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PVAS - THE 6 MIX WITH MARY ANNE HOBBS 28.11.25 (320kbs-m4a/136mb/59mins)
BBC Radio 6 Music broadcast: 28th November 2025
We welcome PVAS to the 6 Mix, he is Jordan Juras, a Berlin-based artist who grew up outside of Windsor, Ontario, now releasing music on Objekt's label Kapsela.
xrp - Unknown
Vtgnike - cheba saba [Bandcamp]
Rrose - Worn/Scarred [Kudos]
Inkscape - Urban Exploration
Beatrice Dillon - Workaround Eight [PAN]
Paleman - Exalted [30D]
Planetary Assault Systems - You Thought It [Peacefrog]
Tag Team 2 - Blue Arsed Fly [MSQCD 001]
Amuck - Low Res [Metroplex]
Morphosis - Androids Among Us (Just For One Day Remix) [MMD-R1]
Shy/NM - G-STAR Jeans
Roger 23 - Ain't No Dirty Game [Playhouse]
Ra.H & Dynamo Dreesen - Spacepops (Donato Dozzy Rework) [Morphine]
xtclvr - trps tombstoned [ejekt]
Madteo - Queens's The New Brooklyn (Realtor Mixx) [Black Orpheus]
Arcane - Wheel It Up [Foxy Jangle]
Laurent Garnier - Playing With The Low-End [Fabric]
Boris K. - Unknown
The Detroit Escalator Co. - Manual Transmission [Peacefrog]
Reeko - Black Owl On My Shoulder [Mental Disorder]
L.B. Rillo - Soft Top [Fragments]
Sean Deason - Detroit 2030 [Intuit-Solar]
Контур Сc - Постоянно Меняющийся [система]
Eve Defy - Clathrus [Illegal Afters]
Ceqi - rrrrrr 99 [Datenfeld]
PVAS & Booty Buster - Audio Research
Binh - Seventh Amb [Caberet Recordings]
Herrmann & Kleine - Wonder [Morr Music]
JASSS - THE 6 MIX WITH MARY ANNE HOBBS 21.11.25 (320kbs-m4a/137mb/60mins)
BBC Radio 6 Music broadcast: 21st November 2025
Spanish-born, Berlin-based artist JASSS joins us for the 6 Mix off the back of her third LP, Eager Buyers. It's the inaugural release on her own new platform called AWOS, which also encompasses musical, AV and art collaborations, live events, and a radio show.
james K - N´Balmed (JASSS Purple Mix) [Unknown]
Kanot - After Age [Invisible Inc]
Voices Of Kwahn - Third Whale Trip [Max-Bilt]
Memory Tapes - Let Me Be [Carpark]
First Epoque - WRONGMANOEUVRE
JASSS - Eager buyers [AWOS]
Drummy & Martini - Friendly Fire [Kindergarten]
Alva Noto - Uni Blue [NOTON]
LR Groove - Riddim Beater [Renk Groove Recordings]
GLYNY - Outlines [Dionysian Mysteries]
Bodhi - Fade [dh2]
Traverse - Vision [Bandcamp]
Ken Meier - End Matter [Standards & Practices]
bambinodj - Carrier [OST]
Sow - Dog [I, Absentee]
Atlas - Compassion [Rebirth]
Underworld - Bruce Lee [JBO]
Mura Masa - I'm Really Hot (For Myself) [Pond Recordings]
Cape Sundew - Engine [SPE:C]
Lorenzo Soria & Sebastián Orellana - Tus Ojitos Moros (con Pilar Angulo) [Mushroom Pillow]
Will Hofbauer - A Methane Oak [Maloca]
Voices From The Lake - Manuark [Spazio Disponibile]
Natural Language - Blow [Noise Pollution Recording]
Thematic & Oddkut - Rocker [Judder]
Step Ball Chain - Heaven Spot [Step Ball Chain]
Leuroj - Isakora (Bushwacka Mix) [Loaded]
DOC SCOTT - THE 6 MIX WITH MARY ANNE HOBBS 14.11.25 (320kbs-m4a/137mb/60mins)
BBC Radio 6 Music broadcast: 14th November 2025
We welcome Doc Scott to the 6 Mix, the pioneering drum n' bass legend, foundational in creating the scene, working at the forefront internationally in 2025 ahead of his live dates at Fabric and shelflife.
Calibre - Badger In Forth [Unreleased]
Satl - Gljtch
Molecular - Crowd Control [1985 Music]
Paul T, Edward Oberon & MC Moose - Future Style [V Recordings]
Theoretical - Creation
Calyx - Repercussion
DRS & Creatures - Over Your Head
FD - Don't Ramp
Kathryn Brenna & Genic - Coincidence
Anile - A C I D
Calibre - Doomed
Satl - Hot Oil
Skeptical - Other Worlds [Exit]
FD & DRS - If I Never
Shore (feat. Kathryn Brenna) - Back To You [Holocron Media]
GLXY - Teze [Shogun Audio]
Harley D - Checkone
Wingz - Unwilling
Molecular - Fair Warning VIP
Trakker & Basic Rhythm - Jelly Belly [Sofa Sound]
Trex - Last Resort [trustaudiodnb]
Mark System - Where's The Dog
Halogenix - SAWTOOTH
TORTOISE - THE 6 MIX WITH MARY ANNE HOBBS 07.11.25 (320kbs-m4a/137mb/60mins)
BBC Radio 6 Music broadcast: 7th November 2025
Tortoise has spent nearly 25 years making music that defies description. The Chicago-based instrumental quintet has nodded to dub, rock, jazz, electronica and minimalism and have just released their first new album in nine years, Touch.
The Paradise (aka Alan Braxe & Romuald) - In Love With You [Vulture Music/PIAS Recordings]
Underground Resistance & Linton Kwesi Johnson - Working Class Warning
The Vanisher - Tic Tac Tactic (Osborne's Simulacrum Mix) [Spectral Sound]
Wax Master Maurice & DJ Rated-X - Footwork [Dance Mania]
Nina Kraviz Vs. Snazzy - U Ludei Est Pravo! [Trip Recordings]
DJ Speedsick - You Do This To Yourself [Psy X]
Analemma - Plunging Asymptote [Trip Recordings]
Silent Servant - Moral Divide [Hospital Productions]
Piezo - Ox [Hundebiss]
Distruction Boyz - Amaxoki [Distruction Boyz]
DJ Rush - 4833 Broadway
J Dilla - Dilla Beats #5 [Unreleased]
Public Enemy - You're Gonna Get Yours [Def Jam Recordings]
Tortoise - Works And Days [Nonesuch]
Rrose - Saliva [Eaux]
Helena Hauff - Multiplying My Absurdities [Tresor]
Robert Hood - Self Powered [Axis]
2hollis - Flash [Interscope]
Buttechno - Untitled [Unknown]
RP Boo - Bang'n On King Dr. [Planet Mu]
Diaki - Tita Cool1 [Planet Mu]
The Normal - T.V.O.D. [Mute]
Emptyset - Descent [Thrill Jockey]
Pan Sonic - Lomittain [Mute]
Devo - Devo Corporate Anthem [Warner Bros.]
RAY BRADBURY - SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES (320kbs-m4a/130mb/57mins)
BBC Radio 4 Extra broadcast: 25th October 2025
Set in 1960's Illinois, USA: this is the story of two boys, and the evil that grips their small Midwestern town with the arrival of a "dark carnival" one Autumn midnight.
James Nightshade and William Halloway are two innocents, both aged 13.
Will was born one minute before Halloween, and Jim one minute after.
Both save the souls of the town - as well as their own.
Starring Theo Gregory and Joseph Lindsay.
Ray Bradbury's gem of modern Gothic literature, first published in 1962
Dramatised by Diana Griffiths
Will ........ Theo Gregory
Jim ........ Joseph Lindsay
Charlie ........ Henry Goodman
Mr Dark ........ Kenneth Cranham
Mr Coogar ........ Gerard McDermott
Lightening Rod Salesman ........ Gerard McDermott
Miss Foley ........ Barbara Barnes
Dust Witch ........ Buffy Davis
Robert ........ Taran Stanzler
Young Miss Foley ........ Amelia Clarkson
JED ........ Ethan Brooke
Music composed by David Paul Jones
Sound by Paul Cargill
Director: Pauline Harris
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in October 2011.
BRAM STOKER - DRACULA (320kbs-m4a/259mb/1hr53mins)
BBC Radio 4 Extra broadcast: 26th October 2025
Dark re-imagining of Bram Stoker's disturbing vampire tale of horror.
Nicky Henson stars as Count Dracula.
An all action adventure story, with ghosts, ghouls, lunatics, and seriously gripping chase sequences.
Narrated by various characters with different 'takes' on the progress of the story.
A thrilling ride through the dark psyche of Victorian England.
Omnibus of two-parts dramatised by Rebecca Lenkiewicz.
Count Dracula .... Nicky Henson
Dr Seward .... Charles Edwards
Renfield .... Don Gilet
Jonathan Harker .... Michael Shelford
Mina Murray .... Ellie Kendrick
Lucy Westenra .... Scarlett Brookes
Dr Van Helsing .... John Dougall
Arthur .... Joe Sims
Landlord's Wife/Maid .... Christine Absalom
Driver/Policeman .... Robert Blythe
Simmons .... Patrick Brennan
Vampiresses .... Sarah Thom/Ellie Crook/Stephanie Racine
Child .... Harper Bone
Singer .... Adriana Festeu
Director: Jessica Dromgoole.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in October 2012.
ALLAN McCLELLAND - THE MONK (320kbs-m4a/271mb/1hr58mins)
BBC Radio 4 Extra broadcast: 25th October 2025
Ambrosio is a charismatic monk, who draws enormous, rapturous crowds to his sermons.
But in 16th century Madrid where superstition reigns with such despotic sway, to seek for true devotion would be fruitless.
An anxious and reluctant novice nun comes to understand more of the real passions unveiled in this Gothic tale of disguise, abduction, murder and incest.
Starring Michael Pennington, Allan McClelland and Sorcha Cusack.
Allan McClelland's drama is based on Matthew Lewis’s novel 'The Monk: A Romance', first published in 1796
The Monk, Ambrosio ... Michael Pennington
The Demon ... Allan McClelland
Rosario/Matilda ... Sorcha Cusack
Agnes ... Jenny Funnell
Antonia ... Emily Morgan
Lorenzo ... Christopher Douglas
Christoval .... Brian Smith
Raymond ... Simon Hewitt
Prioress .... Anne Jameson
Elvira ... Tessa Worsley
Father Pablos .... Alan Thompson
Mother Camilla/Virginia .... Melinda Walker
Leonella ... Mary Wimbush
Flora ... Mia Soteriou
With:
Garard Green
Graham Blockey
Peter Acre
David Learner
Bernard Brown
Music composed and performed by David Chilton and Mia Soteriou.
Director: Michael Heffernan
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 1985.
GRAHAM GREENE - STAMBOUL TRAIN (320kbs-m4a/199mb/1hr26mins)
BBC Radio 4 Extra broadcast: 27th September 2025
Europe in the 1930s. A dangerous place to be.
As the Orient Express weaves its way through snow towards Constantinople, a motley group of people find themselves threatened by intrigue, skulduggery and murderous politics.
It is a heady cocktail of wit, adventure, mystery, interrogations, scamming, shoot-outs and sexual intrigue.
Graham Greene's tense thriller novel, first published in 1932.
Greene admitted, in 1974, that he wrote it to make a bit of money. "In Stamboul Train for the first and last time in my life I deliberately set out to write a book to please, one which with luck might be made into a film. The devil looks after his own and I succeeded in both aims."
Starring Joseph Milson and Sam Dale.
Dramatised by Jeremy Front.
Myatt .... Joseph Millson
Coral .... Abbie Andrews
Czinner .... Sam Dale
Josef .... Nicholas Murchie
Mabel .... Jane Slavin
Janet .... Isabella Inchbald
Petkovitch .... Simon Ludders
Ninitch .... Samuel James
Hartep .... Phillip Fox
Mrs Peters .... Ellie Darvil
Mr Peters .... Charlie Clements
Other parts played by:
Tayla Kovacevic-Ebong
Adam Fitzgerald
Gary Duncan
David Reakes
Kath Weare
Director: Marc Beeby
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 2017.
JEREMY DYSON - HIGH COCKALORUM (320kbs-m4a/101mb/44mins)
BBC Radio 4 broadcast: 18th September 2025
Celebrating Bradford City of Culture and as part of BBC Contains Strong Language Festival, Bradford based writer Jeremy Dyson's original comedy drama set in West Yorkshire in 1978 is inspired by a true story.
High Cockalorum tells of a touching, funny and unlikely encounter between a Hollywood superstar and a humble lad from Leeds thrown together by circumstance.
A meditation on fame, success and what ultimately matters.
Marty / James Mason ..... Mark Gatiss
Harvey/ Librarian / DJ ..... Reece Shearsmith
Pete/ Parking Attendant/ Interviewer ..... Steve Pemberton
Receptionists/ Jackie ..... Monica Dolan
Sharon .....Goldie Crane
Writer - Jeremy Dyson
Director - Nadia Molinari
Composer - Ian Masterson
Sound Designer - Sharon Hughes
Technical Producers - Andrew Garratt, Neva Missirian
Production Co-ordinators - Victoria Moseley, Ben Hollands.
A BBC Studios production for BBC Radio 4
Jeremy Dyson and Mark Gatiss will be in conversation as part of BBC Contains Strong Language Festival in St George's Hall in Bradford on Saturday September 20.
Tickets for this and other events are free from https://www.bbc.co.uk/events/ewbv9r
CHARLES KINGSLEY - THE WATER BABIES (320kbs-m4a/394mb/2hrs51mins)
BBC Radio 4 Extra broadcast: 17th to 19th September 2025
Published in 1863, Charles Kingsley's novel dramatised in three parts by Berlie Doherty.
Starring Julia McKenzie and Timothy West.
Director: Janet Whitaker
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 1998.
CHARLES KINGSLEY - THE WATER BABIES - 1. CRUELTY (320kbs-m4a/130mb/57mins)
BBC Radio 4 Extra broadcast: 17th September 2025
Tom is forced by his cruel master, Grimes, up the chimneys of Hartover Hall.
In the chase that follows, Tom is rescued by the Fairies and taken to be a Water Baby under the waves.
Mrs Doasyouwouldbedoneby ........ Julia McKenzie
Charles Kingsley ........ Timothy West
Tom ........ Oliver Peace
Grimes ........ Philip Jackson
Sir John ........ Geoffrey Whitehead
The Dame ........ Maggie McCarthy
Miss Ellie ........ Ciara Janson
The Otter ........ Frances Jeater
The Dragonfly ........ Charles Simpson
The Fly ........ David Antrobus
The Caddisfly ........ Sarah-Jane Holm
Other parts played by:
Rosie Wiggins
Victoria Hickson
Alex Bird
Mark Guildea
Fiona Taylor
Samantha Morris
Nicola Cannon
Leigh Harris
Patrick Clibbens
CHARLES KINGSLEY - THE WATER BABIES - 2. NEW FRIENDS (320kbs-m4a/131mb/57mins)
BBC Radio 4 Extra broadcast: 18th September 2025
Now a Water Baby, Tom is warned to behave, as he befriends the sea creatures...
Mrs Doasyouwouldbedoneby ...... Julia McKenzie
Charles Kingsley ...... Timothy West
Tom ...... Oliver Peace
Grimes ...... Philip Jackson
The Lobster ...... Olivier Pierre
The Salmon ...... Sean Baker
Lady Salmon ...... Frances Jeater
The Turbot ...... Geoffrey Whitehead
The Professor ...... Christopher Good
Miss Ellie ...... Ciara Janson
The Porpoise ...... Sarah-Jane Holm
And as the Water Babies:
Rosie Wiggins
Victoria Hickson
Alex Bird
Mark Guildea
CHARLES KINGSLEY - THE WATER BABIES - 3. THE OTHER END OF NOWHERE (320kbs-m4a/131mb/57mins)
BBC Radio 4 Extra broadcast: 19th September 2025
Tom sets off for the Other-End-of-Nowhere.
Mrs Doasyouwouldbedoneby ...... Julia McKenzie
Charles Kingsley ...... Timothy West
Tom ...... Oliver Peace
Grimes ...... Philip Jackson
The Lobster ...... Olivier Pierre
The Salmon ...... Sean Baker
Lady Salmon ...... Frances Jeater
The Turbot ...... Geoffrey Whitehead
The Professor ...... Christopher Good
Miss Ellie ...... Ciara Janson
The Porpoise ...... Sarah-Jane Holm
Giant ...... Peter Woodthorpe
Herring ...... Gerard McDermott
Gairfowl ...... Frances Jeater
Older Tom ...... David Antrobus
Truncheon ...... Geoffrey Whitehead
Older Ellie ...... Sarah-Jane Holm
And as the Water Babies:
Rosie Wiggins
Victoria Hickson
Alex Bird
Mark Guildea
PETER SELLERS AT SEA (320kbs-m4a/125mb/54mins)
BBC Radio 4 Extra broadcast: 8th & 9th September 2025
In 1973, Peter Sellers persuaded his friend, film director Peter Medak to direct a pirate comedy he'd developed with Spike Milligan.
Yet he went on to sabotage the production with tantrums and cancelled shoots.
Not forgetting the terrible weather, drunken captains, near fatal illness and missing actors.....
Starring Jack Klaff and Kerry Shale.
Bob Sinfield's two-part comedy drama about a disaster movie that wasn't meant to be a disaster.
Peter Medak .... Kerry Shale
Peter Sellers .... Jack Klaff
Carolyn .... Kathryn Haywood
Spike Milligan .... Bob Sinfield
Other characters played by members of the cast.
Producer: Julian Mayers
A Yada Yada production.
PETER SELLERS AT SEA - 1. DREAMS (320kbs-m4a/62mb/27mins)
BBC Radio 4 Extra broadcast: 8th September 2025
PETER SELLERS AT SEA - 2. DISASTER (320kbs-m4a/64mb/28mins)
BBC Radio 4 Extra broadcast: 9th September 2025
It's 1973. Will Peter Sellers - or the ship - make it to the end of filming?
Sellers and Milligan attended a private screening and left in total silence:
"We all just wanted to kill ourselves."
A NIGHT OUT WITH: DJ MINX 18.10.25 (320kbs-m4a/138mb/60mins)
BBC Radio 6 Music broadcast: 18th October 2025
Detroit house and techno staple DJ Minx takes over Rave Forever with an all-vinyl mix, exploring the music that made her want to DJ. Featuring tracks from Juan Atkins, Chez Damier and Cybotron, DJ Minx reflects on raving in Detroit and the 'snaps, crackles and pops' of her record collection!
Produced by We Are Grape for BBC Radio 6 Music.
K.E.L.S.E.Y. - Boy (M.K. Deep Dub) [Strictly Rhythm]
Cybotron - Alleys Of Your Mind [BGP]
Rhythim Is Rhythim - Beyond The Dance [Telstar]
Robert Owens - I'll Be Your Friend [Warner Dance]
A Tongue & D Groove - Feel Surreal [10]
Chez Damier - Can You Feel It [DMC]
George Kranz - Din Daa Daa (Trommeltanz) [Cherry Pop]
Lil' Louis - French Kiss [FFRR]
Armando - 100% Of Dissin' You (Mike Dunn's House Mix) [Warehouse]
Fast Lane - Young Ladies [Sunnyview]
R-Tyme - Illusion (Juan Atkins' Techno Mix) [Telstar]
"Little" Louie Vega & Marc Anthony - Ride On The Rhythm (Masters At Work Dub) [Strictly Rhythm]
Nightcrawlers - Push The Feeling On (The Dub Of Doom) [Great Jones]
Greg Greene - After The Dance [Pagan]
PEACHES - FOREVER DARK TAKEOVER 11.10.25 (320kbs-m4a/140mb/60mins)
BBC Radio 6 Music broadcast: 11th October 2025
Peaches guest curates this Forever Dark special with a mix of beat based sounds both old and new. Includes Moderna, Miss Kittin, Nuxx, Tones On Tail, GHOSTWOMAN and Patriarchy.
Peaches - Sick In The Head [I U She Music]
Moderna - DIE4U [Brave New Rave]
Nuxx - Outside Days [Synthicide]
Miss Kittin & The Hacker - La Cave [Nobody's Bizzness]
Public Circuit - No Faith [à La Carte]
Sextile - Disco [Felte]
Peaches - Burst! (Planningtorock Remix) [Boysnoize]
Gamma Intel - Nonchalance [Pinkman]
ADULT. - Shake Your Head [Ersatz Audio]
Austra - Beat And The Pulse [Domino]
Malaria! - Your Turn To Run [moabit musik]
Tones On Tail - Go! (Club Mix) [Beggars Banquet]
Krisma - Black Silk Stocking [Universal Music Italia Srl]
GHOSTWOMAN - 5 Gold Pieces [Full Time Hobby]
Peaches - Free Drink Ticket [I U She Music]
Patriarchy - Boy On A Leash [Patriarchy]
ARTWORKS - FOR FUZZ SAKE (320kbs-m4a/64mb/28mins)
BBC Radio 4 broadcast: 30th September 2025
Can a sound effect change the world?
Since the dawn of the electrical age, we've lived alongside the sound of distortion. It's the hiss of TV static, the harsh crackle of a speaker pushed too loud. However, what happens when this glitch, a signifier of the broken and the wrong, becomes part of popular music?
Fuzz flung open the door for rule breakers and rebels. It was a sonic weapon that could stimulate powerful emotions, whip audiences into a frenzy and spark rebellion.
Starting on a highway in 1950s America, music journalist John Robb will follow fuzz through time, calling on philosophy and science to uncover the secrets of this sound. He will stop off at the magical moments of accident and destruction that allowed the sound to evolve and spread. Including a rare demonstration from rock and roll icon Dave Davies on how he crafted the iconic guitar distortion on You Really Got Me.
Interviews with Jerry Phillips, Toby Young, Dave Davies, Mathilde Massenet, Greg Bryant, Ant Macari and Matthew Worley.
Actors voices provided by Paul Colgate (So Sinatra), Phia Saban and Rob Campbell
Presenter: John Robb
Producer and Sound Designer: Seb Masters
Production Assistant: Tom Waterworth
Production Coordinator: Mica Nepomuceno
GREAT LIVES - HG WELLS (320kbs-m4a/64mb/28mins)
BBC Radio 4 broadcast: 23rd October 2025
Author Fay Weldon proposes the writer and visionary HG Wells
Presented by Humphrey Carpenter.
Expert witness: Biographer, Vincent Brome, who met Wells and many of his mistresses.
Biographical series in which a distinguished guest chooses someone who's inspired their life.
Will their hero stand up to intensive scrutiny and merit the description of having led a great life?
Producer: Miles Warde
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in October 2001.
GREAT LIVES - OLIVER POSTGATE (320kbs-m4a/64mb/28mins)
BBC Radio 4 broadcast: 6th October 2025
"Postgate's work is deep inside me and I think that's true for so many of my generation... His work represents nothing less than a touchstone for our national imagination and in that sense it's profoundly important."
Andrew Davenport, writer, composer, and creator of Teletubbies and In the Night Garden, nominates Oliver Postgate, who, along with his Smallfilms business partner, the artist Peter Firmin, invented the children's television shows Ivor the Engine, The Clangers and, perhaps most loved of all, Bagpuss.
Postgate was a late bloomer. Following Dartington school (which he hated) a stint in jail and working the land, several odd jobs and even odder inventions, he eventually discovered a love of stop-motion animation and created some of the most enduring worlds and best-loved characters in television, all from a cowshed in Kent.
Including clips of his programmes, contributions from singer and musician Sandra Kerr, and archive from Postgate's 2007 Desert Island Discs interview.
With cultural historian Matthew Sweet. Produced by Ellie Richold. Presented by Matthew Parris.
DESERT ISLAND DISCS: RONNIE WOOD (320kbs-m4a/132mb/58mins)
BBC Radio 4 broadcast: 12th October 2025
Ronnie Wood is a musician and artist who has been a major player on the UK music scene for over 60 years. In 1975 Ronnie became a member of the Rolling Stones, one of the most influential and enduring bands of the rock era.
Ronnie's parents were born and worked on barges moving cargo up and down the canals between Manchester, Stratford-upon-Avon and London. Ronnie and his two older brothers were the first in the family to be born on dry land.
Ronnie's brothers, Ted and Art, were accomplished musicians and played in highly respected bands. Ronnie made his debut at nine-years-old when he played the washboard in Ted's band during a performance at their local cinema. Ronnie formed his first band, The Birds, with some friends. In 1967 he joined the Jeff Beck Group with his lifelong friend Rod Stewart. Two years later they formed the Faces with the remaining members of the Small Faces.
Ronnie joined the Rolling Stones in 1975, replacing the band's previous guitarist Mick Taylor. Ronnie's love of art developed in childhood and he studied at Ealing College of Art. His work has been shown in exhibitions around the world.
Ronnie lives in Hertfordshire with his wife Sally and their two children.
Presenter: Lauren Laverne
Producer: Paula McGinley
There are more than 2000 programmes in our archive available for you to listen to. We have cast away other musicians and songwriters including Mark Knopfler, Bruce Springsteen and Cyndi Lauper. Ronnie's fellow Stones, Keith Richards and Charlie Watts, are in our archive too along with Ronnie's friend Paul McCartney. You can find their episodes on BBC Sounds or on our Desert Island Discs website.
Big Bill Broonzy - Guitar Shuffle [Stardust]
Jimmy Reed - Shame, Shame, Shame [Life Series]
Howlin' Wolf - Smokestack Lightning [Avid Entertainment]
Muddy Waters - You Need Love [Acrobat]
Frank Sinatra - Adelaide [Classic Soundtracks]
Anda Géza - Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 21 in C Major, K. 467: II. Andante "Elvira Madigan" [Deutsche Grammophon (DG)]
Chuck Berry - Roll Over Beethoven [Universal Music S.A.]
Paul McCartney - Maybe I'm Amazed [Paul McCartney Catalog]
DESERT ISLAND DISCS: MICHAEL SHEEN (320kbs-m4a/133mb/58mins)
BBC Radio 4 broadcast: 28th September 2025
Michael Sheen is an award-winning actor.
After finding his love for the stage with the West Glamorgan Youth theatre as a teenager, he studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London.
He spent the 1990s making a name for himself as a stage actor, shining in the classics from Romeo and Juliet to Peer Gynt as well as in 20th century masterpieces such as Look Back in Anger and Amadeus, receiving several Olivier Award nominations along the way.
A relocation to the US in the early 2000s with his then partner, the actress Kate Beckinsale, and their young daughter Lily prompted a move into films. His breakthrough came in 2003 when he portrayed Tony Blair in a Stephen Frears film called The Deal. It was the beginning of what became an unlikely specialism: morphing into real people from recent history: Kenneth Williams, David Frost, Brian Clough, Chris Tarrant, and Prince Andrew – with two more outings as Tony Blair thrown in for good measure.
Michael was born in Newport, South Wales, in February 1969, the eldest of two children to Meyrick and Irene. He grew up in Port Talbot from the age of eight and considers it his hometown.
His first love was football, and he was spotted as youngster by an Arsenal talent scout to play for their youth team. His parents decided against moving the family to London and he turned to acting instead and graduated from RADA in 1991.
Alongside the classic dramas, his range extends to appearing in fantasy and science fiction films such as The Twilight Saga and Tron: Legacy.
Michael has said that the most meaningful project to him was a modern restaging of the passion play in Port Talbot in 2011, which involved the participation of a thousand local people, because it opened his eyes to the difficulties many of them were experiencing. He has since used his own money to fund the 2019 Homeless World Cup in Cardiff and set up an organisation which supports community groups.
Michael lives in Wales with his partner, the actress Anna Lundberg, and their two young daughters.
BOOK CHOICE: The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell
LUXURY ITEM: A football
CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Vienna - Ultravox
Presenter: Lauren Laverne
Producer: Sarah Taylor
There are more than 2000 programmes in our archive available for you to listen to. We have cast away other notable actors including Sir Anthony Hopkins and some of the people Michael has played including Kenneth Williams, Chris Tarrant and Tony Blair. You can find all those episodes and more by searching BBC Sounds.
Ultravox - Vienna
Ennio Morricone - The Ecstasy Of Gold
Talk Talk - Desire
The Rolling Stones - Gimme Shelter
Manic Street Preachers - Ready For Drowning
Peter Gabriel - Passion
Lau - Dark Secret
Yello - Oh Yeah
CLASSIC THRILLER SOUNDTRACKS (320kbs-m4a/284mb/2hrs3mins)
BBC Radio 3 broadcast: 4th September 2025
Live at the BBC Proms. BBC Concert Orchestra and conductor Edwin Outwater play film scores by Bernard Herrmann, who died fifty years ago. There's also music by Lalo Schifrin and Quincy Jones; and Sterling Elliot is the soloist in Korngold's Cello Concerto.
Presented by Katie Derham, live from the Royal Albert Hall, London.
Herrmann Prelude (North by Northwest)
Herrmann Suite: Psycho (Prelude; The Murder; Finale)
Raksin Laura
Herrmann Suite: Vertigo
Korngold Cello Concerto
INTERVAL: Steven C. Smith is the author of the biography, A Heart at Fire's Center: The Life and Music of Bernard Herrmann. He talks about the film scores created by the composer.
Quincy Jones Ironside theme
Quincy Jones, arr Guy Barker In the Heat of the Night
Herrmann Twisted Nerve
Herrmann Taxi Driver (Nightpiece)
Isaac Hayes Shaft
Quincy Jones On Days Like These (Italian Job)
Schifrin Shiftin Gears (Bullitt)
Quincy Jones It's Caper Time (Italian Job)
Sterling Elliot (cello)
Singers Lance Ellington, Ashton Jones
BBC Concert Orchestra
Conductor Edwin Outwater
From the shrieking strings of Psycho to the brooding jazz-club sleaze of Taxi Driver: Bernard Herrmann’s music is the soundtrack to the greats of Hollywood’s Golden Age. Join the BBC Concert Orchestra and its Principal Guest Conductor and Curator Edwin Outwater to celebrate the composer’s iconic film scores. A programme rich with suspense and drama also includes excerpts from film scores by Quincy Jones, David Raksin and Lalo Schifrin.
ANOUSHKA SHANKAR - CHAPTER I, II & III (320kbs-m4a/188mb/1hr22mins)
BBC Radio 3 broadcast: 12th August 2025
Live at the BBC Proms: Anoushka Shankar brings her Chapter albums to the Royal Albert Hall
Presented by Sara Mohr-Pietsch
Anoushka Shankar , sitar
London Contemporary Orchestra
Robert Ames, conductor
Anoushka Shankar
Chapter I : Forever, For Now
Chapter II: How Dark It Is Before Dawn
Chapter III: We Return to Light (world premiere)
Multi-Grammy-nominated sitar virtuoso and composer Anoushka Shankar returns to the Proms for the world-premiere performance of music from her three ‘Chapter’ albums, tracing her musical and geographical journeys
She is joined by Robert Ames and the London Contemporary Orchestra to perform new orchestral arrangements of the trilogy: Forever, For Now; How Dark It Is Before Dawn and We Return To Light.
Anoushka Shankar - Daydreaming
Anoushka Shankar - Stolen Moments
Anoushka Shankar - What Will We Remember
Anoushka Shankar - Sleeping Flowers (Awaken Every Spring)
Anoushka Shankar - Pacifica
Anoushka Shankar - Offering
Anoushka Shankar - What Dreams Are Made Of
Anoushka Shankar - In the End
Anoushka Shankar - Below The Surface
Anoushka Shankar - New Dawn
Anoushka Shankar - Daybreak
Anoushka Shankar - Hiraeth
Anoushka Shankar - Dancing On Scorched Earth
Anoushka Shankar - We Burn So Brightly
Anoushka Shankar - Amrita
Anoushka Shankar - We Return To Love
OUT OF THIS WORLD: 25 YEARS OF THE ISS (320kbs-m4a/130mb/57mins)
BBC Radio 4 broadcast: 1st November 2025
Out of This World unveils compelling personal tales of bravery, tragedy, ingenuity, political manoeuvring, and triumph, revealing the remarkable story of one of humanity's greatest ever feats – the International Space Station.
Celebrating 25 unbroken years of humans living in space, engineer and former international director at the UK Space Agency, Alice Bunn charts the shifting geopolitics which led to the East and West putting aside their differences and creating the ultimate symbol of human ingenuity and collaboration – a space station orbiting our planet at 17500 mph, which has been home to over 300 people from 23 different nations.
Using mission audio, news archive and personal stories of those intimately involved in the station's creation, Alice explores acts of epic survival, inventiveness, humour and selflessness that made the station a reality. She investigates the blueprint for the ISS – Apollo-Soyuz, a joint Soviet/US mission at the height of the Cold War - and why a near fatal disaster on a Russian space station spurred nations to commit to the ISS.
She reveals how a Moscow basement and Hollywood royalty sparked bonding between Russians and Americans and the bromance that fuelled the mission of the first crew to call the ISS home. Alice also discovers how quick thinking and plastic tape saved the station, allowing it to grow to the size of a football pitch and how one astronaut came within seconds of drowning in space.
And looking into the future, Alice questions what is next for the ISS amid such geopolitical turbulence and uncertainty.
This is a timely reminder of the extraordinary feats humanity can achieve when we unite and strive for a common goal.
Producer: Duncan Bulling
Presenter: Alice Bunn
A 2 Degrees West production for BBC Radio 4
INNER VOICES - THE BURTON DIARIES (320kbs-m4a/128mb/56mins)
BBC Radio 4 broadcast: 10th November 2025
The archive of Richard Burton is a treasure. Hamlet, Under Milk Wood, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf and Equus stand out, and then there are the movies: Wild Geese, Where Eagles Dare, Antony and Cleopatra, Night of the Iguana and The Robe.
Through several periods of Burton's life, most notably from the mid-1960s to the early '70s he kept a diary, sometimes handwritten, mostly typed out and assembled in thick notebooks. The diaries provide a unique view of the world in which he moved, among actors and directors, writers and poets, millionaires and royalty. They also give an insight into his approach to acting, his insecurities, his drinking and his volatile relationship with Elizabeth Taylor at a time when they were the most famous couple in the world.
Shortly after Burton's death in 1984, Melvyn Bragg was given access to the diaries to write his biography of Burton, Rich.
Burton was the son of a Welsh miner. He met a remarkable teacher and made the journey to Oxford and on to fame and fortune but was seldom really happy. He was a hellraiser who often behaved appallingly and was accused of squandering an extraordinary talent on drinking and bad movies. But Burton was also a man of wonderful erudition, passion, insight and self- knowledge. He fought his way in life through force of will, love, and voracious reading. It is this side of the man that makes him such a remarkable presence. It is also a side of him captured in a rich vein of BBC archive and interviews.
Presented by Melvyn Bragg
Reader Josh Richards
Taking part Dai Smith and Chris Williams
Producer Jeremy Grange
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 2012.
ONE LAST CHANCE TO SEE (320kbs-m4a/129mb/56mins)
BBC Radio 4 broadcast: 4th October 2025
"It's funny how often, every author I know, their own favourite book is the one that sold the least… My favourite book is what I'm here to talk about tonight."
Douglas Adams is best known as a science fiction writer. But in the late 80s, the author of The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy embarked on something completely different. After a life-changing meeting with a rare lemur called an Aye-Aye, he decided he wanted to travel the world with the zoologist Mark Carwardine, in search of endangered species. Their journeys became a book and a Radio 4 series called Last Chance To See.
A few years ago, Katherine Rundell stumbled upon Last Chance To See in a second hand book shop. "It was a revelation... the way that he managed to salute the intricate variety and infinite strangeness of living things and still tell some of the best jokes that you will encounter in print, that seemed to me both an extraordinary thing and the thing that we need so much more of."
Here, Katherine Rundell revisits the story behind the book and Radio 4 series – as told by its co-author Mark Carwardine in a new interview, and Douglas himself, thanks to archive from the lecture Douglas gave at the University of California in 2001, just a month before his death.
Ever ahead of his time, the message of the book is even more stark today.
"We don't have to save the world. The world's fine. The world has been through five periods of mass extinction…. What we have to be concerned about is whether or not the world we live in will be capable of sustaining us in it. That's what we need to think about."
With thanks to Mark Carwardine, the Douglas Adams Estate, and the University of California.
Presented by Katherine Rundell. Produced in Bristol by Polly Weston
THIS CULTURAL LIFE - 138. MARK RONSON (320kbs-m4a/98mb/43mins)
BBC Radio 4 broadcast: 23rd October 2025
Having spent his early years in London, Mark Ronson grew up in Manhattan, began working as a DJ as a teenager and quickly made a name for himself on the New York club scene of the 1990s. He moved into music production and, in 2006, co-wrote and co-produced the Amy Winehouse album Back To Black. The record won five Grammys and Mark Ronson himself scooped the Producer of the Year Award. Since then, he has released five solo albums and worked with some of the most successful names in pop including Lady Gaga, Dua Lipa, Queens Of The Stone Age and Paul McCartney. The winner of ten Grammys and two Brits, he added an Academy Award to his list of accolades in 2018 as co-writer of the song Shallow from the film A Star Is Born. He was also Oscar nominated for his work as executive producer, composer and songwriter for the soundtrack to the Barbie movie. More recently he has written a book called Night People, a memoir about his time as a DJ in 90s New York.
Mark Ronson tells John Wilson about the influence of his music-loving parents, who often threw parties at their north London home when he was a child. He talks about the influence of his stepfather Mick Jones, songwriter, guitarist and producer of the 80s rock band Foreigner, who allowed Mark to experiment with equipment in his home studio in New York and encouraged his early interest in production. He remembers how hearing the 1992 track They Reminisce Over You by Pete Rock and CL Smooth led him to pursue a career as a club DJ and become renowned for the diverse range of music he played in clubs - from soul and hip-hop to classic rock - an eclectic approach which later informed his work as a producer. Mark Ronson also recalls first meeting Amy Winehouse and how they wrote and recorded the songs for her Back To Black album.
Producer: Edwina Pitman
THIS CULTURAL LIFE - 132. ALICIA VIKANDER (320kbs-m4a/98mb/43mins)
BBC Radio 4 broadcast: 11th September 2025
Swedish-born Alicia Vikander won global acclaim in 2015 for playing Vera Britten in Testament Of Youth, and a humanoid robot in the thriller Ex-Machina. The following year she won an Academy Award for her supporting role with Eddie Redmayne in The Danish Girl, along with a Screen Actors Guild Award and BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations. Since then her diverse range of screen roles have included playing a spy boss in the film Jason Bourne, computer game heroine Lara Croft in Tomb Raider, and Gloria Steinem in the biopic The Glorias. The daughter of acclaimed stage actor Maria Fahl, she tells John Wilson how she first performed on stage at the age of seven in a musical written by Benny and Bjorn of ABBA. She also appeared in Swedish television dramas and films as a child actor. In 2025 Alicia Vikander makes her return to the stage in a new version of Ibsen's The Lady From The Sea at The Bridge in London, her first theatre role since she was a child.
Producer: Edwina Pitman