The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.
According to an investigation carried out by the conservation group Greenpeace, almost half England's fishing quota is caught by foreign owned vessels. They say that one Dutch-owned vessel holds up to 23% of the English quota. Its campaigning for small-scale fishermen to get a fairer deal. Sarah North is Head of Oceans campaign at Greenpeace, she says they are lobbying both DEFRA and European ministers in Brussels negotiating every Member State's quota for next year. The National Farmers Union wants more transparency from meat processors and abattoirs over the price they pay them for carcasses. Currently, an extra price is deducted after the animal is slaughtered, and this is at the mercy of world commodity prices, the NFU says this should be factored before animals are sent to slaughter. The endangered Scottish Wild Cat is receiving a financial boost of nearly £1million from the Heritage Lottery Fund. Jenny Bryce from Scottish Natural Heritage explained to Anna Hill how a group of more than 30 organisations including landowners and wildlife groups, are intending to help the wildcat. For many farmers what they branch out into has become more niche in order for the business to be a success. Charlotte Smith talked to Stuart Beare from Tulleys Farm in West Sussex which has gone from a 'pick your own' business, to farm shop, to haloween adventure. Presenter Anna Hill. Producer Ruth Sanderson.
Tweet of the Day is the voice of birds and our relationship with them, from around the world.
Liz Bonnin presents the advancing, leaping and queuing male blue manakin of Brazil. Male blue manakins are small, blue and black birds with scarlet caps. They live in the forests of south-east Brazil and neighbouring areas of Argentina and Paraguay. Whilst their plumage is eye-catching, their mating display is one of the strangest of any bird. A dominant male Blue Manakin enlists the support of one or more subordinate males. Calling loudly, all the males sidle along a branch towards the female, taking turns to leap into the air and then fly back down and take their place at the back of the queue. This sequence of advancing, leaping and queuing occurs at a frenetic pace, until, without warning, the dominant male calls time on this avian dance-off, with a piercing screech.
Morning news and current affairs. Including Sports Desk, Yesterday in Parliament, Weather and Thought for the Day.
The surgeon and writer Atul Gawande calls for a new focus on medical systems to ensure doctors work more effectively, alongside far greater transparency about their performance.
Speaking to an audience at the India International Centre in Delhi, he describes the story of medicine over the last century through the prism of his own family. From a grandmother who died in rural India from malaria - a preventable disease - to the high-tech medicine of today. He argues that despite its scientific advances, medicine has failed to exploit its knowledge successfully. In both the developed and developing world doctors do not carry out basic procedures effectively and often do not act in the best interests of their patients. He calls for wide-ranging research into the systems by which medical care is delivered, alongside far greater transparency about performance.
The Reith Lectures are introduced and chaired by Sue Lawley and produced by Jim Frank.
Peter Hennessy, the historian, continues his series of conversations on the future of the United Kingdom's constitution. His guest today is David Hope (Lord Hope of Craighead), former Scottish judge and former Deputy President of the United Kingdom's Supreme Court.
The hurried promises of further devolution made by political leaders during and immediately after the Scottish Referendum will fundamentally change how the United Kingdom is governed, with little opportunity for people to consider what this radical reform might mean or to discuss the constitutional implications.
This series explores the possible impact of further devolution on the United Kingdom's constitution. In each programme, Peter Hennessy invites his guests to draw on their different expertise in government, politics, the law and public ethics in considering questions of accountability, coherence and practicality. For example, would further devolution improve trust in politics? Is devolution practical unless it is accompanied by tax-raising powers? Is there a risk that varying degrees of devolution across the country could create an incoherent system? Would all citizens of the United Kingdom continue to enjoy equal rights? Would a federal constitution be viable? Are we heading towards the end of the United Kingdom?
Peter Hennessy's other guests during the series are William Hague MP, First Secretary of State and Leader of the House of Commons; Alistair Darling MP, former Chancellor of the Exchequer; Onora O'Neill (Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve), philosopher, chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission and former BBC Reith lecturer; and Robin Butler (Lord Butler of Brockwell), former Cabinet Secretary.
The Divine Miss Bette Midler talks to Jane Garvey. Should there be a Justice Board for Women? What are the political parties doing to get more women MPs elected? Losing touch with grandchildren.
Gary and Charlotte struggle with very different approaches to hormone blockers, whilst Amy embarks on some dramatic interior decoration.
How would you cope if your child was born into the wrong body? Powerful new drama by Mark Davies Markham.
A very ordinary family has come to terms with the less ordinary experience of Amy who was born as Ben. Adamant that she is a girl from an early age, Amy is growing up fast and nervous about starting senior school, with a boy's body. Her parents, Gary and Charlotte, have to help decide whether she should take significant steps to delay puberty until she can be fully assessed for transgender treatment. The right thing to do is not clear, and their different views on what is best for their child present some very difficult choices. Granddad Ted loves them all but struggles to grasp how serious the situation is. At the same time, everyday family life goes on, and re-decorating Amy's bedroom brings her and her Granddad closer. This honest, compassionate new drama was inspired by real life experiences.
Thanks to Susie Green and the parents at Mermaids, a charity offering support to gender variant children, teenagers and their families, and the Tavistock Clinic.
Studio Pianist ..... Alfie Davies
Director ..... Polly Thomas
Writer ..... Mark Davies Markham.
Few creatures have infiltrated our psyche as much as wolves. They haunt our imagination and appear in our stories, myths and legends. They are at once the embodiment of the devil and of the wild, enough dog that we relate to them, but also rugged, unpredictable and wild. They roam vast, untamed landscapes and then appear in our midst, hunting sheep and spreading fear. Our relationship has been so conflicting that they were almost eradicated from the earth by the end of the 19th Century. But since being protected they are slowly coming back in both Europe and America. Are we now able to live with them? Do we want to? Monty Don explores the enigma that is the wolf and looks at how our attitudes have shaped their destiny.
Alan Bennett recalls his regular boyhood visits to hear the Yorkshire Symphony Orchestra. With other keen supporters and former members, he tells the Orchestra's history from 1947 to its demise in 1955.
Amid the austerity of the post-war years, the YSO was founded in a spirit of great optimism to provide first class orchestral music for the citizens of Yorkshire. It was based in Leeds Town Hall, and funded entirely out of the Rates. The inaugural concert book expressed the hope that it would "find a permanent place in the musical life of Yorkshire and rank with the finest orchestras of this country".
The founder conductor was Maurice Miles, who appears in the only recording of the YSO to survive in the BBC Archive.
There were guest appearances by Sir Malcolm Sargent, Sir Thomas Beecham and Sir Adrian Boult, and visits from glittering soloists such as Joan Hammond and Tito Gobbi.
As a Leeds schoolboy, Alan Bennett found these figures from the outside world "tinged with great glamour". Violinist Rodney Friend, another supporter, was a winner of the YSO's competition for young soloists before becoming leader of the LPO, the New York Philharmonic and the BBC SO.
Eight former members of the orchestra, now scattered around the country, describe life in the YSO: cold rickety buses, romance, and the thrill of the great conductor Nikolai Malko arriving for the final season. They recall their shock on discovering that the Orchestra was to be disbanded and the sadness of the final concert.
Almost one in five people in the UK are aged 65 and older, but even expressing a figure in those terms involves grouping people whose lifestyles and experiences are very different, maybe even three generations apart.
Perhaps it's a shorthand that shows unsophisticated attitudes to anyone aged between 60 and 100+ years old.
A new series for Radio 4 - The Invisible Age - looks at how society views people aged 85 or over, and how this so-called 'fourth age' group sees younger generations who are in denial about the ageing process.
Maybe you have examples of being treated differently or presented with certain choices because someone perceived you as 'old'.
Bettany Hughes investigates charisma at The Acropolis, in a recording session with Live Aid founder Bob Geldof and on the pages of a best-selling novel with author Ben Okri.
The surprising and invigorating history of the most influential ideas in the story of civilisation, described as 'a double espresso shot of philosophy, history, science and the arts'. Award--winning historian and broadcaster Bettany Hughes begins each programme with the first, extant evidence of a single word-idea in Ancient Greek culture and travels both forwards and backwards in time, investigating how these ideas have been moulded by history, and how they've shaped us.
In this programme Bettany investigates charisma with classicist Professor Paul Cartledge, Byzantinist Dr Dionysios Stathakopoulos, Live Aid founder Bob Geldof, sociologist Professor Linda Woodhead and writer Ben Okri.
Bettany travels to Athens to see where these ideas were born and then explores the street markets, churches, offices and homes where they continue to morph and influence our daily lives.
Ideas examined in the first series, in September 2013, were idea, desire, agony, fame and justice. The second series, in January 2014, considered wisdom, comedy, liberty, peace and hospitality. Other ideas in this series are psyche, irony, nemesis and virtue.
Marcella Evaristi's play - both moving and comic - features three childhood friends who re-unite at a key moment in their lives. PJ returns to the family home in Giffnock outside Glasgow after many years in New York to find Gail and Bianca in mid-life turmoil. PJ would love to help but he has personal issues of his own. He left Giffnock as a man but has now returned as a woman. His initials - PJ - stand for Previously John.
John Wilson continues with his new series in which he talks to leading performers and songwriters about the album that made them or changed them. Recorded in front of a live audience at the BBC's iconic Maida Vale Studios. Each edition includes two episodes, with John initially quizzing the artist about the album in question, and then, in the B-side, the audience puts the questions. Both editions feature exclusive live performances.
Programme 10, the B-side. Having discussed the making of "Theology", her 2007 album (in the A-side of the programme, broadcast on Monday 15th December and available online), Sinéad O'Connor responds to questions from the audience and performs acoustic live versions of some of the tracks from the album which she considers her most personal body of work.
Michael Rosen finds out about the first sounds, words and phrases that babies recognise and learn to say. He talks to author Tom Chatfield and his 15-month-old son, and to linguists Laura Wright and Kriszta Szendroi.
Laura Bates, journalist and curator of the Everyday Sexism Project, explains to Matthew Parris why the 19th century children's author Louisa May Alcott has her vote for a Great Life. They are joined by Sarah Churchwell, Professor of American Literature at the University of East Anglia.
Louisa May Alcott is best known as the writer of "Little Women", the story of four sisters growing up during the Civil War in America. Generations of girls have read the book, which at first sight seems to be an improving tract on growing up and becoming a good Christian wife.
Both Laura and Sarah have a very different reading of the book and believe Louisa May Alcott to have been a remarkable woman and a dedicated feminist.
When Tom's father uncovers some potentially life-changing news through his research into the family tree, Tom is pressganged into helping him find a church which could be devastating for the Wrigglesworth name.
Meanwhile, Tom's mum and gran enter the cut-throat world of competitive well-dressing.
Tom ...... Tom Wrigglesworth
Granny ...... Judy Parfitt
Dad ...... Paul Copley
Mum ...... Kate Anthony
Written by Tom Wrigglesworth and James Kettle. With Miles Jupp.
Carol confides in Jim that she can't bear the idea of losing Jill because of this new road. Going undercover at Justin's drinks bash, Carol immediately finds Justin intriguing and rather charming. She resolves to find out what his interests are, aside from money.
Carol and Justin find they share a mutual love of wine. Carol talks of her vineyard back in the 1970s. Justin thinks Borsetshire is a perfect location. He lets slip that he has his eyes on a place nearby and is looking to build a house to his own design.
Lynda berates Lilian for her disruptive behaviour in rehearsals. She demands that she learn all her lines by the end of the week. Following a lecture to Lilian on the clichéd views of 'frothy' Noel Coward, Lynda introduces Douglas Herrington to his 'wife'.
Lynda cycles home to find Jim and Carol at her door, desperate to report back from their mission. Jim learned from a rather drunk Borchester construction manager that there are plans to construct a distribution hub that would stretch half way to Ambridge. Jim's keen to go straight to the press, but wise Lynda says no. They should sniff around a bit more and come up with some hard evidence, before breaking the story in the New Year.
Ridley Scott's Moses epic Exodus: Gods and Kings is reviewed by Adam Smith; investigative journalist John Sweeney and Baltimore-based crime novelist Laura Lippman discuss the phenomenon of the 'Serial' podcasts; The Shoemaker's Holiday director Phillip Breen tells Samira Ahmed about his RSC production of Thomas Dekker's Elizabethan comedy of class, conflict and cobblers in love; and Quvenzhané Wallis and director Will Gluck on their new film adaptation of Annie.
Now in her 80s, one issue looms ahead for Joan Bakewell and others from her generation - the fear of dementia. She admits that she's becoming increasingly forgetful. Her home is decked with post-it note reminders to help her remember. But are the annoying lapses in memory, that characterise her daily life, just a normal part of ageing, or could they signal something more serious like dementia? As she herself says - 'suppose I lose it?'.
In this programme, Joan asks what she might expect and how she should prepare if she receives the diagnosis.
Joan's search is spurred on by the news that her friend of many years, the actress Prunella Scales, has dementia. Over cups of tea at their home, Joan talks to Prunella and her husband, the actor Timothy West, about how her memory loss is affecting their lives.
Dementia is a growing problem for the nation. Over 800,000 now suffer from it and there's no available cure. It's a problem that the government has been prioritising through the National Challenge on Dementia, but as Professor Sube Banerjee, a lead author on the National Dementia Strategy, says there's still an immense amount that needs to be done.
Even hospitals struggle to cope with people with dementia. Being mostly old and frail, they make up a quarter of inpatients, yet the experience can be traumatising. They tend to leave hospital less capable than when they went it, and are often more confused and anxious.
So how will hospitals cope as the numbers with dementia spiral? Professor Harwood is one of those making a start, adapting Ward B47 at Queens Medical Centre in Nottingham and training staff to meet the complex needs of patients with dementia, which are only now starting to be understood.
One of the challenges of caring for dementia patients is that often their disease is so advanced that they can no longer make decisions about their medical treatment. What's more, few make their wishes known in advance. So geriatrician Professor Rowan Harwood often has to make a best guess, which can mean keeping patients alive longer than they might have wanted. Joan asks what she should do to prepare should she be diagnosed with dementia.
And what's more terrifying - living with dementia, or living in a society that fails to support those suffering with it. Several towns around the country are now addressing the ignorance and fear that can leave sufferers and their carers feeling isolated. The Crawley Dementia Alliance is bringing together schools, GPs, local businesses and transport services to make Crawley more 'dementia friendly'. And it is dementia suffers themselves whose opinions lie at the heart of what happens here.
TV presenter Richard Osman, co-host of BBC One's Pointless quiz show, is Peter White's guest. Richard talks about the impact his eye condition Nystagmus has on his life and career.
Claudia Hammond investigates an often hidden condition: perinatal obsessive compulsive disorder which can affect pregnant women or new mothers. Women with perinatal OCD can have obsessive thoughts about contamination and cleanliness or a less well known aspect of the condition which is compulsive thoughts and intense fear of seriously harming their children. They go to extreme measures to prevent themselves doing any harm, although they never would. Women can be treated successfully with cognitive behavioural therapy. Claudia talks to Fiona Challacombe, clinical psychologist at the Institute of Psychiatry about the condition and its treatment. Also in the programme, the brains cells that have been described by one neuroscientist as underpinning civilisation - have they been overhyped? Claudia talks to mirror neurons expert, Cecelia Heyes from Oxford University. And does a baby pick up anxiety more from its mother or father? Claudia talks to researcher, Eline Moller from Amsterdam University.
Though they could technically vote in local elections before that, many historians have argued that in practice they had no vote until the 1860s at the earliest. And evidence that they ever did vote has proved almost impossible to find.
But now a poll book, discovered in a box of papers in a local record office, clearly shows 25 women voting in elections for important local posts in Lichfield in 1843.
In this week's Document, the historian Sarah Richardson follows the trail of these women, to reveal a picture of Victorian women's involvement in politics which challenges many of our assumptions.
She discovers that they represented a surprising cross-section of society - old and young, poor and prosperous - and attempts to trace their descendants today.
She finds out how, when even universal manhood suffrage was seen as a radical, dangerous idea, these women may have been just a few of many more who could vote at a local level.
And she explores how, decades later, campaigners for Votes for Women at the Westminster level had to contend with this complex legacy.
Mary Costello's acclaimed debut – shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award - traces the arc of a quiet woman's life: from Tess Lohan's childhood in 1940s rural Ireland through to her emigration to America and a career as a nurse in New York.
Resolute in her decision to raise her son alone, Tess vows never to explain herself to anyone again.
Comedian Andrew O'Neill is a transvestite or as he prefers to call himself, a "pharmacist baffler", or "correct toilet double-check instigator" or "patriarchal birthright rejecter". Andrew is also heterosexual, married and in a steam punk band. He confounds expectations and preconceptions.
In the first of two audience, stand-up shows using his own personal experience, he examines sexual and gender identity, what they are and how we get them.
From a transvestite's point of view, Andrew discusses gender identity and his own experiences growing up. His humorous take on these difficult and thought provoking issues delights the audience whilst occasionally shocking them.
Andrew is one of the most interesting and articulate voices on the circuit. He came out as a transvestite when he was 19, and now cross-dresses about half the time (the British Union Of Transvestites requires you to cross-dress at least 3 days out of the 7). He wears make-up and jewellery and has long hair. He's usually dressed in black, has lots of tattoos, plays in a steam punk band and has always been heterosexual. He's married and only ever fancies women. This makes him and Eddie Izzard the only out cross-dressing comics in the country.
This series brings his (almost) unique perspective to ideas about gender and sexual identity, He looks at where you get your ideas about what your gender is, and what it should look like, how your sexuality is defined and how other people's sexuality continues to fascinate us and not necessarily in a good way.
The Prime Minister condemns the week's acts of terrorism-- the massacre of children in Northern Pakistan and the hostage-taking in Sydney, Australia. Meanwhile there's a lively reaction in the Commons as the Leader of the House William Hague unveils a radical plan for only English MPs to vote on English laws at Westminster. Joanna Shinn reports on a busy day at Parliament.
* Members of the House of Lords respond to the U.S.Senate report on the use of torture by the CIA.
* A committee studies the complexity of the process when major defence decisions are made.
* Good news for the nation's Post Offices as a Minister announces that the Post Office Card Account is to be extended.
WEDNESDAY 17 DECEMBER 2014
WED 00:00 Midnight News (b04v2jqp)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.
WED 00:30 The Kingdom to Come (b04v3813)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:45 on Tuesday]
WED 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b04v2jqr)
The latest shipping forecast.
WED 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b04v2jqt)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
WED 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b04v2jqw)
The latest shipping forecast.
WED 05:30 News Briefing (b04v2jqy)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.
WED 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b04v3b97)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Judy Merry.
WED 05:45 Farming Today (b04v3b99)
Fish discard ban, Women in dairy, Winter wildlife
As the EU's Fisheries Ministers hammer out the 2015 fishing quota in Brussels, Farming Today focuses on the 'discard ban', which comes into force for some fish species from January 1st.
We hear how the aim is to stop fishermen throwing back unwanted catches - fish which might not meet the quota, or if they are too small. Instead they'll have to land all the fish they catch. From 2015 this new rule covers pelagic fish - like mackerel, whiting and herring - and then will gradually include all species by 2019.
However, fishermen are concerned that the new discard ban has to run alongside existing legislation, which makes landing everything you catch, illegal. Bertie Armstrong, chief executive of the Scottish Fishermen's Federation, is concerned that fishermen keeping to the new discard ban could actually be breaking the law at the same time.
While the campaign group Farmers for Action is reporting making inroads, forcing the retailer Iceland to give them a better deal on milk, a new organisation's been launched for women in the industry to share their expertise. We find out why 'Women in Dairy' groups have been set up in the South West and in Cheshire - a new scheme supported by the Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers.
As of this week, members of the public in Cumbria and North Yorkshire will be able to protect their common land by putting it on a register - which means they'd regain the rights to walk and perhaps ride on them. These regions have been added to seven others in England which can also be put back on the Common Land Register. Nicola Hodgson of the Open Spaces Society explains what difference winning back rights to common land can mean for local people.
Presented by Anna Hill and Produced by Mark Smalley.
WED 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b04t0gsc)
Saddleback
Tweet of the Day is the voice of birds and our relationship with them, from around the world.
Liz Bonnin presents the formerly widespread saddleback of New Zealand. It's loud, piping and whistling calls once resounded throughout New Zealand's forests, but now the saddleback is heard only on smaller offshore islands. This is a bird in exile. About the size of a European blackbird, saddlebacks are predominantly black with a rust-coloured saddle-shaped patch on their backs. In Maori culture this mark came from the demi-God Maui who, after trying to catch the sun, asked the saddleback to fetch water. The bird refused, so hot-handed Maui grabbed it and left a scorch mark on the bird's back. As well as this chestnut saddle, the bird has two bright red wattles at the base of its beak which it can dilate when it displays. It also has an extensive vocabulary and one of its calls has earned it the Maori name –"Ti-e-ke".
WED 06:00 Today (b04v3b9c)
Morning news and current affairs. Including Sports Desk, Yesterday in Parliament, Weather and Thought for the Day.
WED 09:00 Midweek (b04v3b9f)
Barry and Bob Cryer, Florian Leonhard, Antonia Bolingbroke-Kent, Andrew Gant
Libby Purves meets Barry and Bob Cryer; violin maker Florian Leonhard; adventurer Antonia Bolingbroke-Kent and choirmaster Andrew Gant.
Father and son Barry and Bob Cryer have co-written a new show, Mrs Hudson's Christmas Corker. Set in the kitchen of 221b Baker Street, the Christmas special reveals what really happens below stairs at the home of Sherlock Holmes. Veteran comedy writer and performer, Barry is a regular on Radio 4's I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue. Bob is a writer and actor who has appeared in TV shows such as The Bill and Outnumbered. Mrs Hudson's Christmas Corker is at Wilton's Music Hall, East London.
Florian Leonhard is a violin maker, restorer and dealer. He matches soloists with violins, mentors young talent and advises artists such as Julian Lloyd Webber. He trained at the prestigious Mittenwald violin school in Germany and has been making and restoring fine violins since he was 18.
Antonia Bolingbroke-Kent is a travel writer and adventurer. She is presenting a talk at the Adventure Travel Show about her two month motorcycle trip along the Ho Chi Minh trail. Her other exploits include riding from Thailand to Brighton in a pink tuk-tuk; organising the world's longest horse race in Mongolia and surviving an attempt to reach the Arctic Circle on an old Russian Ural motorcycle with sidecar. Antonia is at The Adventure Travel Show, Olympia.
Andrew Gant is a musician, writer, choirmaster and composer. His book, Christmas Carols: From Village Green to Church Choir, reveals the stories behind 22 Christmas carols. He lectures music at the University of Oxford and led Her Majesty's Chapel Royal choir at the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. Christmas Carols: From Village Green to Church Choir is published by Profile Books.
Producer: Paula McGinley.
WED 09:45 The Kingdom to Come (b04v3b9h)
Onora O'Neill
Peter Hennessy, the historian, continues his series of conversations on the future of the United Kingdom's constitution. His guest today is Onora O'Neill (Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve), philosopher, chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission and former BBC Reith lecturer.
The hurried promises of further devolution made by political leaders during and immediately after the Scottish Referendum will fundamentally change how the United Kingdom is governed, with little opportunity for people to consider what this radical reform might mean or to discuss the constitutional implications.
This series explores the possible impact of further devolution on the United Kingdom's constitution. In each programme, Peter Hennessy invites his guests to draw on their different expertise in government, politics, the law and public ethics in considering questions of accountability, coherence and practicality. For example, would further devolution improve trust in politics? Is devolution practical unless it is accompanied by tax-raising powers? Is there a risk that varying degrees of devolution across the country could create an incoherent system? Would all citizens of the United Kingdom continue to enjoy equal rights? Would a federal constitution be viable? Are we heading towards the end of the United Kingdom?
Peter Hennessy's other guests during the series are William Hague MP, First Secretary of State and Leader of the House of Commons; Alistair Darling MP, former Chancellor of the Exchequer; David Hope (Lord Hope of Craighead), former Deputy President of the United Kingdom's Supreme Court; and Robin Butler (Lord Butler of Brockwell), former Cabinet Secretary.
Producer: Rob Shepherd.
WED 10:00 Woman's Hour (b04v3b9k)
Backstage before a performance
We join the folk musician Kate Rusby backstage, as she prepares for her Christmas tour of the UK.
At the moment, just over a fifth of MPs are women. How might that that change in 2015? We've been looking at how the main political parties at Westminster are trying to get more women to stand - and what help they offer them in getting selected and elected. Today, it's the Conservatives.
As a part of our series on domestic abuse, Jenni Murray visits staff and users of the Gaia Centre in London. Funded by Lambeth Council and run by Refuge, it is referred to as a gendered violence centre and seen as a potential model for future centres.
And Child psychologist Lavern Antrobus will be talking about some of the issues raised by you following yesterday's discussion on grandparents, seeing and maintaining contact with their grandchildren.
WED 10:41 15 Minute Drama (b04v3b9m)
Just a Girl: Series 1
Episode 3
Amy's desperation to get on the hormone blockers begins to worry her family, and her granddad Ted finally understands her predicament.
How would you cope if your child was born into the wrong body? Powerful new drama by Mark Davies Markham.
A very ordinary family has come to terms with the less ordinary experience of Amy who was born as Ben. Adamant that she is a girl from an early age, Amy is growing up fast and nervous about starting senior school, with a boy's body. Her parents, Gary and Charlotte, have to help decide whether she should take significant steps to delay puberty until she can be fully assessed for transgender treatment. The right thing to do is not clear, and their different views on what is best for their child present some very difficult choices. Granddad Ted loves them all but struggles to grasp how serious the situation is. At the same time, everyday family life goes on, and re-decorating Amy's bedroom brings her and her Granddad closer. This honest, compassionate new drama was inspired by real life experiences.
Thanks to Susie Green and the parents at Mermaids, a charity offering support to gender variant children, teenagers and their families and the Tavistock Clinic.
Studio Pianist ..... Alfie Davies
Director ..... Polly Thomas
Writer ..... Mark Davies Markham.
WED 10:55 The Listening Project (b04v3b9p)
Marvina and Renee - Being Gay in Nigeria
Fi Glover with a conversation between friends of Nigerian origin, reflecting on their culture's intolerance of homosexuality and its effect on their lives and their friendship.
The Listening Project is a Radio 4 initiative that offers a snapshot of contemporary Britain in which people across the UK volunteer to have a conversation with someone close to them about a subject they've never discussed intimately before. The conversations are being gathered across the UK by teams of producers from local and national radio stations who facilitate each encounter. Every conversation - they're not BBC interviews, and that's an important difference - lasts up to an hour, and is then edited to extract the key moment of connection between the participants. Most of the unedited conversations are being archived by the British Library and used to build up a collection of voices capturing a unique portrait of the UK in the second decade of the millennium. You can learn more about The Listening Project by visiting bbc.co.uk/listeningproject
Producer: Marya Burgess.
WED 11:00 What's Funny about Money? (b04vxv1c)
The Kilkenomics Festival of economics and comedy was launched in the depths of Ireland's financial crisis in 2010. Five years on it has earned a reputation for being 'Davos with laughs'. Economists and comedians share platforms over a weekend in the Irish city of Kilkenny, demystifying the language and theories of economics. Comedian Colm O'Regan has been performing at Kilkenomics since it was launched and explores how the festival works.
Speaking to the co-founders of the festival, economist David McWilliams and festival organiser Richard Cook, Colm discovers what motivated them to start a comedy festival at such a difficult time for the Irish economy, and how the mood is different today.
He meets John Lanchester, author of How to Speak Money, who explains how those appearing at Kilkenomics are able to find ways to explain difficult economic concepts. He finds out what comedians appearing for the first time, like Ardal O'Hanlan, make of the event. He also hears from Irish economists and asks whether there is a 'Kilkenomics' school of economic thought. Finally, Colm meets a group of protestors against Ireland's debt who are marching at Kilkenomics to make their point.
Colm considers whether it is the Irish experience that makes Kilkenomics so appealing, or if the festival could also work in other countries.
Produced by Philip Reevell
A City Broadcasting production first broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2014.
WED 11:30 Hobby Bobbies (b04v3cx5)
Series 2
Burglaries
Sitcom where Britain's longest serving PCSO -and Britain's laziest - make quite a pairing.
Written by Dave Lamb (the voice of Come Dine With Me) and starring Richie Webb (Horrible Histories), Nick Walker, Chris Emmett and Noddy Holder.
This week, Nigel has taken up free running in the hope that physical fitness can improve his performance at work. But what, if anything, will identify the mysterious hand cream thief?
Cast:
Geoff...............Richie Webb
Nigel...............Nick Walker
The Guv..........Sinead Keenan
Nina................Pooja Shah
Bernie.............Chris Emmett
Geoff's Dad.....Noddy Holder
Written by Dave Lamb
Produced by Steve Doherty
A Top Dog production for BBC Radio 4
WED 12:00 News Summary (b04v2jr0)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
WED 12:04 Home Front (b04v3cx7)
17 December 1914 - Archie Tulliver
The recruitment drive takes a new and charming turn on the streets of Folkestone.
Written by Shaun McKenna
Directed by Jessica Dromgoole
Sound: Martha Littlehailes
WED 12:15 You and Yours (b04v3cx9)
Calderstones, Christmas Dinners and Family Department Stores
The CQC reports today into the Calderstones NHS Trust. The last report was highly critical. The Trust runs one of the controversial Assessment and Treatment Centres meant for short term use only, but some residents have been in the centre for very long periods.
We spend around £40 million each year in ethical cleaning products & another £500 million on ethical cosmetics - all to protect ourselves from chemicals known as Endocrine Disrupter Compounds. But what are these compounds and just how dangerous are they?
Writer Shirley Conran once said "Life is too short to stuff a mushroom". Now it seems Christmas Day is too short to stuff a turkey. Supermarkets have an answer, but is the time it saves worth the extra cost?
Interview with Dermot Nolan the new head of the energy regulator, Ofgem
It used to be the handset of choice for the busy executive. Then Blackberry's fortunes took a tumble due to low sales and increased competition in the mobile phone market. But now the brand is hoping for a return to form with the launch of a new handset - the Classic - which is released today. It's already sold out on pre-order in the United States.
Randall's department store is closing down after 120 years of trading in Uxbridge. Our reporter Henrietta Harrison went to the store as it prepares for the closing down sale.
WED 12:57 Weather (b04v2jr4)
The latest weather forecast.
WED 13:00 World at One (b04v3cxc)
Analysis of current affairs reports, presented by Martha Kearney.
WED 13:45 The Ideas That Make Us (b04v3cxf)
Series 3
Irony
Bettany Hughes examines irony in her archaeology of philosophy in a club where it's banned and in the studios of Radio 4's Today programme.
The surprising and invigorating history of the most influential ideas in the story of civilisation, described as 'a double expresso shot of philosophy, history, science and the arts'. Award-winning historian and broadcaster Bettany Hughes begins each programme with the first, extant evidence of a single word-idea in Ancient Greek culture and travels both forwards and backwards in time, investigating how these ideas have been moulded by history, and how they've shaped us.
In this programme Bettany considers irony with philosopher Angie Hobbs, comedian Robert Newman, and grand inquisitor John Humphrys. Bettany travels to Athens to see where these ideas were born and then explores the street markets, churches, offices and homes where they continue to morph and influence our daily lives.
Ideas examined in the first series, in September 2013, were idea, desire, agony, fame and justice. The second series, in January 2014, considered wisdom, comedy, liberty, peace and hospitality. Other ideas in this series are psyche, charisma, nemesis and virtue.
Series Producer: Dixi Stewart.
WED 14:00 The Archers (b04v383k)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Tuesday]
WED 14:15 Drama (b013gd2b)
Pink Boy Blue Girl
by Mateusz Dymek
When a Swedish PHD student interviews a couple about raising their child gender neutrally she begins to wonder if their choices are as politically correct as they first seem.
Directed by Sally Avens.
WED 15:00 Money Box Live (b04v3cxh)
Fraud
Have you been a victim of fraud? How do you report the crime, get your money back and stop it happening again? Call 03700 100 444 from
1pm to
3.30pm on Wednesday or e-mail moneybox@bbc.co.uk .
Around £450 million was lost to debit and credit card fraud in 2013 say Financial Fraud Action and the City of London Police have just launched 'The 12 online frauds of Christmas' campaign, to warn consumers about the latest dangers.
If you've got a question about dealing with or preventing fraud, Paul Lewis and guests will be ready to help on Wednesday.
Who is liable if you are the victim of fraud or identity theft?
What happens if your credit or debit card is lost or stolen and then used to buy something?
Where do you report fraud and how is it investigated?
How can you stay safe when shopping online?
Do you really need to pay for an identity protection service?
Whatever you need help with, you can speak directly to:
DCI Perry Stokes, Head, Dedicated Cheque and Plastic Crime Unit.
DCI Matt Bradford, National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB)
James Daley, Managing Director, Fairer Finance
Call 03700 100 444 between
1pm and
3.30pm on Wednesday or e-mail moneybox@bbc.co.uk now. Standard geographic charges apply. Calls from mobiles may be higher.
WED 15:30 All in the Mind (b04v3844)
[Repeat of broadcast at
21:00 on Tuesday]
WED 16:00 Thinking Allowed (b04v3cxk)
Butchers; Fat Gay Men
Fat gay men: Laurie Taylor examines a world in which men are doubly stigmatised - for their weight as well as their sexuality. Jason Whitesel, an Assistant Professor in Women's and Gender Studies at Pace University in the US, discusses a study which illuminates how such men negotiate and fight back against a gay culture which places them in an inferior and stigmatised position in the 'attractiveness' hierarchy.They're joined by Paul Simpson, a Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Manchester, who has researched the marginality of older gay men on the gay 'scene'.
Also, the masculine world of the butchers. Dr Natasha Slutskaya, lecturer of Organization Studies at Brunel Business School, discusses a study into the values and meanings butchers ascribe to the 'dirty work' of meat production and sale.
Producer: Jayne Egerton.
WED 16:30 The Media Show (b04v3cxm)
BT's EE Talks, Journalism and PR, Ofcom's Review into C4, London Weeklies Launch
Telecoms group BT has entered exclusive talks over a £12.5 billion deal to buy Britain's biggest mobile phone operator EE. It signals BT''s ambitions to dominate the UK's mobile market, twelve years since it left the sector. BT will be hoping to persuade a growing number of homes to purchase all four of its services - home phone, mobile, broadband and pay TV. Steve Hewlett talks to analyst Claire Enders about how the move would affect consumer choice, and how the deal could impact on the forthcoming bidding for Premier League football rights.
The media regulator OFCOM has raised concerns about the decline of Channel 4's audience. In a review of the broadcaster, which said that broadly it was performing well, it found limited provision of content made for older children and highlighted the continued decline in reach and share for Channel 4 News. It also published initial findings into its third Public Service Broadcasters review. Media commentator Maggie Brown and analyst Claire Enders join Steve Hewlett to discuss the details.
Sir Ray Tindle has launched 4 new weekly London papers, at a time when others are closing down. Steve talks to editor Philip Evans about why the group is bucking the trend.
A new book from the Reuters Institute claims PR no longer needs journalism as much as journalism needs PR. It considers the changing relationship between what it calls 'two trades at once antagonistic and mutually dependent.' Steve hears from journalist and co-author John Lloyd, and Robert Phillips, former UK CEO of Edelman, the world's biggest PR firm.
Producer: Katy Takatsuki.
WED 17:00 PM (b04v3cxp)
Full coverage and analysis of the day's news.
WED 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b04v2jr6)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
WED 18:30 Paul Sinha's History Revision (b04v3cxr)
Series 1
Communication
Paul Sinha looks through all of human history and examines how we came to be where we are.
In this edition, he looks at the modern's youth's obsession with a device that can be used to email, text, surf the web, play games and, very occasionally, make telephone calls - the telephone.
The story of how it came, legally, into being obviously involves electro-shock therapy and an exploding boat.
Paul also looks at a more positive aspect of young people, and tells a story of how the introduction of gin to the United Kingdom inspired the 17th-century equivalent of the Ice Bucket Challenge.
Written and performed by Paul Sinha.
Producer: Ed Morrish
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2014.
WED 19:00 The Archers (b04v3cxt)
At Justin's shoot, Charlie tells him who's who and David finally gets to meet the big man himself. The men get into the spirit of things and enjoy a sumptuous lunch from Jennifer. Brian's not quite as upbeat as Justin. When they raise their glasses, he decides to pace himself. David has a successful morning shooting and Justin toasts the gathered farmers, wishing good sport to "good friends and neighbours".
Jennifer's looking forward to having Kate home. She hopes Kate can build bridges between Roy and Phoebe. Jennifer asks David about Ruth's mother - and schools - up north.
Justin is keen to visit Brookfield with his architect. David reluctantly agrees to a visit after Christmas.
Charlie is keen to know more about Tom and Bridge Farm's organic operation, which he sees as niche farming. Charlie asks Brian about Home Farm's plans. Brian hints that he could decide to move into a new direction. Charlie is disappointed that Adam isn't around today.
At Grey Gables, Roy isn't in the party mood. Roy phones Hayley, desperate to sort out when he can have Abbie over at Christmas. Hayley awkwardly says he'll have to come to Birmingham. They discuss presents. Roy will get Abbie and Phoebe whatever they want. Roy rings off and trudges back to work.
WED 19:15 Front Row (b04v4sx6)
Christoph Waltz, Treasure Island, Mozart in the Jungle, Unread e-Books
Double Oscar-winner Christoph Waltz on working with Tim Burton in Big Eyes, and responds to rumours surrounding his role in the new James Bond film.
Kirsty goes backstage at the National Theatre on the set that really is the star of Treasure Island - it's a ship, a pub, a cave and a strange, pulsating island. And a pirate's corpse.
Radio 3's Petroc Trelawney reviews Mozart in the Jungle, a new 'webseries' about a wild young conductor who tries to rejuvenate the New York Symphony.
And, novelists Lawrence Norfolk and Kate Pullinger discuss the implications of the recent data released by e-reader Kobo about which books are most often left unfinished.
WED 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b04v3b9m)
[Repeat of broadcast at
10:41 today]
WED 20:00 At Home Abroad (b04v4sx8)
The world is on the move. More than 200 million people live today in a different country to their birthplace.
Britain is a major crossroads of this seething human migration. Among developed nations, there are more Britons living abroad than from any other country. Inward migration to Britain has also been massive - more than 13 percent of the UK population is foreign born.
A panel of New Britons, immigrants from all points of the compass, debate questions raised by making a new home abroad. How far do you assimilate? What is the process of leaving one culture behind when the new one doesn't always accept you with open arms? How do you raise your children, born in Britain, if you do not fully feel a member of British society yourself? Can an immigrant believe there too many immigrants coming to this country now?
Presented by Michael Goldfarb
Produced by Anthony Denselow
A Certain Height production for BBC Radio 4.
WED 20:45 Four Thought (b04v4sxb)
Series 4
The Shadow of the Cold War
Jeffrey Sachs argues that many of today's global problems are hangovers from bad, ungenerous decisions at the end of previous conflicts.
Professor Sachs is one of the world's leading economists, and amongst the many governments he has advised over 30 years were Poland and Russia at the end of the Cold War.
In this very personal talk, recorded at McNally Jackson books in New York City, Professor Sachs describes how a stunned Russian Prime Minister, facing economic calamity and desperate for western support, was told instead by western governments that there would be no help forthcoming. And he argues that decisions like this - similar to those taken by the Entente powers at the end of the First World War which sowed the seeds of today's conflicts in the Middle East - are a large part of the explanation of Russian attitudes today, including in Ukraine.
The presenter is Amanda Stern.
Producer: Giles Edwards.
WED 21:00 Frontiers (b04v4sxd)
Can Maths Combat Terrorism?
Dr Hannah Fry investigates the hidden patterns behind terrorism and asks whether mathematics could be used to predict the next 9/11.
When computer scientists decided to study the severity and frequency of 30,000 terrorist attacks worldwide, they found an distinctive pattern hiding in the data.
Even though the events spanned 5,000 cities in 187 countries over 40 years, every single attack fitted neatly onto a curve, described by an equation known as a 'power law'.
Now this pattern is helping mathematicians and social scientists understand the mechanisms underlying global terrorism.
Could these modelling techniques be used to predict if, and when, another attack the size of 9/11 will occur?
Producer: Michelle Martin.
WED 21:30 Midweek (b04v3b9f)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:00 today]
WED 21:58 Weather (b04v2jr8)
The latest weather forecast.
WED 22:00 The World Tonight (b04v4sxg)
President Barack Obama announces the re-establishment of diplomatic relations with Cuba.
Greek MPs fail to agree on a new President - as the prospect of new elections looms.
Pakistan's Nawaz Sharif vows to rid his country of terrorism after yesterday's Taliban attack
plus - how the discount supermarkets have changed the way we shop
and the intern who made a stunning discovery of polyphonic music
In-depth reporting and analysis from a global perspective. With Ritula Shah.
WED 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b04v4sxj)
Mary Costello - Academy Street
Episode 8
Shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award, Mary Costello's acclaimed debut traces the arc of a quiet woman's life: from Tess Lohan's childhood in 1940s rural Ireland through to her emigration to America and a career as a nurse in New York.
Tess has never again heard from David and has raised their son, Theo, alone. Now aged 14, Theo is old enough to ask some tough questions.
Read by Niamh Cusack
Written by Mary Costello
Abridged by Kirsteen Cameron
Produced by Kirsteen Cameron
WED 23:00 The Lach Chronicles (b04v4sxl)
Series 2
Teenage Alcoholic
Lach was the King of Manhattan's East Village and host of the longest running open mic night in New York. He now lives in Scotland and finds himself back at square one, playing in a dive bar on the wrong side of Edinburgh.
His acclaimed night, held in various venues around New York, was called the Antihoot. Never quite fitting in and lost somewhere lonely between folk and punk music, Lach started the Antifolk movement. He played host to Suzanne Vega, Jeff Buckley and many others. He discovered and nurtured lots of talent including Beck, Regina Spektor and the Moldy Peaches - but nobody discovered him.
In 1982, the "Village" was the centre of all worldly excitement. Iggy Pop played small venues to those in the know, style was everybody's own, your heroes drank in the local bars, and anointment was just a few chords away.
Producer: Richard Melvin
A Dabster production for BBC Radio 4 first broadcast in December 2014.
WED 23:15 Mission Improbable (b01p0s15)
Series 1
Jungle!
A series of fast-paced mini-adventures written by and starring Anna Emerson, Lizzie Bates and Catriona Knox, known collectively as The Boom Jennies.
Prompted by the pine-fresh fragrance of zoo keeper Amelia's new perfume, adventure journalist Jane is reminded of a story her uncle Norman once told her about a rare midnight orchid found only in the Guatemalan jungle. This is no ordinary flower, but one that gives off a scent with such aphrodisiac properties it makes the person wielding it utterly irresistible.
That's more than enough to convince perennial singleton Lucy that it is high time they all headed to South America. There follows a roller coaster ride of an adventure taking in waterfalls, crocodiles and a gang of ruthless drug smugglers. But our heroes remain unbowed.
Each and every challenge thrown at them is met head-on with courage, determination and deeply inappropriate footwear.
Jane.................Catriona Knox
Lucy.................Lizzie Bates
Amelia..............Anna Emerson
Norman.............Paul Ryan
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 first broadcast in November 2012.
WED 23:30 Today in Parliament (b04v4sxn)
MPs welcome a report that dismisses as "deliberate lies" allegations that British troops tortured and murdered detainees in Iraq ten years ago.
The Defence Secretary told the Commons that Iraqi witnesses and their lawyers must bear the blame for traducing troops' reputations, and costing taxpayers more than £31 million.
In the final Prime Minister's Question time of the year, there was little seasonal goodwill on display, as Ed Miliband accuses the Conservatives of planning to take Britain back to the 1930s. David Cameron calls the Labour leader a "waste of space".
And the Chancellor warns that anyone expecting "unaffordable pre-election giveaways" in his budget next March, just seven weeks ahead of the May 7 poll, would be "disappointed".
Susan Hulme and team report on today's events in Parliament.
THURSDAY 18 DECEMBER 2014
THU 00:00 Midnight News (b04v2jsc)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.
THU 00:30 The Kingdom to Come (b04v3b9h)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:45 on Wednesday]
THU 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b04v2jsf)
The latest shipping forecast.
THU 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b04v2jsh)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
THU 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b04v2jsk)
The latest shipping forecast.
THU 05:30 News Briefing (b04v2jsm)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.
THU 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b04v59gb)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Judy Merry.
THU 05:45 Farming Today (b04v59gk)
Forage Aid, Fish quotas, Weetabix
Whether its been floods or snow, in recent years a scheme called Forage Aid has helped farmers feed their animals during the crisis. It now hopes to gain charitable status early next year. The organisation, which was founded by Lincolnshire farmer Andrew Ward, helps organise and co-ordinate donations of animal food when weather destroys farmers stocks.
Conservationists say the deal on fish quotas negotiated this week in Brussels is a missed opportunity and accuse the British Government of ignoring the science. With fishermen there is a mixed reaction, while there are cuts in some quotas many are not as big as they had feared. Farming Today speaks to the Fisheries Minister George Eustice and the Marine Conservation Society.
And the company Weetabix, which was bought out by a Chinese company two years ago, hopes to tap into the Chinese breakfast market, by tweaking some of their recipes. All of the wheat grown for thier UK produced cereals is grown within 50 miles of the Northamptonshire factory.
Presented by Charlotte Smith and Produced by Lucy Bickerton.
THU 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b04t0gzx)
Greater Racket-tailed Drongo
Tweet of the Day is the voice of birds and our relationship with them, from around the world.
Liz Bonnin presents the greater racket-tailed drongo of South-East Asia. Across a clearing in a Malaysian forest flies a dark bird, seemingly chased by two equally dark butterflies. Those butterflies in hot pursuit aren't insects at all; they are the webbed tips of the greater racket-tailed drongo's excessively long wiry outer-tail feathers, which from a distance look like separate creatures as it flies. Glossy blue-black birds which live in wooded country and are great insect catchers, hawking after them in mid-air before returning to a perch. They're bold too and won't hesitate to harry and chase much larger birds than themselves, including, birds of prey. Like other drongos the greater racquet-tailed drongo has an extensive but not very musical repertoire which includes the sounds of other birds it meets, when it joins mixed feeding flocks, and can imitate the call of a hawk to alarm the hawk's victims and so steal food from them while they are distracted by the call: an ingenious tactic, which few other birds have learned.
THU 06:00 Today (b04v59gv)
Morning news and current affairs. Including Sports Desk, Yesterday in Parliament, Weather and Thought for the Day.
THU 09:00 In Our Time (b04v59gz)
Truth
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the philosophy of truth. Pontius Pilate famously asked: what is truth? In the twentieth century, the nature of truth became a subject of particular interest to philosophers, but they preferred to ask a slightly different question: what does it mean to say of any particular statement that it is true? What is the difference between these two questions, and how useful is the second of them?
With:
Simon Blackburn
Fellow of Trinity College, University of Cambridge, and Professor of Philosophy at the New College of the Humanities
Jennifer Hornsby
Professor of Philosophy at Birkbeck, University of London
Crispin Wright
Regius Professor of Logic at the University of Aberdeen, and Professor of Philosophy at New York University
Producer: Victoria Brignell and Luke Mulhall.
THU 09:45 The Kingdom to Come (b04v59h1)
Alistair Darling MP
Peter Hennessy, the historian, continues his series of conversations on the future of the United Kingdom's constitution. His guest today is Alistair Darling MP, the former Chancellor of the Exchequer and Secretary of State for Scotland, Trade and Industry, Transport and Work and Pensions.
The hurried promises of further devolution made by political leaders during and immediately after the Scottish Referendum will fundamentally change how the United Kingdom is governed, with little opportunity for people to consider what this radical reform might mean or to discuss the constitutional implications.
This series explores the possible impact of further devolution on the United Kingdom's constitution. In each programme, Peter Hennessy invites his guests to draw on their different expertise in government, politics, the law and public ethics in considering questions of accountability, coherence and practicality. For example, would further devolution improve trust in politics? Is devolution practical unless it is accompanied by tax-raising powers? Is there a risk that varying degrees of devolution across the country could create an incoherent system? Would all citizens of the United Kingdom continue to enjoy equal rights? Would a federal constitution be viable? Are we heading towards the end of the United Kingdom?
Peter Hennessy's other guests in the series are William Hague MP, First Secretary of State and Leader of the House of Commons; Onora O'Neill (Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve), philosopher, chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission and former BBC Reith lecturer; David Hope (Lord Hope of Craighead), former Deputy President of the United Kingdom's Supreme Court; and Robin Butler (Lord Butler of Brockwell), former Cabinet Secretary.
Producer: Rob Shepherd.
THU 10:00 Woman's Hour (b04v59h3)
June Mottershead; Maddy Prior
June Mottershead whose father started Chester Zoo - their story inspired the TV series Our Zoo. As we head into the 2015 General Election just under 23% of MPs are women. What are the Conservatives, Labour and the Liberal Democrats doing to get more women elected? Maddy Prior on a 45 year career in folk music and upcoming tour with reformed Steeleye Span. We discuss the history and future of the sale of commercial beauty products with Hadley Freeman and Gail Parminter.
Presented by Emma Barnett
Produced by Laura Northedge.
THU 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b04v59h5)
Just a Girl: Series 1
Episode 4
A sleep over for Amy with new friends brings things to a head between her parents.
How would you cope if your child was born into the wrong body? Powerful new drama by Mark Davies Markham.
A very ordinary family has come to terms with the less ordinary experience of Amy who was born as Ben. Adamant that she is a girl from an early age, Amy is growing up fast and nervous about starting senior school, with a boy's body. Her parents, Gary and Charlotte, have to help decide whether she should take significant steps to delay puberty until she can be fully assessed for transgender treatment. The right thing to do is not clear, and their different views on what is best for their child present some very difficult choices. Granddad Ted loves them all but struggles to grasp how serious the situation is. At the same time, everyday family life goes on, and re-decorating Amy's bedroom brings her and her Granddad closer. This honest, compassionate new drama was inspired by real life experiences.
Thanks to Susie Green and the parents at Mermaids, a charity offering support to gender variant children, teenagers and their families and the Tavistock Clinic.
Studio Pianist ..... Alfie Davies
Director ..... Polly Thomas
Writer ..... Mark Davies Markham.
THU 11:00 Crossing Continents (b04v59h7)
The Knights of New Russia
Russian support for the separatists in eastern Ukraine doesn't all come directly from the Kremlin. The rebellion there may be stoked, and armed, by Vladimir Putin - but it's also become a personal cause for young Russian volunteers recruited by a variety of nationalist and far-right groups. Many say they're motivated by their Orthodox faith - and their dream to restore Novorossiya, or New Russia, the territory which encompassed eastern Ukraine under the Tsarist Empire. Passionate members of re-enactment societies, they've spent their weekends reliving Russia's historic battles. But now they're fighting - and sometimes dying - for real, in what they see as a test of their own, and Russia's, "manhood". Tim Whewell has gained rare access to the weird, shadowy world of Russia's radical nationalists. He travels with volunteers from the grand old imperial capital, St Petersburg, to the chaotic, muddy battlefields of eastern Ukraine - and reveals a movement whose leaders have become increasingly influential in Putin's Russia - but is now in danger of becoming an embarrassment to the Kremlin.
Producer: Dina Newman.
THU 11:30 James Bond (b04v59h9)
The Soviet James Bond
In the depths of the Cold War, the Soviets had their own version of James Bond, a superspy whose adventures thrilled readers from Minsk to the Urals.
But whereas Bond enjoyed champagne, gambling and beautiful women, the spy codenamed Stierlitz was a Russian patriot of austere tastes (though he does enjoy vodka and singing Russian songs). In novels like “Diamonds for the Dictatorship of the Proletariat,” Stierlitz carved a parallel path to that being followed by the great 007.
Spy fan Miles Jupp explores the extraordinary legacy of the Soviet James Bond and his creator Julian Semyonov.
Producer: David Stenhouse
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2014
THU 12:00 News Summary (b04v2jsp)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
THU 12:04 Home Front (b04v5fjh)
18 December 1914 - Mervyn Harris
Maisie Plackett takes very seriously the question 'Is Your Best Boy in Khaki?'
Written by Shaun McKenna
Directed by Jessica Dromgoole
Sound: Martha Littlehailes
THU 12:15 You and Yours (b04v5fjk)
Delivery delays; Audi problem; 'Gripe sites' censored
The online shopping delivery woes. We find out what the companies are doing to make sure parcels arrive in time for Christmas.
Facebook has removed a 'gripe site' set up to warn people against having laser eye surgery. Are fears of defamation closing Facebook down as a viable forum for complaint about companies?
Plus, why are so many Audi owners finding their car uses a lot of oil? Audi has told us that any customers who think their car may be burning too much can contact their UK customer helpline on 0800 699 888.
Presenter: Winifred Robinson
Producer: Natalie Donovan.
THU 12:57 Weather (b04v2jsr)
The latest weather forecast.
THU 13:00 World at One (b04v5fjm)
Analysis of current affairs reports, presented by Martha Kearney.
THU 13:45 The Ideas That Make Us (b04v5fjp)
Series 3
Nemesis
Bettany Hughes pursues nemesis in her archaeology of philosophy on the streets of ancient Athens, in the gym and with experts on counterterrorism and climate change.
The surprising and invigorating history of the most influential ideas in the story of civilisation, described as 'a double expresso shot of philosophy, history, science and the arts'. Award--winning historian and broadcaster Bettany Hughes begins each programme with the first, extant evidence of a single word-idea in Ancient Greek culture and travels both forwards and backwards in time, investigating how these ideas have been moulded by history, and how they've shaped us.
In this programmes Bettany pursues nemesis with classicist Professor Paul Cartledge, Buddhist scholar Dr Sarah Shaw, Colonel Tim Collins who in March 2003 led British troops into Iraq, and climate change scientist Dr Simon Lewis. Bettany travels to Athens to see where these ideas were born and then explores the street markets, churches, offices and homes where they continue to morph and influence our daily lives.
Ideas examined in the first series, in September 2013, were idea, desire, agony, fame and justice. The second series, in January 2014, considered wisdom, comedy, liberty, peace and hospitality. Other ideas in this series are psyche, charisma, irony and virtue.
Series Producer: Dixi Stewart.
THU 14:00 The Archers (b04v3cxt)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Wednesday]
THU 14:15 Drama (b04v5fjr)
Ebola
The true story of the 1976 discovery of the deadly Ebola virus, in the jungle of Zaire. The arrival in Antwerp of a thermos flask containing the blood of a dead Belgian nun was the first step on a path that led a small group of virologists to discover the deadly disease Ebola.
This drama tells the story of the risks taken by a young team of people, flown deep into the rainforest of Zaire, to study and fight the virus with only the most rudimentary of equipment.
Narrated by one of that 1976 team, Professor Peter Piot was a young trainee virologist based in Antwerp. He went on to run the UN AIDS programme and is now the head of the London School of Hygiene And Tropical Medicine.
Written by Mike Walker
Directed by Dirk Maggs
Produced by David Morley
A Perfectly Normal production for BBC Radio 4.
THU 15:00 Open Country (b04v5fjt)
Christmas Trees at Castle Howard
This week Caz Graham visits Castle Howard in Yorkshire.
Famous as the setting for 'Brideshead Revisited' the country estate has been gearing up for the festive period for months.
In the heart of the Howardian Hills, the estate has around 6,100 acres of farmland.
Much of the produce ends up in the farm shop on the estate.
There is also 2000 acres of woodland and at this time of year there is only one tree that people are after: Christmas Trees. Caz meets Nick Cooke, the man in charge of making sure that the trees reach the customers in good condition and also responsible for supplying some of Yorkshire's largest towns with their towering Christmas trees. Caz discovers why the Howardian Hills are perfect from growing Christmas trees and gets an insight into what happens in the winter on a large country estate.
Presenter: Caz Graham
Producer: Martin Poyntz-Roberts.
THU 15:27 Radio 4 Appeal (b04v2ltz)
[Repeat of broadcast at
07:55 on Sunday]
THU 15:30 Open Book (b04v2s11)
[Repeat of broadcast at
16:00 on Sunday]
THU 16:00 The Film Programme (b04v5fjw)
Angelina Jolie, Danny Elfman, Kevin Macdonald, Kon-Tiki
With Francine Stock.
Angelina Jolie reveals why she's planning to give up acting to concentrate on directing, and describes the moment she discovered that her neighbour Louis Zamperini was an Olympic athlete and ex-prisoner of war, and what it was like showing him her film about his life, Unbroken, just before he died.
Actor Pal Sverre Hagen, known as Norwegian's Ryan Gosling, reveals what it was like to recreate Thor Heyerdahl's epic voyage across the Pacific for the film Kon-Tiki, while Thor Heyerdahl Jr reveals what he thinks is wrong with the account of his father's famous adventure.
Composer Danny Elfman and director Kevin Macdonald share their memories of their first visit to the cinema.
THU 16:30 BBC Inside Science (b04v5fjy)
Microplastics; Holey Ice; Vesalius; Overeating
Microplastics
For the first time, scientists have studied the abundance of microplastics in deep sea sediments They have found that tiny fibres of plastic are everywhere and that levels found in the ocean sediments are 4 times higher than in contaminated sea-surface waters.
Marine debris, mostly consisting of plastic, is a global problem, negatively impacting wildlife, tourism and shipping. However, despite the durability of plastic, and the exponential increase in its production, there was a considerable proportion of the manufactured plastic that was unaccounted for. But now scientists have found that deep-sea sediments are a likely sink for microplastics.
Holey Ice
You'd have thought, given how much water and ice there is around, that we'd know pretty much all there is to know about them. Among the notable facts is that ice is less dense than water - which is why it floats on your pond rather than sinking to the bottom. But like carbon - which exists in two distinct forms, diamond and graphite - the molecules in solid H2O can be packed in many different ways. And this week, scientists have found another completely different form of ice, which is perhaps stranger than all the others.
Overeating
Why do some people overeat? In order to find out, brave scientists tucked into 9000 calorie meals.
Vesalius
Andreas Vesalius, the founder of the modern science of anatomy was born 500 years ago, on the 31st December 1514. He was a proponent of, and yet, a strong critic of the ancient Greek physician Galen, who implied human anatomy from animal dissections. Vesalius challenged physicians and medical scholars to get their hands dirty and carry out dissections themselves.
Producer: Fiona Roberts.
THU 17:00 PM (b04v5fk0)
Full coverage and analysis of the day's news.
THU 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b04v2jst)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
THU 18:30 My Teenage Diary (b04v5fk2)
Series 6
Robert Newman
Rufus Hound is joined by the comedian and author Robert Newman, who reads from his 1981 teenage diaries. The young Newman goes on a CND rally, meets Tony Benn and Joe Strummer, and falls in love on the bus... twice.
Produced by Harriet Jaine
A Talkback production for BBC Radio 4.
THU 19:00 The Archers (b04v5fk4)
Helen and Pat feel for miserable Roy, who's getting nowhere in trying to rebuild his relationship with Phoebe. Jennifer and Helen offer to help Pat out, who's back and forth to Birmingham visiting Tony. Tony is slowly getting some strength back in his legs.
Jennifer offers to have them all over for Christmas Day, but Pat says she'll be at the hospital with Tony, and Helen will be having a quiet one with Rob and Henry. Tom would be grateful though.
Jennifer gives Pat a gift from Prague. Adam tells Jennifer he and Ian are going away somewhere hot in the New Year - Adam can be spontaneous after all.
Pat and Helen enjoy the Christmas market in Birmingham. Helen's being careful with money, but Pat treats her to a wooden train set for Henry, plus some extra cash. She thanks Helen for all her support.
Charlie begs Adam for help - and his digger - to deal with a landslip at the Estate. Adam can't resist telling Charlie he should ask his mates at RB Farming, before finally agreeing to help. Charlie brings Adam coffee and sandwiches. He missed Adam at the shoot.
Charlie encourages Adam to find a niche operation. Arable farming is for the big players now. Before going, Charlie asks Adam if he'll be coming to the Christmas party at Grey Gables. Adam's not sure he'll have the time.
THU 19:15 Front Row (b04v5gh5)
Esio Trot, Robert Olen Butler, The Thompson Family, The Interview controversy
Two well-loved children's books have been adapted for television - Roald Dahl's Esio Trot and The Boy in the Dress by comedian and author David Walliams. Children's book editor Julia Eccleshare discusses whether the characters in the novels come to life on the small screen.
Razia Iqbal talks to Pulitzer prize-winning author Robert Olen Butler who has turned his hand from literary fiction to writing espionage thrillers. He discusses The Hot Country, his new historical novel about an American journalist reporting on the Mexican Revolution.
Sony has cancelled the release of The Interview, a comedy starring James Franco and Seth Rogan that pokes fun at North Korea, after threats from hackers. US film critic Matt Prigge has seen The Interview and discusses its merits as a film.
Years ago Richard and Linda Thompson were a great musical partnership but then they got divorced. Now their son Teddy has brought them together with their daughter, Kami Thompson and her husband James Walbourne, another son, Jack Thompson, and grandson Zak. The Thompson Family have made an album together called - inevitably - 'Family'. Razia meets Richard, Teddy and Kami as they prepare to perform it live.
Presenter: Razia Iqbal
Producer: Olivia Skinner.
THU 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b04v59h5)
[Repeat of broadcast at
10:45 today]
THU 20:00 The Report (b04v5gh7)
Rape: Prosecuting Accusers
A feminist campaign group has criticised the Crown Prosecution Service for prosecuting women suspected of making false accusations of rape. Do cases like this deter women from reporting rape, or is it the best way to get justice for men who go through the ordeal of clearing their name?
In this week's edition we hear the story of Paul Fensome, who was investigated and jailed after a false rape claim. After he cleared his name, his accuser was convicted of perverting the course of justice. Reporter Melanie Abbott asks whether the police are properly investigating accusations and whether the Crown Prosecution Service has got the balance right.
Producer: India Rakusen
Researcher: Kirsteen Knight.
THU 20:30 In Business (b04v5gh9)
For Ever and Ever
FOR EVER AND EVER
Britain's cathedrals have defined the landscape for more than 1000 years
as places of worship, tourist attractions, and unrivalled architectural
achievements. But what's their role in the 21st century? Peter Day hears
about the business of running some of the country's most famous places.
Producer : Sandra Kanthal.
THU 21:00 BBC Inside Science (b04v5fjy)
[Repeat of broadcast at
16:30 today]
THU 21:30 In Our Time (b04v59gz)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:00 today]
THU 21:58 Weather (b04v2jsw)
The latest weather forecast.
THU 22:00 The World Tonight (b04v5ghc)
In-depth reporting and analysis from a global perspective.
THU 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b04v5ghf)
Mary Costello - Academy Street
Episode 9
Mary Costello's acclaimed debut – which has been shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award - traces the arc of a quiet woman's life: from Tess Lohan's childhood in 1940s rural Ireland through to her emigration to America and a career as a nurse in New York.
Close to retirement, Tess's life has settled into a contented rhythm; enjoying her family and taking great pleasure in reading. But fate intervenes and she must cope with a terrible loss.
Read by Niamh Cusack
Written by Mary Costello
Abridged by Kirsteen Cameron
Produced by Kirsteen Cameron
THU 23:00 Another Case of Milton Jones (b013fm6m)
Series 5
Undercover Journalist
Milton Jones becomes Britain's best-known undercover journalist. Which means that Milton Jones also becomes Britain's most least-effective undercover journalist...
He's joined in his endeavours by his co-stars Tom Goodman-Hill ("Camelot"), Dave Lamb ("Come Dine With Me") and Margaret Cabourn-Smith ("Miranda").
Milton Jones returns to BBC Radio Four for an amazing 9th series - which means he's been running for longer than Gardeners' Question Time and answered more questions on gardening as well.
Britain's funniest Milton and the king of the one-liner returns with a fully-working cast and a shipload of new jokes for a series of daffy comedy adventures
Each week, Milton is a complete and utter expert at something - brilliant Mathematician, World-Class Cyclist, Aviator, Championship Jockey...
... and each week, with absolutely no ability or competence, he plunges into a big adventure with utterly funny results...
"Milton Jones is one of Britain's best gagsmiths with a flair for creating daft yet perfect one-liners" - The Guardian.
"King of the surreal one-liners" - The Times
"If you haven't caught up with Jones yet - do so!" - The Daily Mail
Written by Milton with James Cary ("Think The Unthinkable", "Miranda")
David Tyler's radio credits include Armando Iannucci's Charm Offensive, Cabin Pressure, Bigipedia, Another Case Of Milton Jones, Jeremy Hardy Speaks To The Nation, Giles Wemmbley Hogg Goes Off, The 99p Challenge, The Castle, The 3rd Degree and even, going back a bit, Radio Active. His TV credits include Paul Merton - The Series, Spitting Image, Absolutely, The Paul & Pauline Calf Video Diaries, Coogan's Run, The Tony Ferrino Phenomenon and exec producing Victoria Wood's dinnerladies.
Produced & directed by David Tyler
A Pozzitive production for BBC Radio 4.
THU 23:30 Today in Parliament (b04v5ghh)
Peter Mulligan reports as MPs clash on the NHS. There's new cuts for town halls. And what's it like to demonstrate for democracy in Hong Kong?
Editor: Alicia McCarthy.
THU 23:55 The Listening Project (b04sy4v3)
Nancie and Neil - Tears Not Allowed
Fi Glover introduces a 90 year old and her son, who were both sent to boarding school and who now reflect on the pain of being separated from your parents at the age of six.
The Listening Project is a Radio 4 initiative that offers a snapshot of contemporary Britain in which people across the UK volunteer to have a conversation with someone close to them about a subject they've never discussed intimately before. The conversations are being gathered across the UK by teams of producers from local and national radio stations who facilitate each encounter. Every conversation - they're not BBC interviews, and that's an important difference - lasts up to an hour, and is then edited to extract the key moment of connection between the participants. Most of the unedited conversations are being archived by the British Library and used to build up a collection of voices capturing a unique portrait of the UK in the second decade of the millennium. You can learn more about The Listening Project by visiting bbc.co.uk/listeningproject
Producer: Marya Burgess.
FRIDAY 19 DECEMBER 2014
FRI 00:00 Midnight News (b04v2jv8)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.
FRI 00:30 The Kingdom to Come (b04v59h1)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:45 on Thursday]
FRI 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b04v2jvb)
The latest shipping forecast.
FRI 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b04v2jvd)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
FRI 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b04v2jvg)
The latest shipping forecast.
FRI 05:30 News Briefing (b04v2jvj)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.
FRI 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b04v66n6)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Judy Merry.
FRI 05:45 Farming Today (b04v5pfy)
Badger Cull Figures, Convicted Gangmasters
With DEFRA having released the badger cull figures, we ask how successful was it? We hear that while in Somerset the cull was deemed effective, in Gloucestershire it fell well short.
The government's chief vet concluded that the Somerset figures show 'industry-led culling can, in the right circumstances' be effective and help control disease.
Charlotte Smith speaks to NFU President, Meirig Raymond, Dominic Dyer of the Badger Trust, and
Andrew Guest, who's spokesman for Gloscon, the farmer-led company that's carried out badger culling in west Gloucestershire.
As two Latvian men have been found guilty of taking part in an illegal gangmastering operation, we hear about the lives of migrants working in the fields around Wisbech in Cambridgeshire.
Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced by Mark Smalley.
FRI 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b04t0hgk)
Eastern Orphean Warbler
Tweet of the Day is the voice of birds and our relationship with them, from around the world.
Liz Bonnin presents the eastern orphean warbler in an olive grove near Athens. Until recently there used to be just a single species of Orphean Warbler; a summer visitor to southern Europe, North Africa and western Asia: a handsome bird much like a large blackcap with a white throat and greyish-brown back. But across the wide breeding range which stretches from Portugal to Pakistan some orphean warblers look and sound different. Those east of Italy tend to be subtly greyer above and paler beneath. And the songs of birds from Greece eastwards are longer and richer, often including the richness of nightingale like notes. These slight differences have persuaded many ornithologists that the Eastern Orphean warbler is a different species to the Western Orphean Warbler. Biologists call this "splitting "although exactly where these new species boundaries lie is a moot point.
FRI 06:00 Today (b04v5pg0)
Morning news and current affairs. Including Sports Desk, Yesterday in Parliament, Weather and Thought for the Day.
FRI 09:00 Desert Island Discs (b04v2lv7)
[Repeat of broadcast at
11:15 on Sunday]
FRI 09:45 The Kingdom to Come (b04v5pg2)
William Hague MP
In the last programme in this series of one-to-one conversations, Peter Hennessy, the historian, asks William Hague MP, First Secretary of State and Leader of the House of Commons, how the United Kingdom's constitution will change as a result of further devolution.
The hurried promises of further devolution made by political leaders during and immediately after the Scottish Referendum will fundamentally change how the United Kingdom is governed, with little opportunity for people to consider what this radical reform might mean or to discuss the constitutional implications.
This series explores the possible impact of further devolution on the United Kingdom's constitution. In each programme, Peter Hennessy invites his guests to draw on their different expertise in government, politics, the law and public ethics in considering questions of accountability, coherence and practicality. For example, would further devolution improve trust in politics? Is devolution practical unless it is accompanied by tax-raising powers? Is there a risk that varying degrees of devolution across the country could create an incoherent system? Would all citizens of the United Kingdom continue to enjoy equal rights? Would a federal constitution be viable? Are we heading towards the end of the United Kingdom?
Peter Hennessy's other guests in this series are Alistair Darling MP, former Chancellor of the Exchequer; Onora O'Neill (Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve), philosopher, chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission and former BBC Reith lecturer; David Hope (Lord Hope of Craighead), former Deputy President of the United Kingdom's Supreme Court; and Robin Butler (Lord Butler of Brockwell), former Cabinet Secretary.
Producer: Rob Shepherd.
FRI 10:00 Woman's Hour (b04v66n8)
Domestic Abuse, American Nuns, Special Guardianship
A new law has been announced to protect victims of psychological domestic abuse, but will it actually work? Research into special guardianship has raised concerns about support for family members who take on responsibility for relatives' children. Is the Vatican softening its stance on the activities of American nuns, previously criticised as being too secular and feminist. And a special report from West Africa on the impact of Ebola on pregnant women.
FRI 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b04v5pg4)
Just a Girl: Series 1
Episode 5
Gary finally comes to terms with the hormone blockers, but Charlotte has shocking news for him.
How would you cope if your child was born into the wrong body? Powerful new drama by Mark Davies Markham.
A very ordinary family has come to terms with the less ordinary experience of Amy who was born as Ben. Adamant that she is a girl from an early age, Amy is growing up fast and nervous about starting senior school, with a boy's body. Her parents, Gary and Charlotte, have to help decide whether she should take significant steps to delay puberty until she can be fully assessed for transgender treatment. The right thing to do is not clear, and their different views on what is best for their child present some very difficult choices. Granddad Ted loves them all but struggles to grasp how serious the situation is. At the same time, everyday family life goes on, and re-decorating Amy's bedroom brings her and her Granddad closer. This honest, compassionate new drama was inspired by real life experiences.
Thanks to Susie Green and the parents at Mermaids, a charity offering support to gender variant children, teenagers and their families, and the Tavistock Clinic.
Studio Pianist ..... Alfie Davies
Director ..... Polly Thomas
Writer ..... Mark Davies Markham.
FRI 11:00 Becoming Myself: Gender Identity (b04v5pg6)
Trans Women
A revealing series which goes inside the Charing Cross Gender Identity Clinic in Hammersmith, London - the largest and oldest in the world - to explore the condition of gender dysphoria - a sense of distress caused by a disjunction between biological sex and gender identity.
With growing mainstream discussion prompted by high-profile transgender people like boxing promoter Frank Maloney, WikiLeaks source Chelsea Manning and model Andrej Pejic, gender dysphoria is fast becoming more visible. Indeed there has been a steady rise in the numbers of referrals to Gender Identity Clinics across the country and patient numbers at Charing Cross have doubled in the last five years.
This series follows a group of transgender patients pursuing treatment for gender dysphoria in order to 'become themselves'. In the first programme we meet Freddie, Mitchell and Blade, who were raised female and are seeking treatment as trans men. The second programme centres on trans women Bethany, Emma and Tanya, who are making the opposite journey.
We also hear from the psychiatrists, endocrinologists and surgeons as they meet and assess the patients on a day-to-day basis. Their treatment decisions have the potential to transform the lives of their patients, but these irrevocable changes are not made lightly.
Narrator: Adjoa Andoh
Produced by Melissa FitzGerald
A Blakeway production for BBC Radio 4.
FRI 11:30 Just William - Live! (b03z3lhv)
Series 4
The New Neighbour
As a highlight of the Cheltenham Festival of Literature in October, Martin Jarvis performed the second of two of Richmal Crompton's comic classics, live on-stage.
In The New Neighbour, William Brown is at his lateral-thinking best. How to rid the village of a horrific newcomer who torments his neighbours? William, master of human psychology, devises a brilliant plan. But, when the local policeman intervenes, will it work?
Dazzling stand-up from Jarvis - as William, and every other character. A comic tour de force.
Performed by Martin Jarvis
Director: Rosalind Ayres.
A Jarvis & Ayres production for BBC Radio 4.
FRI 12:00 News Summary (b04v2jvl)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
FRI 12:04 Home Front (b04v5pg8)
19 December 1914 - Alice Macknade
A surprise turn of events in the Macknade household heralds a change in their fortunes.
Written by Shaun McKenna
Directed by Jessica Dromgoole
Sound: Martha LIttlehailes
FRI 12:15 You and Yours (b04v66nb)
Broadband Adverts, Smart Meters, Christmas Markets
Why the Advertising Standards authority is being asked to look into adverts for broadband deals.
Do smart meters help you save?
Are German markets a good addition to our Christmas traditions?
Why cookies could, in theory, make you pay more when you shop online.
Confusion over local planning could see self-builders still paying a bill they were told they would never face again.
And why checking your credit history could be more important than you realise.
PRESENTER PETER WHITE
PRODUCER PETE WILSON.
FRI 12:57 Weather (b04v2jvn)
The latest weather forecast.
FRI 13:00 World at One (b04v5pgc)
Iraqi army struggling against Islamic State in Anbar - Quentin Sommerville reports from front line. Kurds lift siege of Mount Sinjar - we hear from chairman of Defence Select Committee Rory Stewart, a former diplomat in Iraq.
Record number of emergency admissions at hospitals in England.
Labour writes to Cabinet Secretary over concerns that government special advisers have come under pressure to get involved in campaigning in by-elections. We hear from shadow minister Lucy Powell and former Conservative MP Paul Goodman.
Rory Cellan-Jones on a test version of Skype's Translator tool; Lithuania prepares to join the euro; and we remember Mandy Rice-Davies who's died at 70.
Presented by Mark Mardell.
FRI 13:45 The Ideas That Make Us (b04v5pgf)
Series 3
Virtue
Bettany Hughes considers virtue at a club for the English aristocracy, with a former Greek Minister of Finance, and with an aid worker just back from an ebola zone in Sierra Leone.
The surprising and invigorating history of the most influential ideas in the story of civilisation, described as 'a double espresso shot of philosophy, history, science and the arts'. Award--winning historian and broadcaster Bettany Hughes begins each programme with the first, extant evidence of a single word-idea in Ancient Greek culture and travels both forwards and backwards in time, investigating how these ideas have been moulded by history, and how they've shaped us.
In this programme Bettany explores virtue with experts from the humanities and sciences, people who see these big philosophical ideas playing out in their own lives including philosopher Angie Hobbs, writer and historian Stella Tillyard, former Greek Finance Minister Petros Doukas, and Oxfam's Head of Water and Sanitation Andy Bastaple. Bettany travels to Athens to see where these ideas were born and then explores the street markets, churches, offices and homes where they continue to morph and influence our daily lives.
Ideas examined in the first series, in September 2013, were idea, desire, agony, fame and justice. The second series, in January 2014, considered wisdom, comedy, liberty, peace and hospitality. Other ideas in this series are psyche, charisma, irony and nemesis.
Series Producer: Dixi Stewart.
FRI 14:00 The Archers (b04v5fk4)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Thursday]
FRI 14:15 Drama (b04v5pgh)
Dogfood Diary
by Laura Bridgeman and Charles Lambert.
A heartbreaking and heartwarming seasonal drama.
Twelve year old Dean has been left home alone. It seems great at first but Christmas is coming and there's no sign of Mum. Where is she?
Choir ..... Jordanhill School Senior Choir
Producer/director ..... Gaynor Macfarlane.
FRI 15:00 Gardeners' Question Time (b04v5pgk)
Dalston
Eric Robson is in the chair for this week's programme from Dalston. Pippa Greenwood, Christine Walkden and Matthew Wilson join him to answer the audience questions.
Produced by Darby Dorras.
Assistant Producer: Claire Crofton.
A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4
This week's questions and answers:
Q. I've got a five-year-old dwarf apple tree which is now leaning over and I'm wondering what kind of strap I can use to support it? We've tried rubber straps, but they've snapped.
A. Matthew suggests staking the tree quite low down so that it can flex and strengthen. Try a dead-anchor - this is four stakes driven into the ground around the root ball. Fix stout timbre boards to the top of those stakes so that they hold the root plate in the ground. Or you can use an underground anchor system of wires and a ratchet. To start, you could just use a couple of stakes and make sure they are facing into the wind and then double up with a good quality rubber tie. Christine suggests using tights. Pippa suggests using really good quality rope threaded through a garden hose.
Q. How can you grow and keep Celeriac reliably.
A. Start it off in January, under heat, in as long a container as possible to minimise root disturbance, use a soil based material - a John Innes number two with 15% grit added. Make sure the plants are kept moist. Really good weed control is also important.
Q. Does the panel think it's an old gardeners' tale that putting soot on onion beds makes them grow better?
A. The panel think that it is a bit of a myth but if your soil is light, it can be useful to help the soil absorb more warmth.
Q. I have a Hydrangea Petiolaris on an east-facing wall and I'd like to grow something through it when it's passed its best. What would the panel recommend?
A. Matthew says make sure its well established before you grow something up it as anything vigorous would strangle it. Give it some love before planting through it. Annual mulching in spring or even a slow releasing fertiliser would help it. Pippa suggests foliar feeding as this stimulates extra root growth. Christine suggests planting a Clematis Alpina a couple of metres away and growing it horizontally into the Hydrangea so that you're not disturbing the roots.
Q. Last year I read about a Daphne that has a wonderful smell and flowers all year long. I bought six, gave four to friends and kept two for myself. The ones I gave away have flourished, but mine have died. I planted them in clay pots and watered well, but not too much. I put them against a west-facing wall. The leaves yellowed and dropped off. They died within a few weeks. What did I do wrong?
A. Daphnes like a humus rich woodland soil, so if you had light compost with high levels of coir they wouldn't have been happy. Daphnes also like neutral to acidic soil. They also like a degree of shade, so perhaps they got too warm. Daphnes are also prone to attack by spider mite.
Q. I've grown Aubergines in the greenhouse for many years with success. This year the plants grew well in the house before I put them in the greenhouse at the end of May. Then they stopped growing despite no inclement weather or late frosts. The Tomatoes, Peppers and Cucumbers just grew normally but the Aubergine's roots just didn't develop properly. I gave a friend some of the plants to put in his greenhouse and he had the same problem.
A. Perhaps they got too damp or they had root rot or some kind of virus. Next year use a fresh packet of seeds and watch out for aphids and whitefly.
Q. How long does it take for grass turfs to break down? What can they be used for once broken down?
A. They take anything between six and twelve months to break down depending on the soil type and composition of the turf. Stack it turf to turf. If it's warm and moist break down will be faster. It can be used as potting compost or seed compost.
Q. I planted a weeping ash about eight years ago. One section is great and is six feet tall and weeping while the other half has gone straight up and is fourteen foot high. When can I cut the vertical part?
A. The trick is to get it out as soon as possible but it's never too late, it might just look a little odd and there will be a sizable wound. Wait until it's in leaf in the spring.
FRI 15:45 King Albert's Book (b04v5r6m)
Episode 1
King Albert's Book was a tribute to the Belgian King and people, published by subscription in December 1914.
The book was the idea of Hall Caine, a novelist and playwright of the late Victorian and Edwardian eras, to raise money for the Daily Telegraph Belgium fund. He invited princes, statesman, churchmen, authors, political activists, artists and composers to present their view of the tragedy that had befallen Belgium in the preceding months of war.
Contributors include Winston Churchill, Thomas Hardy, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Sarah Bernhardt, Emmeline Pankhurst and Rudyard Kipling. The result is an extraordinary snapshot of a moment in time and the passions aroused by the conquest of Belgium and the resistance led by King Albert.
As the book was being prepared in the Autumn of 1914, no one knew how the tragedy of the First World War would unfold - there was still hope that it would all be over fairly swiftly. What seemed to be a heroic defence of a sovereign state was the primary concern of the book's contributors, little knowing how long the conflict would continue and how the greater tragedy of the war would supersede this event.
In this first episode, narrated by the writer and producer Paul Dodgson, there are little known poems by Rudyard Kipling and Edith Wharton, and spirited rhetoric in praise of King Albert from the pen of former Prime Minister, The Earl of Rosebury.
Readers: Kenneth Cranham, Tim McMullan and Harriet Walter.
Pianist: Kevin Matthews
Narrated and Produced by Paul Dodgson
A Pier production for BBC Radio 4.
FRI 16:00 Last Word (b04v66nd)
Mandy Rice-Davies, Dr Tim Black, Michel du Cille, Ian Player, Christopher Morris
Matthew Bannister on
Mandy Rice-Davies, the former showgirl who was involved in the Profumo Affair.
Dr Tim Black who built Marie Stopes International into one of the world's largest family planning organisations.
Michel du Cille - the award winning photographer who covered conflicts in Africa and Afghanistan.
Ian Player, the South African conservationist who built up the population of the white rhino
And Christopher Morris, the organist and publisher who launched the book Carols For Choirs.
FRI 16:30 Feedback (b04v66ng)
Gwyneth Williams is in her fifth year as the controller of Radio 4 and has made her mark with various radical changes - including bringing a former Eastenders' producer to The Archers, cutting 12 minutes from You and Yours and bringing visualisation to a variety of Radio 4 programming.
For the final episode of this series, Feedback listeners speak directly to the Controller and give their views on the network. Loyal Archers Addicts ask how much free rein the editor should have when many listeners are unhappy with the programme's current direction.
Gwyneth is also asked whether there is a theme to the daily '12 o clock slot' that has divided listeners, and whether 15 minute programmes are long enough to over complex topics.
Radio 4's leap towards a dazzling digital future is also put under scrutiny as a listener asks whether radio programmes truly benefit from visual elements.
And how tight is her Radio 4 budget for programmes, given that even more cuts are coming soon?
Producer Will Yates
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4.
FRI 16:55 The Listening Project (b04v5r6p)
Claire and Monica – Taking Things at Face Value
Fi Glover introduces a mother who remembers how her daughter’s birthmark affected her early life, and her daughter who confirms that her parents were right not to have it removed.
The Listening Project is a Radio 4 initiative that offers a snapshot of contemporary Britain in which people across the UK volunteer to have a conversation with someone close to them about a subject they've never discussed intimately before. The conversations are being gathered across the UK by teams of producers from local and national radio stations who facilitate each encounter. Every conversation - they're not BBC interviews, and that's an important difference - lasts up to an hour, and is then edited to extract the key moment of connection between the participants. Most of the unedited conversations are being archived by the British Library and used to build up a collection of voices capturing a unique portrait of the UK in the second decade of the millennium. You can learn more about The Listening Project by visiting bbc.co.uk/listeningproject
Producer: Marya Burgess
FRI 17:00 PM (b04v5xys)
PM at
5pm- Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.
FRI 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b04v2jvq)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
FRI 18:30 The News Quiz (b04v5r6r)
Series 85
Episode 9
A satirical review of the week's news, chaired by Sandi Toksvig, who is joined by Rebecca Front, Bob Mills and Mark Steel, alongside regular panellist Jeremy Hardy.
FRI 19:00 The Archers (b04v5r6t)
George is excited to be playing a Wise Man in the nativity. Keira is a snowflake. Alan's traditional nativity includes the wooden crib made years ago by Tom Forrest, which the children will build up piece by piece. George says his lines and then a star appears over the crib, to Clarrie's amazement
Emma stuns and delights Clarrie by offering to have everyone over to 1, The Green for Christmas dinner - her first in her new home.
Carol treats her guests to mulled wine and canapés at Glebe Cottage. Felpersham Light Opera's production of Season's Greetings has a rave review in the Echo, setting an unspoken challenge for Lynda. Lilian feels that Lynda has been too strict in her approach to Blithe Spirit. Just another week and it'll all be over, says Carol.
Commenting on how good it is for Carol to be part of the village, Jennifer can't help fishing for more details about John. Lilian reprimands Jennifer for this and later catches her snooping around upstairs for clues about Carol and whatever secrets Jennifer is convinced she has.
Jill and Carol reflect on the terrible fallout from Elizabeth and Roy's affair. Jennifer shocks Jill by revealing the extent of Justin Elliott's development plans. He is seeking planning permission to build a country house at Brookfield. Jill confronts David and Ruth. David admits that once the sale goes through, Justin can do whatever he likes.
FRI 19:15 Front Row (b04v66nj)
Miranda Hart, John Rutter, Seamus Heaney
Miranda Hart tells Razia Iqbal about the emotional filming of the final episodes of her sitcom Miranda.
The latest instalment of the Night of the Museum franchise, starring Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson, is set in the British Museum. But how do you film riotous action sequences in one of the busiest museums in the world, full of priceless artefacts? Razia tours the museum with the film's location manager, Michael Harm.
Before his death last August Seamus Heaney was working on a selection of poems from the second half of his career. His 'New Selected Poems 1988 - 2013' has now been published. It ends with 'In Time', a poem written for his granddaughter just a fortnight before he died. Maurice Riordan, editor of 'Poetry Review', reviews the selection.
And composer John Rutter tells Razia what makes the perfect Christmas carol.
FRI 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b04v5pg4)
[Repeat of broadcast at
10:45 today]
FRI 20:00 Any Questions? (b04v5r6w)
Giles Fraser, Tessa Jowell MP, Norman Lamb MP, John Redwood MP
Jonathan Dimbleby presents political debate and discussion from the Hampton on Thames Community Centre in Middlesex with Dr Giles Fraser priest-in-charge at St Mary's Newington in South London, former Secretary of State for Culture Media and Sport, Tessa Jowell MP, the Liberal Democrat MP Norman Lamb who serves as Minister for Care and Support in the coalition government and the back bench Conservative MP John Redwood.
FRI 20:50 A Point of View (b04v66nl)
Art: The Real Thing
In the last of his three talks on art Roger Scruton asks what constitutes real art, as opposed to cliche or kitsch.
He says we must ignore the vast quantities of art produced as commodities to be sold, in contrast to symphonies or novels that cannot be owned in the same way as a painting or a sculpture.
Real art has to have lasting appeal, he argues, and for that it needs three things: beauty, form and redemption. The production of such art, he says, takes immense hard work and attention to detail, but it can give meaning to our modern lives and show love in the midst of doubt and desolation.
Producer: Arlene Gregorius.
FRI 21:00 Home Front - Omnibus (b04v5r6y)
15-19 December 1914
As Christmas approaches, a spirit of generosity and recklessness fills the air, as all Folkestone is encouraged to give themselves to the war.
Written by: Shaun McKenna
Story led by: Katie Hims
Consultant Historian: Professor Maggie Andrews
Music: Matthew Strachan
Sound: Martha Littlehailes
Directed by Jessica Dromgoole.
FRI 21:58 Weather (b04v2jvs)
The latest weather forecast.
FRI 22:00 The World Tonight (b04v66nn)
In-depth reporting and analysis from a global perspective.
FRI 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b04v5r70)
Mary Costello - Academy Street
Episode 10
Mary Costello's acclaimed debut – which has been shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award - traces the arc of a quiet woman's life: from Tess Lohan's childhood in 1940s rural Ireland through to her emigration to America and a career as a nurse in New York.
Carrying the sorrow for her loss deep within her, Tess returns to visit her family in Ireland – her first trip back since she left in 1962.
Read by Niamh Cusack
Written by Mary Costello
Abridged by Kirsteen Cameron
Produced by Kirsteen Cameron
FRI 23:00 Great Lives (b04v382p)
[Repeat of broadcast at
16:30 on Tuesday]
FRI 23:30 Today in Parliament (b04v66nq)
Mark D'Arcy reports from Westminster.
FRI 23:55 The Listening Project (b04v5r72)
Rhian and Meirion – A Farming Family
Fi Glover introduces a couple who have been married for half a century and have passed their love of their mountainous land on to their children.
The Listening Project is a Radio 4 initiative that offers a snapshot of contemporary Britain in which people across the UK volunteer to have a conversation with someone close to them about a subject they've never discussed intimately before. The conversations are being gathered across the UK by teams of producers from local and national radio stations who facilitate each encounter. Every conversation - they're not BBC interviews, and that's an important difference - lasts up to an hour, and is then edited to extract the key moment of connection between the participants. Most of the unedited conversations are being archived by the British Library and used to build up a collection of voices capturing a unique portrait of the UK in the second decade of the millennium. You can learn more about The Listening Project by visiting bbc.co.uk/listeningproject
Producer: Marya Burgess