Good Friday for Friday 25 March 2016
6:06AM Breakfast with Catriona Macleod
An early miscellany of music, stories and random thoughts
6:15AM Fixing The Shower by Waiata Dawn Davies
When Gran slips getting out of the shower, she gets a lot more than she bargained for.
6:50AM BBC Witness
Radiocarbon Dating of the Turin Shroud
7:20AM Yann Martel
Life of Pi author Yann Martel explains why so many of his novels draw inspiration from religion.
7:35AM Worldwatch
The stories behind the international headlines
7:35AM Worldwatch
The stories behind the international headlines
8:10AM More or Less
Do people die if unemployment in the US goes up? In the recent Oscar-winning film The Big Short, Brad Pitt playing a former investment banker Ben Rickert, says: “Every one percent unemployment goes up, 40,000 people die, did you know that?" Although based on a true story, the filmmakers admit there is some creative license in some of the scenes. But is there any truth to this statistic? It turns out it’s a figure that has been around for many decades; we explore its origins.
8:44AM The Car by Gertrude Brittain
Love is blind, until the dear little car comes into the lives of Maude and Ianto - a tale from Wales
9:06AM Long Hours, Short Straw
What does the long-hours culture mean to you? Working late, missing time with friends and family? Does putting in extra hours make you better at your job or improve your chances of getting head?
9:45AM A Dish Best Served Chilly
A woman gets her revenge Eric, on a man who preys on larger women from a dating site. A short story by Justine Lapper read by Geraldine Brophy.
10:06AM The Top Hat Story by Dean Mardon
Napier's Top Hat was the place to go in Hawkes Bay during the 1960s. The Top Hat’s former owner and manager Bernie Meredith recalls the birth and evolution of the nightspot – His narrative is supplemented by contemporary recordings and anecdotes from some of the musicians who performed there including John Walker and John Lindsay of the resident band Johnny & The Contacts, Kevin Tasker from The Len Whittle Combo, and Grant Galgey from The Matloes (An Electric City music production)
10:45AM Stevie by Michele Amas
Stevie Nicks arrives in Danny’s hallway while his wife is in labour on the living room floor. When the mid-wife arrives, she gives Danny a red card and sends him to his room.
11:06PM China's Generation-Y Speaks Out
A step inside the country to hear from the generation of wealthy, middle-class twenty-somethings who will determine the country's future. With extraordinary candour, they raise questions about the way their government is handling the country's economy, they raise questions about the ability of their parent's generation to fully understand the global economic changes which impact China and they outline with remarkable clarity, their generation's hopes for personal wealth, freedom to choose and a greater participation in the global economy. We're also joined by leading economic thinkers and long-time China-watchers Kenneth Rogoff, George Magnus and Diana Choyleva, all on hand to respond to this unique glimpse inside the minds of China's Generation-Y. (BBC)
11:45AM Change Money, Change Money
An American spinster learns the hard facts of money changing a short story by James Norcliffe read by Glenis Levestam
12:00PM The Midday Report
A roundup of to day's news and sport
12:30PM The Food Chain: No Such Thing as a Free Lunch?
From power lunches to ‘desktop dining’, this edition of The BBC World Service Food Chain team unpicks the intimate relationship between food and the workplace
1:10AM Music in Braille
Braille is an important component in many blind peoples’ lives, and some of those blind people are musicians. Lisette Wesseling explores Louis Braille’s adaptation of his six-dot reading and writing system for the blind to represent the language of music.
2:19PM Battle at the Bridge
On the centenary of Ireland's 'Easter Rising' a detailed investigation leads to a modern re-imagining of the infamous engagement that took place at Mount Street bridge in Dublin during Easter week 1916. This RTÉ documentary challenges long held views of the event – and attempts to find out what really happened. (RTÉ )
3:06AM Folktale of Irish Backroads
According to author Pat Higgins, "In Ireland, music is an act of love." This programme follows that thought-- through folkworlds old and new, scattered world-round, in search of musical styles and words of wisdom for, from and about the Irish. From our own Celtic-rooted heartland, through that 'Land of Saints and Scholars' itself, and on into Irish-kissed Spanish, neareastern and African traditions. (PRX)
4:06AM Syria's Refugee Crisis
From the UNHCR's main refugee registration centre in Amman, Jordan the BBC's Zeinab Badawi chairs a high profile panel of leaders and opinion formers discussing Syria's refugee crisis. They face an audience from the refugee camps of Zaatari and Azraq and urban Amman as well as Jordanian citizens as they attempt toanswer the question - what is the best way to help refugees who may be in counties like Jordan for many more months or even years to come?
5:00PM The 5 O’Clock Report
A roundup of today's news and sport
5:12PM Retirement - not an option
Dr. Ranganui Walker died on 29 February 2016, aged 83. This talk epitomising his outlook, is from the collection of essays edited by Gordon McLaughlan and published under the title 'Loving All of it: Eminent New Zealanders Write About Growing Old'
5:30PM Westminster Pilgrimage
A blind Catholic chorister's experiences as part of the Christchurch Cathedral choir’s tour to London and other overseas venues.
6:06PM Ted Cruz - Republican
Senator Ted Cruz is probably the only man left who could thwart Donald Trump’s attempt to become the Republican candidate for president of the United States. Yet four years ago, he was virtually unknown. Mark Coles profiles the God-fearing, constitution-loving lawyer, speaking to friends, critics and former colleagues to find out what has fuelled his meteoric rise (BBC)
6:38PM The Fire Of Life by A.P.Gaskell
Pinkney is progressive in matters educational but far more reticent in matters of the heart.
7:06PM Music for Christian Holy Week
The liturgy of the Christian Holy Week has inspired centuries of music from diverse composers and this week on Harmonia, we're exploring music for the Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday and Good Friday services leading up to Easter. We'll draw from a melting pot of time and geography, and rites and liturgies of the Christian tradition, including a brand new recording from Capella Romana of medieval Byzantine chant. (PRX)
8:06PM An episodic career – the shape of things to come
Author Farai Chideya , Financial guru Alvin Hall; and Ari Wallach, founder and CEO of strategy and innovation consult join Ed Butler of the BBC ‘In the Balance’ business team to examines the increasingly competitive and demanding globalised workplace.
8:30PM Spotlight
Carnivorous Plant Society played a recent set at Auckland’s Wine Cellar. RNZ Music’s Andre Upston was there to commit the performance from the Finn Scholes-led outfit to tape.
9:06PM . Country Life
Memorable scenes, people and places in rural New Zealand
10:00PM The 10 O'Clock Report
A roundup of today's news and sport
10:30PM What's The Word: Rhyme
A look at rhyme in 3 languages. Poetry critic Helen Vendler explores the use of rhyme in William Butler Yates' poem 'Sailing to Byzantium'; Suzanne Stassevitch talks about Rhyme in the classical Arabic ode. . . .and Lawrence Porter disscusses rhyme in French poetry (MLA)
11:06PM The R&B Chronicles - Bill Withers
The American singer-songwriter Bill Withers is featured in this edition of th e musical biography that will focus on classic R&B and soul music and it's great artists and groups. Perhaps more than any other genre of popular American music culture, soul music is the result of the combination and merging of previous styles and sub-styles in the 50’s and 60’s. At it's inception soul music combined the African American concepts of gospel and blues sensibilities in creating a passionate, soulful and musical presentation of the African American spirit. Rhythm and Blues is itself a combination of blues and jazz and developed in the 40’s as small groups of predominately African American musicians built upon the blues tradition which morphed itself into soul music coming into the 50's. (PRX)
