SATURDAY 04 SEPTEMBER 2021

SAT 00:00 Robert Easby - Oneira (b007k29f)
5. Mind the Gap
Battling to complete her epic surreal quest, Oneira literally ends up talking to herself - and finds her other self very rude...
Written by Robert Easby.
Oneira ...... Lyndsey Marshal
Nicholai ...... Peter Marinker
Pete ...... Joseph Kloska
Elias ...... Gerard McDermott
Courier ...... Saikat Ahamed
Producer: Liz Webb
Made for BBC Radio 7 and first broadcast in February 2007.
SAT 00:30 Off the Page (b011plrx)
Terrible Food
What's the worst thing that could be served to you for lunch? Fox lasagne? Tripe? Raw seal blubber?
Dominic Arkwright and his three guests chew over the subject of awful cuisine.
Jonathan McGowan explains how liver turns his stomach, but doesn't think anything of eating dead rats - as long as they're rats from the countryside.
Johann Hari reveals how for many years he's had a culinary addiction that now makes him shudder.
And Stephanie Calman shares some absolute no-nos for dinner parties.
Producer Beatrice Fenton
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 2011.
SAT 01:00 Charles Paris: So Much Blood (m000cctj)
3. First Lunch
Charles is continuing his investigations into the death of Willy Mariello.
Now he turns his attention to James Milne, owner of the house where the other university actors are staying...
Francis Matthews stars as thespian sleuth, Charles Paris.
Simon Brett's thriller serial adapted from his own book.
Charles Paris ...... Francis Matthews
Pam Northcliffe ...... Sara Corper
Martin Warburton ...... Michael Maloney
Anna Duncan ...... Kim Thomson
Lesley Petter ...... Lesley Manville
James Milne ...... Alan McNaughtan
Producer: Martin Fisher
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 1985.
SAT 01:30 Hercule Poirot (b007jvpx)
Lord Edgware Dies
Episode 5
Ross has had to abandon a telephone conversation with Hercule Poirot to answer the doorbell.
When he doesn't return, the panic-stricken Belgian sleuth and Captain Hastings hurry round to his apartment.
Will the murderer finally be unmasked?
Conclusion of Agatha Christie's whodunit starring John Moffatt.
Dramatised by Michael Bakewell.
Hercule Poirot ...... John Moffatt
Captain Hastings ...... Simon Williams
Inspector Japp ...... Norman Jones
Jane Wilkinson ...... Nicola Pagett
Jenny ...... Adjoa Andoh
Bryan Martin ...... Brett Usher
Ellis ...... Paula Jacobs
Director: Enyd Williams
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 1992.
SAT 02:00 Keeping On Keeping On by Alan Bennett (b080xp2f)
2014
Looking back to 2014 - Alan reflects on his dramatic experiences with pigs, boa constrictors and steaming – or not so steaming – manure.
More unique observations, recollections and reminiscences as Alan Bennett reads his final extract from the third collection of his diaries.
Covering the years 2005 to 2014, it proved to be a packed decade.
Abridged and produced by Gordon House.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in October 2016.
SAT 02:15 Delphine de Vigan - Based on a True Story (b09w2tjb)
5. Ghost
Despite L's disappearance Delphine discovers her former friend still has a grip on her life.
Concluding Delphine de Vigan’s psychological thriller about an obsessive female friendship.
Delphine …… Janie Dee
'L' …… Tara Fitzgerald
Francois …… Philip Bretherton
Medic …… Amber Aga
Karine …… Georgie Glen
Librarian …… Kerry Gooderson
Adapted by Claudine Toutoungi
Director: Gemma Jenkins
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2018.
SAT 02:30 Heaven and Earth: Le Ly Hayslip (b04h85ql)
Vietnamese writer Le Ly Hayslip reflects on her life and work shedding new light on her country's experience of the war.
Much of what we know about Vietnam is via the prism of western, primarily American, culture.
Two autobiographies written by the Vietnamese-American author offer an important insight into the war and its aftermath from a Vietnamese perspective.
Her first memoir in 1989, When Heaven and Earth Changed Places: A Vietnamese Woman's Journey from War to Peace, was followed in 1993 by Child of War, Woman of Peace.
Le Ly gives us unique access into her home in Vietnam to share her remarkable story of suffering, survival and her mission to heal the wounds between America and her homeland.
Le Ly was tortured in a South Vietnamese government prison for "revolutionary sympathies", raped by the VC, and fled to Saigon before fleeing to America. There she married unhappily, prospered, and returned to her village in Vietnam 13 years later. She has since set up the East Meets West foundation to reconcile Americans and Vietnamese, and the Global Village Foundation providing development assistance to rural Vietnam.
Director Oliver Stone shares his thoughts. He was so moved by Le Ly's story he made a film about her – 1993's Heaven and Earth. Says Stone:
'That she has been through so much and can talk honestly the way she does is the key to her book and the understanding of it and that's why I wanted to make the film – to understand someone who had suffered even more than I had. And I can learn from her.'
Producer: Eve Streeter
A Pier production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in September 2014.
SAT 03:00 John Peacock - Posters of the Moulin Rouge (b007jrwj)
1. Yvette Guilbert
Singer Yvette Guilbert is drawn to a brand new venue in the capital city of France.
Starring Julie Covington.
When the Moulin Rouge cabaret opened in Montmartre, Paris in 1889, Toulouse-Lautrec was commissioned to paint a series of posters. A performer's career was made if they secured an appearance.
John Peacock brings Toulouse Lautrec's poster characters to life, in four plays about these entertainers, whose lives were as vivid as Lautrec's paint.
Yvette Guilbert ...... Julie Covington
Zidler ...... Norman Jones
Albine Guilbert ...... Pauline Letts
Oller ...... Carlos Douglas
Louise Weber ...... Frances Barber
Maxine ...... Valerie Sarruf
Jean Lorrain ...... John Moffatt
Leon Forneau ...... Simon Treves
Gabrielle ....... Sue Broomfield
Driver ....... Michael Graham Cox
Marie ....... Alice Arnold
Lamplighter ....... John Bull
Music by Stephen Warbeck.
Director: Jane Morgan
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 1989.
SAT 04:00 The Food Quiz (b0076mlq)
Series 2
Episode 1
Journalist and food critic Jay Rayner gives his four contestants a good grilling on their knowledge of food and drink.
On the menu:
* Devour the secret of Stephen Fry's home-made mayonnaise
* The song that keeps Josceline Dimbleby happy while cooking
* The store cupboard staple of food writer Elisabeth Luard
* The best way to catch an eel, according to Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall
Producer: Dixi Stewart
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 2004.
SAT 04:30 Ballylenon (b00grysk)
Series 3
Episode 2
A distinguished relative's arrival rings the alarm for Vera McConkey.
Series set in the sleepy town of Ballylenon, Co Donegal, in 1955, before the days of mass tourism and proper plumbing in every home.
Written by Christopher Fitz-Simon.
Phonsie Doherty ...... T McKenna ..
Vera McConkey ...... Stella McCusker
Muriel McConkey ...... Margaret D'Arcy
Vivienne Boal ...... Aine McCartney
Stumpy Bonnar ...... Gerard McSorley
Guard Gallagher ...... John Hewitt
Parky McGoldrick ...... Charlie Bonnar
Sister Gabriel ...... Marcella Riordan
Josie Doherty ...... Cathy White
Music arranged and performed by Stephanie Hughes.
Director: Eoin O'Callaghan
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 1996.
SAT 05:00 It's Jocelyn (b08fgw6f)
Series 2
Dumped
Jocelyn talks about a break-up, a flirty dentist crosses the line and a street magician shows off his skills to the public.
The return of more sketches and stand-up from the wonderful mind of Jocelyn Jee Esien.
With Paul Whitehouse as a cockney funeral director,.
Plus the vocal talents of:
Ninia Benjamin
Curtis Walker
Dee Kaate
Gavi Chera
Karen Bartke
Producer: Suzy Grant
A BBC Studios production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in February 2017.
SAT 05:30 Michael Frayn's Magic Mobile (m000jf72)
Episode 3
Just sit back and enjoy Michael Frayn’s magical entertainment, directed by Martin Jarvis. Technical guidance from a star cast, including Susannah Fielding, Joanna Lumley, David Suchet, Rosalind Ayres, Adam Godley, Alfred Molina, George Blagden and Lisa Dillon.
Does your computer ever talk back at you? Or your sat-nav? What happens to the huge sums you pay to your gas company? Your chance to join a new How-to-Write course. Or to hear some commercial Brainwaves. Are you confused about cold calling? Any feelings about Quantum Entanglement?
Frayn reveals all. No keys or buttons to press.
Cast:
Joanna Lumley, Susannah Fielding, David Suchet, Adam Godley, Alfred Molina, George Blagden, Lisa Dillon, Anna-Louise Plowman, Moira Quirk, Rosalind Ayres, Nigel Anthony, Darren Richardson, Matthew Wolf
Writer: Michael Frayn
Producer: Rosalind Ayres
Director: Martin Jarvis
A Jarvis and Ayres production for BBC Radio 4
SAT 06:00 Mike Walker - Different States (m000zcvq)
Peter Hemming was in Indonesia on an aid programme. Or so his father thought.
But why was his body found on East Timor? And why won't the authorities fly him home?
Michael Hemming goes on a mission to find out the truth about his son's death.
Starring Norman Jones.
Mike Walker's Sony award-winning political thriller.
Graham Hemming .... Norman Jones
Pat Hemming .... Auriol Smith
Peter Hemming .... David Bannerman
Jost Van Rijn .... Michael Kilgarriff
Nalla .... Mia Soteriou
Lee .... Kerry Shale
Yasap .... Ian Lindsay
Tiam .... Nigel Carrington
Han Halid .... John Moffatt
Jean-Pierre .... Paul Downing
With:
Stephen Garlick
Fraser Kerr
Kim Teoh
Music by Mia Soteriou.
Director: Jeremy Mortimer.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 1990.
SAT 07:30 Great Lives (b08nq5x7)
Series 42
Peaches Golding on Shirley Chisholm
American-born Peaches Golding OBE - Bristol's former Lord Lieutenant and first black female High Sheriff - nominates African American politician Shirley Chisholm who ran unsuccessfully for US President in 1972.
Fellow guest Dr Kate Dossett, Professor of American History at Leeds University, describes Chisholm’s contribution to the cause of African Americans and to feminism.
Presented by Matthew Parris.
Producer: Maggie Ayre
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2017.
SAT 08:00 Whispers (b00c3nw7)
Series 2
Episode 4
Gyles Brandreth hosts the quiz show with scandal on its mind and slander at its heart.
Valerie Grove and Geoffrey Durham join team captains Lucy Moore and Anthony Holden to run the gauntlet of gossip.
Producer: Elizabeth Freestone
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 2004.
SAT 08:30 Snap (b012llxz)
Series 3
Episode 2
Trying to rebuild their relationship after divorcing, Molly and Doug try changing their least appealing traits.
But life isn't that simple...
Paul Mendelson’s sitcom about life for a couple after they've split.
Molly ....... Rebecca Lacey
Doug ....... Paul Venables
Kaz ....... Soumaya Keynes
Ryan ....... Jessie Sullivan
Annie ....... Marlene Sidaway
Dawn ....... Robin Weaver
Raymond ...... Jonathan Tafler
Ansel ...... Richard Firth
Producer: David Ian Neville
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 2005.
SAT 09:00 Sherlock Holmes (b00cm07d)
The Game's Afoot: Sherlock Holmes Special
Hear the evidence gathered clue by clue - as Sherlock Holmes enthusiast, Nick Utechin investigates how the Baker Street sleuth has been portrayed on radio across the decades.
Stretching from the Forties to the Noughties, this 3 hour showcase of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle great detective features some rare recordings of Holmes and Watson in action:
* The Adventure of the Speckled Band (17/05/1945)
Why did Helen Stoner's twin sister die in mysterious circumstances on the eve of her wedding? Stars Cedric Hardwicke as Sherlock Holmes and Finlay Curry as Dr Watson.
* The Red-Headed League (19/10/1954);
The strange case of an ad seeking only red-haired men… Stars Ralph Richardson as Holmes and John Gielgud as Watson.
* The Boscombe Valley Mystery (12/12/1966)
The sleuth probes a murder in Herefordshire, but the crime's roots are down under. Stars Carleton Hobbs as Holmes and Norman Shelley as Watson.
* The Return of Sherlock Holmes: The Solitary Cyclist (17/03/1993)
The sleuth investigates who's following music teacher Violet Smith. Stars Clive Merrison as Holmes and Michael Williams as Watson.
* The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: The Abergavenny Murder (18/05/2004)
When a man dies in his Baker Street apartment, the detective is bound to investigate. Stars Clive Merrison as Holmes and Andrew Sachs as Watson.
Plus: Nick talks to writer and dramatist Bert Coules.
Producer: Sarah Wade
Made for BBC Radio 7 and first broadcast in July 2008.
SAT 12:00 We've Been Here Before (b00ft41b)
Series 2
Episode 1
Clive Anderson hosts the panel show that pokes fun at events of the past.
Return of the topical historical satirical panel show setting out to prove that there's nothing new under, or in, The Sun.
Gyles Brandreth and Arthur Smith battle it out against John O'Farrell and Arabella Weir.
Producer: Ed Morrish
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 2004.
SAT 12:30 It's Jocelyn (b08fgw6f)
[Repeat of broadcast at 05:00 today]
SAT 13:00 Pieces of Britney (p09mw4vt)
1. Quiet Plans
International superstar Britney Spears: the stories so far. Pandora Sykes pieces together what we know about Britney’s journey, and its place in pop culture history.
In this eight-part series for BBC Radio 4, Pandora traces Britney’s incredible life: from her hardscrabble childhood in rural Louisiana, to her coronation as the inaugural pop princess of the internet, navigating an insatiable celebrity gossip complex; through to a young mother on trial by the paparazzi.
Britney is a pop culture phenomenon. Pandora looks behind that mask - and beyond Britney herself - to explore how Britney became the most Googled person in the world, for almost seven years, and what it says, both then and now, about the entertainment industry, politics, sex and how we see women in the public eye.
Britney’s public struggles saw her placed in a conservatorship, in which she lost the right to control her finances and day to day life. Thirteen years later, and she is in court, pleading for this controversial legal arrangement to end. We will look at how Britney has been transformed from girl-next-door teen sensation to a mute symbol of a supposedly rotten system.
Pieces of Britney mixes documentary, archive and interviews to tell Britney’s remarkable story. It also features drama, written by playwright Katie Hims, to bring Britney and her extraordinary world to life.
Pieces of Britney will be a sympathetic portrayal of Britney, during a time of cultural reappraisal about how we treat women - famous, or otherwise. These are some of the stories that have been told about her - but The Narrative is hers to finish.
Episode 1 Cast:
Britney . . . . . Samantha Dakin
Lynne . . . . . Laurel Lefkow
Jamie . . . . . Elliot Cowan
Sam . . . . . Paul Chahidi
Adnan . . . . . Adam El Hagar
Sound design by Peter Ringrose
Produced by Sasha Yevtushenko and Anne Isger
A BBC Audio production for BBC Radio 4
SAT 13:45 Cirque du Soleil (m000z6k3)
The global circus phenomenon Cirque du Soleil was born in 1984.
It began when a group of street performers in Quebec bought a big top tent and went on tour.
Lucy Burns speaks to Cirque du Soleil co-founder Gilles Ste-Croix, who walked 56 miles on stilts to raise money for the show.
First broadcast on the BBC World Service in 2019.
SAT 14:00 Elvenquest (b017mwrv)
Series 4
Queen Eleanor
The noble Questers set off once again to find the Sword of Asnagar, the only thing that can rid Lower Earth from the tyranny of the evil Lord Darkness.
Their search brings them to the kingdom of Premenstrua, where they defeat a band of trolls that have been terrorising the land. As a reward for their heroism, they are offered the Sword of Asnagar by its grateful ruler, Queen Eleanor. But before it's placed in their hands, they must first get her a birthday present...
Meanwhile, Kreech tries to convince Lord Darkness that what he needs to help him maintain eternal dominion over Lower Earth is a personal assistant.
Fantasy-based sitcom set in Lower Earth written by Anil Gupta and Richard Pinto
Vidar - Darren Boyd
Queen Eleanor - Louise Delamere
Dean/Kreech - Kevin Eldon
Amis - Dave Lamb
Sam - Stephen Mangan
Lord Darkness - Alistair McGowan
Penthiselea - Ingrid Oliver
Producer: Sam Michell
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2013.
SAT 14:30 Radio Active (b007k1zs)
Series 5
Wimbledon
Anyone for tennis? Radio Active's exclusive 'live' coverage from Court 19.
Starring:
Helen Atkinson-Wood
Angus Deayton
Geoffrey Perkins
Philip Pope
Michael Fenton-Stevens
Music by Philip Pope and Angus Deayton.
Written by Angus Deayton, Geoffrey Perkins with John Cantor, Moray Hunter, John Docherty and Jeremy Pascall.
Producer: Jamie Rix
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 1985.
SAT 15:00 Alice's Wunderland (b069vvg6)
Series 3
Episode 1
The peculiar narrator takes a trip through time with Lady Bowie to Ye Olde Wunderlande, the middle-ages Poundland of magical realms.
A sketch show written and performed by Alice Lowe.
With Marcia Warren as the narrator.
Also starring:
Richard Glover
Simon Greenall
Rachel Stubbings
Clare Thompson
Producer: Lyndsay Fenner.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 2015.
SAT 15:30 Absolute Power (b019dqxr)
Series 4
Episode 4
The spin doctor firm is offered the chance to cross the pond and help with the presidential campaign.
Charles can't resist the challenge of spinning in the land of the dirty trick, but Martin decides to stay at home.
Could this be the end of a beautiful friendship?
Stephen Fry and John Bird star in Mark Tavener's biting satire.
Charles Prentiss and Martin McCabe are spin masters in the world of government and media relations.
Charles Prentiss …. Stephen Fry
Martin McCabe …. John Bird
Archie …. Alex Lowe
Clive …. Tom George
Alex …. Beth Chalmers
Music by Matthew Scott.
Producer: Dawn Ellis
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2004.
SAT 16:00 Mike Walker - Different States (m000zcvq)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:00 today]
SAT 17:30 Great Lives (b08nq5x7)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:30 today]
SAT 18:00 The Prisoner (m0001h0q)
Series 1
2. Departure and Arrival - Part 2/2
Number 6 continues to explore The Village, trying to establish who runs it and hoping to find some way out.
The original 17 episode TV series of The Prisoner created intrigue and controversy in equal measure when it first aired in the UK in 1967. In a taut psychological spy thriller the main character, dehumanised as ‘Number 6’, has committed no crime, save for having resigned from some unspecified branch of the British Secret Service. His prison is a heavily guarded coastal village.
Under constant surveillance, Number 6 can trust no-one and relentlessly works to establish who his captors are, a seemingly impossible task when the most senior figure he encounters – Number 2 – changes frequently...
CAST:
Agent ZM73/Number 6 …. Mark Elstob
Number 2 …. John Standing
Number 9 …. Sara Powell
The Village Voice …. Helen Goldwyn
Zero Six Two …. Sarah Mowat
Control …. Jim Barclay
Barnaby Edwards …. Barnaby Edwards
Music by Jamie Robertson.
Script Editor: Jamie Anderson
Written and directed by Nicholas Briggs.
A Big Finish Production - based on the classic ITV series.
SAT 18:40 Dracula's Guest by Bram Stoker (b0bf49hl)
A young man sets out on a journey where the elements - and something elemental - are against him.
Bram Stoker’s high-gothic tale, set in the Austrian Alps.
Read by Bertie Carvel.
Abridged and produced by: Justine Willett.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 3 in April 2012.
SAT 19:00 Sherlock Holmes (b00cm07d)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]
SAT 22:00 Ross Noble Goes Global (b007jvt7)
Series 1
Ireland
Travelling from rainy Sligo to busy Dublin, the comedian performs for the locals and learns to play the penny whistle - badly.
Producer: Danny Wallace
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2002.
SAT 22:30 Elvenquest (b01qm4pp)
Series 4
The Magnificent Five
Whilst waiting for news on the whereabouts of the Sword of Asnagar, the Questers stop a pub brawl and in doing so attract the attention of some villagers from the small village of Mexigaroth who are being terrorised by an evil bandit, who goes by the name of "El Maldado".
Never ones to stand by when a wrong can be righted, the Questers promise to help the villagers defeat El Maldado and his hordes.
Meanwhile, Lord Darkness has to make a presentation for an assembly of the Dark Lords. Pretty routine stuff, surely...?
Starring:
Darren Boyd as Vidar
Kevin Eldon as Dean/Kreech
Dave Lamb as Amis
Stephen Mangan as Sam
Alistair McGowan as Lord Darkness
Ingrid Oliver as Penthiselea
and
Chris Pavlo as Hilario
Written by Anil Gupta and Richard Pinto.
Producer: Sam Michell.
SAT 23:00 The Lawrence Sweeney Mix (b00klk4r)
Series 1
Episode 3
Understanding phones – and what women never do...or do they?
Josie Lawrence and Jim Sweeney make it up as they go along!
Faced with a live studio audience and a couple of microphones - the masters of improve create sketches from shouted out suggestions.
Producer: Dawn Ellis
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2007.
SAT 23:30 Daphne Sounds Expensive (b07k0dfn)
Series 1
Malaysia
The gang heads off to Malaysia to find Phil's legendary criminal uncle, Pak Belang.
Critically-acclaimed sketch trio, Daphne, pull out all the stops in a dazzling array of peculiar characters, whacky scenarios, dodgy remarks, curious observations, minor altercations and major peacemaking - served on a bed of catchy little numbers with a live nine-piece band.
Written by and starring: Jason Forbes, Phil Wang & George Fouracres
Featuring Sir Willard White, Emma Sidi and David Elms.
Original music composed by Jeff Carpenter
Musical Director: Freddie Tapner
Piano: Freddie Tapner
Drums: Ben Hartley
Bass: Rob Grist
Percussion: Ben Burton
Trumpet: Michael Maddocks
Tenor Sax: Greg Sterland
Trombone: Elliot Pooley
Violin: Hannah Bell
Cello: Nick Squires
Production Coordinator. Hayley Sterling
Producer: Matt Stronge
A BBC Studios production for BBC Radio 4 first broadcast in July 2016.