The BBC has announced that it has a sustainable plan for the future of the BBC Singers, in association with The VOCES8 Foundation.
The threat to reduce the staff of the three English orchestras by 20% has not been lifted, but it is being reconsidered.
See the BBC press release here.

Radio-Lists Home Now on R4 Contact

RADIO-LISTS: BBC RADIO 4
Unofficial Weekly Listings for BBC Radio 4 — supported by bbc.co.uk/programmes/



SATURDAY 17 DECEMBER 2016

SAT 00:00 Midnight News (b084thvt)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.

SAT 00:30 Book of the Week (b08503cy)
This Long Pursuit, Episode 5

A meditation on the art of biography by a master of the genre. Ranging widely over art, science and poetry, Richard Holmes confesses to a lifetime's obsession with his Romantic subjects - a pursuit and pilgrimage that takes him across three centuries, through much of Europe and into the lively company of many earlier biographers.

In the final episode, he charts how William Blake, who died "a forgotten man" in 1827, was resurrected. The versions of this poet and mystic philosopher that have been created since his death are testament to the enduring art and power of biography.

Richard Holmes was born in 1945 and is an award-wining British author best-known for his biographical studies of major figures of British and French Romanticism. He is a Fellow of The Royal Society of Literature and a Fellow of the British Academy. He was professor of Biographical Studies at the University of East Anglia (2001-2007) and has honorary doctorates from UEA, University of East London, University of Kingston and the Tavistock Institute. In 1992 he was awarded the OBE and, in 2014, the Biographers' Club Lifetime Services to Biography Prize. He lives in London and Norfolk with his wife, British novelist Rose Tremain.

Written by Richard Holmes
Read by Patrick Malahide
Abridged and produced by Jill Waters
A Waters Company production for BBC Radio 4.

SAT 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b084thvw)
The latest shipping forecast.

SAT 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b084thvy)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service. BBC Radio 4 resumes at 5.20am.

SAT 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b084thw0)
The latest shipping forecast.

SAT 05:30 News Briefing (b084thw2)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.

SAT 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b0850blk)
A reading and a reflection to start the day with the Rev'd Dr Karen Smith, Tutor in Church History and Christian Spirituality at South Wales Baptist College.

SAT 05:45 iPM (b0850blp)
All the world's a stage

One listener's investigation into a lonely life, and reflections from the original Poldark. Peter Gibbs reads Your News.

SAT 06:00 News and Papers (b084thw4)
The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.

SAT 06:04 Weather (b084thw6)
The latest weather forecast.

SAT 06:07 Open Country (b084zsy7)
Wordsworth's County Remade

The Lake District was known as 'Wordsworth's County'. Today the poets words are being used to rediscover his homelands with a new app designed to get visitors to explore the lesser known areas celebrated in Wordsworth's work. Helen Mark visits the Lakes one year after Storm Desmond devastated the area to discover how the community and landscape has recovered and how the land of one of our most celebrated poets is being reimagined for visitors of the future.

SAT 06:30 Farming Today (b084thw8)
Farming Today This Week: Hunting

Twelve years after the Hunting Act was passed, the activity remains as controversial and divisive as ever. Boxing Day meets in England this year are expected to attract as many followers and spectators as they did before the ban on hunting mammals with dogs. Hunt Masters insist they drag or trail hunt and therefore operate within the law, but opponents such as the League Against Cruel Sports are equally adamant that foxes are being chased illegally.
Presented by Charlotte Smith.
Produced by Vernon Harwood.

SAT 06:57 Weather (b084thwb)
The latest weather forecast.

SAT 07:00 Today (b0853h4b)
Morning news and current affairs. Including Yesterday in Parliament, Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.

SAT 09:00 Saturday Live (b084thwd)
Raymond Blanc

Raymond Blanc grew up in a self sufficient household in France, and after a few false starts in other professions, became a self taught Michelin star winning chef, and restaurant entrepreneur.

Kassia St Clair loves colour. After studying historical dress she wanted to understand the colours referred to. Her interest led to a column in Elle Decoration and finally a book. She joins us to talk about The Secret Lives of Colour.

Saturday Live listener Mark Sutton Vane was obsessed with torches as a child. He later developed this into a career in lighting, and his dream came true when he lit the Olympic Park in Stratford in 2012.

Kat Francois is a performance poet and playwright who latest work was inspired by finding out on a trip to her parents homeland of Grenada that she had a relative who fought in WWI. She'll join us to talk of Poetry Slams and inspiring stories.

JP Devlin meets comedy stalwart Ricky Gervais.

We'll have your thank yous and the Inheritance Tracks of Maureen Lipman. She chooses When you wish upon a star performed by Barbara Cook and Frank Mills from the musical Hair.

Raymond Blanc's book is Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons, The story of a modern classic
The Secret Lives of Colour is by Kassia St Clair
The next Word4Word run by Kat Francois, will be on 18th December, at 7pm at Theatre Royal Stratford and her play Raising Lazarus will tour in 2017.
Ricky Gervais' DVD is David Brent: Life On The Road
Maureen Lipman is in Sleeping Beauty at Richmond theatre.

SAT 10:30 The Prince Monolulu Quandary (b0855vz8)
Stephen K Amos investigates the incredible true story of Ras Prince Monolulu, the first black man ever to appear on British TV screens.

Standing tall in his billowing robes, lions paws swing from his neck and ostrich feathers adorn his hair. He shouts his catch phrase to an eager crowd, "I gotta 'Orse, I gotta 'Orse to beat the favourite." His smile is wide, his eyes full of spark and secrets, and the crowd is captivated.

Monolulu made his fame on the race courses of England in the 1920s but soon became a national treasure enchanting the nation until his death in the 1960s. But today his story has fallen through the cracks of history. There's no blue plaque and no museum. So who was this man? Where did he come from? What drove him to fame and how did he charm the nation for over forty years?

Comedian Stephen K Amos sets out to discover the incredible truth behind this mystical character, meeting people who remember the Prince and the vigilant detectives striving to get to the bottom of his story. The tale takes us from Ethiopia to Honolulu, from Germany to Soho.

Lifting the gossamer webs of Monolulu's carefully woven stories, Stephen reveals the truth of this man and finds than it's even stranger than fiction. It's a story of invented exotic identities and the struggle for survival.

Producer: Claire Crofton
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4.

SAT 11:00 Week in Westminster (b0853h4h)
Steve Richards and guests reflect on a momentous political year. He talks to Helen Lewis of the New Statesman, Isabel Hardman of the Spectator and Paul Waugh of the Huffington Post. What's the state of play as the year ends and Brexit draws closer?

SAT 11:30 From Our Own Correspondent (b084thwg)
Rwandan Echoes

Kate Adie introduces correspondents' stories. Memories of Rwanda return to Alastair Leithead in northern Uganda as he watches refugees fleeing from South Sudan's civil war; Gideon Long tries not to lose all his money as he changes cash in Venezuela; President Obama described the new UN Secretary General as having "an extraordinary reputation." Alison Roberts, in Portugal, says he's a man who likes to talk and talk and talk. Uzbekistan has just elected only it's second president in a quarter of a century. Peter Robertson sees some signs that this autocratic country might be changing. There's a cash crisis in India too. Horatio Clare retreats to one place where you're not supposed to need money, though you do have to pay for that privilege.

SAT 12:00 News Summary (b084thwj)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.

SAT 12:04 Money Box (b0853h4k)
Scottish income tax goes north

Is it the beginning of the end for the £50 note? Plans for converting Bank of England notes to plastic (with or without animal fat) end with the £20 in 2020. But the future may not be so bright for the £50. There are currently no plans for the more durable version. And as other countries phase out their high value notes - or in India's case not so high ones - to discourage crime, money laundering and tax evasion there are suggestions that the £50 may follow them to the museum.
Claer Barrett, FT Money Editor discusses the rise and fall of high-value banknotes.

Are the banks doing enough to combat financial crime? The Payment Systems Regulator confirmed this week that it has decided on a programme of liaising, sharing information, developing statistics, and developing best practice standards. And there will be ongoing monitoring and a review later next year. Consumer group Which? remains unimpressed.

Higher rate taxpayers in Scotland will pay £314 a year more than those in the rest of the UK under plans revealed by the Scottish Government this week. Finance Minister Derek Mackay used his new powers over income tax to make just one change. From April the 40% higher rate of tax will begin at £43,430 rather than the £45,000 which will apply in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. So who will pay it? And how will they know?

Stephen Hay, Head of Tax Scotland for RSM explains.

Ten credit unions have got together to offer the same sort of instant loans that so far have been the preserve of pay day lenders and other high cost credit providers. They will be offering a low APR (around 13.9% they say) and an instant decision. However, the money may still not be transferred instantly as they are currently promising a next business day service. Could this be the long-awaited breakthrough for credit unions? Or another damp squib? Mohsin Mehdi from My Community Bank tells us why he thinks this new initiative will work.

Producer: Lee Kumutat
Reporter: Jordan Dunbar
Presenter: Paul Lewis
Editor: Andrew Smith.

SAT 12:30 The Now Show (b08507yp)
Series 49, Episode 7

Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis are joined by James Acaster, Suzi Ruffell, Luke Kempner and Pippa Evans as they present the week via topical stand-up and sketches.

This week the team look back at a momentous 2016, and celebrate Christmas with Lindsay Lohan...

Written by the cast with additional material from Gabby Hutchinson-Crouch, Gareth Gwynn, Jenny Laville, Robin Morgan and Catherine Bohart.

Producer: Adnan Ahmed

BBC Studios Production.

SAT 12:57 Weather (b084thwl)
The latest weather forecast.

SAT 13:00 News (b084thwn)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.

SAT 13:10 Any Questions? (b085086h)
Jonathan Bartley, Dawn Butler MP, David Gauke MP, Esther McVey

Jonathan Dimbleby presents political debate from Askew Road Methodist & United Reformed Church in West London with the co-leader of the Green Party for England and Wales Jonathan Bartley,Shadow Minister for Diverse Communities Dawn Butler MP, Chief Secretary to the Treasury David Gauke MP and the former welfare minister Esther McVey.

SAT 14:00 Any Answers? (b084thwq)
Any Answers after the Saturday broadcast of Any Questions? Lines open at 1230
Call 03700 100 444. Email any.answers@bbc.co.uk. Tweet,#BBCAQ. Follow us @bbcanyquestions.

SAT 14:30 Stardust (b07xs23j)
Part 1

Challenged to retrieve a fallen star by the beautiful Victoria Forester, to whom he has lost his heart, Tristran Thorn leaves his home in the sleepy English village of Wall and crosses into the mysterious and magical land of Faerie. But when Tristran locates the fallen star he discovers it is no mere meteorite, but an injured young woman, Yvaine.

Tristran, however, is not the only person to have seen and be in pursuit of the fallen star. Deep in Faerie, Morwanneg the witch queen, is also hunting the star, whose heart she plans to cut out to restore youth to herself and her sisters.

High on Mount Huon, Primus, Tertius and Septimus, the three living heirs to the realm of Stormhold, seek out the star to claim the right to their recently deceased father's kingdom, and each will stop at nothing - not even murder - to ensure they are the only brother left in the running for the throne!

With Yvaine's life in danger, she and Tristran find themselves embarking on an extraordinary adventure, full of danger and intrigue as they flee across Faerie. Encountering Little Hairy Men, witches, and lightning-hunting sky pirates along the way, Tristran is about to uncover the secret to his own identity and a fate beyond his wildest dreams at his journey's end.

This two-part dramatisation of Neil Gaiman's spellbinding novel is narrated by Eleanor Bron and stars Matthew Beard (The Imitation Game, An Education, One Day) as Tristran and Sophie Rundle (Peaky Blinders, Dickensian, Happy Valley, Episodes) as Yvaine.

Dramatised by ..... Dirk Maggs
Sound Design ..... Wilfredo Acosta and Dirk Maggs
Directed by ..... Dirk Maggs and Heather Larmour
Producer ..... Heather Larmour.

SAT 15:30 Tales From the Stave (b084x5kt)
Series 14, Vivaldi's Gloria

Antonio Vivaldi's reputation in the early years of the 20th century rested on a limited amount of printed material, largely for the violin, some of it made popular by arrangements by Bach. That was all to change in the 1920's and 30's with the discovery of the composer's own archive which had been hidden from public view for over two hundred years.
Now housed in the National Library of Turin, this new discovery propelled Vivaldi into the front rank of Baroque composers and in this country one of his most popular and appealing pieces is the choral classic the Gloria. It's thought that it was composed to mark a Venetian victory against the Turks exactly three hundred years ago in 1716.
Frances Fyfield and her team, Nigel Simeone, the local scholar Corrado Rollin and the Soprano Francesca Lanza get the chance to explore the Vivaldi archive and find the Gloria bound in with a slew of other pieces. The Gloria itself with its high energy opening, its beautiful choral writing and the borrowings from other composers in the later movements underlines Vivaldi's ability to compose for the forces at his disposal in Venice's convent, orphanage and music school the Ospedale della Pietà.
It also allows for the celebration of Dr Alberto Gentili, the Turin archivist who fell foul of Mussolini's anti-Semitic laws before his discovery of the Vivaldi archive was first heard in a special concert in 1939 - reviewed enthusiastically by, amongst others, the American poet Ezra Pound.

Producer: Tom Alban.

SAT 16:00 Woman's Hour (b084thws)
The 2016 Powerlist, Masculinity, Glenda Jackson

We continue our Powerlist celebrations hearing why Bridget Jones was one of the seven women who've had the most impact on women's lives in the last 70 years. Germaine Greer gives her reaction to being on the list.

The documentary film maker Karen Guthrie on the film she made capturing her family caring for her mother after a stroke. What can the experience of caring teach us about ourselves.

Grayson Perry discusses the notion of masculinity and talks to a group of 14 year old boys about what they think it means to be a man.

She's won two Oscars and was a junior MP in Tony Blair's government. Now, after 23 years, Glenda Jackson is back on stage playing King Lear. She tells us about the joys and demands of such an iconic role.

And we hear from the writer Sara Stewart who felt pushed into a heterosexual marriage by her mother. She tells us about the difficulties she and her wife faced when she finally came out.

Presented by Jane Garvey
Produced by Rabeka Nurmahomed
Edited by Jane Thurlow.

SAT 17:00 PM (b084thwv)
Saturday PM

Full coverage of the day's news.

SAT 17:30 iPM (b0850blp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 05:45 today]

SAT 17:54 Shipping Forecast (b084thwx)
The latest shipping forecast.

SAT 17:57 Weather (b084thwz)
The latest weather forecast.

SAT 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b084thx1)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.

SAT 18:15 Loose Ends (b084thx3)
Rufus Sewell, Simon Callow, London Hughes, Jools Holland, Honeyfeet, Arthur Smith, Clive Anderson

Clive Anderson and Arthur Smith are joined by Rufus Sewell, Jools Holland, Simon Callow and London Hughes for an eclectic mix of conversation, music and comedy. With music from Jools Holland and Honeyfeet.

Producer: Debbie Kilbride.

SAT 19:00 Profile (b0853h9n)
The White Helmets

Amid the carnage of civil war there is an organisation in Syria committed to saving lives. They are called Syria Civil Defence but they are better known as 'The White Helmets'. They have over 3000 members in rebel-held areas. When an air attack hits, they rush towards the scene to look for survivors trapped under collapsed buildings. To many, they are heroes. Others suspect a conspiracy and question whether video footage of the White Helmets at work is even real. Mark Coles tells the story of the White Helmets in the week when Aleppo was brought back under Syrian government control.

Producers: Alex Burton and Phoebe Keane.

SAT 19:15 Saturday Review (b084thx5)
Hedda Gabler, Son of Joseph, Nadeem Aslam, Roger Hiorns, Maigret, Agatha Christie

Ruth Wilson plays the lead in Ivo van Hove's production of Hedda Gabler at London's National Theatre,
Son of Joseph (a French film with religious overtones) takes on the overwhelming might of the latest Star Wars Rogue One. Blockbuster vs indie might not be an equal fight but thank goodness there's something else out this week! How good is it?
Nadeem Aslam's latest novel The Golden Harvest is set in modern Pakistan, with the resilience of the human spirit fighting corruption and international interference
Roger Hiorns was brought up in Birmingham and his latest exhibition at the city's IKON Gallery looks at his career-long fascinations with human corporeality and its meeting with the mechanical and he proposes a new pathway into how artists can continue to make and behave
And we cionsider a couple of the big crime dramas on TV over Christmas - ITV's Maigret (starring Rowan Atkinson) and Agatha Christie's Witness For The Prosecution on the BBC

Tom Sutcliffe's guests are Alex Preston, Stephanie Merritt and Jamila Gavin. The producer is Oliver Jones.

SAT 20:00 Archive on 4 (b0855vzd)
Instant History

The word "archive" conjures up images of dusty shelves and gradual, patient accumulation of historical material. But what if an archive could be created in a matter of hours - an instant history?

Oral history projects abound across the country but, at the University of Hertfordshire, the exercise has been dramatically condensed to create so-called instant histories on subjects including supporters of Stevenage Football Club and memories of British migrants to the Antipodes.

The instant history concept has been developed at the university by the likes of Professor Owen Davies, Dr Anne Murphy and Visiting Research Fellow Andrew Green, who presents this Archive on 4.

Across a single weekend at the end of October, the members of the university's oral history team tackled a project on retirement in 2016. They spread out far and wide to interview people from many walks of life who have either just retired or are about to cease full-time employment. Interviews took place as far afield as Llandudno, Scunthorpe, Ipswich and Cheltenham with interviewees from nursing, the steel industry, firefighting, City finance, carpentry and international engineering, teaching and supermarket management.

A first-class cricketer talked about what it means to retire in his thirties. The founder of an addiction treatment centre spoke movingly of the scale of the crisis she addressed in her career.

This programme features choice extracts from the newly created archive. Andrew Green explains the processes involved in enabling a stranger to tell their story, and examines the potential conflict between academic history and the subjective narration of personal stories, opinions and feelings in an oral history.

Produced by Andrew Green
A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4.

SAT 21:00 Drama (b084tl7z)
Robert Louis Stevenson: Terror in the South Seas, The Ebb Tide

The second of two dramatisations of Robert Louis Stevenson's gripping novellas set in Samoa and written while he lived there. Starring David Tennant.

Three destitute men steal a schooner. They drink the cargo of champagne and try to steal a treasure trove of pearls from a local slave-owning trader.

At the height of his powers, Stevenson tackled the most pressing theme on the islands - the vicious effects of colonialism including slavery, racism, sexual exploitation and the conflict between traditional and modern values. The subjects are as vivid today as in 1894 and these compelling and violent stories feature some of the most driven, dangerous and obsessive characters in fiction. Joseph Conrad drew on these novellas for Heart of Darkness.

Dramatised for radio by Jane Rogers
Produced and Directed by Clive Brill

A Brill production for BBC Radio 4.

SAT 22:00 News and Weather (b084thx7)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4, followed by weather.

SAT 22:15 We Need to Talk About Death (b084xr5f)
Death Itself

Joan Bakewell and her panel consider the final days and hours that surround death itself. It's a time that we tend to shy away from, which perhaps explains why so much fear and uncertainty surrounds this time.

Joan explores the reality of dying and asks what we should expect in the final days and hours. She demystifies the dying process itself and considers the physical changes that someone may go through as they die. She also discusses the choices open to us and the care and support that should be in place at the end of life.

And you'd be surprised what you can do for your loved one after death has occurred. Relatives can take on any of the tasks traditionally carried out by funeral directors. It's even possible to keep a loved one's body at home for a while so friends and family can visit and, if they die in hospital, transport their body back home yourself.

Producer: Beth Eastwood

Some clips: Courtesy of Healthtalk.

SAT 23:00 Round Britain Quiz (b084wzjl)
Programme 7, 2016

(7/12)
Wales play Scotland in their second clash of the 2016 season, as Tom Sutcliffe provides another sheaf of mind-bendingly cryptic questions. The Scots, Val McDermid and Alan McCredie, will be hoping they can stop Myfanwy Alexander and David Edwards of Wales who have won all of their matches in the series so far.

How good is their knowledge of international football, African politics, the geography of the Arctic regions, and unusual disasters from history? All of this will be tested by today's questions which will be available on the website as usual before the programme begins. Tom is on hand to provide clues and cautions whenever the teams are in danger of straying down too many blind alleys - but the clues will cost them points.

Producer: Paul Bajoria.

SAT 23:30 The Echo Chamber (b084tlkb)
Series 8, Daisy Fried and Brenda Shaughnessy

A mix-tape of new poems from two American poets: Daisy Fried and Brenda Shaughnessy. Paul Farley presses play and record. Producer: Tim Dee.


SUNDAY 18 DECEMBER 2016

SUN 00:00 Midnight News (b08557y8)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.

SUN 00:30 Out There (b04jj115)
Outing

Stories from a new anthology celebrating the work of Scottish Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender writers.

Episode 1/ 3

Outing

A man sits on a station platform reflecting back on his life and on the love he's experienced exclusively behind closed doors.

Credits

Writer ..... Allan Radcliffe
Reader ..... Liam Brennan
Producer ..... Kirsty Williams

A BBC Scotland Production for BBC Radio 4.

SUN 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b08557yk)
The latest shipping forecast.

SUN 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b08557ym)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service. BBC Radio 4 resumes at 5.20am.

SUN 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b08557ys)
The latest shipping forecast.

SUN 05:30 News Briefing (b08557z8)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.

SUN 05:43 Bells on Sunday (b0855znh)
Worcester Cathedral

This week's Bells on Sunday comes from Worcester Cathedral. The Tower contains 15 ringing bells cast in 1928 by Taylor's of Loughborough, the tenor weighs forty eight hundredweight and is tuned to B. The clock room has a unique teaching centre complete with 8 dumb bells, and state of the art computer facilities which enables recruits to the world of bell ringing to practice silently as an individual or as part of a band. Today we hear the winning touch of Stedman Cinques being rung by the St Paul's Cathedral Band in the National 12 Bell Competition on June 24th 2006.

SUN 05:45 Profile (b0853h9n)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Saturday]

SUN 06:00 News Headlines (b08557zg)
The latest national and international news.

SUN 06:05 Something Understood (b08557zj)
Is Art Good For Us?

The poet Michael Symmons Roberts explores the idea that the arts are good for us - body and soul - and considers whether they can be both tonic and threat to society.

He says, "Art is as various as we are, and its moral weight and status is unstable, unpredictable. In times when people are losing trust in politics and religion, art can start to look like a replacement. But if we put too much of our moral weight and hope into art, we imperil it, and it can imperil us too."

Some of the great Victorian philanthropists thought art would benefit society and used their wealth to make art freely available to the masses. Whether or not the original Turner paintings offered in a Manchester museum,improved the lives of the working class is not evidenced, but the continued idea that the arts are of moral benefit persists.

Roberts offers the example of Ken Loach's groundbreaking film Cathy Come Home as a sign that society can be improved through the arts - along with the way Bob Dylan and others used their music to effect social change in the US during the 1960s.

But he also strikes a note of caution. "The arts can act as the conscience of the state, a challenging force for good. But they can equally be used as an instrument of propaganda. Whenever I hear the arts per se being touted as a positive moral and political force in society, I start to feel uneasy." Using evidence of Nazi propaganda from the Second World War, he also points out that a love of art is not necessarily an indication of a healthy morality.

Roberts concludes that art is not per se a good thing for us, but that he "couldn't imagine, and wouldn't want to, a life without music or poetry or films or paintings".

Presenter: Michael Symmons Roberts
Producer: Michael Wakelin
A TBI Media production for BBC Radio 4.

SUN 06:35 The Living World (b0855znk)
A Very Berry Christmas

Chris Packham relives programmes from The Living World archives.

With Christmas fast approaching, many of us will be decorating our homes with the botanical trinity of; the holly, the ivy and mistletoe, of course.

And it is mistletoe that Lionel Kelleway focuses on in this programme first broadcast in 2001. Joining Lionel at Laddin Farm in Herefordshire is Jonathan Briggs from the Mistletoe Survey of Great Britain. The farm with its old orchards sits comfortably in the heart of Britain's mistletoe growing region, an ideal place to begin a journey into this strange hemiparasite of the plant world.

A favourite of ancient religions, mistletoe has long been regarded as something of a beauty and a beast, although as Lionel discovers at this time of the year there is even a mistletoe market in Worcestershire.

Producer Andrew Dawes.

SUN 06:57 Weather (b08557zl)
The latest weather forecast.

SUN 07:00 News and Papers (b08557zs)
The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.

SUN 07:10 Sunday (b08557zy)
Silence, Black Santa, Syrian Refugees

Composer Bob Chilcott remembers his starring role in the Nine Lessons and Carols from King's College Cambridge in the 1960s. For three years running, he was the chorister chosen to open the service with a solo rendition of the first verse of Once in Royal David's City.

His Grace Bishop Angaelos, General Bishop of the Coptic Orthodox Church in the UK, comments on the bombing and murder of 25 people in St Peter's Coptic Orthodox Church in Cairo.

Why is the Church of England concerned about a new Bible study group with links to a South Korean church?

Trevor Barnes asks whether traditional Christmas is in decline because of political correctness and the impact of immigration on British churches.

Author Mark Forsyth explores the religious roots of today's Christmas traditions.

Father Roger Dawson, Director of the St Beuno's Jesuit Spirituality Centre in North Wales, talks about the new Martin Scorsese film Silence.

William Crawley meets Belfast's 'Black Santa', the Very Rev John Mann, as he starts his annual marathon fund raising stint on the steps of St Anne's Cathedral. It's the 40th anniversary of this Belfast Christmas tradition.

Kevin Bouquet has been to meet a family of Syrian refugees who are being looked after by the Catholic Charity Caritas and their new community in Flixton.

Producers:
Helen Lee
Catherine Earlam

Series Producer: Amanda Hancox.

SUN 07:54 Radio 4 Appeal (b0855znm)
The Amber Trust

Cecily, the mother of a child who has benefited from The Amber Trust, makes the Radio 4 Appeal on their behalf.
Registered Charity Number 1050503
To Give:
- Freephone 0800 404 8144
- Freepost BBC Radio 4 Appeal. (That's the whole address. Please do not write anything else on the front of the envelope). Mark the back of the envelope 'The Amber Trust'.
- Cheques should be made payable to 'The Amber Trust'.

SUN 07:57 Weather (b0855803)
The latest weather forecast.

SUN 08:00 News and Papers (b0855805)
The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.

SUN 08:10 Sunday Worship (b0855807)
A Service for Advent from the heart of London in the midst of the busy final weekend before Christmas. As we wait for the new future which God is promising, we reflect on the radical song of Mary, the Magnificat, and how through it we can learn to hear the good news, even if that good news is something different to what we think it is. Led by the Revd Lucy Winkett with music provided by the Soul Sanctuary Gospel Choir. The producer is Andrew Earis.

SUN 08:48 A Point of View (b085086l)
"Baby It's Cold Outside"

The Christmas song "Baby It's Cold Outside" has become the cause of intense controversy in the US where it's been described as a "hymn to rape" .

"As the father of a teenage daughter" writes Adam Gopnik, "I will stand down to no one in the fight against sexual assault of all kinds".

But, he argues, the worst thing liberal minded people can do is "allow their liberalism to become infected with puritanism".

Producer: Adele Armstrong.

SUN 08:58 Tweet of the Day (b04dw7p8)
Superb Lyrebird

Tweet of the Day is the voice of birds and our relationship with them, from around the world.

Sir David Attenborough presents the superb lyrebird of eastern Australia. Superb lyrebirds are about the size of pheasants. During courtship, as the male struts and poses, he unleashes a remarkable range of sounds. Up to 80% of the lyrebird's display calls are usually of other wild birds. However, if kept in captivity, they can mimic a chainsaw, camera click, gunshot and a whole host of other man made sound. Research recently discovered that the lyrebird co-ordinates his dancing displays to particular sounds. But superb lyrebirds are promiscuous performers and it's quite likely that another male may have played the leading role while he dances and sings away.

SUN 09:00 Broadcasting House (b085580c)
Sunday morning magazine programme with news and conversation about the big stories of the week. Presented by Paddy O'Connell.

SUN 10:00 The Archers Omnibus (b085580j)
Jennifer has an unexpected call and Helen puts on a brave face.

SUN 11:15 Desert Island Discs (b0855znp)
Bruce Springsteen

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is Bruce Springsteen.

His career has brought him 20 Grammys, two Golden Globes, an Academy Award and his albums sell in their millions around the world. He grew up in New Jersey where the Catholic church played a central role in his early life. The family teetered on the brink of poverty, and his first guitar was rented, rather than bought. He spent his apprentice years as a musician and singer with local bands before landing a record deal in 1972. When 'Born to Run' was released in 1975 it turned him into a household name. His first Top Ten single was 'Hungry Heart', ahead of his most successful album 'Born in the USA' which was released in 1984.

In spite of having long transcended the environment he grew up in, Springsteen has remained a chronicler of blue-collar lives. His records are frequently a political commentary on the struggles of ordinary Americans. In the Nineties he settled into family life with his wife Patti Scialfa who sings with his E Street Band.

Producer: Cathy Drysdale.

SUN 12:00 News Summary (b085580m)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.

SUN 12:04 I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue (b084wzjs)
Series 66, Episode 5

The godfather of all panel shows pays a visit to the Theatre Royal in Bath. Regulars Barry Cryer and Tim Brooke-Taylor are joined on the panel by Jeremy Hardy and Miles Jupp, with Jack Dee in the chair. Colin Sell accompanies on the piano. Producer - Jon Naismith. It is a BBC Studios production.

SUN 12:32 Food Programme (b0855zns)
A Passion for Cake

In this series of four programmes broadcast over Christmas, Sheila Dillon explores the link between tradition and food.

First, in the run-up to Christmas, she takes an irreverent look at baking - and the connection between baking and being a "Good Wife and Mother. She begins by visiting a "Clandestine Cake Club", which meets every month in a secret location. This month's location takes the theme of the Mad Hatter's tea-party; the members have risen to the challenge and the cakes are truly extravagant. The founder of the cake club, Lynne Hill, sets out her vision for a world brought together by sharing cake. Sheila visits a cake-decorating competition for teenagers, and talks to girls about the particularly feminine lure of cake. She meets a cultural historian of cake, Professor Nicola Humble, whose book on cake traces our current passion back to Elizabethan days, and who explains the long connection between women and cake. But we also have a perspective from a man devoted to cake, former Bake-Off winner John Whaite. He reflects on the connection between gender and cake, and introduces his alternative take on Christmas Cake.

With cake recipes, both ancient and modern, for the website.

Producer: Elizabeth Burke.

SUN 12:57 Weather (b085580p)
The latest weather forecast.

SUN 13:00 The World This Weekend (b085580r)
Global news and analysis.

SUN 13:30 Tales From the Stave (b084bjbv)
Series 14, Puccini's Madame Butterfly

When Madame Butterfly opened at La Scala, Milan on February 14th 1904 it lasted one night. The audience reaction forced Puccini and his publisher Ricordi to pull the Opera and set about a series of rewrites. But in Milan's Archivio Storico Ricordi is the manuscript of that first performance with all the later markings, crossings out and additions which were to see the work become hugely popular over the years that followed. Un Bel Di and the Humming chorus are now familiar to audiences all over the world and the sweep and passion of Puccini's music ensure it's enduring popularity.

However, La Scala have decided to go back to the composer's earliest version, bringing the autographed manuscript with all its hidden material, to life.
Thanks to the generosity of the Archivio Storico Ricordi Frances Fyfield has been allowed to examine the score along with the conductor Julian Smith, the scholar Nigel Simeone and the star of La Scala's revival Maria José Siri. What they discover is a markedly different shape to the Opera which tells the story of the young Japanese girl's sham wedding to the American naval lieutenant Pinkerton and her subsequent refusal to give up on him.
Maria José gets the chance to see the material she's been rehearsing in the composer's own hand and Julian Smith explains why Puccini made the changes he made, raising many of the dilemmas that come from looking to original source material for the final word on what the composer wanted, or thought he wanted.

What's for sure is that the feverish and sometimes frantic hand are a vivid testament to a composer at the height of his powers and with an astonishing attention to minute musical detail.

Producer: Tom Alban.

SUN 14:00 Gardeners' Question Time (b08504lj)
South Yorkshire

Eric Robson and the horticultural panel are in South Yorkshire. Matthew Wilson, Bunny Guinness and Anne Swithinbank answer this week's gardening queries.

Produced by Dan Cocker
Assistant Producer: Laurence Bassett

A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4.

SUN 14:45 The Listening Project (b0856lsz)
Sunday Omnibus - The Power of Two

Fi Glover introduces conversations between married couples who have found the strength together to face the loss of a child, kidney transplants and getting older. All in the Omnibus edition of the series that proves it's surprising what you hear when you listen.

The Listening Project is a Radio 4 initiative that offers a snapshot of contemporary Britain in which people across the UK volunteer to have a conversation with someone close to them about a subject they've never discussed intimately before. The conversations are being gathered across the UK by teams of producers from local and national radio stations who facilitate each encounter. Every conversation - they're not BBC interviews, and that's an important difference - lasts up to an hour, and is then edited to extract the key moment of connection between the participants. Most of the unedited conversations are being archived by the British Library and used to build up a collection of voices capturing a unique portrait of the UK in the second decade of the millennium. You can learn more about The Listening Project by visiting bbc.co.uk/listeningproject

Producer: Marya Burgess.

SUN 15:00 Stardust (b07xs2g4)
Part 2

Challenged to retrieve a fallen star by the beautiful Victoria Forester, to whom he has lost his heart, Tristran Thorn leaves his home in the sleepy English village of Wall and crosses into the mysterious and magical land of Faerie. But when Tristran locates the fallen star he discovers it is no mere meteorite, but an injured young woman, Yvaine.

Tristran, however, is not the only person to have seen and be in pursuit of the fallen star. Deep in Faerie, Morwanneg the witch queen, is also hunting the star, whose heart she plans to cut out to restore youth to herself and her sisters.

High on Mount Huon, Primus, Tertius and Septimus, the three living heirs to the realm of Stormhold, seek out the star to claim the right to their recently deceased father's kingdom, and each will stop at nothing - not even murder - to ensure they are the only brother left in the running for the throne!

With Yvaine's life in danger, she and Tristran find themselves embarking on an extraordinary adventure, full of danger and intrigue as they flee across Faerie. Encountering Little Hairy Men, witches, and lightning-hunting sky pirates along the way, Tristran is about to uncover the secret to his own identity and a fate beyond his wildest dreams at his journey's end.

This two-part dramatisation of Neil Gaiman's spellbinding novel is narrated by Eleanor Bron and stars Matthew Beard (The Imitation Game, An Education, One Day) as Tristran and Sophie Rundle (Peaky Blinders, Dickensian, Happy Valley, Episodes) as Yvaine.

Dramatised by ..... Dirk Maggs
Sound Design ..... Wilfredo Acosta and Dirk Maggs
Directed by ..... Dirk Maggs and Heather Larmour
Producer ..... Heather Larmour.

SUN 16:00 Open Book (b0856lt1)
A look back at the year and the work of Shirley Jackson

Mariella and her guests look back at the literary year and suggest some last minute Christmas presents.

How does good writing really work? Dr Sarah Dillon dissects a passage by the Nigerian prize winning author Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche, from her novel Americanah, to unpick its brilliance.

And the writer Shirley Jackson, who was born one hundred years ago, has been described as 'a genius of literary suspense and psychological horror'. Mariella Frostrup discusses her life and work with her biographer, Ruth Franklin, and literary fan Andrew Michael Hurley.

SUN 16:30 Poetry Please (b0856lt5)
Midwinter

Roger McGough explores the archives to find the most evocative winter poems read by some of our best actors. Poets Thomas Hardy, Miroslav Holub, Robert Frost and Shakespeare are brought to life by actors including Juliet Stevenson, Dame Harriet Walter and Hugh Laurie. Steeleye Span and Bert Jansch make up the numbers.

SUN 17:00 Paying for the Hostage (b084x8s6)
John McCarthy looks at how the techniques used for dealing with a hostage crisis have changed over time.

John was taken hostage in April 1986. Thirty years of his life have passed since that defining moment. He has spent a long time trying to understand both the political motivation for his kidnap and the terms of his release.

Where do the activities of the Hezbollah fighters who took him fit into the history of hostage taking for political ends? Why did the group think that hostage taking the right political move at that time? What methods did the UN use to negotiate a successful release for him and his fellow captives? Would different negotiation techniques be used today? Why was he not rescued earlier by a military force?

John sets out to understand the development of politically motivated hostage taking, and the impact that responses of world powers have had on the activities of the kidnappers. From the hijack of the airliners landed at Dawson's field in 1970, through the impact of the Munich Olympics, the Grand Mosque Seizure and the activities of John's captors in Lebanon, to the publically violent activities of so-called Islamic State today - how has the motivation and response to hostage taking changed and developed?

Negotiate or not? Military response or peaceful resolution? To pay or not to pay?

The programme includes interviews with those involved in hostage taking, analysis from some of the World's leading experts in negotiation, the experience of victims of kidnap and their families, and the views of key academics.

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

SUN 17:40 Profile (b0853h9n)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Saturday]

SUN 17:54 Shipping Forecast (b0855811)
The latest shipping forecast.

SUN 17:57 Weather (b0855813)
The latest weather forecast.

SUN 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b0855815)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.

SUN 18:15 Pick of the Week (b0855817)
Jim Al-Khalili

On Pick of the Week this week prepare yourselves for a bumpy emotional ride. We go from the sombre realities of man's inhumanity to man to uplifting, life-affirming accounts, even in death, and experience the pure joy of the beauty of sport. Along the way we learn about the first environmentalist, we look at how feminism has been treated in science fiction writing and delight in the comedic genius of David Jason. Oh, and we find out if choirmaster Gareth Malone can work a Christmas miracle.

SUN 19:00 The Archers (b0856njn)
Ruth clashes with Jill, and it is feeling festive in the Tearoom.

SUN 19:15 Count Arthur Strong's Radio Show! (b08579m6)
Series 8, The Scam

As Christmas approaches and Arthur attempts to engineer his Christmas scotch from Secret Santa, he bumps into an old friend from his Army Days. Will Arthur be persuaded to be involved in an investment scheme?

All false starts and nervous fumbling badly covered up by a delicate sheen of bravado and self-assurance, an expert in everything from the world of entertainment to the origin of the species, everyday life with Arthur is an enlightening, sometimes frustrating, never dull experience.

Count Arthur Strong is supported in the Christmas special by his Radio Repertory Company (like the RSC only better) - Alastair Kerr, Dave Mounfield and Mel Giedroyc.

Steve Delaney has been performing as Count Arthur Strong since the late 90s. In the last 15 years the character has evolved from Edinburgh cult to a mainstay of BBC comedy, with seven series on BBC Radio 4, and a TV sitcom that has stepped from BBC2 to BBC1 and will return for a third series in 2017.

A Komedia Entertainment production for BBC Radio 4.

SUN 19:45 The Duke of Wellington Misplaces His Horse (b08579m8)
After having lodged for a night at The Seventh Magpie, the Duke of Wellington unwittingly crosses the gap between the village of Wall and the magical land of Faerie and finds himself facing a possibly deadly encounter which cannot be settled by his usual military means. His only weapon? Mrs Pumphrey's embroidery scissors. What is a Duke to do?

Sophie Rundle (who plays Yvaine in the Radio 4 dramatisation of 'Stardust') takes us back into Neil Gaiman's mysterious land of Faerie in this 'Stardust'-inspired story from acclaimed novelist Susanna Clarke ('Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell'). "The Duke of Wellington Misplaces his Horse" was published in Clarke's story collection 'The Ladies of Grace Adieu' (2006).

SUN 20:00 More or Less (b08504ln)
Have more famous people died this year?

Back in April More or Less tried to work out if more famous people were dying this year compared to previous years. When we looked at the number of BBC obituaries from the first three months of the year, the answer appeared to be yes. There was a jump from only five between January and late March 2012 to a staggering 24 in the same period this year - an almost five-fold increase. But now 2016 is drawing to an end we take a look to see if it really has been such an unusual year.

Homophobic hate crime
The Home Office recently published reported crime figures showing that in England and Wales there was a big post-referendum rise in the number of racially or religiously aggravated offences. And – according to The Observer and others – there was an even higher rise in homophobic hate crime over the summer in the UK. But we’ve been talking to the LGBT anti-violence charity behind the story and they say the stats may not actually show what the headlines suggest.

The value of a royal yacht
The royal yacht was decommissioned in 1997 but, with Brexit on the horizon, there have been calls for Britannia to rule the waves again. The argument goes that the yacht would be the perfect venue to make trade deals – as happened in the Britannia’s time. But there’s been a flotilla of – sometimes contradictory - figures about how much the deals signed on the Britannia actually benefited the UK economy. With the help of a commodore, we investigate the claims.

The Queen’s Christmas Message
Mathematician Hannah Fry has analysed every Christmas broadcast that the Queen has given since her reign began. Taking each year’s message, Hannah and a colleague have compared the number of words she has used to the number of unique words used by rappers and singers in their music. Hannah also explains that she has found a way of generating her own Queen’s Christmas Speech, using a simple algorithm to suggest passages that the Queen might say judged on her previous messages.

Presenter: Tim Harford
Producer: Charlotte McDonald

SUN 20:30 Last Word (b08504ll)
Peter Gibson, AA Gill, Coral Atkins, William Chaloner, Ian McCaskill

Matthew Bannister on

Peter Gibson the master glazier who devoted his life to the care of the stained glass windows in York Minster.

AA Gill, who overcame alcoholism and dyslexia to become one of the UK's best known critics.

Coral Atkins who gave up a career as an actress to run homes for disadvantaged children.

William Chaloner, an authority on fossil plants who used pollen from the past to reconstruct ancient environments.

Ian McCaskill, the BBC weather man much imitated by impressionists.

SUN 21:00 Money Box (b0853h4k)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:04 on Saturday]

SUN 21:26 Radio 4 Appeal (b0855znm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:54 today]

SUN 21:30 In Business (b085014x)
Brexit and the Future of Farming

What will Brexit mean for the future of British farms? The EU has been subsidising agriculture - via the Common Agricultural Policy - for decades, and there is a tariff-free market for produce. Jonty Bloom looks at the challenges that lie ahead.

Producer, Ruth Alexander.

SUN 22:00 Westminster Hour (b0855819)
Weekly political discussion and analysis with MPs, experts and commentators.

SUN 23:00 The Film Programme (b085014n)
Rogue One

Francine Stock talks to Gareth Edwards, the director of the first Star Wars spin-off, Rogue One, who reveals what makes his film so different from the seven other episodes in the franchise. Adam Rutherford tries to explain how Rogue One fits into the ever-expanding Star Wars universe and why some works have been deemed "non-canonical".

Few directors can be genuinely described as unique. Rama Burshtein has that honour, being the first and only female film-maker who is part of the Orthodox Jewish community. Her latest work, Through The Wall, is a rom-com about an Israeli woman who arranges her own wedding, despite the fact that she has no groom, in the belief that God will provide.

SUN 23:30 Something Understood (b08557zj)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:05 today]


MONDAY 19 DECEMBER 2016

MON 00:00 Midnight News (b085584h)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.

MON 00:15 Thinking Allowed (b084xpqb)
Men and Violence - Stag Parties

Men, Masculinities and Violence. Laurie Taylor talks to Anthony Ellis, lecturer in Criminology and Sociology at the University of Salford, about his ethnographic study conducted with men involved in serious crime and violence over the course of two years in the North of England. How do some men come to value physical violence as a resource? Historian Joanna Bourke joins the discussion. Also, stag parties and consumerism. Daniel Briggs, Professor in Criminology at the Universidad Europea de Madrid, unpicks the commercial and emotional motivations of men taking part in stag 'dos'. Is such stereotypical excessive and deviant behaviour ultimately rooted in commercial ideology?

Producer: Natalia Fernandez.

MON 00:45 Bells on Sunday (b0855znh)
[Repeat of broadcast at 05:43 on Sunday]

MON 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b085584k)
The latest shipping forecast.

MON 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b085584m)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.

MON 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b085584p)
The latest shipping forecast.

MON 05:30 News Briefing (b085584r)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.

MON 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b0863y1k)
A reading and a reflection to start the day with the Rev'd Dr Karen Smith, Tutor in Church History and Christian Spirituality at South Wales Baptist College.

MON 05:45 Farming Today (b0855850)
British fishing fleet and Brexit, Badger cull figures, Farm-made Christmas gifts

England is to apply for TB status, and what does the future hold for the UK fishing fleet? And avian flu has arrived in the UK.

Defra says the north and east of England should be classified officially TB free, which will improve trade.

The National Farmers Union welcomed the news, saying 'it showed the impact of the government's comprehensive 25 year strategy'. More controversially ministers are to consult on plans to allow badgers culls to continue indefinitely- they say controlling the disease costs taxpayer £100 million a year and that controlling tb in wild animals forms part of the strategy to control both the disease and the costs. 10 badger cull zones are now operating and new figures show that 10,886 badgers were culled this year, however Dominic Dyer from the Badger Trust says culling badgers is a waste of time and does not control the disease in cattle.

British fishing fleets have been expecting Brexit to be good news for them but a House of Lords committee warns that continued access to the European market is vital for the industry and to get it ministers may have to give more European access to British waters. Last week on Farming Today Bertie Armstrong of the Scottish Fishermen's federation outlined the deal he'd like and Lord Teverson, chair of the lords EU fisheries and agriculture committee explained why the fishing industry is so important to the UK.

Avian Flu has arrived in the UK. The virulent strain H5N8 has been confirmed in Louth in Lincolnshire. We will of course follow the story on Farming Today.

And Nancy Nicholson reports from a Christmas fair on a farm in Perthshire.

Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced by Martin Poyntz-Roberts.

MON 05:56 Weather (b0855852)
The latest weather forecast for farmers.

MON 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b03bksqt)
Crested Tit

Tweet of the Day is a series of fascinating stories about the British birds inspired by their calls and songs.

Wildlife Sound Recordist, Chris Watson, presents the Crested Tit. Although crested tits are quite common in Continental Europe, they are confined in the UK to the central Highlands of Scotland. They're the only small British bird with a crest so identification shouldn't be a problem and their black eye-stripe contrasts well with their grey and white face.

MON 06:00 Today (b0855857)
News and current affairs. Includes Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.

MON 09:00 Start the Week (b08575fk)
Scientific Discoveries: from the mind to the cosmos

On Start the Week Andrew Marr looks back at lost heroes of science, and forward to cutting-edge experiments. Saiful Islam, Professor of Materials Chemistry, recreates Michael Faraday's famous 19th century experiments for the Royal Institution's Christmas lectures before exploring the latest materials being invented to boost clean energy. More Christmas fare as Brian Cox attempts to explain the birth of the entire universe with music, dance and comedy. Andrea Wulf celebrates the Victorian naturalist, geographer and explorer Alexander von Humboldt, whose name although mostly forgotten lives on through his research - from the Humboldt Current to Humboldt penguins. Michael Lewis has turned his attention from the financial crisis and his bestselling Liar's Poker and The Big Short to the birth of the Nobel-prize winning theory of behavioural economics, and the remarkable scientific partnership at its heart.
Producer: Katy Hickman.

MON 09:45 Book of the Week (b08575fm)
Love of Country, Jura

Journalist Madeleine Bunting explores the history and landscapes of the Hebrides and demonstrates how this chain of islands in the north west has shaped both Scotland and Britain. Her first journey takes her to Jura, the remote wilderness where George Orwell wrote 1984.

Read by Doon Mackichan
Producer: Eilidh McCreadie.

MON 10:00 Woman's Hour (b085585b)
Working on Christmas Day, Changes to stalking laws

Stalkers could see the maximum jail sentences they face increase from five to ten years after peers passed a Policing and Crime Bill amendment last week. The move follows on from the government's recent introduction of new stalking prevention orders, offering more protection to victims of stalking than ever before. We hear from Catherine Skinner, CEO of the National Stalking Advocacy Service, Paladin, and Labour's Baroness Janet Royall.

This year, around 500,000 women will be working on Christmas day. Simone Williams, a palliative care nurse who featured in this year's Boots Christmas advert, and the Reverend Kate Bottley, the priest best known for her appearances on Channel 4's Gogglebox discuss.

Monday will bring confirmation from a vote in the House of Commons but in the meantime Philip Davies MP, has been elected unopposed by the Conservative Party to the Women and Equalities Select Committee. He joins Jane to discuss why he wanted to take on this role and what he hopes to contribute.

Writer Danielle Dutton has written a novel, Margaret the First, about another writer, Margaret Cavendish, the Duchess of Newcastle, who lived during the seventeenth century. Margaret published volumes of poetry and philosophy , she was the first woman to be invited to the Royal Society and was renowned for her eccentric style and unconventional behaviour. Of herself she wrote "I am as Ambitious as ever any of my Sex was, is, or can be; though I cannot be Henry the Fifth, or Charles the Second, yet I endeavour to be Margaret the First".

Do you enjoy the festive traditions of wearing sparkles, Christmas novelty jumpers, and green and red ensembles? Or, do you hate it? We discuss how to avoid the tyranny of Christmas dress codes with Kenya Hunt, Fashion Features Director at Elle UK and fashion writer, and En Brogue blogger, Hannah Rochell.

Presenter: Jane Garvey
Producer: Kirsty Starkey.

MON 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b08575fp)
Northanger Abbey, Episode 1

by Jane Austen
Dramatised by Hattie Naylor

Directed by Sally Avens

Catherine Morland is taken to Bath for the season and finds that in her fertile imagination danger lurks round every corner.
Jane Austen's satire pokes fun at the popular sensationalist fiction of the day.

Radio 4 is dramatising both Northanger Abbey and The Mysteries of Udolpho which is the novel that Catherine reads in Northanger Abbey, falling under its spell and imagining her life to have taken on many of the trappings of a Gothic Novel. Udolpho can be heard on New Year's Eve featuring the same cast. Georgia Groome (London to Brighton, Angus Thongs and Perfect Snogging, The Cazalets) plays the lead in both with Luke Thompson (shortlisted for Evening Standard Outstanding Newcomer in Midsummer's Night Dream, The Oresteia, In The Club BBC1) as her love interest.
Miriam Margolyes OBE (Harry Potter, Dickens Women) narrates the series.

Hattie Naylor Dramatist: credits include The Diaries Of Samuel Pepys, Ivan And The Dogs, The Night Watch, Going Dark, and Bluebeard. Ivan and the Dogs was nominated in the Olivier Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Theatre and won the Tinniswood Award 2010.

MON 11:00 The Untold (b08575fr)
Desperately Seeking Santa

At a garden centre in Derbyshire, marketing manager Ben needs six Santas and two dozen elves to staff his Christmas grotto. Plus two Mrs Clauses. He's spent a fortune on what he hopes is the biggest, best garden centre grotto in the region, and needs the customers to have a satisfying 90 minute Santa experience. But good Santas are hard to come by. He's had to offer a Santa finder's fee and even approach Santa agencies. Will he pull it off?

Presenter: Grace Dent
Producer: Jolyon Jenkins.

MON 11:30 Cooking in a Bedsitter (b08575wj)
Potato Salad

Beattie Edmondson and Nikesh Patel star in Sue Teddern's new comedy, set in a 1960s' bedsitter, inspired by Katharine Whitehorn's cookery classic. In this episode, Trisha introduces Deepak to the delights of the British seaside.

Directed by Emma Harding.

MON 12:00 News Summary (b085585d)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.

MON 12:04 Home Front (b083lbz6)
19 December 1916 - Alan Lowther

On this day in 1916, the Committee for the Relief of Belgians announced that 8 million envelopes would be left on British Christmas tables for donations, and in Tynemouth, Alan Lowther has a lot on his plate.

Written by Sebastian Baczkiewicz
Directed by Jessica Dromgoole.

MON 12:15 You and Yours (b085585g)
Consumer affairs programme.

MON 12:57 Weather (b085585k)
The latest weather forecast.

MON 13:00 World at One (b085585m)
Analysis of news and current affairs.

MON 13:45 The History of Secrecy (b08575yn)
The Age of Secrecy

Tiffany Jenkins presents a narrative history of secrecy.

MON 14:00 The Archers (b0856njn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Sunday]

MON 14:15 Drama (b085766f)
Fairytale of New Malden

By Katherine Jakeways

Festive comedy drama starring Geoffrey Palmer.

Cathy's barely seen her dad George since her mum died. She suspects his grandkids may have forgotten who he is. But now she's persuaded him to dress up as Santa for the school's Christmas fair and finally they have an opportunity to talk.

Writer Katherine Jakeways (North by Northamptonshire) is described by The Radio Times as the 'new Victoria Wood' saying "her character comedy is so acutely observed and so sharp that it's in danger of causing permanent injury." Geoffrey Palmer has starred in some of the best comedies of the last thirty years -The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin, Butterflies, Fawlty Towers, Blackadder, As Time Goes By.

Directed by James Robinson
A BBC Cymru Wales Production.

MON 15:00 Round Britain Quiz (b08576m3)
Programme 8, 2016

(8/12)
There's a distinctly Christmassy flavour to the opening question, at least, of the latest contest which features Paul Sinha and Marcus Berkmann of the South of England against Stuart Maconie and Adele Geras of the North of England. Tom Sutcliffe provides the usual gentle hints where necessary, as the teams grapple with the finer points of 19th century explorers of Africa and the names of famous ships in fiction.

As always, the programme includes a selection of ingenious questions sent in by listeners hoping to outwit the panel.

Producer: Paul Bajoria.

MON 15:30 Food Programme (b0855zns)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:32 on Sunday]

MON 16:00 Burn Slush! The Reindeer Grand Prix (b085789n)
Competitive reindeer-racing is a popular sport in the Arctic Circle. In Finland, the season runs from November to April and good jockeys are local celebrities. They need strong biceps and serious guts - strapped onto cross-country skis they're hauled behind reindeer at up to 60km/hour.

Cathy FitzGerald travels to Lake Inari in the snowy north of Finland to find out more about the sport.

Presented and produced by Cathy FitzGerald
A White Stiletto production for BBC Radio 4.

MON 16:30 Beyond Belief (b08578tm)
Virgin Birth

Thirty years ago a Bishop could still hit the headlines by saying that he didn't believe that Jesus was born of a virgin. While this doctrine is still strongly held in some parts of the church it is rarely discussed outside of theological circles. Some want to point to the "truth" behind the idea while others regard it as irrational, quaint or damaging to our understanding of God, women and paternity.
Ernie Rea and guests discuss the genesis of the idea of the Virgin Birth and explores its contemporary validity and value.

Producer: Rosie Dawson.

MON 17:00 PM (b085585p)
Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.

MON 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b085585r)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.

MON 18:30 I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue (b08578tr)
Series 66, Episode 6

Back for a second week at the Theatre Royal in Bath, regulars Barry Cryer and Tim Brooke-Taylor are joined on the panel by Jeremy Hardy and Miles Jupp with Jack Dee in the chair. Piano accompaniment is provided by Colin Sell. Producer - Jon Naismith. It is a BBC Studios production.

MON 19:00 The Archers (b08578tt)
Susan celebrates at Ambridge View, while Neil ends up in a tight spot.

MON 19:15 Front Row (b085585t)
Arts news, interviews and reviews.

MON 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b08575fp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:45 today]

MON 20:00 The Sigh (b08578tw)
Award-winning poet Imtiaz Dharker explores the history, cultural significance, physiology and psychology of sighing. She considers its role in literature, music, religion and life.

The sigh of a lover in ecstasy or despair. The ghostly sigh of an invisible being in a ghost story. The sigh of relief, or in the face of extreme beauty. "The sigh of midnight trains in empty stations". Of wind blowing softly through trees or rushes. Charlie Brown's cartoon sigh. Christ healing a deaf man - "He looked up to heaven, sighed, and said unto him, Ephphatha. That is, be opened."

From John Clare, Keats and Imtiaz's own work, via Shakespeare to Elgar, Dido's Lament and As Time Goes By, the sigh appears across the world in poetry, fiction, art and music.

"You must remember this, a kiss is still a kiss, a sigh is just a sigh..."

In earlier centuries, sighing was seen as a way of maintaining bodily and mental health. According to the science of the humours, it expelled melancholy from the body. Too much sighing, however, could leave the person "lean and pale and with a withered heart".

It was also an accepted method of prayer, in some ways a better way of communicating with the divine. On the other hand, of course, Karl Marx defined religion as "the sigh of the oppressed creature".

Psychologists in Oslo discovered that there is a big difference between a person's emotion when sighing - often through frustration, irritation, boredom or disappointment - and other people's perceptions of that emotion as, often, generated by sadness. What, then, are the positive perceptions of a sigh? Does it help us mentally, emotionally, or just physiologically?

When does our presenter, Imtiaz Dharker, normally sigh? And what about the contributors - social and cultural historian Hannah Newton of the University of Reading, English Literature scholar Naya Tsentourou (who's an expert on sighing and groaning in religious texts), classical pianist Peter Hill, and cognitive neuro-scientist Lynne Barker from Sheffield Hallam University?

Rivers may sigh, but do animals? Do birds? What is the difference between a sigh and a yawn? At what age do we start to sigh - and why?

A Pennine Production for BBC Radio 4.

MON 20:30 Crossing Continents (b084zk77)
India's Silent Terror

Less than three years after India's Hindu nationalist government came to office, the country is gripped by a rising tide of extremism - from a stifling of free speech to brutal attacks on religious minorities, all in the name of radical Hinduism. Jill McGivering meets the people subjected to the extremism and goes out with one of the notorious "cow protection" patrols - armed Hindu vigilante groups who spread terror and assault those rumoured to eat beef or kill the cows which for Hindus are sacred.

Caroline Finnigan producing.

Image: An Indian sadhu (Hindu holy man) holds onto a cow at a protest against their killing. Photo credit: Sajjad Hussain/Getty

MON 21:00 The Listeners (b084x5kr)
Series 4, Episode 3

"My job was to anticipate a slip of the tongue" says Ruth Ives, who for three and half years was a censor for the Transatlantic Telephone Link during the Second World War, and among the conversations which she listened to and monitored for any indiscretions were those between Churchill and Roosevelt. Ruth is one of three listeners we hear from in this programme, the others being a Relate Counsellor and a Voice Practitioner. Three very different professions perhaps, but what unites them is that they all listen to human speech and in different ways find meaning beyond the words. Not only has their work made each of them a better listener but as Ruth says "it made me judge character". Presenter Paul Evans, Producer Sarah Blunt.

MON 21:30 Start the Week (b08575fk)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]

MON 21:58 Weather (b085585w)
The latest weather forecast.

MON 22:00 The World Tonight (b085585y)
In-depth reporting and analysis from a global perspective.

MON 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b08578w1)
Christmas Short Stories, Motordrome

A series of short stories specially written for Radio 4 by Alexander McCall Smith, the bestselling author of the No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency. Each story is set at Christmastime and each features the giving of special gifts.

In this first story, "Motordrome" read by Hannah Gordon, a German widow takes her future into her own hands by making a generous bequest.

Other stories in the series will be read by James Fleet, Trevor White, William Gaminara and Stephanie Cole. They range in subject matter from a hot-tempered Canadian chef discovering humility, to an enterprising former Professor escaping the confines of a compassionless care home, to the dutiful President of an Eastern European country attending to the poor; and not forgetting Cousin Grace who, over a very dry Martini, shares her adventures in love (just the four marriages, so far) with three rapt young relatives.

Reader: Hannah Gordon

Writer: Alexander McCall Smith

Producer: Kirsteen Cameron.

MON 23:00 The Male Room (b08578v4)
The Heroic Edition

Late night discussion featuring the conversations men don't often have on air.
Presented by Olly Mann
Produced by Miles Warde.

MON 23:30 Today in Parliament (b08578v6)
Sean Curran reports from Westminster.


TUESDAY 20 DECEMBER 2016

TUE 00:00 Midnight News (b0855887)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.

TUE 00:30 Book of the Week (b08575fm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Monday]

TUE 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b0855889)
The latest shipping forecast.

TUE 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b085588c)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.

TUE 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b085588f)
The latest shipping forecast.

TUE 05:30 News Briefing (b085588j)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.

TUE 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b0864w9p)
A reading and a reflection to start the day with the Rev'd Dr Karen Smith, Tutor in Church History and Christian Spirituality at South Wales Baptist College.

TUE 05:45 Farming Today (b085588m)
The latest news about food, farming and the countryside. Presented by Anna Hill and produced by Beatrice Fenton.

TUE 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b03dx6nq)
Willow Tit

Tweet of the Day is a series of fascinating stories about our British birds inspired by their calls and songs.

Martin Hughes-Games presents the Willow Tit. Willow Tits are declining rapidly in many areas: they are very similar to marsh tits, so alike in fact that no-one realised that they existed here until 1897 and their identity as a breeding bird in the UK was confirmed three years later.

TUE 06:00 Today (b08586nl)
Morning news and current affairs. Including Yesterday in Parliament, Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.

TUE 09:00 The Life Scientific (b08580hs)
Neil de Grasse Tyson on Pluto

The US science superstar, Neil de Grasse Tyson grew up in the Bronx, and studied astrophysics at Harvard, Columbia and Princeton Universities before becoming director of the Hayden Planetarium in New York City. But he's best known for his TV and movie appearances, his books, podcasts and his tweets or 'scientific droppings' as he likes to call them. He has over 6 million followers on Twitter and is often credited with turning millennials around the world on to science. Neil tells Jim al-Khalili why he's so committed to making science feel exciting, why we are all stardust and why Pluto isn't a planet.
Producer: Anna Buckley.

TUE 09:30 One to One (b085849h)
Peter Bazalgette on Empathy

Television executive Peter Bazalgette examines empathy in doctors with Denis Pereira Gray, and the difference it makes for their patients.
Professor Sir Denis Pereira Gray was a GP for 38 years and is now Patron of the National Association for Patient Participation. He believes that humanity and empathy in medicine contributes to a better outcome for all concerned, and research evidence is piling up in support of that view. Empathy in clinical practice can be fostered through training, narrative medicine and continuity of care. 2/3.
Producer Beth O'Dea.

TUE 09:45 Book of the Week (b085849q)
Love of Country, Iona

Journalist Madeleine Bunting explores the history and landscapes of the Hebrides and demonstrates how this chain of islands in the north west has shaped both Scotland and Britain. Bunting visits Iona and uncovers the apparently remote island's well-connected past at the intersection of several busy sea routes.

Abridged by Anna Magnusson
Read by Doon Mackichan
Producer: Eilidh McCreadie.

TUE 10:00 Woman's Hour (b085588q)
Programme that offers a female perspective on the world.

TUE 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b08584jr)
Northanger Abbey, Episode 2

by Jane Austen
Dramatised by Hattie Naylor

Directed by Sally Avens

Catherine Morland finds the sudden disappearance from Bath of Mr Henry Tilney extremely worrying; can some disaster have befallen him?
Jane Austen's satire on the Gothic Novel.

TUE 11:00 Almost Human Rights (b08584jt)
Is a chimpanzee a thing or a person? Is an orangutan an item of property or a being with legal rights?

Around the globe, lawyers, philosophers and scientists have begun arguing such questions. While some say that only humans can hold rights, others want to grant entitlements to non-humans, too.

Evolutionary anthropologist Volker Sommer follows this current controversy about the question of who should belong to the legal "community of equals".

Most recently in November 2016 a judge in Argentina ruled that a captive chimpanzee called Cecilia was a "being" and so her "non-human rights" should be recognised. The court's closing statement quoted philosopher Immanuel Kant: "We may judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals."

In the United States, Steven Wise of the Non-Human Rights Project has been leading a high-profile court case on behalf of four chimps, applying the writ of habeas corpus, which was used in the 18th century to free James Somerset, an enslaved African.

But Steven and his team are not just focussing on apes. We join them in New York as they plan their next court case, filing on behalf of an elephant.

Volker Sommer takes us on a philosophical and scientific journey from the wilderness to the laboratory to the courtroom, following what might be the dawn of a new era of inclusivity.

Contributors include the moral philosopher Paola Cavalieri who started the Great Ape Project, ethologist Frans de Waal, primatologist William McGrew, Steven Wise of the Non-Human Rights Project, animal philosopher Judith Benz-Schwarzburg and legal expert Richard Cupp.

Producer: Caitlin Smith

Photo credit: Jutta Hof.

TUE 11:30 Country Down Under (b085851g)
Country music is commonly associated with downtrodden, lovelorn, white inhabitants of America's rural south - but it has also long been a significant form of expression for Australia's Aboriginal peoples.

Country music became popular Down Under during the first half of the 20th Century. Thanks to gramophone recordings, wind-up radios and touring bands, it even reached the bush where most Aboriginals lived, often more or less imprisoned on missions and government-controlled reserves. At a time when their own cultural heritage was being systematically erased, country music became a medium through which they could maintain their practice of sharing stories via the oral tradition.

Its resonance was enhanced by melodies which tended towards the melancholic. As one musician put it "country music was all about loss, and we'd lost everything".

Through country music, Aboriginal people were able to give voice to their personal experiences and ongoing struggles for justice. For example, songs describe the stealing of babies and land, incidents of racism, poor living conditions and high levels of incarceration.

And so country music, far from its origins, has become a deeply moving and powerfully activist Aboriginal art form.

Produced by Rachel Hopkin
Mixed by Robin Wise
Consultant: Clinton Walker
A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4.

TUE 12:00 News Summary (b085588s)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.

TUE 12:04 Home Front (b083lbzc)
20 December 1916 - Adeline Lumley

On this day in 1916, the German peace proposals were published in Britain, and in Collingwood, Adeline has negotiations of her own.

Written by Sebastian Baczkiewicz
Directed by Jessica Dromgoole.

TUE 12:15 You and Yours (b085588v)
Call You and Yours

Consumer phone-in.

TUE 12:57 Weather (b085588y)
The latest weather forecast.

TUE 13:00 World at One (b0855890)
Analysis of news and current affairs.

TUE 13:45 The History of Secrecy (b0864788)
God's Secrets

Tiffany Jenkins presents a narrative history of secrecy.

TUE 14:00 The Archers (b08578tt)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Monday]

TUE 14:15 Drama (b08586nn)
Deceit, Desire and the Viking Helmet

A surreal and tragi-comic love story by poet and comedian John Hegley, packed with original songs and poems. John stars with Graham Fellowes, sometimes better known as his alter-ego John Shuttleworth. A musical and lyrical treat, inspired by an Anthony Thwaite poem.

Directed by Anne Edyvean

Lyrics by John Hegley
Original music by John Hegley, Tony Curtis and Nigel Piper
Rameau piano playing by Clare Elstow

Special thanks to the football-playing children and members of the audience at the Lowry Centre who provided background action.
And - in case you were wondering - the Latin for badger is Melis Melis.

TUE 15:00 Artist in the Director's Chair (b07cyfkq)
Fifty years ago the London Filmmakers Co-op was formed to challenge the conventions of mainstream cinema. In a derelict building film enthusiasts gathered to see unusual films and artists could share in the equipment and make their own films, abandoning the stranglehold of plot and script to make more expressive, authored, personal, uncensored visions in film. Here the journalist Miranda Sawyer explores an alternative approach to filmmaking.

In 1983 the small audience and growing number of filmmakers would also find a home on TV. The arrival of Channel 4 television, with its remit to provide innovative broadcasting acted as a huge boon for the independent film and video sector. Monday nights through the 1980s were a feast of strange, non commercial arts programmes and film screenings.

Today there is more awareness of the idea of the artist film, though it's still considered taboo in cinemas. But as Miranda discovers, in an age of studio-dominated, mass-produced cinema, artist-filmmakers offer a refreshing voice - and not just on the margins.

Miranda talks to filmmakers Malcolm Le Grice, John Smith, Lis Rhodes, Tacita Dean and Ben Rivers among others.

A Cast Iron Radio production for BBC Radio 4.

TUE 15:30 Shared Experience (b08587ns)
Series 6, Lost

What's it like to get seriously lost? Fi Glover meets three people who have experienced being lost in a dangerous wilderness, in some cases for days.

Producer: Maggie Ayre.

TUE 16:00 Objet Trouve (b08587nv)
To Whom It May Concern

Proinsias O'Coinn was a teenager on a rare shopping trip to Belfast when he stumbled across a vintage military shop.

Hidden among the old fatigues, army garb and war memorabilia, he found a jacket he just knew he had to have. It smelt old and musty but he didn't care. It seemed different, authentic, well-made, smart - the kind of jacket that someone would have worn with pride. So Proinsias bought it.

On the train on the way home, he put his hand into the pocket and found a letter -

"To whom it may concern. The uniform was given to David Griffiths from his uncle George Nelson who resides at N. Atlantic Ave Cocoa Beach, Florida.

Signed,

George Nelson"

At that moment Proinsias knew he needed to return the jacket to its rightful owner. But more than a decade later, nothing can prepare him for what he's about to discover.

Producer: Conor Garrett.

TUE 16:30 Great Lives (b08587nx)
Series 41, Orlando Murrin on Dinu Lipatti

For many piano music lovers, Dinu Lipatti, the Romanian concert pianist, stands head and shoulders above others. He lived during a time of great turbulence, leaving his native Romania for Switzerland at the outbreak of the second World War. He left behind a wealthy family but they subsequently lost everything under communism.

Next year is the centenary of his birth, and food writer and former chef Orlando Murrin explains his love for Lipatti's music and his fascination with his life. It has led him to spending time trying to save Lipatti's family home from demolition in Bucharest.

He joins Matthew Parris and the London based Romanian concert pianist Alexandra Dariescu to champion the life and work of one of classical music's greatest 20th century talents.

Producer: Maggie Ayre.

TUE 17:00 PM (b0855895)
Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.

TUE 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b085589b)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.

TUE 18:30 Clare in the Community (b08587nz)
Series 11, You Take the High Road

It's the social work event of the year and Clare Barker is giving the keynote speech; it's the biggest moment of her career. Provided she can actually get there for it. Back at home Brian and Nali have been taken in by Ray after a barbecue got out of hand. His housekeeping leaves a bit to be desired as far as Nali's concerned.

Sally Phillips is Clare Barker the social worker who has all the right jargon but never a practical solution.

A control freak, Clare likes nothing better than interfering in other people's lives on both a professional and personal basis. Clare is in her thirties, white, middle class and heterosexual, all of which are occasional causes of discomfort to her.

Each week we join Clare in her continued struggle to control both her professional and private life In today's Big Society there are plenty of challenges out there for an involved, caring social worker. Or even Clare.

Written by Harry Venning and David Ramsden
Producer Alexandra Smith

A BBC Studios production.

TUE 19:00 The Archers (b08587p1)
Jennifer tries to keep the peace, but Kate is unhappy, and Brian is not listening.

TUE 19:15 Front Row (b085589d)
Arts news, interviews and reviews.

TUE 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b08584jr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:45 today]

TUE 20:00 Out in Africa (b085882l)
Charles Adesina explores what it means to be gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender in Africa.

Africa has been called the world's most homophobic continent. In the majority of African countries, homosexual activity is illegal, with long jail sentences or worse awaiting those who break anti-gay laws.

Charles Adesina, a filmmaker and gay man with Nigerian roots, goes on a personal exploration to discover how deep homophobia really runs in families and communities. He hears about Africa's own rich heritage of same-sex relationships (including female healers who explain their lesbianism by saying that they are possessed by a male ancestor) and examines how colonial history and religion have influenced social attitudes to LGBT people in Africa today.

The role of parents in helping their LGBT children find acceptance, he discovers, is key.

In South Africa, Charles meets a group of courageous grandmothers ("Gogos" in Zulu) who have taken it upon themselves to learn what it means to be lesbian or gay, and defend their LGBT grandchildren from family hostility. He visits Mpho Tutu-van Furth, daughter of Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, who famously said that he would never worship a homophobic God. Mpho, herself an Anglican priest, married a woman last year - and argues that a God of love cannot be opposed to the kind of loving relationship she shares with her wife.

Charles also visits Cape Town's People's Mosque to hear the story of openly gay Imam Muhsin Hendricks, who works with LGBT Muslims and their parents to convince them that a compassionate understanding of Islam embraces people regardless of their sexuality. Yet it becomes clear that cultural change will be inevitably slow.

A CTVC Radio production for BBC Radio 4.

TUE 20:40 In Touch (b085589g)
News, views and information for people who are blind or partially sighted.

TUE 21:00 Playing Tennis in a Coma (b08588cp)
How do you know if someone is conscious if they can't show it? We follow the researchers trying to detect consciousness in patients with brain injuries and talk to the families affected.

Patients like 23 year old Chris and 75 year old John used to be thought of as unconscious. Following a car crash and a virus respectively, they both now reside in a care home in Hertfordshire living in a vegetative state. They sleep and wake but show no other signs of awareness of the world around them.

But ten years ago a ground-breaking study gave hope to the families of patients like Chris and John. Researched placed patients with disorders of consciousness in an MRI scanner and tracked the activity in their brains when they were asked to imagine playing tennis. It turned the field on its head when it revealed many of these so-called unconscious patients could react to instructions.

Today, up to forty per-cent of patients in a vegetative state are estimated to have some hidden level of consciousness - but new technology is required to expand diagnostic techniques. It's difficult to transfer vulnerable patients to hospital for brain scans, so scientists are working on bringing the tests to their bedside.

In this programme, we follow one brand new study being undertaken by researchers at Cambridge University, investigating how the technology can reveal the patterns of consciousness produced by the brain, meeting the families affected, and understanding the delicate ethical line researchers need to tread to balance expectation and reality.

Producer: Kate Lamble
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4.

TUE 21:30 The Life Scientific (b08580hs)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]

TUE 22:00 The World Tonight (b085589j)
In-depth reporting and analysis from a global perspective.

TUE 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b085zfwm)
Christmas Short Stories, The Revenge, or Otherwise, of Herbie Bontemps

Part of a series of short stories written for Radio 4 by Alexander McCall Smith, the bestselling author of the No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency. Each story is set at Christmastime and features the giving of gifts.

In this second story, "The Revenge, or Otherwise, of Herbie Bontemps", a talented but hot-tempered Canadian chef learns a lesson in humility when he meets his nemesis in the form of a food critic.

Other stories in the series are read by Hannah Gordon, James Fleet, William Gaminara and Stephanie Cole. They range in subject matter from a generous female owner of a Wall of Death, to an enterprising elderly Professor escaping the confines of a compassionless care home, to the dutiful President of an Eastern European country attending to the poor; and not forgetting Cousin Grace who, over a very dry Martini, shares her adventures in love (just the four marriages, so far) with three rapt young relatives.

Reader: Trevor White

Writer: Alexander McCall Smith

Producer: Kirsteen Cameron.

TUE 23:00 Desolation Jests (b0858k3l)
Episode 2

David Jason stars with John Bird, Rory Bremner and Jan Ravens in David Renwick's dark sketch comedy that takes a post-apocalyptic and distinctly counter-factual look at the history of laughter....
This week JP Doom interviews Viktor Schmelling about his career in comedy from his humble beginnings as a joke writer for the Queen through to his current role as Emeritus Professor of Princeton University's Faculty of Laughter. His message - life is horrible - you better learn to see the funny side.
Among the classic comedy sketches Schmelling singles out for posterity are the atheist episode of Sunday Worship; an old lag and his pet orang-utan; and 1950's cult The Demob Mob's remarkable episode on Hitler, liquorish allsorts and the awesome power of the non-sequitur.

Produced by Gareth Edwards

Production Coordinator: Sophie Richardson
It was a BBC Studios Production.

TUE 23:30 Today in Parliament (b0858k3n)
News from Westminster.


WEDNESDAY 21 DECEMBER 2016

WED 00:00 Midnight News (b08558dp)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.

WED 00:30 Book of the Week (b085849q)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Tuesday]

WED 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b08558ds)
The latest shipping forecast.

WED 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b08558dv)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.

WED 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b08558dx)
The latest shipping forecast.

WED 05:30 News Briefing (b08558dz)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.

WED 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b0864zf3)
A reading and a reflection to start the day with the Rev'd Dr Karen Smith, Tutor in Church History and Christian Spirituality at South Wales Baptist College.

WED 05:45 Farming Today (b08558f1)
The latest news about food, farming and the countryside. Presented by Anna Hill and produced by Beatrice Fenton.

WED 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b03dx91j)
Tree Sparrow

Tweet of the Day is a series of fascinating stories about our British birds inspired by their calls and songs.

Martin Hughes-Games presents the Tree Sparrow. With its russet cap, white cheeks and smarter appearance, the tree sparrow looks like a freshly-scrubbed house sparrow. Unlike house sparrows whose sexes look very different, the male and female tree sparrows are identical.

WED 06:00 Today (b0858kym)
Morning news and current affairs. Including Yesterday in Parliament, Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.

WED 09:00 Midweek (b0858kyp)
Sophie Thompson

Lively and diverse conversation with Libby Purves and guests.

WED 09:45 Book of the Week (b0858kyt)
Love of Country, Rum

Journalist Madeleine Bunting explores the history and landscapes of the Hebrides and demonstrates how this chain of islands in the North West has shaped both Scotland and Britain. The author reaches Rum, home to rich man's folly Kinloch Castle, and is struck by the island's turbulent history of rental, ownership and clearance.

Abridged by Anna Magnusson
Read by Doon Mackichan
Producer: Eilidh McCreadie.

WED 10:00 Woman's Hour (b08558f3)
Programme that offers a female perspective on the world.

WED 10:41 15 Minute Drama (b0858kz2)
Northanger Abbey, Episode 3

By Jane Austen
Dramatised by Hattie Naylor

Directed by Sally Avens

Catherine finds her plan to spend more time with Henry Tilney thwarted most disagreeably by John Thorpe.
Jane Austen's satire pokes fun at the popular sensationalist fiction of the day.

WED 10:55 The Listening Project (b0858kz6)
Emet and K'ets - Five Dozen Miles

Fi Glover introduces a conversation between 6 year old twins who disagree about how far their older sibling has to travel to school. Another in the series that proves it's surprising what you hear when you listen.

The Listening Project is a Radio 4 initiative that offers a snapshot of contemporary Britain in which people across the UK volunteer to have a conversation with someone close to them about a subject they've never discussed intimately before. The conversations are being gathered across the UK by teams of producers from local and national radio stations who facilitate each encounter. Every conversation - they're not BBC interviews, and that's an important difference - lasts up to an hour, and is then edited to extract the key moment of connection between the participants. Most of the unedited conversations are being archived by the British Library and used to build up a collection of voices capturing a unique portrait of the UK in the second decade of the millennium. You can learn more about The Listening Project by visiting bbc.co.uk/listeningproject

Producer: Marya Burgess.

WED 11:00 The Sigh (b08578tw)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 on Monday]

WED 11:30 The Stanley Baxter Playhouse (b0858lmz)
Series 8, Melancholy Baby

A lonely old gentleman receives an unexpected visitor and hears a story which changes his life.

Stanley Baxter is joined by Geoffrey Palmer, Penelope Wilton and Tracy Wiles to tell a heartwarming story of two babies from very different backgrounds whose lives become forever linked by events in Glasgow ninety years ago.

The play is written especially for Stanley Baxter by award winning TV writer Michael Chaplin.

Directed by Marilyn Imrie
A Catherine Bailey production for BBC Radio 4.

WED 12:00 News Summary (b08558f5)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.

WED 12:04 Home Front (b083lbzk)
21 December 1916 - Marion Wardle

On this day in 1916, the Triple Industrial Alliance protested the use of Chinese labour on ships without equal pay, and there are grumblings in the Belgian colony in Birtley.

Written by Sebastian Baczkiewicz
Directed by Jessica Dromgoole.

WED 12:15 You and Yours (b08558f7)
Consumer affairs programme.

WED 12:57 Weather (b08558f9)
The latest weather forecast.

WED 13:00 World at One (b08558fc)
Analysis of news and current affairs.

WED 13:43 Four Seasons (b088s61j)
Carol Ann Duffy - Snow

Carol Ann Duffy reads her poem Snow as part of Radio 4's Four Seasons - Poems for the Winter Solstice. Producer: Tim Dee.

WED 13:45 The History of Secrecy (b0864zjm)
State Secrets

Tiffany Jenkins presents a narrative history of secrecy.

WED 14:00 The Archers (b08587p1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Tuesday]

WED 14:15 Afternoon Drama (b04pss4s)
Mercury 13

In the early 1960s Wally Funk and Jerrie Cobb were two of thirteen young women pilots who secretly took NASA's gruelling astronaut selection tests. They passed with flying colours, in some cases beating the scores of the men. Anita Sullivan's drama-documentary explores why they were never allowed to go into space.

Narrated by Laurel Lefkow and featuring an interview with astronaut candidate, Wally Funk.

A BBC/Cymru Wales production, directed by Kate McAll.

WED 15:00 Money Box (b08558ff)
Guide to the Unprotected - personal finance past and present

"Many young people, and especially widows and single ladies, when they first possess money of their own, are in want of advice when they have commonplace business matters to transact...... my aim throughout is to avoid all technicalities; to give plain and practical directions, not only as to what ought to be done, but how to do it."

Those words are from a personal finance book called 'Guide to the Unprotected in Every-Day Matters Relating to Property and Income' which was first published in 1863. The author, listed as 'A Banker's Daughter', was Emma Galton who was born in Birmingham in 1811.

Her book was intended for women with no knowledge of financial matters. Its clear and practical information covered shares, investments, where to find financial advice and what women could do to protect their personal fortunes within their marriages.

What was the financial environment like for nineteenth century investors, especially women? Where did they put their money and why? How much of the book is relevant today?

Paul Lewis is joined by Jeanette Rutterford, Research Professor of the True Potential Centre for the Public Understanding of Finance at the Open University Business School, Anna Sofat, Founder and Managing Director of Addidi Wealth, Dr Lucy Newton Associate Professor in Business History at Henley Business School and Alison Belbin as the voice of The Banker's Daughter.

Presenter: Paul Lewis
Producer: Charmaine Cozier
Editor: Andrew Smith.

WED 15:30 All in the Mind (b0832fq5)
Adolescent brain, Awards update, Phonagnosia

Claudia Hammond's studio guest is Catherine Loveday Principal Lecturer in Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Westminster.

Adolescence is a time when life-long mental health difficulties sometimes emerge for the first time. By combining genetic data with the information from brain scans of many hundreds of people, a team at Cambridge might have worked out why this can happen. Claudia Hammond hears from neuroimaging researcher Dr Kirstie Whittaker and bioinformatics researcher Dr Petra Vertes who work together as part of the Neuroscience in Psychiatry Network (NSPN) consortium.

We've the first in an occasional update from the finalists of the All in the Mind Awards. We hear of progress from Alex : she nominated the organisation One in Four which offers subsidised long-term counselling and supports people in what can be a very long process if they want their abuser to be tried in court.

Some people can't recognise the voices they know. And they might not even realise they have the condition - until they take a test . Phonagnosia is thought to affect as much as 3% of the population. Professor of Neuroscience Irving Biederman has just published the largest analysis to date in the journal Brain and Language. He played people a whole series of celebrity voices to test their skills at identification. He discusses the causes and strategies to minimise this unusual audio anomaly.

WED 16:00 Thinking Allowed (b0858mlp)
Sociological discussion programme, presented by Laurie Taylor.

WED 16:30 The Media Show (b08558fh)
Topical programme about the fast-changing media world.

WED 17:00 PM (b08558fk)
Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.

WED 17:58 Four Seasons (b088s61l)
Kathleen Jamie - Perfect Day

Kathleen Jamie reads her poem Perfect Day as part of Radio 4's Four Seasons - poems for the winter solstice. Producer: Tim Dee.

WED 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b08558fm)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.

WED 18:30 Women Talking About Cars (b0858nvh)
Germaine Greer

Victoria Coren Mitchell interviews famous women about their life and the cars they have known. This week Germaine Greer talks about the journeys she has been on and the cars she has travelled in, including her first Mini, a series of Triumphs, and Australia's own car, the mighty Holden.
Car descriptions read by Josette Simon.

WED 19:00 The Archers (b0858nyz)
Lynda fears for her reputation, and Rex needs another pair of hands.

WED 19:15 Front Row (b08558fp)
Arts news, interviews and reviews.

WED 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b0858kz2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:41 today]

WED 20:00 Psychology of Money (b0858qyf)
How much do we really understand about our relationship with money and the power it holds over us? In The Psychology of Money, award-winning journalist and broadcaster, Claudia Hammond examines how everyday encounters illuminate our complex relationship with money and how a better understanding of it can help our wallets as well as our minds.

It starts early. Very young schoolchildren have little idea where money actually comes from or its true value - but they already know that it's 'special', clutching their piggy banks and purses. As we'll hear, they like the physical sensation of holding money in their hands (as do adults), coins especially, but even better for children, is chocolate money.

As we grow up our childhood experiences and circumstances shape our attitudes to spending. We place items into different "mental moneybags" to rationalise our purchasing decisions - from essentials to luxuries. These vary - reflecting class, gender and culture, so that one person's necessity can be another's luxury.
Many of us hate talking about money but there are awkward occasions when we can't avoid it - a situation which some people are able to exploit. Out for dinner with friends, having a great time? The food, wine and conversation flow freely - until the bill arrives: anxiety sets in. Splitting the bill evenly seems fair but what if you didn't have any wine or dessert and you picked the cheapest main course on the menu whilst others indulged? It seems sensible to keep the peace and pay up. That's what one of your fellow well-fed companions is relying on. Psychologists call this "the unscrupulous diner's dilemma". If you're the one who's always taking the extra financial hit for your "mates" then take notes to avoid coughing up.

Another pitfall for the unwary shopper is bargaining when you're not sure of an item's real value. The British are traditionally terrible at this - being too polite and not wanting to offend. Research shows that if you offer a low but realistic price first then the seller is forced to take that into account when making a counter-offer. It's called anchoring and plays on the fact that the initial bid tends to bias all other offers, irrespective of true worth.

In this programme, Claudia Hammond explores some of the latest research into the psychology and neuroscience of money and reveals some simple and effective tricks that can help us all.

WED 20:45 Four Thought (b0858qyh)
Talks with a personal dimension.

WED 21:00 Science Stories (b0858v5m)
Series 4, The woman who tamed lightning

Series looking at amazing events and characters from science history.

WED 21:30 Midweek (b0858kyp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]

WED 21:58 Weather (b08558fr)
The latest weather forecast.

WED 22:00 The World Tonight (b08558ft)
In-depth reporting and analysis from a global perspective.

WED 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b085zg61)
Christmas Short Stories, How to Escape in Gaelic

A series of short stories specially written for BBC Radio 4 by Alexander McCall Smith, the bestselling author of the No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency. Each story is set at Christmastime and each features the giving of special gifts.

In this third story, "How To Escape in Gaelic", read by James Fleet, an enterprising former Professor of Aeronautical Engineering puts his specialised knowledge to good use in order to escape the confines of a compassionless care home.

The four other stories in the series are read by Hannah Gordon, Trevor White, William Gaminara and Stephanie Cole. They range in subject matter from a generous 75-year-old German female owner of a Wall of Death, to a hot-tempered Canadian chef discovering humility at the hands of a food critic, to the dutiful President of an Eastern European country attending to the poor; and not forgetting Cousin Grace who, over a very dry Martini, shares her adventures in love (just the four marriages, so far) with three rapt young relatives.

Reader: James Fleet

Writer: Alexander McCall Smith

Producer: Kirsteen Cameron.

WED 23:00 Terry Alderton: More Crazy Now (b0858v5w)
A Lot of Thoughts

Terry Alderton flexes his comedy muscles with more craziness and nonsense. Street Kid, Victor, Ed and The Bear all return for the last in the current series.

It's more Terry, more crazy and happening right now.

Written by and starring Terry Alderton
Featuring Johnny Spurling
Additional material from Johnny Spurling and Richard Melvin
Produced by Johnny Spurling and Sean Kerwin
Executive Producer: Richard Melvin
A Dabster production for BBC Radio 4.

WED 23:15 Roger McGough's Other Half (b04ykdyj)
Kids, eh?

Roger McGough is joined by Helen Atkinson-Wood, Philip Jackson and Richie Webb in a hilarious and surreal new sketch show for BBC Radio 4. With sketches about Fandom, Fatherhood and 17th Century France, you'll hear his familiar voice in a whole new light. Expect merriment and melancholy in equal measures, and a whisker of witty wordplay too. Produced by Victoria Lloyd.

WED 23:30 Today in Parliament (b0858v8k)
Susan Hulme reports from Westminster.

WED 23:55 Four Seasons (b085zk1r)
Frost at Midnight by Samuel Taylor Coleridge read by Simon Russell Beale

Frost at Midnight by Samuel Taylor Coleridge read by Simon Russell Beale for Radio 4's Four Seasons - poems for the winter solstice. Producer: Tim Dee.


THURSDAY 22 DECEMBER 2016

THU 00:00 Midnight News (b08558lh)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.

THU 00:30 Book of the Week (b0858kyt)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Wednesday]

THU 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b08558lk)
The latest shipping forecast.

THU 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b08558lp)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.

THU 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b08558lt)
The latest shipping forecast.

THU 05:30 News Briefing (b08558ly)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.

THU 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b08653df)
A reading and a reflection to start the day with the Rev'd Dr Karen Smith, Tutor in Church History and Christian Spirituality at South Wales Baptist College.

THU 05:45 Farming Today (b08558m2)
The latest news about food, farming and the countryside. Presented by Anna Hill and produced by Sally Challoner.

THU 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b03bkfz4)
Rock Dove

Tweet of the Day is a series of fascinating stories about the British birds inspired by their calls and songs.

Wildlife Sound Recordist, Chris Watson, presents the Rock Dove. The birds that Woody Allen once described as "rats with wings" are for many the bane of urban life. Feral pigeons, as domesticated rock doves are known, live closely alongside us. But the same species has, over millennia, been cosseted by pigeon fanciers, used to deliver wartime messages and been housed in dovecotes.

THU 06:00 Today (b085b73l)
Morning news and current affairs. Including Yesterday in Parliament, Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.

THU 09:00 In Our Time (b0858w43)
Four Quartets

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Four Quartets, TS Eliot's last great work which he composed, against a background of imminent and actual world war, as meditations on the relationship between time and humanity.

With

David Moody

Fran Brearley

and

Mark Ford.

THU 09:45 Book of the Week (b0858w45)
Love of Country, Lewis

Journalist Madeleine Bunting explores the history and landscapes of the Hebrides and demonstrates how this chain of islands in the North West has shaped both Scotland and Britain. On Lewis, the author learns how the Gaelic language is inseparable from the landscape.

Abridged by Anna Magnusson
Read by Doon Mackichan
Producer: Eilidh McCreadie.

THU 10:00 Woman's Hour (b08558m8)
Programme that offers a female perspective on the world.

THU 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b0858w47)
Northanger Abbey, Episode 4

By Jane Austen
Dramatised by Hattie Naylor

Directed by Sally Avens

Catherine fears she has offended Henry and Eleanor Tilney and that she may never see either of them again; Jane Austen's satire pokes fun at the popular sensationalist fiction of the day.

THU 11:00 Crossing Continents (b0858y3l)
Punk Art and Protest in Malaysia

Malaysia's government is mired in scandal. Billions of dollars have been looted from a state investment fund. The Prime Minister is accused of receiving $681 million into his personal bank account, although he has denied any wrongdoing.

Earlier this year, punk-inspired artist Fahmi Reza captured public dissatisfaction with an artwork caricaturing the PM as a clown. The image went viral, earning Reza comparisons to street-art provocateur Banksy. It also got him arrested and charged, one of an increasing number of Malaysians facing prison as the government ramps up its suppression of free speech and dissent.

James Fletcher travels to Malaysia on the eve of a major protest rally in Kuala Lumpur. The protest movement is known as 'Bersih', meaning 'clean', and over the past few years they've mobilised hundreds of thousands of people on the streets, dressed in yellow t-shirts, to demand transparency, fair elections, and the PM's resignation. This year they're aiming for their biggest turnout yet. Fahmi Reza is designing placards for the protesters, and plans to attend carrying a giant version of his clown carricature.

But the government is doing everything it can to stop the protest. And there's a new threat - pro-government protesters called the "redshirts", who have disrupted rallies with violence and threatened independent media and free speech advocates.

James spends time with all sides as the protest unfolds. Can art and activism bring Malaysians on to the streets and spur change? Or will the government's crackdown, and the more direct methods of the "redshirts", dampen the protests and allow the PM to ride out criticism and stay in power?

THU 11:30 In Defence of the Mid-Life Crisis (b07pd34f)
Stephen Smith, best known as Newsnight's culture correspondent, takes a wry look at the mid-life crisis.

Far from being something we might feel embarrassed or ashamed, isn't mid-life actually the perfect time to learn new skills, instruments or just an opportunity to re-invent yourself? Isn't it time we defended the Mid-Life Crisis?

In the programme, Stephen hears from scholars of Schopenhauer to Sting, well, his accompanist, Jason Rebello, as he takes a field trip into the un-chartered waters of the Mid-Life Crisis, once considered just a heart-beat away from old age. He visits Brighton, considered by many to be the UK's capital of the mid-life crisis, to talk to those who've come out the other side. They now say they now lead happier and more fulfilled lives. How did they do it? He checks into a top Harley Street clinic, where the faces of the stars are lifted and tummies tucked, but what treatment will they do to him?

And if you thought the old MLC was just the preserve of heterosexual middle aged men, think again, as psychotherapist Philippa Perry, journalist and author Miranda Sawyer and writer Simon Fanshawe, describe.

Perhaps, after all, life is one big crisis, as veteran socialite Nicky Haslam suggests.

Producer: Jim Frank

*This programme has been edited since broadcast so it can be made available worldwide in perpetuity. The edit removes a short clip of the commentary from 1966 World Cup final.*

(Photo: Steve and Nicky Haslam).

THU 12:00 News Summary (b08558mj)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.

THU 12:04 Home Front (b083lbzq)
22 December 1916 - Evelina White

On this day in 1916, the King reminded parliament that "vigorous prosecution of war must be our sole endeavour" and Evelina is determined to keep politics out of her toyshop.

Written by Sebastian Baczkiewicz
Directed by Jessica Dromgoole.

THU 12:15 You and Yours (b08558mn)
Consumer affairs programme.

THU 12:57 Weather (b08558ms)
The latest weather forecast.

THU 13:00 World at One (b08558mw)
Analysis of news and current affairs.

THU 13:45 The History of Secrecy (b0869tfs)
Family Secrets

Tiffany Jenkins presents a narrative history of secrecy.

THU 14:00 The Archers (b0858nyz)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Wednesday]

THU 14:15 Afternoon Drama (b04vkjsm)
Memories of a Cad

Affectionate comedy drama by Roy Smiles about the relationship between Terry-Thomas and Richard Briers, starring Martin Jarvis and Alistair McGowan.

While holidaying on the island of Majorca in 1984, the infinitely charming actor Richard Briers - then 50 and at the height of his TV sitcom fame - decides to visit the comic movie actor Terry-Thomas in his home on the other side of the island.

The 73 year old Terry-Thomas has been suffering from Parkinson's disease for the past ten years. His memory is fading, his body deteriorating and the work has dried up. He lives in quiet seclusion with his adoring wife Belinda.

He is delighted by the visit of 'young' Richard Briers, who he recognises from the telly. Briers cheers him up by telling him facts about his life Terry has long forgotten - from his cabaret years in the 1930s and his success in the Armed Forces as a Stars In Battledress entertainer, to his work in the movies of the Boulting Brothers peaking with I'm Alright Jack and his glory days in American movies such as Those Magnificent Men In Their Flying Machines and It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, which brought him worldwide fame as a 'bounder.'

Terry-Thomas has forgotten he came from Finchley, that his father worked at Smithfields Market and that it was his fate to be a clerk at the same market until he decided to re-invent himself, aged 17, as the raffish cad the world came to love.

Roy Smiles has previously written the Radio 4 dramas Ying Tong, Good Evening, Pythonesque and Dear Arthur, Love John.

Produced by Liz Anstee
A CPL production for BBC Radio 4.

THU 15:00 Open Country (b08590kb)
Winter Solstice at Newgrange

Many people will be aware of the celebrations which take place at Stonehenge for the summer solstice but at Newgrange in Ireland the winter solstice is celebrated by an equally incredible Neolithic monument. To celebrate this years winter solstice Helen Mark visits Newgrange to experience for herself the light of the rising sun on the shortest day of the year as it floods the inner passage revealing the carvings inside. Along the way Helen will discover the precision skills required in order to achieve this solar alignment and the many myths and legends which surround the monument as well as what it means to people celebrating the winter solstice today.

THU 15:27 Radio 4 Appeal (b0855znm)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:54 on Sunday]

THU 15:30 Open Book (b0856lt1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:00 on Sunday]

THU 16:00 The Film Programme (b08590kg)
2016 in Pictures

Santa arrives early for Francine Stock and guests with a sackful of presents including the best DVDs of the year.

THU 16:30 BBC Inside Science (b08558n5)
Adam Rutherford explores the science that is changing our world.

THU 17:00 PM (b08558n9)
Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.

THU 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b08558nf)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.

THU 18:30 A Beginner's Guide to India (b085b73n)
Youth

India is the second most populous nation in the world (1.2 billion people), and British-Indian is the largest ethnic minority in the United Kingdom (1.4 million people). So after Radio 4 broadcast A Beginner's Guide To Pakistan last year, it feels only right to broadcast A Beginner's Guide To India as without India there wouldn't even be a Pakistan.

Our guide will be Aditi Mittal, a Mumbai-based comic who has already appeared on The Now Show and on The Asian Network's Big Comedy Night. The Times of India listed her as one of the top ten comedians in India; Forbes Magazine India put her in their 30 Under 30, ranging across every sphere of life from science to law to sport to theatre to comedy - and she's written articles for everyone from The Financial Times to Grazia. Radio 4 has brought her to the UK to perform A Beginner's Guide To India because she, like all Indians, loves the British - the last time they got some, they kept them for 200 years.

Aditi is young in a country with more history than most; she's a woman in a country that sees street harassment as 'Eve teasing'; she's an Anglophone because of the legacy of the British Empire, but India was independent before her parents were born; she's an atheist in a country that has given the world four major religions and also one actual God (Sachin Tendulkar).

Episode 2: Youth.
Speaking as someone who lives in one of the oldest cultures on the planet, Aditi looks at the challenges facing India's youth - of whom India has more (350m) than any other country in the world, from education to jobs to body image - including the booming industry of skin-lightening cream.

A Beginner's Guide To India will look at an undoubtedly significant and increasingly important country from a point of view that is rarely heard, performed by the most exciting stand-up comedian India has generated. As with A Beginner's Guide To Pakistan ("Stylishly cynical, brutally newsy, bitingly funny, this is political stand-up done with gusto", The Sunday Telegraph) it is informative, educational and entertaining, broadening the range of voices in Radio 4 comedy.

Written and performed by ... Aditi Mittal
The Voice of the Guide ... Ritula Shah
Production Coordinator ... Tamara Shilham
Produced by ... Ed Morrish

A BBC Studios Production.

THU 19:00 The Archers (b085b73q)
Adam is made to wait, and Rob works the room.

THU 19:15 Front Row (b08558np)
Arts news, interviews and reviews.

THU 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b0858w47)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:45 today]

THU 20:00 The Briefing Room (b085b73s)
Liberalism Under Attack

Series looking at important issues in the news. Presented by David Aaronovitch.

THU 20:30 In Business (b085b73v)
Corporations and the Arts

Who pays for the arts, who should pay for the arts? In the UK, there is controversy about corporate sponsorship of arts organisations - particularly oil companies. In the US, there is a very different approach and state funding is much lower. Andrew Dickson examines the funding models and speaks to BP as well as a number of leading arts organisations.

Producer, Penny Murphy

(Image: Burlington House, the Piccadilly site for the Royal Academy of Arts. Credit: Fraser Mar).

THU 21:00 BBC Inside Science (b08558n5)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:30 today]

THU 21:30 In Our Time (b0858w43)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]

THU 21:58 Weather (b08558ny)
The latest weather forecast.

THU 22:00 The World Tonight (b08558p0)
In-depth reporting and analysis from a global perspective.

THU 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b085zggr)
Christmas Short Stories, The Colourful Life of Cousin Grace

A series of short stories specially written for BBC Radio 4 by Alexander McCall Smith, the bestselling author of the No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency. Each story is set at Christmastime and features the giving of gifts.

In this fourth story, "The Colourful Life of Cousin Grace", read by Stephanie Cole, three young siblings sit entranced as their worldly cousin Grace mixes herself a very dry Martini and regales them with tales from her four marriages.

The other stories in the series are read by James Fleet, Trevor White, William Gaminara and Hannah Gordon. They range in subject matter from a generous German female owner of a Wall of Death, to a hot-tempered Canadian chef discovering humility at the hands of a food critic, to an enterprising elderly Professor escaping the confines of a compassion-free care home, to the dutiful President of an Eastern European country attending to the poor of his community.

Reader: Stephanie Cole

Writer: Alexander McCall Smith

Producer: Kirsteen Cameron.

THU 23:00 Wondermentalist Cabaret (b01rr3b6)
Series 2, Episode 2

There's more poetry-infused comedy and cabaret from Matt Harvey, who is joined by Alex Horne, fellow poet Mab Jones, and an appreciative audience at the Swindon Festival of Literature, whilst being needled by his one man house band, Jerri Hart. For their part, the audience have no choice but to be creative, by contributing a crowd-sourced poem.

Producer: Mark Smalley.

THU 23:30 Moss Side Gym Stories (b07ctvg1)
Men's Morning

Moss Side is a small neighbourhood just outside of Manchester's city centre. In the 19th century Elizabeth Gaskell, inspired by the area, made her literary debut with the novel Mary Barton. She described Moss Side as a place of rural charm where Victorian workers and their families came to talk, play and relax. By the later part of the 20th century, the green fields that Gaskell knew had been replaced by housing estates, and Moss Side's reputation for riots, gangs and guns had spread nationwide. Growing up in Moss Side, Manchester's award winning poet Mike Garry, saw another side. Among its terraced rows Mike discovered a place where he could hear an echo of the qualities that caused Gaskell to put pen to paper - the Moss Side Leisure Centre. In the first of a two part programme Mike returns to the leisure centre to perform his epic poem, Men's Morning, an ode to the Friday morning male patrons of the centre. He spends time with the men who use the gym today to discover what, if anything has changed since he wrote the poem 20 years ago.

In the next programme Jackie Kay, acclaimed poet and Scotland's new Makar, writes her own poem inspired by time spent at the leisure centre, this time focusing on the women who use it.

Presented by Mike Garry and produced in Salford by Claire Press and Ekene Akalawu


FRIDAY 23 DECEMBER 2016

FRI 00:00 Midnight News (b08558rq)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.

FRI 00:30 Book of the Week (b0858w45)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Thursday]

FRI 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b08558rs)
The latest shipping forecast.

FRI 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b08558rv)
BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.

FRI 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b08558rx)
The latest shipping forecast.

FRI 05:30 News Briefing (b08558rz)
The latest news from BBC Radio 4.

FRI 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b085bgjw)
A reading and a reflection to start the day with the Rev'd Dr Karen Smith, Tutor in Church History and Christian Spirituality at South Wales Baptist College.

FRI 05:45 Farming Today (b08558s1)
The latest news about food, farming and the countryside. Presented by Caz Graham and produced by Mark Smalley.

FRI 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b03dx98q)
Little Auk

Tweet of the Day is a series of fascinating stories about our British birds inspired by their calls and songs.

Martin Hughes-Games presents the Little Auk. Little auks are black and white relatives of the puffin but only about half the size. They're one of the most numerous seabirds in the world, with around twelve million pairs of birds. In autumn and early winter we see them in the UK as they head south into the North Sea.

FRI 06:00 Today (b085b9sx)
Morning news and current affairs. Including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.

FRI 09:00 Desert Island Discs (b0855znp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:15 on Sunday]

FRI 09:45 Book of the Week (b085b9sz)
Love of Country, St Kilda

Journalist Madeleine Bunting explores the history and landscapes of the Hebrides and demonstrates how this chain of islands in the North West has shaped both Scotland and Britain. Nearing the end of her series of journeys, Madeleine Bunting reaches the evacuated archipelago of St Kilda.

Abridged by Anna Magnusson
Read by Doon Mackichan
Producer: Eilidh McCreadie.

FRI 10:00 Woman's Hour (b08558s3)
Programme that offers a female perspective on the world.

FRI 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b085b9t1)
Northanger Abbey, Episode 5

By Jane Austen
Dramatised by Hattie Naylor

Directed by Sally Avens

Catherine finds herself the recipient of a most pleasing invitation and a most displeasing engagement.
Jane Austen's satire pokes fun at the popular sensationalist fiction of the day.

FRI 11:00 A Brief History of TIM (b07kl685)
Lynne Truss celebrates the 80th anniversary of the Speaking Clock, which was launched amid great anticipation on 24th July, 1936. TIM, "the wonder instrument of the Post Office", used state of the art technology, with the voice reproduced from rotating glass discs. In the first year the service was only available in London, but still received around 12 million calls. Since then, the clock's four successive "Golden Voices" have told the time through a world war, huge cultural and technological changes, and radical developments in our understanding of time itself.

Two celebrated cosmologists comment on aspects of time and timekeeping: Professor Stephen Hawking, and Professor Martin Rees, the Astronomer Royal - it was an earlier holder of this title, Harold Spencer Jones, who made the first call to TIM, at the inaugural ceremony in 1936.

Lynne visits the grand original speaking clock, now housed at the British Horological Institute; and she meets the current Golden Voice, Sara Mendes da Costa, who describes what it is like to be part of this very British institution. Through music and archive, the programme travels back in time to the competitions to appoint Sara and her predecessors - Jane Cain, Pat Simmons, and Brian Cobby - and to discover how much times have changed.

Sound design by Dave Dodd
Produced by Susan Kenyon
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4.

FRI 11:30 Charles Paris Mystery (b085bf8l)
The Cinderella Killer, Episode 4

by Jeremy Front
Based on Simon Brett's novel

Directed by Sally Avens

With the body count rising amongst the cast of the Panto, the line 'they're behind you' is beginning to take on a sinister meaning. But Charles' skills amount to far more than shaking his booty as an Ugly Sister, he finds time to confront the killer too.

FRI 12:00 News Summary (b08558s5)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.

FRI 12:04 Home Front (b083lc01)
23 December 1916

On this day in 1916, the Russian Icebreaker, the St. Alexander Nevsky is launched on the Tyne but it isn't the story Dilys wants to cover.

Written by Sebastian Baczkiewicz
Directed by Jessica Dromgoole.

FRI 12:15 You and Yours (b08558s7)
Consumer news and issues.

FRI 12:57 Weather (b08558s9)
The latest weather forecast.

FRI 13:00 World at One (b08558sc)
Analysis of news and current affairs.

FRI 13:45 The History of Secrecy (b0869qf9)
A Time of No Secrets

Tiffany Jenkins presents a narrative history of secrecy.

FRI 14:00 The Archers (b085b73q)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Thursday]

FRI 14:15 Drama (b085bff4)
Midnight at Christmas

Midnight at Christmas

A magical drama, set when Christmas Eve turns into Christmas Day. Caught in a snowstorm on the way to see his ex, Matt is taken on an unexpected journey by a series of strangers with a surprising interest in his love life.

Written by Elliott Kerrigan
Produced by Charlotte Riches.

FRI 15:00 Gardeners' Question Time (b085bfvb)
Number 10 Downing Street

Eric Robson chairs a special, festive edition recorded in The State Dining Room of the Prime Minister's House, Number 10 Downing Street. The programme includes an exclusive interview with Head Gardener Paul Schooling - who's gardened at Number 10 for more than a quarter of a century.

GQT chairman Eric Robson says, "As GQT enters its 70th anniversary year, it's a delight to be taking our audience for a unique trip through that famous black door to explore the lesser-known garden beyond it."

Regular panellists Christine Walkden, Matthew Wilson and Pippa Greenwood take questions from an audience of Radio 4 listeners who are also inside Number 10.

Produced by Darby Dorras
Assistant Producer: Hannah Newton
A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4.

FRI 15:45 The Handkerchief (b085bfvd)
In David Ashton's short story, a gangly young goalkeeper becomes an unlikely hero - until a well meant gesture goes horribly wrong.
Read by Alexander Morton
Producer: Eilidh McCreadie.

FRI 16:00 Last Word (b085bfyq)
Obituary series, analysing and celebrating the life stories of people who have recently died.

FRI 16:30 More or Less (b085bfys)
Tim Harford investigates the numbers in the news.

FRI 16:55 The Listening Project (b085bfyx)
Graham and Lisa - Where Angels Walk

Fi Glover introduces a conversation between a Buddhist Father Christmas and a Baptist chaplain about how they spend Christmas morning in the hospice. Another in the series that proves it's surprising what you hear when you listen.

The Listening Project is a Radio 4 initiative that offers a snapshot of contemporary Britain in which people across the UK volunteer to have a conversation with someone close to them about a subject they've never discussed intimately before. The conversations are being gathered across the UK by teams of producers from local and national radio stations who facilitate each encounter. Every conversation - they're not BBC interviews, and that's an important difference - lasts up to an hour, and is then edited to extract the key moment of connection between the participants. Most of the unedited conversations are being archived by the British Library and used to build up a collection of voices capturing a unique portrait of the UK in the second decade of the millennium. You can learn more about The Listening Project by visiting bbc.co.uk/listeningproject

Producer: Marya Burgess.

FRI 17:00 PM (b08558sf)
Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.

FRI 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b08558sh)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.

FRI 18:30 Dead Ringers (b085bg02)
Series 17, Episode 1

Topical impressions show that offers a satirical take on politics, media and celebrity.

FRI 19:00 The Archers (b085bg04)
Henry looks forward to Christmas Day, and Tom is on hand to help.

FRI 19:15 Front Row (b08558sk)
News, reviews and interviews from the worlds of art, literature, film and music.

FRI 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b085b9t1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:45 today]

FRI 20:00 Pick of the Year (b085bg5t)
Pick of the Year 2016

Louiza Patikas who has had a memorable year playing Helen in the radio drama 'The Archers' introduces her radio highlights from 2016

Louiza is taking time off from Ambridge and churning her characters award-winning Borsetshire Blue cheese to hand-pick tastes of the best radio on the BBC network this year.

There's nothing remotely cheesy or blue on the menu - just gourmet slivers of fabulous programmes featuring Hollywood royalty, a reformed bank robber, a centenarian killer whale, bells from the ends of the Earth and some of the best popular songwriters of all time. And of course a look back at a very dramatic year in Ambridge.

Produced in Salford by Stephen Garner

The Pick of the Year Production Team: Kay Bishton and Pete Liggins.

FRI 20:45 A Point of View (b085bg5w)
Word of 2016: People

"There is no closure date for thought", writes Howard Jacobson as he looks back at the year and especially at Brexit.

He questions why in a referendum - unlike in an election - we are not allowed second thoughts.

"Whoever believes in democracy as a principle", he says, "must believe in the right of people who question democracy's efficacy...to say so".

Producer: Adele Armstrong.

FRI 21:00 Home Front - Omnibus (b083lc03)
19-23 December 1916

In the week, in 1916, when debate raged nationally over the treatment of foreign workers, there's unrest throughout Tyneside.

Written by Sebastian Baczkiewicz
Directed by Jessica Dromgoole

Sound: Martha Littlehailes
Composer: Matthew Strachan
Consultant Historian: Maggie Andrews.

FRI 21:58 Weather (b08558sm)
The latest weather forecast.

FRI 22:00 The World Tonight (b08558sp)
In-depth reporting and analysis from a global perspective.

FRI 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b085zh8j)
Christmas Short Stories, Good President Wenceslas

Last in a series of stories by Alexander McCall Smith, each set at Christmastime and featuring the giving of gifts.

William Gaminara reads this especially poignant tale, "Good President Wenceslas", in which the leader of an Eastern European country feels duty bound to help a poor man he sees searching for food in a train station rubbish bin.

(This is an extended version of a story that first appeared in The Scotsman newspaper three years ago.)

Reader: William Gaminara

Writer: Alexander McCall Smith

Producer: Kirsteen Cameron.

FRI 23:00 Great Lives (b08587nx)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:30 on Tuesday]

FRI 23:27 Moss Side Gym Stories (b07dklgf)
Moss Side Mirrors

Jackie Kay, acclaimed writer and Scotland's new Makar, writes a poem, commissioned by the BBC and inspired by the women who use Manchester's Moss Side Leisure Centre.

Close to the Centre are streets named in honour of one of the city's most famous residents, Elizabeth Gaskell, who moved to Manchester in the 1830s and knew these streets, as fields. In her debut novel, Mary Barton, Gaskell described this area as a place of serene rural beauty, where Manchester's families would come to walk, talk, rest and rejuvenate.

By the later part of the 20th century, the green fields had been replaced by housing estates. Moss Side's reputation for riots, gangs and guns spread nationwide but its ability to inspire writers remained intact, and a peaceful oasis - otherwise known as the Moss Side Leisure Centre - could still be found. In the first of these two programmes, the poet Mike Garry returned to the Moss Side Leisure Centre to perform his epic poem, Men's Morning, inspired by the Centre and the men who used it.

In this programme, Jackie Kay premieres her 21st century response - Moss Side Mirrors - an ode to the women who, like their 19th century antecedents immortalised by Elizabeth Gaskell, have found in this neighbourhood a place to escape from the pressures of daily life - to breathe deeply, unwind, and renew themselves.

Presented by Jackie Kay and produced in Salford by Claire Press and Ekene Akalawu.

FRI 23:55 The Listening Project (b085bgjy)
Sam and Tom - Where's Woody

Fi Glover introduces a conversation between friends who find that art can reflect life, both poignantly and humorously. Another in the series that proves it's surprising what you hear when you listen.

The Listening Project is a Radio 4 initiative that offers a snapshot of contemporary Britain in which people across the UK volunteer to have a conversation with someone close to them about a subject they've never discussed intimately before. The conversations are being gathered across the UK by teams of producers from local and national radio stations who facilitate each encounter. Every conversation - they're not BBC interviews, and that's an important difference - lasts up to an hour, and is then edited to extract the key moment of connection between the participants. Most of the unedited conversations are being archived by the British Library and used to build up a collection of voices capturing a unique portrait of the UK in the second decade of the millennium. You can learn more about The Listening Project by visiting bbc.co.uk/listeningproject

Producer: Marya Burgess.



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 (b08575fp)

15 Minute Drama 19:45 MON (b08575fp)

15 Minute Drama 10:45 TUE (b08584jr)

15 Minute Drama 19:45 TUE (b08584jr)

15 Minute Drama 10:41 WED (b0858kz2)

15 Minute Drama 19:45 WED (b0858kz2)

15 Minute Drama 10:45 THU (b0858w47)

15 Minute Drama 19:45 THU (b0858w47)

15 Minute Drama 10:45 FRI (b085b9t1)

15 Minute Drama 19:45 FRI (b085b9t1)

A Beginner's Guide to India 18:30 THU (b085b73n)

A Brief History of TIM 11:00 FRI (b07kl685)

A Point of View 08:48 SUN (b085086l)

A Point of View 20:45 FRI (b085bg5w)

Afternoon Drama 14:15 WED (b04pss4s)

Afternoon Drama 14:15 THU (b04vkjsm)

All in the Mind 15:30 WED (b0832fq5)

Almost Human Rights 11:00 TUE (b08584jt)

Any Answers? 14:00 SAT (b084thwq)

Any Questions? 13:10 SAT (b085086h)

Archive on 4 20:00 SAT (b0855vzd)

Artist in the Director's Chair 15:00 TUE (b07cyfkq)

BBC Inside Science 16:30 THU (b08558n5)

BBC Inside Science 21:00 THU (b08558n5)

Bells on Sunday 05:43 SUN (b0855znh)

Bells on Sunday 00:45 MON (b0855znh)

Beyond Belief 16:30 MON (b08578tm)

Book at Bedtime 22:45 MON (b08578w1)

Book at Bedtime 22:45 TUE (b085zfwm)

Book at Bedtime 22:45 WED (b085zg61)

Book at Bedtime 22:45 THU (b085zggr)

Book at Bedtime 22:45 FRI (b085zh8j)

Book of the Week 00:30 SAT (b08503cy)

Book of the Week 09:45 MON (b08575fm)

Book of the Week 00:30 TUE (b08575fm)

Book of the Week 09:45 TUE (b085849q)

Book of the Week 00:30 WED (b085849q)

Book of the Week 09:45 WED (b0858kyt)

Book of the Week 00:30 THU (b0858kyt)

Book of the Week 09:45 THU (b0858w45)

Book of the Week 00:30 FRI (b0858w45)

Book of the Week 09:45 FRI (b085b9sz)

Broadcasting House 09:00 SUN (b085580c)

Burn Slush! The Reindeer Grand Prix 16:00 MON (b085789n)

Charles Paris Mystery 11:30 FRI (b085bf8l)

Clare in the Community 18:30 TUE (b08587nz)

Cooking in a Bedsitter 11:30 MON (b08575wj)

Count Arthur Strong's Radio Show! 19:15 SUN (b08579m6)

Country Down Under 11:30 TUE (b085851g)

Crossing Continents 20:30 MON (b084zk77)

Crossing Continents 11:00 THU (b0858y3l)

Dead Ringers 18:30 FRI (b085bg02)

Desert Island Discs 11:15 SUN (b0855znp)

Desert Island Discs 09:00 FRI (b0855znp)

Desolation Jests 23:00 TUE (b0858k3l)

Drama 21:00 SAT (b084tl7z)

Drama 14:15 MON (b085766f)

Drama 14:15 TUE (b08586nn)

Drama 14:15 FRI (b085bff4)

Farming Today 06:30 SAT (b084thw8)

Farming Today 05:45 MON (b0855850)

Farming Today 05:45 TUE (b085588m)

Farming Today 05:45 WED (b08558f1)

Farming Today 05:45 THU (b08558m2)

Farming Today 05:45 FRI (b08558s1)

Food Programme 12:32 SUN (b0855zns)

Food Programme 15:30 MON (b0855zns)

Four Seasons 13:43 WED (b088s61j)

Four Seasons 17:58 WED (b088s61l)

Four Seasons 23:55 WED (b085zk1r)

Four Thought 20:45 WED (b0858qyh)

From Our Own Correspondent 11:30 SAT (b084thwg)

Front Row 19:15 MON (b085585t)

Front Row 19:15 TUE (b085589d)

Front Row 19:15 WED (b08558fp)

Front Row 19:15 THU (b08558np)

Front Row 19:15 FRI (b08558sk)

Gardeners' Question Time 14:00 SUN (b08504lj)

Gardeners' Question Time 15:00 FRI (b085bfvb)

Great Lives 16:30 TUE (b08587nx)

Great Lives 23:00 FRI (b08587nx)

Home Front - Omnibus 21:00 FRI (b083lc03)

Home Front 12:04 MON (b083lbz6)

Home Front 12:04 TUE (b083lbzc)

Home Front 12:04 WED (b083lbzk)

Home Front 12:04 THU (b083lbzq)

Home Front 12:04 FRI (b083lc01)

I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue 12:04 SUN (b084wzjs)

I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue 18:30 MON (b08578tr)

In Business 21:30 SUN (b085014x)

In Business 20:30 THU (b085b73v)

In Defence of the Mid-Life Crisis 11:30 THU (b07pd34f)

In Our Time 09:00 THU (b0858w43)

In Our Time 21:30 THU (b0858w43)

In Touch 20:40 TUE (b085589g)

Last Word 20:30 SUN (b08504ll)

Last Word 16:00 FRI (b085bfyq)

Loose Ends 18:15 SAT (b084thx3)

Midnight News 00:00 SAT (b084thvt)

Midnight News 00:00 SUN (b08557y8)

Midnight News 00:00 MON (b085584h)

Midnight News 00:00 TUE (b0855887)

Midnight News 00:00 WED (b08558dp)

Midnight News 00:00 THU (b08558lh)

Midnight News 00:00 FRI (b08558rq)

Midweek 09:00 WED (b0858kyp)

Midweek 21:30 WED (b0858kyp)

Money Box 12:04 SAT (b0853h4k)

Money Box 21:00 SUN (b0853h4k)

Money Box 15:00 WED (b08558ff)

More or Less 20:00 SUN (b08504ln)

More or Less 16:30 FRI (b085bfys)

Moss Side Gym Stories 23:30 THU (b07ctvg1)

Moss Side Gym Stories 23:27 FRI (b07dklgf)

News Briefing 05:30 SAT (b084thw2)

News Briefing 05:30 SUN (b08557z8)

News Briefing 05:30 MON (b085584r)

News Briefing 05:30 TUE (b085588j)

News Briefing 05:30 WED (b08558dz)

News Briefing 05:30 THU (b08558ly)

News Briefing 05:30 FRI (b08558rz)

News Headlines 06:00 SUN (b08557zg)

News Summary 12:00 SAT (b084thwj)

News Summary 12:00 SUN (b085580m)

News Summary 12:00 MON (b085585d)

News Summary 12:00 TUE (b085588s)

News Summary 12:00 WED (b08558f5)

News Summary 12:00 THU (b08558mj)

News Summary 12:00 FRI (b08558s5)

News and Papers 06:00 SAT (b084thw4)

News and Papers 07:00 SUN (b08557zs)

News and Papers 08:00 SUN (b0855805)

News and Weather 22:00 SAT (b084thx7)

News 13:00 SAT (b084thwn)

Objet Trouve 16:00 TUE (b08587nv)

One to One 09:30 TUE (b085849h)

Open Book 16:00 SUN (b0856lt1)

Open Book 15:30 THU (b0856lt1)

Open Country 06:07 SAT (b084zsy7)

Open Country 15:00 THU (b08590kb)

Out There 00:30 SUN (b04jj115)

Out in Africa 20:00 TUE (b085882l)

PM 17:00 SAT (b084thwv)

PM 17:00 MON (b085585p)

PM 17:00 TUE (b0855895)

PM 17:00 WED (b08558fk)

PM 17:00 THU (b08558n9)

PM 17:00 FRI (b08558sf)

Paying for the Hostage 17:00 SUN (b084x8s6)

Pick of the Week 18:15 SUN (b0855817)

Pick of the Year 20:00 FRI (b085bg5t)

Playing Tennis in a Coma 21:00 TUE (b08588cp)

Poetry Please 16:30 SUN (b0856lt5)

Prayer for the Day 05:43 SAT (b0850blk)

Prayer for the Day 05:43 MON (b0863y1k)

Prayer for the Day 05:43 TUE (b0864w9p)

Prayer for the Day 05:43 WED (b0864zf3)

Prayer for the Day 05:43 THU (b08653df)

Prayer for the Day 05:43 FRI (b085bgjw)

Profile 19:00 SAT (b0853h9n)

Profile 05:45 SUN (b0853h9n)

Profile 17:40 SUN (b0853h9n)

Psychology of Money 20:00 WED (b0858qyf)

Radio 4 Appeal 07:54 SUN (b0855znm)

Radio 4 Appeal 21:26 SUN (b0855znm)

Radio 4 Appeal 15:27 THU (b0855znm)

Roger McGough's Other Half 23:15 WED (b04ykdyj)

Round Britain Quiz 23:00 SAT (b084wzjl)

Round Britain Quiz 15:00 MON (b08576m3)

Saturday Live 09:00 SAT (b084thwd)

Saturday Review 19:15 SAT (b084thx5)

Science Stories 21:00 WED (b0858v5m)

Selection of BBC World Service Programmes 01:00 SAT (b084thvy)

Selection of BBC World Service Programmes 01:00 SUN (b08557ym)

Selection of BBC World Service Programmes 01:00 MON (b085584m)

Selection of BBC World Service Programmes 01:00 TUE (b085588c)

Selection of BBC World Service Programmes 01:00 WED (b08558dv)

Selection of BBC World Service Programmes 01:00 THU (b08558lp)

Selection of BBC World Service Programmes 01:00 FRI (b08558rv)

Shared Experience 15:30 TUE (b08587ns)

Shipping Forecast 00:48 SAT (b084thvw)

Shipping Forecast 05:20 SAT (b084thw0)

Shipping Forecast 17:54 SAT (b084thwx)

Shipping Forecast 00:48 SUN (b08557yk)

Shipping Forecast 05:20 SUN (b08557ys)

Shipping Forecast 17:54 SUN (b0855811)

Shipping Forecast 00:48 MON (b085584k)

Shipping Forecast 05:20 MON (b085584p)

Shipping Forecast 00:48 TUE (b0855889)

Shipping Forecast 05:20 TUE (b085588f)

Shipping Forecast 00:48 WED (b08558ds)

Shipping Forecast 05:20 WED (b08558dx)

Shipping Forecast 00:48 THU (b08558lk)

Shipping Forecast 05:20 THU (b08558lt)

Shipping Forecast 00:48 FRI (b08558rs)

Shipping Forecast 05:20 FRI (b08558rx)

Six O'Clock News 18:00 SAT (b084thx1)

Six O'Clock News 18:00 SUN (b0855815)

Six O'Clock News 18:00 MON (b085585r)

Six O'Clock News 18:00 TUE (b085589b)

Six O'Clock News 18:00 WED (b08558fm)

Six O'Clock News 18:00 THU (b08558nf)

Six O'Clock News 18:00 FRI (b08558sh)

Something Understood 06:05 SUN (b08557zj)

Something Understood 23:30 SUN (b08557zj)

Stardust 14:30 SAT (b07xs23j)

Stardust 15:00 SUN (b07xs2g4)

Start the Week 09:00 MON (b08575fk)

Start the Week 21:30 MON (b08575fk)

Sunday Worship 08:10 SUN (b0855807)

Sunday 07:10 SUN (b08557zy)

Tales From the Stave 15:30 SAT (b084x5kt)

Tales From the Stave 13:30 SUN (b084bjbv)

Terry Alderton: More Crazy Now 23:00 WED (b0858v5w)

The Archers Omnibus 10:00 SUN (b085580j)

The Archers 19:00 SUN (b0856njn)

The Archers 14:00 MON (b0856njn)

The Archers 19:00 MON (b08578tt)

The Archers 14:00 TUE (b08578tt)

The Archers 19:00 TUE (b08587p1)

The Archers 14:00 WED (b08587p1)

The Archers 19:00 WED (b0858nyz)

The Archers 14:00 THU (b0858nyz)

The Archers 19:00 THU (b085b73q)

The Archers 14:00 FRI (b085b73q)

The Archers 19:00 FRI (b085bg04)

The Briefing Room 20:00 THU (b085b73s)

The Duke of Wellington Misplaces His Horse 19:45 SUN (b08579m8)

The Echo Chamber 23:30 SAT (b084tlkb)

The Film Programme 23:00 SUN (b085014n)

The Film Programme 16:00 THU (b08590kg)

The Handkerchief 15:45 FRI (b085bfvd)

The History of Secrecy 13:45 MON (b08575yn)

The History of Secrecy 13:45 TUE (b0864788)

The History of Secrecy 13:45 WED (b0864zjm)

The History of Secrecy 13:45 THU (b0869tfs)

The History of Secrecy 13:45 FRI (b0869qf9)

The Life Scientific 09:00 TUE (b08580hs)

The Life Scientific 21:30 TUE (b08580hs)

The Listeners 21:00 MON (b084x5kr)

The Listening Project 14:45 SUN (b0856lsz)

The Listening Project 10:55 WED (b0858kz6)

The Listening Project 16:55 FRI (b085bfyx)

The Listening Project 23:55 FRI (b085bgjy)

The Living World 06:35 SUN (b0855znk)

The Male Room 23:00 MON (b08578v4)

The Media Show 16:30 WED (b08558fh)

The Now Show 12:30 SAT (b08507yp)

The Prince Monolulu Quandary 10:30 SAT (b0855vz8)

The Sigh 20:00 MON (b08578tw)

The Sigh 11:00 WED (b08578tw)

The Stanley Baxter Playhouse 11:30 WED (b0858lmz)

The Untold 11:00 MON (b08575fr)

The World This Weekend 13:00 SUN (b085580r)

The World Tonight 22:00 MON (b085585y)

The World Tonight 22:00 TUE (b085589j)

The World Tonight 22:00 WED (b08558ft)

The World Tonight 22:00 THU (b08558p0)

The World Tonight 22:00 FRI (b08558sp)

Thinking Allowed 00:15 MON (b084xpqb)

Thinking Allowed 16:00 WED (b0858mlp)

Today in Parliament 23:30 MON (b08578v6)

Today in Parliament 23:30 TUE (b0858k3n)

Today in Parliament 23:30 WED (b0858v8k)

Today 07:00 SAT (b0853h4b)

Today 06:00 MON (b0855857)

Today 06:00 TUE (b08586nl)

Today 06:00 WED (b0858kym)

Today 06:00 THU (b085b73l)

Today 06:00 FRI (b085b9sx)

Tweet of the Day 08:58 SUN (b04dw7p8)

Tweet of the Day 05:58 MON (b03bksqt)

Tweet of the Day 05:58 TUE (b03dx6nq)

Tweet of the Day 05:58 WED (b03dx91j)

Tweet of the Day 05:58 THU (b03bkfz4)

Tweet of the Day 05:58 FRI (b03dx98q)

We Need to Talk About Death 22:15 SAT (b084xr5f)

Weather 06:04 SAT (b084thw6)

Weather 06:57 SAT (b084thwb)

Weather 12:57 SAT (b084thwl)

Weather 17:57 SAT (b084thwz)

Weather 06:57 SUN (b08557zl)

Weather 07:57 SUN (b0855803)

Weather 12:57 SUN (b085580p)

Weather 17:57 SUN (b0855813)

Weather 05:56 MON (b0855852)

Weather 12:57 MON (b085585k)

Weather 21:58 MON (b085585w)

Weather 12:57 TUE (b085588y)

Weather 12:57 WED (b08558f9)

Weather 21:58 WED (b08558fr)

Weather 12:57 THU (b08558ms)

Weather 21:58 THU (b08558ny)

Weather 12:57 FRI (b08558s9)

Weather 21:58 FRI (b08558sm)

Week in Westminster 11:00 SAT (b0853h4h)

Westminster Hour 22:00 SUN (b0855819)

Woman's Hour 16:00 SAT (b084thws)

Woman's Hour 10:00 MON (b085585b)

Woman's Hour 10:00 TUE (b085588q)

Woman's Hour 10:00 WED (b08558f3)

Woman's Hour 10:00 THU (b08558m8)

Woman's Hour 10:00 FRI (b08558s3)

Women Talking About Cars 18:30 WED (b0858nvh)

Wondermentalist Cabaret 23:00 THU (b01rr3b6)

World at One 13:00 MON (b085585m)

World at One 13:00 TUE (b0855890)

World at One 13:00 WED (b08558fc)

World at One 13:00 THU (b08558mw)

World at One 13:00 FRI (b08558sc)

You and Yours 12:15 MON (b085585g)

You and Yours 12:15 TUE (b085588v)

You and Yours 12:15 WED (b08558f7)

You and Yours 12:15 THU (b08558mn)

You and Yours 12:15 FRI (b08558s7)

iPM 05:45 SAT (b0850blp)

iPM 17:30 SAT (b0850blp)