Speech Radio You Have Listened To Lately

[Jonathan]

I've just listened to the first episode of the new series of 'The Cold Swedish Winter' (BBC Radio 4), which was easily of the same high standard as previous series, and included a truly brilliant joke centred on the film 'Darkest Hour'.

Excellent - thoroughly enjoyed the last series. Looks like I'll be visiting Sounds to catch up! Thanks for the heads-up

[Leinster Lass]

New series of 'Conversations From A Long Marriage'. Top-class comedy script faultlessly delivered by Joanna Lumley and Roger Allam. I'm pleased to say that Covid hasn't led me to develop FOGO! (BBC Radio 4/iPlayer)

[Cockney Sparrow]

I've just listened to the first episode of the new series of 'The Cold Swedish Winter' (BBC Radio 4), which was easily of the same high standard as previous series, and included a truly brilliant joke centred on the film 'Darkest Hour'.

I heard the second programme this morning. Very amusing, and I’ll look up the first programme.


Working on garden tidying I listen to speech on my shirt pocket radio (music is not OK). Yesterday, 4pm, Radio 4 :

“Characters like the Green Lady and Bloody Mary haunt the quiet, abandoned spaces of schools from Sheffield to London, spooking generations of pupils. Some appear in bathroom mirrors, others are never seen, only heard - their eerie footsteps reverberating through empty corridors.”

Although apparently the point of the programme was about the genesis of a song, much of the content is the children themselves…. (I miss the sound of playtime from our local primary now they are in their bubbles/staggered playtimes etc)

Followed 30 minutes later by comedian/comic actress Diane Morgan on “Great Lives”. A trail of coincidences or serendipity led her to choose Hugh Dowding (as in the Battle of Britain). Quite a surprising story – although some here may know about it.

New series of 'Conversations From A Long Marriage'. Top-class comedy script faultlessly delivered by Joanna Lumley and Roger Allam. I'm pleased to say that Covid hasn't led me to develop FOGO! (BBC Radio 4/iPlayer)

These programmes are top class (tonights a little too close to home though....). The writing and the acting from both are faultless.....

[ardcarp]

Coming of Age Letters to 2021

We stumbled on this Radio 4 shortie at 0945 this morning. Each century (going back to the 15th) took on a voice and a personality, comparing itself to ours on its 21st birthday and giving some advice. Amusing idea, And I gather it is a short series at the same time each morning this week.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m000qws5

[Serial_Apologist]

Coming of Age Letters to 2021

We stumbled on this Radio 4 shortie at 0945 this morning. Each century (going back to the 15th) took on a voice and a personality, comparing itself to ours on its 21st birthday and giving some advice. Amusing idea, And I gather it is a short series at the same time each morning this week.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m000qws5

Thanks ardy - would have missed this!

[Nick Armstrong]

Roger Allam.

For Allam fans, as well as the recent Uncle Vanya on BBC Four TV, this Private Passions repeat is not to be missed:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/b078wr8m

[antongould]

For Allam fans, as well as the recent Uncle Vanya on BBC Four TV, this Private Passions repeat is not to be missed:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/b078wr8m

Cheers Rumpole

[Bryn]

An introduction by John Tilbury to Cage's Music of Changes, as broadcast on Friday the 13th (July 1973).

(https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/schedules/radio3/1973-07-13 (from 20.55). From tuner to reel-to-reel to Dolby B cassette to mp3.)

[Leinster Lass]

For Allam fans, as well as the recent Uncle Vanya on BBC Four TV, this Private Passions repeat is not to be missed:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/b078wr8m

Clearly a very cultured man as well as a wonderfully versatlie actor.

[Nick Armstrong]

Clearly a very cultured man as well as a wonderfully versatlie actor.

Indeed.

Talking of which, some equally enjoyable performers in two recent drama repeats:

1. The late great Tim Pigott-Smith (one of the best radio actors IMO) a wonderfully knowing narrator of Trollope’s lesser-known Orley Farm: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01102ds - Ronald Pickup, Samantha Bond et al in a three-parter giving much pleasure

2. Simon Russell-Beale as George Smiley in a rebroadcast to honour the recently-departed John le Carré: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/b00kgfch - Kenneth Cranham, Eleanor Bron et al. in support.

[DracoM]

NO-one [IMO] can replace Guinness as Smiley.............

[Serial_Apologist]

NO-one [IMO] can replace Guinness as Smiley.............

Hear hear! I just don't get it when representations of characters, real life or not, have to be followed by updates, years later, in the name of supposed documented authenticity - especially when so much has to be recreated with obvious artificiality, however clever the scenic prosthetics dept., just to satisfy some conceit.

it was so good to see Le Carré praise Guinness in the other night's posthumous interview with Lawson.

[Nick Armstrong]

NO-one [IMO] can replace Guinness as Smiley.............

I certainly felt that with the Gary Oldman film - indeed he seemed to be doing a Guinness impersonation.

But [IMO] in audio only, Simon Russell Beale is a sufficiently good actor to inhabit the role differently but completely and convincingly.

I too loved the Guinness accolades and anecdotes from Le Carré in that repeated Mark Lawson interview, a fascinating hour. The moment where Guinness hastened out of the restaurant with Le Carré to watch Sir Maurice Oldfield walk away after their lunch together, and register him swinging his umbrella, was marvellous

[Serial_Apologist]

I certainly felt that with the Gary Oldman film - indeed he seemed to be doing a Guinness impersonation.

But [IMO] in audio only, Simon Russell Beale is a sufficiently good actor to inhabit the role differently but completely and convincingly.

I too loved the Guinness accolades and anecdotes from Le Carré in that repeated Mark Lawson interview, a fascinating hour. The moment where Guinness hastened out of the restaurant with Le Carré to watch Sir Maurice Oldfield walk away after their lunch together, and register him swinging his umbrella, was marvellous

Yes! He never mentioned if Sir Maurice was wearing a bowler hat!

[Serial_Apologist]

Autism in film

Not "listened to lately", but a plug (if I may) on behalf of the forthcoming programme this evening on Radio 3, which may be of interest to others besides those of us with a personal interest:

10pm - Free Thinking
Autism, Film and Patterns.
Matthew Sweet leads a discussion on our current understanding of autism through the prism of cinematic portrayals, with Cambridge professor Simon Baron-Cohen* (director of the Autism Research Centre and author of the recent study The Pattern Seekers) and film historians Andrew Roberts and Bonnie Evans (senior researcher on the Queen Mary, University of London and Wellcome Trust project Autism through Cinema).

*As not in Bendit Like Beckham!