The Essay: The Beeb and the Bard

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BBC Radio 3 is a radio channel that started transmitting on the 30th September 1967. It replaced Third Programme.

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The Essay Podcast

The Essay

Discussion & Talk

Factual: Arts, Culture & the Media

Essays from leading writers on arts, history, philosophy, science, religion and beyond.

Leading writers on arts, history, philosophy, science, religion and beyond, themed across a week - insight, opinion and intellectual surprise.

The Essay: The Beeb and the Bard: Diversity

Diversity

The Beeb and the Bard

BBC Radio 3 - The Essay, The Beeb and the Bard, Diversity

Samuel West and Andrea Smith discuss diversity in BBC radio's productions of Shakespeare.

Actor Samuel West, no stranger to Shakespearian roles, is joined by Dr Andrea Smith on a journey through almost 100 years of the Bard on the radio. Today it's about diversity.

Once upon a time, a Shakespeare play on BBC Radio would inevitably feature actors with perfect received pronunciation. Now that has all changed. Actor Samuel West, no stranger to Shakespearian roles, is joined by Dr Andrea Smith to hear how horizons have widened and productions enriched by new voices and new settings for the plays.  We'll hear about plays set in India, plays recorded in Welsh, those with characters clearly from Africa or the Caribbean and voices that are far from the cut glass of RP.

Presented by Samuel West and Dr Andrea Smith
Produced by Susan Marling
A Just Radio Production

Live music and the arts: broadcasts more live music than any other radio network. Classical music is its core. Genres include world and new music, jazz, speech and drama.

A centenary celebration of BBC radio productions of Shakespeare plays.

Actor Samuel West is joined by Dr Andrea Smith to chronicle 100 years (nearly) of Shakespeare on the radio.

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