BBC Radio 4

Having presented well over 1,000 episodes of the much-loved BBC Radio 4 series, Melvyn Bragg has made the decision to step down from In Our Time following the series which aired earlier this year Read more via @bbcpress ➡️ bbc.in/3K0J2RE

Remembering writer and producer, Bill Dare. Julia McKenzie, Comedy Commissioner for BBC Radio 4: “ I am so terribly sorry to hear this tragic news and my thoughts are with Bill's wife, family and friends. Bill has been a huge part of Radio 4 comedy for decades, as a writer and producer, and listeners will have heard his legendary name at the end of many of their favourite shows.   “Bill was a comedy obsessive, and very instinctive about making the funniest choices when it came to writing, directing and editing. He cared so much about his work that in the production booth during Dead Ringers you’d see him crouched over the script, utterly focused on the show. Dead Ringers was on air over many momentous political events, including several general elections and Brexit, which always necessitated writing overnight, and every time he nailed the comedy but also the emotional dimension which made a lot of his satire so powerful. He was funny and very dry in person, amusingly cynical when he needed to be and always pushed to keep the comedy he made, and particularly satire, spiky. I’ve known and worked with him for 18 years and like many I can’t believe he has gone, he will leave a big hole in the comedy world and in our hearts.”    Richard Morris, Creative Director of Comedy and Entertainment at BBC Studios Audio: “Bill was a legendary figure in the comedy world and we, his friends and colleagues in radio will miss him hugely. Not only did he create and develop so many of Radio 4’s most popular comedy shows from The Now Show to Dead Ringers, but he was also a great source of creative encouragement to so many new writers and performers who he supported taking their first steps in the industry. We’ll miss the sharp wit and wisdom he brought to every production he worked on.” Our thoughts are with Bill’s family and friends. Bill Dare 1960-2025

As we wrap up our Shipping Forecast day, have you ever taken a wind down with the Sleeping Forecast instead? Listen along to a soothing blend of classical and ambient music from BBC Introducing artists interspersed with excerpts of the iconic Shipping Forecast from Radio 4.

Have you ever wanted to know how we record the Shipping Forecast? Well, Viji Alles, one of the many famous voices in the Radio 4 Continuity team, takes us behind the scenes and even lifts the lid about some of the funny things you'll find in the studio!

As Radio 4 continues to celebrate the centenary of the Shipping Forecast, some of our Continuity team have travelled the length and breadth of the UK to some of the famous points on the forecast in a special programme called The Shipping Postcards.

Celebrating 100 years of the Shipping Forecast & we've a challenge for you! Remix this audio, reply to this audio or record yourself trying out this short version, you can also use the hashtag #ShippingForecastChallenge & we'll pick some of our favourites later in the week!

"From me, good morning and goodbye." Listen to @MishalHusain sign off from her last #R4Today programme. We'll miss you! 👋

The hidden scandal of Power of Attorney - how one man controls the finances of scores of vulnerable people. The BBC's @SueM1tchell investigates a widespread business practice where some people are moved out of their homes and left with no idea what is happening to their money. Shadow World: The Willpower Detectives | Listen on BBC Sounds

"It's a mistake to think that people who kill are not human." Titled Four Questions about Violence, This year’s BBC Radio 4 Reith Lecturer Dr Gwen Adshead addresses the most pertinent questions that she has faced in her work as a forensic psychiatrist. The lectures were recorded in front of live audiences in London, Dundee, Bergen and HMP Grendon - the first time a Reith lecture has been recorded in a prison. The Reith Lectures | Listen on BBC Sounds

"What is evil? What do we mean by it?" Wicked, the film adaptation of the award-winning musical, is released in the UK on Friday. Gregory Maguire, who wrote the original book, tells #BBCWato what inspired him to write the origin of the Wicked Witch of the West.

"Everyone believed that the American accent itself somehow brought with it glamour, success and a sort of fame." @EvanHD asks Colm Tóibín, author of Brooklyn and Long Island, about the themes of Irish identity and immigration to the US in his novels. #BBCPM

June Spencer, the last original cast member of The Archers, has died aged 105. Mohit Bakaya, Controller of Radio 4 said: “June Spencer has been a longstanding presence and companion for Radio 4 listeners during her exceptional run on The Archers. Many have grown up with June as Peggy and listened as she journeyed through life’s many chapters, with all of its ups and downs." “In her later years, her portrayal of a devoted wife caring for a husband with Dementia, including their very moving final goodbye, was deeply poignant and powerful radio. We send all our love and condolences to June’s family and the many people whose lives she touched.” Jeremy Howe, Editor of The Archers said: "Working with June was like working with a legend, and has been one of the great privileges of my time at the BBC. Here was this person, immaculately dressed and sitting bolt upright in the Green Room at BBC Birmingham, script at the ready, all meticulously marked up with little pencil squiggles and dashes like musical notation, who had been in the first ever episode of the Archers back in 1951. June Spencer wasn’t just a brilliant Peggy Woolley, the ultimate matriarch of Ambridge, but a brilliant actress. I only ever worked with her in radio, but her technique, her precision, her delivery were flawless." “One of the cast once remarked that in all her time in the show he had only ever heard her fluff her lines the once. She was an actress who revelled in her craft, someone who could score a bullseye with a gently insulting cough as if it were a bon mot from Oscar Wilde. She was also a great company member – funny, sharp, warm, never gossipy, but with wonderful stories of the early days of radio drama, self deprecating and a great companion. The two things I would never commit to with June were being driven by her at the age of one hundred and one or taking her on at Scrabble. She was a Scrabble demon. June’s Peggy Woolley was and always will be the Queen of Ambridge, and with her death The Archers has lost its link with the birth of the show over seventy years ago. It is a humbling moment for us all.”

@MishalHusain @bbcnickrobinson Congratulations, Mishal! 👏👏👏

No stray item in the running order is ever getting past me again! This was very generous of @bbcnickrobinson and the team: beyond not knowing where to look I am honoured by the award and the reaction. Last night I thought of so many of the broadcasters whose words and work have shaped me, and also with gratitude - for different reasons - for the lives of both Charles and Dip Wheeler. Thank you @TheBJReview @UniWestminster @JournoCharity , and Shirin and Marina Wheeler. Now back to work!

“If Trump was to appear on your podcast this morning, what one question would you each ask?” @amolrajan & @bbcnickrobinson answer your questions in a US election Q&A episode of The Today Podcast. 📻 Listen on BBC Sounds: bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0…

“Is it the first time a convicted felon has been elected president of the United States?” #Americast discuss Donald Trump’s convictions and what could happen next 🎧 bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0…

Did the Israel-Gaza war cost Harris the election? Sarah Smith explains why some Democrats voted for Donald Trump on the latest #Americast bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0…

Could the Democrats use their final months in power to aid Ukraine? Trump says he could end the war before taking office. Sarah Smith explains what that could mean for Ukraine on the latest #Americast

‘What would he actually do in office? That’s the real issue here.’ Lord Sedwill, who was the UK’s top civil servant and dealt with Donald Trump during his last presidential term, talks to @bbcnickrobinson & @amolrajan. Listen to The Today Podcast: bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0…

What happened at Kamala Harris HQ on election night? Listen to Sarah Smith on the latest #Americast… Americast | Listen on BBC Sounds