SATURDAY 02 MAY 2015

SAT 00:00 John Pilkington - Dead Man's Button (b05s925z)
4 Extra Debut. Big Alby refuses to leave the cab of his tower crane, two hundred feet up. Can Hector really get him down? Starring Tony Selby.
SAT 00:30 My Life in Five Songs (b00zm525)
Series 3
Mary Black
Mary Black enjoys a successful career as a singer of both Irish and contemporary songs.
Sharing the stage with some of the biggest names in the business she has recorded numerous albums and has received many international awards.
Recalling the influence singers like Billie Holiday had on her decision to become a singer, Mary also tells Phil Cunningham about her days on the road with the legendary Irish folk group De Dannan.
Picking her 5 tracks Mary also introduces Phil to one of the new young Irish singers she admires and has high hopes for.
Opening with Mary singing Summer Sent You she goes on to pick these five songs:
1: Billie Holiday - God Bless the Child.
2: Sandy Denny with Fairport Convention - Crazy Man Michael.
3: Joni Mitchell - A case of You from the Blue album.
4: De Dannan - Jimmy Byrne's and Dinkies Reel from the album Anthem.
5: Wallis Bird - To My Bones.
SAT 01:00 Dixon of Dock Green (b016r51t)
Series 2
Give a Dog a Good Name
PC George Dixon helps the newly promoted DI Andy Crawford trap a particularly vicious criminal - a man with an achilles heel in the shape of a small dog called Shirley.
Radio revival of BBC TV's famous copper starring David Calder and Hamish Clark.
Written for TV by Ted Willis and adapted for radio by Sue Rodwell.
George Dixon ...... David Calder
Andy Crawford ...... Hamish Clark
Duffy ...... Shaun Prendergast
Mrs Jones ...... Carol MacReady
DI Cherry ...... Christian Rodska
Mary Crawford ...... Charlie Brooks
Director: Viv Beeby
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 2006.
SAT 01:30 The Carl Rosa Opera (b00v71w6)
When the German born Karl Rose launched his opera company in 1873 at the Princess' Theatre London, he had no intention of becoming a musical institution running for over a hundred years. A concert violinist, his original motivation was to provide a platform for his wife, the wonderfully named singer Euphrosyne Parepa, but on her premature death he decided to continue his operatic ambitions. Changing his name to Carl Rosa he set about bringing opera to British audiences in English. And rather than rely on a London season he wanted to take his company, full orchestra, chorus, sceneary and soloists on the road.
Keel Watson tells the story of Rosa's success, including the British Premier of Puccini's La Boheme and Madame Butterfly, the former in Manchester. He finds out about the years after Rosa's death and between the wars when the company had its own train at Liverpool Street station and sometimes had three groups on the road at the same time. The tradition, established by Rosa himself, of commissioning new work by British composers, of using local singers and of providing full scale productions complete with elaborate scenery and effects was also maintained, and with Dame Eva Turner, they produced a genuine operatic superstar.
But after the second world war keeping the company going proved increasingly difficult.
Keel hears from the singer Joseph Ward who actually toured with them in the 1950's until the final performance in Nottingham in 1956. He also talks to Kenneth Rear, one of the many people introduced to opera by the Rosa's annual visits, in his case to the Lyceum Theatre Shefffield, and to Peter Malloy who runs the much smaller scale Carl Rosa company of today.
Keel address the challenges that Rosa faced and many opera enthusiasts still face today, of bringing opera to audiences outside the major Metropolitan centres in a form which doesn't undermine its natural scale and spectacle.
Producer: Tom Alban.
SAT 02:00 Book at Bedtime (b00snq90)
Lucy Kellaway - In Office Hours
Episode 5
In Office Hours is the new novel by Lucy Kellaway about men and women at work, and illicit love. Today, Bella regrets sending an accusatory email, and Stella crosses the line.
The latest novel from the columnist, Lucy Kellaway, is a witty and sharply observed exploration of today's contemporary corporate world, and what happens when passions run high. The economist Stella Bradberry is at the top of her game, juggling a high powered career with motherhood. Bella Chambers is a bright and pretty single mother who was forced to drop out of college, and is working as a PA to make ends meet. Both women work for Atlantic Energy, a global oil company based in London, where risk taking is a way of life. When the Head of Press resigns unexpectedly, new opportunities and challenges open up for Stella and Bella, which ultimately lead them both to embark on obsessive and destructive affairs.
Readers: Haydn Gwynne has recently returned from Broadway where she was appearing in the award winning hit musical "Billy Elliot" after it transferred from London's West End. Award winning actress Lyndsey Marshal has most recently appeared on stage in "Three Days of Rain" and on television in "Being Human" and "Garrow's Law".
Writer: Lucy Kellaway is the "Financial Times" management columnist. She lives in London is is married with four children.
Abridged by Sally Marmion
Producer Elizabeth Allard.
SAT 02:15 On Your Bike (b00yhxbw)
Renaissance
The mountain bike arrives from California and coincides with a new fashion for fitness and concerns for the environment. Bikes are back in fashion for work and pleasure
Presenter: Martin Ellis
Producer: Simon Evans
A Pier Production for BBC Radio 4.
SAT 02:30 15 Minute Drama (b00thxct)
Rosamond Lehmann - Dusty Answer
Episode 5
Rosamund Lehmann's first novel Dusty Answer records the education of Judith Earle, the only child of an academic father and socialite mother. Judith grew up in the seclusion of a large riverside house in the Thames Valley. The house next door is occupied from time to time by the Fyfe family whose children - cousins Charlie, Roddy, Julian and Martin drift in and out of her life.
Part Five. Whilst travelling in France with her mother, Judith meets up with Julian. They enjoy the French heat together until his sudden departure. Jennifer steps back into her life..
DUSTY ANSWER by Rosamund Lehmann dramatised by Lavinia Greenlaw
Narrator ...................................Julia Hills
Judith......................................Rosina Carbone
Julian.......................................Tom Ferguson
Jennifer ...................................Annabel Scholey
Mamma ...................................Melissa Jane Sinden
Directed by Susan Roberts.
SAT 02:45 Book of the Week (b00sbmjw)
Jenny Uglow - A Gambling Man: Charles II and the Restoration
Episode 5
After The Great Fire of London in 1666, rebuilding work began with a vengeance. But elsewhere, all is not well and Charles is about to take the biggest gamble of his life.
Written by Jenny Uglow
Read by Michael Maloney
Abridged by Libby Spurrier
Producer: Joanna Green
A Pier production for BBC Radio 4.
SAT 03:00 John Buchan - Greenmantle (b00tkyn4)
January 1916
Agent Richard Hannay reaches Constantinople, but is he in time to defeat the German's sinister war plans? Stars David Robb.
SAT 04:00 All the Way from Memphis (b00jj529)
Series 1
Episode 5
James Walton's pop music history quiz with Tracey MacLeod, Andrew Collins, David Hepworth and Carol Decker. From January 2005.
SAT 04:30 Richard Barton: General Practitioner! (b00758fv)
Episode 6
Dick running up a tab in the pub? Strange behaviour from the unimpeachable special agent.
Richard Barton ...... Robert Bathurst
Old Dick Barton ...... Moray Watson
Young Dick Barton ...... Julian Dutton
Sally Phillips ...... Matilda Ziegler
Jock ...... Iain Cuthbertson
Marge ...... Carolyn Jones
Other parts played by 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.
SAT 05:00 Rent (b00752yh)
Series 3
Episode 6
It's time for Paul and Ruby to decide upon their future, which could spell the end of life as we know it at chez Reynolds...
Conclusion of series 3 of Lucy Flannery's award-winning sitcom about Maria and Richard Reynolds and their lodgers.
Stars Barbara Flynn as Maria, Patrick Barlow as Richard, Linda Polan as Amy, Vivienne Rochester as Ruby and Dave Lamb as Paul.
Producer: Liz Anstee.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 1997.
SAT 05:30 The Vote Now Show (b05r3zc4)
Series 2
Episode 2
A series of election specials from the Now Show team. Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis are joined by special guests to give their own unique take on the week's election shenanigans.
Episode two features Pippa Evans, Mitch Benn, Andy Zaltzman, Julia Hartley-Brewer and Lolly Adefope.
Producers; Alexandra Smith, Joe Nunnery and Rachel Wheeley.
Executive Producer Alison Vernon-Smith.
SAT 06:00 Jo Anderson - Solstice (b01hxn33)
London 1873: The story of 19-year-old Vincent van Gogh's life-changing stay in London. Stars Julian Firth and Dexter Fletcher.
SAT 07:30 Fabulous Flops (b012kwzw)
Fabulous Flops
Episode 2
Behind the scenes of musical theatre's biggest flops like Norwegian rock opera 'Which Witch'. With Paul Roseby. From May 2004.
SAT 08:00 Archive on 4 (b00766q4)
The Escape Factory
During World War II British prisoners-of-war had a remarkable ally in the shape of Britain's other secret service, MI9.
Its job was to smuggle information and ingenious devices into camps to ensure the success of some of the most daring escape stories ever.
John Stephen Dalziel finds out more about the organisation which was to provide inspiration for Ian Fleming's "Q" in one of the most amazing untold stories of World War II.
Produced by Pamela Rutherford.
First broadcast on Radio 4 in March 2002.
SAT 09:00 Howerd's Ways: The Radio Times of Frankie Howerd (b01gvwzh)
The life and BBC radio career of Frankie Howerd – the celebrated King of Titters.
His last agent Tessa Le Bars talks to Peter Reed and shares her memories of this icon of British comedy. Featuring:
* The Frankie Howerd Show:
Doggy doing with the BBC DG and Frankie's memoirs. Titters galore with stand-up and sketches from the legendary comic. With June Whitfield and Ray Fell. (BBC Radio 2 from June 1973)
* Radio Lives – Frankie Howerd:
His highs were high, his lows were low. How did he get to be so funny? Dylan Winter finds out from childhood friends, variety artistes and those who knew Frankie very well. (BBC Radio 4 from July 1995)
* Variety Bandbox:
An early radio appearance for Frankie Howerd on a bill with Philip Slessor, Derek Roy, (Alberto) Semprini, Vanessa Lee and Billy Ternent & His Orchestra. (BBC Light Programme from June 1953)
* Now Listen:
Gags from Frankie Howerd, plus sketches with Carol Allen, Robertson Hare and Kenneth Connor. (BBC Light Programme from April 1965)
* Desert Island Discs:
Frankie Howerd chats to Roy Plomley and makes his castaway choices. (BBC Radio 4 from January 1982)
Producer: Mik Wilkojc
Made for BBC Radio 4 Extra and first broadcast in April 2012.
SAT 12:00 Steptoe and Son (b007jl5j)
Series 1
The Offer
After a row with his father Albert, Harold decides to leave their rag and bone business and take up another offer of employment.
Starring Wilfrid Brambell as Albert and Harry H Corbett as Harold.
Following the conclusion of their hugely successful association with Tony Hancock, Ray Galton and Alan Simpson wrote 10 pilots for BBC TV's Comedy Playhouse in 1962.
The Offer was set in a house with a yard full of junk, featuring the lives of rag and bone men Albert Steptoe and his son Harold and it was the spark for a run of 8 series for TV.
Adapted for BBC radio from Galton and Simpson's TV script by Gale Pedrick.
Produced by Bobby Jaye
First broadcast on the BBC Light Programme in July 1966.
SAT 12:30 Dad's Army (b007jm92)
Series 1
Sorry Wrong Number
A downed German plane sees the Home Guard platoon attempting to employ Captain Mainwaring's phone box drill...
The comic exploits of a Second World War Home Guard platoon in Walmington-on-Sea.
Adapted for radio from Jimmy Perry and David Croft's TV scripts by Michael Knowles and Harold Snoad.
Captain Mainwaring …. Arthur Lowe
Sergeant Wilson …. John Le Mesurier
Corporal Jones …. Clive Dunn
Private Pike …. Ian Lavender
Private Frazer …. John Laurie
Private Walker …. Graham Stark
ARP Warden …. Bill Pertwee
Mrs Pike …. Pearl Hackney
Lieutenant …. John Forrest
Telephonist …. Avril Angers
Announcer …. John Snagge
Producer: John Dyas
First broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 in May 1974.
SAT 13:00 Elizabeth von Arnim - The Enchanted April (Omnibus) (b05ssp09)
While at their Shaftesbury Avenue club on a rainy February day, Rosie and Lottie discover they've been reading the same advertisement in The Times:
'To those who Appreciate Wisteria and Sunshine. Small mediaeval Italian Castle on the shores of the Mediterranean to be let Furnished for the month of April.'
Can they seize this opportunity and escape to the sunny Italian Riviera or is it just an impossible dream?
Originally dramatised in 5 parts by Vivienne Allen from Elizabeth von Arnim's novel.
Narrator...Jenny Funnell
Lotty ... Pippa Nixon
Rose ... Lyndsey Marshal
Mrs Fisher ... Joanna Monro
Caroline (Scrap) ... Rhiannon Neads
Mellersh ... Stephen Critchlow
Briggs ... Neet Mohan
Frederick ... Chris Pavlo
Francesca ... Jessica Turner
Director: Tracey Neale
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2015.
SAT 14:10 Inheritance Tracks (b010j7b9)
Tamsin Greig
Actress Tamsin Greig inherits 'The Pearl Fishers Duet' by Bizet and passes on 'To Make You Feel My Love' by Bob Dylan.
SAT 14:15 The Charm Factory (b0075cpw)
Series 1
Broken Wings
Are these the good times for Phyllis Dent, Britain's favourite good-time girl? Stars Tabitha Wady and Luisa Bradshaw-White.
SAT 15:00 Archive on 4 (b00766q4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
SAT 16:00 Jo Anderson - Solstice (b01hxn33)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
SAT 17:30 Fabulous Flops (b012kwzw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
SAT 18:00 Simon Guerrier - Graceless (b05ssthl)
Series 3
The Battle
9th of August, 991 AD. Abby and Zara are on the Essex coast in the rain, searching for a man they loved and lost.
The local people are terrified of the savage pirates waiting just across the water. The bold and brave local earl is ready to wage battle to free his people from such fear.
After all they've been through, Abby and Zara only want to help. But future history has already been written. They're about to find out how much more they can still lose....
Stars Ciara Jansonn as Abby, Laura Doddington as Zara and Geraldine James as Chi.
Scripted by Simon Guerrier. Directed by Lisa Bowerman
A Big Finish Production.
SAT 19:00 Howerd's Ways: The Radio Times of Frankie Howerd (b01gvwzh)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]
SAT 22:00 Radio 2's Comedy Showcase (b00s7m1t)
Hamilton's Ode-ssey
Kevin Eldon and Liza Tarbuck star as a poet in a mid-life crisis and the girlfriend attempting to shake him out of his torpor. Will going on a road trip get creative juices flowing and end his writer's block?
This one-off sitcom was written by Kevin and script-edited by Stewart Lee. It first broadcast on Radio 2 in May 2010, as part of the station's ongoing Comedy Showcase series.
SAT 22:30 Comedy Club at Machynlleth (b05ssvnn)
2015
Comedy Club at Machynlleth
Made for 4 Extra. Arthur Smith takes the Comedy Club to Wales for interviews and features from the 2015 Machynlleth Comedy Festival.
SAT 22:35 Ready, Steady, Sink! (b007kc2k)
As the 1960s rock, pirate Radio Splash rolls and the DJs heave.
The crew on the rotting hulk broadcasting Radio Splash - Britain's 11th most popular pirate radio station - dejectedly endure each other's foul personal habits and constant lack of essential supplies.
Brett …. Peter Kay
Aunty …. Mark Little
Justin …. Julian Rhind-Tutt
Beasley …. Michael Fenton Stevens
Derek …. Julian Dutton
Wim …. Stephen Critchlow
Devised by Stuart Silver and Jeremy Pascall.
Written by Jeremy Pascall.
Producer: Carol Smith
First broadcast on BBC Radio 2 as a Comedy Showcase in January 2000.
SAT 23:05 Comedy Club at Machynlleth (b05sswcg)
2015
Comedy Club at Machynlleth
Arthur Smith takes the Comedy Club to Wales for interviews and features from the 2015 Machynlleth Comedy Festival.
SAT 23:10 The Simon Day Show (b01jxtf2)
Series 2
Tony Becton
Simon Day and his characters welcome listeners to The Mallard, a small provincial theatre somewhere in the UK. Each week one of Simon's comic characters come to perform at The Mallard while the staff struggle with rivalries, self-doubt and the new owner's vision for the theatre's future.
This week reformed violent offender Tony Becton returns to The Mallard Theatre with stories of his rehabilitation and new life in a park.
Cast list:
Tony Becton ..... Simon Day
Emanuel Akinyemi ..... Felix Dexter
Pat Bennet ... Morwenna Banks
Ron Bone / Wozak ..... Simon Greenall
Written by Simon Day
Produced by Colin Anderson.
SAT 23:40 Comedy Club at Machynlleth (b05sswqt)
2015
Comedy Club at Machynlleth
Arthur Smith takes the Comedy Club to Wales for interviews and features from the 2015 Machynlleth Comedy Festival.
SAT 23:45 Rik Mayall's Bedside Tales (b00nqj86)
Wake Up
Settle down, brush your teeth, do whatever it is you do at this time of night. But, most of all, listen because Rik would like to talk to you. One on one. Tonight he'd mostly like to tell you about Wake Up.
Performer ..... Rik Mayall
Writers ..... Rik Mayall & John Nicholson
Producer ..... Steven Canny
Written by Rik and John Nicholson, this is a woozy, strange and resonant series from one of the country's most loved comic performers. Rik wants to sit with you in your room - one on one. He wants to let you know things - important, secret things, things about your neighbours. About him. About you.


SUNDAY 03 MAY 2015

SUN 00:00 Simon Guerrier - Graceless (b05ssthl)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:00 on Saturday]
SUN 01:00 Elizabeth von Arnim - The Enchanted April (Omnibus) (b05ssp09)
[Repeat of broadcast at 13:00 on Saturday]
SUN 02:10 Inheritance Tracks (b010j7b9)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:10 on Saturday]
SUN 02:15 The Charm Factory (b0075cpw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:15 on Saturday]
SUN 03:00 Archive on 4 (b00766q4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 on Saturday]
SUN 04:00 Jo Anderson - Solstice (b01hxn33)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 on Saturday]
SUN 05:30 Fabulous Flops (b012kwzw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 on Saturday]
SUN 06:00 Rosamond Lehmann - Dusty Answer (b05sxwq8)
Omnibus. Growing up in the Thames Valley, Judith Earle's childhood memories of the Fyfe family cousins next door. Narrated by Julia Hills.
SUN 07:10 Inheritance Tracks (b048w5vt)
Jack Whitehall
Comedian Jack Whitehall chooses plainchant from the Monks of Ampleforth Abbey and Rollin' by Limp Bizkit.
SUN 07:15 Kenneth Williams - Ad Lib (b05sxww6)
Episode 4
Master raconteur Kenneth Williams shares memories of the Singapore Stage Club - and his favourite painter.
More entertaining reminiscences and personal opinions recorded in front of an audience at BBC Pebble Mill.
Producer: Michael Ford
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1982.
SUN 07:30 Beauty of Britain (b00npr8g)
Series 1
Beauty and the Beast
Comedy by Christopher Douglas and Nicola Sanderson. Beauty Olonga works as a carer for the Featherdown Agency and sees herself as an inspiration to other African girls hoping to achieve their goals in the land of semi-skimmed milk.
Beauty is looking after the elderly Mr Easterby, who has a new girlfriend and is behaving like a lovestruck teenager. She is also trying to get to the Aspire to Dream retreat. Meanwhile Anil is on a big cat stakeout, as several have been spotted in the region.
Beauty ...... Jocelyn Jee Esien
Sally ...... Felicity Montagu
Karen ...... Nicola Sanderson
Mrs Gupte ...... Indira Joshi
Anil ...... Paul Sharma
Mr Easterby ...... Leslie Phillips
Mrs Mason ...... Liz Fraser
Kevin/Cab Man/Steve ...... Christopher Douglas
Girl on Stretcher ...... Nicola Sanderson
Music by The West End Gospel Choir.
SUN 08:00 All Gas and Gaiters (b007jptm)
The Bishop Warms Up
The newly installed central heating at St Ogg's causes temperatures to rise.
Starring Robertson Hare as the Archdeacon, William Mervyn as the Bishop, Jonathan Cecil as Bishop's Chaplain - the Reverend Mervyn Noote and John Barron as the Dean. With Hugh Paddick as Mr Fox, Frank Vickers as Mr Dawson and Dudley Jones as Mr Parry-Jones.
The ecclesiastical sitcom started life as a TV pilot in Comedy Playhouse, ahead of a run on BBC1 from 1966 to 1971.
Written for radio by Pauline Devaney and Edwin Apps.
Producer: David Hatch.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 1972.
SUN 08:30 Life With The Lyons (b014qxmm)
Dial Special Branch
Sinister foreign agents and a case of mistaken identity sparks more Lyon family discombobulation.
Starring real-life American family: Ben Lyon and his wife Bebe Daniels and their children, Barbara and Richard.
With Doris Rogers as Florrie, Molly Weir as Aggie, Hugh Morton, Wilfred Babbage and Charles Hawtrey.
Life With the Lyons was one the BBC's most popular radio sitcoms between1950 and 1961. It was also adapted for BBC TV.
Written by Bebe Daniels, Bob Block and Ronnie Hanbury.
BBC Variety Orchestra conducted by Paul Fenoulhet.
Producer: Tom Ronald
First broadcast on the BBC Light Programme in February 1958.
SUN 09:00 Philip Glass - Words Without Music: Omnibus (b05sxy2l)
Memoir by the world-renowned American composer of symphonies, operas and film scores, Philip Glass. Read by Kerry Shale.
SUN 10:10 Inheritance Tracks (b05sy1kw)
Philip Glass
The composer inherits La Création du Monde by Milhaud and passes on his own collaboration with Ginsberg, Wichita Vortex Sutra.
SUN 10:15 Desert Island Discs Revisited (b05sy1yw)
Eurovision
Sandie Shaw
From Guy Mitchell to the Beatles.
Singer and psychotherapist, Sandie Shaw MBE shares her castaway choices with Kirsty Young.
With her melodic, velvety voice, bare feet and Sassoon bob, Sandie was the epitome of everything that was swinging about the 1960s.
She was just 17 when she first topped the charts with ‘Always Something There to Remind Me’ and went on to become Britain's first Eurovision winner with Puppet on a String. Sandie loathed the song at the time, but more recently came to terms with it after recording a new version which is, she says, rather forlorn.
Along with the highs have been terrible lows - years that she calls her dark ages, when, without money or creative freedom, she felt hopeless. It was Buddhism that turned her fortunes around and became central to her life.
Now, Sandie says, she can’t believe the journey life has taken her on and she is preparing for a final flourish as a performer.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2010.
SUN 11:00 An Hour With... (b05tr3zq)
Henry Blofeld
BBC cricket commentator Henry Blofeld looks back at his life from his eccentric childhood in Norfolk to his schooldays at Eton, plus his successful career as an international cricket writer and broadcaster.
Henry entertains his audience with many colourful anecdotes about his colleagues on 'Test Match Special', including John Arlott and Brian Johnston, and reveals what really happened when the Queen presented the TMS team with a special cake.
Henry also describes his incredible journey in 1976 when he travelled overland with three friends from London via Iran and Afghanistan to Bombay in a 1921 Roll-Royce Silver Ghost.
Recorded on tour in Autumn 2001.
SUN 12:00 All Gas and Gaiters (b007jptm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
SUN 12:30 Life With The Lyons (b014qxmm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
SUN 13:00 Rosamond Lehmann - Dusty Answer (b05sxwq8)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
SUN 14:10 Inheritance Tracks (b048w5vt)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:10 today]
SUN 14:15 Kenneth Williams - Ad Lib (b05sxww6)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:15 today]
SUN 14:30 Thucydides - The History of the Peloponnesian War (b05sy44s)
Thucydides' masterful first-hand account of the devastating wars between Athens and Sparta that reshaped the face of Ancient Greece, read by David Horovitch.
SUN 15:45 Short Stories by John Mortimer (b007jz3z)
Paradise Island
Will a dentist's Pacific encounter with the lovely La La make him put down his drill forever? Read by Garard Green.
SUN 16:00 Ian Rankin - The Serpent's Back (b02m6s19)
The resourceful if low-born Mr Cullender (caddie, manservant and general dogsbody) goes in search of a double murderer.
Ian Rankin's 18th century black comedy set in the seething Old Town of Edinburgh.
Alexander Morton ... Cully
Richard Greenwood ... Gisborne
Norman MacLean ... Mr Mack
Kern Falconer ... The Comte
Paul Young ... The Deacon
Wendy Seager ... The Lady
Tom Smith ... Walter Scott
Michael Elder ... Braxfield
Liam Brennan ... Urquhart
Shelia Donald ... Lucky Aird
Simon Scott ... Lord Provost
Steven McNicholl ... Ballantine
Best known for his Inspector Rebus novels, Ian Rankin is one of the UK's most widely-read crime novelists, with many of his novels translated into numerous languages
Produced in Edinburgh by Patrick Rayner
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1995.
SUN 17:30 Beauty of Britain (b00npr8g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
SUN 18:00 The Sarah Jane Adventures (b01kpx3m)
The Thirteenth Stone
A school trip for Luke, Maria and Clyde turns to horror when mysterious standing stones come to life. Read by 'Sarah Jane' herself, Elisabeth Sladen.
SUN 19:00 An Hour With... (b05tr3zq)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:00 today]
SUN 20:00 Philip Glass - Words Without Music: Omnibus (b05sxy2l)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]
SUN 21:10 Inheritance Tracks (b05sy1kw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:10 today]
SUN 21:15 Desert Island Discs Revisited (b05sy1yw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:15 today]
SUN 22:00 Beauty of Britain (b00npr8g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
SUN 22:30 Comedy Club at Machynlleth (b05sydc8)
2015
Comedy Club at Machynlleth
Arthur Smith takes the Comedy Club to Wales for interviews and features from the 2015 Machynlleth Comedy Festival.
SUN 22:35 Night Class (b00769gy)
Episode 3
Pottery teacher Johnny Vegas has his class put the kiln to unconventional use, namely a dog cremation. From September 2002.
SUN 23:05 Comedy Club at Machynlleth (b05sydq1)
2015
Comedy Club at Machynlleth
Arthur Smith takes the Comedy Club to Wales for interviews and features from the 2015 Machynlleth Comedy Festival.
SUN 23:10 Radio Shuttleworth (b007s5ds)
Series 1
Vanessa Feltz
Sheffield's aspiring singer-songwriter takes to the airwaves once more from his very own his front room!
Aided by his producer (and sole agent) Ken Worthington, and his hard-to-please wife Mary, the inimitable John Shuttleworth presents celebrity interviews, dodgy keyboard music, and even dodgier jingles.
Can special guest Vanessa Feltz help sort out a tricky domestic problem between him and Mary?
With Boothby Graffoe.
Written and performed by Graham Fellows.
Producers: Paul Schlesinger and Martin Willis.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 1998.
SUN 23:40 Comedy Club at Machynlleth (b05syf2l)
2015
Comedy Club at Machynlleth
Arthur Smith takes the Comedy Club to Wales for interviews and features from the 2015 Machynlleth Comedy Festival.
SUN 23:45 What to Do If You're Not Like Everybody Else (b00tjqzx)
Series 1
Personal Appearance
What lengths do we need to go to "look good"?
Andrew Lawrence examines the effort we all put into our personal appearance and the pressure we feel to take action.
From South London comedy club 'Up The Creek'.
The first of four mini-comedic monologues taking a light-hearted look at various aspects of conventional living and the pressure we feel to conform to social norms and ideals.
Written by Andrew Lawrence.
Producer: Jane Berthoud
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 2010.


MONDAY 04 MAY 2015

MON 00:00 The Sarah Jane Adventures (b01kpx3m)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:00 on Sunday]
MON 01:00 Rosamond Lehmann - Dusty Answer (b05sxwq8)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 on Sunday]
MON 02:10 Inheritance Tracks (b048w5vt)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:10 on Sunday]
MON 02:15 Kenneth Williams - Ad Lib (b05sxww6)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:15 on Sunday]
MON 02:30 Thucydides - The History of the Peloponnesian War (b05sy44s)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:30 on Sunday]
MON 03:45 Short Stories by John Mortimer (b007jz3z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 15:45 on Sunday]
MON 04:00 Ian Rankin - The Serpent's Back (b02m6s19)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:00 on Sunday]
MON 05:30 Beauty of Britain (b00npr8g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 on Sunday]
MON 06:00 Dixon of Dock Green (b016pklm)
Series 2
The Key of the Nick
There's supposed to be a surprise party to celebrate George's 21 years on the beat at Dock Green police station.
But it turns into a night in cold storage instead as Dixon and Crawford are held hostage...
Radio revival of BBC TV's famous copper starring David Calder and Hamish Clark.
Written for TV by Ted Willis and adapted for radio by Sue Rodwell.
George Dixon ...... David Calder
Andy Crawford ...... Hamish Clark
Jimmy Todd ...... Carl Prekopp
Tessa ...... Katharine Rodgers
Albert Todd ...... Michael Fenton Stevens
Director: Viv Beeby
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 2006.
MON 06:30 There's More Here Than I Thought (b00jxc77)
Writer Kate Mosse explores the extraordinary life of Winifred Gill. She was an artist, craftswoman, puppeteer and social reformer, and a friend and supporter of painters such as LS Lowry, Duncan Grant, Roger Fry, Vanessa Bell and poet Walter de la Mare, as well as being a tireless letter writer.
Gill died in 1981 and her name has been little known. But thanks to the hard work and persistence of her niece Margaret Bennett and Margaret's cousin Chrystine Bennett, that is about to change. Gill's papers are now in the Bodleian Library in Oxford and, in June 2009, the Courtauld Gallery in London devotes a whole room to her work.
MON 07:00 The Right Time (b007x046)
Series 1
Episode 2
21st-century life from people growing older disgracefully. Stars Eleanor Bron, Clive Swift and Andrew Sachs. From August 2001.
MON 07:30 Dilemma (b05rnz1n)
Series 4
Episode 4
Sue Perkins presents another edition of the show that puts the big moral and ethical questions to a mixed panel to see the direction in their moral compasses point. This week, it's the turn of comedians Iain Stirling and Shappi Khorsandi, journalist Suzanne Moore, and writer and actor Dan Tetsell. Collectively they rate the merits of getting the money or the credit for something's success, as well as quickly resolving issues such as inheritance, racism, childhood dreams and Beyoncé. Episode four of six.
Dilemma is presented by Sue Perkins.
Devised by ... Danielle Ward
Producer ... Ed Morrish.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2015.
MON 08:00 Dad's Army (b007jmd5)
Series 1
The Bullet Is Not for Firing
The Home Guard platoon faces an inquiry after shots are fired at a low-flying German aeroplane.
The comic exploits of a Second World War Home Guard platoon in Walmington-on-Sea.
Adapted for radio from Jimmy Perry and David Croft's TV scripts by Michael Knowles and Harold Snoad.
Captain Mainwaring …. Arthur Lowe
Sergeant Wilson …. John Le Mesurier
Corporal Jones …. Clive Dunn
Private Godfrey …. Arnold Ridley
Private Walker …. Graham Stark
Vicar …. Frank Williams
Captain Pringle …. Michael Knowles
Captain Marsh …. Timothy Bateson
Choir Members …. John Whitehall
Announcer …. John Snagge
Producer: John Dyas
First broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 in May 1974.
MON 08:30 As Time Goes By (b007k7c7)
Series 2
Episode 1
Publication day arrives and Lionel is plunged into the hectic world of promotion for his memoirs of life in the army and as a coffee-planter in Kenya.
Starring Judi Dench as Jean and Geoffrey Palmer as Lionel. With Moira Brooker as Judith and Philip Bretherton as Alistair.
A six-part adaptation by Bob Larbey of series two of his popular BBC TV sitcom. Two former lovers Jean and Lionel have been reunited unexpectedly after losing contact for 38 years.
After falling in love in the early 1950s, army officer Lionel was sent to Korea, but they lost touch after a letter he sent to her never arrived. Both assumed the other had lost interest, but their paths have crossed again on his return to England.
Producer: Martin Fisher
First broadcast on BBC Radio 2 in January 1998.
MON 09:00 Booked (b00753t1)
Series 1
Episode 3
Joan of Arc turns Bond girl and Kipling's poem If gets an overhaul.
Ian McMillan chairs the irreverent literary game with Dillie Keane, Mark Thomas, Roger McGough and Miles Kington.
Producer: Marc Jobst
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 1995.
MON 09:30 Says on the Tin (b00gqzw0)
Chowder
Comedy by Christopher William Hill.
Eliott, Esther and Hannah compete aggressively to promote American Chowder to the British.
Eliott Thurber ...... Michael Brandon
Esther Finn ...... Samantha Bond
Hannah Walker ...... Pippa Haywood
Zadie ...... Joannah Tincey
Baz ...... Inam Mirza
Sal ...... John Guerrasio
Other parts played by Stephen Critchlow, Jonathan Tafler, Dan Starkey, Gunnar Cauthery and Donnla Hughes.
MON 10:00 Gunter Grass - The Tin Drum (b007jls2)
Episode 1
It's 1930 and Hitler's rise to power has begun. Three year old Oskar decides to stop growing and stop talking. Instead he plays his tin drum.
Phil Daniels stars as Oskar alongside Kenneth Cranham and Lesley Manville in Mike Walker's two-part dramatisation of Gunter Grass's dark and intriguing story.
Written in 1959, The Tin Drum is a modern classic of post-Second World War literature, telling the story of the Third Reich's decline and fall from a most particular perspective - that of a dwarf. It was published at a time when a generation of Germans was seeking to understand the war for the first time.
Oskar ...... Phil Daniels
Matzerath ...... Kenneth Cranham
Agnes ...... Lesley Manville
Bebra ...... David Collings
Jan ...... Stephen Critchlow
Greff ...... Paul Jenkins
Gretchen ...... Kristin Milward
Roswitha ...... Jane Whittenshaw
Marcus ...... John Turner
Fisherman ...... John Hartley
Midwife ...... Tessa Worsley
Gunter Grass was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1999 and the Swedish Academy praised him as a writer 'whose frolicsome black fables portray the forgotten face of history'.
Mike Walker's efforts won him the Writer's Award for Best Dramatisation.
Producer: Peter Kavanagh
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 1996.
MON 11:00 Anthony Horowitz - Blackfriars Bridge (b012s2gc)
A cuckolded husband intends to murder his rival. What could go wrong with his fastidious plan? Anthony Horowitz's thriller, read by Robert Bathurst.
MON 11:15 Drama (b00d0hw2)
Ian Kershaw - Alan and Jean's Incredible Journey
Alan and Jean Warburton decide to spend their holiday in their bedroom. Poignant comedy drama starring Julie Hesmondhalgh.
MON 12:00 Dad's Army (b007jmd5)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
MON 12:30 As Time Goes By (b007k7c7)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
MON 13:00 Dixon of Dock Green (b016pklm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
MON 13:30 There's More Here Than I Thought (b00jxc77)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
MON 14:00 Book at Bedtime (b00sr4bx)
Lucy Kellaway - In Office Hours
Episode 6
In Office Hours is the new novel by Lucy Kellaway about men and women at work, and illicit love. Today, for Stella and Bella passions continue to run high, and when the oil giant they work for is hit hard by the financial crisis the fragility of their situations is put under the spotlight.
The latest novel from the columnist, Lucy Kellaway, is a witty and sharply observed exploration of today's contemporary corporate world, and what happens when passions run high. The economist Stella Bradberry is at the top of her game, juggling a high powered career with motherhood. Bella Chambers is a bright and pretty single mother who was forced to drop out of college, and is working as a PA to make ends meet. Both women work for Atlantic Energy, a global oil company based in London, where risk taking is a way of life. When the Head of Press resigns unexpectedly, new opportunities and challenges open up for Stella and Bella, which ultimately lead them both to embark on obsessive and destructive affairs.
Readers: Haydn Gwynne has recently returned from Broadway where she was appearing in the award winning hit musical "Billy Elliot" after it transferred from London's West End. Award winning actress Lyndsey Marshal has most recently appeared on stage in "Three Days of Rain" and on television in "Being Human" and "Garrow's Law".
Writer: Lucy Kellaway is the "Financial Times" management columnist. She lives in London is is married with four children.
Abridged by Sally Marmion
Producer Elizabeth Allard.
MON 14:15 The Making of Music (b007mh44)
Series 1
Origins
James Naughtie discovers how history has shaped classical music. The origins of this music begin in the churches and monasteries of the Christian world, from Constantinople in the East to Iona in Scotland. The building blocks of classical music were formed.
Produced by Rosie Boulton, Sara Conkey, Lucy Lunt
BBC Birmingham.
MON 14:30 15 Minute Drama (b00txgs7)
The Beginning of Spring
The Beginning of Spring
Penelope Fitzgerald's novel of an English family in Moscow, adapted by Penny Leicester. The winter of 1913 finds Frank Reid, owner of a printing company, abandoned by his wife. First Nellie takes their three children with her, then she sends them back to Frank. What is he to do?
Narrator: Clare Higgins; Frank: Richard McCabe; Selwyn: David Bamber; Nellie: Jennifer Lee Jellicorse; Dolly: Charlotte Ellis. Other parts played by Sonia Ritter, Rachel Atkins, Samuel Barnet, Richard Bremmer and David Collins. Producer: Tim Dee.
MON 14:45 Book of the Week (b00sz34f)
Hampton Sides - Hellhound on His Trail
The Escape
Hampton Sides' compelling book sheds fresh light on the assassination of Martin Luther King and the hunt for his killer, James Earl Ray.
In this opening episode, Ray makes a dramatic escape from his penitentiary and assumes the first of many aliases.
Meanwhile, an increasingly exhausted Martin Luther King plans a bold new direction for the civil rights movement.
Read by Christian Camargo and Clarke Peters.
First published in 2010 and abridged by Viv Beeby.
Producer: Emma Harding
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2010.
MON 15:00 Gunter Grass - The Tin Drum (b007jls2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 today]
MON 16:00 Booked (b00753t1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]
MON 16:30 Says on the Tin (b00gqzw0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 today]
MON 17:00 The Right Time (b007x046)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]
MON 17:30 Dilemma (b05rnz1n)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
MON 18:00 Earthsea (b05sz766)
Series 1
Dragonfly
Ursula K Le Guin's enduring fantasy saga set on the magical archipelago rich with wizards and dragons.
Based on the novel The Farthest Shore by Ursula Le Guin. Adapted by Judith Adams.
It's now over 20 years since the action of The Tombs of Atuan, and magic has gone out of Earthsea. Mages have forgotten their spells and the springs of wizardry have running dry. Ged, Dragonlord and now Archmage of Earthsea, sets out with a young prince to seek the source of the darkness.
Ged ..... Shaun Dooley
Tenar ..... Vineeta Rishi
Arren ..... Will Featherstone
Sailor ..... Jude Akudwudike
Doorkeeper ..... Stephen Critchlow
Summoner ..... Sam Dale
Sopli ..... Chris Pavlo
Hare ..... David Acton
Woman ..... Syesha Antoine
Egre ..... David Hounslow
Woman ..... Jessica Turner
Original music by Jon Nicholls
Directed by Sasha Yevtushenko.
MON 18:30 Peter Brook, Theatrical Revolutionary (b05sz7kd)
4 Extra Debut. Award-winning theatre and film director Peter Brook discusses his career highlights and legacy with James Naughtie.
MON 19:00 Dad's Army (b007jmd5)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
MON 19:30 As Time Goes By (b007k7c7)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
MON 20:00 Dixon of Dock Green (b016pklm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
MON 20:30 There's More Here Than I Thought (b00jxc77)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
MON 21:00 Anthony Horowitz - Blackfriars Bridge (b012s2gc)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:00 today]
MON 21:15 Drama (b00d0hw2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:15 today]
MON 22:00 Dilemma (b05rnz1n)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
MON 22:30 Comedy Club at Machynlleth (b05sz8z7)
2015
Comedy Club at Machynlleth
Arthur Smith takes the Comedy Club to Wales for interviews and features from the 2015 Machynlleth Comedy Festival.
MON 22:35 Hearing With Hegley (b03jpvjt)
Series 3
Episode 4
The Luton laureate visits the Cheltenham Literary Festival, and finds that some poems just don't want to be read. From February 2000.
MON 22:50 The Problem With Adam Bloom (b007qs2d)
Series 1
Mobiles
You can answer a mobile phone anywhere, including a cinema. Should you say anything if somebody does?
Adam Bloom attempts to tackle this tricky situation.
With the help of Rob Rouse , Stefano Paolini and Sarah Kennedy
Written by Adam Bloom.
Producer: Adam Bromley
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 2003.
MON 23:05 Comedy Club at Machynlleth (b05szbxl)
2015
Comedy Club at Machynlleth
Nell Frizzell asks Arthur Smith about his perfect music 'playlist', including his funeral song and the song that makes him dance.
MON 23:10 Comedy Club at Machynlleth (b05szbxn)
2015
Machynlleth Stand-Up Show
Mike Bubbins hosts the proceedings as he introduces some of the acts appearing at this year's Machynlleth Comedy Festival. Recorded in front of a live audience the programme includes performances from Robin Ince, Stuart Laws, Rachel Parris, Kiri Pritchard-McLean, Ivo Graham and Phil Wang.
MON 23:40 Comedy Club at Machynlleth (b05szc0t)
2015
Comedy Club at Machynlleth
Arthur Smith takes the Comedy Club to Wales for interviews and features from the 2015 Machynlleth Comedy Festival.
MON 23:45 What to Do If You're Not Like Everybody Else (b00tmtwm)
Series 1
Communication
Andrew Lawrence examines the difficulties of human interaction and communication.
A four part mini-series of short comedic monologues taking a light-hearted look at various aspects of conventional living and the pressure we feel to conform to social norms and ideals.
From South London comedy club 'Up The Creek'.
Written by Andrew Lawrence.
Producer: Jane Berthoud
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 2010.


TUESDAY 05 MAY 2015

TUE 00:00 Earthsea (b05sz766)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:00 on Monday]
TUE 00:30 Peter Brook, Theatrical Revolutionary (b05sz7kd)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:30 on Monday]
TUE 01:00 Dixon of Dock Green (b016pklm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 on Monday]
TUE 01:30 There's More Here Than I Thought (b00jxc77)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 on Monday]
TUE 02:00 Book at Bedtime (b00sr4bx)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:00 on Monday]
TUE 02:15 The Making of Music (b007mh44)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:15 on Monday]
TUE 02:30 15 Minute Drama (b00txgs7)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:30 on Monday]
TUE 02:45 Book of the Week (b00sz34f)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:45 on Monday]
TUE 03:00 Gunter Grass - The Tin Drum (b007jls2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 on Monday]
TUE 04:00 Booked (b00753t1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 on Monday]
TUE 04:30 Says on the Tin (b00gqzw0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 on Monday]
TUE 05:00 The Right Time (b007x046)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 on Monday]
TUE 05:30 Dilemma (b05rnz1n)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 on Monday]
TUE 06:00 Light on the Road to Woodstock (b007jqqf)
Episode 1
Back from the Crusades, detective monk Brother Cadfael faces treachery. Nigel Anthony reads Ellis Peters' medieval mystery.
TUE 06:30 The Trumpet Shall Sound (b00vg8yw)
From battlefields to royal celebrations, jazz man Julian Joseph goes in search of black classical musicians from the past. From December 2007.
TUE 07:00 Dry Slopes (b00ln0q8)
Series 1
The Lost Boys
Angus Dry has no job, no friends and lives at home with his mum. She has an international business career and a string of lovers. He feels very sorry for her.
In this opening episode of Nick Ball’s sitcom, Angus tries to recapture the joys of childhood.
Angus Dry ...... Nick Ball
Mum ...... Louisa Rix
With Robert Harley, Toby Longworth and Julie Gibbs.
Producer: Gareth Edwards
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 1995.
TUE 07:30 The Casebook of Max and Ivan (b05s307h)
Series 1
Case #32 - Haunted Bookshop
Max and Ivan are private detectives for whom no case is too small....Sorry, for whom no fee is too small. Reece Shearsmith joins them as they investigate ghoulish goings-on in a condemned bookshop.

Driven by their love of truth, justice (and the need to pay off their terrifying landlord, Malcolm McMichaelmas), they take on crimes that no-one else would consider. In this case, they investigate a ghostly apparition that might save a condemned bookshop.

Max and Ivan - comedians and actors Max Olesker and Ivan Gonzalez - are a critically acclaimed, award-winning double act who have quickly established themselves as one of the most exciting comedy duos on the circuit. Over the course of the series they are dropped into new worlds, and have to use their skills to penetrate deep into each community. If that means Ivan dressing up as a 14 year old German girl, so be it!

Cast:
Max................Max Olesker
Ivan...............Ivan Gonzalez
Elliott..............Reece Shearsmith
Malcolm..........Lewis MacLeod
Pat Cooper....David Reed
Luna..............Jessica Ransom


Produced by Victoria Lloyd
A John Stanley production for BBC Radio 4.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on 2015.
TUE 08:00 Round the Horne (b00j05wz)
Series 1
Episode 9
Kenneth Horne trails 'The Spy Who Came With A Cold' and pops round for a trim from riah shushers, Julian and Sandy at Bona Bouffant.
Starring Kenneth Horne.
With Kenneth Williams, Hugh Paddick, Betty Marsden and Bill Pertwee.
Recorded at the BBC's Paris Studio in Lower Regent Street, London.
Announcer: Douglas Smith
Round The Horne was born out of the demise of BBC radio comedy Beyond Our Ken, after the end of writer Eric Merriman's involvement. Using the same cast and producer, Barry Took and Marty Feldman were persuaded to write the scripts - which led to four series that ran between 1965 and 1968 - packed full of parodies, recurring characters, catchphrases and double-entendres.
Music by Edwin Braden and the Hornblowers and The Fraser Hayes Four.
Producer: John Simmonds
First broadcast on the BBC Light Programme in May 1965.
TUE 08:30 The Ken Dodd Show (b05t2xmw)
From 03/08/1975
The King of Knotty Ash delves into the world of crime - and a butcher trades his wares for song and dance.
Starring Ken Dodd.
With Jo Manning Wilson, Miriam Margolyes, Talfryn Thomas, John Graham and Michael McClain.
Devised and written by Ken Dodd with Dave Dutton, Denis Berson, Terry Ravenscroft, Philip Mike Brennan, Maurice Bird, Kenneth Rock and Macollm Cameron.
Doddy's Diddy Orchestra conducted by Geoff Alderson.
Producer: Bobby Jaye
First broadcast on the BBC Radio 2 in August 1975.
TUE 09:00 Dead Ringers (b05s3r6m)
Series 14
Episode 4
The topical impressions show returns just in time to reflect the build up to one of the most important and incisive votes for decades. Will Austria win again or does Britain's Electro Velvet stand a chance? Satire meets silliness in the flagship comedy for hard working families up and down the country.
Starring Jon Culshaw, Jan Ravens, Duncan Wisbey, Lewis MacLeod, Debra Stephenson.
Producer: Bill Dare.
TUE 09:30 Such Rotten Luck (b01nvphb)
Series 1
Stories Before Bed
Woodhouse attempts to write children's fiction.
The ups and downs of a second class writer
Comedy drama series written by Ronald Hayman
Woodhouse …. Tim Piggott-Smith
Gila …. Zoe Wanamaker
Seamus …. Stephan Rea
Wilhelmina …. Susie Bran
Henrietta Masterson …. Miriam Karlin
Hamish McVomitory …. Bill Wallis
Mark Grimshaw …. Geoffrey Whitehead
Benjamin Witrow …. Gila's Father
Joan Matheson …. Gila's Mother
Charlotte aged 17 …. Susan Sheridan
With Eva Stuart and Shaun Prendergast as the other members of the Creative Writing Class
Music by Elizabeth Parker of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop
Director: Piers Plowright.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 1989.
TUE 10:00 Gunter Grass - The Tin Drum (b007jlvd)
Episode 2
As the war rages, Oskar discovers sex, jazz and the black market. Will his mad drumming make him a star?
Phil Daniels stars as Oskar in the conclusion of Gunter Grass's dark and intriguing story.
Written in 1959, The Tin Drum is a modern classic of post-Second World War literature, telling the story of the Third Reich's decline and fall from a most particular perspective - that of a dwarf.
Oskar ...... Phil Daniels
Matzerath ...... Kenneth Cranham
Bebra ...... David Collings
Roswitha ...... Jane Whittenshaw
Zeidler ...... Geoffrey Whitehead
Dorothea ...... Patience Tomlinson
Lankes ...... Jonathan Keeble
Maria ...... Tracy Wiles
Klepp ...... Nigel Anthony
Official ...... David Timson
Young Man ...... Andrew Branch
Other parts ...... John Hartley
Dramatised by Mike Walker.
Producer: Peter Kavanagh
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 1996.
TUE 11:00 Afternoon Reading (b010t6h4)
The Doll: Short Stories by Daphne du Maurier
East Wind
In East Wind the lives of a young couple are altered irrevocably when a group of beguiling strangers are shipwrecked off the shores of the Scilly Isles. Excitingly, East Wind is one of several recently rediscovered stories by Daphne du Maurier, and published in her new anthology, The Doll: Short Stories. East Wind was written when she was just nineteen, until now it has only ever been published in the United States and was found in her 1926 notebooks in the archives at Exeter University. Most of the other stories included in the collection have never been published or have been out of print for decades. Written early on in du Maurier's writing career they reveal the dark themes explored in the novels that made her name.
Reader: Anna Madeley
Abridger: Richard Hamilton
Producer: Elizabeth Allard.
TUE 11:15 Kelvin Segger - The Bribery Warehouse (b0076kbr)
1835 election fever in Ipswich. True story of George Cunnold's brave stand against political corruption. Stars Jonathan Tafler.
TUE 12:00 Round the Horne (b00j05wz)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
TUE 12:30 The Ken Dodd Show (b05t2xmw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
TUE 13:00 Light on the Road to Woodstock (b007jqqf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
TUE 13:30 The Trumpet Shall Sound (b00vg8yw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
TUE 14:00 Book at Bedtime (b00sr4bz)
Lucy Kellaway - In Office Hours
Episode 7
In Office Hours is the new novel by Lucy Kellaway about men and women at work, and illicit love. Today, tensions are running high as Stella is compelled to take more and more risks to be with Rhys, and Bella considers the high cost of the happiness her affair brings her.
The latest novel from the columnist, Lucy Kellaway, is a witty and sharply observed exploration of today's contemporary corporate world, and what happens when passions run high. The economist Stella Bradberry is at the top of her game, juggling a high powered career with motherhood. Bella Chambers is a bright and pretty single mother who was forced to drop out of college, and is working as a PA to make ends meet. Both women work for Atlantic Energy, a global oil company based in London, where risk taking is a way of life. When the Head of Press resigns unexpectedly, new opportunities and challenges open up for Stella and Bella, which ultimately lead them both to embark on obsessive and destructive affairs.
Readers: Haydn Gwynne has recently returned from Broadway where she was appearing in the award winning hit musical "Billy Elliot" after it transferred from London's West End. Award winning actress Lyndsey Marshal has most recently appeared on stage in "Three Days of Rain" and on television in "Being Human" and "Garrow's Law".
Writer: Lucy Kellaway is the "Financial Times" management columnist. She lives in London is is married with four children.
Abridged by Sally Marmion
Producer Elizabeth Allard.
TUE 14:15 The Making of Music (b007mtk0)
Series 1
Notre Dame
James Naughtie discovers how history has shaped the development of classical music. Notre Dame in Paris was consecrated in 1163. Paris was the centre of intellecual life in Europe. As Notre Dame was being built, two men were writing the music that would fill it. Perotin and Leonin are the first named composers that come down to us through history.
Produced by Rosie Boulton, Sara Conkey , Lucy Lunt
BBC Birmingham.
TUE 14:30 15 Minute Drama (b00ty4k8)
The Beginning of Spring
Episode 2
Penelope Fitzgerald's novel of an English family in Moscow, adapted by Penny Leicester. The winter of 1913 finds Frank Reid, owner of a printing company, abandoned by his wife. Frank Reid is not being helped by his accountant, Selwyn.
Narrator: Clare Higgins; Frank: Richard McCabe; Selwyn: David Bamber; Nellie: Jennifer Lee Jellicorse; Dolly: Charlotte Ellis. Other parts played by Sonia Ritter, Rachel Atkins, Samuel Barnet, Richard Bremmer and David Collins. Producer: Tim Dee.
TUE 14:45 Book of the Week (b00szv9n)
Hampton Sides - Hellhound on His Trail
Eric S Galt
Hampton Sides' compelling new book sheds fresh light on the assassination of Martin Luther King and the hunt for his killer, James Earl Ray. In today's episode, King commits himself to leading a march in Memphis on behalf of striking sanitation workers, but the march goes disastrously wrong. Little does King know that a fugitive called Eric S Galt, aka James Earl Ray, appears to be following his every move.
Read by Christian Camargo and Clarke Peters.
Abridged by Viv Beeby
Produced by Emma Harding
The book: Hellhound on his Trail was published in the UK on 3rd June 2010 by Allen Lane.
The readers: Christian Camargo is an American actor, probably best known for his role as Brian Moser in the Showtime drama series Dexter. He also appeared in the Oscar winning 2009 film, The Hurt Locker as head psychiatrist Lieutenant Colonel John Cambridge. In summer 2010, he is playing Ariel in the Bridge Project's production of The Tempest at the Old Vic Theatre, London.
Clarke Peters is an American actor, singer and director, who is probably best known for playing Detective Lester Freamon in the HBO drama series, The Wire. He also appeared in the second series of Damages. He has numerous West End and Broadway credits and was nominated for a Tony award for writing the book of the musical revue, Five Guys Named Moe.
TUE 15:00 Gunter Grass - The Tin Drum (b007jlvd)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 today]
TUE 16:00 Whispers (b007k2zk)
Series 2
Episode 3
Gyles Brandreth hosts the quiz show with scandal on its mind and slander at its heart.
Simon Fanshawe and Charles Collingwood join team captains Lucy Moore and Anthony Holden to run the gauntlet of gossip.
Producer: Elizabeth Freestone
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 2004.
TUE 16:30 Such Rotten Luck (b01nvphb)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 today]
TUE 17:00 Dry Slopes (b00ln0q8)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]
TUE 17:30 The Casebook of Max and Ivan (b05s307h)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
TUE 18:00 Earthsea (b05t3dh9)
Series 1
The Other Earthsea
Ursula Le Guin's enduring fantasy saga set on the magical archipelago rich with wizards and dragons.
Based on the novel The Farthest Shore by Ursula Le Guin. Adapted by Judith Adams.
A strange plague is spreading over Earthsea and the springs of wizardry are drying up. Driven to seek out the source of the trouble, Archmage Ged has embarked on a perilous journey with young prince Arren. Their travels have taken them to a land cursed with a strange soul sickness, as they seek the man behind this darkness.
Ged ..... Shaun Dooley
Tenar ..... Vineeta Rishi
Arren ..... Will Featherstone
Cob ..... Toby Jones
Nilgu ..... Noma Dumezweni
Orm Ember ..... Ayesha Antoine
Original music by Jon Nicholls
Directed by Sasha Yevtushenko.
TUE 18:30 Frankly Speaking (b05t3f72)
Harold Lloyd
Silent film comedy great, Harold Lloyd, answers questions from Liam O'Leary and Peter Duval Smith.
Heralding from the same era as Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd was one of the most popular film comedians of the golden age of silent film. After starting acting aged just 12, Lloyd reveals he never wanted to be a matinee idol. He also attributes his success to a good cameraman and carefully crafted stunts.
Launched in 1952, Frankly Speaking was a completely novel and ground breaking BBC series. Initially there were three interviewers and the series was both unrehearsed and unscripted.
First broadcast on the BBC Home Service in 1962.
TUE 18:55 Inheritance Tracks (b010t4pk)
Peter Hook
The musician inherits 'Strangers in the Night' sung by Frank Sinatra and passes on Candi Staton's 'You Got the Love'.
TUE 19:00 Round the Horne (b00j05wz)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
TUE 19:30 The Ken Dodd Show (b05t2xmw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
TUE 20:00 Light on the Road to Woodstock (b007jqqf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
TUE 20:30 The Trumpet Shall Sound (b00vg8yw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
TUE 21:00 Afternoon Reading (b010t6h4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:00 today]
TUE 21:15 Kelvin Segger - The Bribery Warehouse (b0076kbr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:15 today]
TUE 22:00 The Casebook of Max and Ivan (b05s307h)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
TUE 22:30 I've Never Seen Star Wars (b00r66c1)
Series 3
Sanjeev Bhaskar
Marcus Brigstocke invites his guest Sanjeev Baskar to try five things he really ought to have done by now, including reading PG Wodehouse.
Whether the experiences are banal or profound, the show is about embracing the new and getting out of our comfort zones.
The title comes from the fact that the show's producer and creator Bill Dare had never seen the film Star Wars.
Producer: Bill Dare
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2010.
TUE 22:55 The Comedy Club Interviews (b05w8m8n)
The best in contemporary comedy. Tonight, Tom Wrigglesworth chats to Suzi Ruffell.
TUE 23:00 Giles Wemmbley Hogg Goes Off (b00pk7zr)
Series 4
Las Vegas
He's back! But this time, he's got a computer! Budleigh Salterton's most famous citizen has been grounded by both the Home Office and his father, so he's set up GWH Travvel ("2 Ms, 2 Gs, 2 Vs - bit of a mix up at the printers").
Run from his bedroom in Budleigh Salterton, with the help of his long-suffering former Primary School teacher Mr Timmis and the hindrance of his sister Charlotte, it's a one-stop Travel/Advice/Events Management/Website service, where each week his schemes range far and wide - whether it's roaming the country lecturing would-be overlanders on how to pack a rucksack ("If in doubt, put it in. And double it"), or finding someone a zebra for a corporate promotion ("I'll look in the Phone Book - how hard can it be? Now, "A to D"...), GWH Travvel stays true to its motto - "We do it all, so you won't want to".
This time, it's Viva Las Vegas as Giles accidentally gets three wives in a row and loses the jackpot as he tries his hand at poker and roulette - and comes up the exact opposite of trumps. The game is Texas Hold 'Em, the flop is huge, Giles has the nuts and we're crying all the way to the river, and no-one has a clue what any of that means. Because, as the old saying goes - what happens in Vegas. makes everyone in Budleigh Salterton very cross indeed.
Starring Marcus Brigstocke as Giles.
Giles Wemmbley Hogg ..... Marcus Brigstocke
Tommy "Tomahawk" Hayes ..... Kerry Shale
Nadine ..... Matilda Ziegler
Mr Timmis ..... Adrian Scarborough
Charlotte Wemmbley Hogg ..... Catherine Shepherd
Tony ..... Lou Hirsch
Mikey ..... David Armand
Written by Marcus Brigstocke & Jeremy Salsby.
Producer: David Tyler
A Pozzitive production for BBC Radio 4.
TUE 23:30 Chris Ramsey: Offermation (b01djr50)
South Shields comedian Chris Ramsey brings his Edinburgh Comedy Award nominated show to Radio 4 via the Manchester Comedy store; exploring the notion of 'Offermation' (not very interesting personal information that we haven't asked) and what stuff really makes life meaningful.


WEDNESDAY 06 MAY 2015

WED 00:00 Earthsea (b05t3dh9)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:00 on Tuesday]
WED 00:30 Frankly Speaking (b05t3f72)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:30 on Tuesday]
WED 00:55 Inheritance Tracks (b010t4pk)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:55 on Tuesday]
WED 01:00 Light on the Road to Woodstock (b007jqqf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 on Tuesday]
WED 01:30 The Trumpet Shall Sound (b00vg8yw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 on Tuesday]
WED 02:00 Book at Bedtime (b00sr4bz)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:00 on Tuesday]
WED 02:15 The Making of Music (b007mtk0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:15 on Tuesday]
WED 02:30 15 Minute Drama (b00ty4k8)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:30 on Tuesday]
WED 02:45 Book of the Week (b00szv9n)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:45 on Tuesday]
WED 03:00 Gunter Grass - The Tin Drum (b007jlvd)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 on Tuesday]
WED 04:00 Whispers (b007k2zk)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:00 on Tuesday]
WED 04:30 Such Rotten Luck (b01nvphb)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 on Tuesday]
WED 05:00 Dry Slopes (b00ln0q8)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 on Tuesday]
WED 05:30 The Casebook of Max and Ivan (b05s307h)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 on Tuesday]
WED 06:00 Light on the Road to Woodstock (b007jqqs)
Episode 2
Tackling a case of treachery against his master, detective monk Brother Cadfael misses his friend Alard. Read by Nigel Anthony.
WED 06:30 Talking about Lionel (b00fr715)
Eddie Mair tells the story of composer Lionel Bart, creator of Britain's most successful post-war musical, Oliver!
From the height of his dazzling fame in the 1960s, Bart endured a series of flops, leading to eventual bankruptcy, and he suffered serious health problems, including long battles with alcoholism and depression. He died aged 69 in 1999.
Eddie tells the story of this sensitive and troubled artist with the help of those who knew him intimately, including Tim Rice, Cameron Mackintosh, Miriam Karlin and Barbara Windsor.
Producers: Jo Coombs and Stewart Henderson
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2008.
WED 07:00 The Older Woman (b039gkz0)
Series 2
Episode 3
Roy's efforts to make a video diary become tinged with paranoia. The thought police and Michael Buerk from TV's 999 infiltrate his fantasies.
Surprisingly, Jane finds herself feeling sorry for Roy and makes a gesture she lives to regret.
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, Tilly Vosburgh as Marina and Alistair McGowan as God and Michael Buerk.
Producer: Paul Schlesinger
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 1994.
WED 07:30 Clare in the Community (b03nt9vm)
Series 9
Stand By Your Man
Clare has mysteriously abandoned her honeymoon and come back to work at Sparrowhawk Family Centre. The rest of the social workers have an unfortunate experience on a community project, and Brian struggles to enjoy a holiday on his own.
Sally Phillips is Clare Barker the social worker who has all the right jargon but never a practical solution.
A control freak, Clare likes nothing better than interfering in other people's lives on both a professional and personal basis. Clare is in her 30s, white, middle class and heterosexual, all of which are occasional causes of discomfort to her.
Clare continually struggles to control both her professional and private life.
In today's Big Society there are plenty of challenges out there for an involved, caring social worker. Or even Clare.
Written by Harry Venning and David Ramsden.
Clare ...... Sally Phillips
Brian ...... Alex Lowe
Jill ...... Nina Conti
Petra ...... Nina Conti
Ray ...... Richard Lumsden
Helen ...... Liza Tarbuck
Libby ...... Sarah Kendall
Joan ...... Sarah Thom
Queenie ...... Hannah Gordon
Hazel ...... Hannah Gordon
Ben ...... John Norton
Producer: Alexandra Smith.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2014.
WED 08:00 The Navy Lark (b05t3hvz)
Series 2
Secret Mission to Calais
Tact, diplomacy and discretion are needed as the crew of HMS Troutbridge sets sail to France to collect an agent, but then Phillips gets lost...

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 Fifi, Michael Bates as Smythe 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.

First broadcast on the BBC Light Programme in March 1960.
WED 08:30 I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again (b00tv7wx)
Series 4
Episode 14
To mark the end of series 4, it's panto time with Jack and the Beanstalk!
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 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.
Producer: Humphrey Barclay
First broadcast on the BBC Light Programme in January 1967.
WED 09:00 Trivia Test Match (b00w6c1v)
From 05/11/1991
Brian Johnston umpires as Willie Rushton and Stephen Fry battle Tim Rice and Rachel Heyhoe-Flint. From November 1991.
WED 09:30 The House of the Spirit Levels (b007jr6k)
To Begin At The End
Nick Revell’s six-part comedy serial travels between the Andes, St Petersburg and a town in west Yorkshire, where Tony Hardstaff returns after a 10-year absence.
He encounters his 183-year-old father Obadiah, his Bronte obsessed ex-girlfriend and the Morris Dancing Survivalist Militia.
In this opening episode, Tony is seduced by the charms of the beautiful Natassia Fillipovna Karamazov and has to escape from the ruthless Russian mafia in St Petersburg.
Tony ...... Nick Revell
Natasha Fillipovna ...... Morwenna Banks
The Narrator ...... Alistair McGowan
Mrs Yepanchin ...... Joanna Brooks
Ivan ...... Jonathan Kydd
Sergei ...... Peter Gunn
Kropotkin ...... Peter Serafinowcz
Vladimir ...... Chris Pavlo
Other parts played by the cast.
Music composed by Paul Mottram.
Producer: Paul Schlesinger
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 1997.
WED 10:00 The Inspector Alleyn Mysteries (b0084j7z)
A Man Lay Dead
When a murder takes place at a country-house party, it poses another baffling case for the glamorous Chief Detective Inspector Alleyn.
Dame Ngaio Marsh’s gentleman detective novel dramatised by Michael Bakewell.
Starring Jeremy Clyde as CDI Alleyn.
Nigel Bathgate ...... Nick Waring
Angela North ...... Molly Gaisford
Sir Hubert Hansley ...... Donald Sinden
Arthur Wilde ...... John Moffatt
Marjorie Wilde ...... Dorothy Tutin
Rosamund Grant ...... Susannah Corbett
Doctor ...... John Hartley
Charles Rankin ...... Derek Waring
Sgt Bunce ...... Stephen Thorne
Director: Enyd Williams
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2001.
WED 11:00 Afternoon Reading (b010t7rv)
The Doll: Short Stories by Daphne du Maurier
The Doll
The Doll is a macabre and unsettling tale about a young man besotted by a young violinist, who in turn has a strange and haunting passion. The Doll is the title story of a newly published collection by Daphne du Maurier, and excitingly, is one of several recently re-discovered short fictions by the famous writer that have either never been published or have been out of print for decades. Written in the late 1920s when du Maurier herself was just twenty, The Doll reveals some of the dark themes that she explores in the novels that made her name.
Reader: Ed Stoppard and Sean Baker
Abridger: Richard Hamilton
Producer: Elizabeth Allard.
WED 11:15 Drama (b00y2vgk)
A Nursery Tale
by Kate Clanchy
Xhensila has lost a child. Leona has lost a child. The two women are very similar. They could not be more different. As Kate Clanchy's nailbiting and bitterly funny play uncovers the where, the how and the why of their missing children, we discover exactly why parenthood is not a fairytale.
Producer/Director: Jonquil Panting
The music accompanying the programme is sung by Sister Mildred Barker, from the collection 'Early Shaker Spirituals', published by Rounder Records.
WED 12:00 The Navy Lark (b05t3hvz)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
WED 12:30 I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again (b00tv7wx)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
WED 13:00 Light on the Road to Woodstock (b007jqqs)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
WED 13:30 Talking about Lionel (b00fr715)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
WED 14:00 Book at Bedtime (b00sr4c1)
Lucy Kellaway - In Office Hours
Episode 8
In Office Hours is the new novel by Lucy Kellaway about men and women at work, and illicit love. Today, hard choices confront Stella and Bella.
The latest novel from the columnist, Lucy Kellaway, is a witty and sharply observed exploration of today's contemporary corporate world, and what happens when passions run high. The economist Stella Bradberry is at the top of her game, juggling a high powered career with motherhood. Bella Chambers is a bright and pretty single mother who was forced to drop out of college, and is working as a PA to make ends meet. Both women work for Atlantic Energy, a global oil company based in London, where risk taking is a way of life. When the Head of Press resigns unexpectedly, new opportunities and challenges open up for Stella and Bella, which ultimately lead them both to embark on obsessive and destructive affairs.
Readers: Haydn Gwynne has recently returned from Broadway where she was appearing in the award winning hit musical "Billy Elliot" after it transferred from London's West End. Award winning actress Lyndsey Marshal has most recently appeared on stage in "Three Days of Rain" and on television in "Being Human" and "Garrow's Law".
Writer: Lucy Kellaway is the "Financial Times" management columnist. She lives in London is is married with four children.
Abridged by Sally Marmion
Producer Elizabeth Allard.
WED 14:15 The Making of Music (b007mnr4)
Series 1
Troubadours
James Naughtie discovers how history has shaped the development of classical music. Across Europe in courts and great houses, music was beginning to celebrate the human as well as the divine. The Troubadours wrote songs of love, jealousy and betrayal.
Reader: Benedict Cumberbatch
Produced by Rosie Boulton, Sara Conkey, Lunt Lunt
BBC Birmingham.
WED 14:30 15 Minute Drama (b00tys98)
The Beginning of Spring
Episode 3
Penelope Fitzgerald's novel of an English family in Moscow, adapted by Penny Leicester. The winter of 1913 finds Frank Reid, owner of a printing company, abandoned by his wife. Frank Reid is not being helped by his accountant, Selwyn. The English Chaplaincy has a scary resident and now a shop girl looks set to take on the nannying duties.
Narrator: Clare Higgins; Frank: Richard McCabe; Selwyn: David Bamber; Nellie: Jennifer Lee Jellicorse; Dolly: Charlotte Ellis. Other parts played by Sonia Ritter, Rachel Atkins, Samuel Barnet, Richard Bremmer and David Collins. Producer: Tim Dee.
WED 14:45 Book of the Week (b00szv9b)
Hampton Sides - Hellhound on His Trail
Memphis
Hampton Sides' compelling new book sheds fresh light on the assassination of Martin Luther King and the hunt for his killer, James Earl Ray.
Martin Luther King and Eric S Galt, aka James Earl Ray, both arrive in Memphis. It is April 3rd 1968. As King makes himself comfortable in the familiar surroundings of Room 306 at the Lorraine Motel, Galt installs himself in a boarding house opposite, with a clear view of the door of Room 306.
Read by Christian Camargo and Clarke Peters.
Abridged by Viv Beeby.
Produced by Emma Harding.
The book: Hellhound on his Trail was published in the UK on 3rd June 2010 by Allen Lane.
The readers: Christian Camargo is an American actor, probably best known for his role as Brian Moser in the Showtime drama series Dexter. He also appeared in the Oscar winning 2009 film, The Hurt Locker as head psychiatrist Lieutenant Colonel John Cambridge. In summer 2010, he is playing Ariel in the Bridge Project's production of The Tempest at the Old Vic Theatre, London.
Clarke Peters is an American actor, singer and director, who is probably best known for playing Detective Lester Freamon in the HBO drama series, The Wire. He also appeared in the second series of Damages. He has numerous West End and Broadway credits and was nominated for a Tony award for writing the book of the musical revue, Five Guys Named Moe.
WED 15:00 The Inspector Alleyn Mysteries (b0084j7z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 today]
WED 16:00 Trivia Test Match (b00w6c1v)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]
WED 16:30 The House of the Spirit Levels (b007jr6k)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 today]
WED 17:00 The Older Woman (b039gkz0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]
WED 17:30 Clare in the Community (b03nt9vm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
WED 18:00 Arthur C Clarke Stories (b008h44x)
The Parasite
A man starts having terrifying dreams in which he's plagued by a monstrous creature.
Yet - although hideously repellent - the parasite seems strangely familiar to him...
First published in 1953, Arthur C Clarke's tale is read by Nicholas Boulton.
Arthur C Clarke, along with Robert Heinlein and Isaac Asimov, are known as Science-Fiction's "Big Three". Their work was key to the 1950s and 60s being recognised as the genre's Golden Age.
Abridged and produced by Gemma Jenkins
Made for BBC Radio 7 and first broadcast in 2007.
WED 18:30 Off the Page (b0076mzw)
Competitiveness
Matthew Parris struggles to cross the finish line ahead of Amanda Brookfield, Hugh Rycroft and Hannah McDonald. From August 2004.
WED 19:00 The Navy Lark (b05t3hvz)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
WED 19:30 I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again (b00tv7wx)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
WED 20:00 Light on the Road to Woodstock (b007jqqs)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
WED 20:30 Talking about Lionel (b00fr715)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
WED 21:00 Afternoon Reading (b010t7rv)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:00 today]
WED 21:15 Drama (b00y2vgk)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:15 today]
WED 22:00 Clare in the Community (b03nt9vm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
WED 22:30 John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme (b0150grq)
Series 1
Episode 2
John Finnemore, writer and star of Cabin Pressure, regular guest on The Now Show and popper-up in things like Miranda and That Mitchell and Webb Look returns with half an hour of his own sketches, each funnier than the last. Although, hang on, that system means starting the whole series with the least funny sketch. Might need to rethink that. OK, it's a new show filled with sketches written and performed by John Finnemore, but now no longer arranged in strict order of funniness. Also, he's cut the sketch that would have gone first.
This week's show reveals the truth behind the war effort, sty construction, and evolution.
John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme is written by and stars John Finnemore. It also features Carrie Quinlan (The News Quiz, The Late Edition), Lawry Lewin (The Life & Times of Vivienne Vyle, Horrible Histories) and Simon Kane (Six Impossible Things).
Producer: Ed Morrish.
WED 22:55 The Comedy Club Interviews (b05w8md0)
The best in contemporary comedy. Tonight, Tom Wrigglesworth chats to Suzi Ruffell.
WED 23:00 Arthur Smith's Balham Bash (b00lk09w)
Series 1
Episode 2
Arthur Smith invites an audience into his home in Balham, south London, for music and comedy.
With Benjamin Zephaniah, Stephen K Amos and Matt Holness
Pippa Evans - as singer-songwriter Loretta Maine - lends a hand.
Producer: Alison Vernon-Smith
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 2009.
WED 23:30 Lucy Montgomery's Variety Pack (b00wlg3h)
Series 1
Episode 4
Posh privately educated teenagers Daisy and Maisie show prospective parents around their school.
Joanna Lumley visits her mother with a Christmas present and the Mona Lisa lets us into a secret.
Multi-paced, one woman Fast Show showcasing 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, Jon Hunter and Joe Wilkinson.
Music by Philip Pope
Producer: Katie Tyrrell.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2010.


THURSDAY 07 MAY 2015

THU 00:00 Arthur C Clarke Stories (b008h44x)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:00 on Wednesday]
THU 00:30 Off the Page (b0076mzw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:30 on Wednesday]
THU 01:00 Light on the Road to Woodstock (b007jqqs)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 on Wednesday]
THU 01:30 Talking about Lionel (b00fr715)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 on Wednesday]
THU 02:00 Book at Bedtime (b00sr4c1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:00 on Wednesday]
THU 02:15 The Making of Music (b007mnr4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:15 on Wednesday]
THU 02:30 15 Minute Drama (b00tys98)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:30 on Wednesday]
THU 02:45 Book of the Week (b00szv9b)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:45 on Wednesday]
THU 03:00 The Inspector Alleyn Mysteries (b0084j7z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 on Wednesday]
THU 04:00 Trivia Test Match (b00w6c1v)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 on Wednesday]
THU 04:30 The House of the Spirit Levels (b007jr6k)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 on Wednesday]
THU 05:00 The Older Woman (b039gkz0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 on Wednesday]
THU 05:30 Clare in the Community (b03nt9vm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 on Wednesday]
THU 06:00 Ruth Rendell Stories (b007jrzf)
Paperwork
Cruelty and silence lead a man to confront his past in a house piled high with papers and secrets. Read by Russell Dixon.
THU 06:30 Brandreth's Pills (b00pdk2q)
Gyles Brandreth tells the tale of one of the most influential people you've never heard of - his great great grandfather, Benjamin. It's a story that takes us from Liverpool in the 1830s to New York, with a cast of hucksters, quacks, politicians, millionaires, and medics - not to mention the founders of tabloid journalism and mass advertising. Benjamin Brandreth set sail from Liverpool in 1835 with nothing. By the time of his death in 1887 he was a New York senator, a landowner, the owner of one of New York's biggest hotels, and one of the richest men in the country. He had invented the giant billboard, financed Gordon Bennett's yellow press and developed mass advertising. How? Brandreth's vegetable pills! They were a powerful laxative. Brandreth claimed they could cure almost anything, he spent a fortune on advertising, and people believed him.
Producer: Chris Bond.
THU 07:00 Tomorrow, Today! (b0124y8y)
Series 1
Dial M for Martian
Comedy series by Christopher William Hill, set in 1961. A BBC producer struggles to make a radio soap set in the unimaginably futuristic world of 2006.
Will Hugo give in to government manipulation to save his beloved show from cancellation?
Nigel Lavery ...... Peter Bowles
Sylvia Hann ...... Cheryl Campbell
Godfrey Winnard ...... John Fortune
Sir Angus McNairn ...... Gary Waldhorn
Hugo Kellerman ...... Joseph Kloska
Douglas Bennings ...... Jon Glover
Colin Franks ...... Paul Richard Biggin
Miss Pickford ...... Miranda Keeling.
THU 07:30 Ed Reardon's Week (b03lnzxk)
Series 9
The Bride of Auntie
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 can put his extensive general knowledge to good use when he finally finds his niche and becomes a contestant on the Radio 4 seminal quiz 'What Do You Know'. Not only is his general knowledge excellent, but he's also being paid a fee to the grand sum of £43. Is his luck turning at last?
Written by Andrew Nickolds and Christopher Douglas
Produced by Dawn Ellis.
THU 08:00 Steptoe and Son (b00rdsv7)
Series 1
The Bird
Harold Steptoe is furious when his date Roxanne is late for dinner.
Starring Wilfrid Brambell and Harry H Corbett.
Following the conclusion of their hugely successful association with Tony Hancock, writers Ray Galton and Alan Simpson wrote 10 pilots for the BBC TV's Comedy Playhouse in 1962.
The Offer featured the lives of rag and bone men Albert Steptoe and son Harold - and was the spark for a run of 8 series on TV.
Albert ...... Wilfrid Brambell
Harold ...... Harry H Corbett
Roxanne ...... Marion Stone
Adapted for radio from Galton and Simpson's TV script by Gale Pedrick.
Producer: Bobby Jaye
First broadcast on the BBC Light Programme in July 1966.
THU 08:30 Not in Front of the Children (b05t6kr1)
Series 1
An Older Man's Fancy
After Henry's behaviour at a party, Jennifer tries to be 'with it'.
The comedy mishaps of the Corner family: Jennifer and Henry and their three children Trudi, Amanda and Robin. Family sitcom, Not in Front of the Children originally ran for four series from 1967 to 1970 on BBC TV. Richard Waring adapted his own scripts for this radio version, now fully restored from the original reel-to-reel tapes.
CAST:
Jennifer …. Wendy Craig
Henry …. Francis Matthews
Mary …. Charlotte Mitchell
Trudi …. Roberta Tovey
Amanda …. Jill Riddick
Peter Harrison …. Richard Waring
Vanessa …. Carole Lorimer
Sheila …. Rosalind Adams
Dr Steele …. Ross Hutchinson
Music by Ronnie Hazlehurst
Producer: Trafford Whitelock
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 1969.
THU 09:00 Who Goes There? (b0075z6w)
Series 4
Episode 5
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 Gyles Brandreth and Sheridan Morley.
Producer: Liz Anstee
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 2000.
THU 09:30 No Commitments (b007jn4l)
Series 5
Family Business
Worried Victoria takes action when daughter Emily decides to enrol at drama school. Stars Nicola Pagett. From July 1998.
THU 10:00 Simon Brett - The Furniture Play (b00p6c7z)
The speaking furniture in the flat of fledgling publisher Miles comments on his love life. Comedy starring Michael Maloney.
THU 11:00 Afternoon Reading (b010t7p2)
The Doll: Short Stories by Daphne du Maurier
The Happy Valley
The Happy Valley by Daphne du Maurier tells the story of a young woman who dreams of an eerie wilderness and a grand old house, and echoes her most famous book, Rebecca. In the story, the young woman starts a romantic relationship with a man and finds herself walking into the real landscape she has dreamed of...
The Happy Valley is selected from The Doll: Short Stories, the newly published collection by Daphne du Maurier. This includes several pieces recently rediscovered by an enthusastic devotee of the famous writer. The Happy Valley was originally printed in the Illustrated London News in 1932 but hasn't been published in a collection until now. Written early in her career these stories reveal the dark themes explored in the novels that made her name.
Reader: Hattie Morahan
Abridger: Richard Hamilton
Producer: Lucy Collingwood.
THU 11:15 Charlotte Greig - The Confessions (b00s93p9)
When Luke 'acquires' a valuable sketch, he plans to make a killing. Contemporary art scam thriller. Stars Clive Standen.
THU 12:00 Steptoe and Son (b00rdsv7)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
THU 12:30 Not in Front of the Children (b05t6kr1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
THU 13:00 Ruth Rendell Stories (b007jrzf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
THU 13:30 Brandreth's Pills (b00pdk2q)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
THU 14:00 Book at Bedtime (b00sr4c3)
Lucy Kellaway - In Office Hours
Episode 9
In Office Hours is the new novel by Lucy Kellaway about men and women at work, and illicit love. Today, Bella's hand is forced, and Stella is up for a prize.
The latest novel from the columnist, Lucy Kellaway, is a witty and sharply observed exploration of today's contemporary corporate world, and what happens when passions run high. The economist Stella Bradberry is at the top of her game, juggling a high powered career with motherhood. Bella Chambers is a bright and pretty single mother who was forced to drop out of college, and is working as a PA to make ends meet. Both women work for Atlantic Energy, a global oil company based in London, where risk taking is a way of life. When the Head of Press resigns unexpectedly, new opportunities and challenges open up for Stella and Bella, which ultimately lead them both to embark on obsessive and destructive affairs.
Readers: Haydn Gwynne has recently returned from Broadway where she was appearing in the award winning hit musical "Billy Elliot" after it transferred from London's West End. Award winning actress Lyndsey Marshal has most recently appeared on stage in "Three Days of Rain" and on television in "Being Human" and "Garrow's Law".
Writer: Lucy Kellaway is the "Financial Times" management columnist. She lives in London is is married with four children.
Abridged by Sally Marmion
Producer Elizabeth Allard.
THU 14:15 The Making of Music (b007mvlf)
Series 1
Burgundy
James Naughtie discovers how history has shaped the development of classical music. Philip The Good, the Duke of Burgundy funded great musicians Dufay and Binchois. They in turn were influenced by an English composer, John Dunstable. His style was imitated in the Burgundy court and gave music there ' an English countenance.'
Produced by Rosie Boulton, Sara Conkey and Lucy Lunt.
BBC Birmingham.
THU 14:30 15 Minute Drama (b00tz3yw)
The Beginning of Spring
Episode 4
Penelope Fitzgerald's novel of an English family in Moscow, adapted by Penny Leicester. The winter of 1913 finds Frank Reid, owner of a printing company, abandoned by his wife. Frank Reid is not being helped by his accountant, Selwyn. The English Chaplaincy has a scary resident and now a shop girl is taking on the nannying duties. Lisa, the new nanny, is too beautiful for Frank, even with her plaits cut off.
Narrator: Clare Higgins; Frank: Richard McCabe; Selwyn: David Bamber; Nellie: Jennifer Lee Jellicorse; Dolly: Charlotte Ellis. Other parts played by Sonia Ritter, Rachel Atkins, Samuel Barnet, Richard Bremmer and David Collins. Producer: Tim Dee.
THU 14:45 Book of the Week (b00szv9d)
Hampton Sides - Hellhound on His Trail
Racial Apocalypse
Hampton Sides' compelling new book sheds fresh light on the assassination of Martin Luther King and the hunt for his killer, James Earl Ray. In today's episode, as news of King's murder spreads, the USA prepares itself for widespread unrest. Meanwhile, Eric S Galt, aka James Earl Ray, is already making his escape north to Canada.
Read by Christian Camargo and Clarke Peters.
Abridged by Viv Beeby.
Produced by Emma Harding.
The book: Hellhound on his Trail was published in the UK on 3rd June 2010 by Allen Lane.
The readers: Christian Camargo is an American actor, probably best known for his role as Brian Moser in the Showtime drama series Dexter. He also appeared in the Oscar winning 2009 film, The Hurt Locker as head psychiatrist Lieutenant Colonel John Cambridge. In summer 2010, he is playing Ariel in the Bridge Project's production of The Tempest at the Old Vic Theatre, London.
Clarke Peters is an American actor, singer and director, who is probably best known for playing Detective Lester Freamon in the HBO drama series, The Wire. He also appeared in the second series of Damages. He has numerous West End and Broadway credits and was nominated for a Tony award for writing the book of the musical revue, Five Guys Named Moe.
THU 15:00 Simon Brett - The Furniture Play (b00p6c7z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 today]
THU 16:00 Who Goes There? (b0075z6w)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]
THU 16:30 No Commitments (b007jn4l)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 today]
THU 17:00 Anything Legal (b008cxvk)
Episode 7
The do-it-yourself skills of Charles and George arouse the suspicions of their wives Marjorie and Hilary.
Starring Donald Hewlett and Michael Knowles.
A Tale of Two City Gents by Wally K Daly
Charles ...... Donald Hewlett
George ...... Michael Knowles
Marjorie ...... Dilys Laye
Hilary ...... Norma Ronald
Theme music by Jim Parker
Producer: John Fawcett Wilson
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 1984.
THU 17:30 Tomorrow, Today! (b0124y8y)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]
THU 18:00 Arthur C Clarke Stories (b008h36w)
All the Time in the World
Professional thief Robert Ashton receives an unexpected visit... Time is altered so the world's treasures can be stolen - but who is behind it?
Arthur C Clarke's 1952 short story read by Nicholas Boulton.
Somerset-born author Arthur C Clarke (1917-2008) achieved his greatest fame in 1968 when his short story The Sentinel was turned into the film 2001: A Space Odyssey. His visions of space travel and computing sparked the imagination of readers and scientists alike.
Producer: Gemma Jenkins
Made for BBC Radio 7 and first broadcast in 2007.
THU 18:30 Great Lives (b0076l8p)
Nelson
Explorer Benedict Allen chooses Horatio Nelson. With biographer Terry Coleman. Presenter Humphrey Carpenter. From April 2004.
THU 19:00 Steptoe and Son (b00rdsv7)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
THU 19:30 Not in Front of the Children (b05t6kr1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
THU 20:00 Ruth Rendell Stories (b007jrzf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
THU 20:30 Brandreth's Pills (b00pdk2q)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
THU 21:00 Afternoon Reading (b010t7p2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:00 today]
THU 21:15 Charlotte Greig - The Confessions (b00s93p9)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:15 today]
THU 22:00 Party (b00r7l7j)
Series 1
Episode 1
A group of young idealists try to set up a brand new political party.
From the perils of electing a leader and choosing a party name through to the finer intricacies of Foreign and Environmental policy
Tom Basden’s sitcom satirises their ambitions, hypocrisy and naivety - based on his 2009 Edinburgh play which won a fringe first.
Simon ...... Tom Basden
Mel ...... Anna Crilly
Duncan ...... Tim Key
Jared ...... Johnny Sweet
Phoebe ...... Katy Wix
Producer: Julia McKenzie
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2010.
THU 22:25 The Election Selection (b05w8mxp)
Episode 1
A night of political comedy to ease you through the election process. Andy Zaltzman chats to Jon Holmes.
THU 22:30 Count Arthur Strong's Radio Show! (b00plzyg)
Series 5
Yes Count Arthur
Outraged by an optician's dispute, Arthur seeks high office in the council elections. Stars Steve Delaney. From January 2010.
THU 22:55 The Election Selection (b05w8mzg)
Episode 2
A night of political comedy to ease you through the election process. Here's some advice on storming an election - from an expert.
THU 23:00 Dave Podmore (b00sjvcl)
Dave Podmore on the Stump
Everyone remembers where they were when they heard the news that Dave Podmore had been elected MP for the hotly-contested marginal seat of Leicester Forest Services (East). Except Dave Podmore who, to be fair, had had a few.
Pod's had a lot on his mind. His attractive wife Jacqui is playing away with an Aussie ex-cricketer even more overweight than Pod; his dogs get turned away from a bed-and-breakfast by a seaside landlady who has no qualms about letting gays in to reorganize her table settings; and he urgently needs money to pay for the dogs' sumptuous new living quarters.
His faithful sidekick Andy points out that there's still money to be made as an MP, so Pod embarks on the long road to Westminster - starting by parking illegally on it outside the Town Hall.
Pod develops a political philosophy - he wants to see a world where no dogs have to be licensed, no patio heater is deemed environmentally unsound and where it's possible for the fly-tipper to walk without fear throughout this green and pleasant landfill.
All of this appeals to Hard Shoulder Man, Pod's core voters, and he's elected in a landslide. So how come he has to resign his seat three days later? And will Jacqui return? And could reality TV possibly come to the rescue and give us a dramatically satisfying ending?
Written by Christopher Douglas, Nick Newman and Andrew Nickolds.
Producer: Richard Wilson
A Hat Trick production for BBC Radio 4.
THU 23:25 The Election Selection (b05w8n15)
Episode 3
A night of political comedy to ease you through the election process. Andy Zaltzman chats to Angela Barnes.
THU 23:30 Henning Knows Best (b01dppfp)
Politics
Comedian Henning Wehn (German Comedy Ambassador to the United Kingdom) has spent over ten years living in the UK and feels he's in a good position to share his views on Britain and its unique foibles.
With a tongue sharper than a rapier sword, and searing Teutonic honesty, he shares his thoughts on what it is to be British. He takes a look at various aspects of British life over the next six weeks - class, languages, sport, humour, shopping - and he continues with British politics, sharing his views on the history of the parties, voting and Europe.
Each week he's joined by his musical companion, Otto Kuhnle - the Fatherland's foremost Yodelmeister - and a different guest. This week, it's the former football mascot, and now Mayor of Hartlepool, Stuart Drummond.


FRIDAY 08 MAY 2015

FRI 00:00 Hancock's Half Hour (b007jsvk)
Series 5
The Election Candidate
The electioneering lad battles to represent East Cheam in the Houses of Parliament.
Stars Tony Hancock.
With Sidney James, Bill Kerr, Hattie Jacques and Kenneth Williams.
Written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson.
Theme and incidental music written by Wally Stott.
Producer: Tom Ronald
First broadcast on the BBC Light Programme in March 1958.
FRI 00:30 Yes Minister (b007jl60)
Series 1
Open Government
Newly re-elected, MP Jim Hacker is summoned to the PM's office.
Jim learns from his chauffeur that the new St Edwards Hospital has 300 administrators, cooks and cleaners, but no doctors, nurses or patients. How can he cure it? As usual the Minister doesn't know his ACAS from his NALGO.
Starring Paul Eddington, Nigel Hawthorne and Derek Fowlds.
Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn satirical sitcom ran on BBC TV between 1980 and 1984. Yes Minister is centred around the hapless Jim Hacker and a collection of civil service underlings headed by the Machiavellian Sir Humphrey Appleby and obsequious Bernard.
Jim Hacker ...... Paul Eddington
Sir Humphrey Appleby ...... Nigel Hawthorne
Bernard ...... Derek Fowlds
Annie Hacker ...... Diana Hoddinot
Frank Weisel ...... Bill Nighy
Sir Arnold ...... John Nettleton
Chief Whip ...... Edward Jewesbury
Nigel ...... Haydn Wood
Radio Presenter ...... Gordon Clyde
Newsreader ...... Bob Docherty
Adapted for radio by producer Pete Atkin.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in October 1983.
FRI 00:55 The Election Selection (b05w8rqh)
Episode 4
A night of political comedy to ease you through the election process. Andy Zaltzman chats to Jon Holmes.
FRI 01:00 Radio Active (b05t7gjf)
Series 6
A Thodding By-Election Special
Expect no bias as Radio Active's Chairman Norman Tonsil stands as an Independent Candidate in the Thodding By-Election.
Starring Helen Atkinson-Wood, Angus Deayton, Geoffrey Perkins, Philip Pope and Michael Fenton-Stevens.
Music by Philip Pope and Geoffrey Perkins.
Written by Angus Deayton and Geoffrey Perkins with John Canter.
Producer: Paul Mayhew-Archer
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in October 1986.
FRI 01:30 Absolute Power (b007t3kk)
Series 2
Episode 1
Prentiss McCabe try to save New Labour from total voter humiliation. Starring Stephen Fry and John Bird. From January 2001.
FRI 01:55 The Election Selection (b05w8ry1)
Episode 5
A night of political comedy to ease you through the election process. David Mills shares his thoughts.
FRI 02:00 Dead Ringers (b00762g2)
Election Special 2001
Tony Blair and William Hague lead the battle in the 2001 general election. Stars Jon Culshaw and Jan Ravens. From June 2001.
FRI 02:25 The Election Selection (b05w8s18)
Episode 6
A night of political comedy to ease you through the election process. Jonny and the Baptists play us a song.
FRI 02:30 The News Huddlines (b007kf4b)
As vote counting commences, Roy Hudd lampoons the candidates from Thatcher to Kinnock. With Chris Emmett. From June 1987.
FRI 02:55 The Election Selection (b05w8s48)
Episode 7
A night of political comedy to ease you through the election process. Andy Zaltzman chats to Angela Barnes.
FRI 03:00 The Party Line (b010p0pf)
Series 1
Episode 1
The frustrations of a backbench MP. Topical sitcom from Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis. Starring James Fleet. From May 2005.
FRI 03:30 The Burkiss Way (b00gsb7z)
Series 2
Govern Britain the Burkiss Way
The comedy team sweep to a political landslide.
The Burkiss Way to Dynamic Living from radio's Advanced Correspondence Course
With democratic instruction from Jo Kendall , Nigel Rees, Chris Emmett and Fred Harris.
A proportionally representative script by Andrew Marshall and David Renwick.
Ministerial production by Simon Brett.
Cult sketch show first broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 1977.
FRI 03:55 The Election Selection (b05w8s71)
Episode 8
A night of political comedy to ease you through the election process. David Mills shares his thoughts.
FRI 04:00 Little Blighty on the Down (b00sts5b)
Series 2
Episode 1
Parish Council leader Mrs Roberts battles on with her village toll tax. Political satire with Jo Kendall. From July 1989.
FRI 04:25 The Election Selection (b05w8s90)
Episode 9
A night of political comedy to ease you through the election process. Jonny and the Baptists play us a song.
FRI 04:30 The Men from the Ministry (b0116gvp)
We All Make Mistakes
Sir Gregory decides it's time to take action over the bumbling bureaucrats...
A weekly tribute to all those who work in government departments.
Stars Richard Murdoch and Deryck Guyler. With Norma Ronald, Ronald Baddiley and John Graham.
Written by Edward Taylor and John Graham.
'The Men from the Ministry' ran for 14 series between 1962 and 1977. Deryck Guyler replaced Wilfrid Hyde-White from 1966. Sadly many episodes didn't survive in the archive, however the BBC's Transcription Service re-recorded 14 shows in 1980 - never broadcast in the UK, until the arrival of BBC Radio 4 Extra.
Producer: Edward Taylor
First broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 in August 1971.
FRI 05:00 Political Animals (b01lv38q)
Series 1
Wilberforce
Wilberforce, Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office 1973-1987, reflects on his life with Margaret Thatcher.
Starring Clive Swift.
The first in a series of four scurrilous talks given by well-known, if unreliable, Downing Street cats.
Tony Bagley assists each feline to relate their trials and tribulations under four different Prime Ministers.
Director: Marc Beeby
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 2012.
FRI 05:15 Political Animals (b01m179f)
Series 1
Humphrey
Notoriously photo-shy Humphrey was chief mouser to the Cabinet Office from 1989 to 1997.
With a robust vocabulary and a pretty earthy view of political life, he looks back on New Labour life at Number 10 under Tony Blair.
Starring James Fleet.
Series of scurrilous talks given by well-known, if unreliable, Downing Street cats.
Tony Bagley assists each feline to relate their trials and tribulations under four different prime ministers.
Director: Marc Beeby
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 2012.
FRI 05:30 Political Animals (b01m5nt0)
Series 1
Sybil
Sybil, Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office 2007 to 2008, reflects on her troubled life with Gordon Brown.
Starring Tracy Wiles.
Series of scurrilous talks given by well-known, if unreliable, Downing Street cats.
Tony Bagley assists each feline to relate their trials and tribulations under four different prime ministers.
Director: Marc Beeby
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 2012.
FRI 05:45 Political Animals (b03ktz1b)
Series 2
Barney and George
Barney reveals how President George W Bush broke his heart by being unfaithful with a man called Tony.
Another unreliable dog's eye view of the trials and tribulations of living in the White House.
Written by Tony Bagley.
Director: Marc Beeby.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2013.
FRI 06:00 Mark Tavener - High Table, Lower Orders (b008wf8j)
Series 1
Episode 1
Since graduation, Simon has hardly blazed a trail as a plodding Health and Safety executive, so why does his old Cambridge master Gilbert need him?
Following the death of one of its most prominent Dons, celebrity TV historian Peter Devanti - everyone at a Cambridge College gathers to attend the funeral. Simon, an ex-student and now disillusioned health and safety officer, starts wondering whether his death was not as straightforward as it at first appeared.
CAST:
Gilbert …. Geoffrey Palmer
Simon …. Samuel West
Patricia …. Rebecca Front
with Sharon Small, Michael Maloney, Jonathan Coy, Emily Wachter, Nicholas Boulton, Hugh Dickson, and Beth Chalmers
Script Editor: Paul Schlesinger
Producer: Dawn Ellis
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2005.
FRI 06:30 The Brixmis Story (b007nf6t)
They were unsung heroes of the cold war: some of the most effective gatherers of military intelligence behind the iron curtain.
But compared to the glamorous spies of MI6, the Brixmis officers were virtually unknown.
Jolyon Jenkins tells the story of the spies in uniform, who stole bit of Soviet military hardware and went through East German rubbish dumps in search of classified information.
Producer: Jolyon Jenkins
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 2007.
FRI 07:00 Lucky Heather (b0075rtm)
For a Few Dollars More
Just this side of nosey, Heather is western movie-mad. She's also the Sherlock Holmes of the rundown Sutter Estate.
With the aid of daughter Natalie and her boyfriend Ryan, she's determined to help her local community.
For starters, Heather tries to help a family with a sick child, but events take an unexpected turn...
Six-part sitcom by Sue Teddern
Starring Lindsey Coulson as Heather. ( Lindsey played Carol Jackson in BBC TV's EastEnders until 2015)
With Abigail Hart as Natalie, Ben Crowe as Ryan, Dearbhla Molloy as Maev, Tom George as Craig and Beth Chalmers as Lisa.
Director: David Hunter
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2000.
FRI 07:30 The Vote Now Show (b05s3sth)
Series 2
Episode 4
A series of election specials from the Now Show team. Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis are joined by special guests to give their own unique take on the week's election shenanigans.
Episode four features Laura Shavin, John Robins, Ben Partridge, Deborah Orr and Adam Kay.
Producers; Alexandra Smith, Joe Nunnery and Rachel Wheeley.
Executive Producer Alison Vernon-Smith.
FRI 08:00 Hancock's Half Hour (b007k4m9)
Series 4
The Bolshoi Ballet
The lad's hopes for a night of dance at London's Covent Garden don't quite go to plan.
Starring Tony Hancock.
With Sidney James, Bill Kerr 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 October 1956.
FRI 08:30 Play It Cool (b05tbp4r)
Episode 6
Revealing tales of Hollywood and the life of William Shakespeare.
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 (b00jnlsm)
Series 1
Episode 6
James Walton's pop music history quiz with Tracey Macleod, Andrew Collins, Anthony Wilson and Richard Curtis. From January 2005.
FRI 09:30 On Baby Street (b00dp75j)
Series 1
Episode 1
Three women neighbours are set to discover the delights of parenthood. Stars Keith Allen and Kathy Burke. From January 1996.
FRI 10:00 Peter Tinniswood (b007jx5l)
The House Swap
Sid Fiedelman, a hard-drinking, award-winning American cartoonist, is sent by his editor to cast a satirical eye on Britain at the end of the millennium.
But Sid and his world-weary wife Alma are unprepared for what the small English village of Winterleaf Gunner has to offer...
Penelope Wilton, Peter Vaughan and William Hootkins stars in Peter Tinniswood’s drama.
Alma ...... Penelope Wilton
Sid ...... William Hootkins.
Ferns ...... Peter Vaughan
Edgar ...... John Hartley
Henry ...... Nigel Carrington
Director: Gordon House
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 1999.
FRI 11:00 RK Narayan Stories (b01d98l5)
The Axe
If the old house remains intact, Velan's beautiful gardens will endure. But property developers gather. Read by Sam Dastor. From June 1991.
FRI 11:15 Graham Swannell - The Gift (b05tbrqz)
A young man, dying of an incurable disease, asks an old school friend to join him on a journey to the sun. Stars David Collings.
FRI 12:00 Hancock's Half Hour (b007k4m9)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
FRI 12:30 Play It Cool (b05tbp4r)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
FRI 13:00 Mark Tavener - High Table, Lower Orders (b008wf8j)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
FRI 13:30 The Brixmis Story (b007nf6t)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
FRI 14:00 Book at Bedtime (b00sr4c5)
Lucy Kellaway - In Office Hours
Episode 10
In Office Hours is the new novel by Lucy Kellaway about men and women at work, and illicit love. In the concluding episode, personally and professionally things unravel for Stella and Bella.
The latest novel from the columnist, Lucy Kellaway, is a witty and sharply observed exploration of today's contemporary corporate world, and what happens when passions run high. The economist Stella Bradberry is at the top of her game, juggling a high powered career with motherhood. Bella Chambers is a bright and pretty single mother who was forced to drop out of college, and is working as a PA to make ends meet. Both women work for Atlantic Energy, a global oil company based in London, where risk taking is a way of life. When the Head of Press resigns unexpectedly, new opportunities and challenges open up for Stella and Bella, which ultimately lead them both to embark on obsessive and destructive affairs.
Readers: Haydn Gwynne has recently returned from Broadway where she was appearing in the award winning hit musical "Billy Elliot" after it transferred from London's West End. Award winning actress Lyndsey Marshal has most recently appeared on stage in "Three Days of Rain" and on television in "Being Human" and "Garrow's Law".
Writer: Lucy Kellaway is the "Financial Times" management columnist. She lives in London is is married with four children.
Abridged by Sally Marmion
Producer Elizabeth Allard.
FRI 14:15 The Making of Music (b007mnr6)
Series 1
The Renaissance
James Naughtie discovers how history has shaped the development of classical music.The world was changing: in the Renaissance, man was well as God was celebrated in music and the arts. In Ferrara, Italy, Josquin Desprez wrote as mass that immortalised his patron, the Duke Ecole d'Este I. Missa Hercules dux Ferrariae was based on the syllables of the Dukes name.
Reader: Simon Russell Beale
Produced by Rosie Boulton, Sara Conkey, Lucy Lunt.
BBC Birmingham.
FRI 14:30 15 Minute Drama (b00tzmqn)
The Beginning of Spring
Episode 5
Penelope Fitzgerald's novel of an English family in Moscow, adapted by Penny Leicester. The winter of 1913 finds Frank Reid, owner of a printing company, abandoned by his wife. Frank Reid is not being helped by his accountant, Selwyn. The English Chaplaincy has a scary resident and now a shop girl is taking on the nannying duties. Lisa, the new nanny, is too beautiful for Frank, even with her plaits cut off.
Narrator: Clare Higgins; Frank: Richard McCabe; Selwyn: David Bamber; Nellie: Jennifer Lee Jellicorse; Dolly: Charlotte Ellis. Other parts played by Sonia Ritter, Rachel Atkins, Samuel Barnet, Richard Bremmer and David Collins. Producer: Tim Dee.
FRI 14:45 Book of the Week (b00szv9g)
Hampton Sides - Hellhound on His Trail
Breakthrough
Hampton Sides' compelling new book sheds fresh light on the assassination of Martin Luther King and the hunt for his killer, James Earl Ray. In today's episode, the FBI's manhunt for King's killer has made an exciting breakthrough - they now know that the real name of their prime suspect. But they first need to pursue him to London, where he is hiding out under another new identity - that of 'Ramon Sneyd'.
Read by Christian Camargo and Clarke Peters.
Abridged by Viv Beeby
Produced by Emma Harding
The book: Hellhound on his Trail was published in the UK on 3rd June 2010 by Allen Lane.
The readers: Christian Camargo is an American actor, probably best known for his role as Brian Moser in the Showtime drama series Dexter. He also appeared in the Oscar winning 2009 film, The Hurt Locker as head psychiatrist Lieutenant Colonel John Cambridge. In summer 2010, he is playing Ariel in the Bridge Project's production of The Tempest at the Old Vic Theatre, London.
Clarke Peters is an American actor, singer and director, who is probably best known for playing Detective Lester Freamon in the HBO drama series, The Wire. He also appeared in the second series of Damages. He has numerous West End and Broadway credits and was nominated for a Tony award for writing the book of the musical revue, Five Guys Named Moe.
FRI 15:00 Peter Tinniswood (b007jx5l)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 today]
FRI 16:00 All the Way from Memphis (b00jnlsm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]
FRI 16:30 On Baby Street (b00dp75j)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 today]
FRI 17:00 Lucky Heather (b0075rtm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]
FRI 17:30 The Vote Now Show (b05s3sth)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
FRI 18:00 Arthur C Clarke Stories (b007jvt0)
Before Eden
Scientists stationed on Venus battle to find signs of life, but what about the impact of their quest? Read by Tim Pigott-Smith.
FRI 18:30 My Life in Five Songs (b011d5sw)
Judy Collins
1/1 Judy Collins is an American singer and songwriter with a successful career spanning over fifty years.
Born is Seattle one of her early influences was her father Chuck who hosted his own radio show in Seattle and then in Los Angeles.
Judy enjoyed early chart success with Both Sides Now written by Joni Mitchell and Turn Turn Turn from the pen of Pete Seeger.
Known for her political activism she's participated in benefit concerts for many causes including civil rights, the Vietnam War protests and women's rights.
The show opens with Both Sides Now and Judy goes on to pick the following five tracks.
1: Diana Krall with Quiet Nights
2: In My Life by The Beatles
3: Gotta Sing High by Kenny White
4: Amy Speace with Weight of the World
5: The Stranger Song by Leonard Cohen
Phil also plays a little of Judy's version of Farewell to Tarwathie before closing the conversation with another of Judy's classic tracks, Chelsea Morning.
FRI 19:00 Hancock's Half Hour (b007k4m9)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
FRI 19:30 Play It Cool (b05tbp4r)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
FRI 20:00 Mark Tavener - High Table, Lower Orders (b008wf8j)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
FRI 20:30 The Brixmis Story (b007nf6t)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
FRI 21:00 RK Narayan Stories (b01d98l5)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:00 today]
FRI 21:15 Graham Swannell - The Gift (b05tbrqz)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:15 today]
FRI 22:00 The Vote Now Show (b05s3sth)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
FRI 22:30 Victor Lewis-Smith (b05tbtwn)
Episode 1
Vacuum cleaners, Chinese takeaways and fatherly advice abound in the darkly comic world of Victor Lewis-Smith.
Award-winning controversial comedy surfaced on BBC Radio 1 in 1990 in the shape of Victor Lewis-Smith. The writer and producer took a comedy cudgel to the self-satisfied, mid-Atlantic style of the very network he was appearing on - with hoax phone calls, sketches, plus comic takedowns of high profile celebs. It's all deliciously sandwiched between the original jangly Radio 1 jingles made by JAM Creative Productions in Dallas, USA.
Winner of the British Comedy Awards 1990 for Best Radio Comedy.
After making 12 late night programmes for Radio 1, Victor took aim at TV in 1993 with BBC TWO's Inside Victor Lewis Smith, before sparking another stir on Channel 4 in 1998 with TV Offal.
Written by Victor Lewis Smith and Paul Sparks
Produced by Victor Lewis Smith
First heard on Radio 1 in March 1990.
FRI 23:00 Armando Iannucci's Charm Offensive (b007k03d)
Series 2
Episode 1
The comedy guru's radio drop-in centre examines croquet this week, and nothing else. With Clive Anderson. From June 2006.
FRI 23:30 Sir Ralph Stanza's Letter from Salford (b0076f1p)
Series 2
Security Bard
Romance is in the air with the Salford-based bard at a superstore - and the volunteer trainee poet is the security guard, Rod.
Sir Ralph sets out to use poetry to pep up Rod's love life...
Written by and starring James Quinn.
With:
Alison Darling
Tony Melody
Neil Bell
Jemma Thompson
Produced in Manchester by Graham Frost
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2003.
FRI 23:45 I, Regress (b019fxbc)
Series 1
Episode 3
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.
In this episode, Ms Taffgoon (Morgana Robinson) finds her appointment with Dr Berry to cure a fear of heights takes a strange path, taking in a talking pigeon (Derek Griffiths) and an interplanetary trip. And a field.
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!
Produced by Sam Bryant.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2012.