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BBC Radio 4 FM

BBC Radio 4 is a radio channel that started transmitting on the 30th September 1967. It replaced BBC Home Service.

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Something Understood

Religion & Ethics

Ethical and religious discussion that examines some of the larger questions of life

Ethical and religious discussion that examines some of the larger questions of life, taking a spiritual theme and exploring it through music, prose and poetry

BBC Radio 4 LW

Something Understood: Restoration and Transformation

Poetic Rituals

Restoration and Transformation

BBC Radio 4 - Something Understood, Restoration and Transformation

Sarah Goldingay examines the transformative process of restoration and mending.

Sarah Goldingay examines the transformative process of restoration. She discovers that, by mending broken or damaged items, we can often also mend ourselves.

Academic Sarah Goldingay examines the process of restoration. She discovers that restoring a broken or damaged item can have a transformative and spiritual impact on us.

To make do and mend is becoming a thing of the past as we slip into a cycle of consuming and quickly discarding our possessions. But Sarah argues the act of giving a damaged piece of clothing or a broken knick-knack a new lease of life by mending it is hugely rewarding. An intriguing example is the work of highly skilled audio restorer Andrew Rose, who digitally removes layers of noise ruining old and battered classical music records, revealing the beautiful music that was previously smothered in a fog of hiss.

The process of restoration can go beyond just returning a damaged object to its original state. It can inspire imagination and ingenuity. A broken or damaged thing can be a catalyst for creativity. Sarah takes us to Paraguay where we meet an internationally acclaimed youth orchestra who play instruments made out of rubbish. We also hear excerpts from William Basinski’s stunning Disintegration Loops, a classic ambient album made from ruined recordings of old compositions that had begun to decay.

Sarah concludes that mending and restoring are both hugely therapeutic. By mending broken objects we can also often mend ourselves. 

Presenter: Sarah Goldingay
Producer: Max O’Brien
A TBI Media production for BBC Radio 4

Intelligent speech, the most insightful journalism, the wittiest comedy, the most fascinating features and the most compelling drama and readings anywhere in UK radio.

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