BBC Radio Four
Created | Updated Oct 4, 2004
What is Radio Four?
BBC Radio Four is a UK based national radio station which was offically launched on September 29th, 1967 to provide intelligent, cultural and factual talk-radio, and maintains its high-brow and rather middle-class image today. Originally 'The Home Service' (today's Radio Two having been 'The Light Programme' and Radio Three having been 'The Third Programme). Its renaming was the source of much heated discussion within the BBC, the term 'Radio' to mean 'station' having been considered inapporiate in some quarters.
Today, it is one of the five analogue domestic radio stations which the British Broadcasting Corporation now provides. The others include the popular music station BBC Radio One.
Flagship Programming
To much of the public, Radio Four is simply its most well-known and long-running programmes. The Today Programme is the station’s morning news programme, presented by John Humphreys and with a reputation for cutting-edge journalism. This was the subject of controversy in 2004, with Andrew Gilligan’s report on the Government’s Iraq War dossier, which in turn led to the death of Government military scientist Dr. David Kelly. The resulting Hutton Report heavily criticised both Gilligan and the BBC. Other news programmes include the afternoon PM and the Sunday morning Broadcasting House. It's continued broadcasting of The Shipping Forecast, weather news for those at sea, incomprehensible to most of the public, is often quoted as a source of comfort, and was the basis of a song by the indie band Blur.
The station has always provided a healthy balance of factual and entertaining content. Much loved interview programmes such as Desert Island Discs sit alongside in-depth academic discussion, like Melvyn Bragg’s In Our Time in the schedules. Perhaps the most popular programme is The Archers an incredibly long-running rural soap opera, which pre-dates the station itself. Woman's Hour, currently presented by Jenny Murray is another enduring and highly popular programme, combining interviews and unusual features of particular interest to women, with original dramatisations.
Comedy has always been of paramount importance to Radio Four, and the BBC have often used it as a ‘testing ground’ for shows which have later made the cross-over to television such as Knowing Me, Knowing You with Alan Partridge and Little Britain. Panel games have long been a mainstay of the station as well, such as the irreverent Just a Minute and the eccentric I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue, which has attracted a signficant cult-following.
From the outset of Radio Four, broadcasting for children was important, with programmes such as Listen with Mother continuing over from the Home Service. During the early 1990s, BBC Radio Five took on the mantle of a station for children with a wide variety of original material and classic stories being broadcast. However, listening figures were not deemed high enough and in 1994 the station abandoned children's programmes for continuous news and sport output, rebranding itself as 'Radio Five Live'. Under significant listner pressure Radio Four introduced a new Sunday evening children's show Go for It!, a mix of stories, features and educational content, presented by Matt Smith.
Difficult Times
In the 1990s the station came under criticism for ‘dumbing down’ the quality and intellectual value of their programming and for needlessly axing popular series such as Kaleidoscope and the satirical comedy show Weekending. Regulation of its news output has also come into question post-Hutton Report. However, Radio Four seems to have largely maintained its status and continues to produce pioneering and quality programmes.
Finding Radio Four
BBC Radio Four is transmitted by the Droitwich aerial and is accessible at 92-95 FM and 198 Longwave (which has the best uninterrupted range of frequencies, hence its use for weather reporting). The programming content differs slightly between the two, the later being the regular home of Test Match Cricket. These wavelengths may also be subject to regional variations, but are stated as given by the BBC.
Between the hours of 1am and 5.30am, Radio Four closes down and BBC World Service broadcasts on their frequencies.
A selection of its current output is available to listen to online at BBC Radio Four Online
Paul Evans
