SATURDAY 17 OCTOBER 2020

SAT 00:00 Weird Tales (b00vknlv)
Series 1
The Fly by Lynn Ferguson
Lonely, middle-aged computer programmer Alan knows everything there is to know about flies.
Then one day, online, he meets Amber, a Californian lady who knows everything there is to know about spiders.
Written by Lynn Ferguson.
Series of four chilling dramas inspired by Lovecraft's stories of magical rites and forbidden lore.
Lovecraft/Colby ...... Stephen Hogan
Mother ...... Stella Gonet
Alan ...... Alec Newman
Amber ...... Rachel Ogilvy
Other parts played by Caroline Guthrie, Janice Acquah and Paul Rider.
Producer: Luke Fresle.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2009.
SAT 00:30 Off the Page (b007w0j1)
Act Your Age
Dominic Arkwright chairs the lively discussion series on the theme of growing up.
5/7. Act Your Age
With Katherine Whitehorn, Martin Newell and Lucy Mangan.
Produced by Miles Warde
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2007.
SAT 01:00 A Charles Paris Mystery (b01pg3qw)
An Amateur Corpse
Episode 4
Charles closes in on the murderer of his old friend Hugo's wife with help from both his wife and his mother.
Bill Nighy stars as actor-cum-sleuth, Charles Paris.
By Jeremy Front - based on Simon Brett's novel.
Charles ..... Bill Nighy
Frances ..... Suzanne Burden
Joan ..... Geraldine McEwan
Maurice ..... Jon Glover
Geoff ..... Patrick Brennan
Saskia ..... Christine Absalom
Hugo ..... Paul Ritter
Holly ..... Susie Ridell
Director: Sally Avens
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2012.
SAT 01:30 Trueman and Riley (b01dw1mx)
Series 3
5. Home Truths
Riley doesn't want a woman who keeps reporting the same crime every year to divert investigations from something closer to home - his own granddaughter.
But he's asking for trouble when he impersonates a 14-year old girl himself.
Starring Robert Daws as Trueman and Duncan Preston as Riley.
Brian B Thompson’s detective series about the ill-matched duo set in Leeds.
DI Trueman .... Robert Daws
DS Riley .... Duncan Preston
Sue Stokes .... Lorraine Ashbourne
Becki .... Holly Matthews
Constable .... Harry Livingstone
Director: Toby Swift
Made for BBC Radio 4 Extra and first broadcast in March 2012
SAT 02:00 The Personality Test (b00mvs9s)
Series 2
Antony Worrall-Thompson
Celebrity chef and writer Antony Worrall-Thompson quizzes a panel about himself.
With Sue Perkins, Lucy Porter, Will Smith and Robin Ince.
Series with changing hosts who quiz the panel.
Script by Richard Turner and Simon LIttlefield
Devised and produced by Aled Evans.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2006.
SAT 02:30 Ballylenon (b007k4hw)
Series 1
Episode 2
A "gramophone record recital" is the Irish town's cultural highlight of 1953 - the start of something big?
Series set in the sleepy town of Ballylenon, Co Donegal, in 1953, before the days of mass tourism and proper plumbing in every home.
Written by Christopher Fitz-Simon.
Phonsie Doherty ...... TP McKenna
Muriel Maconchy ...... Margaret D'Arcy
Vera Maconchy ...... Stella McCusker
Vivienne Hawthorne ...... Aine McCartney
Guard Gallagher ...... John Hewitt
Stumpy Bonnar ...... Gerard McSorley
Eithne Ni Phartalain ...... Marcella Riordan
Aubrey Frawley ...... Dominic Letts
Music arranged and performed by Stephanie Hughes
Director: Eoin O'Callaghan
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 1994.
SAT 03:00 Jonathan Swift - Gulliver's Travels (b01c6trt)
3 The Voyage to Laputa
The last voyages of Jonathan Swift's story are the lesser told. Gulliver finds himself on the floating Island of Laputa, where he encounters mad scientists and the terrifying ghosts of the great and the good. He flees from these intellectual and spiritual horrors, only to finally find a kind of Eden with the Houyhnhnms, a race of intelligent and gentle horses.
However, in this land, humans - or as they are called, the 'Yahoos' - are considered vermin. The dark and traumatizing experiences Gulliver has in this land change his life (and his wife and family's lives) forever.
With the satire here focused on crazy scientific experimentation, superstition, and finally spiritual desolation - Gulliver's Travels is as modern and potent now as it has ever been.
Jonathan Swift's classic satire starring Arthur Darvill as Gulliver.
Gulliver …. Arthur Darvill
Richard Sympson …. Matthew Gravelle
Mary …. Bethan Walker
The Governor of Glubdrubdrib …. Ewan Bailey
The Master Horse …. Sam Dale
Lady Munodi …. Phoebe Waller-Bridge
Adapted by Matthew Broughton.
A BBC Cymru/Wales production for BBC Radio 4 first broadcast in February 2012.
SAT 04:00 Podcast Radio Hour (m000nf82)
Press Play - video games and children's podcasts
Amanda Litherland is joined by Chrystal Genesis to present a goody bag full of podcast recommendations.
First - great children's podcasts:
Tai Asks Why (CBC)
The Week Junior
Eleanor Amplified (WHYY)
Peace Out - Meditation for Kids
Kyla Slaven, producer of ABC's Short and Curly joins to discuss the philosophy show for kids.
And then we celebrate glorious video games and some of the best podcasts to stay up to date and entertained:
Women Of Marvel (episode Women of Video Game Journalism Revisited)
How Did This Get Played
Sound of Gaming (BBC Radio 3)
Triple Click (Maximum Fun)
Girls On Games
You can suggest your favourite podcast, or get in touch with the team by emailing podcastradiohour@bbc.co.uk
SAT 05:00 Jack & Millie (b08fh65p)
Pilot: Kafka Died at 39
A phone, a strudel and Franz Kafka combine to make Jack and Millie's day rather complicated.
Jeremy Front's comedy about an older couple getting to grips with a French daughter-in-law, gassy beer, Eye-Closing Leon and a married lifetime's-worth of verbal sparring.
So Millie's son Melvin has given her a new tablet with a voice recorder?
Suddenly Jack and Millie have decided to record everything that happens to them? And for this, we should be grateful?
Well yes! Because this is a comedy written by Jeremy Front (writer of the BBC's Charles Paris mysteries) about a Jack and Millie Lemman who are fully engaged with contemporary life whilst at war with the absurdities of the modern world.
Jack ...... Jeremy Front
Millie ...... Rebecca Front
Shirley ...... Tracy-Ann Oberman
Harry ...... Andy Nyman
Melvin ...... Harry Peacock
Delphine ...... Jenny Bede
Carrie ...... Sue Kelvin
Lindsay ...... Rachel Stubbings
Producer: David Tyler
A Pozzitive production for BBC Radio 4 first broadcast in February 2017.
SAT 05:30 Love in Recovery (m0001tzt)
Series 3
Les McKeown's Autograph
Third series of the award-nominated comedy drama set in Alcoholics Anonymous. Written by Pete Jackson and inspired by his own road to recovery. Stars Rebecca Front, John Hannah, Sue Johnston, Paul Kaye and Johnny Vegas.

Love in Recovery follows the lives of five very different recovering alcoholics. Johnny Vegas is Andy, the sweet but simple self-appointed group leader. Sue Johnston plays straight talking Julie, who's been known to have the odd relapse here and there - and everywhere. Rebecca Front is the snobby and spiky Fiona, an ex-banker who had it all and then lost the lot. John Hannah is Simon, a snide journalist who’s not an alcoholic – he got caught drink driving, his boss made him attend the meeting, but he fell in love with Fiona and stayed. And, despite her best efforts, she fell in love with him too. Paul Kaye is Danno, a down and out two-bit chancer with a shady past but a lot of heart, who’s desperate to turn his life around.

As we follow their weekly meetings, we hear them moan, argue, laugh, fall apart, fall in love and, most importantly, tell their stories.

This week, Fiona has been distant and her boyfriend Simon thinks he knows exactly what’s on her mind. He decides to help her, and believes the best way to start is by casually bringing this private issue up in the weekly meeting. What could possibly go wrong?

Writer Pete Jackson is a recovering alcoholic and has spent time in Alcoholics Anonymous. It was there he found, as most people do, support from the unlikeliest group of disparate souls, all banded together due to 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.

Love in Recovery doesn’t seek to represent an AA meeting exactly as it might happen in real life, but to capture the funny stories, the sad stories, the stories of small victories and of huge milestones, stories of loss, stories of hope, and most importantly, the many highs and lows in the journey of recovery.

Cast:
Fiona….. Rebecca Front
Simon….. John Hannah
Julie….. Sue Johnston
Danno….. Paul Kaye
Andy..... Johnny Vegas

Written and created by Pete Jackson
Producer/Director: Ben Worsfield

A King Bert production for BBC Radio 4
SAT 06:00 Kingsley Amis - All Free Now (b08n1vxy)
"As you get older, you'll find that absolutely straight-down-the-middle sex doesn't strike you in quite the way it did."
Sir Roy's pursuit of something more stimulating wreaks havoc in his own and everyone else's life in this comic observation of the late 1960s. Written by Tony Bilbow based on Kingsley Amis’s novel ‘Girl 20’.
Starring Robert Stephens as Sir Roy Vandervane, Christopher Timothy as Douglas Yandell, Eva Stuart as Lady Kitty, Geoffrey Whitehead as Meers, Kim Thomson as Penny, Anna Mazzotti as Sylvia and Okon Jones as Gilbert.
Producer: Matthew Walters
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1989.
SAT 07:30 Great Lives (b067x5hx)
Series 37
Monica Ali chooses Richard Francis Burton
Sir Richard Francis Burton was an explorer, adventurer, soldier, author, poet, sexologist and translator. He brought us the Kama Sutra and spoke 29 languages. The author Monica Ali champions this racy character and tells Matthew Parris why this 19th-century explorer is a Great Life. They are also joined by historian and broadcaster Matthew Ward.
Producer: Perminder Khatkar.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2015.
SAT 08:00 Dilemma (b01r9rtd)
Series 2
Episode 5
Sue Perkins puts Jason Cook, Cerys Matthews, David Aaronovitch and Sara Pascoe through the moral and ethical wringer.
Amongst the dilemmas facing the panel, Sue asks singer and BBC 6 Music host Cerys Matthews whether she'd eat an alien as an act of survival?
There are no "right" answers - but there are some deeply damning ones.
Devised by Danielle Ward.
Producer: Ed Morrish
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2013.
SAT 08:30 North East of Eden (b01flnpj)
Cod Comfort
With submarine manoeuvres offshore and troubles with EEC fish quotas for the fishermen, Marcia tries to adjust to a quieter lifestyle.
And a man from the ministry man is snooping about...
Rebecca Front and Joan Sims stars in Peter Kerry's sitcom about a GP living on Paradise Island off the coast of Northumbria.
Doctor Marcia Hulme …. Rebecca Front
Auntie Annie …. Joan Sims
Hjorst …. Niall Ashdown
Joseph Gates …. James Garbutt
Mrs Peevis …. Jean Southern
William …. Sammy Johnson
Ralph Gates …. Stephen Thirkeld
Other Roles …. Peter Kerry
Producer: Kathy Smith
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 1997.
SAT 09:00 People Talking (b09ggc2f)
Fi Glover trawls the archives for intimate stories of the everyday, tracing how curated wartime spirit developed into today's unmediated snapshots of life, with the help of writer and lido supporter, Tanya Shadrick.
From Olive Shapley's Mass Observation-inspired recordings in the 1930s and 40s, via Radio Ballads and Down Your Way, they arrive at the verbatim examples of 20th Century Vox and The Listening Project, charting the development from patronised 'ordinary folk' to the autonomy of contemporary voices.
Producer: Marya Burgess
Made for BBC Radio 4 Extra and first broadcast in November 2017.
SAT 12:00 My Favorite Husband (m000nlnp)
Piano and Violin Lessons
Liz swaps places to become a maid for the day so Katy can sound glamorous. Will it be convincing?
Lucille Ball and Richard Denning star as Liz and George. Vintage US comedy from 1948.
SAT 12:30 Rumblings from the Rafters (b07h65c6)
Death Watch Beetle and Queen Wasp
Alison Steadman and Bill Paterson star as a bossy queen wasp and a death watch beetle as they reveal the truth about life in a draughty old attic in a house in Amersham.
The first of three tales, written and introduced by Lynne Truss.
Death Watch Beetle ...... Bill Paterson
Queen Wasp ...... Alison Steadman
The Death Watch Beetle is a wood-boring beetle. Having spent twelve years as a larva boring through a single rafter in the house with no one to talk to, our beetle is now an adult with about 5 weeks left to live. He has just three aims in life:
Firstly, to find a mate, which he does by banging his head on the timber "Oh Come on girls, .. I know you're out there ... Don't tell me this attic has ever seen such a specimen before. This lovely compact dark brown capsule of hard cuticle covered with yellowish scale-like hair and just under a centimetre long - it could all be yours!
Secondly, to make as much noise as he can.
And finally, to live long enough to see the roof cave in.
The Queen Wasp is very, very bossy, and very, very stressed. She carries the entire responsibility for the wasp colony and its thousands of inhabitants, all of whom are her own progeny. There is an enormous amount of work to be done.
"They call themselves workers, these girls, but quite frankly, none of them knows what real work actually is." It is lonely at the top too," I did consider leaving all this, at one point. None of them knows this; they'd be heartbroken to think I might have left them" and she is just beginning to lose her grip. "Bring me my list" she constantly yells.
Life doesn't get much more stressful than this.
Wildlife sound recordings Chris Watson
Producer Sarah Blunt.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 2016.
SAT 13:00 Trueman and Riley (b01dtjlt)
Series 3
1. Every Dog Has His Day
Ignoring all evidence to the contrary, underachieving detectives Trueman and Riley still hope for a return to the front line of policing.
But will the strange case of a murdered greyhound bring them to the notice of the top brass?
Starring Robert Daws as Trueman and Duncan Preston as Riley.
Brian B Thompson’s detective series about the ill-matched duo is set in Leeds.
DI Trueman .... Robert Daws
DS Riley .... Duncan Preston
Sally .... Katherine Dow Blyton
Brandon .... Harry Livingstone
Patrick Makin .... Gerard McDermott
Track Announcer .... James Lailey
Director: Toby Swift
Made for BBC Radio 4 Extra and first broadcast in March 2012
SAT 13:30 Trueman and Riley (b01dtrfl)
Series 3
2. Angel Delight
Burlesque performer, Ophelia Nuts, reports a robbery at her club and our usually grumpy detectives enter a world where desserts - and in particular cherries - take on a whole new meaning.
Starring Robert Daws as Trueman and Duncan Preston as Riley.
Brian B Thompson’s detective series about the ill-matched duo set in Leeds.
DI Trueman .... Robert Daws
DS Riley .... Duncan Preston
Angel .... Tracy Wiles
David Farr .... Peter Hamilton Dyer
Martin Beer .... Don Gilet
Ophelia Nuts .... Susie Riddell
Cafe Owner .... Harry Livingstone
Director: Marion Nancarrow
Made for BBC Radio 4 Extra and first broadcast in March 2012
SAT 14:00 Trueman and Riley (b01dtvfj)
Series 3
3. Family Business
Yorkshire's grumpiest detectives are on the trail of a missing gambler with £98,000 in cash in his pocket. If only they knew who he was...or where he lived...or anything really.
Time for some old fashioned sleuthing...
Starring Robert Daws as Trueman and Duncan Preston as Riley.
Brian B Thompson’s detective series about the ill-matched duo set in Leeds.
DI Trueman .... Robert Daws
DS Riley .... Duncan Preston
Bill .... Gerard McDermott
Charlie .... David Hargreaves
Dermot .... James Lailey
Sandra .... Christine Absalom
Waitress .... Tracy Wiles
Director: Toby Swift
Made for BBC Radio 4 Extra and first broadcast in March 2012
SAT 14:30 Trueman and Riley (b01dvydy)
Series 3
4. Green Machine
Trueman and Riley stumble onto the Crime Squad's patch when they investigate an environmental activist who's been run over.
But they're all on the same side. Aren't they?
Starring Robert Daws as Trueman and Duncan Preston as Riley.
Brian B Thompson’s detective series about the ill-matched duo set in Leeds.
DI Trueman .... Robert Daws
DS Riley .... Duncan Preston
Terry .... Don Gilet
Jenny .... Susie Riddell
Tyler .... Tom Meredith
Mr Eagle .... James Lailey
Woman .... Christine Absalom
Director: Marion Nancarrow
Made for BBC Radio 4 Extra and first broadcast in March 2012
SAT 15:00 Trueman and Riley (b01dw1mx)
[Repeat of broadcast at 01:30 today]
SAT 15:30 A Good Read (b00w1zx7)
Baroness Mary Warnock and John Telfer
In a special edition of the programme recorded in front of an audience at the Bristol Old Vic, Sue MacGregor and guests Baroness Warnock and actor John Telfer talk about their favourite paperbacks. Baroness Mary Warnock is one of the country's leading philosophers and the author of more than 15 books, widely known for the work she has done on government committees. JohnTelfer plays the Reverend Alan Franks in The Archers. He studied at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and has appeared in more than 35 plays with the Bristol Old Vic Company.
The books they'll be discussing include Evelyn Waugh's Brideshead Revisited and Philip Pullman's recent re-telling of the gospels, The Good Man Jesus and The Scoundrel Christ.
The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ by Philip Pullman
Publisher: Canongate Books
If It Bleeds by Duncan Campbell
Publisher: Headline
Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh
Publisher: Penguin Modern Classics
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2010.
SAT 16:00 Kingsley Amis - All Free Now (b08n1vxy)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
SAT 17:30 Great Lives (b067x5hx)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
SAT 18:00 Dermot Bolger - Hunger Again (b0b1q0kp)
The aftermath of an explosion at a British nuclear plant creates a lawless Ireland with the spectre of famine.
Against this backdrop, Helen Curtayne is searching for her young daughter Millie across a dangerous and altered country.
Helen Curtayne …. Cathy Belton
Thomas …. Owen Roe
Millie …. Hannah Gordon
Susan …. Susannah Doyle
Stephen …. Sean Campion
Theresa …. Tina Kellegher
Miko …. Gerry O'Brien
Old Traveller …. John Hewitt
Solider …. Vincent Higgins
Child …. Sarah Gordon
Child …. Martha Gordon
Written by Dermot Bolger
Directed at BBC Belfast by Gemma McMullan.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2005.
SAT 19:00 People Talking (b09ggc2f)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]
SAT 22:00 Think the Unthinkable (b01mm3ch)
Series 4
Eurotank
The bumbling management consultants try to salvage the reputation of the MoD. Stars Marcus Brigstocke. From September 2005.
SAT 22:30 Rhod Gilbert's Bulging Barrel of Laughs (b00v4x0d)
Episode 6
Welsh comic Rhod Gilbert introduces regulars Lloyd Langford and Greg Davies, plus Sarah Millican who takes a look at the last stage of Woman.
With live music from The Hoosiers.
Guest comedian: Jon Richardson.
Find out what aliens know about teeth; why young people are as annoying as a nude Elton John playing the vuvuzela; and what depths Rhod would sink to become a kung fu master.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 2 in October 2010.
SAT 23:30 The Mary Whitehouse Experience (b0486dwz)
Series 4
Episode 8
Robert De Niro stars in a Christmas panto. With Hugh Dennis, Steve Punt, Robert Newman and David Baddiel. From December 1990.