Episodes
| Episode | Title | First Broadcast | Repeated | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Shaping The Air, Writers And Radio: Samuel West | 20141124 | 20160509 (R3) | The first of five essays on the voice and radio - all delivered by seasoned broadcasters and practitioners. Actor Samuel West explores the art of performance and declarative language. How should an actor speak? What is the best way to read poetry on the radio? How does radio drama get by without images? Are the pictures really better? Recorded in front of an audience at the British Academy in London in October 2014 as part of a series of events marking the 100th anniversary of the birth of Dylan Thomas, himself one of the best known radio voices of all time. Subsequent essays from the British Academy come from veteran Irish broadcaster Olivia O'Leary, Professor of Media David Hendy, Radio Merseyside's phone-in host Roger Phillips and Radio 4's Fi Glover - all sharing their varied perspectives on the art of radio. Producer: Tim Dee. |
| 02 | Shaping The Air, Writers And Radio: Olivia O'leary | 20141125 | 20160510 (R3) | The second of five personal essays on the voice and radio. Journalist and broadcaster Olivia O'Leary describes her autobiography in radio from Irish nuns at her boarding school hunting down wicked wirelesses to thoughts on the speed of the Irish voice by comparison with the English. Olivia O'Leary has worked in radio for decades and is well known - as a voice - for her penetrating yet tactful interviewing skills. She shares some of her secrets. An essay given in front of an audience at the British Academy in London in October 2014 as part of a series of events marking the 100th anniversary of the birth of Dylan Thomas, himself one of the most famous radio voices of all time. Producer: Tim Dee. Journalist and broadcaster Olivia O'Leary describes the influence of radio on her. |
| 03 | Shaping The Air, Writers And Radio: David Hendy | 20141126 | 20160511 (R3) | The third of five personal essays on the voice and radio. Former BBC journalist and now media professor David Hendy explores how, in the early years of radio, the voices coming through the airwaves were heard and regarded. Why did a heard voice carry more swaying power than written words, why did a radio voice carry - so experiments and test showed - even more potency? How did radio become a tool for demagogues? Why are our ears susceptible? An essay given in front of an audience at the British Academy in London in October 2014 as part of a series of events marking the 100th anniversary of the birth of Dylan Thomas. Producer: Tim Dee. Media professor and historian David Hendy on early anxieties about radio's power. |
| 04 | Shaping The Air, Writers And Radio: Roger Phillips | 20141127 | 20160512 (R3) | The fourth of five personal essays on the voice and radio. BBC Radio Merseyside presenter Roger Phillips describes his job as the listening anchorman of the station's daily phone-in programme. What is is like to be the in the middle of a city as it talks to and of itself every day of the week? How does the city's voice manifest itself in the way it talks? Are there as many talkers in Newcastle or Bristol? What does the Liverpool voice do to the Liverpool mind? Thoughts too on victim culture and Scally jokes. An essay given in front of an audience at the British Academy in London in October 2014 as part of a series of events marking the 100th anniversary of the birth of Dylan Thomas. Producer: Tim Dee. Roger Phillips describes his job as the listening anchorman of a daily phone-in programme. |
| 05 | Shaping The Air, Writers And Radio: Fi Glover | 20141128 | 20160513 (R3) | The last of five personal essays on the voice and radio. Broadcaster Fi Glover on how radio voices make the global local and the local global. Fi Glover has worked in almost every job that radio offers and is currently presenting the Listening Project on BBC Radio 4 - a programme in which her voice hardly appears whilst the voices of its contributors (ordinary people often at corners of their lives) are rich in personality and incident. Is radio good at not presenting and just listening? Has the BBC traditionally over-managed those who speak on its airwaves? And what of hate speech and hate radio? Why does the radio voice still reach deep into our hearts and minds in the era of screen-based living and social media? An essay given in front of an audience at the British Academy in London in October 2014 as part of a series of events marking the 100th anniversary of the birth of Dylan Thomas. Producer: Tim Dee. Broadcaster Fi Glover on how radio voices 'make the global local and the local global'. |