Radio Radio

There is a good fun programme with three vicars discussing their work.

Political historian Peter Hennessy looks back on the 1960s in "Winds of Change" for the BBC Book of the Week slot.
15 minute episodes, the first one mixes recollections of growing up in austerity Britain with the sometimes farcical nature of UK cold war planning.

Also, coming up on Sunday on RTE Radio's Documentary on One slot is Brendan Behan in Paris.

If you are a fan of University Challenge or table quizes in general, I think you will enjoy this once off BBC radio comedy about the worst ever University Challenge team...

BBC are also airing 15 minute snippets from Bill Bryson's "The Body: A Guide for Occupants" in their book of the week slot.

And coming soon, the next installment of John Updike's Rabbit series, narrated by actor Toby Jones.

RTE Radio's Documentary on One has finished for the season.

A great podcast of a short story read by the author. It's a futuristic story set in the world of autonomous driving and robots. Actually it's an awful lot better than I make it sound.


The New Yorker story podcasts are often great. I zap a few after a few minutes, if they have got too complicated and are going nowhere, but there are many jewels in there.

Nearly everything read by Kevin Barry is brilliant. This one is great.

Brendan

The Irish Freemen are nothing in comparison to the English guys.

Jolyon Jenkins makes consistently good radio programmes for BBC in the Out of the Ordinary series


The Queen's Enemies
Out of the OrdinarySeries 6

Across Britain, thousands of people have stopped paying council tax, water rates and speeding fines. They think they have the law on their side, thanks to the 1215 Magna Carta treaty between King John and the Barons. They argue that the present Queen has breached her obligations under the treaty and so has in effect deposed herself and even become a traitor. As a result, all laws passed by parliament are invalid, the courts are shams, and government officials are imposters. Instead, they swear an oath of allegiance to a group of members of the House of Lords.
The rebels meet in a Facebook group with 13,000 members. In truth, few people join the group because of an interest in constitutional history - most arrive there because they are in a desperate financial or legal situation, feel that the system is stacked against them, and are looking for a way out. The group offers a system to deal with the authorities that - if used effectively - will supposedly get them off your back.
For nearly a year, Jolyon Jenkins followed the group's members, even signing an oath himself. But does the system work? Over the months, members of the group become increasingly frustrated at the authorities' refusal to take their arguments seriously. The frustration eventually leads to a secret plan to seize a crown building, as they believe Magna Carta entitles them to.

BBC radio documentary about Dublin's Gaeity Theatre.
[broken link removed]

Really liked this one. About a coffee house in New York called Sin e where the Irish used to drop into and where Jeff Buckley played a lot.

Firefly said:

Jeff Buckley played a lot.

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Quite a number of his songs were recorded live there. Such a tragedy that he and his father, Tim, both died so young.

Brendan Burgess said:

I am roaring laughing listening to the Pickwick Papers from BBC 4 Extra.

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Hi Brendan, I take it you were listening to live broadcasts of this show and others rather than podcasts? I've just checked the BBC 4 Extra website and there are no episodes available

ATC110 said:

Hi Brendan, I take it you were listening to live broadcasts of this show and others rather than podcasts?

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That was January 2019. Over a year ago.

I rarely listen live.

If it's not available on Podcast, it can usually be listened back to for about a month afterwards.

If you go into the programme, it will say "23 days left to listen"

Brendan

The Peregrine: David Attenborough reads from this British nature writing classic by J.A. Baker where the author charts his obsessive observations of this extraordinary predator.

In a companion piece, readings from Robert Macfarlane's Landmarks, on vivid places and the words they conjure up: Essex, John Alec Baker and a peregrine falcon.

BBC radio in their Book at Bedtime slot have an abridged reading of Amongst Women by Irish author John McGahern.
There will be 10 episodes, about 15 minutes in length:

Hi Odyssey

I listened to that and enjoyed it to a point.

But if I recall correctly, John McGahern read it himself some years ago and that was a much better version. Not sure why they needed a new actor to read it.

The comedy on Radio 4 hasn't been much good in recent years, but this programme is very funny.


As is My Teenage Diary https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000jg9x

Brendan

Good programme on why people are attacking 5G masts

Pretty grim subject matter in "On the Menu" ... Adam Hart explorers humans as prey for predators such as tigers, lions, leopards, wolves through history and into the present.

30 minute podcast available worldwide via BBC Sounds:

Listening to 'The Debrief on BBC Radio - 5 x 15 minute episodes.

It follows a married couple with kids as they reach mid-life crisis age.
Not much happens in it - more a 'slice of life' as you follow them through 5 events.
But I thought the dialogue felt natural, not forced at all and the two leads had great chemistry and timing.
Almost as if you were listening to a phone call between a real couple.

I liked this line:
"What would I think about you if I didn't know you."

"I Love Lucy" was before my time but this is a very enjoyable BBC radio production set behind the scenes of the famous US sitcom.
I thought the parts about the business side of things - sponsorship, production costs etc were very informative if you are interested in the history of early TV.

Next week, BBC Radio 4 will be airing readings of Love by Roddy Doyle.

There will be 10 x 15 minute episodes.

The reader is Brendan Gleeson.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000nlkt

I found Sarah Kendall very, very funny.


And Debbie McGee was very funny on My Teenage Diary


Brendan

For runup to Christmas my 15 minute book at bedtime slot is Village Christmas by Laurie Lee. Recollections of childhood in the Cotswolds in first part of 20th century. Read by Derek Jacobi.