SATURDAY 15 DECEMBER 2012

SAT 00:00 Midnight News (b01p7c0p)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.


SAT 00:30 Book of the Week (b01p7hcr)
Looking for Mrs Livingstone

Episode 5

Read by Tamara Kennedy.

Writer Julie Davidson searches for traces of Mary Livingstone, the courageous and stoical wife of renowned explorer and missionary, David Livingstone.

The author's travels through Southern Africa come to an end, when she reaches Mary Livingstone's final resting place: a crumbling grave on the banks of the Zambezi River, in a remote part of Mozambique.

Abridged by Laurence Wareing.

Produced by Kirsteen Cameron.


SAT 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b01p7c0r)
The latest shipping forecast.


SAT 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b01p7c0t)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service. BBC Radio 4 resumes at 5.20am.


SAT 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b01p7c0w)
The latest shipping forecast.


SAT 05:30 News Briefing (b01p7c0y)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.


SAT 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b01p7hj2)
A short reflection and prayer with Bishop Donal McKeown, Auxiliary Bishop of Down and Connor.


SAT 05:45 iPM (b01p7hj4)
A vicar and a former vicar with opposing views discuss gay marriage. And we hear from a listener who's devoted her life to persuading people not to smoke.


SAT 06:00 News and Papers (b01p7c10)
The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.


SAT 06:04 Weather (b01p7c12)
The latest weather forecast.


SAT 06:07 Costing the Earth (b01p9dcp)
Future Forests

The crisis in Britain's ash forests came as a shock to public and politicians. But is it a vision of the future for our woodlands? Stressed by climate change and vulnerable to pests and diseases crossing the English Channel the prospects seem grim.

In a special edition of Costing the Earth Tom Heap asks what our forests will look like in the future. Is there anything we can do to stem the flow of disease, can our native trees be made more resilient or should we consider planting a wider range of trees? Tom visits Lithuania where ash dieback disease first came to attention in Europe to find out how they've come to terms with new threats to their forests and meets the experts and enthusiasts with a fresh approach to protecting our forests.

Producer: Alasdair Cross.


SAT 06:30 Farming Today (b01p9ddx)
Farming Today This Week

Charlotte Smith looks at the biggest manufacturing industry in the UK, Food Processing ,which is facing a skills gap.

Despite huge economic pressures and competitive pressures from a global food system, the food sector offers huge opportunities for those with the right skills. But does it suffer from an image problem? Charlotte is at the Regional Food Academy at Harper Adams University to discover how the next generation are being trained.

Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced by Rich Ward.


SAT 06:57 Weather (b01p7c14)
The latest weather forecast.


SAT 07:00 Today (b01p9ddz)
Morning news and current affairs with James Naughtie and Justin Webb, including:

0810
The Justice Secretary Chris Grayling has produced plans to try to stem the growth in applications for judicial review, in which courts are asked to decided whether decisions by government or public bodies have been carried out properly. The BBC's legal affairs correspondent Clive Coleman assesses the proposal and the former Lord Chief Justice, Lord Woolf, discusses the proposal.
0817
The best selling author Wilbur Smith has signed a new book deal worth £15m, but he will be using "carefully selected co-authors" to help write the book. Ian Rankin the crime writer and Jennie Erdal, the author of Ghosting - a book about her experiences as a ghost writer - discuss how often this happens and whether it is important.
0828
The BBC's Barbara Plett has been in the American town of Newtown, where a school shooting took place yesterday, talking to residents about the experience. Robert Spitzer author of "The Politics of Gun Control" and professor of political science at the State University of New York College at Cortland spoke to Justin Webb about America's options for gun control.
0840
The BBC's Winifred Robinson follows the work of the government's Troubled Families Unit, set up after the riots in England last year.
0845
Justice Secretary Chris Grayling talks about his plans to tackle what he describes as "ill-founded" judicial reviews, suggesting that in future they should cost more. Ministers say the changes will not alter role reviews play in holding them, and others, to account.


SAT 09:00 Saturday Live (b01p9f59)
Lee Mack, Fiona Shaw Inheritance Tracks, John McCarthy, Paul O'Grady

Sian Williams and Richard Coles with comedian Lee Mack talking about his life before and after he made it as comic and Paul O'Grady on his enthusiasm for home remedies. Paul Hodgkinson walked to all 92 Football League grounds as his sight deteriorated and John McCarthy travelled on Leighton Buzzard's miniature steam railway with travel writer Monisha Rajesh who journeyed round India by train. Michael Sanderson explains why he stockpiles goods and necessities for a terrible eventuality, Ruth Keeling tells why she is never without her Granny's sewing kit and the actor Fiona Shaw chooses her Inheritance Tracks.

Producer: Harry Parker.


SAT 10:30 The Actor's Gang (b01p9f5c)
Just outside of LA in the Californian desert, presenter Rajesh Mirchandani joins 'Shawshank Redemption' star Tim Robbins as he leads acting classes with the segrgated inmates from Norco prison. Rajesh witnesses the transformation of inmates, from tough gangsters into respectable men and gains a unique insight into some of America's toughest social challenges.

Rajesh recorded inside the prison with Tim Robbins over a two month period, gaining unique access not only to Tim but also to the inmates. Tim visibly enjoys cult status among the inmates and quickly gains their trust. He is no stranger to prisons, having played an innocent man convicted of murder in "The Shawshank Redemption" and was nominated for a Best Director Oscar for "Dead Man Walking" - a film about a death row inmate. He formed The Actor's Gang, an acting troupe, which runs prison theatre workshop for inmates having spent time in some of LA's toughest prisons whilst researching both films. With re-offending a more likely scenario once they are out of prison, Robbins believes that more should be done whilst they are inside to help them change their ways.

Robbins' Hollywood master class ranges from Shakespeare to Commedia dell' arte, a style that originated in 16th-Century Italy and involves actors in masks playing basic character types. Robbins explains that inmates learn to portray four different emotions: happiness, sadness, fear and anger. One of the inmates who Rajesh follows over the course is Mike who is serving a lengthy prison sentence. Mike says, "In the yard, gangs stick to their patch but these classes have helped to make guys see that we don't need to be violent.".


SAT 11:00 The Week in Westminster (b01p9f5f)
Peter Oborne of The Daily Telegraph looks behind the scenes at Westminster.

He asks why the Church of England and the Church in Wales have been exempted from the new gay marriage laws. Why do ministers want more power to appoint top civil servants? What's the best policy to help resolve the bloodshed in Syria? And, after this week's shocking report into collusion during the 'Troubles', he hears memories of the intelligence war from two former army officers in Northern Ireland. Sir Tony Baldry, Andreas Whittam Smith , Paddy Ashdown, Rory Stewart, Sir Richard Mottram, Bernard Jenkin, Patrick Mercer and Bob Stewart are his guests.

Peter Mulligan is the Editor.


SAT 11:30 From Our Own Correspondent (b01p9f5h)
Dementia Village

Reporters worldwide provide context to the week's news. Today:

South Africa's ANC at the crossroads? As the party prepares for conference, its figurehead Nelson Mandela in fragile health, Andrew Harding reads the political runes at a critical time for the country.

At the conclusion of another big European summit, Allan Little is in the Polish city of Wroclaw observing how old allegiances and old identities are emerging in the new Europe.

Now what's the attraction of the 'mitten' or 'hairy' crab? At this time of year in eastern China they're much in demand and Fuchsia Dunlop's been finding out why.

Not many of our correspondents have got to meet the president of Equatorial Guinea, Teodoro Obiang. Stephen Sackur has though and asked him questions the president thought impertinent and malicious.

And is getting dementia really the end of the world? The Dutch authorities have created a village for dementia sufferers near Amsterdam which is pioneering a new sort of care, one which tries to make sure residents don't have to confront the two Cs: conflict and confusion.

Producer: Tony Grant.


SAT 12:00 Money Box (b01p9f5k)
O2 price rises and Asda credit cards

Customers of the mobile phone company O2 are complaining in large numbers this week after the firm announced that it is to raise its prices by 3.2% even for customers in the middle of what they thought was a one or two year contract at a set price. O2 is not alone - all the other networks have done the same over the last few months. What are your rights to break the contract yourself in these circumstances? Paul Lewis talks to Richard Lloyd, Executive Director of the consumer group, Which?

Asda's famous price guarantee that shopping at Asda will be cheaper than other supermarkets has been rather undermined this week when a flyer invited customers with an Asda Money Credit Card to use it draw up to £300 cash from a cash machine for 'a bit of Christmas magic'. Certainly magic for the card company Asda now uses, Creation, which will charge 3% or £5 whichever is higher. And the story doesn't end there as the cash withdrawal will be charged at an interest rate of 27.9% from the time it's withdrawn. Creation and Asda have both apologised. We'll hear from Guy Anker, News Editor for MoneySavingExpert and from James Jones, Head of Consumer Affairs at the credit reference agency, Experian, on why some long-standing Asda credit card holders have been refused the new cards issued by Creation.

The Office of Fair Trading has issued new guidance to firms which use Continuous Payment Authorities. These agreements let the firm take money from your credit or debit card in the future. OFT now says that firms must explain how to cancel a payment authority. Paul Lewis talks to Jason Freeman, Legal Director at the Office of Fair Trading

Big changes to council tax benefit start in April. In fact it's being abolished and local councils have to set up their own alternative. The Government in Wales is passing regulations to make these changes. And the new rules will mean more than 200,000 low income households in Wales will have to pay some council tax for the first time. Erika Helps, Chief Executive, Rhondda Taff Citizens Advice Bureau explains the details

Customers of 632 branches of Lloyds TSB are being told they must move to another bank. In fact it will be the Co-op. Some are objecting to this forced move. Others are welcoming it. But what choice do customers get? And why isn't Lloyds making that choice clearer? Money Box will provide the answers.


SAT 12:30 The Now Show (b01p7hdv)
Series 38

Episode 6

Census and Censorability. In the week that the findings of the 2011 England and Wales Census were released, and the UK Government enshrined a "quadruple lock" in law that would prevent same sex couples marrying in the Church of England or the Church of Wales, Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis present the week in topical stand-up and sketches. Joining them this week are Jon Holmes, Laura Shavin, Mitch Benn and special guest Roisin Conaty. Produced by Victoria Lloyd.


SAT 12:57 Weather (b01p7c16)
The latest weather forecast.


SAT 13:00 News (b01p7c18)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.


SAT 13:10 Any Questions? (b01p7hf1)
Balshaw's CE High School, Leyland

Jonathan Dimbleby presents political debate and discussion from Balshaw's Church of England High School in Leyland Lancashire. Guests include the journalist Alastair Campbell, Camila Batmanghelidjh from Kids Co, Tim Montgomerie from Conservative Home and the Director General of the Institute of Economic Affairs Mark Littlewood.


SAT 14:00 Any Answers? (b01p9f5m)
Call Anita Anand at Any Answers? on 03700 100 444 or email any.answers@bbc.co.uk, using the #bbcaq. Topics include call for a Royal Commission into and possible decriminalisation of drugs, Immigration, Gay Marriage, Fracking and Performance Related Pay for Teachers.


SAT 14:30 Saturday Drama (b01p9f5p)
Carlo Collodi - Pinocchio

Carlo Collodi's classic tale of a wooden puppet who wants to be a boy dramatised by Linda Marshall Griffiths.

When Geppetto's wooden puppet miraculously comes to life, Geppetto names him Pinocchio and imagines a bright future together. Pinocchio must understand what it is to be a boy and the first step is school. But danger and folly lurk around every corner and it is hard for Pinocchio to find the right path. The world is full of temptation, contradiction and fear. Will Pinocchio find his way to becoming a real boy?

Original Music by Olly Fox
Sound Design by Steve Brooke
Directed by Nadia Molinari.


SAT 15:30 An Alternative Christmas (b01p70p6)
In An Alternative Christmas, Reverend Richard Coles is on a mission to compile a playlist full of songs that were recorded for Christmas but have mostly been unplayed and forgotten, until now.

The programme starts with a pair of uplifting Christmas sermons that were originally advertised in the December 17th, 1927 edition of the Chicago Defender: Rev. J.M. Gates' "Will The Coffin Be Your Santa Claus?" and "Did you spend Christmas Day in jail?". There were plenty of Christmas sermons in the 1920's and 1930's when recorded sermons, many which were sung and performed with a blues guitar, rivalled blues in popularity among black audiences.

We'll hear other songs and the stories behind them, such as Santa's Rap Party, a favourite hidden Christmas treasure of Radio 1 DJ, Huw Stephens.

Rev Coles finds someone on a similar mission to him. Andy Cirzan is the longtime vice president of concerts at Jam Productions in Chicago. He's searched high and low to add to his own collection of wildly obscure Christmas recordings for his own playlist for more than a quarter of a century. He plays Richard some of his treasured recordings from the 50's and 60's, including the cold war era's 'Santa Miss Those Missiles' and the dark Christmas track, 'There is No Sanity Claus II', with its references to guns, missiles and napalm.

Music critic and recent Christmas album curator Pete Paphides also shares his well stocked alternative Christmas record box.

Producer: Jo Meek
A Sparklab production for BBC Radio 4.


SAT 16:00 Woman's Hour (b01p9f5t)
Nigella Lawson; Tanya Byron; supermarket ads at Christmas

Nigella Lawson and Tanya Byron on parenting guilt; Nigella talks about her own relationship with her mother. Allison Pearson and Deborah Orr discuss supermarket ads at Christmas. Ruchira Gupta whose charity helps women out of prostitution in Nepal and India. Cosmetics from Shakespeare's time to now with the head of research at the Globe Theatre Dr Farah Karim-Cooper and beauty editor and author Jo Fairley. Relationship advice: best from an agony aunt or expert, or from a website of your peers? Carrie Henderson McDermott from hetexted.com and former agony aunt Anna Raeburn discuss. And terms of endearment: cute or cringe-worthy?
Presenter Jane Garvey
Producer Dianne McGregor.


SAT 17:00 PM (b01p9f5w)
Saturday PM

Full coverage of the day's news presented by Patrick O'Connell.


SAT 17:30 iPM (b01p7hj4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 05:45 today]


SAT 17:54 Shipping Forecast (b01p7c1b)
The latest shipping forecast.


SAT 17:57 Weather (b01p7c1d)
The latest weather forecast.


SAT 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b01p7c1g)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


SAT 18:15 Loose Ends (b01p9f5y)
Sophie Parkin, Sarah Hadland, Peter Wight, Scottee, Ed Harcourt and Clock Opera

Clive's overjoyed to talk to actor Peter Wight about his career, including four collaborations with director Mike Leigh. Peter's now starring in a violent satire about a family Christmas interrupted by the unexpected arrival of Uncle Bob. Who is he? Why has he come? And what's the meaning of his long and outrageous message. 'In The Republic Of Happiness' is at London's Royal Court Theatre until Saturday 19th January 2013.

Clive's up to mischief with actress Sarah Hadland, who last Christmas played Miss Primly Tightclench in 'The Bleak Old Shop of Stuff'. This Christmas, Sarah returns to our screens to play "joke slash gift shop" manager Stevie Sutton in the award-winning sitcom 'Miranda'. Will best friends Miranda and Stevie ever be responsible enough to make a success of the shop? 'Miranda' is on Wednesday 26th December on BBC One at 21.00.

Emma Freud dons her stiletto's for performance artist and Burger Queen Scottee, whose new show features broken limbs, police questioning, the loss of 100's of pairs of high heels and leaves the audience elated, confused and covered in glitter! 'Camp (As Christmas)' is at the Roundhouse, London until Saturday 22nd December.

Clive's Best of Friends with author Sophie Parkin with a new book 'The Colony Room Club 1948 - 2008 - A History of Bohemian Soho'. It about the explosion of culture in post war London from one small green room up some filthy stairs in Soho and the international figures who frequented it.

With music from eclectic four piece avant pop band Clock Opera, who perform 'Belongings' from their album 'Ways To Forget'.

And a welcome return for singer-songwriter Ed Harcourt, who plays the title track of his new album 'Back Into the Woods'.

Producer: Cathie Mahoney.


SAT 19:00 From Fact to Fiction (b01p9f60)
Series 13

Love and Honour

Topical drama by award-winning playwright, Ali Taylor, marks the return of the series in which writers respond to a major story from the week's news.

In the week that the Government announced its plans to legislate on same-sex marriages, Lyn and Steff have plans of their own. It's the dead of night and the couple embark on an audacious undertaking to pledge their love for each other. When an uninvited guest challenges them, it reveals that the two women might not be on the same page.

Lyn ... Morven Christie
Steff ... Alex Tregear
Jossy ... Greg McHugh
The Rev. Helen Cairn ... Sally Orrock

Producer: Gemma Jenkins.


SAT 19:15 Saturday Review (b01p9f62)
The Hobbit; Quentin Blake exhibition; pantomime dames

Sarfraz Manzoor and his guests, writers Aminatta Forna and David Benedict and actor Kerry Shale, review the week's cultural highlights.

The latest Peter Jackson film is the first in a three part adaptation of JRR Tolkien's The Hobbit. Set in Middle Earth 60 years before "The Lord of the Rings", the story follows Bilbo Baggins (Martin Friedman) as he sets out on an epic quest to reclaim stolen dwarf treasure from the dragon Smaug. On the way he clashes swords with Goblins and Orcs, deadly Wargs, Shapeshifters and Sorcerers not to mentioned Gollum.

There's a new exhibition of drawings and prints by renowned artist and illustrator Quentin Blake, who turns eighty this month. None of the work on display here will have been seen before, and none are illustrations of books, but are entirely derived from the artist's imagination and observations.

The play In the Republic of Happiness, by Martin Crimp, is a violent satire on contemporary obsessions that follows the unexpected return of a long-lost uncle one family Christmas. This event provides an opportunity to explore the dark underside of the contemporary demand for happiness.

Flight Behaviour, the new novel by Orange Prize winner Barbara Kingsolver, tells the story of a woman attempting to escape her empty marriage and the drudgery of life on a rundown Appalachian farm. En route to a tryst with a lover, Dellarobia Turnbow stumbles on a hillside covered with swathes of orange monarch butterflies that appear like fire on the landscape, an event that will transform her life.

In a BBC documentary Michael Grade explores the rich history of the very British Pantomime Dame. From the extravagant productions in Drury Lane in the 19th Century to the vintage performances by Terry Scott and Arthur Askey, the Pantomime Dame has always been anarchic, witty, vulgar, affectionate and good box office.

Producer: Anne-Marie Cole.


SAT 20:00 Archive on 4 (b01p9f64)
Frost on Nixon

Watching Richard Nixon's first inauguration ceremony in January 1969, and hearing the prayer of the Reverend Billy Graham who stood by him at that ceremony, it seemed that here was an honest man of integrity. Yet much detail has emerged since that time demonstrating that the 37th President of the United States was less than upstanding in his dealings with his Democrat opponents and the American people.

But who was Nixon the man? What was he really like? Do all those allegations and solid facts alluding to his dirty tricks - the wire-tapping, the break-ins, the pay-offs, the "Commie" slurs, the Machiavellian manoeuvrings - add up to a thoroughly dishonest and dislikeable man?

Many of the Nixon insiders, some of whom were jailed and several of whom were sacked by their boss after the Watergate scandal, were not critical of Nixon - and others, such as Bob Haldeman, while not admitting to a love of Nixon, still claimed to respect him after the event.

Many observers and colleagues point to Nixon's awkwardness and aloofness, citing that he came across in this way because he was a diffident man who was not a natural politician. His speeches were often mawkishly sentimental and manipulative, simplistic in their appeal to an American down-home conservatism and a hatred of Communism. Yet he won two elections - the second a landslide despite the parlous state of a country being riven in two because of the Vietnam war.

In this programme, the man who got close to Nixon when in 1977 he taped nearly 29 hours of interviews with Nixon, Sir David Frost, searches through the BBC archives and the White House tapes to try to discover just what kind of man Richard Nixon was.

Producer: Neil Rosser
A Ladbroke production for BBC Radio 4.


SAT 21:00 Alexandre Dumas - The Count of Monte Cristo (b01p6rz5)
Episode 3

With Fernand de Morcerf dead, the Count begins to tighten the net around Baron Danglars and Gerard de Villefort, and their unsuspecting wives.

Adventure novel by Alexandre Dumas dramatised by Sebastian Baczkiewicz.

The Count/Edmond Dantes ...... Iain Glen
Haydee ...... Jane Lapotaire
Mercedes de Morcerf ...... Josette Simon
Gerard de Villefort ...... Paul Rhys
Heloise de Villefort ...... Kate Fleetwood
General Noirtier ...... Karl Johnson
Baron Danglars ...... Toby Jones
Hermine Danglars ...... Stephanie Racine
Fernand de Morcerf ...... Zubin Varla
Caderousse ...... Ben Crowe
Andrea Cavalcanti ...... Will Howard
Madame Lascelles ...... Sarah Thom
Coachman ...... Paul Stonehouse
Bertuccio ...... Paul Stonehouse
Valentine de Villefort ...... Lizzy Watts
Max Morrell ...... Adam Nagaitis
Eugenie Danglars ...... Eleanor Crooks
Jacopo ...... Joe Sims
Operator ...... Robert Blythe
Banker ...... Paul Stonehouse

Music by David Tobin and Jeff Meegan.

Directors: Jeremy Mortimer / Sasha Yevtushenko

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2012.


SAT 22:00 News and Weather (b01p7c1j)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4, followed by weather.


SAT 22:15 Unreliable Evidence (b01p7bxr)
Who's to Blame?

In the first of a new series, Clive Anderson and guests discuss the legal liability of organisations for crimes or other misbehaviours committed by people who work for them.

In the wake of Jimmy Savile and other recent abuse cases, complex legal questions have arisen about who, apart from the perpetrators themselves, should be held to blame - and liable to pay compensation.

Clive's guests, all leading experts in the field, argue about the way the courts are currently applying the law of vicarious liability to hold employers to blame for the actions of their staff, even when there is no indication of any fault on their part.

In what all agree is rapidly becoming a legal minefield, the courts are widening their interpretation of who can be legitimately sued in these circumstances. Bodies are increasingly being held liable for the actions of people for whom they are responsible but do not formally employ. This could include freelancers or other casual workers or even volunteers working for a charity.

Senior barrister, Edward Faulks says the law is being misused to identify parties with deep pockets and to ensure victims receive compensation from someone.

Producer: Brian King
An Above The Title production for BBC Radio 4.


SAT 23:00 Brain of Britain (b01p704h)
(3/17)
Which film actor was known as 'The Great Stone Face'? And which Welsh rugby coach is credited with first using the phrase 'get your retaliation in first'?

The competitors in Brain of Britain will have to come up with the answers, and many others, as they face Russell Davies' questioning in the third heat of the current series. The programme comes from Salford and the contestants this week hail from Liverpool, Norwich, Leeds and Lincoln. If their general knowledge carries them through to the next stage in the new year, they'll stand a real chance of becoming the sixtieth holder of the prestigious quiz title, 'Brain of Britain'.

As always, a Brain of Britain listener stands to win a prize, as the competitors try to answer a pair of fiendish questions he or she has devised.

Producer: Paul Bajoria.


SAT 23:30 Poetry Please (b01p6szg)
Roger McGough presents some tree poems, old and new, as the country contemplates losing its ashes. Part of a short season of tree programmes on BBC Radio 4. Poets Simon Armitage, Kathleen Jamie, Alice Oswald and Robin Robertson read some of their own poems, including new work, and some much loved and requested favourite tree poems including work by DH Lawrence, Philip Larkin, Thomas Hardy, WB Yeats and Gerard Manley Hopkins. Producer: Tim Dee.



SUNDAY 16 DECEMBER 2012

SUN 00:00 Midnight News (b01p9cv7)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.


SUN 00:30 Rhys Davies Competition Winners (b01p9fxk)
One Summer

One Summer by Kate Hamer. Scarlet is a young girl dealing with the fact that her mother has been seriously injured in a car accident. She spends a summer without her mother and realises that there is more to the world than she ever previously knew. Winner of the Welsh short story contest.

Read by Eiry Thomas
Directed by James Robinson

A BBC Cymru Wales Production.


SUN 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b01p9cv9)
The latest shipping forecast.


SUN 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b01p9cvc)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.


SUN 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b01p9cvf)
The latest shipping forecast.


SUN 05:30 News Briefing (b01p9cvh)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.


SUN 05:43 Bells on Sunday (b01p9fxm)
The bells of York Minster.


SUN 05:45 Four Thought (b01p7bxt)
Series 3

Nancy Lublin: 21st-Century Social Activism

Nancy Lublin, CEO of DoSomething.Org, discusses how the next generation are doing social activism. She describes the impact of the web on social activism, making it faster, cheaper and easier to do than ever before, and argues that this has big implications for societies around the world.

Four Thought is a series of talks which combine thought provoking ideas and engaging storytelling. Recorded live in front of an audience, speakers air their latest thinking on the trends, ideas, interests and passions that affect our culture and society.

Producer: Giles Edwards.


SUN 06:00 News Headlines (b01p9cvm)
The latest national and international news.


SUN 06:05 Something Understood (b01p9g0b)
In Search of Bohemia

Irma Kurtz remembers her quest to find bohemia with a small 'b'.

The bohemians had a hunger for art, literature and changing the rules and Irma's personal odyssey in search of a non-materialistic and art-focused society took her from Greenwich Village in Manhattan to the Left Bank in Paris and finally to London's Soho.

She considers the historical background to bohemia and wonders if it exist today. If not, why not and are we the poorer without it?

To illustrate her journey, Irma draws on extracts from the work of Henri Murger, Dylan Thomas and Alan Ginsberg and the music of Claude Debussy, Giacomo Puccini and Juliet Greco.

The readers are Liza Sadovy and Col Farrell.

Producer: Ronni Davis
A Unique production for BBC Radio 4.


SUN 06:35 On Your Farm (b01p9g0d)
Caz Graham visits Europe's largest wild eel fishery on Lough Neagh in Northern Ireland to find out about the slippery and mysterious fish. As there is no domestic market for eels, the fishery exports 700 tonnes of live eels each year to Holland and France. However, a decline in eel numbers and more young people moving away from the Lough raises a question over this industry's future.

Presenter Caz Graham. Producer Ruth Sanderson.


SUN 06:57 Weather (b01p9cvp)
The latest weather forecast.


SUN 07:00 News and Papers (b01p9cvr)
The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.


SUN 07:10 Sunday (b01p9g0g)
We report from the most Godless and most holy of places - according to the 2011 Census results.

Edward Stourton talks to religious stats and numbers cruncher, Clive Field of Birmingham University, about what it all tells us about Britain's changing religious landscape.

Theoretical physicist and author Jim Al-Khalili is the new President of the British Humanist Association. Edward finds out why despite descending from an Iraqi Ayatollah and being raised by a Christian mother and Muslim father, he has been a humanist since his teenage years.

Apocalypse now? Jane Little reports on the Mayan Prophecy and why some believe the world will end on the 21st December 2012.

After a week of surprise announcements on gay marriage Edward gets analysis and reaction from the BBC's Religion Correspondent, Robert Piggot, the Bishop of Buckingham Alan Wilson and Conservative MP, Sir Gerald Howarth.


SUN 07:55 Radio 4 Appeal (b01p9g0j)
Lively Minds

Katy Hill presents the Radio 4 Appeal for Lively Minds
Reg Charity:1125512
To Give:
- Freephone 0800 404 8144
- Freepost BBC Radio 4 Appeal, mark the back of the envelope Lively Minds.


SUN 07:57 Weather (b01p9cvt)
The latest weather forecast.


SUN 08:00 News and Papers (b01p9cvw)
The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.


SUN 08:10 Sunday Worship (b01p9g0l)
Advent Expectations - 'Great Expectations' is the theme of Sunday Worship live from Bradford Cathedral. Preacher: The Bishop of Bradford, the Rt Revd Nick Baines; Leader: Canon Andy Williams;
Alexander Woodrow directs the Girls and Adults of Bradford Cathedral Choir; Organist: Paul Bowen; Producer: Katharine Longworth.

Advent is a time of expectation. The Biblical texts are filled with anticipation of the coming Messiah, promises of hope for the future, and expectations of the Second Coming of Christ. It's a time that we're called to question what's expected of us and reflect upon what we can expect from God. As we prepare for Christmas our hearts are filled with expectations, which may or may not be fulfilled. And we are also reminded that God does not show His love for us in the way we expect; rather than making a great and triumphant entry into the world, he comes to us as a tiny, vulnerable child.

The expectations we hold during advent are the same as those held by the People of Judah in the time of Isaiah. They hoped for a wise ruler who would bring about a new age. Christians also have great expectations for the future as they wait patiently for the Second Coming of Christ.


SUN 08:50 A Point of View (b01p7hf3)
Digital Past

Will Self reflects on the effect of digital technology on his perception of the passage of time. "Perhaps the reason I feel quite so liberated from the present while more and more attached, not to the individually recalled 'good old days', but to a collectively attested and ever-present past, is because the hard drive of my computer is overloaded with digital images of the places I've been and the people I've met, all of them time-coded to within a tenth of a second."
Producer: Sheila Cook.


SUN 09:00 Broadcasting House (b01p9g3r)
News and conversation about the big stories of the week with Paddy O'Connell.


SUN 10:00 The Archers Omnibus (b01p9g3t)
For detailed synopses, please see daily episodes

Writer ..... Simon Frith
Director ..... Kim Greengrass
Editor ..... Vanessa Whitburn

Jill Archer..... Patricia Greene
Kenton Archer..... Richard Attlee
David Archer..... Timothy Bentinck
Ruth Archer..... Felicity Finch
Elizabeth Pargetter..... Alison Dowling
Matt Crawford... Kim Durham
Lilian Bellamy..... Sunny Ormonde
Jolene Perks..... Buffy Davis
Fallon Rogers..... Joanna Van Kampen
Will Grundy..... Philip Molloy
Nic Grundy..... Becky Wright
Emma Grundy..... Emerald O'Hanrahan
Edward Grundy..... Barry Farrimond
Neil Carter..... Brian Hewlett
Susan Carter..... Charlotte Martin
Vicky Tucker..... Rachel Atkins
Oliver Sterling..... Michael Cochrane
Caroline Sterling..... Sara Coward
Lynda Snell..... Carole Boyd
Kirsty Miller..... Annabelle Dowler
Paul Morgan..... Michael Fenton Stevens
James Bellamy..... Roger May
Rhys Williams..... Scott Arthur
Iftikar Shah..... Pal Aron.


SUN 11:15 Desert Island Discs (b01p9g3w)
Sister Wendy Beckett

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the nun, writer and broadcaster Sister Wendy Beckett.

For over 40 years she's lived the life of a hermit, rising every day at midnight to spend seven hours praying. Her home is a caravan in the grounds of a Carmelite Monastery where she spends her days in silence - speaking only once a day to the nun charged with delivering her daily food rations of skimmed milk, cold cooked vegetables and two rice crackers.

Her self-imposed isolation has only been broken by the - frankly rather unlikely - occurrence of a television career. She is the nun who knows about art and her passionate and pithy critiques of the world's great works and hidden treasures have won her many devoted fans.

With decades of solitude and prayer under her belt she seems, unlike nearly every other guest, to be perfectly cut out for a stretch alone on a desert island.

She says "It's my apostolic duty to talk about art. If you don't know about God, art is the only thing that can set you free".

Producer: Christine Pawlowsky.


SUN 12:00 I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue (b01p704r)
Series 58

Episode 5

The 58th series of Radio 4's multi award-winning 'antidote to panel games' promises yet more quality, desk-based entertainment for all the family. The series starts its run at the Grove Theatre in Dunstable, where regulars Barry Cryer, Graeme Garden and Tim Brooke-Taylor are joined on the panel by Tony Hawks, with Jack Dee as the programme's reluctant chairman. Regular listeners will know to expect inspired nonsense, pointless revelry and Colin Sell at the piano.

Producer - Jon Naismith.


SUN 12:32 The Food Programme (b01p9g3y)
Cheap Veg

Cheap veg - the surprising stories behind humble British vegetables. Sheila Dillon enlists three experts to uncover the hidden side of our veggies.

Ethno-botanist James Wong argues that rhubarb is the only uniquely British indigenous vegetable. Agricultural expert Dr Oliver Moore discovers the work that a seed bank in Ireland is doing to increase variety in our potatoes. And food writer Andrew Webb unearths new uses for onions.

Presented by Sheila Dillon and produced by Emma Weatherill.


SUN 12:57 Weather (b01p9cvy)
The latest weather forecast.


SUN 13:00 The World This Weekend (b01p9g42)
Shaun Ley presents national and international news, including an in-depth look at events around the world. Email: wato@bbc.co.uk; twitter: #theworldthisweekend.


SUN 13:30 Hardeep's Sunday Lunch (b01p9g44)
Series 1

Episode 4

For this week's Sunday Lunch Hardeep Singh Kohli visits a beautiful valley in Lancashire to meet the volunteers who run Clarion House. With it's red flag waving and a sign outside saying 'Socialism Our Hope', Clarion House is the last Independent Labour Party socialist tea room in the country. Visited several times by Keir Hardie, the tea room was set up at the end of the 19th century to encourage mill workers into the countryside every Sunday. Over pint mugs of tea, visitors were encouraged to make friends, discuss the issues of the day and spread the message of socialism. And as Hardeep finds out, today Clarion House still attracts lots of cyclists and walkers every Sunday in search of a pint of tea and a chat even though the social message is diminished.

Producers: Dawn Bryan
Amanda Hancox.


SUN 14:00 Gardeners' Question Time (b01p7hdg)
Cranleigh, Surrey

Peter Gibbs and the team are in Cranleigh in Surrey for this week's GQT. On the panel taking questions are gardening experts Chris Beardshaw, Pippa Greenwood and Bob Flowerdew.

Produced by Howard Shannon
A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4

Questions answered in the programme:

Q. We are about to move from the Surrey/Sussex border to a loch-side croft in the highlands of Scotland, taking our garden with us. Could the panel advise what will be the survivors of this move?

A. If you do want to take plants with you, take small ones or even cuttings. Spring plants will not do as well, but late-summer and autumn plants such as Asters or Crocosmias will. Avoid plants with hairy foliage and go for bold, glossy foliage or plants that are woody.

Q. My garden floods occasionally. Which evergreen shrubs might withstand these conditions?

A. Evergreens suffer more from drowning, due to the climates they originate from. Most plants that will withstand water logging tend to be deciduous. Taxodium Distichum, the Swamp Cyprus, and Metasequoia, though both deciduous would give long seasonal displays. Willows and Alders should also be considered.

Q. Is it possible for an amateur gardener to mix their own compost accelerators in order to avoid paying for branded varieties?

A. Grass clippings and nettle tops have high nitrogen and moisture content, as does poultry manure, which will aid composting.

Q. Our chickens roam happily underneath our boundary of Leylandii. Will the chickens' waste have a negative effect on the trees?

A. More than one chicken per tree might! Watch for the chickens dust bathing under the trees, which can cause them to destabilise.

Q. My previously successful Ceanothus was killed of by frost in early 2012. Could the panel suggest a replacement climber for the now vacant spot on my north-facing wall which backs on to a patio?

A. Hydrangea Petiolaris will thrive in a north-facing aspect, as will Schizophragma. You could also replace the Ceanothus, insulating the insides of a large container to prevent losing it to frost again!

Q. Is there a potential problem with liver fluke worms in watercress grown in a water butt?

A. Liver fluke worms are really more of a risk when harvesting watercress from ponds or rivers, especially where there are sheep in the area.

Q. Is it OK to collect the leaves from a seemingly healthy mature ash tree and include them in the compost heap?

A. If in doubt about the risks of infection from Ash Dieback Disease, the leaves can be collected and burnt.

Q. How can I protect my Phormiums over the coming winter?

A. Cold winds and wet conditions can cause foliage scorch and root rot respectively. As such, try to grow your Phormiums in ground that's unlikely to get too wet. Shelter the plant from the wind with other, hardier plants nearby, or wrap the sides of the plant in loose fleece.

Q. Could the panel recommend some colourful, low-growing plants for the north-facing flowerbed at the front of my house?

A. Pulmonarias (Lungworts), Lamiums such as 'Silver Beacon' or 'White Nancy', and Heucheras should meet the criteria and do well.

Q. Many local residents where I live enjoy watching the local rabbit population. Is there a secret deterrent I could use to protect my gardening plot?

A. There are electronic, ultrasonic devices on the market, which might be worth trying. Other than fencing or high raised beds, there are few 'non-violent' methods of discouraging a rabbit population.


SUN 14:45 The Listening Project (b01p9gjw)
Sunday Edition

Fi Glover with conversations about marriage, spiders, frogs, birds, leaving home for university and coming back again, all in the Sunday Edition of Radio 4's series that proves it's surprising what you hear when you listen.

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. Many of the long 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 15:00 Alexandre Dumas - The Count of Monte Cristo (b01p9gjy)
Episode 4

Caderousse is dead, and the Count's ward Andrea is poised to marry Eugenie Danglars.

While Heloise de Villefort pursues her own murderous plans to secure General Noirtier's inheritance for her son. The Count's revenge, so long in the planning, is devastating in its conclusion.

Adventure novel by Alexandre Dumas dramatised by Sebastian Baczkiewicz.

The Count/Edmond Dantes ...... Iain Glen
Haydee ...... Jane Lapotaire
Younger Haydee ...... Amber Rose Revah
Mercedes de Morcerf ...... Josette Simon
Fernand, Count de Morcerf ...... Zubin Varla
Gerard de Villefort ...... Paul Rhys
Heloise de Villefort ...... Kate Fleetwood
Abbe Faria ...... Richard Johnson
Baron Danglars ...... Toby Jones
Hermine Danglars ...... Stephanie Racine
Eugenie Danglars ...... Eleanor Crooks
Valentine de Villefort ...... Lizzy Watts
Edouard de Villefort ...... Finn Monteath
Max Morrell ...... Adam Nagaitis
Andrea Cavalcanti ...... Will Howard
Bertuccio ...... Paul Stonehouse
Jacopo ...... Joe Sims
Milly ...... Sarah Thom

Music by David Tobin and Jeff Meegan.

Directors: Jeremy Mortimer / Sasha Yevtushenko

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2012.


SUN 16:00 Open Book (b01p9gk0)
Barbara Kingsolver, Victoria Glendinning and David Baddiel

Mariella Frostrup talks to Orange Prize winner Barbara Kingsolver about her latest novel Flight Behaviour, set in a poor district of the Appalachian Mountains in Tennessee. The book explores the impact of climate change, an issue which Kingsolver, with a background as a scientist, feels is important to highlight.

Despite only completing two novels in his lifetime, The Broom of the System and his blockbuster Infinite Jest, and leaving one unfinished manuscript, The Pale King, the American author David Foster Wallace has been described as one of the most gifted and innovative writers of his generation. Fan David Baddiel and biographer DT Max explain why he deserves that praise.

Sir Stamford Thomas Raffles has become an integral part of the mythology of the British Empire and he remains omnipresent in the Singapore he is credited with founding. The twice Whitbread Winning biographer Victoria Glendinning explains why she has called her latest biography, Raffles and The Golden Opportunity, the book of her life.

Producer: Andrea Kidd.


SUN 16:30 No Ideas But in Things: The Poetry of William Carlos Williams (b01p9gk2)
Presented by poet Annie Freud, with the former American Poet Laureate Billy Collins, and poets August Kleinzahler and Mark Ford.

William Carlos Williams is known as a revolutionary figure in poetry but, in comparison to his friend Ezra Pound and American writers including TS Eliot and Gertrude Stein, who sought a more exciting environment for creativity in Europe, Williams lived a strikingly conventional life.

A doctor for more than forty years serving the New Jersey town of Rutherford, he relied on his patients and the America around him to create a distinctively American verse. His lifelong quest was that poetry should mirror the speech of the American people.

A second generation immigrant, he sought to make something of the people and for the people in America. He was mocked by Pound who came from centuries of Americans and wrote to him "My dear boy, you have never felt the whoop of the PEEraries", but their correspondence was vital in developing the poetry of Imagism, which Pound would formally name in 1912.

Williams' sense of ordinary people, living in a real place not an imagined city of ancient relics and memory, defined America for him and infused his work. He got rid of the high blown poetic language of Europe, paring down his verse to essential, unemotional, broken lines. His famous poem The Red Wheelbarrow, published in 1923, is 16 words on 8 lines.

He was awarded the Pulitzer prize for poetry, posthumously, in the year he died 1963. He is America's first true poet.

Producer: Kate Bland
A Just Radio production for BBC Radio 4.


SUN 17:00 Pension Off the Old Lady! (b01p71gs)
The role of Governor of the Bank of England is one of the most important in the financial world. Mark Carney, whose appointment was announced in November by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, will have vast oversight of everything from the level of mortgage finance to the way the British financial system functions. The role is unique in its power, scope and influence.

So what should the new Governor's plan for Britain's economic future be? In this programme, Kamal Ahmed considers the prospects for jobs, growth and economic well-being under the new Governor. And he examines what will be the likely impact on the value of everyone's debts, borrowings and savings.

For some observers, the Bank of England failed to see the approach of the financial crisis and, when it did arrive, did not act decisively to mitigate its effects. Responsible for targeting inflation at 2%, managing monetary policy and smoothing the economic cycle, the Old Lady of Threadneedle Street - as the Bank is known in the City of London - has, they claim, consistently disappointed. And we have all paid the price.

Yet others argue that it has done no worse than other major central banks. Ministers seem to agree: the government is making the Bank responsible for more of the UK's financial system.

Talking to former Bank insiders, prominent politicians, business leaders, economists and bankers, Kamal Ahmed asks what lessons the Bank needs to draw from its role in the crisis. Given its new responsibilities, what and how does it need to change about how it is currently run and managed? Can it be made more effective - while also being properly accountable for its actions? And should it emulate how other central banks do their job or do its own thing?

Producer Simon Coates.


SUN 17:40 From Fact to Fiction (b01p9f60)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Saturday]


SUN 17:54 Shipping Forecast (b01p9cw0)
The latest shipping forecast.


SUN 17:57 Weather (b01p9cw2)
The latest weather forecast.


SUN 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b01p9cw4)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


SUN 18:15 Pick of the Week (b01p9gn8)
Who do we have peeping out from the audio advent calendar that is this week's Pick Of The Week? All your festive favourites, Richard Nixon, Morrissey, Jean Cocteau, The Supremes , the entire population of Handsworth and many more.

Alternative Christmas - Radio 4
Poundshops R Us - Radio 4
I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue - Radio 4
The Smiths at the BBC - Radio 2
Analysing the Child Sex Offender - Radio 4
Great Lives - Jean Cocteau - Radio 4
Mark Steel's in Town - Handsworth - Radio 4
Free Thinking - Radio 3
Mr X - Julian Mclaren Ross - Radio 4
The Essay - The Meaning of Trees - The Sycamore - Radio 3
Archive on 4 - Nixon at 100 - Radio 4
Today - Radio 4
The Story of the Supremes - Radio 2

Produced by Geoff Bird

If there's something you'd like to suggest for next week's programme, please e-mail potw@bbc.co.uk.


SUN 19:00 The Archers (b01p9gnb)
Matt treats Lilian to breakfast in bed saying she deserves pampering now that she's no longer at James' beck and call. Lilian's surprised by Matt's thoughtfulness when he suggests visiting Joyce to see how she's settling in. Later Joyce says she's finding it hard getting used to living on her own in the new flat - she's grateful for all the work that's been done, she just wishes their old home could've been as nice.

Lynda's perturbed when she discovers her posters have been 'defaced' with intriguing stickers. When Lynda questions whether Kenton knows who's doing it, he says it's not him. Later Lynda puts Usha straight when she congratulates Lynda on how eye-catching the posters are. Suspicious Usha then asks Kenton if it's him as he's 'Lord of Misrule' but they're interrupted by Lilian's arrival to rehearse the witch scenes. Later Kenton's reluctant to take on Lynda's suggestion of using Shakespeare's comedy for his introductions.

At the Dower House, Matt suggests snuggling up in front of a DVD with Lilian. When she mentions she's taking a day off on Wednesday to Christmas shop, Matt says he can't go. Lilian says that's fine, he'll only get bored. When Matt asks where she's going she says - Cheltenham.


SUN 19:15 Nick Mohammed in Bits (b00tpn6r)
Daniel Thornthwaite

Character comedian Nick Mohammed (Reggie Perrin, I'm Sorry I've Got No Head) plays a wildlife expert on the edge of sanity in this fly on the wall look at the making of a major new documentary series. Anna Crilly (Lead Balloon) and Colin Hoult co-star as his hapless colleagues.

Bits showcases the best of Nick Mohammed's idiosyncratic characters in a series of one off comic plays.

Produced by Victoria Lloyd.


SUN 19:45 The Apocalypse Clock (b01p9gnd)
Before the End

A short story diptych written by the award-winning author Patrick Ness.

Read by Lindsay Duncan.

In an abandoned hospital, on the day the Mayans predicted would bring the apocalypse, a terminally ill man counts down the minutes and waits with his wife for the end to come.

The Mayans predicted that the world will end on 21st December 2012. These specially commissioned short stories explore the nature of endings, seen through the eyes of a woman who loses everything on the day of revelation.

Producer: Kirsteen Cameron.


SUN 20:00 More or Less (b01p7hdn)
The Census, and what is 'rare'?

This week Tim Harford asks why the estimate for the number of Eastern Europeans likely to come to the UK made back in 2003 was so wrong.

Tim asks what is rare? And are words sometimes better than numbers when communicating information.

Nassim Taleb explains anti-fragility

And we'll debunk the oft quoted 'you're never more than 6ft from a rat'.


SUN 20:30 Last Word (b01p7hdl)
An astronomer, a sitar player, a surgeon, an engineer, a singer and a newsreader

Matthew Bannister on

The sitar player and composer Ravi Shankar who found fame in the West after collaborations with George Harrison and Yehudi Menuhin.

Joseph Murray - the American surgeon who carried out the world's first successful human organ transplant

The astronomer Sir Patrick Moore - Murray Lachlan Young pays tribute in verse.

The bicycle designer Alex Moulton

And the influential folk singer Ian Campbell - he's recalled by Dave Pegg of Fairport Convention and Mike Harding.


SUN 21:00 Money Box (b01p9f5k)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:00 on Saturday]


SUN 21:26 Radio 4 Appeal (b01p9g0j)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:55 today]


SUN 21:30 In Business (b01p7ddy)
Strike Up the Broadband

The government's aim is clear: by 2015, it wants Britain to have the best superfast broadband network in Europe. The internet is so essential to businesses, the argument goes, that the network over which internet traffic travels is becoming a vital part of the UK's infrastructure - as important as energy and roads.
Right now, though, the country is a long way off from the target. Nowhere is this more apparent than in rural and remote areas of the country. In Norfolk, some small businesses are struggling just to get connected, much less plug into the high-speed network the government has pledged to help expand.
A decade ago, internet access was a luxury for many small firms, but today it's essential. Orders are placed and received online, a website is a key marketing tool for all sorts of companies, and businesses must now file VAT returns via a website.
This week on In Business, Peter Day evaluates the government's plans for broadband and finds out how close the UK is coming to a high-speed future online.

Producer: Mike Wendling.


SUN 22:00 Westminster Hour (b01p9jmf)
Preview of the week's political agenda at Westminster with MPs, experts and commentators. Discussion of the issues politicians are grappling with in the corridors of power.


SUN 22:45 What the Papers Say (b01p9jmh)
John Harris of The Guardian analyses how the newspapers are covering the biggest stories in Westminster and beyond.


SUN 23:00 The Film Programme (b01p7ddk)
Peter Jackson on The Hobbit

Francine Stock talks to Sir Peter Jackson about his new film The Hobbit, An Unexpected Journey, the first in a trilogy of films adapting the enduringly popular masterpiece The Hobbit by J R R Tolkien, which was published 75 years ago this year. Sir Ian McKellan reprises his role as Gandalf from The Lord of The Rings trilogy, and the film also stars Andy Serkis as Gollum, Christopher Lee as Saruman and Cate Blanchett as Galadriel.

Critic Alice Tynan on Hobbit mania: with commemorative stamps and coins, and Air New Zealand inflight safety video featuring air crew dressed as Hobbit characters, will it outstrip that provoked by The Lord of the Rings trilogy when the New Zealand government appointed a new Minister especially for the film?

As the Golden Globes nominations are released, critic Tim Robey and Clare Binns, Director of Programming and Acquisitions at Picture House, look back at the films of 2012.

And film journalist Chris Laverty provides a master class in how to read the subtle clues in costume design which make cult film Cabin in The Woods such a subversive take on the horror film genre - as Laverty says "a jacket is never just a jacket, it is always there for a reason."

Producers: Timothy Prosser and Hilary Dunn.


SUN 23:30 Something Understood (b01p9g0b)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:05 today]



MONDAY 17 DECEMBER 2012

MON 00:00 Midnight News (b01p9cx6)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.


MON 00:15 Thinking Allowed (b01p720h)
Children in hospitals; History, heritage and tradition in British politics

British politics, heritage and history. Laurie Taylor explores the divergent stories political parties construct about our history and their own historical roles. From disputes over the National Curriculum for History to the assertion of a lost 'social democratic' tradition by New Labour. Research Fellow, Emily Robinson, argues that politicians' manipulation of the past leaves them unable to speak of different futures. Also, Allison James talks about her research on the experience of sick children in hospital.

Producer: Jayne Egerton.


MON 00:45 Bells on Sunday (b01p9fxm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 05:43 on Sunday]


MON 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b01p9cx8)
The latest shipping forecast.


MON 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b01p9cxb)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.


MON 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b01p9cxd)
The latest shipping forecast.


MON 05:30 News Briefing (b01p9cxg)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.


MON 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b01pw4vx)
A short reflection and prayer with Bishop Donal McKeown, Auxiliary Bishop of Down and Connor.


MON 05:45 Farming Today (b01pbhvs)
As winter lambing begins, cases of Schmallenberg reach nearly 1000. Charlotte Smith talks to a Leicestershire farmer who has seen his flock devastated by the disease.

The EU fish talks start today. Farming Today asks where the battle lines will be drawn, as countries fight over fish quotas.

And as new marine conservation zones are announced by government, the RSPB warns that the government is not doing enough to protect marine life.

Presenter Charlotte Smith. Producer Ruth Sanderson.


MON 05:57 Weather (b01p9cxj)
The latest weather forecast for farmers.


MON 06:00 Today (b01pbhvv)
Morning news and current affairs with Evan Davis and Sarah Montague. Including Sports Desk; Weather; Thought for the Day.


MON 09:00 Start the Week (b01pbhvz)
Science Special

On Start the Week Andrew Marr talks to Peter Wothers about modern day alchemy, as we enter a new era of chemistry. In the past some scientists dismissed the vast majority of the human genome as 'junk DNA', Ewan Birney argues for renaming it 'enigmatic DNA'. And curiosity gets the better of Sanjeev Gupta as he explores the terrain on Mars. But science doesn't have all the answers as Helen Bynum charts the history of tuberculosis, from the medieval period to the present day, and looks at how this killer disease continues to spread and evolve. Producer: Katy Hickman.


MON 09:45 Book of the Week (b01p9k16)
Shakespeare's Local - Six Centuries of History Seen Through One Extraordinary Pub

Episode 1

Pete Brown's history of pubs as seen through the story of one remarkable London inn, the George in Southwark, said to be the one-time local of Chaucer, Dickens and Shakespeare.

The George Inn is one of the few remaining galleried coaching inns, and lies a few minutes' walk from the Thames. 'Shakespeare's Local' takes us on a literary pub crawl through the history of this pub, from its regulars - the watermen, merchants, actors, craftsmen, writers and coachdrivers - as well as the many incarnations of the pub itself - from lawless Southwark tavern to coaching inn, theatre pub to Victorian drinking den, unfashionable boozer to tourist attraction.

This isn't only a history of half a century of pubs and drinking, but also a paean to the importance of the now declining pub to British society.

Today: the George's early days as a Southwark drinking den in the lawless neighbourhood south of the City.

Reader: Tony Robinson is best-known for his portrayal of Baldrick in the Blackadder series. He also presented Channel' 4's TV's Time Team, and is the author of numerous children's books.
Author: Pete Brown , the 'Beer drinkers' Bill Bryson' (TLS), was named Beer Writer of the Year by the British Guild of Beer Writers, and is the author of three other books on pubs and brewing.
Producer: Justine Willett.


MON 10:00 Woman's Hour (b01pbhw1)
Cate Blanchett; Zoe Williams; anonymity for rape defendants

Cate Blanchett on those ears, hobbit feet and Australian PM Julia Gillard. Radio 4 newsreader Carolyn Brown and her husband discuss her decision to donate him one of her kidneys and lookahead to the transplant in the New Year. Zoe Williams and Cally Robson debate whether women have a match for the old boys' network. After the acquittal on a rape charge of Amy Winehouse's former boyfriend Reg Traviss, we hear calls that there should be anonymity for men accused of rape.
Presented by Jane Garvey
Producer Emma Wallace.


MON 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b01p9l4s)
Modesty Blaise - A Taste for Death

Episode 1

She's glamorous, intelligent, rich and very, very cool. Modesty Blaise has been called the female James Bond but she's much more interesting than that. With her expertise in martial arts and unusual weapons, the ability to speak several languages and her liking for fast cars, twenty-something Modesty became a female icon long before the likes of Emma Peel, Lara Croft, or Buffy.

In Stef Penney's brand new radio adaptation of Peter O'Donnell's novel, Sir Gerald Tarrant, Head of a secret British agency, tempts Modesty out of retirement and into a job involving a young woman with extra sensory powers, an exotic desert location, and a larger than life public school villain, intent on murdering his way to a vast fortune. With its perfect cocktail of glamorous settings, hidden treasure, a twisting turning plot, and characters to root for, A Taste for Death is an action packed treat - and a guilty pleasure.

With an original score by Goldfrapp's Will Gregory, arranged by Ian Gardiner, and performed by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, conducted by Ben Foster.

Produced and Directed by Kate McAll

Interesting Modesty Facts:
Modesty first started life in 1963 as a strip cartoon in the London Evening Standard - the first of the novels followed three years later.

Vincent Vega, played by John Travolta, is seen reading a Modesty Blaise book in Pulp Fiction.


MON 11:00 Our Language in Your Hands (b01pbhw3)
New York City

New York has long been a city of immigrants, and as a result of waves of immigration, language experts describe it as the most linguistically dense city on earth. Mark Turin travels to the Big Apple to track the many languages of New York. He travels the 7 train, designated a US Heritage Trail, as it rattles its way from Flushing to the heart of Manhattan, passing through areas where Korean, Bengali and Spanish are the languages spoken on the street. He meets the linguists who are tracking New York's many languages and hears from those who believe that the US needs to promote the English language ahead of all others.
His journey ends with a story of linguistic rebirth as he discovers how the Yiddish language, once in decline, has attracted a new generation of speakers.


MON 11:30 Jeeves in Manhattan (b00wx6rn)
Jeeves and the Unbidden Guest

Martin Jarvis performs 'Jeeves and the Unbidden Guest', the second of two of P.G. Wodehouse's celebrated 'New York' stories, starring blithe Bertie Wooster and his urbane valet Jeeves. It was recorded in front of a live audience - a packed house at the Everyman Theatre - as a highlight of the 2010 Cheltenham Festival of Literature.

In this one-man tour de force, as well as the characters of Jeeves and Wooster, Jarvis also portrays chinless wonder Lord Pershore and his lordship's formidable mother Lady Malvern. As her ladyship and her son arrive in New York expecting hospitality from Bertie (and therefore Jeeves) the situation becomes electric.

After Lord Pershore sets about to misbehave his way around the night clubs of Manhattan it is left to Jeeves to seek a solution. Wodehouse wrote these sparkling stories in 1925 during the period when he was living in Manhattan and enjoying great success as a lyric writer for American musicals. The tales provide a brilliantly humorous perspective for Jeeves and Bertie Wooster on how to deal with eccentric Americans, plus how to cope with the Brits abroad.

Producer/Director: Pete Atkin
A Jarvis & Ayres Production for BBC Radio 4.


MON 12:00 You and Yours (b01pbhw5)
Post-adoption support, theatre dress codes and the Rathlin Island postman

The government's adoption advisor Martin Narey responds to your complaints about the lack of support for parents who adopt children who have suffered abuse or neglect.

Italian designer Valentino has branded British theatre goers as scruffy. Is he right? We test your elegance quotient.

And we'll be casting off on one of the country's most remote postal routes - delivering the Christmas mail to Rathlin Island off the north east coast of Ireland.


MON 12:57 Weather (b01p9cxl)
The latest weather forecast.


MON 13:00 World at One (b01pbhw7)
Martha Kearney presents national and international news. Listeners can share their views via email: wato@bbc.co.uk or on twitter: #wato.


MON 13:45 Grimm Thoughts (b01p3hql)
Episode 1

When the Grimm brothers first published their Children's and Household Tales in 1812, in a scholarly effort to collate a national identity of the people, it was the beginning of an obsessive project of two intricately interwoven lifetimes.

To mark the bicentenary of the first edition, writer and mythographer Marina Warner explores the many compelling and often controversial aspects of the tales in a 10-part series, revealing new insights into the stories we think we know so well, and introducing us to the charms and challenges of those that we don't.

Alongside beautifully narrated extracts from the tales themselves, renowned academics and artists who work closely with the Grimm's rich heritage add to our understanding of these deceptively complex stories.

In the opening episode, we are introduced to the Grimm brothers themselves and the context in which they collected these tales, in parallel with the story of The Frog King - a tale of transformation and sexual favour that has opened the collection since it was first published and has played a central role in the Romantic attraction to the tradition of Volkspoesie.

Producer: Kevin Dawson
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4.


MON 14:00 The Archers (b01p9gnb)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Sunday]


MON 14:15 McLevy (b01pbk7z)
Series 9

The Cross-Roads

Victorian detective drama series, starring Brian Cox and Siobhan Redmond.

Written by David Ashton.

Episode four: The Cross-Roads.

McLevy is kidnapped by a grieving father who seeks vengeance for the death of his son. Jean, Roach and Mulholland join forces in a desperate bid to find the Inspector before kidnap turns into murder.

Producer/Director: Bruce Young.


MON 15:00 Brain of Britain (b01pbk81)
(4/17)
Which explorer gave the Pacific Ocean its name? And which film actor played both Sergeant Bilko in 1996 and Inspector Clouseau in 2006?

Russell Davies asks the questions in this fourth heat of the current series of Britain's longest-running general knowledge contest. The competitors are from Chorley in Lancashire, Stoke-on-Trent, Birmingham and Aberdare. They'll each be hoping they can win through to the semi-finals in the new year, with a chance of becoming the sixtieth holder of the coveted Brain of Britain title.

There's also a chance for a listener to win a prize by devising questions tricky enough to stump the combined brainpower of the contestants.

Producer: Paul Bajoria.


MON 15:30 The Food Programme (b01p9g3y)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:32 on Sunday]


MON 16:00 Stage Door (b01pbk84)
Set back from the street, down dingy courts or in the recesses of a grubby alleyway, the stage door is often out of the way and hidden from public view. It separates the hurly burly off-stage reality outside a theatre or opera house, from the drama behind the curtain and out front on stage. Why does it remain, for most of us, a curious and peculiar place?

In Stage Door, actress Rachael Stirling reveals its secrets, unwritten rules and routines - and we get a glimpse of what happens in the moments before and after crossing the threshold, past and present. However unglamorous its environs, visitors become momentarily enchanted, whether for a fleeting glimpse of John Gielgud or Peter O'Toole, an autograph and a smile from Margot Fonteyn, or the shock of seeing Simon Callow in his pants.

Staking out the stage door, we hear from 'stage dooring' fans and autograph hunters as well as actors, cast members and crew. In the middle is the stage door keeper, determining who goes in and what stays out, organising its transitory residents and protecting the performers when the show comes in. "One time in Newcastle, Ray - smashing fella - picked up a bad vibe from someone waiting for me" explains Shaun Williamson. "The guy was waiting to assault me for something that Barry Evans had done on screen in EastEnders."

Contributors: Shaun Williamson (Barry from EastEnders); Harry Gabriel, stage door keeper at London's Shaftesbury Theatre; house assistants Tom Shallaker and Martha Lamb from The Lyceum and Crucible in Sheffield; opera critic Rupert Christiansen; actor Geoffrey Streatfield; and Geoffrey Marsh, Director of Theatre Collections at The Victoria and Albert Museum.

Producer: Tamsin Hughes
A Testbed production for BBC Radio 4.


MON 16:30 The Infinite Monkey Cage (b01pbq3p)
Series 7

Creating Life

Brian Cox and Robin Ince are joined on stage by guests Ed Byrne, Adam Rutherford and Philip Ball to talk about science's quest to create life. From the medieval alchemists' recipe for creating an homunculus through to IVF, cloning and the current cutting edge science working on creating artificial DNA, the quest to create life is an age-old one, but with modern scientific techniques now a reality. Viewed by many as deeply suspicious, even heretical, creation of life is one of the key ideas that generates distrust in science, but is this fair and are we really entering a brave new world where life is no longer in nature's hands.

Producer: Alexandra Feachem
Presenters: Brian Cox and Robin Ince.


MON 17:00 PM (b01pbq3r)
Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.


MON 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b01p9cxn)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


MON 18:30 I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue (b01pbq3t)
Series 58

Episode 6

Back for a second week at the Charter Theatre in Preston, regulars Barry Cryer, Graeme Garden and Tim Brooke-Taylor are joined on the panel by the great Victoria Wood, with Jack Dee in the chair. Piano accompaniment is provided by Colin Sell.

Producer - Jon Naismith.


MON 19:00 The Archers (b01pbq3w)
It's Vicky's birthday and she's thrilled when Mike spoils her with breakfast in bed. She's especially touched by his present of aromatherapy oils, particularly when she learns he went to the shop himself to choose them. With his present and the trip to Cheltenham to look forward, this is turning out to be her best birthday ever!

Eddie gets cross with Will when he's scathing about Ed and Emma having to move in with the Carters, especially when Will says Ed can't even keep a roof over his family's head. Eddie points out that he didn't manage it either and anyway, Will's lucky he's had money left to him. When Will carries on criticising Ed, Eddie stops him short saying that Ed's having a tough time and isn't proud of what's been going on and if Will's got nothing useful to say, he'd better not say anything.

Ed's grateful when Neil runs his eye over Ed's business accounts. Neil's concerned when it appears that Ed doesn't do any financial forward planning. He suggests that maybe Ed could do with advice from someone like Ruth who knows a bit about dairy management. Ed's initially reluctant but finally agrees to let Neil mention it casually to Ruth.


MON 19:15 Front Row (b01pbq3y)
Toby Jones; David O Russell; the Life of Pi film

With Mark Lawson.

Toby Jones has played Truman Capote and now he's taken on Alfred Hitchcock in The Girl - a TV drama, written by Gwyneth Hughes, that explores Hitchcock's relationship with Tippi Hedren, played here by Sienna Miller. Toby Jones discusses the appeal of the role and his experiences making the film.

Yann Martel's Man Booker prize winning novel Life of Pi has now been made into a film, directed by Ang Lee. In the book, much of the story takes place on a small boat inhabited by a young boy and a tiger, so it was not an obvious choice for film adaptation. Meg Rosoff gives the verdict on how the fantasy adventure works on screen.

David O. Russell, director of Three Kings, I Heart Huckabees and The Fighter, talks about his new film, The Silver Linings Playbook. Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence have already both won various best actor and best actress awards, for their roles in this comedy about a depressed man who is ordered to live with his mother.

Producer Nicki Paxman.


MON 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b01p9l4s)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:45 today]


MON 20:00 2012: The End of Time (b01pbq40)
December 21st, 2012 is the date ancient Mayans believed would be the end of time. The Mayan civilisation died out thousands of year ago, yet still this archaic prophecy has attracted followers from multiple faiths and philosophies around the world, spawned countless conspiracy theories and fed a multi-million dollar industry in extreme survival guides. As the clock ticks down on the prophesy that spells the end of the world perhaps this is the one programme you need to listen to. Producer: Phil Pegum.


MON 20:30 Crossing Continents (b01p7dd3)
Libya: Life after the Revolution

The city of Misrata arguably suffered the most during the Libyan conflict as missiles rained on it for months on end. By the end of the revolution though, fighters from Misrata had exacted their revenge on neighbouring towns and had been responsible for the capture of Colonel Gaddafi, as well as Gaddafi strongholds. More recently Misratan fighters have been in action against the city of Bani Walid. Many residents of Bani Walid, accused of being Gaddafi supporters, have been expelled from their homes. Misrata has, effectively, set itself up as a city state, outside the control of Libya's new government.
Writer and journalist Justin Marozzi, who has been visiting Libya over the last twenty years, including during the revolution, returns to examine if this fragmented country can rebuild itself and come together. Is reconciliation possible while different armed groups continue to fight each other?
Producer: John Murphy.


MON 21:00 Material World (b01p7ddm)
Earlier this week, Steven Hawking was awarded 3 million dollars for his contribution to theoretical physics. 7 scientific leaders at CERN received the same amount between them. We look at the impact of awarding such prizes. While they create headlines for the scientists involved - do they help promote the science and are they fair, given the collaborative nature of contemporary scientific research?

We also look at the mystery of Piltdown man. Once thought of as the missing link between ancient apes and humans this Sussex fossil was exposed as a fake more than 50 years ago. The mixture of human, orang-utan and chimpanzee parts is the subject of a new scientific investigation using modern techniques including DNA analysis. Researchers hope to solve the mystery of who produced the hoax and why.

Also on the programme we speak to mathematicians who may have found a way of making computers process information thousands of times faster than they do now.

And we discuss the 'science of Middle earth' how far the fantasy of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings and Hobbit stories accurately reflect science.


MON 21:30 Start the Week (b01pbhvz)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


MON 21:58 Weather (b01p9cxq)
The latest weather forecast.


MON 22:00 The World Tonight (b01pbq42)
President Obama promises action on mass shootings - but what does that mean?

Syria's vice-president accepts that his Government may not win the civil war.

The Queen will attend tomorrow's Cabinet - will ministers be on their best behaviour?

With Ritula Shah.


MON 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b09g5xml)
Maeve Binchy Short Stories

Dolly's Mother

In tribute to Maeve Binchy who died earlier this year, a selection of her short stories taken from Radio 4's Archive. In today's story, the beauty, grace and efficiency of her perfect parents have always made Dolly feel inferior - until the day of her sixteenth birthday.

Maeve Binchy was one of Ireland's most-loved authors, with her 30-year career also including work as a playwright, short story writer and columnist. Her 16 novels and 4 short story collections sold 42 million copies worldwide and include Circle of Friends and Tara Road. She died in July 2012 after a short illness.

Dolly's Mother was written especially for R4 and was first broadcast in 1992.

Written by Maeve Binchy
Read by Stella McCusker
Produced by Eoin O'Callaghan.


MON 23:00 Mastertapes (b01pbq46)
Series 1

The Zombies (the B-Side)

John Wilson concludes 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 7, the B-side. Having discussed the making of the Zombies' seminal 1968 album, "Odessey & Oracle" (in the A-side of the programme, broadcast on Tuesday 11th December and available online), Rod Argent, Chris White and Colin Blunstone responds to questions from the audience and perform live versions of some of the songs from the album, still held in such high regard.

Producer: Paul Kobrak.


MON 23:30 Today in Parliament (b01pbq48)
The Labour leader, Ed Miliband, accuses the Conservatives of being in danger of "sleepwalking" the UK towards leaving the European Union.
But the Prime Minister, David Cameron, insists he wants Britain to stay in the European Union, despite pressure from his own side for a referendum on the UK's membership.
The House of Lords also debates recent events in Europe.
The Home Secretary, Theresa May, faces questions from MPs and Peers about the Government's national security strategy.
And peers call for events in 2015 to commemorate the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta.
Susan Hulme and team report on today's events in Parliament.



TUESDAY 18 DECEMBER 2012

TUE 00:00 Midnight News (b01p9cyk)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.


TUE 00:30 Book of the Week (b01p9k16)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Monday]


TUE 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b01p9cym)
The latest shipping forecast.


TUE 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b01p9cyp)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.


TUE 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b01p9cyr)
The latest shipping forecast.


TUE 05:30 News Briefing (b01p9cyt)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.


TUE 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b01p9k18)
A short reflection and prayer.with Bishop Donal McKeown, Auxiliary Bishop of Down and Connor.


TUE 05:45 Farming Today (b01p9k1b)
An Oxfordshire - based hunt have been fined for hunting foxes illegally. The RSPCA says this case demonstrates that nobody is exempt from the law of the land, but the Countryside Alliance claims that hunting laws are pointless and confusing.

As winter lambing begins the threat of the Schmallenberg virus looms large. One pedigree sheep breeder tells Anna Hill that government should be doing more to help affected farmers.

And as EU fishing talks get underway in Brussels, Farming Today hears fishermen's concerns that there may be cuts to the number of days they can spend at sea.

Presenter Anna Hill. Producer Ruth Sanderson.


TUE 06:00 Today (b01p9ks6)
Morning news and current affairs with Evan Davis and Justin Webb. Including Sports Desk; Yesterday in Parliament; Weather; Thought for the Day.


TUE 09:00 The Life Scientific (b01p9ks8)
John Gurdon

Sir John Gurdon talks to Jim al-Khalili about how coming bottom of the class in science was no barrier to winning this year's Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine. We're familiar with Dolly the Sheep but many people find the idea of cloning humans rather disturbing. It seems to cut to the core of who we are; but, scientifically speaking, we are getting closer to a time when cloning people might be possible. John Gurdon gives it fifty years. After a famously bad school report for science, he won the Nobel Prize for cloning a frog, decades before Dolly the Sheep. He talks to Jim al-Khalili about his pioneering work on cloning and where it all might lead.


TUE 09:30 One to One (b01p9ksb)
Olivia O'Leary with Mick Fitzgerald

For these two programmes of the One to One interview series, Olivia O'Leary talks to people, who have reached the peak of their profession, about growing older.

This week she meets one of the greatest ever jump-jockeys, Mick Fitzgerald. He was forced to retire in 2008 after a very serious fall in the Grand National.

Producer: Karen Gregor.


TUE 09:45 Book of the Week (b01p9ksd)
Shakespeare's Local - Six Centuries of History Seen Through One Extraordinary Pub

Episode 2

Tony Robinson reads Pete Brown's history of pubs as seen through the story of one remarkable London inn, the George in Southwark, said to be the one-time local of Chaucer, Dickens and Shakespeare.

The George Inn is one of the few remaining galleried coaching inns in Britain, and lies a few minutes' walk from the Thames. 'Shakespeare's Local' takes us on a literary pub crawl through the history of this pub, from its regulars - the watermen, merchants, actors, craftsmen, writers and coachdrivers - as well as the many incarnations of the pub itself - from lawless Southwark tavern to coaching inn, theatre pub to Victorian drinking den, unfashionable boozer to tourist attraction.

Today: along with neighbouring Southwark Inn, the Tabard, the George enters literary history with the publication of Chaucer's 'Canterbury Tales'.

Reader: Tony Robinson is best known for his role as Baldrick in the Blackadder series. He's also presented Channel 4's 'Time Team' and written numerous books for children.
Author: Pete Brown , the 'Beer drinkers' Bill Bryson' (TLS), was named Beer Writer of the Year by the British Guild of Beer Writers, and is the author of three other books on pubs and brewing.
Producer: Justine Willett.


TUE 10:00 Woman's Hour (b01p9ksg)
Sheridan Smith; Meow Meow; Alcohol and teenagers

Meow Meow in cabaret, Sheridan Smith on her new screen role, alcohol and teenagers - how to negotiate the party season, Ann McKechin MP on the Women in the Workplace Parliamentary Inquiry. Presented by Jane Garvey.


TUE 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b01pc3h2)
Modesty Blaise - A Taste for Death

Episode 2

Sir Gerald Tarrant, Head of a secret British agency, has heard from his friend, Dr Aaronson, that there's trouble at an archaeological dig in the Sahara. But when Sir Gerald and Modesty go to meet Dr Aaronson they find his lifeless body at the bottom of the stairs. Modesty's side-kick, Willie Garvin, meanwhile, has returned from South America with a blind Canadian girl called Dinah, whom he rescued from being kidnapped. Now, it seems that these two threads are connected. In this second episode, Dinah reveals her special skill, a talent that explains why the bad guys were after her. Modesty and Willie, meanwhile, get a lead from Paris and decide to follow it up. They leave Dinah and Steve at the cottage, with specially rigged steel screens over the windows to keep them safe. But is it enough to keep at bay Delicata, a villain of inhuman strength? Adapted by Stef Penney from the novel by Peter O'Donnell.

With an original score by Goldfrapp's Will Gregory, arranged by Ian Gardiner

Produced and Directed by Kate McAll.


TUE 11:00 Saving Species (b01pcsmf)
Series 3

Wildlife Art / Wildlife Gardening Forum

This week Brett looks at the increasing alliance between the arts and conservation. We hear from 2 artists, one a painter and one a photographer who are using their talents to help raise awareness about highly endangered species. Professor Tim Birkhead tells Brett about a growing movement - New Networks for Nature - which brings many different artists and scientists together to inspire each other. Sarah Pitt brings a report on wildlife gardening, with suggestions for wildlife friendly Christmas presents.

Also in the programme - News from around the world with our regular news reporter, Kelvin Boot. And we'll update you on the activities of the Open University's iSpot.

Presenter: Brett Westwood
Producer: Mary Colwell.


TUE 11:30 Riot Grrrls (b01p9l1l)
For many young women coming of age in the nineties and beyond, the music of the Riot Grrrl movement was tremendously influential. It had a riotous exuberance, with bands like Bikini Kill, Bratmobile and Huggy Bear encouraging young women to stand up and shout out against a culture that they felt had turned a deaf ear to the voices of young women.

In this noisy exploration of the movement's music and politics we hear from the women who were labelled riot grrrls, music journalists and the young women who still feel their legacy today.

Featuring contributions from Molly Neuman (Bratmobile), Delia Sparrow (Mambo Taxi), Liz Naylor (Catcall Records), cultural critic Bidisha, the singer Emmy the Great and the writers Sara Marcus and Amy Raphael.

Produced by Eleanor McDowall
A Falling Tree Production for BBC Radio 4.


TUE 12:00 You and Yours (b01p9l1n)
Call You and Yours: more money for grassroots sports

On Call You &Yours - grassroots sport. What will a £493 million investment in it mean for you?

Sport England have just announced that it is to invest 493 million pounds over four-years to keep the inspiration of London 2012 alive and help fulfil Lord Coe's pledge that the Games would get more people - young and old, women and men - playing sport.

They say that 15.5 million people aged 16 and over are now playing sport every week. That's 750,000 more than a year ago and 1.57 million more than when London won the Olympic and Paralympic bid, with large increases in Olympic sports such as cycling and sailing.

The strongest growth has been among women, with an increase of more than half a million in the past year helping to cut the gender gap in sport. Over half a million women have taken to their bikes, playing netball, running, swimming and going to the gym in the past year helping to cut the gender gap in sport.

Are you one of those people who's been inspired by the Olympics to take up a sport? If so what kind of sport do you do now? Or would you like to do more sport but can't afford to do it, or perhaps you don't have facilities nearby? If you're involved with one of the small clubs who hope to benefit from this money, what do you hope to achieve with it?

03700 100 444 is the phone number to call or you can e-mail via the Radio 4 website or text us on 84844. Join me at four minutes past twelve.

Presenter: Julian Worricker
Producer: Maire Devine.


TUE 12:57 Weather (b01p9cyw)
The latest weather forecast.


TUE 13:00 World at One (b01p9l1q)
National and international news with Martha Kearney. Listeners can share their views via email: wato@bbc.co.uk or on twitter: #wato.


TUE 13:45 Grimm Thoughts (b01pc2td)
Episode 2

When the Grimm brothers first published their Children's and Household Tales in 1812, in a scholarly effort to collate a national identity of the people, it was the beginning of an obsessive project of two intricately interwoven lifetimes.

To mark the bicentenary of the first edition, writer and mythographer Marina Warner explores the many compelling and often controversial aspects of the tales in a 10-part series, revealing new insights into the stories we think we know so well, and introducing us to the charms and challenges of those that we don't.

Alongside beautifully narrated extracts from the tales themselves, renowned academics and artists who work closely with the Grimm's rich heritage add to our understanding of these deceptively complex stories.

In the second episode, Marina traces the tales right back to their ancient origins, hoping to answer the question of why we find parallels with the Grimms' stories in texts across cultures throughout time. Her search centres on Cinderella as she visits the tale's oldest known incarnation - an ancient Egyptian manuscript that tells the rags-to-riches story of the 'rosy-cheeked' Rhodopis and was a (perhaps fittingly) precious find, recovered from a rubbish dump.

Producer: Kevin Dawson
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4.


TUE 14:00 The Archers (b01pbq3w)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Monday]


TUE 14:15 Drama (b01p9l1s)
Rumpole

Episode 1

By John Mortimer.
Adapted for radio by Richard Stoneman.

Benedict Cumberbatch and Timothy West star as the younger and elder Rumpole in this new story.

In 1964, Rumpole returns to Oxford, where he studied law, to defend a young gardener, Peter Vernon, accused of blackmailing the Master of St Joseph's College, Sir Michael Tuffnell.

Peter and Sir Michael had enjoyed a friendship that provoked rumours of homosexuality - still illegal in those days. Sir Michael has gone to the police alleging Peter was about to accuse him publicly of sodomy. Peter denies the charge and, indeed, is engaged to be married to his solicitor - a young woman by the name of Sue Galton. Rumpole sees through a plot to depose the Master and, sensing Peter's underlying honesty, he defends his client. But, in doing so, he's forced to re-assess the choices he's made in his career and his marriage to She Who Must Be Obeyed.

Director: Marilyn Imrie
A Catherine Bailey production for BBC Radio 4.


TUE 15:00 The Kitchen Cabinet (b01p9l1v)
Series 3

Birmingham

This week Jay Rayner and The Kitchen Cabinet team are with food-enthusiasts in Birmingham, with Angela Hartnett, Annie Gray, Henry Dimbleby and Angela Malik on the panel.

Food Consultant: Anna Colquhoun.

Produced by Robert Abel and Peggy Sutton.
A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4.


TUE 15:30 The Library Returns (b01h75xw)
The public outcry over the predicted closure of libraries masks a subtler story. Across Europe, the USA and Britain libraries are being re-invented. They are being given a much needed architectural facelift and a profound review of services in order to guarantee their survival into the 21st century.

Jonathan Glancey presents this programme which visits the great game-changing library in Seattle, Europe's 'most modern' library in Deft, a library in Stuttgart which is reviving a whole neighbourhood, Piers Gough's 'super library' for Canada Water in London's Docklands and, of course, the huge new library at the centre of Birmingham which will open next year as the largest public cultural space in Europe.

He considers what these libraries are doing to secure their place in the future - what they can offer in terms of inspiring architecture, engagement with the communities they serve and democratic access to the digital world.

Producer: Susan Marling
A Just Radio Production for BBC Radio 4.


TUE 16:00 Word of Mouth (b01p9l1x)
Under the Influence

Michael Rosen returns for a new series with an investigation into the effects of alcohol on speech and voice quality. Michael talks to psychologists at the University of Liverpool and listens to some of the controlled experiments they're carrying out with undergraduates both sober and intoxicated. He looks at research into the perfect pub song, and beer writer Pete Brown talks about the quintessential hum of pub chat. And we visit the Royal College of Music to discuss voice care and the kinds of food and drink professional singers have to avoid in order to prolong their careers.

Producer: Chris Ledgard.


TUE 16:30 Great Lives (b01p9l1z)
Series 29

Prince Alamayu

A royal prince rescued from a savage fate by the British - or a child prisoner of war? Poet Lemn Sissay joins Matthew Parris to discuss the life of Queen Victoria's favourite, the Abyssinian Prince Alamayu, and finds many surprising parallels with his own.

Writer Elizabeth Laird joins the debate.

Lemn Sissay MBE is a poet, playwright and performer of Ethiopian heritage who was 'raised by Wigan Social Services': 'the guilty secret of an innocent woman and a dead man'. Saved from a loveless childhood by a passion for words, Lemn's work has been inspired by the consequences of his early life and the search for his family.

Prince Alamayu was uprooted from his home after the British defeated his father in the Abyssinian Expedition of 1868. Taken to England as an orphaned seven year old, speaking no English, he was befriended by the Queen and became an unwilling national celebrity. Alamayu was refused permission to return home despite the pleas of his grandmother. He died at the age of eighteen while staying with a friend in Leeds, of pleurisy.

Elizabeth Laird writes fiction for children and young adults, set in places around the world where she has lived and worked, including Ethiopia. Her novel 'The Prince Who Walked with Lions' is based on the life of Prince Alamayu.

In this moving and evocative programme Lemn's personal experiences of loneliness as a solitary black child in a white community, longing for a real family, shine a light on the tragic life of a young prince whose heritage he shares.

Reader...Liza Sadovy.

Produced by Mary Ward-Lowery

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2012.


TUE 17:00 PM (b01p9l21)
Full coverage and analysis of the day's news with Eddie Mair. Includes Weather.


TUE 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b01p9cyy)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


TUE 18:30 Bleak Expectations (b01p9l4v)
Series 5

A Terrifying Life Made Even Scarier a Bit Some More

A new and terrible danger threatens Victorian Britain as Harry Biscuit becomes possessed by the evil Pen of Penrith, which turns his heart to inky black.

Pip and Gently Benevolent join forces to take on this new, cruel and cake-obsessed nemesis and his army of robot swans. They also turn out to share a love of antiquing in the Cotswolds.

Mark Evans's epic Victorian comedy in the style of Charles Dickens.

Sir Philip ..... Richard Johnson
Young Pip Bin ..... Tom Allen
Gently Benevolent ..... Anthony Head
Harry Biscuit ..... James Bachman
Servewell ...... James Bachman
Clampvulture ..... Geoffrey Whitehead
Ripely ..... Sarah Hadland
Pippa ..... Susy Kane
Lily ...... Sarah Hadland
Hector the Holy Horse ...... Mark Evans

Producer: Gareth Edwards

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2012.


TUE 19:00 The Archers (b01p9l4x)
Jim complains to Jazzer about the appalling editing job on his Borsetshire Life article about Mike. Jazzer consoles Jim with a pint, and Kenton helpfully suggests that no one reads the magazine anyway.

Neil's kicking himself for not spotting Ed's money problems - Ed just needs a bit of finance training. Neil will to talk to Ruth - carefully, considering how proud Ed is.

Ed and Emma are all set to move into Ambridge View and Susan and Neil look forward to Christmas. Poor Tracy won't be at the Loxley Barratt carol concert today after an incident in her work there where she reportedly handled a child. Neil says Tracy can be her own worst enemy.

Jill's delighted to see Elizabeth so enthusiastic as they discuss her wedding and conference plans. Elizabeth invites Jill over to tea on Thursday, so the kids can tell her about their end of term festivities. Jill reveals her plans for her own alternative desserts and home-made ice cream.

Bond-like Kenton has new missions for Jill, which they discuss as part of his Operation Misrule. He gives Jill an important list, featuring blindfolds, bells and a pig's bladder. Kenton's feeling inventive and tells Jill to hang on to her hat.


TUE 19:15 Front Row (b01p9l4z)
Salman Rushdie, Victoria Wood, Christmas Jukebox Jury

With Mark Lawson

Salman Rushdie has written his first ever screenplay, an adaptation of his own Booker Prize-winning novel Midnight's Children. He reflects on condensing the family saga which follows India from Colonialism to Partition, about filming in Sri Lanka, and about the experience of writing his memoir, Joseph Anton.

Victoria Wood discusses her TV drama Loving Miss Hatto, in which Francesca Annis and Alfred Molina play real-life concert pianist Joyce Hatto, who died in 2006, and her husband Barrington Coupe. He caused a storm when he hoodwinked the classical music world by releasing recordings by other pianists under his wife's name.

It's time for Front Row's Christmas Jukebox: music writers David Hepworth and Rosie Swash join Mark for their annual assessment of the merits of a host of Christmas singles.

Producer Claire Bartleet.


TUE 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b01pc3h2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:45 today]


TUE 20:00 Europe Moves East (b01p9l5f)
Allan Little looks at the changing dynamic of the European Union

The Europe that Britain joined forty years ago was a small and loose association of nations on the western edge of the continent. Germany was still divided, with its capital in the sleepy town of Bonn near the Belgian border. France - with its long-standing commitment to the sovereignty of nation states - was the driving force of the European project.

But the last decade has seen a profound and irreversible shift. Europe's centre of gravity has moved dramatically east. After reunification in 1990, a much more powerful Germany has emerged. The countries of the old Eastern bloc look to Berlin for leadership. Their experience of Soviet occupation and communist dictatorship has committed them to building a much stronger and more tightly integrated Europe, one that will help secure their young and still vulnerable democracies. "I want the European Union to become a superpower," the Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski tells the programme. This changing dynamic is the subtle, hidden undertow to the continuing tensions over the Euro.

Forty years ago the European project was being shaped by those who had survived the Second World War on the Western Front. Now, more and more, it is being driven by those who lived through the brutality and horror of the Eastern Front, and who endured forty years of communist oppression.

Power in Europe has shifted, from the old and familiar Paris-Bonn relationship to the new and much more dynamic Berlin-Warsaw. This is the new Europe. It is one in which France - once the unchallenged leading voice - is increasingly marginalised. And it is one in which Britain seems, increasingly, reluctant to stay part of.

Producer: Jane Beresford.


TUE 20:40 In Touch (b01p9l5h)
Matt Davies from RNIB tells Peter White about the concerns the charity has about the new regulations on Personal Independence Payments, (PIPS) which will replace the benefit Disability Living Allowance.
Visually impaired people are likely to lose out in the assessment process, although the details have not yet been fully announced.
Marion Ripley is the Director of ClearVision, a tactile lending book library, and is retiring after more than 20 years.
She and Clearvisionfounder Kath Gastor, talk about the work they have been doing and of their ideas for the future of ClearVision.


TUE 21:00 All in the Mind (b01pbqkh)
Mind mindedness; communicating risk; dyslexia

New research shows that reading a baby's mind aids its development. Claudia Hammond reports on a new technique which helps mothers connect with their infants. Known as mind mindedness this method cuts across social groups and is being used successfully to help women with serious mental illness bond with their babies.

And should people with mental illness be told the long term effects of their drugs? One listener thinks this is a message that should be handled with care. Plus, how a poem written twenty years ago by a twelve year old dyslexic boy has inspired a new art science collaboration.


TUE 21:30 The Life Scientific (b01p9ks8)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


TUE 21:58 Weather (b01p9cz0)
The latest weather forecast.


TUE 22:00 The World Tonight (b01pbqkk)
The latest on Andrew Mitchell & 'plebgate'.

Five female Pakistani polio vaccination workers shot dead, following Taliban threats.

As satellites Ebb & Flow end their mission, what did they teach us about the moon?

With Ritula Shah.


TUE 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b01pbqkm)
Maeve Binchy Short Stories

Home Coming

In tribute to Maeve Binchy who died earlier this year, a selection of her short stories taken from Radio 4's Archive. In today's story, the Brennans run Quentin's restaurant in Dublin for the owner, who lives abroad. But what will happen when he suddenly pays a visit?

Maeve Binchy was one of Ireland's most-loved authors, with her 30-year career also including work as a playwright, short story writer and columnist. Her 16 novels and 4 short story collections sold 42 million copies worldwide and include Circle of Friends and Tara Road. She died in July 2012 after a short illness.

Homecoming was written especially for R4 and was first broadcast in 2001.

Written by Maeve Binchy
Read by Sean Campion
Produced by Heather Brennon.


TUE 23:00 The Infinite Monkey Cage (b01pbq3p)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:30 on Monday]


TUE 23:30 Today in Parliament (b01pbqkp)
Sean Curran reports as Kenneth Clarke defends controversial plans to hold some civil cases in secret; peers want the public to have redress against aggressive bailiffs; and MPs hear that the UK Border Agency will take years to turn round.

Editor : Peter Mulligan.



WEDNESDAY 19 DECEMBER 2012

WED 00:00 Midnight News (b01p9czx)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.


WED 00:30 Book of the Week (b01p9ksd)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Tuesday]


WED 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b01p9czz)
The latest shipping forecast.


WED 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b01p9d01)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.


WED 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b01p9d03)
The latest shipping forecast.


WED 05:30 News Briefing (b01p9d05)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.


WED 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b01pjj0f)
A short reflection and prayer.with Bishop Donal McKeown, Auxiliary Bishop of Down and Connor.


WED 05:45 Farming Today (b01pbvxr)
The Government's chief vet warns that Schmallenberg disease could be more widespread than expected. The National Sheep Association says a vaccine is needed soon to avoid more misery on farms.

When should farmers retire? The European Council for Young Farmers tells Farming Today that older farmers are clinging on to family farms for too long, and that money should be set aside to help them retire earlier.

Presenter Anna Hill. Producer Ruth Sanderson.


WED 06:00 Today (b01pbvxt)
Morning news and current affairs with Sarah Montague and Justin Webb. Including Sports Desk; Yesterday in Parliament; Weather; Thought for the Day.


WED 09:00 Midweek (b01pbvxw)
Maddy Prior, Andy Watts, Simon Callow, Eddie Johnson, John Lang

Maddy Prior MBE is one of the founding members of Steelye Span - the band credited with bringing folk music into the electronic age and making it commercially successful. Andy Watts is musical director of the Carnival Band which has been performing Christmas carols with Maddy every year for 25 years. Their repertoire features obscure and ancient versions of traditional carols and a different take on more familiar material. 'The Best of Maddy Prior and The Carnival Band - A Christmas Caper'' is released on Park Records

Simon Callow CBE is an actor, director and writer who is currently appearing in his one-man show, Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol. A new edition of his biography of Charles Laughton is published this month to mark 50 years since Laughton's death. Simon has a strong association with the work of Charles Dickens and has played the writer on stage, film and television. A Christmas Carol is at the Arts Theatre, London.

Eddie Johnson is a former publican and the author of Tales From The Two Puddings, a memoir about his life and career. In 1962 he became licensee of the notorious Two Puddings pub in Stratford, East London. Known as one of London's busiest and most fashionable pubs, it attracted a cast of disparate characters including actors, writers, singers, musicians and infamous gangsters. 'Tales From The Two Puddings' is published by Fifty First State Press. An exhibition of photographs from the book will be on display at the Bishopsgate Institute, London from January.

John Lang is a British seafarer who has served both the merchant service and the Royal Navy. In a naval career spanning 33 years he commanded two submarines and a frigate. He retired from the Navy with the rank of Rear Admiral in 1995 and was appointed head of the UK's Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) two years later. His book 'Titanic - a fresh look at the evidence by a former Chief Inspector of Marine Accidents' is published by Seafarer books.

Producer: Paula McGinley.


WED 09:45 Book of the Week (b01pbvxy)
Shakespeare's Local - Six Centuries of History Seen Through One Extraordinary Pub

Episode 3

Tony Robinson reads Pete Brown's history of British pubs as seen through the story of one remarkable London inn, the George in Southwark, said to be the one-time local of Chaucer, Dickens and Shakespeare.

The George Inn is one of the few remaining galleried coaching inns, and lies a few minutes' walk from the Thames. 'Shakespeare's Local' takes us on a literary pub crawl through the history of this pub, from its regulars - the watermen, merchants, actors, craftsmen, writers and coachdrivers - as well as the many incarnations of the pub itself - from lawless Southwark tavern to coaching inn, theatre pub to Victorian drinking den, unfashionable boozer to tourist attraction.

Today: Shakespeare's inn-yard theatres take off in Southwark's taverns, against stiff competition from the far less lofty pursuits of bear-baiting and cockfighting.

Reader: Tony Robinson is best known for his role as Baldrick in the Blackadder series. He's also presented Channel 4's 'Time Team' and written numerous books for children.
Author: Pete Brown , the 'Beer drinkers' Bill Bryson' (TLS), was named Beer Writer of the Year by the British Guild of Beer Writers, and is the author of three other books on pubs and brewing.
Producer: Justine Willett.


WED 10:00 Woman's Hour (b01pbvy0)
Caroline Charles, Chantal Coady, Kate Nash

Caroline Charles discusses 50 years in fashion with Jenni Murray. Cook the Perfect chocolate truffle with Chantal Coady. Journalist Tania Branigan reports on life for women in North Korea. Diabulimia is an eating disorder where type 1 diabetics omit or manipulate their insulin in order to lose weight. Campaigners are trying to get it recognised as a specific medical condition. We hear from Jacqueline Allan and Tayler Hackett. And Kate Nash's rock and roll school for girls.


WED 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b01pc2kr)
Modesty Blaise - A Taste for Death

Episode 3

Modesty and Willie have been hoodwinked into going to Paris, leaving Dinah vulnerable at the cottage. Now she's been abducted by Delicata and taken to the desert. He plans to use her special powers to help him locate something very valuable. Knowing that Dinah's life is in terrible danger, Modesty and the gang hitch a ride with Skeet Lowry, pilot of the archaeological dig's supply plane. But are they walking into a trap? Adapted from the novel by Peter O'Donnell by Stef Penney.

With an original score by Goldfrapp's Will Gregory, arranged by Ian Gardiner

Produced and Directed by Kate McAll

Interesting Modesty fact:
She once ran a criminal gang called the Network.


WED 11:00 Train Hopping in the USA (b01p71wl)
"The last red blooded American adventure out there" - the words of a man who doesn't need to ride the rails, but does it for excitement.

Train hopping has a long tradition in America - from Jack London to the 1930s, when the unemployed took to the rails to find work. Despite increased security since 9/11, train hopping is far from a forgotten way of travelling in the USA - but the demographics are new.

Today the vast majority are illegal workers, mainly Hispanic, who seek to cross the border in to the States, and join legal migrants following the seasonal work - from lumber cutting in the north, to the melon fields of California. They risk entanglement with border guards and heavy machinery, even hanging in wire baskets under the units to avoid detection. Others take that risk voluntarily - seeking fun and adventure - getting their information from handbooks, conventions and websites giving safety tips and eulogising the thrill to be had taking to the rails. Finally, there are the hobos - people who choose to spend their lives on the road, and rails - welcomed annually as romantic heroes in Britt, Iowa, at the Hobo Festival.

Peter Bowes hears from the train hoppers of the 21st century - hair-raising tales from illegal migrants from Honduras and El Salvador; the engine drivers who takes two mile long freight trains across the remotest wildernesses in America, spotting 'jumpers' alongside the desert tracks; and those who prefer the excitement of an open box car to the safety of the wheel - preferring to lie on top of a lumber car and watch a starry sky as the wheels thunder below. Romance and danger - desperation and fear - the real world of "Train Hopping In The USA" today.

Producer: Sara Jane Hall.


WED 11:30 A Charles Paris Mystery (b01pc2kt)
An Amateur Corpse

Episode 3

Charles wants to prove that his old friend Hugo didn't kill his wife, but all the signs are pointing to Hugo's guilt.

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
Hugo ..... Paul Ritter
Holly ..... Susie Ridell
Detective ..... Don Gilet
Paramedic ...... Joe Sims

Director: Sally Avens

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2012.


WED 12:00 You and Yours (b01pc2q3)
Delivery charges in Scotland, rising bus fares and servicemen barred from pubs

Online shopping can be good value as well as convenient, but for people living in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland there are some hidden costs. Should it be made illegal to bar serving soldiers, sailors and airmen from pubs and clubs? What will be the benefits of ultra-fast broadband to businesses and schools? Travelling by bus is getting more and more expensive, but what is driving up the cost of bus fares, and is there any chance of prices falling?

Producer: Jonathan Hallewell
Presenter: Winifred Robinson.


WED 12:57 Weather (b01p9d07)
The latest weather forecast.


WED 13:00 World at One (b01pc2q5)
National and international news with Edward Stourton. Listeners can share their views via email: wato@bbc.co.uk or on twitter: #wato.


WED 13:45 Grimm Thoughts (b01pc2q7)
Episode 3

When the Grimm brothers first published their Children's and Household Tales in 1812, in a scholarly effort to collate a national identity of the people, it was the beginning of an obsessive project of two intricately interwoven lifetimes.

To mark the bicentenary of the first edition, writer and mythographer Marina Warner explores the many compelling and often controversial aspects of the tales in a 10-part series, revealing new insights into the stories we think we know so well, and introducing us to the charms and challenges of those that we don't.

Alongside beautifully narrated extracts from the tales themselves, renowned academics and artists who work closely with the Grimm's rich heritage add to our understanding of these deceptively complex stories.

In the third episode we enter the magical worlds of the fairy tale, immersing ourselves in the spellbound transformations, landscapes and objects that have charmed generations. When magic rubs against the grain of reality and the impossible is naturalised, the stories' unique character comes alive.

Producer: Kevin Dawson
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4.


WED 14:00 The Archers (b01p9l4x)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Tuesday]


WED 14:15 Drama (b01pc33r)
My Boy

A lonely young woman and an isolated teenager share the secret of her miracle baby.

Lisa is being rehoused, providing a fresh start for her and the baby she is expecting. She makes friends with Jordan, a teenage neighbour who cares for his depressed father. Lisa is under social work supervision and Claire, her worker, becomes concerned about her ability to deal with motherhood. When Jordan is intimidated by local kids, Lisa threatens the bullies and the police are called. Lisa barricades herself in her flat and waits for her baby, the angel she believes will save her from the real world.

My Boy is an uplifting new play by theatre writer Laura Lomas, exploring a modern miracle. It has been developed over nine months with lead actress Christine Bottomley, and recorded with documentary techniques, reflecting the contemporary story and characters.

Laura Lomas was one of six writers selected for the Paines Plough / Channel 4 Future Perfect scheme in 2009. She has been produced by Paines Plough, Nottingham Playhouse, and Hampstead and New Perspectives theatre companies. Her radio plays include Lucy Island (BBC Radio3, The Wire) and Siren (BBC Radio3, The Verb).

Writer: Laura Lomas
Produced and directed by Polly Thomas
Sound design: Eloise Whitmore
A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4.


WED 15:00 Money Box Live (b01pc37x)
Child Benefit

The rules about who can claim child benefit are changing. Do you claim the allowance and could you get caught by the new tax charge? Call 03700 100 444 from 1pm on Wednesday or email moneybox@bbc.co.uk with your questions.

Around a million letters have been sent out by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) warning people that their entitlement to child benefit could be reduced or lost.

The High Income Child Benefit Charge starts on 7 January 2013, for those with an income above £50,000. If you are affected you will need to decide whether to keep receiving the benefit and pay the tax charge through self- assessment, or to stop claiming.

If you have a question about the new system or making a decision about your claim you can call or e-mail Wednesday's programme.

How can you find out if you are affected?

Which income do you need to declare and what happens if your finances increase or decrease?

Where do you stand if your personal circumstances change or your partner moves in or out?

What can you do to keep your benefit?

If you don't claim child benefit will your right to other benefits and your state pension be damaged?

Perhaps you need advice about paying the charge through a self-assessment form?

Whatever your question, Paul Lewis and guests will be ready to help. Paul will be joined by:

Lin Homer, Chief Executive and Permanent Secretary, HMRC
Anita Monteith, Technical Manager, Tax Faculty, ICAEW
Phil Agulnik Director of Entitledto, suppliers of online benefit calculators

You can email your question to moneybox@bbc.co.uk. Or the number to call is 03 700 100 444 - lines are open between 1pm and 3.30pm on Wednesday. Standard geographic charges apply. Calls from mobiles may be higher.


WED 15:30 All in the Mind (b01pbqkh)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 on Tuesday]


WED 16:00 Thinking Allowed (b01pc37z)
Female jockeys; military migrants

Military Migrants and the British Army. From Fiji to Ghana, the British military recruits soldiers to fight Britain's wars. Since 1998 overseas recruitment has been stepped up in response to labour shortages and diversity programmes. The sociologist, Vron Ware, talks to Laurie Taylor about her new book 'Military Migrants: Fighting for Your Country'. She argues that this new category of soldier inhabits a contradictory situation - on the one hand, praised as a 'hero' but on the other, stigmatised as an 'immigrant' and 'foreigner'. They're joined by the sociologist, Les Back. Also, Deborah Butler discusses her research on trainee female jockeys in the horse racing world.

Producer: Jayne Egerton.


WED 16:30 The Media Show (b01pc3bt)
Pollard Review

Analysis and reaction to the Pollard Review in to the management of the Newsnight investigation into Jimmy Savile and the subsequent Editor's Blog. Steve Hewlett is joined by;
JOHN LLOYD Director of Journalism at Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism and contributing Editor of the Financial Times. TIM SUTER Founding Managing Director at Perspective Associates provide regulatory and policy advice to some of the leading media and telecommunications clients in the UK and abroad and former Partner at Ofcom (Office of Communications), SIAN KEVILL Former Editor of Newsnight and Director of Make World
LIS HOWELLS Director of Broadcasting, Department of Journalism, City University and Alan Yentob the BBC's Creative Director.

Producer Beverley Purcell.


WED 17:00 PM (b01pc3bw)
Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.


WED 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b01p9d09)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


WED 18:30 Mark Steel's in Town (b01pc3by)
Series 4

Ottery St Mary

Comedian Mark Steel returns with a new series, looking under the surface of some of the UK's more distinctive towns to shed some light on the people, history, rivalries, slang, traditions, and eccentricities that makes them unique.

Creating a bespoke stand-up set for each town, Mark performs the show in front of a local audience.

As well as examining the less visited areas of Britain, Mark uncovers stories and experiences that resonate with us all as we recognise the quirkiness of the British way of life and the rich tapestry of remarkable events and people who have shaped where we live.

During this 4th series of 'Mark Steel's In Town', Mark will visit Tobermory, Whitehaven, Handsworth, Ottery St Mary, Corby, and Chipping Norton.

This week, Mark visits Ottery St Mary in Devon to discuss Coleridge's embarrassing childhood, pixies, and what happens when you put five thousand people in a square with a lit tar barrel. From December 2012.

Additional material by Pete Sinclair.
Produced by Sam Bryant.


WED 19:00 The Archers (b01pc3c0)
Lilian and Paul are in Cheltenham, where Lilian tries on a selection of dresses as a treat from Paul. She chooses a gorgeous purple one, saying she'll think of Paul every time she wears it. Over a romantic lunch, they agree to make the most of today. But Matt throws Lilian's plans by calling and offering to pick her up from Hollerton station. To get around this, Paul drives Lilian to Felpersham (the stop before). Lilian thanks considerate Paul and rewards him with a present of cufflinks that she knew he liked.

Mike and Vicky are also out shopping in Cheltenham. Vicky spotted a lovely mobile and looked at christening robes. It the restaurant Vicky sneaks a peak at her purchases. She can't wait to get it all into the nursery - the only thing missing now is the baby.

Proud Vicky has bought multiple copies of Borsetshire Life - with Mike's feature - to send to friends. As they get on to the train they spot Lilian, who gets flustered. Matt's ready to meet Lilian at Hollerton and offers Mike and Vicky a lift home. Lilian squirms as Matt gets a look at her dress. He says she'll have to wear it on Christmas day.


WED 19:15 Front Row (b01pc3c2)
Dustin Hoffman's Quartet reviewed; singer Katy Carr; comedy DVDs

With Kirsty Lang.

Barry Norman reviews Dustin Hoffman's directorial debut, Quartet. The film is set in a home for retired opera singers and features Maggie Smith, Billy Connolly and Michael Gambon among the all-star cast.

Katy Carr is a singer, songwriter and aviator. She's half Polish and her album, Paszport, focuses on Polish stories from World War II, including a veteran who escaped from Auschwitz. She reflects on how she turns personal histories into songs.

The release of new DVDs by leading stand-up comedians has become a Christmas tradition. Stephen Armstrong offers his guide to the best of this year's stocking-fillers.

Many of today's newspapers feature a photograph of the Queen and the Cabinet, with the monarch flanked by politicians who are laughing, looking away or unprepared. Jeremy Selwyn, the photographer who took the memorable shot, discusses the art of the group photo.

According to a Mayan prophecy, the world will end on 21 December. Making good use of the remaining time, David Quantick has pulled together a selection of music for an apocalypse.

Producer Olivia Skinner.


WED 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b01pc2kr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:45 today]


WED 20:00 Unreliable Evidence (b01pcqkf)
Unfair Dismissal

Clive Anderson and guests discuss concerns that proposed government changes to employment law are nudging us towards a US-style 'fire at will' culture.

Business secretary Vince Cable says he plans to cut "red tape" in employment law in order to promote economic growth. But the proposals, which include a cut in how much workers can claim for unfair dismissal, have raised fears that workers' rights are being eroded.

With many recession-hit businesses looking for ways to downsize their workforces, and the government determined to simplify dismissal procedures, this programme asks if current employment law strikes the right balance between protecting job security and allowing employers the flexibility to adjust their staffing levels.

Leading lawyers representing the interests of employers and employees explain how current law works in the areas of dismissal and redundancy and argue about the need for further change.

Producer: Brian King
An Above the Title production for BBC Radio 4.


WED 20:45 Four Thought (b01pcqkh)
Series 3

Georgie Fienberg: Saying No to Pity

Georgie Fienberg believes that endless fundraising by overseas aid charities is not sustainable, and she argues that charities should want to close.

Georgie is Founder of Afrikids, a charity which supports poor children in Ghana. When she started the organisation she set a deadline for closing its UK fundraising arm, so that the organisation in Ghana would be sustainable and self-sufficient.

Four Thought is a series of talks which combine thought provoking ideas and engaging storytelling. Recorded live in front of an audience, speakers air their latest thinking on the trends, ideas, interests and passions that affect our culture and society.

Producer: Giles Edwards.


WED 21:00 For All Mankind (b01pcqkk)
What did the Apollo Moon missions ever do for us? To mark the fortieth anniversary of the last man on the Moon, science writer Chris Riley examines the difference this brief human adventure has made to all our lives.

In December 1972, astronaut Gene Cernan left the last footprint on the Moon. In that brief era of lunar exploration, only twelve men had walked on the Moon's surface but, forty years on, the legacy of those missions is still having an impact.

Chris Riley talks to astronauts, philosophers and entrepreneurs about the enduring impact of Apollo. By pushing technology to its limits, the missions showed us what we could achieve as a species. In the longer term, they accelerated the development of modern electronics, inspired the environmental movement and even helped thaw Cold War relations.

Tens of thousands of schoolchildren became scientists and engineers as a result of Apollo. The missions to the Moon made the Earth a very different place.

Producer: Richard Hollingham.
A Boffin Media production for Radio 4.


WED 21:30 Midweek (b01pbvxw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


WED 21:58 Weather (b01p9d0c)
The latest weather forecast.


WED 22:00 The World Tonight (b01pcqkm)
The deputy head of BBC News, Stephen Mitchell, has resigned - and three other senior members of staff are being moved to different jobs - after highly critical reports on how Newsnight shelved an investigation into Jimmy Savile, and then broadcast one which led to Lord McAlpine being wrongly implicated in allegations of sexual abuse. An independent review - by a former head of Sky News - has concluded that Newsnight's decision to drop its Savile investigation was "seriously flawed", and BBC management was "completely incapable" of dealing with subsequent events. And the Home Secretary, Theresa May, has announced a new police investigation into the Hillsborough disaster - a move which she says may lead to criminal prosecutions. The High Court has also overturned the original inquest verdicts on the 96 Liverpool fans who died, of accidental death. Presented by Ritula Shah.


WED 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b01pcqkp)
Maeve Binchy Short Stories

The White Trolley

In tribute to Maeve Binchy who died earlier this year, a selection of her short stories taken from Radio 4's Archive. In today's story, Christmas goes awry when Sara brings home the wrong shopping.

Maeve Binchy was one of Ireland's most-loved authors, with her 30-year career also including work as a playwright, short story writer and columnist. Her 16 novels and 4 short story collections sold 42 million copies worldwide and include Circle of Friends and Tara Road. She died in July 2012 after a short illness.

The White Trolley, along with its counterpart story The Feast of Stephen, was written for the BBC and originally aired at Christmas in 1998.

Written by Maeve Binchy.

Read by Jenny Agutter.

Producer: Pam Fraser Solomon.


WED 23:00 Warhorses of Letters (b01pcqkr)
Series 2

Episode 4

It's the eve of Waterloo and our two heroes face the prospect of seeing each other face to face, if only it was not across a battlefield. And is Marengo's life at risk from another more immediate enemy?

The continuing romantic correspondence between two of history's most important horses: Napoleon's mount Marengo and the Duke of Wellington's own Copenhagen.

Marengo ..... Stephen Fry
Copenhagen ..... Daniel Rigby
Narrator ..... Tamsin Greig

Written by Robbie Hudson and Marie Phillips.

Producer: Gareth Edwards.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2012.


WED 23:15 Mission Improbable (b01pcqkt)
Series 1

Ice!

Adventure journalist Jane, long term singleton Lucy and zookeeper Amelia set off on another international adventure.

This time, Jane finds herself trying to beat that famous adventurer Marcus Wolfton across the arctic tundra in a bid to be the first and only journalist to record the voice of the last speaker of a dying language. Meanwhile Lucy finds herself trying to slow the team down so she can get up close and personal with the man himself, who's only a matter of hours behind. Amelia only has eyes for the polar bears she's hoping she'll get a chance to chat to.

During this ice cap caper, our heroes survive sub-zero temperatures, furious indigenous wildlife and a frantic game of cosmetic tennis before an encounter with an angry Inuit has them running for their lives. Will they survive? Will they beat Marcus Wolfton to the prize? Or will they dress up as nuns and make complete fools of themselves?

Cast:
Jane................Catriona Knox
Lucy................Lizzie Bates
Amelia.............Anna Emerson
Marcus............James Lance

Written by Anna Emerson, Lizzie Bates and Catriona Knox
Audio production by Matt Katz
Produced by Dave Lamb and Richie Webb
A Top Dog production for BBC Radio 4.


WED 23:30 Today in Parliament (b01pcqkw)
Ed Miliband attacks the Government's record on poverty, saying more "working people are turning to food banks".
But in animated exchanges, David Cameron says coalition tax changes are helping the worst-paid in society.
The Government announces that 3,800 British troops will be withdrawn from Afghanistan next year.
MPs debate the Government's Energy Bill for the first time. The Communities Secretary says English councils will see a cut in their spending power next year of 1.7%.
And the Prime Minister indicates that VAT on the Hillsborough charity single will be waived.
In the House of Lords there is criticism of the postponement of a debate on the Leveson report.
Rachel Byrne and team report on today's events in Parliament.



THURSDAY 20 DECEMBER 2012

THU 00:00 Midnight News (b01p9d16)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.


THU 00:30 Book of the Week (b01pbvxy)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Wednesday]


THU 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b01p9d18)
The latest shipping forecast.


THU 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b01p9d1b)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.


THU 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b01p9d1d)
The latest shipping forecast.


THU 05:30 News Briefing (b01p9d1g)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.


THU 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b01pvdcz)
A short reflection and prayer with Bishop Donal McKeown, Auxiliary Bishop of Down and Connor.


THU 05:45 Farming Today (b01pcs5b)
Farmers are receiving food handouts, as a charity tells us that rural poverty is on the rise. The Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution tells us that they have seen a huge increase in the number of farmers seeking help. We hear from a farmer who has had to contact the charity because times have got so tough.

There are calls for a ban on importing ash wood in an effort to prevent the spread of ash dieback disease. Barry Gardiner MP says that woodchip imports are too risky, while Dr Steve Woodward from Aberdeen University tells us a ban would be disproportionate.

And Sarah Swadling visits a Prime Stock show in Truro, where she finds out what judges look for in a prize winner.

Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced in Birmingham by Polly Procter.


THU 06:00 Today (b01pcs5d)
Morning news and current affairs with John Humphrys and James Naughtie. Including Sports Desk; Yesterday in Parliament; Weather; Thought for the Day.


THU 09:00 In Our Time (b01pcs5g)
The South Sea Bubble

Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss The South Sea Bubble, the speculation mania in early 18th-century England which ended in the financial ruin of many of its investors. The South Sea Company was founded in 1711 with a view to restructuring government debt and restoring public credit. The company would ostensibly trade with South America, hence its name; and indeed, it did trade in slaves for the Spanish market even after the Bubble burst in 1720.

People from all walks of life bought shares in the South Sea Company, from servants to gentry, and it was said the entire country was gripped by South Sea speculation mania. When the shares crashed and the company collapsed there was a public outcry and many people faced financial ruin, although some investors sold before the crash and made substantial amounts of money. For example, the bookseller Thomas Guy made his fortune and founded a hospital in his name the following year.

But how did such a financial crisis develop and were there any lessons learnt following this early example of a stock market boom and bust?

With:

Anne Murphy
Senior Lecturer in History at the University of Hertfordshire

Helen Paul
Lecturer in Economics and Economic History at the University of Southampton

Roey Sweet
Head of the School of History at the University of Leicester

Producer: Natalia Fernandez.


THU 09:45 Book of the Week (b01pcs5j)
Shakespeare's Local - Six Centuries of History Seen Through One Extraordinary Pub

Episode 4

Tony Robinson reads Pete Brown's history of pubs as seen through the story of one remarkable London inn, the George in Southwark, said to be the one-time local of Chaucer, Dickens and Shakespeare.

The George Inn is one of the few remaining galleried coaching inns, and lies a few minutes' walk from the Thames. 'Shakespeare's Local' takes us on a literary pub crawl through the history of this pub, from its regulars - the watermen, merchants, actors, craftsmen, writers and coachdrivers - as well as the many incarnations of the pub itself - from lawless Southwark tavern to coaching inn, theatre pub to Victorian drinking den, unfashionable boozer to tourist attraction.

Today: while the age of the stagecoach changes the face of British pubs, the George faces its darkest hour.

Reader: Tony Robinson is best known for his role as Baldrick in the Blackadder series. He's also presented Channel 4's 'Time Team' and written numerous books for children.
Author: Pete Brown , the 'Beer drinkers' Bill Bryson' (TLS), was named Beer Writer of the Year by the British Guild of Beer Writers, and is the author of three other books on pubs and brewing.
Producer: Justine Willett.


THU 10:00 Woman's Hour (b01pcs5l)
Margaret Evison; child models; Tove Jansson

Margaret Evison tells us about her son Mark, a Lieutenant in 1st Battalion Welsh Guards who died in Helmand Province in 2009, and about the foundation established in his name. The career of Moomins author Tove Jansson. As Romeo Beckham is chosen to model Burberry's Spring/Summer 2013 season Sally Peck from the Telegraph and TV presenter and former child model Sonali Shah discuss whether photo-shoots and the catwalk are a good place for kids. A nurse has been found guilty of manslaughter after causing a baby's death after a botched home circumcision. While such deaths are rare in the UK, non-fatal complications are not uncommon, Clinical Director of Surgery at Birmingham Children's Hospital, Anthony Lander explains the dangers of such operations outside the medical profession. The Cazalet Chronicles are being adapted into a Woman's Hour Drama serial which begins in the New Year. We hear from author Elizabeth Jane Howard and adaptor Lin Coghlan.


THU 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b01pcs5n)
Modesty Blaise - A Taste for Death

Episode 4

Dinah is using her extra sensory powers to try and locate the lost treasures of the Garamantes. So far, she's only found Roman swords and buckles. Delicata is becoming impatient and furious. Time is running out for the gang and they need an escape plan. So Modesty comes up with a ruse to get hold of McWhirter's notebook and win the pilot, Skeet Lowry over to their side. Adapted from the novel by Peter O'Donnell by Stef Penney.

With an original score by Goldfrapp's Will Gregory, arranged by Ian Gardiner

Produced and Directed by Kate McAll

Interesting Modesty Fact: The Treadmill is the name of the pub that Willie Garvin bought on his return to England.


THU 11:00 Crossing Continents (b01pcs5q)
Poland's New Immigrants

For decades, Poland has been a country of emigrants travelling to build new lives abroad, not least in the UK. But could things be about to change? Paul Henley travels to the country at the eastern edge of the EU, where the financial crisis has, so far, been avoided. He meets the migrants already making a life in Europe's least multicultural society, and explores the conditions that suggest Poland could be on the cusp of becoming a destination; home to a new wave of migrants.
Producer: Lila Allen.


THU 11:30 Neil Tennant's Smash Hits Christmas (b01pcs5s)
Neil Tennant had a life as a journalist before he became famous as a Pet Shop Boy. In fact, it was on a Smash Hits trip to New York that he had his big breakthrough with the record producer Bobby O.

Here, 30 years after his first stint on pop's most successful and inventive magazine, Neil recalls the golden days of Smash Hits.

We hear from founder and legendary magazine maker Nick Logan, editors David Hepworth and Mark Ellen, writers Miranda Sawyer and Sylvia Patterson, and from regular Smash Hits cover girl, Toyah.

We also sample a rare recording from the 1982 Christmas Flexidisc (a message from the stars) and probably Neil Tennant's first recording - the music for a trailer advertising Smash Hits stickers.

Producer: Susan Marling
A Just Radio Ltd. production for BBC Radio 4.


THU 12:00 You and Yours (b01pcs5v)
Legal highs, Christmas refunds, Value-added books

A record 57 new 'legal highs' have been found in the EU during 2012. We look at how they're being sold.

Returning unwanted Christmas presents may depend on whether the retailer offers a goodwill exchange, or if the gift was bought online. Money Saving Expert Martin Lewis explains your rights to a refund.

With independent booksellers in decline and e-book sales increasing, some publishers have found a niche with value-added books; limited editions with extended texts, author forewords or special artwork.

Producer: Joel Moors
Presenter: Winifred Robinson.


THU 12:57 Weather (b01p9d1j)
The latest weather forecast.


THU 13:00 World at One (b01pcs5x)
Martha Kearney presents national and international news. Listeners can share their views via email: wato@bbc.co.uk or on twitter: #wato.


THU 13:45 Grimm Thoughts (b01pcs5z)
Episode 4

When the Grimm brothers first published their Children's and Household Tales in 1812, in a scholarly effort to collate a national identity of the people, it was the beginning of an obsessive project of two intricately interwoven lifetimes.

To mark the bicentenary of the first edition, writer and mythographer Marina Warner explores the many compelling and often controversial aspects of the tales in a 10-part series, revealing new insights into the stories we think we know so well, and introducing us to the charms and challenges of those that we don't.

Alongside beautifully narrated extracts from the tales themselves, renowned academics and artists who work closely with the Grimm's rich heritage add to our understanding of these deceptively complex stories.

In the fourth episode, Marina tells the latent truth from the familiar fiction in the tales, identifying the real people and places that some believe to have inspired the Grimms brothers' collection. Was Bluebeard inspired by the real-life serial killer Giles de Rais, a 15th century French lord who served under Joan of Arc? Was Snow White based on truth? Leading academics discuss what these parallels tell us about the dormant human anxieties that transcend time and place.

Producer: Kevin Dawson
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4.


THU 14:00 The Archers (b01pc3c0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Wednesday]


THU 14:15 Drama (b01pcs61)
Strummer and Me

Written by Colin MacDonald.

In early 1982, The Clash, the greatest live rock band in the world, was in crisis. Their album had been panned and ticket sales for an upcoming tour were not going well. With tensions among the band running high, their manager hit on what he thought would be a great PR stunt: he took the band frontman Joe Strummer aside and told him it'd be good to disappear - to create massive headlines.

But Joe, fed up with what was going on, decided he really would disappear. He vanished with his girlfriend and no-one knew where he was until, three weeks later, he turned up in Paris. This play imagines what might have taken place during two of those 'lost' Parisian nights.

22nd December 2012 is the tenth anniversary of Joe Strummer's untimely death - aged only fifty - from a congenital heart defect. This drama pays tribute to the man and his music, and examines the influence on him of his mother's Scottish Highland roots.

Other parts were played by members of the cast.

Written by Colin MacDonald.

Produced and directed by Kirsteen Cameron.


THU 15:00 Open Country (b01pcs63)
Christmas in Norfolk

Helen Mark is in Norfolk where preparations for Christmas are underway. In Great Hockham Helen meets Vincent Thurkettle whose life has been defined by a love of trees and the great outdoors. During the early part of the year, Vincent tends his fields of Christmas trees, which are allowed to grow with wild flowers at their roots, before spending his summers diving for sunken treasure off the coast of Britain. Returning to Norfolk later in the year, Vincent begins his Christmas tree deliveries and Helen joins him as he sets off.
In the coastal town of Cromer, a rather more unusual Christmas tree has appeared in the churchyard and Helen meets fisherman, John Davies, to find out about the 150 lobster pots that were used to build the tree which now lights up the town and celebrates the town's fishing heritage.
Helen also finds out how to decorate a Christmas tree for garden birds before heading back to Great Hockham where Vincent Thurkettle has finished the day's deliveries. Vincent, who also spends a week each year chopping wood to heat his cottage and cook his food gives Helen a lesson in how to lay the best wood fire and where the chestnuts will soon be roasting.

Presenter: Helen Mark
Producer: Helen Chetwynd.


THU 15:27 Radio 4 Appeal (b01p9g0j)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:55 on Sunday]


THU 15:30 Open Book (b01p9gk0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:00 on Sunday]


THU 16:00 The Film Programme (b01pcs65)
Life of Pi, Ewan MacGregor, Xmas films on TV

Francine Stock meets with Ang Lee to discuss Life of Pi, the hugely anticipated big screen adaptation of Yan Martel's novel.

Ewan McGregor reveals his reluctance to take on the part of a father searching for his family in the aftermath of the 2004 Asian tsunami in The Impossible, directed by Juan Antonio Bayona.

Critic Nigel Floyd picks out his favourite films showing on television over Christmas.

And Peter Jackson talks about his involvement with West of Memphis, a documentary focusing on the case of three teenagers arrested for the murders of three 8 year old children.

Producer: Craig Smith.


THU 16:30 Material World (b01pcs67)
This week Quentin Cooper looks at new research into the usefulness of I Q tests. The hundred year old measure of intelligence has often been derided for being culturally biased, sexist and unfairly divisive. Now the largest ever study of IQ tests examines asks what such tests really measure and how far they can provide a useful way to compare the abilities of different people.

We also look to Antarctica, a project to drill through the frozen surface of Lake Ellsworth has been suspended due to problems with a hot water powered drill. Scientists hope to resume drilling by Christmas day and obtain samples for their search for life forms that may have existed for millennia below the lakes frozen surface.

We talk to Alexander Kumar a doctor who has spent the past 9 months living in Antarctica as part of an European Space Agency project to look at the physiological and psychological impact of extreme cold and isolation - which ESA hopes will help inform future long distance space missions to other planets.

And we hear from children's presenters Dick and Dom about their new science series 'How Dangerous' which is being broadcast on 4 Extra starting on Christmas Eve.


THU 17:00 PM (b01pcsm3)
Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.


THU 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b01p9d1l)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


THU 18:30 Births, Deaths and Marriages (b01jhnyh)
Series 1

Episode 3

A new sitcom set in a Local Authority Register Office where staff deal with the three greatest events in anybody's life.

Written by David Schneider (The Day Today, I'm Alan Partridge), he also stars as chief registrar Malcolm Fox who is a stickler for rules and would be willing to interrupt any wedding service if the width of the bride infringes health and safety. He's not married - but why does he need to be? He's married thousands of women.

Alongside him are rival and divorcee Lorna who has been parachuted in from Car Parks to drag the office (and Malcolm) into the 21st century. To her, marriage isn't just about love and romance, it's got to be about making a profit in our new age of austerity.

There's also the ever spiky Mary, geeky Luke who's worried he'll end up like Malcolm one day, while ditzy Anita may get her words and names mixed up occasionally but as the only parent in the office, she's a mother to them all.

In this episode, Malcolm is distracted by a breast feeding mother during a birth registration, causing Lorna to suspect he might have made his first ever mistake.

Cast:
Malcolm........................................David Schneider
Lorna............................................Sarah Hadland
Anita.............................................Sandy McDade
Luke..............................................Russell Tovey
Mary..............................................Sally Bretton
Mr Carrick......................................Andrew Brooke
Mrs Carrick.....................................Kerry Godliman
Mrs Ferguson/
Mrs Goldring/ Mrs Smith..................Jane Whittenshaw

Producer: Simon Jacobs
A Unique production for BBC Radio 4.


THU 19:00 The Archers (b01pcsm5)
Excited Elizabeth tells Jill that it looks like she'll be going with the conversion of the old dairy for wedding and conference overnights and it should all be ready to go in the New Year.

Lynda's pleased by how the Christmas Show's coming together, but she's still puzzled by the strange additions to her posters. When Lynda says to Jim that he and Jazzer seem to be getting along, Jim agrees saying Jazzer's welcome to stay with him as long as he likes. When talk turns to Borsetshire Life, Jim confesses to Lynda that he's having second thoughts about his involvement. Jazzer's nervous about performing his bawdy song at rehearsals in front of Lynda and Lynda's somewhat taken aback when she hears his performance!

Eddie's cross when Joe tells Jim and Jazzer that Clarrie found his false teeth in one of the turkeys - he doesn't want any returns. He's also worried about Ed and Emma moving in with the Carters because it reminds him of moving out of Grange Farm. Ed must feel like such a failure and now Eddie feels like he's failed him too. Joe reassures him saying they'll have to do their best to set them back on their feet, won't they.


THU 19:15 Front Row (b01pcsm7)
The Impossible; Simon Amstell; Arts Funding

With Kirsty Lang.

A new film The Impossible, starring Ewan McGregor and Naomi Watts, focuses on the powerful tsunami which occurred in the Indian Ocean on Boxing Day 2004, and killed over 280,000 people. The film shows how events affected one family on a Christmas holiday in Thailand. Novelist Kamila Shamsie reviews.

Ed Vaizey, the Minister for Culture, and Tom Morris, Artistic Director at Bristol's Old Vic Theatre, discuss the future of arts funding. Leading figures in the arts, including Sir Nicholas Hytner and Danny Boyle have expressed concerns about how government funding cuts could affect regional theatre. Following the news that Arts Council England will have its funding cut by a further £11.6m before 2015, Ed Vaizey outlines his thoughts on the future of UK arts organisations.

Comedian Simon Amstell's stand-up show, Numb, is on TV on New Year's Eve. The former host of Never Mind The Buzzcocks, who also wrote and starred in the autobiographical TV comedy, Grandma's House, reveals how creating Numb from his own insecurities, led him to a happier place - helped by a pungent potion in Peru.

With Christmas on the horizon, Front Row takes a look at the wealth of festive television programmes. Time Out's TV Editor Gabriel Tate, discusses a selection of the drama, factual and children's programmes on offer, and recommends some must-see shows.

Producer Rebecca Nicholson.


THU 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b01pcs5n)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:45 today]


THU 20:00 The Report (b01pcsm9)
Roma Children in Care

Following the row over Rotherham council's decision to remove three foster children from a couple because of their support for UKIP, Simon Cox investigates concerns about the high number of Roma children being taken into care.


THU 20:30 In Business (b01pcsmc)
Can the Co-op Cope?

The Cooperative movement is 168 years old and the Co-op brand is a presence in food, funerals, travel and banking. Peter Day reports on its relevance to the 21st century consumer.


THU 21:00 Saving Species (b01pcsmf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:00 on Tuesday]


THU 21:30 In Our Time (b01pcs5g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


THU 21:58 Weather (b01p9d1n)
The latest weather forecast.


THU 22:00 The World Tonight (b01pcsmh)
National and international news and analysis with Philippa Thomas.


THU 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b01pcsmk)
Maeve Binchy Short Stories

The Feast of Stephen

In tribute to Maeve Binchy who died earlier this year, a selection of her short stories taken from Radio 4's Archive. Today, a mix up at the shop upsets Stephen's plans for Christmas lunch.

Maeve Binchy was one of Ireland's most-loved authors, with her 30-year career also including work as a playwright, short story writer and columnist. Her 16 novels and 4 short story collections sold 42 million copies worldwide and include Circle of Friends and Tara Road. She died in July 2012 after a short illness.

The Feast of Stephen, along with its counterpart story The White Trolley, was written for the BBC and was originally aired at Christmas in 1998.

Written by Maeve Binchy.

Read by Jenny Agutter.

Producer: Pam Fraser Solomon.


THU 23:00 The Simon Day Show (b010t7qt)
Series 1

Dave Angel

British comedy legend and star of The Fast Show, Down the Line and Bellamy's People, Simon Day debut's his own Radio 4 character comedy show.

Simon Day and his characters welcome listeners to The Mallard, a small provincial theatre somewhere in the UK. Each week one of Simon's characters come to perform at The Mallard and we hear the highlights of that night's show, along with the back stage and front of house goings on at the theatre itself.

This week 1990s Eco-Warrior Dave Angel (Simon Day), performs at The Mallard Theatre and a confused delivery man arrives with gifts from a star.

Cast list:

Dave Angel / White Van Man ..... Simon Day
Catherine ..... Catherine Shepherd
Goose ..... Felix Dexter
Ron Bone ..... Simon Greenall

Written by Simon Day
Produced by Colin Anderson.


THU 23:30 Today in Parliament (b01pcsmm)
Sean Curran with the day's top news stories from Westminster.



FRIDAY 21 DECEMBER 2012

FRI 00:00 Midnight News (b01p9d2h)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.


FRI 00:30 Book of the Week (b01pcs5j)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Thursday]


FRI 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b01p9d2k)
The latest shipping forecast.


FRI 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b01p9d2m)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.


FRI 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b01p9d2p)
The latest shipping forecast.


FRI 05:30 News Briefing (b01p9d2r)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.


FRI 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b01pjj10)
A short reflection and prayer.with Bishop Donal McKeown, Auxiliary Bishop of Down and Connor.


FRI 05:45 Farming Today (b01pctnz)
Nearly half of EU member states will be producing pork in breach of new welfare regulations introduced on January 1st. Despite having eleven years to prepare for a partial ban on sow stalls , seventeen countries will fail to conform to the new directive.
Starlings from abroad swoop in and eat feed for dairy cows, one farmer says it could change how he farms

A top European vet says there is no need for a vaccine against the Schmallenberg disease.

As Christmas approaches, Charlotte Smith discovers how new varieties of brussels sprouts aim to reach new markets.

Presenter Charlotte Smith. Producer Ruth Sanderson.


FRI 06:00 Today (b01pctp1)
Morning news and current affairs with John Humphrys and James Naughtie. Including Sports Desk; Yesterday in Parliament; Weather; Thought for the Day.


FRI 09:00 Desert Island Discs (b01p9g3w)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:15 on Sunday]


FRI 09:45 Book of the Week (b01pcvkw)
Shakespeare's Local - Six Centuries of History Seen Through One Extraordinary Pub

Episode 5

Tony Robinson reads Pete Brown's history of British pubs as seen through the story of one remarkable London inn, the George in Southwark, said to be the one-time local of Chaucer, Dickens and Shakespeare.

The George Inn is one of the few remaining galleried coaching inns in Britain, and lies a few minutes' walk from the Thames. 'Shakespeare's Local' takes us on a literary pub crawl through the history of this pub, from its regulars - the watermen, merchants, actors, craftsmen, writers and coachdrivers - as well as the many incarnations of the pub itself - from lawless Southwark tavern to coaching inn, theatre pub to Victorian drinking den, unfashionable boozer to tourist attraction.

Today: the myths and the ghosts of landlords and ladies past.

Reader: Tony Robinson is best known for his role as Baldrick in the Blackadder series. He's also presented Channel 4's 'Time Team' and written numerous books for children.
Author: Pete Brown , the 'Beer drinkers' Bill Bryson' (TLS), was named Beer Writer of the Year by the British Guild of Beer Writers, and is the author of three other books on pubs and brewing.
Producer: Justine Willett.


FRI 10:00 Woman's Hour (b01pcvky)
Chestnuts are inextricably linked to the Christmas period as this is the time of year when they are at their best. The season only runs for around three months (November - January). Chestnuts make for a great ingredient to use for stuffing or go equally well with sprouts and bacon. But what are the other ways of using them in cooking?

Jean Colclough, believed to be the longest serving nurse in the NHS, is to retire next week from the Southend University Hospital. She has spent all her working life as a nurse in that area. When she was born, the NHS didn't even exist. She is now nearly 75 and started her nurse training at the age of 18 in September 1956 earning £260 a year. She was 22 when she qualified in 1960. We hear about her memories as a nurse, how the NHS has changed and whether she still thinks it is the best form of health care.

Is it possible to name our power list without the advantage of hindsight? How do we know these women really are powerful - rather than a flash in the pan? Do you need an historical perspective to define who was and is powerful? Margaret Thatcher would not be on our list today, but in terms of power, her influence and legacy probably affects all of us more now than anyone who will be on the list of 2012.

Presented by Jenni Murray.


FRI 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b01pcvl0)
Modesty Blaise - A Taste for Death

Episode 5

The showdown in the desert reaches its climax as Modesty and Willie use all their resources - not to mention a few ancient Roman weapons - to put their escape plan into action. Superhumanly strong Delicata finally meets his match. Back at home, though, there's still one more villain who has to be dealt with.

The final episode of Stef Penney's adaptation of Peter O'Donnell's novel.

With an original score by Goldfrapp's Will Gregory, arranged by Ian Gardiner

Stef Penney has written extensively for film and radio including adaptations of Moby Dick and The Worst Journey In The World for Radio 4.

Produced and Directed by Kate McAll.


FRI 11:00 Down and Out Debaters (b01pcvl2)
Every Tuesday night during Michaelmas term at Durham University, the debating chamber at the Durham Union Society is filled with student volunteers training a group of participants brought in by the homeless charity Cyrenians.

The hope is that through debating the group can hone their skills of speaking, and gain confidence and the ability to deal better with job interviews and challenging environments. They've got eight weeks, then there's a black tie dinner and the participants will be debating in front of an audience.

The participants have had a tough history, and for many of them the idea of public speaking fills them with terror. The students 'ooze confidence' and it's up to them to impart some of that on their trainees, and hope that in the long term it might make a difference to their lives.

Can it? Edi Stark finds out.

Produced by Lucy Lloyd.


FRI 11:30 Three Wishes (b01608jr)
The genie - or jinn, to give it its original name - has been a key player in some of the world's oldest stories. Compared to similar beings from classical western mythologies, the jinn is much harder to predict and pin down thanks to its unpredictable spirit. Born of fire, it can be a tempestuous, vindictive, benevolent or sometimes just downright grumpy character, after thousands of years trapped in a lamp. The fact of its frequent servitude has led some to interpret the popularity of the stories during the abolition of slavery campaign as a commentary on the slave trade. Others have focused on the quandaries posed by the giving and receiving of wishes, while others, perhaps most famously Robin Williams, have simply revelled in the larger-than-life exuberance the shape-shifting genie offers. In 'Three Wishes', Janet Ellis talks with Marina Warner, an expert on the Arabian Nights; Ajmal Zaheer Ahmad, who's film 'Jinn' is released next year; Philip Kerr, best known for his crime novels but also responsible for series of seven children's books focusing on twin heroes who happen to be genies; polymath Hugh Montgomery, who's exploiting the metaphorical potential of the idea of the genie in the bottle for a major campaign against global warming; and the director and star in a production of perhaps the most famous genie story of them all - Aladdin.

Producer Geoff Bird.


FRI 12:00 You and Yours (b01pcvl4)
Grocery sales 2012, male grooming and alcohol pricing

Research shows we bought fewer items but paid more for them in 2012 and that we dumped staple items in favour of those little luxuries.

How will supermarkets cope with the expected Christmas rush this Sunday given that they can only open the tills for six hours ?

You & Yours are running a series in the New Year testing government's health guidelines - where they come from, what scientific basis there is and whether we can trust them. Presenter Michael Moseley will preview some key findings.

Can't figure out how to put your new furniture, TV or computer; perhaps you need a hand to get something down from the loft- for a small fee more and more online services are putting people who 'can' together with people who can't.

The cosmetics industry claim the market has never been more buoyant for male grooming products but who is actually buying them and are men leaving them used at home?

One of the world's leading brewers says new research proves the 45p minimum unit price for alcohol will punish responsible drinkers.


FRI 12:52 The Listening Project (b01pcvl6)
Nadine and Frank - Autism

Fi Glover presents a conversation about Tommy, an 8 year old with autism, between his parents. They contend with his challenging behaviour daily, but also celebrate his uniqueness, in Radio 4's series that proves it's surprising what you hear when you listen.

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. Many of the long 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.


FRI 12:57 Weather (b01p9d2t)
The latest weather forecast.


FRI 13:00 World at One (b01pcvl8)
Shaun Ley presents national and international news. Listeners can share their views via email: wato@bbc.co.uk or on twitter: #wato.


FRI 13:45 Grimm Thoughts (b01pcvlb)
Episode 5

When the Grimm brothers first published their Children's and Household Tales in 1812, in a scholarly effort to collate a national identity of the people, it was the beginning of an obsessive project of two intricately interwoven lifetimes.

To mark the bicentenary of the first edition, writer and mythographer Marina Warner explores the many compelling and often controversial aspects of the tales in a 10-part series, revealing new insights into the stories we think we know so well, and introducing us to the charms and challenges of those that we don't.

Alongside beautifully narrated extracts from the tales themselves, renowned academics and artists who work closely with the Grimm's rich heritage add to our understanding of these deceptively complex stories.

In the fifth episode, we are drawn into the tales' rich history of illustration. These evocative stories have always stirred vivid images in the minds of artists, from the angular drawings of an early David Hockney to Dickens' Victorian illustrator George Cruikshank. Through these artists' impressions, we paint a new picture of the tales' vital contribution to the long tradition of visual storytelling.

Producer: Kevin Dawson
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4.


FRI 14:00 The Archers (b01pcsm5)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Thursday]


FRI 14:15 Drama (b01pcwqn)
The Long Count

By Glen Neath.

Today is the winter solstice and, according to some, doomsday.

A Mayan prophecy seems to specify 21st December 2012 as the end of a 'Long Count' and the beginning of a cataclysm that will engulf us all. Assorted spiritualists and new age groups add their own spin on the day's events: some say we are passing a tipping point, the birth of a new age where we'll take better care of our people and our planet; others say we are entering the end times, where many will die and the chosen few will ascend to another dimension, a higher consciousness - in a space ship.

Avis Roberts, a journalist, has been following one such group and, today, he is joining them at Silbury Hill in Wiltshire to share their final moments and figure out what is actually happening.

Other parts played by members of the company.

Music and sound by Alisdair McGregor and Howard Jacques.

Produced and directed by Boz Temple-Morris.

A Holy Mountain production for BBC Radio 4.


FRI 15:00 Gardeners' Question Time (b01pcwqq)
Muncaster Castle, Cumbria

Eric Robson hosts a special Christmas edition of GQT from Muncaster Castle, Cumbria. Chris Beardshaw, Bunny Guinness and Matthew Wilson join in the seasonal fun as your Gardeners' Question time panel.

Produced by Howard Shannon
A Somethin' Else Production for BBC Radio 4.

Q. How can I encourage my Pyracantha and Winter Jasmine plants to climb?

A. Lack of support for the plants will result in a lack of upward growth. Net around the Jasmine, and tie in other plants to the support. Alternatively, Sea Buckthorn might do well as it is very robust.

Q. Our new garden is bounded on both sides by fields. Is there anything we can do to create a barrier to the wild grasses and weeds (especially Buttercups), without losing the view?

A. Changing the ground habitat at the boundary with a low hedge (such as a mix of Sloe and Hawthorne) will discourage the wild plants from migrating across. Make this hedge several rows deep to create a thicker network of stems, and put a mowing strip inside it. It might be possible to add plants to your garden which references the landscape, such as the 'Hedgehog' variety of cultivated Buttercup.

Q. Can the panel recommend any plants that can withstand sea salt, sand, wind and that are not enjoyed by snails?

A. The Yellow Horned-Poppy (Glucium Flavum) or Californian Poppy (Eschscholzia Californica) would do well, as would the Crambe Cordifolia or Maritima, also known as Seakale. Hebe Topiaria is a good evergreen plant. You could also combat the snails with ferric phosphate.

Q. What's the best time of year to prune a Magnolia Grandiflora 'Exmouth'?

A. As with most evergreens, wait until it is in growth and the beginning of summer. Light pruning and tip pruning can be carried out a little earlier. You should take out no more than a quarter of total canopy in any one season, but 'little and often' is recommended.

Q. Is there any environmentally friendly way of getting rid of moss on driveways and pathways?

A. A flame gun would work on moss, as might salt. However, the chemicals available for combating moss are easier, although not as easy as letting the moss grow! Clinker could be added to paths and its pH would help get rid of the moss.

Q. Could the panel recommend small trees or shubs with all-year interest for a soggy, clay garden facing southwest.

A. Ornamental Crabapples, Viburnum Lantana (the Wayfaring Tree), Aesculus Buckeyes, Willows such as Chermisina, Britzensis and Salix Elaeagnus and blueberries are all recommended.

Q. In 1996 we had around 100 Rhododendrons planted in our garden. For the past few years, many have black, undeveloped buds on them. Why is this?

A. In bad-weather seasons, the plants' delicate petals can be scorched out leaving the bud dry and crumbling. Rhododendrons are also susceptible to a fungus that results in pinheads around the bud, but this is more moist. A good mulch around the plant will help.

Q. Our Leylandii hedge has stopped growing. How can we get it to grow faster?

A. There may be a problem with your soil, or they could be sitting in water. You could try planting Sea Buckthorn instead!


FRI 15:45 Morven Crumlish - Murals (b01pcwqs)
Banana Bread

These three stories by Morven Crumlish, commissioned specially for Radio 4, are inspired by the work of the artist Phoebe Anna Traquair.

Traquair (1852-1936) was born in County Dublin and, in the 1870s, moved to Edinburgh where she would later become a prominent figure in the Scottish Arts and Crafts movement.

Probably her best-known works are the vibrantly-coloured murals in what was formerly the Catholic Apostolic Church in Broughton Street, Edinburgh which Traquair took eight years to complete (1893-1901). When the church fell out of ecclesiastical use, the murals suffered badly through neglect but, following the formation of the Mansfield Traquair Trust, a major restoration was undertaken, completed in 2005.

While art is at the core of all three fictions, Murals also mirrors the evolution of a similar building: from church, to brickyard, to present-day use for visitors and as a venue for events.

2/3. Banana Bread

The building has fallen into disuse as a church and is now a warehouse for bricks. A builder uncovers some of the neglected murals and relives the life and death of his lost son.

Morven Crumlish's stories have been broadcast widely, and she also contributes to the Guardian. Her work has featured in four previous Sweet Talk productions for BBC Radio 4, including Dilemmas of Modern Martyrs - five of her stories - in 2008; and most recently 'Harold Lloyd Is Not The Man Of My Dreams' (Three For My Baby, 2011). Morven lives in Edinburgh.

Reader: Mark Bonnar
Producer: Jeremy Osborne
A Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4.


FRI 16:00 Last Word (b01pcwqv)
A Russian opera diva, a famous British housebuilder, a reluctant union leader and a '60s trendsetter called 'Mr Freedom'

Matthew Bannister on

Sir Lawrie Barratt who built hundreds of thousands of Barratt homes during the 1970s and 80s

The soprano Galina Vishnevskaya - a great interpreter of Russian music who - with her husband the cellist Rostropovich - was forced into exile by the Soviet Union.

Jack Hart who led the fight to regain trade union recognition at the government's listening station GCHQ

And the design pioneer Tommy Roberts who sold flamboyant clothes in a series of London shops. Dame Vivienne Westwood and Sir Paul Smith pay tribute to his influence.


FRI 16:30 More or Less (b01pcwqx)
Fact-checking US gun crime statistics

The recent massacre at a school in the United States has re-opened the debate on gun ownership in the US. Tim Harford investigates whether the anti-gun statistics being widely shared on the internet stand up to scrutiny.

Whether you're looking at crime statistics or the effectiveness or hospitals, we've long argued on More or Less that death is the one hard fact that it's very hard to fudge. So imagine how surprised we are to find out it's not very reliable an outcome at all. At least not in England. Medical statistician Professor Sheila Bird tells Tim why she's concerned that the death register in England is causing delays for important health research.

Eating more chocolate improves a nation's chances of producing Nobel Prize winners - or at least that's what a recent study appears to suggest. But how much chocolate do Nobel laureates eat, and how could any such link be explained?

The average age of first-time buyers has been steadily climbing for years - it's not just government ministers who say this - everyone says it, everyone knows it. Apart from, More or Less discovers, the people who actually calculate the figure: the Council of Mortgage Lenders.

Plus, the statistical paradox of road collisions caused by deer; and the mathematics of juggling, with Colin Wright.

Producer: Ruth Alexander.


FRI 16:55 The Listening Project (b01pcwqz)
Phil and Nicky - The Price of Campaigning

Fi Glover presents a conversation about the price paid by one online disability rights campaigner who is cyber-bullied for her work. While she copes, it's harder for her husband.

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. Many of the long 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.


FRI 17:00 PM (b01pcwr1)
Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.


FRI 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b01p9d2w)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


FRI 18:30 The News Quiz (b01pcwr3)
Series 79

Episode 1

A satirical review of the week's news, chaired by Sandi Toksvig. Panellists are Jeremy Hardy, Susan Calman, Samira Ahmed and Nick Doody.

Produced by Lyndsay Fenner.


FRI 19:00 The Archers (b01pcwr5)
Susan prepares the house for Ed and Emma's move. Neil defends Ed when Susan worries about his situation, telling Susan that Ruth will set Ed right. Neil's having a chat with Ruth on Monday.

While packing, Emma worries about the impact their moving will have on George. Ed apologises to Emma about how disastrous her life has been since they got together, but Emma reassures him it'll all be ok. When Ed says he'll do everything in his power to make sure this situation is temporary, Emma says she loves him.

George loves his new room at Ambridge View and early Christmas present from Susan. When Emma offers to share the housework and housekeeping, Susan thanks her, but says it will just be lovely to have them there. Ed also offers to pay his way, but Neil stops him short. Ed's had a tough time, they're going to help them through.

On the phone, Lilian dismisses Paul's worries that Matt might be suspicious about the dress he bought her. They tell each other how much they'll miss talking when Paul's in Dubai seeing his sister.

Later Lilian's taken aback when Matt announces a surprise for her. He's taking her away for the weekend - to New York!


FRI 19:15 Front Row (b01pcwr7)
People of the Year 2012

Mark Lawson unwraps new interviews with arts headline makers of the year, in the first of two special programmes.

In the wake of the record-breaking success of the James Bond film Skyfall, Judi Dench reflects on her role as M, and director Sam Mendes discusses the pressures of working on such a high-profile movie - and whether he knew about Bond's secret role in the Olympic opening ceremony.

Hilary Mantel remembers the night when she won the Man Booker Prize for the second time - the only woman to do so - and Sheridan Smith looks back on a year in which her roles have ranged from Hedda Gabler on stage to the wife of train robber Ronnie Biggs on TV.

Dramatist James Graham won acclaim for This House, his play about the struggles of the Labour government between 1974 and 1979. He reveals how he has seen many key politicians of the period in the audience, comparing his version of events with their own memories.

Rebecca Front, winner of a British Comedy Award for her role in the political TV comedy The Thick Of It, considers how the latest series regularly seemed to predict the news headlines, and members of the Mercury Prize-winning band alt-J talk about their approach to rehearsals, with strict rules about attendance and mobile phone use.

Producer Ella-mai Robey.


FRI 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b01pcvl0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:45 today]


FRI 20:00 Any Questions? (b01pcwr9)
Haddenham Village Hall, Buckinghamshire

Jonathan Dimbleby presents political debate from Haddenham in Buckinghamshire - the panel includes the Labour MP Frank Field, Green Party leader Natalie Bennett, Daily Mail columnist Max Hastings and the Minister for International Development Alan Duncan MP.


FRI 20:50 A Point of View (b01pcwrc)
Economics Priesthood

Will Self warns against the false prophets of the new priesthood of economics who base their analyses and predictions on "spurious notions of human behaviour". "In place of the vulgate we require the holy books of economics to be written in the language we actually speak, and along with this we should actively seek a liberty of individual conscience, so that we communicate directly with Mammon, freed from the intercession of a priesthood who, when not arguing about how many angels can be fitted on the head of a pin, are spending our money producing elegant but utterly spurious mathematical models of possible future angel-on-pin scenarios."
Producer: Sheila Cook.


FRI 21:00 The Penny Dreadfuls (b012f5qv)
Revolution

The French Revolution was one of the most far-reaching social and political upheavals in modern history spanning 10 years and involving the execution of the King, collapse of monarchy and slaughter of thousands at the guillotine.

Starring Richard E Grant and Sally Hawkins.

Comedy trio The Penny Dreadfuls attempt to tell the epic story of the Revolution in one hour, with jokes.

Richard E Grant is Maximilien Robespierre the dictatorial architect of the Reign of Terror, who sent thousands to their death and Sally Hawkins is Marie-Therese, the 16 year old daughter of Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI.

Marie-Therese was incarcerated for three years by the revolutionaries. When she was locked up her father, mother, aunt and little brother were also with her. After the execution of her father the rest of the family were moved to another part of the tower and Marie-Therese was kept in solitary confinement. It's recorded that Robespierre visited Marie-Therese at one point in the tower but there's no historical record of that conversation. This play is that conversation.

Written by and co-starring The Penny Dreadfuls: Humphrey Ker, David Reed and Thom Tuck, plus Margaret Cabourn-Smith.

Producer: Julia McKenzie

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 2011.


FRI 21:58 Weather (b01p9d2y)
The latest weather forecast.


FRI 22:00 The World Tonight (b01pcwrf)
Has the UK military presence in Afghanistan cut the number of terrorist plots? At least 39 people have been killed in fresh clashes between rival communities in the Tana River district of Kenya's Coast province, and how the Poles view the EU with Philippa Thomas.


FRI 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b01pcwrh)
Maeve Binchy Short Stories

Euston

In tribute to Maeve Binchy who died earlier this year, a selection of her short stories taken from Radio 4's Archive. Today, Christmas leads Mary to reflect on the family she has not seen in 20 years.

Maeve Binchy was one of Ireland's most-loved authors, with her 30-year career also including work as a playwright, short story writer and columnist. Her 16 novels and 4 short story collections sold 42 million copies worldwide and include Circle of Friends and Tara Road. She died in July 2012 after a short illness.

Written by Maeve Binchy.

Read by Frances Tomelty.

Abridged by Di Speirs.

Producer: Sarah Johnson.


FRI 23:00 Great Lives (b01p9l1z)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:30 on Tuesday]


FRI 23:30 Today in Parliament (b01pcwrk)
Mark D'Arcy looks back at the year in parliament, as MPs begin their Christmas break.


FRI 23:55 The Listening Project (b01pcwrm)
Jo and George - Washing Your Dirty Linen in Public

Fi Glover presents a conversation from Cumbria about the etiquette of the washing basket and the daily irritations of living with someone you love in Radio 4's series that proves it's surprising what you hear when you listen.

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. Many of the long 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.