The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.
In memory of Stuart Hall: a special programme paying tribute to the leading cultural theorist and former director of the Birmingham Centre for Cultural Studies. A pioneer of 'multiculturalism', he documented the changing character of 'post Imperial' British society. Laurie Taylor is joined by Caspar Melville, Lecturer in Global Creative and Cultural Industries at SOAS, Baroness Lola Young and Jeremy Gilbert, editor of the journal, New Formations. They explore Stuart Hall's life, influence and legacy.
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Sister Gemma Simmonds of the Congregation of Jesus.
Police and the RSPCA say they have evidence that organised gangs have been using dogs for illegal hunting across the South West of England. Several men have been arrested and more than a dozen dogs seized in a series of anti-poaching raids. Scott Bingham from the BBC Inside Out South West team has been given "behind the scenes" access to the investigation.
Experts say it could take over a year for some flood-stricken farmland to return to productivity again as thousands of acres continue to sit under water across many parts of the UK. Agronomist Stuart Fripp tells Farming Today that the weight of the water on the land is squeezing the oxygen out of the soil.
And the Government wants to see nearly a quarter of a million new homes built each year by 2016. All of this week on Farming Today we'll be looking at what a building boom could mean for rural Britain. The Country Land and Business Association are calling for more affordable housing in the countryside. This morning on Farming Today their President goes head to head on this matter with the Chief Executive of the Campaign to Protect Rural England.
Tweet of the Day is a series of fascinating stories about our British birds inspired by their calls and songs.
John Aitchison tells the story of the Canada goose. These large black-necked geese with white cheeks and chinstraps are native to Canada and the USA. The first reference to them in the UK is in 1665 when English diarist, John Evelyn, records that they were in the waterfowl collection of King Charles II at St. James' Park in London.
Morning news and current affairs. Including Sports Desk; Weather; Thought for the Day.
Andrew Marr discusses the history of confession with the writer John Cornwell, from its origins in the early church to the current day. The psychotherapist Susie Orbach explores whether the confession, both secular and religious, provides psychological relief, and the presenter Vanessa Feltz celebrates its public manifestations, the talk show and radio phone in. The former high-flying Wall Street trader, Turney Duff, is looking for absolution, as he reveals his life of excess.
The Last Asylum begins with Barbara Taylor's visit to the innocuously named Princess Park Manor in Friern Barnet, North London - a place of luxury flats and careful landscaping. But this is the former site of one of England's most infamous lunatic asylums, the Middlesex County Pauper Lunatic Aslyum at Colney Hatch. At its peak, this asylum housed nearly 3,000 patients - including, in the late 1980s, Barbara Taylor herself.
Writing about The Last Asylum, Booker prize winner and memoirist, Hilary Mantel said, ''We believe our response to mental illness is more enlightened, kinder and effective than that of the Victorians who built the asylums. Can we be sure? Barbara Taylor challenges complacency, exposes shallow thinking, and points out the flaws and dangers of treatment on the cheap. It is a wise, considered and timely book'
Darian Leader has described it as 'Superb, Riveting, insightful and relentlessly honest'.
At its founding in 1851, the year of the Great Exhibition, Colney Hatch was the largest asylum in Europe. When Barbara Taylor revisited it years after her own stay there, it had been converted into luxury flats.
Sharon Rooney on starring in TV's My Mad Fat Diary, the appeal of pansexuality and what it means to people who practice it, why we get dressing up so wrong with Zoe Williams and fashion blogger Sasha Wilkins, do men have the answers to getting more women elected to the Conservative Party? The campaign to get recognition for nurses who served in WW1.
Presented by Jenni Murray.
Ambassador B should be inspecting minor planets of far-away suns for the peaceful Interplanetary Commonwealth. Instead, her recorded reports reveal that she is veering off-course, pursuing a vendetta and bringing anything but peace.
Mind-bending, interstellar fun and adventure from Sony Gold-winning writer Ed Harris.
1/5 Ambassador B inspects a planet which encourages free speech. But where no one has a word to say about her predecessor, Ambassador A.
The Mapperley Costa coffee branch opened a year ago, an opening which hit the headlines when 1701 desperate job hunters applied for just eight positions. Radio 4's Peter White has been tracking the progress of those who did secure work and speaking to some of those who did not: did this prove to be a lucky break or a lucky near-miss and what kind of or career, if any, is available in UK's growing network of coffee chains?
The Costa story was seen as highlighting the effect of recession in the East Midlands, an area with 178,000 out of work and high streets badly hit by the collapse of chains like Comet, Clinton Cards and Jessops. Among those who tried - and failed - to secure the coveted barista jobs were accountants and managers with many years of experience. Times have definitely changed, says area manager, Sham Ramparia: once these kinds of jobs were seen as easy to walk in and out of but he is looking for skill, experience, personality and "a real passion for coffee."
Peter follows Sham as he sifts through application forms, highlighting those peppered with errors, spelling mistakes and inaccuracies. He believes schools could do far more to prepare youngsters for the reality of job hunting and even degree students sometimes fail to grasp of what potential employers might be looking for. As well as many who fall at the early stages, there are some who get as far as being offered jobs on a trial basis but who opt out of the trial - sometimes after less than an hour or so!
As the eight settle into their new roles Sham thinks he has spotted management potential in a couple of them - two 26 year olds, Steve Tomlinson and Heather Davies, who says she has so much passion for coffee "it's unbelievable" Other couples shine out for perhaps less welcome reasons: two workers, Chelsea and Johno, are in love and plan to spend their first wage checks on a first holiday together abroad. Before long Chelsea is abandoning her plans for University in favour of staying put in the Nottingham suburb of Mapperley, an idea which surprises Sham: "I have said to her she should go to University, get her degree and if she wants to she can always come back."
For Steve the Costa job and the chance of being fast-tracked for a management post comes after two years spent on benefits, a time when he sent out hundreds of unsuccessful job applications. He left school at 16, a decision he bitterly regrets and lost his job as manager of a milkshake bar when the business collapsed. It was, he says, a very difficult and demoralising search for work: "I got very low through it. That's why I can't really believe that I got this job, but I think my passion for coffee just shone through. Everyone who knows me has seen a great change in me - there are things I now look forward to and plans i have for the future. This is my life and it's finally taking shape."
But behind the success stories there are still many who are still struggling and others who have yet to properly find their feet. Nineteen year old Christina Delfina was happy to get the Costa work but had her heart set on a job in the airport. When she left Costa to finally give that a go, she found that it didn't work out. Now she is back at the Mapperley Costa branch and reviewing her options. Gone is the blessed glow of those opening days and instead she struggles with what lies ahead: "I've never been lucky - perhaps because I don't expect much...I'm not sure now what I'll do or where I'll go, it's so difficult thinking of plans for your life.".
The tranquillity of the Trench household is breached once again when Damien's mother calls to say she's coming to stay while Damien's father is on a silent retreat.
No sooner has she arrived than she starts setting about trying to be helpful, which only irritates Damien more. So he's forced to spend some time away by accepting the offer of an after-dinner speaking engagement, something he's never tried before...
With many rail services disrupted by the floods, possibly for months, we'll be asking how much should you pay for a reduced or even non-existent service?
We'll be hearing how people in affected areas are managing to get food and basic sanitation.
And would you buy a mattress from a man who knocks on your door or pay for a green deal assessment if someone cold calls you? We'll tell you why you shouldn't.
National and international news. Listeners can share their views via email: wato@bbc.co.uk or on twitter: #wato.
In Hungary, she meets Ivan Fischer - the conductor and composer who is holding up a mirror to Hungarian society and using culture to expose growing racial intolerance. The success of the extreme right wing party Jobbik in the 2010 elections prompted him to write an opera denouncing anti-Semitism. Fischer's opera, The Red Heifer draws on an incident 130 years ago when a young girl went missing in a village in North East Hungary. Local Jews were accused of murdering the 14 year old and were eventually acquitted but blood libel stories such as these still resonate more than a century later. But some have accused Fischer of cultural politicking and say he is in danger of besmirching the country's image abroad. Lucy catches up with the composer as he rehearses for his next performance.
Rhakeele sees a return to Africa for a tour of her and husband Musondi's stand-up act as a chance to reignite their careers and their marriage. He's not as keen. And it turns out he may be right - as they find themselves caught in a culture clash which threatens everything, including their freedom.
by Sibusiso Mamba, co-created with Daliso Chaponda, with additional material by Ava Vidal
Real-life stand up comedians Daliso Chaponda and Ava Vidal play married couple Musondi and Rhakeele in this new play which Sibusiso Mamba co-created with Daliso, with additional material by Ava. Rhakeele has a secret desire to go back to the country she was born in - in Africa, but for husband Musondi who has never lived there, it initially holds no attraction. Once there, however, the differences between life in the UK and life in Africa become polarised and they find themselves in direct opposition, using what they do best - stand up - to prove which of them is the stronger. But unwittingly they're making a tense situation in a country Rhakeele no longer understands far worse than they could ever realise and putting their closest friends in jeopardy.
How often would a hebdomadal meeting take place? And in which town do the football team St Mirren play their home games? Russell Davies puts these and many other general knowledge questions to today's competitors, who come from Leeds, Accrington, Grimsby and York.
Today's winner will become the eleventh person to go through automatically to the semi-finals - but with just two weeks to go before the semi-finals begin, they'll all be trying to score as many points as they can, in the hope of securing one of the sought-after places for the highest-scoring runners-up.
As always, a Brain of Britain listener gets the chance to win a prize by outwitting the contestants with quiz questions of his or her own devising.
Booker Prize-winning novelist AS Byatt presents a selection of her favourite pieces of poetry and prose, at her home in London, with the help of her chosen actor Peter Eyre. Her choices include Beatrix Potter, Coleridge, Shakespeare, John Donne, Emily Dickinson, Alice Oswald and Terry Pratchett.
She talks about her life among books and how reading has been a passion from early childhood.
As the Sochi Games enter their final week, William Crawley discusses the role of religion in Putin's Russia with Xenia Dennen, chairman of the Keston institute for the study of religion in the former Communist bloc, Vera Tolz, Professor of Russian Studies at the University of Manchester and Fr Andrew Phillips, a priest with the Russian Orthodox Church abroad.
Radio 4's classic panel game in which the contestants are challenged to speak for one minute without hesitation, deviation or repetition on any subject given to them by the legendary host Nicholas Parsons.
The players in this first episode are Alun Cochrane, Rebecca Front, Russell Kane and Paul Merton. Subjects include "The Femme Fatale" "Bread or Toast" and "Previously on Just a Minute...".
Jennifer gossips with Clarrie about Neil and Susan's financial windfall. In her opinion some people just can't handle money.
Brian suggests he and Jennifer have dinner in The Bull as the state of the kitchen at home is getting her down.
At the bar Clarrie informs Brian and Jennifer that the Carter's are buying Netherbourne Hall with their newfound wealth and that Alice and Christopher will be set up for life. Clarrie can't sustain the windup and cracks. Brian enjoyed the tease and comments that Jennifer's face was a picture. Jennifer is not amused.
Kirsty is stressing about her wedding dress dilemma and decides she will try the designer one on again. She also comments that Helen seems down.
Helen confronts Rob. She wants to know if he was with Jess a week last Thursday and did he sleep with her like she said? He admits he was but it is not what she thinks. He was protecting Helen from the truth. With everything Helen went through with Greg he didn't want her to know that Jess had threatened to kill herself. He confides that Jess had tried to commit suicide before but he found her in time. Helen apologises for not trusting him. Rob insists he loves Helen and reiterates he chose her.
The legendary film-making duo of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger were commemorated today with the unveiling of an English Heritage blue plaque. The plaque was unveiled by Thelma Schoonmaker, film-editor and Powell's widow, and by film-director Martin Scorsese. Both talk to John about their love of Powell and Pressburger's work.
The Welsh director Kieran Evans has won the BAFTA for an Outstanding Debut for his feature film Kelly + Victor. Evans, who started his career as a music video director, discusses what winning the BAFTA means to him.
John talks to the actress Lesley Sharp (Scott and Bailey, Clocking Off) about A Taste of Honey, the taboo-breaking play which was written by Shelagh Delaney in 1958 when she was only 18. Set in working class Salford in the 1950s, it's about social prejudice and the volatile relationship between a mother and her teenage daughter.
Only Lovers Left Alive, the latest release from independent director Jim Jarmusch, is a vampire romance drama nominated for the Palme d'Or at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival. Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton star as the music-loving, undead couple Adam and Eve, who have been married for centuries. Briony Hansen reviews.
What an extraordinary few years it's been for the LibDem leader, Nick Clegg, and his party. Once frequently dismissed as peripheral, even irrelevant, in May 2010 Britain's third party was suddenly propelled into the centre of power. At its helm: a man with only five years' experience as an MP who became Deputy Prime Minister in the first peacetime coalition for 80 years.
In this series Steve Richards talks to Nick Clegg himself and other senior LibDem figures about their rollercoaster ride in government, and assesses the party's prospects for the future.
Through in-depth interviews with insiders, we trace the key moments in this dramatic story:
The meteoric rise of Clegg himself, who went from MEP to DPM in little more than a decade. The abrupt transition from "Cleggmania" to becoming one of the most pilloried figures in public life.
The highs and lows of the UK's first experiment with coalition in modern political history. The heady first days, tuition fees debacle, AV referendum campaign, health reforms, election results, Lords reform row, and the increasingly bitter, fractious relationship between the coalition partners.
We explore Nick Clegg's leadership through turbulent times, assessing his political beliefs. How was a left-leaning party able to partner up with Conservatives with such apparent ease? What was the cost? And, with a hung parliament still very much in prospect in 2015, we show how Nick Clegg's politics and character could matter hugely to the future of British politics.
The wish to be anonymous in our dealings with private companies or governments, in commenting on the news or in daily life seems to be increasing.
For some, anonymity is an ironic response to the cult of celebrity that usually preoccupies us. For others, being anonymous enables us to reject the endless celebration of the individual that characterises our times and instead to find comfort and ease in the unidentifiable mass.
Frances Stonor Saunders examines if the desire for being unknown - whether by the NHS or your search engine - is set to be the new trend of our times.
She explores with those who use the cloak of anonymity - including whistleblowers, authors and medical practitioners - the benefits which concealing your identity can confer. But she also considers the dangers of not being identifiable and how these pitfalls may affect the rest of society.
In the second of three programmes recorded in Iceland, wildlife sound recordist Chris Watson goes in search of Arctic Terns, which travel here from Antarctica to breed; the longest regular migration of any animal. Some birds travel even further to the Arctic Circle, and so on the summer solstice, Chris takes a 3 hour ferry journey from the mainland to the island of Grimsey which lies on the Arctic Circle to record some of these remarkable migrants. Scientists are becoming increasingly concerned about the number of breeding colonies which have failed in Iceland in the past decade and Chris hears about the reasons why and what steps need to be taken to help the situation. Often called Sea Swallows because of their overall shape long tail feathers, Arctic terns are very protective of their eggs and young and aggressive as Chris discovers when he tries to record in their colony. He also comes across Arctic terns inland at Lake Myvatn, the 'Lake of Flies' "and its very aptly named. I had to wear a head net in June as tens of thousands of flies swarmed around me the moment I set foot outdoors" . After recording the haunting songs of red throated divers, long tailed ducks and black-tailed godwits, Chris watches Arctic terns swooping down to pick off flies along the road which the adults can feed on. The programme also reveals how with the latest technology scientists have gained a fascinating insight into the exact migration routes of these birds; "We discovered new stopover areas, we discovered a new southern route but overall the sheer scale of this migration was what was most impressive to us " says Iain Stenhouse, one the scientists working on this project. "These birds are not just Olympic athletes they are spatial geniuses as well".
Naturalistic in style, 'Dubliners' depicts an array of characters, graduating progressively from childhood, through adolescence, to maturity, culminating in the final story, 'The Dead'. The stories each centre on the idea of a moment of epiphany, but are grounded in the minutiae of daily life. Stories of love, loss, con men, friendship, alcoholism, marriage, politics and family, combine to create a unified world, a celebration of a city, in the unparalleled prose of its most famous son.
Arthur Smith shares a love letter to his mother with reflections on life, death, dementia and Leonard Cohen along the way.
14 years after his melodi-comic extravaganza 'Arthur Smith Sings Leonard Cohen', Arthur returns once again to his hero. His reflections on dementia, enthusiasm, comedy and death are marinated in Cohen's music in a performance that's both personal and poignant, yet packed with big laughs.
Arthur's rendition of the songs is hugely enhanced by his backing trio, The Smithereens: Kirsty Newton, Carrie Marx and Ali Day.
TUESDAY 18 FEBRUARY 2014
TUE 00:00 Midnight News (b03tv4p1)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.
TUE 00:30 Book of the Week (b03vd5j7)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:45 on Monday]
TUE 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b03tv4p3)
The latest shipping forecast.
TUE 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b03tv4p5)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
TUE 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b03tv4p7)
The latest shipping forecast.
TUE 05:30 News Briefing (b03tv4p9)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.
TUE 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b03vrsl9)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Sister Gemma Simmonds of the Congregation of Jesus.
TUE 05:45 Farming Today (b03vh2k5)
The worry in the rain-soaked south of England is not only 'when will the floodwaters go?', but 'what will they leave behind?' Researchers at the University of Aberystwyth have published a paper which shows livestock died as a result of eating silage contaminated with lead, deposited by a flood in 2012. The lead, a remnant from heavy metal mining in the area, killed several beef cattle. Anna Hill discusses the findings with the university's director of agriculture, Professor Will Haresign, and asks whether there are lessons to be learned for other areas of the country.
Staying with the floods, Anna finds out about a special edition of Radio 4's Costing the Earth. Tom Heap explores how best to avoid disasters like this in the future.
Wildlife groups have worked for years to protect native red squirrels from being overwhelmed by greys, which out-compete them for food and pass on disease. But it seems a new saviour could be the horizon, in the shape of the pine marten, which happily feeds on grey squirrels. Scientists in Ireland have found that in areas where there are significant populations of European pine martens, grey squirrels have declined in number or disappeared altogether.
And Sarah Falkingham has a report from the Yorkshire Dales National Park about proposals to convert old stone barns into houses, without planning permission. Some National Park Authority officials claim the landscape will be changed forever if barns become houses, while others believe it will bring a welcome injection of cash for struggling farmers.
Presented by Anna Hill and produced by Anna Jones.
TUE 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b03tht7c)
Skylark
Tweet of the Day is a series of fascinating stories about our British birds inspired by their calls and songs.
John Aitchison tells the story of the skylark. No other UK bird is capable of sustaining such a loud and complex song while hovering high above the ground, rapidly beating its wings to stay aloft. Some songs can last 20 minutes or more and their performance is likely to be as much a territorial display as an exhibition of the male's physical fitness to impress a female.
TUE 06:00 Today (b03vdx7k)
Morning news and current affairs. Including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.
TUE 09:00 The Life Scientific (b03vdx7m)
Peter Higgs
Peter Higgs opens up to Jim Al-Khalili, admitting that he failed to realise the full significance of the Higgs boson and to link it to the much celebrated Standard Model of Physics. An oversight he puts down to a string of missed opportunities, including one night at physics summer camp when, most regrettably, he went to bed early.
Working alone in Edinburgh in the sixties, Peter Higgs was considered 'a bit of a crank'. 'No-one wanted to work with me', he says. In 1964, he predicted the possible existence of a new kind of boson but, at the time, there was little interest in his boson. And in the years that followed, Peter Higgs says, he was 'looking in the wrong place for the application'.
Three years later, the Higgs mechanism was shown to be central to the new Standard Model of
Physics, which brings together three of the four fundamental forces of nature and has dominated physics ever since. Higgs met one of the key architects of the Standard Model several times, but they failed to realise they were working on the same thing. He particularly regrets one night at physics summer camp when he decided to go to bed early. The others meantime stayed up all night working up The Standard Model.
The seventies was an exciting time for particle physics but Higgs says he 'struggled to keep up'.
His PhD was in a different field and he says he 'lacked technical competency'. He says work pressure contributed to the breakdown of his marriage and that perhaps he suffered a personality change in the mid-sixties when he realised his research might be on to something good and started working harder.
Four decades and several billion pounds on, scientists at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN confirmed that the Higgs boson had indeed been found and Peter Higgs shot to fame.
This ephemeral speck of elusive energy is now so well-known it's featured in car adverts and countless jokes. There's even song by Nick Cave called the Higgs Boson Blues. But Higgs has always called it the 'scalar boson' and remains embarrassed that it is named after only him.
Three different research groups, working independently, published very similar papers in 1964 describing what's now known as the Higgs mechanism. And Higgs remains surprised that another British physicist, Tom Kibble from Imperial College, London didn't share the 2013 Nobel Prize for Physics along with him and Belgian physicist, Francois Englert.
"[Kibble] wrote a longer paper which was really very important in generalising the sort of thing I had written in '64 ", says Higgs.
Peter Higgs found physics boring, as it was taught at school. He was going to be an engineer, like his father, but was clumsy in the lab and, he says, became a theoretical physicist 'by default'.
When the 2013 Nobel Prize winners were announced, many assumed Higgs was blissfully unaware that he might win or just not that interested. In fact, he left the house quite deliberately that morning fully expecting the Nobel Committee to call.
These days, he's constantly stopped in the street and asked for autographs and photographs which, he says, is 'nice but a bit of a nuisance'.
Producer: Anna Buckley.
TUE 09:30 One to One (b03vdx7p)
City Women and Motherhood
Andrea Catherwood chose to give up her role as a foreign correspondent once she had children. She switched to the position of news anchor; trading Baghdad for the safety of the studio felt to her like a sensible move.
Last month Nigel Farage made some comments about women in the City being worth less once they'd had children – reigniting a debate about working mothers. But is the City particularly unforgiving?
For this series of 'One to One', we talk to senior women in the City about how they combine motherhood with their high flying careers. Brenda Trenowden is a managing director at ANZ bank in London's financial hub Canary Wharf. How does she manage a full time, high pressured job that takes up evenings as well?
Producer: Perminder Khatkar
TUE 09:45 Book of the Week (b03vdx7r)
Barbara Taylor - The Last Asylum
Episode 2
The Last Asylum begins with Barbara Taylor's visit to the innocuously named Princess Park Manor in Friern Barnet, North London - a place of luxury flats and careful landscaping. But this is the former site of one of England's most infamous lunatic asylums, the Middlesex County Pauper Lunatic Aslyum at Colney Hatch. At its peak, this asylum housed nearly 3,000 patients - including, in the late 1980s, Barbara Taylor herself.
Writing about The Last Asylum, Booker prize winner and memoirist, Hilary Mantel said, ''We believe our response to mental illness is more enlightened, kinder and effective than that of the Victorians who built the asylums. Can we be sure? Barbara Taylor challenges complacency, exposes shallow thinking, and points out the flaws and dangers of treatment on the cheap. It is a wise, considered and timely book'.
Darian Leader has described it as 'Superb, Riveting, insightful and relentlessly honest'.
Episode 2:
Taylor recalls how, in the 1980s, the left-wing intelligentsia of London was infatuated with psychoanalysis. Listening to people 'swap couch gossip', she 'yearned to join in' - but was not prepared for the pain and despair which gained her entry into this world.
Reader: Maggie Steed
Producer: Jill Waters
A Waters Company production for BBC Radio 4
TUE 10:00 Woman's Hour (b03vdx7t)
Major Kate Philp; Vicki Wickham; Tongue-tie; Oxford grooming ring survivor
Major Kate Philp talks about her recent expedition to the South Pole with the charity Walking Wounded, the impact of losing her leg in Afghanistan and why she's physically as strong and fit as the men.
Vicki Wickham, music pioneer and editor of the iconic British music television show 'Ready, Steady, Go' has received an OBE for services to music. She talks about booking the Beatles, working with Dusty Springfield and bringing Motown to Britain.
The National Childbirth Trust wants the government to improve the diagnosis and treatment of tongue-tie in the UK. The parenting charity says detection is patchy and means affected babies are left unable to feed properly for weeks or even months. So should professionals routinely check for and treat tongue-tie?
Seven members of the Oxford grooming ring were jailed for a total of 95 years in June 2013 after an 18-week trial at the Old Bailey. They groomed, raped and prostituted girls as young as 11 in Oxford between 2004 and 2012. We hear from 'Lara', one of the young girls who survived that abuse and her mother, 'Elizabeth'.
Presenter: Jenni Murray
Producer: Karen Dalziel.
TUE 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b03vgd9l)
Ed Harris - The Interplanetary Notes of Ambassador B
Episode 2
Ambassador B should be inspecting minor planets of far-away suns for the peaceful Interplanetary Commonwealth. Instead, her recorded reports reveal that she is veering off-course, pursuing a vendetta and bringing anything but peace.
Mind-bending, interstellar fun and adventure from Sony Gold-winning writer Ed Harris.
2/5 Pursuing her missing sister into the uncharted planets of the Tundra, Ambassador B finds a world of constant war.
Produced and Directed by Jonquil Panting.
TUE 11:00 Nature (b03vdx7w)
Series 8
In Search of Humpback Whales
Every year between January and April, Humpback whales from all around the North Atlantic Ocean gather in an area called Silver Bank 100km north of the Dominican Republic to breed. After calving, the whales migrate north from these lower latitudes to their high latitude, summer feeding grounds.
In June, wildlife sound recordist Chris Watson travelled to Husavik on the north coast of Iceland where he joined a whale watching trip to look for Humpback whales on their feeding grounds - and perhaps even see some of the same animals which he had recorded on their breeding grounds earlier in the year.
For many years scientists thought that male humpbacks whales only sing on their breeding grounds but in Iceland, Marianne Rasmussen and her PhD student have recorded whales singing on their feeding grounds in winter during the past four years. This has also been observed elsewhere, and one theory is that these are young immature whales singing. The songs of Humpback whales are quite astonishing; "gorgeous peals of sound, sounded like everything that a cello can do .. and organised as though it were part of a song" says Katy Payne who studied the evolving nature of these songs. The whales in any single population sing the same song, but the songs gradually evolve and change over time, for reasons which are not fully understood. There is still much debate as to why males sing; one theory is that it's to stimulate the females into oestrous. At Silver Bank, Chris found himself surrounded by whales hanging vertically, head down, motionless in the shallow waters created by a coral platform. When he lowered a pair of hydrophones (underwater microphones) beneath the boat, the clear waters were filled with the beautiful, haunting songs of Humpback whales.
Producer Sarah Blunt.
TUE 11:30 The Twelve Bar Blues (b0372ct1)
You've heard of the twelve bar - it's time to learn what exactly it is.
It is the DNA of popular music. Three chords played in a set sequence over twelve bars.
The twelve bar is an American invention. It was originally taken up by rural blues musicians. The first commercial example was W.C. Handy's 'St Louis Blues'. Then it became the staple of the New Orleans jazz repertoire, the big bands, Chicago blues . And in the fifties, just about every other pop song was written around the twelve bar chord sequence.
It is also the common ground for musicians who want to get to know each other. You might not know the same songs, but you know a twelve bar, and you jam. It's a musical level playing field.
You might not know it but a lot of very familiar songs are twelve bars. Here are twelve:
Hound Dog
Mustang Sally
Can't Buy Me Love
Subterranean Homesick Blues
Green Onions
Making Your Mind Up
Folsom Prison Blues
Mercy (Duffy)
Stormy Monday
Money
In The Mood
Sweet Home Chicago
Nick Barraclough has played a few twelve bars in his time. In this programme he talks to bluesologists, a couple of jazzers and a banjo player about why the twelve bar works so well. They illustrate what can be done with this simple sequence and how much fun it can be to mess with it.
Producer: John Leonard
A Smooth Operation production for BBC Radio 4
TUE 12:00 You and Yours (b03vdx8g)
Call You and Yours: Floods Advice
Today we're asking - what's next for those who've been affected by the floods.
We're bringing together experts from the environment agency, the insurance industry, and the National Flood Forum to answer your questions.
Perhaps your home or business has been damaged and you want to know what kind of compensation you are entitled to? The government has promised five thousand pound grants to those affected but how do you get hold of this money? And will those hit by the floods see their insurance premiums shoot up?
We'll also be asking what lessons we can learn from the events of the past weeks and we'll be getting some practical tips on how to best protect our homes and communities against floods in the future.
The number to call is 03 700 100 444.
You can E-mail you and yours at BBC dot CO dot UK.
Or you can text 84844. Or you can use the hashtag youandyours.
TUE 12:57 Weather (b03tv4pc)
The latest weather forecast.
TUE 13:00 World at One (b03tv4pf)
National and international news. Listeners can share their views via email: wato@bbc.co.uk or on twitter: #wato.
TUE 13:45 Europe's Troublemakers (b03vf07j)
Spain: Ada Colau
Lucy Ash profiles five people who are making waves across Europe, with individual stories which expose the continent's cultural, political and economic fault lines.
Ada Colau made the headlines when she called a banker a 'criminal' at a parliamentary hearing into Spain's mortgage crisis. According to Spanish media she is "the best-known representative of popular indignation" in the country. After the hearing, her Twitter following shot up from 8,000 to 100,000. The group she founded, known as the PAH or Platform for People Affected by Mortgages, has blocked hundreds of evictions of families unable to keep up with their mortgage payments. Supporters are encouraged to embarrass government officials by haranguing them outside their own homes. Ada was driven to set up the organisation and challenge Spain's draconian mortgage laws after a number of indebted homeowners committed suicide. But the governing party has accused the PAH of extremism and was outraged when it got a prize last year from the European Parliament. A few months later the government drafted strict new laws against unauthorized protests. Ada Colau is not deterred. "Either we disobey," she wrote on her Twitter account, "or we accept slavery." Lucy travels to Barcelona to meet Ada and some of the distressed homeowners she has helped. They also visit a bank, which was invaded by members of PAH and is now home to families evicted from their former homes.
Producer: Mark Savage.
TUE 14:00 The Archers (b03vdknm)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Monday]
TUE 14:15 McLevy (b03vf07l)
Series 10
A Different Path
New series of Victorian detective dramas, starring Brian Cox and Siobhan Redmond.
Written by David Ashton.
Episode one: A Different Path.
A turf war breaks out between rival factions in the Leith underworld.
And a new Chief Constable turns up the heat on McLevy.
Other parts are played by the cast.
Producer/Director: Bruce Young.
TUE 15:00 The Kitchen Cabinet (b03vf07n)
Series 6
Dartmouth
Jay Rayner and the team travel to Dartmouth for this week's episode of Radio 4's culinary panel programme. Answering questions from the audience are food scientist Peter Barham, restaurateur Henry Dimbleby, Catalan cuisine specialist Rachel McCormack, and restaurateur and fishmonger Mitch Tonks.
Up for discussion are locally caught crabs, clotted cream and sprats, herring, anchovies and other fish caught off the South Devon coast.
Food Consultant: Anna Colquhoun.
Produced by Peggy Sutton.
A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4.
TUE 15:30 Costing the Earth (b03vf07q)
Britain Under Water
It's time to fight back against nature. For two months great swathes of Britain have been paralysed by torrential rain, storms and flooding. Tom Heap has had enough. In a special edition of 'Costing the Earth' he'll be eschewing the moaning and buck-passing in favour of a search for a long-term solution to Britain's vulnerability.
With the help of an expert panel including Richard Betts from the Met Office, Phil Dyke from the National Trust, farmer Guy Smith and civil engineer Ola Holmstrom Tom will discuss the challenges in an era of climate change and the best solutions that science can offer.
Producer: Alasdair Cross.
TUE 16:00 The Design Dimension (b03vf07s)
Series 1
Design and Identity
Design is one of the most powerful forces in our lives. None of us can avoid its influence. It's a ubiquitous element of our world that determines how we feel, what we do and whether we succeed or fail. In this new four-part series, the architectural writer Shumi Bose explores its power to affect us, for better and worse.
In each episode of 'The Design Dimension' Shumi charts a different aspect of our relationship to design - desire, damage, choice and, finally, truth.
This week, Shumi examines how we express our identity through design - from the mark we leave on our cities through to the indelible designs we place on our bodies. We hear stories of the tattoo designs of Russian gang members, the memory aids which are being used to help preserve the identity of dementia sufferers and Shumi's own experiences in the the city where she grew up - Calcutta.
Produced by Alan Hall and Hana Walker-Brown
A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4.
TUE 16:30 A Good Read (b03vf07v)
Tracy-Ann Oberman and Richard Herring
Comedian Richard Herring and actor Tracy-Ann Oberman discuss their favourite books with Harriett Gilbert.
Richard chooses Slaughterhouse 5 by Kurt Vonnegut.
Tracy-Ann's choice is another dystopian novel: Random Acts of Senseless Violence by Jack Womack.
And Harriett makes them both laugh with Vanished Years, the second volume of Rupert Everett's memoirs.
Producer Beth O'Dea.
TUE 17:00 PM (b03vf07x)
Full coverage and analysis of the day's news.
TUE 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b03tv4ph)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
TUE 18:30 Dilemma (b03vf07z)
Series 3
Episode 3
Sue Perkins puts Tom Wrigglesworth, Lucy Beaumont, Anne McElvoy and Joel Morris through the moral and ethical wringer.
The panellists attempt to resolve dilemmas based around dictators and ugly children; using a phone booth to solve a super problem and helping out an audience member.
Devised by Danielle Ward.
Producer: Ed Morrish.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2014.
TUE 19:00 The Archers (b03vf081)
As concern grows for Jill, Ruth suggests to David that she moves in with them for a few weeks while she gets her confidence back.
Ruth thinks that David should go to Borchester Market with Tony on Thursday as she can handle the lambing.
Helen is planning a delicious meal for Rob but when he gets home he can't eat it. He doesn't like tuna. Helen is mortified. She wanted everything to be perfect. Rob isn't really bothered and suggests he cook himself an omelette, but Helen insists on starting a new meal from scratch. Rob tries to reassure Helen. She has nothing to worry about. They are still getting to know each other but have all the time in the world to do so.
When Jolene goes to the basement she finds a flood. She and Kenton can smell electrics so they call 999. They discover many of the drains are blocked and the back of the Bull is like a lake. They are both disheartened. Quantities of stock are ruined along with some of her costumes. Neither of them are sure when the insurance will pay out. They have to put a sign out stating The Bull will be closed until further notice.
TUE 19:15 Front Row (b03vf083)
Lynda La Plante; Jon Hopkins; The Smoke
With John Wilson.
Prime Suspect creator Lynda La Plante reveals her plans for a prequel focusing on the early life of DCI Tennison. Who will play the iconic detective?
The makers of Spooks have teamed up with writer Lucy Kirkwood (Skins, Chimerica) to create a new Sky1 drama about firemen, starring Jamie Bamber and Jodie Whittaker. Sarah Crompton reviews.
Andrew Graham Dixon reviews Strange Beauty, a new exhibition of German Renaissance painting at the National Gallery, which includes work by Hans Holbein and Albrecht Dürer.
And musician Jon Hopkins on his Mercury nominated album Immunity, in which he uses real sounds such as exploding fireworks and creaking doors, on his relationship with Brian Eno, and on improvising for Coldplay.
TUE 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b03vgd9l)
[Repeat of broadcast at
10:45 today]
TUE 20:00 File on 4 (b03vf0f7)
Repeat Offenders
Probation staff are currently being told where they will be working under a radical reform of the service. The government is transferring the management of low and medium risk offenders to private companies and high risk cases will be handled by a national probation service.
The Justice Secretary, Chris Grayling, says the reforms are necessary to cut reoffending rates and save money which will be ploughed back into providing support to all prisoners who have served less than 12 months.
But opponents claim the reforms are being rushed in and will put the public at risk.
Last month, it was announced the plans have been delayed. They were due to come into effect in May but the start date has been put back until July.
The new private providers will only be paid in full if they achieve a reduction in reoffending. The programme speaks to one of the companies bidding for the contracts which says payment by results will lead to innovation and visits a prison which says it is already achieving success in a pilot scheme working with prisoners serving under 12 months.
But Home Affairs correspondent Danny Shaw also talks to probation staff about their fears for the future of partnership working and hears why some of them are threatening to quit the service.
Producer: Paul Grant.
TUE 20:40 In Touch (b03vf0f9)
Scottish referendum; Accessible heating; Listener feedback
With the referendum on Scottish independence approaching, Peter White asks Ken Reid, Chair of RNIB Scotland, what might change for visually impaired people should there be a "yes" vote.
Adjusting your central heating controls can be quite difficult if you are visually impaired, often there are no tactile markers and difficult to read print. The blindness charity Pocklington Trust in partnership with RICA (Research Institute for Consumer Affairs) is calling on manufacturers to practise universal design and to keep the needs of visually impaired people in mind. The two organisations have also produced a guide on the most accessible central heating controls for visually impaired people. We invited Michael Smith, who is partially sighted, to join Peter White in the studio, to try a couple of them out.
Producer: Lee Kumutat
Editor: Andrew Smith.
TUE 21:00 Inside Health (b03vf0fc)
Loneliness, Statins, Feedback on glucosamine and gut instinct, Cycle lanes and air pollution, Coughs and antibiotics
Dr Mark Porter investigates the health effects of loneliness and why some researchers believe being lonely is worse for your health than obesity. Also in the programme, as proposed new UK guidelines mean as many as 5 million more people could be prescribed statins to lower their cholesterol how do you work out if you are in this new category of being at risk? Are the current calculators that work out your risk up to the job? Mark also investigates coughs. Does it really make a difference if your cough is viral or bacterial, and why eighty percent of people won't benefit from taking antibiotics for their cough. A recent study has found that long term, repeated exposure to air pollution increases the risk of heart attacks. What does this mean for people who live near busy roads, and who is most at risk? Mark Porter talks to Frank Kelly, professor of environmental health at King's College London about why the microscopic particles in air pollution cause problems for the heart and why he believes cycle routes shouldn't be on busy, main roads.
TUE 21:30 The Life Scientific (b03vdx7m)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:00 today]
TUE 22:00 The World Tonight (b03vf1f9)
Violence in Ukraine leaves at least nine dead.
Is there a postcode lottery in responding to cardiac arrests?
Should parents of under-5s be tutoring their children?
Drought in California.
With Ritula Shah.
TUE 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b03vf1ff)
Dubliners
Ivy Day in the Committee Room (Part One)
Naturalistic in style, 'Dubliners' depicts an array of characters, graduating progressively from childhood, through adolescence, to maturity, culminating in the final story, 'The Dead'. The stories each centre on the idea of a moment of epiphany, but are grounded in the minutiae of daily life. Stories of love, loss, con men, friendship, alcoholism, marriage, politics and family, combine to create a unified world, a celebration of a city, in the unparalleled prose of its most famous son.
Abridger ..... Doreen Estall
Reader ..... Stephen Rea
Producer ..... Stephen Wright
Music by ..... Neil Martin.
TUE 23:00 2525 (b03nj185)
Episode 3
In the year 2525, if man is still alive, if woman can survive... then it may sound something like this. Set 511 years in the future, 2525 invites you to hear more snippets of our future from talking billboards to a dieting consumer of planets.
Written by Colin Birch, Ali Crockatt and David Scott, Jason Hazeley and Joel Morris, Jon Hunter, Jane Lamacraft, Stuart Cotterill, John Luke Roberts and Eddie Robson
Produced by Ashley Blaker
A John Stanley production for BBC Radio 4.
TUE 23:30 The Lost Tapes of Orson Welles (b03ls15g)
Episode 1
This two-part programme is a revealing series of informal conversations with the man best known as America's great cultural provocateur and one of the finest of filmmakers.
Director Orson Welles was asked to write his life story in his later years. He declined but was convinced by his friend Henry Jaglom to discuss his life over a weekly lunch at their favourite Hollywood restaurant, Ma Maison. The hundreds of tapes, recorded from 1983 to 1985, reveal extraordinary, frank, conversations between Welles and the independent director Jaglom.
The tapes gathered dust in a shoebox in the corner of Jaglom's production office for over thirty years - until now, but this programme provides an opportunity to hear the amazing material they contain for the first time.
Welles talks intimately, disclosing personal secrets and reflecting on the people of the time. At times the tapes display the great film maker as a world champion grudge keeper, rather different from the amiable character who appeared in interviews when he was alive. As we hear, he hated the way Charlton Heston always called Touch of Evil (directed by Welles) a 'minor film'. Welles also found the work of fellow directors, Woody Allen, Charlie Chaplin and Alfred Hitchcock, difficult to embrace. But, as we hear, he had some unexpected enthusiasms.
Presenter Christopher Frayling reveals the great director free to be irreverent and Welles is sometimes cynical and romantic, sentimental but never boring, and often wickedly entertaining. The programmes also feature the thoughts of fellow diner Henry Jaglom, film author Peter Biskind, as well as actor and Welles scholar Simon Callow.
Producer: John Sugar
A Sugar production for BBC Radio 4.
WEDNESDAY 19 FEBRUARY 2014
WED 00:00 Midnight News (b03tv4qb)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.
WED 00:30 Book of the Week (b03vdx7r)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:45 on Tuesday]
WED 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b03tv4qd)
The latest shipping forecast.
WED 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b03tv4qg)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
WED 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b03tv4qj)
The latest shipping forecast.
WED 05:30 News Briefing (b03tv4ql)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.
WED 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b03vrthc)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Sister Gemma Simmonds of the Congregation of Jesus.
WED 05:45 Farming Today (b03vgd8t)
Cost of the Floods, Butterflies and New-builds
As the floodwaters start to subside in some areas of the UK, the true cost of the clear-up is beginning to emerge. It's expected that claims for storm and flood damage will amount to up to £80 million for the insurers NFU Mutual. The company who insure almost three quarters of farms in the UK and many rural properties say they've already been dealing with more than 8000 claims.
After suffering from the wet weather in 2012, last summer proved to be a bumper year for farmland butterflies. A new report out today shows that almost double the number of butterflies on farmland were recorded compared to the year previously.
The Government says that fewer homes were built between 2009 and 2010 than any year in peace time since the 1920's. With just over 100,000 new builds during that time, they are now urging developers and local councils to build more houses. With land being in such high demand Farming Today looks at whether farmers could be sitting on a goldmine.
Presented by Anna Hill and produced by Lucy Bickerton.
WED 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b03tht5z)
Chough
Tweet of the Day is a series of fascinating stories about our British birds inspired by their calls and songs.
John Aitchison tells the story of the chough. Our healthiest chough populations are in Ireland, southwest and north Wales and western Scotland. The last English stronghold was in Cornwall and Choughs feature on the Cornish coat of arms. Even here they became extinct until wild birds from Ireland re-colonised the county in 2001. Now the birds breed regularly on the Lizard peninsula.
WED 06:00 Today (b03vgd8w)
Morning news and current affairs. Including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.
WED 09:00 Midweek (b03vgd8y)
Arthur Smith, Dr Akiko Mikamo, Martin White, Tom Mitchell
Libby Purves meets plant hunter Tom Mitchell; psychologist Dr Akiko Mikamo; Martin White, professor of theatre at the University of Bristol and comedian Arthur Smith.
Tom Mitchell gave up his job as a banker to follow his dream and become a plant hunter. He now travels the world collecting rare and endangered plants which he cultivates from seed to sell from his nursery. He is a galanthophile (a lover and collector of snowdrops) and recently auctioned a new variety of the snowdrop flower - giving the highest bidder the opportunity to name the bulb after their Valentine.
Dr Akiko Mikamo is a psychologist who was born and raised in Hiroshima, Japan. In her book, Rising From the Ashes, she tells her father Shinji's story of survival and forgiveness. He was less than a mile away from the site where the atomic bomb exploded in August 1945 when he was 19. Akiko has drawn inspiration from her father who has devoted his life to peace and reconciliation. Rising From The Ashes - A true Story Of Survival And Forgiveness From Hiroshima is published by Lulu.
Martin White is professor of theatre at Bristol University who devised the candle lighting for the new Sam Wanamaker Playhouse at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. The theatre is a replica of a Jacobean indoor playhouse and is lit solely by candles throughout performances - just as it would have been 400 years ago. The Knight of The Burning Pestle is at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse at Shakespeare's Globe, London.
Arthur Smith is a comedian and writer whose show Arthur Smith Sings Leonard Cohen (Vol 2) is at the Soho Theatre. He performed his first tribute to the Canadian singer-songwriter 14 years ago and in this new production he reflects on life, death and dementia using Cohen classics to accompany his personal observations. Arthur has been a comedian since the early 80s and has also written plays including An Evening with Gary Lineker and The Live Bed Show. Arthur Smith Sings Leonard Cohen (Vol 2) is at the Soho Theatre, London.
Producer: Paula McGinley.
WED 09:45 Book of the Week (b03vgd90)
Barbara Taylor - The Last Asylum
Episode 3
The Last Asylum begins with Barbara Taylor's visit to the innocuously named Princess Park Manor in Friern Barnet, North London - a place of luxury flats and careful landscaping. But this is the former site of one of England's most infamous lunatic asylums, the Middlesex County Pauper Lunatic Aslyum at Colney Hatch. At its peak, this asylum housed nearly 3,000 patients - including, in the late 1980s, Barbara Taylor herself.
Writing about The Last Asylum, Booker prize winner and memoirist, Hilary Mantel said, ''We believe our response to mental illness is more enlightened, kinder and effective than that of the Victorians who built the asylums. Can we be sure? Barbara Taylor challenges complacency, exposes shallow thinking, and points out the flaws and dangers of treatment on the cheap. It is a wise, considered and timely book'.
Darian Leader has described it as 'Superb, Riveting, insightful and relentlessly honest'.
Episode 3:
At severe risk of suicide and with her nightmares invading her waking world, the author was finally admitted to Friern Hospital, 'Colney Hatch'. Her analyst continues to challenge and support, her friends still visit, fellow patients are an unexpected source of warmth and humour.
Reader: Maggie Steed
Abridged and produced by Jill Waters
A Waters Company production for BBC Radio 4
WED 10:00 Woman's Hour (b03vgd92)
Female Defence Ministers; Shopping with Mum; Good Housekeeping
The female defence ministers of Sweden, Norway, The Netherlands and Germany. We discuss the impact of benefit cuts on single parents with Caroline Davey from Gingerbread and some young mums. As Good Housekeeping becomes the most popular monthly women's magazine, editor Lindsay Nicholson and Sally Feldman talk about its appeal. And the highs and lows of a shopping trip with your mother - we discuss with Judith Woods from the Daily Telegraph and radio producer Elizabeth Burke who wants listeners' stories.
Presented by Jenni Murray
Produced by Jane Thurlow.
WED 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b03vgf43)
Ed Harris - The Interplanetary Notes of Ambassador B
Episode 3
Ambassador B should be inspecting minor planets of far-away suns for the peaceful Interplanetary Commonwealth. Instead, her recorded reports reveal that she is veering off-course, pursuing a vendetta and bringing anything but peace.
Mind-bending, interstellar fun and adventure from Sony Gold-winning writer Ed Harris.
3/5 She may have hired a gun-slinging companion, but Ambassador B is about to be disarmed in a way she never dreamed of.
Produced and Directed by Jonquil Panting.
WED 11:00 Steve the Sweep (b03vgf45)
Steve Carver learns the trade of a chimney sweep.
As more and more house holders open-up fireplaces and install wood-burning stoves - partly in an attempt to counter rising energy prices - chimney sweeping has become something of a recession-busting business.
The busiest time of year is the run-up to Christmas and it was during this frantic time in December of last year that Steve Carver shadowed two Cambridgeshire chimney-sweeps for a week: Lawson Wight, a sweep of fifteen years' experience, and Ralph While-Paddon, more of a new-comer.
Ralph was in the army for nearly thirty years, leaving as a Lieutenant-Colonel, and enjoys the relatively stress-free life that sweeping allows. However, as Steve discovers, it is all relative: removing birds' nests, knowledge of building regulations and the inner-workings of stoves are all part of a highly-responsible job that both Lawson and Ralph believe should require proper qualifications and regulation – something that, as yet, isn't the case in the UK.
Producer: Karen Gregor
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2014.
WED 11:30 HR (b03vgf47)
Series 5
Love Precisely
In the new series of Nigel William's hit comedy, Peter's former partner Kate moves in. Sam, who thought he was gay, finds himself deeply attracted to her. There will be fireworks!
Original music for the film by Stephen Benham
Director ..... Peter Kavanagh
Starring Jonathan Pryce, Nicholas Le Prevost and Kate Fahy, Nigel Williams' long running comedy-drama series HR has developed something a cult following. And this latest promises to be just as funny and outrageous, but even more apposite than the previous four.
As well as the usual humour in spade-loads, this series deals with important issues, among them the complications round bi-sexuality, and gay marriage.
Sam's house is home not only to Peter (Pryce) and himself (Le Prevost), but also to Peter's ex-wife Kate (Fahy) and soon Sam's new boyfriend Ed (David Haig). The series will chart Sam's initial conviction that he is in love with Kate, ergo not gay. Then him accepting that he is indeed gay, but still - at age 65 - a virgin, and in need of a partner in the autumn of his life. He will check out gay websites for 'the right guy for the right guy', with hilarious - and almost disastrous - consequences. Then an electricity-meter reader (Ed - Haig) rings the bell on a routine call, and Sam's life suddenly changes.
In the penultimate episode Sam will propose to Ed, and many of the emotional issues round gay marriage and commitment will be explored.
At the same time commitment-phobe Peter, now sharing (and sparring!) with ex-wife Kate has to confront the possibility that he may still have feelings for her. Again that story-line will run right until the last episode, with a dramatic twist. (NB: Kate Fahy and Jonathan Pryce are married in real life)
But as the series opens:
Episode 1: Domestic life is complicated as Sam, who thought he was gay, wakes one morning to realise that he has fallen in love with Kate, former partner of Peter, who is Sam's best friend and his infuriatingly abrasive, rascally, trouble-making lodger. Who can guess how it will all turn out, particularly when Peter then insists on giving Sam lessons in courtship: 'Women doubt themselves' Peter asserts vigorously, 'they all lack confidence. As men, it is our duty to take advantage of that ... thereby to maximise their dependence on us'.
Will Sam follow unreconstructed Peter's advice?
Listen out to this new run of topping comedy dramas.
WED 12:00 You and Yours (b03vgf49)
Community energy, discount supermarkets
Living next door to a wind farm might not sound too appealing. But would you feel differently if it helped to reduce your energy bills, and you partly owned it? The government recently unveiled its Community Energy Strategy which aims to encourage consumers to be more closely involved in how their electricity is generated and supplied. Ministers are keen for developers to share ownership of wind-farms with local communities, which could create a cash-boost for towns and villages.
Discount supermarkets Aldi and Lidl are enjoying a boom just now, with rising sales. Their market share is still small, but it is growing as more people choose to shop in the cheaper stores. But why are people changing their shopping habits? Is it just a desire to save money? One retail expert thinks that some consumers are turning away from the UK's big four supermarkets in what he calls "anti-corporatism".
There seems to be no end to the apps you can download on your smartphone. Now there are specialist health apps, which allow you to constantly monitor things like your blood pressure, how well you are sleeping and how much exercise you are doing. But can they really help you to live a healthy life, or could they turn you into a hypochondriac?
And for those who like to plan ahead - is there any sense at all in starting to save now for Christmas? We ask whether traditional Christmas savings clubs are good value for money.
Producer: Jonathan Hallewell
Presenter: Peter White.
WED 13:00 World at One (b03tv4qn)
National and international news. Listeners can share their views via email: wato@bbc.co.uk or on twitter: #wato.
WED 13:45 Europe's Troublemakers (b03vgf4c)
Italy: Wu Ming
Lucy Ash profiles people who are making waves across Europe, with individual stories which expose the continent's cultural, political and economic fault lines.
Wu Ming - an Italian writers' collective rather than one person - is turning literary conventions on their head and questioning the political establishment. They started out as pranksters, hoodwinking the media, cooking up stories about a missing British cyclist and an artistic chimpanzee. Now their exploits are mainly confined to the page following the unexpected success of their first novel Q which has been translated into more than 20 languages. They are prolific bloggers and writers of non-fiction on issues they care about such as Italy's colonial record in Africa and the threat of fascism in Europe.Lucy Ash samples their brand of art and activism, first at a reading in Turin and then with Italy's most famous social protest movement, which is fighting a high-speed rail link under the Alps.
Producer: Mark Savage.
WED 14:00 The Archers (b03vf081)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Tuesday]
WED 14:15 Drama (b03vgf4f)
North of Riga
A man's strength is in his hair. A woman's dreams are in hers...
When a mysterious woman arrives in a small Northern Irish fishing port and opens a hairdressing salon, the locals discover she has a curious effect on their lives as she plies her trade. The Latvian girls working in the fish factory say she is a witch, but no one really knows who she is or where she came from. Or why. When thirteen year old Lorna meets and befriends the mysterious hairdresser, Sarah, the fate of the two soon become entangled.
Lorna, a solitary child remarkable for her long tangled fair hair, is a concern of the welfare services; she is rarely at school, apparently running wild and is more often than not to be found at the harbour with local homeless couple Mervyn and Sandra. Like Sarah, Lorna has a secret she doesn't want anyone to discover. But when another mysterious stranger arrives in town, Sarah's past finally catches up with her, and Lorna makes the one sacrifice she can to save Sarah's future - and her own.
A contemporary fable of magic and murder from award-winning writer Eoin McNamee, starring Amybeth McNulty as Lorna and Branka Katic as Sarah.
Other parts were played Barra Best, Bronagh Taylor and members of the cast.
WED 15:00 Money Box Live (b03vgf4h)
Retirement Income Choices
Converting pension savings into retirement income? Put your questions to Lesley Curwen and guests. Call 03700 100 444 from
1pm to
3.30pm on Wednesday or e-mail moneybox@bbc.co.uk now.
As retirement approaches you'll need to start thinking about how to get the most from your pension pot, as good decisions now could boost your future income by thousands of pounds.
To help maximise your returns we'll have a panel of advisers ready to talk you through retirement options, annuities and income drawdown.
When should you take your pension and how much can you access as a cash lump sum?
What types of annuity are available?
You may want to ask about standard, guaranteed, impaired or investment-linked products?
What are the rules about leaving your pension fund invested but taking an income from it?
Can you access your pension savings in stages or combine the different choices?
Should you pay for advice, use a broker or do your own research?
What questions should you ask and how much will you have to pay?
Joining Lesley Curwen to answer your questions will be:
Stuart Bayliss, Chairman, Better Retirement Group.
Michelle Cracknell, Chief Executive, The Pensions Advisory Service.
Brian Tabor, Chartered Financial Planner, Care Matters & The Society of Later Life Advisers.
To talk to the team 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.
Presenter: Lesley Curwen
Producer: Lesley McAlpine.
WED 15:30 Inside Health (b03vf0fc)
[Repeat of broadcast at
21:00 on Tuesday]
WED 16:00 Thinking Allowed (b03vgf4m)
The Great Indoors
The Great Indoors. Laurie Taylor talks to cultural theorist Ben Highmore about his history of the family home in the 20th century and how houses display currents of class, identity and social transformation.
Also, the evolution of the bathroom. Architectural historian Barbara Penner looks at that most intimate space in the home, and considers how it became an international symbol of key modern values, such as cleanliness, order and progress.
Producer: Torquil MacLeod.
WED 16:30 The Media Show (b03vgf4p)
Adverts on the World Service; Daybreak changes; Reader's Digest sale
MPs have expressed concern about the future funding and growing commercialisation of the World Service. The BBC Trust has agreed that, subject to clearance from government, the World Service can broadcast a limited amount of advertising and sponsored content that is not news and current affairs, from 1 April, when the BBC moves to licence fee funding. Steve Hewlett asks Peter Horrocks about how the audience feels about adverts, and questions him over whether featuring commercial products would threaten the network's impartiality.
Reports this week say ITV has held talks with BBC presenter Susanna Reid in a bid to revive its fortunes in the TV breakfast wars. It's understood Daybreak is set to have another presenter change, with Richard Bacon and Dermot O'Leary also reported to be in the running. It's the latest in a series of relaunches the programme has had since it began in September 2010 in a bid to pull in audiences. Steve Hewlett talks to former head of ITV Daytime Dianne Nelmes, and Liam Hamilton, launch editor and former executive producer of GMTV, about how to save flailing breakfast programmes.
Reader's Digest is a 76 year old UK publication which, in its heydey, was one of the most popular magazines in the UK. Now, however, it's circulation has dropped to under 200,000. This weekend, it was bought for a nominal sum - said to be £1 - by entrepreneur Mike Luckwell. He says he wants to return the magazine to its glory days by boosting subscribers, offering direct marketing, and potentially putting the website behind a paywall. Steve Hewlett talks to him about how to reshape the magazine, at a time when circulation across the whole of the industry, is falling.
Producer: Katy Takatsuki
Editor: Andrew Smith.
WED 17:00 PM (b03vgnjj)
Full coverage and analysis of the day's news.
WED 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b03tv4qq)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
WED 18:30 Thanks a Lot, Milton Jones! (b03vgnjl)
Series 1
Wedding Planner
Mention Milton Jones to most people and the first thing they think is 'Help!'.
King of the one-liners, Milton Jones returns BBC to Radio 4 for an amazing 10th series in a new format where he has decided to set himself up as a man who can help anyone anywhere - whether they need it or not. Because, in his own words, "No problem too problemy".
But each week, Milton and his trusty assistant Anton set out to help people and soon find they're embroiled in a new adventure. So when you're close to the edge, then Milton can give you a push.
This week, Milton has decided to become a wedding planner. But when a distraught bride comes to the door with the case of the vanishing groom-to-be, Milton is all set to help.
Written by Milton with James Cary ("Bluestone 42", "Miranda") and Dan Evans (who co-wrote Milton's Channel 4 show "House Of Rooms") the man they call "Britain's funniest Milton," returns to the radio with a fully-working cast and a shipload of new jokes.
The cast includes regulars Tom Goodman-Hill ("Spamalot", "Mr. Selfridge") as the ever-faithful Anton, and Dan Tetsell ("Newsjack"), and features the one and only Josie Lawrence working with Milton for the first time.
Producer 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, The Brig Society, Giles Wemmbley Hogg Goes Off, The 99p Challenge, The Castle, The 3rd Degree and even, going back a bit, Radio Active.
Produced and Directed by David Tyler
A Pozzitive production for BBC Radio 4.
WED 19:00 The Archers (b03vgnjn)
Isobel, the wedding dress designer, appreciates that Kirsty would like to consider some cheaper dresses but insists she try her design again as Kirsty looked amazing in it. Isobel offers to do the dress for £2450, and Kirsty puts down a deposit.
Pat, Tony, David and Ruth are off to help their flooded colleagues in Worcestershire. They're bringing back a trailer full of ewes and lambs, to keep them safe at Brookfield until Sue, the farmer, can get her land fit for use again. As they make the journey past the flooded fields, Pat and Ruth agree it must be awful to be in her situation, felling like the place has been violated. Ruth compares it to the havoc left after a burglary, and tells Pat that Jill still isn't sleeping properly. Back at Brookfield, they acknowledge that what they've done isn't much in the grand scheme of things. They just hope they've made a difference.
Kenton is trying to be optimistic about the damage to the pub. When Jolene discovers Kenton is to blame for not clearing the drains she is furious. Kenton feels her reaction is a bit OTT. In her anger Jolene bans him from sleeping in the bedroom, suggesting he try Fallon's bed or the sofa.
WED 19:15 Front Row (b03vgnjq)
Andrew Sachs; Martin Carthy; Awards speeches
With John Wilson
Andrew Sachs' new autobiography describes his journey from arriving in Britain as a young Jewish refugee from Nazi Germany to playing Manuel in Fawlty Towers. He discusses the physical hazards of being Manuel and his reaction to the infamous prank phone-calls from Jonathan Ross and Russell Brand.
Tonight musician Martin Carthy is receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Radio 2 Folk Awards. Carthy discusses his love of playing live, starting out in the early 60s, getting over his annoyance about Paul Simon's success with Scarborough Fair, and making his first album with daughter Eliza.
John visits The Courtauld Gallery in London to discover the story behind one of the most beautiful and enigmatic objects in their collection; a seven hundred year old bag made in Northern Iraq.
And with the film awards season in full swing, Stephen Armstrong looks at the art of the awards speech, from the inspiring, to the cringe-worthy and the downright bizarre.
Producer: Gabriella Meade.
WED 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b03vgf43)
[Repeat of broadcast at
10:45 today]
WED 20:00 Moral Maze (b03vgnjs)
Science and Morality
As the flood waters rise and gales rip through the country the debate about climate change has erupted with new energy, with both sides claiming the scientific and moral high ground. So where does that leave us? Whether it's climate change, GM crops or the latest IVF technique - how should we make moral decisions when the facts are in dispute? Environmentalists accuse the sceptics of being climate change "deniers" with all the emotional charge that comes with that word "denier"; while the sceptics accuse the environmentalists of following a quasi-religious cult that is more about controlling people's freedoms than it is about anything to do with the weather. Both claim the science backs up their position and accuse the other side of ignoring and twisting the evidence. Do we rely too much on science being the only reliable and neutral source of knowledge? How often have you heard politicians fall back on the phrase "the science shows that..." when they're promoting their own values and policies? Is science filling in the moral vacuum left by our increasing scepticism of traditional forms of authority? Or is the scientific method the only thing that's saving us from dressing up our own prejudices as moral, right and just? Increasingly we live in an age when we want answers and we want them now. But arguably, we also live in an age when our scientific illiteracy is matched only by our philosophical ignorance. Thankfully the Moral Maze is here to help. Combative, provocative and engaging debate chaired by Michael Buerk with Claire Fox, Michael Portillo, Giles Fraser and Anne McElvoy.
Witnesses are James Panton, Canon Dr Alan Billings, Angie Hobbs and Dr Evan Harris.
Produced by Phil Pegum.
WED 20:45 Four Thought (b03vgnjv)
Series 4
Nothing to Lose
Byron Vincent discusses nature versus nurture, and society's obligations to its weakest.
In a powerful, personal talk, Byron tells the story of his own childhood on a troubled housing estate, of how his surroundings shaped him, and of the choices he felt forced to make. Faced with similar circumstances he asks who can say they would make different choices. Byron explores the moral consequences of this for the rest of our society.
Introduced by Kamin Mohammadi.
Producer: Giles Edwards.
WED 21:00 Costing the Earth (b03vf07q)
[Repeat of broadcast at
15:30 on Tuesday]
WED 21:30 Midweek (b03vgd8y)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:00 today]
WED 21:58 Weather (b03tv4qs)
The latest weather forecast.
WED 22:00 The World Tonight (b03vgnjz)
EU threatens sanctions on Ukraine as violence continues in Kiev. Is Egypt more repressive now than under Mubarak? Bangladesh's booming economy with Ritula Shah.
WED 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b03vgnk1)
Dubliners
Ivy Day in the Committee Room (Part Two)
Naturalistic in style, 'Dubliners' depicts an array of characters, graduating progressively from childhood, through adolescence, to maturity, culminating in the final story, 'The Dead'. The stories each centre on the idea of a moment of epiphany, but are grounded in the minutiae of daily life. Stories of love, loss, con men, friendship, alcoholism, marriage, politics and family, combine to create a unified world, a celebration of a city, in the unparalleled prose of its most famous son.
Abridger ..... Doreen Estall
Reader ..... Stephen Rea
Producer ..... Stephen Wright
Music by ..... Neil Martin.
WED 23:00 History Retweeted (b03vgnk3)
The Moon Landing
History Retweeted sends us back in time as we hear people from the past comment on a series of major world events, in 140 characters or fewer.
In this first episode, The Moon Landing: From Launch to Landing, we follow the crew of Apollo 11 as they cruise to the moon. We're given a snapshot of an internet-savvy 1960s - astronauts are trolled, Action Chaps are sold, and America wins gold in the space race.
A space-based David Bowie and a caterpillar's eating disorder are the trending topics of the day.
History Retweeted transports us to timelines gone by - feeding hashtags, trolls and trending topics into moments from history.
Featuring the voices of Tim Barnes and Simon Berry, Wayne Forester and Annabelle Llewellyn,
Peter Temple and Jelly Macintosh - with Lucy Beaumont as the voice of The Computer.
Written by Tim Barnes and Simon Berry
Produced by Sally Harrison
A Woolyback production for BBC Radio 4.
WED 23:15 Nurse (b03vgnk5)
Series 1
Episode 1
A brand new series starring Paul Whitehouse and Esther Coles, with Rosie Cavaliero, Simon Day, Cecilia Noble and Marcia Warren.
The series follows Elizabeth, a Community Psychiatric Nurse in her forties, into the homes of her patients (or Service Users in today's jargon). It recounts their humorous, sad and often bewildering daily interactions with the nurse, whose job is to assess their progress, dispense their medication and offer comfort and support.
Compassionate and caring, Elizabeth is aware that she cannot cure her patients, only help them manage their various conditions. She visits the following characters throughout the series:
Lorrie and Maurice: Lorrie, in her fifties, is of Caribbean descent and has schizophrenia. Lorrie's life is made tolerable by her unshakeable faith in Jesus, and Maurice, who has a crush on her and wants to do all he can to help. So much so that he ends up getting on everyone's nerves.
Billy: Billy feels safer in jail than outside, a state of affairs the nurse is trying to rectify. She is hampered by the ubiquitous presence of Billy's mate, Tony.
Graham: in his forties, is morbidly obese due to an eating disorder. Matters aren't helped by his mum 'treating' him to sugary and fatty snacks at all times.
Ray: is bipolar and a rock and roll survivor from the Sixties. It is not clear how much of his 'fame' is simply a product of his imagination.
Phyllis: in her seventies, has Alzheimer's. She is sweet, charming and exasperating. Her son Gary does his best but if he has to hear 'I danced for the Queen Mum once' one more time he will explode.
Herbert is an old school gentleman in his late Seventies. Herbert corresponds with many great literary figures unconcerned that they are, for the most part, dead.
Nurse is written by Paul Whitehouse and David Cummings, who have collaborated many time in the past, including on The Fast Show, Down the Line and Happiness.
Written by Paul Whitehouse and David Cummings with additional material from Esther Coles
Producers: Paul Whitehouse and Tilusha Ghelani
A Down the Line production for BBC Radio 4.
WED 23:30 The Lost Tapes of Orson Welles (b03m7z0j)
Episode 2
This two-part programme is a revealing series of informal conversations with the man best known as America's great cultural provocateur and one of the finest of filmmakers.
Director Orson Welles was asked to write his life story in his later years. He declined but was convinced by his friend Henry Jaglom to discuss his life over a weekly lunch at their favourite Hollywood restaurant, Ma Maison. The hundreds of tapes, recorded from 1983 to 1985, reveal extraordinary, frank, conversations between Welles and the independent director Jaglom.
The tapes gathered dust in a shoebox in the corner of Jaglom's production office for over thirty years - until now, but this programme provides an opportunity to hear the amazing material they contain for the first time.
Welles talks intimately, disclosing personal secrets and reflecting on the people of the time. At times the tapes display the great film maker as a world champion grudge keeper, rather different from the amiable character who appeared in interviews when he was alive. As we hear, he hated the way Charlton Heston always called Touch of Evil (directed by Welles) a 'minor film'. Welles also found the work of fellow directors, Woody Allen, Charlie Chaplin and Alfred Hitchcock, difficult to embrace. But, as we hear, he had some unexpected enthusiasms.
Presenter Christopher Frayling reveals the great director free to be irreverent and Welles is sometimes cynical and romantic, sentimental but never boring, and often wickedly entertaining. The programmes also feature the thoughts of fellow diner Henry Jaglom, film author Peter Biskind, as well as actor and Welles scholar Simon Callow.
Producer: John Sugar
A Sugar production for BBC Radio 4.
THURSDAY 20 FEBRUARY 2014
THU 00:00 Midnight News (b03tv4ry)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.
THU 00:30 Book of the Week (b03vgd90)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:45 on Wednesday]
THU 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b03tv4s0)
The latest shipping forecast.
THU 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b03tv4s2)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
THU 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b03tv4s4)
The latest shipping forecast.
THU 05:30 News Briefing (b03tv4s6)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.
THU 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b03vry93)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Sister Gemma Simmonds of the Congregation of Jesus.
THU 05:45 Farming Today (b03vgq1l)
Bovine TB, Wales, Rural Industry and Bees
New figures from the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories suggest that levels of bovine tuberculosis in Wales have fallen significantly over the last year. Between November 2011 and November 2012 there were 1145 instances of the disease in new herd reported in Wales. In the same period last year, there were 880 reports - a 23% drop. And the numbers of cattle slaughtered in Wales because of bovine Tb fell by a third.
However in England, farmers saw a less than one per-cent decrease in new cases last year and a seven per-cent drop in the number of cattle sent for slaughter.
In a statement, Defra told us that whilst the Welsh Government's figures were encouraging, they only reflected a single year. However, the The Welsh Government's chief vet told Anna Hill that a strict annual testing and a zero tolerance approach to the disease could be the reason for the significant decline.
The countryside could benefit from increased manufacturing business and industry, according to Professor Mark Shucksmith at Newcastle university. As part of our week on building in the countryside, Lucy Bickerton visited a factory near Malmsbury where the owners reap the benefits
And could our bumblebees be at risk of disease from honeybee hives? And what can farmers do to help?
Presented by Anna Hill and produced by Jules Benham.
THU 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b03thtfs)
Parrot Crossbill
Tweet of the Day is a series of fascinating stories about our British birds inspired by their calls and songs.
John Aitchison tells the story of the parrot crossbill. The Parrot Crossbill lives only in a few native pinewoods in Scotland. When they're at the top of pine trees a view of the Parrot Crossbill is tricky, so crossbill experts use the birds' calls to tell them apart from Common and Scottish Crossbills. Parrot crossbills have a deeper call than the others.
THU 06:00 Today (b03vgq1n)
Morning news and current affairs. Including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.
THU 09:00 In Our Time (b03vgq1q)
Social Darwinism
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss Social Darwinism. After the publication of Charles Darwin's masterpiece On the Origin of Species in 1859, some thinkers argued that Darwin's ideas about evolution could also be applied to human society. One thinker particularly associated with this movement was Darwin's near-contemporary Herbert Spencer, who coined the phrase 'survival of the fittest'. He argued that competition among humans was beneficial, because it ensured that only the healthiest and most intelligent individuals would succeed. Social Darwinism remained influential for several generations, although its association with eugenics and later adoption as an ideological position by Fascist regimes ensured its eventual downfall from intellectual respectability.
With:
Adam Kuper
Centennial Professor of Anthropology at the LSE, University of London
Gregory Radick
Professor of History and Philosophy of Science at the University of Leeds
Charlotte Sleigh
Reader in the History of Science at the University of Kent.
Producer: Thomas Morris.
THU 09:45 Book of the Week (b03vgq1s)
Barbara Taylor - The Last Asylum
Episode 4
The Last Asylum begins with Barbara Taylor's visit to the innocuously named Princess Park Manor in Friern Barnet, North London - a place of luxury flats and careful landscaping. But this is the former site of one of England's most infamous lunatic asylums, the Middlesex County Pauper Lunatic Aslyum at Colney Hatch. At its peak, this asylum housed nearly 3,000 patients - including, in the late 1980s, Barbara Taylor herself.
Writing about The Last Asylum, Booker prize winner and memoirist, Hilary Mantel said, ''We believe our response to mental illness is more enlightened, kinder and effective than that of the Victorians who built the asylums. Can we be sure? Barbara Taylor challenges complacency, exposes shallow thinking, and points out the flaws and dangers of treatment on the cheap. It is a wise, considered and timely book'.
Darian Leader has described it as 'Superb, Riveting, insightful and relentlessly honest'.
Episode 4:
The history of mental health hospitals is fraught with failures and good intentions. When it was decided to close down the old asylums, the care in the community revolution was already well underway. Barbara finds herself in a hostel.
Reader: Maggie Steed
Abridged and produced by Jill Waters
A Waters Company production for BBC Radio 4
THU 10:00 Woman's Hour (b03vgq1v)
Dame Kathleen Lonsdale; Deborah Turness
Jenni Murray presents the programme that offers a female perspective on the world.
THU 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b03vgq1x)
Ed Harris - The Interplanetary Notes of Ambassador B
Episode 4
Ambassador B should be inspecting minor planets of far-away suns for the peaceful Interplanetary Commonwealth. Instead, her recorded reports reveal that she is veering off-course, pursuing a vendetta and bringing anything but peace.
Mind-bending, interstellar fun and adventure from Sony Gold-winning writer Ed Harris.
4/5 Landing on an unknown rock, Ambassador B gets a cheery welcome, dinner and even a movie. Too bad the armrests have handcuffs.
Produced and Directed by Jonquil Panting.
THU 11:00 From Our Own Correspondent (b03vgq1z)
Saddam Hussein Lives!
Stories from foreign correspondents. In this edition: Prashant Rao meets an Iraqi called Saddam Hussein and hears how difficult it is being named after the brutal and hated dictator; Lynne O'Donnell visits the famous 'laneways' of Melbourne in Australia and wonders whether this precious example of architectural heritage is being properly looked after by the local council; Jane Beresford finds her preconceptions shattered when she visits the Beirut suburb associated with the Hezbollah movement; Tamasin Ford journeys to a remote corner of Madagascar where an illegal trade in a rare wood is worth billions and Alan Johnston in Rome considers the man most likely to be Italy's next prime minister and suggests his strength may actually lie in his inexperience.
THU 11:30 The Folklorist (b0381fzj)
One of the UK's most acclaimed folk singers, Seth Lakeman, travels to New York to meet the man regarded as the world's leading expert on folk music, 85-year-old Izzy Young, who opened his first Folklore Center in New York's Greenwich Village in 1957.
The store in MacDougal St became a focal point for the American folk music scene of the time. Bob Dylan writes in his memoirs about spending time at the Center, which he referred to as "The citadel of Americana Folk Music - like an ancient chapel". Dylan met Dave Van Ronk in the store, and Izzy Young produced Dylan's first concert at Carnegie Chapter Hall in 1961. Dylan wrote a song about the store and Young called "Talking Folklore Center".
After developing an interest in Swedish folk music at a festival, Young closed his New York store and in 1973 he moved to Stockholm where he opened the Folklore Centrum, where he still works seven days a week.
Making a rare return to New York, 40 years since he first left, Izzy joins Seth on the steps of 110 MacDougal St in Greenwich Village - the site of his original Folklore Center – to reminisce about the evocative days in the late 50s and early 60s when, as Bob Dylan recalls, "Folk music glittered like a mound of gold".
Wandering up MacDougal Street to Washington Square Park, Izzy describes the events of April 1961, when `Folkies' staged what would later be referred to as `the first protest action of the 60s'. When city officials tried to ban folk musicians from performing in the square, Izzy was the main organiser of a protest that resulted in clashes with local police. The protestors eventually won their legal battle with the city and music has been permitted in the square ever since.
Producer: Des Shaw
A Ten Alps production for BBC Radio 4
THU 12:00 You and Yours (b03vgq21)
Bank switching
The house buyer who's been snubbed three times - we'll find out what you can and can't do when it comes to gazumping. We look at the number of people who have switched to a new bank since the Payments Council made it easier to transfer accounts. We return to one of the high streets most beloved brands - can the Canadians really save HMV? And the bank that's turning customers away for not being millionaires.
Presented by Peter White
Produced by Natalie Donovan.
THU 12:57 Weather (b03tv4s8)
The latest weather forecast.
THU 13:00 World at One (b03tv4sb)
National and international news. Listeners can share their views via email: wato@bbc.co.uk or on twitter: #wato.
THU 13:45 Europe's Troublemakers (b03vgq23)
France: Christian Troadec
Lucy Ash profiles five people who are making waves across Europe, with individual stories which expose the continent's cultural, political and economic fault lines.
Christian Troadec is the gruff Breton mayor who has struck a blow for independence from a revenue-hungry French state. Carhaix, his town of 15,000 people, has been called ground zero in the revolt of the red caps - named after Breton bonnets rouges who led a protest in the 17th century. In those days the revolt was against the levies imposed by Louis XIV, the Sun King, to finance his war against the Dutch. Nearly 340 years later, people in Brittany have donned their bonnets rouges once more to fight taxes imposed, not by a king, but by President Francois Hollande and his socialist government. They joke it is the new 'guerre de Hollande' and the red caps include farmers, fishermen, traders, shopkeepers and workers. The last straw for many was the hated "ecotax" on lorries. Trucking is essential for the transport of agricultural products in this agricultural region. The government hopes it has bought off dissent with a new Chinese-owned dairy factory but Troadec says the bonnet rouges will not be so easily placated. Lucy Ash visits the mayor in his stronghold to hear about his next move - a congress in March designed to air Brittany's many grievances with Paris.
Producer: Mark Savage.
THU 14:00 The Archers (b03vgnjn)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Wednesday]
THU 14:15 Drama (b03trpzl)
Burning Desires
Between 1914 and 1918, Parisian Henri Désiré Landru proposed to ten women. Always the same method, always the same hideous outcome: The lonely hearts advertisement, the courtship, the proposal, the opening of a joint bank account. Then a trip to his country house. He always bought a return ticket for himself, but never his companions. As they were not returning. They were murdered, dismembered and burned in his kitchen stove. This is his story. Sort of...
Written by Colin Bytheway
Director: Celia de Wolff.
THU 15:00 Ramblings (b03vgq25)
Series 26
Rachael Kiddey, Avon Estuary
This series is themed 'Ramblings Revisited' as Clare Balding walks again with some of her favourite and most memorable guests.
In March of 2006 Clare Balding went rambling with Rosie Barrett and her two children, Rachael and Rob. They took her on their local walk around the Avon Estuary in south Devon. It had always been part of their lives, as a route for venting teenage tantrums or simply as a ramble to the pub, but after Rosie's other son, Hugh, died of cancer at the age of 19 the walk took on a deeper significance. The family, and a hundred others, planted trees in Hugh's memory on a nearby hillside and a new section of the walk was created through dense woodland.
For this programme Clare revisits Rachael and Rosie and follows the same route. Rob can't make it this time, but in his place is Jonno, Rosie's husband. It's now 11 years since Hugh died and of course the trees have grown; meanwhile Rachael now works in academia where her speciality is - appropriately enough - memory, landscape and therapeutic heritage.
Producer: Karen Gregor.
THU 15:27 Radio 4 Appeal (b03vcyx2)
[Repeat of broadcast at
07:55 on Sunday]
THU 15:30 Open Book (b03vd165)
[Repeat of broadcast at
16:00 on Sunday]
THU 16:00 The Film Programme (b03vgq27)
John Ridley on 12 Years a Slave
Francine Stock talks to John Ridley, the Oscar nominated screenwriter of 12 Years a Slave about the journey from first historic hand account to the big screen also and the portrayal of race in mainstream cinema today. Critic Jonathan Romney critiques the work of director Jim Jarmusch whose latest movie 'Only Lovers Left Alive' hits theatres this week. Award winning production designer Maria Djurkovic and film historian Kim Newman discuss the enduring appeal of the French musical The Umbrellas of Cherbourg. Dialect coaches Andrew Jack and Julia Wilson-Dickson let the Film Programme in on the tricks of their trade.
THU 16:30 BBC Inside Science (b03vgq3b)
Bees; Whales; Pain; Gay genes
Bees - Nearly all bees in the UK suffering serious declines. They're mostly threatened by habitat and land-use change. But disease also plays a part. Adam Rutherford talks to Professor Mark Brown about new work he's done looking at the evidence of diseases harboured by honeybees, spilling over into wild bumblebees.
Pain and epigenetics - Marnie Chesterton goes to Kings College, London to watch identical twins being tested for pain tolerance. The study is to gain insight into the genetic components of pain perception. One area which is fascinating researchers like Professor Tim Spector is the role of epigenetics in how we process pain. Our epigenome is a system that changes the way our DNA is interpreted. Genes can be dialled up or down, like a dimmer switch, by adding little chemical tags to the DNA. These chemical tags, unlike DNA, are changeable, in response to the changing environment. So could the way we live affect the pain we feel?
Whales from Space - More listeners' questions, this time, asking whether surveys using images from satellites to see whales underwater, could be hijacked by whale hunters? Peter Fretwell from the British Antarctic Survey has the answer.
Genetics of sexual preference - The media is all of a twitter this week over unpublished work recently revealed on research looking for genes related to homosexuality. We hear from Professor Tim Spector on the topic, and Adam talks to Professor Steve Jones about the science.
Producer: Fiona Roberts.
THU 17:00 PM (b03vgq3d)
Coverage and analysis of the day's news.
THU 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b03tv4sd)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
THU 18:30 Jason Cook's School of Hard Knocks (b03vgr6q)
Best Man Speeches and Weddings
Comedian Jason Cook uses his life experiences to help us better navigate the choppy waters of life.
In this opening episode, Jason examines the pitfalls of making best man speeches, with advice on how to make a wedding memorable.
With Zoe Harrison and Neil Grainger.
Jason was the creator of BBC2's comedy Hebburn.
Producer: Sam Michell
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2014.
THU 19:00 The Archers (b03vgr6s)
Ruth and David comment on how well the refugee sheep from Worcestershire are settling in. Ruth pushes David to make a decision about Jill moving in with them. She appreciates David's reluctance agreeing there were a few awkward moments the last time she lived with them but he eventually agrees.
Ruth helps Kenton with some laundry and in return he agrees to help tidy Jill's garden.
Jill and Ruth make Kenton see sense and he decides buying Jolene some flowers would be a move to the road of forgiveness.
Later Ruth explains to Jill how they would really appreciate it if she would come and stay with them for a while to help out through their busy period. Jill is delighted and goes to pack.
At the auction David and Tony agree how awful it must be to have your farm turn into a lake.
Tony misses out on the Herefords but that's fine, as some suckler cows have caught his eye. David isn't sure but Tony's convinced he's ready for a new challenge. Tony has sourced a herd of organic Aberdeen Angus crosses in Hopwood Under Hill that he can view later. An excited Tony makes his way to see them accompanied by a cautious David asking if Tony is absolutely sure about this.
THU 19:15 Front Row (b03vgr6v)
Nymphomaniac; Joanne M Harris; Robert Cohan
Nymphomaniac is the latest film from acclaimed Danish director Lars Von Trier. It stars Charlotte Gainsbourg as Joe, a woman who describes herself as "nymphomaniac", telling her story to a man who has found her in the street after a beating. In the flashbacks to her past, the young Joe is played by Stacey Martin alongside a cast that includes Shia LaBeouf and Christian Slater. Antonia Quirke reviews.
Joanne M. Harris, bestselling author of Chocolat, has written her first epic fantasy novel for adults, The Gospel of Loki. Based on ancient mythology, the book follows the rise and fall of the Norse gods from the perspective of the trickster Loki, popularised in Marvel's Thor comics which have recently been adapted into blockbuster films.
Robert Cohan is widely described as the founding father of Britain's contemporary dance movement. His career, spanning over 6 decades, has included dancing with Ginger Rogers and the legendary Martha Graham. Cohan, who was born in America, discusses how he came to revolutionise British dance whilst rehearsing a reimagining of his only female solo Canciones Del Alma.
Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson star in True Detective, a new HBO detective series. The show follows two contrasting detectives as they investigate a ritual killing in Louisiana.
Producer: Claire Bartleet.
THU 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b03vgq1x)
[Repeat of broadcast at
10:45 today]
THU 20:00 The Report (b03vgr6x)
Who Killed Meredith Kercher?
Amanda Knox has had her conviction for the murder of British student Meredith Kercher reinstated by an Italian court. She was convicted, along with her former boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito, in 2009. Doubts about forensic evidence meant the couple were freed after a successful appeal in 2011. But in January 2014 an appeal court reverted to the original guilty verdicts.
Reporter Ruth Alexander travels to Italy to investigate the strength of the case.
Producer: Helen Grady
Translation by Santo Cullura and Helen Grady
The readers were:
Matthew Watson (reading the words of Francesca Maresca)
Clive Hayward (reading the words of Valter Biscotti)
David Cann (reading the words of Giancarlo Costagliola)
Wilf Scolding (reading the words of Antioco Fois).
THU 20:30 The Bottom Line (b03vgr6z)
Life After CEO
Business leaders spend their lives climbing the corporate ladder, so what happens when it is time to step off? Evan Davis and guests discuss life after CEO.
Guests:
Lord Browne of Madingley, former Chief Executive of BP
Kate Wilson, former MD of Scholastic UK, Managing Director of Nosy Crow
Robert Polet, former CEO of Gucci Group
Producer: Kent DePinto.
THU 21:00 BBC Inside Science (b03vgq3b)
[Repeat of broadcast at
16:30 today]
THU 21:30 In Our Time (b03vgq1q)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:00 today]
THU 21:58 Weather (b03tv4sg)
The latest weather forecast.
THU 22:00 The World Tonight (b03vgr71)
Ukraine: the bloodiest day since protests began.
Is there a bubble in the housing market?
Nigeria sacks central bank head over corruption allegations.
With David Eades.
THU 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b03vgr73)
Dubliners
A Mother
Naturalistic in style, 'Dubliners' depicts an array of characters, graduating progressively from childhood, through adolescence, to maturity, culminating in the final story, 'The Dead'. The stories each centre on the idea of a moment of epiphany, but are grounded in the minutiae of daily life. Stories of love, loss, con men, friendship, alcoholism, marriage, politics and family, combine to create a unified world, a celebration of a city, in the unparalleled prose of its most famous son.
Abridger ..... Doreen Estall
Reader ..... Stephen Rea
Producer ..... Stephen Wright
Music by ..... Neil Martin.
THU 23:00 William Peter Blatty - The Exorcist (b03vgxyz)
Episode 1
by W P Blatty, dramatised by Robert Forrest. In this modern classic, a priest is called in to help a 12-year-old girl who appears to be possessed by an overwhelming demonic force.
Produced and directed by Gaynor Macfarlane.
FRIDAY 21 FEBRUARY 2014
FRI 00:00 Midnight News (b03tv4td)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.
FRI 00:30 Book of the Week (b03vgq1s)
[Repeat of broadcast at
09:45 on Thursday]
FRI 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b03tv4tg)
The latest shipping forecast.
FRI 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b03tv4tj)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
FRI 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b03tv4tl)
The latest shipping forecast.
FRI 05:30 News Briefing (b03tv4tn)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.
FRI 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b03vs2m8)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Sister Gemma Simmonds of the Congregation of Jesus.
FRI 05:45 Farming Today (b03vgy21)
African Swine Fever, Puffins and Dartmoor Ponies
Thirteen years on from the outbreak of Foot and Mouth, the National Pig Association is calling for renewed vigilance as African Swine Fever moves closer to the UK. The disease has now been confirmed in Poland and was carried across the border from Belarus by a wild boar.
The centuries old annual sale of Dartmoor ponies now held in Tavistock will not take place this October. The town's cattle market says it isn't financially viable. Last year the market only sold 14 foals with some just fetching £12 each.
And there's more casualties of the stormy weather. A record number of dead puffins are being washed up on European beaches. The British Trust for Ornithology says birds from colonies in Wales and Scotland have been found on beaches in France and Spain.
Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced by Lucy Bickerton.
FRI 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b03thvkt)
Slavonian Grebe
Tweet of the Day is a series of fascinating stories about our British birds inspired by their calls and songs.
John Aitchison tells the story of the Slavonian grebe. In winter, Slavonian Grebes, with their vermilion eyes, bright and shiny as redcurrants, fly south from Scandinavia and Iceland to spend the winter around our coasts. Their winter plumage is black, grey and white but in spring they moult into their breeding plumage with a rich chestnut throat and belly and golden ear-tufts. A small population breed on a few Scottish Lochs where you might hear their trilling calls.
FRI 06:00 Today (b03vh0c0)
Morning news and current affairs. Including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.
FRI 09:00 Desert Island Discs (b03vd02p)
[Repeat of broadcast at
11:15 on Sunday]
FRI 09:45 Book of the Week (b03vh0c2)
Barbara Taylor - The Last Asylum
Episode 5
The Last Asylum begins with Barbara Taylor's visit to the innocuously named Princess Park Manor in Friern Barnet, North London - a place of luxury flats and careful landscaping. But this is the former site of one of England's most infamous lunatic asylums, the Middlesex County Pauper Lunatic Aslyum at Colney Hatch. At its peak, this asylum housed nearly 3,000 patients - including, in the late 1980s, Barbara Taylor herself.
Writing about The Last Asylum, Booker prize winner and memoirist, Hilary Mantel said, ''We believe our response to mental illness is more enlightened, kinder and effective than that of the Victorians who built the asylums. Can we be sure? Barbara Taylor challenges complacency, exposes shallow thinking, and points out the flaws and dangers of treatment on the cheap. It is a wise, considered and timely book'.
Darian Leader has described it as 'Superb, Riveting, insightful and relentlessly honest'.
Episode 5:
Gradually perspective returns, 'something inside me shifts'. The author recalls the return of hope but she also wonders if today's mental health system would offer the same space for recovery that she was able to find.
Reader: Maggie Steed
Abridged and produced by Jill Waters
A Jill Waters production for BBC Radio 4
FRI 10:00 Woman's Hour (b03vh0c4)
Anxiety in older women; Prince; Jilted brides
New NHS figures reveal that women over 60 are more prone to anxiety. Is Prince a feminist icon? Jilted brides: the real Miss Havershams. How did you distract yourself during labour? New research into dense breast tissue could lead to better breast cancer prevention techniques.
FRI 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b03vh0c6)
Ed Harris - The Interplanetary Notes of Ambassador B
Episode 5
Ambassador B should be inspecting minor planets of far-away suns for the peaceful Interplanetary Commonwealth. Instead, her recorded reports reveal that she is veering off-course, pursuing a vendetta and bringing anything but peace.
Mind-bending, interstellar fun and adventure from Sony Gold-winning writer Ed Harris.
5/5 Ambassador B decides to turn in her badge on the next planet she finds. But when she gets there, there's no one to surrender to.
Produced and Directed by Jonquil Panting.
FRI 11:00 Gareth Gwynn's Little Book of Welsh Independence (b03vh0c8)
Could Wales ever be an independent country? Comedian, writer and Now Show regular Gareth Gwynn takes us on a journey - via a cheapo coach up the M4, and his own strange head - into the question of Welsh independence.
The United Kingdom, 2014. In the year Scotland decides whether it should stay or it should go, the concept of the Welsh leaving the UK and going it alone seems both distant - and to some people, not least in Wales itself - almost laughable. England and Wales, Wales and England, the odd couple, conjoined and bickering together forever - much to the disgruntlement of many in both nations.
But what if Welsh independence wasn't a ridiculous idea? How would an independent Wales go about its business if - like the likes of say, Estonia, Montenegro or Slovenia - the Welsh were to make the leap into independence?
If he's perfectly honest, Gareth's never really thought about it. He's certainly no freedom-fighting, rabble-rousing modern-day Owain Glyndwr (plus, he's a quarter Maltese, and to be perfectly honest, the weather's better there).
But with every comic and his dog making gags about Scotland 'staying together for the sake of the Welsh' - and Radio 4 having plopped a small-but-significant sum of money onto his filthy desk - he's been doing a bit of, well, *research*.
Gareth's been out and about speaking to economists, historians, sociologists and the Proud Welsh Public (TM) to find out what we'd need to do - good, bad and ugly - to make Wales into a nation state - and whether it's a good idea...
As he makes a depressingly regular trip on a cheapo coach from London to Cardiff, Gareth recounts to us what he's discovered: is it a question of could or should? Do you have to speak Welsh to be Welsh? And if you do disentangle Wales from the UK, where does that leave England?
Presented by Gareth Gwynn; produced by Steven Rajam for BBC Wales.
FRI 11:30 Making the Best of It (b03vh0cb)
Eking It
After losing his job in urban planning, Matt's been eking out the last of his money.
Luckily for him, his ex-partner has a stable job and is still fond of him. Possibly.
Series of comedies developed with the Comedians Theatre Company.
Matt ...... Alan Francis
Lisa ...... Jo Caulfield
Doug ...... Ewan Bailey
Henson ...... Ewan Bailey
Dad ...... Ewan Bailey
Policewoman ...... Carolyn Pickles
Mum ...... Carolyn Pickles
Graham ...... Richard Turner
Hayley ...... Carys Eleri
Clive ...... David Seddon
Gregory ...... David Seddon
Written by Alan Francis and Richard Turner.
Produced and directed by Jonquil Panting.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2014.
FRI 12:00 You and Yours (b03vh0cd)
E-cigarette advertising; Mortgage holidays; Rockers turned brewers; Rail compensation
Peter White looks at the issues around TV advertising for e-cigarettes, 'erroneous transfers' of energy supplier and your rights to compensation if your train is delayed. He also hears about a new scheme aimed at improving the experiences of dementia patients in hospital and talks to Status Quo's Francis Rossi about brewing the brand's beer.
FRI 12:57 Weather (b03tv4tq)
The latest weather forecast.
FRI 13:00 World at One (b03tv4ts)
National and international news. Listeners can share their views via email: wato@bbc.co.uk or on twitter: #wato.
FRI 13:45 Europe's Troublemakers (b03vh0cg)
Ukraine: Tetiana Chornovol
Lucy Ash profiles five people who are making waves across Europe, with individual stories which expose the continent's cultural, political and economic faultlines.
Tetiana Chornovol, a Ukrainian opposition journalist, was brutally attacked after her car was forced off the side of the road on Christmas Day. The beating took place just hours after the publication of an article she wrote on the assets of top government officials. Chornovol believes she was targeted for exposing government corruption and for writing about two of the lavish residences she claims belong to President Viktor Yanukovych. She had played a leading role in the ongoing pro-EU protests in Maidan Square, climbing on trucks and urging crowds to occupy the city council building in Kiev. Her critics claim she is more an activist with ties to nationalist parties than an objective observer of the Ukrainian political scene. Lucy Ash talks to her while she recovers from her injuries and finds out what she is planning to do next.
Producer: Mark Savage.
FRI 14:00 The Archers (b03vgr6s)
[Repeat of broadcast at
19:00 on Thursday]
FRI 14:15 Drama (b012fbw8)
Torchwood - The Lost Files
The Devil and Miss Carew
Martin Jarvis and Juliet Mills join the regular cast for this latest Torchwood adventure by Rupert Laight.
When Rhys's elderly Uncle Bryn has a heart attack while listening to the shipping forecast, it seems like another routine death at Ivyday Nursing Home. But when Rhys and Gwen go to collect the old man's effects, Gwen's suspicions are roused by another elderly resident. The conversation is cut short, though, by a fire alarm, one of many consequences of the mysterious power cuts that are sweeping the nation. Gwen has a hunch that something is wrong and her search leads her to Miss Carew, a suspiciously fit and strong octogenarian who, despite having supposedly terminal heart disease, has left Ivyday and gone back to work at the Computer firm she used to run. Miss Carew has been offered a deal by Fitzroy, a wandering alien with an aversion to electricity who is looking for a home. It's a deal that Miss Carew can't refuse. But the consequences for planet Earth are unthinkable.
Rupert Laight is one of the writers of The Sarah Jane Adventures
Recorded at The Invisible Studios, by Mark Holden and mixed at BBC Wales by Nigel Lewis.
A BBC/Cymru Wales production, directed by Kate McAll.
FRI 15:00 Gardeners' Question Time (b03vh0cj)
Wyke Regis, Weymouth
Peter Gibbs chairs GQT from Wyke Regis, Weymouth. Chris Beardshaw, Bunny Guinness and Anne Swithinbank answer questions from the audience of local gardeners.
Also in this episode, Chris Beardshaw explores Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens to find out what the incredible Jurassic Coast can teach us about plant history, and James Wong visits Bob Flowerdew's garden for the last in a series of winter topical tips.
Produced by Darby Dorras.
Assistant Producer: Hannah Newton.
A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4.
This week's questions:
Q. Does the panel have any knowledge of using low powered LED light panels to extend the day length for newly germinated seedlings?
A. Only in the past few years have they become usable because they now provide the correct spectrum of light to encourage healthy plant growth. Compared to the old growing lamps, they are much more cost effective and burn a lot cooler. They do provide the potential to grow things all the year round; however, it might be more efficient to wait a few weeks and sow them in the traditional manner under a cloche or propagator. It is the early plants, such as cucumbers and tomatoes, which need the extra warmth. The layers of glass surrounding them reduce their light levels, so LED panels can be really beneficial.
Q. I had a strange scaly pest covering my Blackcurrants last year. Should I be worried if I see it again?
A. It is likely to be a type of scale. They will be sucking the sap from the stems and leaving their eggs behind. You should try pruning them out and be very vigilant. Eggs will be over-wintering, so check the new growth with a magnifying glass and apply a soft soap solution too deter them. The scale only affects the older stems, so prune back hard and only leave young stems.
Q. I am trying to create a 'fedge' using Willow saplings. Can I leave them in pots to reduce their growth?
A. A 'fedge' is a hybrid between a fence and a hedge. You will need big pots and will have to maintain them. Clip at least five times a year to retain any form. You will find that they will self-graft where they are able to touch other plants.
Q. I have two Honeysuckles in my garden: one evergreen and one deciduous. They have become very woody and are no longer attractive. Would it be ok to cut them right back or should I start again?
A. It is fine to cut them to the ground but you will lose the flowers. You could cut a third each year to save some of the flowers. You may find that you only have one or two very long, old stems and little young growth to cut further down. If this is the case, try bringing some upper young growth down to the ground and encourage them to root by pegging them. Think about adding other plants, such as the hybrid flowering Clematis Jackmanii Superba. Some of the thornless roses, such as the primrose-like Rosa Banksiae 'Lutea' would work with Honeysuckle. The general rule is to prune after flowering and you won't miss a season.
Q. How can I get nice compact heads on my Cauliflower and Calabrese Broccoli?
A. Cauliflower is not easy to grow. They need generous spacing and really firm ground. Plant them in a deep drill and it will fill in as they are growing. The ground should not have been recently dug over. Make sure you cover them over so that the caterpillars don't get to them.
Q. The local roundabouts have recently been replaced by traffic islands. What can we do to inject planting back into our streets?
A. Try adding street trees to compensate. You could also try flowering hardy annuals such as Cosmos, Nigella or Calendula. They would only require a skim of soil and would look amazing for the summer period. They are also very cheap and easy to grow. Sow the seeds and you will be able to walk away for nine months before strimming them down and starting again.
Q. What could I plant in a redundant wellington boot to give me a colourful display later in the year?
A. You need to put some holes in the bottom, add some pebbles to make it sturdy and fill it with good, gritty potting compost. As the boot is a pink colour, you could use a trailing, dark-coloured Petunia.
It would be worth planting a range of bulbs and annuals for the autumn. The Guernsey Lily Nerine Sarniensis is a lovely option. It has explosions of fluted curved petals and an almost jeweled frosted finish.
FRI 15:45 Border Crossings (b03vh0cl)
Wheer d'ye Belang?
Katrina Porteous, the poet, explores the wild places and ancient histories of the Northumbrian hills in her poem and personal essay about the Borderlands.
Border Crossings is a pair of specially commissioned pieces from either side of the Border. Each explores the unique qualities of the debatable lands and the centuries of interlinked history between England and Scotland, the amity and the animosity. The first of our commissions is by the poet Katrina Porteous who was born in Scotland and now lives in Northumbria. In her personal essay, Wheer d' ye Belang? she vividly captures the formidable landscape of the Northumbrian hills and their ancient history and culture.
Poet Katrina Porteous was born in Aberdeen and has lived on the Northumberland coast since 1987. Much of her poetry explores the Northumbrian landscape and its communities, especially the fishing community. Her latest collection, Two Countries, is published by Bloodaxe.
Produced by Elizabeth Allard and Di Speirs.
FRI 16:00 Last Word (b03vh0cn)
Sir Tom Finney CBE, Sid Caesar, Ian McNaught-Davis, Els Borst, Louise Brough
Matthew Bannister on
The footballer Sir Tom Finney, who played loyally for Preston and England. His friend Jimmy Armfield pays tribute.
The comedian Sid Caesar who dominated American entertainment TV in the 1950s
The climber and broadcaster Ian McNaught-Davis, who took part in the live TV coverage of the ascent of the Old Man of Hoy - and went on to explain computers to BBC viewers. Sir Chris Bonington shares his memories.
Els Borst, the Netherlands' first medically qualified Minister of Health, who brought in a new law on euthanasia.
And the tennis player Louise Brough - who won many Grand Slams, including, in 1950, the Wimbledon singles, women's doubles and mixed doubles all in the same year.
Producer: Simon Tillotson.
FRI 16:30 Feedback (b03vh0cq)
The Today programme says its "fair, balanced and impartial" in its science coverage. The statement came in response to comments after interviewing former Chancellor of the Exchequer Lord Lawson, a climate change sceptic, alongside Sir Brain Hoskins, Professor of Meteorology and Director of the Grantham Institute of Climate Change at Imperial College. Today was the cause of further frustration on Monday when many listeners felt a story about genetically modified potatoes had no opposing side represented. We speak to some of those listeners about Today's coverage of controversies in science.
British success at the Sochi Winter Olympics has created added interest in the games - as well as an 'enthusiastic' response from TV commentator Aimee Fuller to snowboarder Jenny Jones' bronze medal win last week. But what about radio coverage from Sochi? We'll be asking the Head of BBC radio sport, Richard Burgess, why 5Live Sports Extra has been quiet throughout the games when listeners have an appetite for more from Sochi.
The BBC's Director of Television, Danny Cohen, has promised no more all-male comedy panel shows. We find out from the Radio 4 Commissioning Editor for Comedy whether Radio 4 will also go so far as to ban all-male comedy shows.
And Feedback listener and folk music enthusiast Diana Butler takes us behind the scenes at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards to find out whether the network is pushing this once niche music into the mainstream.
Producers: Karen Pirie and Katherine Godfrey
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4.
FRI 17:00 PM (b03vh0cs)
Full coverage and analysis of the day's news.
FRI 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b03tv4tv)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
FRI 18:30 The News Quiz (b03vh0cv)
Series 83
Episode 2
A satirical review of the week's news, chaired by Sandi Toksvig, with regular panellist Jeremy Hardy and guest panellists including Bob Mills.
Produced by Lyndsay Fenner.
FRI 19:00 The Archers (b03vh0cx)
Rob mysteriously asks Helen if she can stay at home this morning. Helen is pleasantly surprised when a lorry arrives with a new bed for them. They are happy in domestic bliss making up their new bed.
Susan rescues come glossy magazines that Emma was about to recycle to read later.
Susan is asking Pat all about the wedding preparations. She thinks a marquee at the farm will be lovely. Susan is keen to establish what Pat will be wearing and is surprised that Pat hasn't given it much thought. As they head for a tea-break some estate agent details fall from the magazine Susan has with her. Susan finds this upsetting. Emma must have been looking at house particulars. Susan wishes she had won more money to make all Emma's dreams come true.
Tom and Pat are surprised when a lorry of cows arrives at the farm that Tony claims are his.
Pat calls Tony a dark horse but comments they are fine looking beasts and looks forward to hearing the plan for then. Tom is angry. How could his dad do all this research and make such an investment without telling them? Tony explains to Tom that this is not a game and that the suckler herd will give a good return as they are a well-regarded beef brand worldwide. Tom explains he had plans for the land for the weaners he has just ordered. Tony reminds Tom that he and Pat built the farm up and they are not going to be railroaded or put out to pasture by him. Tom and Peggy have written him off as a farmer but he will not go quietly.
Tony also explains that the outlay has been quite high so they will not be in a position to contribute as much to the wedding. Tom, still angry, cancels the marquee. They are not having the wedding at the farm any more.
FRI 19:15 Front Row (b03vh0cz)
Emily Mortimer and Dolly Wells; Stalingrad; David Grossman
With Tom Sutcliffe
Actresses Emily Mortimer and Dolly Wells have created a sitcom, Doll & Em, about a Hollywood star who hires her best friend as her personal assistant. They talk to Mark Lawson about playing exaggerated versions of themselves and how their own close friendship inspired the series.
The 1942 battle of Stalingrad was one of the bloodiest in the history of warfare. Stalingrad 3D is the first Russian film made completely with 3D IMAX technology and is Russia's highest grossing film to date. Film historian Ian Christie reviews.
Award winning writer David Grossman talks about Falling Out of Time. Combining drama, prose and poetry, the book tells the story of bereaved parents setting out to reach their lost children. David Grossman, whose own son died in 2006, discusses the art of writing about loss and grief.
Producer: Timothy Prosser.
FRI 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b03vh0c6)
[Repeat of broadcast at
10:45 today]
FRI 20:00 Any Questions? (b03vh0d1)
Alistair Carmichael MP, Laurie Penny, Frank Field, Nadhim Zahawi MP
Jonathan Dimbleby presents political debate and discussion from Blundells School in Tiverton, Devon, with Secretary of State for Scotland Alistair Carmichael, Conservative backbench MP Nadhim Zahawi MP, New Statesman columnist Laurie Penny and Labour backbench MP Frank Field.
FRI 20:50 A Point of View (b03vh0d3)
United We Fall
Roger Scruton argues for a voice for the English in the debate over Scottish independence. "As an Englishman I naturally ask why my interests in the matter have never been taken into account."
Producer: Sheila Cook.
FRI 21:00 Pete Seeger in Word and Song (b00k2nkx)
The folk-singer and activist Pete Seeger, who died earlier this year at the age of 94, was often known as "America's Tuning Fork".
His appearance at Barack Obama's first inauguration concert brought him to public attention once more.
Drawing on the BBC's extensive archive and on two recent new interviews with him, BBC World Service Arts Correspondent Vincent Dowd celebrates Seeger's life and examines his belief in the power of song.
Lucid and lively as ever, Pete spoke to Vincent as much about environmental and urban issues as about his lifelong commitment to disarmament and civil rights. Even at his grand old age, there was nothing predictable in his words- with refreshingly positive views about city life as the model of the future.
Above all, Seeger spoke about performing the Woody Guthrie song, This Land Is Your Land, with Bruce Springsteen outside the Lincoln Memorial for Barack Obama's inauguration. He also treated Vincent to an impromptu, unplugged version of This Land is Your Land.
Pete Seeger in Word and Song explores the continuing role of folk music in American political life while also celebrating the artist who brought the world songs such as Where Have All the Flowers Gone, If I Had a Hammer, Turn, Turn, Turn and new versions of spirituals such as We Shall Overcome.
Producer - Beaty Rubens.
FRI 21:58 Weather (b03tv4tx)
The latest weather forecast.
FRI 22:00 The World Tonight (b03vh228)
Ukraine's President Yanukovych and opposition sign deal on early election after months of political crisis and scores of deaths. We hear from opposition MP Andriy Shevchenko and visiting German MEP Rebecca Harms. Plus Andrew Hosken reports from Donetsk, part of Yanukovych's heartland.
The militant Basque separatist group, ETA, begins decommissioning its weapons. We speak to Rev Harold Good, who witnessed the IRA putting its weapons beyond use.
And Robert Mugabe reaches 90. Prof Stephen Chan helps us assess Zimbabwe's leader.
Presented by David Eades.
FRI 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b03vh22b)
Dubliners
Grace (Part One)
Naturalistic in style, 'Dubliners' depicts an array of characters, graduating progressively from childhood, through adolescence, to maturity, culminating in the final story, 'The Dead'. The stories each centre on the idea of a moment of epiphany, but are grounded in the minutiae of daily life. Stories of love, loss, con men, friendship, alcoholism, marriage, politics and family, combine to create a unified world, a celebration of a city, in the unparalleled prose of its most famous son.
Abridger ..... Doreen Estall
Reader ..... Stephen Rea
Producer ..... Stephen Wright
Music by ..... Neil Martin.
FRI 23:00 William Peter Blatty - The Exorcist (b03vh22d)
Episode 2
by William P Blatty, dramatised by Robert Forrest.
In this modern classic, a priest is called in to help a 12-year-old girl who appears to be possessed by an overwhelming demonic force. Karras is increasingly convinced that the girl needs an exorcist.
Produced and directed by Gaynor Macfarlane.
LIST OF THIS WEEK'S PROGRAMMES
(Note: the times link back to the details; the pids link to the BBC page, including iPlayer)
15 Minute Drama
10:45 MON (b03vd7cs)
15 Minute Drama
19:45 MON (b03vd7cs)
15 Minute Drama
10:45 TUE (b03vgd9l)
15 Minute Drama
19:45 TUE (b03vgd9l)
15 Minute Drama
10:45 WED (b03vgf43)
15 Minute Drama
19:45 WED (b03vgf43)
15 Minute Drama
10:45 THU (b03vgq1x)
15 Minute Drama
19:45 THU (b03vgq1x)
15 Minute Drama
10:45 FRI (b03vh0c6)
15 Minute Drama
19:45 FRI (b03vh0c6)
2525
23:00 TUE (b03nj185)
A Good Read
16:30 TUE (b03vf07v)
A Point of View
08:48 SUN (b03ttmf8)
A Point of View
20:50 FRI (b03vh0d3)
All You Need Is Lab - How Science And Technology Inspired Innovation In Music
10:30 SAT (b03v9np1)
Analysis
21:30 SUN (b03trqh1)
Analysis
20:30 MON (b03vdkrb)
Any Answers?
14:00 SAT (b03v9nqg)
Any Questions?
13:10 SAT (b03ttmf6)
Any Questions?
20:00 FRI (b03vh0d1)
Archive on 4
20:00 SAT (b03v9p0x)
Arthur Smith Sings Leonard Cohen, Again
23:00 MON (b03vdl1v)
BBC Inside Science
16:30 THU (b03vgq3b)
BBC Inside Science
21:00 THU (b03vgq3b)
Bells on Sunday
05:43 SUN (b03vcywt)
Bells on Sunday
00:45 MON (b03vcywt)
Beyond Belief
16:30 MON (b03vdknf)
Book at Bedtime
22:45 MON (b03vdky3)
Book at Bedtime
22:45 TUE (b03vf1ff)
Book at Bedtime
22:45 WED (b03vgnk1)
Book at Bedtime
22:45 THU (b03vgr73)
Book at Bedtime
22:45 FRI (b03vh22b)
Book of the Week
00:30 SAT (b03ttg7x)
Book of the Week
09:45 MON (b03vd5j7)
Book of the Week
00:30 TUE (b03vd5j7)
Book of the Week
09:45 TUE (b03vdx7r)
Book of the Week
00:30 WED (b03vdx7r)
Book of the Week
09:45 WED (b03vgd90)
Book of the Week
00:30 THU (b03vgd90)
Book of the Week
09:45 THU (b03vgq1s)
Book of the Week
00:30 FRI (b03vgq1s)
Book of the Week
09:45 FRI (b03vh0c2)
Border Crossings
15:45 FRI (b03vh0cl)
Brain of Britain
23:00 SAT (b03trpzn)
Brain of Britain
15:00 MON (b03vdfyc)
Broadcasting House
09:00 SUN (b03vcyx6)
Cappuccino Careers
11:00 MON (b03vd7cv)
Costing the Earth
15:30 TUE (b03vf07q)
Costing the Earth
21:00 WED (b03vf07q)
Desert Island Discs
11:15 SUN (b03vd02p)
Desert Island Discs
09:00 FRI (b03vd02p)
Dilemma
18:30 TUE (b03vf07z)
Drama
14:15 MON (b03vdfy9)
Drama
14:15 WED (b03vgf4f)
Drama
14:15 THU (b03trpzl)
Drama
14:15 FRI (b012fbw8)
Europe's Troublemakers
13:45 MON (b03vd7d1)
Europe's Troublemakers
13:45 TUE (b03vf07j)
Europe's Troublemakers
13:45 WED (b03vgf4c)
Europe's Troublemakers
13:45 THU (b03vgq23)
Europe's Troublemakers
13:45 FRI (b03vh0cg)
Farming Today
06:30 SAT (b03v9nn8)
Farming Today
05:45 MON (b03vd5j1)
Farming Today
05:45 TUE (b03vh2k5)
Farming Today
05:45 WED (b03vgd8t)
Farming Today
05:45 THU (b03vgq1l)
Farming Today
05:45 FRI (b03vgy21)
Feedback
20:00 SUN (b03ttmdw)
Feedback
16:30 FRI (b03vh0cq)
File on 4
17:00 SUN (b03ts4fw)
File on 4
20:00 TUE (b03vf0f7)
Four Thought
05:45 SUN (b03tt512)
Four Thought
20:45 WED (b03vgnjv)
From Fact to Fiction
19:00 SAT (b03v9p0s)
From Fact to Fiction
17:40 SUN (b03v9p0s)
From Our Own Correspondent
11:30 SAT (b03v9np5)
From Our Own Correspondent
11:00 THU (b03vgq1z)
Front Row
19:15 MON (b03vdknp)
Front Row
19:15 TUE (b03vf083)
Front Row
19:15 WED (b03vgnjq)
Front Row
19:15 THU (b03vgr6v)
Front Row
19:15 FRI (b03vh0cz)
Gardeners' Question Time
14:00 SUN (b03ttmdr)
Gardeners' Question Time
15:00 FRI (b03vh0cj)
Gareth Gwynn's Little Book of Welsh Independence
11:00 FRI (b03vh0c8)
HR
11:30 WED (b03vgf47)
History Retweeted
23:00 WED (b03vgnk3)
In Our Time
09:00 THU (b03vgq1q)
In Our Time
21:30 THU (b03vgq1q)
In Touch
20:40 TUE (b03vf0f9)
In and Out of the Kitchen
11:30 MON (b03vd7cx)
Inside Health
21:00 TUE (b03vf0fc)
Inside Health
15:30 WED (b03vf0fc)
Jason Cook's School of Hard Knocks
18:30 THU (b03vgr6q)
Jennifer Egan - Emerald City and Other Stories
00:30 SUN (b01gnjwm)
Just a Minute
12:00 SUN (b03trq8h)
Just a Minute
18:30 MON (b03vdknk)
Kerry's List
19:15 SUN (b01s7yvx)
Last Word
20:30 SUN (b03ttmdt)
Last Word
16:00 FRI (b03vh0cn)
Living World
06:35 SUN (b03vzhnj)
Loose Ends
18:15 SAT (b03v9p0j)
Making the Best of It
11:30 FRI (b03vh0cb)
McLevy
14:15 TUE (b03vf07l)
Midnight News
00:00 SAT (b03tt96g)
Midnight News
00:00 SUN (b03tv4kr)
Midnight News
00:00 MON (b03tv4mm)
Midnight News
00:00 TUE (b03tv4p1)
Midnight News
00:00 WED (b03tv4qb)
Midnight News
00:00 THU (b03tv4ry)
Midnight News
00:00 FRI (b03tv4td)
Midweek
09:00 WED (b03vgd8y)
Midweek
21:30 WED (b03vgd8y)
Money Box Live
15:00 WED (b03vgf4h)
Money Box
12:00 SAT (b03v9np9)
Money Box
21:00 SUN (b03v9np9)
Moral Maze
22:15 SAT (b03tt510)
Moral Maze
20:00 WED (b03vgnjs)
Nature
21:00 MON (b03trs78)
Nature
11:00 TUE (b03vdx7w)
News Briefing
05:30 SAT (b03tt96q)
News Briefing
05:30 SUN (b03tv4l0)
News Briefing
05:30 MON (b03tv4mw)
News Briefing
05:30 TUE (b03tv4p9)
News Briefing
05:30 WED (b03tv4ql)
News Briefing
05:30 THU (b03tv4s6)
News Briefing
05:30 FRI (b03tv4tn)
News Headlines
06:00 SUN (b03tv4l2)
News and Papers
06:00 SAT (b03tt96s)
News and Papers
07:00 SUN (b03tv4l6)
News and Papers
08:00 SUN (b03tv4lb)
News and Weather
22:00 SAT (b03tt979)
News
13:00 SAT (b03tt971)
Nick Clegg: The Liberal Who Came to Power
20:00 MON (b03vdkr8)
Nurse
23:15 WED (b03vgnk5)
One to One
09:30 TUE (b03vdx7p)
Open Book
16:00 SUN (b03vd165)
Open Book
15:30 THU (b03vd165)
PM
17:00 SAT (b03v9p0g)
PM
17:00 MON (b03vdknh)
PM
17:00 TUE (b03vf07x)
PM
17:00 WED (b03vgnjj)
PM
17:00 THU (b03vgq3d)
PM
17:00 FRI (b03vh0cs)
Pete Seeger in Word and Song
21:00 FRI (b00k2nkx)
Pick of the Week
18:15 SUN (b03vd169)
Poetry Please
23:30 SAT (b03tr7jb)
Poetry Please
16:30 SUN (b03vd167)
Prayer for the Day
05:43 SAT (b03ttmnd)
Prayer for the Day
05:43 MON (b03vs2mr)
Prayer for the Day
05:43 TUE (b03vrsl9)
Prayer for the Day
05:43 WED (b03vrthc)
Prayer for the Day
05:43 THU (b03vry93)
Prayer for the Day
05:43 FRI (b03vs2m8)
Radio 4 Appeal
07:55 SUN (b03vcyx2)
Radio 4 Appeal
21:26 SUN (b03vcyx2)
Radio 4 Appeal
15:27 THU (b03vcyx2)
Ramblings
06:07 SAT (b03tt7l1)
Ramblings
15:00 THU (b03vgq25)
Saturday Drama
14:30 SAT (b00y4cvg)
Saturday Live
09:00 SAT (b03v9nng)
Saturday Review
19:15 SAT (b03v9p0v)
Selection of BBC World Service Programmes
01:00 SAT (b03tt96l)
Selection of BBC World Service Programmes
01:00 SUN (b03tv4kw)
Selection of BBC World Service Programmes
01:00 MON (b03tv4mr)
Selection of BBC World Service Programmes
01:00 TUE (b03tv4p5)
Selection of BBC World Service Programmes
01:00 WED (b03tv4qg)
Selection of BBC World Service Programmes
01:00 THU (b03tv4s2)
Selection of BBC World Service Programmes
01:00 FRI (b03tv4tj)
Shipping Forecast
00:48 SAT (b03tt96j)
Shipping Forecast
05:20 SAT (b03tt96n)
Shipping Forecast
17:54 SAT (b03tt973)
Shipping Forecast
00:48 SUN (b03tv4kt)
Shipping Forecast
05:20 SUN (b03tv4ky)
Shipping Forecast
17:54 SUN (b03tv4lg)
Shipping Forecast
00:48 MON (b03tv4mp)
Shipping Forecast
05:20 MON (b03tv4mt)
Shipping Forecast
00:48 TUE (b03tv4p3)
Shipping Forecast
05:20 TUE (b03tv4p7)
Shipping Forecast
00:48 WED (b03tv4qd)
Shipping Forecast
05:20 WED (b03tv4qj)
Shipping Forecast
00:48 THU (b03tv4s0)
Shipping Forecast
05:20 THU (b03tv4s4)
Shipping Forecast
00:48 FRI (b03tv4tg)
Shipping Forecast
05:20 FRI (b03tv4tl)
Shorts
19:45 SUN (b03vd1kp)
Six O'Clock News
18:00 SAT (b03tt977)
Six O'Clock News
18:00 SUN (b03tv4ll)
Six O'Clock News
18:00 MON (b03tv4n4)
Six O'Clock News
18:00 TUE (b03tv4ph)
Six O'Clock News
18:00 WED (b03tv4qq)
Six O'Clock News
18:00 THU (b03tv4sd)
Six O'Clock News
18:00 FRI (b03tv4tv)
Something Understood
06:05 SUN (b03vcyww)
Something Understood
23:30 SUN (b03vcyww)
Start the Week
09:00 MON (b03vd5j5)
Start the Week
21:30 MON (b03vd5j5)
Steve the Sweep
11:00 WED (b03vgf45)
Sunday Worship
08:10 SUN (b03vcyx4)
Sunday
07:10 SUN (b03vcyx0)
Thanks a Lot, Milton Jones!
18:30 WED (b03vgnjl)
The Archers Omnibus
10:00 SUN (b03vd02m)
The Archers
19:00 SUN (b03vd16c)
The Archers
14:00 MON (b03vd16c)
The Archers
19:00 MON (b03vdknm)
The Archers
14:00 TUE (b03vdknm)
The Archers
19:00 TUE (b03vf081)
The Archers
14:00 WED (b03vf081)
The Archers
19:00 WED (b03vgnjn)
The Archers
14:00 THU (b03vgnjn)
The Archers
19:00 THU (b03vgr6s)
The Archers
14:00 FRI (b03vgr6s)
The Archers
19:00 FRI (b03vh0cx)
The Barchester Chronicles
21:00 SAT (b03tr7j6)
The Barchester Chronicles
15:00 SUN (b03vd163)
The Bottom Line
17:30 SAT (b03tt7lk)
The Bottom Line
20:30 THU (b03vgr6z)
The Design Dimension
16:00 TUE (b03vf07s)
The Film Programme
23:00 SUN (b03wxt1x)
The Film Programme
16:00 THU (b03vgq27)
The Folklorist
11:30 THU (b0381fzj)
The Food Programme
12:32 SUN (b03vd15x)
The Food Programme
15:30 MON (b03vd15x)
The Kitchen Cabinet
15:00 TUE (b03vf07n)
The Life Scientific
09:00 TUE (b03vdx7m)
The Life Scientific
21:30 TUE (b03vdx7m)
The Lost Tapes of Orson Welles
23:30 TUE (b03ls15g)
The Lost Tapes of Orson Welles
23:30 WED (b03m7z0j)
The Media Show
16:30 WED (b03vgf4p)
The News Quiz
12:30 SAT (b03ttmf0)
The News Quiz
18:30 FRI (b03vh0cv)
The Report
20:00 THU (b03vgr6x)
The Twelve Bar Blues
11:30 TUE (b0372ct1)
The Week in Westminster
11:00 SAT (b03v9np3)
The World This Weekend
13:00 SUN (b03vd15z)
The World Tonight
22:00 MON (b03vdkrw)
The World Tonight
22:00 TUE (b03vf1f9)
The World Tonight
22:00 WED (b03vgnjz)
The World Tonight
22:00 THU (b03vgr71)
The World Tonight
22:00 FRI (b03vh228)
Thinking Allowed
00:15 MON (b03tt50m)
Thinking Allowed
16:00 WED (b03vgf4m)
Today
07:00 SAT (b03v9nnb)
Today
06:00 MON (b03vd5j3)
Today
06:00 TUE (b03vdx7k)
Today
06:00 WED (b03vgd8w)
Today
06:00 THU (b03vgq1n)
Today
06:00 FRI (b03vh0c0)
Tweet of the Day
08:58 SUN (b03ths4v)
Tweet of the Day
05:58 MON (b03thswl)
Tweet of the Day
05:58 TUE (b03tht7c)
Tweet of the Day
05:58 WED (b03tht5z)
Tweet of the Day
05:58 THU (b03thtfs)
Tweet of the Day
05:58 FRI (b03thvkt)
Weather
06:04 SAT (b03tt96v)
Weather
06:57 SAT (b03tt96x)
Weather
12:57 SAT (b03tt96z)
Weather
17:57 SAT (b03tt975)
Weather
06:57 SUN (b03tv4l4)
Weather
07:57 SUN (b03tv4l8)
Weather
12:57 SUN (b03tv4ld)
Weather
17:57 SUN (b03tv4lj)
Weather
05:56 MON (b03tv4my)
Weather
12:57 MON (b03tv4n0)
Weather
21:58 MON (b03tv4n6)
Weather
12:57 TUE (b03tv4pc)
Weather
21:58 WED (b03tv4qs)
Weather
12:57 THU (b03tv4s8)
Weather
21:58 THU (b03tv4sg)
Weather
12:57 FRI (b03tv4tq)
Weather
21:58 FRI (b03tv4tx)
Westminster Hour
22:00 SUN (b03vd1kr)
What the Papers Say
22:45 SUN (b03vd1kt)
When Cassius Met The Beatles
13:30 SUN (b00r8b1k)
William Peter Blatty - The Exorcist
23:00 THU (b03vgxyz)
William Peter Blatty - The Exorcist
23:00 FRI (b03vh22d)
With Great Pleasure
16:00 MON (b03vdfyf)
Witness
14:45 SUN (b03vd161)
Woman's Hour
16:00 SAT (b03v9p0d)
Woman's Hour
10:00 MON (b03vd7cq)
Woman's Hour
10:00 TUE (b03vdx7t)
Woman's Hour
10:00 WED (b03vgd92)
Woman's Hour
10:00 THU (b03vgq1v)
Woman's Hour
10:00 FRI (b03vh0c4)
World at One
13:00 MON (b03tv4n2)
World at One
13:00 TUE (b03tv4pf)
World at One
13:00 WED (b03tv4qn)
World at One
13:00 THU (b03tv4sb)
World at One
13:00 FRI (b03tv4ts)
You and Yours
12:00 MON (b03vd7cz)
You and Yours
12:00 TUE (b03vdx8g)
You and Yours
12:00 WED (b03vgf49)
You and Yours
12:00 THU (b03vgq21)
You and Yours
12:00 FRI (b03vh0cd)
iPM
05:45 SAT (b03ttmnn)