About 	 Lucy Rycroft: Lucy is the founder of The Hope-Filled Family, a ministry encouraging Christian parents, carers and all those investing in the younger generation. She is the author of several books for adults and children, including Busy Family Devotional and the Mighty Girl, Mighty God series. She is mum to four children ages 11 to 16, who arrived by birth and adoption, and is married to Al, a church leader in York, England.

	 Lucy Rycroft

5ive Guys FC

82ASK

A A Gill

About A D Swanston: Andrew Swanston read law at Cambridge, but was inspired to write by his lifelong interest in early modern history. His Thomas Hill novels – The King’s Spy, The King’s Exile and The King’s Return – are set against the backdrops of the English Civil War, Cromwell’s Commonwealth and the early Restoration respectively. He is also the author of Waterloo: The Bravest Man and Beautiful Star and Other Stories. His first historical thriller set during the reign of Elizabeth I – Incendium (published in paperback as The Incendium Plot) – introduced readers to the academic, lawyer and intelligencer Dr Christopher Radcliff, whose adventures continue in Chaos. Andrew Swanston lives in Surrey.

A D Swanston

A E Langsford

A G Hopkins

About A J Baime: A. J. BAIME is the New York Times best-selling author of The Arsenal of Democracy: FDR, Detroit, and an Epic Quest to Arm an America at War and Go Like Hell: Ford, Ferrari, and Their Battle for Speed and Glory at Le Mans. Both books are in development for major motion pictures. Baime is a longtime regular contributor to the Wall Street Journal, and his articles have also appeared in the New York Times, Popular Science, and Men’s Journal. He lives in Granite Bay, California. Visit him at facebook.com/ajbaime and trumanbook.com.

A J Baime

A J Jacobs

A J P Taylor

About A J Pollard: Anthony James Pollard is a British medieval historian, specialising in the fifteenth century and in particular the Wars of the Roses. A leading authority in the field, he is profesor emeritus of Teesside University. His books include North-Eastern England during the Wars of the Roses, Richard III and the Princes in theTower, Imagining Robin Hood: the Late Medieval Stories in Historical Context and Warwick the kingmaker: Politics, Power and Fame.

A J Pollard

A J Rochester

About A K Benjamin: A K Benjamin is a clinical neuropsychologist and the author of Let Me Not Be Mad: A Story of Unravelling Minds.

A K Benjamin

About A L Berridge: A. L. Berridge read English at Oxford, and taught for ten years before moving into television, where her production credits range from period drama and thrillers to long-running soaps. She has written two previous novels, Top Ten besteller Honour and the Sword and In the Name of the King. Into the Valley of Death is her third novel.

A L Berridge

About A L Gaylin: Alison Gaylin's first job was as a reporter for a celebrity tabloid, which sparked a lifelong interest in writing about people committing despicable acts. More than a decade later, she wrote and published her Edgar-nominated first novel, HIDE YOUR EYES. 
 
She's since published nine more books, including the USA Today and international bestselling Brenna Spector suspense series, which has been nominated for the Edgar, Anthony and Thriller awards and won the Shamus award. 
 
She lives in upstate New York with her husband, daughter, cat and dog.

A L Gaylin

A Maxwell-Hyslop

A McArthur

A P Wavell

About A S Webb: A.S. Webb is the Sunday Times bestselling author of Daughter of Chaos, the first instalment of The Dark Pantheon Trilogy. She is inspired by stories rooted in history and mythology, that push the boundaries of imagination and urge us to reflect on what it means to be human.

A S Webb

About A. A. Dhand / A. A. Dhand: A. A. Dhand is the author of six previous novels, and has been shortlisted for the CWA Steel Dagger Award. His DI Harry Virdee novels are currently being adapted for TV by the BBC. He was raised in Bradford and spent his youth observing the city from behind the counter of a small convenience store. After qualifying as a pharmacist, he worked in London and travelled extensively before returning to Bradford to start his own business and begin writing. The history, diversity and darkness of the city have inspired all his novels. For more information about A. A. Dhand and his books, follow him on X @aadhand, and on Instagram @aa_dhand.

A. A. Dhand

A. A. Gill

A. A. Milne

A. Anatoli

About A. B. Poranek / A. B. Poranek: A. B. Poranek grew up sharing her time between Ontario, Canada and rural Poland, and eventually completed a veterinary degree at the Warsaw University of Life Sciences. A lover of mythology and history, she enjoys exploring both in her writing. Her debut novel, Where the Dark Stands Still, an instant New York Times bestseller, is an ode to Poland's folktales, while A Treachery of Swans transports readers to a world inspired by 17th century France.

A. B. Poranek

A. Bradley

About A. C. Grayling / A. C. Grayling: Professor A. C. Grayling is Principal of the New College of the Humanities at Northeastern University, London, and a Supernumerary Fellow of St Anne's College, Oxford. He has written and edited over thirty books on philosophy, history, science and current affairs. For several years he wrote columns for the Guardian newspaper and The Times and was the chairman of the 2014 Man Booker Prize.

A. C. Grayling

About A. D. Miller / A. D. Miller: A.D. Miller is the author of Snowdrops, The Earl of Petticoat Lane and The Faithful Couple. Snowdrops was a bestseller and was shortlisted for many prizes including the Man Booker and the CWA Gold Dagger. It was translated into 25 languages. As Moscow Correspondent of The Economist A.D. Miller has travelled across the former Soviet Union and covered the Orange Revolution in Ukraine; he is now the magazine’s Culture Editor based in London. 
 
admillerbooks.com

A. D. Miller

A. E. Ellis

A. E. W. Mason

A. Humphreys

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BBC Radio Comedy

24 more archive editions of the much-loved BBC Radio 4 panel game chaired by Nicholas Parsons 
 
As if to prove the point that good humour never dates, this collection of archive Just a Minute includes episodes broadcast across four decades, from 1973 to 2009. As usual, players must attempt to speak for one minute on a given subject without hesitation, repetition or deviation and while at the mercy of both the stopwatch and their fellow contestants’ buzzers. Mirth, merriment and silliness are bound to follow, in a fashion that has made ‘JAM’ a beloved institution not only in this country but also around the world. Nicholas Parsons welcomes listeners to each episode and gives his firm but fair adjudication to the many tricky challenges that ensue. 
 
Regular players Kenneth Williams, Peter Jones, Derek Nimmo and Paul Merton pit their wits against each other and guests Sheila Hancock, Jean Marsh, Magnus Pyke, Joan Bakewell, Tim Brooke-Taylor, Barry Took, Jan Ravens, Brian Johnston, Gyles Brandreth, Martin Jarvis, Simon Bates, Craig Ferguson, Stephen Fry, Pete McCarthy, Steve Frost, Jenny Eclair, Kit Hesketh-Harvey, Maria McErlane, Julian Clary, Linda Smith, Tony Hawks, Graham Norton, Tim Rice, Sue Perkins, Wendy Richard, Bill Bailey, Chris Neill, Charles Collingwood, Janey Godley, Shappi Khorsandi and Liza Tarbuck. 
 
Please note: Contains mild innuendo. The humour in these programmes sometimes reflects the era in which they were first broadcast. Due to the archive nature of some of the episodes, the sound quality may vary. 
 
Cast and credits 
 
Devised by Ian Messiter 
Chaired by Nicholas Parsons 
Episode selection by Michael Stevens 
Music: The Minute Waltz (Waltz in D Flat Major, Op. 64) by Chopin 
With thanks to Keith Wickham and the Radio Circle for archive assistance. 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on the following dates: 
 
Episode Guide 
1 01 October 1973 
Featuring Sheila Hancock, Peter Jones, Derek Nimmo, Kenneth Williams 
 
2 26 November 1973 
Featuring Peter Jones, Jean Marsh, Derek Nimmo, Kenneth Williams 
 
3 19 January 1977 
Featuring Peter Jones, Derek Nimmo, Magnus Pyke, Kenneth Williams 
 
4 27 March 1979 
Featuring Joan Bakewell, Peter Jones, Derek Nimmo, Kenneth Williams 
 
5 9 May 1981 
Featuring Tim Brooke-Taylor, Peter Jones, Barry Took, Kenneth Williams 
 
6 25 April 1983 
Featuring Peter Jones, Derek Nimmo, Jan Ravens, Kenneth Williams 
 
7 16 May 1983 
Featuring Brian Johnston, Peter Jones, Derek Nimmo, Kenneth Williams 
 
8 30 June 1984 
Featuring Gyles Brandreth, Martin Jarvis, Derek Nimmo, Kenneth Williams 
 
9 1 February 1986 
Featuring Simon Bates, Peter Jones, Derek Nimmo, Kenneth Williams 
 
10 8 March 1993 
Featuring Craig Ferguson, Peter Jones, Paul Merton, Derek Nimmo 
 
11 8 January 1994 
Featuring Stephen Fry, Peter Jones, Pete McCarthy, Paul Merton 
 
12 4 February 1995 
Featuring Steve Frost, Peter Jones, Paul Merton, Derek Nimmo 
 
13 25 February 1995 
Featuring Jenny Eclair, Kit Hesketh-Harvey, Peter Jones, Paul Merton 
 
14 22 June 1998 
Featuring Steve Frost, Peter Jones, Maria McErlane, Paul Merton 
 
15 15 January 2001 
Featuring Julian Clary, Kit Hesketh-Harvey, Paul Merton, Linda Smith 
 
16 4 February 2002 
Featuring Jenny Eclair, Tony Hawks, Graham Norton, Tim Rice 
 
17 29 July 2002 
Featuring Tony Hawks, Kit Hesketh-Harvey, Sue Perkins, Wendy Richard 
 
18 17 February 2003 
Featuring Bill Bailey, Tony Hawks, Chris Neill, Linda Smith 
 
19 21 March 2005 
Featuring Tony Hawks, Chris Neill, Tim Rice, Linda Smith 
 
20 24 July 2006 
Featuring Charles Collingwood, Tony Hawks, Paul Merton, Sue Perkins 
 
21 3 March 2008 
Featuring Gyles Brandreth, Janey Godley, Tony Hawks, Kit Hesketh-Harvey 
 
22 12 January 2009 
Featuring Charles Collingwood, Shappi Khorsandi, Paul Merton, Graham Norton 
 
23 9 February 2009 
Featuring Gyles Brandreth, Paul Merton, Sue Perkins, Liza Tarbuck 
 
24 10 August 2009 
Featuring Charles Collingwood, Jenny Eclair, Stephen Fry, Paul Merton 
 
 
© 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Just a Classic Minute

A Timeless Anthology

BBC Comedy

All 30 soundtrack episodes of the BBC TV version of Just a Minute 
 
Just a Minute is a radio perennial. Loved by listeners for almost 60 years, it’s the BBC’s longest-running and most popular panel game, having clocked up over 1000 episodes on Radio 4. And now, you can enjoy 30 more, with these sparkling soundtrack episodes from the BBC TV run of the show. 
 
First broadcast on BBC One in 1999 and BBC Two in 2012, they are chaired by the one and only Nicholas Parsons, who presides over a host of celebrity wordsmiths including Paul Merton, Pam Ayres, Clare Balding, Jo Brand, Gyles Brandreth, Barry Cryer, John Sergeant, Brian Sewell, Hugh Bonneville, Marcus Brigstocke, Julian Clary, Stephen Fry, Phill Jupitus, Miles Jupp, Shappi Khorsandi, Graham Norton, Sue Perkins and Liza Tarbuck. 
 
Though the format may be different, the aim of the game is still the same: to speak on a given theme for 60 seconds, without hesitation, repetition or deviation. Among the topics testing the panellists’ verbal dexterity are Ever Decreasing Circles, Mumbo Jumbo, Garden Gnomes, Yorkshire Pudding, Charlie Chaplin, A New Rule for Just a Minute, My 45th Birthday and Writer’s Block. 
 
So ready your ears for a feast of comic improvisations, magical monologues, cheeky challenges and outrageous one-upmanship, as the panellists set their sights on that rarest of beasts: a perfect, uninterrupted minute... 
 
NB: Contains mild innuendo. The humour in these programmes sometimes reflects the era in which they were first broadcast. 
 
 
Cast and credits 
Devised by Ian Messiter 
Chaired by Nicholas Parsons 
BBC One series produced and directed by Helena Taylor 
BBC Two series produced by Andy Brereton and Jamie Ormerod and directed by Richard van't Riet 
 
Episode list: 
 
BBC One 
19 Apr 1999: Barry Cryer, Su Pollard, John Sergeant and Brian Sewell 
20 Apr 1999: Tony Hawks, Wendy Richard, Steve Frost and Clare Baldin 
21 Apr 1999: Isla Blair, Gyles Brandreth, Linda Smith and Gary Wilmot 
22 Apr 1999: Pam Ayres, Peter Jones, Wendy Richard and Linda Smith 
23 Apr 1999: Jo Brand, Gyles Brandreth, Tony Hawks and Peter Jones 
26 Apr 1999: Barry Cryer, Stephen Frost, Tony Hawks and Wendy Richard 
27 Apr 1999: Michael Cashman, Peter Jones, Maria McErlane and Linda Smith 
28 Apr 1999: Liza Goddard, Richard Morton, Tom O’Connor and Richard Vranch 
29 Apr 1999: Clare Balding, Stephen Frost, Tony Hawks and Wendy Richard 
30 Apr 1999: Barry Cryer, Su Pollard, John Sergeant and Brian Sewell 
3 May 1999: Isla Blair, Gyles Brandreth, Linda Smith and Gary Wilmot 
4 May 1999: Maria McErlane, Steve Punt, Wendy Richard and Linda Smith 
5 May 1999: Gyles Brandreth, Ken Bruce, Liza Goddard and Richard Morton 
6 May 1999: Pam Ayres, Peter Jones, Wendy Richard and Linda Smith 
10 May 1999: Tony Hawks, Wendy Richard, Barry Cryer and Stephen Frost 
11 May 1999: Michael Cashman, Peter Jones, Maria McErlane and Linda Smith 
12 May 1999: Jo Brand, Gyles Brandreth, Tony Hawks and Peter Jones 
13 May 1999: Maria McErlane, Steve Punt, Wendy Richard and Linda Smith 
14 May 1999: Gyles Brandreth, Ken Bruce, Liza Goddard and Richard Morton 
26 May 1999: Liza Goddard, Richard Vranch, Richard Morton and Tom O'Connor 
 
BBC Two 
26 Mar 2012: Paul Merton, Graham Norton, Sue Perkins and Phill Jupitus 
27 Mar 2012: Paul Merton, Julian Clary, Stephen Fry and Russell Tovey 
28 Mar 2012: Paul Merton, Sue Perkins, Marcus Brigstocke and Ruth Jones 
29 Mar 2012: Paul Merton, Liza Tarbuck, Gyles Brandreth and Miles Jupp 
30 Mar 2012: Paul Merton, Josie Lawrence, John Sergeant and Jason Manford 
2 Apr 2012: Paul Merton, Graham Norton, Sue Perkins and Tony Hawks 
3 Apr 2012: Paul Merton, Shappi Khorsandi, Hugh Bonneville and Jason Manford 
4 Apr 2012: Paul Merton, Sue Perkins, Marcus Brigstocke and Stephen Mangan 
5 Apr 2012: Paul Merton, Liza Tarbuck, Gyles Brandreth and Tony Hawks 
6 Apr 2012: Paul Merton, Julian Clary, Stephen Fry and Shappi Khorsandi 
 
© 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Just a Minute: The Complete BBC TV Collection

Every Soundtrack Episode from the Hit BBC Comedy Show

Sue Perkins chairs these two scintillating series from 2025 
 
The BBC’s longest-running radio panel game is back for twelve more episodes, as host Sue Perkins challenges contestants to extemporise for 60 seconds on any subject that comes up on the cards – without hesitation, deviation or repetition. 
 
Topics include Snake Oil, Getting Butterflies, Negotiating with a Toddler, The Life of a Strawberry, Mr Darcy, When I Was Staying at The White Lotus, My Favourite Pizza Topping, Oasis Tickets and Paddington Bear. Tackling these tricky themes are a host of star guests including Paul Merton, Gyles Brandreth, Julian Clary, Josie Lawrence, Desiree Burch, Emma Sidi, Paterson Joseph, Charlotte Ritchie, Daliso Chaponda and – returning to play the game after ten years away – Stephen Mangan. 
 
All are funny, fluent and fearless – but can they avoid trips, slips, stutters and hiccups to gain the glory of a perfect, uninterrupted minute? 
 
 
Production credits 
Devised by Ian Messiter 
Chaired by Sue Perkins 
Produced by Rajiv Karia and Georgia Keating 
Production Coordinator: Sarah Nicholls 
Sound Editor: Marc Willcox 
Executive Producer: James Robinson 
Additional material by Eve Delaney 
 
Series 94 featuring: Paul Merton, Laura Smyth, Julian Clary, Desiree Burch, Tony Hawks, Ian Smith, Zoe Lyons, Charlotte Ritchie, Josie Lawrence, Ivo Graham, Sara Pascoe, Daliso Chaponda 
 
Series 95 featuring: Paul Merton, Lucy Porter, Zoe Lyons, Stephen Mangan, Tony Hawks, Desiree Burch, Gyles Brandreth, Emma Sidi, Julian Clary, Paterson Joseph, Rachel Parris 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 20 January-24 February 2025 (Series 94), 18 August-22 September 2025 (Series 95) 
 
© 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) © 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Just a Minute 2025: The Complete Series 94 & 95

The BBC Radio 4 Topical Comedy

All three series of the award-winning topical panel show from 2025 
 
Andy Zaltzman returns for a triple helping of comic quizzing, as he serves up a satirical smorgasbord of choice news morsels for his esteemed panellists to feast on. Making short work of them are some of the biggest names in British and international comedy and journalism, including Sara Barron, Ria Lina, Nish Kumar, Pierre Novellie, Armando Iannucci, Zing Tsjeng, Ava Santina, Mark Steel, Adam Kay, Geoff Norcott, Susie McCabe and Ian Smith. 
 
Kicking off with a ‘Best of 2024’ compilation episode, revisiting and revelling in the previous year’s funniest moments, the team proceed to tuck into 2025’s most pertinent topics, among them the presidential inauguration, the election of the world’s first American Pope, Donald Trump’s tariff turmoil, the Birmingham bin workers’ strike, Budget talks, the Boriswave and the stripping of both Royal titles and Royal crown jewels. 
 
They also take time to savour some of the year’s smaller stories – including the overdue return of the woolly mammoth, the death of the semi-colon, pop stars popping to the stars, Yorkshire gladiators, telepathic Google searches and chimps drunk on fruit. And as soaring cocoa prices impact Britain’s sweet treats, the panel chew over the big question of the moment: are things better or worse than they used to be? 
 
Production credits 
Written and hosted by Andy Zaltzman 
With additional material by Simon Alcock, Rebecca Bain, Chris Ballard, Daman Bamrah, Samira Banks, Carwyn Blayney, Catherine Brinkworth, Angela Channell, Ruby Clyde, Cody Dahler, Eve Delaney, Tasha Dhanraj, David Duncan, Jain Edwards, Milo Edwards, Alice Fraser, Jade Gebbie, Marty Gleeson, Alexandra Haddow, Miranda Holmes, Ruth Husko, Alex Kealy, Ralph Jones, Sam Lake, Sascha LO, Cameron Loxdale, Laura Major, Christian Manley, Stuart McPherson, Meryl O'Rourke, Alfife Packham, Ben Pope, Christina Riggs, Mike Shephard, Peter Tellouche and John Tothill 
 
Produced by Sam Holmes, Rajiv Karia and Gwyn Rhys Davies 
Executive Producers: James Robinson, Pete Strauss and Richard Morris 
Production Co-ordinators: Jodie Charman, Beanna Olding, Caroline Barlow and Giulia Lopes Mazzu 
Sound: Sean Kerwin, David Thomas, Mark Willcox 
 
Series 116 featuring: Anushka Asthana, Angela Barnes, Sara Barron, Scott Bennett, Simon Evans, Daniel Finkelstein, Alice Fraser, Ayesha Hazarika, Athena Kugblenu, Nish Kumar, Jay Lafferty, Laura Lexx, Ria Lina, Zoe Lyons, Alex Massie, Andrew Maxwell, Susie McCabe, Val McDermid, Stuart Mitchell, Glenn Moore, Geoff Norcott, Pierre Novellie, Lucy Porter, Hugo Rifkind, Paul Sinha, Ian Smith and Zing Tsjeng 
 
Series 117 featuring: Anushka Asthana, Sara Barron, Alasdair Beckett-King, Ed Byrne, Daliso Chaponda, Jessica Fostekew, Armando Iannucci, Alex Kealy, Athena Kugblenu, Marie Le Conte, Ria Lina, Zoe Lyons, Andrew Maxwell, Glenn Moore, Geoff Norcott, Pierre Novellie, Lucy Porter, Hugo Rifkind, Ava Santina, Ian Smith, Mark Steel, Zing Tsjeng, Felicity Ward and Cindy Yu 
 
Series 118 featuring: Celya AB, Sara Barron, Alasdair Beckett-King, Scott Bennett, Stephen Bush, Daliso Chaponda, Kate Cheka, Neil Delamere, Simon Evans, Ayesha Hazarika, Adam Kay, Coco Khan, Laura Lexx, Ria Lina, Zoe Lyons, Andrew Maxwell, Susie McCabe, Geoff Norcott, Pierre Novellie, Lucy Porter, Hugo Rifkind, Ava Santina, Ash Sarkar, Ahir Shah, Ian Smith, Tiff Stevenson and Cindy Yu 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 3 Jan 2025, 10 Jan-28 February 2025 (Series 116), 18 Apr-6 Jun 2025 (Series 117), 5 Sep-24 Oct 2025 (Series 118) 
 
© 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The News Quiz 2025: The Complete Series 116, 117 and 118

The Topical BBC Radio 4 Panel Show

Steve Punt

David Tyler

The complete second collection of the quiz show where a team of three University students take on a team of three of their professors, hosted by Steve Punt (star of BBC Radio 4’s The Now Show and the brains behind Horrible Histories), including the complete final series 15. 
 
The show is recorded on location at a different University each week, and pits three Undergraduates against three of their Professors in this fresh take on an academic quiz. The General Knowledge rounds include a quickfire bell-and-buzzer finale and the ‘Highbrow & Lowbrow’ round is cunningly devised to test not only the students’ knowledge of history, art, literature and politics, but also their Professors’ awareness of TV, music and sport. Meanwhile there are the three Specialist Subject rounds, in which students take on their Professors in their own subjects, and where we find out whether the students have actually been awake during lectures... 
 
In the eighth series the universities are Newcastle, Hertfordshire, Dundee, Merton College Oxford, Sheffield and Brunel. Questions range from Bach and benzene rings to Gnasher from The Beano and why eating detergent is wrong. 
 
In the ninth series the universities are Royal Holloway, Aberdeen, Plymouth, St Catharine’s College Cambridge, Brighton, and Oxford Brookes. We’ll hear about Lego, Scottish Gaelic fishing jargon and horse teeth via Jack Straw, James Bond and Dick Dastardly. 
 
In the tenth series the universities are Bournemouth, Imperial College, Reading, Durham, Ulster, and Mansfield College Oxford. Questions range from sarcophagi to cocktail ingredients to Jack Reacher, with a bit of Tristram Shandy thrown in. 
 
In the eleventh series the universities are Southampton, Cumbria, Brasenose College Oxford, Anglia Ruskin, Northampton, and Nottingham Trent. Subjects include brothels, bats and robbing a bank, plus there’s a chance to brush up on Plato, piercings, and postage. 
 
In the twelfth series the universities are UCL, Leeds Beckett, Gonville & Caius College Cambridge, Warwick, Bangor, and Lancaster. Questions range from the isotropy of the universe and Kartvelian Languages to Yellow Submarines and a song about sausage rolls. 
 
In the thirteenth series the universities are Exeter, Strathclyde, Somerville College Oxford, Keele, King’s College London, and Portsmouth. Subjects include a giant spider, Kate Winslet, and why it's no longer illegal to commit champerty. Also, there's your chance to hear the most-played piece of music ever. 
 
In the fourteenth series the universities are Leicester, St Andrews, Loughborough, Falmouth, Robinson College Cambridge, and UEA. We’ll meet a five-legged sheep and a Belgian biscuit, and discover how to luff a jib, how to deconstruct a dodecagon, and the one thing Hannibal Lecter really shouldn’t eat… 
 
In the fifteenth series the universities are Bristol, Queen Mary London, University of Kent, Worcester College Oxford, Manchester Metropolitan University and more. Specialist subjects include Environmental Science, Drama, and History, so naturally we’ll be discussing Boron/Calcium pH proxy analysis, Noël Coward’s wartime satire and St Cuthbert’s A-level results. All this and the world’s hottest chili pepper to boot. If not to eat. 
 
Hosted by Steve Punt 
Devised & produced by David Tyler 
First broadcast 25 June 2018 – 19 October 2025 
A Pozzitive Production for BBC Radio 4©2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P)2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

The 3rd Degree: Series 8-15

The BBC Radio 4 Brainy Quiz Show

Richard Coles

Charles Spencer

Cat Jarman

Join the trio behind the hit history podcast, The Rabbit Hole Detectives, Richard Coles, Charles Spencer and Cat Jarman in their first trivia book as they investigate weird and wonderful facts and stories rescued from obscurity. From the earliest recorded examples of practical jokes to a whistle-stop tour of the world's ghost towns to a history of red heads, The Rabbit Hole Book is a fascinating and entertaining dive into all the things you didn't know you wanted to know.

The Rabbit Hole Book

99 adventures into the history of stuff

Nate Silver

In the bestselling The Signal and the Noise, Nate Silver showed how forecasting would define the age of Big Data. Now, in this timely and riveting new book, Silver investigates "The River," or those whose mastery of risk allows them to shape—and dominate—so much of modern life. 
 
These professional risk takers—poker players and hedge fund managers, crypto true-believers and blue-chip art collectors—can teach us much about navigating the uncertainty of the 21st century. By embedding within these worlds, Silver offers insight into a range of issues that affect us all, from the frontiers of finance to the future of AI. 
 
The River has increasing amounts of wealth and power in our society, and understanding their mindset—including the flaws in their thinking—is key to understanding what drives technology and the global economy today. There are certain commonalities in this otherwise diverse group: high tolerance for risk; appreciation of uncertainty; affinity for numbers; skill at de-coupling; self-reliance and a distrust of the conventional wisdom. For the River, complexity is baked in, and the work is how to navigate it, without going beyond the pale. 
 
Taking us behind-the-scenes from casinos to venture capital firms to meetings of the effective altruism movement, On the Edge is a deeply-reported, all-access journey into a hidden world of powerbrokers and risk takers.

On the Edge

The Art of Risking Everything

24 more archive editions of the much-loved BBC Radio 4 panel game chaired by Nicholas Parsons 
 
This new collection of previously unpublished editions, first broadcast between 1979 and 2009, comes brimming with Just a Minute’s unique blend of wit, wordplay and one-upmanship beloved by listeners all around the world. Hilarity is guaranteed whenever the intrepid players attempt to speak without hesitation, repetition or deviation from the given subject, all whilst under the scrutiny of their fellow players and the stopwatch. Nicholas Parsons is once more in the chair to introduce proceedings and adjudicate on challenges. 
 
Long-time players Kenneth Williams, Peter Jones, Derek Nimmo and Paul Merton compete alongside guests including Joan Bakewell, Wendy Richard, Richard Stilgoe, Tim Rice, Tony Hawks, Graham Norton, Neil Mullarkey, Greg Proops, Blythe Duff, Maria McErlane, Stephen Frost, Stephen Fry, Jenny Eclair, Sue Perkins, Ross Noble, Fred MacAulay, Nick Revell, Gyles Brandreth, Charles Collingwood, Liza Tarbuck, Kit Hesketh-Harvey, Chris Neill, Alun Cochrane, Chris Addison, Julian Clary, Ian McMillan, Shappi Khorsandi, the sadly missed Janey Godley and Richard Herring. 
 
 
Please note: Contains mild innuendo. The humour in these programmes sometimes reflects the era in which they were first broadcast. Due to the archive nature of some of the episodes, sound quality may vary. 
 
 
Cast and credits 
 
Devised by Ian Messiter 
Chaired by Nicholas Parsons 
Episode selection by Michael Stevens 
Music: The Minute Waltz (Waltz in D Flat Major, Op. 64) by Chopin 
 
All episodes first broadcast on BBC Radio 4: 
 
Episode Guide 
1 6 February 1979 
Feat. Joan Bakewell, Peter Jones, Derek Nimmo, Kenneth Williams 
2 12 January 1991 
Feat. Peter Jones, Tim Rice, Wendy Richard, Richard Stilgoe 
3 2 March 1996 
Feat. Tony Hawks, Peter Jones, Derek Nimmo, Graham Norton 
4 15 February 1997 
Feat. Peter Jones, Paul Merton, Neil Mullarkey, Derek Nimmo 
5 31 January 1998 
Feat. Paul Merton, Derek Nimmo, Graham Norton, Greg Proops 
6 6 July 1998 
Feat. Blythe Duff, Tony Hawks, Paul Merton, Derek Nimmo 
7 13 July 1998 
Feat. Stephen Frost,Peter Jones, Maria McErlane, Paul Merton 
8 17 January 2000 
Feat. Peter Jones, Stephen Fry, Maria McErlane, Paul Merton 
9 26 February 2001 
Feat. Jenny Eclair, Tony Hawks, Graham Norton, Tim Rice 
10 16 July 2001 
Feat. Tony Hawks, Ross Noble, Sue Perkins, Tim Rice 
11 2 February 2004 
Feat. Gyles Brandreth, Fred MacAulay, Maria McErlane, Nick Revell 
12 9 February 2004 
Feat. Charles Collingwood, Kit Hesketh-Harvey, Paul Merton, Liza Tarbuck 
13 2 January 2006 
Feat. Gyles Brandreth, Paul Merton, Graham Norton, Sue Perkins 
14 6 February 2006 
Feat. Gyles Brandreth, Paul Merton, Graham Norton, Sue Perkins 
15 6 March 2006 
Feat. Kit Hesketh-Harvey, Paul Merton, Chris Neill, Liza Tarbuck 
16 22 January 2007 
Feat. Alun Cochrane, Paul Merton, Chris Neill, Tim Rice 
17 29 January 2007 
Feat. Tony Hawks, Paul Merton, Neil Mullarkey, Sue Perkins 
18 5 March 2007 
Feat. Tony Hawks, Paul Merton, Neil Mullarkey, Sue Perkins 
19 13 August 2007 
Feat. Alun Cochrane, Paul Merton, Chris Neill, Tim Rice 
20 1 September 2008 
Feat. Chris Addison, Julian Clary, Paul Merton, Sue Perkins 
21 22 September 2008 
Feat. Tony Hawks, Shappi Khorsandi, Ian McMillan, Paul Merton 
22 17 August 2009 
Feat. Gyles Brandreth, Kit Hesketh-Harvey, Shappi Khorsandi, Paul Merton 
23 31 August 2009 
Feat. Janey Godley, Richard Herring, Paul Merton, Sue Perkins 
24 7 September 2009 
Feat. Charles Collingwood, Jenny Eclair, Stephen Fry, Paul Merton 
 
 
©2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

A Heritage Collection

Paul Sinha

'That night, I'd survived my life flashing before me, with my dignity intact. 
Yes, this chaotic life has always been a gamble. 
... But what a gamble.' 
 
Paul Sinha is an award-winning comedian, a quizzing mastermind and a happily-married husband. But for much of his life none of these seemed remotely imaginable. 
 
As a boy, Paul struggled to find his place in a world where he didn't quite fit. Who was he? An over-achieving schoolkid with the world's knowledge at his fingertips? A traditional Bengali son, destined for a career in medicine that he never once craved? A young gay man yearning to breathe freely? Or was he yet another flawed human being on a self-destruct mission? 
 
Amid life's mayhem, it was frequently Paul's love of facts in which he found solace, whether funding his lifestyle through quiz machines or simply trying to show off to his mates. Stumbling serendipitously into both a career in stand-up and a clandestine network of competitive quizzers introduced him to a new sense of purpose, a new identity, and, eventually, new love... 
 
A hilarious and moving coming-of-age memoir of one man's search for fulfilment, One Sinha Lifetime is an unconventional odyssey through love, family, and the joy of general knowledge.

One Sinha Lifetime

Comedy, disaster and one man’s quest for happiness

Kelly Clancy

We play games to learn about the world, to understand our minds and the minds of others, and to make predictions about the future. They're also a lot of fun. But what happens when we mistake games for reality? 
 
Playing With Reality explores the riveting history of games since the Enlightenment, weaving an unexpected path through military theory, biology, artificial intelligence, neuroscience, cognitive psychology and the future of democracy. As neuroscientist and physicist Kelly Clancy shows us, games have been deeply intertwined with the arc of history. War games shaped the outcomes of real wars in nineteenth and twentieth-century Europe. Game theory warped our understanding of human behaviour and brought us to the brink of annihilation - yet still underlies basic assumptions in economics, politics and technology. We used games to teach computers how to learn for themselves, and now we are designing games that will determine the shape of society and future of democracy. 
 
Lucid, thought-provoking, and masterfully told, Playing With Reality makes the bold argument that the human fascination with games is the key to understanding our nature.

Playing with Reality

How Games Shape Our World

A brand-new collection of previously unpublished episodes taken from the programme’s first four decades 
 
Shimmering like jewels on a velvet backcloth of world events, this collection presents 14 vintage episodes from BBC Radio 4’s long-running panel show, chaired by Barry Took and Simon HoggartJoining regular panelists Alan Coren, Richard Ingrams, Jeremy Hardy and Francis Wheen to sparkle humorously are guest players including Kate Adie, Peter Cook, Andy Hamilton, Tony Hawks, Ian Hislop, Armando Iannucci, Julia Langdon, Ann Leslie, Fred MacAulay, Stan McMurtrie, Eve Pollard, Oliver Pritchett, Steve Punt, Libby Purves, Gillian Reynolds, Gay Search, John Sergeant, Linda Smith, Mark Steel, Mark Steyn and Michael White. The original Radio 4 broadcast dates are 01/01/1981, 07/05/1983, 24/03/1984, 30/11/1989, 21/03/1992, 10/04/1993, 21/03/1998, 17/04/1998, 28/05/1999, 17/03/2000, 06/10/2000, 11/05/2001, 13/12/2002, 25/11/2005Cast and credits:Chaired by Barry Took & Simon HoggartFeaturing: Kate Adie, Peter Cook, Alan Coren, Andy Hamilton, Jeremy Hardy, Tony Hawks, Ian Hislop, Armando Iannucci, Richard Ingrams, Julia Langdon, Ann Leslie, Fred MacAulay, Stan McMurtrie, Eve Pollard, Oliver Pritchett, Steve Punt, Libby Purves, Gillian Reynolds, Gay Search, John Sergeant, Linda Smith, Mark Steel, Mark Steyn, Francis Wheen, Michael WhiteNewsreaders: Corrie Corfield, Peter Donaldson, Eugene Fraser, Charlotte Green, John Marsh, Brian PerkinsProduced by Lucy Armitage, Jenny Campbell, Louise Coates, Danny Greenstone, Armando Iannucci, Simon Nicholls, Alan Nixon, Jon Rolph, Colin Swash, Katie TyrrellWritten by Debbie Barham, Paul Carenza, Dave Cohen, Rhodri Crooks, Tom Jamieson, John Langdon, Simon Littlefield, Paul McKenzie, Iain Pattinson, George Poles, Felix Riley, Hugh Ryecroft, Robert Fraser SteeleEpisode selection by Michael Stevens©2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The News Quiz: Gems from the Archive

Highlights from the Topical Radio 4 Panel Show

Two sparkling series of the BBC’s long-running comedy panel game from 2024The fast-talking, quick-thinking Radio 4 parlour game returns with twelve more episodes, in which host Sue Perkins is joined by a wealth of talented and illustrious panellists including Paul Merton, Gyles Brandreth, Lucy Porter, Tony Hawks, Eshaan Akbar, Eleanor Tiernan, Stephen Fry, Katherine Parkinson and Kiell Smith-Bynoe.In time-honoured tradition, each player endeavours to speak for 60 seconds without repetition, deviation or hesitation on a given subject. Among the topics in these two series are Skimming Stones, Apostrophes and Catastrophes, Doppelgängers, Doomsday Bunkers, The Perfect Outfit, Small-Town Secrets, Making Friends On The Internet and Letting The Cat Out Of The Bag.Will they fall at the first hurdle, or fend off all comers to win the points? As the ‘Minute Waltz’ fades away, it’s time to find out...Production creditsDevised by Ian MessiterChaired by Sue PerkinsProduced by Rajiv KariaProduction Co-ordinator: Sarah NichollsSound Editor: Marc WillcoxSound Manager: Jerry PealSeries 92 featuring: Paul Merton, Daliso Chapondo, Kerry Godliman, Zoe Lyons, Lucy Porter, Angela Barnes, Eshaan Akbar, Eleanor Tiernan, Heidi Regan, Tony HawksSeries 93 featuring: Stephen Fry, Jan Ravens, Tony Hawks, Katherine Parkinson, Lucy Porter, Gyles Brandreth, Desiree Burch, Glenn Moore, Julian Clary, Jenny Eclair, Kiell Smith-Bynoe, Josie LawrenceFirst broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 8 Jan-12 Feb 2024 (Series 92), 16 Sep-21 Oct 2024 (Series 93)© 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Just a Minute 2024: The Complete Series 92 & 93

The BBC Radio 4 Comedy Panel Game

All 25 episodes of the award-winning satirical news show from 2024 
 
One of BBC Radio 4’s flagship topical comedies, The News Quiz has been satirising the living daylights out of current events for 47 years. These three series see host Andy Zaltzman skewering the news and passing it to the panellists to be grilled and served up with comic seasoning. 
 
Opening with a ‘Best of 2023’ compilation episode, looking back on some of the best (and worst) bits of the previous 365 days, the show goes on to tackle the big topics at home and abroad in 2024. The subjects explored include broken geopolitical New Year’s resolutions, BBC bias, the battle for the White House, Labour’s ‘Brat Summer’, King Charles’ wild adventures in the South Pacific, the coming of Earth’s new moon (‘All hail Moon 2!) plus a post-General Election special; and two shows in which Lucy Portman and Ian Smith step in as guest hosts in Andy Zaltzman’s absence. 
 
Diving headlong into the headlines are comedians and commentators from across the political spectrum, among them Marie Le Conte, Alasdair Beckett-King, Shaparak Khorsandi, Hugo Rifkind, Athena Kugblenu, Stuart Mitchell, Robin Morgan, Cindy Yu, Andrew Maxwell, Tadiwa Mahlunge and Aditi Mittal. 
 
 
Production credits 
Written and hosted by Andy Zaltzman, Lucy Porter (115:7) and Ian Smith (115:8) 
With additional material by Dee Allum, Rebecca Bain, Teresa Burns, Sarah Campbell, Angela Channell, Ben Clover, Stu Cooper, Cody Dahler, Laura Davis, Sarah Dempster, Tasha Dhanraj, Toussaint Douglass, Krystal Evans, James Farmer, Alice Fraser, Alex Garrick-Wright, Jade Gebbie, Mark Granger, Adam Greene, Callum Jones, Alex Kealy, Cameron Loxdale, Sam Lyden, Lizzy Mansfield, Stephen Mawhinney, Viv May, Tom Mayhew, Molly McGuinness, John Meagher, Meryl O’Rourke, Alfie Packham, Owen Pullar, Christina Riggs, Katie Sayer, Mike Shephard, Alison Spittle, Claire Sullivan, Dan Sweryt, Peter Tellouche and Sharon Wanjohi 
 
Produced by Sam Holmes, Georgia Keating, Gwyn Rhys Davies and Rajiv Karia 
Executive Producers: James Robinson, Richard Morris and Pete Strauss 
Production Co-ordinators: Dan Marchini, Sarah Nicholls and Jodie Charman 
Sound Editors: Mark Willcox, Chris Maclean, Rich Evans, Jerry Peal and Giles Aspen 
Recorded by Sean Kerwin, Marc Willcox and Neva Missirian 
 
Series 113 featuring: Anushka Asthana, Alasdair Beckett-King, Neil Delamere, Diona Doherty, Andrew Doyle, Simon Evans, Danny Finkelstein, Ayesha Hazarika, Alex Kane, Marie Le Conte, Ria Lina, Zoe Lyons, Shaparak Khorsandi, Tadiwa Mahlunge, Andrew Maxwell, Susie McCabe, Stuart Mitchell, Robin Morgan, Geoff Norcott, Rachel Parris, Lucy Porter, Hugo Rifkind, Ian Smith, Mark Steel, Ashley Storrie, Cindy Yu 
 
Series 114 featuring: Anushka Asthana, Katy Balls, Angela Barnes, Alasdair Beckett-King, Scott Bennett, Daliso Chaponda, Simon Evans, Shaparak Khorsandi, Athena Kugblenu, Marie Le Conte, Ria Lina, Zoe Lyons, Susie McCabe, Stuart Mitchell, Geoff Norcott, Lucy Porter, Hugo Rifkind, Ian Smith, Laura Smyth, Cindy Yu 
 
Series 115 featuring: Anushka Asthana, Alasdair Beckett-King, Scott Bennett, Daliso Chaponda, Neil Delamere, Simon Evans, Alice Fraser, Amy Hoggart, Coco Khan, Athena Kugblenu, Marie Le Conte, Ria Lina, Zoe Lyons, Andrew Maxwell, Susie McCabe, Aditi Mittal, Glenn Moore, Robin Morgan, Geoff Norcott, Lucy Porter, Hugo Rifkind, Ash Sarkar, Ahir Shah, Ian Smith, Mark Steel, Cindy Yu 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 5 Jan-8 Mar 2024 (Series 113), 7 Jun-19 Jul 2024 (Series 114), 6 Sep-25 Oct 2024 (Series 115) 
 
© 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The News Quiz 2024: The Complete Series 113, 114 and 115

A quiz show hosted by Steve Punt (star of BBC Radio 4’s The Now Show and the brains behind Horrible Histories) where a team of three University students take on a team of three of their professors. 
 
The show is recorded on location at a different University each week, and pits three Undergraduates against three of their Professors in this fresh take on an academic quiz. The General Knowledge rounds include a quickfire bell-and-buzzer finale and the ‘Highbrow & Lowbrow’ round is cunningly devised to test not only the students’ knowledge of history, art, literature and politics, but also their Professors’ awareness of TV, music and sport. Meanwhile there are the three Specialist Subject rounds, in which students take on their Professors in their own subjects, and where we find out whether the students have actually been awake during lectures... 
 
In the eighth series the universities are Newcastle, Hertfordshire, Dundee, Merton College Oxford, Sheffield and Brunel. Questions range from Bach and benzene rings to Gnasher from The Beano and why eating detergent is wrong. 
 
In the ninth series the universities are Royal Holloway, Aberdeen, Plymouth, St Catharine’s College Cambridge, Brighton, and Oxford Brookes. We’ll hear about Lego, Scottish Gaelic fishing jargon and horse teeth via Jack Straw, James Bond and Dick Dastardly. 
 
In the tenth series the universities are Bournemouth, Imperial College, Reading, Durham, Ulster, and Mansfield College Oxford. Questions range from sarcophagi to cocktail ingredients to Jack Reacher, with a bit of Tristram Shandy thrown in. 
 
In the eleventh series the universities are Southampton, Cumbria, Brasenose College Oxford, Anglia Ruskin, Northampton, and Nottingham Trent. Subjects include brothels, bats and robbing a bank, plus there’s a chance to brush up on Plato, piercings, and postage. 
 
In the twelfth series the universities are UCL, Leeds Beckett, Gonville & Caius College Cambridge, Warwick, Bangor, and Lancaster. Questions range from the isotropy of the universe and Kartvelian Languages to Yellow Submarines and a song about sausage rolls. 
 
In the thirteenth series the universities are Exeter, Strathclyde, Somerville College Oxford, Keele, King’s College London, and Portsmouth. Subjects include a giant spider, Kate Winslet, and why it's no longer illegal to commit champerty. Also, there's your chance to hear the most-played piece of music ever. 
 
In the fourteenth series the universities are Leicester, St Andrews, Loughborough, Falmouth, Robinson College Cambridge, and UEA. We’ll meet a five-legged sheep and a Belgian biscuit, and discover how to luff a jib, how to deconstruct a dodecagon, and the one thing Hannibal Lecter really shouldn’t eat… 
 
Hosted by Steve Punt 
Devised & produced by David Tyler 
First broadcast 25 June 2018 – 18 August 2024 
A Pozzitive Production for BBC Radio 4 
 
©2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The 3rd Degree: Series 8-14

24 archive editions of the much-loved BBC Radio 4 panel game chaired by Nicholas ParsonsLike a treasured piece of furniture, Just a Minute has graced the living rooms and kitchens of radio listeners for more than 50 years. Comfortable, relaxing and easy to sink into, it has long been the seat of sparkling comedy, infectious laughter and intelligent humour. We invite you once again to enjoy the fine patina of another top-drawer collection of classic episodes.In these 24 previously unpublished editions, first broadcast between 1978 and 2009, the redoubtable players attempt to speak without hesitation, repetition or deviation from the given subject. Nicholas Parsons is in the chair, to introduce proceedings and adjudicate on challenges.Seasoned players Kenneth Williams, Peter Jones, Derek Nimmo and Paul Merton compete alongside guests including Bernard Cribbins, Sheila Hancock, Barry Cryer, Alfred Marks, Stanley Unwin, Richard Murdoch, Wendy Richard, Richard Morton, Tony Hawks, Graham Norton, Fred MacAulay, Greg Proops, Blythe Duff, Tim Rice, Jenny Eclair, Julian Clary, Kit Hesketh-Harvey, Linda Smith, Sue Perkins, Ross Noble, Charles Collingwood, Maureen Lipman, Pam Ayres, Dara O’Briain, Gyles Brandreth, Shappi Khorsandi and Ian McMillan.NB: Contains mild innuendo. The humour in these programmes sometimes reflects the era in which they were first broadcast. Due to the archive nature of some of the episodes, the sound quality may vary.Cast and creditsDevised by Ian MessiterChaired by Nicholas ParsonsEpisode selection by Michael StevensMusic: The Minute Waltz (Waltz in D Flat Major, Op. 64) by Chopin 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on the following dates:Episode Guide1 21 February 1978Featuring Bernard Cribbins, Sheila Hancock, Derek Nimmo, Kenneth Williams2 25 December 1979Featuring Peter Jones, Lance Percival, Derek Nimmo, Kenneth Williams3 11 August 1984Featuring Barry Cryer, Peter Jones, Tim Rice, Kenneth Williams4 16 May 1987Featuring Peter Jones, Derek NImmo, Tim Rice, Kenneth Williams5 30 May 1987Featuring Peter Jones, Alfred Marks, Tim Rice, Kenneth Williams6 2 May 1989Featuring Peter Jones, Derek Nimmo, Tim Rice, Stanley Unwin7 30 May 1989Featuring Peter Jones, Paul Merton, Richard Murdoch, Derek Nimmo8 24 March 1990Featuring Peter Jones, Paul Merton, Richard Murdoch, Wendy Richard9 30 January 1993Featuring Peter Jones, Paul Merton, Richard Morton, Derek Nimmo10 3 February 1996Featuring Tony Hawks, Peter Jones, Derek Nimmo, Graham Norton11 17 February 1996Featuring Tony Hawks, Peter Jones, Fred MacAulay, Derek Nimmo12 11 January 1997Featuring Peter Jones, Paul Merton, Neil Mullarkey, Derek Nimmo13 3 January 1998Featuring Paul Merton, Derek Nimmo, Graham Norton, Greg Proops14 10 August 1998Featuring Blythe Duff, Tony Hawks, Paul Merton, Derek Nimmo15 1 February 1999Featuring Jenny Eclair, Steve Frost, Peter Jones, Tim Rice16 5 February 2001Featuring Julian Clary, Kit Hesketh-Harvey, Paul Merton, Linda Smith17 6 August 2001Featuring Tony Hawks, Ross Noble, Sue Perkins, Tim Rice18 14 August 2006Featuring Charles Collingwood, Tony Hawks, Paul Merton, Sue Perkins19 16 July 2007Featuring Pam Ayres, Maureen Lipman, Paul Merton, Dara O’Briain20 17 September 2007Featuring Gyles Brandreth, Julian Clary, Jenny Eclair, Paul Merton21 14 January 2008Featuring Gyles Brandreth, Janey Godley, Tony Hawks, Kit Hesketh-Harvey22 11 August 2008Featuring Tony Hawks, Shappi Khorsandi, Ian McMillan, Paul Merton23 29 December 2008Featuring Charles Collingwood, Shappi Khorsandi, Paul Merton, Graham Norton24 21 September 2009Featuring Pam Ayres, Tony Hawks, Sue Perkins, Tim Rice

Gems from the Archive

A brand-new collection of previously unpublished episodes taken from the programme's first four decades. 
 
As highly prized as a Ming vase or a Regency sideboard, this fine collection of 14 vintage episodes of BBC Radio 4&rsquo;s long-running panel show - chaired by Barry Took, Simon Hoggart, Bill Tidy and Sandi Toksvig - is at last available for all to hear. Those in the know will discern a clear patina of sensible, silly and salacious news items from Britain, America and all around the world.Joining regular panellists Alan Coren, Richard Ingrams, Jeremy Hardy and Andy Hamilton to examine the silverware are guest players including Clive Anderson, Mark Steel, Jo Brand, Ian Hislop, Phill Jupitus, and John Sergeant. Included among the programmes is a duo of two-part News Quiz of the Year editions from 1981/82 and 1983. 
 First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on 26/12/1981, 02/01/1982, 24/12/1983, 25/12/1983, 05/10/1985, 22/09/1990, 22/03/1997, 04/10/1997, 05/01/2001, 01/03/2002, 29/02/2008, 09/01/2009, 04/02/2011, 06/04/2012.Cast and creditsWritten by Stephen Carlin, Carl Carter, Dave Cohen, Lucy Clarke, Rhodri Crooks, Nev Fountain, Gareth Gwynn, Jon Hunter, John Langdon, Simon Littlefield, Paul McKenzie, Gráinne Maguire, Benjamin Partridge, Suk Pannu, Iain Pattinson, George Poles, John-Luke Roberts, Hugh Ryecroft, Jane Sherwood, David SpicerChaired by Barry Took, Simon Hoggart, Bill Tidy &amp; Sandi ToksvigWith Clive Anderson, Joan Bakewell, Alistair Beaton, Jo Brand, Susan Calman, Alan Coren, Kevin Day, Justin Edwards, Andy Hamilton, Phil Hammond, Jeremy Hardy, Ian Hislop, Peter Hobday, Simon Hoggart, Laurence Howarth, Richard Ingrams, Phill Jupitus, Miles Kington, Andrew Lawrence, Ann Leslie, Stan McMurtrie, Edward Pearce, Gay Search, John Sergeant, Linda Smith, Mark Steel, David Taylor, Laurie Taylor, Sandi Toksvig, John Wells, Francis Wheen, Michael White.Newsreaders: Harriet Cass, Corrie Corfield, Peter Donaldson, Charlotte Green, John Marsh, Brian Perkins, Simon VanceProduced by Lucy Armitage, Sam Bryant, Aled Evans, Danny Greenstone, Victoria Lloyd, Diane Messias, Ed Morrish, Alan Nixon, and Jon RolphEpisode selection by Michael Stevens&copy;2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The News Quiz: A Heritage Collection

James Walton

Highlights from the light-hearted literary quiz chaired by James WaltonThe Write Stuff is the book-based panel show that takes a witty and whimsical look at well-known authors and their work. Host James Walton challenges the erudite contestants with tricky literary teasers, which they endeavour to answer using a combination of knowledge and guesswork.Each episode is themed around an ‘Author of the Week’, who is the subject of the introductory rounds in which the panellists read out favourite quotations from their writing and field questions about their life. Among the intervening rounds are ‘Connections’, ‘Odd One Out’, a music round, an archive round and a fast-paced, fingers-on-buzzers round of general literary knowledge. And for the rib-tickling finale, the contestants are tasked with penning parodies in the style of the chosen author, resulting in comic gems such as Jerome K Jerome’s ‘Three Men on a Club 18-30 Holiday’, a hardboiled crime novel in the style of Virginia Woolf, and a Twitter thread by Jane Eyre.Collected here are 40 of the finest episodes from the show’s 17 series, featuring iconic writers from Jane Austen and Charles Dickens to James Joyce, Anton Chekhov, William Wordsworth and John Milton. Pitting their wits against each other are the fiercely competitive team captains Sebastian Faulks and John Walsh, aided by celebrity guests including Stephen Fry, Miles Kington, Philippa Gregory, Sue Limb, Simon Brett, Lynne Truss, John O’Farrell, Natalie Haynes and Mark Billingham. Also included is a Christmas special, filled with festive quizzing and seasonally themed pastiches.Clever, funny and decidedly unstuffy, this knockabout show is a must for bookworms, bibliophiles and anyone who enjoys mixing some laughter with their literature.Production creditsCompiled, written and presented by James WaltonProduced by John Rolph, Katie Marsden, Dawn Ellis, Alexandra Smith and Sam MichellReaders: Rachel Atkins, Beth Chalmers and Becky HindleyFirst broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on the following dates: Jane Austen 31 July 1998DH Lawrence 28 August 1998Charles Dickens 4 September 1998Arthur Conan Doyle 14 July 1999The Brontë Sisters 21 July 1999James Joyce 28 July 1999Oscar Wilde 11 August 1999William Wordsworth 11 April 2001Samuel Taylor Coleridge 10 April 2002Virginia Woolf 17 April 2002George Orwell 2 April 2003Dylan Thomas 12 May 2004Rudyard Kipling 26 May 2004Alexander Pope 9 June 2004Samuel Pepys 16 June 2004The Write Stuff at Christmas 29 December 2004Lord Byron 25 May 2005John Milton 22 June 2005Charles Dickens 29 June 2005Henry James 19 June 2006Thomas Hardy 17 July 2006F Scott Fitzgerald 9 April 2007John Keats 16 April 2007Jonathan Swift 7 April 2008Hans Christian Andersen 14 April 2008George Eliot 28 April 2004DH Lawrence 3 November 2008Marcel Proust 19 October 2010Daniel Defoe 27 January 2012Gustav Flaubert 3 February 2012HG Wells 24 February 2012The Brontës 12 May 2013Mark Twain 19 May 2013Greek Tragedy 26 May 2013William Blake 9 June 2013Gerald Manley Hopkins 19 October 2014Jerome K Jerome 26 October 2014Henry Fielding 2 November 2014Virginia Woolf 9 November 2014© 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

The Write Stuff

40 Episodes from the Panel Game of Literary Correctness

Sandi Toksvig’s first four series as host of the popular satirical comedy showTaking over the News Quiz chair from Simon Hoggart, comedian and broadcaster Sandi Toksvig steps up to the plate to lead the intrepid panellists in a round-up of the biggest (and smallest) news stories of 2006 and 2007. With the exception of one show, hosted by Clive Anderson when Sandi had the flu, she chairs each of these 33 episodes with her characteristic wit, charm and erudition.Squaring up to the headlines are a panel of regulars and new recruits, including Clive Anderson, Jo Brand, Fred Macaulay, Andy Zaltzman, Simon Evans, Nick Revell, Phil Hammond, Stewart Lee, Caitlin Moran and the late, great Alan Coren. Between rounds, newsreaders Charlotte Green, Carolyn Brown, Peter Donaldson, Harriet Cass, Corrie Corfield, Rory Morrison and Chris Aldridge read a selection of funny cuttings sent in by listeners.Among the topics covered in these four series are Gordon Brown succeeding Tony Blair as PM; the death of Boris Yeltsin; the Iraq war; immigration and the NHS – plus telephone telepathy, cheating cheetahs, Prozac for dogs and the startling discovery that mice are actually completely uninterested in cheese. Series 63 also includes a special Alan Coren tribute show following his death in 2007, dedicated to his many contributions to The News Quiz and presented by Sandi Toksvig, Jeremy Hardy and Andy Hamilton.Production creditsChaired by Sandi ToksvigChair’s script written by Lucy Clarke, Rhodri Crooks, Paul Kerensa, Simon Littlefield, George Poles, John Finnemore and Danielle WardWith additional material by James Allnutt, Madeleine Brettingham, Stephen Carlin, Lloyd Langford, Matthew Morton, Kieron Quirke, John-Luke Roberts, James Sherwood and Danielle WardProduced by Katie Tyrrell and Ed MorrishA BBC Studios ProductionSeries 60 featuring: Clive Anderson, Jo Brand, Jo Caulfield, Jackie Clune, Alan Coren, Simon Evans, Andy Hamilton, Phil Hammond, Jeremy Hardy, Stanley Johnson, Phill Jupitus, Sarah Kendall, Stewart Lee, Fred MacAulay, Mark Steel, Francis Wheen, Andy ZaltzmanSeries 61 featuring: Clive Anderson, Jo Brand, Clive Coleman, Alan Coren, Dave Gorman, Andy Hamilton, Jeremy Hardy, Armando Iannucci, Phill Jupitus, Shappi Khorsandi, Fred MacAulay, Caitlin Moran, Mark Steel, Francis WheenSeries 62 featuring: Alan Coren, Simon Evans, Andy Hamilton, Phil Hammond, Jeremy Hardy, Armando Iannucci, Phill Jupitus, Fred MacAulay, Sue Perkins, Carrie Quinlan, Mark Steel, Nick Revell, Francis Wheen, Andy ZaltzmanSeries 63 featuring: Jo Brand, Justin Edwards, Simon Evans, Andy Hamilton, Jeremy Hardy, Phill Jupitus, Fred MacAulay, Sue Perkins, Greg Proops, Carrie Quinlan, Nick Revell, Mark Steel, Francis WheenNews items read by Charlotte Green, Carolyn Brown, Peter Donaldson, Harriet Cass, Corrie Corfield, Rory Morrison and Chris AldridgeFirst broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 8 September-27 October 2006 (Series 60), 5 January-23 February 2007 (Series 61), 27 April-15 June 2007 (Series 62), 28 September-23 November 2007 (Series 63)© 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

The News Quiz 2006 – 2007: Sandi Toksvig Takes the Helm!

Series 60, 61, 62 and 63 of the topical BBC Radio 4 comedy panel show

Three series of the award-winning satirical panel game, chaired by Sandi ToksvigHosted by the peerless Sandi Toksvig, these 25 episodes take us through the highlights and lowlights of 2008, a year dominated by the global financial crisis and the US presidential race between Barack Obama and John McCain.Scrutinising stories both world-shaking and whimsical are an esteemed panel of comedians, journalists and commentators, among them Andy Hamilton, Jeremy Hardy, Phill Jupitus, Francis Wheen, Kevin Day, Carrie Quinlan, Mark Steel, Hugo Rifkind, Justin Edwards, Sue Perkins and Robin Ince. Trying not to laugh as they read out listeners’ comic cuttings are newsreaders Harriet Cass, Chris Aldridge, Carolyn Brown, Peter Donaldson, Charlotte Green, Rory Morrison, Corrie Corfield and Neil Sleat.Subjects picked apart by the panel include Nicolas Sarkozy, Sarah Palin, Boris Johnson’s election as Mayor of London, the Large Hadron Collider, the dangers of obesity, stroppy teenagers and fuel duty protests – as well as the sex life of chimpanzees, naked flights for nudists, the formula for the perfect Yorkshire pudding and the surprising revelation that fish can count to four...Production creditsChaired by Sandi ToksvigChair’s script written by Stephen Carlin, Lucy Clarke, Rhodri Crooks, Jane Lamacraft, Simon Littlefield, Matthew Morton, Paul Kerensa, Suk Pannu, James Sherwood, Danielle WardWith additional material by Stephen Carlin, Aaron Counter, Miriam Elia, Alistair Griggs, Gareth Gwynn, Jane Lamacraft, John-Luke Roberts, James Sherwood, Alan Stafford, Rory Stamp, Liz StephensProduced by Ed Morrish and Victoria LloydA BBC Studios ProductionSeries 64 featuring: Kevin Day, Jack Dee, Justin Edwards, Simon Evans, Jeff Green, Andy Hamilton, Phil Hammond, Jeremy Hardy, Phill Jupitus, Fred MacAulay, Sue Perkins, Carrie Quinlan, Mark Steel, Francis WheenSeries 65 featuring: Kevin Day, Simon Evans, Andy Hamilton, Jeremy Hardy, Phill Jupitus, Fred MacAulay, Sue Perkins, Hugo Rifkind, Carrie Quinlan, Mark Steel, Francis WheenSeries 66 featuring: Jo Caulfield, Kevin Day, Justin Edwards, Simon Evans, Andy Hamilton, Jeremy Hardy, Robin Ince, Phill Jupitus, Fred MacAulay, Sue Perkins, Hugo Rifkind, Carrie Quinlan, Mark Steel, Francis WheenNews items read by Harriet Cass, Chris Aldridge, Carolyn Brown, Peter Donaldson, Charlotte Green, Rory Morrison, Corrie Corfield and Neil SleatFirst broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 11 January-29 February 2008 (Series 64), 2 May-11 June 2008 (Series 65), 26 September-21 November 2008 (Series 66)© 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

The News Quiz 2008

Series 64, 65 and 66 of the topical BBC Radio 4 comedy panel show

Clive Anderson

Clive Anderson hosts the comedy panel game that fancies itself as an intelligent quiz 
 
Ostensibly a quickfire quiz, The Guessing Game is really a show that pushes facts aside in favour of flights of fancy and rewards the funniest, luckiest and most bizarre guesses. The premise is simple: host Clive Anderson fires off a series of difficult and implausible questions, and awards points to the panellists for their outlandish answers. 
 
What's the difference between Justin Bieber and a banana? Who invented the cat hole? Why would humans lose a war with chickens? These posers, and many others, are tackled by some of Britain's best and brightest celebrities, among them Rory Bremner, Phill Jupitus, Christopher Brookmyre, Jo Caulfield, Josh Widdicombe, Lucy Porter and Cariad Lloyd. Series 1 is a complete free-for-all, but in Series 2, Alex Horne and Susan Calman step in as team captains to try and impose some order on the chaos. 
 
Included here are all 12 episodes of the witty, whimsical and wildly speculative show - so sit back and enjoy six fun-filled hours of silly questions and even sillier answers. 
 
Production credits 
Presented by Clive Anderson 
Written by Michael Beck 
House band: The Gus and Fin Four 
Produced by Margaret Anne Docherty 
 
Series 1 featuring: Rory Bremner, Toma Allen, Alex Horne, Phill Jupitus, Zoe Lyons, Christopher Brookmyre, Susan Calman, Alun Cochrane, Emily Dean, Imran Yusuf, Des Clarke, Keith Farnan, Jo Caulfield, Josh Widdicombe, Raymond Mearns, Phil Nichol, Paul Pirie and Rob Rouse 
 
Series 2 featuring: Alex Horne, Susan Calman, Aisling Bea, Lloyd Langford, Phil Nichol, Joel Dommett, Hal Cruttenden, Keith Farnan, Des Clarke, Maeve Higgins, Lucy Porter, Rob Rouse, Matthew Crosby and Cariad Lloyd 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 4 April-9 May 2012 (Series 1), 1 May-5 June 2013 (Series 2) 
 
© 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

The Guessing Game: The Complete Series 1 and 2

A BBC Radio Comedy Quiz Show

Clive Anderson and guests poke fun at the past in this panel show with a yesteryear twist 
 
Originally broadcast on Radio 4 in 2003-4, We&rsquo;ve Been Here Before is the topical, satirical, historical panel game that aims to show beyond all doubt that there&rsquo;s nothing new in the news. Hosted by award-winning comedian, broadcaster and Whose Line Is It Anyway? star Clive Anderson, it takes a wry, witty look at long-gone days through a present-day lens, as the panellists battle it out to discover who&rsquo;s got the best memory for detail when it comes to raking up the past. 
 
Gyles Brandreth, Jimmy Carr, Chris Addison, Mark Steel, Natalie Haynes, Richard Herring, Robin Ince and Steve Punt are among the stellar guests striving to identify news clips from years gone by, and to spot the parallels with contemporary events. From reality TV, BBC-bashing and striking unions to celebrity American presidential hopefuls, European referendums and Prime Ministers under pressure, they find that the stories they sift through sound strangely familiar. 
 
Still funny and relevant over 20 years after it first aired, this entertaining series is the ultimate proof that what goes around comes around. It&rsquo;s a blast from the past with a modern perspective &ndash; and any similarity to current events is entirely the idea... 
 
Production credits 
Presented by Clive Anderson 
Reader: Lewis MacLeod 
Produced by Adam Bromley (Series 1) and Ed Morrish (Series 2) 
 
Series 1 featuring: Gyles Brandreth, Jimmy Carr, John O'Farrell, David Quantick, Jon Holmes, Simon Brett, Lewis Shaffer, Steve Punt, Robin Ince, Maureen Lipman, Simon Brett 
 
Series 2 featuring: Gyles Brandreth, John O'Farrell, Arthur Smith, Arabella Weir, Natalie Haynes, Richard Herring, Mark Steel, David Quantick, Chris Addison, Nick Revell, Helen Atkinson-Wood 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 1-29 August 2003 (Series 1), 11 June-2 July 2004 (Series 2) 
 
&copy; 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

We’ve Been Here Before: The Complete Series 1 and 2

The BBC Radio Comedy Panel Show

Both series of the BBC’s classic comedy panel game from 2023 – plus two Edinburgh SpecialsThe long-running Radio 4 national treasure of a parlour game is back for two more series, chaired once again by the superlative Sue Perkins. Joining her are an array of loquacious panellists, all hoping to avoid the pitfalls of hesitation, deviation and repetition as they strive to speak for 60 seconds on a given topic.Showing off their quick wit and nimble minds are celebrities including Paul Merton, Julian Clary, Jennifer Saunders, Jan Ravens, Tony Hawks, Lucy Porter, Alan Davies, Anna Maxwell Martin and Heidi Regan. Among the subjects up for discussion are Snakes and Ladders, Whitney Houston, Wordle, The Perfect Mullet, The Letter Q, Columbo, Revolving Restaurants and The Great Barrier Reef.Also included are two special editions of Just a Minute recorded at the Edinburgh Festival, featuring Gyles Brandreth, Janey Godley, Susie McCabe, Fred MacAulay, Rachel Parris and debut contestants Ian Smith and Urooj Ashfaq. Faced with topics including How to Make a Good First Impression, Heckling A Walking Tour, Teacakes and A Hatchet Job, can they ad-lib their way to a complete, uninterrupted minute?Note - April 2024: The audio files have been updated to include the complete Edinburgh specials.Production creditsDevised by Ian MessiterChaired by Sue PerkinsProduced by Rajiv KariaProduction co-ordinator: Caroline BarlowSound editor: Marc WillcoxSeries 90 featuring: Paul Merton, Jennifer Saunders, Julian Clary, Anna Maxwell Martin, Desiree Burch, Tony Hawks, Jan Ravens, Zoe Lyons, Alan Davies, Holly Walsh, Gyles Brandreth, Lucy Porter, Ria Lina, Rhys JamesSeries 91 featuring: Paul Merton, Jennifer Saunders, Julian Clary, Lucy Porter, Shaparak Khorsandi, Daliso Chaponda, Heidi Regan, Felicity Ward, Ivo Graham, Josie Lawrence, Gyles Brandreth, Jan Ravens, Tony Hawks, Rachel ParrisEdinburgh Specials featuring: Gyles Brandreth, Janey Godley, Ian Smith, Urooj Ashfaq, Susie McCabe, Fred MacAulay, Rachel ParrisFirst broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 26 December 2022-13 February 2023 (Series 90), 3 April-22 May 2023 (Series 91), 21-28 August 2023 (Edinburgh Specials)© 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) © 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

Just a Minute 2023: The Complete Series 90 & 91

The BBC Radio 4 comedy panel game

All three series of the award-winning satirical news show from 2023 
 
Originally conceived as a one-off whimsy, The News Quiz is now in its 46th year and still going strong. In these 26 shows, host Andy Zaltzman gathers up handfuls of headlines and hurls them at the panellists, who promptly fling back punchlines, puns and persiflage. 
 
Kicking off with a ‘Best of 2022’ episode reflecting on the highs and lows of a year in which Britain had two monarchs and three Prime Ministers, the team go on to peruse the biggest, funniest and most noteworthy events of 2023. Among the stories discussed are the UK strike wave, the conflict in Ukraine, the Israel-Hamas war, Nicola Sturgeon’s surprise resignation, Boris Johnson’s WhatsApps, HS2 grinding to a halt, the looming general election and BRITS IN SPACE – as well as the curious case of 200,000 stolen Cadbury Creme Eggs and the surprise appearance of a walrus in Scarborough. 
 
Mulling over all this, and more, are some of the nation’s best comedians and journalists, including Anushka Asthana, Chris McCausland, Simon Evans, Andy Hamilton, Susie McCabe, Ian Smith, Scott Bennett, Ayesha Hazarika, Ria Lina, Mark Steel, Zoe Lyons and Ashley Storrie. 
 
Production credits 
Hosted and written by Andy Zaltzman 
With additional material by Simon Alcock, Rebecca Bain, Davina Bentley, Catherine Brinkworth, Carl Carzana, Suchandrika Chakrabarti, Ben Clover, Cody Dahler, Max Davis, Kate Dehnert, James Farmer, Aidan Fitzmaurice, Alice Fraser, Jade Gebbie, Mark Granger, Adam Greene, Will Hall, Miranda Holms, Cameron Loxdale, Caroline Mabey, Stuart Mitchell, Eleri Morgan, Eleanor Morton, Alfie Packham, Vicky Richards, Christina Riggs, Rhiannon Shaw, Mike Shephard, Katie Storey, Peter Tellouche, Zoë Tomalin and Jennifer Walker 
 
Produced by Georgia Keating, Sam Holmes and Gwyn Rhys Davies 
Executive Producers: James Robinson, Richard Morris and Pete Strauss 
Production Co-ordinators: Ryan Walker-Edwards, Becky Carewe-Jeffries and Dan Marchini 
Sound Editors: Jerry Peal, Marc Willcox, Giles Aspen, John Hemingway and David Thomas 
 
Series 110 featuring: Maisie Adam, Samira Ahmed, Kate Andrews, Anushka Asthana, Angela Barnes, Alasdair Beckett-King, Scott Bennett, Catherine Bohart, Frankie Boyle, Simon Evans, Andy Hamilton, Isabel Hardman, Ayesha Hazarika, Shaparak Khorsandi, Nish Kumar, Helen Lewis, Ria Lina, Camilla Long, Zoe Lyons, Alex Massie, Susie McCabe, Chris McCausland, Geoff Norcott, Andy Parsons, Lucy Porter, Hugo Rifkind, Ian Smith, Mark Steel, Ashley Storrie, Holly Walsh, Felicity Ward 
 
Series 111 featuring: Kate Andrews, Anushka Asthana, Scott Bennett, Rachel Cunliffe, Neil Delamere, Andrew Doyle, Simon Evans, Alice Fraser, Freddy Gray, Andy Hamilton, Isabel Hardman, Rosie Holt, Ria Lina, Camilla Long, Andrew Maxwell, Susie McCabe, Robin Morgan, Geoff Norcott, Andy Parsons, Lucy Porter, Ian Smith, Ashley Storrie 
 
Series 112 featuring: Anushka Asthana, Tom Ballard, Alasdair Beckett-King, Bethany Black, Daliso Chaponda, Andrew Doyle, Simon Evans, Alice Fraser, Ayesha Hazarika, Athena Kugblenu, Ria Lina, Zoe Lyons, Alex Massie, Susie McCabe, Chris McCausland, Robin Morgan, Rachel Parris, Lucy Porter, Hugo Rifkind, Ian Smith, Mark Steel, Felicity Ward 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 30 December 2022-10 March 2023 (Series 110), 28 April-9 June 2023 (Series 111), 8 September-27 October 2023 (Series 112) 
 
© 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

The News Quiz 2023: The Complete Series 110, 111 and 112

The topical BBC Radio 4 panel show

Grant Stott

Jo Caulfield

Gary Robertson

Grant Stott is joined by team captains Jo Caulfield and Gary Robertson in the panel game that pits journalists against the people they're reporting on 
 
Hold the front page - it's Stop the Press, the comedy quiz where the points really matter! Recorded live in Edinburgh, each show sees well-known entertainers taking on keen newshounds in a bid to find out who knows more about their own specialist subject. Do these comedians, musicians, actors and writers have what it takes to stop the press? 
 
Joining quizmaster Grant Stott are two team captains, Good Morning Scotland host Gary Robertson and Britain's finest funnywoman, Jo Caulfield. Taking on the might of the Fourth Estate are intrepid celebrities including Ian Rankin, Sindhu Vee, Janey Godley and Jan Ravens, while among those defending the press' honour are rock and pop critic Fiona Shepherd, BBC meteorologist Judith Ralston and formidable Newsnight presenter Kirsty Wark. 
 
Included here are all four series of the fast-paced, star-packed show, as well as a special New Year episode recorded at the start of 2018, in which the players look forward to the sporting, cultural and more unusual events of the coming year. With topics ranging from current affairs to general knowledge, it's a good old-fashioned comedy quiz that's ideal to play along with: so why not get in on the action, and pit your wits against the professionals? 
 
Production credits 
Chaired by Grant Stott 
Team captains: Jo Caulfield and Gary Robertson 
A Dabster Production for BBC Radio Scotland 
 
Series 1 featuring: Justin Currie, Fiona Shepherd, Sean Biggerstaff, Siobhan Sinnott, Frank McAvennie, Moira Gordon, Nick Nairn, Bill Whiteford, Joanna Blythman, Andy Gray, Paul English, Horse, Lisa-Marie Ferla 
 
Series 2 featuring: Dave Johns, Hannah McGill, Guy Pratt, Gayle Anderson, Stuart Donaldson, Rona Dougall, John Lloyd, Kate Copstick, Fish, Fiona Shepherd, Tom Urie, Beverly Lyons 
 
2018 New Year Special featuring: Alex Arthur, Aileen Clarke 
 
Series 3 featuring: Allan Stewart, Judith Ralston, Gary Little, Lisa Summers, Ray Bradshaw, Catriona Shearer, Scott Agnew, Laura MacIver, Julia Sutherland, Brian Taylor, Ian Rankin, Theresa Talbot, Sindhu Vee, Glenn Campbell 
 
Series 4 featuring: Donald Alexander, Kirsty Wark, Janey Godley, Richard Gordon, Stuart McPherson, Viv Lumsden, Michelle McManus, Dougie Vipond, Jan Ravens, Tam Cowan, Lucy Porter, David Currie, Hal Cruttenden, Cat Shearer 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 5 May-9 June 2017 (Series 1), 1 September-6 October 2017 (Series 2), 2 January 2018 (New Year Special), 4 May-15 June 2018 (Series 3), 31 August-12 October 2018 (Series 4) 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

Stop the Press

The Complete BBC Radio 4 Comedy Quiz Series

Paul Sinha and his audience join together to compile the questions for a perfect pub quiz 
 
'If you love armchair quizzing, chances are you'll love this' The Times 
 
Stand-up star, quizzer and Rose d'Or winner Paul Sinha is banned from taking part in pub quizzes - so he's decided to create his own. In his bid to put together the ultimate syllabus for this great social tradition, he offers up a wealth of surprising and original questions - as well as the fascinating stories behind the answers. He then goes on to open it up to the audience, who attempt to stump him with their own favourite puzzlers. 
 
Series 1 comprises four rounds - Literature, The World, Four-Letter Words and Everything - while Series 2 ranges across a variety of topics including New Cities, Themes, Monkeys and Apes, Truth, Chat GPT and 2023. Each show is packed with jokes, puns, fascinating facts and scintillating trivia. 
 
Which author's bestselling work was inspired by his filing cabinet? How many countries sit along the Equator? Where was the first British woman to win Miss World born? And which anagram of 'A TWISTED COLON' connects gorillas in 2001 and orangutans in 1978 and 1980? Find out in this quirky, question-packed quiz show! 
 
Production credits 
Written and presented by Paul Sinha 
Additional material: Oliver Levy 
Additional questions: The Audience 
Original music: Tim Sutton 
Sound engineers: Jerry Peal and David Thomas 
Photographer: Andy Hollingworth 
Produced by Ed Morrish 
A Lead Mojo production for BBC Radio 4 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4 on the following dates: 
 
Series 1 
Round One: Literature 21 April 2022 
Round Two: The World 28 April 2022 
Round Three: Four-Letter Words 5 May 2022 
Round Four: Everything 12 May 2022 
 
Series 2 
Episode 1: New Cities 4 September 2023 
Episode 2: Manchester 11 September 2023 
Episode 3: Hampshire 18 September 2023 
Episode 4: Suffolk 25 September 2023 
Episode 5: Somerset 2 October 2023 
Episode 6: Themes 9 October 2023 
Episode 7: Monkeys and Apes 16 October 2023 
Episode 8: Truth 23 October 2023 
Episode 9: Chat GPT 30 October 2023 
Episode 10: 2023 6 November 2023 
 
&copy; 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

Paul Sinha’s Perfect Pub Quiz: The Collected Series 1 and 2

A BBC Radio 4 Comedy

Francis Bourgeois

The adventure filled memoir from the world's most beloved trainspotter, TikTok sensation Francis Bourgeois. 
 
'Francis is one of the kindest, most genuine people I've met in a long time. His passion and unadulterated happiness is inspiring. I can't wait for more magical adventures with him.' - Joe Jonas 
 
'A National Treasure Of The TikTok Age.' - Grazia 
 
'Thrashing builds and builds. I look down and pull up my sleeve: I've got goosebumps, making all the hairs on my arm stand on end. I'm absolutely buzzing.' 
 
From sleeping in a car to get a good shot of 73962 Dick Mabbutt to trainspotting with Niall Horan, Francis Bourgeois has been on one hell of a ride over the past year. Bringing joy to millions, his epic journeys have highlighted the importance of connecting with your passions. 
 
In The Trainspotter's Notebook, Francis shares his greatest trainspotting adventures and takes you with him across the fields and footbridges of Britain, passing through historic terminals and backwater stations in pursuit of tones, thrash and locomotive perfection. Told in his inimitable style, these hilarious and heart-warming tales take you behind the scenes of his most popular videos, and celebrate the places and people of the railway. 
 
Are you ready to depart? 
 
'Oh for goodness sake, I'm on the wrong platform!'

The Trainspotter's Notebook

Gyles Brandreth

Gyles Brandreth presents the quiz show with scandal on its mind 
 
Hosted by the least discreet man in Britain, broadcaster and national treasure Gyles Brandreth, Whispers is the panel game that celebrates all things scurrilous and salacious. Running the gauntlet of gossip are two teams of two guests, who test their wits and wit as they try to tell the difference between fact, fiction and outlandish speculation. 
 
In the opening round, they are challenged to work out whether a given allegation is true, false or a 'whisper' (a rumour that was widely circulated, but never proven). Subsequent rounds include 'Scandal of the Week', in which they must flesh out the bare bones of a celebrity biography by buzzing in with the missing information; and 'Loose Connections', where their task is to pinpoint the sensational or bizarre link between two well-known personalities. At the end of each show, five bonus points are allocated to anyone who can identify a fib told by Gyles earlier in the game. 
 
Team captains Anthony Holden, Stella Duffy and Lucy Moore are joined by panellists including Lynne Truss, Jennie Bond, Julian Fellowes, Richard Herring, Louise Doughty and John O'Farrell to probe the follies and foibles of the famous and infamous. Did Queen Victoria take cannabis? What's the connection between Salman Rushdie and The Beatles? And was Bonaparte really attacked on his wedding night by Josephine's dog? Find out in the quiz that puts naughty before nice and dishes the dirt on the bad boys and girls of history. 
 
Production credits 
Devised and presented by Gyles Brandreth 
Written by Nick Hildred and Hugh Rycroft 
Produced by Elizabeth Freestone and Victoria Lloyd 
 
Series 1 featuring: Anthony Holden, Stella Duffy, Rosie Millard, Jenny Colgan, Lynne Truss, Rowan Pelling, Jennie Bond, Geoffrey Durham 
 
Series 2 featuring: Anthony Holden, Lucy Moore, Geoffrey Durham, Valerie Grove, Lynne Truss, Michèle Brown, Simon Fanshawe, Charles Collingwood 
 
Series 3 featuring: Anthony Holden, Lucy Moore, Penny Junor, Julian Fellowes, Richard Herring, Louise Doughty, Dan Tetsell, John O'Farrell 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 29 October-10 December 2003 (Series 1), 15 September-20 October 2004 (Series 2), 5 October-9 November 2005 (Series 3) 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

Whispers: The Complete Series 1-3

A BBC Radio 4 Comedy Panel Game

Three series of the satirical radio panel show chaired by Sandi Toksvig 
 
Ever since 1977, The News Quiz has been finding the hilarity in the headlines and providing witty commentary on stories big and small. In these 25 episodes from 2009, the inimitable Sandi Toksvig is in the hot seat, presiding over an all-star panel of journalists and comedians. 
 
Bringing their A-game to the show are regulars including Jeremy Hardy, Andy Hamilton, Mark Steel, Francis Wheen, Sue Perkins and Carrie Quinlan, as well as relative newcomers such as Chris Addison, Phill Jupitus, Rory Bremner, Robin Ince and David Mitchell. 
 
Each episode brings a fresh crop of news for the team to get their teeth into, and among the topics under discussion are Barack Obama's first 100 days, MP's expenses, Twitter's shakedown of super-injunctions, North Korea's nuclear ambitions, the Iraq inquiry and the perils of drunken trampolining. Rounding off the proceedings are newsreaders Harriet Cass, Peter Donaldson, Charlotte Green, Corrie Corfield, Neil Sleat, Carolyn Brown and Rory Morrison, with a selection of classic comic cuttings sent in by listeners. 
 
Production credits 
Chaired by Sandi Toksvig 
Chair's script written by Stephen Carlin, Lucy Clarke, Rhodri Crooks, Jon Hunter, Simon Littlefield, Suk Pannu, James Sherwood and Danielle Ward 
 
With additional material by Nathon Caton, Matt Charlton, Steve Day, Gary Delaney, Miriam Elia, Gareth Gwynn, Elliot Howe, James Kettle, Benjamin Partridge, Dale Phillips, Dominic Philpott, Rory Stamp, John-Luke Roberts and Holly Walsh 
 
Produced by Victoria Llloyd, Katie Tyrrell and Ed Morrish 
A BBC Studios Production 
 
Series 67 featuring: Chris Addison, Clive Anderson, Dave Gorman, Andy Hamilton, Jeremy Hardy, Laurence Howarth, Shappi Khorsandi, Phill Jupitus, Fred MacAulay, David Mitchell, Sue Perkins, Carrie Quinlan, Mark Steel, Danielle Ward, Francis Wheen 
 
Series 68 featuring: Rory Bremner, Andy Hamilton, Jeremy Hardy, Robin Ince, Phill Jupitus, Josie Long, Fred MacAulay, Sue Perkins, Steve Punt, Carrie Quinlan, Hugo Rifkind, Mark Steel, Danielle Ward, Francis Wheen, Andy Zaltzman 
 
Series 69 featuring: Rory Bremner, Simon Evans, Andy Hamilton, Jeremy Hardy, Robin Ince, Miles Jupp, Fred MacAulay, David Mitchell, Andy Parsons, Sue Perkins, Carrie Quinlan, Hugo Rifkind, Paul Sinha, Mark Steel, Holly Walsh, Danielle Ward, Francis Wheen 
 
News items read by Harriet Cass, Peter Donaldson, Charlotte Green, Corrie Corfield, Neil Sleat, Carolyn Brown and Rory Morrison 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 9 January-27 February 2009 (Series 67), 1 May-19 June 2009 (Series 68), 25 September-20 November 2009 (Series 69) 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

The News Quiz 2009

Series 67, 68 and 69 of the topical BBC Radio 4 comedy panel show

Sandi Toksvig hosts these three sensational series of 'the finest topical panel game known to radio' 
 
For over 40 years, The News Quiz has been scrutinising the headlines to give us its unique, sardonic take on the stories that are making a splash. In these 25 episodes, we raid the archives from 2010 to rediscover the highs, lows and mediums of that action-packed year. 
 
Sandi Toksvig is in the chair once more, attempting to corral panellists including Micky Flanagan, Armando Iannucci, Fred MacAulay, Milton Jones, Gyles Brandreth, Bridget Christie, Will Smith, Ava Vidal and Danielle Ward. 
 
Together, they probe topics including Sarah Palin's Fox News gig; Greece's precarious economy; the eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull; the Commonwealth Games, Australia's Next Top Model, the General Election and the Conservative/LibDem coalition government - as well as the battling Milliband brothers and fibbing toddlers. Plus, newsreaders Carolyn Brown, Harriet Cass, Corrie Corfield, Peter Donaldson, Charlotte Green, Rory Morrison and Neil Sleat light up each episode with the funny stories, misprints and typos sent in by listeners. 
 
Production credits 
Chaired by Sandi Toksvig 
Chair's script written by Stephen Carlin, Lucy Clarke, Rhodri Crooks, Gareth Gwynn, Simon Littlefield, John-Luke Roberts and James Sherwood 
 
With additional material by Jack Bernhardt, Carl Carter, Nathon Caton, Hannah George, Ivo Graham, Elliot Howe, Jon Hunter, Nadia Kamil, Lee Kern, James Kettle, Benjamin Partridge, John Robins, Dale Shaw, Russell Thompson, Andy Wolton and Mike Wozniak 
 
Produced by Sam Bryant and Victoria Lloyd 
A BBC Studios Production 
 
Series 70 featuring: Susan Calman, Jack Dee, Micky Flanagan, John Gordillo, Andy Hamilton, Jeremy Hardy, Milton Jones, Miles Jupp, Fred MacAulay, Victoria Mather, Sue Perkins, Carrie Quinlan, Will Smith, Ava Vidal, Danielle Ward, Francis Wheen 
 
Series 71 featuring: Susan Calman, Jack Dee, Andy Hamilton, Armando Iannucci, Jeremy Hardy, Phill Jupitus, Miles Jupp, Fred MacAulay, David Mitchell, Sue Perkins, Hugo Rifkind, Will Smith, Mark Steel, Ava Vidal, Danielle Ward, Francis Wheen 
 
Series 72 featuring: Gyles Brandreth, Rory Bremner, Susan Calman, Bridget Christie, Andy Hamilton, Jeremy Hardy, Phill Jupitus, Miles Jupp, Fred MacAulay, Sue Perkins, Will Smith, Mark Steel, Ava Vidal, Francis Wheen 
 
News items read by Carolyn Brown, Harriet Cass, Corrie Corfield, Peter Donaldson, Charlotte Green, Rory Morrison and Neil Sleat 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 8 January-26 February 2010 (Series 70), 16 April-11 June 2010 (Series 71), 24 September-12 November 2010 (Series 72) 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

The News Quiz 2010

Series 70, 71 and 72 of the topical BBC Radio 4 comedy panel show

Three more series of the satirical radio panel show chaired by Sandi Toksvig 
 
Sandi Toksvig, 'probably the funniest person in the English-speaking world' (The Guardian), is our host for these 25 episodes of the perennially popular comedy news quiz, first broadcast between New Year's Eve 2010 and 4 November 2011. 
 
Joining her to poke fun at stories big and small are a panel of illustrious players including Roisin Conaty, Dominic Lawson, Richard Herring, Tom Wrigglesworth, Henning Wehn, Imran Yusuf, Julia Hartley-Brewer, Laura Solon, Sarah Millican and Paul Sinha. 
 
Among the headlines grabbing their attention are Sky Sport's own goal, bankers' bonuses, shrinking clinks, cohabitee's rights, iPhone's tracking abilitites, celebrity gagging orders, Wikileaks whistleblowing, the Higgs-Boson particle, internet dating scams and Mary Portas' charity shop challenge - plus David Cameron's KGB recruitment attempt and Theresa May's cat spat. 
 
Giving us a round-up of the comic cuttings sent in by listeners are newsreaders Carolyn Brown, Harriet Cass, Corrie Corfield, Peter Donaldson, Charlotte Green, Rory Morrison and Neil Sleat. 
 
Production credits 
Chaired by Sandi Toksvig 
Chair's script written by Carl Carter, Lucy Clarke, Rhodri Crooks, Gareth Gwynn, Jane Lamacraft, Simon Littlefield, John-Luke Roberts and Danielle Ward 
 
Produced by Victoria Lloyd, Sam Bryant, Katie Tyrrell and Lyndsay Fenner 
A BBC Studios Production 
 
Series 73 featuring: Jo Brand, Susan Calman, Roisin Conaty, Justin Edwards, Andy Hamilton, Jeremy Hardy, Dominic Holland, Phill Jupitus, Miles Jupp, Andrew Lawrence, Fred MacAulay, Sue Perkins, Carrie Quinlan, Hugo Rifkind, Paul Sinha, Mark Steel, Henning Wehn, Danielle Ward, Francis Wheen, Imran Yusuf 
 
Series 74 featuring: Rory Bremner, Susan Calman, Bridget Christie, Jack Dee, Rebecca Front, Jeremy Hardy, Richard Herring, Armando Iannucci, Miles Jupp, Russell Kane, Fred MacAulay, Andrew Maxwell, Sarah Millican, Matthew Parris, Hugo Rifkind, Will Smith, Mark Steel 
 
Series 75 featuring: Marcus Brigstocke, Susan Calman, Bridget Christie, Andy Hamilton, Jeremy Hardy, Julia Hartley-Brewer, Phill Jupitus, Dominic Lawson, Fred MacAulay, Sarah Millican, Bob Mills, Matthew Parris, Hugo Rifkind, Paul Sinha, Laura Solon, Tom Wrigglesworth 
 
News items read by Carolyn Brown, Harriet Cass, Corrie Corfield, Peter Donaldson, Charlotte Green, Rory Morrison and Neil Sleat 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 31 December 2010-25 February 2011 (Series 73), 15 April-3 June 2011 (Series 74), 9 September-4 November 2011 (Series 75) 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

The News Quiz 2011

Series 73, 74 and 75 of the topical BBC Radio 4 comedy panel show

The year is 1Q84. This is the real world, there is no doubt about that. But in this world, there are two moons in the sky. Discover the 1Q84 Trilogy by Haruki Murakami.

1Q84

365 Days of Art

A BBC Christmas

A Black Book Thriller

A Box Full of Murders

A Cal Leandros Novel

A Christmas Mystery

The intelligent and capable police commissioner Guido Brunetti confronts crime in and around his home town of Venice.

A Commissario Brunetti Mystery

A DC Smith / Kings Lake Investigation Series

A Daisy Story

Chronicling the lives of over three hundred characters, unrivalled for its scope and humour, this is a unique evocation of life in twentieth-century England.

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