BBC Radio 4

Composed this for a recent BBC Radio 4 Documentary
Written and produced by me.

Young(ish)

A noisy exploration of the world of British Roller Derby. In this documentary we skate alongside the London Roller Girls to catch a glimpse of a dynamic new expression of female identity.

First broadcast in May 2011, BBC Radio 4
Produced by Eleanor McDowall

Photo by Derek Bremner http://www.derekbremner.com/

Roller Girls

Sarfraz Manzoor talks to American students from two different universities who have opted for a racially segregated education, whether black or white.

First broadcast 29th February 2008, BBC Radio 4
Presented by Sarfraz Manzoor
Produced by Alan Hall

A Race Apart

The story of Iraq's most celebrated heavy metal band, Acrassicauda.

Formed in Baghdad in 2000, they even managed to perform in front of wildly enthusiastic audiences during the violence and chaos that followed the fall of Saddam Hussein. This programme catches up with the four band members in Turkey, where they were living as refugees, and hears how they hoped to gain asylum in the United States and hit the big time.

First broadcast 11th September 2008, BBC Radio 4
Produced by Peregrine Andrews

Baghdad Headbangers

A look at the history and evolution of the radio documentary feature, a hybrid form which can sometimes appear closer to music or poetry than to news reporting.

The list of contributors features some of the finest feature-makers of their generation, including Chris Brookes, Berit Hedemann, Kaye Mortley, Robyn Ravlich, Edwin Brys, Simon Elmes, Mark Burman, Sarah Taylor and Piers Plowright.

First broadcast 28th June 2008 BBC Radio 4
Produced by Alan Hall

The Ballad Of The Radio Feature

Part one of a two-part series examining life at the edge of the city's urban sprawl as the rural environment takes over. 

Including interviews with archaeological historian Janet Clayton about the estate at Scadbury in south London, Danish architect Peder Boas Jensen about Copenhagen's Finger Plan, human geographer and folk singer Georgina Boyes, Irish town planners Michael Grace and Sheena McCambley and Robert Bruegmann, author of Sprawl: a Compact History. 

"...a quick hooray for a different type of documentary altogether ... about the frankly ridiculous topic of where suburbia hits the countryside. Not a 'proper' documentary subject, but the programme was beautifully put together... The speakers didn't introduce themselves until the very end. They weren't famous, their lives weren't 'great' , but they were, in their own way, still great." - The Observer 19 August 2007

First broadcast 14th August 2007 BBC Radio 4
Produced by Alan Hall

City Limits: Countryside

Part two of a two-part series examining life at the edge of the city's urban sprawl as the rural environment takes over.

In this programme the experiences of people living in the 1960s housing development of Ballymun, near Dublin, are interwoven with analysis and reflections from planners and sociologists including Michael Grace, Sheena McCambley, Terry Robinson of Natural England and folklorist Georgina Boyes.

City Limits: The Cityside

In this 'composed feature', the experiences of four professionals who rely on an innate sense of good timing are considered and counterpointed.  Playing upon the rhythmic qualities of their observations, composer Nina Perry reveals, demonstrates and celebrates the secrets of good timing.  

With drummer Dawne Adams, chef Brian Fantoni, squash champion Madeline Perry and comedian and 'juggling artiste' Steve Royle.

First broadcast 21st July 2006 BBC Radio 4
Produced by Nina Perry

Good Timing

Sara Parker's investigation into the phenomenon of Internet Sleuths, amateur detectives - such as Todd Matthews of the Doe Network - who use the web to solve 'cold cases' and help police identify missing persons. 

First broadcast 24th April 2007 BBC Radio 4
Produced by Sara Parker

Internet Sleuths

Completing an accurate map of all the stars in the night sky is the lifelong goal of astronomer and self-confessed nocturnal hermit, Brian Skiff. He spends an average of 150 nights a year 'at the eye piece'. 

In Lonely Nights, we experience a typical night in the life of one of this dwindling number of professionals as Brian searches for comets, locates 'near to earth orbiting asteroids' and pursues his "filing project of astronomical proportions". 

First broadcast on 26th May 2008 BBC Radio 4
Produced by Diane Hope and Alan Hall

"Its blend of night sounds - frogs, elks, coyotes, and the clunking of heavy telescopes - melted into ambient music to make a hypnotic, sensual tapestry." -  The Guardian 27th May 2008

Lonely Nights

On the 30th anniversary of Queen's majesterial pop classic, pomp rock's classical pretensions come under scrutiny from Times critic and 'innocent ear' Hilary Finch, opera singer Jane Manning, composer Joby Talbot, writer Simon Garfield, film buff Tommy Pearson, Radio 3's CD Review presenter Andrew McGregor, 'tribute band Freddie Mercury', Rob Comber and singer-songwriter Andy Watts who's composed a song specially for the programme.

First broadcast on 26th September 2005 BBC Radio 4
Produced by Alan Hall

Rhapsody In Bohemia

Third generation southern jazz musician Will Thompson joined the Louisiana National Guard to fund his way through studies at the University of New Orleans. Then, in April 2004, instead of graduating, he found himself deployed to Iraq. 

During his tour of duty Will documented his experiences in recordings of the sound of calls to prayer, radio bulletins, the nightly 'music' of mortar attacks and the gentle conversation of his comrades on the rooftop of the US Military compound. Before his tour of duty was over, he released this collection of music and found sound, calling it his Baghdad Music Journal. 

Shortly before returning to New Orleans hurricane Katrina struck. He's now back, staying in a FEMA trailer park and completing his studies at Ellis Marsalis' jazz department. This is the story of a musician and reluctant soldier.

First broadcast 21st December 2006 BBC Radio 4
Produced by Alan Hall

William Thompson IV's War

What happens when you leave 84 well-read copies of a book labelled Take Me Home and Read Me in public places in London and New York? When the book is Helene Hanff's much-loved 84 Charing Cross Road, the result is chains of those whose lives have been touched by the copy they've found...

First broadcast 1st May 2005 BBC Radio 4
Produced by Tim Heffer

84 Book Crossing Road

Ian Sansom can chart his life through his notebooks - he's been writing in them for 20 years.

He used to keep his notebooks in the freezer in case the house burnt down - until the notebooks in the freezer got damp. The current run of notebooks is stacked against the walls in his office and once a year he goes through them, harvesting for ideas and misplaced telephone numbers.

The notebook is - or has traditionally been - the crucible of creativity, a 'commonplace book', the first resort, and the last word in portable technology. They're where writers and artists begin. 

In this short, carefully scribbled history, Ian looks at his own and other people's and asks whether their time is now coming to an end.

First broadcast 16th February 2013 BBC Radio 4
Presented by Ian Sansom
Produced by Rachel Hooper

A Scribbled Aside

On the sixtieth anniversary of his death, Cerys Matthews takes a side-ways look at the life and work of her hero Dylan Thomas. Using special access to her uncle's extensive archive of interviews with those who knew him, she explores some of Dylan's greatest and lesser known works and finds her way to the man behind the myth.

First broadcast 25th October 2014 BBC Radio 4
Presented by Cerys Matthews
Produced by Sarah Cuddon

Cerys Goes Under Milk Wood

An exploration of the demolitions industry through the dismantling of one the largest granite faced buildings in the world, Marischal College in Aberdeen.

First broadcast 30th November 2009
Produced by Katie Burningham

Brick By Brick

The writer Garrett Carr charts the Irish border; a place of mythology and controversy.

First broadcast 30th June 2014 BBC Radio 4
Presented by Garrett Carr
Produced by Rachel Hooper

Charting The Border

Everyday, more than 400 cycle couriers race across London delivering packages and jumping red lights. In some ways, they lead a carefree life - cruising outside all day on bikes, often without brakes. But they're also embroiled in city life and the pressures that go with it: if a package isn't delivered, they don't get paid. It's a strange situation to be in, and through their eyes we get a unique perspective of urban life. 

Couriers Nhatt Attack and Will Melling and former courier Buffalo Bill reveal the alternative and somewhat precarious lifestyle of a city cycle courier.

"...a beautifully produced documentary..the toughness of the job was made clear but the portrayal - a rich soundscape of music and traffic noise, plus intriguing slivers of interview - left you associating it with wanderlust and non-conformity." - The Guardian, 19.08.08

First broadcast 18th August 2008 BBC Radio 4
Produced by Katie Burningham

City Messengers

Cerys Matthews celebrates the life of one of her musical heroines, the gospel singer Mahalia Jackson, who died in 1972.

"A passionate portrait of a true gospel great ... a monumental talent in danger of slipping into obscurity." -  The Independent, Thursday 10th May 2012

First broadcast 1st May 2012
Presented by Cerys Matthews
Produced by Sarah Cuddon

Conjuring Halie

The intriguing story of Hermann Rorschach, the Swiss psychiatrist who pioneered inkblot personality tests - a feature of modern psychoanalysis and an icon of popular culture.

First broadcast 25th July 2012 BBC Radio 4
Presented by Jo Fidgen
Produced by Alan Hall

Dr Inkblot

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