BBC Radio 4 LW

Shipping Forecast

The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping

Shipping Forecast: 16/05/2009

16/05/2009

BBC Radio 4 - Shipping Forecast, 16/05/2009Close menu

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.

News Briefing

News Briefing: 16/05/2009

BBC Radio 4 - News Briefing, 16/05/2009Close menu

Prayer for the Day

Prayer for the Day: 16/05/2009

BBC Radio 4 - Prayer for the Day, 16/05/2009

Daily prayer and reflection with the Most Rev Peter Smith, Archbishop of Cardiff.

A Wonderful Way to Make a Living

US satirist Joe Queenan presents a series on people with highly unusual occupations

A Wonderful Way to Make a Living: Series 2

A Wonderful Way to Make a Living: Series 2: Episode 2

Episode 2

Series 2

BBC Radio 4 - A Wonderful Way to Make a Living, Series 2, Episode 2

Joe meets a decluttering professional who claims to have sold feng shui books to Japanese.

In Brighton, Joe Queenan meets a decluttering expert who claims to have sold feng shui books to Japanese.

US satirist Joe Queenan presents a series on people with highly unusual occupations.

In Brighton, he meets a decluttering professional who claims to have sold feng shui books to Japanese. Joe accompanies him to the home of Attila the Stockbroker to see decluttering in action.

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

News and Papers

The news headlines, including a look at the newspapers

News and Papers: 16/05/2009

BBC Radio 4 - News and Papers, 16/05/2009

News headlines, plus a look at the papers.

The latest news headlines. Including a look at the papers.

Weather

Weather: 16/05/2009

BBC Radio 4 - Weather, 16/05/2009Close menu

Open Country

Countryside magazine featuring the people and wildlife that shape the landscape of Britain

Countryside magazine featuring the people and wildlife that shape the landscape of the British Isles

Open Country: North Devon Coastline

North Devon Coastline

BBC Radio 4 - Open Country, North Devon Coastline

Helen Mark explores the north Devon coastline.

Helen Mark takes to the sea to find out how the perilous conditions of the north Devon coastline have affected life there from prehistory to the present day.

Helen Mark takes to the sea to find out how the perilous conditions of the north Devon coastline have affected life there from prehistory to the present day. She tours Baggy Point with National Trust archaeologist Shirley Blaylock in search of the first coastal dwellers, attempts the perilous crossing to Lundy Island and crosses the Cornish border to hear the story of Parson Hawker, the eccentric vicar of Morwenstow and purported scourge of the wreckers.

This is the last in the present series.  'Open Country' returns on the 4th of July with a look at the alternative energy revolution in Orkney.

Farming Today

The latest news about food, farming and the countryside

Farming Today: Farming Today This Week

Farming Today This Week

BBC Radio 4 - Farming Today, Farming Today This Week

Charlotte Smith goes to a farm with woolless sheep to examine future wool production.

Charlotte Smith goes to a farm with woolless sheep to examine the future of wool production in Britain, now that it often costs more to shear the sheep than the fleece is worth.

Charlotte Smith goes to a farm with woolless sheep to examine the future of wool production in Britain, now that it often costs more to shear the sheep than the fleece is worth. She hears from people making carpets, thermal insulation and even compost from wool. Is the British Wool Marketing Board doing enough to promote innovation and improved prices for farmers?

Today

Radio 4's flagship news and current affairs programme; including Thought for the Day

Radio 4's flagship news and current affairs programme; including religious reflections from Thought for the Day at 0748

Today: 16/05/2009

BBC Radio 4 - Today, 16/05/2009

Including Sports Desk, Weather, Thought for the Day, Yesterday in Parliament.

With James Naughtie and John Humphrys. Including Sports Desk; Weather; Thought for the Day; Yesterday in Parliament.

Saturday Live

Radio 4's Saturday morning show brings you extraordinary stories and remarkable people.

Saturday Live: 16/05/2009

BBC Radio 4 - Saturday Live, 16/05/2009

Richard Coles is joined by Bangladeshi writer Tahmima Anam. With poetry from Matt Harvey.

Real life stories in which listeners talk about the issues that matter to them. Richard Coles is joined by Bangladeshi writer Tahmima Anam. With poetry from Matt Harvey.

Richard Coles is joined by Bangladeshi writer and novelist Tahmima Anam, whose first novel, A Golden Age, won the 2008 Commonwealth Writers' Prize.

With poetry from Matt Harvey.

Excess Baggage

Travel magazine, featuring travellers' tales, experiences and anecdotes

Excess Baggage: 16/05/2009

BBC Radio 4 - Excess Baggage, 16/05/2009

John McCarthy focuses on Corfu and green tourism in Uganda and Thailand.

John McCarthy talks to winners of the Whitley Award for Wildlife Conservation and hears why Corfu is so popular with the British.

Human beings and wild animals do not live easily side by side, and the larger the animal the bigger the conflict. John McCarthy talks to two winners of the Whitley Awards for International Nature Conservation who have been tackling the problems. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka is a wildlife vet working with mountain gorillas in Uganda and has started a project to prevent the spread of diseases between the animals and humans, especially now that tourists are encountering gorillas at much closer quarters. Jittin Ritthirat works in Thailand trying to reconcile the needs of the wild elephants with those of the human residents of and visitors to the monsoon forest. 

Tourists have also had a big impact on Corfu, and none more so than the British. John talks to a long-time regular visitor to the island about its appeal to us, our influence on it, and ginger beer.

Getting the Gongs

BBC Radio 4 Extra - Getting the Gongs

Steve Punt investigates the growing trend for industry awards ceremonies.

4 Extra Debut. From the law to car parking, comedian Steve Punt investigates the growth of the industry awards ceremony. From May 2009.

Steve Punt investigates the growing trend for industry awards ceremonies which may not be as well known as the Oscars, but which aspire to be just as glamorous and life-changing. 

Practically every week, some branch of industry holds its own awards ceremonies in a top class venue in the UK, complete with silver service dinner, champagne and celebrity guest speaker. The range of sectors represented is vast. There are awards for call centres, for people involved in designing packaging components and for people who get children to eat more seafood. And for the winner, there is the chance to get up on a podium, grasp a trophy and feel that, for one glorious moment, you are recognised by your peers as being the best. 

Steve goes behind the scenes to find out who takes part in awards ceremonies and why. He talks to the winners, losers and organisers, scrutinises the most curious categories and hears from awards presenters including Gyles Brandreth and Stephen K Amos. He looks at the people who contribute to awards ceremonies by making the awards themselves, or helping to write the category submissions. He also explores the human stories behind the growing lists of categories and gives a uniquely humorous insight into little-known industries with a growing trend for gongs.

BBC Radio 4 Extra

Your digital radio entertainment station showcasing the best in comedy and drama

Your digital radio entertainment station showcasing the best in comedy and drama. With recent favourites from BBC Radio 4.

Test Match Special

Test Match Special: 16/05/2009

BBC Radio 4 - Test Match Special, 16/05/2009

Coverage of the third day of the Second Test between England and West Indies from Durham.

Coverage of the third day of the Second Test between England and West Indies from Chester-le-Street, Durham. Including Shipping Forecast.

Coverage of the third day of the Second Test between England and West Indies from Chester-le-Street, Durham. Commentary by Jonathan Agnew, Simon Mann and Tony Cozier and summaries from Sir Viv Richards, Vic Marks and Alec Stewart.

Including Shipping Forecast.

Six O'Clock News

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4

Six O'Clock News: 16/05/2009

BBC Radio 4 - Six O'Clock News, 16/05/2009

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4, followed by Weather.

Loose Ends

An eclectic mix of conversation, music and comedy

Loose Ends: 16/05/2009

BBC Radio 4 - Loose Ends, 16/05/2009

Peter Curran is joined by Jarvis Cocker, Adriana Trigiani and Mica Paris.

Peter Curran is joined by Jarvis Cocker, Adriana Trigiani and Mica Paris, with comedy from Stephen K Amos and music from The Broken Family Band.

An eclectic mix of conversation, music and comedy, with Peter Curran and his guests. 

Peter is joined by Jarvis Cocker, Adriana Trigiani and Mica Paris.

Rachael Stirling finds out about feasts from around the world with food writer Stefan Gates.

With comedy from Stephen K Amos and music from Jarvis Cocker and The Broken Family Band.

From Fact to Fiction

Series in which writers create a fictional response to recent headlines.

From Fact to Fiction: Series 6

From Fact to Fiction: Series 6: Episode 3

Episode 3

Series 6

BBC Radio 4 - From Fact to Fiction, Series 6, Episode 3Search BBC

John Fletcher creates a fictional response to the week's news.

Series in which writers create a fictional response to the week's news

Saturday Review

Sharp, critical discussion of the week's cultural events, with Tom Sutcliffe and guests

Presenter Tom Sutcliffe and guests offer sharp, critical discussion of the week's cultural events

Saturday Review: The BBC Poetry Season, The Brighton Festival and Plan for Chaos by John Wyndham

The BBC Poetry Season, The Brighton Festival and Plan for Chaos by John Wyndham

BBC Radio 4 - Saturday Review, The BBC Poetry Season, The Brighton Festival and Plan for Chaos by John Wyndham

Tom Sutcliffe is joined by Adam Mars Jones, Maria Delgado and Philip Hoare.

Tom Sutcliffe is joined by novelist Adam Mars Jones, professor of theatre and screen arts Maria Delgado and writer Philip Hoare to discuss the cultural highlights of the week.

Tom Sutcliffe is joined by novelist Adam Mars Jones, professor of theatre and screen arts Maria Delgado and writer Philip Hoare to discuss the cultural highlights of the week - featuring a spot of bother with cloned Nazis, anarchy at the end of the pier and a theatre director unravelling onscreen.

Charlie Kaufman has forged a reputation as an idiosyncratic writer with films such as Being John Malkovich and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, but with Synecdoche, New York, he gets to sit in the director's chair for the first time. The cast, headed by Philip Seymour Hoffman, is impressive and the film is nothing if not wildly ambitious, but whether it's the panel's cup of tea is another matter.

John Wyndham may have been dead for 40 years, but that doesn't stop him from having a new book out. Plan For Chaos was written around the same time as The Midwich Cuckoos, but failed to find a publisher at the time. Your average run-of-the-mill, cloned Nazis and flying saucers sci-fi romp, it is now available for you to decide whether those publishers were right or wrong.

The BBC Poetry Season is attempting to get poetry to the parts that verse normally doesn't reach - television for a start. We concentrate on two programmes from the season: Why Poetry Matters, presented by Griff Rhys Jones, and Changing of the Bard, in which Ian Hislop investigates the history of the post of Poet Laureate.

Turner Prize-winning artist Anish Kapoor has been appointed Guest Artistic Director for the 2009 Brighton Festival. Tom and the team headed down to Brighton and wandered around the town to see some of the striking Kapoor exhibits on view, including the Dismemberment of Jeanne d'Arc in the Old Municipal Market and C-Curve, an extraordinary reflective sculpture on the Downs above the city.

Also down in Brighton, Hydrocracker present a unique promenade performance of Joe Orton's The Erpingham Camp on Brighton Pier. Empire, anarchy, knobbly knees and fish and chips all feature in this ambulatory adaptation of Orton's parable of a holiday camp in meltdown.

Archive on 4

Brilliant stories told using archive from the BBC and beyond.

Archive on 4: A Laureate's Legacy - The Poetry Archive

A Laureate's Legacy - The Poetry Archive

BBC Radio 4 - Archive on 4, A Laureate's Legacy - The Poetry Archive

Andrew Motion tells the story of the proudest legacy of his time as Poet Laureate.

Andrew Motion explores and tells the story of the proudest legacy of his time as Poet Laureate, The Poetry Archive.

Andrew Motion explores and tells the story of the proudest legacy of his time as Poet Laureate, The Poetry Archive - hundreds of poems, read by their authors and all available online, free to everyone. 

Motion's stint as Poet Laureate ended with predictable discussions about his successor and what he did or didn't do. But the lasting legacy of his laureateship and the great achievement of his tenure is his creation, with sound producer Richard Carrington, of the remarkable online Poetry Archive, begun in 1999 and growing. It includes contemporary poets reading their work, including Seamus Heaney, UA Fanthorpe and Jackie Kay and historic recordings by poets including Hilaire Belloc, Siegfried Sassoon, WB Yeats and even Tennyson and Browning. As well as the poems there are sections for children and teachers, interviews with poets, poets in residence and useful information about genres, forms and metres. If you want to know what an anapaest is, or a pantoum, the Poetry Archive can help. 

Motion and Carrington talk about why they created the archive, and state that there is more to it than simply preserving poets reading their work. Motion develops his theme that poetry is primarily an aural art, and what this reveals. The poet's voice is fundamental: the windswept moor is in the voice of Ted Hughes; Charles Causley's Cornish accent and dialect are important. The sound of a poem is an aspect of its meaning. At the recording session when Carol Ann Duffy reads her book Rapture for the archive, Richard Carrington speaks about his role: not to coax a performance so much as to help the poets to be themselves. 

Andrew Motion and Richard Carrington lead us around the archive, playing gems that we might otherwise have missed. They talk, too, about what is missing, and appeal to people who might have recordings. For example, they do not know how Thomas Hardy, AE Housman and DH Lawrence sounded because as far as we know they never made recordings. But they might have, and one day they might turn up.

Classic Serial

Adaptations of works which have achieved classic status

Classic Serial: The Siege of Krishnapur

Classic Serial: The Siege of Krishnapur: Episode 1

Episode 1

The Siege of Krishnapur

BBC Radio 4 - Classic Serial, The Siege of Krishnapur, Episode 1

By JG Farrell. It is 1857 and British rule in India is under threat from mutineers.

Dramatisation of the novel by JG Farrell. It is 1857 and British rule in India is under threat. The colonists are confident they will prevail, but the mutineers show their metal.

Dramatisation by Shelagh Stephenson of the novel by JG Farrell. 

It is 1857 and British rule in India is under threat. At first the colonists are confident that their 'superior culture' will prevail, but as the Indian mutineers show their metal, the Collector of Krishnapur is forced to reconsider. 

Hopkins, The Collector ...... Alex Jennings
Fluery ...... Ben Askew
Prince Hari ...... Shiv Grewal
Harry Dunstaple ...... Matt Addis
Louise Dunstaple ...... Jasmine Hyde
Dr Dunstaple ...... Malcolm Tierney
Mrs Dunstaple ...... Caroline Guthrie 
Willoughby ...... Sam Dale 
Miriam ...... Janice Acquah 
Dr MacNab ...... Stephen Hogan
The Padre	 ...... Philip Fox 
Cutter ...... Jonathan Tafler  
Lieutenant Peterson ...... Paul Rider
Lucy Hughes ...... Lizzy Watts

Directed by Eoin O'Callaghan.

By JG Farrell. It is 1857 and British rule in India is under threat

Dramatisation by Shelagh Stephenson of the novel by JG Farrell. It is 1857 and British rule in India is under threat

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4, followed by weather.

Unreliable Evidence

Series exploring and analysing the legal issues of the day

Unreliable Evidence: The Law and Death

13/05/2009

The Law and Death

BBC Radio 4 - Unreliable Evidence, The Law and Death

Clive Anderson and guests explore the ongoing legal arguments about assisted suicide.

Clive and his guests explore the ongoing legal arguments about assisted suicide, mercy killing and even the precise definition of death.

Clive Anderson presents the series analysing the legal issues of the day. 

Medical science has given us increasing control over when, where and how we die, but the law is struggling to keep pace. Clive and his guests explore the ongoing legal arguments about assisted suicide, mercy killing and even the precise definition of death.

Counterpoint

Paul Gambaccini presents radio's widest-ranging music quiz.

Counterpoint: Series 23: 2009 Semi-final 1

2009 Semi-final 1

Series 23

BBC Radio 4 - Counterpoint, Series 23, 2009 Semi-final 1

The first semi final of the wide-ranging music quiz, with Paul Gambaccini.

Paul Gambaccini hosts the wide-ranging music quiz, as the first three contestants battle for a place in the final. From 2009.

Paul Gambaccini chairs the general knowledge music quiz. 

The questions cover every aspect of music - from the classical repertoire to world music, show tunes, film scores, jazz, rock and pop.

Three contestants battle it out in the first semi-final of the contest: 

Alan Douglas from Worcestershire
Brian Haines from London
David Saxon from Northwood in Middlesex.

Producer: Paul Bajoria

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2009.

Counterpoint: Series 23

The Women of Rainer Maria Rilke

10/05/2009

BBC Radio 4 - The Women of Rainer Maria Rilke

The influence of significant women on the life and work of poet Rainer Maria Rilke.

Hayley Radford explores the influence of significant women on the life and work of German language poet Rainer Maria Rilke, who was born in 1875.

Hayley Radford explores the influence of significant women on the life and work of poet Rainer Maria Rilke. Regarded by many as one of the most significant German-speaking literary figures of the early Modern period, Rilke wrote lyrical verse and prose including Sonnets to Orpheus and Letter to A Young Poet. 

Hayley examines how he was dominated by the love of his mother and later pushed himself to the very limits of romantic love. The poet threw himself into endless heartbreak, many relationships, even abandoning a wife and child. He became the passive lover of a series of forthright, older women, including a princess and some heiresses, all in pursuit of the sweet agonies with which he could infuse his writing. 

Featuring contributions from Rilke experts Dirk Heisserer, Professor Karen Leeder, Dr Ben Hutchinson and Professor Von Bulow.

Midnight News

The latest news and weather forecast from BBC Radio 4.

Midnight News: 16/05/2009

BBC Radio 4 - Midnight News, 16/05/2009

The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. Followed by Weather.

Afternoon Reading

Short stories or abridged books, often from new writers

Afternoon Reading: Murder She Thought - Series 1

Afternoon Reading: Murder She Thought - Series 1: Episode 1: Dear George

Episode 1: Dear George

Murder She Thought - Series 1

Dear George

BBC Radio 4 - Afternoon Reading, Murder She Thought - Series 1, Dear GeorgeSearch BBC

It seems Joyce plans to do away with her amiable husband.

In Cathy Ace's suspenseful tale, it seems Joyce plans to do away with her amiable husband, but is it a good idea to confide in her secret diary?

Compelling crime stories by women writers. 

In Cathy Ace's suspenseful tale, it seems Joyce plans to do away with her amiable husband, but is it a good idea to confide in her secret diary? 

Read by Alex Kingston and Simon Templeman.

Series of compelling crime stories by women writers

Selection of BBC World Service Programmes

A selection of BBC World Service news and current affairs, arts and science programmes

BBC Radio 4 presents a selection of news and current affairs, arts and science programmes from the BBC World Service

Accessibility links

Programme Index

Shipping Forecast

16/05/2009

Genres

Brand

Weather

16/05/2009

Genres

Brand

Weather

16/05/2009

Genres

Brand

Test Match Special

16/05/2009

Genres

Brand

Shipping Forecast

16/05/2009

Genres

Brand

BBC Radio 4 LW

About BBC Radio 4

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