SATURDAY 31 MARCH 2018

SAT 00:00 Algernon Blackwood - The Willows (b007jvdr)
Episode 4
The Swede offers his opinion on the island's evil forces and the necessity of offering them a sacrifice. Read by Roger Allam. From April 2005.
SAT 00:30 Mastertapes (b01p0bnh)
Series 1, Brinsley Forde (the B-Side)
John Wilson continues the series in which he talks to leading performers and songwriters about the album that made them or changed them. Recorded in front of a live audience at the BBC's iconic Maida Vale Studios, each edition includes two episodes, with John initially quizzing the artist about the album in question, and then, in the B-side, the audience puts the questions. Both editions feature exclusive live performances.
Having discussed the making of New Chapter, the third album from the UK reggae group, Aswad, Brinsley Forde responds to questions from the audience and performs live versions of some to the tracks from the album which was released more than three decades ago.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, where a new series of Mastertapes began on 11th November.
SAT 01:00 Wimsey (b007jvn3)
The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club, Ann Dorland
With two suspects missing, Lord Peter Wimsey battles to pinpoint the poisoner.
Starring Ian Carmichael as Lord Peter Wimsey, Allan Cuthbertson as Robert Fentiman, Martin Jarvis as George Fentiman, Amanda Reiss as Ann Dorland and Gabriel Woolf as Inspector Parker.
British gentleman detective Lord Peter Wimsey features in a number of detective novels and short stories by English crime writer, Dorothy L Sayers. The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club was first published in 1928.
Classy and sharp-witted, aristocratic amateur sleuth Lord Peter Bredon Wimsey was born in 1890 and educated at Eton and Oxford, before serving in the military during the First World War.
Ian Carmichael appeared as Lord Peter Wimsey for BBC Radio from 1973 to 1983, in addition to the BBC TV adaptations that were broadcast between 1972 and 1975.
Adapted for radio in six episodes by Chris Miller.
Producer: Simon Brett
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 1975.
SAT 01:30 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.
SAT 02:00 Book at Bedtime (b037vflr)
Ian Sansom - The Norfolk Mystery, Episode 10
Julian Rhind-Tutt reads the final part of Ian Sansom's new comic thriller, The Norfolk Mystery.
Swanton Morley and his assistant Stephen Sefton had set out in rural Norfolk to conduct field research for Morley's latest set of guidebooks. However their attentions have been diverted by the deaths of the local vicar and his maid, Hannah. In the pursuit of their enquiries, they have bumped into several local characters; the formidable Miss Harris, the parsimonious Reverend Swain, the free spirited Juan and Constance, the curmudgeonly detective and of course Mrs Thistle Smith and her husband, Morley's nemesis, the Professor. All gather today in the church to hear a shocking revelation.
The Norfolk Mystery by Ian Sansom is abridged by Lauris Morgan-Griffiths.
Produced by: Sarah Langan.
SAT 02:15 Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen's History of Home (b009mc9d)
Ideal Home Show
Laurence talks to philosopher Alain de Botton about how our ideas of the home have changed and what the future holds. From April 2008.
SAT 02:30 Charles Dickens (b007jwk3)
The Old Curiosity Shop, Episode 20
With the help of Samson Brass, Quilp plots to get Kit Nubbins out of the way. Dickens dramatisation starring Alex Jennings. From January 2003.
SAT 02:45 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.
SAT 03:00 DH Lawrence - Sons and Lovers (b007jlr6)
Episode 2
Clinging to her sons, unhappy Gertrude is jealous of Paul's success and his friendship with Miriam. Stars Elizabeth Estensen. From September 1999.
SAT 04:00 The Motion Show (b071k5vf)
Series 3, Episode 5
Graeme Garden hosts the comic debating show with Gyles Brandreth, Hugh Dennis, Chris Neill and Stuart Maconie. From August 2000.
SAT 04:30 Kathmandu or Bust (b07rhlzg)
A Sticky Night
The travellers have Nepal almost in sight until their truck is stolen by bandits. Stars David Haig. From June 1996.
SAT 05:00 The Emerald Green Show (b078dlrj)
All For One
Will Emerald Green's ego be able to deal with the ambitious plans of new girl, Tanesha?
A vain, ambitious black woman dreams of becoming a chat-show queen.
Lisselle Kayla's 4-part comedy series starring Llewella Gideon as Emerald Green.
With Jonathan Firth as Tristram, Iwan Thomas as Fabio, Dean Hill as Victor, Sheila Reid as Eunice, Jonathan Keeble as David and Jo Martin as Tanesha.
Director: Pam Fraser Solomon
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 1998.
SAT 05:30 In and Out of the Kitchen (b03wp5j6)
Series 3, The Works Barbecue
Damien is forced to confront his hatred of barbecues, when Anthony organises one for some work colleagues. Meanwhile, Mr Mullaney is putting the finishing touches to the 'shoffice'.
SAT 06:00 Jill Hyem - Remember Me (b09xj1j4)
A haunting tune from a music box - and an insane craving for revenge.
The Suttons stay at a remote Peak District guest house turns from a happy holiday to a terrifying nightmare.
Jill Hyems' thriller stars Jill Balcon as Thelma Weadon, Julian Glover as Paul Sutton, Sarah Badel as Margot Sutton, Peter Tuddenham as Edgar Parsons, Pauline Letts as Hester Drew, Margot Boyd as Enid Gosler and Rowena Roberts as Nancy.
Director: Kay Patrick
First broadcast on Saturday-Night Theatre on BBC Radio 4 in May 1978.
SAT 07:30 Freedom Pass (b00sn9rn)
Episode 4
Sexagenarians Alan Coren and Christopher Matthew use free travel for another chatty trip on their local buses. From September 2004.
SAT 08:00 Archive on 4 (b009pdh4)
Giving Way to a New Era
4 Extra Debut. John Sergeant and Tony Benn look back at some of the momentous occasions captured by BBC broadcasting after cameras were introduced to the Commons. From April 2008.
SAT 09:00 Rodgers & Hammerstein - Carousel (b07mcp5y)
Mandy Patinkin and Deborah Myers star in the classic 1945 Broadway musical. With music by Richard Rodgers and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, it's based on Ferenc Molnar's 1909 play 'Liliom' - transferring the setting to the New England coast of Maine between 1873 and 1888.
Telling the tale of the bumpy romance of fairground barker, Billy Bigelow and mill worker, Julie Jordan, it features many familiar songs including: 'You'll Never Walk Alone', 'June Is Bustin' Out All Over', 'When the Children Are Asleep', 'My Boy Bill' and 'If I Loved You'.
Carousel initially ran for 890 performances on Broadway and earned more success after opening in London in 1950.
Stars Mandy Patinkin as Billy Bigelow, Deborah Myers as Julie Jordan, Janie Dee as Carrie Pipperidge, Josephine Blake as Mrs Mullin, Howard Attfield as David Bascombe, Shezwae Powell as Nettie Fowler, Barry James as Enoch Snow, John Altman as Jigger Craigin, Michael Cahill as Heavenly Friend and David Kelsey as Starkeeper.
With The Children of The Sylvia Young Choir, The Stephen Hill Singers and The BBC Concert Orchestra conducted by Kenneth Alwyn.
Producer: John Langridge
First broadcast on BBC Radio 2 in 1995.
SAT 11:50 Inheritance Tracks (b09xj2qt)
Mavis Staples
Gospel and rhythm and blues singer Mavis Staples chooses 'Will the Circle Be Unbroken' by The Staple Singers and 'What's Going On' by Marvin Gaye.
SAT 12:00 Listomania (b09x4n4c)
Pilot episode
Susan Calman hosts the pilot for the series exploring the world of the list - from the magnificent to the mundane - from the humble 'to do' list to the bucket list...
With Lucy Porter, Joe Lycett, Richard Herring and Katherine Ryan.
Written by James Kettle and Gráinne Maguire.
Producers: Adnan Ahmed and Sam Bryant
First broadcast on BBC Radio 2 in 2014.
SAT 12:30 Arrested Development (b0075vh3)
Episode 1
Penny and Dave are getting married, but there are a few hiccups - Penny's hair being just one of them. She wanted the Julia Roberts look but has ended up with a Mrs Merton instead.
Stars Letitia Dean as Penny (Sharon from BBC 1's EastEnders), Phil Cornwell as Dave and Julian Rhind-Tutt as Andy.
Simon Warne's four-part comedy serial.
Producer: Tracey Neale
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2000.
SAT 13:00 Lucy Gannon - Judas (Omnibus) (b09xj3ry)
Outsider Judas struggles to weigh his love for his brothers against growing rage and resentments. Starring Damien Molony.
SAT 14:10 Inheritance Tracks (b09xj339)
Anthony Head
Actor Anthony Head inherits 'Adagio for Strings' by Samuel Barber and passes on 'Highway, Highway' by Stephen Allen Davis.
SAT 14:15 Sentimental Journey (b0076zp7)
Shappi Khorsandi
Arthur Smith takes Iranian comedian Shappi Khorsandi to Paris, where she went as a teenager. Her satirist father was exiled for his humour, but Shappi carries on the family tradition.
Producer: Sharon Banoff
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2006.
SAT 14:45 Allen Saddler - I Should Say So (b01kpzsr)
Series 1, The Balloon
Robb Wilton (1881 - 1957) was one of the most popular music hall and radio comics of the 1930s and 1940s.
Famed as an all-round pessimist - what would he have made of 1980s Britain - negotiating the more difficult aspects of charity fundraising?
Michael Williams stars as Robb Wilton - making as little sense out of life as he did 40 years before...
Written by Allen Saddler.
Producer: Brian Miller
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 1986.
SAT 15:00 Archive on 4 (b009pdh4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
SAT 16:00 Jill Hyem - Remember Me (b09xj1j4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
SAT 17:30 Freedom Pass (b00sn9rn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
SAT 18:00 Afternoon Drama (b00hzgp0)
Kim Newman - Cry Babies
Angela and Barty Flitcroft are busy, successful people. They want a child but don't have the time to care for it.
Their solution is a genetically enhanced daughter, Joy, birthed by a surrogate mother and reared to adulthood in a cryogenic chamber.
Joy experiences brief moments 'out of the machine', and as time passes, each opening brings shocks and surprises as her parents and their society undergo incredible changes. And for Joy, stuffed with education by the machine but denied everyday experiences, life is not just a strange new country, but a frightening, confusing and often funny one too.
Kim's Newman's sci-fi satire stars Alex Jennings as Dr Rossiter, Natasha Little as Angela Flitcroft, Rupert Degas as Barty Flitcroft, Sia Berkeley as Joy Flitcroft, Colin Morgan as Roger, Sarah Douglas as SleepLearn Machine, Emma Darwall-Smith as Aruna, Sam Alexander as Jeff, Kirsty Stuart as Daisy, Rob Kendrick as Ari and Emma Handy as Nurse Marketa.
Composer: Jeremy Paul Carroll
Director: Neil Gardner
A Ladbroke Radio Production for BBC Radio 4 first broadcast in 2009.
SAT 18:45 Stephen King - Cookie Jar (b09xj6ct)
Bottom of the Jar
Returning home after the Second World War, the unusual cookie jar continues to exert its influence on Rhett...
'I had sort of a peculiar childhood, because my mother was peculiar. Not outright crazy, but very, very peculiar. Stories were her way of staying sane... A way to cover that hole in reality the way you might cover a well with boards so no one would fall in. But her stories stopped working for her. Because the thing she was afraid of was in the house with her all along.'
From 'The Bazaar of Bad Dreams', Stephen King's story adapted in three parts. Concluded by Colin Stinton.
Music by Timothy X Atack...
Abridged and Produced by Mair Bosworth.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2016.
SAT 19:00 4 Extra Celebrates Dora Bryan (b03szf7d)
A celebration of the life of Dora Bryan, hailed as one of Britain's great all-round performers.
Journalist and writer Lynne Truss looks back on Dora's remarkable career with handpicked highlights from the BBC radio archive. Lynne is joined by Dora's friend and co-star Bernard Cribbins, BBC radio drama producer Martin Jenkins, theatre critic Benedict Nightingale and film writer Matthew Sweet.
With her unmistakable voice and scene-stealing comic timing, Dora was a regular pleasure of 1950s and 60s British cinema, playing a series of 'tarts with hearts'. But she was just at home on stage performing Pinter, belting out show tunes in Hello, Dolly! or captivating listeners from behind a microphone. And well into her 70s she was still in the West End singing, dancing and doing the splits.
The archive selection includes:
* Desert Islands Discs from 1987, when Dora was Michael Parkinson's castaway
* Jimmy Chinn's drama Perfect Timing about a struggling music hall duo all at sea on a cruise ship booking starring Dora, Bernard Cribbins and Roy Barraclough
* That Reminds Me from 2000, in which Dora recalls her stage, film and TV career
* With Great Pleasure from 2003, featuring readings from Dora's favourite books
* The Child Within, Wally K Daly's moving monologue written especially for and performed by Dora Bryan.
Dora Bryan was born on 7th February 1923 and died on 23rd July 2014.
Made for BBC Radio 4 Extra by Pier Productions and first broadcast in March 2014.
SAT 22:00 My Teenage Diary (b039cy0f)
Series 5, Sarfraz Manzoor
Another brave celebrity revisits their formative years by opening up their intimate teenage diaries, and reading them out in public for the very first time. In this programme, comedian Rufus Hound is joined by journalist Sarfraz Manzoor.
Sarfraz relives his teenage days living in Luton in a strict Muslim family - when he was obsessed with Bo Derek and pop music, and desperate to buy a computer.
Producer: Harriet Jaine
A Talkback production for BBC Radio 4.
SAT 22:30 Irish Micks and Legends (b053bq5m)
Series 2, Cuchulain and the Hound
Aisling Bea (British Comedy Award Winner 2014) and Yasmine Akram (Sherlock) return with a second series, offering their unique take on Ireland's ancient stories.
Irish Micks and Legends is comedic, highly irreverent storytelling of ancient Irish folklore. Still the very best pals, Aisling and Yasmine take their role explaining Irish legends to the British nation very seriously indeed. That said, it would appear that they haven't had the time to do much research, work out who is doing which parts, edit out the chat or learn how to work the sound desk.
With a vast vault of fantastical myths, mixed with 21st century references to help you along, prepare for some very silly lessons in life, love and the crazy shenanigans of old Ireland and modern Irish. The first series was a Chortle Best Radio Comedy Nominee 2013.
Episode Four: Cuchulain and the Hound
Join Aisling and Yasmine to learn how the young Setanta became known as Cuchulain, the most famous of all the warriors in ancient Ireland because he played our national sport.
Producer: Raymond Lau
A Green Dragon Media production for BBC Radio 4.
SAT 22:45 Terry Alderton's All Crazy Now (b064z7h0)
Episode 3
Thank goodness! No pole vaulting chickens this week, no honey bees, no guinea pig diving. Just cornflakes, Dave, sausages, a grave digger and Ed and the bear in an airport.
What could possibly go wrong?
Nothing could go wrong. It's not real. None of this is real. It's just Terry Alderton and a microphone. The microphone was real. Definitely a real microphone.
Written by and starring Terry Alderton. Additional material from Johnny Spurling, Boothby Graffoe, Richard Melvin, Julia Sutherland and Owen Parker.
Sound designed by Sean Kerwin.
Produced by Richard Melvin.
A Dabster production for BBC Radio 4.
SAT 22:55 The Comedy Club Interviews (b09ylvgv)
Sally Phillips 2/3
From 10.00 to midnight, 7 days a week, the Comedy Club has two hours of comedy. Plus Arthur Smith chats to Sally Phillips.
SAT 23:00 That Mitchell and Webb Sound (b00mk7rn)
Series 4, Episode 4
A visit to Britain's only sanctuary for balloon animals. Stars David Mitchell and Robert Webb. From September 2009.
SAT 23:30 Think the Unthinkable (b007k4g0)
Series 2, Genforce
The management consultants work with a suspicious energy company. Stars Emma Kennedy and Marcus Brigstocke. From November 2002.

SUNDAY 01 APRIL 2018

SUN 00:00 Afternoon Drama (b00hzgp0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:00 on Saturday]
SUN 00:45 Stephen King - Cookie Jar (b09xj6ct)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:45 on Saturday]
SUN 01:00 Lucy Gannon - Judas (Omnibus) (b09xj3ry)
[Repeat of broadcast at 13:00 on Saturday]
SUN 02:10 Inheritance Tracks (b09xj339)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:10 on Saturday]
SUN 02:15 Sentimental Journey (b0076zp7)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:15 on Saturday]
SUN 02:45 Allen Saddler - I Should Say So (b01kpzsr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:45 on Saturday]
SUN 03:00 Archive on 4 (b009pdh4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 on Saturday]
SUN 04:00 Jill Hyem - Remember Me (b09xj1j4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 on Saturday]
SUN 05:30 Freedom Pass (b00sn9rn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 on Saturday]
SUN 06:00 Charles Dickens (b007wv8s)
The Old Curiosity Shop (Omnibus), Episode 4
Mrs Nubbins and the mysterious gentleman try to find Nell and her grandfather.
Starring Alex Jennings as the Narrator, Lindsey Coulson as Mrs Nubbins, Clive Swift as the Single Gent, Phil Daniels as Quilp, Julia McKenzie as Mrs Jarley and Ian Masters as Batchelor.
Charles Dickens's fourth novel was published in 1841.
Dramatised in 25 episodes by Mike Walker.
Music by Melanie Pappenheim and Anne Wood.
Director: Jeremy Mortimer
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2002.
SUN 07:15 Winston Graham Short Stories (b03yqfx1)
Ross and Demelza
An extract from the first of the historical novels set in Cornwall, Ross Poldark. Ross takes his new wife and sometime serving girl and ward, out to see the pilchard harvest. Read by Ewan Bailey.
Winston Graham was one of the most successful and prolific novelists of the 20th century. He wrote in many genres but his best known body of work was undoubtedly the 12 historical novels set in Cornwall at the end of the 18th and beginning of the 19th centuries which became known as The Poldarks.
Although it's the Poldarks that brought Winston Graham the most fame, he also wrote more than 30 other novels, six of which have been filmed including the thriller, Marnie directed by Alfred Hitchcock in 1964.
This selection celebrates the range of his work and offers a glimpse into the enduring appeal of his most famous characters, Ross and Demelza who are set to return to BBC screens in a new adaptation.
Made for BBC Radio 4 Extra by The Waters Partnership.
SUN 07:30 John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme (b03b0yf2)
Series 3, Episode 3
John Finnemore, the writer and star of Cabin Pressure, regular guest on The Now Show and popper-upper in things like Miranda, presents a third series of his hit sketch show.
The first series was described as 'sparklingly clever' by The Daily Telegraph and 'one of the most consistently funny sketch shows for quite some time' by The Guardian. The second series won Best Radio Comedy at both the Chortle and Comedy.co.uk awards, and was nominated for a Sony award.
This time around, John promises to stop doing silly sketches about nonsense like Winnie the Pooh's honey addiction or how goldfish invented computer programming, and concentrate instead on the the big, serious issues.
This third episode of the series features a song about an unheralded inventor, a touching reunion and a normal man.
Written by and starring John Finnemore, with Margaret Cabourn-Smith, Simon Kane, Lawry Lewin and Carrie Quinlan. Original music is by Susannah Pearse.
Producer: Ed Morrish.
SUN 08:00 Ray's a Laugh (b007js2p)
From 6/12/1949
Kitty suspects Ted is having an affair - and reporter George dons disguise.
Starring Ted Ray.
With Kitty Bluett, Peter Sellers, Patricia Hayes, Fred Yule and Leslie Perrins.
Ray's A Laugh - the successor to ITMA - follows the comedy exploits of Ted's life at home with his 'radio' wife Kitty, as well as in a variety of jobs. It ran from 1949-1961.
Scripted by Eddie Maguire and Ted Ray.
Music from Bob & Alf Pearson and The Beaux and The Belles.
BBC Dance Orchestra conducted by Stanley Black.
Announcer: Kenneth Kendall
Producer: George Inns
First broadcast on the BBC Home Service in December 1949.
SUN 08:30 Harry Worth in Things Could Be Worse (b09xjb65)
All At Sea
Time and tide wait for no man, as Harry and his friends go nature rambling along the Welsh coast.
Written by David McKellar and David Renwick.
Starring Harry Worth. With John Baddeley, John Graham and Miriam Margolyes.
Producer: Simon Brett
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 1976.
SUN 09:00 Paul Theroux - Deep South: Four Seasons on Back Roads (Omnibus) (b068j4qb)
From a car park in Tusacaloosa to the backroads of Georgia and Alabama.
Paul Theroux's account of his car journeys through America's southern states.
Five-episode omnibus read by Henry Goodman.
Abridged for radio by Katrin Williams.
Producer: Duncan Minshull
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2015.
SUN 10:10 The Listening Project (b048nsnp)
Sarah and Lucy - Adventure in Love
Fi Glover introduces a conversation between an adventurer and her partner who accepted her marriage proposal over satellite phone across distant oceans.
The Listening Project is a Radio 4 initiative that offers a snapshot of contemporary Britain in which people across the UK volunteer to have a conversation with someone close to them about a subject they've never discussed intimately before. The conversations are being gathered across the UK by teams of producers from local and national radio stations who facilitate each encounter. Every conversation - they're not BBC interviews, and that's an important difference - lasts up to an hour, and is then edited to extract the key moment of connection between the participants. Most of the unedited conversations are being archived by the British Library and used to build up a collection of voices capturing a unique portrait of the UK in the second decade of the millennium. You can upload your own conversations or just learn more about The Listening Project by visiting bbc.co.uk/listeningproject
Producer: Marya Burgess.
SUN 10:15 Desert Island Discs Revisited (b09xjfn4)
Artists, Paula Rego
4 Extra Debut. From Amalia Rodrigues to Giuseppe Verdi. Painter Paula Rego shares her castaway choices with Sue Lawley. From December 1997.
SUN 11:00 Radiolab (b09xj3kz)
Series 3, Stress
Radiolab takes a long hard look at the body's system for getting out of trouble: stress. With Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich.
Radiolab is a Peabody-award winning show about curiosity. Where sound illuminates ideas, and the boundaries blur between science, philosophy, and the human experience.
First broadcast on public radio in the USA.
SUN 12:00 Ray's a Laugh (b007js2p)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
SUN 12:30 Harry Worth in Things Could Be Worse (b09xjb65)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
SUN 13:00 Charles Dickens (b007wv8s)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
SUN 14:15 Winston Graham Short Stories (b03yqfx1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:15 today]
SUN 14:30 Jon McGregor - Reservoir 13 (b09xjfn6)
Omnibus
It's four years since the disappearance of 13-year-old Becky Shaw on a family walk in the Peak District.
Now, although the investigation is still open, few people expect that she'll ever be found. But as the seasons continue to turn, life goes on in the village, often behind closed doors. And stories begin to emerge as to what the missing girl was really like...
Jon McGregor's Reservoir 13 is one of the most acclaimed novels of the 2017. It won the Costa Novel Award, was shortlisted for the Goldsmiths Prize, and was long-listed for the Man Booker.
Omnibus of parts 6-10 concluded by Lee Ingleby.
Abridged in ten parts by Sara Davies.
Producer: Justine Willett
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2018.
SUN 15:45 Ian Fleming's Thrilling Cities (b04kfk20)
Hong Kong
4 Extra Debut. In 1959, Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond, was commissioned by the Sunday Times to explore some of the world's most exotic cities. Travelling to the Far East and then to America, he left the bright main streets for the back alleys, abandoning tourist sites in favour of underground haunts, and mingling with celebrities, gangsters and geishas. The result is a series of vivid snapshots of a mysterious, vanished world.
Fleming wote, 'On November 2nd, armed with a sheaf of visas...one suitcase...and my typewriter, I left humdrum London for the thrilling cities of the world. All my life I have been interested in adventure and abroad. I have enjoyed the frisson of leaving the wide, well-lit streets and venturing up back alleys in search of the hidden, authentic pulse of towns. It was perhaps this habit that turned me into a writer of thrillers.'
In today's episode, Fleming flies to Hong Kong - the most vivid and exciting city he had ever experienced. He enjoys a massage at the hands of an expert, and his senses are enchanted by the smells of the streets at night - from the 'exciting dash of sandalwood' in a joss-stick factory to the scent of frying onions and 'sweet perspiration'.
Read by Simon Williams.
Abridged by Mark Burgess.
Copyright Ian Fleming Publications Ltd 1963
Produced by David Blount.
A Pier production for BBC Radio 4.
SUN 16:00 Nick Warburton: Oliver Park - The Easter Riots (b09xjh8x)
One year on, what's the truth behind the West Trent tragedy?
Joe Sims (Broadchurch) stars in Nick Warburton's drama reflecting the themes of the Easter story in a modern setting.
The fictional story is told in documentary format, using interviews improvised by the cast of Emerald O'Hanrahan (The Archers), Sam Dale, Tracy Wiles, Arian Nik, Michael Imerson and Mark Dowd
Oliver Park, in the centre of West Trent, has become host to a camp for refugees, and a few splinter protest groups. A vigilante group, City Watch, has been established in response, and with a march planned by the camp supporters, tensions are high. Into this situation comes Carl Franklin, with a small group of followers and a radical but peaceful message. Events move quickly as an act of betrayal has terrible consequences.
Producer: Paul Arnold
A Things Unseen Production.
SUN 17:00 Poetry Extra (b09xjh8z)
The Bards of Whitelocks Bar
Poet Daljit Nagra revisits the BBC's radio poetry archive with 'The Bards of Whitelocks Bar'.
Poet Jean Sprackland visits the characterful Leeds city centre bar, Whitelocks, famous for its poetic punters from Betjeman to TS Eliot.
In the company of poets Ian Duhig, Jon Glover, Rommi Smith and Antony Dunn, she explores the legacy of the post-war Leeds poetry renaissance that produced such eminent poets as Geoffrey Hill, Tony Harrison and Jon Silkin.
Producer: Emma Harding
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2008.
SUN 17:30 John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme (b03b0yf2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
SUN 18:00 The World of Daphne du Maurier (b09xjh91)
Panic
They met at a party and became friends. Despite their age difference, they embarked on an affair - with a trip to Paris.
And so began a night of fear which led to panic...
Series of adaptations of Daphne Du Maurier's famous short stories.
Starring Dinsdale Landen as David.
With Christopher Cazenove as Stephen, Alexis Gallnos as the Storekeeper, Maureen O'Brien as Celia, Gabriel Woolf as the Storyteller, Jane Thomson as Shelia, Nikolas Janis as Zus and Anna Cropper as the Wife.
Dramatised and produced by Derek Hoddinott.
First broadcast on the BBC World Service in 1974.
SUN 18:30 Weird Tales (b00vk756)
Series 1, The Loop, by Chris Harrald
Series of four chilling and intimate plays by Chris Harrald.
It is 1906 and workers on the new London underground network unearth some mysterious remains. A young archaeologist investigates and discovers that there are some mysteries better left undisturbed.
Lovecraft/Samuelson ...... Stephen Hogan
Geoffrey Coombs ...... Geoffrey Streatfeild
Lucy Allen ...... Sophie Roberts
Mr Hodge ...... Stephen Critchlow
Billy ...... Joe Prospero
Feasy ...... Paul Rider
Workman ...... Matt Addis
Waitress ...... Lizzy Watts.
SUN 19:00 Radiolab (b09xj3kz)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:00 today]
SUN 20:00 Paul Theroux - Deep South: Four Seasons on Back Roads (Omnibus) (b068j4qb)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]
SUN 21:10 The Listening Project (b048nsnp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:10 today]
SUN 21:15 Desert Island Discs Revisited (b09xjfn4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:15 today]
SUN 22:00 John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme (b03b0yf2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
SUN 22:30 Brian Gulliver's Travels (b00yqhrk)
Series 1, Gelbetia
by Bill Dare
Brian Gulliver, a seasoned presenter of travel documentaries, finds himself in a hospital's secure unit after claiming to have experienced a succession of bizarre adventures.
This week we hear about his travels in Gelbetia, a country run by doctors.
Produced by Steven Canny
Brian Gulliver's Travels is a new satirical adventure story from Bill Dare. The series has attracted an excellent cast led by Neil Pearson and award winning star of the RSC's current season, Mariah Gale. Cast includes fantastic actors Tamsin Greig, John Standing, Paul Bhattacharjee, Christopher Douglas, Catherine Shepherd, Vicky Pepperdine, Phil Cornwell, Antonia Campbell Hughes, Jo Bobin and Katherine Jakeways.
For years Bill Dare wanted to create a satire about different worlds exploring Kipling's idea that we travel, 'not just to explore civilizations, but to better understand our own'. But science fiction and space ships never interested him, so he put the idea on ice. Then Brian Gulliver arrived and meant that our hero could be lost in a fictional world without the need for any sci-fi.
Satirical targets over the series: the medical profession and its need to pathologize everything; the effect of marriage on children; spirituality and pseudo-science; compensation culture; sexism; the affect of our obsession with fame.
Gulliver's Travels is the only book Bill Dare read at university. His father, Peter Jones, narrated a similarly peripatetic radio series: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
SUN 22:55 The Comedy Club Interviews (b09ylx2h)
Sally Phillips 3/3
From 10.00 to midnight, 7 days a week, the Comedy Club has two hours of comedy. Plus Arthur Smith chats to Sally Phillips.
SUN 23:00 John Shuttleworth's Lounge Music (b049xyhy)
Series 1, Heaven 17
Since the mid-1980s, aspiring singer/songwriter, John Shuttleworth has been posting audio cassettes of his 'finest songs to date' to pop stars throughout the land, in the hope that someone would record his material. But all to no avail.
However, the BBC has very kindly given John a series and asked him to invite pop starts to bring their music to his Sheffield home. So it is that Chas and Dave, Heaven 17, Toyah Wilcox and Leee John find themselves in John's lounge having tea with wife Mary, being flirted with by Mary's friend Joan and hassled by John's agent Ken Worthington, as they try and perform not only one their greatest hits but more importantly, one of John's.
This week John is in a fluster as Kirsty the scottie dog has eaten the tape with all John's jingles on it - so he's having to play them all live and is worried they may all go wrong.
Mary has been complaining that the music is too loud - although she doesn't seem to mind when Heaven 17 are playing. And is that a lemon drizzle cake she's brought for them?
As Glenn and Martyn settle down to play one of their songs, Come Live With Me, Joan Chitty arrives and quite likes the sound of the title. So while John is fretting that the maths in the song lyrics are all wrong, Joan asks if the boys can give her a massage to ease her sciatica.
All this, along with Tina Charles telling John how to sing very high in Top Tips on the Telephone, leaves time short for Ken in the Konservatory - will it happen?
Written and Performed by Graham Fellows with special guests Heaven 17 and Tina Charles.
Producer: Dawn Ellis
A Chic Ken production for BBC Radio 4.
SUN 23:30 2000 Years of Radio (b007tcbl)
Series 1, Headless - Civil War Radio
Battle reports as they happen - with all the decapitations and more. Stars Marcus Brigstocke. From November 2000.
SUN 23:45 Quando, Quando, Quando (b00800m4)
Spies
Spies steal the Quando brothers' secret formula - upsetting the delicate equilibrium that's existed for so long between them and the Quandos.
Brothers Rene, Carlo and Charlie Quando chop, snip and crimp their lucky clients into shape at London's finest hair salon.
Six-part comedy written and performed by Rainer Hersch and Mark Maie. With Stephen Greif and Catherine Tate.
Producer: Claire Jones
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 1999.

MONDAY 02 APRIL 2018

MON 00:00 The World of Daphne du Maurier (b09xjh91)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:00 on Sunday]
MON 00:30 Weird Tales (b00vk756)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:30 on Sunday]
MON 01:00 Charles Dickens (b007wv8s)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 on Sunday]
MON 02:15 Winston Graham Short Stories (b03yqfx1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:15 on Sunday]
MON 02:30 Jon McGregor - Reservoir 13 (b09xjfn6)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:30 on Sunday]
MON 03:45 Ian Fleming's Thrilling Cities (b04kfk20)
[Repeat of broadcast at 15:45 on Sunday]
MON 04:00 Nick Warburton: Oliver Park - The Easter Riots (b09xjh8x)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:00 on Sunday]
MON 05:00 Poetry Extra (b09xjh8z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 17:00 on Sunday]
MON 05:30 John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme (b03b0yf2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 on Sunday]
MON 06:00 Cadfael (b007jlcr)
The Virgin in the Ice, Casualties of War
Shrewsbury, Winter in the year 1139: Amid a civil war, medieval sleuth Brother Cadfael sets out to find a missing boy and his sister.
Ellis Peters' thriller narrated by Sir Michael Hordern and starring Philip Madoc as Brother Cadfael, Douglas Hodge as Hugh and Leonard Fenton as Leonard. With Julian Rhind-Tutt.
This is the second series of the Chronicles of Brother Cadfael.
Dramatised by Bert Coules.
Producer: Phil Clarke.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1992.
MON 06:30 North and South: Across the Great Divide (b01dht1z)
Cleethorpes to Coventry
4 Extra Debut. Ian Marchant takes a trip along a very precise line dividing North from South to find out if it's changing.
You can walk the line that separates North from South across England, as mapped by Professor Danny Dorling of Sheffield University. Think of the border which used to separate East and West Germany: a stark division of different life chances. The line which divides the UK is just like that - it's the only comparable 'border' in Europe -according to Dorling.
In these documentaries, writer Ian Marchant travels along the dividing line between North and South, zigzagging the line which runs, rather surprisingly, from Cleethorpes to Gloucester. His aim is to find out what the statistics really mean to neighbours who are separated from each other by a gulf of health, wealth, education, culture and prospects.
Programme one looks at how economic opportunities divide communities on the line, including their health and educational prospects and the type of work available to them. Ian begins his journey just south of Cleethorpes, is buzzed by spitfires, talks to Sir Michael Darrington - ex CEO of Greggs - about different pie-marketing strategies north and south. Professor Danny Dorling reveals the surprisingly clear-cut economic differences he can trace all along the line. Ian also meets Rachel North of West Lindsey District Council to talk about degrees of southern-ness and joins her and some street-cleansing operatives in Gainsborough who are very surprised to find they live in the 'south'.
With his customary wit and deceptively gentle interviewing style he demonstrates so brilliantly in programmes such as 'On the Top Deck' and 'The Ghost Trains of Old England' Ian develops an understanding of what the North/South divide really means to the people who live on it. This is an under-the-skin, thoughtful interrogation of the social geography of Britain using this neat device to dig out fascinating human stories of the real - and changing - meaning of the North/South divide.
Producer: Mary Ward-Lowery.
MON 07:00 Millport (b0076b7f)
Series 3, Reinstatement
As the first ferry of the holiday season arrives - why is Irene back on the island?
Bittersweet comedy written by and starring Lynn Ferguson as 30-something barmaid Irene Bruce, who hankers after a better life on the mainland.
With Janet Brown as Agnes / Moira, Lewis McLeod as Alberto / Dr Hume / Ferryman / Robert, Gabriel Quigley as Ena / Bunty, Robert Paterson as the Minister /Bob and Kenneth Bryans as Dougie.
Producer: Lucy Bacon
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2002.
MON 07:30 Just a Minute (b09wrxty)
Series 80, Episode 6
Nicholas Parsons invites Stephen Fry, Jan Ravens, Gyles Brandreth and Paul Merton to speak for 60 seconds on the subjects like Elephants and Office Politics.
Hayley Sterling blows the whistle.
Produced by Victoria Lloyd.
A BBC Studios Production.
MON 08:00 Hancock's Half Hour (b007k1nm)
The Rail Strike
The lad gets a green signal to outwit a rail strike, but a bumpy ride lies ahead.
Starring Tony Hancock, Bill Kerr, Sidney James, Andree Melly and Kenneth Williams.
Announcer: 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 June 1955.
MON 08:30 Flywheel, Shyster and Flywheel (b007zgqw)
Series 1, Episode 5
Shady lawyer Waldorf T Flywheel tries to swing a prize fight.
Recreation of the Marx Brothers' lost shows charting the adventures of shady lawyer Waldorf T Flywheel and his assistant, Emmanuel Ravelli. Originally broadcast with sponsors on America's NBC radio network in the 1930s. The scripts were rediscovered in 1988.
Starring Michael Roberts as Groucho Marx as Waldorf T Flywheel and Frank Lazarus as Chico Marx as Emmanuel Ravelli
With Lorelei King and Graham Hoadly.
Written by Nat Perrin and Athur Sheekman. Adapted by Mark Brisenden.
Music arranged and conducted by David Firman.
Producer: Dirk Maggs
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 1990.
MON 09:00 We've Been Here Before (b00g1rsp)
Series 2, Episode 4
Clive Anderson's yesteryear quiz with Helen Atkinson-Wood, John O'Farrell, Nick Revell and Gyles Brandreth. From July 2004.
MON 09:30 King Street Junior (b007jnkx)
Series 9, Relative Values
A new parent-governor makes waves, there's trouble in the school playground - and it's staff quiz night.
Created by Jim Eldridge, ten series of this comedy about a junior school ran between 1985 and 1998. King Street Junior Revisited ran from 2002 to 2005.
Written by Andy Rashleigh.
Stars Karl Howman as Mr Sims, James Grout as the Headmaster, Deirdre Costello as Mrs Patterson, Paul Copley as Mr Long, Marlene Sidaway as Miss Lewis, Margaret John as Mrs Stone, Vivienne Martin as Mrs Rudd, Tom Watson as Mr Holliday, Karen Archer as Mrs Carter, Sarah McDonnell as Rachel and Jade Williams as Fatima.
Producer: John Fawcett Wilson
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 1996.
MON 10:00 DH Lawrence - Sons and Lovers (b007jlrk)
Episode 3
Gertrude clings to her son Paul, who now turns to a new lover even though he has not forgotten his first love. Stars Benedict Sandiford. From September 1999.
MON 11:00 Man about the House (b04nvkjz)
The Middle Of, by James Meek
Three specially commissioned stories that explore men's relationships with their homes:
3. The Middle Of by James Meek.
A man returns to his former marital home and discovers subtle changes
have taken place. In every room, it seems.
Reader Ben Miles
Producer Duncan Minshull.
MON 11:15 Afternoon Drama (b01slvvl)
Roy Smiles - Goodnight from Him
A new comedy drama by award-winning playwright Roy Smiles, writer of previous Afternoon Dramas Ying Tong, Good Evening, Pythonesque and Dear Arthur, Love John.
Goodnight From Him tells the story of Ronnie Corbett and Ronnie Barker from their beginnings in cabaret and repertory theatre, via their first meeting at the bar of the Buckstone Club in 1963 and being chosen by David Frost for his new show The Frost Report (alongside John Cleese), to getting their own Saturday night BBC1 series The Two Ronnies in 1971. The show ran for an extraordinary sixteen years, always topping the ratings, ending in 1986 with Ronnie Barker's early retirement.
The play explores the differences between the two: Corbett the happy-go-lucky sketch performer and extrovert, comfortable chatting to an audience; and Barker the shy introvert who needed to hide behind his characters to face an audience and worked like a demon behind the scenes.
Using parodies of some of their greatest sketches - Fork Handles, Mastermind and The Class Sketch from The Frost Report - Goodnight From Him tells the story of how two men worked together for twenty years without ever a cross word.
Written by Roy Smiles.
Producer: Liz Anstee
A CPL production for BBC Radio 4.
MON 12:00 Hancock's Half Hour (b007k1nm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
MON 12:30 Flywheel, Shyster and Flywheel (b007zgqw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
MON 13:00 Cadfael (b007jlcr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
MON 13:30 North and South: Across the Great Divide (b01dht1z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
MON 14:00 Book at Bedtime (b08ktxqq)
Sarah Perry - The Essex Serpent, Episode 1
Sarah Perry's award-winning novel, set at the end of the nineteenth century and inspired by true events.
Moving between Essex and London, myth and modernity, Cora Seaborne's spirited search for the Essex Serpent encourages all around her to test their allegiance to faith or reason in an age of rapid scientific advancement. At the same time, the novel explores the boundaries of love and friendship and the allegiances that we have to one another. The depth of feeling that the inhabitants of Aldwinter share are matched by their city counterparts as they strive to find the courage to express and understand their deepest desires, and strongest fears.
Episode One
It is 1893. Newly widowed, Cora Seaborne and her young son, Francis, leave London and head for Colchester. Cora plans to look for fossils but is intrigued to hear about the myth of the Essex Serpent.
Sarah Perry was born in Essex in 1979. She has a PhD in creative writing at Royal Holloway which she completed under the supervision of Andrew Motion. She has been writer in residence at the Gladstone Library and is the winner of a Shiva Naipaul award for travel writing. Her first novel, After Me Comes The Flood won the East Anglian Book of the Year Award in 2014. The Essex Serpent was Waterstone's Book Of The Year in 2016 and was short-listed for the Costa Novel Award 2016. She lives in Norwich.
Writer: Sarah Perry
Abridger: Jeremy Osborne
Reader: Ruth Gemmell
Producer: Rosalynd Ward
A Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4.
MON 14:15 Disability: A New History (b01slvvj)
The Only Dwarf in Liverpool
Across the country, historians are discovering the voices of disabled people from the past. In this 10-part series, Peter White draws on the latest research to reveal first-hand accounts of what it was like to live with physical disability in the 18th and 19th centuries.
The result is moving, revealing, and sometimes very funny:
'Sirs, I am a dwarf. I have lost my job at the circus and what is a dwarf to do in such a situation? In this Godforsaken place the snow comes so deep that a self-respecting dwarf can't even walk along the street without drowning!'
This document is from a huge archive of letters from disabled people in the 19th century, applying to the local authorities for money. They are a rich source of what life was like with a disability. Sources like this are only now being discovered and interpreted by historians across the country - it amounts to a new historical movement.
In the first programme, Peter explores what this new history reveals, and challenges our pre-conceptions.
For Peter, as a blind man, there is a strong sense of personal discovery. He says, 'I never realised disabled people had a history. History was what happened to everyone else.'
For him the series is revelatory. This programme, for instance, includes 18th century jokes about disability and discusses what juicy terms for disability were common in a society where there was no political correctness.
With historians David Turner, Chris Mounsey, Stephen King, Judith Hawley, and voices from the past brought vividly to life by actors Gerard McDermott, Ewan Bailey and Emily Bevan.
Producer: Elizabeth Burke
Academic adviser: David Turner, Swansea University
A Loftus production for BBC Radio 4.
MON 14:30 Charles Dickens (b007wvy7)
The Old Curiosity Shop, Episode 21
Is Kit Nubbins a thief or a victim of evil Quilp's plotting?
Starring Alex Jennings as the Narrator, Daniel Bliss as Kit, Adrian Scarborough as Sampson Brass, Richard Firth as Mr Chuckster, Phil Daniels as Quilp, Lindsey Coulson as Mrs Nubbins and David Collings as Mr Garland.
Charles Dickens's fourth novel was published in 1841.
Dramatised in 25 episodes by Mike Walker.
Music by Melanie Pappenheim and Anne Wood.
Director: Jeremy Mortimer
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2002.
MON 14:45 James Bond - On Her Majesty's Secret Service (b079zfs9)
Episode 1
Hunting for SPECTRE boss Ernst Stavro Blofeld in France, agent 007 James Bond meets a tragic contessa. Joanna Lumley reads Ian Fleming's thriller in ten parts.
First published in 1963, this was Fleming's 11th Bond novel, sandwiched between 'The Spy Who Loved Me' and 'You Only Live Twice'. In movie terms, this was the sixth of the original Bond movie franchise with George Lazenby playing the hero and Diana Rigg as Tracy.
The reader Joanna Lumley had a small, unnamed role in the 1969 film of 'On Her Majesty's Secret Service', being simply referred to as 'The English Girl'.
Abridged by Michael Bakewell.
Producer: David Benedictus
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1989.
MON 15:00 DH Lawrence - Sons and Lovers (b007jlrk)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 today]
MON 16:00 We've Been Here Before (b00g1rsp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]
MON 16:30 King Street Junior (b007jnkx)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 today]
MON 17:00 Millport (b0076b7f)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]
MON 17:30 Just a Minute (b09wrxty)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
MON 18:00 Brian Aldiss - Hothouse (b00m9p2w)
Episode 1
Millions of years in the future, a colossal banyan tree covers much of the Earth. In its boughs, the last remnants of humanity are fighting for survival, terrorized by carnivorous plants and grotesque insect life.
The Earth has stopped rotating and the Sun's output has increased. Plants are engaged in a constant tropical forest-style frenzy of growth driving other life forms to extinction...
Brian Aldiss's 1962 sci-fi fantasy read by Gareth Thomas.
Abridged in five parts by Lu Kemp.
Producer: Eilidh McCreadie
Made for BBC Radio 7 and first broadcast in 2009.
MON 18:30 A Good Read (b09xjsvx)
Hilary Spurling and Roy Strong
Sue MacGregor and her guests - biographer and critic Hilary Spurling and historian and gardener Roy Strong - discuss favourite paperbacks by Thomas Hardy, Marjorie Bowen and EF Benson. From 2005.
From the Ways with Words Festival, Southwold.
Under the Greenwood Tree by Thomas Hardy
Publisher: Oxford World Classics
The Viper of Milan by Marjorie Bowen
Publisher: Elliott & Thompson (Young Spitfire)
Mapp and Lucia by EF Benson
Publisher: Penguin Modern Classics.
MON 19:00 Hancock's Half Hour (b007k1nm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
MON 19:30 Flywheel, Shyster and Flywheel (b007zgqw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
MON 20:00 Cadfael (b007jlcr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
MON 20:30 North and South: Across the Great Divide (b01dht1z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
MON 21:00 Man about the House (b04nvkjz)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:00 today]
MON 21:15 Afternoon Drama (b01slvvl)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:15 today]
MON 22:00 Just a Minute (b09wrxty)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
MON 22:30 Cowards (b00fhtm0)
Series 2, Episode 2
Cowards: Sketch show with a comic slant on human frailties. With Tom Basden, Stefan Golaszewski and Tim Key. Part of Radio 4 Extra's Comedy Club, originally broadcast on Radio 4 in November 2008.
MON 22:55 The Comedy Club Interviews (b09xjwvv)
Andy Hamilton 1/2
From 10pm to midnight, 7 days a week, the Comedy Club has two hours of comedy. Plus Jon Holmes chats to Andy Hamilton.
MON 23:00 The Now Show (b09wvy1t)
Series 52, Episode 5
Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis present the week via topical stand-up and sketches
Punt and Dennis are joined this week by Andy Zaltzman, Mae Martin and Beardyman.
MON 23:30 The Problem With Adam Bloom (b019chmt)
Series 3, Parents
Despite being close to his mum and dad, why does Adam Bloom argue with them all the time?
Adam examines our attitudes to children and parents, as well as picking up a flute for the first time in years.
Heart-warming, funny and quixotic comedy, written and starring Adam Bloom.
With Rob Rouse, Hattie Hayridge, Stefano Paolini and Bernie Bloom.
Producer: Adam Bromley
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 2005.

TUESDAY 03 APRIL 2018

TUE 00:00 Brian Aldiss - Hothouse (b00m9p2w)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:00 on Monday]
TUE 00:30 A Good Read (b09xjsvx)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:30 on Monday]
TUE 01:00 Cadfael (b007jlcr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 on Monday]
TUE 01:30 North and South: Across the Great Divide (b01dht1z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 on Monday]
TUE 02:00 Book at Bedtime (b08ktxqq)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:00 on Monday]
TUE 02:15 Disability: A New History (b01slvvj)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:15 on Monday]
TUE 02:30 Charles Dickens (b007wvy7)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:30 on Monday]
TUE 02:45 James Bond - On Her Majesty's Secret Service (b079zfs9)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:45 on Monday]
TUE 03:00 DH Lawrence - Sons and Lovers (b007jlrk)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 on Monday]
TUE 04:00 We've Been Here Before (b00g1rsp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 on Monday]
TUE 04:30 King Street Junior (b007jnkx)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 on Monday]
TUE 05:00 Millport (b0076b7f)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 on Monday]
TUE 05:30 Just a Minute (b09wrxty)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 on Monday]
TUE 06:00 Cadfael (b007jld1)
The Virgin in the Ice, Danger From All Sides
Amid bitter civil war, detective monk Brother Cadfael makes headway in his medieval crime hunt, but it's mixed news.
Ellis Peters' thriller narrated by Sir Michael Hordern and starring Philip Madoc as Brother Cadfael, Douglas Hodge as Hugh, Leonard Fenton as Leonard, Raad Rawi as Olivier and Dean Magri as Ives.
This is the second series of the Chronicles of Brother Cadfael.
Dramatised by Bert Coules.
Music by Peter Salem.
Producer: Phil Clarke
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1992.
TUE 06:30 North and South: Across the Great Divide (b01dtwls)
Warwick to the Severn
Ian Marchant continues his trip along a very precise line dividing North from South to find out if it's changing.
You can walk the line that separates North from South across England, as mapped by Professor Danny Dorling of Sheffield University. Think of the border which used to separate East and West Germany: a stark division of different life chances. The line which divides the UK is just like that - it's the only comparable 'border' in Europe - according to Professor Dorling.
In these documentaries, writer Ian Marchant travels along the dividing line between North and South, zigzagging the line which runs, rather surprisingly, from Cleethorpes to Gloucester. His aim is to find out what the statistics really mean to neighbours who are separated from each other by a gulf of health, wealth, education, culture and prospects.
In programme two, Ian travels from Warwick to Cinderford and talks to accents expert Dominic Watt about the 'bath' divide (long 'a' makes you a southerner, short 'a' and you're probably a northerner). Poet and creative writing guru Professor David Morley talks about the pull of London and the joy of heading north and Ian meets geographer John Langton, who reveals the ancient origins of the north/south divide.
With his customary wit and deceptively gentle interviewing style Ian develops an understanding of what the North/South divide really means to the people who live on it. This is an under-the-skin, thoughtful interrogation of the social geography of Britain using this neat device to dig out fascinating human stories of the real - and changing - meaning of the North/South divide.
Producer: Mary Ward-Lowery.
TUE 07:00 Arrested Development (b0075vmg)
Episode 2
Jilted by Dave on her wedding day, can Penny's sister Kate help her come to terms with it?
Stars Letitia Dean as Penny, Phil Cornwell as Dave, Julian Rhind-Tutt as Andy and Susannah Doyle as Kate.
Simon Warne's 4-part comedy serial.
Producer: Tracey Neale
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 2000.
TUE 07:30 Love in Recovery (b0742hlk)
Series 2, Gillian
Second series of the award-nominated comedy drama set in Alcoholics Anonymous, written by Pete Jackson and inspired by his own road to recovery. Stars Sue Johnston, John Hannah, Eddie Marsan, Rebecca Front, Paul Kaye and Julia Deakin - with Samantha Bond.
Love in Recovery follows the lives of five very different recovering alcoholics. Taking place entirely at their weekly meetings, we hear them moan, argue, laugh, fall apart, fall in love and - most importantly - tell their stories.
In this second episode of the series, the group have a visitor with a story to tell. Gillian (Samantha Bond) doesn't want to join their group, she doesn't want to wait her turn, she doesn't even want a biscuit - she just wants to be listened to.
Writer Pete Jackson is a recovering alcoholic and has spent time in Alcoholics Anonymous. It was there he found support from the unlikeliest group of disparate souls - with one common bond. As well as offering the support he needed throughout a difficult time, AA also offered a weekly, sometimes daily, dose of hilarity, upset, heartbreak and friendship.
There are lots of different kinds of AA meetings. Love in Recovery is about meetings where people tell their stories. There are funny stories, sad stories, stories of small victories and milestones, stories of loss, stories of hope, and those stories that you really shouldn't laugh at - but still do, along with the storyteller.
Written and created by Pete Jackson
Producer/Director: Ben Worsfield
A Lucky Giant production for BBC Radio 4.
TUE 08:00 The Ken Dodd Show (b05wjsdf)
From 24/8/1975
Professor Chuckabutty lectures on great leaders and inventors - and Laurel's got a surprise for Hardy.
Starring Ken Dodd.
With Jo Manning Wilson, Miriam Margolyes, Talfryn Thomas, Chris Emmett and Michael McClain.
Devised and written by Ken Dodd with Dave Dutton, David McKellar, Norman Beadle and Terry Ravenscroft.
Doddy's Diddy Orchestra conducted by Geoff Alderson.
Producer: Bobby Jaye
First broadcast on the BBC Radio 2 in August 1975.
TUE 08:30 The Men From the Ministry (b016dgvc)
She'll Have To Go
Can the bungling bureaucrats save their secretary from the scrap heap?
Stars Richard Murdoch and Deryck Guyler.
With Norma Ronald, Ronald Baddiley, John Graham and Gillie 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 September 1974.
TUE 09:00 The Now Show (b09wvy1t)
[Repeat of broadcast at 23:00 on Monday]
TUE 09:30 Stilgoe's Around (b00ty334)
The Boat Show (09/04/1984)
Laughs and jigs aplenty from Richard Stilgoe at the Boat Show. With Sheila Steafel and Charles Collingwood. From April 1984.
TUE 10:00 Leo Tolstoy - Anna Karenina (b007jprn)
Episode 1
In 19th-century Russia, women had to accept their roles as wife and mother - or be socially ostracised.
Bored high society wife Anna embarks on a love affair..
Leo Tolstoy's 1977 novel dramatised in four parts by Ed Thomason.
Stars Teresa Gallagher as Anna Karenina, Toby Stephens as Alexis Vronsky, Nicholas Farrell as Alexis Alexandrovich Karenin, Karen Archer as Princess Dolly, George Allonby as Serezha, Sean Baker as Stiva Oblonsky, Gerard McDermott as Railway Worker, Stephen Thorne as 1st Passenger, Robert Harper as Driver, Hugh Dickson as Station Master, Tracy-Ann Oberman as Kitty, Ioan Meredith as 2nd Passenger, Christopher Scott as Korsunsky, Janet Maw as Princess Betsy, Alison Pettitt as Annushka, Shirley Dixon as Countess Vronskaya and Carolyn Jones as Princess Nataly.
Translator: Louise Maude
Director: David Hitchinson
First broadcast on the BBC World Service in 1997.
TUE 11:00 The Time Being (b03qfzgs)
Series 7, Closer, by CD Rose
4 Extra Debut. The Time Being provides a showcase for new voices, none of whom have been previously broadcast.
Previous series have brought new talent to a wider audience and provided a stepping stone for writers who have since gone on to enjoy further success both on radio and in print, such as Tania Hershman, Heidi Amsinck, Sally Hinchcliffe and Joe Dunthorne.
Closer by C.D. Rose:
In the 'anni di piombo' (Years of Lead), groups such as Lotta Continua, Prima Linea and Brigate Rosse (Red Brigades) are active, and Italian cities are tense places to be. In Rome 1977, an ordinary young woman seems more than curious about the daily routines of a lawyer and academic.
C.D. Rose has published a trail of short stories over the last ten years. One of them was listed for the Sunday Times/EFG Private Bank short story award, and another for the Bridport Prize. He is the editor of The Biographical Dictionary of Literary Failure, which will be published in autumn 2014. C.D. Rose is currently working on a PhD in the short story at Edge Hill University, lives in Norwich, and makes bread.
Reader: Bryony Hannah
Producer: Jeremy Osborne
A Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4.
TUE 11:15 Patrick O'Brian - HMS Surprise (b0101l89)
Episode 1
Naval battles, political intrigue and romantic rivalry loom large in Patrick O'Brian's novel, set in 1804-5 in England, India and on the high seas.
Captain Jack Aubrey engages the Spanish at sea and the French on land - but falls victim to enemies at home.
Starring David Robb as Aubrey, Richard Dillane as Stephen Maturin, Jon Glover as Preserved Killick, David Timson as Barret Bonden, Struan Rodger as Sir Joseph Blaine, Liz Sutherland as Sophie Williams, David Holt as Lieutenant Pullings, Dan Starkey as Lieutenant Simmons, Lesley Nicol as Mrs Williams and Sarah Danes as Cecilia Williams.
Dramatised in three parts by Roger Danes.
Director: Bruce Young
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2008.
TUE 12:00 The Ken Dodd Show (b05wjsdf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
TUE 12:30 The Men From the Ministry (b016dgvc)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
TUE 13:00 Cadfael (b007jld1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
TUE 13:30 North and South: Across the Great Divide (b01dtwls)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
TUE 14:00 Book at Bedtime (b08kv5fg)
Sarah Perry - The Essex Serpent, Episode 2
Sarah Perry's award-winning novel, set at the end of the nineteenth century and inspired by true events.
Moving between Essex and London, myth and modernity, Cora Seaborne's spirited search for the Essex Serpent encourages all around her to test their allegiance to faith or reason in an age of rapid scientific advancement. At the same time, the novel explores the boundaries of love and friendship and the allegiances that we have to one another. The depth of feeling that the inhabitants of Aldwinter share are matched by their city counterparts as they strive to find the courage to express and understand their deepest desires, and strongest fears.
Episode Two
Rumours about the re-emergence of the Essex Serpent are circulating in the village of Aldwinter. Cora has an unexpected encounter with one of the villagers.
Sarah Perry was born in Essex in 1979. She has a PhD in creative writing at Royal Holloway which she completed under the supervision of Andrew Motion. She has been writer in residence at the Gladstone Library and is the winner of a Shiva Naipaul award for travel writing. Her first novel, After Me Comes The Flood won the East Anglian Book of the Year Award in 2014. The Essex Serpent was Waterstone's Book Of The Year in 2016 and was short-listed for the Costa Novel Award 2016. She lives in Norwich.
Writer: Sarah Perry
Abridger: Jeremy Osborne
Reader: Ruth Gemmell
Producer: Rosalynd Ward
A Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4.
TUE 14:15 Disability: A New History (b01sm70w)
Miracle Cures
Peter White draws on the latest research to reveal the lives of physically disabled people in the 18th and 19th centuries. In this second episode - the search for Miracle Cures.
Peter says, 'Every so often in the street someone sees me with my white stick and comes up to me -and offers me my sight back. I'm usually quite rude to them, it depends what kind of day I'm having. But the idea of miracle cures runs very deep.'
It goes back at least to the Middle Ages, to the earliest accounts we have of disability in Britain. Peter investigates the roots of the idea of the miracle cure, in conversation with medieval historian Irina Metzler. She reveals that having a child with a disability was thought to be the result of 'the wrong kind of sex' - and there were many 'wrong kinds', such as sex on Feast Days and in daylight.
Thousands of people with illnesses and disabilities flocked to their local Cathedral, praying to the Saints for a cure. When that didn't work, they simply moved on to another cathedral. And the belief in miracles lasted at least until the 18th Century - we hear how the infant Samuel Johnson was taken to see Queen Anne, his mother hoping that the Royal touch would cure his skin disease. It didn't work, of course, but the great rationalist wore the amulet the Queen gave him all his life - hoping for a cure for his multiple disabilities. There's a triumph of hope over experience!
With historians Irina Metzler and Judith Hawley and voices from the past brought vividly to life by actors Emily Bevan, Ewan Bailey and Gerard McDermott.
Producer: Elizabeth Burke
Academic adviser: David Turner, Swansea University
A Loftus production for BBC Radio 4.
TUE 14:30 Charles Dickens (b007x06k)
The Old Curiosity Shop, Episode 22
It's the day of Kit Nubbins' trial and there's bad news for Dick. Dickens dramatisation starring Alex Jennings and Phil Daniels. From January 2003.
TUE 14:45 James Bond - On Her Majesty's Secret Service (b07b2sbd)
Episode 2
Having rescued the beautiful contessa, 007 gains an unlikely ally and a lead in his search for Blofeld. Read by Joanna Lumley. From October 1989.
TUE 15:00 Leo Tolstoy - Anna Karenina (b007jprn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 today]
TUE 16:00 The Personality Test (b00mbl3k)
Series 1, Jennie Bond
Former BBC Royal Correspondent Jennie Bond quizzes a panel about herself. With Sue Perkins and Robin Ince. From August 2006.
TUE 16:30 Ballylenon (b007vmbw)
Series 4, Episode 2
The death of Canon Friel causes upset amongst the faithful and ruins Phonsie Doherty's plans...
Series set in the sleepy town of Ballylenon, County Donegal in 1955.
Written by Christopher Fitz-Simon.
Starring TP McKenna as Phonsie Doherty, Margaret D'Arcy as Muriel McConkey, Stella McCusker as Vera McConkey, Aine McCartney as Vivienne Boal, John Hewitt as Guard Gallagher, Gerard McSorley as Stumpy Bonnar and Gerard Murphy as Rev Samuel Hawthorne.
Music arranged and performed by Stephanie Hughes.
Director: Eoin O'Callaghan
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1997.
TUE 17:00 Arrested Development (b0075vmg)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]
TUE 17:30 Love in Recovery (b0742hlk)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
TUE 18:00 Brian Aldiss - Hothouse (b00mdx7n)
Episode 2
The tribal elders have gone, leaving the children to face the Earth's dense jungle alone. Sci-fi fantasy read by Gareth Thomas. From August 2009.
TUE 18:30 Pioneers (b01466cy)
Series 2, Shannon Murray
Actress Shannon Murray speaks to Clare English about becoming the UK's first high street disabled model and how she physically and psychologically rebuilt her life after a diving accident.
She explains how she's challenged some of the prejudices and misconceptions surrounding disability.
Producer: Philip Sime
First broadcast on BBC Radio Scotland in 2011.
TUE 19:00 The Ken Dodd Show (b05wjsdf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
TUE 19:30 The Men From the Ministry (b016dgvc)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
TUE 20:00 Cadfael (b007jld1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
TUE 20:30 North and South: Across the Great Divide (b01dtwls)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
TUE 21:00 The Time Being (b03qfzgs)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:00 today]
TUE 21:15 Patrick O'Brian - HMS Surprise (b0101l89)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:15 today]
TUE 22:00 Love in Recovery (b0742hlk)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
TUE 22:30 Elvis McGonagall Takes a Look on the Bright Side (b043xlb4)
Series 1, Go Wild in the Country
Stand-up poet, armchair revolutionary, comedian and broadcaster Elvis McGonagall (aka poet and performer Richard Smith) is determined to do something about his bitter, dyspeptic and bloody-minded view of contemporary life. There are good things out there, if he could only be bothered to find them.
From his home in the Graceland Park near Dundee, the Scottish punk poet goes in search of the brighter side of life. With the help of his dog, Trouble, his friend, Susan Morrison, and his own private narrator, Clarke Peters, Elvis does his very best to accentuate the positive - he really does. Recorded almost entirely on location, in a caravan on a truly glamorous industrial estate somewhere in Scotland.
Episode 4. Go Wild in the Country. The Graceland Caravan Park is beset by second home owners trying to 'keep it real'. Surrounded by Laura Ashley wheelie bins, he begins to wonder what's so great about country life anyway. I mean what are you supposed to do - run with the deer or shoot them?
As Elvis, poet Richard Smith is the 2006 World Poetry Slam Champion, the compere of the notorious Blue Suede Sporran Club and appears regularly on BBC Radio 4 ('Saturday Live', the 'Today Programme', 'Arthur Smith's Balham Bash', 'Last Word', 'Off The Page' and others as well as writing and presenting the popular arts features 'Doggerel Bard' on the art of satiric poetry and 'Beacons and Blue Remembered Hills' on the extraordinary resonance of AE Housman's 'Shropshire Lad', which was recorded on location as well.
(further info at www.elvismcgonagall.co.uk)
Written by Elvis MacGonagall, with Richard Smith, Helen Braunholtz-Smith and Frank Stirling.
Director: Frank Stirling
Producer: Frank Stirling
A Unique production for BBC Radio 4.
TUE 22:45 Richard Marsh (b01rlswh)
Love and Sweets, Jess
Winner of Best Scripted Comedy in the BBC Audio Awards 2014, poet and playwright Richard Marsh fuses poetry and prose to tell a heart-breaking and witty tale of losing love, falling for a seductive-looking lady called Sorrow, and learning to put himself back together.
Richard's marriage has fallen apart, and he's a broken man locked in a flat full of memories, rattling around like sweets in a bowl. Siobhan's moved out; the flat, half-full, is the emptiest thing. On the plus side, his friends cook him a lot of meals - but there's only so much consolation chicken a man can eat.
When moping at the pub, Richard meets the seductive Sorrow, who tries to stop him recovering or moving on with his life. Will she succeed, or will Richard learn to love again?
Contains some explicit language.
Written and performed by Richard Marsh.
Producer: Ben Worsfield
A Lucky Giant production for BBC Radio 4.
TUE 23:00 Elvenquest (b00w22h6)
Series 2, Episode 2
Amis' over-eating has forced him to put on weight. Which would be fine, were it not for the fact that he is the "Chosen One" and everyone knows Chosen Ones cannot be seen to be too pudgy. He is a role model after all. So the Questers take him to see the sorcerer, Dietica, where he is put on a punishing new regime - along with the rest of our noble band of heroes.
But, as ever, danger lurks round every corner in Lower Earth and it is not long until Dietica reveals his true plans for the Questers. And it involves more than just staying away from carbs.
An all-star cast, featuring:
Stephen Mangan as 'Sam',
Alistair McGowan as 'Lord Darkness',
Sanjeev Bhaskar as 'Dietica',
Kevin Eldon as 'Dean/Kreech',
Darren Boyd as 'Vidar',
Dave Lamb as 'Amis - The Chosen One'
Sophie Winkleman as 'Penthiselea'
The producer is Sam Michell.
TUE 23:25 The Comedy Club Interviews (b09xjwxr)
Andy Hamilton 2/2
From 10pm to midnight, 7 days a week, the Comedy Club has two hours of comedy. Plus Jon Holmes chats to Andy Hamilton.
TUE 23:30 Arthur Smith's Balham Bash (b00s7dw0)
Series 2, Episode 4
Arthur Smith invites the audience into his home for comedy, entertainment and music from Nine Below Zero, Phill Jupitus, Josh Widdecombe and Marlon Davies.

WEDNESDAY 04 APRIL 2018

WED 00:00 Brian Aldiss - Hothouse (b00mdx7n)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:00 on Tuesday]
WED 00:30 Pioneers (b01466cy)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:30 on Tuesday]
WED 01:00 Cadfael (b007jld1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 on Tuesday]
WED 01:30 North and South: Across the Great Divide (b01dtwls)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 on Tuesday]
WED 02:00 Book at Bedtime (b08kv5fg)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:00 on Tuesday]
WED 02:15 Disability: A New History (b01sm70w)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:15 on Tuesday]
WED 02:30 Charles Dickens (b007x06k)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:30 on Tuesday]
WED 02:45 James Bond - On Her Majesty's Secret Service (b07b2sbd)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:45 on Tuesday]
WED 03:00 Leo Tolstoy - Anna Karenina (b007jprn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 on Tuesday]
WED 04:00 The Personality Test (b00mbl3k)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:00 on Tuesday]
WED 04:30 Ballylenon (b007vmbw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:30 on Tuesday]
WED 05:00 Arrested Development (b0075vmg)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 on Tuesday]
WED 05:30 Love in Recovery (b0742hlk)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 on Tuesday]
WED 06:00 Cadfael (b007jldd)
The Virgin in the Ice, Found and Lost
As English civil war rages in Shropshire, monk-cum-sleuth, Brother Cadfael's brave search for Ermina leads him to the isolated medieval manor of Ledditch.
Ellis Peters' thriller narrated by Sir Michael Hordern and starring Philip Madoc as Brother Cadfael, Douglas Hodge as Hugh, Leonard Fenton as Leonard, Moira Buffini as Ermina, Dean Magri as Ives and Crispin Letts as Elyas.
This is the second series of the Chronicles of Brother Cadfael.
Dramatised by Bert Coules.
Music by Peter Salem.
Producer: Phil Clarke
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1992.
WED 06:30 Target Practice (b00rz0k4)
RAF Holbeach is a bombing range on the Lincolnshire Wash that is used by British, American and European squadrons for training purposes. Protected in part by the military presence, the range has a curious atmosphere. Here, a team of civilian employees man the targets and look after the natural landscape. The targets themselves are a collection of old ships, armoured personal carriers and ad hoc structures made from scrap material. In the eyes of one local artist, Michael Sanders, they look like 'accidental sculptures', punching out from stark landscape of the Wash.
Local contractor Norman Parnell takes great pride in building and maintaining these structures, despite the fact that they are constantly damaged by artillery fire and the tide, and Holbeach employee Geoff Smith is as careful to check for damage to the electronic scoring system as he is in spotting oyster catcher eggs at the targets.
Those that work at RAF Holbeach maintain a delicate balance between protecting the environment and serving the needs of the pilots that use the range ahead of deployment. Through their eyes, we encounter a unique place where the military and natural world meet in surreal and surprising circumstances, encouraging us to reflect upon the activity of the armed forces on home soil.
The producer is Katie Burningham. This is a Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4.
WED 07:00 Ring Around the Bath (b00tqqjf)
Series 2, Go With the Flow
When Patrick makes a chart to show where all the children are at any one time, it dawns on Stella that one of them isn't always where her little arrow says she is.
Series 2 of Lucy Clare and Ian Davidson's sitcom about topsy-turvy family life.
Stars Duncan Preston as Patrick, Penny Downie as Stella, Claudie Blakley as Alison, Bruce MacKinnon as Rick, Catherine Shepherd as Xanthe, Daniela Denby-Ashe as Egg and Rosie Armstrong as Mrs Fox.
Producer: Elizabeth Freestone
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 2004.
WED 07:30 It's Not What You Know (b09wt185)
Series 5, Episode 4
What does Russell Kane's think his best personality trait is? What's Fern Britton's party trick and who does Ivo Graham believe is the funniest person he knows?
All these burning questions, and more, will be answered in the show hosted by Joe Lycett, where panellists are tested on how well they know their nearest and dearest.
Produced by Matt Stronge.
It's Not What You Know is a BBC Studios production.
WED 08:00 The Navy Lark (b007vkkf)
The Explosive Biscuits
Povey is warned about a bomb on a new frigate while Phillips receives a special gift for a journey.
Starring Jon Pertwee as the Chief Petty Officer, Leslie Phillips as the Sub-Lieutenant, Stephen Murray as the Number One, Richard Caldicot as Captain Povey, Heather Chasen as Heather and Ronnie Barker and Michael Bates as the Potarneylanders.
Laughs afloat aboard British Royal Navy frigate HMS Troutbridge. The Navy Lark ran for an impressive thirteen series between 1959 and 1976
Scripted by Lawrie Wyman
Producer: Alastair Scott Johnston.
First broadcast on the BBC Light Programme in November 1960.
WED 08:30 Round the Horne (b00hzh39)
Series 1, Episode 14
Special agent Kenneth Horne probes a pirate invasion of the BBC, while Kenneth Williams throws a hissy fit. How sure are Binkie Huckaback and Dame Celia Molestrangler about their latest movie revival? And at the Studio Bona, is Mr Horne up to flexing his deltoids for photographers Julian and Sandy?
With 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 June 1965.
WED 09:00 The Write Stuff (b04k7kbn)
Series 17, John Osborne
4 Extra Debut. Radio 4's literary panel show, hosted by James Walton, with team captains Sebastian Faulks and John Walsh and guests Mark Billingham and Lynne Truss. The week's author is playwright John Osborne, the creator of 1956's Look Back in Anger.
Produced by Alexandra Smith.
WED 09:30 Life, Death and Sex with Mike and Sue (b00751f6)
Series 3, Episode 2
Sofa-bound TV presenters Mike and Sue tackle terrorism and gardening.
Starring Robert Duncan and Jan Ravens.
With Ronnie Ancona. Alistair McGowan, Roger Blake and Tracy-Ann Oberman.
Written by Ian Brown and James Hendrie from a format by Bill Dare.
Music by Mark Burton.
Producer: Aled Evans
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 1998.
WED 10:00 Leo Tolstoy - Anna Karenina (b007jps2)
Episode 2
Anna's affair with young officer Vronsky has begun, but her pompous husband will not acknowledge it. Stars Teresa Gallagher. From July 1997.
WED 11:00 The Time Being (b03sb3x4)
Series 7, Spells for Love, by Melissa Lee-Houghton
The Time Being provides a showcase for new voices, none of whom have been previously broadcast.
Previous series have brought new talent to a wider audience and provided a stepping stone for writers who have since gone on to enjoy further success both on radio and in print, such as Tania Hershman, Heidi Amsinck, Sally Hinchcliffe and Joe Dunthorne.
Spells For Love by Melissa Lee-Houghton:
A tale of love, loss and white magic. Sybil will do everything in her power to see that her daughter Lucia falls in love.
Melissa Lee-Houghton has written two collections of poetry. Her most recent, Beautiful Girls, is a Poetry Book Society Recommendation. Melissa lives in Blackburn, Lancashire.
Reader: Ruth Gemmell
Producer: Jeremy Osborne
A Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4.
WED 11:15 Patrick O'Brian - HMS Surprise (b0101tp7)
Episode 2
Scurvy, death and a surprise proposal, as Captain Jack Aubrey conveys a British ambassador to the East Indies. Stars David Robb. From October 2008.
WED 12:00 The Navy Lark (b007vkkf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
WED 12:30 Round the Horne (b00hzh39)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
WED 13:00 Cadfael (b007jldd)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
WED 13:30 Target Practice (b00rz0k4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
WED 14:00 Book at Bedtime (b08kvpw3)
Sarah Perry - The Essex Serpent, Episode 3
Sarah Perry's award-winning novel, set at the end of the nineteenth century and inspired by true events.
Moving between Essex and London, myth and modernity, Cora Seaborne's spirited search for the Essex Serpent encourages all around her to test their allegiance to faith or reason in an age of rapid scientific advancement. At the same time, the novel explores the boundaries of love and friendship and the allegiances that we have to one another. The depth of feeling that the inhabitants of Aldwinter share are matched by their city counterparts as they strive to find the courage to express and understand their deepest desires, and strongest fears.
Episode Three
Cora, her son Francis and her companion, Martha, visit the Essex village of Aldwinter. They are introduced to the local vicar, Will Ransome, and his delightful family.
Sarah Perry was born in Essex in 1979. She has a PhD in creative writing at Royal Holloway which she completed under the supervision of Andrew Motion. She has been writer in residence at the Gladstone Library and is the winner of a Shiva Naipaul award for travel writing. Her first novel, After Me Comes The Flood won the East Anglian Book of the Year Award in 2014. The Essex Serpent was Waterstone's Book Of The Year in 2016 and was short-listed for the Costa Novel Award 2016. She lives in Norwich.
Writer: Sarah Perry
Abridger: Jeremy Osborne
Reader: Ruth Gemmell
Producer: Rosalynd Ward
A Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4.
WED 14:15 Disability: A New History (b01smkq3)
Freaks and Entrepreneurs
Peter White draws on the latest research to reveal the lives of physically disabled people in the 18th and 19th centuries. In this third episode, he challenges our modern ideas of freaks and freak shows.
Many disabled people who exhibited themselves in the 18th century were in fact wealthy entrepreneurs. Historians now argue that they were in charge of their own careers, and they challenged society's expectations of what disabled people could achieve.
Case studies include the artist Matthew Buchinger, who was born without arms or legs but became a performer to Royalty and a symbol of virility in the 18th century. Peter also discovers that 18th century dwarves could be delivered to your door in a box - if you were wealthy enough to pay for a private view.
With historians David Turner, Judith Hawley and Naomi Baker and voices from the past brought to life by actors Gerard McDermott, Ewan Bailey and Emily Bevan.
Producer: Elizabeth Burke
Academic adviser: David Turner of Swansea University
A Loftus production for BBC Radio 4.
WED 14:30 Charles Dickens (b007wznr)
The Old Curiosity Shop, Episode 23
Dick suffers with his fever and Sally Brass is confronted. Dickens dramatisation starring Alex Jennings and Sandi Toksvig. From January 2003.
WED 14:45 James Bond - On Her Majesty's Secret Service (b07b3c6d)
Episode 3
Bond receives confirmation of Blofeld's whereabouts and adopts a disguise in pursuit of his quarry. Read by Joanna Lumley. From October 1989.
WED 15:00 Leo Tolstoy - Anna Karenina (b007jps2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 today]
WED 16:00 The Write Stuff (b04k7kbn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]
WED 16:30 Life, Death and Sex with Mike and Sue (b00751f6)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 today]
WED 17:00 Ring Around the Bath (b00tqqjf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]
WED 17:30 It's Not What You Know (b09wt185)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
WED 18:00 Brian Aldiss - Hothouse (b00mj3gd)
Episode 3
The manipulative Morel fungus guides Gren and Poyly's lives without their tribe. Sci-fi fantasy read by Gareth Thomas. From September 2009.
WED 18:30 The Tingle Factor (b04vjkfv)
Joan Bakewell
Joan Bakewell shares the musical moments that stir her emotions with Jeremy Nicholas.
From Britten to Haydn, the broadcaster also looks back over her life and career.
Producer: Ray Abbott
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1993.
WED 19:00 The Navy Lark (b007vkkf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
WED 19:30 Round the Horne (b00hzh39)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
WED 20:00 Cadfael (b007jldd)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
WED 20:30 Target Practice (b00rz0k4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
WED 21:00 The Time Being (b03sb3x4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:00 today]
WED 21:15 Patrick O'Brian - HMS Surprise (b0101tp7)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:15 today]
WED 22:00 It's Not What You Know (b09wt185)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
WED 22:30 2525 (b007znn2)
Episode 1
In the year 2525, if man is still alive, if woman can survive... then it may sound something like this. Set 511 years in the future, 2525 welcomes you into a world of competitive kitchen appliances, robotic stand-up comedians and religions devoted to the worship of the Beatles.
Cast:
Jenny Bede
Jamie Demetriou
Kieran Hodgson
Catriona Knox
Waen Shepherd
Written by Colin Birch, Ali Crockatt and David Scott, Jason Hazeley and Joel Morris, Jon Hunter, Jane Lamacraft, Alex Lowe, Paul Putner, John Luke Roberts and Eddie Robson.
Produced by Ashley Blaker.
A John Stanley production for BBC Radio 4.
WED 23:00 As Told to Craig Brown (b00b4j53)
Series 1, Episode 3
Craig Brown introduces a mixture of satire, social observation and nonsense.
Narrated by Juliet Stevenson and Steve Wright, with John Humphrys, Ronni Ancona, Jon Culshaw, Lewis MacLeod, Sally Grace, Ewan Bailey and Margaret Cabourn-Smith.
WED 23:30 The Consultants (b0076pm3)
Series 2, Episode 2
A complaint about a wonky pram turns serious. Cerebral sketch show with Neil Edmond and Justin Edwards. From November 2003.

THURSDAY 05 APRIL 2018

THU 00:00 Brian Aldiss - Hothouse (b00mj3gd)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:00 on Wednesday]
THU 00:30 The Tingle Factor (b04vjkfv)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:30 on Wednesday]
THU 01:00 Cadfael (b007jldd)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 on Wednesday]
THU 01:30 Target Practice (b00rz0k4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 on Wednesday]
THU 02:00 Book at Bedtime (b08kvpw3)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:00 on Wednesday]
THU 02:15 Disability: A New History (b01smkq3)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:15 on Wednesday]
THU 02:30 Charles Dickens (b007wznr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:30 on Wednesday]
THU 02:45 James Bond - On Her Majesty's Secret Service (b07b3c6d)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:45 on Wednesday]
THU 03:00 Leo Tolstoy - Anna Karenina (b007jps2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 on Wednesday]
THU 04:00 The Write Stuff (b04k7kbn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 on Wednesday]
THU 04:30 Life, Death and Sex with Mike and Sue (b00751f6)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 on Wednesday]
THU 05:00 Ring Around the Bath (b00tqqjf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 on Wednesday]
THU 05:30 It's Not What You Know (b09wt185)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 on Wednesday]
THU 06:00 Cadfael (b007jldr)
The Virgin in the Ice, The Wolves' Nest
Brother Cadfael searches for Ives Hugonin and Brother Elyas who are missing in a blizzard.
Ellis Peters' thriller narrated by Sir Michael Hordern and starring Philip Madoc as Brother Cadfael, Douglas Hodge as Hugh, Leonard Fenton as Leonard, Moira Buffini as Ermina, Dean Magri as Ives and Peter Laird as Le Gaucher.
This is the second series of the Chronicles of Brother Cadfael.
Dramatised by Bert Coules.
Music by Peter Salem.
Producer: Phil Clarke
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1992.
THU 06:30 100 Years of the Royal Flying Corps (b01h5xcq)
After receiving its warrant from King George V, the Royal Flying Corps came into being in May 1912. Peter and Dan Snow look at the centenary of this corps of the British Army and how it advanced from primitive balloons and flimsy biplanes to sophisticated long range bombers.
Dan looks back on the experience of flying in a World War One trainer and Peter explores the aircraft of the Shuttleworth Collection, all working examples of trainers, fighters and bombers. Professor Richard Overy and General Sir Mike Jackson explain how the RFC's pioneering work altered the course of warfare, and documents from the Museum of Army Flying chart the tragic loss of life that went hand in glove with extreme bravery and remarkable technical development. In a few short years the RFC went from being perceived as a fad to a major component of 20th century warfare, and eye witness accounts tell of artillery spotting, photo reconnaissance and the carnage on the Somme.
More importantly, rather than focusing on the RFC as a curtain-raiser to the creation of the Royal Air Force in 1918, the programme looks at the Corps in its own right and what it brought in terms of intelligence, sophisticated mapping and air supremacy to the British Army in the field.
Producer: Alyn Shipton
A Unique Production for BBC Radio 4.
THU 07:00 North by Northamptonshire (b00sv6fw)
Series 1, Episode 3
Sheila Hancock heads a stunning cast including Mackenzie Crook, Penelope Wilton, Felicity Montagu and Kevin Eldon. This is a clever, funny and touching series about a small town in the middle of Northamptonshire as it prepares for a talent night. It is written by and also stars Katherine Jakeways.
Recently divorced Jan gets two compliments in one day. Meanwhile her ex husband Frank performs the most embarrassing version of Je T'Aime ever heard, with his new love, Angela.
Across town Rod the local supermarket manager (Mackenzie Crook) is still sharing rather more than is usual about his private life over the store's tannoy system. Could he be getting closer to Tanya on till 4?
Written by Katherine Jakeways
Produced by Claire Jones.
THU 07:30 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (b09wvpbp)
Hexagonal Phase, Episode 4
Simon Jones stars as Arthur Dent in a brand new full-cast series based on And Another Thing..., the sixth book in the famous Hitchhiker's Guide trilogy.
Forty years on from the first ever radio series of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Arthur Dent and friends return to be thrown back into the Whole General Mish Mash, in a rattling adventure involving Viking Gods and Irish Confidence Tricksters, with our first glimpse of Eccentrica Gallumbits and a brief but memorable moment with The Ravenous Bugblatter Beast Of Traal.
Starring John Lloyd as The Book, with Simon Jones as Arthur, Geoff McGivern as Ford Prefect, Mark Wing-Davey as Zaphod Beeblebrox, Sandra Dickinson and Susan Sheridan as Trillian, Jim Broadbent as Marvin the Paranoid Android and Jane Horrocks as Fenchurch. The cast also includes Samantha Béart, Toby Longworth, Andy Secombe, Ed Byrne, Lenny Henry, Philip Pope, Mitch Benn, Jon Culshaw and Professor Stephen Hawking.
The series is written and directed by Dirk Maggs and based on And Another Thing... by Eoin Colfer, with additional unpublished material by Douglas Adams.
Cast:
The Voice Of The Book......................................................John Lloyd
Arthur Dent..................................................................... Simon Jones
Ford Prefect.....................................................................Geoff McGivern
Zaphod Beeblebrox............................................................Mark Wing-Davey
Trillian/Tricia McMillan.........................................................Sandra Dickinson
Trillian............................................................................ Susan Sheridan
Random...........................................................................Samantha Béart
Jeltz/Wowbagger...............................................................Toby Longworth
Constant Mown..................................................................Andy Secombe
Left Brain/Thor.................................................................. Mitch Benn
Fenchurch........................................................................Jane Horrocks
Hillman Hunter.................................................................. Ed Byrne
Cthulu............................................................................ Jon Culshaw
Marvin............................................................................ Jim Broadbent
The Guide MkII................................................................Professor Stephen Hawking
The Consultant............................................................ Lenny Henry
Heimdall/Barzoo/Buckeye Brown/
Eccentrica /Gunner Vogon.....................................................Tom Alexander
Aseed Preflux/Sub-Etha Voice/HOG Door ..............................Philip Pope
Modgud/The Viking............................................................ Theo Maggs
Baldur ............................................................................ Phillipe Bosher
Announcer............................................................................John Marsh
Music by Philip Pope
Production research by Kevin Jon Davies
Written and directed by Dirk Maggs
Based on the novel And Another Thing... by Eoin Colfer, with additional material by Douglas Adams
Recorded at The Soundhouse Ltd by Gerry O'Riordan
Sound Design by Dirk Maggs
Produced by Dirk Maggs, Helen Chattwell and David Morley
A Perfectly Normal production for BBC Radio 4.
THU 08:00 Marriage Lines (b0674hjd)
Series 2, Episode 11
Could a new arrival upset George and Kate's house plans?
Richard Briers and Prunella Scales star in their second series based on the mutual love and mistrust of a young married couple. With Edward De Souza and Derek Fowlds.
Originating on BBC TV, it was adapted for radio due to its popularity by Richard Waring from his own TV scripts. A decade later, Richard Briers was starring as Tom Good in The Good Life whilst Prunella Scales starred as Sybil in Fawlty Towers. They remained friends until Richard Briers' death in 2013.
Producer: Charles Maxwell
Recorded at the BBC Paris Studio in London.
First broadcast on the BBC Light Programme in May 1967.
THU 08:30 The Goon Show (b007jn48)
The Jet-Propelled Guided Naafi
Grytpype and Moriarty set out to steal the plans for a secret new weapon. Stars Spike Milligan and Peter Sellers. From January 1956.
THU 09:00 Listomania (b09xk5rb)
Series 1, Episode 1
Susan Calman hosts the series exploring the world of the list - from the magnificent to the mundane - from the humble 'to do' list to the bucket list and many more...
With Katherine Ryan, Dane Baptiste, Elis James and Aisling Bea.
Written by James Kettle and Gráinne Maguire with Max Davis and Gabby Hutchinson Crouch.
Producer: Sam Bryant
First broadcast on BBC Radio 2 in 2015.
THU 09:30 HR (b01bm0p7)
Series 3, Disabled
In the return of Nigel Williams' much-praised comedy series the two 60-something chums have just lost their pensions. Sam (Nicholas le Prevost) balks at Peter's (Jonathan Pryce) outrageous survival measures. But will he become embroiled?
Peter ..... Jonathan Pryce
Sam ..... Nicholas le Prevost
Doctor ..... Paul Moriarty
Director...Peter Kavanagh.
THU 10:00 Leo Tolstoy - Anna Karenina (b007jpsj)
Episode 3
Anna becomes distraught as the full impact of her affair begins to dawn on her. Stars Teresa Gallagher and Nicholas Farrell. From July 1997.
THU 11:00 Berlie Doherty - The Bad Boy (b06qngjk)
Geraldine is forbidden from seeing a local boy, but her sister observes a tender connection between them. Read by Kathryn Hunt. From July 1992.
THU 11:15 Patrick O'Brian - HMS Surprise (b0102nrl)
Episode 3
Tragedy halts the ship's voyage. In Calcutta, Stephen makes a proposal of marriage but faces a duel. Stars David Robb. From October 2008.
THU 12:00 Marriage Lines (b0674hjd)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
THU 12:30 The Goon Show (b007jn48)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
THU 13:00 Cadfael (b007jldr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
THU 13:30 100 Years of the Royal Flying Corps (b01h5xcq)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
THU 14:00 Book at Bedtime (b08ky4lb)
Sarah Perry - The Essex Serpent, Episode 4
Sarah Perry's award-winning novel, set at the end of the nineteenth century and inspired by true events.
Moving between Essex and London, myth and modernity, Cora Seaborne's spirited search for the Essex Serpent encourages all around her to test their allegiance to faith or reason in an age of rapid scientific advancement. At the same time, the novel explores the boundaries of love and friendship and the allegiances that we have to one another. The depth of feeling that the inhabitants of Aldwinter share are matched by their city counterparts as they strive to find the courage to express and understand their deepest desires, and strongest fears.
Episode Four
Will tries to dissuade his congregation from their belief in the existence of the Essex Serpent. Cora and her family move to Aldwinter where Cora's friendship with Will deepens.
Sarah Perry was born in Essex in 1979. She has a PhD in creative writing at Royal Holloway which she completed under the supervision of Andrew Motion. She has been writer in residence at the Gladstone Library and is the winner of a Shiva Naipaul award for travel writing. Her first novel, After Me Comes The Flood won the East Anglian Book of the Year Award in 2014. The Essex Serpent was Waterstone's Book Of The Year in 2016 and was short-listed for the Costa Novel Award 2016. She lives in Norwich.
Writer: Sarah Perry
Abridger: Jeremy Osborne
Reader: Ruth Gemmell
Producer: Rosalynd Ward
A Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4.
THU 14:15 Disability: A New History (b01snjq4)
Beauty and Deformity
Peter White draws on the latest research to reveal the lives of physically disabled people in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Today, he explores ideas of beauty and deformity which had a real impact on the lives of people with disabilities.
In the 18th century, you could be transformed from beautiful to 'deformed' overnight. We hear the first-hand account of one woman who suffered this transformation - the writer Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, a society beauty who caught smallpox when she was 26: 'How am I changed! Where's my complexion, where the bloom that promised happiness for years to come?'
Mourning loss of beauty was not just natural human vanity, because beauty was thought of as a moral quality, not just skin-deep - and ugliness was deeply shameful. The belief was that outward deformity revealed inner wickedness.
Peter explores how this idea changed under the impact of a greater scientific understanding of the world. But surprisingly, science did not encourage more tolerance - in fact, it led to a much narrower definition of what was "normal". He also discovers that disability was thought to be contagious in the 18th century, and that all women were believed to be deformed because the ideal body was male.
With historians Naomi Baker and Judith Hawley, and historical sources including manuals for parents to correct the appearance of their children as well as 18th century doctors' advertisements. Voices from the past are brought vividly to life, with actors Emily Bevan, Ewan Bailey and Gerard McDermott.
Producer: Elizabeth Burke
Academic adviser: David Turner of Swansea University
A Loftus production for BBC Radio 4.
THU 14:30 Charles Dickens (b007wwf2)
The Old Curiosity Shop, Episode 24
Kit gets a surprise visit in prison and there's news for Little Nell. Dickens dramatisation starring Alex Jennings. From January 2003.
THU 14:45 James Bond - On Her Majesty's Secret Service (b07bb72s)
Episode 4
Adopting a cover identity, 007 hits Switzerland in search of the elusive Blofeld. Joanna Lumley reads Ian Fleming's thriller. From October 1989.
THU 15:00 Leo Tolstoy - Anna Karenina (b007jpsj)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 today]
THU 16:00 Listomania (b09xk5rb)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]
THU 16:30 HR (b01bm0p7)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 today]
THU 17:00 North by Northamptonshire (b00sv6fw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]
THU 17:30 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (b09wvpbp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
THU 18:00 Brian Aldiss - Hothouse (b00mpnkm)
Episode 4
Gren and Poyly survive the volcano, but the Morel is becoming increasingly frustrated. Sci-fi fantasy read by Gareth Thomas. From September 2009.
THU 18:30 Great Lives (b00wr8pq)
Series 23, Sammy Davis Jr
Lionel Blair chooses his friend and dancing partner Sammy Davis Jr. Sammy described himself as a 'one-eyed black Jew' - and he was described by others as one of the greatest all-round entertainers of all time.
Lionel danced and sang with Sammy in a dazzling performance on the stage at the Royal Variety Performance in 1961, and he revisits that memory through an evocative archive recording. Paul Gambaccini is on hand to help presenter Matthew Parris draw out the contradictions and triumphs of Sammy Davis Jr's great American life.
Producer Beth O'Dea.
THU 19:00 Marriage Lines (b0674hjd)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
THU 19:30 The Goon Show (b007jn48)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
THU 20:00 Cadfael (b007jldr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
THU 20:30 100 Years of the Royal Flying Corps (b01h5xcq)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
THU 21:00 Berlie Doherty - The Bad Boy (b06qngjk)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:00 today]
THU 21:15 Patrick O'Brian - HMS Surprise (b0102nrl)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:15 today]
THU 22:00 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (b09wvpbp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
THU 22:30 Sketchorama (b048nyk4)
Series 3, Episode 3
Tom Tuck presents the pick of the best live sketch groups currently performing on the UK comedy circuit - featuring three up and coming groups in character, improv, broken and musical sketch comedy.
In this programme:
Four Screws Loose.
New Act of the Year finalists, featuring Richard Caine, Joseph Elliot, Thom Ford and Conan House.
They have performed in prestigious comedy venues from London to Edinburgh (via, naturally, Yeovil) and alongside top acts such as Ardal O'Hanlon, Patrick Kielty, Alex Zane, Frisky and Mannish and Boy With Tape on his Face.
The Jest.
Recently slimmed down from a nine-person sketch group Simply the Jest, who performed at the Fringe from 2011 to 2013. The Jest is made up of University of Exeter graduates Ella Ainsworth (School of Comedy on Channel 4 and at The Pleasance, the BBC's Hustle and Being Human), Tristan Rogers, Jack Stanley (Little Britain, 2005 film The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy), Luke Theobald (runner-up on an episode of Pointless. Hell yeah!) and Bryony Twydle.
Birthday Girls.
Beattie Edmondson, Rose Johnson and Camille Ucan. Collectively, individually and existentially they have been seen or heard on things like Live At The Electric (BBC3), Absolutely Fabulous, Dick & Dom's Funny Business (BBC2) and the first series of Sketchorama in their former sketch collective Lady Garden.
Producer: Gus Beattie.
A Comedy Unit production for BBC Radio 4.
THU 23:00 Masala FM (b0080p9x)
Masala FM
It's the Asian station phone-in show's first wedding, but is love blind or stupid? Stars Sanjeev Bhaskar. From October 1996.
THU 23:30 Bleak Expectations (b00nrrd5)
Series 3, A Sort of Fine Life De-Niced Completely
Pip wants to save the poor and Harry Biscuit wants swans. Mark Evans's Dickensian spoof starring Tom Allen. From November 2009.

FRIDAY 06 APRIL 2018

FRI 00:00 Brian Aldiss - Hothouse (b00mpnkm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:00 on Thursday]
FRI 00:30 Great Lives (b00wr8pq)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:30 on Thursday]
FRI 01:00 Cadfael (b007jldr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 on Thursday]
FRI 01:30 100 Years of the Royal Flying Corps (b01h5xcq)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 on Thursday]
FRI 02:00 Book at Bedtime (b08ky4lb)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:00 on Thursday]
FRI 02:15 Disability: A New History (b01snjq4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:15 on Thursday]
FRI 02:30 Charles Dickens (b007wwf2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:30 on Thursday]
FRI 02:45 James Bond - On Her Majesty's Secret Service (b07bb72s)
[Repeat of broadcast at 14:45 on Thursday]
FRI 03:00 Leo Tolstoy - Anna Karenina (b007jpsj)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 on Thursday]
FRI 04:00 Listomania (b09xk5rb)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 on Thursday]
FRI 04:30 HR (b01bm0p7)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 on Thursday]
FRI 05:00 North by Northamptonshire (b00sv6fw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 on Thursday]
FRI 05:30 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (b09wvpbp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 on Thursday]
FRI 06:00 Cadfael (b007jldz)
The Virgin in the Ice, Discoveries
Detective monk, Brother Cadfael discovers outlaws have taken Ives Hugonin prisoner.
Ellis Peters' thriller narrated by Sir Michael Hordern and starring Philip Madoc as Brother Cadfael, Douglas Hodge as Hugh, Leonard Fenton as Leonard, Moira Buffini as Ermina, Dean Magri as Ives, Peter Laird as Le Gaucher and Crispin Letts as Elyas.
This is the second series of the Chronicles of Brother Cadfael.
Dramatised by Bert Coules.
Music by Peter Salem.
Producer: Phil Clarke
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1992.
FRI 06:30 Arvon Turns Forty (b00fgsg2)
Novelist Mavis Cheek examines the birth and development of the Arvon Foundation, the creative writing centres that were founded 40 years ago in an obscure North Devon village by a group of poets.
The original course took a group of 16-year-olds and expected them to live and work like writers. Galvanised by a workshop with Ted Hughes, the Foundation took off and, in doing so, arguably gave birth to the modern Creative Writing movement.
FRI 07:00 The Stanley Baxter Playhouse (b06r5xx2)
Series 7, The Leaving of Barra
Stanley Baxter's first story in his new Playhouse season goes back in time to 1949, when a young man, an assistant director on Whisky Galore, falls in love with a local girl on the Hebridean island of Barra where filming is taking place.
Sixty six years later, his memories of that golden time come flooding back.
Stanley Baxter plays the old man who abandoned a career in film to stay on the island with the woman he loved, and now faces a sad farewell. The other members of the company are June Watson, Scott Hoatson, Samara Maclaren and Tracy Wiles.
Written by Michael Chaplin.
Directed by Marilyn Imrie.
.
A Catherine Bailey production for BBC Radio 4.
FRI 07:30 In and Out of the Kitchen (b03xd3hn)
Series 3, The Prisoner
Nerves are fraying as Anthony's first night of Hay Fever looms, not helped by news of a dangerous prisoner loose in the area. Meanwhile, Damien contends with an angry neighbour.
FRI 08:00 I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again (b00dp3qq)
Series 6, Episode 8
A dandy's revenge with Beau Legs - and persecuting pigeons.
Starring Tim Brooke-Taylor, John Cleese, Graeme Garden, David Hatch, Jo Kendall and Bill Oddie.
Written by Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Bill Oddie and Graeme Garden.
Originating from the Cambridge University Footlights revue 'Cambridge Circus', ISIRTA ran for eight years on BBC Radio and quickly developed a cult following.
Music and songs by Liam Cohen, Dave Lee and Bill Oddie.
Producer: David Hatch/Peter Titheradge
First broadcast on the BBC Radio 2 in June 1968.
FRI 08:30 Brothers in Law (b007k1xl)
Series 2, Polite Notice
Parking his car lands bungling barrister Roger in a jam.
Starring Richard Briers as Roger Thursby, John Glyn-Jones as Grimes, Julia Lockwood as Sally, Bridget Armstrong as Joy, David Jason as Bannister, Gerald Cross as the Judge.
Others parts by Sean Arnold and Douglas Blackwell.
Written by Henry Cecil and Basil Dawson.
Published in 1955, Henry Cecil's comic legal novel Brothers in Law was adapted first for TV in 1962 by Frank Muir and Denis Norden. It provided the first regular starring role for Richard Briers, who later reprised his role of the idealistic young lawyer Roger Thursby for BBC Radio between 1970 and 1972.
Producer: David Hatch
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 1971.
FRI 09:00 The Motion Show (b0075dc8)
Series 3, Episode 6
Graeme Garden hosts the comic debating show with Hugh Dennis, Boothby Graffoe, Steve Punt and Stuart Maconie. From August 2000.
FRI 09:30 Kathmandu or Bust (b07s6dls)
End of the Road
The lights of Kathmandu are twinkling on the horizon. What can possibly go wrong? Starring Richard Ridings. From July 1996.
FRI 10:00 Leo Tolstoy - Anna Karenina (b007jpt0)
Episode 4
As arguments rage over her future, Anna looks set on a path of self-destruction. Stars Teresa Gallagher and Toby Stephens. From August 1997.
FRI 11:00 Podcast Radio Hour (b09xy6nr)
Cariad Lloyd
Made for 4 Extra. Amanda Litherland and Cariad Lloyd recommend their favourite podcasts. Features 'Adrift', 'Made of Human' and a chat with Sofie Hagen.
FRI 12:00 I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again (b00dp3qq)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
FRI 12:30 Brothers in Law (b007k1xl)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
FRI 13:00 Cadfael (b007jldz)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
FRI 13:30 Arvon Turns Forty (b00fgsg2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
FRI 14:00 Book at Bedtime (b08kylx4)
Sarah Perry - The Essex Serpent, Episode 5
Sarah Perry's award-winning novel, set at the end of the nineteenth century and inspired by true events.
Moving between Essex and London, myth and modernity, Cora Seaborne's spirited search for the Essex Serpent encourages all around her to test their allegiance to faith or reason in an age of rapid scientific advancement. At the same time, the novel explores the boundaries of love and friendship and the allegiances that we have to one another. The depth of feeling that the inhabitants of Aldwinter share are matched by their city counterparts as they strive to find the courage to express and understand their deepest desires, and strongest fears.
Episode Five
Cora is invited to give a talk to Joanna Ransome's class in Aldwinter school, which has unforeseen consequences for the girls.
Sarah Perry was born in Essex in 1979. She has a PhD in creative writing at Royal Holloway which she completed under the supervision of Andrew Motion. She has been writer in residence at the Gladstone Library and is the winner of a Shiva Naipaul award for travel writing. Her first novel, After Me Comes The Flood won the East Anglian Book of the Year Award in 2014. The Essex Serpent was Waterstone's Book Of The Year in 2016 and was short-listed for the Costa Novel Award 2016. She lives in Norwich.
Writer: Sarah Perry
Abridger: Jeremy Osborne
Reader: Ruth Gemmell
Producer: Rosalynd Ward
A Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4.
FRI 14:15 Disability: A New History (b01snxyf)
Finding a Voice
Peter White draws on the latest research to reveal the lives of physically disabled people in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Today - Finding a Voice: Peter discovers William Hay, an 18th-century MP born with spinal curvature who has left us a remarkably revealing account of his life.
Peter comments, 'This series has been full of surprises for me - surprises even after making programmes about disability for 30 years. But perhaps this discovery has been for me the most startling. It's a book which very few people know about, and even fewer have read - a personal exploration of what it's like to be disabled in the 18th century. It's full of insights we like to think of as modern.'
In his book 'On Deformity', William Hay describes his life as a disabled MP, in Parliament and on the streets. He reveals the daily humiliation of being a man of restricted growth and his fear of rowdy crowds. But he also proudly challenges the conventional thinking of the time that his disability makes him ill. He gives advice to other men in his situation about which careers they should follow. And he excels at self-deprecating humour - sometimes, he confesses, he feels like 'a Worm'.
Hay's essay is seen by historians as ground-breaking - because in William Hay, disability had for the first time found a voice. But Hay is a challenging role model for modern disability activists.
With historians David Turner, Naomi Baker, Tim Hitchcock and Chris Mounsey and readings by Jonathan Keeble.
Producer: Elizabeth Burke
Academic adviser: David Turner of Swansea University
A Loftus production for BBC Radio 4.
FRI 14:30 Charles Dickens (b007wxhm)
The Old Curiosity Shop, Episode 25
Kit and the single gentleman reach their destination. Conclusion of the Dickens dramatisation starring Alex Jennings. From January 2003.
FRI 14:45 James Bond - On Her Majesty's Secret Service (b07bft32)
Episode 5
In the guise of Sir Hilary Bray, Bond contacts Blofeld and learns more about his Alpine hideaway. Read by Joanna Lumley. From October 1989.
FRI 15:00 Leo Tolstoy - Anna Karenina (b007jpt0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:00 today]
FRI 16:00 The Motion Show (b0075dc8)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]
FRI 16:30 Kathmandu or Bust (b07s6dls)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:30 today]
FRI 17:00 The Stanley Baxter Playhouse (b06r5xx2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:00 today]
FRI 17:30 In and Out of the Kitchen (b03xd3hn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
FRI 18:00 Brian Aldiss - Hothouse (b00mtpl0)
Episode 5
A parting of the ways for the Morel and Gren, but the search for a home goes on. Sci-fi fantasy read by Gareth Thomas. From September 2009.
FRI 18:30 Mastertapes (b01p0fpq)
Series 1, Ray Davies (the A-Side)
John Wilson continues with his new series in which he talks to leading performers and songwriters about the album that made them or changed them. Recorded in front of a live audience at the BBC's iconic Maida Vale Studios. Each edition includes two episodes, with John initially quizzing the artist about the album in question, and then, in the B-side, the audience puts the questions. Both editions feature exclusive live performances.
Programme 5, A-side. 'Lola Versus Powerman And The Moneygoround, Part One' & 'Muswell Hillbillies' - Ray Davies goes back to the early 1970s and the making of two classic Kinks albums. Marking a period of transition for the group (as they left one British record label for an American one), both were concept albums, tackling such broad themes as corruption within the music industry and the destruction of old communities via urban regeneration. In a revealing interview, Ray Davies considers the power of the lyric and the importance of place in his song-writing. He also performs exclusive live versions of songs from the two albums.
Producer: Paul Kobrak.
FRI 19:00 I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again (b00dp3qq)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:00 today]
FRI 19:30 Brothers in Law (b007k1xl)
[Repeat of broadcast at 08:30 today]
FRI 20:00 Cadfael (b007jldz)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
FRI 20:30 Arvon Turns Forty (b00fgsg2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:30 today]
FRI 21:00 Podcast Radio Hour (b09xy6nr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:00 today]
FRI 22:00 In and Out of the Kitchen (b03xd3hn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
FRI 22:30 The Show What You Wrote (b04fcc89)
Series 2, Art and Literature
Radio 4's themed sketch show made entirely from contributions sent in by the public is back for a second series.
The best ideas have been chosen from thousands of submissions from new writers resulting in a show like no other.
Recorded in Manchester.
Episode 3 - Art & Literature
Written by
The Public
Producers
Alexandra Smith
Carl Cooper.
FRI 23:00 Kevin Eldon Will See You Now (b04hvyp0)
Series 2, You May Know Me as Dudley
Comedy's best kept secret ingredient returns with another series of his own sketch show. Sketches, characters, sound effects, bit of music, some messin' about, you know...
In this episode, we get to shape some hedges, eat some cheese, annoy an alligator and play an exciting round of Ten Man's Nancy.
Kevin Eldon is a comedy phenomenon. He's been in virtually every major comedy show in the last fifteen years, but not content with working with the likes of Chris Morris, Steve Coogan, Armando Iannucci, Harry Enfield and Paul Whitehouse, Stewart Lee, Julia Davis and Graham Linehan, he's finally decided to put together another run of his own comedy series for BBC Radio 4.
After all the waiting - Kevin Eldon Will See You Now...
Appearing across the series are Amelia Bullmore (I'm Alan Partridge, Scott and Bailey), Julia Davis (Nighty Night), Paul Putner (Little Britain), Justin Edwards (The Consultants), David Reed (The Penny Dreadfuls) and Catherine Shepherd (Cardinal Burns, Harry and Paul).
Written by Kevin Eldon, with additional material by Jason Hazeley and Joel Morris (A Touch Of Cloth, That Mitchell and Webb Sound)
Original music by Martin Bird.
Produced and Directed by David Tyler.
A Pozzitive production for BBC Radio 4.
FRI 23:30 A Look Back at the Nineties (b007jqm8)
1996
Coming out to parents with a twist, an unusual Blue Peter appeal - and is the end of the world nigh..?
Recorded in 1993 - Brian Perkins, Kate Robbins and Chris Barrie 'look back' at 1996 - a year that was yet to happen
A satirical review set on New Year's Eve 1999 - the Sony Gold award-winning comedy recalls the events from 1995 to 1999.
Predicted by 'Spitting Image' writers Mark Burton, John O'Farrell and Pete Sinclair.
Producer: Caroline Leddy
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 1993.