On the last Sunday in Lent, Mark Tully asks if confession is really good for us. He examines the secular and political benefits of owning up to crimes and misdemeanours in public life, as well as talking to religious historian and writer Eamon Duffy about the history of confession as a religious rite.

There are stories here of politicians caught red-handed, a priest confessing posthumously to his atheism - and to his hatred for the confessional box - and of the sheer psychological relief of forgiving.

The programme includes readings from James Joyce, Elizabeth Jennings and A. C. Clarke, with music by Caroline Barnett and Hans Zimmer among others.

The readers are Adjoa Andoh and Arsher Ali

Producer: Frank Stirling
A Unique production for BBC Radio 4. Show less