smoke, aftershave and expectation fill the air in the only gay bar in the country. Sat having a drink on a night out is Darren Bradshaw. He was just 24 years old when he was shot dead in front of hundreds of people. His brutal murder by terrorists sparked fears of a return to all out violence as the new Labour government under Tony Blair sought to bring peace to Northern Ireland - on the road to the Good Friday Agreement.
This is the untold story of his life and murder. A story of both love and eventually betrayal.
Presenter Jordan Dunbar grew up in the city, he was a comedian and drag performer on the Belfast scene and yet this murder and Darren's life was never talked about. As a child of the ceasefire, his knowledge of LGBT life in Northern Ireland all came after the Good Friday Agreement. His history was based on the Loyalist and Republican - the Orange or Green versions and the rainbow had never come up.
Following Darren's story brings to life the struggle of being gay in The Troubles, how Belfast got its first Pride parade only in 1991 and it's very first gay club in 1994 -The Parliament bar where Darren was tragically shot dead.
It's a community surviving as well as thriving against a backdrop of violence and discrimination. He meets the original drag queens, DJs and club pioneers determined to claim back the city centre from the terrorists and create a safe place of their own.
Determined to piece together for the first time how Darren was killed that night and why, Jordan uncovers stories of bigotry, bravery and betrayal.

Reporter: Jordan Dunbar
Series Producer: Paul Grant
Researcher: Patrick Kiteley
Technical Producer: Craig Boardman
Assistant Commissioner: Lorraine Okuefuna
Commissioning Editors: Richard Maddock and Dylan Haskins
Editor and Executive Producer: Carl Johnston


THU 21:00 BBC Inside Science (m001ptds)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:30 today]


THU 21:30 The Patch (m001pt7w)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


THU 22:00 The World Tonight (m001ptgd)
Putin pays tribute to Wagner boss

Also in the programme: Donald Trump poised to hand himself in at Fulton County Jail over election racketeering charges; and the mother and daughter who travelled to space together


THU 22:45 Memory Wall by Anthony Doerr (m001ptgp)
Episode 4

Cape Town, the near future.

The memory clinic cannot cure Alma Konachek’s dementia, but it can slow it down and give her some of her memories back, captured on a series of cartridges and then retrieved on a device called a ‘remote memory simulator'.

At home, Alma has a memory wall covered with these cartridges, along with hand-written notes and a photograph of her late husband, Harold, who was a keen fossil-hunter.

But Alma’s memories are not just of interest to her.

Episode Four
Roger and Luvo think they have what they need, but Alma is waiting for them downstairs.

Anthony Doerr is an American author of novels and short stories. He gained widespread recognition for his 2014 novel All The Light We Cannot See which won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. Memory Wall is the title story from his 2010 collection.

Writer: Anthony Doerr
Reader: Rakie Ayola
Abridger: Jeremy Osborne
Producer: Jeremy Osborne

A Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4


THU 23:00 Fresh from the Fringe (m001ptgz)
2023, Part 2

Radio 4 brings you a live showcase spotlighting some of the best comedy acts at the Edinburgh Fringe this August. Hosted by Kiri Pritchard-McLean with performances from Christopher Macarthur-Boyd, Lindsey Santoro, Tadiwa Mahlunge, Lorna Rose Treen and Dan Tiernan.

Produced by Sasha Bobak
Production Coordinator: Becky Carewe-Jeffries

A BBC Studios Production for Radio 4.


THU 23:30 What's Funny About ... (m0010p13)
Series 2

5. John Cleese on Fawlty Towers

Comedy legend John Cleese discusses his BBC TV sitcom masterpiece, Fawlty Towers.

He's sharing the inside story with TV veterans Peter Fincham and Jon Plowman.

John traces the beginnings of Basil Fawlty all the way back to his work on Monty Python (“nice though the abattoir is…”), and talks about the real hotelier who inspired the character.

He tells us about the writing and casting of the show, and discusses some of the challenges of bringing a character like Fawlty to the screen.

And John talks about the doomed American effort to remake Fawlty , but with one tiny change – the leading character Basil was written out!

Producer: Owen Braben

Made for BBC Radio 4 Extra by Expectation Productions, and first broadcast in October 2021.

FRIDAY 25 AUGUST 2023

FRI 00:00 Midnight News (m001pth7)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.


FRI 00:30 What We Fear Most: Reflections on a Life in Forensic Psychiatry by Dr Ben Cave (m001pt8j)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Thursday]


FRI 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m001pthk)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping


FRI 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m001pthz)
World Service

BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.


FRI 05:20 Shipping Forecast (m001ptjd)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping


FRI 05:30 News Briefing (m001ptjr)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4


FRI 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m001ptk3)
Spiritual reflection to start the day with Rev Neil Gardner of Canongate Kirk, Edinburgh


FRI 05:45 Farming Today (m001ptkh)
25/08/23 Indoor grown salad, micro-greens, broad bean harvest

Which is better - roots deep in the earth or in a nutrient cocktail on a vertical farm? We hear about the biology of how salad crops are grown without using soil.
As part of our week focusing on salad, we visit a micro-farm growing micro-greens.
It's harvest time for broad beans, but one grower calls them “the forgotten vegetable”.

Presented by Caz Graham and produced by Beatrice Fenton.


FRI 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b03whpln)
St Kilda Wren

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

Bill Oddie presents the St Kilda wren. The Island of St Kilda is not where you'd expect to see wrens but the wrens that sing along the cliffs of St Kilda are the same species as the common wren, but after 5000 years of isolation they've evolved a different song and are slightly larger and slightly paler than the mainland wrens. Bill Oddie remembers an encounter with the St Kilda Wren.


FRI 06:00 Today (m001pths)
News and current affairs, including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


FRI 09:00 The Reunion (m001pt17)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:15 on Sunday]


FRI 09:45 What We Fear Most: Reflections on a Life in Forensic Psychiatry by Dr Ben Cave (m001ptj4)
Book of the Week: Episode 5 - In praise of nurses

Dr Ben Cave's compassionate memoir about his career in forensic psychiatry concludes. Today, he reflects on the dedication of the nurses he has worked with over three decades, and recalls one nurse's bravery. He also reaches a turning point. Adrian Scarborough reads.

In What We Fear Most Dr Ben Cave reflects on his decades on the front line of forensic psychiatry where he has seen the extremes of mental illness. He tells the human stories behind the headlines and introduces us to some of the people he has treated. Fear, violence, and sadness but most of all humanity are the hallmarks of each. What emerges is compassion, understanding and for many of his patients, hope and the potential for a brighter future. We also discover how Cave has been shaped by all the many cases that have been his life's work.

Abridged by Richard Hamilton
Produced by Elizabeth Allard


FRI 10:00 Woman's Hour (m001ptjh)
Listener Week: Generative AI, Female thatchers, Big noses, Communal living

For Listener Week, you, our listeners, decide what we cover on the programme.

Listener Liane has tasked the programme with a deep dive into the impact of generative Artificial Intelligence on the workforce. She’s concerned that AI risks making humans “obsolete” and “has the capacity to replace millions of people's creative ideas, artwork, writing, music, their skills in language, invention and interpretation in seconds.” We speak to Dame Diane Coyle, the Bennett Professor of Public Policy at Cambridge University, and Christina Colclough, founder of the Why Not Lab specialising in the futures of work.

Listener Deb emailed in to shine a light on the work of her daughter Daisy and her partner Anna, thatchers who have worked on rooves all over Devon. Our reporter Sarah Swadling caught up with them at work on a cottage near Okehampton.

How do you feel about your nose? Once considered a symbol of beauty and power in ancient Rome, having a slightly larger facial feature nowadays can have a different meaning for some. Do you embrace it in its natural form or have you ever thought about changing it? We speak to Radhika Sanghani, who started the #sideprofileselfie campaign; and Karolina who decided to have a rhinoplasty.

Listener Annette has often thought about living with her female friends in old age but she doesn’t know how to go about it. To answer her questions, we speak to architect Anne Thorne, who has recently built Cannock Mill CoHousing with 25 other households. And Mim Skinner, author of Living Together, a book about intentional communities in the UK and beyond.

Presenter: Anita Rani
Producer: Lucy Wai
Studio Manager: Gayl Gordan

00:00 OPENER
02:17 AI AND AUTOMATION
17.45 TRAIL
18:57 FEMALE THATCHERS
32:00 BIG NOSES
45:51 COMMUNAL LIVING


FRI 11:00 The Briefing Room (m001ptg2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 on Thursday]


FRI 11:30 Ashley Blaker: 6.5 Children (m001ptjw)
Series 2

4. Leisure

If you thought your family holidays are hard work, you need to hear about the Blaker family’s vacation! In episode four of Ashley Blaker’s new series about raising children with special educational needs, he ponders the topic of leisure, including family days out, trips to the park, and one very challenging flight to Greece.

Ashley Blaker: 6.5 Children is a mix of stand-up and observational recording featuring the voices of Ashley's real family. The series brings a whole new perspective to the subject of parenting. Three of Ashley’s children have a diagnosis – two boys with autism and ADHD, and an adopted girl with Down Syndrome – and Ashley Blaker: 6.5 Children sensitively finds the funny in raising children with disabilities.

Ashley Blaker is a comedian who has performed two Off-Broadway shows, tours on five continents, and is author of ‘Normal Schmormal: My occasionally helpful guide to parenting kids with special needs’.

He is joined by Shelley Blond (Peep Show, Cold Feet and the voice of Lara Croft in Tomb Raider), Kieran Hodgson (Three-time Edinburgh Comedy Award nominee and now known to all for his online parody of The Crown), and Rosie Holt (another star of lockdown who has put out many viral videos, most often as her character, The Woman).

Also appearing as themselves are Ashley’s own children - Adam (19), Ollie (18), Dylan (15), Zoe (14), Edward (13) and Bailey (9).

Written and performed by Ashley Blaker
Also starring Shelley Blond, Kieran Hodgson, Rosie Holt, as well as Adam, Ollie, Dylan, Zoe, Edward and Bailey Blaker.
Produced by Steve Doherty

A Giddy Goat production for BBC Radio 4


FRI 12:00 News Summary (m001ptk6)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


FRI 12:04 AntiSocial (m001ptkl)
Can white people be victims of racism?

The argument about prejudice, power, and the disputed idea of “reverse racism”.

A design guide from the Mayor of London’s office included a photo of a white family along with the caption “Doesn’t represent real Londoners”. A spokesman for Mayor Sadiq Khan said the text was “added by a staff member in error”, but some on social media said it showed City Hall was racist against white people. What was actually in the guide? Where does the concept of racism come from? And what does the law say about whether white people can be victims of racism?

Guests:
Rakib Ehsan, researcher, writer, and commentator specialising in immigration and integration
Jaya Gordon-Moore, teacher of A-level Criminology and rapper (JayaHadADream)
Mónica Moreno Figueroa, Professor of Sociology at the University of Cambridge
Mike Walters, Professor of Criminal Law and Criminology at the University of Sussex


FRI 12:57 Weather (m001ptkw)
The latest weather forecast


FRI 13:00 World at One (m001ptl8)
Forty-five minutes of news, analysis and comment, with Jonny Dymond.


FRI 13:45 Hoax (m001ptln)
The Pursuit of Parrots

The search for Australia's mysterious Night Parrot has driven birders mad for decades. But how did a survival good news story descend into allegations of fakery? Dr Tori Herridge investigates.

Produced for BBC Audio Bristol by Beth Sagar-Fenton


FRI 14:00 The Archers (m001ptfj)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Thursday]


FRI 14:15 Limelight (m001ptlz)
There's Something I Need to Tell You

There’s Something I Need to Tell You - 3: The Invitation

After agreeing to help a mysterious stranger, a young couple are implicated in an assassination at their hotel. They find themselves plunged into a deadly game of political score-settling that spans the world and from which they must run to survive. A global thriller of espionage, money and murder.

In Episode 3, A Bangkok escape, another death, an unexpected invite…

By John Scott Dryden and Misha Kawnel

Cast:
Jake.....Chris Lew Kum Hoi
Kayla.....Sophia Del Pizzo
Terry.....Nick Nevern
Miriam.....Jennifer Armour
Zidane.....Walles Hamonde
Official.....Nezar Alderazi

Other parts played by:
Yasmine Alice
Nezar Alderazi
Hugo Dyden
Leela-Grace Dryden
Nicholas Goh
Walles Hamonde
Jay Lim
Ayeesha Menon
Megan Soh
Sheng Chien Tsai

Original music by Sacha Puttnam

Production:
Sound Design: Joseff Harris & John Scott Dryden
Sound Engineer: Paul Clark
Production Assistant: Jo Troy
Producer: Emma Hearn
Director: John Scott Dryden

A Goldhawk production for BBC Radio 4.


FRI 14:45 Helen Lewis: Great Wives (m001ptmb)
Series 2

Rulers and Regents

From the murderous Wu Zetian to the Serpent Queen of France, what does it take for a royal wife to step out of the shadows and dare to wield power?

History is full of “humble” consorts who turned out to be steely leaders after their husbands died. Some governed on behalf of their young sons, while others ruled in their own right. Even queens with living partners could be called on to guard the country when the king was away at war. But not everyone was happy to have a woman in charge.

For two decades, Great Lives on Radio 4 has explored what it takes to change the world. But Helen Lewis wants to ask a different question: what does it take to live with someone who changes the world? In the second season of Great Wives, we’ll meet more fascinating women - and men - and uncover the relationships that created great art, started wars and changed history.

Written and performed by Helen Lewis with additional voices from Kudzanayi Chiwawa & Joshua Higgott
Producer: Gwyn Rhys Davies
Production Coordinator: Sarah Nicholls
Sound Design: Neil Goody

A BBC Studios Production for Radio 4


FRI 15:00 Gardeners' Question Time (m001ptml)
Matt Biggs' House

Is it a realistic goal to grow strawberries indoors? I never seem to have success growing beetroots or carrots. What should I do differently? Can you identify the grey caterpillars on my Solomon’s seal?

This week, Peter Gibbs and his team of horticultural experts pay a visit to GQT regular, Matt Biggs’ garden for a postbag edition of Gardeners’ Question Time. Joining Peter and Matt to offer all their tips and advice are pest and disease expert Pippa Greenwood, and plants woman, Christine Walkden. The panel offer their best horticultural advice on a variety of questions: - from watermelons and strawberries to methods of moving a plant - all the while having a wander around Matt Biggs' back garden.

Assistant Producer: Rahnee Prescod
Producer: Dan Cocker
Executive Producer: Hannah Newton

A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4.


FRI 15:45 Short Works (m001ptmv)
Madwoman's Milk by Louise Kennedy

An original short story commissioned for BBC Radio 4 from the award-winning author of Trespasses, set on the northwest coast of Ireland.

A gardener is faced with hostility and scorn from a new client, until a moment of shattering vulnerability brings understanding...

Reader: Liam O'Brien
Writer: Louise Kennedy is the award-winning author of Trespasses, her debut novel, as well as a collection of short stories, The End of the World Is a Cul de Sac. She grew up near Belfast but now lives in Sligo, Ireland, and worked as a chef for almost thirty years before becoming a writer.
Producer: Justine Willett


FRI 16:00 Last Word (m001ptn3)
Michael Parkinson, Renata Scotto, John Brierly, Isobel Crook

John Wilson on:

The journalist and broadcaster who became synonymous with the British chat show, Sir Michael Parkinson.

Italian soprano Renata Scotto, one of the biggest stars of opera in the 1960s and 70s

John Brierly, the author of bestselling guidebooks to the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route

The teacher, anthropologist and communist Isobel Crook who lived and worked in China for most of her life.

Producer: Ed Prendeville


FRI 16:30 Feedback (m001ptn9)
Call Jonathan Pie has been one of the most popular new BBC comedy podcasts, with over a million plays on BBC Sounds. It pulls no punches and next week makes its debut on Radio 4. Jonathan Pie creator, comedian Tom Walker, and Radio 4’s Comedy Commissioner Julia McKenzie join Andrea Catherwood to discuss the satirical phone-in show and respond to listeners’ comments.

Did BBC Audio play a blinder with their coverage of the Women's World Cup? Sports Reporter Heather Dewar joins Andrea to hear what you have to say.

And the Shiny Bob podcast from BBC Scotland/BBC Sounds explores a scandal that shook the Scottish legal establishment In the early 90s. Karin Goodwin, Investigative Journalist at The Ferret, and Andrew Tickell, Senior Law Lecturer at Glasgow Caledonian University, give their evidence on the podcast in the Vox Box.

Presented by Andrea Catherwood
Produced by Gerry Cassidy
A Whistledown Scotland production for BBC Radio 4


FRI 17:00 PM (m001ptnf)
Afternoon news and current affairs programme, reporting on breaking stories and summing up the day's headlines


FRI 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m001ptnh)
Luis Rubiales has been criticised for kissing a Spanish player at the Women's World Cup


FRI 18:30 Catherine Bohart: TL;DR (m001ptnk)
The fifth of our satirical specials this summer. Columns. Analysis. The Guardian's Long Read. Who has time? Catherine Bohart, that's who, and she's going beyond the headlines to give you the lowdown on one of the biggest stories of the week, alongside writer performer Tom Neenan and roving correspondent Sunil Patel.

Catherine has fast become one of the most sought-after comedians in the UK and Ireland. She co-hosted the BBC Sounds Podcast and Radio 4 show You’ll Do and has appeared on multiple radio shows including The Now Show, The News Quiz, Museum of Curiosity and A Good Read.

The past twelve months have seen her record her debut special for Amazon Prime Video. She has also made multiple appearances on shows such Mock The Week, Late Night Mash and The News Quiz.

Catherine’s other broadcasting credits include Sky1’s A League Of Their Own, Channel 4’s 8 Out Of 10 Cats, Comedy Central UK’s Roast Battle, ITV2’s The Stand Up Sketch Show, Dave’s Jon Richardson: Ultimate Worrier and BBC2’s Richard Osman’s House Of Games. She was also a regular correspondent on BBC2’s The Mash Report and has written material for BBC Radio 4’s The Now Show and Frankie Boyle’s New World Order (BBC2).

Written by Madeleine Brettingham, Sarah Campbell, Emma Nagouse and Pravanya Pillay.

Produced by Victoria Lloyd.

A Mighty Bunny production for BBC Radio 4


FRI 19:00 The Archers (m001ptnm)
Writer, Tim Stimpson
Director, Pip Swallow
Editor, Jeremy Howe

David Archer ….. Timothy Bentinck
Helen Archer ….. Louiza Patikas
Natasha Archer ….. Mali Harries
Pat Archer ….. Patricia Gallimore
Ruth Archer ….. Felicity Finch
Pip Archer ….. Daisy Badger
Tom Archer ….. William Troughton
Susan Carter ….. Charlotte Martin
Rex Fairbrother ….. Nick Barber
Toby Fairbrother ….. Rhys Bevan
Emma Grundy ….. Emerald O’Hanrahan
George Grundy ….. Angus Stobie
Will Grundy ….. Philip Molloy
Stella Pryor ….. Lucy Speed


FRI 19:15 Screenshot (m001ptnp)
Brits Abroad

Ellen and Mark explore Brits abroad in the movies, taking a look at everything from 1972's Carry on Abroad to 2023's Cannes prize-winner How To Have Sex.

Mark talks to Steve Chibnall, Professor of British Cinema at De Montfort University, about some of the most notable examples of Brits on holiday in 20th century cinema. They discuss the mid-century travelogue trend, what British holiday films can tell us about national identity and class, and how 1989's Shirley Valentine stands apart from other films in the genre.

Ellen looks at two more recent examples of the British holiday film, speaking first to director Molly Manning Walker about her debut feature How To Have Sex. Molly reveals how the resort of Malia proved the perfect setting for the film, which follows three teenage girls navigating the complexities of sex and consent on a rite of passage clubbing holiday.

And Ellen then speaks to actor Samantha Morton about her starring role in director Lynne Ramsay's 2002 cult classic Morvern Callar. They discuss Samantha's own experiences as a Brit abroad, her close working relationship with Ramsay, and why Morvern Callar remains so influential two decades on from its first release.

Producer: Jane Long
A Prospect Street production for BBC Radio 4


FRI 20:00 Any Questions? (m001ptnr)
Stephen Flynn MP, Rachael Hamilton MSP, Daniel Johnson MSP, Alex Salmond

Alex Forsyth presents political discussion from Peterhead Theatre in Aberdeenshire with the SNP Westminster Leader Stephen Flynn MP, Scottish Conservative spokesperson for Rural Affairs and Islands Rachael Hamilton MSP, Scottish Labour spokesperson for Business and Enterprise Daniel Johnson MSP and Leader of the Alba party and former First Minister of Scotland Alex Salmond.
Producer: Camellia Sinclair
Lead broadcast engineer: Ken Garden


FRI 20:50 A Point of View (m001ptnt)
The Trad Wife

Megan Nolan explores the concept of the 'trad wife'. She argues that 'the failings of mainstream girl-boss feminism' are leading to a resurgence of the sort of women's lifestyle associated with the 1950s.

Producer: Adele Armstrong
Sound: Peter Bosher
Production coordinator: Gemma Ashman
Editor: Bridget Harney


FRI 21:00 Living on the Edge (m001ptnw)
Omnibus 1

Ten coastal encounters, presented by writer Richard King.

Not simply town or countryside, the coastline is a place apart – attracting lives and stories often overlooked.

In these ten programmes, Richard King travels around the UK coast to meet people who live and work there – a sequence of portraits rooted in distinct places, which piece together into an alternative portrait of the UK: an oblique image of the nation drawn from its coastal edge.


FRI 22:00 The World Tonight (m001ptny)
In depth reporting, intelligent analysis and breaking news from a global perspective


FRI 22:45 Memory Wall by Anthony Doerr (m001ptp0)
Episode 5

Cape Town, the near future.

The memory clinic cannot cure Alma Konachek’s dementia, but it can slow it down and give her some of her memories back, captured on a series of cartridges and then retrieved on a device called a ‘remote memory simulator'.

At home, Alma has a memory wall covered with these cartridges, along with hand-written notes and a photograph of her late husband, Harold, who was a keen fossil-hunter.

But Alma’s memories are not just of interest to her.

Episode Five
Luvo has been camping out in the Karoo, in search of Harold’s fossil, when he recalls a detail from Alma’s memories.

Anthony Doerr is an American author of novels and short stories. He gained widespread recognition for his 2014 novel 'All The Light We Cannot See' which won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. 'Memory Wall' is the title story from his 2010 collection.

Writer: Anthony Doerr
Reader: Rakie Ayola
Abridger: Jeremy Osborne
Producer: Jeremy Osborne

A Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4


FRI 23:00 Americast (m001ptp3)
Republican Rumble

While his challengers clashed in Milwaukee, Donald Trump skipped the first Republican debate of the campaign for the relative comfort of an interview with ex-Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson.

Did any of the other presidential candidates surprise? It’s an Americast Wisconsin special as the team try cheese curds and sip beer at a bar near the venue and link up with Sarah, who’s in Atlanta waiting for Trump’s latest arrest, to break down the showdown and the no-show.

And Marianna chats to local voters about how the politics has been playing out on their social media feeds.

HOSTS:
• Sarah Smith, North America editor
• Marianna Spring, disinformation and social media correspondent
• Anthony Zurcher, North America correspondent

GET IN TOUCH:
• Join our online community: https://discord.gg/qSrxqNcmRB
• Send us a message or voice note via WhatsApp to +44 330 123 9480
• Email Americast@bbc.co.uk
• Or use #Americast

Find out more about our award-winning “undercover voters” here: bbc.in/3lFddSF.

This episode was made by Rufus Gray with Catherine Fusillo. The technical producer was Emma Crowe. The series producer is Daniel Wittenberg and the editor is Jonathan Aspinwall.

BBC SOUNDS CHAPTERS:
00:00 – Trump’s Debate No-Show
04:19 – Debate Winners and Losers
18:57 – US Voters Social Media Panel
34:20 – Cheese Curd Wisconsinbly


FRI 23:30 What's Funny About ... (m0010wqb)
Series 2

6. Felicity Kendal on The Good Life

Felicity Kendal reveals the inside story of her iconic performance as Barbara Good in much-loved BBC sitcom, The Good Life.

The actress shares the inside story with TV veterans Peter Fincham and Jon Plowman.

Felicity reveals how the part came to her – not via an audition or a call from her agent, but from Richard Briers himself, when he popped round to her dressing room, script in hand, after seeing her in a West End matinee.

She talks with huge affection about her co-stars, Richard Briers, Paul Eddington, and Penny Keith. And she addresses the question that everyone wants to ask – did the Goods and the Leadbetters ever *really* consider wife swapping?!

Discover how great TV comedy gets made.

Producer: Owen Braben

Made for BBC Radio 4 Extra by Expectation Productions, and first broadcast in October 2021.