SATURDAY 26 MARCH 2022

SAT 00:00 Midnight News (m0015l1r)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.


SAT 00:30 Making History: The Storytellers Who Shaped The Past by Richard Cohen (m0015l1w)
Bad History - truth versus patriotism

Richard Cohen examines the storytellers of the past, how they worked and how their writings still influence our ideas about history.

Who were the historians who changed the way history is written? How did their biases affect their accounts? Is there such a thing as objective history?

The series explores lives and works from the Greek historian Herodotus, through the great Roman historians Tacitus and Livy, with their great epic stories of war and plagues, all of them inventing stories to be more reader friendly, and then moving through Arab and Islamic writings, to the medieval historians like Bede and Geoffrey of Monmouth – the latter famous for his economy with the truth, in other words, making it all up.

The great Italian Niccolo Machiavelli became a historian by accident, Voltaire and Edward Gibbon changed the way history was written, breaking away from a God centred universe. Then there's the Red historians from Marx (always in debt and crippled by boils on his skin) to Eric Hobsbawm, the emergence of female historians, and false accounts of history.

Episode 10
Truth telling versus patriotism. The Hungarian government and the Japanese governments covering up atrocities, the US covering up the My Lai massacre, Putin working with the Stasi in East Germany to destroy incriminating documents in the 1980s which are now being restored. Oral history, history programmes on television from AJP Taylor to the American Ken Burns’ series on the American Civil War. And what should a historian ideally be?

Author: Richard Cohen
Abridger: Libby Spurrier
Reader: Alex Jennings
Producer: Celia de Wolff

A Pier production for BBC Radio 4


SAT 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m0015l1z)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


SAT 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m0015l23)
BBC Radio 4 presents a selection of news and current affairs, arts and science programmes from the BBC World Service.


SAT 05:33 Shipping Forecast (m0015l27)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


SAT 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m0015l2h)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Rev Grace Thomas.

Good morning.

Saturday, for me, is a buzz of activity that revolves around my daughter’s football matches. These are nearly always scheduled for a midday kick off, so they act as a fulcrum, a central point of focus, for the day. A couple of weeks ago, her team approached their match in trepidation – their opposition being a team three divisions above them and vastly more experienced. When the final whistle blew, with a scoreline of 21-nil to the opposition, I alongside the other supporters took a deep intake of breath at the sidelines. Yet, the girls ran off the pitch smiling, patting their teammates on the back. Despite everything, they had enjoyed playing together and being in each other’s company. It had been time well spent, for them, despite the outcome.

I reflected on this after the match. Would I have appreciated the opportunity of playing alongside friends, whatever the outcome? I’m not sure. Just as I know that, when I am rushing around completing activities and tasks, I can be so focussed on the result that I don’t take time to notice and appreciate the joys around me. Jesus encourages his disciples to do just this - to consider the lilies. Indeed, even when it comes to prayer, how often do I take time to appreciate the gift of an ever present and listening God, whilst I rattle off the various petitions of things that I need help with?

Loving God, may I take time today to notice and appreciate the multitude of blessings that I encounter as I undertake the various tasks and jobs of the day, instead of simply being focussed on the desired outcome. May I remember with gratitude the fact that you are with me in all these things, as my companion and my guide.

Amen


SAT 05:45 Lent Talks (m0015l2m)
"I was a stranger and you invited me in"

Lent Talks is a series of personal reflections inspired by an aspect of the story leading up to Easter. This year’s theme is the power of hospitality, based on Jesus’ encouragement in Matthew’s gospel to feed the hungry, welcome the stranger and look after the sick.

In this episode, the author and social entrepreneur Dr Krish Kandiah considers the words, "I was a stranger and you invited me in".

Producer: Dan Tierney.


SAT 06:00 News and Papers (m0015ttt)
The latest news headlines. Including the weather and a look at the papers.


SAT 06:07 Ramblings (m0015lx7)
Old and New Winchelsea with historian Dr Matthew Green

The walk begins on the shingle at Winchelsea Beach - the possible site of the drowned city that was engulfed by waves in the 11th century. Crossing the marshy fields inland Clare and Matthew climb the steep hill to the gate of the rebuilt and fortified town of Winchelsea that was once a thriving wine port. They walk through the town passing open wine cellars as they go. The town was built on a grid system and as with similar towns in France and Italy it became known as a medieval Manhattan. Trade with European ports in France, Italy, Spain and Portugal was vibrant and it was said that in the Middle Ages Winchelsea was close to becoming the wine capital of Europe. Fierce fighting took place between its citizens and bands of marauding pirates from across the Channel to protects its wealth and prosperity.
Dr Matthew Green specialises in walking as a way of understanding history and gives wine and gin tours in London. He says he prefers to try and understand how people lived and felt at the time they were living rather than to focus on the politics and conflicts of the past.
Crossing into fields on the south side of Winchelsea they walk over buried streets of houses, a hospital and the market place down to the stone towngate on the road to Icklesham.
Having submerged the original town, the sea then played another cruel trick on Winchelsea. Large deposits of shingle amassed meaning ships could no longer enter the harbour. Trade dwindled and the town declined. Only around a third of the original settlement remains.

Producer: Maggie Ayre


SAT 06:30 Farming Today (m0015ttw)
26/03/22 Farming Today This Week: Seed potatoes going to Russia, Manure to replace fertiliser, Lambs

A large consignment of seed potatoes is being sent from Scotland to Russia, despite a plea from the Scottish Government for businesses to 'disengage from trade with Russia' in response to the war in Ukraine.

High artificial fertiliser prices remain a worry for farmers. One farmer in Lancashire is reported to be spending a lottery win on it. The cost has quadrupled with some farmers saying they’re being asked to pay around £1,000 a tonne, and there are warnings that the knock-on effect will be less, and more expensive grain. But the Defra Secretary George Eustice says there is a longer term solution: manures.

And to celebrate spring actually springing over much of the country this week, complete with lambs, Farming Today has been talking sheep.

Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced by Beatrice Fenton.


SAT 06:57 Weather (m0015tty)
The latest weather reports and forecast


SAT 07:00 Today (m0015tv0)
Including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


SAT 09:00 Saturday Live (m0015tv4)
Les Dennis

Suzy Klein and Huw Stephens are joined by actor, comedian and entertainer Les Dennis as he hosts a tribute to his friend Barry Cryer.
Kat Farmer left a lucrative city job after she had kids and was unsure what to do next. She rediscovered a love of fashion and it’s ability to reinvent, and embraced the digital age, starting a blog, "Does my bum look 40 in this?" and becoming an online influencer. She now works as a stylist, for personal clients and on TV. She joins us.
Saturday Live listener Martyn Bradley was aged 12 when, at a family party, his great grandfather gave all his great grandchildren a pocket watch, except him, on the grounds that he was adopted. It was the first he had heard about it. He tells us what happened next.
We have Comedian Zoe Lyons on going from Survivor into stand up, and alopecia, and the inheritance tracks of Donna Leon, she chooses Carolyn Watkinson singing “Oh thou that telleth good tidings to Zionz' from Handel’s Messiah and Joyce DiDonato singing “As with Rosy steps the morn” from Handel’s Theodora.
Plus, your thank you!

Producer: Corinna Jones


SAT 10:30 My Dream Dinner Party (m0015tv6)
David Baddiel's Dream Dinner Party

Comedian and author David Baddiel hosts a dinner party with a twist - all his guests are from beyond the grave, long-time heroes brought back to life by the wonders of the radio archive.

Comedy legends Morecambe and Wise join David's guests, philosopher and feminist icon Simone de Beauvoir, comedian Joan Rivers, footballing hero George Best and Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist John Updike.

David's three-course meal may not live up to everyone's culinary standards, but the guests enjoy the lively conversation around his dinner table - from the joys of winning to the lows of being number two, from comedy heroes to the allure of sex.

There's high-brow debate, laughter - and an inappropriate advance.

Written and presented by David Baddiel
Produced by Sarah Peters and Peregrine Andrews
Researcher: Edgar Maddicott, Louis Grace
BBC Archivist: Tariq Hussein
Executive Producer: Iain Chambers

Thanks to the Studs Terkel archive for additional audio of Simone De Beauvoir

A Tuning Fork and Open Audio production for BBC Radio 4


SAT 11:00 The Week in Westminster (m0015tv8)
Paul Waugh from the i newspaper is joined by former secretary-general of NATO, Lord George Robertson to assess the Ukraine war and NATO's response.

The Chancellor's spring statement is debated by two former Treasury ministers, Conservative MP Jesse Norman and Labour MP Angela Eagle.

The chair of the Transport Select Committee, Conservative MP Huw Merriman and the general secretary of the Trades Union Congress Frances O'Grady discuss P&O Ferries and the no-notice sackings of 800 staff.

And the director of the Conservative Environment Network Sam Hall and Times columnist Rachel Sylvester discuss Conservative party tensions over the green agenda and how to reach net zero.


SAT 11:30 From Our Own Correspondent (m0015tvb)
Shattered Dreams in Afghanistan

Since the Taliban took power last year, more than half a million Afghans have lost their jobs, and the country now faces a severe economic crisis. There was a glimmer of hope for secondary school girls this week though as they prepared to go back to school - but it was short-lived, reveals Secunder Kermani.

Allan Little reflects on the parallels between the war in Ukraine and a previous conflict, in the former Yugoslavia, where cities also came under siege as Serbian nationalists sought to take back control of the state of Bosnia-Herzegovina. The Bosnians, like the Ukrainians, put up a courageous resistance, and, in that conflict, NATO ultimately decided to intervene.

International observers are increasingly worried that a cash-strapped Palestinian Authority could face financial collapse. Earlier this month, the International Monetary Fund described the fiscal outlook as 'dire.' Meanwhile vital healthcare services are being dramatically affected. Yolande Knell visits a hospital in East Jerusalem.

Texas has the most restrictive abortion law in the United States. But for some Texans the law doesn’t go far enough – they want a complete ban. The campaign to outlaw abortion altogether is being played out in towns across this state, led by evangelical Christians. Linda Pressly visits west Texas to meet some of the activists.

Oaxaca in Mexico has become a much-desired location for destination weddings for both Europeans and North Americans. But Louis Harnett O'Meara finds mixed opinions in the local community - should this be welcomed as a valuable source of income, or is it an exercise in exploitation of indigenous culture and customs?

Presenter: Kate Adie
Producer: Serena Tarling
Editor: Richard Fenton-Smith


SAT 12:00 News Summary (m0015v7n)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4


SAT 12:04 Money Box (m0015tq1)
Inflation and the cost of living crisis

Inflation is the rise in the price of everything we buy. This week the Office for Budget Responsibility predicted prices would rise more than 7% this year, peaking at nearly 9% this winter. We hear from Isabel Stockton of the Institute of Fiscal Studies, on tax changes and the worst inflation most people have ever seen.

Some very vulnerable people are facing an even worse cost of living crisis than the rest of us. The amount of money that working age disabled adults are allowed to keep from their benefits - the "minimum income guarantee" - has been frozen for 7 years, even though prices have risen. Money Box reporter Dan Whitworth investigates. And we hear from a family affected, and from Jackie O'Sullivan, Executive Director of Advocacy for the learning disability charity Mencap.

The Chancellor is raising the income level at which employees start paying National Insurance. From July, anyone earning less than £12,570 will not pay NI contributions. How will this affect your state pension at retirement age?

Money Box has reported sad stories of people who are manipulated by thieves into investing in what they thought was cryptocurrency. Most retail banks follow a code intended to ensure that victims are refunded where they are groomed into transferring their savings to crooks. However, banks often refuse to refund the money stolen by these psychological techniques. But one bank, TSB, refunds almost everyone. We hear from Paul Davis, TSB's Director of Fraud Prevention.

And a major funeral plan provider, Safe Hands, goes bust with too little money to honour its promises. What faces their 45,000 customers now?

Presenter: Paul Lewis
Producer: Paul Waters
Reporter: Dan Whitworth
Researcher: Marianna Brain
Editor: Emma Rippon


SAT 12:30 The Now Show (m0015l15)
Series 60

Episode 3

Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis present the week via topical stand-up and sketches.


SAT 12:57 Weather (m0015tvg)
The latest weather forecast


SAT 13:00 News and Weather (m0015tvj)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4


SAT 13:10 Any Questions? (m0015l19)
Stella Creasy MP, Alexander Downer, Miatta Fahnbulleh, Baroness Neville-Jones

Chris Mason presents political debate and discussion from Wyvern School in Ashford with a panel which includes the Labour MP Stella Creasy; the Former Foreign Minister of Australia, Alexander Downer; the Chief Executive of The New Economics Foundation Miatta Fahnbulleh, and the Conservative peer and former Chair of the Joint Intelligence Committee Baroness Neville-Jones.
Producer: Richard Hooper
Lead broadcast engineer: Simon Tindall


SAT 14:00 Any Answers? (m0015tvl)
Ukraine & Cost of Living

How should the UK — the world — respond if Russia uses chemical weapons in Ukraine? Would war with Russia then be inevitable?
What more should the government be doing to address the cost of living crisis?

Presenter: Chris Mason
Producer: Dianne McGregor


SAT 14:45 39 Ways to Save the Planet (m000r4vb)
Siberian Rewilding

Trees are often thought to be the good guys when it comes to climate change. In Siberia, however, it's not always the case. The landscape was changed when humans arrived and the forest that took over from grasslands is causing problems. In Pleistocene Park, Russian scientists are carrying out a radical rewilding - removing trees and reintroducing species of grazing animals to help protect the permafrost - the deep frozen ground - from thawing and releasing methane into the atmosphere. Tom Heap and Dr Tamsin Edwards consider how this ambitious idea could help in the fight against climate change.

Producer : Anne-Marie Bullock

Researcher: Sarah Goodman

Produced in association with the Royal Geographical Society. Special thanks for this episode to Professor Vincent Gauci from the University of Birmingham.


SAT 15:00 Drama (m0015tvn)
Between Two Places

In Yolanda Mercy’s new play, set in London in a time not far from now, Angela is struggling to survive.

Angela does not have all the papers the government says she should.

Can you imagine not being able to get medical treatment, not being able to protest, not being able to hold your employer to account? Can you imagine trusting so few people that making new friends, finding love, means taking an almighty risk? And working every hour you can to send money home to your family who live far away?

That’s Angela’s life.

The government is placing a Documentation App on everyone’s phone, whether they want it or not – and Angela’s life is about to get even more difficult.

Yolanda Mercy’s play Quarter Life Crisis was the first play to be heard on Radio 1Xtra and has been performed in Edinburgh, Lagos, Thailand, and in London, It was chosen to be one of the reopening season shows at the Bridge Theatre London shows in Autumn 2020 where it played to full houses. Yolanda’s first television drama BBW was commissioned and broadcast by Channel 4 and has since been nominated for the 2022 Writers’ Guild of Great Britain Best Short Form TV Drama and Best Short Form TV Drama at the 2021 Baftas, and won her The Television Foundation’s Debut Writer Award in the same year.

Her series World of Curls (created with Jade Lewis) is available to hear on BBC Sounds https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000s7m3.

Cast:
ANGELA Deborah Bahi
MONICA Michelle Greenidge
FOX Cash Holland
JAMAL Patrick Elue
IAN Clarence Smith
DOCTOR Nadine Gray
PHONE Esme Scarborough

Other parts were played by members of the cast.

Directed by Yolanda Mercy
Produced by Caroline Raphael
Sound by Wilfredo Acosta at The Soundhouse
With thanks to Zoe Gardner at The Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants

A Dora production for BBC Radio 4


SAT 16:00 Woman's Hour (m0015tvq)
Body hair, Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe speaks out, UK ambassador to Ukraine, Actor Ruth Wilson, Kinship care, Duvets

TV shows go to huge lengths with their sets, costumes and wigs to make you feel like you’re looking back at the past but why – given hair removal is a fairly modern development – is body hair so rarely seen? We hear from historian Dr Marissa C Rhodes.

After Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe expressed her opinions at a press conference this week, 'ungrateful' started trending online. Reaction from Gina Miller who took the government to court and won over how it tried to implemented Brexit without approval from Parliament and Emily Thornberry a former shadow foreign secretary.

Best known for The Affair and Luther, and more recently playing her own grandmother in a BBC drama, actor Ruth Wilson on her two latest roles – on the London stage in The Human Voice and on screen in True Things.

Melinda Simmons on her role as the British Ambassador to Ukraine. She left Ukraine on 7th March 2022 eleven days after the Russian invasion and is now in Poland.

Woman’s Hour understands that the Independent Review of Social Care in England is set to recommend that there should be a renewed focus on alternatives to care with a major focus on kinship care. The Chief Executive of the charity Kinship, Dr Lucy Peake, and kinship carer Meyrem discuss.

Journalist Sally Peck on the joys of swapping one duvet for two in the bed with her husband.

Presenter: Chloe Tilley
Producer: Dianne McGregor


SAT 17:00 PM (m0015tvs)
Full coverage of the day's news


SAT 17:30 The Bottom Line (m0015ly4)
Business and Energy

How will soaring energy costs affect UK corporations? Prices are spiking, not least because of the war in Ukraine. Energy is essential for everything from heating offices to transportation to manufacturing, so what happens when it just becomes too expensive? Evan Davis and guests discuss the current energy crisis and ask how long is it likely to last and what we can do to reduce the vulnerability of our businesses.

GUESTS
Michael Lewis, Eon Energy
Natalie Quail, Founder Smiletime
Tina McKenzie, Federation of Small Businesses
Gareth Stace, UK Steel
Producer: Lucinda Borrell
Production Coordinators: Siobhan Reed and Sophie Hill
Sound: Neil Churchill and Rod Farquhar
Editor: Hugh Levinson

The programme was produced in partnership with the Open University.


SAT 17:54 Shipping Forecast (m0015tvw)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


SAT 17:57 Weather (m0015tvy)
The latest weather reports and forecast


SAT 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m0015tw0)
Russia says Mr Biden's words diminish the chance of mending relations between Moscow and Washington


SAT 18:15 Loose Ends (m0015tw2)
Jack Thorne, Rachel Parris, Kasim Ali, Seiriol Davies, Joss Stone, Ibibio Sound Machine, David Morrissey, Clive Anderson

Clive Anderson and David Morrissey are joined by Jack Thorne, Rachel Parris, Seiriol Davies and Kasim Ali for an eclectic mix of conversation, music and comedy. With music from Joss Stone and Ibibio Sound Machine.


SAT 19:00 Profile (m0015tpn)
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson

She made history in the US this week as the first black woman to go through Senate confirmation hearings for an appointment to America’s all powerful Supreme Court.

A person of profound faith, Ketanji Brown Jackson poured her soul into her studies. She excelled at Miami Palmetto Senior High School where she was a champion debater, star performer and the president of her class.

She graduated from Harvard University where she met her husband Patrick Jackson and formed life-long friendships. From there, she rose up the legal ranks, fast becoming a public defender, Vice Chair of the US Sentencing Commission and finally a Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

Mark Coles profiles the indefatigable Judge on the brink of becoming the 116th Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court.

Presenter: Mark Coles
Producer: Diane Richardson
Researcher: Imogen Serwotka
Production: Coordinator
Editor: Damon Rose


SAT 19:15 This Cultural Life (m0015tw4)
Tamara Rojo

Spanish ballet star Tamara Rojo has enjoyed a 20 year stage career, in which she starred in all the greatest classical ballet roles to both critical and popular acclaim. She became artistic director of the English National Ballet, and recently made her debut as a choreographer with a new version of the 19th century ballet Raymonda. Now, after a decade running the ENB, she is preparing to take on a new job as artistic director of the San Francisco ballet, the first woman to hold the role.

She tells John Wilson about the chance introduction to a dance class at school, and her unexpected success winning the Paris International Dance competition in 1994 which led to a role at Scottish Ballet at the age of 17. She reveals how seeing Francis Bacon's studies of the Velazquez portrait of Pope Innocent X made her reassess approaches to classic works of art and inspired a desire to re imagine works from the classical ballet canon. She also explains why she loves the Lars von Trier film Dancer in the Dark and how Bjork's tour de force performance mirrors he own approach to inhabiting a role.

Producer: Edwina Pitman


SAT 20:00 Archive on 4 (m0015tw6)
Sir Alex Ferguson: Made in Govan

BBC Radio Manchester presenter Mike Sweeney and former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson go back a long way. They used to play football together and bonded over their love of music from the sixties. In this edition of Archive on 4, they sit down together to talk about Sir Alex as a young man and the influences which shaped his extraordinary career. Sir Alex reflects on his upbringing in Govan, the tenements where he lived and the people who first believed in him. He reveals how his early experiences as a working man left him with values that last to this day. He tells Mike about the magic of first playing football, and reflects on the ups and downs of his playing and coaching career and their impact on what came next. Moments from the BBC Archive help Mike tell Sir Alex's story.

Presented by Mike Sweeney.
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Camellia Sinclair.
Mixed by Michael Harrison.


SAT 21:00 Drama (m0015tw8)
4am Kyiv Is Bombed

One story from Ukraine. In Jonathan Myerson’s quick-response drama we meet some of the police officers in Kyiv who are dealing with the shocking events currently taking place.

Like so many in Ukraine they must consider how to fight for their country and what it is to be Ukrainian.

This is a fiction, informed by real events, written and recorded as the invasion has been taking place.

Oleksiy Gordon Peaston
Polina Pearl Appleby
Super Sandy Grierson
Marichka Alyth Ross
Holub Nabil Eluahabi
Denysenko Noof Ousellam
Runner Charlie Archer
Titles Inna Bagoli Goncharenko

Other parts played by members of the company

Written by Jonathan Myerson
Sound design by Alisdair McGregor
Produced and Directed by Boz Temple-Morris

A Holy Mountain production for BBC Radio 4.


SAT 21:45 Border Crossing (b079mjm8)
First Born & Demoiselle

A series of programmes that sets up a unique pairing between writers from countries challenged by refugee and migration issues with short story writers from Britain. Each foreign story was given to a British writer who wrote their own response, in an exchange of fiction that aims to explode myths, explore shared concerns and extend the boundaries of the short story.

In First Born by Leila Haidar, a Syrian mother mourns the death of her eldest son. The reader is Sirine Saba.

In Mish Green's response, Demoiselle, a woman prepares to join her friend working with migrating cranes in India. The reader is Clare Corbett.

Leila Haidar is the pseudonym of a published writer living in a regime-controlled area of Syria. Mish Green is a British-Canadian writer and spoken word artist. Mish has published one collection of poetry, and the book Jebel Marra, a collection of linked stories on Darfur’s ongoing war, is out now.

A Pier production for BBC Radio 4


SAT 22:00 News (m0015twb)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4


SAT 22:15 Moral Maze (m0015lr7)
Cleaning the Internet

For a brief moment this month Ukrainians were allowed to call for the death of Vladimir Putin on Instagram and Facebook. That freedom was subsequently withdrawn – “hate speech” isn’t tolerated on those platforms after all. But can Ukrainians really be expected to hold back on how they feel about the Russian military? And maybe we, as bystanders, could do with seeing that anger expressed without the filter of online ‘etiquette’ policies devised by a Silicon Valley CEO. Maybe our rage about Mariupol is all we’ve got, so is it wrong to share it. How should we strike the right balance between reason and raw emotion, without on the one hand caring too little, or on the other hand losing perspective.

The trouble is, if we allow ‘hate speech’ about the Russian President, where do we then draw the line? And what about propaganda, misinformation and conspiracy theories. The social media platforms spend millions on trying to sort truth from lies, but why should it be an internet company that gets to decide? The just-published Online Safety Bill sets out plans to punish internet companies for failing to censor material that is ‘legal but harmful’. The aim is to protect us from the effects of dark images and suggestions. But is it foolish to imply that we can make the internet ‘safe’. And if we agree that the internet will always be dangerous, shouldn’t we cultivate a healthy suspicion of it, rather than a misplaced trust in its moderators. Might it not it be better, and more moral, to teach our children – and trust our fellow-citizens – to think for themselves? With digital researcher Ellen Judson; CEO of Index on Censorship Ruth Smeeth; internet safety expert Will Gardner and former teacher and author Joanna Williams.

Produced by Olive Clancy


SAT 23:00 Counterpoint (m0015ll9)
Series 35

The Final, 2022

(13/13)
The three competitors who've won their way through the heats and semi-finals of the 2022 tournament line up to face Paul Gambaccini's questions for the last time this year, in a bid to become the 35th BBC Counterpoint champion.

Dvorak and Liszt line up alongside Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark and the Beatles, in the unpredictable array of questions facing the Finalists this year. Breadth of knowledge of musical eras and genres counts for a lot, but speed on the buzzer can also be crucial when the stakes are so high. All of our Finalists have proved they know their music, so who will triumph on the day? After a series when the overall standard has been so impressive, a close and hard-fought Final is guaranteed.

Assistant Producer: Stephen Garner
Producer: Paul Bajoria


SAT 23:30 Cold as a Mountain Top (m0015kt7)
WH Murray was one of a pioneering group of climbers in Scotland in the 1930’s, establishing new routes in Glencoe, Ben Nevis and The Cuillin. But it was one particular mountain that he loved – and climbed – the most; the iconic Buachaillie Etive Mor at Glencoe. This was the last mountain he climbed just before leaving for war in 1941.

Murray was captured in the African desert but his life was saved when he uttered the words, ‘Cold as a mountain top.’ The German officer was also a mountaineer and took him prisoner instead of shooting him on the spot. During his imprisonment in Italy and Czechoslovakia he wrote the seminal ‘Mountaineering in Scotland’ completely from memory, recalling the intimate details of climbs he undertook in the 1930’s.

The book has been a talismanic text for climbers like Robert Macfarlane. He's turned to it often, particularly when the cold of the mountain top has felt very far away during recent periods of confinement. In this immersive audio voyage, Robert returns to Murray’s beloved Buachaille with 'Mountaineering in Scotland' by his side.

Produced by Helen Needham in Aberdeen.
Readings by Cal MacAninch.
Sound design and composition by Anthony Cowie.
Sound consultation and mixing by Ron McCaskill.
Our mountain Guide was Richard Parker.

Thanks to Robin Lloyd-Jones, WH Murray's biographer, for help with the preparation of this programme.



SUNDAY 27 MARCH 2022

SUN 00:00 Midnight News (m0015twd)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.


SUN 00:15 Tom Mayhew Is Benefit Scum (m000tcd8)
Fit to Work

Working Class comedian Tom Mayhew takes you on an autobiographical journey through the benefits system in a stand-up series that takes a wry, sideways look at the prejudices that people have towards benefits claimants and turns those assumptions on their head. Tom Mayhew is a critically acclaimed comedian, whose material about being working-class – mixing the personal and the political, with the punchline-rate of a one-liner comic – sets him apart from any other act on the circuit. Tom Mayhew is Benefit Scum is an audio adaptation of Mayhew's acclaimed Edinburgh show I, Tom Mayhew which transferred to a sell out run at the Soho Theatre.

Produced by Benjamin Sutton
A BBC Studios Production


SUN 00:30 A Pocketful of Rye (b0638p8n)
Marsh Fever

A beautiful tale of a young girl who has been badly treated in the past and the result of that treatment is lying sick before her.

Believing that she has the secret to his recovery she decides it is time to make a claim on what is rightfully hers.

The final story in a series of three set in and around Rye in East Sussex.

Written by Alison Fisher and read by Teresa Gallagher.

Producer: Celia de Wolff

A Pier production for BBC Radio 4 first broadcast in July 2015.


SUN 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m0015twg)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


SUN 02:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m0015twj)
BBC Radio 4 presents a selection of news and current affairs, arts and science programmes from the BBC World Service.


SUN 05:33 Shipping Forecast (m0015twl)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


SUN 05:43 Bells on Sunday (m0015tq7)
The Parish Church of St Marys North Creake in Norfolk.

Bells on Sunday comes from the parish church of St Marys North Creake in Norfolk. The church was mainly built in the 14th and 15th centuries with extensive restorations in the late 19th century. In 2015 the old ring of six bells, from various founders, were retuned and augmented to a ring of eight by John Taylor & Co of Loughborough with a tenor weighing eleven and a half hundredweight in the note of F sharp. We hear the bells ringing North Creake Surprise Major


SUN 05:45 Profile (m0015tpn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Saturday]


SUN 06:00 News Summary (m0015tnd)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4


SUN 06:05 Something Understood (m00163qn)
I Got Rhythm

An edition of the programme originally broadcast on New Year's Eve in 2006 and presented by the celebrated radio feature-maker Piers Plowright, who died last summer.

Presenter: Piers Plowright
Reader: Emma Fielding
Producer: Alan Hall

A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4


SUN 06:35 Natural Histories (b0901fqk)
Cuckoo

We know the cuckoo for its song and think of it as the harbinger of spring. But we also know it as a rascally bird that abandons its young to the care of unwitting foster parents. Such a double life has ensured that the cuckoo has had a substantial place in the culture of all the countries across Europe and Asia where it comes to breed. In addition, observers, natural historians and scientists have long puzzled over the bird's secretive behaviour and habits - how do they do what they do, where do they go when they are not here, why are we losing them in England? Brett Westwood in the company of various field workers who have spent lifetimes trying to figure out cuckoos explores the rich and tangled life of the bird. With Nick Davies, Jenny York, Mark Cocker, and Chris Hewson and a gone-cuckoo song by Hanna Tuulikki.

First broadcast in a longer form on 8th August 2017
Original Producer: Tim Dee.
Archive Producer for BBC Audio in Bristol Andrew Dawes


SUN 06:57 Weather (m0015tnh)
The latest weather reports and forecast


SUN 07:00 News and Papers (m0015tnk)
The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.


SUN 07:10 Sunday (m0015tnm)
'Good versus evil' in Ukraine, Taliban U-turn on girls' education, The Merchant of Venice

Perhaps not since the Second World War has a conflict been so readily characterised as ‘good vs evil’. Is that helpful? What do we mean by 'evil' and how might we view it in the context of the Ukraine war?

Girls’ secondary schools in Afghanistan were due to open last week but the Taliban reversed its decision at the last minute, saying a ruling is still to be made on the uniforms that girls must wear. What is the longer-term significance of this U-turn?

Many theatre directors are reluctant to put on Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice because of the prominence of antisemitism in the play. A new version, directed by a Jewish woman, Abigail Graham, seeks to explore how antisemitism manifests itself in society.

Presenter: Edward Stourton
Producers: Dan Tierney and Amanda Hancox
Editor: Helen Grady.


SUN 07:54 Radio 4 Appeal (m0015tnp)
The Halo Trust

Afghanistan veteran and broadcaster JJ Chalmers makes the Radio 4 Appeal on behalf of The Halo Trust.

To Give:
- UK Freephone 0800 404 8144
-You can donate online at bbc.co.uk/appeal/radio4
- Freepost BBC Radio 4 Appeal. (That’s the whole address. Please do not write anything else on the front of the envelope). Mark the back of the envelope ‘The Halo Trust’.
- Cheques should be made payable to ‘The Halo Trust’.
Please note that Freephone and online donations for this charity close at 23.59 on the Saturday after the Appeal is first broadcast. However the Freepost option can be used at any time.

Registered charity number: 1001813


SUN 07:57 Weather (m0015tnr)
The latest weather reports and forecast


SUN 08:00 News and Papers (m0015tnt)
The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.


SUN 08:10 Sunday Worship (m0015tnw)
A Passion for Hospitality - I was naked

Marking Mothering Sunday with Rev Dr Alison Jack of Edinburgh University's School of Divinity.
Continuing the series, the theme is 'I was naked'. During Lent, Sunday Worship is considering, as the nation emerges from the experience of unprecedented isolation, how we can better reach out both to neighbour and stranger, and especially to the marginalised and disadvantaged.
We hear the stories of Luke Bacon, himself adopted and now an adoptive father, and Alison Phipps, whose life changed when she met a young girl from Eritrea.
Reading: Luke 8: 26-39
Lent resources for individuals and groups are available from the Sunday Worship website.
Producer: Mo McCullough


SUN 08:48 A Point of View (m0015l1c)
Tolstoy in Our Time

Adam Gopnik seeks enlightenment for our time in Tolstoy's War and Peace, finding parallels in Tolstoy's thinking for today's war in Ukraine.

Reflecting on how Russian characters in the book converse in fluent French, Adam considers how mixed identities should not undermine national integrity, writing that the composite nature of Ukrainian identity does not cast doubt on its integrity as a country.

He also explores Tolstoy's debunking of the 'great man' theory of history, and a reminder that 'history lies outside the control of any one hero, or heroine' while conceding that heroism is in itself a plausible concept, and 'if great men and women do not cause history, they surely make history. We seem to be seeing it made in action right now.'

Producer: Sheila Cook
Sound: Peter Bosher
Production Coordinator: Gemma Ashman
Editor: Richard Fenton-Smith


SUN 08:58 Tweet of the Day (b04dyh88)
Emperor Penguin

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

Sir David Attenborough presents the emperor penguin from the Antarctic Peninsula. With temperatures down to minus 50oC, midwinter blizzards scouring one of the most inhospitable places on the planet, this is not an obvious location for raising young. Yet at the heart of this landscape, the world's largest penguin, the emperor, stands guard over their young. Tightly-packed colonies of hundreds or sometimes thousands of birds huddle together, to conserve heat. The male broods the single egg on his feet, protected under folds of bare abdominal skin. Females travel up to 100km from the colony in search of food, using a technique called tobogganing which is far more efficient than walking on their short legs. Harsh though the landscape is in midwinter, all this activity is co-ordinated to allow the young to fledge into the relatively warmth of an Antarctic summer.


SUN 09:00 Broadcasting House (m0015tny)
We meet British fighters in Ukraine with an exclusive report from Jonah Fischer. Lyse Doucet will be live in Kiev. We profile Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as rumours swirl over President Putin's inner circle. A ten year old refugee starting a new school in Dublin updates us on her first week. Ahead of the Oscars, our coverage is led not from Los Angeles but from Belfast .. where the city watches the film of the same name. Our headliners - Emily Thornberry, Karen Krizanovitch and Roya Nikkah.


SUN 10:00 The Archers Omnibus (m0015tp0)
Writer, Sarah McDonald-Hughes
Director, Rosemary Watts
Editor, Jeremy Howe

Adam Macy ….. Andrew Wincott
Alan Franks ….. John Telfer
Alice Carter ….. Hollie Chapman
Amy Franks ….. Jennifer Daley
Beth Casey ….. Rebecca Fuller
Brian Aldridge ….. Charles Collingwood
Chris Carter ….. Wilf Scolding
Freddie Pargetter ….. Toby Laurence
Hannah Riley ….. Helen Longworth
Ian Craig ….. Stephen Kennedy
Jazzer McCreary ….. Ryan Kelly
Justin Elliott ….. Simon Williams
Lily Pargetter ….. Katie Redford
Neil Carter ….. Brian Hewlett
Russ Jones ….. Andonis James Anthony
Susan Carter ….. Charlotte Martin
Tony Archer ….. David Troughton
Tracy Horrobin ….. Susie Riddell
Usha Franks ….. Souad Faress


SUN 11:00 Desert Island Discs (m0015tp2)
Winnie Byanyima, executive director of Unaids

Winnie Byanyima is a human rights advocate and executive director of Unaids, the joint UN Programme which was set up to eradicate Aids as a threat to public health by 2030.

Winnie was born in the village of Ruti, in south west Uganda, where her teacher parents raised her and her siblings to follow their example of doing good things for others. From an early age Winnie adopted the family motto of ‘truth and justice’.

Winnie fled the country in 1978, during the regime of President Idi Amin, and came to the UK as a refugee. She won a scholarship to study aeronautical engineering at Manchester University, graduating in 1981. She returned home where she found a job as an engineer for Ugandan Airlines while secretly working for Yoweri Museveni’s resistance movement that opposed Amin’s successor, Milton Obote.

In 1994 Winnie was elected as an MP in the Ugandan Parliament and was instrumental in drawing up a new constitution for the country. In 2013 she was appointed executive director of Oxfam International and became executive director of Unaids in 2019. She currently lives in Geneva.

DISC ONE: Sanyu Lyange by Juliana Kanyomozi
DISC TWO: Cantata No. 147: Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring by New London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Leopold Stokowski, with the Norman Luboff Choir
DISC THREE: Le Bûcheron by Franklin Boukaka
DISC FOUR: Heart of Glass by Blondie
DISC FIVE: Umqombothi by Yvonne Chaka Chaka
DISC SIX: Steal Away (Remastered) by Nat King Cole
DISC SEVEN: Don't Worry Be Happy by Bobby McFerrin
DISC EIGHT: I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free by Nina Simone

BOOK CHOICE: The Second Sex by Simone De Beauvoir
LUXURY ITEM: A basket weaving needle
CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free by Nina Simone

Presenter: Lauren Laverne
Producer: Paula McGinley


SUN 11:45 Letter from Ukraine (m0015nr9)
Displaced Lives

Ukrainian writer Andrey Kurkov gives a personal account of the adjustments and displacements of war.

Written and read by Andrey Kurkov
Translated by Elizabeth Sharp
Produced by Emma Harding

Production co-ordinator Eleri McAuliffe
Technical producer Catherine Robinson

A BBC Cymru Wales production for BBC Radio 4


SUN 12:00 News Summary (m0015v5x)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4


SUN 12:04 Just a Minute (m0015lln)
Series 88

Episode 5

Sue Perkins challenges Zoe Lyons, Gyles Brandreth, Shazia Mirza and Paul Merton to speak for 60 seconds without repetition, deviation or hesitation.

The long-running national treasure of a parlour game is back, with subjects this week ranging from She Sells Sea Shells to My Irish Roots.

Production co-ordinator: Caroline Barlow
Sound editor: Marc Willcox
Producer: Hayley Sterling

A BBC Studios Production


SUN 12:32 The Food Programme (m0015tp6)
Beans Part 1: Are Legumes the Answer?

In the first of two programmes all about beans, Sheila Dillon asks if they could be the answer to our issues with health and global warming.

We're often told how eating less meat is crucial for a healthy lifestyle and a healthy planet. In response, supermarkets and food outlets have been adding more meat-free options, and whole plant-based product ranges, which are often highly processed. So what if there was another food that we could all do with eating a lot more of, that's relatively affordable, is healthy and can be good for soil health and the environment? For hundreds of years beans have had a reputation in the UK of being food for the poor, vegetarians, or as filler for stews and curries. Mainly sold pre-cooked in cans, the ranges have been growing in recent years, but by far the biggest seller are Baked Beans.

Someone who wants to change that is entrepreneur Amelia Christie-Miller, the founder of a new brand called Bold Bean Co. Sheila finds out why Amelia's beans that come in glass jars, taste so different from the ones she is used to eating from cans. The beans are imported from Spain, where they are a much bigger part of the culture. The owner of Spanish restaurant chain Bar44, Owen Morgan demonstrates how to make them the main event; Dietitian and nutritionist Dr Megan Rossi from Kings College London explains how the can also improve our gut health; and Dr Pete Iannetta from the James Hutton Institute, and writer and grower Susan Young (author of "Growing Beans: A Diet for Healthy People and Planet") say we should all be considering growing more beans in order to reap the benefits for our soils and health.

Presented by Sheila Dillon
Produced in Bristol by Natalie Donovan


SUN 12:57 Weather (m0015tp8)
The latest weather forecast


SUN 13:00 The World This Weekend (m0015tpb)
Radio 4’s look at the week’s big stories from both home and around the world.


SUN 13:30 The Archbishop Interviews (m0015tpd)
Stephen King

In this series, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has deep conversations with people who have made a significant contribution to public life about what they believe. How have the navigated their inner life alongside their public profile? What has been their moral ‘touchstone’ through the good times and the bad? How do they engage with faith and spirituality?

This week's guest is the author Stephen King. He's written more than 60 novels, hundreds of short stories, and has sold hundreds of millions of books worldwide. Described as the “King of Horror”, he became a household name with novels such as Carrie, The Shining, and Misery. Those and countless others have been adapted for the big screen, including The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile, providing some of the most captivating moments in cinema history.

Producer: Dan Tierney for BBC Audio North.


SUN 14:00 Gardeners' Question Time (m0015l0s)
Gardeners' Question Time: Exbury Gardens

Kathy Clugston is in the village of Exbury in Hampshire. She's joined by Pippa Greenwood, Matthew Wilson and Christine Walkden to answer the audience's horticultural queries.

This week, the panellists discuss the best way to eliminate horsetail and green fly, pollinator-friendly plants for year-round flowers, and the use of the word 'dirt'.

Stepping away from the questions, Pippa Greenwood meets Exbury Gardens' Head Gardener Tom Clarke as he shows her around the dragonfly pond.

Producer: Daniel Cocker
Assistant Producer: Bethany Hocken

A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4


SUN 14:45 1922: The Birth of Now (m0013rrr)
The Criterion, which published The Waste Land

1922: The Birth of Now - Ten programmes in which Matthew Sweet investigates objects and events from 1922, the crucial year for modernism, that have an impact today.

2. The Criterion. T. S. Eliot founded this literary magazine in which The Waste Land first appeared. It contained new voices - but some were speaking in the language of the dead. The Criterion also published Yeats and Proust, who were both interested in the occult, auras and voices from other worlds. Matthew Sweet explores some of the forgotten preoccupations of Modernism, such as the trauma of war, dirt, pollution and mysticism, that are still potent a century later, with writer Gary Lachman and critics including Lisa Mullen and Xine Yao.

Producer: Eliane Glaser

Readings: Neil McCaul and Michael Begley

Photograph courtesy of The Manhattan Rare Book Company


SUN 15:00 Drama (m0015tpg)
Some Kind of Black, Episode 2

Tough, wry Black British classic about a young man navigating love, politics and violence in 90s Britain. Adapted from his hit novel by Diran Adebayo.

Dele launches a campaign to raise awareness about the police brutality that has left his sister comatose in hospital. But when a march for her goes tragically wrong, Dele starts to wonder who he can trust...

Dele....Kenneth Omole.
Sol....Zackary Momoh
Gabriel....Kwabena Ansah
Andria....Thea Gajic
Celia....Nneka Okoye
Genevieve....Nneka Okoye
Mother....Yetunde Oduwole
Father....Cyril Nri
Dapo....Danielle Vitalis
Concrete....Stephen Odubola
Lee....Tayla Kovacevic-Ebong
Michael....Chris Jack
Other parts were played by Alexandra Hannant, Matthew Durkan and other members of the cast

Technical Producer....Caleb Knightley
Technical Producer....Jenni Burnett
Technical Producer....Martha Littlehailes
Technical Producer....Keith Graham
Production Co-ordinator....Ben Hollands

Writer and dramatist....Diran Adebayo
Director....by Femi Elufowoju jr
Producer....Abigail le Fleming

A BBC Audio production for Radio 4


SUN 16:00 Open Book (m0015tpj)
Here Again Now, Readers guide to Gogol, Lessons in Chemistry

Elizabeth Day talks to the author of The Private Joys of Nnenna Maloney, Okechukwu Nzelu about his second novel Here Again Now.

A tender portrait of lovers, fathers, and sons which explores the power of family, both the one into which we are born and those we choose for ourselves. Achike, an up-and-coming actor, has a lifelong friendship with Ekene, which always seems on the brink of becoming more intimate. When Achike’s alcoholic father moves in, the three men are forced to re-evaluate everything they thought they knew about each other and find a way forward into their new lives.

Elizabeth explores the writing of Nikolai Gogol. Born in Ukraine, the author of Dead Souls, The Overcoat and The Nose, embodies both the ties that bind the Russia and Ukraine together and the differences that set them apart. Dr Oliver Ready, translator and research fellow in Russian Literature at St Anthony's College Oxford, currently writing about Nikolai Gogol and Viktoriia Grivina, from Kharkiv, currently a cultural researcher in Modern Languages at St Andrews University, join Elizabeth to discuss Gogol's life and writing.

And we hear about a new book for April. Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus features a pioneering female chemist who chafes against the sexism of 1950s America.


SUN 16:30 Papageno and the poetry of disquiet (m0015tpl)
Some of the finest poems in the English language flirt with death, but does that make them dangerous reading for those struggling with depression and suicidal thoughts?

Suicide prevention websites today routinely warn that young people drawn to suicidal impulses listen to music about suicide or seek out literary texts about suicide. But from John Clare to Sylvia Plath, some of our most celebrated poets have written about the impulse to die by suicide.

Author Joanna Cannon is well known for her bestselling novels, but her work as a psychiatric doctor, often working with suicidal patients, has led her to a greater understanding of the power of poetry, not least in her own life, and how it can help to alleviate the darkest moments of despair.

Joanna seeks to make sense of the conflicting attitudes towards this “poetry of disquiet”. How should we read Sylvia Plath’s powerful depiction of her suicide attempt in The Bell Jar, or Anne Sexton’s “Wanting to Die” in an era when we are more sensitive about idealising self-harm and suicidal ideation than ever before? How much is the creative impulse intertwined with depression and mental health? Can a poet’s distillation of despair be a destructive influence on vulnerable readers? Or rather could those struggling with life - and death - instead draw something positive from those who have written about suicide? Just like the character of Papageno in Mozart’s opera the Magic Flute, who is dissuaded from taking his own life, can what is known in suicide prevention circles as the Papageno Effect be achieved by finding hope and solace through a poet’s words?

Drawing on her own experience, Joanna also questions writers, poets, those who have struggled with depression and suicide and those who work to prevent it, and finds a fount of solace and understanding in words which with exquisite clarity can strike a chord deep within the troubled mind.

Joanna is the author of The Trouble with Goats and Sheep and Three Things about Elsie.
Contributors include Femi Oyebode, professor of psychiatry and poet; Heather Clark, professor of contemporary poetry; Ella Risbridger, writer; Thomas Niederkrotenthaler, deputy head of the International Suicide Prevention Association, and those with lived experience of depression and mental illness.

Produced by Amanda Hargreaves
Readings by Susie Maguire and David Jackson Young


SUN 17:00 Bad Apples (m0015ltf)
Reporter Cara McGoogan investigates shocking claims of bullying, sexual harassment and violence within the ranks of the police towards female officers.

When the revelations about toxic behaviour at Charing Cross Police Station emerged, including WhatsApp messages boasting of graphic sexual violence against female police, officers up and down the country would have been deleting their messaging history. So says an ex-officer who has spoken to Cara McGoogan: “There’ll be a lot of people worried about the information they’ve shared.”

But the behaviour goes much deeper than WhatsApp messages. Female officers tell Cara they have been bullied, harassed, emotionally abused and sexually assaulted - all at the hands of their colleagues. They paint a picture of a broken system - victims are punished, perpetrators promoted.

As Cara’s investigation deepens, more and more women approach her from inside the police, Some, having won sex discrimination complaints, feel free to speak openly. Others feel intimidated, too fearful of reprisals and revenge. Disloyalty is often punished, “career suicide” says an anonymous speaker. Others say the police operate like a gang, protecting their own and pushing out women who ‘grass’.

Sue Fish, former chief constable at Nottinghamshire Police, strongly disputes the defence of a few ‘bad apples’. So are the police guilty of institutional misogyny - and a cover-up?

Presenter: Cara McGoogan
Produced by Sarah Peters
Executive Producer: Iain Chambers

A Tuning Fork and Open Audio production for BBC Radio 4


SUN 17:40 Profile (m0015tpn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Saturday]


SUN 17:54 Shipping Forecast (m0015tpq)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


SUN 17:57 Weather (m0015tps)
The latest weather reports and forecast


SUN 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m0015tpv)
Ukrainian intelligence chief warns Russia may seek to divide the country.


SUN 18:15 Pick of the Week (m0015tpx)
Rick Edwards

Rick Edwards is presenting this week, and it will come as no surprise to anyone who’s listened to his show on Radio 5Live, that his Pick of the Week is tonally - all over the place. You'll find out how Johnny Cash wrote Walk the Line, how to avoid being charged by a chimp and maybe even how to get more lovin' in your life...

You’ll laugh - twice - you’ll cry - three, maybe four times - and you’ll mutter ‘that’s interesting, I didn’t know that’ six times, minimum, or you’ll get your money back.


SUN 19:00 The Archers (m0015tpz)
At the shop, Susan tells Neil Tracy is avoiding her. Neil’s sorry that Berrow Farm has caused tension between the two sisters. When Lilian joins them Susan gives her the cold shoulder. Lilian doesn’t want to be involved in any awkwardness due to Chris and Alice’s divorce. But Susan is also annoyed with Justin looking to close Berrow Fam while at the same time investing in The Stables. She orders her out of the shop and refuses to serve her there in future.

After delivering a Mothering Sunday sermon, Alan thanks Amy for standing in for an unwell Clarrie to do a reading. Kate attends the service with Jennifer and Peggy and approaches Alan to donate to the Lent Appeal. She then confronts Amy about sleeping with Chris. Amy flees in tears and Alan is furious at Kate for attacking his daughter in church.

Tearful Amy calls in at the shop and explains what happened between her, Alan and Kate in church. Neil goes to find Alan and Susan comforts Amy. Susan goes as far to say that Alice was never right for Chris and that she’d give her backing to Amy and Chris becoming a couple. Meanwhile, Lilian and Kate chat on their way to Mother’s Day lunch at The Lodge. Kate wants to make an official complaint against Alan.


SUN 19:15 Desolation Jests (b084xc8c)
Episode 1

David Jason stars alongside John Bird, Jan Ravens and Rory Bremner in David Renwick’s dark and quirky comedy sketch show that takes a not-altogether-factual look at the history of comedy….

What comedy sketches would you most want at your side to face the end of the world?

In the opening episode, interviewer JP Doom interviews Frankie “Flesh Eater” Harris about a life at the top of the Most Wanted list, and discusses what sketch-based chuckles he would choose to lighten his heart if he found himself stranded in a post-apocalyptic wasteland.

And there are clips from spurious comedy greats such as Mace and Dixon’s “the Fiancée of Frankenstein” sketch; the ultimate Mastermind parody from Jenkin Spleen and Helena Handcart; and the fast-talking lunacy of the Klutz Brothers' classic “A Day at the Proctologists”.

With:

David Jason
John Bird
Jan Ravens
Rory Bremner

Producer: Gareth Edwards

A BBC Studios production for BBC Radio 4 first broadcast in December 2016.


SUN 19:45 Moorings (b08hqm2z)
A tale by Thomas Lynch - the award-winning American essayist, poet and undertaker - set in the far North of his home state, Michigan.

The Upper Peninsula has more trees than people, and a glorious autumn of colour will soon be followed by a long, cold snowy winter. Every year, before the weather sets in, Doyle Shields must take his boat up river to the marina where it will be stored until the spring. Now 90, as he makes his slow progress upstream, he can't help thinking of those he's lost.

Directed by Kate McAll
A Pier production for BBC Radio 4


SUN 20:00 Feedback (m0015l0x)
As the airwaves and social media are flooded with disinformation, how can listeners find out what is really happening in Ukraine, and see through the conspiracy of lies pouring out of Russia? Roger Bolton talks to the BBC World Service’s Disinformation Editor Rebecca Skippage, about the darkening fog of war.

Also, John Wilson talks about Radio 4’s This Cultural Life, and how he tries to get to the heart of the creative process.

And has the new Radio 4 adaptation of the award-winning TV serial Our Friends In The North made friends with our listeners?

Presenter: Roger Bolton
Producer: Kate Dixon
Executive Producer: Samir Shah

A Juniper Connect production for BBC Radio 4


SUN 20:30 Last Word (m0015l0v)
Bruce Page, Dottie Frazier, Josephine Veasey (pictured), Maynard Davies

Matthew Bannister on

Bruce Page, the investigative journalist best known for leading the Sunday Times Insight team’s expose of the Thalidomide scandal.

Dottie Frazier, the pioneering American scuba diver who kept a boa constrictor as a pet and rode a motorcycle until she was in her nineties.

Josephine Veasey, the British mezzo-soprano acclaimed for her performances in works by Wagner and Berlioz.

And Maynard Davies, who left school unable to read and write, went on to become a well-known bacon curer and chronicled his extraordinary life in a series of books.

Producer: Neil George

Interviewed guest: Magnus Linklater
Interviewed guest: Peter Kellner
Interviewed guest: Alec Peirce
Interviewed guest: Karen Straus
Interviewed guest: Una Barry
Interviewed guest: Karen McCall

Archive clips used: AP Archive, How West Germany Treats Thalidomide Children 10/12/1972; BBC One, The Editors: Press and Politicians 02/07/1978; Alec Peirce Scuba Channel, Dottie Frazier - A Diving Legend 09/01/2020; BBC Radio 4, A Musical Evening - Josephine Veasey 01/08/1985; YouTube - TheScottReaProject/Channel 4, Interview with Maynard Davies 1996; BBC Radio 4, The Food Programme - Interview with Maynard Davies 23/07/2000; AmericanRhetoric.com/YouTube Channel, Madeleine Albright - International Women's Day speech 08/03/2010.


SUN 21:00 Money Box (m0015tq1)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:04 on Saturday]


SUN 21:25 Radio 4 Appeal (m0015tnp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:54 today]


SUN 21:30 Analysis (m0015llx)
The Court of Putin

In the wake of the greatest crisis to hit Europe since the Second World War, former Moscow correspondent Tim Whewell examines the president, people and processes that led to that momentous decision, and others like it.

Radical advisers, tame oligarchs, intelligence agencies scared to tell Putin the truth and the domestic repercussions of NATO’s political moves - Tim brings together the variety of causes that have led to deep dysfunction and the concentration of power in a single man who risks becoming synonymous with the state itself.

Interviewees include investigative journalists Catherine Belton and Andrei Soldatov, and former NATO Secretary General George Robertson.

Producer: Nathan Gower
Sound: Nigel Appleton
Production Coordinators: Siobhan Reed and Sophie Hill
Editor: Hugh Levinson


SUN 22:00 Westminster Hour (m0015tq3)
Lewis Goodall is joined by the former Cabinet minister Mark Harper; Shadow Employment Minister Alison McGovern; and the former leader of the Green Party, Baroness Natalie Bennett. They discuss the Chancellor's response to the cost of living crisis, the forthcoming energy security strategy, and the situation in Ukraine. George Parker - political editor of the Financial Times - brings additional insight and analysis.


SUN 23:00 The Curious Cases of Rutherford & Fry (m0015lx9)
Series 19

The Colour Conundrum

The world is full of colour! But, wonders listener Maya Crocombe, ‘how do we see colour and why are some people colour blind?’

Dr Rutherford and Professor Fry set out to understand how special light-sensitive cells in our eyes start the process of colour perception, why people sometimes have very different experiences of colour and whether, in the end, colour is really just ‘in our heads’.

Dr Gabriele Jordan from Newcastle University explains why lots of men struggle to discriminate between certain colours and why there were lots of complaints from colour-blind viewers when Wales played Ireland at rugby.

Professor Anya Hurlbert, also from Newcastle University, tackles the most divisive of internet images: The Dress! Did you see it as blue-black or yellow-gold? Anya explains why people see it so differently, and why our ability to compensate for available light is so useful.

Finally, Dr Mazviita Chirimuuta, a philosopher at the University of Edinburgh, gives us her take on what all this means: are colours real, or just in our minds?

If you want to see some of the images and activities referenced in the episode read on...
To take the colour perception test which Hannah and Adam do in the epsiode, search for the 'Farnsworth Munsell Hue test' - you can do it online for free.
To see the Dunstanborough Castle illusion as described in the episode, check out the Gallery section on the Curious Cases BBC website.
To learn more about colour blindness, and for support and resources go to colourblindawareness.org

Producer: Ilan Goodman


SUN 23:30 Something Understood (m00163qn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 06:05 today]



MONDAY 28 MARCH 2022

MON 00:00 Midnight News (m0015tq5)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.


MON 00:15 Wireless Nights (m0012fk8)
Series 7

On The Edge

Jarvis goes into hospital for a routine procedure, and the anaesthetic gives him some very strange nocturnal visions.

As Dr Ed Patrick administers the anaesthetic, Jarvis is transported far, far away. One moment he's on a Scottish lighthouse at midnight with artist and writer Peter Hill, who spent time as a lighthouse keeper in the 1970s.

Then, in the blink of an eye, he's in a blizzard in the far north of Norway with Sunniva Sorby and Hilde Fålun Strøm, who became the first women in history to overwinter solo in the Arctic.

The visions just keep coming as ice turns to fire, and Jarvis finds himself on the top of a mountain watching forest fires burn through the night with author Philip Connors who spends half of every year as a fire lookout high up in the mountains of New Mexico.

In a night of vivid encounters, everyone Jarvis meets has stepped away from their every day lives, to live life on the edge.

Doctor and comedian Ed Patrick is the author of 'Catch Your Breath: The Secret Life of a Sleepless Anaesthetist'
Peter Hill is the author of 'Stargazing: Memoirs of a Young Lighthouse Keeper'
Philip Connors is the author of 'Fire Season: Field notes from a wilderness lookout'.
Details of the work of Sunniva Sorby and Hilde Fålun Strøm are at heartsintheice.com

Producer: Laurence Grissell


MON 00:45 Bells on Sunday (m0015tq7)
[Repeat of broadcast at 05:43 on Sunday]


MON 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m0015tq9)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


MON 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m0015tqc)
BBC Radio 4 presents a selection of news and current affairs, arts and science programmes from the BBC World Service.


MON 05:33 Shipping Forecast (m0015tqf)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


MON 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m0015tqk)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Rev Grace Thomas

Good morning.

In March 1965, three large civil rights marches took place in Alabama, in the United States. 25,000 people walked to the state capitol building in Montgomery, where Martin Luther King delivered one of his most powerful speeches. It became known as the ‘How long, not long speech’

‘How long’ is a cry oft repeated by the psalmist. In Psalm 13, which begins with the words ‘how long oh Lord’ the psalmist recounts the journey he has been on before concluding with words that reveal how the hope of the Lord is able to break through, even in the darkest of times. ‘I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me’

Martin Luther King’s speech echoed this pattern. ‘We have walked through desolate valleys and across the trying hills’ he recounted. Yet, by the end of his speech, like the ancient psalmist, the words of truth and hope brought by faith in a steadfast God burst through: ‘How long?’ he concluded ‘Not long because: Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord…His truth is marching on.’

Today, faced with situations of war and exile, the cry ‘how long oh Lord’ seems particularly apt. In crying out, we follow in the footsteps of those who have travelled before us, calling to a God who reminds us that we can cast our burdens onto Him.

Lord, we know you hear us when we cry out to you. With every step we take, may we be heartened by this and by the hope that comes from knowing that your light can never be extinguished, and your truth will prevail.

Amen


MON 05:45 Farming Today (m0015tqm)
28/03/22 Food security and sustainability, Australia trade deal

The EU is to spend 500 million Euros to help farmers facing high fertiliser and energy prices. It’s part of the response to the war in Ukraine and will see support for pig farmers and measures to allow fallow land to be used to grow protein crops to help avert a scarcity of animal feed. In the UK the Government has confirmed it will remove the 25% tariff on maize imported from the USA from June, to help reduce feed cost bills for livestock farmers. The EU removed the tariff in January. However campaigners are worried that the industry will move away from sustainable practices towards more intensive systems.

The UK’s Free Trade Agreement with Australia is being scrutinized by the Trade and Agriculture Commission which is due to give its verdict on the deal later this week. The FTA was signed at the end of last year. The UK Government hailed it as ‘world class deal’ and the Australians called it a ‘once in a generation deal’. However food and farming business here have been less enthusiastic. The deal will remove all import tariffs on meat from Australia after 15 years. UK farmers are concerned that different welfare standards will mean they could undercut by cheaper imports produced in ways which wouldn’t be allowed here.

Presenter = Charlotte Smith
Producer = Rebecca Rooney


MON 05:56 Weather (m0015tqp)
The latest weather forecast for farmers.


MON 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b03bkgqv)
Carrion Crow

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

Wildlife Sound Recordist, Chris Watson, presents the Carrion Crow. The crow is defined in Samuel Johnson's A Dictionary of the English Language as "a large black bird that feeds upon the carcasses of beasts." Crows have always suggested an element of foreboding. They are arch-scavengers and black mobs of them crowd our rubbish tips but they're also birds we admire for their intelligence and adaptability.


MON 06:00 Today (m0015v7s)
News and current affairs, including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


MON 09:00 Start the Week (m0015v7v)
Liberalism in crisis

With the Russian invasion of Ukraine images of war in Europe dominate the news, and questions rage about the political failure to both prevent and end the atrocities. Amol Rajan discusses the political forces that have allowed the West to flourish and the cracks that are beginning to widen.

Developed in the wake of European wars of religion and nationalism, Liberalism was designed as a system to govern diverse societies, with a strong emphasis on the rights of individuals, equality and the rule of law. In Liberalism and Its Discontents Francis Fukuyama argues for a return to its classical form but shows how attacks from both the left and right have left it in a state of crisis.

Europe’s dependence on Russian oil is central to Helen Thompson’s book, Disorder: Hard Times in the 21st Century. She looks back at the historical origins of today’s overlapping geopolitical, economic and political failures.

Shifts in the global balance of power in the 19th century between Old Europe and the New World of American Imperialism are at the heart of Edward Shawcross’s extraordinary tale. He describes the ignoble end of a Habsburg Archduke, aided by Napoleon III, who crossed the world to become The Last Emperor of Mexico.

Producer: Katy Hickman

Image credit: Francis Fukuyama – © Djurdja Padejski


MON 09:45 When the Dust Settles by Lucy Easthope (m0015v7x)
Ep 1. The Disaster Planner

When Lucy Easthope arrives at the scene of a catastrophe she is the one who picks up the pieces. Her expertise as a disaster planner becomes key as well as her resilience, compassion and kindness. Read by Rebekah Staton.

When the Dust Settles is Lucy Easthope's memoir about her career in disaster planning. Since 2001, Lucy has been at the heart of the recovery effort of almost every disaster involving a UK citizen. She's the one who has written the plans for what to do when things go wrong and need a response. From 9/11, to the devastating impact of flooding, the poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko, to the pandemic she has been there, advising politicians, local authorities and the families who have suffered bereavement and loss. Here she takes us behind the police tape, makes sense of the confusion and plans for what happens after the initial emergency response is over, and the rebuilding of lives and communities must begin. She lights a way through the chaos and on towards hope.

Abridged by Penny Leicester
Produced by Elizabeth Allard


MON 10:00 Woman's Hour (m0015v80)
Ukrainian MPs, Women Surgeons, Remember Monday

We speak to 3 MPs who are members of the Women’s Diplomatic Battalion of Ukraine. They are Olena Khomenko, Mariia Mezentseva and Alona Shkrum. They're all about shuttle diplomacy, pressing their case for international help.

Coverage of the Oscars has been dominated by Will Smith's punch in defence of his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. Nimco Ali, Independent Government Adviser on Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls and comedian, Shapi Korsandi give us their reaction, and discuss the messages a punch sends out.

Women make up more than half of all medical students but far less that that go on to work as surgeons. Researchers from King’s College London found that just 16 per cent of consultants and 34 per cent of registrars working across 10 surgical specialities are female. Roshana Mehdian-Staffell is a surgeon working in Trauma and Orthopaedics and speaks to Emma about the difficulties of going up the career ladder if you're a female surgeon.

We speak to the country-pop trio Remember Monday who are making a splash on Tik-Tok. Holly-Anne Hull, Lauren Byrne, and Charlotte Steele first met as sixth formers and bonded over John Mayer and harmonies. Now they’ve been singing together for a whole decade. They discuss why they sing in multi-story car parks, juggling their own careers alongside the band, and how their friendship has kept them together over the years.


MON 11:00 The Invention of... (m0015v82)
Poland

Obliterated from the map

Long before Putin tried it on, long before the Soviet Union as well, Ukraine was controlled by somebody else - the old Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. In the first of a new series, Misha Glenny and Miles Warde travel to eastern Poland to find out more.

It's a tale of terrifying power politics, when an ancient European kingdom was sliced up like a cake. Beginning in Krakow, they travel by train and tiny bus in an arc around the south east to the Renaissance city of Zamosc, near the border with Ukraine.

With contributions from Norman Davies, Adam Zamoyski, Professor Natalia Nowakowska, Bartek Ziobro of Krakow Explorers and Olesya Khromeychuk of the Ukrainian Institute in London.

The image shows the Warsaw Uprising Monument which features in episode three.

This is the latest in the How to Invent a Country podcast series which has previously travelled to Germany, the USA, Scandinavia and Brazil.

Presenter Misha Glenny is a former BBC Central European correspondent and the author of McMafia.

Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Miles Warde


MON 11:30 Loose Ends (m0015tw2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 18:15 on Saturday]


MON 12:00 News Summary (m0015v86)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4


MON 12:04 The Battle of Savoy Hill (m0015v88)
Episode 1

The Battle of Savoy Hill explores Hilda Matheson’s working relationships at the BBC in the 1920s, in particular with John Reith the BBC’s first director general. The account also features extracts from the unpublished letters written by Hilda to her lover, the poet and novelist Vita Sackville-West.

Hilda Matheson was a woman of high artistic integrity, with a passion for sharing with listeners the best of what was thought and said. This was to bring her into direct conflict with the man who recruited her to the BBC, John Reith. Both had a Scottish background, and both were the children of men of the cloth. Neither had conventional private lives, although Hilda’s was happier and more fulfilled than Reith’s.

This remarkable true story takes place at the heart of the newly formed BBC, which operated in its early years from a number of buildings on Savoy Hill between the Thames and the Strand.

Research assistance from Kate Murphy, author of Behind the Wireless: A History of Early Women at the BBC. Other key sources include Michael Carney’s biography of Hilda Matheson, Stoker; Asa Briggs’ The History of Broadcasting in the United Kingdom; The Natural Bent by Lionel Fielden; Ariel and All His Quality by R S Lambert; and Ian McIntyre’s biography of John Reith, The Expense of Glory.

Permission to quote from the letters of Harold Nicolson and Vita Sackville West kindly given by Juliet Nicolson and the Estates of Vita Sackville-West and Harold Nicolson.

Written by Jill Waters

Narrator: Clare Higgins
Hilda Matheson: Romola Garai
Vita Sackville West: Nancy Carroll
John Reith: Derek Riddell
Harold Nicolson / RS Lambert : Richard Goulding
Lionel Fielden : Simon Paisley Day

A Waters Company production for BBC Radio 4


MON 12:18 You and Yours (m0015v8d)
Sick of self-service and QR codes? The rapid rise of Kick Game

Are you struggling to find a rental property? We reveal exclusive figures from Open Innovations that show England has the lowest number of available properties in the western world. Winifred speaks to Tom Forth, their head of data.

Sick of ordering via QR codes in bars and restaurants? They were everywhere at the height of the pandemic and made it easy to keep your distance, but now things have re-opened, is it time to get rid? Talking to Mowgli owner Nisha Katona and pub owner David Robertson.

The Runway of Dreams was set up nine years ago to promote clothes for people with disabilities. Some mainstream fashion brands have launched limited runs of adaptive clothes that are easy to put on and take off, but why is the massive untapped market stalling? Our reporter Linda Walker visits a charity in Swindon doing bespoke adaptations.

Easter holidays are the on the way and it's much easier to fly abroad but will people take the chance for some sun? Trivago say searches for accommodation are almost a 50-50 split between here and overseas. Winifred will speak to David Pitcher who fell in love with UK holidays in lockdown and won't be going away this year.

Kick Game is a UK brand bringing the trainer re-sale market to the UK high street. They've opened five shops in the most challenging of retail conditions and have got more in the pipeline. Winifred will speak to CEO Alicia Thompson.

PRESENTER: WINIFRED ROBINSON
PRODUCER: CATHERINE MURRAY


MON 12:57 Weather (m0015v8j)
The latest weather forecast


MON 13:00 World at One (m0015v8p)
Forty-five minutes of news, analysis and comment, with Edward Stourton.


MON 13:45 Past Forward: A Century of Sound (m0015v8s)
Listen with Mother

Public historian Greg Jenner enjoys a clip from 1950 of the iconic radio show Listen with Mother, and reflects on the ways children's entertainment has changed since then with Professor Kate Lacey and Kay Benbow

Marking the centenary of the BBC, Past Forward uses a random date generator to alight somewhere in the BBC's vast archive over the past 100 years. Greg Jenner hears an archive clip for the first time at the top of the programme, and uses it as a starting point in a journey towards the present day. The archive captures a century of British life in a unique way - a history of ordinary people’s lives, as well as news of the great events. Greg uncovers connections through people, places and ideas that link the archive fragment to Britain in 2022, pulling in help from experts and those who remember the time, and looking at how far we've come since then.

Producer: Megan Jones


MON 14:00 The Archers (m0015tpz)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Sunday]


MON 14:15 Drama (m0015v8v)
Contender

An electrifying drama about swimming, ruthless ambition and abuse of power by a new writer for Radio 4.

Aspiring Olympian Hannah is excited, if a little intimidated, by the arrival from the States of Ben, her magnetic new coach. But as their relationship becomes increasingly unsettling, so too do his unorthodox methods. This play asks - how fluid can a definition of victory become before it dissolves completely?

CAST
Hannah ..... Hannah Tointon
Ben ..... Elliot Cowan
Luke ..... Tayla Kovacevic-Ebong
Andrea ..... Jasmine Hyde

Sound by Cal Knightley, Mike Etherton and Pete Ringrose

With thanks to Caitlin McClatchey

Written by Melanie Spencer
Produced and directed by Ciaran Bermingham


MON 15:00 Round Britain Quiz (m0015v8x)
Programme 1, 2022

(1/12)
How have a Taiwanese violinist, a Spanish waiter and Prospero's daughter joined forces to popularise the largest city in Waikato? With this, the new season of the long-running cryptic quiz begins, celebrating no less than 75 years as a regular fixture on BBC Radio. The opening contest is between the teams from The Midlands and Wales. Kirsty Lang is in the chair and will be awarding and deducting points according to how much help the teams need with the programme's famously difficult questions.

Taking part are Stephen Maddock and Frankie Fanko for The Midlands, opposite Myfanwy Alexander and David Edwards for Wales.

Producer: Paul Bajoria


MON 15:30 The Food Programme (m0015tp6)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:32 on Sunday]


MON 16:00 Archaeology of a Storyteller (m0015v90)
The author Alan Garner has spent all his life living within the same few square miles of Cheshire and can trace his family's history in this area back to the 16th century. Digging down into his novels, Archaeology of a Storyteller uncovers the historical inspiration behind the stories written by the man who many authors consider to be their favourite writer.

All his novels, from The Stone Book Quartet, to Treacle Walker, and his famous children's books, The Weirdstone of Brisingamen and The Moon of Gomrath, mine this area for history and legend, truth, and imagination. These stories are literally embedded in the archaeology and geology of the land - in the mysterious caves and tunnels under Alderley Edge. Although Garner is highly regarded by writers like Philip Pullman, Neil Gaiman, Susan Cooper and David Almond and Frank Cottrell Boyce, he says his closest friends are archaeologists!

Since 1957, Garner has lived in an old medieval house a stone's throw from the gigantic radio telescope at Jodrell Bank. In 1972 his house was joined by the Medicine House, an old timber-framed building the Garners saved from demolition 18 miles away, now protected by their organisation The Blackden Trust.

Alan Garner knows the stories told by every stone, timber and protective mark in his home - and every inch of the surrounding land. Sifting through layers of interviews, including the archaeologists Mark Edmonds and Tim Campbell-Green, archive recordings and extracts from his work, Archaeology of a Storyteller sets out to uncover how Garner found his creative inspiration in a small patch of Cheshire.

Music composed and performed by John Dipper
Reader: Robert Powell
Producer: Andy Cartwright

A Soundscape production for BBC Radio 4


MON 16:30 The Digital Human (m0015v92)
Series 25

Function

Aleks Krotoski explores who owns the function of the devices we use, and why we need the right to repair and hack the things we consume.


MON 17:00 PM (m0015v94)
Afternoon news and current affairs programme, reporting on breaking stories and summing up the day's headlines.


MON 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m0015v96)
Ukraine has closed humanitarian corridors for civilians to leave besieged towns and cities because it fears Russian attacks


MON 18:30 Just a Minute (m0015v98)
Series 88

Episode 6

Sue Perkins challenges Lucy Porter, Shaparak Khorsandi, Julian Clary and Paul Merton to speak for 60 seconds without repetition, deviation or hesitation.

The long running national treasure of a parlour game is back, with subjects this week ranging from My Drag Name to Bringing a Plus One.

Production co-ordinator: Caroline Barlow
Sound editor: Marc Willcox
Producer: Hayley Sterling

A BBC Studios Production


MON 19:00 The Archers (m0015v9b)
Jazzer’s switched to packed lunches since learning his Berrow Farm job is at risk. Hannah tries to stay hopeful that the pig unit won’t close. It would be bad news for both of them if it did. Jazzer misses the money his milk round brought in but admits life is different now that he’s older and with Tracy. Tom calls in to buy some overweight carcasses to make bargain sausages. While he waits for Hannah, Tom tries to lighten Jazzer’ mood with talk about the Easter Bunny and the challenge to track it down and guess who’s in the costume. The two of them also look back - Tom apologises for how he handled Jazzer’s exit from Bridge Farm and recounts Jazzer’s feelings for Hannah when they first met.

Lilian calls on Alan to talk about his encounter with Kate yesterday. Alan’s embarrassed by it. Lilian’s clear she doesn’t want to blame anyone but wanted to warn Alan that Kate’s talking about making an official complaint. Alan accepts Kate’s entitled to do so. Later, Chris visits Alan to apologise for Kate’s behaviour and for Alan getting dragged into the mess of his personal life. Alan makes it clear that while he likes Chris, when it comes to Amy his first concern is her welfare. Alan will do everything in his power to protect Amy from hurt and he expects Chris to do the same.


MON 19:15 Front Row (m0015v9d)
Sonia Boyce, Cellist Laura van der Heijden, the Oscars

Artist Sonia Boyce discusses her new video work, the product of being embedded with social services in Barking and Dagenham, which addresses domestic violence. She also reveals her process as she prepares to represent the UK at the Venice Biennale.

After a dramatic Oscars ceremony, film critics Anna Smith and Tim Robey join us to discuss the Academy Award winning films, the success enjoyed by British contenders, and the slap that was heard around the world.

BBC Young Musician Winner Laura van der Heijden is in the studio to talk about her new album with pianist Jâms Coleman. Called Pohádka, it explores the rich folk melodies of Janáček, Kodály and Dvořák. Laura's debut album won BBC’s Newcomer of the Year award and BBC Music Magazine just awarded it 5 stars, saying: “These performers bring sonorous depth and mystery.” Laura and Jâms perform Dvořák’s “Songs My Mother Taught Me” live in the studio.

Presenter: Samira Ahmed
Producer: Jodie Keane

Image credit: Anne Purkiss


MON 20:00 The End of Invention (m0015v9g)
Someone born in the late 19th century would have lived through the most rapid period of technological progress in human history. By comparison, people born since the Second World War have seen stagnation and sclerosis. At least, that’s what some people claim - that we are living through “the great stagnation”.

The productivity of scientists and inventors is slowing - and economist Sam Bowman is worried. There are fewer new drugs coming to market, and it takes more and more people to make smaller computer chips. It takes longer for PhD students to finish their studies, and research grants go to ever older scientists.

The balance of research funding has shifted from government to companies, and companies look for profitable inventions rather than necessarily revolutionary ones. It looks as though big new ideas are getting harder to find. Can we fix the system, or are we doomed to permanent slowdown?

Presenter: Sam Bowman
Producer: Jolyon Jenkins
Executive Producer: Katherine Godfrey
Sound Design & Engineering: Rob Speight
A Novel production for BBC Radio 4


MON 20:30 Analysis (b09sn5f8)
The Dictator's Survival Guide

How do dictators and authoritarians stay in power? James Tilley, a professor of politics at Oxford University, finds out what's in the dictators' survival guide. How do they control ordinary people and stop revolts? How do they stop rivals from taking over? And how do they manipulate apparently democratic procedures like elections - such as the notoriously fraudulent 2004 vote in Ukraine - to secure their rule? This is another chance to hear a programme, originally broadcast in 2018, that has acquired new relevance.

Producer: Bob Howard
Production Coordinators: Sophie Hill and Siobhan Reed
Editor: Hugh Levinson


MON 21:00 The Anatomy of Kindness (m0015lpq)
In the Anatomy of Kindness Claudia Hammond asks who we are kind to. Professor Nichola Raihani from University College London says there are circles of connections, so family and friends, work colleagues, neighbours continuing out to everyone on the planet. Different people will put their boundaries in different places. One of the mechanisms we have to move these boundaries is empathy says Sara Konrath associate professor at the Lily Family School of Philanthropy. And being able to elicit empathy in strangers is an important part of raising awareness of challenging issues according to Lyndall Stein who has raised money for HIV, refugees and the homeless.
But how do we expand who us is, (whatever that means)? Sunder Katwaler of the think tank British Future says that in part it’s about making connections, which is something Gillian Sandstrom from the University of Sussex studies would agree with. She studies talking to strangers and why that is beneficial.

Presenter Claudia Hammond
Producer Geraldine Fitzgerald
Sound Engineer Sarah Hockley
Sound Designer Eleni Hassabis


MON 21:30 Start the Week (m0015v7v)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


MON 22:00 The World Tonight (m0015v9m)
Abramovich “poisoned by the Russians”

In depth reporting, intelligent analysis and breaking news from a global perspective


MON 22:45 The Battle of Savoy Hill (m0015v88)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:04 today]


MON 23:00 You're Dead To Me (p07p2p98)
Young Napoleon

Never mind the famous battles, who was the real Napoleon? Where did he come from? What events conspired to turn him from a young Corsican officer to one of history’s greatest figures? How intense was his relationship with his wife Josephine? What part of his body was recreated in plaster, and how much was somebody willing to pay for it?

And just how did one man manufacture his own hype way before the days of social media?

Greg Jenner is joined by comedian Dan Schreiber and historian Dr Laura O’Brien. It’s history for people who don’t like history!

Produced by Dan Morelle
Script and research by Emma Nagouse

A Muddy Knees Media production for BBC Radio 4


MON 23:30 Today in Parliament (m0015v9p)
News from Westminster with Sean Curran.



TUESDAY 29 MARCH 2022

TUE 00:00 Midnight News (m0015v9r)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.


TUE 00:30 When the Dust Settles by Lucy Easthope (m0015v7x)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Monday]


TUE 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m0015v9t)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


TUE 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m0015v9w)
BBC Radio 4 presents a selection of news and current affairs, arts and science programmes from the BBC World Service.


TUE 05:33 Shipping Forecast (m0015v9y)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


TUE 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m0015vb2)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Rev Grace Thomas

Good morning.

Today is the 88th day of 2022. I know this because it is also world piano day, a day always celebrated on the 88th day of the year, to represent the number of keys on a piano.

I am blessed to have a piano at home that belonged to my husband’s grandma. It is the source of many memories for my husband’s family, and, with us, new memories have been formed as our children have learnt to play. It is more than a musical instrument. It holds stories of many beloved people and brings together generations. It stands in our living room as a reminder of both the joy of music and the connections and emotions that are experienced through its playing.

I was, therefore, moved to tears a couple of weeks ago when I saw a video that went viral of professional Ukrainian pianist Irina Maniukina, brushing dirt off her piano, in her bombed out home, and playing it for possibly the last time before she fled. The devastation of war and loss was articulated powerfully as the keys of the piano - which had probably been played and practised on for years - produced a melody conveying emotion that transcended language. As I watched Irina play, I was powerfully reminded of the gift of music, and the way in which it is a medium that can convey joy, pain, worship and lament.

Loving God, be with all today who are fleeing war, leaving so much of themselves and their histories behind. May we cherish the gift of music, that enables emotions and stories to be told in ways more powerful than words. May music be a source of hope, meaning and restoration.

Amen


TUE 05:45 Farming Today (m0015vb4)
29/03/22 Chicken muck, seed potatoes, Australian dairy and NI climate

With the price of fertiliser reaching new heights, one alternative is to use manure - or organic waste. Sarah Godwin and her husband run a dairy, arable and egg enterprise in North Wiltshire and have been trialling using out their own waste on their farm, causing them to look at their chicken poo in a new light.

This week on Farming Today, we're looking at the impact of the Australia and UK trade deal. Before the UK joined the EU in the 1970’s, the UK was Australia’s largest dairy export market - they shipped around 55,000 tonnes of dairy products, including cheese and milk powders, to the UK each year. But things have changed. UK customs data shows we imported almost 1.5 million tonnes of dairy products in 2020, mostly from the EU. We hear from Dairy Australia, the levy body for the country’s dairy farmers, about which dairy products they plan to import.

And a planned shipment of seed potatoes from Scotland to Russia has been shelved after criticism that it went against Scottish Government advice to ‘dis-invest’ in trade with Russia, following the invasion of Ukraine.

Presented by Anna Hill and produced in Bristol by Caitlin Hobbs


TUE 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b0378xsn)
Common Gull

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

Michaela Strachan presents the common gull. In spite of their name Common Gulls aren't as common or widespread as some of our other gulls. Most of the breeding colonies in the UK are in Scotland. In North America their alternative name is Mew gull because of their mewing cat-like cries.


TUE 06:00 Today (m0015vbd)
News and current affairs, including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


TUE 09:00 The Life Scientific (b09sn7yk)
Ailie MacAdam on the biggest construction project in Europe

Ailie's first engineering challenge was working out how to get the solids to settle in a mixture of raw sewage at a treatment plant in Stuttgart. Years later, she worked on the Boston Big Dig and realised that large-scale construction projects were her thing. A seven lane highway was rerouted underground and a bridge built using blocks of expanded polystyrene to support the on off ramps. When Bostonians complained about the vibrations from all the drilling, their beds were put on springs. She returned home to the UK to run the transformation of St Pancras Station in London, creating an international terminal for Eurostar while preserving the historic features of the original building. Preventing 690 cast iron pillars that supported the platform from 'breaking like carrots' was a particular challenge, as was keeping the Midlands mainline running. Next she took on Crossrail and was in charge of the challenging central London section, with a budget of £7.5 billion. Aware that diverse teams tend to be more successful she recruited a top team of engineers in which 30% were women.

Ailie talks to Jim about how she rose from doing experiments with sewage to become one of the most successful engineers in the UK.

Producer: Anna Buckley


TUE 09:30 Witness (b036q5bz)
The Crate Escape

In the summer of 1984, an exiled Nigerian politician was kidnapped outside his London home. He was bundled into a crate in an attempt to smuggle him out of the UK. Hear what happened next in the bizarre story of Umaru Dikko.


TUE 09:45 When the Dust Settles by Lucy Easthope (m0015vbj)
Ep 2 - 9/11 & Lac Megantic

Lucy Easthope's memoir tells the story of her career as an expert in disaster recovery. Today, she recalls her first assignment which took her to New York City in the immediate aftermath of 9/11. Rebekah Staton reads.

When the Dust Settles is Lucy Easthope's memoir about her career in disaster planning. Since 2001, Lucy has been at the heart of the recovery effort of almost every disaster involving a UK citizen. She's the one who has written the plans for what to do when things go wrong and need a response. From 9/11, to the devastating impact of flooding, the poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko, to the pandemic she has been there, advising politicians, local authorities and the families who have suffered bereavement and loss. Here she takes us behind the police tape, makes sense of the confusion and plans for what happens after the initial emergency response is over, and the rebuilding of lives and communities must begin. She lights a way through the chaos and on towards hope.

Abridged by Penny Leicester
Produced by Elizabeth Allard


TUE 10:00 Woman's Hour (m0015vbl)
Ella Jarmulska, Dr Caitlin Dean, Nicola Cutcher, Professor Marian Knight, Rose Gallagher, Threads, Marion Lees McPherson

Emma Barnett speaks to Ella Jarmulska a Polish entrepreneur who wants to provide safer car rides to families fleeing the war in Ukraine. Displaced and disoriented, often with no idea where to go next, refugees are forced to put their trust in strangers. Trafficking rings are notoriously active in Ukraine and neighbouring countries in peace time. The fog of war is perfect cover to increase business.

Today sees the launch of a new campaign which calls for health professionals, the media, retailers and the public to ditch the term ‘morning sickness’ and refer to ‘pregnancy sickness’ instead. We talk to Dr Caitlin Dean, a nurse specialist in this area and to the co-founder, of the ‘Not Morning Sickness’ campaign Nicola Cutcher.

As the end of free testing draws near, we talk to Rose Gallagher from the Royal College of Nurses about who will pay for Covid tests for staff in the NHS. We’ll also consider the latest Government statistics which show just over half of pregnant women in England have had at least one covid jab with Professor Marian Knight the head of national surveillance of Covid hospitalisation in pregnancy.

In our series Threads we've been talking to listeners about the clothes they've hung on to. They'll never end up in the charity shop bag, they hold powerful emotions. Dorothy sent us a photo of a beautiful dress she wore age 14 at a barn dance in Hereford - happy memories.

And Marion Lees McPherson from the Society of Women Organists tells us how they're taking on the inequality of the ecclesiastical organ scene with men represent 90 per cent of permanent directors of music and organists in English and Welsh cathedrals.

Presenter: Emma Barnett
Producer: Lisa Jenkinson
Studio Engineer: John Boland


TUE 11:00 Putin (m0015vbn)
3. Unleashing power

President Putin turns on the men who manoeuvred him to power, he turns on the media and turns to the West with an offer of support after 9/11.

According to Britain’s former ambassador to Russia, there are two sides to Putin; one pragmatic and charming, the other angry and irrational. To understand him and what he might do next you need to learn to read both.

Jonny Dymond is joined by:

Sir Roderic John Lyne, British Ambassador to Russia from 2000 to 2004
Misha Glenny, former BBC correspondent and author of ‘McMafia’
Irina Borogan, Russian investigative journalist and author of “The New Nobility: The Restoration of Russia's Security State and the Enduring Legacy of the KGB”

Production coordinators: Sophie Hill and Siobhan Reed
Sound engineer: James Beard
Producers: Caroline Bayley, Sandra Kanthal, Joe Kent
Series Editor: Emma Rippon
Commissioning Editor: Richard Knight


TUE 11:30 China's Stolen Treasures (m0015vbq)
A Question of Ownership

American collector Christopher Bruckner opens the door to his basement. It is packed with Chinese antiquities of the highest quality, many of them once the property of emperors and some of which, he admits, were stolen from the Old Summer Palace in 1860. It turns out he was even offered three infamously looted Zodiac heads, though he declined. He has been courted by Chinese officials who wish to buy items from his collection in order to repatriate them.

In this final episode of China’s Stolen Treasures, Noah Charney looks at how the looting of Chinese antiquities in the 19th century has shaped questions of ownership, cultural heritage and identity in China today.

Noah explores the most pressing question of all - who should own a country’s cultural heritage? The answer is not straightforward. Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei argues that the current Chinese regime is not entitled to it. There is a strong undercurrent of nationalism to the Chinese re-acquisition of their cultural treasures in foreign hands. By bringing these pieces home, now that China is a wealthy, powerful nation, can they go some way to healing China's Century of Humiliation?

With artist Ai Weiwei, historian Liu Yang, art dealer William Chak, Christie’s specialist Kate Hunt, American art collector Christopher Bruckner, criminologist Emiline Smith, art investigator Arthur Brand, China expert Jasper Becker, Fitzwilliam Museum China curator James Lin, and art lawyer Georges Lederman.

Writer and Presenter - Dr Noah Charney
Producer - Caroline Finnigan
Executive Producer - Rosie Collyer
Researcher - Nadia Mehdi
China Producer - Coco Zhao
Sound Designers - David Smith and Tom Berry for Wardour Studios
Music Composer - Nicholas Alexander
Voice Over Artists - Bernard O'Sullivan and Oliver Zheng

A Novel production for BBC Radio 4


TUE 12:00 News Summary (m0015vbs)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4


TUE 12:04 The Battle of Savoy Hill (m0015vbv)
Episode 2

The Battle of Savoy Hill explores Hilda Matheson’s working relationships at the BBC in the 1920s, in particular with John Reith the BBC’s first director general. The account also features extracts from the unpublished letters written by Hilda to her lover, the poet and novelist Vita Sackville-West.

Hilda Matheson was a woman of high artistic integrity, with a passion for sharing with listeners the best of what was thought and said. This was to bring her into direct conflict with the man who recruited her to the BBC, John Reith. Both had a Scottish background, and both were the children of men of the cloth. Neither had conventional private lives, although Hilda’s was happier and more fulfilled than Reith’s.

This remarkable true story takes place at the heart of the newly formed BBC, which operated in its early years from a number of buildings on Savoy Hill between the Thames and the Strand.

Research assistance from Kate Murphy, author of Behind the Wireless: A History of Early Women at the BBC. Other key sources include Michael Carney’s biography of Hilda Matheson, Stoker; Asa Briggs’ The History of Broadcasting in the United Kingdom; The Natural Bent by Lionel Fielden; Ariel and All His Quality by R S Lambert; and Ian McIntyre’s biography of John Reith, The Expense of Glory.

Permission to quote from the letters of Harold Nicolson and Vita Sackville West kindly given by Juliet Nicolson and the Estates of Vita Sackville-West and Harold Nicolson.

Written by Jill Waters

Narrator: Clare Higgins
Hilda Matheson: Romola Garai
Vita Sackville West: Nancy Carroll
John Reith: Derek Riddell
Harold Nicolson / RS Lambert : Richard Goulding
Lionel Fielden : Simon Paisley Day

A Waters Company production for BBC Radio 4


TUE 12:18 You and Yours (m0015vbx)
Call You and Yours: How are you cutting back in this cost of living crisis?

On our phone in we're asking: How are you cutting back in this cost of living crisis?

With prices rising and millions of households facing sharp increases in energy bills from Friday, how are you preparing to meet these extra costs?

The Office for Budget Responsibility said last week that due to inflation and rising taxes, real household disposable incomes per person will fall by 2.2 per cent in 2022-23, in the biggest drop in a year since records began in 1956. And research from Royal London pension company found that with the level and speed of price rises, nine out of 10 of us (89%) are looking to make changes to pay for the cost of living increases.

Will you go out less, save less, cut back on the food shop, turn off the heating?
Let us know - email youandyours@bbc.co.uk and please include a contact number.

Presenter: Winifred Robinson
Producer: Miriam Williamson


TUE 12:57 Weather (m0015vbz)
The latest weather forecast


TUE 13:00 World at One (m0015vc1)
Forty-five minutes of news, analysis and comment, with Edward Stourton.


TUE 13:45 Past Forward: A Century of Sound (m0015vc3)
Rebuilding Britain

Greg Jenner watches a clip from a documentary from 1963 about the growth in large urban redevelopment projects in the UK and seeks assistance in unpacking the past and present of such schemes from Otto Saumarez-Smith and Andrew Carter from the Centre for Cities.

Marking the centenary of the BBC, Past Forward uses a random date generator to alight somewhere in the BBC's vast archive over the past 100 years. Greg Jenner hears an archive clip for the first time at the top of the programme, and uses it as a starting point in a journey towards the present day. The archive captures a century of British life in a unique way - a history of ordinary people’s lives, as well as news of the great events. Greg uncovers connections through people, places and ideas that link the archive fragment to Britain in 2022, pulling in help from experts and those who remember the time, and looking at how far we've come since then.

Producer: Martin Williams


TUE 14:00 The Archers (m0015v9b)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Monday]


TUE 14:15 Drama (m0015vc5)
Waterloo Station

Two strangers look back on an incident that happened a couple of years ago, just before the world turned upside down. As they do so, they take stock of what's happened over the last two years.

Ray ..... Ralph Ineson
Christa. ..... Christine Bottomley

Written by Katie Hims
Directed by Mary Peate


TUE 15:00 Short Cuts (m0015vc7)
Shorter Cuts

Josie Long presents even shorter short documentaries and audio adventures in this episode built around miniature works of audio art.

Our Shared Secrets
Written by Joe Dunthorne

Gretchen Bender - Artificial Treatment. 1988. Recorded at Studio PASS. N.Y. by B. Hutchinson.
Published on TELLUS, the Audio Cassette Magazine #21 - Audio by Visual Artists.

Donegal Revisited
Produced by Phil Smith

Redacted Mixtape
Produced by Erisa Apantaku

Doomscroll
Produced by Axel Kacoutié

A Breath of Fresh Air
Produced by Redzi Bernard and Phoebe McIndoe

Series Producer: Eleanor McDowall
A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4


TUE 15:30 Costing the Earth (m0015vc9)
Northern Ireland's Environmental Future

In Northern Ireland peace and prosperity have long been prioritised over environmental protection. Tom Heap asks if a new generation can push nature and wildlife up the agenda.

For decades a blind eye was often turned to suspect developments in natural areas and breaches of pollution regulations. A more recent upsurge in large-scale dairy, pig and poultry farming has added to the burden on Northern Ireland's once green and pleasant land. New laws to fight climate change and a new subsidy regime for agriculture give Northern Irish politicians and regulators the chance to put things right. With the help of BBC Northern Ireland Environment Correspondent, Louise Cullen, Tom Heap considers the issues in advance of the Stormont Assembly elections.

Producer: Sarah Swadling


TUE 16:00 Culture on the Couch (m0015vcc)
Ramaa Sharma thought therapy could help with the onset of her depression and anxiety. Despite being a highly successful British South Asian journalist in a white-dominated profession, she felt isolated both at work and in her own family. Eventually she had cognitive behavioural therapy - a talking therapy which aims to manage issues by changing the mindset and attitude towards them.

Her white therapist at first supported her but when the therapist declared: "We're all the same," Ramaa questioned whether her therapist would ever truly understand her.

The idea of psychological universalism arose from a white, Western model of therapy which frustrated Ramaa because it didn't adequately embrace her distress over conflicts specific to her experience of being of Indian descent and raised in the UK.

In her search for answers Ramaa discovered a Canadian study which described the conflicts which can arise in the South Asian diaspora, and offered tools for therapists to support those struggling with competing individual and community values.

Studies show that people from black, Asian and other minority ethnic backgrounds drop out of talking therapies more quickly than white clients and for those who do persist, the outcomes are poorer. And it's not just a case of matching your therapist's skin tone to your own. Acknowledging the values and beliefs of "collectivist" cultures - those which sometimes require an individual to sacrifice their own wants in favour of wider family values or community cohesion - is central to culturally-appropriate mental health care.

We hear from therapists and psychologists about how mass movements like Black Lives Matter have accelerated the move away from universalism along with the growth of networks of black and Asian therapists and the NHS now promising to deliver more culturally appropriate mental health care.

Social media support groups like Brown Girls Rising on Facebook help to bring thousands of young women together from diaspora communities globally to support each other in the absence of adequate systemic support in the countries they live in.


TUE 16:30 A Good Read (m0015vcf)
Julie Hesmondhalgh and Elaine C Smith

Julie Hesmondhalgh is a well known face on television and stage. Recently she has been in The Pact on BBC1 and played Hayley in Coronation Street. Her choice of book is Notes To Self by Emilie Pine - a raw and powerful memoir of life for a young Irish woman. It's not a 'mis-mem' or misery memoir as Julie is keen to point out, rather a life affirming and honest account of womanhood, a book she has given copies of to many women friends.
Elaine C Smith chooses the memoir of Scots poet Jackie Kay - Red Dust Road - a love letter as Elaine describes it - to Jackie's adoptive parents as well as her birth parents. It deals with the painful quest to find her Nigerian father and Scots mother whilst feeling that she was betraying her loving adoptive parents. It also recounts the prejudices experienced by a young dual heritage girl.
Birdsong In A Time of Silence is as you would expect an appreciation of the sounds of nature that suddenly became amplified during the Covid Spring of 2020. Steven Lovatt records his walks and observations of wildlife during the first lockdown. All three agree that it has opened their eyes and ears to avian behaviour in a new way.

Producer: Maggie Ayre


TUE 17:00 PM (m0015vch)
Afternoon news and current affairs programme, reporting on breaking stories and summing up the day's headlines.


TUE 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m0015vck)
Russia has said it will drastically reduce its combat operations around Kyiv. The Met is to issue fixed penalty fines for Downing Street lockdown parties.


TUE 18:30 The World of Simon Rich (m0015vcm)
Series 3

Episode 4

Simon Rich is a one-man comedy phenomenon, described by The Guardian as "the funniest man in America" and with credits including The Simpsons, Pixar movies and Saturday Night Live. He created the hit sitcom Miracle Workers starring Steve Buscemi and Daniel Radcliffe, and his debut movie An American Pickle was released in 2020, starring Seth Rogen.

Now Simon returns to Radio 4 with a third series of his charmingly absurd stories, performed by a top-drawer British cast. Featuring parenting pirates, a baby detective, an unlikely retelling of Beauty And The Beast, and a super monster being promoted into management, this is unlike anything else you’ll hear this year.

Starring Mat Baynton, Ed Eales-White, Kieran Hodgson, Cariad Lloyd, Claire Price and Adjani Salmon
Produced by Jon Harvey and Clarissa Maycock
Editor: David Thomas
Executive Producer: Polly Thomas
A Naked production for BBC Radio 4


TUE 19:00 The Archers (m0015vcp)
Fallon asks Alice to join her looking for the Easter Bunny - the first clue’s on the village website - but Alice declines. When Alice asks, Fallon confirms she knew about Chris and Amy sleeping together. Fallon’s sorry; she was trying to protect Alice. Alice is emotional feeling she doesn’t deserve Fallon’s friendship. She opens up about Chris and Amy’s liaison; she can’t get over Amy’s betrayal. Fallon tells Alice about what happened between Kate and Alan after Sunday’s church service.

Natasha chats to Pat and Tony about rewilding. She questions its economic viability while Pat and Tony gently make their arguments in favour of the project. Tom has helped Tony with a Tamworth pigs contact for the rewilding land. Later, on her return from a routine pregnancy scan, Natasha reveals to Pat that she has gestational diabetes. Natasha’s confident she can manage it and Tom’s going to reduce his sugar intake in solidarity. Tony’s dismayed when Pat suggests that they should do the same, starting today.

Ahead of the Borchester Land board meeting to agree Berrow Farm’s fate, Brian’s nervous of Justin wanting to get to the bottom of the leak about its possible closure. Afterwards, Brian’s relieved that another board member is the prime suspect. Justin continues to threaten to sell his majority share in BL so, to Brian’s horror, Martyn offers Justin the role of Chair. Justin declines but mysteriously says there’s another local project he’d like to discuss with Martyn. Meanwhile Brian’s tasked with communicating the latest decision on Berrow to the workforce.


TUE 19:15 Front Row (m0015vcr)
How to refill theatres; the 2022 Windham Campbell Prizes; crime writing duo Dreda Say Mitchell and Ryan Carter

We look at how audience figures are recovering after two years of shutdown and pandemic restrictions. Carolyn Atkinson reports on the business of seat-filling companies and on new models being considered for ticket sales.

We announce the winner of the 2022 Windham Campbell Prizes. The awards recognise eight writers annually for literary achievement across fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and drama, at every stage of their careers. Each recipient is gifted an unrestricted grant of $165,000 USD to support their writing and allow them to focus on their work independent of financial concerns.

And the authors Dreda Say Mitchell and Ryan Carter join us to discuss their new crime novel, Say Her Name, and writing as a partnership.

Presenter: Tom Sutcliffe
Producer: Simon Richardson

Image: Empty auditorium seats Credit: BBC


TUE 20:00 Dirty Work (m0015vct)
Over the past 20 years, our workplaces have changed for the better. The MeToo movement and Black Lives Matter have brought harassment and discriminatory actions to the fore, and our workplaces have generally become less tolerant of bad behaviour. But there’s another highly damaging aspect of workplace culture that often goes unchecked - workplace bullying. As members of the UK political class come under fire for bullying their staff, Matthew Taylor is putting bullying in the spotlight.

Matthew Taylor is the Chief Executive of the NHS Confederation, author of the Taylor Review into Modern Workplace Practices, and has spent many years thinking about creating safer environments for the future of our workforce. Despite his extensive grounding in tackling workplace culture, when he fell victim to poor treatment at work, it took him a long time to realise that what he was experiencing was bullying. Anxiety, self-doubt and isolation meant that he never did anything about it at the time, but it set him on a path of thinking about this prevalent and hidden issue.

The pandemic has given many of us a chance to consider what we want from our working lives, and the so-called “Great Resignation” has brought new demands on employers to provide positive, meaningful working environments for their employees.

Given the big shifts that are happening in employment, Matthew brings new perspectives and solutions to the table which are aiming to ensure that the future of work is better than the environments many of us work in today. Is bullying an inevitable part of a stressful and high-pressure work environment or is the fundamental way many workplaces are organised and managed a breeding ground for bullying? Matthew examines how work culture and the law could radically change to help prevent it.

Presenter: Matthew Taylor
Producer: Emma Barnaby
Executive Producer: Katherine Godfrey
Sound Designer and Mix Engineer: Rob Speight
A Novel production for BBC Radio 4


TUE 20:40 In Touch (m0015vcw)
Enhanced Audio Description; Strawberry Field Exhibition

Audio description is a form of narration that fills in the blanks in film, TV and theatre shows. It tells blind and partially sighted people what visual elements they could be missing on screen or the stage. Many believe that the current provision of audio description is too low, as some of the leading broadcasters and streaming platforms are only just going above the legally recommended requirement of 10%. Despite this, a project from The University of York is looking to improve the overall quality of audio description and they are calling it 'Enhanced Audio Description'. Its aim is to provide a more immersive experience for both visually impaired and sighted people.

We paid a visit to an exhibition that is aiming to be the most accessible in the UK for blind and partially sighted people. It is based in Liverpool and is called Strawberry Field. You've probably guessed by now that it is an exhibition about the legacy of The Beatles. It was once a Salvation Army children’s home where John went to play and escape, now it is now home to an interactive visitor exhibition, café, shop and gardens.

Presenter: Peter White
Producer: Beth Hemmings
Production Coordinator: Lewis Reeves

Website image description: pictured is the steinway piano that John Lennon composed his iconic song 'Imagine' on. It is stood in the middle of the Strawberry Field exhibition. On the wall behind the piano is a large image of John Lennon's face, his eyes just peeping over the top of the piano. His face is made up of hundreds of individual black and white photographs of people who have donated to the exhibition. Above the piano hangs a TV screen with words that read 'Strawberry Field, The Imagine Piano'.


TUE 21:00 The Witches' Pardon (m0015bdj)
From allegations of cursing the king's ships, to shape-shifting into animals, or dancing with the devil, three centuries ago witch-hunting was a mania that spread right across Europe. But nowhere did it exert a greater grip than in Scotland, which had an execution rate five times higher than England's.

It remains an example of just how vicious sexism and misogyny - exacerbated by superstitious beliefs and religious extremism - can be.

Now campaigners are on course to win an official pardon for the estimated four thousand - mostly women - tried as witches.

Leading QC Claire Mitchell, known for her prominent role in the Lockerbie appeal, is also fighting for an apology for all those accused, and for a national monument to mark the state-sanctioned atrocities she calls "the greatest miscarriage of justice in Scottish history."

Claire Mitchell and co-founder Zoe Vendittozi hope that First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon will issue a formal apology. But will she? And why does it matter?

Once again 'witch' is a name being levelled at women, usually in high profile cultural or political roles. It's not unusual to see figures like Hillary Clinton, Nicola Sturgeon, Professor Mary Beard, in twitter memes with green faces, stirring cauldrons and wearing pointy hats.

Dani Garavelli takes a fresh look at the history and at why women were so often accused of being witches. She explores the campaign which has gained mass traction across the UK and Europe, and spawned a copy-cat campaign in Catalonia. Which power structures were being maintained then, and which ones now?

Producer: Caitlin Smith
Presenter: Dani Garavelli
Sound Design: Joel Cox


TUE 21:30 The Life Scientific (b09sn7yk)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


TUE 22:00 The World Tonight (m0015vcy)
Russia to "significantly reduce" military activity

In depth reporting, intelligent analysis and breaking news from a global perspective


TUE 22:45 The Battle of Savoy Hill (m0015vbv)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:04 today]


TUE 23:00 Fortunately... with Fi and Jane (m0015vd0)
228. Crème Fraîche Ice Cream and Not-Hot Takes, with musician and writer Dessa

This week on Fortunately, Fi and Jane speak to American singer, rapper and writer Dessa. She joins the podcast from her home town of Minneapolis, Minnesota, and tells Fi and Jane about her series Deeply Human, which assembles brilliant minds from around the world to investigate the human experience. The three of them cover topics such as the teenage brain, saying 'yes' like a member of the Royal Family and Jane's transformation as she gets into the back of a Lime St. cab. Before Dessa logs in there's newly shaved armpits and sage advice from pilates.

Get in touch: fortunately.podcast@bbc.co.uk


TUE 23:30 Today in Parliament (m0015vd2)
Susan Hulme reports as MPs debate the controversial appointment of Evgeny Lebedev to the House of Lords.



WEDNESDAY 30 MARCH 2022

WED 00:00 Midnight News (m0015vd4)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.


WED 00:30 When the Dust Settles by Lucy Easthope (m0015vbj)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Tuesday]


WED 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m0015vd6)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


WED 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m0015vd8)
BBC Radio 4 presents a selection of news and current affairs, arts and science programmes from the BBC World Service.


WED 05:33 Shipping Forecast (m0015vdb)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


WED 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m0015vdg)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Rev Grace Thomas

Good morning.

Last week we commemorated 2 years since the first UK lockdown. With the quieter roads in lockdown, I decided to try and take up cycling. I have never been a confident cyclist. I haven’t ridden in years and was terrified at the prospect, so I engaged the help of a cycling instructor to get me started.

Now, two years on, I love cycling. It’s been liberating for me. I will not win any prizes for speed, but I love cycling downhill, with the wind in my face. There’s a thrilling sense of freedom in it – so much so that I sometimes have to resist the urge to squeal aloud with joy. I stop myself because of a sense of self consciousness about what I, a full-grown adult, would look like to others.

Jesus once said that unless you become like little children, you won’t enter the kingdom of heaven. One thing I have noticed as I have watched my children grow up is the uninhibited delight that they would express when riding a bike or playing outside. How their laughter and enjoyment brightens the world around them. It makes me wonder how much more joyful an experience it would be, when cycling, if I did just let myself go and squeal out loud as I race down hills. Who knows, by being like a child, I may well experience something like a foretaste of heaven.

Loving God, help me to let go of my inhibitions, sometimes, and enjoy the delights of the world more freely. Help me to see the world through the eyes of a child and, through this, maybe catch a glimpse of what heaven can be like.

Amen


WED 05:45 Farming Today (m0015vdj)
30/03/22 - New fertiliser technology, grassland sulphur use and whisky exports to Australia.

The huge hike in fertiliser prices has prompted DEFRA to set up an Industry Fertiliser Roundtable, chaired by Farming Minister Victoria Prentis. The group will discuss the impact a shortage of fertiliser will have on UK farms and also look at alternatives. We hear from one company working on just that - CCM Technologies makes pellets of fertiliser out of products like manure or digestate, combined with waste carbon dioxide and ammonia from industry.

A farming trial backed by the Welsh Government has found that applying fertilisers enhanced with selenium and sulphur can increase grass yield by up to 11%. Tests were carried out on three farms in Wales, where soils are often deficient in those minerals.

And until now, exports of Scotch whisky to Australia have been subjected to a 5% tariff. But the new UK-Australia Trade Deal will see that removed - so how are distillers responding to the change?

Presented by Anna Hill
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Heather Simons


WED 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b0423j3r)
Pied Flycatcher

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

David Attenborough presents the story of the pied flycatcher. The pied flycatcher is the voice of western woods, as much a part of the scenery as lichen-covered branches, mossy boulders and tumbling streams. When they arrive here in spring from Africa the black and white males, which are slightly smaller than a house sparrow, take up territories in the woodland and sing their lilting arpeggios from the tree canopy.


WED 06:00 Today (m0015vdl)
News and current affairs, including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


WED 09:00 The Anatomy of Kindness (m0015vdq)
In the final part of the Anatomy of Kindness, Claudia Hammond and guests ask 'Can bosses be kind'? Using evidence from the Kindness Test, the world's largest psychological study into kindness, Claudia starts her quest with Thom Elliot Co-founder of Pizza Pilgrims, who deliberately set out to foster a kind culture in a sector not exactly known for its benevolence. They're joined for pizza by Prof Robin Banerjee, architect of the Kindness Test to discuss the findings and examine whether kindness in business really does result in success. Joe Folkman is the perfect person to ask. He runs an evidence based leadership development firm and produced a fascinating study "I'm a boss why should I care if you like me"? It turns out there's a strong correlation between being likeable and effectiveness. Such concepts are backed up by a relatively new field of research called 'ethical leadership' pioneered by Professor Mike Brown. But 60,000 people who took part in the Kindness Test revealed time pressures as one of the barriers to being kind, so how easy is it to be a kind leader on a day to day basis? Claudia meets former head teacher Ros McMullen who tells some home truths about leadership in a culture of relentless pressure and accountability. Plus Lisa Smosarski, editor in Chief of Stylist magazine shares shocking office stories of the 'Devil Wears Prada' era and discusses wider societal shifts that may be contributing to a kinder culture in her industry. And Claudia's fellow science presenters, Robin Ince, Hannah Fry and Marnie Chesterton recall some old bad boss stories of their own.

Producer, Erika Wright


WED 09:30 Ingenious (m000xzf5)
The Huntington's Gene

A simple glitch in the DNA code turns an unassuming gene into a deadly killer. It passes from parent to child, has been subject to huge stigma, and for many has been a dark family secret. Dr Kat Arney speaks to Alice Wexler, author of “The Woman Who Walked into the Sea: Huntington's and the Making of a Genetic Disease”, whose family uncovered the secrets of the Huntington’s gene, and Dr Sarah Tabrizi, who’s leading the hunt for a cure.

Presenter: Kat Arney
Producer: Beth Sagar-Fenton
Sound Mix: James Beard
Editor: Penny Murphy


WED 09:45 When the Dust Settles by Lucy Easthope (m0015vgf)
Ep 3 - Flooding

In Lucy Easthope's memoir about her career in disaster recovery she explores the devastation that flooding caused in Doncaster in 2007. Rebekah Staton reads.

When the Dust Settles is Lucy Easthope's memoir about her career in disaster planning. Since 2001, Lucy has been at the heart of the recovery effort of almost every disaster involving a UK citizen. She's the one who has written the plans for what to do when things go wrong and need a response. From 9/11, to the devastating impact of flooding, the poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko, to the pandemic she has been there, advising politicians, local authorities and the families who have suffered bereavement and loss. Here she takes us behind the police tape, makes sense of the confusion and plans for what happens after the initial emergency response is over, and the rebuilding of lives and communities must begin. She lights a way through the chaos and on towards hope.

Abridged by Penny Leicester
Produced by Elizabeth Allard


WED 10:00 Woman's Hour (m0015vdv)
Sister Bliss, Lucy Easthope, Rachel Maclean on Domestic Abuse Plan, Ockenden Review

Do you have a soundtrack to your life that you return to again and again? Emma explores the power of music to affect our mood and well being with DJ and song writer and Sister Bliss and Professor Lauren Stewart from Goldsmiths who studies the psychology and neuroscience of music.

Whenever there’s a catastrophic event somewhere in the world Lucy Easthope is likely to get a phone call about it. She’s one of the country’s foremost disaster planners and long experience has taught her that the line between our everyday lives and catastrophe is a fine one. Name almost any global disaster of the last twenty years from 9/11 to the UK’s 7/7 terrorism attacks, the Grenfell fire, to earthquakes, plane and train crashes and you’ll find she’s been there behind the scenes with the clear up operation. She helps identify bodies, support the survivors and carry out the painstaking process of retrieving and returning invaluable, tattered possessions to the bereaved. She joins Emma Barnett to talk about her life and new book “When the Dust Settles”.

The government has today published its Domestic Abuse plan, bringing in new measures with the aim to tackle perpetrators and prevent abuse in the first instance. This includes plans to create the first national register of domestic abusers as well as offer more funding for victim support helplines and health services. This follows the Domestic Abuse Act introduced last year which updated the definition of domestic abuse to recognise a range of behaviours as abusive as well as establish children as victims too. But will these new measures protect women from domestic abuse and focus on taking tough action against perpetrators? Emma is joined by Rachel Maclean the Safeguarding Minister.

The second and final report into one of the biggest NHS maternity scandals in history has just been unveiled. The Independent Review into Maternity Services at the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust , led by midwife Donna Ockenden, has examined nearly nine thousand maternity cases in which mothers and babies may have been harmed or died, over almost twenty years. Emma speaks to BBC Health Correspondent.


WED 11:00 The P Word (m0015vdx)
Is the use of the ‘P’ word ever acceptable? Prompted by the recent allegations of racism at Yorkshire CCC by cricketer Azeem Rafiq, Rajan Datar and producer Rajeev Gupta go on a journey of personal exploration. Like many South Asians in the 1970s and 80s, Rajan was routinely called the P-word as he walked to and from school, but a new generation of young British Asians say they now claim the word and it can be used within the community as a sign of power. Rajan finds out for himself how true this is and does a context in which the use of the word is acceptable actually exist?

Produced by: Rajeev Gupta


WED 11:30 Oti Mabuse's Dancing Legends (m0015vdz)
Irish dancer Michael Flatley

Morgan Bullock became popular overnight when her video doing Irish dancing to hip hop music gained fans around the world. Morgan sits down with Oti Mabuse to talk about her love of dancing and the dancers she enjoyed watching as a young girl. And the one who stands out for her is Michael Flatley.

Flatley is credited with reinventing Irish dancing and his shows have played to more than 60 million people worldwide. Morgan and Oti explore the life and monumental career of the Irish dancer with archive clips and expert knowledge from Dr Orfhlaith Ni Bhriain.

Oti has never put on Irish dance plimsolls before, but now she has a go with the aim of learning some steps in the style of Michael Flatley. Irish dancer Ziggy Gaca joins her in studio to demonstrate how it's done.

Presenter: Oti Mabuse
Producer: Candace Wilson
Production Team: Emily Knight and Rema Mukena
Editors: Kirsten Lass and Chris Ledgard
A BBC Audio Bristol production for BBC Radio 4


WED 12:00 News Summary (m0015vgw)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4


WED 12:04 The Battle of Savoy Hill (m0015vf3)
Episode 3

The Battle of Savoy Hill explores Hilda Matheson’s working relationships at the BBC in the 1920s, in particular with John Reith the BBC’s first director general. The account also features extracts from the unpublished letters written by Hilda to her lover, the poet and novelist Vita Sackville-West.

Hilda Matheson was a woman of high artistic integrity, with a passion for sharing with listeners the best of what was thought and said. This was to bring her into direct conflict with the man who recruited her to the BBC, John Reith. Both had a Scottish background, and both were the children of men of the cloth. Neither had conventional private lives, although Hilda’s was happier and more fulfilled than Reith’s.

This remarkable true story takes place at the heart of the newly formed BBC, which operated in its early years from a number of buildings on Savoy Hill between the Thames and the Strand.

Research assistance from Kate Murphy, author of Behind the Wireless: A History of Early Women at the BBC. Other key sources include Michael Carney’s biography of Hilda Matheson, Stoker; Asa Briggs’ The History of Broadcasting in the United Kingdom; The Natural Bent by Lionel Fielden; Ariel and All His Quality by R S Lambert; and Ian McIntyre’s biography of John Reith, The Expense of Glory.

Permission to quote from the letters of Harold Nicolson and Vita Sackville West kindly given by Juliet Nicolson and the Estates of Vita Sackville-West and Harold Nicolson.

Written by Jill Waters

Narrator: Clare Higgins
Hilda Matheson: Romola Garai
Vita Sackville West: Nancy Carroll
John Reith: Derek Riddell
Harold Nicolson / RS Lambert : Richard Goulding
Lionel Fielden : Simon Paisley Day

A Waters Company production for BBC Radio 4


WED 12:18 You and Yours (m0015vf5)
Kids Online, Venison, Families Renting

A report this morning by the regulator Ofcom, reveals that children are watching more online videos from brands, celebrities and influencers, and less posted by friends. The majority of teenagers - eight out of ten - use online services to support their wellbeing. But more than a third of children reported doing potentially risky stuff - surfing incognito, deleting their browsing history or circumventing parental controls. We hear from two teenagers about their experience...

Energy bills are not just affecting consumers, but also businesses. Particularly night clubs, with some reporting that their annual energy bill has risen by over £60,000.
With increased staff shortages, insurance premiums going up and rapidly rising energy bills, a large number of nightclubs may not survive the year...

Could eating venison be a guilt free meal for the environmentally conscious?
There are around two million wild deer in the UK. They have to be culled because the herds grow so quickly. They wander on to roads and they strip the woodlands bare. Forestry England manages one and a half thousand woodlands is now selling the wild deer it culls directly to the public, through a new partnership.

Research by the housing charity Shelter suggests that around 1 in 14 families have been barred from renting a place they wanted, because the landlord has a no child policy. We hear from a mother of 4 about how she struggled to find anywhere to rent for her and her children...

PRESENTER: WINIFRED ROBINSON

PRODUCER: JAY UNGER


WED 12:57 Weather (m0015vf7)
The latest weather forecast


WED 13:00 World at One (m0015vf9)
Forty-five minutes of news, analysis and comment, with Jonny Dymond.


WED 13:45 Past Forward: A Century of Sound (m0015vfc)
The Corncrake and the Croft

Greg Jenner watches a clip from the 1970s containing dour predictions for the future of the Outer Hebrides and seeks help in explaining its prognosis from Professor of Sustainable Rural Development Frank Rennie and the co-founder of the North Uist Distillery Kate Macdonald.

Marking the centenary of the BBC, Past Forward uses a random date generator to alight somewhere in the BBC's vast archive over the past 100 years. Greg Jenner hears an archive clip for the first time at the top of the programme, and uses it as a starting point in a journey towards the present day. The archive captures a century of British life in a unique way - a history of ordinary people’s lives, as well as news of the great events. Greg uncovers connections through people, places and ideas that link the archive fragment to Britain in 2022, pulling in help from experts and those who remember the time, and looking at how far we've come since then.

Producer: Martin Williams


WED 14:00 The Archers (m0015vcp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Tuesday]


WED 14:15 Drama (m0015tw8)
[Repeat of broadcast at 21:00 on Saturday]


WED 15:00 Money Box (m0015vff)
Young People and Money Anxiety

The cost of living crisis is fuelling valid fears about personal and household finances - but what happens when money anxiety gets out of control? Many young people worry about their own and their family's finances, but what can they do to conquer the fear?
We hear from Iona Bain, musician turned financial author who specialises in millennial personal finance. She founded Young Money Blog after suffering with money anxiety herself. And we also hear from Sharon Davies, CEO of Young Enterprise, the national charity providing enterprise and financial education to young people up to the age of 24.

Presenter: Bukiie Smart
Producers: Paul Waters, Maggie Latham & Drew Miller Hyndman
Production Coordinator: Janet Staples
Editor: Emma Rippon


WED 15:30 The Invention of... (m0015v82)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:00 on Monday]


WED 16:00 Rewinder (m0015401)
Man With A Pigeon On His Head

Greg James, host of the Radio 1 Breakfast show and self-confessed 'proud radio nerd', uses his access-all-areas pass to the BBC Archives to track down audio gems, using listener requests, overlooked anniversaries and current stories as a springboard into the vast vaults of past programmes.

This week, as the final series of Killing Eve hits TV screens, Greg looks back at the career of its star Jodie Comer, from her first role in a BBC Radio 3 drama aged just 14 to her myriad accents as globetrotting assassin Villanelle.

It's 50 years since David Bowie's extra-terrestrial creation Ziggy Stardust looked down the TV lens on Top of the Pops and influenced the hairstyles, make up and jumpsuits of a generation of young people: Greg looks at some of Bowie's characters and finds out how audiences reacted to the superstar at the time. He also revisits the moment 40 years ago when David Bowie starred in Baal, a play by Bertolt Brecht, on BBC One at the heart of the evening schedule.

It's a big year for Birmingham, leading Greg on an eccentric's tour of the city in which he encounters a coal-powered car, tortoise racing, a topless dress and a man with a pigeon on his head.

Listener requests take him to memories of D-Day, the coronation of Queen Victoria, and the inimitable corpsing of Brian Johnston.

Producer: Tim Bano


WED 16:30 The Media Show (m0015vfj)
Ukraine's lessons for the media

As peace talks between Ukraine and Russia get underway, the war on the ground continues. How is the war being reported differently by Ukrainian and international media? And is there a danger that the public is losing interest in the war?

Guests: Oleksiy Sorokin, political editor at the Kyiv Independent; Iryna Matviyishyn, freelance journalist and producer; Zanny Minton Beddoes, editor-in-chief of The Economist; Lyse Doucet, BBC Chief International Correspondent; Cristina Nicolotti Squires, director of content at Sky News.

Presenter: Ros Atkins

Studio engineer: Duncan Hannant

Producer: Dan Hardoon


WED 17:00 PM (m0015vfl)
Afternoon news and current affairs programme, reporting on breaking stories and summing up the day's headlines.


WED 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m0015vfq)
A report has been published looking at maternity care at Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Trust, which found errors that may have led to the deaths of more than 200 babies.


WED 18:30 Conversations from a Long Marriage (m0015vfs)
Series 3

Losing the Way

Joanna Lumley and Roger Allam star in Jan Etherington’s award-winning comedy, as a couple who are passionate about life and each other. This week: they drop in on some old friends they haven't seen for years. And while Joanna and Roger feel the same as they always have, their friends seem to have changed beyond recognition. He's moved from technicolour to tweed, and she's never even heard of Stormzy.

Conversations from a Long Marriage won the Voice of the Listener & Viewer Award for Best Radio Comedy in 2020.

Conversations from a Long Marriage is written by Jan Etherington. It is produced and directed by Claire Jones. It is a BBC Studios Production.

Details of organisations offering information and support with some of the issues in this episode are available at bbc.co.uk/actionline.

‘Joanna Lumley and Roger Allam have had illustrious acting careers but can they ever have done anything better than Jan Etherington’s two hander? This is a work of supreme craftsmanship.’ RADIO TIMES
‘Peppered with nostalgic 60s hits and especially written for the pair, it’s an endearing portrait of exasperation, laced with hard won tolerance – and something like love.’ THE GUARDIAN
‘The delicious fruit of the writer, Jan Etherington’s experience of writing lots of TV and radio, blessed by being acted by Joanna Lumley and Roger Allam. Treasure this one, produced by Claire Jones. Unlike many a current Radio 4 ‘comedy’, this series makes people laugh’ GILLIAN REYNOLDS. SUNDAY TIMES
‘You’ve been listening at my window, Jan’. JOANNA LUMLEY
‘The writing is spot on and Joanna Lumley and Roger Allam exquisite. So real, so entertaining. Please never stop making such terrific radio’. BBC DUTY LOG
‘Absolutely brilliant!! May it never end!’ BBC DUTY LOG


WED 19:00 The Archers (m0015vfv)
Alan visits Kate and catches her performing a ceremony to mark the death of Roy the goldfish. Alan apologises for how he spoke on Sunday but stands by what he said. Kate reassures him, saying she won’t be making a complaint - on reflection she and Alan are more alike than she realised. Alan recounts this conversation to Amy, but it doesn’t put her at ease. She thinks there’s still lots of people in Ambridge who think badly of her and the best thing would be to return to Nottingham for good.

Jazzer’s anxious about his Berrow Farm job even though Borchester Land isn’t closing the pig unit. After a meeting between Brian, Neil and Hannah, Jazzer learns that he remains employed but with reduced hours. Later, Jazzer tells Neil that he was impressed with how Tracy took the news and that he took the opportunity to persuade Tracy to make up with Susan. Neil’s grateful and tells Jazzer that he’s part of the family now.

Amy tells Chris about her plans to return to Nottingham. She says that she’s fallen in love with him and asks if he feels the same. If he does, then maybe they can find somewhere they can be together or stay and tough it out it. Chris isn’t ready to say that he loves Amy but thinks that one day in the future they would be good together. That’s not enough for Amy and her mind is made up: she’s moving back to Nottingham. It would be easier if she and Chris weren’t in touch for a while.


WED 19:15 Front Row (m0015vfx)
Glasgow's Burrell Collection reopens; Orphans the musical; Yoga Concerto; Edinburgh’s new Makar Hannah Lavery

Presented by Kate Molleson from Glasgow.

As the Burrell Collection reopens in Glasgow after a £68 million refit, Sunday Post art critic Jan Patience discusses the significance of the gallery, which includes rare Persian carpets, Chinese ceramics and sculptures by Rodin.

Director Cora Bissett talks about Orphans – the new musical from the National Theatre of Scotland, adapted from Peter Mullan’s 1998 cult classic film set in Glasgow.

Belgian clarinettist Annelien Van Wauwe is in Glasgow to perform the world premiere of Sutra with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. She tells Kate about collaborating with composer Wim Henderickx to create a concerto inspired by Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, the first scriptures of yoga, and how yoga can help musicians find their flow.

Hannah Lavery is the recently appointed Edinburgh City Makar, the city’s poet laureate. She discusses her new role and her debut poetry collection Blood, Salt, Spring, a seemingly real time meditation on where we are – exploring ideas of nation, race and belonging.

Presenter: Kate Molleson
Producer: Timothy Prosser

Image: The Warwick Vase, a 2nd Century Roman marble sculpture, in The Burrell Collection, Glasgow
Photo credit: Timothy Prosser


WED 20:00 Things Fell Apart (m0015vfz)
How Things Fell Apart, with Jon Ronson and Louis Theroux

In this bonus episode of Things Fell Apart, Jon Ronson's friend and fellow documentary maker Louis Theroux asks him all about how he made the series. They take a deep dive into Culture Wars battles and explore Jon's storytelling methods, all while chatting about Jon's broken arm, putting old rivalries to bed, and how they deal with difficult interviewees when they both hate conflict.

Produced by Sarah Shebbeare


WED 20:45 Lent Talks (m0015vg1)
"I was naked and you clothed me"

Lent Talks is a series of personal reflections inspired by an aspect of the story leading up to Easter. This year’s theme is the power of hospitality, based on Jesus’ encouragement in Matthew’s gospel to feed the hungry, welcome the stranger and look after the sick.

This week's speaker is the sexual abuse survivor Dr Margaret Kennedy. Now living with a degenerative condition, she looks back on the trauma as well as the joys in her life, as she considers the words, "I was naked and you clothed me".

Producer: Dan Tierney.

--

If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in the programme, details of organisations that can provide help and support are available here:

Child sexual abuse
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/22VVM5LPrf3pjYdKqctmMXn/information-and-support-sexual-abuse-and-violence

Victims of crime
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/2MfW34HqH7tTCtnmx7LVfzp/victims-of-crime

Suicide/Emotional distress
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/4WLs5NlwrySXJR2n8Snszdg/information-and-support-suicide-emotional-distress


WED 21:00 Costing the Earth (m0015vc9)
[Repeat of broadcast at 15:30 on Tuesday]


WED 21:30 The Media Show (m0015vfj)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:30 today]


WED 22:00 The World Tonight (m0015vg3)
Russia announces 1 day Mariupol ceasefire

In depth reporting, intelligent analysis and breaking news from a global perspective


WED 22:45 The Battle of Savoy Hill (m0015vf3)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:04 today]


WED 23:00 The Damien Slash Mixtape (m0015vg5)
Series 4

Episode 4

Multi-character YouTube star Damien Slash is back for a fourth round of zeitgeisty sketches in this new fast-paced, one-man sketch comedy show. In the final instalment, we hear a landlord who loves to check on his tenants, a meeting between FIFA and Qatar ahead of the 2022 World Cup, and a Pingu adventure for our times.

Written by and starring Damien Slash (aka Daniel Barker)
Additional material by Tom Savage

Guest starring Natasia Demetriou.

Production Coordintator: Sarah Sharpe
Sound Editor: Rich Evans

Produced by Gwyn Rhys Davies. A BBC Studios production


WED 23:15 Chris Neill: Raging Enigma (m0015vg7)
A (Partial) Advent Calendar

It needn't be Christmas to be Christmas, need it? Chris Neill, joined by Isy Suttie and Martin Hyder, hacks back the undergrowth of his life for the comedy stories buried within.

“A rapid-fire English David Sedaris. Every word is perfectly chosen and perfectly used.” - Miranda Sawyer, The Observer

After ten episodes of Woof, in Raging Enigma Chris Neill continues to reveal the unvarnished realities of being a really quite mediocre man. Memoir continues to underpin these illustrated stand-up shows, and the subject matter will be as varied as before…. But this time without the studio audience.

“Chris Neill’s show is a consummate masterpiece” - Susan Nickson

“Blissfully well written. Neill may be first and foremost a comedian, but his observations are as acute as any novelist’s. Sweet, sharp and very funny.” - The Times

Written by: Chris Neill
Producer: Steve Doherty
A Giddy Goat production for BBC Radio 4


WED 23:30 Today in Parliament (m0015vg9)
News, views and features on today's stories in Parliament



THURSDAY 31 MARCH 2022

THU 00:00 Midnight News (m0015vgc)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.


THU 00:30 When the Dust Settles by Lucy Easthope (m0015vgf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Wednesday]


THU 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m0015vgh)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


THU 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m0015vgk)
BBC Radio 4 presents a selection of news and current affairs, arts and science programmes from the BBC World Service.


THU 05:33 Shipping Forecast (m0015vgm)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


THU 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m0015vgr)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Rev Grace Thomas

Good morning.

Today, the Church of England commemorates priest and poet John Donne. Born in the Elizabethan era of the sixteenth century, Donne penned many poems about love, religion and death. My favourite, however, has to be the poem entitled ‘The sun rising’, which begins with the lines - Busy old fool, unruly sun, why dost thou thus, through windows, and through curtains call on us?

The tone of these opening words always makes me smile. I hear Donne’s frustration at the morning sun interrupting his blissful slumber and I am reminded of the many times when I have shared his sentiments. How often have I cried out in frustration when the morning sun has burst through and disturbed me in my comfort?

Donne’s poems stood out at the time that they were written because he did not accede to the conventions of the day. His language could be very direct in nature – as seen in the opening lines of The Sun Rising. I think this is what I find so appealing about his poetry – its raw honesty. I’m reminded of the prayer that Mother Mary Clare of the Sisters of the Love of God – a Church of England Community in Oxford – would urge her Sisters to say:

‘Here I am, God, what a mess’.

Direct, honest and to the point. Sometimes that’s all I need to say – knowing that God hears my prayers and accepts me as I am.

Faithful God, thank you that I can bring all my mess and frustration to you. Help me to be honest and direct with you in prayer and to trust that you will listen to me, just as I am.

Amen


THU 05:45 Farming Today (m0015vgt)
31/03/22 - Fertiliser, food waste and Australian sheep farmers

With fertiliser prices rising, Defra Secretary George Eustice responds by delaying new restrictions on some, and clarifying the rules on muck spreading. And we hear more detail on have also been released about the Sustainable Farming Incentive or SFI - part of the new system of farm payments being introduced in England.

The food waste charity WRAP estimate that just over 3% of food harvested is wasted before it gets to consumers - and once in our homes we waste far more. With MPs discussing food security and prices in a Westminster Hall debate called for by the SNP, we hear from farmer Will Woodhall who grows spring onions and beetroot alongside cereal crops - but who this year hasn’t been able to sell all his produce.

The Trade and Agriculture Commission deliver their advice on the Australia-UK trade deal to ministers today - looking at the impacts of the deal on UK food and farming - and that’s what we’ve been doing all week. Farmers here are worried they will be exposed to imports of cheaper meat, and in particular lamb meat, which is produced in ways that aren’t allowed here. Peter Hadfield has been in Merriwa to hear what Australian sheep farmers make of it.

Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced by Caitlin Hobbs


THU 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b03x45tq)
Ring Ouzel

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

Bill Oddie presents the ring ouzel. Ring ouzels are related to blackbirds and because they nest in the uplands, they’re sometimes known as the ‘mountain blackbird’. The male ring ouzel is a handsome bird, sooty black with a broad white ring called a ‘gorget’ right across his chest that stands out like a beacon. Unfortunately these summer visitors are becoming harder to find even in their strongholds, which include the North York Moors and several Scottish and Welsh mountains.


THU 06:00 Today (m0015vh4)
News and current affairs, including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


THU 09:00 In Our Time (m0015vh8)
The Sistine Chapel

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the astonishing work of Michelangelo (1477-1564) in this great chapel in the Vatican, firstly the ceiling with images from Genesis (of which the image above is a detail) and later The Last Judgement on the altar wall. For the Papacy, Michelangelo's achievement was a bold affirmation of the spiritual and political status of the Vatican, of Rome and of the Catholic Church. For the artist himself, already famous as the sculptor of David in Florence, it was a test of his skill and stamina, and of the potential for art to amaze which he realised in his astonishing mastery of the human form.

With

Catherine Fletcher
Professor of History at Manchester Metropolitan University

Sarah Vowles
The Smirnov Family Curator of Italian and French Prints and Drawings at the British Museum

And

Matthias Wivel
The Aud Jebsen Curator of Sixteenth-Century Italian Paintings at the National Gallery

Producer: Simon Tillotson


THU 09:45 When the Dust Settles by Lucy Easthope (m0015vjp)
Ep 4 - Fukushima

In Lucy Easthope's memoir about her career in disaster recovery she recalls the response to the Fukushima disaster, and the relief when nuclear catastrophe was averted. Rebekah Staton reads.

When the Dust Settles is Lucy Easthope's memoir about her career in disaster planning. Since 2001, Lucy has been at the heart of the recovery effort of almost every disaster involving a UK citizen. She's the one who has written the plans for what to do when things go wrong and need a response. From 9/11, to the devastating impact of flooding, the poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko, to the pandemic she has been there, advising politicians, local authorities and the families who have suffered bereavement and loss. Here she takes us behind the police tape, makes sense of the confusion and plans for what happens after the initial emergency response is over, and the rebuilding of lives and communities must begin. She lights a way through the chaos and on towards hope.

Abridged by Penny Leicester
Produced by Elizabeth Allard


THU 10:00 Woman's Hour (m0015vhd)
Donna Ockenden and The Ockenden Review

Today we are dedicating the whole programme to the biggest maternity scandal in the NHS's history - leading to headlines across newspapers today stating childbirth is not safe for women in England. Those are the stark words of the midwife Donna Ockenden - the author of the long awaited Ockenden Review - published yesterday. Her mission? To find out what went on under the care of those working for the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust over a 20 year period. She concluded 201 babies and nine mothers could have survived if the Trust had provided better care, learned from mistakes and crucially listened to women.

Along with several other key guests she joins Emma to discuss her findings and where we go from here.

Presenter Emma Barnett.
Producer Kirsty Starkey

Interviewed Guest: Kayleigh Griffiths
Interviewed Guest: Maria Caulfield
Interviewed Guest: Donna Ockenden
Interviewed Guest: Dr Jo Mountfield
Interviewed Guest: Prof Soo Downe


THU 11:00 From Our Own Correspondent (m0015vhg)
Russia's path of destruction

Despatches from Ukraine, Germany, Sudan and Canada. The pounding of civilian infrastructure by Russian forces has continued this week in cities like Mykolaiv and Mariupol even as peace talks were underway. And Russia's claims it will reduce its military activity in the north are being treated with scepticism. Orla Guerin has been reporting across the country since the invasion began.
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, described the siege of Mariupol as a ‘crime against humanity’. Mariupol’s mayor has called for the evacuation of the entire city. But the journey away from the city is fraught with danger and a safe passage is far from guaranteed. Hugo Bachega spoke to some who did manage to escape.
A few days after the invasion, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz unexpectedly announced a massive boost in military spending in a dramatic shift in German foreign policy. Polls suggest most Germans support the new policy. Our correspondent Damien McGuinness is in Berlin.
In Sudan, women, young and old, have been celebrated for leading the revolution that toppled the former military ruler Omar al-Bashir. But after two years of sharing power with civilian politicians, the military staged a coup in October. There have been almost daily protests and at least 90 people have been killed in a crackdown. Catherine Byaruhanga has just returned from Khartoum and she reports on allegations of sexual assault against female protestors.
Nearly 1.4 million people in Canada are of Ukrainian heritage. Many of them trace their roots to Ukrainian immigrants who came to Canada in the late 19th century. Greg Mercer has heard how they are rallying to the defence of the old country.
Presenter: Kate Adie
Producer: Serena Tarling
Production Coordinator: Gemma Ashman
Editor: Hugh Levinson


THU 11:30 The Godfather And Me (m0015vhj)
Since debuting in 1972, many people have attempted to capture what makes Francis Ford Coppola’s film a defining moment moment in cinema history. Based on Mario Puzo’s best-selling gangster epic, The Godfather examines the dynamics between fathers and sons, family bonds, ruthless violence, capitalist greed and the American Dream.

The story has infiltrated our collective consciousness, generating an aura around the Corleones, an Italian-American crime family and the conversion of power in their ranks.

Co-writer and Director of McMafia James Watkins has long been drawn to this world. In this programme he re-evaluates The Godfather effect and why the films influence casts a huge shadow over his career.

Taking to the streets of New York he identifies several key areas which for him inspired fascinating filmmaking techniques and memorable moments. As he recalls the first time he saw it, the notable cast performances, and the origin of how it came to be made, he pieces together his persistent fascination with the film and its place in our culture and history.

As we roll back the covers we’ll also hear how Puzo’s book, amplified by the genius of the film, changed the way Italian-Americans saw themselves, why the Mafia blockbuster became a political handbook with a set text for politicians in Washington and Westminster and how this cultural juggernaut paved the way for the wonder of the ‘box set’.

The compulsion to continue examining the Godfather phenomenon and consider why the movie is so compelling only feeds its standing in the pantheon of great filmmaking and storytelling.

Producer: Stephen Garner


THU 12:00 News Summary (m0015vq0)
National and international news from BBC Radio 4


THU 12:04 The Battle of Savoy Hill (m0015vhn)
Episode 4

The Battle of Savoy Hill explores Hilda Matheson’s working relationships at the BBC in the 1920s, in particular with John Reith the BBC’s first director general. The account also features extracts from the unpublished letters written by Hilda to her lover, the poet and novelist Vita Sackville-West.

Hilda Matheson was a woman of high artistic integrity, with a passion for sharing with listeners the best of what was thought and said. This was to bring her into direct conflict with the man who recruited her to the BBC, John Reith. Both had a Scottish background, and both were the children of men of the cloth. Neither had conventional private lives, although Hilda’s was happier and more fulfilled than Reith’s.

This remarkable true story takes place at the heart of the newly formed BBC, which operated in its early years from a number of buildings on Savoy Hill between the Thames and the Strand.

Research assistance from Kate Murphy, author of Behind the Wireless: A History of Early Women at the BBC. Other key sources include Michael Carney’s biography of Hilda Matheson, Stoker; Asa Briggs’ The History of Broadcasting in the United Kingdom; The Natural Bent by Lionel Fielden; Ariel and All His Quality by R S Lambert; and Ian McIntyre’s biography of John Reith, The Expense of Glory.

Permission to quote from the letters of Harold Nicolson and Vita Sackville West kindly given by Juliet Nicolson and the Estates of Vita Sackville-West and Harold Nicolson.

Written by Jill Waters

Narrator: Clare Higgins
Hilda Matheson: Romola Garai
Vita Sackville West: Nancy Carroll
John Reith: Derek Riddell
Harold Nicolson / RS Lambert : Richard Goulding
Lionel Fielden : Simon Paisley Day

A Waters Company production for BBC Radio 4


THU 12:18 You and Yours (m0015vhq)
Council tax rebate, VAT on Hospitality, Gleaning

The chair of the commons Levelling Up Select Committee, Clive Betts, has said that ministers need to "get a grip" of the system giving homes in England a £150 council tax rebate. The scheme is due to come into force next month, but Clive Betts expressed concern people would be "unable to access help quickly and smoothly".
Councils have also warned payments could be delayed to those who don't pay their tax by direct debit. Those who pay by direct debt will get an automatic rebate. We'll find out more and look at what you can do to make sure you receive the payment.

Energy price rises kick in on the 1stt of April and the average increase will be over 50 percent, more than £700 a year. Consumer groups are advising people to submit meter readings today - or at the very least to take a photo of the readings and submit them when you can. It's to make sure you are charged the lower rates for as long as possible.

Could gleaning be part of the solution to cutting food waste? There is a growing network of volunteer gleaning groups that are being welcomed into farmers’ fields to collect tonnes of free produce that would otherwise be left to rot after the commercial harvest. Instead it can be given to local food banks. Our reporter Bob Walker heads out to find out more.

PRESENTER: WINIFRED ROBINSON

PRODUCER: LINDA WALKER


THU 12:57 Weather (m0015vhs)
The latest weather forecast


THU 13:00 World at One (m0015vhv)
Forty-five minutes of news, analysis and comment, with Jonny Dymond.


THU 13:45 Past Forward: A Century of Sound (m0015vhx)
Life on the Canals

Greg Jenner explores a fragment of archive about the last working canal boatmen in the 1960s, and speaks to writer Julian Dutton and boat-dwellers Jo and Vic about the new era of life on Britain's waterways.

Marking the centenary of the BBC, Past Forward uses a random date generator to alight somewhere in the BBC's vast archive over the past 100 years. Greg Jenner hears an archive clip for the first time at the top of the programme, and uses it as a starting point in a journey towards the present day. The archive captures a century of British life in a unique way - a history of ordinary people’s lives, as well as news of the great events. Greg uncovers connections through people, places and ideas that link the archive fragment to Britain in 2022, pulling in help from experts and those who remember the time, and looking at how far we've come since then.

Produced by Amelia Parker


THU 14:00 The Archers (m0015vfv)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Wednesday]


THU 14:15 Our Friends in the North (m0015vhz)
Episode 3: 1967

Peter Flannery once famously said of Our Friends in the North, "... it's just a posh soap opera - but it's a posh soap opera with something to say."

And now he has rewritten his multi-award winning and highly acclaimed television series as an audio drama for BBC Radio 4. Ambitious in scale and scope, the drama chronicles the lives of four friends over three decades beginning in the 1964. The series tackles corporate, political and police corruption in the 1960s, the rise and fall of the Soho porn empires in the 1970s, the Miners’ Strike of the 1980s and the rise of New Labour in the 1990s. Some of the stories are directly based on the real-life controversies involving T. Dan Smith and John Poulson in Newcastle during the 60s and 70s. The adapted series now ends with a new, tenth episode by writer Adam Usden, bringing the story up to the present day.

The third episode opens in 1967. Nicky has turned his back on the Labour Party and is now looking to the anarchists for solutions, Mary and Tosker’s new high-rise flat in Newcastle is almost uninhabitable and, in London, Geordie has fallen in love with his boss’s mistress Jools - a dangerous game. The government are desperate to clean up Soho - Scotland Yard’s Dirty Squad, together with porn baron Benny Barratt, come up with a solution.

Cast
Geordie: Luke MacGregor
DI Salway / Tosker: Philip Correia
DS Conrad: Andrew Byron
Julia / Mary: Norah Lopez-Holden
Benny Barratt / Eddie Wells: Tony Hirst
Commander Harold Chapple: James Gaddas
Austin Donohue / Claud Seabrook: Tom Goodman-Hill
John Edwards: Maanuv Thiara
Sandra: Tracey Wilkinson
Helen: Eve Shotton

Writer: Peter Flannery
Studio Engineer: Paul Clark
Sound Design: Jon Nicholls
Producer: Melanie Harris
Executive Producer: Jeremy Mortimer

A Sparklab production for BBC Radio 4


THU 15:00 Ramblings (m0015vj1)
The Saxon Shore Way in Kent

Colleen Thirkell and her husband Richard have been walking stretches of the Saxon Shore Way with their friends Bev and John. In autumn 2020 Colleen fell seriously ill with a rare reaction to a flu jab. She was unable to walk and spent months in hospital. But she has slowly recovered and part of her rehabilitation has been to get out walking with her friends again. They invited Clare to walk one of the final stages of the 168 mile route they have been walking together when time has allowed. The ramble takes them from the village of Hamstreet to Appledore on the edge or Romney Marsh. Along the way they talk about their love of walking together as a group and how Colleen's recovery was aided by the thought of being outdoors with friends and family again.

Producer: Maggie Ayre


THU 15:27 Radio 4 Appeal (m0015tnp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 07:54 on Sunday]


THU 15:30 Open Book (m0015tpj)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:00 on Sunday]


THU 16:00 Unreal: The VFX Revolution (m000xltg)
A Long, Long Time Ago...

The story of how visual effects changed and changed cinema told from the inside by the Oscar winning Paul Franklin. In 1975, in a nondescript warehouse in Van Nuys, George Lucas and John Dykstra created a visual effects startup that would make history. Industrial Light & Magic. A group of many talents spent well over a year in R&D to perfect the dream of motion control before X-Wings and the Millennium Falcon could soar. Meanwhile the magic eye of Douglas Trumbull and his team was creating the light show for Steven Spielberg's Close Encounters. It was the beginning of a revolution.

With the voices of Robert Blalack, John Dykstra, Richard Edlund, Dennis Muren & Doug Trumbull.
Producer: Mark Burman


THU 16:30 BBC Inside Science (m0015vj3)
How can the UK get to zero carbon?

Energy is essential: every living thing needs energy to survive, and today’s industrialised societies consume enormous quantities of it. At the moment, the vast majority of this comes from burning fossil fuels that emit carbon. But the government is committed to reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Meanwhile, oil and gas prices are rocketing, exacerbated by the ongoing war in Ukraine. And the energy price cap is being raised on April 1st, hitting millions of householders in the UK.

While we await the government’s energy strategy, Inside Science looks at how to solve the problem, finding the best possible ways to meet our energy needs while slashing our carbon emissions. Joining us to discuss this are Alice Bell, co-director of the climate charity Possible, and Jan Rosenow, director at the Regulatory Assistance Project.

We also hear from Chris Stark of the Climate Change Commission on how the government might meet its decarbonisation targets, visit a Cornish field that might be a rich source of homegrown lithium for batteries, and talk to Jonathan Atkinson from People Powered Retrofit about how to make our homes greener and warmer.


THU 17:00 PM (m0015vj5)
Afternoon news and current affairs programme, reporting on breaking stories and summing up the day's headlines.


THU 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m0015vj9)
No police officers will lose their jobs over the child sex abuse scandal in Rotherham.


THU 18:30 Big Problems with Helen Keen (b09d4bkr)
Series 2

Care

This week's Big Problem with Helen Keen is; Care

Who cares? Why do we care? If genes are selfish why is altruism attractive? Is fairness built into our brains? What is the future of empathy? What is the cost of love?

We look at how technology can help us deal with keeping an ageing population healthy, happy & independent, and why the latest Japanese nursing robot has the face of a bear. Does technology isolate us, or does it over-connect us. We look at how it can keep us linked to others & feeling 'cared about' at any age, and the vanishing luxury of solitude.

And we ask in an age when rolling global news can tell us about every awful thing under the sun, how could we care less?

As humanity faces a very big raft of very varied problems, many of them of its own making, here is a series of optimistic, scientifically literate yet comically nimble shows that offer a sweeping overview of the biggest challenges we face and the science behind them. We look at the often surprising solutions of past generations and the likely and unlikely solutions of the future and present a scrupulously researched comedy celebrating human ingenuity.

Written by Helen Keen, Jenny Laville, Lloyd Langford and Carrie Quinlan.
Cast: Helen Keen, Jon Culshaw and Susy Kane.
Producer was Katie Tyrrell and it was a BBC Studios Production.


THU 19:00 The Archers (m000tvg9)
Writer, Keri Davies
Director, Marina Caldarone
Editor, Jeremy Howe

Alan Franks ….. John Telfer
Alice Carter ….. Hollie Chapman
Amy Franks ….. Jennifer Daley
Brian Aldridge ….. Charles Collingwood
Chris Carter ….. Wilf Scolding
Fallon Rogers ….. Joanna Van Kampen
Hannah Riley ….. Helen Longworth
Jazzer McCreary ….. Ryan Kelly
Justin Elliott ….. Simon Williams
Kate Madikane ….. Perdita Avery
Lilian Bellamy ….. Sunny Ormonde
Martyn Gibson ….. Jon Glover
Natasha Archer ….. Mali Harries
Neil Carter ….. Brian Hewlett
Pat Archer ….. Patricia Gallimore
Susan Carter ….. Charlotte Martin
Tom Archer ….. William Troughton
Tony Archer ….. David Troughton


THU 19:15 Front Row (m0015vjd)
A Clockwork Orange, the National Poetry Competition winner announced, Slow Horses and Coppelia reviewed

Critics Sarah Crompton and Abir Mukherjee review Slow Horses, the brand new series from Apple TV+ starring Gary Oldman, Kristen Scott Thomas, Olivia Cooke, Jack Lowden, Saskia Reeves and Jonathan Pryce. Slow Horses is based on the novel of the same name by Mick Herron, which is part of the author's Slough House series. It tells the story of a team of British intelligence agents who have all committed career-ending mistakes, and subsequently work in a dumping ground department of MI5 called Slough House.

New ballet film Coppelia is an innovative family feature with an original score by Maurizio Malagnini, performed by the BBC Concert Orchestra. Choreographed by Dutch National Ballet artistic director Ted Brandsen, it combines 2D and 3D animation with live action dance and features a blend of musical influences from classical to electronic. Based on the original 19th century tales of E.T.A. Hoffmann this modern adaptation tells the love story between Swan and Franz, which is jeopardised by Dr. Coppelius and his uncannily beautiful protégée Coppelia. With a diverse and world-class cast, including Michaela DePrince, Darcey Bussell, Daniel Camargo, Vito Mazzeo and Irek Mukhamedov, the adaptation is created by filmmakers Jeff Tudor, Steven De Beul and Ben Tesseur. Sarah and Abir review.

Professor Andrew Biswell, Professor of Modern Literature at Manchester Metropolitan University and Director of the International Anthony Burgess Centre, marks the 50th and 60th anniversaries of ‘A Clockwork Orange’ by looking into its history, controversy, and legacy.

Front Row will be announcing the winner of the National Poetry Competition this evening. Previous winners include former Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy, and distinguished poets Tony Harrison, and Jo Shapcott.


THU 20:00 Terrorism and the Mind (m0013swk)
The Mental Health Frontline

Are terrorists mentally ill?

It's a question which has come to the fore in recent years as the terrorist threat has shifted from organised group actions to isolated incidents carried out by individuals.

News reports of attacks are increasingly filled with questions around an attacker's mental health, as people struggle to understand the reasons for what has happened.

Raffaello Pantucci explores what we know - and don't know - about the potential link between mental illness and the actions of violent extremists. He reveals how the changing nature of terrorism in the UK and elsewhere is forcing police and intelligence agencies to reconsider what motivates people to carry out attacks, as well as how they respond.

In this first episode, he looks at a ground-breaking programme which sees specially formed teams manage a growing number of people with mental health issues, who are referred through the Prevent scheme. He hears from police, psychiatrists and the people they have helped - such as a man living with schizophrenia who joined a proscribed far-right group.

Throughout the series Raffaello explores the growing body of academic research which seeks to better understand the potential link between mental illness and violent extremism, and considers concerns of stigma that may come from discussing this link.

Raffaello Pantucci has studied terrorism and counter-terrorism for over 15 years at strategic studies think tanks in London, Washington, Shanghai and Singapore. He is currently a Senior Associate Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute and Senior Fellow at the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore.

Producer: Richard Fenton-Smith


THU 20:30 My Name Is... (m0015wty)
My Name Is Joanne

Joanne Paul, an acclaimed renaissance historian, is leaving the ivory tower of university academia this summer. A Canadian in her early-30s, she has lived, studied and worked in the UK since arriving in 2010 to do her PhD with eminent historian Quentin Skinner at Queen Mary, University of London. Despite this opportunity, life hasn’t always been easy - burning the midnight oil, surviving on limited funds and never knowing where her next short term university contract will take her.

With 70,000 lecturers and researchers facing insecure contracts and casualisation, Joanne acknowledges that she is one of the lucky ones, eventually securing a coveted permanent position as a senior lecturer at the University of Sussex. But now, after nearly six years there, she has decided enough is enough and leaving is the only way she can regain control of her life.

Joanne wants to restore a work-life balance, which had been swallowed up by long unsocial hours of planning, delivering lectures, marking, targets and university admin, and is eating into her time for crucial academic research and writing. She wants to put down roots, spend time with her partner who she marries this year, run yoga classes and walk her dog on the beach in Worthing where she lives. But most of all she wants to create time and space to think, research beyond the ‘restrictive hamster wheel' of the academy, and write. Her recent book The House of Dudley – A New History of Tudor England is published this month.

In this episode of My Name Is…, Joanne looks at why others like her are leaving or thinking of leaving university academia. She starts on the picket line of the recent strikes, hearing from disillusioned colleagues and union officials about their well-documented grievances. She hears about bullying and ill health brought on by overwork, competition and toxic environments. She challenges the university authorities on the way higher education is going - and looks at how things could change for the better.

Presente3r: Dr Joanne Paul
Producer: Sara Parker
Executive Producer: Katherine Godfrey
Sound Engineer: Tom Brignell
A Novel production for BBC Radio 4


THU 21:00 BBC Inside Science (m0015vj3)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:30 today]


THU 21:30 In Our Time (m0015vh8)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:00 today]


THU 22:00 The World Tonight (m0015vjh)
In depth reporting, intelligent analysis and breaking news from a global perspective


THU 22:45 The Battle of Savoy Hill (m0015vhn)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:04 today]


THU 23:00 Gaby's Talking Pictures (b0b9vjls)
Series 1

Episode 6

Gaby Roslin hosts the funny, entertaining film quiz with impressions by Alistair McGowan and Ronni Ancona. This week, team captains John Thomson and Ellie Taylor are joined by special guests Stephen Tomkinson and Sally Lindsay.

Presented by Gaby Roslin
Team Captains: John Thomson and Ellie Taylor
Impressionists: Alistair McGowan and Ronni Ancona
Created by Gaby Roslin
Written by Carrie Quinlan and Barney Newman

Produced by Gordon Kennedy, Gaby Roslin and Barney Newman
An Absolutely production for BBC Radio 4.


THU 23:30 Today in Parliament (m0015vjk)
News, views and features on today's stories in Parliament



FRIDAY 01 APRIL 2022

FRI 00:00 Midnight News (m0015vjm)
The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.


FRI 00:30 When the Dust Settles by Lucy Easthope (m0015vjp)
[Repeat of broadcast at 09:45 on Thursday]


FRI 00:48 Shipping Forecast (m0015vjr)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


FRI 01:00 Selection of BBC World Service Programmes (m0015vjt)
BBC Radio 4 presents a selection of news and current affairs, arts and science programmes from the BBC World Service.


FRI 05:33 Shipping Forecast (m0015vjw)
The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.


FRI 05:43 Prayer for the Day (m0015vk4)
A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Rev Grace Thomas

Good morning.

Today, the 1st of April, is traditionally known as April Fool’s Day – a day given to playing hoaxes and trying to trick people. I remember, as a child, hearing about the spaghetti tree hoax – where, in the late 50’s, BBC’s Panorama programme conducted an elaborate April Fool by running a feature on how spaghetti was harvested from trees. Despite the hoax happening two decades before I was born, it had such an impact that it was still talked about as I was growing up. This, I think, was because the hoax came from a source that was thought of as wholly reliable and factual.

Having days for fools is a helpful reminder that the truth doesn’t always lie in the places I might expect. It is often said that April Fools day is the one day in the year when people look at news headlines, texts or emails with a critical eye as they try to discern whether what they are reading is actually true. The search for truth has been a human endeavour since life began. We all need to have a sense of truth, and, as Jesus reminds us in the Gospel of John, truth – real truth – sets us free.

Discerning what is true, though, is very difficult – even when it isn’t April 1st - so these words of Jesus, are a reminder that, for me, the search for truth begins in a relationship with God. And that relationship is nurtured through prayer – through asking questions and holding my confusion and doubts to God.

Eternal One, in a world of fake news and clickbait, you provide the way of the truth. When I am confused and unsure, help me to see the right path to take.

Amen.


FRI 05:45 Farming Today (m0015vk8)
01/04/22 - Upland farmers, trade deals and Australian beef farmers

England’s upland farmers are facing an uncertain future despite increases in payments announced this week. The payment under the Sustainable Farming Initiative for moorland was £6.45 a hectare, which has now been increased to £10.30 a hectare, plus an added £6.15 a hectare for common land - so a possible increase of £16.45. However the Foundation for Common Land warns that the transition from the EU system of direct payments to a public money for public goods approach will leave many farming on fells and moorland significantly worse off.

All week we’ve been looking at the free trade deal agreed between the UK and Australia and its impact on food and farming here. We consider what it might mean for the UK's beef industry and we hear from the BBC’s Global Trade Correspondent Dharshini David about other trade deals currently in negotiation.

Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced for BBC Audio by Caitlin Hobbs


FRI 05:58 Tweet of the Day (b03zdbr0)
Willow Warbler

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

Kate Humble presents the willow warbler. The first willow warblers return from Africa in late March. Willow warblers were once the commonest and most widespread summer migrant to the UK but in the last two decades numbers in the south and east of England have dropped. Fortunately in Scotland, Ireland and the west, numbers seem to be holding up.


FRI 06:00 Today (m0015vl1)
News and current affairs, including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.


FRI 09:00 Desert Island Discs (m0015tp2)
[Repeat of broadcast at 11:00 on Sunday]


FRI 09:45 When the Dust Settles by Lucy Easthope (m0015vmt)
Ep 5 - The Pandemic

In Lucy Easthope's memoir about her career in disaster recovery she reflects on the shocking realities of human trafficking in the UK. Lastly, she turns to the pandemic, and the labour of healing. Rebekah Staton reads.

When the Dust Settles is Lucy Easthope's memoir about her career in disaster planning. Since 2001, Lucy has been at the heart of the recovery effort of almost every disaster involving a UK citizen. She's the one who has written the plans for what to do when things go wrong and need a response. From 9/11, to the devastating impact of flooding, the poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko, to the pandemic she has been there, advising politicians, local authorities and the families who have suffered bereavement and loss. Here she takes us behind the police tape, makes sense of the confusion and plans for what happens after the initial emergency response is over, and the rebuilding of lives and communities must begin. She lights a way through the chaos and on towards hope.

Abridged by Penny Leicester
Produced by Elizabeth Allard


FRI 10:00 Woman's Hour (m0015vl5)
Have you heard of Nubia from the DC comic books? She’s the adopted sister of Wonder Woman and is DC’s first Black superwoman introduced in the 70s before disappearing from comics for decades. Nubia returned last year in the new comic book Nubia: Real One, which is set in modern day America and tells the story of her teenage life. Anita talks to the cartoonist, Robyn Smith who illustrated the book about the importance of representing Black women and their stories in comics.

Next week, Justyna Wydrzynska from Poland will be the first pro-choice activist to appear in court, charged with breaking the country's strict abortion law. On the 27th January 2021 Poland enforced an near-total abortion ban. It is now only allowed in cases of rape or incest or when the pregnancy threatens the life of the mother. Justyna provided miscarriage-inducing tablets to a pregnant woman. Unlike in other countries where abortion is banned, women in Poland are not criminalised for illegal termination of pregnancy; instead it is those who order or carry out an abortion that face penalties. Anita is joined by Justyna and Dr Sydney Calkin, from Queen Mary University.

Are you familiar with parasocial relationships? It’s a psychological term to describe when someone thinks they have a friendship or bond with a person they have never met before or spoken to face-to-face. The most common parasocial dynamic exists between celebrities and their fans. But is it healthy? And do women often pay the price? Anita explores this with Gretchen Roberts, a psychotherapist whose clients include influencers and vloggers, and Flossie Clegg - a YouTuber and Digital Content Creator with over 700,000 subscribers.

Ramadan begins this weekend. It’s the month when Muslims refrain from eating or drinking between dawn and sunset to give more time for self-reflection, prayer and identify with the hungry. Statistics from Dubai show that women spend twice as much time in the kitchen during this time in Muslim communities around the world, which is a paradox given that it’s also a time of eating less. Much of the pressure comes from the preparation of the Iftar meals which end each day of fasting; an important time for families and communities to come together in homes and mosques. To discuss the issues are Shelina Janmohamed, Vice President of Islamic Marketing at Ogilvy and best selling author of Love in A Headscarf, and journalist and broadcaster Remona Aly.


FRI 11:00 The Smugglers' Trail (m0015vl7)
Smugglers Profit as War Rages

The war in Ukraine has generated new opportunities for smugglers to make money and they have been quick to react. Some of those fleeing their homes have been prepared to pay for safe passage out of the country. And as BBC reporter, Sue Mitchell, and former soldier turned aid worker, Rob Lawrie, discover, the gangs involved are even offering false paperwork to help with visa applications and discounted places for those wanting to cross by dinghy from France to the UK

For vulnerable children in Ukraine the dangers posed by those involved in trafficking are huge and charities are reporting growing concerns about the number of orphans who have disappeared from the system. Rob Lawrie joins a team of US military special operations veterans from Aerial Recovery who are working with the Government to rescue vulnerable children from combat zones. From the orphanages they can then be taken to safe areas where they can be properly processed.

According to Martin Kvernbekk, from the Norwegian branch of the refugee charity, Salam, this wasn't happening at the start of the war, when children dropped at the Poland-Ukraine border by well-meaning organisations were in danger of being targeted by smugglers: “They're very easy prey - they're looking for assistance, so if you're an adult with some candy, food or refuge, they will come with you, they don't know any better.”

He describes how people smugglers wearing reflective vests pretended to belong to organisations helping the relief effort: “The gangs are very advanced - it's big, well-financed networks that do this for a living. They're good at this in peace time,” he says, “Now it's a war, it's chaos, and they're exploiting the fact that there is disorder to be able to snatch more kids and women.”


FRI 11:30 Whatever Happened to Baby Jane Austen? (m000qlxy)
Pilot

Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders star as respected novelist Florence and movie star Selina, in a sparkling comedy series about two sisters at war, by Veep writer David Quantick - with another chance to hear the first programme, before the new episodes are broadcast from next week.

Florence Ransom (Dawn French) is a literary novelist, known for the Booker Prize winning Pennant Days. Her sister is Selina Mountjoy (Jennifer Saunders), a movie star and glamorous celebrity. The two sisters have avoided each other for decades, but when Selina returns to Britain to promote her kiss and tell autobiography, the two are forced together once more. As Selina’s popularity outweighs Florence’s, with big bucks book deals and TV appearances, Florence vents her jealousy at her daughter Lucy and PA Mrs Ragnarrok. But Selina turns out to be broke and threatens to reveal her sister’s guilty secret unless Florence lets Selina move in with her…

“The leads’ natural chemistry, plus David Quantick’s witty script… make for an enjoyable comedy with series potential” The Observer

“It’s as slick, dark and funny as one would expect – but surely this cannot be a one-off? The ending alone leaves us begging for a series” Radio Times

“French and Saunders sparkle with a magic that is so rarely heard in new radio comedies that I’d almost forgotten it was possible” Daily Telegraph

Cast:
Florence - Dawn French
Selina - Jennifer Saunders
Mrs Ragnarrok - Josette Simon
Lucy - Lisa McGrillis
All the men - Alistair McGowan

Written by David Quantick
Producer: Liz Anstee,

A CPL production for BBC Radio 4


FRI 12:00 News Summary (m0015vr0)
The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.


FRI 12:04 The Battle of Savoy Hill (m0015vlf)
Episode 5

The Battle of Savoy Hill explores Hilda Matheson’s working relationships at the BBC in the 1920s, in particular with John Reith the BBC’s first director general. The account also features extracts from the unpublished letters written by Hilda to her lover, the poet and novelist Vita Sackville-West.

Hilda Matheson was a woman of high artistic integrity, with a passion for sharing with listeners the best of what was thought and said. This was to bring her into direct conflict with the man who recruited her to the BBC, John Reith. Both had a Scottish background, and both were the children of men of the cloth. Neither had conventional private lives, although Hilda’s was happier and more fulfilled than Reith’s.

This remarkable true story takes place at the heart of the newly formed BBC, which operated in its early years from a number of buildings on Savoy Hill between the Thames and the Strand.

Research assistance from Kate Murphy, author of Behind the Wireless: A History of Early Women at the BBC. Other key sources include Michael Carney’s biography of Hilda Matheson, Stoker; Asa Briggs’ The History of Broadcasting in the United Kingdom; The Natural Bent by Lionel Fielden; Ariel and All His Quality by R S Lambert; and Ian McIntyre’s biography of John Reith, The Expense of Glory.

Permission to quote from the letters of Harold Nicolson and Vita Sackville West kindly given by Juliet Nicolson and the Estates of Vita Sackville-West and Harold Nicolson.

Written by Jill Waters

Narrator: Clare Higgins
Hilda Matheson: Romola Garai
Vita Sackville West: Nancy Carroll
John Reith: Derek Riddell
Harold Nicolson / RS Lambert : Richard Goulding
Lionel Fielden : Simon Paisley Day

A Waters Company production for BBC Radio 4


FRI 12:18 You and Yours (m0015vlh)
Care home records, Motorhomes, BT compensation

We report on a care home that's refused to comply with an independent investigation into a complaint involving the financial records of a very vulnerable woman. The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman says the company, Hamilton Care Ltd, failed to supply a court appointed solicitor with the information he needed. The Ombudsman has now issued a scathing notice against the provider which runs The Lodge care home in Scarborough in North Yorkshire. We speak to Daniel Lumb, the solicitor managing the woman's affairs, and Mike Hyatt, from the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman. Hamilton Care insist they've sent the records and also say they've apologised and paid compensation.

One of the fastest growing holiday trends since the pandemic has been people deciding to stay in the UK, with increasing numbers heading off on their travels in a campervan or motorhome. According to the National Caravan Council there are about 225,000 on the road. Today, Forestry and Land Scotland have launched a scheme called Stay the Night. Leona Wilkie, Head of Visitor Services and Community tells us more.

For the past year we've been hearing from BT customers who've been cut off phone and broadband - sometimes for weeks on end. A lot of the problems were caused by a big industry drive to improve broadband speeds and move people off copper landlines on to digital phones that connect to the internet. Earlier this week, BT decided to pause that mass switchover unless customers ask to be upgraded. We hear from a listener whose elderly parents were cut off from their landline and broadband for nearly a month after being sold an upgrade. We also speak to Martyn James from Resolver, an online complaints resolution service.

Presenter: Peter White
Producer: Tara Holmes


FRI 12:57 Weather (m0015vlk)
The latest weather forecast


FRI 13:00 World at One (m0015vlm)
Forty-five minutes of news, analysis and comment, with Jonny Dymond.


FRI 13:45 Past Forward: A Century of Sound (m0015vlp)
Save our Steelworks

Greg Jenner hears an archive clip of Welsh women trying to save Ebbw Vale steelworks in 1975. He talks Professor Louise Miskell about how important women were in political activism in Wales in the 1970s, and to Sophie Williams about how she approaches activism in 2022.

Marking the centenary of the BBC, Past Forward uses a random date generator to alight somewhere in the BBC's vast archive over the past 100 years. Greg Jenner hears an archive clip for the first time at the top of the programme, and uses it as a starting point in a journey towards the present day. The archive captures a century of British life in a unique way - a history of ordinary people’s lives, as well as news of the great events. Greg uncovers connections through people, places and ideas that link the archive fragment to Britain in 2022, pulling in help from experts and those who remember the time, and looking at how far we've come since then.

Producer: Dan Potts


FRI 14:00 The Archers (m000tvg9)
[Repeat of broadcast at 19:00 on Thursday]


FRI 14:15 Limelight (m0015vlr)
Dead Hand

Dead Hand – Episode 1: Number Stations

A contemporary thriller set in Northern Ireland written by Stuart Drennan.

Greg is the host of a true crime podcast dedicated to uncovering the identity of a serial killer, last active over twenty years ago, known only as Dead Hand. A killer named after a mysterious radio transmission which has been broadcasting an indecipherable code in the years since Dead Hand vanished. A code told in the voices of Dead Hand’s victims; including Greg’s missing father. However, when a new voice is added to the code, Greg realises that Dead Hand is active again. With time already running out, can he finally crack the code and catch the killer?

Cast:
Greg ... Paul Mallon
DS Murray … Michelle Fairley
Kate … Roísín Gallagher
Lucy … Hannah Eggleton
Stacey … Eimear Fearon
Daniel … Desmond Eastwood
Assistant Jo … Nicky Harley
Operator … Louise Parker
All other roles played by members of the cast.

Writer … Stuart Drennan
Script Editor … Philip Palmer
Producer … Michael Shannon
Executive Editor … Andy Martin

A BBC Northern Ireland production for Radio 4.


FRI 14:45 Helen Lewis: Great Wives (m000zmlt)
Series 1

Out of the Shadows

For two decades, Great Lives on Radio 4 has explored what it takes to change the world. But Helen Lewis wants to ask a different question: what does it take to live with someone who changes the world?

Behind the history of genius lies a second, hidden history: the stories of people who give geniuses the time they need to flourish. This series explores the many "supporting roles" needed to sustain an apparently "singular" genius.

In the final episode of the series, Helen explores the myth of the solitary genius as we meet Alma Mahler, discover Charles Darwin's "pros and cons" list on the subject of taking a wife and unpick the influential work of the psychologist Hans Eysenck.

Written by Helen Lewis with additional voices from Joshua Higgott
Producer: Richard Morris
Production Coordinator: Sarah Nicholls
Sound Design: Chris Maclean

A BBC Studios Production


FRI 15:00 Gardeners' Question Time (m0015vlv)
North Solent

Kathy Clugston hosts the horticultural programme. Pippa Greenwood, Matthew Wilson, and Christine Walkden answer the questions.

This week the panellists suggest some easy-to-grow Euphorbias, as well as giving hope to one gardener whose Mimosa was destroyed in recent storms. They also puzzle over a lack of Granny's Bonnets this year, and come up with planting ideas for creating a screen.

Away from the questions, Matthew Wilson speaks to Exbury Gardens head gardener Tom Clarke to learn about ericaceous soil, and the brilliant rhododendrons that grow from it.

Producer: Daniel Cocker
Assistant Producer: Aniya Das

A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4


FRI 15:45 Short Works (m0015vlx)
Profound Earthly Suffering

A young Indian woman, soon to be a bride, longs to have her heart broken, in Kritika Pandey's new story for Radio 4.

Reader: Deeivya Meir
Writer: Kritika Pandey is winner of the 2020 Commonwealth Short Story Prize, for Asia.
Producer: Justine Willett


FRI 16:00 Last Word (m0015vlz)
Madeleine Albright (pictured), Peter Padfield, Christina Smith, Sheila Paine

Matthew Bannister on

The first female US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, who was a leading advocate of the NATO bombing campaign aimed at stopping ethnic cleansing in the Balkans.

Peter Padfield, the naval historian who as a young man took part in the reconstruction of the voyage of the Mayflower from the UK to the USA.

Christina Smith, the colourful entrepreneur known as “the queen of Covent Garden” for her property and business development in that area of London.

Sheila Paine, who travelled to remote areas of the world to build up a renowned collection of textiles.

Producer: Neil George

Interviewed guest: Jim Naughtie
Interviewed guest: Tom Lippman
Interviewed guest: Fiona Padfield
Interviewed guest: Andrew Lambert
Interviewed guest: Dame Rosemary Anne Squire DBE
Interviewed guest: Nick Fielding

Archive used: One to One: Madeleine Albright, BBC Two, TX 12.9.2005; A Woman Called Smith, BBC Two, TX 30.4.1997


FRI 16:30 Feedback (m0015vm1)
Radio 4’s Tom Sutcliffe responds to listener criticism of Front Row's discussion on the views of JK Rowling.

The presenter of Money Box, Paul Lewis, talks about the appalling financial frauds his programme has been investigating.

And is the musician Gary Barlow a good interviewer? Two listeners give their verdict.

Presenter: Roger Bolton
Producer: Kate Dixon
Executive Producer: Samir Shah

A Juniper Connect production for BBC Radio 4


FRI 17:00 PM (m0015vm3)
Afternoon news and current affairs programme, reporting on breaking stories and summing up the day's headlines


FRI 18:00 Six O'Clock News (m0015vm7)
Office for National Statistics figures are released on day free Covid-19 tests end for most people in England


FRI 18:30 The Now Show (m0015vm9)
Series 60

Episode 4

Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis are joined by the voices of Luke Kempner and Freya Parker, with stand-up from Ola Labib and Rhys James, and music by Stiff and Kitsch.


FRI 19:00 Letter from Ukraine (m00165v1)
Bees and Books

Acclaimed Ukrainian novelist, Andrey Kurkov, gives a personal reflection on the war in Ukraine in a week of travels around Europe.

Translated by Elizabeth Sharp
Produced by Emma Harding

Sound by Nigel Lewis
Production Co-ordinator Eleri McAuliffe

A BBC Cymru Wales production for BBC Radio 4


FRI 19:15 Screenshot (m0015vmc)
Hoaxes, fakes and pranks

Ellen E Jones and Mark Kermode explore hoaxes, fakes and pranks on screen for April Fool's Day.

Mark is joined by documentarian Morgan Neville and Anna Bogutskaya for a deep dive into Orson Welles’ 1973 docudrama about forgers and fakery, F for Fake.

And Ellen looks back at small screen hoaxes, from the 1970s sci-fi mockumentary Alternative 3 to the terrifying BBC1 Halloween drama Ghostwatch via a sprinkling of Noel's House Party, with the help of writers David Ambrose and Mark Gatiss.

Also, critic and filmmaker Mark Cousins shares his Viewing Notes.
 
Screenshot is Radio 4’s guide through the ever-expanding universe of the moving image. Every episode, Ellen E Jones and Mark Kermode journey through the main streets and back roads connecting film, television and streaming over the last hundred years.
 
Producer: Jane Long
A Prospect Street production for BBC Radio 4


FRI 20:00 Any Questions? (m0015vmf)
Sir Ed Davey MP, Louise Haigh MP, Robert Jenrick MP, Tommy Sheppard MP

Chris Mason presents political debate and discussion from Hull Minster with a panel which includes the leader of the Liberal Democrats Sir Ed Davey MP, the Labour MP and Shadow Transport Secretary Louise Haigh, the Conservative MP and former cabinet minister Robert Jenrick and the SNP MP and spokesperson for Constitutional Affairs at Westminster Tommy Sheppard.

Producer: Camellia Sinclair
Lead broadcast engineer: Mike Smith


FRI 20:50 A Point of View (m0015vmh)
Helpless

'Perhaps, like me,' writes A L Kennedy, 'you can now only picture Cabinet meetings as gatherings where ministers and staff sing la-la-la with their fingers in their ears while dancing between the wine fridges.'

In the midst of a lot of bad news, Alison finds some room for cheer.

Producer: Adele Armstrong
Sound: Peter Bosher
Production Coordinator: Gemma Ashman
Editor: Richard Vadon


FRI 21:00 The Hackers (m0015vmk)
Gabriella Coleman investigates one of the most misunderstood cultures of the modern world


FRI 22:00 The World Tonight (m0015vmm)
In depth reporting, intelligent analysis and breaking news from a global perspective


FRI 22:45 The Battle of Savoy Hill (m0015vlf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 12:04 today]


FRI 23:00 A Good Read (m0015vcf)
[Repeat of broadcast at 16:30 on Tuesday]


FRI 23:30 Today in Parliament (m0015vmp)
All the news from today's sitting at Westminster.