#bbcradio4 — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #bbcradio4, aggregated by home.social.
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The midnight BBCNews on Radio4 finally got to the "releasing more dangerous prisoners than [those convicted of manslaughter]" argument.
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The midnight BBCNews on Radio4 finally got to the "releasing more dangerous prisoners than [those convicted of manslaughter]" argument.
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(BBCDrama have been doing some adaptations of centuries old works that actually have very contemporary issues -- this one is like listening to scambuster cautionary tales)
Episode Six
The Vicar of Wakefield by Oliver Goldsmith
Episode 6 of 10A classic comic novel from the 18th century.
Life is good to the Reverend Dr Primrose, in his idyllic country parsonage, surrounded by his beloved family. But then his world unravels in a series of misfortunes and calamities.
Episode 6
Dr Primrose is briefly reunited with his son George, before continuing his search for Olivia.Oliver Goldsmith was born in Ireland in 1728. The Vicar of Wakefield was published in 1766. An essayist, dramatist and poet, his other works include the play She Stoops To Conquer and the poem An Elegy on the Death of a Mad Dog. He died in 1774.
Writer: Oliver Goldsmith
Abridger: Jeremy Osborne
Reader: Edmund Kingsley
Producer: Jeremy OsborneA Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4
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(BBCDrama have been doing some adaptations of centuries old works that actually have very contemporary issues -- this one is like listening to scambuster cautionary tales)
Episode Six
The Vicar of Wakefield by Oliver Goldsmith
Episode 6 of 10A classic comic novel from the 18th century.
Life is good to the Reverend Dr Primrose, in his idyllic country parsonage, surrounded by his beloved family. But then his world unravels in a series of misfortunes and calamities.
Episode 6
Dr Primrose is briefly reunited with his son George, before continuing his search for Olivia.Oliver Goldsmith was born in Ireland in 1728. The Vicar of Wakefield was published in 1766. An essayist, dramatist and poet, his other works include the play She Stoops To Conquer and the poem An Elegy on the Death of a Mad Dog. He died in 1774.
Writer: Oliver Goldsmith
Abridger: Jeremy Osborne
Reader: Edmund Kingsley
Producer: Jeremy OsborneA Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4
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Writing Our Mothers
Archive on 4‘Mothers have such a weight of idealisation and expectation landed upon their bodies and their minds and what women writers can do is to take that apart and explore
its underbelly,’ says feminist writer Jacqueline Rose.Whether worshipped or vilified, treated as lifetime confidantes or rarely trusted, the mothers we meet when we write them are re-inventions. Some may be closer to the
truth than others. Many of them will have roots in the life experiences of the daughter-writer. Virginia Woolf, who lost her mother at the age of 13, said she was obsessed with writing her mother. Eventually she also argued that it was ‘the occupation of the woman writer to kill’ what she called ‘The Angel in the House’ – the perfect, self-sacrificing mother – who may well have been her own maternal influence.Drawing on interviews with Maya Angelou, we hear how for her to write her mother was to ‘write about a hurricane in its perfect power’. She describes how the influence of a mother who ‘abandoned’ her as a child forced her most urgent examinations of class, race and, importantly love. In another frank interview with Marguerite Duras from 1968, she describes writing as a search for connection with her raging and ‘mad’ mother. For Sylvia Plath, the process of writing about becoming a mother herself in the 1950s produced work of a psychic intensity rarely seen before.
What the archive ultimately reveals is that a mother, whether present or absent, loving or cruel, might be as formative an influence on a writer’s work, as in life. ‘When I read about motherhood, I want to be shaken loose from whatever limitations I have when I think about what that means,’ says the writer Siri Hustvedt.
With contributions from Susie Orbach, Jacqueline Rose, Kit de Waal and Siri Hustvedt, and narration from Amaka Okafor.
Produced by Sarah Cuddon
A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4Archive sources:
Desert Island Discs with Arundhati Roy (2017)
A Chance to Meet ... Edna O'Brien (1971)
Sylvia Plath, Peter Orr interview (1962)
Audre Lorde, Pacifica Radio Archives and Academy of American Poets www.poets.org
Maya Angelou, BBC News (1985)
Jeannette Winterson, Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit (BBC, 1990) and Face To Face (BBC, 1994)
Marguerite Duras, Worn Out With Desire To Write (1985)
Toni Morrison, Brief Encounters (BBC, 2001)
Jackie Kay, Book of the Week (The Waters Company for BBC R4, 2015)
Elena Ferrante, Lying Lives of Adults (BBC, 2020)
Available now57 minutes
#ArundhatiRoy #EdnaOBrien
#SylviaPlath #AudreLorde
#MayaAngelou #JeannetteWinterson
#MargueriteDuras #ToniMorrison
#JackieKay #ElenaFerrante -
Writing Our Mothers
Archive on 4‘Mothers have such a weight of idealisation and expectation landed upon their bodies and their minds and what women writers can do is to take that apart and explore
its underbelly,’ says feminist writer Jacqueline Rose.Whether worshipped or vilified, treated as lifetime confidantes or rarely trusted, the mothers we meet when we write them are re-inventions. Some may be closer to the
truth than others. Many of them will have roots in the life experiences of the daughter-writer. Virginia Woolf, who lost her mother at the age of 13, said she was obsessed with writing her mother. Eventually she also argued that it was ‘the occupation of the woman writer to kill’ what she called ‘The Angel in the House’ – the perfect, self-sacrificing mother – who may well have been her own maternal influence.Drawing on interviews with Maya Angelou, we hear how for her to write her mother was to ‘write about a hurricane in its perfect power’. She describes how the influence of a mother who ‘abandoned’ her as a child forced her most urgent examinations of class, race and, importantly love. In another frank interview with Marguerite Duras from 1968, she describes writing as a search for connection with her raging and ‘mad’ mother. For Sylvia Plath, the process of writing about becoming a mother herself in the 1950s produced work of a psychic intensity rarely seen before.
What the archive ultimately reveals is that a mother, whether present or absent, loving or cruel, might be as formative an influence on a writer’s work, as in life. ‘When I read about motherhood, I want to be shaken loose from whatever limitations I have when I think about what that means,’ says the writer Siri Hustvedt.
With contributions from Susie Orbach, Jacqueline Rose, Kit de Waal and Siri Hustvedt, and narration from Amaka Okafor.
Produced by Sarah Cuddon
A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4Archive sources:
Desert Island Discs with Arundhati Roy (2017)
A Chance to Meet ... Edna O'Brien (1971)
Sylvia Plath, Peter Orr interview (1962)
Audre Lorde, Pacifica Radio Archives and Academy of American Poets www.poets.org
Maya Angelou, BBC News (1985)
Jeannette Winterson, Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit (BBC, 1990) and Face To Face (BBC, 1994)
Marguerite Duras, Worn Out With Desire To Write (1985)
Toni Morrison, Brief Encounters (BBC, 2001)
Jackie Kay, Book of the Week (The Waters Company for BBC R4, 2015)
Elena Ferrante, Lying Lives of Adults (BBC, 2020)
Available now57 minutes
#ArundhatiRoy #EdnaOBrien
#SylviaPlath #AudreLorde
#MayaAngelou #JeannetteWinterson
#MargueriteDuras #ToniMorrison
#JackieKay #ElenaFerrante -
Margot Fonteyn
Lauren Cuthbertson on Margot Fonteyn
Great LivesMargot Fonteyn was an icon: a ballerina who helped build and indeed embodied the traditional image of a dancer, just as the artform was finding its feet on the British cultural scene.
From humble beginnings she became an international star, enjoying a dazzling career with the Royal Ballet, a glamorous social life as a diplomat’s wife, and an electric dancing partnership with Rudolf Nureyev. But it was also a life infused with disappointment, controversy and heartbreak; much of which seems to have been hidden behind Margot's smiling public facade.
Dedicated listeners might remember that Margot Fonteyn has been the subject of a previous episode and although we rarely revisit past greats, when we do it’s an opportunity to look afresh and see more. So today, with the assistance of nominating guest Lauren Cuthbertson - herself a dancer who has been with the Royal Ballet for more than 20 years - we take a closer look at the highs and lows of Margot's life.
Joining Matthew and Lauren to share their expert perspectives are Rosie Gerhard, a Lecturer in Dance Studies at the Royal Academy of Dance and creator of the blog 'British Ballet Now & Then'; and the film director and author Tony Palmer, who directed the 2005 film ‘Margot’.
Presented by Matthew Parris and produced for BBC Studios Audio by Lucy Taylor.
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BBC Radio 4 -
Margot Fonteyn
Lauren Cuthbertson on Margot Fonteyn
Great LivesMargot Fonteyn was an icon: a ballerina who helped build and indeed embodied the traditional image of a dancer, just as the artform was finding its feet on the British cultural scene.
From humble beginnings she became an international star, enjoying a dazzling career with the Royal Ballet, a glamorous social life as a diplomat’s wife, and an electric dancing partnership with Rudolf Nureyev. But it was also a life infused with disappointment, controversy and heartbreak; much of which seems to have been hidden behind Margot's smiling public facade.
Dedicated listeners might remember that Margot Fonteyn has been the subject of a previous episode and although we rarely revisit past greats, when we do it’s an opportunity to look afresh and see more. So today, with the assistance of nominating guest Lauren Cuthbertson - herself a dancer who has been with the Royal Ballet for more than 20 years - we take a closer look at the highs and lows of Margot's life.
Joining Matthew and Lauren to share their expert perspectives are Rosie Gerhard, a Lecturer in Dance Studies at the Royal Academy of Dance and creator of the blog 'British Ballet Now & Then'; and the film director and author Tony Palmer, who directed the 2005 film ‘Margot’.
Presented by Matthew Parris and produced for BBC Studios Audio by Lucy Taylor.
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Available now28 minutes
Last onToday
23:00
BBC Radio 4 -
Brendan Behan #BrendanBehan
It Must Be Wonderful to Be Free
Archive on 4Irish novelist Megan Nolan presents an intimate study of the late playwright, singer and novelist, Brendan Behan. She reveals a poetic socialist, a fiercely anti-establishment artist concerned with class solidarity, outcasts, liberation, self-revelation and empathy. And she trashes the trivial, stereotyped memory of Behan, as Ireland’s most famous drunk.
She tells his story through the lens of his most prolific years, 1954 - 1958. It was a time of explosive creativity for Behan, which saw the release of three of his most remarkable works - his plays The Quare Fellow and The Hostage, and his work of auto-fiction Borstal Boy. She hears about his determination in these years to recruit language rather than the militarised violence of his youth as a means to valorise life, dignity, humour and queer love, and to advance his vision for his country, forged in his working class roots.
His words paint a picture of a complex character. An intelligent, anti-establishment writer, an Irish beatnik whose talents “would make Jack Kerouac weep with terror” and who even Bob Dylan couldn’t find the courage to “touch the hem of his garment”. A man who met a tragic end, addicted to alcohol and wielding his fame and power in cruel ways.
Marking the 60th anniversary of his death, Megan hears from historians, writers and members of Behan’s family, as well as from the rich archive of the man himself.
Producer: Cat Gough
Executive Producer: Robert NicholsonA Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4
With thanks to Iris Klein and Semiotexte for providing archival interview recordings with Brendan Behan made by journalist Sylvere Lotringer in Paris in 1961
Show less
Available now57 minutes
On air
Today
22:00
BBC Radio 4 -
Brendan Behan #BrendanBehan
It Must Be Wonderful to Be Free
Archive on 4Irish novelist Megan Nolan presents an intimate study of the late playwright, singer and novelist, Brendan Behan. She reveals a poetic socialist, a fiercely anti-establishment artist concerned with class solidarity, outcasts, liberation, self-revelation and empathy. And she trashes the trivial, stereotyped memory of Behan, as Ireland’s most famous drunk.
She tells his story through the lens of his most prolific years, 1954 - 1958. It was a time of explosive creativity for Behan, which saw the release of three of his most remarkable works - his plays The Quare Fellow and The Hostage, and his work of auto-fiction Borstal Boy. She hears about his determination in these years to recruit language rather than the militarised violence of his youth as a means to valorise life, dignity, humour and queer love, and to advance his vision for his country, forged in his working class roots.
His words paint a picture of a complex character. An intelligent, anti-establishment writer, an Irish beatnik whose talents “would make Jack Kerouac weep with terror” and who even Bob Dylan couldn’t find the courage to “touch the hem of his garment”. A man who met a tragic end, addicted to alcohol and wielding his fame and power in cruel ways.
Marking the 60th anniversary of his death, Megan hears from historians, writers and members of Behan’s family, as well as from the rich archive of the man himself.
Producer: Cat Gough
Executive Producer: Robert NicholsonA Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4
With thanks to Iris Klein and Semiotexte for providing archival interview recordings with Brendan Behan made by journalist Sylvere Lotringer in Paris in 1961
Show less
Available now57 minutes
On air
Today
22:00
BBC Radio 4 -
( ... there are possibly some David Sedaris fans out in Fediverseland ... )
David Sedaris
Take Four BooksPresenter James Crawford speaks to American author and humourist David Sedaris on his new collection of essays, The Land and Its People. From navigating the realities of ageing to reflecting on his personal relationships, Sedaris explores a wide range of experiences across the book's 28 essays.
He also discusses the three works that inspired the collection: Raymond Carver's Cathedral (1981), Joy Williams's Taking Care (1982), and Alan Bennett's Talking Heads (1988).
Producer: Rachael O’Neill
Editor: Gillian Wheelan
This was a BBC Audio Scotland production.Show less
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16:00
BBC Radio 4 -
( ... there are possibly some David Sedaris fans out in Fediverseland ... )
David Sedaris
Take Four BooksPresenter James Crawford speaks to American author and humourist David Sedaris on his new collection of essays, The Land and Its People. From navigating the realities of ageing to reflecting on his personal relationships, Sedaris explores a wide range of experiences across the book's 28 essays.
He also discusses the three works that inspired the collection: Raymond Carver's Cathedral (1981), Joy Williams's Taking Care (1982), and Alan Bennett's Talking Heads (1988).
Producer: Rachael O’Neill
Editor: Gillian Wheelan
This was a BBC Audio Scotland production.Show less
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Available now29 minutes
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BBC Radio 4 -
Episode 1
Drama on 4
Libra Episode 1 of 2Don DeLillo’s fictionalised reimagining of the events surrounding the 1963 assassination of John F Kennedy, adapted for audio by Ben Lewis.
Starring Fisher Stevens and Tucker St. Ivany.A CIA analyst is tasked with pulling together all the facts, theories and suppositions surrounding this founding moment in recent American history. Drawing them together, he tries to imagine how and why JFK was killed. Cutting between the story of Lee Harvey Oswald’s life and two men conspiring to assassinate the president, it builds a picture of a fractured America during the cold war era.
This is a work of fiction inspired by fact. Don DeLillo’s novel - and this adaptation - draw on real events and on some real people. But characters, incidents and dialogue are predominantly works of fiction. Real people have been placed in imagined situations whilst other characters have been created entirely for the purposes of storytelling.
Part of Radio 4’s Story of America - a major collection of dramatisations of milestone American titles marking 250 years since the Declaration of Independence and the foundation of the United States.
Cast:
The Analyst… Fisher Stevens
Lee Harvey Oswald…Tucker St. Ivany
The conspirators…Tyler Collins and Michael Nardone
Marguerite Oswald…Nicole Cooper
The Marine…Michael Guest
Bobby Dupard…Reuben Joseph
Marina Oswald…Holly Howden Gilchrist
George de Mohrenschildt…Grant O’Rourke
David Ferrie…Robin LaingAll other parts were played by the company
BBC Audio Scotland Production
Production Co-ordinators: Bethany Woodhead and Minnie Harrop
Studio Production and sound editing: Andrew Hay and Gav Murchie
Sound Design and original scoring: Danny KrassAdapted by Ben Lewis
Directed by Kirsty WilliamsArchive: CBS Evening News, November 22nd 1963
Show less
Release date:09 August 2026
57 minutes
On radioToday
15:00
BBC Radio 4#DonDeLillo #BBCDrama #BBCIssues #BBCOpeningLines #BBCRadio4 #BBCDramaOn4
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Episode 1
Drama on 4
Libra Episode 1 of 2Don DeLillo’s fictionalised reimagining of the events surrounding the 1963 assassination of John F Kennedy, adapted for audio by Ben Lewis.
Starring Fisher Stevens and Tucker St. Ivany.A CIA analyst is tasked with pulling together all the facts, theories and suppositions surrounding this founding moment in recent American history. Drawing them together, he tries to imagine how and why JFK was killed. Cutting between the story of Lee Harvey Oswald’s life and two men conspiring to assassinate the president, it builds a picture of a fractured America during the cold war era.
This is a work of fiction inspired by fact. Don DeLillo’s novel - and this adaptation - draw on real events and on some real people. But characters, incidents and dialogue are predominantly works of fiction. Real people have been placed in imagined situations whilst other characters have been created entirely for the purposes of storytelling.
Part of Radio 4’s Story of America - a major collection of dramatisations of milestone American titles marking 250 years since the Declaration of Independence and the foundation of the United States.
Cast:
The Analyst… Fisher Stevens
Lee Harvey Oswald…Tucker St. Ivany
The conspirators…Tyler Collins and Michael Nardone
Marguerite Oswald…Nicole Cooper
The Marine…Michael Guest
Bobby Dupard…Reuben Joseph
Marina Oswald…Holly Howden Gilchrist
George de Mohrenschildt…Grant O’Rourke
David Ferrie…Robin LaingAll other parts were played by the company
BBC Audio Scotland Production
Production Co-ordinators: Bethany Woodhead and Minnie Harrop
Studio Production and sound editing: Andrew Hay and Gav Murchie
Sound Design and original scoring: Danny KrassAdapted by Ben Lewis
Directed by Kirsty WilliamsArchive: CBS Evening News, November 22nd 1963
Show less
Release date:09 August 2026
57 minutes
On radioToday
15:00
BBC Radio 4#DonDeLillo #BBCDrama #BBCIssues #BBCOpeningLines #BBCRadio4 #BBCDramaOn4
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Libra - Episode One
Opening Lines
For the 100th title to be explored in Opening Lines, John Yorke picks up the 1998 novel Libra by the heavyweight American writer, Don DeLillo. The book centres around the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, the event DeLillo says marked ‘a turning point in consciousness’ for Americans. He presents a fragmented portrait of the country at the height of the Cold War, following the misfortunes of disaffected loner Lee Harvey Oswald - as well as the large cast of rogue operators planning to use him to bring the President down.
In the first of two-parts, John looks to find what makes this widely acclaimed novel stand out from the hundreds of other books and films spawned by the world-shaking events in Dealey Plaza back in November 1963. He speaks with, among others, Pulitzer Prize winning novelist Jennifer Egan, a self-proclaimed DeLillo acolyte, who says of Libra that the “sense of the chaos and the noise of contemporary life invading the narrative I was very drawn to, and, you know, have tried to emulate, frankly.”
John Yorke has worked in television and radio for over 30 years and shares his experience as he unpacks the themes of the books, plays and stories dramatised in BBC Radio 4’s Sunday Drama series. As former Head of Channel Four Drama and Controller of BBC Drama Production he has worked on some of the most popular shows in Britain - from EastEnders to The Archers, Life on Mars to Shameless. He created the BBC Writers Academy and trained a generation of screenwriters - now with thousands of hours of television to their names. His acclaimed books Into the Woods and Trip to the Moon explore the structure and power of narrative, and he writes, teaches and consults on all forms of storytelling, including many podcasts for R4.
Libra by Don de Lillo is the 100th title covered by Opening Lines. The series began in January 2023 with Lady Chatterley’s Lover. Since then John Yorke has explored novels from Anna Karenina to Gone with the Wind, plays from Shakespeare to Eugene O’Neill and ground-breaking non-fiction like John Hersey’s Hiroshima. Each episode provides background, context and some expert discussion in advance of Radio 4’s Sunday afternoon drama, and all 100 titles can be heard on BBC Sounds.
Contributors: Pullitzer Prize winning author Jennifer Egan & Professor Jesse Kavadlo.
Sound:
Researcher: Henry Tydeman
Production Hub Coordinator: Dawn Williams
Producer: Geoff Bird
Executive Producer: Sara DaviesA Pier production for BBC Radio 4
Show less
Download
Choose your file
Higher quality (128kbps)
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Available now14 minutes
On airToday
14:45
BBC Radio 4#DonDeLillo #BBCDrama #BBCIssues #BBCOpeningLines #BBCRadio4
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Libra - Episode One
Opening Lines
For the 100th title to be explored in Opening Lines, John Yorke picks up the 1998 novel Libra by the heavyweight American writer, Don DeLillo. The book centres around the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, the event DeLillo says marked ‘a turning point in consciousness’ for Americans. He presents a fragmented portrait of the country at the height of the Cold War, following the misfortunes of disaffected loner Lee Harvey Oswald - as well as the large cast of rogue operators planning to use him to bring the President down.
In the first of two-parts, John looks to find what makes this widely acclaimed novel stand out from the hundreds of other books and films spawned by the world-shaking events in Dealey Plaza back in November 1963. He speaks with, among others, Pulitzer Prize winning novelist Jennifer Egan, a self-proclaimed DeLillo acolyte, who says of Libra that the “sense of the chaos and the noise of contemporary life invading the narrative I was very drawn to, and, you know, have tried to emulate, frankly.”
John Yorke has worked in television and radio for over 30 years and shares his experience as he unpacks the themes of the books, plays and stories dramatised in BBC Radio 4’s Sunday Drama series. As former Head of Channel Four Drama and Controller of BBC Drama Production he has worked on some of the most popular shows in Britain - from EastEnders to The Archers, Life on Mars to Shameless. He created the BBC Writers Academy and trained a generation of screenwriters - now with thousands of hours of television to their names. His acclaimed books Into the Woods and Trip to the Moon explore the structure and power of narrative, and he writes, teaches and consults on all forms of storytelling, including many podcasts for R4.
Libra by Don de Lillo is the 100th title covered by Opening Lines. The series began in January 2023 with Lady Chatterley’s Lover. Since then John Yorke has explored novels from Anna Karenina to Gone with the Wind, plays from Shakespeare to Eugene O’Neill and ground-breaking non-fiction like John Hersey’s Hiroshima. Each episode provides background, context and some expert discussion in advance of Radio 4’s Sunday afternoon drama, and all 100 titles can be heard on BBC Sounds.
Contributors: Pullitzer Prize winning author Jennifer Egan & Professor Jesse Kavadlo.
Sound:
Researcher: Henry Tydeman
Production Hub Coordinator: Dawn Williams
Producer: Geoff Bird
Executive Producer: Sara DaviesA Pier production for BBC Radio 4
Show less
Download
Choose your file
Higher quality (128kbps)
Lower quality (64kbps)
Available now14 minutes
On airToday
14:45
BBC Radio 4#DonDeLillo #BBCDrama #BBCIssues #BBCOpeningLines #BBCRadio4
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Shadow World
Breakin' the Cycle Episode 2 of 6
2. A Hood StoryAs Colin and D begin turning their prison-written script into a real production, they recruit former pop stars and emerging actors, building a cast captivated by the promise of an authentic Black British crime story. Their film starts to feel like a genuine cultural moment. But most of the cast and crew are unaware of the true story behind the pair or their journey to becoming film-makers.
Beneath the excitement of the production, the money, power, and instincts that built “Love of Money” are still very much in play. When D’s commitment to turning away from crime is tested, he is drawn back to familiar instincts.
Gripping stories from the Shadows - BBC investigations from across the UK.
Presenter and Producer: Lewis Albrow
Series Producer: Emma Barnaby
Producer: Louis Hollis
Assistant Editor: Georgina Savage
Sound Designer, Composer, and Mix Engineer: Axel Kacoutie
Script Editor: Jason Lewis
Fact Checker: Jessica Hatcher-Moore
Production Manager: Anna-Marie Batho
Production Executive: Letisha Kidza
Head of Production: Nicky Murphy
Production Support: Emma Wood and Olivia Bouton
Executive Producers for Raw: Deborah Dudgeon, David Waters, and Tim Wardle.
Business Affairs: Amy Ofori-Attah, Clotilde Leroux, Damian Kent, and Emma Ong.
Commissioning Executive: Tracy Williams
Commissioning Editor: Dan ClarkeA Raw Production for BBC Radio 4
#BBCRadio4 #BBCShadowWorld #BreakinTheCycleEpisode #StreetCream #MakinMovies #ProductionHell
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Shadow World
Breakin' the Cycle Episode 2 of 6
2. A Hood StoryAs Colin and D begin turning their prison-written script into a real production, they recruit former pop stars and emerging actors, building a cast captivated by the promise of an authentic Black British crime story. Their film starts to feel like a genuine cultural moment. But most of the cast and crew are unaware of the true story behind the pair or their journey to becoming film-makers.
Beneath the excitement of the production, the money, power, and instincts that built “Love of Money” are still very much in play. When D’s commitment to turning away from crime is tested, he is drawn back to familiar instincts.
Gripping stories from the Shadows - BBC investigations from across the UK.
Presenter and Producer: Lewis Albrow
Series Producer: Emma Barnaby
Producer: Louis Hollis
Assistant Editor: Georgina Savage
Sound Designer, Composer, and Mix Engineer: Axel Kacoutie
Script Editor: Jason Lewis
Fact Checker: Jessica Hatcher-Moore
Production Manager: Anna-Marie Batho
Production Executive: Letisha Kidza
Head of Production: Nicky Murphy
Production Support: Emma Wood and Olivia Bouton
Executive Producers for Raw: Deborah Dudgeon, David Waters, and Tim Wardle.
Business Affairs: Amy Ofori-Attah, Clotilde Leroux, Damian Kent, and Emma Ong.
Commissioning Executive: Tracy Williams
Commissioning Editor: Dan ClarkeA Raw Production for BBC Radio 4
#BBCRadio4 #BBCShadowWorld #BreakinTheCycleEpisode #StreetCream #MakinMovies #ProductionHell
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Now listening: Crossing Continents - Getting Gaza back online
How amid the tents and the rubble Gaza is developing once again as an unlikely tech hub.
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( ... a pro-Google episode from the newly enGoogle'd BBC ... )
Getting Gaza back online
Crossing ContinentsHow amid the tents and the rubble Gaza is developing once again as an unlikely tech hub.
Even before the October 7th 2023 attack and the subsequent war between Israel and Hamas, NGOs, with the backing of Google, had sought to develop tech start-ups in the Gaza strip. The digital economy was one of the few areas in which young Gazans in particular could seek to earn money for their families.
During the two years of war they struggled for food and water. Forced to move from place to place, most of them lost their homes, their work, sometimes their laptops and plenty lost family members. Now 80% of Gazans are unemployed and have no income. Many of them live amid the rubble in tents. Stable electricity and internet are difficult to come by. And yet co-working hubs have begun to pop up, giving well educated graduates a chance to work remotely for foreign companies as coders, software engineers and app developers. With Israel controlling what comes in and out of Gaza, they still face significant obstacles, not least finding decent internet, electricity and spare parts for their laptops. And with near-daily bombings continuing, Gaza’s wider recovery remains uncertain. Yolande Knell reports on how its tech workers give a glimpse of a brighter, possible future, open to the world beyond Gaza’s borders.
Producer: John Murphy
Studio mix: Gareth Jones
Programme co-ordinator: Gemma Ashman
Editor: Penny Murphy2026-08-04 2100-2130
-
( ... a pro-Google episode from the newly enGoogle'd BBC ... )
Getting Gaza back online
Crossing ContinentsHow amid the tents and the rubble Gaza is developing once again as an unlikely tech hub.
Even before the October 7th 2023 attack and the subsequent war between Israel and Hamas, NGOs, with the backing of Google, had sought to develop tech start-ups in the Gaza strip. The digital economy was one of the few areas in which young Gazans in particular could seek to earn money for their families.
During the two years of war they struggled for food and water. Forced to move from place to place, most of them lost their homes, their work, sometimes their laptops and plenty lost family members. Now 80% of Gazans are unemployed and have no income. Many of them live amid the rubble in tents. Stable electricity and internet are difficult to come by. And yet co-working hubs have begun to pop up, giving well educated graduates a chance to work remotely for foreign companies as coders, software engineers and app developers. With Israel controlling what comes in and out of Gaza, they still face significant obstacles, not least finding decent internet, electricity and spare parts for their laptops. And with near-daily bombings continuing, Gaza’s wider recovery remains uncertain. Yolande Knell reports on how its tech workers give a glimpse of a brighter, possible future, open to the world beyond Gaza’s borders.
Producer: John Murphy
Studio mix: Gareth Jones
Programme co-ordinator: Gemma Ashman
Editor: Penny Murphy2026-08-04 2100-2130
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Natalie Merchant ('er out of 10,000 Maniacs) sings you to sleep ... near the end ...
2026-08-03 2200-2245
#NatalieMerchant #10000Maniacs
#BBCRadio4 #BBCTheWorldTonight -
Natalie Merchant ('er out of 10,000 Maniacs) sings you to sleep ... near the end ...
2026-08-03 2200-2245
#NatalieMerchant #10000Maniacs
#BBCRadio4 #BBCTheWorldTonight -
Claude didn't defeat the guardrails, it was simply meant to be operating in a sandbox but Anthropic hadn't actually configured it to be sandboxed. Reframing human incompetence as Ai super intelligence to leverage it as marketing fluff
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Those looking for a bit of education with their funnies (of vice versa) could do worse than "Natalie Haynes Stands Up for the Classics', this week's episode is well worth a listen, this episode is on Ancient Alexandria, but also includes a pretty good dig at the idiot near the end!
BBC Radio 4 - Natalie Haynes Stands Up for the Classics https://share.google/UeA9VrwZ9bhDqziia
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Those looking for a bit of education with their funnies (of vice versa) could do worse than "Natalie Haynes Stands Up for the Classics', this week's episode is well worth a listen, this episode is on Ancient Alexandria, but also includes a pretty good dig at the idiot near the end!
BBC Radio 4 - Natalie Haynes Stands Up for the Classics https://share.google/UeA9VrwZ9bhDqziia
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Intimacy (Radio Version)
1. Did You Just Dribble on Me?
2. I Like Being NakedEpisode 1 of 4
Intimacy coordinator Liza lands a major film on a Greek island, but old tensions resurface. As she meets the cast, setting boundaries proves harder than expected.
Lena Headey as Liza
Tia Bannon as Ruby
Hannah Waddingham as Lou
Alison Steadman as Mum
Simon Kassianides as Rob
Thaddea Graham as Kate
Tom Goodman-Hill as Gary
Maisie Williams as Bunny
Matthew Broome as AlexAdditional Voices:
Dempsey Bovell, Tom Glenister, Mark Kilcawley, James Nicolaou, Paul Panting, Finlay Paul, Nigel Pilkington, Josh Singh Sian, Sam Stafford, Sarah WhitehouseBased on an original idea by Erika Lust
Executive Producers: Sharon Horgan, Faye Dorn
Executive Producer for the BBC: Dylan Haskins
Assistant Commissioner for BBC: Lorraine Okuefuna
Written, created and directed by Lena Headey
Constultant Audio Director: Celia De Wolff
Series Producer: Emma Morgan
Story Producer: Maddie Beautyman and Megan Heverin
Production Manager: Archan Mohile
Production Coordinator: Marlene Beauquis Smith
Production Runner: Tobias Davies
Script Assistants: Liis Miik and Jo Troy
Casting Director: Lauren Evans
Intimacy Coordinator: Robbie Taylor Hunt
Recorded at Sound Node
Sound Designer: Martin Schulz
Supervising Sound Editor and Mixer: Daniel Jaramillo
Recording Engineers: David Crane and Giancarlo Granata
Music and Score composed by Max Perryment
Merman Television Managing Director: Rebecca Parkinson
Merman Finance Director: Jackie Sidey
Merman Television Head of Production: Amanda Wasey
Merman Television Finance Manager: Gemma Wilson
Legal and Business Affairs: Mark Rogers and Georges Villeneau
Artwork Photography: Stevan Keane
Behind the Scenes: Michas VanniA Merman Television Scotland production for BBC Radio 4
28 minutes
On airToday
23:00
BBC Radio 4#LenaHeadey #BBCRadio4 #BBCDeama
#BBCIntimacy
#AlisonSteadman #MaisieWilliams -
Intimacy (Radio Version)
1. Did You Just Dribble on Me?
2. I Like Being NakedEpisode 1 of 4
Intimacy coordinator Liza lands a major film on a Greek island, but old tensions resurface. As she meets the cast, setting boundaries proves harder than expected.
Lena Headey as Liza
Tia Bannon as Ruby
Hannah Waddingham as Lou
Alison Steadman as Mum
Simon Kassianides as Rob
Thaddea Graham as Kate
Tom Goodman-Hill as Gary
Maisie Williams as Bunny
Matthew Broome as AlexAdditional Voices:
Dempsey Bovell, Tom Glenister, Mark Kilcawley, James Nicolaou, Paul Panting, Finlay Paul, Nigel Pilkington, Josh Singh Sian, Sam Stafford, Sarah WhitehouseBased on an original idea by Erika Lust
Executive Producers: Sharon Horgan, Faye Dorn
Executive Producer for the BBC: Dylan Haskins
Assistant Commissioner for BBC: Lorraine Okuefuna
Written, created and directed by Lena Headey
Constultant Audio Director: Celia De Wolff
Series Producer: Emma Morgan
Story Producer: Maddie Beautyman and Megan Heverin
Production Manager: Archan Mohile
Production Coordinator: Marlene Beauquis Smith
Production Runner: Tobias Davies
Script Assistants: Liis Miik and Jo Troy
Casting Director: Lauren Evans
Intimacy Coordinator: Robbie Taylor Hunt
Recorded at Sound Node
Sound Designer: Martin Schulz
Supervising Sound Editor and Mixer: Daniel Jaramillo
Recording Engineers: David Crane and Giancarlo Granata
Music and Score composed by Max Perryment
Merman Television Managing Director: Rebecca Parkinson
Merman Finance Director: Jackie Sidey
Merman Television Head of Production: Amanda Wasey
Merman Television Finance Manager: Gemma Wilson
Legal and Business Affairs: Mark Rogers and Georges Villeneau
Artwork Photography: Stevan Keane
Behind the Scenes: Michas VanniA Merman Television Scotland production for BBC Radio 4
28 minutes
On airToday
23:00
BBC Radio 4#LenaHeadey #BBCRadio4 #BBCDeama
#BBCIntimacy
#AlisonSteadman #MaisieWilliams -
(Justin Webb is upto shit again ...)
Americast
The anti DEI MAGA activist Christopher Rufo
We’ve been speaking to perhaps the most prominent anti DEI MAGA activist, Christopher Rufo. He’s widely credited for convincing Donald Trump to dismantle Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) programmes within the government, and led the campaign which saw Harvard President Claudine Gay resign from her post in 2024.
He's a controversial figure who has who has spearheaded the right-wing movement against what he describes as "gender ideology" and "woke" institutional policies. He’s also concerned about the future direction of the movement he helped to create and worries about splits within MAGA that have seen influencers like Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens split with Donald Trump.
In today’s podcast, Justin and Rufo sit down to discuss how successful he thinks the second Trump administration has been, and why Richard Nixon is enjoying a revival among Gen Z Republicans.
HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenterGUEST:
• Christopher Rufo, Senior Fellow at the Manhattan InstituteGET IN TOUCH:
• Join our online community: https://discord.gg/qSrxqNcmRB
• Send us a message or voice note via WhatsApp to +44 330 123 9480
• Email [email protected]
• Or use #AmericastThis episode was made by George Dabby and Alix Pickles. The technical producer was Rohan Madison. The series producer is Purvee Pattni. The senior news editor is Sam Bonham.
If you want to be notified every time we publish a new episode, please subscribe to us on BBC Sounds by hitting the subscribe button on the app.
You can now listen to Americast on a smart speaker. If you want to listen, just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Americast”. It works on most smart speakers.
US Election Unspun: Sign up for Anthony’s BBC newsletter: https:// www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-68093155
Americast is part of the BBC News Podcasts family of podcasts. The team that makes Americast also makes lots of other podcasts, including Newscast. If you enjoy Americast (and if you're reading this then you hopefully do), then we think that you will enjoy some of our other pods too. See links below.
Newscast: https:// www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/series/p05299nl
Top Comment: https:// www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand/m001mssm
Radical: https:// www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand/p0gg4k6r
The Global Story: https:/ /www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand/w13xtvsdDownload
Choose your file
Higher quality (128kbps)
Lower quality (64kbps)
Available now27 minutes
-
(Justin Webb is upto shit again ...)
Americast
The anti DEI MAGA activist Christopher Rufo
We’ve been speaking to perhaps the most prominent anti DEI MAGA activist, Christopher Rufo. He’s widely credited for convincing Donald Trump to dismantle Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) programmes within the government, and led the campaign which saw Harvard President Claudine Gay resign from her post in 2024.
He's a controversial figure who has who has spearheaded the right-wing movement against what he describes as "gender ideology" and "woke" institutional policies. He’s also concerned about the future direction of the movement he helped to create and worries about splits within MAGA that have seen influencers like Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens split with Donald Trump.
In today’s podcast, Justin and Rufo sit down to discuss how successful he thinks the second Trump administration has been, and why Richard Nixon is enjoying a revival among Gen Z Republicans.
HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenterGUEST:
• Christopher Rufo, Senior Fellow at the Manhattan InstituteGET IN TOUCH:
• Join our online community: https://discord.gg/qSrxqNcmRB
• Send us a message or voice note via WhatsApp to +44 330 123 9480
• Email [email protected]
• Or use #AmericastThis episode was made by George Dabby and Alix Pickles. The technical producer was Rohan Madison. The series producer is Purvee Pattni. The senior news editor is Sam Bonham.
If you want to be notified every time we publish a new episode, please subscribe to us on BBC Sounds by hitting the subscribe button on the app.
You can now listen to Americast on a smart speaker. If you want to listen, just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Americast”. It works on most smart speakers.
US Election Unspun: Sign up for Anthony’s BBC newsletter: https:// www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-68093155
Americast is part of the BBC News Podcasts family of podcasts. The team that makes Americast also makes lots of other podcasts, including Newscast. If you enjoy Americast (and if you're reading this then you hopefully do), then we think that you will enjoy some of our other pods too. See links below.
Newscast: https:// www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/series/p05299nl
Top Comment: https:// www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand/m001mssm
Radical: https:// www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand/p0gg4k6r
The Global Story: https:/ /www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand/w13xtvsdDownload
Choose your file
Higher quality (128kbps)
Lower quality (64kbps)
Available now27 minutes
-
( this is what I imagine a Catholic jazz presenter would sound like )
From Our Rome Correspondent
Archive on 4There are few who can remember the days when David Willey wasn't the BBC's Rome Correspondent. Here, with the help of the BBC's and his own private archive, David looked back at his years acting as our eyes and ears in the Italian capital.
The programme also delves into David's earlier career covering North and East Africa and the early years of the Vietnam War. But it's the understanding of the culture and the politics of Italy that David has made his lifetime's work.
In this very personal reminiscence he explores again the events of his time in the country. He talks to old friends and new arrivals about Italian life and attitudes at a crucial point in the country's story, and he offers his own telling insights into the stories behind the stories, and the importance of gaining and sustaining the trust of those on whom he reports.
There's a particularly telling view of the Vatican and its workings from a man who was largely responsible for the Pope providing Radio Four with a unique 'Thought for the Day'.
There's also a chance to hear the lighter side of David's Roman adventure including a truffle hunt with an eccentric female aristocrat and a conversation with a man who has both a Stradivarius and a Guaneri violin to choose from when he performs.
But it's the extra insights, the tour of Silvio Berlusconi's private tomb and the private conversations with the late Pope John Paul II that make David Willey such a unique and treasured figure in the BBC News story.
Producer: Tom Alban.
Available now57 minutes
-
( this is what I imagine a Catholic jazz presenter would sound like )
From Our Rome Correspondent
Archive on 4There are few who can remember the days when David Willey wasn't the BBC's Rome Correspondent. Here, with the help of the BBC's and his own private archive, David looked back at his years acting as our eyes and ears in the Italian capital.
The programme also delves into David's earlier career covering North and East Africa and the early years of the Vietnam War. But it's the understanding of the culture and the politics of Italy that David has made his lifetime's work.
In this very personal reminiscence he explores again the events of his time in the country. He talks to old friends and new arrivals about Italian life and attitudes at a crucial point in the country's story, and he offers his own telling insights into the stories behind the stories, and the importance of gaining and sustaining the trust of those on whom he reports.
There's a particularly telling view of the Vatican and its workings from a man who was largely responsible for the Pope providing Radio Four with a unique 'Thought for the Day'.
There's also a chance to hear the lighter side of David's Roman adventure including a truffle hunt with an eccentric female aristocrat and a conversation with a man who has both a Stradivarius and a Guaneri violin to choose from when he performs.
But it's the extra insights, the tour of Silvio Berlusconi's private tomb and the private conversations with the late Pope John Paul II that make David Willey such a unique and treasured figure in the BBC News story.
Producer: Tom Alban.
Available now57 minutes
-
Last Word obit programme
Brenda Fricker: The first Irish woman to win an Oscar
Brenda Fricker became the first Irish woman to win an Academy Award for her performance in the film “My Left Foot”. She began her career with parts in Ireland’s first soap opera Tolka Row, ITV’s Coronation Street, and became a household name as the nurse Megan Roach in Casualty on the BBC. Her friend and fellow actress Anna Friel pays tribute.
The BBC’s long-serving correspondent David Willey was a renowned authority on the Vatican, covering the lives and deaths of five popes. Before he settled in Rome, David had travelled widely for the BBC, reporting from Algeria, the Vietnam War and China just after the communist revolution. Two of his colleagues, former Chief News Correspondent Kate Adie and International Editor Jeremy Bowen, share their memories of working with him.
The name David Austin is forever indelibly associated with the rose growing business. He created some of the most sought after roses, naming new varieties after fictional or real-life people, including Gabriel Oak from Far From the Madding Crowd, the actress Dame Judi Dench and ceramicist Emma Bridgewater - who pays tribute to him alongside Gardeners' World presenter Sue Kent.
Wally Funk broke records as the oldest person to go to space onboard Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin Rocket in 2021. In the early 1960s she was part of a group of women known as the Mercury 13 who were tested to see if they could compete with male astronauts for a place in the American space programme. But the project was abandoned and her hopes dashed. Loretta Hall, who co-wrote her memoir, tells us her story.
( ... also featuring The Pink Panther saxophone guy ...)
Producer: Ben Mitchell
Assistant Producer: Catherine Powell
Researcher: Jesse Edwards
Editor: Andrea KennedyArchive:
"My Left Foot", Ferndale Films, Granada Film, RTÉ, Hell's Kitchen Films; BBC One, Wogan, 16/02/1990; 62nd Academy Awards, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, 26/03/1990; BBC Radio 4, Woman's Hour, 05/03/1997; BBC One, Wogan, 15/02/1991; BBC Radio 4, Sunday, 10/03/2013; BBC Radio 4, Archive on 4, From our Rome Correspondent, 07/04/2012; BBC One, RHS Chelsea Flower Show, 21/05/2007; BBC One, Football Focus, 06/10/2018; BBC Radio 4, Woman's Hour, 19/06/2019; BBC News, 19/06/1983; Blue Origin, YouTube, 20/07/2021; Other audio courtesy of Loretta Hall -
Last Word obit programme
Brenda Fricker: The first Irish woman to win an Oscar
Brenda Fricker became the first Irish woman to win an Academy Award for her performance in the film “My Left Foot”. She began her career with parts in Ireland’s first soap opera Tolka Row, ITV’s Coronation Street, and became a household name as the nurse Megan Roach in Casualty on the BBC. Her friend and fellow actress Anna Friel pays tribute.
The BBC’s long-serving correspondent David Willey was a renowned authority on the Vatican, covering the lives and deaths of five popes. Before he settled in Rome, David had travelled widely for the BBC, reporting from Algeria, the Vietnam War and China just after the communist revolution. Two of his colleagues, former Chief News Correspondent Kate Adie and International Editor Jeremy Bowen, share their memories of working with him.
The name David Austin is forever indelibly associated with the rose growing business. He created some of the most sought after roses, naming new varieties after fictional or real-life people, including Gabriel Oak from Far From the Madding Crowd, the actress Dame Judi Dench and ceramicist Emma Bridgewater - who pays tribute to him alongside Gardeners' World presenter Sue Kent.
Wally Funk broke records as the oldest person to go to space onboard Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin Rocket in 2021. In the early 1960s she was part of a group of women known as the Mercury 13 who were tested to see if they could compete with male astronauts for a place in the American space programme. But the project was abandoned and her hopes dashed. Loretta Hall, who co-wrote her memoir, tells us her story.
( ... also featuring The Pink Panther saxophone guy ...)
Producer: Ben Mitchell
Assistant Producer: Catherine Powell
Researcher: Jesse Edwards
Editor: Andrea KennedyArchive:
"My Left Foot", Ferndale Films, Granada Film, RTÉ, Hell's Kitchen Films; BBC One, Wogan, 16/02/1990; 62nd Academy Awards, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, 26/03/1990; BBC Radio 4, Woman's Hour, 05/03/1997; BBC One, Wogan, 15/02/1991; BBC Radio 4, Sunday, 10/03/2013; BBC Radio 4, Archive on 4, From our Rome Correspondent, 07/04/2012; BBC One, RHS Chelsea Flower Show, 21/05/2007; BBC One, Football Focus, 06/10/2018; BBC Radio 4, Woman's Hour, 19/06/2019; BBC News, 19/06/1983; Blue Origin, YouTube, 20/07/2021; Other audio courtesy of Loretta Hall -
audio essays by Rebecca Stott
Episode 4: Mud and War
A Meditation on Mud by Rebecca Stott
Episode 4 of 5Award-winning writer Rebecca Stott likes to unearth the overlooked and the forgotten.
While taking a long walk in Sussex to mark the first anniversary of her mother’s death, Rebecca’s focus shifts to the mud all around her. Noticing it for the first time in detail, she sets off on a journey to discover its hidden depths and meanings. She finds herself peeling back layers of literature, culture, science and geology; she discovers the rich literary history of marsh monsters, dips her toes into Darwin’s mud experiments, treads in the footsteps of soldiers in the trenches during World War One and finds out how mud cores extracted from the seabed can shed light on the planet’s past and future.
In Episode 4, Rebecca traces her own tragic family history: two newly discovered letters reveal that two of her family members lost their lives on mud-drenched battlefields, one in Mesopotamia and the other in France.
Written and narrated by Rebecca Stott
Producer, Lisa Lipman
Editor, Kirsten Lass
Sound engineer and mix, Jon Calver
A Loftus Media production for BBC Radio 4Show less
29 days left to listen14 minutes
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audio essays by Rebecca Stott
Episode 4: Mud and War
A Meditation on Mud by Rebecca Stott
Episode 4 of 5Award-winning writer Rebecca Stott likes to unearth the overlooked and the forgotten.
While taking a long walk in Sussex to mark the first anniversary of her mother’s death, Rebecca’s focus shifts to the mud all around her. Noticing it for the first time in detail, she sets off on a journey to discover its hidden depths and meanings. She finds herself peeling back layers of literature, culture, science and geology; she discovers the rich literary history of marsh monsters, dips her toes into Darwin’s mud experiments, treads in the footsteps of soldiers in the trenches during World War One and finds out how mud cores extracted from the seabed can shed light on the planet’s past and future.
In Episode 4, Rebecca traces her own tragic family history: two newly discovered letters reveal that two of her family members lost their lives on mud-drenched battlefields, one in Mesopotamia and the other in France.
Written and narrated by Rebecca Stott
Producer, Lisa Lipman
Editor, Kirsten Lass
Sound engineer and mix, Jon Calver
A Loftus Media production for BBC Radio 4Show less
29 days left to listen14 minutes
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Tom Whipple has Beaver Anal Glands.
Testing Testosterone Testing
BBC Inside ScienceSecretary of Defence Pete Hegseth has announced that the US military will be screening military personnel aged 30 and older for testosterone deficiency. Those found with low testosterone levels will be offered voluntary hormone replacement therapy. The secretary says this is to ensure “a healthy, capable, and decisively dominant fighting force”. Tom Whipple is joined by Professor Joe Herbert from the University of Cambridge to discuss why jacking soldiers up with testosterone may be the best idea. [NS1.1]
Marine Biologist Kathryn Ayres, from the non-profit organisation Beneath the Waves, describes a newly observed behaviour in orcas in which they collaboratively swim so hard into a dead sunfish it explodes. Is it a teachable moment for their young or is it just for fun?
Finally, we have Kit Yates, our resident mathematician, to reassure Tom that although AI might one day actually kill [NS2.1]us all, at least it can disprove an 87-year-old mathematics conjecture[NS3.1].
Presenter: Tom Whipple
Producer: Dan Welsh, Alex Mansfield, Imy Harper, Tabitha Taylor Buck
Editor: Martin Smith
Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth2026-07-23 1630-1700
( ... would actually pay #BBCLicenceFee for this content ... maybe ...)
#Hegseth #Orca
#TomWhipple #InsideScience #BBCInsideScience #BBCRadio4 -
Tom Whipple has Beaver Anal Glands.
Testing Testosterone Testing
BBC Inside ScienceSecretary of Defence Pete Hegseth has announced that the US military will be screening military personnel aged 30 and older for testosterone deficiency. Those found with low testosterone levels will be offered voluntary hormone replacement therapy. The secretary says this is to ensure “a healthy, capable, and decisively dominant fighting force”. Tom Whipple is joined by Professor Joe Herbert from the University of Cambridge to discuss why jacking soldiers up with testosterone may be the best idea. [NS1.1]
Marine Biologist Kathryn Ayres, from the non-profit organisation Beneath the Waves, describes a newly observed behaviour in orcas in which they collaboratively swim so hard into a dead sunfish it explodes. Is it a teachable moment for their young or is it just for fun?
Finally, we have Kit Yates, our resident mathematician, to reassure Tom that although AI might one day actually kill [NS2.1]us all, at least it can disprove an 87-year-old mathematics conjecture[NS3.1].
Presenter: Tom Whipple
Producer: Dan Welsh, Alex Mansfield, Imy Harper, Tabitha Taylor Buck
Editor: Martin Smith
Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth2026-07-23 1630-1700
( ... would actually pay #BBCLicenceFee for this content ... maybe ...)
#Hegseth #Orca
#TomWhipple #InsideScience #BBCInsideScience #BBCRadio4 -
BBCNews:
ANDY BURNHAM LACKS FOREIGN DIPLOMATIC EXPERIENCE!!!... in other sources for other PMs ...
"... She was previously Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs from 15 September 2021 ..." -
BBCNews:
ANDY BURNHAM LACKS FOREIGN DIPLOMATIC EXPERIENCE!!!... in other sources for other PMs ...
"... She was previously Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs from 15 September 2021 ..." -
(fascinating documentary about someone I've never heard of who spouted a load of bollocks which fascinated easily confused idiots (imho))
Alan Watts: The Brahman of Bromley
Archive on 4Jarvis Cocker wasn’t exactly enthusiastic when his bandmate suggested they listen to some old Buddhist lectures to while away the hours on their tour bus. But when the captivating voice of Alan Watts floated through the speakers, it transformed the way he saw the world.
Alan Watts is considered by many to have been a key translator of Eastern spiritual ideas in the 20th century. His books and lectures took the complex and often intangible concepts of Buddhism, Zen and Taoism, and unpacked them for Western ears with startling clarity and wry humour.
Born in Chislehurst in 1915, Watts moved to America just before the Second World War, where he became a popular public intellectual, “philosophical entertainer” and a thought-leader for the Beat Generation and emergent hippy counterculture.
In the years since his death in 1973, Watts’ reputation has only grown - first in esoteric New Age circles, and now with the millions of viewers online who take comfort from his archive of recorded lectures on YouTube and social media.
With access to his extensive recorded archive, Jarvis Cocker examines Watts’ life, work and digital legacy - featuring interviews with Watts enthusiasts and family members, historians and experts, as well as artists and filmmakers inspired by his work.
Access to Alan Watts' audio lectures provided by Mark Watts at the Alan Watts Organization.
Written and produced by Tom Harrad.
Executive producer: Ant Adeane
Sound mix: Alex PortfelixA Small Blue production for BBC Radio 4
Available now57 minutes
Last onYesterday
20:00
BBC Radio 4 -
(fascinating documentary about someone I've never heard of who spouted a load of bollocks which fascinated easily confused idiots (imho))
Alan Watts: The Brahman of Bromley
Archive on 4Jarvis Cocker wasn’t exactly enthusiastic when his bandmate suggested they listen to some old Buddhist lectures to while away the hours on their tour bus. But when the captivating voice of Alan Watts floated through the speakers, it transformed the way he saw the world.
Alan Watts is considered by many to have been a key translator of Eastern spiritual ideas in the 20th century. His books and lectures took the complex and often intangible concepts of Buddhism, Zen and Taoism, and unpacked them for Western ears with startling clarity and wry humour.
Born in Chislehurst in 1915, Watts moved to America just before the Second World War, where he became a popular public intellectual, “philosophical entertainer” and a thought-leader for the Beat Generation and emergent hippy counterculture.
In the years since his death in 1973, Watts’ reputation has only grown - first in esoteric New Age circles, and now with the millions of viewers online who take comfort from his archive of recorded lectures on YouTube and social media.
With access to his extensive recorded archive, Jarvis Cocker examines Watts’ life, work and digital legacy - featuring interviews with Watts enthusiasts and family members, historians and experts, as well as artists and filmmakers inspired by his work.
Access to Alan Watts' audio lectures provided by Mark Watts at the Alan Watts Organization.
Written and produced by Tom Harrad.
Executive producer: Ant Adeane
Sound mix: Alex PortfelixA Small Blue production for BBC Radio 4
Available now57 minutes
Last onYesterday
20:00
BBC Radio 4 -
BBCNews #BBCNews #BBCRadio4
"A small boat crossed the Channel carrying a RECORD number of migrants."
#WorldRecord #GuinnessBookOfRecords #RecordBreakers #OfficialWorldRecord
-
BBCNews #BBCNews #BBCRadio4
"A small boat crossed the Channel carrying a RECORD number of migrants."
#WorldRecord #GuinnessBookOfRecords #RecordBreakers #OfficialWorldRecord
-
Ten Years After Brexit: Omnibus 1
PoliticallyIt is 10 years since the Brexit referendum. Alex Forsyth, a BBC correspondent who’s covered Brexit from both Brussels and Westminster, looks at what impact the decision to leave the EU has had on various aspects of public and political life.
In the first of two programmes, Alex and guests discuss Brexit's effect on the UK economy and trade and immigration, and how the referendum result impacted Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
Producers: Ben Carter and Mhairi MacKenzie
Editor: Richard Vadon
Sound mix: James Beard
Production Coordinator: Tim Fernley57 minutes
Last on
Yesterday
21:00
BBC Radio 42026-07-11 2100-2200
#BBCPolitically
#TenYearsAfterBrexit
#BBCTenYearsAfterBrexitOmnibus
#BBCRadio4 -
Ten Years After Brexit: Omnibus 1
PoliticallyIt is 10 years since the Brexit referendum. Alex Forsyth, a BBC correspondent who’s covered Brexit from both Brussels and Westminster, looks at what impact the decision to leave the EU has had on various aspects of public and political life.
In the first of two programmes, Alex and guests discuss Brexit's effect on the UK economy and trade and immigration, and how the referendum result impacted Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
Producers: Ben Carter and Mhairi MacKenzie
Editor: Richard Vadon
Sound mix: James Beard
Production Coordinator: Tim Fernley57 minutes
Last on
Yesterday
21:00
BBC Radio 42026-07-11 2100-2200
#BBCPolitically
#TenYearsAfterBrexit
#BBCTenYearsAfterBrexitOmnibus
#BBCRadio4 -
Peter Singer
50 Years of Peter Singer's Animal Liberation
Archive on 4In 2026 the philosopher Peter Singer turns 80. He’s a most unusual contemporary philosopher: his ideas reach far beyond the academy, sparking widespread public debate and changing minds. His book Animal Liberation (1975) became the best-selling philosophy book of the 20th century, and is considered the founding text of the animal liberation movement.
Singer argued that the moral status of animals depends on their capacity for suffering, rather than any abstract considerations about whether they have ‘rights’. He coined the phrase ‘speciesism’, to highlight humans’ prejudice that their suffering matters more than the suffering of other species. He argued that if anything humans do to an animal causes it to suffer, it’s morally wrong.
Singer’s views have remained remarkably consistent since the mid 1970s. But a look into the archive suggests the world of animal rights activism has gone through several changes. In 1979 File On Four reported on the rise of an anti-vivisectionist movement named for Singer’s book: the Animal liberation Front. Their main concern back then was to raise awareness of scientific experimentation on animals. By 1983, the World At One was reporting on concerns that the Front was using increasingly violent tactics, but Delia Smith was also exposing viewers to the novelty of vegetarian food. Today the importance of animal suffering is recognised in law, and vegan options appear on many menus.
Throughout this change in the animal liberation movement, Peter Singer has been on the front line of the media battle. But he's also provoked controversy, particularly with his views on euthanasia.
Philosopher Jonathan Egid explores the thought, legacy, and extensive media archive of Peter Singer.
Producer: Luke Mulhall
Show less
Available now57 minutes
Last on
Yesterday
20:00
BBC Radio 4Peter Singer
2026-07-11 2000-2100
#50YearsOfPeterSingersAnimalLiberation
#BBC50YearsOfPeterSingersAnimalLiberation
#BBCArchiveOn4 #BBCRadio4
#PeterSinger -
Peter Singer
50 Years of Peter Singer's Animal Liberation
Archive on 4In 2026 the philosopher Peter Singer turns 80. He’s a most unusual contemporary philosopher: his ideas reach far beyond the academy, sparking widespread public debate and changing minds. His book Animal Liberation (1975) became the best-selling philosophy book of the 20th century, and is considered the founding text of the animal liberation movement.
Singer argued that the moral status of animals depends on their capacity for suffering, rather than any abstract considerations about whether they have ‘rights’. He coined the phrase ‘speciesism’, to highlight humans’ prejudice that their suffering matters more than the suffering of other species. He argued that if anything humans do to an animal causes it to suffer, it’s morally wrong.
Singer’s views have remained remarkably consistent since the mid 1970s. But a look into the archive suggests the world of animal rights activism has gone through several changes. In 1979 File On Four reported on the rise of an anti-vivisectionist movement named for Singer’s book: the Animal liberation Front. Their main concern back then was to raise awareness of scientific experimentation on animals. By 1983, the World At One was reporting on concerns that the Front was using increasingly violent tactics, but Delia Smith was also exposing viewers to the novelty of vegetarian food. Today the importance of animal suffering is recognised in law, and vegan options appear on many menus.
Throughout this change in the animal liberation movement, Peter Singer has been on the front line of the media battle. But he's also provoked controversy, particularly with his views on euthanasia.
Philosopher Jonathan Egid explores the thought, legacy, and extensive media archive of Peter Singer.
Producer: Luke Mulhall
Show less
Available now57 minutes
Last on
Yesterday
20:00
BBC Radio 4Peter Singer
2026-07-11 2000-2100
#50YearsOfPeterSingersAnimalLiberation
#BBC50YearsOfPeterSingersAnimalLiberation
#BBCArchiveOn4 #BBCRadio4
#PeterSinger -
How Boarding Schools Shaped Britain
1. Building men of Empire
Boarding schools have long been synonymous with leadership, privilege and tradition. Woven into the fabric of British society, these institutions have played a significant role in shaping the nation's leaders - from Empire builders to politicians.
In the first of three programmes, Nicky Campbell unravels the complex history of boarding schools, from their humble origins as day schools for the poor to their transformation into elite institutions that have defined power and influence.
But does early separation from family and loved ones come at a cost? And what impact has Britain's most enduring educational tradition had on the rest of British society?
Available now
42 minutesLast on
Yesterday
19:15
BBC Radio 42026-07-11 1915-2000
#BBCRadio4 #BBCHowBoardingSchoolsShapedBritain
#HowBoardingSchoolsShapedBritain
#NickyCampbell -
How Boarding Schools Shaped Britain
1. Building men of Empire
Boarding schools have long been synonymous with leadership, privilege and tradition. Woven into the fabric of British society, these institutions have played a significant role in shaping the nation's leaders - from Empire builders to politicians.
In the first of three programmes, Nicky Campbell unravels the complex history of boarding schools, from their humble origins as day schools for the poor to their transformation into elite institutions that have defined power and influence.
But does early separation from family and loved ones come at a cost? And what impact has Britain's most enduring educational tradition had on the rest of British society?
Available now
42 minutesLast on
Yesterday
19:15
BBC Radio 42026-07-11 1915-2000
#BBCRadio4 #BBCHowBoardingSchoolsShapedBritain
#HowBoardingSchoolsShapedBritain
#NickyCampbell -
Gianni Infantino
ProfileThe FIFA president grew up in Switzerland as part of an Italian migrant family, and fell in love with football and its administration when he was just a teenager.
Having qualified as a football lawyer and making a name for himself at the European football federation UEFA, Infantino ended up perfectly positioned to take over the presidency of the world body FIFA after the organisation was mired in corruption charges. His promise to give the member associations double the money sealed his bid.
He’s now been president for over 10 years and has overseen FIFA’s expansion, with World Cups in Qatar, Russia and now North America; the growth of the women’s game; more competitions; more controversy - and of course more money.
This week, his love affair with Donald Trump has been thrust into the spotlight after US player Folarin Balogun’s red card was suspended following Trump's appeal to Infantino. Will this latest controversy prove his undoing, or is it just another chapter in a new brazen age?
Production:
Presenter: Mark Coles
Producers: Tom Gillett, Eleanor Harrison-Dengate
Production Coordinator: Maria Ogundele, Siobhan Reed
Sound: Neil Churchill
Editor: Justine LangARCHIVE:
FIFAShow less
Download
Choose your file
Higher quality (128kbps)
Lower quality (64kbps)
Available now15 minutes
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Gianni Infantino
ProfileThe FIFA president grew up in Switzerland as part of an Italian migrant family, and fell in love with football and its administration when he was just a teenager.
Having qualified as a football lawyer and making a name for himself at the European football federation UEFA, Infantino ended up perfectly positioned to take over the presidency of the world body FIFA after the organisation was mired in corruption charges. His promise to give the member associations double the money sealed his bid.
He’s now been president for over 10 years and has overseen FIFA’s expansion, with World Cups in Qatar, Russia and now North America; the growth of the women’s game; more competitions; more controversy - and of course more money.
This week, his love affair with Donald Trump has been thrust into the spotlight after US player Folarin Balogun’s red card was suspended following Trump's appeal to Infantino. Will this latest controversy prove his undoing, or is it just another chapter in a new brazen age?
Production:
Presenter: Mark Coles
Producers: Tom Gillett, Eleanor Harrison-Dengate
Production Coordinator: Maria Ogundele, Siobhan Reed
Sound: Neil Churchill
Editor: Justine LangARCHIVE:
FIFAShow less
Download
Choose your file
Higher quality (128kbps)
Lower quality (64kbps)
Available now15 minutes
-
Justin:
What's your appeal to the peoplr of Clacton?Count Bin Face:
I'm not Nigel Farage. -
Justin:
What's your appeal to the peoplr of Clacton?Count Bin Face:
I'm not Nigel Farage. -
(male characters on the run written in that thriller novel style)
A Good Read
feat Daisy Dunn and Andrew Hunter Murray
The classicist and the author talk about books they love with presenter Harriett Gilbert. One of the books is eerily prescient about the state of the world today.
The books are:
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, chosen by classicist Daisy Dunn
Rogue Male by Geoffrey Household, chosen by podcaster and author Andrew Hunter Murray
A Life's Music by Andreï Makine, translated by Geoffrey Strachan, chosen by presenter Harriett Gilbert
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Beth O'Dea
Join us over on instagram @ agoodreadbbcPhoto credit: Timothy Foster
#Fahrenheit451 by #RayBradbury
#Daisy Dunn#RogueMale by #GeoffreyHousehold
#AndrewHunterMurray#ALifesMusic by #AndreiMakine
#HarriettGilbertmention of #TheThirtyNineSteps by #JohnBuchan
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(male characters on the run written in that thriller novel style)
A Good Read
feat Daisy Dunn and Andrew Hunter Murray
The classicist and the author talk about books they love with presenter Harriett Gilbert. One of the books is eerily prescient about the state of the world today.
The books are:
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, chosen by classicist Daisy Dunn
Rogue Male by Geoffrey Household, chosen by podcaster and author Andrew Hunter Murray
A Life's Music by Andreï Makine, translated by Geoffrey Strachan, chosen by presenter Harriett Gilbert
Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Beth O'Dea
Join us over on instagram @ agoodreadbbcPhoto credit: Timothy Foster
#Fahrenheit451 by #RayBradbury
#Daisy Dunn#RogueMale by #GeoffreyHousehold
#AndrewHunterMurray#ALifesMusic by #AndreiMakine
#HarriettGilbertmention of #TheThirtyNineSteps by #JohnBuchan
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(it's comedy, but not as we know it)
Parish Matters
1. "Don't come crying to me when the robots take over!"
Parish Matters
Series 1 Episode 1 of 4A new sitcom-sketch hybrid made in Belfast and starring voices from all over Ireland. Each week we join the eccentric inhabitants of the parish in their weekly council meeting to air their problems and grievances.
The parish is in the grip of a technological revolution and the council meets to try to understand what exactly it all means and where they can noisily wade in. So what will they do about the gargantuan data centre in the good field? Why do the drone deliveries keep blowing up? How did two council members nearly die? What’s the update on the upcoming Manifestival? And can the best (and only) cop in town solve the case of the man going round stealing everyone’s jobs?
Parish Matters is a window into an everlasting argument and an energetic and original comedy show written by Michael McCullagh and Phil Taggart and starring the writers alongside Michael Fry, Ciara Knight, Hannah Mamalis, Mary Flanigan, Michael Stranney and Peter McGann.
Producer: Keith Martin
Executive Producer: Sam MichellA Fabel Radio production for BBC Radio 4
-
(it's comedy, but not as we know it)
Parish Matters
1. "Don't come crying to me when the robots take over!"
Parish Matters
Series 1 Episode 1 of 4A new sitcom-sketch hybrid made in Belfast and starring voices from all over Ireland. Each week we join the eccentric inhabitants of the parish in their weekly council meeting to air their problems and grievances.
The parish is in the grip of a technological revolution and the council meets to try to understand what exactly it all means and where they can noisily wade in. So what will they do about the gargantuan data centre in the good field? Why do the drone deliveries keep blowing up? How did two council members nearly die? What’s the update on the upcoming Manifestival? And can the best (and only) cop in town solve the case of the man going round stealing everyone’s jobs?
Parish Matters is a window into an everlasting argument and an energetic and original comedy show written by Michael McCullagh and Phil Taggart and starring the writers alongside Michael Fry, Ciara Knight, Hannah Mamalis, Mary Flanigan, Michael Stranney and Peter McGann.
Producer: Keith Martin
Executive Producer: Sam MichellA Fabel Radio production for BBC Radio 4
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Mr Jefferson's Library (5 part series)
Michael Goldfarb visits the Library of Congress and Thomas Jefferson's home at Monticello in Virginia to see how Jefferson's reading shaped the beginnings of American history.
#MichaelGoldfarb
#LibraryOfCongress
#ThomasJefferson
#Monticello#BBCRadio4 #BookOfTheWeek #BBCBOTW #BBCBookOfTheWeek
(15 minute episodes) (very fast reading presentation style)
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#AndyBurnham #UlamSpirals #AirCon #Whales #WernerHerzog
Examining the numbers behind Andy Burnham’s ‘Manchester Miracle’
More or Less
Tim Harford investigates some of the numbers in the news. This week:
(00:23) Andy Burnham may not be Prime Minister yet, but he’s setting out his economic agenda, and its based on his old stomping ground, Greater Manchester. We ask whether the official figures that seem to show an economic miracle can be fully believed, and how much credit he deserves.
(10:09) As our towns and cities get hotter, would turning to air conditioning really drive outside temperatures up by 10 to 12 degrees celcius? We learn about the fascinating world of ‘urban heat islands’.
(15:40) We turn to homophones in an attempt to continue a running joke. This week, we follow six items about Wales with an item about whales - are our cetacean friends the carbon sinks of our dreams? Will we ever write a stranger paragraph?
(22:10) Cult director and maths fanboy Werner Herzog has been waxing lyrical about the intruiging mysteries of prime numbers. Tim cracks out a surprisingly decent impression and we learn about one of the most inscrutable problems in mathematics - what’s not to like?
More or Less is the programme that looks at numbers and statistics in news and in life. We’re always looking for questions from listeners - you can contact us on [email protected].
Guests:
Paul Swinney - Chief Economist at The Data City
Liam Sides - Associate Director at Oxford Economics
Dimple Rana - Heat Resilience Leader at Arup
Sue Grimmond - Professor of Meteorology, University of Reading
Dr Olaf Meynecke - Marine Ecologist, Griffith University
James Grime - Mathematician and star of YouTube channel NumberphileSpecial Guest Appearance:
The Voice of Werner HerzogPresenter: Tim Harford
Series Producer: Tom Colls
Reporter: Nathan Gower
Producers: Josh McMinn, Lizzy McNeill
Editor: Richard Vadon
Programme Coordinator: Brenda Brown
Sound Engineer: James Beard