The BBC Academy Podcast

Petrie Hosken from BBC Radio Bristol is joined by a panel of guests to discuss how to take risks in radio. All radio producers want to make challenging, provocative and fresh work. But how do you make sure that this work sits on the right side of Ofcom regulations and your in-house compliance team? The panel share their experiences of putting live comedy and edgy drama on air. The panellists are Steven Canny, acting head of BBC radio comedy, Carina Tillson, head of compliance for Global Radio and Kate Rowland, the BBC’s creative director for new writing

Linda Smith from the Radio Advertising Bureau is joined by a panel of guests to discuss the use of syndication to grow your audience and your revenue. Packed full of advice and anecdote, our guests share their experiences of what works when you’re looking to make the most of your audio assets. The panellists are Karen Pearson from Folded Wing, Russell Williams of Yahoo and Matt Deegan from Folder Media. They are joined by BBC Radio 1 DJ Rob da Bank and John Quinn, chief executive of the Global Travel Network.

Broadcaster Liz Barclay is joined by a panel of guests who share advice on how to set up and run an independent production company. They discuss their experiences of starting out and keeping going – the highs and lows - and give advice to those who want to follow in their footsteps. The panel are Mark Goodier from Wise Buddah, Gloria Abramoff of Tonic Productions, Mukti Jain Campion from Culture Wise and Nick Baker of Testbed Productions.

Sound Women founder Maria Williams is joined by a panel of guests to discuss how to create strong connections with your listeners. They discuss the value of audience research, share successful examples of work that their audiences have loved and suggest strategies for developing engagement and appreciation. The panel are Mary Dowson of Bradford Community Broadcasting, Robin Crowley of GaydarRadio, Brett Spencer, interactive editor for BBC Radio 2 and 6 Music and stand-up poet Murray Lachlan Young.

Georgie Bingham of talkSPORT is joined by a panel of guests to discuss the challenges and opportunities for sports broadcasters in this Olympic year. What approaches will radio shows deploy to grab audiences from tv and from each other? What skills will they require in their staff and what treats can listeners look forward to? Answering these questions are Moz Dee of talkSPORT, Jonathan Wall from BBC Radio 5 live and Claire McDonnell of IMG Media.

Tim Davie, director of BBC Audio & Music, is joined by a panel of guests to debate how audio can exploit new platforms and services. Do online sharing services challenge the future for traditional broadcasters? Does digital split the audience or create greater opportunities for audio producers? Answering these questions are radio futurologist James Cridland, Ben Fawkes from audio sharing service Soundcloud, Chris Maples of Spotify and Nicky Birch from indie Somethin’ Else.

Amanda Lyon is joined by three enthusiastic supporters of audio visualisation to talk about what video content adds to audio, and which shows are using visual techniques to best effect. They discuss an early example of audio visualisation from the 1930s and debate if it’s desirable or possible for all audio content to have a visual element. The guests are Joe Harland, BBC Radio 1 and 1Xtra’s head of short form content, 1Xtra DJ Charlie Sloth and photofilm creator Peter Rudge from digital agency Duckrabbit.

Broadcaster Fi Glover hosts a celebration of all things audio. Fi explains her passion for a medium which she describes as being like the best friend you never had. She reflects on the raw power of audio and talks to the broadcasters behind some of the bravest, brightest sounds you’ll hear.We hear from Zane Ibrahim of Africa’s oldest community radio station, Bush Radio, which began broadcasting illegally under South Africa’s apartheid regime. And Fi is also joined by Kate Hutchinson of London Fields Radio, to discover how a micro radio revolution is underway in a booth in a café in east London.

Country and western singer turned lesbian performance artist Tammy Whynot is the host for this session on getting into radio presenting. Her guests are presenters Annie Mac of Radio 1 and Angie Greaves of Magic FM, along with Paul Sylvester, head of presentation at Absolute Radio and Chris North, head of talent for Wise Buddah.They share their journeys, knowledge and expertise. Find out how Annie and Angie got their breaks and learn what radio executives listen out for in new talent.

Lorna Clarke, network manager of BBC Radio 2, is joined by a panel of presenters and their producers to discuss the secrets of successful creative relationships. Lorna and her guests debate how you can build trust, whether differences of opinion are destructive or desirable and how close the connection is between great relationships and great performances.The panel are R1’s Scott Mills and his producer Emlyn Dodd, Woman’s Hour presenter Jane Garvey and producer Lucinda Montefiore and Don’t Hang Up’s Alan Dein and Mark Burman.