The Ancient Algorithm

Eleanor Rosamund Barraclough delves into the history of runes, the ancient alphabet.

• 44 mins

Here Be Mermaids

Why are mermaids an ideal tool for describing things that our society does not understand?

• 14 mins

Dylan and the Ferry

Dafydd Mills Daniel investigates the story behind an iconic image of Bob Dylan.

• 14 mins

Afterwords: Muriel Spark

Reflections on the work of Muriel Spark, through archive of the author and new interviews.

• 44 mins

Afterwords: Chinua Achebe

The work of Chinua Achebe, in his own words, and in the words of those who knew him.

• 44 mins

Afterwords: Thich Nhat Hanh

A radio portrait of Vietnamese Buddhist monk and author Thich Nhat Hanh.

• 44 mins

City solutions

Professor Des Fitzgerald explores new thinking on the health impact of city life.

• 14 mins

Classical Commonwealth, Part 2

Errollyn Wallen unravels more stories of classical music across the British Commonwealth.

• 44 mins

Yellowstone - The Art of America

How art played a crucial role in creating the world's first national park.

• 44 mins

Frank Johnson, Queen Victoria and the Black Brass Band

Uchenna Ngwe tracks down the remarkable story of an African American musical pioneer.

• 44 mins

An Unconventional Teacher

Ralph Vaughan Williams's legacy as a teacher of women composers.

• 44 mins

Such Stuff As Dreams Are Made On

Simon Heffer explores what lies behind the Sixth Symphony by Vaughan Williams.

• 44 mins

The Sonic Century: A New Art

A kaleidoscopic montage exploring the life and work of radio pioneer Lance Sieveking.

• 44 mins

Chasing the Dream

Dr Hetta Howes examines the creative power of a disturbed night's sleep.

• 14 mins

The Microphone

Alan Dein explores the world-changing cultural history of an overlooked object.

• 44 mins

The Most Contrary Region

Paul Muldoon on how the arts influenced a century of broadcasting at the BBC in Belfast.

• 44 mins

Briggflatts - A Northern Poetic Odyssey

Rory Stewart in search of Basil Bunting’s neglected masterpiece about love, loss and time.

• 44 mins

Deeds and Words

Dr Diarmuid Hester explores the radical life of suffrage theatre pioneer Edith Craig.

• 14 mins

Shostakovich and the Battle for Babi Yar

The story of Shostakovich's Symphony No 13 and the trailblazing poem which inspired it.

• 44 mins

What Walls Hold

Charles Dickens’s life was shaped by an extraordinary house. Docudrama with Alex Jennings.

• 44 mins

O Sole Mio

On the streets of Naples, Joanna Robertson celebrates the city's unique musical tradition.

• 44 mins

Unlocking Anne

Clare Pollard pieces together the life and work of forgotten 16th-century poet Anne Lock.

• 44 mins

Scott Ross – Harpsichord Rebel

Phil Hebblethwaite traces the complex life of an early music maverick.

• 44 mins

Yiddish Glory

Songs confiscated by the KGB, and thought lost.

• 44 mins

Rebel Sounds: Musical Resistance in Barbados

Peter Brathwaite discovers the music of both his enslaved and slave-owning ancestors.

• 44 mins

Metal City

How has metalworking affected the culture of Birmingham over hundreds of years?

• 44 mins

Tutu - A Portrait of Nigeria

Chibundu Onuzo tells the story of ‘Africa’s Mona Lisa’ and its creator Ben Enwonwu.

• 44 mins

A Jig into History

Nandini Das celebrates the pioneering commercial triumph of Shakespeare's clown Will Kemp.

• 14 mins

Carol and Muriel

Carol Morley on Britain's most prolific female director, Muriel Box.

• 44 mins

Government Song Woman

Rhiannon Giddens investigates folk song collector Sidney Robertson Cowell.

• 44 mins