John Beatty on the Iceland volcano

In February, some of us caught John Beatty on his Wild Vision tour, sponsored by Rohan. Little did we realise that a month later he would be an eyewitness to the eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano in Iceland. He was subsequently interviewed by John McCarthy on Excess Baggage, the Radio 4 travel programme.

The Believers: 60s Christian pop (radio play)

The Saturday Play yesterday on Radio 4 was The Believers, by Frank Cottrell Boyce, set in Liverpool, 1963. The Merseybeat boom is about to take off. And with it, The Believers, a Christian pop band determined to spread the Word. If only they were all singing from the same hymn sheet...

You can Listen again for the next six days.

What to remember during the silence

David Winter, on Thought for the Day last Saturday, talks of the challenge: 'I never know what to think about during these silences'. He says "it would be inappropriate to tell other people what to think about" but it is important to reflect on what we do think about during the annual collective silence.

He concludes: "To remember, and then forget what we have learnt, is an unforgivable waste of the God-given gift of memory. The Hebrew and Christian Scriptures constantly call on us to remember - events, outcomes, people, tragedies, blessings - but not just to remember. Genuine, profound remembrance brings the past into the present so that the present may be changed....... The precious gift of memory is a means, not an end in itself. We remember the past, but in order to transform and renew the present".

Whatever happened to the teapots?

In the 1980s, Roger Law and Peter Fluck of Spitting Image went to Stoke-on-Trent to get some Margaret Thatcher teapots made. Now Mr Law, in the Radio 4 show Whatever Happened To The Teapots?, has returned to meet the potters to find out what has happened to their industry.

Whatever Happened To The Teapots? is broadcast from Monday 9 to Friday 13 November on BBC Radio 4 at 1545 GMT. You can also listen to the programmes for seven days after transmission on the BBC iPlayer.

Tea and Biscuits on R4

In Tea and Biscuits, broadcast daily from 3.45-4.00pm on Radio 4, you can listen to Hardeep Singh Kohli as he joins people as they meet and indulge in that very British ritual: a cup of tea and a biscuit.

Leicestershire Round goes Audio‏

The Leicestershire Round is on the radio. Chris Baxter, the afternoon presenter on BBC Radio Leicester has recently walked the Round and 10 minute recordings of his travels are being featured on his programme for the next two weeks. They're also available as RealAudio files on the BBC Leicester website. Along with some nice mellow music it's reminiscent of Julia Bradbury's walking programmes on TV.
[provided by Andrew]

Grow your own tea?

Last year Jacky reported on home-grown British tea, and yesterday Radio 4's On your farm visited the Tregothnan Estate in Cornwall which now sells a range of fourteen teas: four black teas (including Earl Grey) and ten herbal infusions.

Tregothnan teas are now served and sold at a select number of establishments throughout the UK including Claridges and Fortnum & Mason’s in London. They are also available online and you can even buy a tea bush (Camellia Sinensis) to grow your own tea at home!

Birdsong Radio lives on

Did you ever listen to Birdsong radio? Unfortunately the DAB Station went off air on 1st June. However, you can order the CD for offline access, or listen to the peaceful sounds of Dawn Chorus via your computer, using the player on http://www.birdsongradio.com/. You can also become a Facebook Fan or follow the service on Twitter.

Calvin at 500

Marking the 500th anniversary of the birth of John Calvin, Radio 4's Beyond Belief this week discussed why this major Protestant reformer altered the shape and changed the thinking of Western Europe. Listen here to learn more about the legacy of Calvin and why his ideas still influence churches in Britain and around the world today.

Over on the Theology Network, Mike Reeves introduces us to Calvin, his life and theology, in three talks.

In our Time on St Paul‏

Going to work this morning I heard a trailer for In our Time, presented by Melvyn Bragg. The focus for today's programme is St Paul: "The spirit of St Paul infuses Christianity still, but his life and his letters reveal the very early church; a community dealing with the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Without Paul's energy, his encouragement and his ideas, Christianity as we know it would simply not exist". You can listen again for the next week.

An Edible History of Humanity

Earlier this week I listened to a discussion on the Today programme between Tom Standage, the business editor of The Economist, and Peter Kendall, president of the National Farmers' Union, discuss how the history of food has affected the history of man.

The discussion was stimulated by the recent publication of a new book, An Edible History of Humanity. It was fascinating to hear Standage's thesis that the switch to farming has done more to change the world than any other human activity, and may have been one of man's biggest mistakes. You can read a review from the Sunday Times.

A restaurant in your living room?

I heard this news item on the Today Programme this morning and thought it sounded a great idea. As part of the Eat Newcastle Gateshead food festival, ten families have opened up their homes for an evening as "underground restaurants". The concept is simple: an amateur cook prepares and serves food for members of the public. There is usually a small charge but for a fraction of restaurant prices, the diners will get a meal that is authentic and distinctive. Check out the story here: a restaurant in your living room. It does sound a little bit like the Infusion formal dinners.

God.com

In God.com (broadcast yesterday on Radio 4), Dr Robert Beckford examines the popularity of religion on the internet. Every traditional religion and their denominations within has a web site as do a fast-growing number of individual churches, mosques and synagogues. In the programme, a podcasting priest, a blogging rabbi and an imam whether on-line religion is replacing more traditional forms.

The obligatory Olympics post

The 2008 Olympic Games commence today after what seems to have been a very long build-up.

I caught this morning's TFTD on the Olympic Games are a metaphor for life itself with a reminder of Paul's use of this metaphor in 1 Corinthians 9. I also appreciated the mention of Olympic athlete Eric Liddell , who was immortalised in the film Chariots of Fire.

[Posted on 08/08/08]

Something Understood: the potentially subversive nature of walking

On a Sunday morning and/or night I often drift in and out of sleeping and catch parts of Something Understood through the radio headphone under my pillow. The theme for last Sunday's episode was One Foot in Front, in which Mark Tully considered "the potentially subversive nature of walking. While walking may have immense therapeutic benefits, it is also about protest and pilgrimage." You can see the readings and music selected for this episode here or listen again until Sunday.

Cheep and cheerful - the new radio hit

Apparently an old recording of birdsong played on a loop on the old Oneword channel is causing a stir with tens of thousands of listeners flocking to it! In "cheep and cheerful" Elisabeth Mahoney writes in The Guardian:

"When digital radio station Oneword closed last month, it seemed that things couldn't get any worse for the broadcaster. But indeed they could. Gallingly, the temporary replacement on the old Oneword channel - a 1992 recording of birdsong, played on a loop - is causing more of a stir than its predecessor ever managed, with tens of thousands of listeners flocking to it.

"The warbling and tweeting is proving an unlikely hit with urbanites apparently hankering for the soundtrack of a rural idyll. Online radio and bird-watching forums are full of chirrupy comments. 'It is a lot more enjoyable than some of the rubbish on air these days,' trills one happy listener, 'and definitely better than phone-in shows full of 'oiks' shouting at each other.'"

The Strange Parallel World of Christian Pop

Earlier this week Paul Bayley investigated The Strange Parallel World of Christian Pop on Radio 4, which talks about the emergence of Christian pop music back in the 60 when "a few of the faithful were dabbling with the devil's music". Although they never got much airplay, "some of the music was surprisingly good - and now it's being rediscovered by fans of 60s psychedelia". In fact some rare recordings made by Christian pop groups from Britain during the 1960s and 70s have become collectors' items. You can use Radio 4's Listen Again feature to catch it until a week after transmission.

Guardian praises TFTD

You probably gather that I tend to listen to Thought for the Day most days, although I'm aware that opinions vary. However, I was intrigued to read a Guardian editorial today in their "In praise of...."series on TFTD. While still calling for the inclusion of "non-religious contributors", the leader says:

"while the slot may be one of Radio 4's Marmite offerings (provoking either love or hatred), the evidence shows the audience appreciates it"

Religion and Radio 4

After a Thought for the Day on the BBC marking the 40th anniversary of the reorganisation of its radio network, the Church Times looks back at Radio 4 and religion over the past four decades. In the article, "Wireless, but not yet faithless", David Hendy notes that Radio 4 was — and remains — ecumenical in the broadest sense: "a conduit of information, contemplation, surprise, familiarity, provocation, and escape". He concludes that Radio 4's essential purpose remains "a gently civilising mission, to show us the crooked timber of humanity — and that the world is broader than people sometimes think".
[This week's Church Times is available online because of the postal strike]

TFTD as Radio 4 turns 40

As Radio 4 turned 40, this morning Colin Morris looked back at Thought for the Day over the years. He likened speaking on TFTD to "tiptoeing through a minefield" and continued:. "If you are fervent, you'll be called preachy by the generality of listeners but approved of by the devout; if you are undogmatic, that may be more congenial to the generality, but the devout will write you off as wishy-washy". Very true! If your schedule doesn't allow you to catch TFTD every day you can listen / read it on the Radio4 website or get it as a Podcast.