SATURDAY 09 JANUARY 2021

SAT 00:00 John Wyndham - The Day of the Triffids (m0006fx1)
5. World Narrowing
'The utter loneliness was beginning to get on my nerves.'
Killer plants are on the rampage across the countryside. Bill sets-off in search of Josella but finds a new companion...
First published in 1951, John Wyndham's classic sci-fi novel dramatised by Giles Cooper.
Gary Watson …. Bill Masen
Barbara Shelley …. Josella Playton
Jill Cary …. Susan
Freda Dowie …. Mary
David Brierley …. Dennis
Margaret Robertson …. Joyce
Music composed by David Cain.
Producer: John Powell.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 1968.
SAT 00:30 Off the Page (b00ctl6y)
Making Your Mind Up
Dominic Arkwright, Dr David Lewis, Christine Webber and Michael Blastland discuss our decision-making process. From June 2008.
SAT 01:00 John Fletcher - Some Mother's Son (m000qz19)
6. The End?
Ecology journalist Andy Smith is now entirely in Sir Jack Watson's power - can he escape?
Starring Nick Chilvers, a thriller in six parts, taking in global power struggles, smuggling and the dangers of uranium, written by John Fletcher.
Andy ... Nick Chilvers
Sir Jack ... Conrad Phillips
Stanley ... Nick Brimble
Anderson ... Trevor Nichols
Anne ... Caroline Blakiston
Shirley ... Diane Fletcher
Directed by Brian Miller.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1987.
SAT 01:30 Dick Francis (b007qg3v)
Bolt
5. Nemesis for Two
Champion jockey Kit Fielding gets wind that Henri de Brescou plans to kill more horses. Kit is determined to put a stop to this needless slaughter.
Conclusion of Dick Francis's racing thriller.
Kit Fielding ...... Eric Allan
Princess Casilia ...... Sian Phillips
Danielle ...... Elizabeth MacGovern
Roland ...... Simon Carter
Wykeham ...... William Eedle
Prince Litsi ...... Sam Dastor
Henri ...... John Bull
Greening ...... Jack May
Thomas ...... Steve Hodson
Beatrice Bunt ...... Margaret Robertson
Allardeck ...... Bill Wallis
Dramatised by John Ashe.
Directed by Shaun MacLoughlin at BBC Pebble Mill.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 1994.
SAT 02:00 Tarka the Otter by Henry Williamson (b007jvch)
5. The Chase
As the otter basks in the sun, a pack of hounds catch his scent, sparking a great chase.
Nicholas Farrell reads Henry Williamson's classic tale of otter life, first published in 1927.
Abridged in five episodes by Sally Marmion.
Producer: Elizabeth Allard
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2002.
SAT 02:15 Gregory Evans - Blood and Milk (b07pjkhm)
Series 1
Episode 5
To save both her brother and the family's dairy business Meg must risk everything and confront the dangerous Moses Lipski. Thriller set in 1890s Whitechapel.
Megan Evans ….. Bettrys Jones
Samuel Singer ….. David Horovitch
Luc Evans ….. Trystan Gravelle
Moses Lipski ….. Brian Protheroe
Annie Riley ….. Alice Haig
by Gregory Evans
Directed by Marc Beeby.
In 1900 over half London's milk came from Welsh dairies. One of those dairies, on the Commercial Road, was owned and run by the writer’s family.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 2016.
SAT 02:30 Take Two - Joan Baez (b007mhw0)
Richard Coles presents a discussion series looking at collaborations between two musicians.
Richard Cole, Martin Carthy and Michael Gray discuss the king and queen of the folk revival in the early 1960s, Dylan and Baez who were the darlings of the emerging civil rights movement until Dylan turned his back on the folk scene, and on Baez, to play his distinctive style of electric blues-rock.
Produced by Adam Fowler.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2007.
SAT 03:00 Drama (b08dmrzv)
A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Episode 2
Archie Panjabi (The Good Wife, The Fall) and Rebecca Front (War and Peace, Dr Thorne) star with Clare Perkins in this much-loved gothic treat.
'It's only an accident that I'm not you, and you're not me.'
A Little Princess starts with a schoolgirl. But it's not a school story. Frances Hodgson Burnett's tough tale shows us a London full of foreign wealth and child poverty. That's why for over a century, its shocking story and unforgettable young characters have influenced everything from Angela Carter to anime.
And Kate Clanchy's radical new dramatisation discovers the Indian heart of Sara Crewe. When Sara is rich, she is treated just the same as other girls. But when she is not rich - exactly who is she? And why has she been brought to England?
Sara Crewe ..... Archie Panjabi
Becky Perkins ..... Clare Perkins
Miss Minchin ..... Rebecca Front
Young Sara ..... Nishi Malde
Young Becky ..... Polly Allen
Ram Dass ..... Sagar Radia
Mr Carrisford ..... James Lailey
Mr O’Neill ..... Nick Underwood
Miss Amelia ..... Adie Allen
Mrs Brown ..... Elizabeth Bennett
Lavinia ..... Rebecca Hamilton
Ermengarde ..... Lucy Hutchinson
Anne ..... Kirsty Oswald
Produced and directed by Jonquil Panting.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2017.
SAT 04:00 The Personality Test (b007tckc)
Series 3
Edwina Currie
Ex-MP, novelist and broadcaster Edwina Currie tests a panel about herself. With Sue Perkins and Robin Ince. From July 2007.
SAT 04:30 Ballylenon (b00gddtk)
Series 2
Episode 4
After "overhearing" that Reverend Hawthorne is leaving Ballylenon for a larger congregation, telephone operator Vera McConkey loses no time in communicating the good news to the local newspaper, The Vindicator.
Series set in the sleepy town of Ballylenon, Co Donegal, in 1954, before the days of mass tourism and proper plumbing in every home.
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, Charlie Bonnar as Packy McGoldrick, Ciara McKeown as Josie Doherty 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 1995.
SAT 05:00 Dot (b0714033)
Series 1
The Astonishing Adventures of Agent Whiff-Whaff
Comic adventures with Dot and the gals from personnel who are getting squiffy over Agent Bertie Whiff-Whaff.
Bertie wants Dot promoted, but can Dot handle life on the other side of the hallway?
Rollicking wartime comedy by Ed Harris - set in the personnel department of the Cabinet War Rooms.
Dot ..... Fenella Woolgar
Myrtle ..... Kate O'Flynn
Peg ..... Freya Parker
Millicent ..... Jane Slavin
Peabody ..... David Acton
Agent Bertie Whiff-Whaff ..... Adie Allen
Director: Jessica Mitic
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2015.
SAT 05:30 Big Broadcast (m000qlqd)
Series 4
Sex
Neil Brand's musical caper set in a Chicago radio station in 1937. When the station is threatened with closure by the League of Decency, Katharine Hepburn responds in style.
Cast
Katharine Hepburn ..... Susannah Fielding
Cary Grant ..... Ian Conningham
Arthur Clarke ..... Neil McCaul
Barbara Meek ..... Bettrys Jones
Ramona Fairfax ..... Heather Craney
Jerry Soundguy ..... Hasan Dixon
Preston Lanister ..... Clive Hayward
Danny Folly ..... Franchi Webb
Singer ..... Helen Neeves
Singer ..... Nancy Cole
Singer ..... Christopher Bowen
Singer ..... Jimmy Holliday
Foley ..... Alison Craig
Written and composed by Neil Brand
Directed by Jessica Dromgoole
SAT 06:00 Barbara Vine - A Fatal Inversion (m000r32v)
It’s 1976, the year of the long, hot summer. Adam and some friends spent it in idyllic circumstances. But when the weather finally breaks, their lives have changed forever.
A thriller by Barbara Vine - alias Ruth Rendell – and winner of the Crime Writers’ Association ‘Golden Dagger’ for 1987. Dramatised for radio by Michael Bakewell.
CAST:
Adam Verne Smith …. Andrew Wincott
Rufus Fletcher …. Matthew Morgan
Zosie …. Siriol Jenkins
Shiva …. Tariq Alibai
Vivien …. Mia Soteriou
Mary Gage …. Alison Reid
Anne …. Mary Chater
Lili …. Rita Wolf
Marigold …. Theresa Streatfield
Alec Chipstead …. Terence Edmond
Meg Chipstead/Mrs Beecham …. Joanna Wake
WPC/Supermarket PA/Nurse/Radio Announcer …. Emma Fielding
Inspector Winder …. Jonathan Adams
Sgt Fuller …. Neil Roberts
Lewis …. Tim Seely
Beryl …. Ann Windsor
Gardner/Porter/Antique Dealer …. Ronald Herdman
Tatian/Pearson …. Steve Hodson
Director: Jane Morgan
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 1991.
SAT 07:30 Great Lives (b06vkdz3)
Series 38
Susan Calman on Molly Weir
Matthew Parris invites his guests to nominate the person who they feel is a great life. Comedian Susan Calman chooses the Scottish actress Molly Weir who began her long career on radio before moving into television and becoming one of the first Scottish female voices on national media in the 1950s.
Producer: Maggie Ayre & Perminder Khatkar.
SAT 08:00 All the Way from Memphis (b00mjktm)
Series 2
Episode 5
James Walton tests and tickles the knowledge of industry pundits and people passionate about pop music.
Team captains Tracey MacLeod and Andrew Collins are joined by Stewart Lee and David Quantick to be put through their musical paces
Reader: Beth Chalmers
Written and researched by James Walton.
Producer: Dawn Ellis
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2006.
SAT 08:30 Rent (b05pb40g)
Series 3
Episode 2
Maria needs a day out, so Paul has to look after the baby - but can he be trusted?
Series 3 of Lucy Flannery's award-winning sitcom about Maria and Richard Reynolds and their lodgers.
Stars Barbara Flynn as Maria, Patrick Barlow as Richard, Linda Polan as Amy, Vivienne Rochester as Ruby, Dave Lamb as Paul, Sally Grace as the Mother and Sarah Parkinson as the Checkout Girl.
Producer: Liz Anstee.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 1997.
SAT 09:00 Comedy Connections (m000r32x)
Simon Brett clambers through the family tree of British comedy making connections along the way from Bandwaggon (30/09/39) to Much Binding In The Marsh (24/05/50), Beyond Our Ken (12/08/58), Hancock's Half Hour - Michelangelo 'Ancock (18/11/56) and Paradise Street (27/04/54).
SAT 12:00 Genius (b008jdzb)
Series 2
Sid Waddell
Perforated bread and counselling with a twist.
Dave Gorman asks Darts commentator Sid Waddell to choose the public's best loopy idea.
Award-winning comedian Dave Gorman and a celebrity guest chew over the ridiculous, unworkable but sometimes genius inventions, schemes and policies of the public.
Producer: Simon Nicholls
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in October 2006.
SAT 12:30 Drama (m0001mv2)
Looking for Oil Drum Lane
A dramatisation of Ray Galton and Alan Simpson's comedy writing partnership - from Tony Hancock's departure to striking gold with Steptoe and Son. Starring Marc Wootton, Phil Cornwell, Barry Castagnola, James Hurn and Toby Longworth.
Weaving comedy archive and newly written scenes, the show follows the tortuous search for Oil Drum Lane, the fictional address of Steptoe and Son. The programme commemorates the passing of Ray Galton in October 2018.
Ray Galton and Alan Simpson met in a tuberculosis sanatorium in 1948. They became friends through a shared passion for radio comedy. To amuse themselves, they broadcast their own sketches over the hospital radio. After sending their material to famous comedy writers of the day Denis Norden and Frank Muir, Alan and Ray were encouraged to post some scripts to the BBC. An unexpectedly positive response left the fledgling writers ecstatic.
Soon they became regular sketch writers for the BBC. They met Tony Hancock and rose to the top of their profession.
But when Hancock decided to go it alone Galton and Simpson were devasted and left high and dry.
The team was then commissioned by the colourful head of light entertainment at the BBC, Tom Sloane, to write ten comedy plays - but the loss of Hancock generated an impenetrable writer's block - until they hammered out a pilot sit-com that became Steptoe and Son.
Ray Galton........................................Marc Wootton
Alan Simpson...................................Barry Castagnola
Tony Hancock/Wilfred Brambell......James Hurn
Harry H Corbett...............................Phil Cornwell
Tom Sloan........................................Ian Pearce
Duncan Wood..................................Toby Longworth
Other parts were played by the cast.
Written by Ian Pearce.
Script Editor - Nick Romero.
Directed and Produced by Andrew McGibbon.
A Curtains For Radio production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in December 2018.
SAT 13:00 Dick Francis (b007jpxx)
Bolt
1. Threats and Menaces
Champion jockey Kit Fielding is engaged to Danielle de Brescou the niece of his employer Princess Casilia.
The Princess recruits Kit to fend off Henri de Brescou, a dangerous cousin trying to involve her in the armaments business.
But Kit also has problems of his own...
Dick Francis's 1986 racing thriller dramatised in five-parts by John Ashe.
Kit Fielding ...... Eric Allan
Princess Casilia ...... Sian Phillips
Danielle ...... Elizabeth MacGovern
Henri ...... John Bull
Greening ...... Jack May
Dusty ...... Christian Rodska
Thomas ...... Steve Hodson
Allardeck ...... Bill Wallis
Roland ...... Simon Carter
Directed by Shaun MacLoughlin at BBC Pebble Mill.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 1994
SAT 13:30 Dick Francis (b007jpyf)
Bolt
2. Horses Begin to Die
Henri de Brescou, bent upon obtaining authority from the French Government to make plastic guns, threatens Roland, Princess Casilia's frail and elderly husband.
Dick Francis's racing thriller dramatised by John Ashe.
Kit Fielding ...... Eric Allan
Princess Casilia ...... Sian Phillips
Danielle ...... Elizabeth MacGovern
Henri ...... John Bull
Roland ...... Simon Carter
Dusty ...... Christian Rodska
Thomas ...... Steve Hodson
Allardeck ...... Bill Wallis
Wykeham ...... William Eedle
Directed by Shaun MacLoughlin at BBC Pebble Mill.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 1994
SAT 14:00 Dick Francis (b007jpyx)
Bolt
3. Hostile Intelligence
Danielle de Brescou is followed and terrified by two men in hoods, while two of Princess Casilia's finest racing horses are slaughtered with a bolt gun.
Dick Francis's racing thriller dramatised by John Ashe.
Kit Fielding ...... Eric Allan
Princess Casilia ...... Sian Phillips
Danielle ...... Elizabeth MacGovern
Henri ...... John Bull
Roland ...... Simon Carter
Dusty ...... Christian Rodska
Wykeham ...... William Eedle
Lord Vaughnley ...... Gerry Hinks
Prince Litsi ...... Sam Dastor
Beatrice Bunt ...... Margaret Robertson
Directed by Shaun MacLoughlin at BBC Pebble Mill.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 1994
SAT 14:30 Dick Francis (b007jpzb)
Bolt
4. The Killing Game
Prince Litsi faces terror, hanging by his finger tips from the top of the old stand at Bradbury race-course.
Dick Francis's racing thriller dramatised by John Ashe.
Kit Fielding ...... Eric Allan
Princess Casilia ...... Sian Phillips
Danielle ...... Elizabeth MacGovern
Roland ...... Simon Carter
Dusty ...... Christian Rodska
Wykeham ...... William Eedle
Hodges ...... Gerry Hinks
Prince Litsi ...... Sam Dastor
Beatrice Bunt ...... Margaret Robertson
Allardeck ...... Bill Wallis
Directed by Shaun MacLoughlin at BBC Pebble Mill.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 1994
SAT 15:00 Dick Francis (b007qg3v)
[Repeat of broadcast at 01:30 today]
SAT 15:30 A Good Read (b011zms3)
Laura Solon and Fleur Adcock
Harriett Gilbert discusses favourite paperbacks with writer Fleur Adcock and comedian Laura Solon. Their choices include a modern classic by Evelyn Waugh and two coming-of-age novels, one set in France and the other in the north of England.
Harriett Gilbert's choice: The Greengage Summer by Rumer Godden
Publ. Pan
Laura Solon's choice: Decline and Fall by Evelyn Waugh
Publ. Penguin Modern
Fleur Adcock's choice: Bilgewater by Jane Gardam
Publ. Abacus Books
Producer Christine Hall
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2011.
SAT 16:00 Barbara Vine - A Fatal Inversion (m000r32v)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
SAT 17:30 Great Lives (b06vkdz3)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
SAT 18:00 Mike Walker - Alpha (b0080p6l)
An all-knowing computer appears to have an independent life of its own - an abomination for those who believe in a supreme creator.
Father Marquez is sent to interrogate ‘Alpha’ to decide whether or not it can be allowed to exist. During their conversations, Marquez finds out far more than he expects about both Alpha and - much more disturbingly - himself...
Mike Walker’s chilling drama won Gold at the Sony Radio Academy Awards 2001.
Stars David Calder as Father Marquez, Sarah-Jane Holm as Alpha, John Moffatt as Cardinal Correlli, Ana Sofrenovia as Katerina, Daniel O'Grady as Tom and Lexi Ross as Sophia.
Original music composed and played by David Chilton.
Producer: Gordon House
First broadcast on the BBC World Service in 2001.
SAT 19:00 Comedy Connections (m000r32x)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]
SAT 22:00 I Think I've Got a Problem (b007wwdc)
Series 1
Episode 2
Having been arrested for inciting a near riot at a football match, Tom is sentenced to do community service at an old folks home where he meets an aging banjo player who can also see his "imaginary" band.
Will Charlie prove to Sadie that he's not going mad? Will there be lots of dancing and singing on the terraces? Will there be a pun about "perfect-pitch..?
Andrew McGibbon and Nick Romero's everyday story about a man who can't stop himself from breaking into song.
Suggs ..... Tom Caine
Bob Monkhouse ..... Dr Boone
Mika Simmons ..... Sadie
Phil Cornwell ..... Bouche
Michael Roberts ..... Clammy Clemence
Andrew McGibbon ..... Jake
Nick Romero ..... Monty DeVere
Emma Clarke ..... Judge
Songs: Andrew McGibbon. Nick Romero and Suggs
Director: Chris Neill
Producers: Torquil MacLeod. Julian Mayers and Andrew McGibbon.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 2001.
SAT 22:30 What Does the K Stand For? (b04wwgz3)
Series 2
All the Fun of the Affair
Stephen K Amos' sitcom about his own teenage years, growing up black, gay and funny in 1980s South London.
Written by Jonathan Harvey with Stephen K Amos.
Produced by Colin Anderson.
SAT 23:00 Mark Steel's in Town (b07v2mdz)
Series 7
Colchester
Colchester - The oldest recorded town in Britain
Mark Steel returns for a seventh series of the award-winning show that travels around the country, researching the history, heritage and culture of six towns that have nothing in common but their uniqueness, and performs a bespoke evening of comedy for the local residents.
"The oldest hot cross bun in the world was baked in Colchester"
Mark visits the Essex town of Colchester and walks through the streets where 'Emperor Claudius once rode triumphantly on the first elephant in Britain', before Boudicca burnt the place to the ground, that was. He visits 'Jumbo', the town's iconic, Victorian water tower and he delves into the history of Colchester Zoo. Mark also discovers how several nursery rhymes have their origins in Colchester and he investigates the town's rivalry with Chelmsford.
In this series Mark visits Stockport in Greater Manchester, Colchester in Essex, Hebden Bridge in Yorkshire, The Royal Borough of Kingston Upon Thames, Lynton in North Devon and the British overseas territory of Gibraltar.
Written and performed by ... Mark Steel
Additional material by ... Pete Sinclair
Production co-ordinator ... Hayley Stirling
Producer ... Carl Cooper
A BBC Radio Comedy production for BBC Radio 4 first broadcast in 2016. .
SAT 23:30 4 at the Store (b00db35n)
Series 2
Episode 3
Stand-up at London's Comedy Store with host Simon Bligh, Ian Stone, Ronnie Golden and Jo Caulfield. From January 2002.