Blind amateur sleuth, Max Carrados investigates a dastardly husband's plot to murder his wife.
Out in the London suburbs, mystery piles upon mystery. What does the urgent telegram say? Why is there a metal plate bolted to the floor? Max thinks he knows, but can he halt the deadly machinations?
Read by Arthur Darvill.
Max Carrados first featured in a series of mystery books in 1914. Carrados also shared top billing alongside Sherlock Holmes in 'The Strand Magazine". The character often boasts how much his blindness means his other senses are heightened.
Ernest Bramah excelled in his detailed writing and uncovering of clues. The beneficiary of a large inheritance from an American relative, Carrados is foremost a gentleman who undertakes sleuthing only as an avocation. Though equipped with a keen observer in the perfect manservant Parkinson, Carrados doesn't just sit around deducing. He makes his own observations with ears, nose and fingertips.
Abridged by Paul Kent.
Made for BBC Radio 4 Extra by Ladbroke Radio Productions and first broadcast in 2011.
Ceramicist Lars Tharp explores our relationship with the funeral urn. He examines both the history and future of the urn with artist Grayson Perry, using readings from Sir Thomas Browne's treatise, Urn Burial. Lars also talks to funeral directors, ceramic experts and visits the British Museum where, he uncovers the urn which inspired Keats to write his poem, Ode on a Grecian Urn.
On the down side, Roy has lost his job as journalist, blown his chance of romance with his former teacher, Jane and is about to have his house repossessed.
But just when he thought it was safe to retreat into self-pity and fantasies about The Archers, help comes from an unexpected quarter...
Series two of Tony Bagley's romantic comedy drama serial that mixes fantasy with reality.
Starring Martin Clunes as Roy Hitchcock, Geraldine James as Jane Gallaghan, Nicky Henson as Chad Mann., David Troughton as Colin, Rebecca Front as Mrs Churchill and Sue Roderick as Gwyn.
Adventuring comedian Tim FitzHigham recreates a 19th-century bet.
Producer: Joe Nunnery.
Commander Povey orders the poorly crew of HMS Troutbridge on to choppy waters in search of a buoy.
Starring Leslie Phillips as the Sub-Lieutenant, Jon Pertwee as the Chief Petty Officer, Stephen Murray as Number One, Richard Caldicot as Commander Povey, Ronnie Barker as AS Johnson, Heather Chasen as Heather, Michael Bates as the Rating and Tenniel Evans as AS Goldstein.
The Navy Lark ran for an impressive 13 series on BBC Radio between 1959 and 1976.
Scripted by Lawrie Wyman.
Producer: Alastair Scott Johnston.
Meet the Aristocracy of Britain - and take a driving test with a difference...
More quick-fire sketches, terrible puns, humorous songs and parodies.
Stars Tim Brooke-Taylor, John Cleese, David Hatch, Jo Kendall and Bill Oddie.
Written by Eric Idle, Graeme Garden, David Hatch and Bill Oddie.
Originating from the Cambridge University Footlights revue 'Cambridge Circus', ISIRTA ran for 8 years on BBC Radio and quickly developed a cult following.
Music and songs by Dave Lee and Bill Oddie.
Brian Johnston umpires as Willie Rushton and William Franklyn battle Tim Rice and Bernard Cribbins. From October 1991.
Second World War stand-up comedian Edie Trinder joins Mel Hudson and Vicki Pepperdine for some Blitz humour - and another war hero literally drops in!
Plus tips on relaxation from the Dirty Sloanes and more from the Gory Nuns and the Goatee Beard Men's Group.
Variety meets sitcom meets sketch show - written and performed by Mel Hudson and Vicki Pepperdine.
With Dave Lamb, Martin Hyder and Jim North.
Additional material by Martin Hyder and Jim North.
Music by Richard Webb.
Producers: Helen Williams and Claire Jones.
Fulham, London, 1958: It's over five years since Tommie was de-mobbed after National Service. Now he's come back in search of some familiar faces
George Cole stars in Ronnie Smith’s poignant comedy which is interspersed with music of the period.
Older Tommie ...... George Cole
Younger Tommie ...... David Thorpe
Lil ...... Becky Hindley
Duckett ...... John Hartley
Doreen ...... Deborah Berlin
Mrs Letts ...... Kate Williams
Hank ...... Matt Podmore
Bewildered by the changes in her life, an aunt finds solace in an unexpected place. Read by Penelope Wilton.
by Michael Chaplin.
Series created by Jonathan Ruffle.
Meticulously based on unit war diaries and eye-witness accounts, each episode of TOMMIES traces one real day at war, exactly 100 years ago.
Through it all, we'll follow the fortunes of Mickey Bliss and his fellow signallers, from the Lahore Division of the British Indian Army. They are the cogs in an immense machine, one which connects situations across the whole theatre of the war, over four long years.
Indira Varma, Danny Rahim and Nicholas Farrell star in this story, as the first Indian Army soldiers arrive on the battlefields of France, and the under-equipped infantry of the 9th Bhopal Regiment find themselves on the front line at the first battle of Neuve Chapelle.
What is the truth behind the shadowy Gastmann's dinner parties? Bernard Hepton reads Friedrich Dürrenmatt's novella.
Pneumatic tyres and the development of the safety bicycle allow the wealthier middle classes to take to the road in the bicycling craze of the late 19th century.
Beasts on the Lawn is a collection of Edwardian short stories by Saki (H.H Munro) recycled and restaged in a modern day gated community for the far too wealthy for their own good. The tales are woven together by the character of Clovis, a security guard. She recalls the events of strange days and long nights.
When Conrad de Ropp Snr is given 'gardening leave' from his bank, his time at home coincides with his adopted ten year old son's (Conrad Jnr) school holiday. It's a sobering time, mainly because Conrad Snr had almost forgotten the boy existed. Snr thinks Jnr spends far too much time on his own in the garden. He's occupying himself in the shed, and Snr wonders if the boy has found himself an unhealthy habit. But it's not sexual, it's religious. Jnr has got himself an idol. To anyone else it's just a pet ferret, but to little Conrad it's Sredni Vashtar, a vengeful, merciless god. He loves it. He worships it in secret, and he prays each day it will rid him of Conrad Snr.
Reading his account of the famous Kent garden, Adam Nicolson wants to create an organic farm, but others aren't so sure.
Death has fun in the real world, leaving his daughter Ysabell and Mort in charge of the life-collecting business.
The fourth of Terry's Pratchett's comic fantasy stories set on Discworld.
Narrated by Anton Lesser.
Mort ...... Carl Prekopp
Death ...... Geoffrey Whitehead
Albert ...... Phillip Jackson
Ysabell ...... Clare Corbett
Princess Keli ...... Alice Hart
Cutwell ...... Adam Godley
Keeble ...... Philip Fox
Landlord ...... Jon Glover
Dramatised by Robin Brooks.
Matthew Parris knows what he did, and so do Gillian Slovo, Dannie Abse and Paul Burke. They all discuss atonement. From September 2004.
Through the medium of four open letters, the comedian Tom Wrigglesworth investigates the myriad examples of corporate lunacy and maddening jobsworths in modern Britain.
In this series his subjects range from traffic wardens to estate agents, with Tom recalling his own funny and ridiculous experiences as well as recounting the absurd encounters of others.
Walter continues to be suspicious of his wife's attempts at reconciliation, and the Crumb-Looselys' long-distance relationship steers towards the rocks.
Geoffrey Palmer and Julian Rhind-Tutt star in series 3 of David Nobbs’s sitcom about a small museum of paintings and sculpture.
Rod Millet ...... Julian Rhind-Tutt
Walter Brindle ...... Geoffrey Palmer
Prunella Edgecumbe ...... Rachel Atkins
Susie Maltby ...... Margaret Cabourn-Smith
Julian Crumb-Loosely ...... Ben Willbond
Wilf Arbuthnot ...... Geoff McGivern
Eva Tattle ...... Juklia Deakin
Des Wainwright ...... Michael Smiley
Stelios Constantinopoulis ...... Chris Pavlo
Gloria Brindle ...... Helen Atkinson-Wood
Vicar ...... Stephen K Amos
Meet Daisy, the chattering public school girl's, parents and find out why the Mona Lisa has been dumped by the Laughing Cavalier.
Plus, a Police Officer who can't find the right words, a street survey that probes too far and Candi Karmel's sister makes an appearance.
A multi-paced, showcase for the exceptional talent of Lucy Montgomery.
With Philip Pope, Sally Grace, Waen Shepherd and Natalie Walter.
Written by Lucy Montgomery with additional material by Steven Burge and Dan Tetsell.
Producer: Katie Tyrrell.
THURSDAY 23 APRIL 2015
THU 00:00 Terry Pratchett (b007k1c1)
[Repeat of broadcast at
18:00 on Wednesday]
THU 00:30 Off the Page (b0076n30)
[Repeat of broadcast at
18:30 on Wednesday]
THU 01:00 The Tales of Max Carrados (b016z2cw)
[Repeat of broadcast at
06:00 on Wednesday]
THU 01:30 Earth to Earth: Potted Immortality (b00lyrb6)
[Repeat of broadcast at
06:30 on Wednesday]
THU 02:00 Inspector Barlach - The Judge and his Hangman (b01nhg6d)
[Repeat of broadcast at
14:00 on Wednesday]
THU 02:15 On Your Bike (b00ybzn2)
[Repeat of broadcast at
14:15 on Wednesday]
THU 02:30 15 Minute Drama (b011vg91)
[Repeat of broadcast at
14:30 on Wednesday]
THU 02:45 Sissinghurst: An Unfinished History (b010nn2r)
[Repeat of broadcast at
14:45 on Wednesday]
THU 03:00 Ronnie Smith - Cherries Hung with Snow (b0075zy2)
[Repeat of broadcast at
10:00 on Wednesday]
THU 04:00 Trivia Test Match (b00vt76v)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:00 on Wednesday]
THU 04:30 The Hudson and Pepperdine Show (b0076283)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:30 on Wednesday]
THU 05:00 The Older Woman (b0391n2w)
[Repeat of broadcast at
07:00 on Wednesday]
THU 05:30 Tim FitzHigham: The Gambler (b05qgm0y)
[Repeat of broadcast at
07:30 on Wednesday]
THU 06:00 The Tales of Max Carrados (b017071f)
The Last Exploit of Harry the Actor
After a spate of mysterious thefts from the supposedly impregnable Lucas Street Depository, blind amateur sleuth Max Carrados discovers that infamous American con-man, Harry the Actor's been at work...but to what end?
Read by Arthur Darvill.
Max Carrados first featured in a series of mystery books in 1914. Carrados also shared top billing alongside Sherlock Holmes in 'The Strand Magazine". The character often boasts how much his blindness means his other senses are heightened.
Ernest Bramah excelled in his detailed writing and uncovering of clues. The beneficiary of a large inheritance from an American relative, Carrados is foremost a gentleman who undertakes sleuthing only as an avocation. Though equipped with a keen observer in the perfect manservant Parkinson, Carrados doesn't just sit around deducing. He makes his own observations with ears, nose and fingertips.
Abridged by Paul Kent.
Producer: Neil Gardner
Made for BBC Radio 4 Extra by Ladbroke Radio Productions and first broadcast in 2011.
THU 06:30 Femme Fatale: The Story of Nico (b00gd1t0)
Marc Riley tells the story of Christa Paffgen, the German model and actress who would become better known as Nico, the singer with influential 1960s rock band The Velvet Underground.
Featuring interviews with her son Ari; her manager during her time in Manchester, Alan Wise; her biographer Richard Witts; John Cale, one of her colleagues in The Velvet Underground; and James Young, author and musician who worked with Nico for six years.
Producer: Nicola Swords
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2009.
THU 07:00 Potting On (b00lblps)
Flab
Noticing both their waistlines are getting bigger, Pam challenges Gordon to a dieting competition.
Sitcom about a couple at odds over running a garden centre and growing older.
Starring Pam Ayres as Pam and Geoffrey Whitehead as Gordon.
Written by Chris Thompson and Peter Reynolds with Pam Ayres.
With Trevor Bannister, Karl Theobald and Alex Tregear.
Sitcom by Chris Thompson and Peter Reynolds.
Producer Claire Jones
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2008.
THU 07:30 Ed Reardon's Week (b03jz1hz)
Series 9
Blood of the Reardons
Ed Reardon leads us through the ups and down of his week, complete with his trusty companion, Elgar, and his never-ending capacity for scrimping and scraping at whatever scraps his agent, Ping, can offer him to keep body, mind and cat together.
Ed discovers that he has diabetes and his daughter, Eli, turns up to be his calorie counter- in-chief. To escape Eli's gluten free falafel salad, Ed enrols on a clinical trial, and that's when his son, Jake turns up in the hope of a fly-on-the-wall documentary, although as Ping Points out, it will only be marketable if Ed dies!
Written by Andrew Nickolds and Christopher Douglas
Produced by Dawn Ellis.
THU 08:00 Brothers in Law (b007k268)
Series 1
Counsel for the Prosecution
Rookie barrister Roger Thursby confronts a fearsome judge.
Starring Richard Briers as Roger Thursby and Richard Waring as Henry Blagrove.
Judge Duncannon ...... Andrew Cruickshank
Spicer ...... Roy Kinnear
Grimes ...... John Glyn-Jones
Sally Mannering ...... Ann Davies
Mrs Thursby ...... Jean Anderson
Hindmouth ...... John Baker
Other parts Alan Barry, Hector Ross and Frederick Treves
Adapted for radio by Richard Waring from the BBC TV scripts.
Restored from BBC Transcription Service tapes - originally edited for sale abroad.
Published in 1955, Henry Cecil's comic legal novel Brothers in Law was adapted first for TV in 1962 by Frank Muir and Denis Norden. It provided the first regular starring role for Richard Briers, who later reprised his role of the idealistic young lawyer Roger Thursby for BBC Radio between 1970 and 1972.
Producer: David Hatch.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 1970.
THU 08:30 Not in Front of the Children (b05r7w7g)
Series 1
Spare Time Job
Jen's scheme to make money runs into red tape - and worse.
Starring Wendy Craig and Francis Matthew.
The comedy mishaps of the Corner family - Jennifer and Henry and their three kids Trudi, Amanda and Robin.
Four series were first shown on BBC TV from 1967 to 1970. Richard Waring adapted his own scripts for this radio version, now fully restored from the original reel-to-reel tapes. Wendy Craig won a Best Actress BAFTA award for the TV version of Not in Front of the Children in 1969
Jennifer …. Wendy Craig
Henry …. Francis Matthews
Trudi …. Roberta Tovey
Robin …. Hugo Keith-Johnston
Amanda …. Jill Riddick
Mother …. Fanny Rowe
Mary …. Charlotte Mitchell
Bill Perry …. Michael Kilgarriff
Vera Walters …. Aline Waites
Bobby's Daddy …. David Tate
City Man …. Frederick Treves
Music by Ronnie Hazlehurst.
Producer: Trafford Whitelock.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 1969.
THU 09:00 Who Goes There? (b0075yzs)
Series 4
Episode 3
Martin Young chairs the quiz which looks at the noteworthy and the notorious from history.
Tackling the biographical teasers are team captains Francis Wheen and Fred Housego with guests Vivienne Parry and Jonathan Meades
Producer: Liz Anstee
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 2000.
THU 09:30 The Sit Crom (b00mbc2k)
Night Exercises
With the sovereign set for a visit, confusion reigns in Lady Anne's bedchamber.
Sue Limb's six-part comedy set during the English Civil War.
Sir John Firebasket ...... Joss Ackland
Lady Anne Firebasket ...... Denise Coffey
Tobias Thynne ...... Clive Merrison
Mercy, alias Melissa ...... Miriam Margoyles
Father Francis ...... Nickolas Grace
Slow Ned ...... Chris Emmett
Gazebo Fogg ...... Jack Klaff
Posthumous ...... Nicky Henson
Counter Tenor ...... Peter Hayward
Producer: Jonathan James-Moore
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1990.
THU 10:00 Anthony Trollope - Orley Farm (b01102gl)
1. Suspicions
Mr Dockwrath, attorney by profession and a tenant of Orley Farm, is convinced there are suspicious circumstances regarding the inheritance of the estate, and he's determined to prove it.
Starring Tim Pigott-Smith, Samantha Bond and Ronald Pickup.
First published in 1861, Anthony Trollope’s compelling, emotional tale is a treasure trove of splendidly disreputable lawyers, young lovers, the beautiful Lady Mason and the honourable Sir Peregrine Orme.
Dramatised in three parts by Martyn Wade
Anthony Trollope ...... Tim Pigott-Smith
Lady Mason ...... Samantha Bond
Sir Peregrine ...... Ronald Pickup
Peregrine Orme ...... Dan Stevens
Mrs Edith Orme ...... Amanda Root
Lucius Mason ...... Jonathan Christie
Sophia Furnival ...... Lydia Leonard
Mr Furnival ...... Robert Maskell
Mrs Furnival ...... Joanna Monro
Mr Dockwrath ...... Sam Dale
Miriam Dockwrath ...... Janice Acquah
Joseph Mason ...... Jonathan Tafler
Mr Moulder ...... Stephen Critchlow
Mr Kantwise ...... Pual Rider
Felix Graham ...... Gunnar Cauthery
Augustus Staveley ...... Robert Lonsdale
Matthew Round ...... Dan Starkey
Richard Round ...... Malcolm Tierney
Miss Biggs ...... Jill Cardo
Director: Tracey Neale.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2008.
THU 11:00 Five Stories by Rose Tremain (b00cqmjl)
Moth
A strange transformation brings attention and tragedy to a trailer park mother. Read by Debora Weston.
THU 11:15 Tommies (b03thc5k)
4 November 1914
by Michael Chaplin.
Series created by Jonathan Ruffle.
Meticulously based on unit war diaries and eye-witness accounts, each episode of Tommies traces one real day at war and behind the battlefront, exactly 100 years ago.
And through it all, we follow the fortunes of Mickey Bliss and his fellow signallers, from the Lahore Division of the British Indian Army. They are the cogs in an immense machine, one which connects situations across the whole theatre of the war, over four long years.
Indira Varma, Pippa Nixon and Patrick Kennedy star in this story, as Dr Celestine de Tullio returns from France to find that things are amiss with army medicals, while her husband Robert gets embroiled in the realities of financing a war.
Producers: David Hunter, Jonquil Panting, Jonathan Ruffle
Director: Jonquil Panting.
THU 12:00 Brothers in Law (b007k268)
[Repeat of broadcast at
08:00 today]
THU 12:30 Not in Front of the Children (b05r7w7g)
[Repeat of broadcast at
08:30 today]
THU 13:00 The Tales of Max Carrados (b017071f)
[Repeat of broadcast at
06:00 today]
THU 13:30 Femme Fatale: The Story of Nico (b00gd1t0)
[Repeat of broadcast at
06:30 today]
THU 14:00 Inspector Barlach - The Judge and his Hangman (b01nj0km)
Episode 4
The man known as Gastmann reveals his and Barlach's shared past. Bernard Hepton reads Friedrich Dürrenmatt's novella.
THU 14:15 On Your Bike (b00yfq5h)
Politics, Liberation and Emancipation
Cycling, suffragettes and socialism, the new political pioneers of the open road as freedom of movement brings political freedom and the ability to campaign for your cause.
Presenter: Martin Ellis
Producer: Simon Evans
A Pier Production for BBC Radio 4.
THU 14:30 15 Minute Drama (b011vh4r)
HH Munro - Beasts on the Lawn: Saki
Gabriel Ernest
Beasts on the Lawn: Saki 2011
Original stories by Saki (H.H Munro)
Adapted by Sean Grundy
Beasts on the Lawn is a collection of Edwardian short stories by Saki (H.H Munro) recycled and restaged in a modern day gated community for the far too wealthy for their own good. The tales are woven together by the character of Clovis, a security guard. She recalls the events of strange days and long nights.
Episode Four: Gabriel Ernest
Unpleasant celebrity chef Van Cheele has made quite a name for himself with his particular brand of nasty cooking. One day he finds a filthy naked teenager sunbathing in his large garden on the Munro Estate. The boy claims to enjoy hunting animals and also occasionally humans on the estate. Van Cheele believes that this is a prank by a fellow celebrity chef, but soon discovers that he's truly met his match.
Cast:
Clovis.............................Pippa Haywood
Gabriel Ernest.......................Carl Prekopp
Van Cheele..............................Ed Weeks
Ewa Ptorovisch......................Dolly Wells
Jeff the Man..................Malcolm Hamilton
Director: Alison Crawford.
THU 14:45 Sissinghurst: An Unfinished History (b010nrtr)
Setbacks and Struggles
In his account of the famous Kent garden, Adam Nicolson faces opposition to his plan to return to productive farming.
THU 15:00 Anthony Trollope - Orley Farm (b01102gl)
[Repeat of broadcast at
10:00 today]
THU 16:00 Who Goes There? (b0075yzs)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:00 today]
THU 16:30 The Sit Crom (b00mbc2k)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:30 today]
THU 17:00 Anything Legal (b0088z2b)
Episode 5
Charles and George hire a secretary to boost their new business offering anything legal...
Starring Donald Hewlett and Michael Knowles.
A Tale of Two City Gents by Wally K Daly
Charles .... Donald Hewlett
George .... Michael Knowles
Belinda Bustrom .... Sherrie Hewson
Job Applicant .... Helena Breck
Theme music by Jim Parker
Producer: John Fawcett Wilson
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 1984.
THU 17:30 Potting On (b00lblps)
[Repeat of broadcast at
07:00 today]
THU 18:00 Terry Pratchett (b007k1l2)
Mort
Episode 4
Death has disappeared, leaving his apprentice Mort, his daughter Ysabell and Albert the cook to carry on the life-collecting operation.
The conclusion of Terry's Pratchett's comic fantasy set on Discworld.
Narrated by Anton Lesser.
and Jon Glover as the Duke.
Mort ...... Carl Prekopp
Death ...... Geoffrey Whitehead
Albert ...... Phillip Jackson
Ysabell ...... Clare Corbett
Princess Keli ...... Alice Hart
Cutwell ...... Adam Godley
Rincewind ...... Philip Fox
Duke ...... Jon Glover
Dramatised by Robin Brooks.
Director: Claire Grove
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 2004.
THU 18:30 Great Lives (b0076l2c)
Series 5
Tchaikovsky
Economist Ruth Lea chooses the great Russian composer. Music critic and writer Stephen Johnson adds his expertise. With Humphrey Carpenter. From April 2004.
THU 19:00 Brothers in Law (b007k268)
[Repeat of broadcast at
08:00 today]
THU 19:30 Not in Front of the Children (b05r7w7g)
[Repeat of broadcast at
08:30 today]
THU 20:00 The Tales of Max Carrados (b017071f)
[Repeat of broadcast at
06:00 today]
THU 20:30 Femme Fatale: The Story of Nico (b00gd1t0)
[Repeat of broadcast at
06:30 today]
THU 21:00 Five Stories by Rose Tremain (b00cqmjl)
[Repeat of broadcast at
11:00 today]
THU 21:15 Tommies (b03thc5k)
[Repeat of broadcast at
11:15 today]
THU 22:00 Ed Reardon's Week (b03jz1hz)
[Repeat of broadcast at
07:30 today]
THU 22:30 My Teenage Diary (b01kknzp)
Series 4
Jackie Kay
My Teenage Diary returns with six more brave celebrities ready to revisit their formative years by opening up their intimate teenage diaries, and reading them out in public for the very first time.
Comedian Rufus Hound is joined by poet Jackie Kay who revisits her politically active student years in the early eighties, when she went on every demo she possibly could. She shares some of her early poetry, and talks about what a revelation it was to finally meet and make friends with other black women when she was at university.
Producer: Harriet Jaine
A Talkback production for BBC Radio 4.
THU 23:00 My Booze Hell, by Little Johnny Cartilage (b00dwnds)
Malcolm MacDonald's Sideburns
The not-terribly-true autobiography of 1970s idol Little Johnny Cartilage.
His descent into obscurity begins with the launch of Cartilage Family and includes extracts from his infamous appearance on BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs with Sue Lawley.
Written by and starring Johnny Meres.
With:
Sue Lawley
Ben Miller
Peter Serafinowicz
Geoff McGivern ,
Rosemary Martin
Deborah Berlin
Producer: Gareth Edwards
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in October 1996.
THU 23:15 Date With Fate (b008y7g7)
A Damp Fib
Simon is a junior clerk in a surveyor's office, but when he tells a white lie it sparks disastrous consequences...
Harold Wing Pinero is your host.
The first of four comic close encounters with fate written by Gary Parker and Phil Whelans.
Simon ...... Alex Lowe
Harold Wing Pinero ...... Charles Gray
Naomi ...... Elliot Nicholls
Mr Reynolds ...... James Greene
Mrs Gibson ...... Margaret Stallard
Alan ...... Paul Davies
Producer: Paul Schlesinger
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 1996.
THU 23:30 Hut 33 (b00wbkxg)
Series 2
Where Boffins Dare
The codebreakers are threatened with being sent to Burma after making yet another mistake with a message.
In an attempt to redeem themselves before their superiors, they set out to capture a German spy.
James Cary's sitcom set at Bletchley Park - the top-secret home of the Second World War codebreakers.
Charles …. Robert Bathurst
Archie …. Tom Goodman-Hill
Minka …. Olivia Colman
Mrs Best …. Lill Roughley
Gordon …. Fergus Craig
Joshua … Alex McQueen
With Ben Willbond.
Producer: Adam Bromley
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 2008.
FRIDAY 24 APRIL 2015
FRI 00:00 Terry Pratchett (b007k1l2)
[Repeat of broadcast at
18:00 on Thursday]
FRI 00:30 Great Lives (b0076l2c)
[Repeat of broadcast at
18:30 on Thursday]
FRI 01:00 The Tales of Max Carrados (b017071f)
[Repeat of broadcast at
06:00 on Thursday]
FRI 01:30 Femme Fatale: The Story of Nico (b00gd1t0)
[Repeat of broadcast at
06:30 on Thursday]
FRI 02:00 Inspector Barlach - The Judge and his Hangman (b01nj0km)
[Repeat of broadcast at
14:00 on Thursday]
FRI 02:15 On Your Bike (b00yfq5h)
[Repeat of broadcast at
14:15 on Thursday]
FRI 02:30 15 Minute Drama (b011vh4r)
[Repeat of broadcast at
14:30 on Thursday]
FRI 02:45 Sissinghurst: An Unfinished History (b010nrtr)
[Repeat of broadcast at
14:45 on Thursday]
FRI 03:00 Anthony Trollope - Orley Farm (b01102gl)
[Repeat of broadcast at
10:00 on Thursday]
FRI 04:00 Who Goes There? (b0075yzs)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:00 on Thursday]
FRI 04:30 The Sit Crom (b00mbc2k)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:30 on Thursday]
FRI 05:00 Anything Legal (b0088z2b)
[Repeat of broadcast at
17:00 on Thursday]
FRI 05:30 Potting On (b00lblps)
[Repeat of broadcast at
07:00 on Thursday]
FRI 06:00 The Tales of Max Carrados (b01709qq)
A Game Played in the Dark
The British Museum contacts blind amateur sleuth, Max Carrados over a horde of stolen ancient coins. Out on his hunt for the currency, Max comes face-to-face with some of his old adversaries. But who will win..?
Read by Arthur Darvill.
Max Carrados first featured in a series of mystery books in 1914. Carrados also shared top billing alongside Sherlock Holmes in 'The Strand Magazine". The character often boasts how much his blindness means his other senses are heightened.
Ernest Bramah excelled in his detailed writing and uncovering of clues. The beneficiary of a large inheritance from an American relative, Carrados is foremost a gentleman who undertakes sleuthing only as an avocation. Though equipped with a keen observer in the perfect manservant Parkinson, Carrados doesn't just sit around deducing. He makes his own observations with ears, nose and fingertips.
Abridged by Paul Kent.
Producer: Neil Gardner
Made for BBC Radio 4 Extra by Ladbroke Radio Productions and first broadcast in 2011.
FRI 06:30 The Lake (b00gs3ks)
An evocative sound portrait of Britain's largest lake, Lough Neagh in Northern Ireland. With a shoreline measuring over 70 miles long, this vast stretch of water is more like a sea than a lake. Recordings made above and below the waves reveal a moody, stormy, wild and even dangerous place where legends of a buried town, a horse god and three sisters emerge from the shallows, while smoke-like plumes and huge flocks of birds rise from the surface as the seasons unfold.
FRI 07:00 Rent (b00752s3)
Series 3
Episode 5
Paul has a very serious question to ask Ruby, and Maria is developing a serious problem with gambling.
Series 3 of Lucy Flannery's award-winning sitcom about Maria and Richard Reynolds and their lodgers.
CAST:
Maria …. Barbara Flynn
Richard …. Patrick Barlow
Amy …. Linda Polan
Ruby …. Vivienne Rochester
Paul …. Dave Lamb
Betting Shop Assistant …. Amanda Davies
Producer: Liz Anstee.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 1997.
FRI 07:30 The Vote Now Show (b05qk706)
Series 2
Episode 1
A series of election specials from the Now Show gang kicks off this evening. Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis will host a series of six shows spread across four weeks in the lead up to the General Election. With the help of Jon Holmes, Pippa Evans, Laura Shavin, Mitch Benn and special guests from across the political spectrum they'll give their own unique take on the election news and shenanigans. In the first show there'll be their critique of the second of the leader's debates.
In the first episode Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis are joined by Jon Holmes, Pippa Evans, Mitch Benn, Sean Kemp and Nish Kumar.
Producers; Alexandra Smith, Joe Nunnery and Rachel Wheeley.
Executive Producer Alison Vernon-Smith.
FRI 08:00 Hancock's Half Hour (b007k456)
Series 3
The Test Match
MCC chairman Sid makes the lad cricket captain for England, but places his bet on Australia to win!
Starring Tony Hancock.
With Bill Kerr, Sidney James, Andree Melly and Kenneth Williams.
Written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson.
Theme and incidental music composed by Wally Stott. Recorded by the BBC Revue Orchestra conducted by Harry Rabinowitz.
Producer: Dennis Main Wilson
First broadcast on the BBC Light Programme in February 1956.
FRI 08:30 Play It Cool (b05r7w7p)
Episode 4
What if the Cannes film festival came to Britain? What might Hollywood stars expect?
Fast-moving sketches starring Ian Carmichael, Joan Sims and Hugh Paddick.
Films like Private's Progress and I'm All Right Jack helped make Ian Carmichael a major star of both British stage and screen. Play it Cool was his first radio comedy series promising a variety of potty and pompous situations.
Written by Eric Merriman - best known for his work on Beyond Our Ken.
With music from Rosemary Squires, The Mike Sammes Singers and The Ken Thorne Orchestra
Producer: John Simmonds
First broadcast on the BBC Light Programme in August 1964.
FRI 09:00 All the Way from Memphis (b00jdp93)
Series 1
Episode 4
James Walton's pop music history quiz with Andrew Collins, Martin Freeman, Tracey Macleod and Stewart Lee. From December 2004.
FRI 09:30 Richard Barton: General Practitioner! (b0075887)
Episode 5
Unretirable special agent Dick Bartno and his son Richard are having no trouble speaking their minds. Which inevitably gets them both into trouble.
Richard Barton ...... Robert Bathurst
Old Dick Barton ...... Moray Watson
Jock ...... Iain Cuthbertson
Young Dick Barton ...... Julian Dutton
Sally Phillips ...... Matilda Ziegler
Other parts played by Fiona Allen and Roger Blake.
In 1946, Edward J Mason wrote the first episode of Dick Barton - Special Agent. The BBC Light Programme's hugely popular serial followed the adventures of the ex-Commando and his mates Jock Anderson and Snowy White. Despite facing a series of never-ending cliff-hangers at the hands of dastardly villains, our hero always triumphed. "With one bound Dick was free!".
Half a century later, Edward J's son Lol created Richard Barton, son of Dick, in an affectionate homage to one of BBC Radio's most enduring heroes.
Producer: Jo Clegg
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 1998.
FRI 10:00 Anthony Trollope - Orley Farm (b00g9f9q)
2. Romance
Romance is in the air for the young folk staying at Noningsby, the country home of Judge and Lady Staveley.
Lady Mason accepts Sir Peregrine's invitation to spend Christmas at The Cleeve, and, in the Moulder household, there is business to consider.
Starring Tim Pigott-Smith, Samantha Bond and Ronald Pickup.
Anthony Trollope’s compelling, emotional novel dramatised by Martyn Wade.
Anthony Trollope ...... Tim Pigott-Smith
Lady Mason ...... Samantha Bond
Sir Peregrine ...... Ronald Pickup
Peregrine Orme ...... Dan Stevens
Mrs Edith Orme ...... Amanda Root
Lucius Mason ...... Jonathan Christie
Sophia Furnival ...... Lydia Leonard
Mr Furnival ...... Robert Maskell
Lady Staveley ...... Pamela Miles
Madeline Staveley ...... Manjeet Mann
Augustus Staveley ...... Robert Lonsdale
Felix Graham ...... Gunnar Cauthery
Mr Dockwrath ...... Sam Dale
Miriam Dockwrath ...... Janice Acquah
Joseph Mason ...... Jonathan Tafler
Mr Moulder ...... Stephen Critchlow
Mrs Moulder ...... Jane Whittenshaw
John Kenneby ...... Inam Mirza
Mr Kantwise ...... Paul Rider
Matthew Round ...... Dan Starkey
Director: Tracey Neale.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2009.
FRI 11:00 Five Stories by Rose Tremain (b00cr1lq)
How It Stacks Up
A poignant portrait of John McCreedy's 46th birthday celebration. Read by Dermot Crowley.
FRI 11:15 Tommies (b04nrwp2)
11 November 1914
By Nick Warburton.
Series created by Jonathan Ruffle.
Meticulously based on unit war diaries and eye-witness accounts, each episode of TOMMIES traces one real day at war, exactly 100 years ago.
Through it all, we follow the fortunes of Mickey Bliss and his fellow signallers, from the Lahore Division of the British Indian Army. They are the cogs in an immense machine, one which connects situations across the whole theatre of the war, over four long years.
Indira Varma, Lee Ross and Sam Rix star in this story, as Mickey finds himself at Ypres with the exhausted British Expeditionary Force, and no one to defend a vital breach in line, at Nonne Bosschen copse.
Producers: David Hunter, Jonquil Panting, Jonathan Ruffle
Director: Jonquil Panting.
FRI 12:00 Hancock's Half Hour (b007k456)
[Repeat of broadcast at
08:00 today]
FRI 12:30 Play It Cool (b05r7w7p)
[Repeat of broadcast at
08:30 today]
FRI 13:00 The Tales of Max Carrados (b01709qq)
[Repeat of broadcast at
06:00 today]
FRI 13:30 The Lake (b00gs3ks)
[Repeat of broadcast at
06:30 today]
FRI 14:00 Inspector Barlach - The Judge and his Hangman (b01nj2x5)
Episode 5
The surprising truth about Schmied's murder is revealed. Bernard Hepton concludes Friedrich Dürrenmatt's novella.
FRI 14:15 On Your Bike (b00yfq80)
The Open Road
Elgar, Vaughan Williams and Percy Grainger all drew inspiration in the saddle along Conan Doyle whose detective Sherlock Holmes could identify a suspect by his tyre tread
Presenter: Martin Ellis
Producer: Simon Evans
A Pier Production for BBC Radio 4.
FRI 14:30 15 Minute Drama (b011vhsl)
HH Munro - Beasts on the Lawn: Saki
Mrs Packletide's Tiger
Beasts on the Lawn: Saki 2011
Original stories by Saki (H.H Munro)
Adapted by Sean Grundy
Beasts on the Lawn is a collection of Edwardian short stories by Saki (H.H Munro) recycled and restaged in a modern day gated community for the far too wealthy for their own good. The tales are woven together by the character of Clovis, a security guard. She recalls the events of strange days and long nights.
Episode Five: Mrs Packletide's Tiger
Mrs Packletide, ghastly wealthy inheritor of the Gippe perfume empire, needs to shoot a tiger in order to silence her long-time rival Loona Bimberton. She wants it to take place on Munro Estate. Clovis is asked to offer her services, but it doesn't quite go to plan.
Cast:
Clovis...........Pippa Haywood
Mrs Packletide........Marcia Warren
Louisa Mebbin....Jennifer Lee Jellicorse
Director: Alison Crawford.
FRI 14:45 Sissinghurst: An Unfinished History (b010nxrw)
The Way Forward
Concluding his recollections, Adam Nicolson must convince his workers to back the garden's return to a working landscape.
FRI 15:00 Anthony Trollope - Orley Farm (b00g9f9q)
[Repeat of broadcast at
10:00 today]
FRI 16:00 All the Way from Memphis (b00jdp93)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:00 today]
FRI 16:30 Richard Barton: General Practitioner! (b0075887)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:30 today]
FRI 17:00 Rent (b00752s3)
[Repeat of broadcast at
07:00 today]
FRI 17:30 The Vote Now Show (b05qk706)
[Repeat of broadcast at
07:30 today]
FRI 18:00 Philip Levene - Cold Storage (b007jxmr)
Cold stores are intended only for perishable goods - so the doors don't always have handles on the inside - as one accident-prone frozen food manufacturer finds out…
Philip Levene's chilling thriller.
Robert Craig …. Nigel Graham
Lucy Craig …. Bonnie Hurren
Alan Scott …. John Forrest
Producer: Margaret Etal
First broadcast in Thirty-Minute Theatre on BBC Radio 4 in October 1973.
FRI 18:30 My Life in Five Songs (b00yrl8q)
Series 3
Eve Graham
Eve Graham enjoyed worldwide success and recognition as lead singer with The New Seekers.
Forming a school band at Perth Academy in the 1960's Eve was destined for a career as a singer.
Hits with The New Seekers included Never Ending Song of Love, Circles and the international hit I'd Like To Teach the World to Sing.
Chatting to Phil Cunningham she picks 5 tracks that are special to her and tells of her adventures in the world of pop including the time the New Seekers appeared on the same bill as Dionne Warwick who refused to meet her backstage.
Eve's Five Songs:
1: How High the Moon, by Les Paul and Mary Ford
2: Teddy Bear, by Elvis Presley
3: Walk on By, by Dionne Warwick
4: California Girls, by the Beach Boys
5: The Way Old Friends Do, by Eve along with the Glasgow Phoenix Choir.
FRI 19:00 Hancock's Half Hour (b007k456)
[Repeat of broadcast at
08:00 today]
FRI 19:30 Play It Cool (b05r7w7p)
[Repeat of broadcast at
08:30 today]
FRI 20:00 The Tales of Max Carrados (b01709qq)
[Repeat of broadcast at
06:00 today]
FRI 20:30 The Lake (b00gs3ks)
[Repeat of broadcast at
06:30 today]
FRI 21:00 Five Stories by Rose Tremain (b00cr1lq)
[Repeat of broadcast at
11:00 today]
FRI 21:15 Tommies (b04nrwp2)
[Repeat of broadcast at
11:15 today]
FRI 22:00 The Vote Now Show (b05qk706)
[Repeat of broadcast at
07:30 today]
FRI 22:30 Sarah Millican's Support Group (b011j6lq)
Series 2
5. 'I'm a mother in need of quiet'
"Sibling Rivalry: The grass is always greener in my brother's massive garden"
"I'm a mother in need of quiet - do drum kits have a mute button?"
Sarah Millican is a life counsellor and modern-day agony aunt tackling the nation's problems head on, dishing out real advice for real people.
Assisted by her very own team of experts of the heart - man of the people local cabbie Terry, and self qualified counsellor Marion,
Sarah tackles the nation's problems head on and has a solution for everything.
Sarah ...... Sarah Millican
Marion ...... Ruth Bratt
Terry ...... Simon Daye
Melissa ...... Isabel Fay
Michael ...... Miles Jupp
Janet ...... Annie Aldington
Written by Sarah Millican.
Producer: Lianne Coop
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2011
FRI 23:00 The Consultants (b007k37y)
Series 3
Episode 5
Chesney is having a crisis of confidence. Cerebral sketch show with Neil Edmond and Justin Edwards. From January 2005.
FRI 23:30 Sir Ralph Stanza's Letter from Salford (b0076dvc)
Series 2
Treating an Acute Elegy
Can poet-at-large Sir Ralph Stanza spread the healing power of poetry across Salford?
Ralphie, famous for his silk scarf, panama and ability seamlessly to blend in with the locals, is now embarked on a further stage of his work in north-west England.
He’s basing himself in various locations giving individuals the benefit of his couplets. So for starters, he's at a clinic, helping a woman with some poetry about her behind...
Written by and starring James Quinn.
With:
Alison Darling
Tony Melody
Neil Bell
Judy Flynn
Jemma Thompson
Produced in Manchester by Graham Frost
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2003.
FRI 23:45 I, Regress (b018xs90)
Series 1
Episode 1
A dark, David Lynch-ian comedy, ideally suited for an unsettling and surreal late night listen. 'I, Regress' sees Matt Berry (The IT Crowd, Garth Marenghi's Dark Place, Snuff Box) playing a corrupt and bizarre hypnotherapist taking unsuspecting clients on twisted, misleading journeys through their subconscious.
Each episode sees the doctor dealing with a different client who has come to him for a different problem (quitting smoking, fear of water, etc). As the patient is put under hypnosis, we 'enter' their mind, and all the various situations the hypnotherapist takes them through are played out for us to hear. The result is a dream- (or nightmare-) like trip through the patient's mind, as funny as it is disturbing.
Episode 1: Karen House-Water (Katherine Parkinson) visits Dr Berry to treat her fear of water, and finds that the cure can sometimes be worse than the disease - via mermaids, the titanic, and talking dolphins.
The cast across the series include Katherine Parkinson (IT Crowd), Morgana Robinson (The Morgana Show), Simon Greenall (I'm Alan Partridge), Jack Klaff (Star Wars, For Your Eyes Only), Tara Flynn (The Impressions Show, Stewart Lee's Comedy Vehicle), Alex Lowe (Barry From Watford, The Peter Serafinowicz Show), and Derek Griffiths (Playschool, Bod, and The Royal Exchange).
A compelling late night listen: tune in and occupy someone else's head!
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2012.