Radio
‘I’ve seen controllers come and go’: Radio 3’s Michael Berkeley interviewed
A few years ago I had a panic-stricken phone call from a female friend. ‘Help!’ she wailed. ‘Remind me what…
Impeccable history of the free market – and from the BBC too
The launch of Radio 4’s Invisible Hands series has been both blessed and cursed by timing. It tells the story…
Perfection: The Rest is Classified reviewed
Interviewing for MI6 sounds to have been even scarier a century ago than it must be today. Candidates would enter…
I just don’t get P.G. Wodehouse
I have a confession to make, which may upset many readers. Having only a passing acquaintance with his books, I’ve…
Soothing and glorious: Fashion Neurosis reviewed
Sometimes the mind needs to take a break. And I can’t think of a better stopping-off place than the soothing,…
Booze now has its own Rest is History-style podcast
Intoxicating History is the perfect title for drinks expert Henry Jeffreys and food critic Tom Parker Bowles’s new podcast. Its…
It’s moving to think how happy Van Gogh was in Brixton
When a phrase really takes off in the political sphere, you will recognise it by the frequency with which it…
A feel-good classic: The Armie HammerTime Podcast reviewed
Relive with me and enjoy again the downfall of Armand Douglas Hammer. If you remember, Hammer’s Hollywood career had been…
Why I’m obsessed with Farming Today
Farming Today airs at an undignified hour each morning on Radio 4. On the few occasions I’ve caught it live…
I have no time for Radio Four’s dross
I switched the radio on in my car today and it went straight to the BBC World at One on…
Radio 4’s Lord Lucan series is rescued by a brilliant narrator
It was 50 years ago this week, on 7 November 1974, that Lord Lucan fled what was destined to become…
This UFO testimony had me hooked
In October 1964, a young man was driving to a dance in Hamburg, Pennsylvania, when his radio began to pick…
The fascinating mechanics of striking a deal
If you wish to know how to become a master negotiator, a formidable body of books will now offer to…
How Berlin nearly broke Bowie
This week’s Archive on 4 is a treat for David Bowie fans. Francis Whately, the producer behind several of the…
Glamour or guilt? The perils of marketing the British country house
The most angst-ridden sub-category of the very rich – admittedly a lucky bunch to start with – must surely contain…
Do men and women need different podcasts?
Do men and women need different podcasts? The notion goes against the unisex, every-sex, what-is-sex-anyway culture we have come to…
Under the Taliban, Afghan light entertainment accrued unusual weight
For a television talent show, Afghan Star had unusually high stakes. When it first hit Afghanistan’s screens in 2005, four…
The jaw-dropping story of the British Museum thefts
It’s August 2023 when news breaks that artefacts have gone missing, presumed stolen, from the British Museum. I’m about an…
How to live off the land for a year
Could you live off the land for a year without buying a single thing to eat? This was the challenge…
How did the internet become so horrific?
Plus: the joy of hearing lawyers argue
I’m not convinced Thomas Heatherwick is the best person to be discussing boring buildings
Architects are often snobby about – and no doubt jealous of – the designer Thomas Heatherwick, who isn’t an actual…
A Radio 3 doc that contains some of the best insults I’ve ever heard
A recent Sunday Feature on Radio 3 contained some of the best insults I have ever heard. Contributors to the…
