| 00:00 | 00:00The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. 00:15Men, masculinities and violence. Also, stag parties, deviance and consumerism.(R) 00:45Church bells from Worcester Cathedral.(R) 00:48The latest shipping forecast.
| 00:00The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. 00:301/5Feeling the pull of the north west, a journalist travels to the Hebridean island of Jura.(R) 00:48The latest shipping forecast.
| 00:00The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. 00:302/5Madeleine Bunting visits Iona and uncovers the remote island's well-connected past.(R) 00:48The latest shipping forecast.
| 00:00The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. 00:303/5The author reaches Rum and is struck by its history of rental, ownership and clearance.(R) 00:48The latest shipping forecast.
| 00:00The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. 00:304/5On Lewis, Madeleine Bunting learns how the Gaelic language is enmeshed with landscape.(R) 00:48The latest shipping forecast.
| 00:00The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. 00:305/5At the end of her journey, Madeleine Bunting reaches the archipelago of St Kilda.(R) 00:48The latest shipping forecast.
| 00:48The latest shipping forecast.
| |
|---|
| 01:00 | 01:00BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
| 01:00BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
| 01:00BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
| 01:00BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
| 01:00BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
| 01:00BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
| 01:00BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
| |
|---|
| 02:00 | | | | | | | | |
|---|
| 03:00 | | | | | | | | |
|---|
| 04:00 | | | | | | | | |
|---|
| 05:00 | 05:20The latest shipping forecast. 05:43A reading and a reflection to start the day, with the Rev Dr Karen Smith. 05:45England is to apply for TB-free status for half the country. 05:56The latest weather forecast for farmers. 05:58Wildlife Sound Recordist, Chris Watson, presents the Crested Tit.(R)
| 05:20The latest shipping forecast. 05:43A reading and a reflection to start the day, with the Rev Dr Karen Smith. 05:45Has the WHO report on the cancer risks of eating bacon affected our shopping habits? 05:58Martin Hughes-Games presents the willow tit.(R)
| 05:20The latest shipping forecast. 05:43A reading and a reflection to start the day, with the Rev Dr Karen Smith. 05:45Asparagus from the Vale of Evesham gains EU protected food status after a 4-year campaign. 05:58Martin Hughes-Games presents the Tree Sparrow.(R)
| 05:20The latest shipping forecast. 05:43A reading and a reflection to start the day, with the Rev Dr Karen Smith. 05:45Why a shortage of seasonal workers post-Brexit could mean more expensive turkeys next year 05:58Wildlife sound recordist Chris Watson presents the rock dove.(R)
| 05:20The latest shipping forecast. 05:43A reading and a reflection to start the day, with the Rev Dr Karen Smith. 05:45The Tenant Farmers Association calls for county councils to keep their farm estates. 05:58Martin Hughes-Games presents the Little Auk.(R)
| 05:20The latest shipping forecast. 05:30The latest news from BBC Radio 4. 05:43A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Leslie Griffiths. 05:45We hear two stories from listeners who have very different Christmases. iPM@bbc.co.uk.
| 05:20The latest shipping forecast. 05:43Church bells from Durham Cathedral. 05:45Marks Coles profiles the author and illustrator Raymond Briggs.(R)
| |
|---|
| 06:00 | 06:00News and current affairs. Includes Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.
| 06:00Including Yesterday in Parliament, Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.
| 06:00Including Yesterday in Parliament, Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.
| 06:00Including Yesterday in Parliament, Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.
| 06:00News and current affairs. Including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.
| 06:00News headlines, plus a look at the papers. 06:04The latest weather forecast. 06:07To celebrate winter solstice Helen Mark visits prehistoric monument Newgrange in Ireland.(R) 06:30Caz Graham takes a look at some festive gifts all made on farms. 06:57The latest weather forecast.
| 06:00The latest national and international news. 06:05Mark Tully on the angels' message of goodwill at Christmas. Readings from Derek Jacobi. 06:35Lionel Kelleway is in Scotland looking at the diminutive wren. Recorded in 1999. 06:57The latest weather forecast.
| |
|---|
| 07:00 | | | | | | 07:00News and current affairs. Including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.
| 07:00Edward Stourton goes back to Christmas 1516 and time of Martin Luther. 07:54Alexander Armstrong makes an appeal on behalf of MapAction. 07:57The latest weather forecast.
| |
|---|
| 08:00 | | | | | | | 08:00Including pieces on a special partridge, books, Jesus and Mary in Islam and Welsh carols. 08:58Wildlife Sound Recordist, Chris Watson, presents the Crested Tit.(R)
| |
|---|
| 09:00 | 09:00Andrew Marr with Brian Cox, Saiful Islam, Andrea Wulf and Michael Lewis. 09:451/5Feeling the pull of the north west, a journalist travels to the Hebridean island of Jura.
| 09:00US science superstar, Neil de Grasse Tyson describes why Pluto isn't a planet. 09:30Television exec Peter Bazalgette examines empathy in doctors and the difference it makes. 09:452/5Madeleine Bunting visits Iona and uncovers the remote island's well-connected past.
| 09:00Actor Sophie Thompson joins Libby Purves. 09:453/5The author reaches Rum and is struck by its history of rental, ownership and clearance.
| 09:00Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss TS Eliot's Four Quartets, known as his great last work. 09:454/5On Lewis, Madeleine Bunting learns how the Gaelic language is enmeshed with landscape.
| 09:00Bruce Springsteen is interviewed by Kirsty Young for Desert Island Discs.(R) 09:455/5At the end of her journey, Madeleine Bunting reaches the archipelago of St Kilda.
| 09:00Arabella Weir joins Aasmah Mir and Suzy Klein, with the Inheritance Tracks of Bill Bailey.
| 09:00A service for Christmas from Durham Cathedral. With Canon Angela Tilby. 09:45Father Christmas, Toy Story and six-year-old twins all feature in this festive edition.
| |
|---|
| 10:00 | 10:00Christmas Day working; stalking law change; Danielle Dutton; Philip Davies. 10:451/10Jane Austen's satire on all things Gothic with Miriam Margolyes.
| 10:00Reducing insulin to control weight, Zsa Zsa Gabor and power, 2016 in gingerbread. 10:452/10Catherine Morland becomes extremely worried. Stars Georgia Groome.
| 10:00Seven women discuss life for women aged 70. 10:413/10Catherine finds her plan to spend more time with Henry Tilney thwarted. 10:55Twins debate irritating older siblings and expose widely differing perceptions of distance
| 10:00Sigourney Weaver talks about playing a grandmother in A Monster Calls. 10:454/10Catherine discovers that heroines must take desperate action to get what they want.
| 10:00Lia Williams and Juliet Stevenson on the nightly stage roles, decided by tossing a coin. 10:455/10Catherine receives a most pleasing invitation and a most displeasing engagement.
| 10:30Rajesh Mirchandani meets with Kevin Bacon to explore the strange game of fame.
| 10:00Jennifer tries to keep the peace, and Lynda fears for her reputation.
| |
|---|
| 11:00 | 11:00Ben is trying to produce the best Santa grotto in the Midlands. Will he pull it off? 11:304/4Trisha introduces Deepak to the British seaside.
| 11:00Is this the beginning of a new expansion in human rights for great apes? 11:30How country music became a powerful form of expression for Australia’s Aboriginal peoples.
| 11:00Poet Imtiaz Dharker explores the history, cultural significance and psychology of sighing.(R) 11:302/2A lonely old man receives an unexpected visitor with a story which changes his life.
| 11:00James Fletcher asks if art and activism can bring about change in Malaysia. 11:30Time to re-think the mid-life crisis? Stephen Smith explores....(R)
| 11:00Lynne Truss explores the history of the Speaking Clock. With Professor Stephen Hawking.(R) 11:304/4Bill Nighy stars as the actor cum amateur sleuth who's never far from a murder.
| 11:00A reimagining the story of the Nativity, 'written' by five- and six-year-old children. 11:30Correspondents' stories from Somaliland, Catalonia, India, Russia and the City of Light.
| 11:15Gareth Malone, choirmaster, is interviewed by Kirsty Young for Desert Island Discs.
| |
|---|
| 12:00 | 12:00The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. 12:04Alan Lowther is increasingly caught in the middle at Marshalls'. 12:15A look at hotel investments that go wrong and how to make high streets successful. 12:57The latest weather forecast.
| 12:00The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. 12:04On the day German peace proposals are published, Adeline has negotiations of her own. 12:15Do strikes work? Callers discuss their experiences with industrial action. 12:57The latest weather forecast.
| 12:00The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. 12:04There are grumblings in the Belgian colony in Birtley. 12:13Don Paterson reads his poem Rain as part of Radio 4's Four Seasons. 12:15The government review into home energy improvements. And how audio books are put together. 12:57The latest weather forecast.
| 12:00The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. 12:04Evelina is determined to keep politics out of her toyshop. 12:15Nearly half of the water companies in England and Wales are getting more complaints. 12:57The latest weather forecast.
| 12:00The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. 12:04Epic drama series set in Great War Britain on this day a hundred years ago. 12:15Hospital lawyers; 1970s food; Brent Cross shopping centre; Mozart sales.
| 12:00The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. 12:04What can we learn from a personal finance guidebook that's 153 years old?(R) 12:301/2Tinselly satire, spreading good will to all - except those who'll be stuffed and roasted.(R) 12:57The latest weather forecast.
| 12:00The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. 12:046/6Barry Cryer, Tim Brooke-Taylor, Jeremy Hardy and Miles Jupp join Jack Dee.(R) 12:32Sheila Dillon explores the Wild Boar Feast, an ancient Christmas tradition. 12:57The latest weather forecast.
| |
|---|
| 13:00 | 13:00The programme hears from the man leading the operation against so-called Islamic State. 13:451/5An exploration of the idea of secret knowledge.
| 13:00Analysis of news and current affairs with Martha Kearney. 13:452/5Tiffany Jenkins explores the power of secrets in religions.
| 13:00Analysis of news and current affairs. 13:43Carol Ann Duffy reads her poem Snow for the Winter Solstice. 13:453/5Tiffany Jenkins explores the development of 'state secrets'.
| 13:00Analysis of news and current affairs. 13:454/5Tiffany Jenkins explores the idea of secret knowledge: the impact of family secrets
| 13:00Analysis of news and current affairs. 13:455/5Tiffany Jenkins explores whether 'transparency' is a panacea?
| 13:00The latest news from BBC Radio 4. 13:15Louiza Patikas introduces the best of BBC Radio this year.(R)
| 13:00The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. 13:15A tribute to the late broadcasting legend Nicholas Parsons, CBE.
| |
|---|
| 14:00 | 14:00Ruth clashes with Jill.(R) 14:15By Katherine Jakeways. Festive comedy drama starring Geoffrey Palmer.
| 14:00Susan celebrates at Ambridge View.(R) 14:15A musical love story with a twist, by poet and comic John Hegley.
| 14:00Jennifer tries to keep the peace.(R) 14:15The women who trained as astronauts but were never allowed to go into space.(R)
| 14:00Lynda fears for her reputation.(R) 14:15Comedy drama about the relationship between Terry-Thomas and Richard Briers, by Roy Smiles(R)
| 14:15A magical Christmas drama by Elliott Kerrigan. Starring Luke Newberry and Lizzie Roper.
| 14:00Alistair McGowan plays all 44 parts in David Spicer's comic take on the Lord of Lies.
| 14:00Eric Robson chairs a special edition recorded inside Number 10 Downing Street.(R) 14:45Peter Bazalgette talks to Jane Davis about the power of reading in encouraging empathy.
| |
|---|
| 15:00 | 15:00Tom Sutcliffe chairs the game of lateral thinking and cryptic connections. 15:30Sheila Dillon takes an irreverent look at baking and the history of cake.(R)
| 15:00Miranda Sawyer explores the London Film-makers' Co-op and its refreshing approach to film. 15:30What is it like to get seriously lost? Fi Glover meets three people who know.
| 15:00What can we learn from a personal finance guidebook that's 153 years old? 15:30Adolescent brain, awards update, phonagnosia.(R) 15:58Noma Dumezweni reads A Robin, by Walter de la Mare, as part of Radio 4's Four Seasons.
| 15:00To celebrate winter solstice Helen Mark visits prehistoric monument Newgrange in Ireland. 15:27Cecily, whose child has benefited from the Amber Trust, appeals on the charity's behalf.(R) 15:30Mariella Frostrup and guests look at the life and work of Shirley Jackson.(R)
| 15:00Eric Robson chairs a special edition recorded inside Number 10 Downing Street. 15:45A young goalkeeper becomes an unlikely hero - until a kind gesture goes horribly wrong.
| 15:00Christmas carols and readings live from the candlelit chapel of King's College, Cambridge.
| 15:00The Queen's Christmas message to the Commonwealth and the nation. 15:05The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. 15:15Rumpole shares some of his favourite yuletide stories as he recounts seasonal legal cases.
| |
|---|
| 16:00 | 16:00Run, Rudolph, run! Cathy FitzGerald goes reindeer-racing in the Arctic Circle. From 2015. 16:30Ernie Rea and guests discuss the belief that Jesus was born of a virgin birth.
| 16:00Proinsias O'Coinn sets out to untangle the secret history of a vintage army jacket. 16:30Matthew Parris invites Orlando Murrin to discuss the life of Romanian pianist Dinu Lipatti
| 16:00The Musicians Union. Also women heavy metal fans. 16:30Andrea Catherwood asks what is next for Murdoch's bid for Sky.
| 16:00Francine Stock and guests discuss the best films of 2016. 16:30Can Inuits survive the Arctic cold thanks to deep past liaisons with another species?
| 16:00Julian Worricker on a journalist, an actress, a politician, a rabbi, a composer. 16:30Tim Harford poses a tough statistical challenge. 16:55A Buddhist Santa Claus and a chaplain contemplate Christmas morning in a hospice.
| 16:30How to mark the events of 2016 in gingerbread people. Working at Christmas. Sarah Phelps.
| 16:00A special edition of Open Book - literary postcards from around the world. 16:30An anthology of seasonal poems old and new, read by actors and poets.
| |
|---|
| 17:00 | 17:00Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.
| 17:00Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.
| 17:00Coverage and analysis of the day's news. 17:58Kathleen Jamie reads her poem Perfect Day as part of Radio 4's Four Seasons.
| 17:00Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.
| 17:00Eddie Mair with interviews, context and analysis.
| 17:00We hear two stories from listeners who have very different Christmases. iPM@bbc.co.uk.(R) 17:54The latest shipping forecast. 17:57The latest weather forecast.
| 17:00Listening Project producers remember the highs and lows of the Booth summer tour. 17:54The latest shipping forecast. 17:57The latest weather forecast.
| |
|---|
| 18:00 | 18:00The Russian ambassador to Turkey has been shot and killed in the capital, Ankara. 18:306/6Barry Cryer, Tim Brooke-Taylor, Jeremy Hardy and Miles Jupp join Jack Dee.
| 18:00Police release Christmas market suspect and say attacker could still be on the loose 18:306/6Clare and Libby find themselves stranded a long way from home. Starring Sally Phillips.
| 18:00A Tunisian asylum-seeker has been named as suspect in Berlin market attack 18:304/4Victoria Coren Mitchell talks to Germaine Greer about her life and the cars she has known.
| 18:00Trump says US must expand nuclear capability Fingerprints found in Berlin attack lorry 18:302/2Aditi Mittal looks at her patriarchal home nation from the point of view of being young.
| 18:00The man suspected of carrying out the Berlin Christmas market attack has been shot dead. 18:301/2Tinselly satire, spreading good will to all - except those who'll be stuffed and roasted.
| 18:00Police in Tunisia have arrested three men they've described as a "terrorist cell" 18:15Clive Anderson and guests with an eclectic mix of conversation, music and comedy.
| 18:00A recovery operation is taking place after a Russian plane crashed into the Black Sea. 18:15The best of BBC Radio this week. 18:56Alexander Armstrong makes an appeal on behalf of MapAction.(R)
| |
|---|
| 19:00 | 19:00Susan celebrates at Ambridge View. 19:15Martin Freeman and Mark Gatiss on the new Sherlock plus best albums of the year. 19:451/10Jane Austen's satire on all things Gothic with Miriam Margolyes.(R)
| 19:00Jennifer tries to keep the peace. 19:15Barry Jenkins, Agatha Christie's The Witness for the Prosecution, Saint Joan, Meilyr Jones 19:452/10Catherine Morland becomes extremely worried. Stars Georgia Groome.(R)
| 19:00Lynda fears for her reputation. 19:15Dame Helen Mirren, conductor Ed Gardner, poet Kayo Chingonyi, hairy old rockers. 19:453/10Catherine finds her plan to spend more time with Henry Tilney thwarted.(R)
| 19:15Trumpeter Alison Balsom, and a review of Sally Wainwright's Brontë drama To Walk Invisible 19:454/10Catherine discovers that heroines must take desperate action to get what they want.(R)
| 19:00Henry looks forward to Christmas Day. 19:15Actor and rapper Riz Ahmed discusses his career and a review of Dawn French in Delicious. 19:455/10Catherine receives a most pleasing invitation and a most displeasing engagement.(R)
| 19:00Marks Coles profiles the author and illustrator Raymond Briggs. 19:15Art at London's Old Vic, Scorsese: Silence, VR gaming, Yaa Gyasi's Homegoing, Alan Bennett
| 19:00Helen has an early start. 19:152/2Arthur sets up his own Japanese-themed Christmas wonderland. 19:45A resonantly beautiful seasonal story by George Mackay Brown. Read by Robert Jack.
| |
|---|
| 20:00 | 20:00Poet Imtiaz Dharker explores the history, cultural significance and psychology of sighing. 20:30Jill McGivering reports on the rising tide of Hindu extremism in India.(R)
| 20:00Charles Adesina explores what it means to be gay, lesbian or transgender in Africa. 20:40Peter White and his guests discuss suitable gifts for blind and partially sighted people.
| 20:00Claudia Hammond explores our complex relationship with cash. 20:45Matt Hood says we need to treat teaching like a performance profession.
| 20:00What is Liberalism? And did it die in 2016 as both left and right wing media claim? 20:30Andrew Dickson asks: Who pays for the arts? Who should pay for the arts?
| 20:00Louiza Patikas introduces the best of BBC Radio this year. 20:45Howard Jacobson searches for his Word of the Year.
| 20:00What is the enduring appeal of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens?
| 20:00Tim Harford poses a tough statistical challenge.(R) 20:30Julian Worricker on a journalist, an actress, a politician, a rabbi, a composer.(R)
| |
|---|
| 21:00 | 21:003/3A WWII transatlantic telephone line censor reveals what happens when you really listen.(R) 21:30Andrew Marr with Brian Cox, Saiful Islam, Andrea Wulf and Michael Lewis.(R)
| 21:00Researchers and families discuss a study of consciousness in patients with brain injuries. 21:30In a typically playful turn, Lionel Blue presents his own obituary.
| 21:00Naomi Alderman tells the story of engineer Hertha Ayrton, who refined street lights. 21:30Actor Sophie Thompson joins Libby Purves.(R)
| 21:00Can Inuits survive the Arctic cold thanks to deep past liaisons with another species?(R) 21:30Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss TS Eliot's Four Quartets, known as his great last work.(R)
| 21:00Epic drama series set in Great War Britain a hundred years ago this week.
| 21:00Tristran Thorn travels to the mysterious land of Faerie in pursuit of a fallen star.(R)
| 21:00Tristran must find and rescue the star before she is captured by dark forces in Faerie.
| |
|---|
| 22:00 | 22:00Investigation into "terror attack" after truck ploughs into market in central Berlin. 22:45A German widow takes her future into her own hands by making a generous bequest.
| 22:00Pressure mounts on Angela Merkel to change her immigration policy. 22:45A talented chef learns humility in this short story by Alexander McCall Smith.
| 22:00German police search for a Tunisian man in connection with the Berlin lorry attack. 22:45James Fleet reads a short story by Alexander McCall Smith, set on the Isle of Mull.
| 22:00A seven-year-old girl, famous for her tweets, tells the BBC about her life in Aleppo. 22:45Over a dry martini, Grace tells the story of her many marriages. Read by Stephanie Cole.
| 22:00The UN criticises Israeli settlements in the West Bank - the US abstains from the vote. 22:45A dutiful political leader is moved by a poor man's plight. Read by William Gaminara.
| 22:00The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4. 22:15Claudia Hammond explores our complex relationship with cash.(R)
| 22:00Armstrong and Miller reunite to present their favourite bits of writing, music and song.
| |
|---|
| 23:00 | 23:00Olly Mann and guests discuss heroism and role models. 23:30Sean Curran reports from Westminster.
| 23:002/4David Jason stars in David Renwick’s dark sketch show about laughter after the apocalypse. 23:30Susan Hulme reports from Westminster.
| 23:004/4More chaos and confusion from comedian Terry Alderton 23:153/4Merriment, melancholy and witty wordplay in equal measure.(R) 23:30Mark D'Arcy reports from Westminster. 23:55Frost at Midnight by Samuel Taylor Coleridge read by Simon Russell Beale for Four Seasons.
| 23:002/4Matt Harvey presents his poetry cabaret from the Swindon Festival of Literature.(R) 23:301/2Mike Garry's epic poem Men's Morning performed in its place of conception.(R)
| 23:00Matthew Parris invites Orlando Murrin to discuss the life of Romanian pianist Dinu Lipatti(R) 23:272/2Jackie Kay's ode to the women who have found a place to unwind and renew themselves.(R) 23:55Friends for whom Toy Story – especially film number three in the franchise – means a lot.
| 23:00Tom Sutcliffe chairs the game of lateral thinking and cryptic connections.(R) 23:30Midnight Mass, live from Westminster Abbey. With the dean, the Very Rev Dr John Hall.
| 23:00Glenda Jackson's returns to the stage for the first time in 23 years playing King Lear. 23:30Mark Tully on the angels' message of goodwill at Christmas. Readings from Derek Jacobi.(R)
| |
|---|
