Stephen Fry hosts four programmes on the joys of the English language - as heard on BBC Radio 4. Current Puns Why does our language groan with the weight of puns? What exactly is a pun? And who, or what, is the Thief of Bad Gags? Metaphor The English language is chock-full of maritime metaphors: cock up, taken aback, chip on your shoulder and show...

In 1956, toward the end of Reverend John Ames's life, he begins a letter to his young son, a kind of last testament to his remarkable forebears. Reverend Ames writes to his son about the tension between his father - an ardent pacifist - and his grandfather who came west to Kansas to fight for abolition and 'preached men into the Civil War'. And he...

Do you know someone who is incensed by compulsory tipping? Who is infuriated if kept on hold for more than a minute? Who is positively apoplectic if someone answers their phone during dinner? If so, you've probably encountered the phenomenon of the grumpy old man. Following their first massively successful BBC1 series, this autumn will see the grum...

The team from I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue present their own unique take on Lewis Carroll's most famous work, casting their reluctant chairman - the late Humphrey Lyttelton - in the title role, with support from Graeme Garden, Tim Brooke-Taylor, Barry Cryer, Sandi Toksvig, Tony Hawks, Andy Hamilton, Rob Brydon, Jeremy Hardy and Jacke Dee, with Colin...

In a commemorative programme to mark the anniversary of John Peel's death, Tom Robinson visits `Peel Acres' to meet John's wife Sheila and their four children.

BILL BRYSON presents a fascinating exploration of THE HISTORY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. This highly entertaining BBC Radio 4 series is written and presented by Bill Bryson and based on his bestselling book, Mother Tongue. In it he romps through the history of Britain to reveal how English became such an infuriatingly complex - but ultimately world-b...

In this BBC full-cast production, Julius Caesar is triumphant after his victory over the sons of Pompey. But as bad omens and weather plague Rome, even his most loyal friends are starting to see the signs...Political intrigue and fierce battle rage in this tense and dynamic production in which a country is torn apart under the legacy of Julius Caes...

Nicholas Parsons introduces four archive episodes of the ever-popular comedy panel game. Just as uproariously funny - and terrifically popular - today as when it first began on BBC Radio 4 in 1968, Just a Minute challenges contestants to speak for one minute on a given subject without repetition, hesitation or deviation. Its mix of irreverent fun a...

When 10-year-old Will's father dies, his mother surprises him with a trip to Indonesia. But little could she have known what awaited them both there. The first Will knows that anything is wrong is when Oona, the elephant he is riding along the beach, begins to spook. Then, suddenly, she takes off into the jungle with Will on her back. And that's wh...

Starring Steve Coogan as Alan Partridge. The complete Award winning BBC TV series starring the man who gives new meaning to leisure wear. And on that bombshell......What is Knowing Me, Knowing You, with Alan Partridge? Well, how long is a piece of string? How many people can you fit in a mini? - four, possibly five. The second question, the string...

Prunella Scales and Patricia Routledge take on the world in another hilarious series of the BBC Radio 4 comedy hit. The caustic correspondence between Irene Spencer and Vera Small is always richly entertaining, and these latest letters are no exception. Catty and competitive as ever, the pensioner pen-pals find themselves in yet more trouble in thi...

Little Women begins the much-loved story of the March sisters, Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy. The girls grow up amidst the turmoil, adventures and hardships of the American Civil War. The household is presided over by Mrs. March, 'Marmee', who tries to rule with kindness and to create harmony amongst her four little women.

Perhaps the ultimate in TV comedy madness and absurdity, this cult series, which began in 1969, was conceived, written and performed by Graham Chapman, Eric Idle, Michael Palin, Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones. It was innovative and ground-breaking comedy which inspired many of today's writers and performers. Its sketches, songs and catchphrases are...

Richard Eyre directs Ken Stott as Macbeth and Phyllis Logan as Lady Macbeth in Shakespeare's dramatic tale of greed and destiny. BBC radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of makin...

Daydream Believers, written by and starring David Mitchell and Robert Webb, follows the parallel stories of two flatmates, Ray and Colin, and the mighty alien empire of Baron Amstrad and Info, his retro-looking android. Ray (Mitchell) writes popular science fiction stories when he doesn't get writer's block. He does, however, get many interruptions...

At one time Morecambe & Wise were as much a part of Christmas television as the Queen's speech. This compilation of their best festive sketches, songs and playlets covers the years 1969 to 1975, when the BBC shows regularly achieved huge audience ratings.

In this BBC full-cast production of Much Ado About Nothing, some handsome soldiers return from battle. Yet one soldier finds himself locked in a merry war of his own...In Shakespeare's comedy of wit, love and miscommunication, Beatrice and Benedick and Hero and Claudio are pushed into and pulled out of love, their friends playing cupid with li...

In this BBC full-cast production, Othello is drawn further and further into jealous rage by the manipulative Iago.In this story of evil cunning perverting a once noble mind, radio captures Iago's sly hints and boasts to the audience with shocking clarity. The listener is led along an emotional path that grips with fascinating horror until the play'...

Writer, poet, entertainer and broadcaster, Pam Ayres has been delighting the nation with her mix of comic poetry, prose and droll observations on life for more than twenty years. This live recording of Pam's overwhelmingly popular stage show is the entertainer at her best. Pam Ayres' stage show has been a sell-out success throughout the world. With...

When Peter Pan flies into the night nursery of Wendy, John and Michael Darling, he takes them on the journey - and the adventure - of a lifetime. Mermaids, wolves and Indians weave their spell in the magical Never Never Land - where also lurks the wicked Captain Hook...Toyah Willcox stars as Peter Pan, with Ron Moody as Captain Hook, Roy Hudd as Sm...

A BBC Radio 4 dramatisation of Dick Francis' pacey thriller starring Nigel Havers. At the annual party celebrating the success of the racing season, everything is running well to form - until a runaway horsebox ploughs into the marquee, causing terrible death and destruction. A witness to the tragedy, wine merchant Tony Beach presumes it is just on...