A. Igoni Barrett was born in Port Harcourt, Nigeria, in 1979 and lives in Lagos. He is a winner of the 2005 BBC World Service short story competition, the recipient of a Chinua Achebe Center Fellowship, a Norman Mailer Center Fellowship, and a Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center Residency. His short story collection, Love is Power, or Something Like That, was published in 2013. In 2014 he was named on the Africa39 list of sub-Saharan African writers under 40. Blackass is his first novel.

A. Igoni Barrett

The short life of A.J.A. Symons (1900-41) was described by his biographer as an intricate and largely harmless confidence trick. His many interests included the collection of musical boxes and rare books as well as the study and practice of forgery; they left him time to edit an anthology of Edwardian verse and compose studies of H.M. Stanley and other notable figures. He is remembered for The Quest for Corvo, one of the most remarkable biographies ever written, and for co-founding the Wine and Food Society.

A. J. A. Symons

A. J. Liebling, born in Manhattan in 1904, joined the staff of the New Yorker in 1935 and contributed innumerable articles to the magazine throughout his lifetime, on subjects ranging from food to boxing and France to horse racing. As a war correspondent during the Second World War, he reported from France, England and Algeria, and participated in the Normandy landings. In later life he married the writer Jean Stafford, his third wife. He died in 1963.

A. J. Liebling

A. J. Rosen is an author of YA fantasy novels and is an ambassador for Wattpad, known as @agatharoza. Entwined is her first novel.

A. J. Rosen

A. K. Davidson

A. O. Scott has been a film critic at the New York Times since 2000. His writing has appeared in many other publications, including the New York Review of Books, Slate, the New Yorker and the Nation. A finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in criticism in 2010, Scott is currently Distinguished Professor of Film Criticism at Wesleyan University. He lives with his family in Brooklyn, New York. 
 
@aoscott

A. O. Scott

A.S. Byatt (1936-2023) was a novelist, short-story writer and critic of international renown. Her novels include Possession (winner of the Booker Prize 1990), the Frederica Quartet and The Children’s Book, which was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for Fiction. She was appointed CBE in 1990 and DBE in 1999, and was awarded the Erasmus Prize 2016 for her ‘inspiring contribution to life writing’ and the Pak Kyongni Prize 2017. In 2018 she received the Hans Christian Andersen Literature Award.

A. S. Byatt

A. T. Williams won the George Orwell Prize for Political Writing in 2013 for his book A Very British Killing: The Death of Baha Mousa. He lives in Warwickshire.

A. T. Williams

A. W. Chase

Dubbed ‘The new queen of spy fiction’ by the Guardian newspaper, and ‘the real thing’ by the Washington Post, A.C. 'Ava' Glass is the CWA Dagger-shortlisted author of Alias Emma (The Chase), The Traitor and The Trap. The Traitor was a 2023 Richard and Judy Bookclub pick. Alias Emma was a Barnes and Noble book of the month. A former crime reporter and communications consultant, for five years Ava worked closely with spies. Her time in that world fascinated her, and the people she met back then inspire every book she writes.

A.C. Glass

A.E. Housman

Arthur Edward Waite was the designer and co-creator of the now famous Rider Waite Tarot deck. 
 
An American-born British poet and scholarly mystic, his strong interest in all esoteric matters - divination, magic, Kabbalism, alchemy and Freemasony - led to him penning a number of books. These include the Key to the Tarot, The Book of Ceremonial Magic and A New Encyclopedia of Freemasony.

A.E. Waite

A.E. Warren is the author of the Tomorrow's Ancestors series, which consists of Subject Twenty-One, The Hidden Base, The Fourth Species and The Final Rising. 
 
After spending eight years working as a lawyer, she began to write in the evenings and early mornings as a form of escapism from life in a very small cubicle with lots of files. She self-published her first novels in her spare time, which were picked up by Del Rey UK which is the science fiction/fantasy imprint of Penguin Random House. 
 
 She is an avid reader, occasional gamer and fair-weather runner. She lives in the UK with her husband, daughter and hopefully, one day, a wise border terrier named Austen.

A.E. Warren

A.G.D. Maran

A.J. Ayer

A.J. Cronin

A K Benedict writes crime and speculative fiction in a room filled with clowns, mannequins and Doctor Who figures. Her first novel, The Beauty of Murder, was nominated for an eDunnit award and is in development for a major 8-part TV series by Company Pictures. Her second, Jonathan Dark or The Evidence of Ghosts, came out in February 2016. She's written Torchwood audio dramas for Big Finish and her short stories have featured in anthologies including Great British Horror and Best British Short Stories. She lives in St Leonards-on-Sea with her dog, Dame Margaret Rutherford.

A.K.Benedict

A. L. Kennedy has twice been selected as one of Granta’s Best of Young British Novelists and has won a host of other awards – including the Costa Book of the Year for her novel Day. She lives in Essex.

A.L. Kennedy

A.M. Ellis is a speculative fiction author and lover of everything steeped in myth and mystery. Her stories often lean into diverse voices, not only in her identity as a Black woman, but in exploring neurodivergence and mental health. A proud introvert and nostalgic gamer, she lives in Maryland, USA, with her husband and three children.

A.M. Ellis

A.N. Wilson was born in 1950 and educated at Rugby and New College, Oxford. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, he holds a prominent position in the world of literature and journalism. He is an award-winning biographer and a celebrated novelist, winning prizes for much of his work. He lives in North London.

A.N. Wilson

A. T. Emerald lives with her husband and baby daughter in Nottinghamshire. She discovered her love of writing in 2020 and has not shut up about enemies to lovers ever since. She loves iced matcha, torrid love confessions with knives pressed to throats (fictional, of course) and does not accept bills for any therapy her books might incur.

A.T. Emerald

A.W. Priest

A.B.C. Merriman-Labor was a barrister, writer and munitions worker born in Freetown, Sierra Leone in 1877. His published works include A Series of Lectures on the Negro Race and The Story of the African Slave in a Nutshell. He also edited two editions of the Handbook of Sierra Leone. He arrived in the UK in 1904 to study law. In 1907, he organised a centenary commemoration of the abolition of the slave trade in Westminster Abbey. He later embarked on an 'entertainment-lecture' tour called Life and Scenes in Britain, travelling across thousands of miles of West, South West and Central Africa, which he expanded on to create Britons Through Negro Spectacles.

ABC Merriman-Labor

AJ Cronin

AJ Molloy

Aabria Iyengar is an American actress and author.

Aabria Iyengar

Aaliya Jaleel is a freelance illustrator, designer, and visual development artist, currently majoring in Animation at the University of Texas at Dallas. She is also the illustrator of Under My Hijab and Muslim Girls Rise. You can visit her online at www.aaliyamj.com.

Aaliya Jaleel

Aaron Allston

After more than fifteen years of experience as a clinical psychotherapist, Dr Aaron Balick has taken the amazing insights from psychology and psychotherapy out of the consultation room and made them accessible to the wider world. 
 
He has been an ‘agony uncle’ for many years for both CBBC and BBC Radio 1, as well as on television, including BBC Worldwide, BBC 3 and BBC Learning.

Aaron Balick

Aaron Carroll

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An anthology of programmes hosted by and about Roger Deakin, the legendary naturalist, introduced by 
 his friend Robert Macfarlane. 
 
Author, filmmaker and conservationist Roger Deakin first came to fame with his bestselling book Waterlog, which brought wild swimming into the mainstream and pioneered the 'new nature writing' genre. Published posthumously, his second travelogue, Wildwood, and collected journals, Notes from Walnut Tree Farm, were also hailed as classics. The collection is introduced by Robert Macfarlane, a dear friend of Roger Deakin's as well as his literary executor. 
 
Deakin's life at Walnut Tree Farm is the subject of the two radio soundscapes that open this collection. In The House, he introduces us to his home of almost 40 years, presenting an atmospheric sound portrait of this ancient, timber-framed Suffolk farmhouse - from the sighing of the wind to the scuttling spiders and the chirpings of the swallows up the chimney. The Garden takes us on a tour of the untamed land surrounding it - with its moat, shepherd's hut and the walnut tree that gave the farm its name - offering us an intimate record of the changing seasons. 
 
Cigarette on the Waveney sees Deakin paddling his canoe, Cigarette, from the source of the River Waveney at Redgrave Fen in Suffolk to Geldeston Locks in Norfolk. Recorded over several days and nights, this evocative audio diary charts his journey as he captures the sounds of the waterway and its wildlife. 
 
Next, in a 5-part abridged reading of Wildwood by Sean Baker, we journey with Deakin from Suffolk in the spring to the Australian outback, in search of what lies behind humanity's profound connection with wood and trees. 
 
A radio tribute to Waterlog follows, as anthropologist and wild swimmer Alice Roberts joins friends and fans of Deakin, including Robert Macfarlane, Sue Clifford and Richard Mabey, to celebrate the book's enduring legacy. 
 
And in a pair of travel documentaries, we take two delightful day trips with Roger Deakin. In Ramblings, he takes a walk with presenter Clare Balding around his home patch of Diss in Suffolk, and in On the Beach, he spends a summer day on the Essex coast near Clacton, revisiting one of the places he described so vividly in Waterlog: Jaywick Sands. 
 
© 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 
 
The House 
Presented by Roger Deakin 
Produced by Sarah Blunt 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 2 February 2004 
 
The Garden 
Presented by Roger Deakin 
Produced by Sarah Blunt 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 5 December 2005 
 
Cigarette on the Waveney 
Presented by Roger Deakin 
Produced by Sarah Blunt 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 26 July 2005 
 
Wildwood 
Read by Sean Baker 
Abridged by Julian Wilkinson 
Produced by Amber Barnfather 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 18-22 June 2007 
 
Waterlog 
Presented by Alice Roberts 
Produced by Sarah Blunt 
With: Sue Clifford, Richard Mabey, Robert Macfarlane, Joe Minihane and Kate Rew 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 12 May 2019 
 
Ramblings 
Presented by Clare Balding 
Produced by Mark Smalley 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 20 May 2005 
 
On the Beach 
Presented by Roger Deakin 
Produced by Jane Greenwood 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 17 November 2003

Roger Deakin: A BBC Nature Collection

The legendary naturalist on wild swimming and nature, plus a reading of Wildwood

David Attenborough

Collected together for the very first time, this is the complete Series 1 and 2 of Life Stories, written and presented by Sir David Attenborough. 
 
One of the nation's most popular presenters, Sir David examines 40 marvels of the natural world from his extraordinary and pioneering experiences. 
 
What was Sir David's first pet? Which animal would he most like to be? How did he track down a giant earthworm? Why does he respect rats? And what did he do when confronted by a ten-foot-long reptile? 
 
His enthusiasm is as infectious as ever, and conveys a unique fascination on topics as diverse as the sloth, monstrous flowers, the platypus, dragons, the fire salamander, the coelacanth, the dodo, bird's-nest soup and the large blue butterfly. So listen to these stories to find out the real reason why animals sing, the story behind a 150-million-year-old feather, and what it is about snakes that really unnerves Sir David. 
 
©2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

David Attenborough's Life Stories

The Complete Collection

Tom Heap

Climate change is real. It's happening. But it's not the end of the world. 
 
Beating climate change takes the best ideas from the smartest minds, and in this programme, Tom Heap reveals 39 ways to relieve the stress that climate change is exerting on the planet. 
 
Our brightest brains are developing potent carbon-cutting ideas - from the paddy fields of the Punjab to the Siberian permafrost. We hear about incredible new solar panel materials and robots repairing wind turbines, as well as thinking about biodiversity, trees and blue carbon - the marine and coastal ecosystems that are so important for storing carbon and preventing coastal erosion. 
 
There isn't going to be just one solution. We're not going to discover one new energy source that will solve the whole problem. But it all adds up. And one thing that all these solutions have in common is that the people working on them believe they can make a big difference. 
 
All of these different solutions, with all of their different pros and cons, will at some point get us to our net zero target. This is a golden opportunity to pause, and design a better future. 
 
We made this mess, but we can clean it up. 
 
Presented by Tom Heap, with Dr Tamsin Edwards 
Produced by Alasdair Cross and Anne-Marie Bullock 
Researcher: Sarah Goodman 
Produced in partnership with the Royal Geographical Society 
 
© 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 
(p)2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

39 Ways to Save the Planet

Simon Singh

Simon Singh takes a quirky look at some of the most important numbers in mathematics 
 
Physicist and popular science author Simon Singh explores the numbers and concepts that lie at the heart of some of the trickiest problems in mathematics, revealing their history, significance and unique qualities. 
 
Beginning with zero - which, amazingly, wasn't invented until 400 BC and then took thousands of years to catch on - he goes on to serve up a slice of pi, uncover the hidden beauty of the Golden Ratio, reveal the reality behind the imaginary number, and explain why some infinities are bigger than others... 
 
Are 7 shuffles sufficient to randomise a pack of cards? Are 4 colours enough to paint any map, so neighbouring countries have different colours? And could really big prime numbers help us to devise more secure encryption codes? Listen to these 15 programmes and find out... 
 
You'll also hear about G, the number that defines the universe; learn how game theory was used to boost profits for the Treasury when 3G phone licences were sold; and discover what makes 1729 - the first 'taxicab number' - so special. Whether you're a maths geek or simply curious about the weird and wonderful world of numbers, this lively, engaging series will surprise and delight. 
 
Production credits 
Presented by Simon Singh 
Produced by Adrian Washbourne 
 
With: Dave Gorman, Ian Stewart, John Barrow, Adam Spencer, Charles Seife, Marcus du Sautoy, Robin Wilson, Rob Eastaway, David Blatner, Ron Knott, Greg Chaitin, Ken Appel, Thomas Bass, Persi Diaconis, Dave Bayer, Karl Sabbagh, Thomas Hales, Ken Binmore, Sylvia Nasar, Robert Matthews, Julie Roskies, Eleanor Robson, Mark Nigrini, Julie Litman, Janna Levin, Marcus Chown, Duncan Watts, Paul Hoffman, Martin Rees, Robert Kanigel, Cristian Calude 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 11-15 March 2002 (Five Numbers), 27-31 October 2003 (Another Five Numbers), 23 August-20 September 2005 (A Further Five Numbers) 
 
 
©2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Simon Singh's Numbers

A BBC Radio Mathematics Adventure

Vivienne Parry

How much exercise do we need? Is eight hours the right amount of sleep? What is the 'average' libido? When does 'normal weight' become 'overweight' or 'obese'? And how do doctors decide if what's going on inside someone's head is normal? 
 
When it comes to our health, what constitutes 'normal'? Who decides, and where do they draw the line? Is 'normal' the same for everyone? And if you don't tick the box marked 'normal', do you need treatment or are you simply different? In these 34 episodes, science writer and broadcaster Vivienne Parry attempts to answer these questions, and work out what 'normal' means with regard to our bodies and minds. 
 
Talking to doctors, patients and a wealth of medical and scientific experts, she considers issues ranging from mental health and physical wellbeing to fitness, child development, parenting and sex. 
 
Over the course of eight series, Vivienne explores topics including cancer, blood pressure, giving birth, dyslexia, drinking, depression, ageing and autism. As she tries to build up a picture of what normality looks like, she discovers that in defining 'normal', we create 'abnormal' - and that in reality, 'normal' is anything but. 
 
'Fascinating stuff' - The Guardian 
 
Production credits 
Presented by Vivienne Parry 
Produced by Anna Buckley, Fiona Roberts, Katy Hickman, Erika Wright, Deborah Cohen, Fiona Hill, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Alison Hughes, Julian Siddle and Pamela Rutherford 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 22 August-12 September 2006 (Series 1), 14 November-12 December 2006 (Series 2), 31 July-21 August 2007 (Series 3), 18 September 2007 (The Sex Lives of Us: Sex), 4-25 March 2008 (Series 4), 30 September-21 October 2008 (Series 5), 24 February-17 March 2009 (Series 6), 2-23 March 2010 (Series 7), 19 July-10 August 2011 (Series 8) 
 
© 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. 
(p) 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Am I Normal?

A BBC quest to discover what’s normal

Buzz Aldrin

Neil Armstrong

James Burke

Brian Cox

A collection of BBC radio documentaries celebrating the lunar landings and their legacy 
 
On July 20th 1969, for the first time in history, man walked on the moon. Over 50 years later, this 'giant leap for mankind' still captures our imagination, and in this 4-part collection, we bring together some of the most fascinating and insightful BBC documentaries about our ever-changing relationship with our only natural satellite. 
 
In Part 1: The Moon Landings, we hear personal accounts of what it was like to be part of some of the defining moments of the 20th Century. Walking on the Moon sees Buzz Aldrin reliving the perilous final moments before touchdown, while in Last Word, Matthew Bannister hears the story of that historic voyage, with contributions from friends, colleagues and old classmates of Neil Armstrong. The History Hour: Exploring Space features recollections of five landmarks in space travel, and in Seriously: Apollo 8, Helen Sharman hears about the first mission which took human beings beyond the earth's orbit. 
 
Part 2: Legacy ranges from 1969 to the present day, and analyses the enduring significance of the moon landings. In James Burke: Our Man on the Moon, the key voice for the BBC coverage of the event revisits that dramatic time in front of a live audience. Give Me the MoonLITE finds Richard Hollingham examining British plans to return to space, and two episodes of The Infinite Monkey Cage - The Infinite Moonkey Cage and Astronaut Special - feature an extraordinary gathering of space explorers. 
 
Part 3: Why the Moon? considers how the moon has long been an object of fascination for humanity. The Why Factor investigates the moon in culture, and how it affects life on Earth. In Discovery: The Making of the Moon, Lucie Green asks 'Where does the Moon come from - and are we going back'? Meanwhile, in The Forum: The Moon from Earth, Rajan Datar and guests contemplate how our understanding of what the moon is and what it means has changed over time. 
 
Part 4: The Future probes the current state of space exploration. In Brainwaves: The Moon, Pennie Latin looks at the race to return to the moon, and in Tulips on the Moon, Richard Hollingham finds out whether it's really possible to grow plants in space. Finally, In The Real Story: The Future of Space Exploration, Celia Hatton and guests discuss where we go next in our quest to understand our place in the universe. 
 
Copyright © 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

One Small Step: A BBC Moon Landing Collection

The Apollo missions, their lasting significance, and our age-old fascination with the moon

Clare English

Clare English meets the entrepreneurs, mavericks, trend-setters and seminal thinkers who have forged a path to the top 
 
Broadcaster and current affairs specialist Clare English talks to 12 extraordinary trailblazers. Here are the inspiring stories of politicians and inventors, scientists and surgeons, models, parents, creatives and founders. All, in their own field and in their own way, have broken new ground and changed the world. 
 
David Blunkett tells how he rose to high political office despite being blind from birth; Kim Cotton discusses the highs and lows of becoming the UK's first surrogate mother; and Ian Ritchie talks about pioneering the first web browser - and reveals the missed opportunity that could have made him millions. From EastEnders actor Michael Cashman, who made history with UK TV's first gay kiss to Professor Sir Alan Cuschieri on spearheading keyhole surgery and David Gow on coming up with the idea of the world's first bionic hand, each has a compelling tale to share. 
 
Also included are three episodes from another BBC Radio Scotland series, Women on Top, in which Clare English chats to successful women about the sacrifices they had to make to reach the top, and whether they really have it all. We hear from Nicola Sturgeon about her life in Scottish politics; Marie Claire editor Marie O'Riordan on the glamour of the fashion industry; and Krissi Murison on becoming NME magazine's first female editor, and whether her gender makes any difference on the job. 
 
Presented by Clare English 
 
Pioneers 
Produced by Philip Sime 
With: David Blunkett, Sir Alec Jeffreys, Kim Cotton, Ian Ritchie, Michael Cashman, James Goodfellow, Michael Apted, Shannon Murray, Professor Sir Alfred Cuschieri, Roy Day and Mike Tunstall of The Samaritans, David Gow 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio Scotland: 23 December 2010-3 February 2011 (Series 1), 25 August-29 September 2011 (Series 2) 
 
Women on Top 
With Nicola Sturgeon, Marie O'Riordan and Krissi Murison 
First broadcast on BBC Radio Scotland: 29 January 2009, 15 January 2009 and 17 June 2010 
 
©2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P)2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

Pioneers

Lessons from 12 world-leading innovators

Ian Blatchford

Tilly Blyth

The landmark BBC series exploring science in art, developed by Radio 4 in partnership with the Science Museum - with an introduction read by Toby Jones 
 
'A real treat' The Spectator 
 
Art and science are often considered to be in conflict, with art dealing in creativity and science in cold, hard facts. But the two disciplines have always been interconnected, taking inspiration from each other and shaping each other's worlds. In this fascinating 20-part series, Sir Ian Blatchford, Director of the Science Museum, and Dr Tilly Blyth, the Science Museum's Head of Collections, reveal how science's ingenuity has been incorporated into artistic expression - and how art's creativity has stimulated scientific progress and technological change. 
 
Beginning with the Enlightenment and concluding with our modern-day Age of Ambivalence, they take a chronological journey through 250 years of British history, looking at the often surprising relationships between iconic works of art and key scientific objects and ideas. Among the pieces they analyse are Philippe Jacques de Loutherbourg's theatrical portrayal of the Industrial Revolution, Coalbrookdale by Night; Constable's cloud paintings; John Nasmyth's extraordinarily detailed photographs of the Moon; Roy Nockolds' Supersonic, the first abstract image to show the breaking of the sound barrier; and Longplayer, a 1000-year-long musical composition created by computer algorithm. 
 
From Joseph Wright's 1776 painting A Philosopher Giving A Lecture On The Orrery, illuminating a new scientific age of wonders, to Cornelia Parker's Einstein's Abstracts and Cold Dark Matter, shining cosmological light on what is yet to be known, we see that science and art are part of the same rich culture, engaged in an ongoing dialogue driven by mutual curiosity, creativity and imagination. 
 
Presented by Sir Ian Blatchford and Tilly Blyth 
Introduction read by Toby Jones 
Readers: Shaun Mason, Katherine Cusack and Sean Baker 
Music composed by Mark Russell 
Produced by Adrian Washbourne, in partnership with The Science Museum Group 
 
© 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 
(p) 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on the following dates: 
 
The Scientific Sublime 23 September 2019 
Masters of Spectacle 24 September 2019 
Satirizing Science 25 September 2019 
Observing the Air 26 September 2019 
Tracking Progress 27 September 2019 
Plants on Paper 30 September 2019 
Reaching for the Moon 1 October 2019 
Dyeing to Display 2 October 2019 
Capturing Time 3 October 2019 
Celebrating Speed 4 October 2019 
Art as Protest 7 October 2019 
Humans in the Industrial Machine 8 October 2019 
Forms of Knowledge 9 October 2019 
Supersonic 10 October 2019 
Patterns from Atoms 11 October 2019 
Wonder Materials 14 October 2019 
Polaroid Perceptions 15 October 2019 
Protecting the Earth 16 October 2019 
Patterns of Thought 17 October 2019 
Imagining Matter 18 October 2019

The Art of Innovation

How art and science have inspired each other, a Radio 4 and the Science Museum collaboration.

New Generation Thinkers

The most exciting emerging thinkers of our age present their ideas 
 
Since 2010, the Arts and Humanities Research Council and the BBC have joined forces to find the best and brightest academic minds whose cutting-edge research deserves to be shared with a wider audience. Each year, 10 pioneering scholars are selected as New Generation Thinkers, and given the unique opportunity to bring their groundbreaking work to life on radio. New Generation Thinkers have explored the arts, history, philosophy, science, religion and beyond, and continue to share ideas, bring people into their world, and expand horizons everywhere. 
 
To mark ten years of this incredible scheme, this collection brings together the 100 winners from the past decade. Many have gone on to become prominent public figures, and all have fascinating insights to share. Charlotte Blease questions the relationship between doctors and patients; Sarah Dillon explores roles for women in science fiction and whether the genre is sexist; Anindya Raychaudhuri discusses the 1947 Partition of India and how it is remembered; Edmund Richardson tells the story of Alexander the Great's lost city; and Ben Anderson explains how trespassers in the early 20th Century helped create new attitudes to nature by going off-piste. 
 
With topics ranging from a pirate's cookbook to prison breaks, from shaving to Shakespeare and from Berlin techno music to the Glasgow rag trade, these intriguing radio essays will inform, provoke, stimulate and surprise. 
 
© 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (p) 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 
 
If you'd like to learn more about New Generation Thinkers, visit the Arts and Humanities Research Council website at ahrc.ukri.org

Instant Expert

100 of the best ideas from New Generation Thinkers

Jacob Hawley

Stand-up comedian Jacob Hawley explores every corner of the UK drugs scene, from nightclubs to prisons 
 
In his first BBC radio series, New Comedy Award finalist Jacob Hawley examines one of the most important issues affecting young people today, looking into every aspect of British drug culture to discover its scope and effects. As a recreational drugs user for almost a decade, Jacob thought he knew more than most about the topic - but was shocked by how much he still had to learn. 
 
Beginning with a debate about legalisation, these 16 episodes examine the highs and lows of drug use and abuse, from psychedelics, ayahuasca and chemsex to addiction, County Lines gangs and drugs behind bars and on the streets. Jacob visits a rehab clinic to talk to recovering addicts, meets families who have lost loved ones to drugs and speaks with dealers and policemen to canvass opinions from both sides of the law. In addition, he probes the murky world of doping and performance-enhancing drugs, investigates prescription drug abuse and antidepressants, and looks at the damaging effects of one of the most widely-used drugs in the world: alcohol. 
 
His guests include controversial scientist Professor David Nutt; 'Acid Countess' Amanda Feilding, grime artist and DJ Faze Miyake and Olympic gold medal winner Luke Campbell - and, in a special episode live from the BBC 6Music Festival, Jacob catches up with actor and presenter Tyger Drew-Honey, who discusses his struggle with drink and drugs. 
 
This acclaimed series earned Jacob a Radio Academy Silver Award for Best New Presenter. Enlightening, informative and insightful, it will expand your mind and make you rethink the way you look at drugs. 
 
Created and presented by Jacob Hawley 
Produced by Nick Coupe 
Music by Buddy Peace 
Art by Charles Williams at Made Up 
Jacob Hawley: On Drugs is a BBC Studios production for BBC Sounds 
 
With guests including: Professor David Nutt, Dr Kevin Sabet, Lizzie McCulloch, Jack Barry, Adam Deacon, Sabina Osbourne Gray, Tom Huggins, Carl Donnelly, Amanda Feilding, Harry Shapiro, Joshua Levitas, Elizabeth Burton-Phillips MBE, James Wharton, Denholm Spurr, Monty Moncrieff MBE, Luke Laws, Faze Miyake, Ryan Walker-Edwards, Fiona Measham, Bradley Laurencin, Shaun Attwood, Lawrence Gibbons, Paul Sharky, Joseph Kaz, Dr Michael Shiner, Chloe Petts, Laura Pilcher, Nathan Harmer, Ed Warner, Emily Robinson, Luke Campbell, Thomas Maw, Tyger Drew-Honey, Dr Tom Yerburgh, Michael Ritchie, Nikki Holland, Sonya Jones, Tanayah Sam, Ahir Shah, Angela Barnes, Emma Carrington, Dr David Healy, Lou Sanders, Jon Long, Tom Blackwood, Dr Richard Piper 
 
 
If you've been affected by any of the issues discussed in this podcast, you can find help and support here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/1kS7QTDB16PWkywhsXJLzxz/information-and-support-addiction-alcohol-drugs-and-gambling

Jacob Hawley: On Drugs

Exploring the UK drug scene

Dustin Lance Black

Dustin Lance Black, the Oscar-winning screenwriter and activist, explores attitudes towards surrogacy. He shares his own journey to have a child, with husband Tom Daley, through surrogacy. 
 
 
Dustin beautifully and thoroughly explores how the question of surrogacy links to wider societal questions; how much control do women legally have over their body? Do we have a right to know our genetic history? How can LGBTQ+ couples shield their children from homophobia? 
 
 
Dustin explores the personal, scientific, financial and legal aspects of surrogacy. He talks to women who are surrogates, hears the experiences of straight and gay intended parents who have built a family via surrogacy and raises concerns about the current surrogacy laws in the UK. Dustin hears from families in different countries who have had different and difficult processes, and also hears from children born through surrogacy on the right to know their genetic history, always bringing it back to 'why are some people uncomfortable with surrogacy?'.

Surrogacy: A Family Frontier

Adam Hart-Davis

Science's long history is studded with 'eureka years', when radical and brilliant ideas emerged from the maelstrom of mad, bad and dangerous thinking to transform the way we look at ourselves and our universe. Veteran broadcaster and polymath Adam Hart-Davis guides us through 16 of these pivotal years, examining the ways in which they revolutionised our scientific understanding. 
 
He begins with 1665, uncovering the truth behind the legendary story of Newton's discovery of gravity; and explores how two industrial breakthroughs in 1769 - the spinning frame and the steam engine - were connected with a robot that could apparently play chess. In 555 BC, he asks if Pythagoras really came up with the mathematical theorem that bears his name; and in 1965, he considers how the Cold War and advances in military technology fuelled the race to the moon. 
 
Back in 1650, Adam finds out how the opening of England's first coffeehouse signalled the beginning of a new age of reason; while another everyday invention - the motorcar - sped onto the scene in 1893 thanks to groundbreaking developments by Henry Ford, Karl Benz and Gottfried Daimler. And in 1905, a young man called Albert Einstein changed our view of space and time with one of the most important ideas in modern physics - how's that for a 'eureka year'! 
 
Plus, special episode 'The Eureka Year at Christmas' delves into the technology of the festive season, as Adam finds a dazzling description of the first Christmas tree lit by electric light bulbs, peers at X-rays of teddy bear skeletons and pulls a cracker in the name of scientific investigation. 
 
Full of amazing stories, told with Adam Hart-Davis' trademark enthusiasm and humour, this entertaining series guides us through some of the astounding moments that changed our world. 
 
© 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 
 
Presented by Adam Hart-Davis 
Produced by John Byrne and Mary Ward-Lowery 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 9-30 October 2004 (Series 1), 14-28 January 2006 (Series 2), 29 August-19 September 2007 (Series 3), 11 July-1 August 2008 (Series 4), 26 December 2008 ('The Eureka Years at Christmas')

The Eureka Years

A BBC history of science

Brett Westwood

Stephen Moss

All six of BBC Radio 4's entertaining and practical guides to the birds of Great Britain, their habitats and their sounds 
 
'An absolute joy from start to finish' Jane Anderson, Radio Times 
 
Presenter Brett Westwood joins forces with BAFTA award-winning producer and naturalist Stephen Moss for six delightful and informative series, introducing us to some of Britain's most popular and best-loved birds. 
 
Together with wildlife sound recordist Chris Moss, they tour the UK, tracking down the rich variety of species that make their home there - from garden and woodland birds to ones that live on water, by the coast, on farms and in the mountains and moors. Recorded on location in Somerset, the Forest of Dean, Devonshire, the Marlborough Downs and Shropshire's Long Mynd, each programme focuses on a different habitat and type of bird, giving us a comprehensive overview of British avian life. 
 
There's a wealth of advice on how to recognise birds from their appearance, and identify them from their songs and calls - enabling you to easily sort out your Blue Tits from your Great Tits, and your House Sparrows from your Tree Sparrows. Brett and Stephen also share fascinating facts about bird behaviour, revealing that playful jackdaws enjoy doing acrobatics in air currents, and ravens love to 'ski' in the snow. 
 
Full of useful information and helpful tips, this box set will appeal to novice and experienced birdwatchers alike, as well as gardeners, walkers, ramblers and anyone who is keen to know more about the beautiful birds of the British Isles. 
 
Copyright © 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. ? 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 
Presented by Brett Westwood and Stephen Moss 
Sound recordist: Chris Watson 
Produced by Julian Hector 
Series producer: Sarah Blunt 
 
A Guide to Garden Birds 
Episode 1 Thrushes 22 May 2007 
Episode 2 Titmice 29 May 2007 
Episode 3 Finches 5 June 2007 
Episode 4 Woodland Visitors 12 June 2007 
Episode 5 House Guests 19 June 2007 
 
A Guide to Woodland Birds 
Episode 1 Classic Woodland Birds 25 May 2008 
Episode 2 Common Warblers 1 June 2008 
Episode 3 The Oakwood Trio 8 June 2008 
Episode 4 Conifer Specialists 15 June 2008 
Episode 5 The Big Stuff 22 June 2008 
 
A Guide to Water Birds 
Episode 1 Wet Meadow Waders 31 May 2009 
Episode 2 Ducks 7 June 2009 
Episode 3 Warblers 14 June 2009 
Episode 4 Rails 21 June 2009 
Episode 5 River Birds 28 June 2009 
 
A Guide to Coastal Birds 
Episode 1 Estuaries 8 August 2010 
Episode 2 Sandy Shores 15 August 2010 
Episode 3 Rocky Shores 22 August 2010 
Episode 4 Sea Cliffs 29 August 2010 
Episode 5 Offshore Islands 5 September 2010 
 
A Guide to Farmland Birds 
Episode 1 Arable Fields 15 August 2011 
Episode 2 Winter Pastures 16 August 2011 
Episode 3 Hedgerows 17 August 2011 
Episode 4 Copses 18 August 2011 
Episode 5 Farmyards 19 August 2011 
 
A Guide to Mountain and Moorland Birds 
Episode 1 Heather Moors 7 January 2013 
Episode 2 Cliffs and Crags 8 January 2013 
Episode 3 Upland Grasslands 9 January 2013 
Episode 4 Bogs and Mires 10 January 2013 
Episode 5 High Mountain Tops 11 January 2013

A Complete Guide To British Birds

And their calls and songs

Rory Sutherland

Rory Sutherland explores the stories and psychology behind the most influential marketing campaigns in history, and smashes apart received wisdom with a look at iconoclastic ideas. 
 
Advertising guru Rory Sutherland is a world-leading proponent of behavioural economics. In Hacking the Unconscious, he looks at how this emerging science is used by marketers to influence us and challenges us to reassess which ideas we hold dear. 
 
In Part 1, Marketing, Rory asks why certain ad campaigns, such as Nike's 'Just Do It' and the MND Ice Bucket Challenge, cast such a spell over us. Looking at ten all-time great campaigns - including Coke's iconic 'Hilltop' ad, Dove's 'Campaign for Real Beauty' and De Beers' 'A Diamond is Forever' - he discusses their success with the creative minds that conceived them. 
 
Along the way, he ponders the allure of altruism, asks whether ads can be art, considers what 'Big Data' means for the future of marketing, and shows how a powerful health campaign transformed attitudes, and saved lives. 
 
Part 2, Thought Cages, sees Rory confounding conventional wisdom with his intriguing, subversive and controversial concepts. Is education always a good thing? Would we be better off selecting our MPs by lottery? Plus, he looks at the dilemma the NHS faces - to be successful, or to be loved; speculates if we're really as rational as we think; exposes the fallacy of market research; shows how businesses play on our susceptibility to commitment; and wonders whether online retail will ever replicate the magic of the traditional shopping experience. 
 
As he explores how 'psycho-logic', behavioural quirks and mind hacks could drive change, he formulates a magical series of radical ideas that may provide new solutions to society's problems. 
 
Contributors include novelist Fay Weldon, onetime CEO of Cambridge Analytica, Alexander Nix, New York Times bestseller Bryan Caplan, MP Jess Philips and Nassim Nicholas Taleb, statistician and author of The Black Swan. 
 
Copyright © 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 
Presented by Rory Sutherland 
Produced by Steven Rajam and Michael Surcombe 
 
Hacking the Unconscious 
Featuring: Shelina Janmohamed, Steve Henry, Roger Greenaway, Nicola Raihani, Sara Pascoe, Geoffrey Miller, Daryl Fielding, J Courtney Sullivan, Fay Weldon, Scott Bedbury, Liz Dolan, Byron Sharp, Alexander Nix, Nick Hall, Lord Norman Fowler, Sammy Harari, Sir Nick Partridge, Jacqueline Gold, Jennifer Jacquet, Matt Brosnan 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 1-12 May 2017 
 
Thought Cages 
Featuring: Natalie Perera, Bryan Caplan, Nicholas Gruen, Jess Philips, Diana Fleischman, Nassim Nicholas Taleb, Helena Cronin, Dave Trott, Ben Page, Nichola Raihani, Robin Hanson, Oliver Payne, Natalie Nahai, Leigh Caldwell, Jonathan Haidt, Owain Service, Sue Benson, Dan Ariely, Katherine Lewis, David Dalziel 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 19-30 November 2018

Hacking The Unconscious

Sally Sheard

Medical historian Sally Sheard reveals the heroic characters and incredible innovations that have shaped our NHS. 
 
On 5 July 1948, for the first time anywhere in the world, healthcare in Britain became free for all. Sally Sheard looks at the highs and lows that followed the launch of the National Health Service - and describes what life was like before it. Drawing on unique archive recordings of staff, patients and politicians, including visionary NHS founders William Beveridge and Aneurin Bevan, she tells the stories behind 20 key moments in the history of the NHS. 
 
Beginning in the 1930s, when treatments were basic and access to healthcare was determined by your ability to pay, she examines how pioneering individuals, and emergency wartime medical provision, combined to pave the way for the NHS. But funding was a problem from the start, and an epidemic of lung cancer in the 1950s forced the service to acknowledge its responsibility to not just treat disease, but prevent it. 
 
Yet alongside the challenges came great achievements, such as the introduction of the contraceptive pill; the birth of the first IVF baby; and the successful public health campaign to halt the spread of AIDS. We hear accounts of unsung heroes and heroines such as John Charnley, inventor of the first artificial hip; Barbara Robb, who triggered a nationwide investigation into the care of the mentally ill; and Cecily Saunders, whose 'modern hospice' movement forced the NHS to care for the dying. 
 
Tackling topics such as the role of nurses, the fight against MRSA and why health ministers rarely learn from history, this landmark series explores every aspect of the NHS, from its beginnings to the present day. Fascinating, surprising and provocative, it shines new light on Britain's best-loved institution, showing how the NHS has revolutionised the nation's health and saved lives. 
 
Also included is Healthy Visions, a bonus 75-minutes series in which five experts set out their ideas for the future of public health in Britain. 
 
 
Presented by Sally Sheard 
Produced by Beth Eastwood and Deborah Cohen 
Music composed and played, and 'Now is the Hour' arranged and played, by Andy Skinnard 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 18 June-13 July 2018 
 
©2021 BBC Worldwide Ltd (P)2021 BBC Worldwide Ltd

National Health Stories

A BBC History of the NHS

David Baddiel

David Baddiel attempts to unravel an array of life's conundrums, as suggested by the public on Twitter. In each episode he speaks to experts and the general public to make sense of common, yet little understood, subjects and impart his new-found knowledge on each topic in under 15 minutes. 
 
From the global economy to electricity, much loved comedian David Baddiel gets to the heart of issues that dominate random shower musings and dinner party debates. He attempts to understand areas including fracking, rugby, hacking, The Constitution, fashion and even the modern-day enigma, The Kardashians. 
 
Where do fossil fuels really come from? How do Bitcoins work? What does the International Monetary Fund actually do? Why is all my data stored in The Cloud? And when does a cry become a sob? 
 
Join Baddiel in his quest to understand these puzzling topics, and the world. 
 
 
© 2020 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 
(p) 2020 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

David Baddiel Tries to Understand: Series 1-4

Adam Rutherford

Hannah Fry

Science sleuths Dr Adam Rutherford and Dr Hannah Fry investigate everyday mysteries. 
 
In this irreverent and illuminating popular science show, award-winning geneticist Dr Adam Rutherford teams up with mathematics guru Dr Hannah Fry to solve puzzling conundrums sent in by listeners. For the past five years, they've been scrutinizing a cornucopia of cases using the power of science - from why people shout on their mobile phones to d how much the bacteria in our body weighs. 
 
As broadcast on BBC Radio, these 50 episodes tackle topics including what makes gingers ginger, how to make the perfect cup of tea, whether being left-handed affects your brain and why we get static shocks. Plus, they explain why the Earth spins, what's inside a black hole, why tunes get stuck in our heads and how bats echolocate - as well as solving the enigma of why sex exists and discovering whether science can help you win the lottery. 
 
So whether you're curious about déjà vu, wondering if we could shoot lasers to the moon, or simply desperate to identify the tiniest dinosaur, Fry and Rutherford have the answers you need. Helping them to find the solutions are a host of fellow scientists and special guests including Professors Alice Roberts, Marcus du Sautoy and Jim Al-Khalili; Jay Rayner; Shaun Keaveney, Rory Cellan-Jones and Duncan Wisbey. 
 
Presented by Drs Adam Rutherford and Hannah Fry 
This collection contains the original episodes of The Curious Cases of Rutherford and Fry as they first appeared on BBC Radio 4 on 15-19 February 2016 (Series 1), 30 May-3 June 2016 (Series 2), 3-7 October 2016 (Series 3), 5-9 December 2016 (Series 4), 13-17 March 2017 (Series 5), 12-16 June 2017 (Series 6), 25-29 September 2017 (Series 7), 8-12 January 2018 (Series 8), 26 February-2 March 2018 (Series 9), 28 May-1 June 2018 (Series 10) 
Producer: Michelle Martin 
 
©2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The Curious Cases of Rutherford and Fry: Series 1-10

BBC science sleuths solve everyday mysteries

Dr Adam Rutherford and Dr Hannah Fry solve more of your everyday mysteries in these five fantastic radio series 
 
Inquisitive investigators Dr Adam Rutherford and Dr Hannah Fry are back to crack open another batch of baffling cases sent in by the great British public. Using the power of science, they find the surprising solutions to tricky questions such as 'Is anything really random'?, 'Why do we have hangovers?', 'Is hypnotism real?' and 'How do you make gold?' 
 
As broadcast on BBC Radio, these 29 episodes encompass classic cosmic conundrums - including whether there is intelligent alien life out there, if infinity exists, and how wormholes could allow us to time-travel - as well as probing more down-to-earth human quirks like our differing pain thresholds, our attraction to 'bad' foods like chips and chocolate, and our varied regional accents. Plus, the duo embark on a cheery evolutionary thought experiment as they wonder what would happen if humanity became extinct... 
 
Also included is a Valentine's episode about how love affects our brain, and a two-part Halloween special on why horror bewitches us so - and it's Rutherford and Fry squared when Stephen Fry joins the show to find out why he struggles to remember faces. 
 
Among the many guest experts aiding the two Doctors in their investigations are quantum physicist Jim Al-Khalili, cosmologist Andrew Pontzen, 'The Angry Chef' Anthony Warner, stage hypnotist Ben Dali, psychologist Claudia Hammond, neuroscientist Sophie Scott, and Phil Plait, AKA The Bad Astronomer. 
 
Presented by Drs Adam Rutherford and Hannah Fry 
This collection contains the original episodes of The Curious Cases of Rutherford and Fry as they first appeared on BBC Radio 4 on 3-7 September 2018 (Series 11), 21 November-26 December 2018 (Series 12), 3 April-8 May 2019 (Series 13), 30 October-4 December 2019 (Series 14), 5 February-11 March 2020 (Series 15) 
Producer: Michelle Martin 
 
Series 11 featuring: Monica Grady, Seth Shostak, Matthew Cobb, Sara Rugheimer, Peter Weyand, Polly McGuigan, Steve Haake, Colva Roney-Dougal, Bill Thompson, Tilly Blyth, Jim Al-Khalili, Irene Tracey, Steve Pete 
Series 12 featuring: Janina Ramirez, Mark Thomas, Marina Tyndall, Trevor Cox, Steven Strogatz, Eugenia Cheng, Sean Carroll, Andrew Pontzen, Mark Miodownik, Linda Bartoshuk, Anthony Warner, Sally Adams, Andrea Sella, Adam Rogers 
Series 13 featuring: Ben Dali, Wendy Moore, Devin Terhune, Dawn Shaughnessy, Philip Ball, Jim Al-Khalili, Matt Chandler, Wayne Urquhart, Trevor Cox, Zoe Laughlin, Maggie Aderin-Pocock, Sara Russell, Brendan Owens, Neil Comins, Steve Brusatte, Julia Clarke, Al Nelson 
Series 14 featuring: Mathias Clasen, Margee Kerr, Claudia Hammond, David Poeppel, Sophie Scott, Brad Duchaine, Frank Close, Andrew Pontzen, Andrew Blum, Helen Willetts, Steven Strogatz, Matthew Cobb, Kate Jones, Phil Plait 
Series 15 featuring: Mark Miodownik, Lucie Green, Andrew Pontzen, Dr Helen Fisher, Claudia Hammond, Irene Tracey, Dr Nick Davis, Dr Giulia Poerio, Claire Jones, Jonathan Ball, Wendy Barclay, Carl Philpott. Richard Warren, Heather Massey, Kathryn Jeffs, Jim Al-Khalili, Jennifer Oullette 
 
©2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The Curious Cases of Rutherford and Fry: Series 11-15

John Wright

Go behind the scenes on the Covid wards of one of Britain's busiest hospitals, Bradford Royal Infirmary 
 
2020 will forever be remembered as the year of coronavirus, but it's easy to forget the shock, fear and confusion that pervaded Britain as the pandemic first hit. In this exceptional radio series, senior NHS doctor and epidemiologist Professor John Wright takes us back to those crucial early days, giving us a first-hand account of one hospital's fight against COVID-19 and providing an invaluable oral history of this unique historical moment. 
 
Beginning on March 16th, the day the Prime Minister gave his first TV address about coronavirus and a week before the UK locked down, Wright and his front-line staff recorded the crisis that was happening in front of their eyes. In these 10 episodes, we listen to the pandemic unfold in real time as NHS doctors, nurses, managers and cleaners unite in a battle to save lives. 
 
We join them on the ground as they dash to find beds; make tough decisions about which patients receive ventilators; deal with the lack of testing and shortages of PPE; and are forced to tell families they can't visit their dying loved ones. And as increasing numbers of patients arrive on the Covid wards, those caring for them must face the very real threat of catching the virus themselves. 
 
Introduced and presented by Winifred Robinson, this extraordinary audio diary chronicles the amazing work being done by everyday NHS heroes, the sacrifices they routinely make and their willingness to go the extra mile in the face of an unprecedented emergency. 
 
 
Recorded by Professor John Wright with the staff and patients of Bradford Royal Infirmary 
Presented by Winifred Robinson 
Produced by Sue Mitchell 
Sound production by Richard Hannaford 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 26 March-26 May 2020 as The NHS Front Line

The Fight of Our Lives

The NHS Front Line and the Covid-19 Crisis

BBC Radio

Join world-leading scientists as they delve into the incredible stories behind 16 elements, including the dark and controversial history of gold; how a solar eclipse in 1868 led to the discovery of the periodic table's most notorious escape artist, helium; the role of iron in the rise and fall of human civilisations; why you might find iodine in British milk, but not necessarily anywhere else in the world; and how a discovery in boiled urine led to the trade union movement and a chemical weapon. 
 
Far from being confined to a laboratory, In Their Element weaves chemistry back into our everyday lives. 
From the incredible power of lithium to our use and abuse of lead, to why carbon is the backbone of life, but silicone is the world's crucial building block. We learn why fluorine is called 'the tiger of chemistry', how sodium might be the key to a new generation of painkillers, that mercury is integral to hundreds of years of scientific discoveries, and the extraordinary story of how the health impact of phosphorus on a group of Irish girls changed politics forever. 
 
In Their Element is a fascinating introduction to both the history of chemistry and a debate about the way we use raw materials in the modern world. 
 
1 Mercury 
2 Oxygen 
3 Lithium 
4 Carbon 
5 Silicon 
6 Lead 
7 Phosphorus 
8 Iodine 
9 Fluorine 
10 Iron 
11 Sodium 
12 Silver 
13 Aluminium 
14 Gold 
15 Helium 
16 Strontium

In Their Element: How Chemistry Made the Modern World

A BBC Radio 4 Programme

Lisa Jardine

In Britain, we're sometimes inclined to think of science as happening far away from us - in labs or universities or even in the past - and having little impact on our lives. In this groundbreaking series, Lisa Jardine weaves science back into the everyday by showing how the concerns of scientists have always been the concerns of us all. Starting in Restoration England, we travel through seven ages to examine Britain's unparalleled contribution to science. 
 
First, the age of ingenuity, when mechanically-minded citizens pioneered a new way of thinking. 
Then, the age of exploration when young bright men sailed the seas in search of specimens and exotic lands. 
We travel through the age of opportunity when the industrial revolution made science, like industry, into a factory-based, mass-manufactured pursuit. 
Next into the age of inspiration when scientists like Maxwell, Einstein, Darwin, and Anning took great leaps of faith. 
Onward into the age of the lab when scientists professionalised and started to be separated from society in general. 
Into the age of war when military needs placed new demands on science. 
Finally into the age of now where we find science is driven sometimes by curiosity, but also by politics, PR and profit. 
 
From the 1600s to the present day, Seven Ages of Science offers a fascinating insight into the history of science in Britain.

Seven Ages of Science

A BBC Radio 4 History of Science in Britain

Four more series of Brian Cox and Robin Ince’s multi award-winning science/comedy show – including the 100th episode and The Infinite Moonkey Cage, a special hour-long episode celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Apollo moon landings 
 
One of BBC Radio 4’s most popular programmes, The Infinite Monkey Cage sees physicists Robin Ince and Brian Cox taking a witty, irreverent look at the world through scientists’ eyes. Aided by guests from the worlds of science, academia and entertainment, they delve into a variety of topics in a quest to explore the quirks and wonders of the universe. 
 
In these 25 episodes, they celebrate their 100th show with some very special appearances from Monkey Cage alumni including Brian Blessed, Eric Idle and Andy Hamilton; talk cryptography and codebreaking at GCHQ; look at the origin of numbers; and learn how to build a bionic human. There’s also a discussion about dinosaurs; a sleepy look at the science of dreaming; and a Brits in Space special featuring astronauts Tim Peake and Helen Sharman – plus The Infinite Moonkey Cage, a 60-minute episode in which they are joined by some of the key players involved in landing the first men on the moon on July 20th 1969. 
 
Among the many other guests featured in these four series are Neil deGrasse Tyson, Danny Wallace, Shappi Khorsandi, Beardyman, Ed Byrne, Chris Addison, Jo Brand, Rufus Hound, Bridget Christie and Mark Steel. 
 
Producer: Alexandra Feachem

The Infinite Monkey Cage: Series 18-21 plus Apollo Special

Douglas Adams and Mark Carwardine travel the world in pursuit of species on the brink of extinction 
 
In 1985, The Observer magazine sent Douglas Adams to Madagascar to look for the exotic and potentially extinct aye-aye lemur. There he met zoologist Mark Carwardine, and together they made a radio pilot about their travels, In Search of the Aye-Aye. This led to a hugely popular radio series, Last Chance to See, later adapted as a bestselling book. Douglas Adams died in 2001, but his friend Stephen Fry took his place for a follow-up 20th anniversary television series, broadcast on BBC Two in 2009. 
 
This collection includes the initial pilot show and the complete BBC radio series from 1989, in which Adams and Carwardine embark on a quest to track down weird and wonderful threatened species across the globe. Voyaging from New Zealand to Chile, they hope to encounter the flightless Kakapo parrot, the river dolphin revered as the ‘goddess of the Yangtze’ and the secretive, confusing manatee – as well as the randy Rodrigues fruit bat, the terrifying (and smelly) Komodo dragon and the solitary Juan Fernandez fur seal. 
 
Funny, thought-provoking and poignant, Last Chance to See combines Adams’ inimitable humour and Carwardine’s expertise to provide a unique snapshot of our vanishing world and the rare creatures that inhabit it. 
 
Sadly the Kakapo remains critically endangered, and Yangtze River dolphin was declared functionally extinct in 2006. Part travelogue, part natural history show, this unforgettable account of a remarkable voyage of discovery serves as a reminder to protect our planet while we still can. 
 
Track listing: 
1 In Search of the Aye-Aye 
2 Ralph, The Fragrant Parrot of Codfish Island (the kakapo) 
3 Gone Fishing! (the Yangtze River dolphin) 
4 Animal, Vegetable or Mineral? (the Amazonian manatee) 
5 The Answer is Blowing in the Wind (the Rodrigues fruit bat) 
6 A Man-Eating, Evil-Smelling Dragon (the Komodo dragon) 
7 The Sultan of Juan Fernandez (the Juan Fernandez fur seal) 
 
Presented by Douglas Adams and Mark Carwardine 
 
Natural Selection: In Search of the Aye-Aye 
Produced by Tim Grout Smith 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 1 November 1985 
 
Last Chance to See 
Narrated by Peter Jones 
Produced by Chris Muir 
Series producer: Gaynor Shutte 
Additional music by Steven Faux 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 4 October 1989-8 November 1989

Last Chance to See: The original BBC Radio series

In search of the world's most endangered species

Douglas Adams

Technology affects almost everything we do, and its possibilities can be both exhilarating and daunting. This collection features two radio documentaries exploring Douglas Adams’ vision of the digital future, plus Did Douglas Get it Right?, presented by Mitch Benn. 
 
Douglas Adams was a passionate technology enthusiast. His bestselling The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is full of futuristic tech, and in 1990 he predicted something very like the World Wide Web in the BBC2 film Hyperland. So in 1999, he was the natural choice to present Radio 4’s The Internet: The Last 20th Century Battleground. In it, he looked at the explosion in online communication, the evolution of cyberspace, and the risks and opportunities of the new virtual world. 
 
A year later, he hosted The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Future, in which he and his guests discussed how music, publishing, broadcasting, and society in general would be transformed in the 21st century. Sadly, this was Adams’ last BBC project: his death in 2001 meant he would never see if his visions came true. 
 
However, in 2015, Mitch Benn dipped into the archives for a follow-up programme, Did Douglas Get it Right?, revisiting Adams’ predictions to discover how prescient (or otherwise) they turned out to be... 
 
Fascinating, funny and insightful, these three programmes are a wonderful tribute to Douglas Adams, and a treat for fans and futurists alike. 
 
 
Produced by Mark Rickards.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Future

Douglas Adams and the digital world

Henry Normal

Henry Normal uses poetry, storytelling and comedy to tackle big subjects with his trademark humour. This collection includes five of his funny and moving BBC Radio 4 shows: 
 
A Normal Family is centred around Henry's son, Johnny, who was diagnosed with autism. Through stand-up and poetry, Henry explores what this means for Johnny, for himself, and for his wife, Angela. 
 
A Normal Life continues to draw on Henry's experiences of bringing up a child with autism, and tackles the subjects of life, death, loneliness, loss, human frailty and other classic conversation stoppers. 
 
A Normal Love sees Henry explore love, romance and other unreasonable expectations. 
 
A Normal Imagination looks at the reasons why humans create. 
 
A Normal Nature is an exploration of unsung nature, from the point of view of a busy urban human. 
 
These extended episodes include material never broadcast on the radio. 
 
‘It's a rare and lovely thing: half an hour of radio that stops you short, gently demands your attention and then wipes your tears away while you have to have a little sit down’ - The Guardian 
 
A Normal Life was awarded a Silver ARIA for Best Comedy/Entertainment production at the 2017 Radio Academy Awards. 
 
Written and performed by Henry Normal. 
Produced by Carl Cooper. 
A BBC Studios Production.

A Normal…Family, Life, Love, Imagination & Nature

The BBC Radio 4 stand up shows

Festival of the Spoken Nerd

Get ready to enjoy both series 1 and 2 of the heady combination of maths, science and comedy that is Domestic Science. 
Featuring Matt Parker, Steve Mould and Helen Arney as Festival of the Spoken Nerd, these 8 episodes use stand-up, songs and experiments to investigate the world around us with a level of scientific accuracy not normally found in your average comedy series. 
 
If you've ever pondered where the mint in your toothpaste really comes from, or wondered what The Hot Chocolate Effect is, then come explore and play along at home. The team also investigate everything from radioactive bananas and musical bicycle tyres to assisting you with mathematically efficient sock storage and how to host your very own static electricity party. 
 
UK science comedy phenomenon Festival of the Spoken Nerd created this truly experimental radio show for BBC Radio 4, alongside appearances on BBC2’s QI and sharing stages at the Hammersmith Apollo and Royal Albert Hall with comedian Robin Ince, Professor Brian Cox and Commander Chris Hadfield. They toured their most recent stand-up science show to over 50,000 curious nerds (and non-nerds) and have accumulated millions of views on YouTube for their stand-up maths, songs and science explanations. 
 
Produced by Julia McKenzie

Domestic Science: Series 1 and 2

The BBC Radio 4 comedy

Helen Keen

Miriam Underhill

Helen Keen, Peter Serafinowicz and Susy Kane star in this funny, off-beat but factual expedition through the universe, boldly going where no Radio 4 comedy show has gone before. 
 
 
“A pithy sweet programme … with a joke stuffed script” Miranda Sawyer, The Observer 
“Beautiful...A gem” The Sunday Express 
“Informed, enthusiastic and funny” Daily Mail 
“A sort of stand up version of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” The Times 
 
This “shamelessly nerdy…deeply silly” (Radio Times) space extravaganza features fewer close-ups of Professor Brian Cox looking cool in front of a rocket than Wonders of the Universe, but more weird, wonderful and occasionally woeful stories about the geniuses, Nazis and Satanists who plotted to propel humankind to the stars. Find out the many and varied ways to leave the planet as It Is Rocket Science! takes you on a “gleefully irreverent” (The Scotsman) whistle-stop comic tour of the Great Brains who put monkeys, ladies, dogs and gentlemen into orbit. 
 
Discover the daring Mercury 13 women - the astronauts and moonwalkers that never were, hear the adventures of Felix the French Space Cat, raise your eyebrows at the career trajectory of Wernher von Braun, from Nazi to Disney to NASA, meet the man who (metaphorically) connects rocket fuel to Aleister Crowley, explore your options in case an asteroid is heading directly your way, and discover some of the more surprising suggestions scientists have advanced for how to get in touch with life on other planets, from giant burning parallelograms in the Sahara to sending nude pictures into space.... 
 
“Factually accurate yet funny” (The Telegraph), the show won several major awards including The Association of British Science Writers’ Royal Society Radio Prize. 
 
“Harnessing a sharp comedy sensibility to an arsenal of fascinating facts, she’s a treat for anyone who matches a sense of humour with an inquiring mind” The Guardian [on Helen Keen]

It Is Rocket Science: The Complete Series 1-3

A BBC Radio 4 comedy show

BBC Natural History Radio

The complete first series of Tweet of the Day, with introductions by Sir David Attenborough, Chris Packham, Kate Humble and many others. 
 
First heard every weekday morning at 5.58am on BBC Radio 4, Tweet of the Day captured the imagination of early risers and bird lovers, proving so popular that it was named Radio Programme of the Year 2014. Each episode begins with a bird call or song, followed by fascinating ornithological detail about its owner. 
 
This collection contains every edition from the first series, British Birds. The songs of over 260 birds can be heard over the course of a year, from the Cuckoo's call in spring to the summer seaside sound of the Herring Gull, the autumn song of the Robin and the Song Thrush's voice of hope in the depths of winter. 
 
Featuring a mix of native birds, such asthe Blackbird and Tawny Owl, and migrant visitors including the Icterine Warbler and Ortolan Bunting, the series provides memorable insight into their behaviour and habits, explains their literary or folkloric associations, and tells stories of scientific or conservation success. 
 
Presented by wildlife experts including Miranda Krestovnikoff, Steve Backshall, Michaela Strachan, Brett Westwood, Chris Watson, Martin Hughes-Games, John Aitchison and Bill Oddie, Tweet of the Day is a treat for the ears.

Tweet of the Day

A Year of British Birds

BBC Radio Comedy

Brian Cox and Robin Ince present a witty, irreverent look at the world according to science. 
 
The Infinite Monkey Cage has become one of BBC Radio 4’s most popular science-based programmes. In each episode physicist Brian Cox and comedian Robin Ince delve into a particular field of science, with the help of guests from the worlds of science, academia and entertainment. 
 
These 25 episodes feature subjects ranging from music to Frankenstein, from particle physics to the science of sleep, and from astronauts to insects. Also included are the 2016 and 2017 Christmas Special episodes. 
 
Well-known guests featured in this collection include Dave Gorman, Phil Jupitus, Sara Pascoe, Ross Noble, Eric Idle, Noel Fielding, Katy Brand, Mark Gatiss and Dara O'Briain.

The Infinite Monkey Cage: The Complete Series 14-17

Brian Cox and Robin Ince present a witty, irreverent look at the world according to science. 
 
The Infinite Monkey Cage has become one of BBC Radio 4’s most popular science-based programmes. In each episode physicist Brian Cox and comedian Robin Ince delve into a particular field of science, with the help of guests from the worlds of science, academia and entertainment. 
 
These 29 episodes feature subjects ranging from the solar system to war, from UFOs to climate change, and from the mathematics of love to artificial intelligence. This collection also includes two special episodes from December 2015 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Albert Einstein's theory of General Relativity, and the 2014 and 2015 Christmas specials. 
 
Well-known guests featured in this collection include Dave Gorman, Sara Pascoe, Dara O Briain, Alexei Sayle, Ross Noble, Eric Idle, Jo Brand, Lee Mack, Josie Long, Katy Brand and Stephen Fry.

The Infinite Monkey Cage: The Complete Series 10-13

A Private Thriller

A series of children's modern classic novels by renowned 20th century children's writers. All the titles in this series have the A Puffin Book logo, contemporary-style covers, and child-friendly endnotes.

A Puffin Book

A Ripley Novel

A Slice of the Moon

A Victorian Mystery

A Walk in...

A Women’s Murder Club Thriller

A chef Paul Delamare Mystery

Aberrations

Across the Universe

Actiphons

Adelia Aguilar

Adrian Mole

Adventures in Time

Aftermath

Against War

Age of X

Agent 21

Agent Z

Detective Aidan Waits is a troubled junior detective haunted by his past. Facing an uncertain future, and disconnected from his history, DC Waits and his partner, Detective Inspector Peter 'Sutty' Sutcliffe work on Manchester's streets to uncover the city's worst criminals among the grime of the underworld.

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