BBC Radio 4 and 4 Extra Programme Information, Week 11 (Saturday 14th March – Friday 20th March 2026)

WEEK 11Sunday 15th MarchDrama on 4: My Ántonia15:00 - 16:00Willa Cather’s beloved novel about an emblematic East European settler on the unspoiled plains of Nebraska in the 1880s, who, against terrible odds, reinvents the American Dream. Dramatised by Kate Clanchy. My Ántonia became an instant classic when it was first published in 1918. It inspired F. Scott Fitzgerald and is now regarded as a cornerstone of the American novel, an exquisitely written, feminist Little House on the Prairie for adults. This adaptation – the first for the BBC – is a soulful, affirming drama about the resilience of the human spirit, young love that lasts forever, and our connection to the land. It continues the Story of America collection of dramatisations of milestone American titles marking 250 years since the Declaration of Independence and the foundation of the United States. As children, Jim, an orphan from Virginia, and Ántonia, a Bohemian immigrant, are among the first pioneer settlers when they arrive in the Midwest – a world with ‘no fences. Only the ground and sun and sky were left’. (Willa Cather was also a child when her family arrived as settlers in Nebraska from Virginia.) The children play rapturously but, as they grow up, and the pristine prairie goes rapidly under the plough, their paths diverge. Ántonia’s family, ill-equipped to farm, stumbles towards tragedy. Jim excels at school while Ántonia loses her chance of education. But love endures, as does the hope of the American Dream. Jim returns from his life in New York to search for Ántonia and ask if there can be more than the ‘precious, incommunicable past’ between them. Jim ….. Danny MahoneyEmmaline ….. Lorelei KingÁntonia ….. Vera GraziadeiAmbrosch ….. Greg KolpakchiChild Ántonia ….. Emily CosttriciChild Jim ….. Max Lester With specially composed music by Katharine Seaton, performed by Yeva Volkava (violin) and Katharine Seaton (piano). Production Co-ordinator: Sarah TomblingSound Designer: David Thomas Director / Producer: Amber Barnfather A Flare Path production for BBC Radio 4  Monday 16th MarchThe Race to Control the World13:45 - 14:001/5The US and China are locked in a race to dominate the world of Artificial Intelligence - who has the edge? While the US and the USSR fought the Cold War in the second half of the 20th Century. In the first half of the 21st Century, the US now finds itself in a different kind of war with a different adversary - China. But this battle for supremacy is no longer being fought out via a nuclear arms race, but instead, a desire to dominate technology. It’s a fight being realised in research labs, universities campuses, and the offices of cutting-edge start-ups - watched-over by leaders of some of the world’s richest companies, and the highest level of government. In this series, Misha Glenny explores some of the key areas of this rivalry - from AI to robotics to satellites and explains how it's going to impact all our lives. It’s a global contest which is consuming vast resources, both physical and intellectual, and costing trillions of dollars as the modern-day super powers race to control the world. In episode one, Misha looks at the race to control what many see as the definitive technology of our age - predicted to change our lives in a myriad of ways: Artificial Intelligence. Presenter: Misha GlennyProducer: Ben CarterEditor: Richard Fenton-Smith  Unspeakable18:30 - 19:001/6This episode we hear Tim Vine's word for suspicious squirrels, Olga Koch with an improvement on 'Googling oneself', and Aurie Styla's word for leaving a party early. Ever struggled to find the right word for a feeling or sensation? Unspeakable sees comedian Phil Wang and lexicographer Susie Dent invite celebrity guests to invent new linguistic creations, to solve those all too relatable moments when we're lost for words. Hosts: Phil Wang and Susie DentGuests: Olga Koch, Aurie Styla and Tim VineCreated by Joe VarleyWriters: Matt Crosby and James FarmerRecorded by Jerry PealProducer: Jon HarveyExecutive Producers: Joe Varley and Akash Lockmun A Brown Bred production for BBC Radio 4   Tuesday 17th MarchUnder a Cloud16:00 - 16:30The Poet Laureate Simon Armitage writes about clouds a lot. And high up in Marsden he lives in them too.But he wants to bring the sky out of the background of his work and into the foreground - to consider why the floating grey blobs that ruin picnics and are the centrepiece of childhood paintings hold such a fascination for artists.They hold a particular grip on poets, and most of us know exactly what Wordsworth wandered lonely as.Simon visits the poet's home to browse Wordsworth's notebooks and heads to The National Gallery to explore the meticulous approach of John Constable in The Haywain.Finally, he sets himself a nerve-wracking challenge, bringing a boyhood ambition full circle.He's in serious training. He's going to present the weather. Presented by Simon ArmitageProduced by Kevin Core  Wednesday 18th MarchMoney, Influence and the NHS15:30 - 16:001/3Dr Margaret McCartney tells her story of a 20-year quest to reveal conflicts of interest in medicine. What might be the financial influences that can impact your treatments and how do they affect trust? Margaret is a GP and academic who has campaigned to expose hidden influences in medicine. She goes back to the powerful 2005 Health Select Committee; a parliamentary investigation called The Influence of the Pharmaceutical Industry, to discover what they found.   BBC Radio 4 Extra Programme Information, Week 11 (Saturday 14th March – Friday 20th March 2026) Saturday 14th MarchHaving a Ball1/111.00 – 12:30New to 4 Extra. To mark the 80th birthday of Liverpudlian playwright Alan Bleasdale (b. 23/3/1946), 4 Extra broadcasts his play set in a private clinic specialising in cosmetic and social surgery. Four men are awaiting vasectomies. But the play takes in far more than just the men's reactions to the prospect of surgery. He went on to be best known for his groundbreaking television series, Boys From the Blackstuff (1982) established Bleasdale as one of the most popular screenwriters of the era. "Having a Ball" was performed at the Oldham Coliseum as part of the BBC/Arts Council scheme to commission new work for radio and the theatre. Cast:Lenny ... David RossNurse ... Jeffrey LongmoreSurgeon ... Judith BarkerAnaesthetist ... Ian MercerMalcolm ... Cliff HowellsDoreen ... Lesley E. BennettRitchie ... Andrew HayOld Man ... Ted MorrisJean ... Lesley Nicol Written by Alan BleasdaleDirected by Caroline Smith First broadcast on BBC Radio 3 in May 1981 Sunday 15th MarchPoetry Extra: The Echo Chamber: Gillian Clarke12:00 – 12:30Poet Daljit Nagra continues his quest to delve into the BBC archive in search of the best poetry programmes. To mark the Spring Equinox he selects The Echo Chamber - Gillian Clarke. A visit to the spring lambs and bluebell woods of Gillian Clarke's home in Ceredigion, Wales. The one-time National poet of Wales shares poems from her collection: Zoology as well as some old favourites. Producer: Ellie Richold. First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2018. Monday 16th March – Friday 20th MarchLadies of Letters: Crunch Credit1-5/508:45 – 09:00New to 4 Extra. Patricia Routledge and Prunella Scales star as the sparring widows as they continue their correspondence. Financial problems force Vera to live on her allotment while Irene finds a rich friend reduced to begging. Cast:Vera Small - Patricia RoutledgeIrene Spencer - Prunella ScalesWritten by Lou Wakefield and Carole Hayman Producer - Liz Webb First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1999 Monday 16th March – Wednesday 18th MarchJazzed Up: How Jazz Changed Britain1-3/310:30 – 11:00New to 4 Extra. Originally broadcast to mark the centenary of the first ever jazz recording in 1917, Kevin LeGendre reveals the story of how a music which started small on the streets and clubs of New Orleans quickly had a big influence on artists around the world. Kevin argues passionately that this influence is often under-estimated, particularly now when jazz often finds it hard to make itself heard in the cultural mainstream. Whether it's the French composer Ravel, whose piano music shows how his ears were opened by what he heard in New York and New Orleans, or the Dutch painter Mondrian, whose studio echoed to the sounds of Duke Ellington - not to mention writers from Harlem to Prague, shows from Broadway to Berlin, movie makers from Hollywood to Paris. Across three programmes, Kevin takes three key elements of jazz - sound, attitude and freedom - and charts their vital, energising impact on all kinds of artists. From a blue note in a symphony to jazz as an emblem of freedom in Cold War fiction, Kevin believes we're closer to a jazz planet than most of us realise. Produced by Harry Parker First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2017 Tuesday 17th MarchA Simple Heart1-3/313:30 – 13:45New to 4 Extra. Julian Barnes, who recently turned 80 [b.17.1.1946], reads Gustave Flaubert's classic tale of a woman's life in 19th century Normandy in three parts. The selfless and devout Félicité arrives to work in the household of Madame Aubain. She proves an enviable servant, who does everything. Julian Barnes has had a long association with Gustave Flaubert - including a novel he wrote called Flaubert's Parrot - and he has been honoured as a man of letters in France. Translated by Robert BaldickAbridged by Alison JosephRead by Julian Barnes Producer: Duncan Minshull First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1997 Friday 20th MarchA Dewey Decimal1/110:30 – 11:004 Extra marks 150 years (March 1876) since the implementation of The Dewey Decimal Classification system which organises books in libraries. Its inventor, Melvil Dewey, was so obsessed with efficiency he had specific pockets for different times of the day. Mastermind winner Shaun Wallace goes to his local library to see how the system works and investigates the life and times of the efficiency maniac and inventor Melvil Dewey - who even changed the spelling of his name to make it more efficient. And Shaun wonders whether, with the advent of the internet search, we are losing something precious. With readings by Kerry Shale. Producer - James Cook First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2007. Dewey Eyed1/115:00 – 15:454 Extra marks 150 years (March 1876) since the implementation of The Dewey Decimal Classification system which organises books in libraries. Olivia Colman stars as a librarian, from a long line of librarians. When her father dies and her mother loses her wits, Philippa tries the only language Vera understands, that of the Dewey cataloguing system, to guide her back to sanity. Cast: Philippa .... Olivia ColmanVera .... Sheila ReidSheila .... Caroline GuthrieAlistair .... Paul Rider Written by Sarah Naomi LeeDirector: Jessica Dromgoole First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2009