The Meaning of Flowers

Sunflower

Fiona Stafford explores the meanings and importance to us of the sunflower.

• 15 mins

The Meaning of Flowers

Lily

Professor Fiona Stafford explores our contradictory relationship with the lily.

• 15 mins

The Meaning of Flowers

Rose

Professor Fiona Stafford discusses our millennia-long understanding of roses.

• 15 mins

The Meaning of Flowers

Magnolia

Fiona Stafford discusses magnolias, which are among the oldest plants in the world.

• 15 mins

The Meaning of Flowers

Daisy

Fiona Stafford discusses the daisy, an almost indestructible, pest-resistant flower.

• 15 mins

Islands

Iona

Poet Kenneth Steven reflects on Scottish island life.

• 14 mins

Islands

Hoy

Kenneth Steven explores Hoy, the only place of cliffs and mountains in the Orkney islands.

• 15 mins

Islands

Rum

Poet Kenneth Steven reflects on on Scottish island life.

• 15 mins

Islands

Raasay

Kenneth Steven on Raasay, an island close to Skye and once home to poet Sorley MacLean.

• 15 mins

Islands

St Kilda

Poet Kenneth Steven on the Scottish islands.

• 15 mins

The Birthday Treat

Lisa Appignanesi: A Visit to the Savoy Hotel

Lisa Appignanesi visits the Savoy Hotel, where she reflects on the glamorous Belle Epoque.

• 15 mins

The Birthday Treat

Michael Rosen: On the Trail of DH Lawrence

Michael Rosen visits Eastwood and the childhood home of DH Lawrence, who inspired him.

• 15 mins

The Birthday Treat

Gervase Phinn: On the Camino de Santiago

Gervase Phinn recalls joining the pilgrims on a visit to Santiago de Compostela in Spain.

• 15 mins

The Birthday Treat

Edwina Currie: A Ferry Across the Mersey

Edwina Currie returns to the Mersey, where she once took part in a schoolgirl ritual.

• 15 mins

The Birthday Treat

Marina Lewycka - Up the Eiffel Tower

Marina Lewycka takes a trip up the Eiffel Tower to reflect on a lifetime of visiting Paris

• 15 mins

New Generation Thinkers

Food: Are We What We Eat?

Christopher Kissane explores the role of food in past and present conflicts over identity.

• 15 mins

New Generation Thinkers

Partitioned Memories

Anindya Raychaudhuri considers people's memories of India and Pakistan in 1947.

• 15 mins

New Generation Thinkers

Telephone Terrors

Poet Sarah Jackson explores the phone and its voices in philosophy and fiction.

• 15 mins

New Generation Thinkers

Strindberg and 'the Woman Question'

Leah Broad considers 'the woman question' in 19th-century Scandinavian countries.

• 15 mins

New Generation Thinkers

The Rise and Fall of the Hairdresser

New Generation Thinker Seán Williams on the depiction of hairdressers in prints and prose

• 15 mins

Brick, Stone, Glass, Steel

288a Main Road

Novelist Mark Haddon reflects on the house in Northamptonshire that was his childhood home

• 15 mins

Brick, Stone, Glass, Steel

Impington College, Cambridge

Painter Humphrey Ocean introduces Impington College, built by architect Walter Gropius.

• 15 mins

Brick, Stone, Glass, Steel

Chesterfield's Crooked Spire, Derbyshire

Poet Helen explains why Chesterfield's Crooked Spire Church has inspired her.

• 15 mins

Brick, Stone, Glass, Steel

Queensferry Crossing, Scotland

Dr Gavin Francis on the largest balanced cantilever bridge ever to be built.

• 15 mins

Brick, Stone, Glass, Steel

Novelist Kit de Waal reflects on the architecture of the prison where she worked.

Novelist Kit de Waal reflects on the architecture of the prison where she once worked.

• 15 mins

All My Presidents

Ike and JFK

Michael Goldfarb recalls his family's encounters with Presidents Eisenhower and Kennedy.

• 15 mins

All My Presidents

The Evil that Men Do Lives After

Michael Goldfarb recalls the lasting memories he has of American president Richard Nixon.

• 15 mins

All My Presidents

The Lucky and the Luckless - Ronald Reagan and Jimmy Carter

Michael Goldfarb tells the story of American presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan.

• 15 mins

All My Presidents

Talkin' 'bout My Generation - Bill Clinton and George W Bush

Michael Goldfarb discusses American presidents Bill Clinton and George W Bush.

• 15 mins

All My Presidents

The Bully Pulpit

Speeches by Presidents Eisenhower, Carter and Obama that have shaped modern US history.

• 15 mins