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 06 JANUARY 2018

SAT 00:00 Midnight News (b09k0nqf)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.


SAT 00:30 Book of the Week (b09k8qz9)
The Vital Spark: Appointment in Arezzo, Episode 5

After Muriel Spark's triumphant return to her hometown for the Edinburgh Book Festival, Alan Taylor reflects on his friendship with the peerless writer.
When journalist Alan Taylor travelled to the Italian town of Arezzo to interview Muriel Spark, it was the beginning of a friendship which would last for years. On regular visits to her Italian villa and on trips accompanying the author to literary festivals across Europe Taylor gained a unique insight into the character of this fascinating artist.

Abriged by Laurence Wareing
Read by Paul Higgins
Producer: Eilidh McCreadie.


SAT 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b09k0nqh)

The latest shipping forecast.


SAT 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b09k0nqk)

SAT 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b09k0nqm)

The latest shipping forecast.


SAT 05:30 News Briefing (b09k0nqp)

The latest news from BBC Radio 4.


SAT 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b09k8y02)

A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Monica M. Grady CBE, Professor of Planetary and Space Sciences.


SAT 05:45 iPM (b09k8y04)

iPM is the news programme that starts with its listeners. Email ipm@bbc.co.uk. Twitter: @BBCiPM. Presented by Luke Jones and Eddie Mair.


SAT 06:00 News and Papers (b09k0nqr)

The latest news headlines. Including the weather and a look at the papers.


SAT 06:07 Open Country (b09k8frd)
Football and fairies around Bradford

Helen Mark uncovers fantastic fairy stories and forgotten football legends in the landscape around Bradford. She also visits UNESCO World Heritage Site, the 'model' village of Saltaire, with Salts Mill at its centre, now home to David Hockney's extraordinary series of paintings 'The Arrival of Spring'.

Helen meets archaeologist Jason Wood, who has excavated the former football ground of Bradford Park Avenue, along with memories of footballing legends, including the star goalie who was regularly showered with safety pins after an embarrassing incident with the elastic in his football shorts. Sure enough, the dig turned up nappy pins around the goal mouth.

She has her photo taken at Cottingley Beck, where the Cottingley fairies caused a sensation in the early twentieth century, when two young girls took photographs of the fairies they saw at the bottom of the garden. News of the fairies travelled all over the world and the story has never quite been laid to rest. And early example of the transmission of fake news?

Helen meets Zoe Silver, whose father Jonathan bought Salts Mill after it closed in 1986, to find out how her family continues to protect the extraordinary original vision of Titus Salt, who built the mill and the village of Saltaire in 1953. Artist David Hockney was born in Bradford and was a close friend of Jonathan Silver, which is why so many of his paintings, including landscapes of the local countryside, are on show at Salts Mill.

Producer...Mary Ward-Lowery.


SAT 06:30 Farming Today (b09k0nqt)

The latest news about food, farming and the countryside.


SAT 06:57 Weather (b09k0nqw)

The latest weather forecast.


SAT 07:00 Today (b09kplfl)

News and current affairs. Including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


SAT 09:00 Saturday Live (b09k0nqy)
Phil Daniels

Actor Phil Daniels joins Aasmah and Richard in the studio.
Since his first big role aged 19 as the lead in cult The Who film Quadrophenia, he hasn't stopped working in film, theatre or TV including Eastenders; Chicken Run; Les Miserables; Shakespeare; and the voice in Blur's Park Life. Now actor Phil Daniels is putting his versatility to good use in a new production of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.

Stefanie Reid is a five-time world record holder, reigning world champion in long jump, and triple Paralympic medallist in the long jump and 200m sprint. She'll be talking about her journey and the future.

Fashion historian author and vintage clothes expert Amber Butchart joins us to talk about the significance of clothes in our lives, as explored in her new show 'A Stitch in Time', which fuses biography, art and the history of fashion to explore the lives of historical figures through the clothes they wore.

A couple of years ago, after hearing a talk by a colleague, listener and teacher Helen Brace decided to set herself a new year challenge, but instead of choosing something to give up, she wanted to add something to her life. Last year she decided to walk a 1000 miles, raise a 1000 pounds for charity and read 1000 pages for pleasure each month. What has she challenged herself to this year?

Texas singer and songwriter Sharleen Spiteri chooses her inheritance tracks. She chooses Rock the Casbah by The Clash and These Boots are Made for Walking by Nancy Sinatra.

Our reporter Anna Bailey meets Cyril and his barber Peter at Emmanuel's barber shop in Peckham.

DR JEKYLL & MR HYDE opens on 14 February at Rose Theatre Kingston and then tours the country
A Stitch in Time with Amber Butchart is on BBC4 on Wednesday evenings from 3rd January

Producer: Corinna Jones
Editor: Eleanor Garland.


SAT 10:30 The Kitchen Cabinet (b09kplfs)
Series 19, Worcester

Jay Rayner takes his culinary panel to Worcester. Andi Oliver, Tim Hayward, Paula McIntyre and Zoe Laughlin join him to answer questions from the audience on cooking and eating.

This week the panellists ignite a spicy debate - is it Worcester Sauce or Worcestershire Sauce?

They also create their own culinary crest, explore the local obsession with pears, and interrogate Antiques Roadshow's Henry Sandon about Worcester porcelain

Produced by Hannah Newton
Assistant Producer: Hester Cant

Food Consultant: Anna Colquhoun

A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4.


SAT 11:00 The Forum (b09kplfv)
Nikola Tesla's Electric Dreams

Bridget Kendall discusses the extraordinary life and inventions of the engineer Nikola Tesla with Professor Jasmina Vujic, Tesla expert Jane Alcorn, and historian Michael Krause.


SAT 11:30 From Our Own Correspondent (b09k0nr0)

Reports from writers and journalists around the world. Presented by Kate Adie.


SAT 12:00 News Summary (b09k0nr2)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


SAT 12:04 Money Box (b09kplrg)

The latest news from the world of personal finance.


SAT 12:30 The News Quiz (b09k8w1k)
Series 95, 05/01/2018

Series 95 of the programme that invites the protagonists of the week's big news stories to gracefully hurl themselves into a blender and be thoroughly churned around by Britain's foremost satirists. Miles is joined by regular panellists including Jeremy Hardy, Andy Hamilton, Susan Calman and Hugo Rifkind as well as other hand-picked wits and bon viveurs as they try to make sense of the headlines. Some news will be naturally funny, like fishing quota regulations, whereas other stories might take a bit more comedic expertise to make entertaining, like the incident of a donkey getting a tattoo in Wigan. Or should that be the other way around.

So, it's a date. January 5th. Start the New Year as you mean to go on and join Miles and the team for Britain's foremost "quiz" about the "news".

Producer: Richard Morris
A BBC Studios Production.


SAT 12:57 Weather (b09k0nr4)

The latest weather forecast.


SAT 13:00 News (b09k0nr6)

The latest news from BBC Radio 4.


SAT 13:15 One to One (b096hcln)
Trevor Nelson and half siblings 1/3

DJ and radio presenter Trevor Nelson grew up in London and came to find out he had half siblings on the Caribbean island of St Lucia. However, for Trevor and his three sisters who were raised by his parents in the UK, this was something that didn't really have an impact on his family life until much later when Trevor finally met his half siblings.

It's something that has fascinated Trevor all his life, and now in this series of One to One, he meets people to uncover what it's like to have, or to find out you have, half siblings.

In this programme, Trevor meets Adrienne who has eight half siblings but no full brothers and sisters. She tells Trevor that that there is no jealousy and rivalry and that they really are one big happy family. Really?

The producer is Perminder Khatkar.


SAT 13:30 Mastertapes (b092cmwl)
Randy Newman, Randy Newman (A-side)

With six Grammys, three Emmys and two Oscars (from 20 Academy Award nominations) - to say nothing of his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and membership of both the Songwriters and the Rock & Roll Halls of Fame - means that Randy Newman has one of the most crowded mantelpieces in the world of popular entertainment.

In this special edition of MASTERTAPES the legendary singer-songwriter and composer talks to John Wilson about 'Sail Away' - the album that Rolling Stone magazine described as "a work of genius" when it was released forty-five years ago.

Already with a good dozen years under his belt as a professional song writer (he was only 28 years old when this album was released), with 'Sail Away' we see an artist able to combine biting wit, novelistic complexity and deep understanding of the contradictions of the American psyche with sumptuous melodies and restrained arrangements. Nowhere more so than with 'Lonely At The Top' (originally written with Frank Sinatra in mind), 'You Can Leave Your Hat On' (later recorded by Tom Jones for The Full Monty), 'God's Song (That's Why I Love Mankind)' and the austere title track that kicks off the album.

MASTERTAPES is recorded in front of a live audience at the BBC's iconic Maida Vale Studios. Each edition includes two episodes, with John Wilson initially quizzing the artist about a career defining key album, and then, in the B-side, the audience puts the questions. Both editions feature exclusive live performances.

The second part of this special edition is broadcast at 9.30pm on Monday 28 August 2017

Producer: Paul Kobrak.


SAT 14:00 Mastertapes (b092khwp)
Randy Newman, Randy Newman (B-side)

A special edition of the programme in which John Wilson talks to leading performers and songwriters about the album that made them or changed them. Recorded in front of a live audience at the BBC's iconic Maida Vale Studios. Each edition includes two episodes, with John initially quizzing the artist about the album in question, and then, in the B-side, the audience puts the questions. Both editions feature exclusive live performances.

Having discussed the making of "Sail Away" - the 45 year old album described by Rolling Stone magazine as "a work of genius" (in the A-side of the programme, broadcast on Monday 28th August 2017 and available online), Randy Newman responds to questions from the audience and performs live versions of both new and old tracks from his career in music and film that spanned almost 60 years (as well as six Grammys, three Emmys, two Oscars, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and membership of both the Songwriters and the Rock & Roll Halls of Fame)

Producer: Paul Kobrak.


SAT 14:30 Drama (b09kpm4s)
Offshore

by Penelope Fitzgerald dramatised by Michael Butt

Michael Butt's dramatisation of Penelope Fitzgerald's 1979 Booker Prize-winning novel is set amongst a small community of eccentric barge-dwellers on the River Thames. Nenna and her two daughters have tricky decisions to make.

Director: David Hunter.


SAT 15:30 Opening Night (b09kpm4v)

Monthly series that gives listeners a backstage pass to the best in theatre, playwriting and live performance across the UK.


SAT 16:00 Woman's Hour (b09k0nr8)
Weekend Woman's Hour

Highlights from the Woman's Hour week.Presented by Jane Garvey
Producer: Rabeka Nurmahomed
Editor: Jane Thurlow.


SAT 17:00 PM (b09k0nrb)
Saturday PM

Full coverage of the day's news with Luke Jones.


SAT 17:30 iPM (b09k8y04)
[Repeat of broadcast at 05:45 today]


SAT 17:54 Shipping Forecast (b09k0nrd)

The latest shipping forecast.


SAT 17:57 Weather (b09k0nrg)

The latest weather forecast.


SAT 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b09k0nrj)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


SAT 18:15 Loose Ends (b09k0nrl)
Miriam Margolyes, Lili Fini Zanuck, Lucy Porter, YolanDa Brown, Anoushka Warden, Son of Dave, Scottee, Clive Anderson

Clive Anderson and Scottee are joined by Miriam Margolyes, Lili Fini Zanuck, YolanDa Brown, Lucy Porter and Anoushka Warden for an eclectic mix of conversation, music and comedy. With music from Yolanda Brown and Son of Dave.

Producer: Sukey Firth.


SAT 19:00 Profile (b09kpmhp)
President Hassan Rouhani

As violent protests continue on the streets of Iran, Mark Coles looks at the life and career of President Hassan Rouhani.


SAT 19:15 Saturday Review (b09k0nrn)
Digital arts: Crown Heights, The Boat, Google Cultural Institute, The Miniaturists

A digital edition of Saturday Review presented by Antonia Quirke.

Crown Heights is a new on-demand film based on an episode of NPR's This American Life, telling the true story of Trinidadian teenager Colin Warner's twenty year wrongful incarceration.

The Miniaturists takes a long-running short play night and turns it into a podcast with five new short plays from up and coming British playwrights.

The reviewers explore the world's greatest and strangest museums, galleries and monuments with Google Cultural Institute.

The story of a refugee's journey across the sea is rendered in an interactive graphic novel format in Nam Le & Matt Huynh's The Boat.

Antonia's guests are Inua Ellams, Andy Riley and Errollyn Wallen. The producer is Caitlin Benedict.


SAT 20:00 Archive on 4 (b09kpmys)
Good Luck Professor Spiegelhalter

Whether we believe in luck or not, we do use the word- a lot ! More as a figure of speech than an article of faith perhaps but some do pray for luck, others fantasize about it - and bad luck or misfortune is a staple of comedy

Can Luck be said to exist as some force in our lives and if so, what is its nature? How have people thought about luck in the past and what's changed today? Can you bring good luck upon yourself - there's a school of thought these days that thinks you can without appealing to the divine or supernatural.

In Good Luck Professor Spiegelhalter, the Winton Professor for the Public Understanding of Risk at Cambridge University looks at notions of luck in gambling, traces the origins of how we think about fate and fortune, the religious and psychological view of luck and how the emergence of theory of probability changed our view of it.

He is convinced by the philosopher Angie Hobbs that there is one form of luck it is rational to believe in and by psychologist Richard Wiseman that there is a secular solution to bringing about good fortune in your life.

Good Luck Professor Spiegelhalter, is presented by David Spiegelhalter and produced in Salford by Kevin Mousley.


SAT 21:00 Drama (b09k0ny9)
Graeae's Midwich Cuckoos, Episode 1

A bold new version of John Wyndham's science fiction classic by Graeae, a disabled led theatre company.

Jenny Sealey, Graeae artistic director, has her own understanding of The Midwich Cuckoos, based on growing up feeling different and has cast deaf and disabled actors who also identify with the Cuckoos and what it is to be 'other' in society.

While being faithful to the original, this production brings a new sensitivity to the iconic novel, trying to grapple with the complexity of difference.

This brave modernisation is by award winning writer Roy Williams, with original music from composer Oliver Vibrans.

Episode 1
Professor Zellerby and his 8 year old daughter Michaela survive the strange blackout of Midwich one afternoon in September 2009. Nine months later, some extraordinary children are born. Zellerby starts tracking their amazing development, secretly reporting on them to concerned government authorities. Michaela finds herself caught between her difficult relationship with her father, and the Cuckoo children who immediately learn to sign and therefore communicate with her better than her own father.

Composer.....................................Oliver Vibrans
Co-directors...................................Polly Thomas and Jenny Sealey
Producer/Sound designer.................... Eloise Whitmore
Studio engineer...............................Lee Aston
Shadow writer................................Amy Bethan Evans
BSL interpreters..............................Ruth Andrews, Beverley Roberts, Tony Redshaw
Production coordinator.....................Sarah Kenny
Executive Producer..........................Joby Waldman

A Naked Productions/Graeae Theatre co-production for BBC Radio 4.


SAT 22:00 News and Weather (b09k0nrq)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4, followed by weather.


SAT 22:15 Across the Red Line (b09k822l)
Series 1, Is it ok to be wary of those from other backgrounds?

Anne McElvoy takes guests and listeners alike to the edges of their certainties. She brings together two figures who are active in the public debate on opposed sides of a political question.

Anne is joined by conflict resolution specialist Gabrielle Rifkind to lead the two guests through a series of structured conversations to encourage them to air the personal experiences, instincts and feelings that underpin their public positions. Together Anne and Gabrielle invite guests to do something that doesn't often feature in debates: really listen to each other.

Joining the discussion this week are Charles Moore, former editor and now columnist at the Daily Telegraph and Hugh Muir, Associate Editor for the Guardian's Opinion pages.

Producer: Sarah Shebbeare.


SAT 23:00 Round Britain Quiz (b09k1fll)
Programme 7, 2017-18

(7/12)
In a special programme recorded at last summer's Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the South of England take on Scotland, with both teams hoping to score a victory this time after a draw the last time they met. Marcus Berkmann and Paul Sinha play for the South of England while the Scots are Val McDermid and Alan McCredie.

Tom Sutcliffe asks the cryptic and complex questions, which include: Why might Private Atkins, the Marble Man and Clive Dunn find themselves working with Agent J? The more help the teams need from Tom in unravelling the solutions, the fewer points they'll get.

Tom will also have the answer to the teaser puzzle he set before Christmas.

Producer: Paul Bajoria.


SAT 23:30 Wintertide (b09k0p03)

Robert Pugh reads an evocative new story from Cynan Jones, this year's winner of the BBC National Short Story Prize. With sound and music woven through it and written for this dark moment at the turn of the year, Wintertide is a poetic meditation on the season, myth and waiting.

It features music by Terje Insungst, Kimmo Pohjonen and Sharron Kraus.

Produced by Natalie Steed for BBC Wales
Sound design by Natalie Steed and Mike Frost.



SUNDAY 07 JANUARY 2018

SUN 00:00 Midnight News (b09kq114)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.


SUN 00:30 From Fact to Fiction (b09k8vlt)
Cold Turkey

Writer Hugo Rifkind creates a short story in response to a topical news story.


SUN 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b09kq116)

The latest shipping forecast.


SUN 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b09kq118)

SUN 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b09kq11b)

The latest shipping forecast.


SUN 05:30 News Briefing (b09kq11d)

The latest news from BBC Radio 4.


SUN 05:43 Bells on Sunday (b09kx83h)
York Minster

Church bells from York Minster.


SUN 05:45 Profile (b09kpmhp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Saturday]


SUN 06:00 News Headlines (b09kq11g)

The latest national and international news.


SUN 06:05 Something Understood (b09kq11j)
Initiation

As the new year gets under way and in a week in which many celebrate Jesus' baptism in the river Jordan, Mark Tully explores the significance of initiation rites and rituals, religious and secular.

He considers their role in marking new stages in life with readings of poetry by Emily Dickinson and C Day Lewis, and music from Briju Maharaj, Leonard Bernstein and blues guitarist Elizabeth Cotten.

The readers are Alistair McGowan, Emma Cunniffe and Francis Cadder.

Presenter: Mark Tully
Producer: Frank Stirling

A 7digital production for BBC Radio 4.


SUN 06:35 The Living World (b09kx83k)
Mountain Hares

The Mountain Hare, sometimes called the Arctic or Blue Hare, is a native of Scotland but to most people's surprise a colony also live in England.

Brett Westwood relives programmes from The Living World archives. This episode from 2005 Sarah Pitt heads into a wintry Peak District with the late Derek Yaldon in search of mountain hares, one of the great relics of the ice age. Nestled into the hills and as white as white during the winter these animals are very at home straddling the Pennine Way. But how did they get here? To discover this Sarah Pitt is led by zoologist Derek Yalden deep into wintry moors to find these animals, and much to his surprise is given a special device by Sarah to enable him to see the hares at night, something he's never done before. So a double surprise. Hares by day and hares by night. It certainly seems from Sarah and Derek's encounter that the night time is the right time for Mountain Hares.

Producer Andrew Dawes.


SUN 06:57 Weather (b09kq11l)

The latest weather forecast.


SUN 07:00 News and Papers (b09kq11n)

The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.


SUN 07:10 Sunday (b09kq11q)

Sunday morning religious news and current affairs programme, presented by Edward Stourton.


SUN 07:54 Radio 4 Appeal (b09kx83m)
Opportunity International UK

The actress Adjoa Andoh makes the Radio 4 Appeal on behalf of Opportunity International UK.

Registered Charity Number: in England and Wales (1107713) and in Scotland (SCO39692)
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 'Opportunity International UK'.
- Cheques should be made payable to 'Opportunity International UK'.


SUN 07:57 Weather (b09kq11s)

The latest weather forecast.


SUN 08:00 News and Papers (b09kq11v)

The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.


SUN 08:10 Sunday Worship (b09kx83p)
Three Kings from Persian Lands Afar

A Meditation for Epiphany from Holy Name Church in Manchester's student district

Live from Holy Name Church in Manchester's busy student district, reflecting on the universality of the Christian message at the start of the season of Epiphany. Hymns include 'As with gladness men of old' and 'Hail Redeemer, King Divine!' alongside carols for choir including Cornelius' 'The Three Kings' and Thomas Hewitt Jones' 'What child is this?'. The service is led by Father Brendan Callaghan and the preacher is Father William Pearsall. The Kantos Chamber Choir is directed by Ellie Slorach with organist Simon Leach.

Producer: Andrew Earis.


SUN 08:48 A Point of View (b09kx83w)
The Last Bohemia

Howard Jacobson on why we need to preserve Bohemia.

London's Soho, he says, is the nearest the UK has to a Bohemia but "you don't sniff aesthetic licence in the streets of Soho as you once did".

But one day recently, writes Howard, Soho recovered its spirit - at the funeral of the leopard-skin jacketed "Prince of Soho".

Producer: Adele Armstrong.


SUN 08:58 Tweet of the Day (b09k0p9b)
Doug Allan on the Emperor Penguin

In the first of five recollections about his encounters with birds in Antarctica, wildlife cameraman Doug Allan recalls hearing a Emperor Penguin chick for the first time.

Tweet of the Day has captivated the Radio 4 audience with its daily 90 seconds of birdsong. But what of the listener to this avian chorus? In this new series of Tweet of the Day, we bring to the airwaves the conversational voices of those who listen to and are inspired by birds. Building on the previous series, a more informal approach to learning alongside a renewed emphasis on encounter with nature and reflection in our relationship with the natural world.

Producer: Sarah Blunt
Photograph: Christopher Michel.


SUN 09:00 Broadcasting House (b09kq11x)

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 (b09kq11z)

Noluthando uses her initiative, and Pip prepares for a big night.


SUN 11:15 Desert Island Discs (b09kx840)
Charlie Brooker

Charlie Brooker is a satirist, broadcaster and writer. He created the Emmy-award winning series, Black Mirror, and presents Screenwipe and Newswipe which won Best Comedy Entertainment Show award at the British Comedy Awards in 2011.

Born in 1971, his career has been influenced both by his early love of technology - he was a keen computer gamer - and by his passion for the anarchic, surreal and experimental comedy of Monty Python and The Young Ones. After creating his own comic while at school, he went on to provide cartoons for the magazine Oink! at the age of 15. He cultivated his acerbic style and satirical pessimism as a writer of games reviews and features for PC Zone magazine.

His online creation TVGoHome, an often caustic parody of television listings in the style of Radio Times, brought him to the attention of the Guardian newspaper where he began writing a TV review column entitled Screen Burn in 2000. This was adapted into a BBC Four television series, and various spin-offs, including Gameswipe and Newswipe, followed.

The first two series of Black Mirror, an anthology of unrelated dramas focused around the unexpected consequences of new technologies, aired on Channel 4. The third series was released on Netflix in 2016, followed by a fourth at the end of 2017.

Charlie is married to former Blue Peter presenter Konnie Huq and they have two young sons.

Presenter: Kirsty Young
Producer: Cathy Drysdale.


SUN 12:00 News Summary (b09kq121)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


SUN 12:04 50 years of Just a Minute: Nicholas Parsons in Conversation with Paul Merton (b09k1frv)

As part of the special programming celebrating 50 years of Just a Minute, Paul Merton talks to Nicholas Parsons about his life, and his 50 years of hosting Radio 4's beloved panel show, with guest appearances from some of the many regulars who have appeared over the years.

In a career which started in 1945, Nicholas Parsons has worked with an extraordinary range of people - from the golden age of British cinema in the 50s and 60s, to the seedy glamour of the Windmill Theatre where he rubbed shoulders with the cream of stand-up talent including Bruce Forsyth and Tommy Cooper. He formed a famous double act with the legendary comic Arthur Haynes, and worked with him on both sides of the Atlantic - all before Just a Minute was even thought of. In later years he worked with Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmondson, guest starred in Doctor Who, and will shortly be heard as the voice of God in a TV adaptation of Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett's Good Omens.

Not bad for a lad who started his career as an engineering apprentice on the Glasgow Docks...

Produced by Victoria Lloyd
A BBC Studios Production.


SUN 12:32 The Food Programme (b09kx846)
Porridge

The sudden proliferation of porridge is there for all to see, across the country. Café chains like Pret, Starbucks, McDonalds; instant tubs on offer in your local supermarket; on the train, even. Sheila Dillon explores the current fashion for porridge, and meets the "porridge pioneers" who have ridden the sticky porridge wave and created booming porridge businesses. She eats breakfast with Alex Healy Hutchinson, founder of the Covent Garden porridge restaurant 26 Grains; she tours the Edinburgh factory of Stoates Oats, a business which started from a mobile porridge van at rock festivals and is now on track for a turnover of £10 million. She hears from contestants from all over the world at this year's Golden Spurtle International Porridge Championship, and she talks to the Harvard scientist who published the largest study about the health benefits of porridge. (Yes it certainly is good for you.) Finally, back in her kitchen Sheila convenes her own porridge championship with Jamaican chef Levi Roots, Scandinavian chef Trine Hahnemann and Scottish chef Shirley Spear. Whose porridge will taste best? And which Bob Marley song has a verse about cooking porridge?

Presenter: Sheila Dillon
Producer: Elizabeth Burke.


SUN 12:57 Weather (b09kq123)

The latest weather forecast.


SUN 13:00 The World This Weekend (b09kq125)

Global news and analysis.


SUN 13:30 Hardeep's Sunday Lunch (b09kx848)
Series 7, Northern Ireland

Hardeep travels to Northern Ireland to meet sisters Paula and Tracey who have both lost husbands serving in the armed forces. In 1992, at the tender age of 23, Tracey's childhood sweetheart - Steven - died when he was shot many times in front of her by the IRA during the Christmas holidays. Following his death, Paula swore that she would never marry a soldier or policeman however she went on to meet and marry David, a member of the SAS. In 2006, he was shot and killed by the Taliban, leaving her with a baby daughter. It is 25 years since Steven was killed and Tracey has never publically spoken of her harrowing experience. In this episode, the sisters share with Hardeep their mutual experiences of widowhood, the differences in the aftermaths and the twists and turns their lives have taken since.

Producer: Helen Lee.


SUN 14:00 Gardeners' Question Time (b09k8vlr)
Essex

Eric Robson visits gardeners in Essex. Bob Flowerdew, Christine Walkden and Matt Biggs answer their questions.

This week, the panellists advise on getting the best out of parsnip crops, reviving a failing Acer, and waiting for the beautiful Frangipani tree to flower.

They also offer tips on Clematis "wilt" and what to do with spotty roses.

Bob Flowerdew delivers a masterclass in vine pruning and Peter Gibbs pays a visit to the impressive and ambitious Millennium Seed Bank at Wakehurst Place.

Produced by Dan Cocker
Assistant Producer: Hester Cant

A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4.


SUN 14:45 The Listening Project (b09kx84f)
Omnibus - Coming Clean

Fi Glover introduces conversations between a father and son, a mother and daughter, and between two friends, all of which bring past problems out into the open, 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 Drama (b09kx88y)
Graeae's Midwich Cuckoos, Episode 2

A bold new version of John Wyndham's science fiction classic by Graeae, a disabled led theatre company.

Jenny Sealey, Graeae's artistic director, has her own understanding of The Midwich Cuckoos, based on growing up feeling different and has cast deaf and disabled actors who also identify with the Cuckoos and what it is to be 'other' in society.

While being faithful to the original, this production brings a new sensitivity to the iconic novel, trying to grapple with the complexity of difference.

This brave modernisation is by award winning writer Roy Williams, with original music from composer Oliver Vibrans.

Episode 2
As the Cuckoos' extraordinary powers grow, so fears grow for their and the safety of others. Michaela is increasingly at loggerheads with her father over how to deal with the Cuckoos, as the stakes get higher.

Composer.....................................Oliver Vibrans
Co-directors...................................Polly Thomas and Jenny Sealey
Sound designer/Producer.................... Eloise Whitmore
Studio engineer...............................Lee Aston
Shadow writer................................Amy Bethan Evans
BSL interpreters..............................Ruth Andrews, Beverley Roberts, Tony Redshaw
Production coordinator.....................Sarah Kenny
Executive Producer..........................Joby Waldman

A Naked Productions/Graeae Theatre co-production for BBC Radio 4.


SUN 16:00 Bookclub (b09kx890)
Colin Thubron - In Siberia

James Naughtie and a group of readers talk to the renowned travel writer and novelist Colin Thubron about his account of travelling through Russia in the late 1990s, In Siberia.

It's the story of how Thubron made a 15,000-mile journey through an astonishing region - one twelfth of the land surface of the whole earth. He journeyed by train, river and truck among the people most damaged by the breakup of the Soviet Union, travelling among Buddhists and animists, radical Christian sects, reactionary Communists and the remnants of a so-called Jewish state; from the site of the last Czar's murder and Rasputin's village, to the ice-bound graves of ancient Scythians, to Baikal, the deepest and oldest of the world's lakes.

Presenter : James Naughtie
Interviewed guest : Colin Thubron
Producer : Dymphna Flynn

February's Bookclub choice : A Girl is a Half-formed Thing by Eimear McBride (2013).


SUN 16:30 In Pursuit of Edward Thomas (b08kxyks)

The poet Edward Thomas died at the Battle of Arras one hundred years ago on 9th April 1917. He'd been a poet for little more than two years and his collected works amount to only a slim volume. Nevertheless he is regarded as among the greatest of English poets. What made him so? Poet and editor, Matthew Hollis, follows a journey Thomas made by bike in the spring of 1913 from London into south west England. It was a journey that produced a prose book for Thomas, In Pursuit of Spring, but it was also a journey that turned him towards poetry. Producer: Tim Dee.


SUN 17:00 Germany Without Merkel (b09k6pn7)

How do young Germans, who've grown up in a reunified nation with Angela Merkel as Chancellor see the future? Anne McElvoy of The Economist, who was based in Berlin in the late eighties, teams up with Tilo Jung, a German video blogger, political journalist and millennial, to find out.

Born in the former East Germany, Tilo was a child when the Berlin Wall came down. He and Anne go back to his home town of Malchin to meet his family and friends.

They ask what next for Germany, potentially without Angela Merkel as Chancellor?

Producer: Caroline Bayley.


SUN 17:40 Profile (b09kpmhp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Saturday]


SUN 17:54 Shipping Forecast (b09kq127)

The latest shipping forecast.


SUN 17:57 Weather (b09kq129)

The latest weather forecast.


SUN 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b09kq12c)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


SUN 18:15 Pick of the Week (b09kq12f)
Jake Yapp

Broadcasters choose their BBC Radio highlights.


SUN 19:00 The Archers (b09kx89b)

Ruth has a difficult question to raise, and Roy takes umbrage.


SUN 19:15 The Break (b07ctt0z)
The Key

Welcome to Flamford, the setting for a new comedy series starring Philip Jackson, Tom Palmer and Alison Steadman.

In this first episode, Andy Chambers (Tom Palmer) - edgy, sharp-tongued City burn-out - has fled London for his Uncle Jeff's (Philip Jackson) seaside home. When we meet him, all Andy wants to do is sleep, but Jeff is having none of it.

Jeff gets Andy out of bed and gives him breakfast with the promise of an interesting surprise which is safely stowed in the shed. He suddenly realises his keys are missing - his friend Fat Sid borrowed the keys three years ago and hasn't given them back. Jeff leads Andy on a quest around Flamford for Fat Sid and the missing keys.

On their Odyssey they encounter Fish Shop Frank (Mark Benton) and his outré selection of fish, Pest Control Officer Corinne (Alison Steadman) with whom Jeff has an "understanding", and finally Fat Sid himself in an unexpected new role.

Writers: Ian Brown and James Hendrie

Producer/Director: Gordon Kennedy
An Absolutely production for BBC Radio 4.


SUN 19:45 The Reservoir Tapes (b09kx8b5)
Series 1, Joe's Story

'Think we can talk her into that walk?' Bertie Carvel concludes Costa Novel-winner Jon McGregor's gripping series.

Over 14 gripping weeks, The Reservoir Tapes has told the tales of those rocked by the strange disappearance of 13-year-old Becky Shaw on a midwinter walk in Peak District moors. In the final episode, Becky's father thinks back to the bittersweet hours before the fateful walk....

A prequel to Jon McGregor's critically acclaimed Costa Prize-winning novel Reservoir 13, these stories and their different perspectives offer tantalizing glimpses as to what might have happened to Becky.

Writer: Jon McGregor is an acclaimed British novelist. He recently won the Costa Book Award for Best Novel of 2017 for Reservoir 13. He has also been longlisted for the Man Booker Prize three times. His third novel, Even the Dogs, won the International Dublin Literary Award.
Reader: Bertie Carvel is an acclaimed stage and TV actor. His is currently starring as Rupert Murdoch in Ink in London's West End, and recently starred in TV's hit drama Doctor Foster.
Producer: Justine Willett.


SUN 20:00 Open Book (b09jvvnr)
David Walliams

In a special programme David Walliams talks about his life as a children's writer. He has enjoyed phenomenal success with his books, which include Gangsta Granny, Billionaire Boy and Mr Stink, and has sold millions of copies around the world. In this revealing and entertaining interview Walliams talks with Mariella Frostrup about his latest Bad Dad, the writers he admires and his relationship with his own father.


SUN 20:30 Last Word (b09k8vlw)

Matthew Bannister on

Maureen Baker who designed clothes for Princess Anne, including her Tudor inspired wedding dress.

Richard Cousins - the Chief Executive who transformed the fortunes of the world's biggest catering company Compass Group.

Lady Astor - the model who was caught up in the Profumo Affair.

Meic Povey - the Welsh playwright who also created award winning films and TV dramas.

Rick Hall who produced classic recordings by soul stars like Aretha Franklin, Wilson Pickett and Candi Staton in the town of Muscle Shoals Alabama.


SUN 21:00 Money Box (b09kplrg)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:04 on Saturday]


SUN 21:26 Radio 4 Appeal (b09kx83m)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:54 today]


SUN 21:30 In Business (b09k8ft6)
Diversifying Russia's Economy

Oil and gas are the backbone of Russia's economy and swings in energy prices can push the country from boom to bust. 80 per cent of the country's exports are directly related to hydro-carbons. So how successfully is Russia diversifying into new areas? As Caroline Bayley discovers, government money is supporting hi-tech start-ups and counter sanctions imposed by the government on food imports from the US and EU are helping the food sector. However, doing business in Russia is far from straightforward.

Producer: Kate Lamble.


SUN 22:00 Westminster Hour (b09kx8c2)

Weekly political discussion and analysis with MPs, experts and commentators.


SUN 23:00 The Film Programme (b09k8fs3)
Churchill in the movies; Rosamund Pike

With Francine Stock.

The Darkest Hour is the second bio-pic about Winston Churchill in 12 months. Director Joe Wright discusses our continuing fascination with Britain's most famous prime minister and reveals why he cast Gary Oldman in the lead role and why some people doubted his sanity when they heard the news.

Gone Girl star Rosamund Pike is in studio to discuss her role in gritty western Hostiles.

Sandra Hebron and Nadia Denton slug it out to get their chosen director into The Film Programme's A to Z of film-makers.


SUN 23:30 Something Understood (b09kq11j)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:05 today]



MONDAY 08 JANUARY 2018

MON 00:00 Midnight News (b09kq146)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.


MON 00:15 Thinking Allowed (b09k80tg)
The Housing Crisis, Squatting in Amsterdam

The housing crisis and beyond: Laurie Taylor talks to Anna Minton, Reader in Architecture at the University of East London & author of 'Big Capital: What Is Housing For?' and David Madden, Assistant Professor in Sociology at the LSE. They explore the way in which homes have come to be seen as sites of capital investment and accumulation rather than as places of shelter and security.
Also, the anthropologist, Nazima Kadir, discusses her study of the 'autonomous' life of politically motivated squatters in Amsterdam.

Producer: Jayne Egerton.


MON 00:45 Bells on Sunday (b09kx83h)
[Repeat of broadcast at 05:43 on Sunday]


MON 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b09kq148)

The latest shipping forecast.


MON 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b09kq14b)

MON 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b09kq14d)

The latest shipping forecast.


MON 05:30 News Briefing (b09kq14g)

The latest news from BBC Radio 4.


MON 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b09m36zk)

A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Monica M. Grady CBE, Professor of Planetary and Space Sciences.


MON 05:45 Farming Today (b09kq14j)

The latest news about food, farming and the countryside.


MON 05:56 Weather (b09kq14l)

The latest weather forecast for farmers.


MON 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b09kxq2m)
Andy Radford on the Curlew

Professor Andy Radford, a Behavioural Biologist at the University of Bristol recalls how the evocative cries of the Curlews on the Yorkshire Moors first captivated him as a child and inspired his interest in bird vocalisations.

Tweet of the Day has captivated the Radio 4 audience with its daily 90 seconds of birdsong. But what of the listener to this avian chorus? In this new series of Tweet of the Day, we bring to the airwaves the conversational voices of those who listen to and are inspired by birds. Building on the previous series, a more informal approach to learning alongside a renewed emphasis on encounter with nature and reflection in our relationship with the natural world.

Producer: Sarah Blunt
Photograph: Rachel Walker.


MON 06:00 Today (b09kq14n)

News and current affairs. Including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


MON 09:00 Start the Week (b09kxq2p)
Votes for Women

British women first got the vote a century ago this year. The social historian Jane Robinson tells Andrew Marr the suffrage movement is known for the actions of its militant wing and their call for 'deeds not words'. But thousands of ordinary women, known as suffragists, campaigned successfully to have their voices heard too. Political theorist Christopher Finlay asks whether violent political protest is ever justified, while the artist Peter Kennard explains how he was inspired by the protest movements in Europe in 1968 to infuse his works with politics. The writer Mary Shelley was born into a politically radical family, with an anarchist father and her mother the feminist Mary Wollstonecraft. On the 200th anniversary of her novel Frankenstein, the poet Fiona Sampson looks back at Shelley's radical life.


MON 09:45 Book of the Week (b09ltj8g)
Auntie's War, A War Footing

The BBC is a British institution unlike any other, and its story during the Second World War is also the story of Britain's people.

Writer and presenter Edward Stourton is a sharp-eyed and affectionate companion on the BBC's wartime journey, investigating archives, diaries, letters and memoirs to examine what the BBC was and what it stood for.

In this first episode, Ed describes how the BBC adapted to being on a war footing, the boredom of the Phoney War and the experiences of reporters sent to France.

These were the years when Auntie (the BBC's enduring nickname) earned a reputation for bossiness. It was also a period of remarkable voices - Churchill's fighting speeches de Gaulle's broadcasts from exile, George Orwell, Ed Murrow, Richard Dimbleby and Vera Lynn.

During these extraordinary times, eyewitness testimonies gave a voice to everyone, securing the BBC's reputation as a reliable purveyor of the truth.

Auntie's War is more than a portrait of an institution at a critical time, it is also a portrayal of the British in wartime and an insight into why we have our broadcast culture today.

Read by Edward Stourton
Abridged by Anna Magnusson
Produced by Pippa Vaughan
A Loftus production for BBC Radio 4.


MON 10:00 Woman's Hour (b09kq14q)

Programme that offers a female perspective on the world.


MON 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b09kxqv0)
Shardlake: Heartstone, Episode 6

CJ Sansom's Tudor mystery featuring lawyer-detective Matthew Shardlake.


MON 11:00 The Untold (b09kxrc8)
Jay-Z and Me

Grace Dent presents a series documenting the untold dramas of 21st-century Britain.


MON 11:30 Tom Wrigglesworth's Hang-Ups (b06pbwzh)
Series 3, Broadband on the Run

Episode 1, 'Broadband on the Run'. Tom and his Dad fret about some potentially uncomfortable brushes with the law while Mum prepares for the arrival of a new lodger.

Series 3 of the sitcom where Tom Wrigglesworth phones home for his weekly check-in with his Mum, Dad and Gran, giving listeners a glimpse into his family background and the influences that have shaped his temperament, opinions and hang-ups.

Starring Tom Wrigglesworth, Paul Copley, Kate Anthony, Elizabeth Bennett and Chris Pavlo.
Written by Tom Wrigglesworth and James Kettle with additional material by Miles Jupp
Produced by Richard Morris

A BBC Radio Comedy Production.


MON 12:00 News Summary (b09kq14t)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


MON 12:04 The Curious Cases of Rutherford & Fry (b09kxsds)
Series 8, The Baffled Bat

"Why don't thousands of bats in a cave get confused? How do they differentiate their own location echoes from those of other bats?" This puzzling problem was sent in to curiouscases@bbc.co.uk by Tim Beard from Hamburg in Germany.

Since ecolocation was first discovered, this question has perplexed biologists. Hannah turns bat detective to try and track down these elusive creatures at The Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in East London. This is where zoologist Kate Jones from University College London is using a network of smart sensors to find, identify and track wild bats.

John Ratcliffe from Toronto University chats bats and sonar with Adam to try and locate the answer. It's an unlikely tale involving gruesome early experiments, cunning electric fish and some surprising bat maths.

Send your Curious Cases for consideration to: curiouscases@bbc.co.uk

Presenters: Adam Rutherford, Hannah Fry
Producer: Michelle Martin.


MON 12:15 You and Yours (b09kq14w)

News and discussion of consumer affairs.


MON 12:57 Weather (b09m5xn9)

The latest weather forecast.


MON 13:00 World at One (b09kq14y)

Analysis of news and current affairs.


MON 13:45 Conflict and Co-operation: A History of Trade (b09kxsdv)
Series 1, The Black Death

As it advanced across Europe in the mid-14th century, the Black Death wiped out as many as half of the communities it affected. And yet, in its wake, there was a major resurgence in European trade, with long-lasting effects. Why? Paul Seabright explores the connections between trade and disease.

Producer: Chris Ledgard.


MON 14:00 The Archers (b09kx89b)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Sunday]


MON 14:15 Drama (b09kxsdx)
Stone, Episode 1

Stone Episode 1 by Martin Jameson.

Stone and the team investigate a fire at a homeless hostel run by charismatic charity leader Jackie Stanton-Hope. A body is found by forensics. But who is he?

Created by Danny Brocklehurst. Script Editor Caitlin Crawford.
Director Gary Brown. Producers Nadia Molinari & Gary Brown

DCI John Stone investigates the suspicious death of a man in a fire at a homeless hostel. Stone's enquiries lead him to re-examine a murder he worked on twenty years before in order to solve the case. In doing so he uncovers a web of lies and deceit that make him face past mistakes and lead to personal trauma.


MON 15:00 Round Britain Quiz (b09kxsdz)
Programme 8, 2017-18

(8/12)
Robert Muldoon's successor, Blue Sky's Oscar winner and Mozart's portraitist: why are they only different on the radio?

This is just one of the eight apparently impenetrable questions facing the Round Britain Quiz panellists this week, as Stephen Maddock and Rosalind Miles of the Midlands take on Stuart Maconie and Adele Geras of the North of England. Tom Sutcliffe is on hand to provide helpful steers where needed - but the more help the teams need, the more points they'll be docked.

As always, the programme includes some of the best recent question ideas sent in by listeners - and Tom will have the solution to the teaser he left unanswered at the end of last week's show.

Producer: Paul Bajoria.


MON 15:30 The Food Programme (b09kx846)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:32 on Sunday]


MON 16:00 Copyright or Wrong (b08md9xf)

Leading copyright lawyer and author Richard Taylor asks whether copyright is an analogue law in the digital age.

Everywhere we look, there are examples of copyright - from the music playing in stores to the images on billboards and the trainers we wear. And that is just in the real world. On the internet, users downloading music or posting images can infringe copyright on a daily basis without ever being aware.

Richard Taylor examines the problems with copyright law, revealing the cracks in the current system which can stifle artistic creation, manipulate our view of history and even put hurdles in the way of scientific development. He acknowledges the importance of copyright in recognising and rewarding authorship but questions at what point it becomes more about financial greed and control, with increasing ownership in the hands of big music labels, film companies and publishers.

US judge Alex Kozinski says, "Overprotecting intellectual property is as harmful as under protecting it. Nothing since we tamed fire is genuinely new, culture like technology, grows by accretion, each new creator building on the works of those who came before."

Rows over copyright are not new. In 1842, Charles Dickens, at the height of his fame, embarked on a lengthy tour of America, not to promote his books but to stop US publishers ripping him off. Dickens failed - and took his revenge in the American passages in Martin Chuzzlewit.

Dickens would be delighted at the growing enforcement of copyright law. In the early 1970s, Terry Gilliam borrowed hundreds of images and paintings for his famous Monty Python animations, yet in 1995 he discovered times had changed when making the film 12 Monkeys. A court stopped distribution of the film, concluding that Gilliam had based a set design on a copyrighted drawing. Gilliam also had to pay for a background appearance of Andy Warhol's Xerox of Da Vinci's Last Supper.

In today's digital age, ownership is more complicated and subject to different legislation in different countries. In France for example, a photograph of the Eiffel Tower lit up at night could infringe the copyright of the light show creators, even though a photo taken during the day is permissible because the architect has long since died.

More obvious are copyright infringements in music, art and written works. A recent US case sent shock waves through the music industry when a jury concluded parts of Blurred Lines by Robin Thicke were copied from Marvin Gaye's 1977 hit Got to Give It Up and ordered $7.4m be paid to Gaye's children. Forensic musicologist Peter Oxendale worked on the case and is on record condemning the verdict as appalling. The uncertainty around music copyright judgements has led to a mushrooming of his case load. He now gets hundreds of enquiries from music labels and singer song writers wanting him to check for possible copyright infringement before tracks are released.

The film industry also spends millions to pick their way through the copyright minefield. In the recent film Selma, however, the King Estate refused permission to use the speeches of Martin Luther King. The film's director was therefore forced to re-write his words.

In the programme, Richard interviews copyright experts, hunts down representative cases and talks to campaigners like Julia Reda MEP who calls for better copyright laws and clarity.

Presenter: Richard Taylor
Producer: Sara Parker
A TBI Media production for BBC Radio 4.


MON 16:30 The Infinite Monkey Cage (b09kxt28)
Series 17, When Two Stars Collide

When Two Stars Collide

Brian Cox and Robin Ince are joined on stage by comedian Dara O'Briain, Professor Sheila Rowan of Glasgow University and Professor Nils Andersson of Southampton University to look at last summer's spectacular discovery of gravitational waves from two colliding neutron stars. The observation of this huge cosmic event not only confirmed one of Einstein's great predictions, some 100 years ago, but also revealed the source of gold in our universe. Brian, Robin and guests look at how this momentous discovery brought together nearly 1/3 of the world's astronomers and astrophysicists as they raced to point their telescopes at the collision, but also confirmed the presence of gravitational waves, first predicted in Einstein's theory of general relativity back in 1915. They also discover why the source of our heavier elements such as gold and platinum has been so difficult to prove, until now.
Producer: Alexandra Feachem

The Infinite Monkey Cage book "How to Build A Universe (Part 1)" is out now and available to buy from all the usual places.


MON 17:00 PM (b09kq150)

Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.


MON 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b09kq152)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


MON 18:30 The Museum of Curiosity (b09kxt2b)
Series 12, Episode 1

This week, the Professor of Ignorance John Lloyd and his new curator Sally Phillips welcome the charmingly troublesome comedian Joe Lycett, the longest-serving female Blue Peter presenter Konnie Huq and a professor who knows why your life expectancy goes down as you travel eastwards on the Jubilee Line, Tom Shakespeare.

This week, the Museum's Guest Committee discover why watching a woman called Maria folding towels can be bliss, how one little plastic badge came to mean so much and how the French Revolution turned on four wheels.

The show was researched by Mike Turner.

The Associate Producer was James Harkin.

The Producers were Richard Turner and Anne Miller.


MON 19:00 The Archers (b09kxt2d)

Brian makes a controversial decision, and Pip faces the inevitable.


MON 19:15 Front Row (b09kq154)

Arts news, interviews and reviews.


MON 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b09kxqv0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:45 today]


MON 20:00 Cameron Years (b09kxt2g)
Series 1, Episode 1

The political columnist and broadcaster Steve Richards presents a major series looking back on David Cameron's dramatic years in power, through interviews with high-profile insiders. How did Mr Cameron go from promising not to "bang on about Europe" to being brought down by it? What is the significance of Brexit in his overall record and legacy? We look back on the other seismic events of his leadership - the first peacetime coalition government in nearly a century, the stewardship of the economy in the aftermath of a massive financial crash, the narrowly avoided constitutional crisis of the Scotland independence referendum, the 2015 general election victory against the odds.

We examine how far David Cameron succeeded with his self-proclaimed mission to modernise the Conservative party and its thinking. And we explore the legacy of his politics and leadership for the struggles Theresa May's government is grappling with today.

Part One explores the European issue which overwhelmed the Cameron years and continues to engulf British politics, describing the dramatic journey which led up to the 2016 referendum and Britain's exit from the European Union. We explore Cameron's own views about the European Union and uncover new insights and stories about key moments, such as Cameron's arduous and ultimately doomed attempt to renegotiate Britain's relationship with Europe.

Interviewees in the series overall include major players in the Cameron story, both friends and critics, including Craig Oliver, Oliver Letwin, Nicky Morgan, George Eustice, Nick Boles, Ed Vaizey, Camilla Cavendish, Gabby Bertin, Jacob Rees-Mogg, Iain Duncan Smith, Ken Clarke, Nigel Farage, David Blunkett and Vince Cable.

Producer: Leala Padmanabhan
Executive Producer: Martin Rosenbaum.


MON 20:30 Crossing Continents (b09k894l)
Black and Proud in Brazil

For decades, Brazil has presented itself as a colour-blind nation in which most citizens are, at least to some extent, racially mixed. But a controversial education law is encouraging black Brazilians to assert their own distinct identity. Federal public universities now have to comply with government quotas for black students, as well as others deemed to be at risk of discrimination. Yet, since the rules allow applicants to self-define their colour, there have been numerous alleged frauds, and some universities are now creating inspection boards to assess students based on whether they appear phenotypically black. On the political right, there's a backlash among those who say the quotas are divisive and even racist. While some people of mixed race complain that they are 'not black enough'. But many black Brazilians themselves say they finally have a reason to acknowledge their ethnicity in a country where privilege all too often belongs to those of European descent. For Crossing Continents, David Baker reports on an issue that is at the heart of what it means to be black in Brazil.

Michael Gallagher producing.


MON 21:00 The Far Future (b09k6jdj)

How do we prepare for the distant future? Helen Keen meets the people who try to.

If our tech society continues then we can leave data for future generations in huge, mundane quantities, detailing our every tweet and Facebook 'like'. But how long could this information be stored? And if society as we know it ends, will our achievements vanish with it? How do we plan for and protect those who will be our distant descendants and yet may have hopes, fears, languages, beliefs, even religions that we simply cannot predict? What if anything can we, should we, pass on?


MON 21:30 Start the Week (b09kxq2p)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


MON 22:00 The World Tonight (b09kq156)

In-depth reporting and analysis from a global perspective.


MON 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b09kxtdb)
The Vital Spark: A Far Cry from Kensington, Episode 1

Muriel Spark's playful and autobiographical novel set amid London's post-war publishing scene.
War widow Mrs Hawkins enjoys her life; her rooms suit her, she cherishes good friends and holds a coveted job working with books. But when an author starts to make a nuisance of himself, her life will change beyond recognition.
Read by Maggie Service
Abridged by Rosemary Goring
Producer: Eilidh McCreadie.


MON 23:00 The Strange Case of Henry James' Testicles (b08zc0r3)

What was the nature of the "horrid... obscure hurt" which befell Henry James on the night of October 28th 1861, and how did it influence his literary career?
In October 1861 the 18 year old Henry James was working as a fireman, and was called to battle a blaze at the West Stables in Newport Rhode Island. There, while putting out the fire, he suffered an injury, referred to in his autobiography as a "horrid... obscure hurt." James scholars have been divided ever since on whether James injured his back, or, more painfully,suffered an injury to his testicles.
Is the story of the "obscure hurt" a fiction as profound as any of James' novels or a real wound which gives us an insight into the life long bachelor's intimate life?
Professor John Sutherland investigates.


MON 23:30 Today in Parliament (b09kxt2j)

News from Westminster.



TUESDAY 09 JANUARY 2018

TUE 00:00 Midnight News (b09kq17m)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.


TUE 00:30 Book of the Week (b09ltj8g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Monday]


TUE 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b09kq17p)

The latest shipping forecast.


TUE 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b09kq17r)

TUE 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b09kq17t)

The latest shipping forecast.


TUE 05:30 News Briefing (b09kq17w)

The latest news from BBC Radio 4.


TUE 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b09m4x7s)

A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Monica M. Grady CBE, Professor of Planetary and Space Sciences.


TUE 05:45 Farming Today (b09kq17y)

The latest news about food, farming and the countryside.


TUE 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b09l02hs)
Andy Radford on the Robin

The variety of sounds produced by Robins has long fascinated Professor Andy Radford, a Behavioural Biologist at the University of Bristol.

Tweet of the Day has captivated the Radio 4 audience with its daily 90 seconds of birdsong. But what of the listener to this avian chorus? In this new series of Tweet of the Day, we bring to the airwaves the conversational voices of those who listen to and are inspired by birds. Building on the previous series, a more informal approach to learning alongside a renewed emphasis on encounter with nature and reflection in our relationship with the natural world.

Producer: Sarah Blunt
Photograph: Laurie Robinson.


TUE 06:00 Today (b09kq180)

News and current affairs. Including Yesterday in Parliament, Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


TUE 09:00 Black Music in Europe: A Hidden History (b09l02hv)
Series 1, 1920-1930

The Wire's Clarke Peters draws on a rare collection of archive recordings to explore a forgotten musical history.

Received wisdom has it that black popular music arrived in Europe with the Empire Windrush in 1948, but Clarke brings us black sounds recorded in Europe from as far back as 1900.

Focusing on early commercial discs made in the recording studios of London, Paris and Berlin, we hear from dozens of different performers, including African American travelling entertainers, traditional African musicians, black British classical composers and more.

Episode 3 - 1920-1930
Clarke explores the sounds of Zonophone records, a pioneering label that recorded a huge amount of early African popular music. Many of these discs were made in London for export to West Africa, including several Nigerian hymns recorded in 1922 by Fela Kuti's grandfather. The programme also includes the sounds of African American jazz in 1920s Paris, especially the work of Josephine Baker, the world's first black superstar.

Much of the music in this series is drawn from Black Europe, a vast boxset issued by Bear Family Records and documenting the sounds of the era.
With readings by Paterson Joseph.

Produced by Tom Woolfenden
A Loftus Media production for BBC Radio 4.


TUE 09:30 One to One (b09l039m)
Dame Kelly Holmes talks to Helen Glover

The Olympic rower, Helen Glover, speaks to Dame Kelly Holmes about 'life after gold' - how to cope after retiring from sport.

Helen Glover is one of our most successful athletes; in a life devoted to rowing she's won a phenomenal 21 Olympic, World and European gold medals. But now that she's considering retirement, a future away from competitive rowing seems as daunting as it is liberating. She worries that, in her early 30s, her best days could be behind her. So, for this series, she is speaking to athletes who have already made the transition away from professional sport. In this programme, Dame Kelly Holmes tells her how she rebuilt her life and her identity.

Producer Karen Gregor.


TUE 09:45 Book of the Week (b09ltkkj)
Auntie's War, Wartime Propaganda

The BBC is a British institution unlike any other, and its story during the Second World War is also the story of Britain's people.

Writer and presenter Edward Stourton is a sharp-eyed and affectionate companion on the BBC's wartime journey, investigating archives, diaries, letters and memoirs to examine what the BBC was and what it stood for.

In this second episode, Ed investigates propaganda, coded messages sent across Europe, and relaying less than truthful information to the enemy.

These were the years when Auntie (the BBC's enduring nickname) earned a reputation for bossiness. It was also a period of remarkable voices - Churchill's fighting speeches de Gaulle's broadcasts from exile, George Orwell, Ed Murrow, Richard Dimbleby and Vera Lynn.

During these extraordinary times, eyewitness testimonies gave a voice to everyone, securing the BBC's reputation as a reliable purveyor of the truth.

Auntie's War is more than a portrait of an institution at a critical time, it is also a portrayal of the British in wartime and an insight into why we have our broadcast culture today.

Read by Edward Stourton
Abridged by Anna Magnusson
Produced by Pippa Vaughan
A Loftus production for BBC Radio 4.


TUE 10:00 Woman's Hour (b09kq182)

Programme that offers a female perspective on the world.


TUE 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b09l039p)
Shardlake: Heartstone, Episode 7

CJ Sansom's Tudor mystery featuring lawyer-detective Matthew Shardlake.


TUE 11:00 Too Much Medicine? The Problem of Overtreatment (b091v271)

Dr Margaret McCartney investigates the controversy of medicine's search for traces of disease in people who would otherwise never know about them, or suffer any ill effects.

There's growing world-wide concern about the extent to which screening programmes and advanced diagnostic tools are finding signs of serious diseases, particularly cancer, in people who are outwardly healthy. For example, in South Korea, a mass screening programme for thyroid cancer has detected 15 times more cases than before it started - yet there's been no improvement in death rates from the disease.

The fundamental problem is that the harder doctors look for disease in people who are apparently well, the more they will find. Yet most of it will never matter to those people.

As a result, there is a movement towards Slow Medicine - echoing Italy's Slow Food campaign - that puts more emphasis on shared decision-making between doctor and patient, not always prescribing every possible test and treatment, and keeping people "in the kingdom of the well" as long as possible, rather than moving them prematurely into "the kingdom of the sick".

Presented by Dr Margaret McCarney
Produced by Mike Hally
A Square Dog Radio production for BBC Radio 4.


TUE 11:30 Tales From the Stave (b09l039r)
Series 16, Delius - On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring

Frances Fyfield ends this series of Tales from the Stave with a look forward to the new year in the form of Delius' orchestral favourite 'On Hearing The First Cuckoo In Spring'. Now one of the most popular pieces in the British music repertoire it began life as one of two pieces for small orchestra. The melody has its origins in a Norwegian Folk song set by Delius' friend Edvard Grieg. All that we have left of Delius manuscript is a few pages of detailed sketch material. The final manuscript was sent to Germany for publication in Germany in 1912 and was lost. Frances is joined by the conductor Alice Farnham, the scholar Nigel Simeone and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra Clarinettist Joanna Patton.

Producer: Tom Alban.


TUE 12:00 News Summary (b09kq184)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


TUE 12:04 The Curious Cases of Rutherford & Fry (b09l039t)
Series 8, The Dreadful Vegetable

"Why don't children like vegetables?" asks Penny Young from Croydon, and every parent ever.

This week Rutherford and Fry dig into the science of taste and discover that there may be more to this question than meets the eye.

Children and adults have a different taste experience when they eat the same foods. When you're young, foods can taste saltier and more bitter. What's more, as Jackie Blisset, Professor of Childhood Eating Behaviour explains, there are even evolutionary reasons why toddlers avoid vegetables.

For most children it's a phase, but a minority of adults are also labelled as fussy eaters. According to food psychologist Linda Bartoshuk, they are probably what's known as 'supertasters'.

Supertasters live in a neon taste world where vegetables are more bitter, and chillies are unbearably hot.

Adam sets out on a quest to find potential supertasters in the Radio 4 offices. First stop, the Today programme where Nick Robinson and Sarah Montague become his experimental guinea pigs, with surprising results.

Send your questions for consideration to: curiouscases@bbc.co.uk

Presenters: Hannah Fry, Adam Rutherford
Producer: Michelle Martin.


TUE 12:15 You and Yours (b09kq186)

Consumer affairs programme.


TUE 12:57 Weather (b09kq188)

The latest weather forecast.


TUE 13:00 World at One (b09kq18b)

Analysis of news and current affairs.


TUE 13:45 Conflict and Co-operation: A History of Trade (b09l066j)
Series 1, When Cultures Collide

When Captain Cook arrived in New Zealand waters in 1769, his sailors and the Maori who met them began to trade almost immediately. When two civilizations meet, trade has a major role to play - for good and for bad. Paul Seabright investigates the cultural impact of trade. And, in a story from China, he hears how the social consequences of trade contacts made many centuries ago can still be seen today.

Producer: Chris Ledgard.


TUE 14:00 The Archers (b09kxt2d)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Monday]


TUE 14:15 Drama (b09l0673)
Stone, Episode 2

Stone - Episode 2. By Martin Jameson
The team investigate the homeless charity and also the background of the victim. Who would want to do him harm? Meanwhile Stone's daughter Alice starts to act out of character.

Created by Danny Brocklehurst. Script Editor Caitlin Crawford. Director Gary Brown. Producers Nadia Molinari and Gary Brown

DCI John Stone investigates the suspicious death of a man in a fire at a homeless hostel. Stone's enquiries lead him to re-examine a murder he worked on twenty years before in order to solve the case. In doing so he uncovers a web of lies and deceit that make him face past mistakes and lead to personal trauma.


TUE 15:00 The Kitchen Cabinet (b09kplfs)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:30 on Saturday]


TUE 15:30 Making History (b09l067w)
Acid Attacks

Helen Castor is in the chair for this edition of the long-running history magazine programme. Today, she's joined by the historian of Victorian sex, suffrage and entertainment, Dr Fern Riddell - along with an expert on Victorian and Edwardian humour, Dr Bob Nicholson of Edge Hill University in Lancashire.

Making History reporter Hester Cant braves the streets of north London with Fern Riddell to dig into the nasty past of acid attacks on the capital's streets, and a nineteenth century scare that became actor murdering mania.

Iszi Lawrence takes to the jiu jitsu mat with historian Naomi Paxton to discover how and why the suffragettes embraced this martial art.

Tom Holland has a tale that's hot off the historical presses.

And the Cornwall village of Linkinhorne comes under the spotlight when it enters the jeux sans frontières of history competitions, Top Town History.

Producer: Nick Patrick
A Pier production for BBC Radio 4.


TUE 16:00 The Arts of Life (b092pp65)

The broadcaster Roger Hill goes to Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham and the North East of England, to see what art can do for people and communities facing some of life's toughest challenges. Roger revisits some of the ideas he explored 25 years ago when he was asked to produce a report on what he called The Arts of Life - the way in which art, in its widest sense, can enrich and inspire people who are really up against it. A quarter of a century on he sets out to see how the Arts of Life are working now. He travels to a homeless centre in Manchester, an HIV support group in Liverpool, a community project for young people in Birmingham and the town of Easington in the North East of England, which has spent the last decades dealing with the loss of its coal mine.

Producer: Nicola Swords.


TUE 16:30 Great Lives (b09l068g)
Series 44, Gisela Stuart on Joseph Chamberlain

Gisela Stuart, the former Member of Parliament for Birmingham Edgbaston makes the case for Joseph Chamberlain to be nominated as her great life.
But can she really make the case for this former industrialist who made it to the cabinet but had a knack for splitting political parties and switching allegiances?

Jo Chamberlain was first a Liberal then a Liberal Unionist and finally formed an alliance with the Conservative party but fell out with them too.
Gisela argues he was a man who wasn't afraid to take action, a radical who shouldn't simply be remembered for his failures but as "the man who made the weather" and for making Birmingham the best governed city in the world.

The expert witness is Peter Marsh, Honorary Professor of History at the University of Birmingham and author of 'Joseph Chamberlain, Entrepreneur in Politics.' Matthew Parris is the presenter and the producer is Perminder Khatkar.


TUE 17:00 PM (b09kq18d)

Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.


TUE 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b09kq18g)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


TUE 18:30 Mark Steel's in Town (b09l068v)
Series 8, Ventnor

Mark Steel's In Town - Ventnor on The Isle of Wight

Mark Steel returns to Radio 4 with the 8th series of his award winning show that travels around the country visiting towns that have nothing in common but their uniqueness. After thoroughly researching each town, Mark writes and performs a bespoke evening of comedy for the local residents.

In the final episode in the series Mark visits Ventnor on The Isle of Wight and performs at the Winter Gardens, the venue of his first ever gig when he got up and told some jokes in a talent contest on a childhood holiday.

Ventor has a microclimate, subsidence, and the residents claim that on some days they can see France reflected upside down in the sky.

Written and performed by ... Mark Steel
Additional material by ... Pete Sinclair
Production co-ordinator ... Hayley Sterling
Sound Manager ... Jerry Peal
Producer ... Carl Cooper

Picture Credit ... Tom Stanier

This is a BBC Studio Production.


TUE 19:00 The Archers (b09l068x)

Jill is left stunned, while Lexi considers her options.


TUE 19:15 Front Row (b09kq18j)

Arts news, interviews and reviews.


TUE 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b09l039p)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:45 today]


TUE 20:00 The Dawn of British Jihad (b09l06nt)

Before 9/11 British attitudes to partaking in faith-inspired armed combat were... different.

British Muslims travelled freely to fight in countries like Afghanistan, Bosnia and Burma for a few weeks or months, and then returned home to their day jobs or studies - no questions asked.

In turn, renowned Islamic militants from overseas freely toured British mosques, spreading the word about the honour of fighting a holy war, recruiting fighters and raising money.

Many of the 'pioneers' who first went to fight came from Britain's Salafi community - followers of a strict, conservative interpretation of Islam.

In this programme, Mobeen Azhar sheds light on the people and organisations involved in this early wave of British Jihadis, revealed in reports featured in magazines published by Lashka-e-Taiba - the terrorist group behind the 2008 Mumbai attacks.

Within its pages are detailed reports on how its leader Hafiz Saeed came to Britain in the mid-90s to spread the word on fighting a holy war, find recruits and raise money. The programme hears from those who answered his call - the British Muslims who built bridges with militant groups in South Asia.

Since 9/11 the Salafis - sometimes known as Wahabbis - have often been named as the key influencers in the global jihad movement, but is that tag really fair?

Importantly, this programme also explores the nuances of Salafism and reveal how this early period of British Jihad was itself hugely divisive within the British Salafi community, creating a schism between a peaceful pious majority, and those who chose to take up arms.

Producers: Richard Fenton-Smith & Sajid Iqbal.


TUE 20:40 In Touch (b09kq18l)

News, views and information for people who are blind or partially sighted.


TUE 21:00 Inside Health (b09l06vv)

Dr Mark Porter presents a series on health issues.


TUE 21:30 Black Music in Europe: A Hidden History (b09l02hv)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


TUE 22:00 The World Tonight (b09kq18n)

In-depth reporting and analysis from a global perspective.


TUE 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b09m6cy1)
The Vital Spark: A Far Cry from Kensington, Episode 2

Muriel Spark's playful and autobiographical novel set amid London's post-war publishing scene.
War widow Mrs Hawkins' future prospects look uncertain as the Ullswater Press falters: meanwhile there are more pressing problems close to home.
Read by Maggie Service
Abridged by Rosemary Goring
Producer: Eilidh McCreadie.


TUE 23:00 The Infinite Monkey Cage (b09kxt28)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:30 on Monday]


TUE 23:30 Today in Parliament (b09l0709)

News from Westminster.



WEDNESDAY 10 JANUARY 2018

WED 00:00 Midnight News (b09kq1bg)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.


WED 00:30 Book of the Week (b09ltkkj)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Tuesday]


WED 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b09kq1bj)

The latest shipping forecast.


WED 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b09kq1bl)

WED 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b09kq1bq)

The latest shipping forecast.


WED 05:30 News Briefing (b09kq1bs)

The latest news from BBC Radio 4.


WED 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b09m7fhm)

A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Monica M. Grady CBE, Professor of Planetary and Space Sciences.


WED 05:45 Farming Today (b09kq1bx)

The latest news about food, farming and the countryside.


WED 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b09l07lh)
Andy Radford on the Superb Fairy Wren

Professor Andy Radford, a Behavourial Biologist at the University of Bristol describes the fascinating abilities of Superb Fairy Wrens to recognise the alarm calls of other species and use this skill to their own advantage.

Tweet of the Day has captivated the Radio 4 audience with its daily 90 seconds of birdsong. But what of the listener to this avian chorus? In this new series of Tweet of the Day, we bring to the airwaves the conversational voices of those who listen to and are inspired by birds. Building on the previous series, a more informal approach to learning alongside a renewed emphasis on encounter with nature and reflection in our relationship with the natural world.

Producer: Sarah Blunt
Photograph: David Munro.


WED 06:00 Today (b09kq1c2)

Morning news and current affairs. Including Yesterday in Parliament, Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


WED 09:00 Soul Music (b09l07ly)
Series 25, 10/01/2018

J.S Bach wrote his cantata Ich Habe Genug for the Feast of the Purification of Mary to be performed in Leipzig on 2nd February 1727. The work is a retelling of the story of the old man Simeon who, waiting in the temple, was presented with the baby Jesus. As he held the baby in his arms, in Bach's version he says:
It is enough.

I have held the Saviour, the hope of all peoples,
In the warm embrace of my arms.
It is enough.

In this edition of Soul Music, oboist George Caird recalls playing Ich Habe Genug at his father's funeral. Theologian Paula Gooder recalls the effect of putting her new born baby into the arms of an elderly relative. Danish music therapist Lars Ole Bonde tells how this music provided vital solace for him as a teenager growing up with a father suffering from depression. American Susan Dray remembers how the Cantata helped her when she was grieving for her baby. And tenor Ian Bostridge wonders why we never feel that we have "enough".

Producer: Rosie Boulton.


WED 09:30 The Ideas That Make Us (b07mwqfk)
Series 4, Character

Bettany Hughes considers changing ideas about character at an ancient Greek palace, in a library, at a political think-tank, in a centre of neuroscience and in a prison kitchen.

This surprising and invigorating history of the most influential ideas in the story of civilisation, has been described as 'a double espresso shot of philosophy, history, science and the arts'. Award-winning historian and broadcaster Bettany Hughes begins each programme with the first, extant evidence of a single word-idea in Ancient Greek culture and travels both forwards and backwards in time, investigating how these ideas have been moulded by history, and how they've shaped us.

In this programme Bettany explores character with experts from the humanities and sciences, people who see these big philosophical ideas playing out in their own lives including archaeologist Michael Cosmopoulos, writer and historian Hannah Dawson, classicist Paul Cartledge and neuroscientist Patrick Haggard. Bettany travels to a major new archaeological excavation Greece to see where these ideas were born and then explores the street markets, churches, offices and homes where they continue to morph and influence our daily lives, including the Fellows' Library At Clare college in Cambridge, The Adam Smith Institute in Westminster and the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience at University College London.

Other ideas in this series are harmony, narcissism, technology and hubris. Ideas examined previously include idea, desire, agony, fame, justice, wisdom, comedy, liberty, peace, hospitality, virtue, psyche, charisma, irony and nemesis.

Readings: Sean Baker

Series Producer: Dixi Stewart.


WED 09:45 Book of the Week (b09ltkpj)
Auntie's War, Remarkable Voices

The BBC is a British institution unlike any other, and its story during the Second World War is also the story of Britain's people.

Writer and presenter Edward Stourton is a sharp-eyed and affectionate companion on the BBC's wartime journey, investigating archives, diaries, letters and memoirs to examine what the BBC was and what it stood for.

In episode three, General de Gaulle rallies the French from London and US journalists arrive to report the Blitz.

These were the years when Auntie (the BBC's enduring nickname) earned a reputation for bossiness. It was also a period of remarkable voices - Churchill's fighting speeches de Gaulle's broadcasts from exile, George Orwell, Ed Murrow, Richard Dimbleby and Vera Lynn.

During these extraordinary times, eyewitness testimonies gave a voice to everyone, securing the BBC's reputation as a reliable purveyor of the truth.

Auntie's War is more than a portrait of an institution at a critical time, it is also a portrayal of the British in wartime and an insight into why we have our broadcast culture today.

Read by Edward Stourton
Abridged by Anna Magnusson
Produced by Pippa Vaughan
A Loftus production for BBC Radio 4.


WED 10:00 Woman's Hour (b09kq1c4)

Programme that offers a female perspective on the world.


WED 10:41 15 Minute Drama (b09l0blf)
Shardlake: Heartstone, Episode 8

CJ Sansom's Tudor mystery featuring lawyer-detective Matthew Shardlake.


WED 10:55 The Listening Project (b08w11zh)
Brandon and Sarok - Keeping Out of Trouble

When you're in Year 5 learning is a serious business and it's important to avoid distractions. Fi Glover presents another conversation in the series that proves it's surprising what you hear when you listen.

Producer: Marya Burgess.


WED 11:00 Cameron Years (b09kxt2g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 20:00 on Monday]


WED 11:30 Chain Reaction (b071vkwl)
Series 11, Al Murray interviews Ian Hislop

Series 11 of the show where one week's interviewee becomes the next week's interviewer. The first episode of Chain Reaction was broadcast on BBC Radio Five in 1991 when John Cleese was the first comedian in the hot seat. Now, 25 years on, a new series sees another raft of the world's best-loved comedians talking to each other about their lives and work. This week, Pub Landlord creator, Al Murray passes the baton to the comedian and satirist Ian Hislop.

After an early foray into stand-up as a character called 'The Murderer', Al Murray created his famous Pub Landlord character in the mid nineties as part of a touring show with Harry Hill. The Pub Landlord went on to tour venues and festivals worldwide before making his own chat show and sitcom for Sky. Outside of the Pub Landlord, Al is well known as a presenter of history documentaries and more recently as a candidate for parliament when he stood against Nigel Farage in South Thanet during the UK General Election of 2015.

Al's guest Ian Hislop is much more used to the cut and thrust of British politics both as a long-standing team captain on 'Have I Got News for You' and as the editor of satirical magazine Private Eye. As a dedicated fan and student of history, he has made several acclaimed documentaries on wide-ranging subjects including conscientious objectors and The Beeching Report.

Al grills Ian on his early days writing for such comedians as Harry Enfield, asks how we should define the role of the satirist and poses the intriguing question, 'what's it like being sued?'

Producer: Richard Morris
A BBC Radio Comedy Production.


WED 12:00 News Summary (b09kq1c6)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


WED 12:04 The Curious Cases of Rutherford & Fry (b09l0c35)
Series 8, The Cosmic Speed Limit

"We often read that the fastest thing in the Universe is the speed of light. Why do we have this limitation and can anything possibly be faster?" Ali Alshareef from Qatif in Saudia Arabia emailed curiouscases@bbc.co.uk with this puzzling problem.

The team grapples with Einstein's Special Theory of Relativity, with help from cosmologist Andrew Pontzen and a British train, travelling somewhat slower than the speed of light.

Plus physicist and presenter Jim Al-Khalili describes how he nearly lost his boxer shorts in a daring bet concerning the speed of subatomic particles.

Send your questions for consideration to: curiouscases@bbc.co.uk

Presenters: Adam Rutherford, Hannah Fry
Producer: Michelle Martin.


WED 12:15 You and Yours (b09kq1c8)

Consumer affairs programme.


WED 12:57 Weather (b09kq1cb)

The latest weather forecast.


WED 13:00 World at One (b09kq1cd)

Analysis of news and current affairs.


WED 13:45 Conflict and Co-operation: A History of Trade (b09l0cby)
Series 1, The Box

If there's one innovation that deserves a chapter to itself in the modern history of trade, it's the shipping container. Paul Seabright explores the story of the humble metal box, how it took years for it to become the shape it is today, and why it has had such an impact.

Producer: Chris Ledgard.


WED 14:00 The Archers (b09l068x)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Tuesday]


WED 14:15 Drama (b09l0cc0)
Stone, Episode 3

Stone Episode 3 by Richard Monks.

Following a suspicious death in a fire at a homeless hostel, DCI Stone has to track down the victim's next of kin. When the victim's father is pulled in for questioning Stone probes into the complex relationship they had but Stone's ongoing problems with his daughter lead him to some soul searching of his own.

Written by Richard Monks
Created by Danny Brocklehurst
Script Editor Caitlin Crawford
Director Nadia Molinari
Producers Gary Brown and Nadia Molinari

DCI John Stone investigates the suspicious death of a man in a fire at a homeless hostel. Stone's enquiries lead him to re-examine a murder he worked on twenty years before in order to solve the case. In doing so he uncovers a web of lies and deceit that make him face past mistakes and lead to personal trauma.


WED 15:00 Money Box (b09kq1cg)
Money Box Live

Financial phone-in.


WED 15:30 Inside Health (b09l06vv)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 on Tuesday]


WED 16:00 Thinking Allowed (b09l0cc2)

Sociological discussion programme, presented by Laurie Taylor.


WED 16:30 The Media Show (b09kq1cj)

Topical programme about the fast-changing media world.


WED 17:00 PM (b09kq1cl)

Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.


WED 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b09kq1cp)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


WED 18:30 Angstrom (b09l0ds8)
Series 1, The Man Who Wasn't Dead

Matthew Holness stars as Knut Ångström, a brooding, alcoholic, maverick Swedish detective from the tough streets of Oslo, in a Scandinavian detective yarn adapted from the bestselling Ångström trilogy by Martin English (writing as Bjorgen Swedenssonsson).

Following the death of his wife, Ångström is posted to the Njalsland peninsula where he becomes embroiled in a labyrinthine murder (or possibly not-murder) case which bears an eerie similarity to the Askeladden killings - a case from his distant past.

In episode 1, a body goes missing from a crime scene. But was it ever even there in the first place?

A new comedy series by writers of the Ladybird Books for Grown Ups, Charlie Brooker's ...Wipe, That Mitchell and Webb Look and A Touch of Cloth.

Written by Joel Morris and Jason Hazeley
Cast: Matthew Holness, Nadia Kamil, Simon Kane, Morgana Robinson, David Reed, Freya Parker.
Production Co-ordinator: Tamara Shilham
Produced by Lyndsay Fenner

A BBC Studios production.


WED 19:00 The Archers (b09l0ccb)

Susan's hopes are dashed, while David tries to swallow his pride.


WED 19:15 Front Row (b09kq1cv)

Arts news, interviews and reviews.


WED 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b09l0blf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:41 today]


WED 20:00 Across the Red Line (b09l0dx7)
Series 1, 10/01/2018

Anne McElvoy is joined by two figures on opposed sides of a political issue. Working with conflict resolution specialist Gabrielle Rifkind, she invites them to listen to each other.


WED 20:45 Four Thought (b09l0dx9)
Gardening, Roses and Cultural Identity

Talks with a personal dimension.


WED 21:00 A Little Lateral Thinking (b08xcvq9)

Fifty years ago, Edward de Bono coined the term "lateral thinking". From Blair to Branson, the Eurythmics to Gorbachev, de Bono's influence has been impressive. Stephen Smith dons his lateral thinking cap to ask how this concept - berated by many for its intellectual scope - has become a by-word for creativity.

Producer: Adele Armstrong.


WED 21:30 Soul Music (b09l07ly)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


WED 22:00 The World Tonight (b09kq1cz)

In-depth reporting and analysis from a global perspective.


WED 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b09m7fhp)
The Vital Spark: A Far Cry from Kensington, Episode 3

Muriel Spark's playful and autobiographical novel set amid London's post-war publishing scene.

War widow Mrs Hawkins is perturbed by the poison pen letter sent to neighbour Wanda. However a problem with her beloved career is about to eclipse all other issues.

Read by Maggie Service
Abridged by Rosemary Goring
Producer: Eilidh McCreadie.


WED 23:00 Life on Egg (b09l0fqz)
Series 1, Stand-In

When Peter is sent back to the mainland to undergo some urgent diversity training, Harry and Ann are given a replacement guard by The Minister. Warder Leo Hatchet is a tough, uncompriomising new screw and soon makes his mark on the prison's regime. But in doing so, has he destroyed The Egg's ambiance? And what about Peter? Will The Minister allow him to return to The Egg, if Hatchet's already doing his job quicker and better?

Written by Dan Maier

Produced by Sam Michell

It is a production from BBC Studios.


WED 23:15 The East Coast Listening Post (b09l0fr1)
Series 1, Empire

In the final episode of the series, Jenna and Dana travel meet self-made business woman and strip-club mogul, Jackie Sanchez. Jackie has built an empire from scratch, but empires raise complicated questions of legacy.

The sisters observe the strained relationship between Jackie and her daughter Big T. Jenna finally suffers the crisis of confidence that's been building all series. This crisis is soon overpowered by a tragedy no one sees coming; a tragedy that will deal with the question of legacy sooner than expected...

The East Coast Listening Post was written and performed by Celeste Dring and Freya Parker, with performances from David Elms and Sally Lindsay. The original score was composed by Owain Roberts. The script editor was Matthew Crosby. The production co-ordinator was Steve Lanham.

The East Coast Listening Post was produced by Suzy Grant for BBC Studios Scripted Comedy.


WED 23:30 Today in Parliament (b09l0fr3)

News from Westminster.



THURSDAY 11 JANUARY 2018

THU 00:00 Midnight News (b09kq1gc)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.


THU 00:30 Book of the Week (b09ltkpj)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Wednesday]


THU 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b09kq1gf)

The latest shipping forecast.


THU 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b09kq1gh)

THU 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b09kq1gk)

The latest shipping forecast.


THU 05:30 News Briefing (b09kq1gm)

The latest news from BBC Radio 4.


THU 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b09m7mhq)

A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Monica M. Grady CBE, Professor of Planetary and Space Sciences.


THU 05:45 Farming Today (b09kq1gp)

The latest news about food, farming and the countryside.


THU 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b09l1tfm)
Andy Radford on the Pied Babbler

Professor Andy Radford, a Behavioural Biologist at the University of Bristol describes how the Pied Babbler uses the Watchman's song in its role as a sentry whilst the rest of the flock forage for food on the ground.

Tweet of the Day has captivated the Radio 4 audience with its daily 90 seconds of birdsong. But what of the listener to this avian chorus? In this new series of Tweet of the Day, we bring to the airwaves the conversational voices of those who listen to and are inspired by birds. Building on the previous series, a more informal approach to learning alongside a renewed emphasis on encounter with nature and reflection in our relationship with the natural world.

Producer: Sarah Blunt
Photograph: Petrus van Zyl.


THU 06:00 Today (b09kq1gr)

Morning news and current affairs. Including Yesterday in Parliament, Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


THU 09:00 In Our Time (b09l1wmr)
The Siege of Malta, 1565

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the event of which Voltaire, a hundred years later, said 'nothing was more well known'. The Ottoman Empire had already driven the Knights Hospitaller from their headquarters in Rhodes, in 1522, after a siege and wanted to do the same in Malta. The siege of 1565, one of the fiercest recorded, ended with a victory for the Knights, raising questions of why the Ottomans failed to press their advantage home. It became one of the most celebrated events of C16th, for Christians in Europe, and changed the perception that the Ottomans were invincible. It also marked a new period of Spanish dominance in the Mediterranean.

The image above is the Death of Dragut at the Siege of Malta (1867), after a painting by Giuseppe Cali. Dragut (1485 – 1565) was an Ottoman Admiral and privateer, known as The Drawn Sword of Islam and as one of the finest generals of the time.

With

Diarmaid MacCulloch

Helen Nicholson

and

Kate Fleet

Producer: Simon Tillotson.


THU 09:45 Book of the Week (b09ltlg1)
Auntie's War, George Orwell

The BBC is a British institution unlike any other, and its story during the Second World War is also the story of Britain's people.

Writer and presenter Edward Stourton is a sharp-eyed and affectionate companion on the BBC's wartime journey, investigating archives, diaries, letters and memoirs to examine what the BBC was and what it stood for.

Episode Four - Propaganda, truth and lies and the space between. George Orwell joins the BBC.

These were the years when Auntie (the BBC's enduring nickname) earned a reputation for bossiness. It was also a period of remarkable voices - Churchill's fighting speeches de Gaulle's broadcasts from exile, George Orwell, Ed Murrow, Richard Dimbleby and Vera Lynn.

During these extraordinary times, eyewitness testimonies gave a voice to everyone, securing the BBC's reputation as a reliable purveyor of the truth.

Auntie's War is more than a portrait of an institution at a critical time, it is also a portrayal of the British in wartime and an insight into why we have our broadcast culture today.

Read by Edward Stourton
Abridged by Anna Magnusson
Produced by Pippa Vaughan
A Loftus production for BBC Radio 4.


THU 10:00 Woman's Hour (b09kq1gt)

Programme that offers a female perspective on the world.


THU 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b09l1wmt)
Shardlake: Heartstone, Episode 9

CJ Sansom's Tudor mystery featuring lawyer-detective Matthew Shardlake.


THU 11:00 Crossing Continents (b09l1wmw)
Ukraine's Frontline Bakery

Lucy Ash meets the staff and customers of a bakery which is the one bright spot in war-torn east Ukraine. The war there between Russian-backed rebels and the Ukrainian army has dropped out of the headlines and there seems to be little political will to make peace. More than 10,000 people have been killed and as it enters its fourth year, this has become one of the longest conflicts in modern European history. But in the frontline town of Marinka there's one bright spot amidst the gloom - the bakery. It's the first new business in the town since the fighting began and it is bringing some hope and comfort to its traumatised citizens. We meet staff and customers from the bakery to explore a community living on the edge. "The aroma of fresh bread," says the man behind the enterprise, " gives people hope. It smells like normal life."
Producer Albina Kovalyova.


THU 11:30 From the Steppes to the Stage (b09l1ygv)
Series 1, Episode 1

From the nomads of the vast steppe - to the glamour and adulation of the stage. Kate Molleson unravels the story of Mongolia's remarkable rise to being an opera superpower (1/2)

Mongolia is becoming a global leader in opera singing - and completely breaking the mould. Young nomadic herders and horsemen are being plucked from the vast plains and taken to Ulaanbataar - where they're transformed into the next generation of top-flight tenors and baritones.

It's a fascinating synergy of young men with the perfect physique, often honed in a rugged, traditional outdoorsmen culture, and a superb Soviet-era music and arts education system that - just over half a century after its State Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet first opened - is delivering the next generation of global singing superstars.

Radio 4 brings you a hypnotic audio portrait, taking you from the open plains, horse lullabies and throat singing of the endless Mongolian landscape to the cultural melee of Ulaanbataar - a place of stark contrasts where gleaming 21st century skyscrapers rise, yet where around half the population live in traditional gers (tents). A nation numbering just 3 million people, yet the size of Western Europe, and sandwiched between the gigantic superpowers of Russia and China - how much can Mongolia harness its cultural might to have a voice in global geopolitics?

In this first episode, journalist Kate Molleson documents the story of Ariunbaatar Ganbaatar - last year, the winner of one of the most prestigious prizes in global opera: the BBC Cardiff Singer Of The World Song Prize, whose previous winners include Bryn Terfel and Ailish Tynan.

Ariunbaatar was born to a family of nomadic herders, who still live a traditional lifestyle in the immense Mongolian steppe. At his family's ger, hundreds of miles from the nearest settlement, Kate is treated to a performance of Mongolian longsong - the nation's traditional classical singing art - as well as joining Ariunbaatar on horseback to hear the songs he sang as a young boy, alone in the vast wilderness. Is Mongolia's unique traditional culture - perhaps even its landscape itself - the secret of its extraordinary vocal alchemy?

Producer: Steven Rajam
Presenter: Kate Molleson
A BBC Wales production for BBC Radio 4.


THU 12:00 News Summary (b09kq1gw)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


THU 12:04 The Curious Cases of Rutherford & Fry (b09l1ygx)
Series 8, The Curious Face Off

"Are machines better than humans at identifying faces?" asks the excellently named Carl Vandal.

Today's Face Off leads our intrepid detectives to investigate why we see Jesus on toast, Hitler in houses and Kate Middleton on a jelly bean.

Face perception psychologist Rob Jenkins from the University of York explains why we're so good at spotting familiar faces, like celebrities. Plus, Franziska Knolle from the University of Cambridge discusses her face recognition study involving Barack Obama and a group of highly-trained sheep.

But are we outwitted by artificial intelligence when it comes to face ID? BBC technology correspondent Rory Cellan-Jones gives us the low-down on the pros and cons of current technology.

Presenters: Hannah Fry, Adam Rutherford
Producer: Michelle Martin.


THU 12:15 You and Yours (b09kq1gy)

Consumer affairs programme.


THU 12:57 Weather (b09kq1h0)

The latest weather forecast.


THU 13:00 World at One (b09kq1h2)

Analysis of news and current affairs.


THU 13:45 Conflict and Co-operation: A History of Trade (b09l1yh0)
Series 1, Slavery

The exchange of human beings for work or sex or other forms of enslavement has been a feature of human society throughout history. Paul Seabright looks at the part slavery has played in the industrialization of the western world, and in the lives of countless unsuspecting people who were captured and transported as a result of trading activity on the other side of the globe.

Producer: Chris Ledgard.


THU 14:00 The Archers (b09l0ccb)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Wednesday]


THU 14:15 Drama (b09l1yh2)
Stone, Episode 4

Stone Episode 4 by Richard Monks.

DCI Stone's investigation into a murder victim's final movements shines a spotlight on several new suspects but will Stone and his team manage to track them down?

Writer Richard Monks
Created by Danny Brocklehurst
Script Editor Caitlin Crawford
Director Nadia Molinari
Producers: Gary Brown and Nadia Molinari

Series:
DCI John Stone investigates the suspicious death of a man in a fire at a homeless hostel. Stone's enquiries lead him to re-examine a murder he worked on twenty years before in order to solve the case. In doing so he uncovers a web of lies and deceit that make him face past mistakes and lead to personal trauma.


THU 15:00 Open Country (b09l1yh4)
Finding Fossils on the Jurassic Coast

The crumbling Jurassic Coast in Dorset has already helped us to discover some of the most interesting species from deep time, revolutionising our understanding of dinosaurs and the prehistoric landscape. The latest important fossil to be found along this stretch of coastline is not a huge dinosaur but a tiny mammal. Grant Smith recently found the fossilised teeth of a small rodent like creature which date back to the early Cretaceous period, around 140 million years ago. The sophistication of these teeth have made scientists reassess the time frame for mammal development as they indicate a far more developed mammal species who would have lived alongside the dinosaurs of the Cretaceous period.

The new species which Grant unearthed is mankind's earliest ancestor and has been named 'Durlstotherim Newmani', after keen amateur palaeontologist and local landlord Charlie Newman. The landlord of the Square and Compass in Worth Matravers founded his own fossil museum in the pub, and pointed Grant to the location in Durlston Bay at which he found the specimen.

The rich history of scientists and academics being ably assisted by passionate amateurs on this coastline is echoed further down the coast at Kimmeridge where Steve Etches, a retired plumber, has just opened his incredible collection of fossils to the public at the Etches Collection. It is a history of collaboration which goes right back to one of the earliest fossil hunters Mary Anning and as Helen Mark discovers the work of the people who live along this coastline in enhancing our understanding of deep time is now being rightly celebrated.


THU 15:27 Radio 4 Appeal (b09kx83m)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:54 on Sunday]


THU 15:30 Bookclub (b09kx890)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:00 on Sunday]


THU 16:00 The Film Programme (b09l203n)
Martin McDonagh

With Francine Stock.

Playwright and writer/director Martin McDonagh talks about his award-winning drama Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.


THU 16:30 BBC Inside Science (b09kq1h4)

Adam Rutherford investigates the news in science and science in the news.


THU 17:00 PM (b09kq1h6)

Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.


THU 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b09kq1h8)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


THU 18:30 John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme (b09l21yy)
Series 7, Episode 2

John Finnemore presents another half hour of his award-winning sketch show, joined by his regular ensemble cast of Margaret Cabourn-Smith, Simon Kane, Lawry Lewin and Carrie Quinlan.

This week we hear about the world's least popular invention and an exciting - perhaps too exciting - new wedding venue. We also hear Shakespeare the way it's supposed to be said and, well, since you ask him for a tale of a mission set against almost insurmountable odds...

John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme was described by The Radio Times as "the best sketch show in years, on television or radio", and by The Daily Telegraph as "funny enough to make even the surliest cat laugh". Already the winner of a BBC Audio Drama Award and a Radio Academy Silver Award, John was named the 2016 Radio Broadcaster of the Year by the Broadcasting Press Guild for his work on Souvenir Programme.

Written by & starring ... John Finnemore
Cast ... Margaret Cabourn-Smith
Cast ... Simon Kane
Cast ... Lawry Lewin
Cast ... Carrie Quinlan
Production Coordinator ... Beverly Tagg
Producer ... Ed Morrish

A BBC Studios production.


THU 19:00 The Archers (b09l21z0)

Adam is outmanoeuvred, and Kate is at her wits end.


THU 19:15 Front Row (b09kq1hc)

Arts news, interviews and reviews.


THU 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b09l1wmt)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:45 today]


THU 20:00 The Briefing Room (b09kq1hf)

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


THU 20:30 In Business (b09l21z2)
Electric Cars

There is a motoring revolution underway: the fast accelerating switch from petrol and diesel cars, to electric vehicles. In Norway, almost 40% of new car purchases are now fully electric or hybrids. Other countries are starting to catch up, and are setting ambitious targets. Britain wants to ban the sale of all petrol and diesel cars by 2040. Oxford wants to ban non-electric vehicles from parts of the city centre by 2020. Motor manufacturers are investing vast sums in the development of new electric models. Those who don't, risk being left behind.
And yet, as Peter Morgan reports, obstacles remain. Many drivers feel "range anxiety", the fear that the car battery will run out before they can recharge it. And electric cars are not cheap to buy.
But costs are coming down fast, batteries will soon last for hundreds of miles, and charge-points are being installed in more and more places. So much so, that there's a new land grab going on for market share. Start-ups are getting in on the act, and even big oil companies like Shell are branching out into this business.
Nevertheless, where will all the extra electricity come from? Will there be standardisation of the charging infrastructure, so drivers don't end up frustrated at a charge-point where their plug doesn't fit?
And while electric cars don't emit toxic fumes like nitrogen oxides, how much difference do they actually make to harmful particulates in the air?
Producer: Arlene Gregorius.


THU 21:00 BBC Inside Science (b09kq1h4)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:30 today]


THU 21:30 In Our Time (b09l1wmr)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


THU 22:00 The World Tonight (b09kq1hk)

In-depth reporting and analysis from a global perspective.


THU 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b09m7mmd)
The Vital Spark: A Far Cry from Kensington, Episode 4

Muriel Spark's playful and autobiographical novel set amid London's post-war publishing scene.

War widow Mrs Hawkins has lost her job after insulting a well-connected author. However the free time she finds herself with will do wonders for her love life.

Read by Maggie Service
Abridged by Rosemary Goring
Producer: Eilidh McCreadie.


THU 23:00 The Brig Society (b06d9lhx)
Series 3, Diplomat

Ahem. Marcus Brigstocke coughs politely, dons a crumpled linen suit and fibs for Britain as he tries his hand at becoming a diplomat. On the way, he'll look at the history and origins of diplomacy, the training required and the fact that approximately 60% of the modern British diplomat's work is spent apologising for Jeremy Clarkson.

Helping him to foster mutually beneficial relationships will be Margaret Cabourn-Smith, William Andrews and Colin Hoult.

Written by Marcus Brigstocke, Jeremy Salsby, Toby Davies, Nick Doody, Steve Punt and Dan Tetsell

Produced by David Tyler
A Pozzitive production for BBC Radio 4.


THU 23:30 Today in Parliament (b09l21z4)

News from Westminster.



FRIDAY 12 JANUARY 2018

FRI 00:00 Midnight News (b09kq1kn)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.


FRI 00:30 Book of the Week (b09ltlg1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Thursday]


FRI 00:48 Shipping Forecast (b09kq1kq)

The latest shipping forecast.


FRI 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (b09kq1ks)

FRI 05:20 Shipping Forecast (b09kq1kv)

The latest shipping forecast.


FRI 05:30 News Briefing (b09kq1kx)

The latest news from BBC Radio 4.


FRI 05:43 Prayer for the Day (b09m7mwz)

A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Monica M. Grady CBE, Professor of Planetary and Space Sciences.


FRI 05:45 Farming Today (b09kq1kz)

The latest news about food, farming and the countryside.


FRI 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b09l226r)
Andy Radford on the Green Woodhoopoe

Professor Andy Radford, a Behavioural Biologist at the University of Bristol describes the role of sound when it comes to competing choruses of Green Woodhoopoes.

Tweet of the Day has captivated the Radio 4 audience with its daily 90 seconds of birdsong. But what of the listener to this avian chorus? In this new series of Tweet of the Day, we bring to the airwaves the conversational voices of those who listen to and are inspired by birds. Building on the previous series, a more informal approach to learning alongside a renewed emphasis on encounter with nature and reflection in our relationship with the natural world.

Producer: Sarah Blunt.


FRI 06:00 Today (b09kq1l1)

Morning news and current affairs. Including Yesterday in Parliament, Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


FRI 09:00 Desert Island Discs (b09kx840)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:15 on Sunday]


FRI 09:45 Book of the Week (b09ltll9)
Auntie's War, Eyewitness Reports

The BBC is a British institution unlike any other, and its story during the Second World War is also the story of Britain's people.

Writer and presenter Edward Stourton is a sharp-eyed and affectionate companion on the BBC's wartime journey, investigating archives, diaries, letters and memoirs to examine what the BBC was and what it stood for.

In this final episode, the BBC's War Reporting Unit comes into being, and correspondent Guy Byam is parachuted behind enemy lines.

These were the years when Auntie (the BBC's enduring nickname) earned a reputation for bossiness. It was also a period of remarkable voices - Churchill's fighting speeches de Gaulle's broadcasts from exile, George Orwell, Ed Murrow, Richard Dimbleby and Vera Lynn.

During these extraordinary times, eyewitness testimonies gave a voice to everyone, securing the BBC's reputation as a reliable purveyor of the truth.

Auntie's War is more than a portrait of an institution at a critical time, it is also a portrayal of the British in wartime and an insight into why we have our broadcast culture today.

Read by Edward Stourton
Abridged by Anna Magnusson
Produced by Pippa Vaughan
A Loftus production for BBC Radio 4.


FRI 10:00 Woman's Hour (b09kq1l3)

Programme that offers a female perspective on the world.


FRI 10:45 15 Minute Drama (b09l2299)
Shardlake: Heartstone, Episode 10

CJ Sansom's Tudor mystery featuring lawyer-detective Matthew Shardlake.


FRI 11:00 Butterbeer and Grootcakes (b08tgbc2)

Aleks Krotoski takes her seat at the table to explore the amazing world of fictional food made real.

Food is not a new force in fiction, but increasingly fictional food is finding its way onto the table. And fan communities from the new breed of modern cultural canon aren't just nibbling on Laura Esquivel's devastating quail in rose petal sauce from Like Water for Chocolate, but also tucking in to fried squirrel and raccoon from The Hunger Games, Sansa's lemon cakes from Game of Thrones, or downing a frothy glass of butterbeer from Harry Potter.

Now Aleks gathers together three people who know a lot about fictional food to discuss its appeal for fans, authors and food creators alike. Together, they will make, and eat, a meal of food from fiction, and discuss some of the interesting questions it raises.

Joanne Harris is author of several novels where food is almost a character in its own right - most famously Chocolat, which was turned into a film of the same name; she also co-created a cookbook, The Little Book of Chocolat, for the many fans desperate to make the concoctions they had read about in her novels. Sam Bompas is co-founder of creative food studio Bompas & Parr, who recently helped create Dinner At The Twits, inspired by Roald Dahl's book. And Kate Young brings together her passion for food and literature in her blog The Little Library Café, where she creates recipes for food found in fiction, and many of them will be included in her first cookbook, The Little Library Cookbook.

The programme also includes music played on the flavour conductor - a working cocktail organ, conceived by Sam Bompas for Johnnie Walker. The music is composed by Simon Little.

Producer: Giles Edwards.


FRI 11:30 The Pale Horse (b04gr786)
Episode 2

by Agatha Christie
dramatised by Joy Wikinson

New adaptation of this atmospheric murder mystery with an ingenious scam at its heart.

Part Two. Despite his girlfriend's irritation, young - fogey Mark Easterbrook can't resist looking into a series of recent deaths.

Directed by Mary Peate.


FRI 12:00 News Summary (b09kq1l5)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


FRI 12:04 The Curious Cases of Rutherford & Fry (b09l234m)
Series 8, Goldfinger's Moon Laser

"The other day I was watching the James Bond film Goldfinger. He boasts a laser powerful enough to project a spot on the Moon. Is this possible? If so, just how powerful would such a laser need to be?" This curious question was sent to curiouscases@bbc.co.uk by Eddie Griffith from Hinckley in Leicestershire.

Adam visits one of the most powerful lasers in the world, the Gemini Super Intense Laser at the aptly named Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Didcot, Oxfordshire. Plasma physicist Ceri Brenner gives him a quick zap, whilst explaining what would happen if they attempted to shoot their quadrillion watt laser at the Moon.

Hannah talks to Tom Murphy from the University of California San Diego, who fires lasers at the Moon for a living. However, unlike Goldfinger, he's not using his Moon Laser for crime, he's using it for science.

Presenters: Hannah Fry, Adam Rutherford
Producer: Michelle Martin.


FRI 12:15 You and Yours (b09kq1l7)

Consumer news and issues.


FRI 12:57 Weather (b09kq1l9)

The latest weather forecast.


FRI 13:00 World at One (b09kq1lc)

Analysis of news and current affairs.


FRI 13:45 Conflict and Co-operation: A History of Trade (b09l234p)
Series 1, Age of Anxiety

The latest backlash against globalization is nothing new. Paul Seabright looks at how opening yourself up to trade with others not only creates opportunities, but can make you anxious about being dependent on the outside world.

Producer: Chris Ledgard.


FRI 14:00 The Archers (b09l21z0)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Thursday]


FRI 14:15 Drama (b09ly5v7)
Stone, Episode 5

Stone episode 5 written by Cath Staincliffe. Detective series created by Danny Brocklehurst.

DCI Stone tracks down one of the key suspects in the current murder case but is forced to consider the possibility that mistakes may have been made in a connected case from twenty years before.

Written by Cath Staincliffe
Created by Danny Brocklehurst.
Script Editor Caitlin Crawford.
Director Nadia Molinari
Producers: Gary Brown and Nadia Molinari

Series:
DCI John Stone investigates the suspicious death of a man in a fire at a homeless hostel. Stone's enquiries lead him to re-examine a murder he worked on twenty years before in order to solve the case. In doing so he uncovers a web of lies and deceit that make him face past mistakes and lead to personal trauma.


FRI 15:00 Gardeners' Question Time (b09l234r)
Lancashire

Eric Robson and the panel are in Lancashire. This week, Matthew Wilson, Bunny Guinness and Anne Swithinbank field the horticultural questions.

Produced by Hannah Newton
Assistant Producer: Laurence Bassett

A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4.


FRI 15:45 Short Works (b09l234v)
Series 1, What Does the Fox Say?

An original short story commissioned by BBC Radio 4, written and read by the novelist and broadcaster Ian Sansom.

Ian Sansom is the author of several books, including the popular Mobile Library Mystery Series. He is a regular broadcaster on BBC Radio 3 and Radio 4 as well as a frequent contributor and critic for, among others, The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph, The London Review of Books and The Spectator.

Writer ..... Ian Sansom
Reader ..... Ian Sansom
Producer ..... Michael Shannon.


FRI 16:00 Last Word (b09l234z)

Obituary series, analysing and celebrating the life stories of people who have recently died.


FRI 16:30 More or Less (b09l2351)

Investigating the numbers in the news.


FRI 16:55 The Listening Project (b08w14fk)
Niomi and Struan - I Don't Like Manners

A 6 year old finds his mother's memories of a childhood without smartphones incomprehensible. Fi Glover presents another conversation in the series that proves it's surprising what you hear when you listen.

Producer: Marya Burgess.


FRI 17:00 PM (b09kq1lf)

Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.


FRI 18:00 Six O'Clock News (b09kq1lh)

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


FRI 18:30 The News Quiz (b09l250q)
Series 95, 12/01/2018

Miles Jupp and team vs The News. Lining up this week are Angela Barnes, Lucy Porter, Lloyd Langford and Peter Oborne.

Producer: Richard Morris
A BBC Studios Production.


FRI 19:00 The Archers (b09l250s)

Toby receives a shocking instruction, and Roy fears for the future.


FRI 19:15 Front Row (b09kq1lk)

News, reviews and interviews from the worlds of art, literature, film and music.


FRI 19:45 15 Minute Drama (b09l2299)
[Repeat of broadcast at 10:45 today]


FRI 20:00 Any Questions? (b09l250v)
Graham Brady MP, Thangam Debbonaire MP, Claire Fox, Matthew Parris

Jonathan Dimbleby presents political debate from Wydean School in Sedbury, Gloucestershire, with the Chair of 1922 Committee Graham Brady MP, the Labour Whip Thangam Debbonaire MP, the Director of the Institute of Ideas Claire Fox and the writer and broadcaster Matthew Parris.


FRI 20:50 A Point of View (b09l250x)

A weekly reflection on a topical issue.


FRI 21:00 Conflict and Co-operation: A History of Trade (b09lt2tr)
Omnibus, Omnibus: Part 1

Economist and author, Paul Seabright, begins a series that explores our trading story, from the earliest exchange networks in child-care and food, right up to the modern day. He discusses the links between trade and war, the different phases of globalization, and how the history of trade features major setbacks as well as extraordinary progress.

In episode one, Paul visits the Café Bibent in Toulouse to talk about the city's connections with two key moments in the history of trade: Adam Smith and his great book The Wealth of Nations, and the outbreak of World War One.

Producer: Chris Ledgard.


FRI 22:00 The World Tonight (b09kq1lm)

In-depth reporting and analysis from a global perspective.


FRI 22:45 Book at Bedtime (b09m7n7t)
The Vital Spark: A Far Cry from Kensington, Episode 5

Muriel Spark's playful and autobiographical novel set amid London's post-war publishing scene.

As Mrs Hawkins makes good use of her contacts, she hopes to put her professional troubles at the Ullswater Press behind her.

Read by Maggie Service
Abridged by Rosemary Goring
Producer: Eilidh McCreadie.


FRI 23:00 Great Lives (b09l068g)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:30 on Tuesday]


FRI 23:30 Today in Parliament (b09l2530)

News from Westminster.


FRI 23:55 The Listening Project (b08vzfgt)
Leonie and Tobin - I'm Glad He's Your Dad

A mother and her 10 year old son reflect on their relationship with his father and with the other relationships in her life. Fi Glover presents another conversation in the series that proves it's surprising what you hear when you listen.

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 (b09kxqv0)

15 Minute Drama 19:45 MON (b09kxqv0)

15 Minute Drama 10:45 TUE (b09l039p)

15 Minute Drama 19:45 TUE (b09l039p)

15 Minute Drama 10:41 WED (b09l0blf)

15 Minute Drama 19:45 WED (b09l0blf)

15 Minute Drama 10:45 THU (b09l1wmt)

15 Minute Drama 19:45 THU (b09l1wmt)

15 Minute Drama 10:45 FRI (b09l2299)

15 Minute Drama 19:45 FRI (b09l2299)

50 years of Just a Minute: Nicholas Parsons in Conversation with Paul Merton 12:04 SUN (b09k1frv)

A Little Lateral Thinking 21:00 WED (b08xcvq9)

A Point of View 08:48 SUN (b09kx83w)

A Point of View 20:50 FRI (b09l250x)

Across the Red Line 22:15 SAT (b09k822l)

Across the Red Line 20:00 WED (b09l0dx7)

Angstrom 18:30 WED (b09l0ds8)

Any Questions? 20:00 FRI (b09l250v)

Archive on 4 20:00 SAT (b09kpmys)

BBC Inside Science 16:30 THU (b09kq1h4)

BBC Inside Science 21:00 THU (b09kq1h4)

Bells on Sunday 05:43 SUN (b09kx83h)

Bells on Sunday 00:45 MON (b09kx83h)

Black Music in Europe: A Hidden History 09:00 TUE (b09l02hv)

Black Music in Europe: A Hidden History 21:30 TUE (b09l02hv)

Book at Bedtime 22:45 MON (b09kxtdb)

Book at Bedtime 22:45 TUE (b09m6cy1)

Book at Bedtime 22:45 WED (b09m7fhp)

Book at Bedtime 22:45 THU (b09m7mmd)

Book at Bedtime 22:45 FRI (b09m7n7t)

Book of the Week 00:30 SAT (b09k8qz9)

Book of the Week 09:45 MON (b09ltj8g)

Book of the Week 00:30 TUE (b09ltj8g)

Book of the Week 09:45 TUE (b09ltkkj)

Book of the Week 00:30 WED (b09ltkkj)

Book of the Week 09:45 WED (b09ltkpj)

Book of the Week 00:30 THU (b09ltkpj)

Book of the Week 09:45 THU (b09ltlg1)

Book of the Week 00:30 FRI (b09ltlg1)

Book of the Week 09:45 FRI (b09ltll9)

Bookclub 16:00 SUN (b09kx890)

Bookclub 15:30 THU (b09kx890)

Broadcasting House 09:00 SUN (b09kq11x)

Butterbeer and Grootcakes 11:00 FRI (b08tgbc2)

Cameron Years 20:00 MON (b09kxt2g)

Cameron Years 11:00 WED (b09kxt2g)

Chain Reaction 11:30 WED (b071vkwl)

Conflict and Co-operation: A History of Trade 13:45 MON (b09kxsdv)

Conflict and Co-operation: A History of Trade 13:45 TUE (b09l066j)

Conflict and Co-operation: A History of Trade 13:45 WED (b09l0cby)

Conflict and Co-operation: A History of Trade 13:45 THU (b09l1yh0)

Conflict and Co-operation: A History of Trade 13:45 FRI (b09l234p)

Conflict and Co-operation: A History of Trade 21:00 FRI (b09lt2tr)

Copyright or Wrong 16:00 MON (b08md9xf)

Crossing Continents 20:30 MON (b09k894l)

Crossing Continents 11:00 THU (b09l1wmw)

Desert Island Discs 11:15 SUN (b09kx840)

Desert Island Discs 09:00 FRI (b09kx840)

Drama 14:30 SAT (b09kpm4s)

Drama 21:00 SAT (b09k0ny9)

Drama 15:00 SUN (b09kx88y)

Drama 14:15 MON (b09kxsdx)

Drama 14:15 TUE (b09l0673)

Drama 14:15 WED (b09l0cc0)

Drama 14:15 THU (b09l1yh2)

Drama 14:15 FRI (b09ly5v7)

Farming Today 06:30 SAT (b09k0nqt)

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Four Thought 20:45 WED (b09l0dx9)

From Fact to Fiction 00:30 SUN (b09k8vlt)

From Our Own Correspondent 11:30 SAT (b09k0nr0)

From the Steppes to the Stage 11:30 THU (b09l1ygv)

Front Row 19:15 MON (b09kq154)

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Gardeners' Question Time 14:00 SUN (b09k8vlr)

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Germany Without Merkel 17:00 SUN (b09k6pn7)

Great Lives 16:30 TUE (b09l068g)

Great Lives 23:00 FRI (b09l068g)

Hardeep's Sunday Lunch 13:30 SUN (b09kx848)

In Business 21:30 SUN (b09k8ft6)

In Business 20:30 THU (b09l21z2)

In Our Time 09:00 THU (b09l1wmr)

In Our Time 21:30 THU (b09l1wmr)

In Pursuit of Edward Thomas 16:30 SUN (b08kxyks)

In Touch 20:40 TUE (b09kq18l)

Inside Health 21:00 TUE (b09l06vv)

Inside Health 15:30 WED (b09l06vv)

John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme 18:30 THU (b09l21yy)

Last Word 20:30 SUN (b09k8vlw)

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Life on Egg 23:00 WED (b09l0fqz)

Loose Ends 18:15 SAT (b09k0nrl)

Making History 15:30 TUE (b09l067w)

Mark Steel's in Town 18:30 TUE (b09l068v)

Mastertapes 13:30 SAT (b092cmwl)

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Money Box 12:04 SAT (b09kplrg)

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More or Less 16:30 FRI (b09l2351)

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One to One 13:15 SAT (b096hcln)

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Open Book 20:00 SUN (b09jvvnr)

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Opening Night 15:30 SAT (b09kpm4v)

PM 17:00 SAT (b09k0nrb)

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Pick of the Week 18:15 SUN (b09kq12f)

Prayer for the Day 05:43 SAT (b09k8y02)

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Profile 19:00 SAT (b09kpmhp)

Profile 05:45 SUN (b09kpmhp)

Profile 17:40 SUN (b09kpmhp)

Radio 4 Appeal 07:54 SUN (b09kx83m)

Radio 4 Appeal 21:26 SUN (b09kx83m)

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Round Britain Quiz 23:00 SAT (b09k1fll)

Round Britain Quiz 15:00 MON (b09kxsdz)

Saturday Live 09:00 SAT (b09k0nqy)

Saturday Review 19:15 SAT (b09k0nrn)

Selection of BBC World Service Programmes 01:00 SAT (b09k0nqk)

Selection of BBC World Service Programmes 01:00 SUN (b09kq118)

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Shipping Forecast 00:48 SAT (b09k0nqh)

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Short Works 15:45 FRI (b09l234v)

Six O'Clock News 18:00 SAT (b09k0nrj)

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Something Understood 06:05 SUN (b09kq11j)

Something Understood 23:30 SUN (b09kq11j)

Soul Music 09:00 WED (b09l07ly)

Soul Music 21:30 WED (b09l07ly)

Start the Week 09:00 MON (b09kxq2p)

Start the Week 21:30 MON (b09kxq2p)

Sunday Worship 08:10 SUN (b09kx83p)

Sunday 07:10 SUN (b09kq11q)

Tales From the Stave 11:30 TUE (b09l039r)

The Archers Omnibus 10:00 SUN (b09kq11z)

The Archers 19:00 SUN (b09kx89b)

The Archers 14:00 MON (b09kx89b)

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The Archers 19:00 FRI (b09l250s)

The Arts of Life 16:00 TUE (b092pp65)

The Break 19:15 SUN (b07ctt0z)

The Briefing Room 20:00 THU (b09kq1hf)

The Brig Society 23:00 THU (b06d9lhx)

The Curious Cases of Rutherford & Fry 12:04 MON (b09kxsds)

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The Dawn of British Jihad 20:00 TUE (b09l06nt)

The East Coast Listening Post 23:15 WED (b09l0fr1)

The Far Future 21:00 MON (b09k6jdj)

The Film Programme 23:00 SUN (b09k8fs3)

The Film Programme 16:00 THU (b09l203n)

The Food Programme 12:32 SUN (b09kx846)

The Food Programme 15:30 MON (b09kx846)

The Forum 11:00 SAT (b09kplfv)

The Ideas That Make Us 09:30 WED (b07mwqfk)

The Infinite Monkey Cage 16:30 MON (b09kxt28)

The Infinite Monkey Cage 23:00 TUE (b09kxt28)

The Kitchen Cabinet 10:30 SAT (b09kplfs)

The Kitchen Cabinet 15:00 TUE (b09kplfs)

The Listening Project 14:45 SUN (b09kx84f)

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The Living World 06:35 SUN (b09kx83k)

The Media Show 16:30 WED (b09kq1cj)

The Museum of Curiosity 18:30 MON (b09kxt2b)

The News Quiz 12:30 SAT (b09k8w1k)

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The Pale Horse 11:30 FRI (b04gr786)

The Reservoir Tapes 19:45 SUN (b09kx8b5)

The Strange Case of Henry James' Testicles 23:00 MON (b08zc0r3)

The Untold 11:00 MON (b09kxrc8)

The World This Weekend 13:00 SUN (b09kq125)

The World Tonight 22:00 MON (b09kq156)

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Thinking Allowed 00:15 MON (b09k80tg)

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Today in Parliament 23:30 MON (b09kxt2j)

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Tom Wrigglesworth's Hang-Ups 11:30 MON (b06pbwzh)

Too Much Medicine? The Problem of Overtreatment 11:00 TUE (b091v271)

Tweet of the Day 08:58 SUN (b09k0p9b)

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You and Yours 12:15 MON (b09kq14w)

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