

Saturday Live
BBC Radio 4
Join Adrian Chiles for a Saturday morning full of remarkable people with extraordinary stories.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Sep 13, 2025 • 57min
Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith, Beekeeping, Basketball, and Dan Brown's Inheritance Tracks
Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith have worked together for three decades on the likes of The League of Gentlemen and Inside No. 9. But, despite creating some of television's most twisted characters the pair are, as far as we can tell, relatively normal off-screen - Reece is a keen home-baker and Steve loves a good cryptic crossword.Today John Amaechi is a psychologist and leadership consultant, but in a previous life he was an NBA star. But, John spent most of his childhood in Stockport feeling lonely, bullied for his height and weight, he hated sport. But a chance encounter with a basketball coach in the street that saw this 6'10" teenager stars align.One of Molly Earl's earliest memories as a child is rescuing bees with her amateur beeping father. Today she rescues swarms of bees destined for extermination for a living and has given refuge to millions of bees creating 250 established hives around St Austell - where she turns their efforts into award-winning honey. All that, plus the Inheritance Tracks of The Da Vinci Code author, Dan Brown.Presenter: Adrian Chiles
Producer: Ben Mitchell

Sep 6, 2025 • 57min
Michael Rosen, Ghostwriting, Dry Stone Walls, and Oti Mabuse's Inheritance Tracks
Former Children's Laureate, Michael Rosen, shares his guide to hope and happiness during troubling times in the world and after his battle against Covid-19 during the pandemic - plus he reveals the joy of returning to work with "We're Going on a Bear Hunt" illustrator, Helen Oxenbury, for the first time in more than 30 years with "Oh Dear, Look What I Got!".Kristie De Garis is a writer, photographer and one of the few female dry stone wallers in the UK. Based in Perthshire, she fixes the cracks in both the countryside and at home, as she lives with her two children and two ex-husbands.Journalist and professional ghost-writer, Zoë Apostolides, creates memoirs for those who are old or dying to pass down to their family - but it was the creation of her own grandmothers memoirs during lockdown that revealed more than she thought.All that, plus former Strictly star Oti Mabuse shares her Inheritance Tracks.Presenter: Adrian Chiles
Producer: Ben Mitchell

Jul 19, 2025 • 60min
Adam Kay, Anna Whitwham, Kevin Rowland, Janet Street-Porter
Adam Kay from delivering babies to delivering punchlines, the former obs and gynae doctor turned BAFTA-winning writer and comedian, now stitches together stories in his bestselling books. The beloved voice of Dexys Midnight Runners and Dexys - the singer-songwriter Kevin Rowland. He’s traded melodies for memories in his raw and revealing memoir. And penning stories, teaching other writers and also throwing punches - the author Anna Whitwham proves she’s as fierce a pugilist as she is a wordsmith. Plus, the Inheritance Tracks from the journalist, writer and broadcaster Janet Street-Porter. Producer: Gareth Nelson-Davies

Jul 12, 2025 • 1h 2min
Bettany Hughes, Jay McGuiness, Dave Fishwick, Ade Adepitan
Award-winning historian, broadcaster, and author Bettany Hughes wrote her first book when she was just five years old. Now she's
written her first ever children's book, as part of her mission to make history accessible to all. Jay McGuiness swapped the glittery Strictly ballroom and The Wanted tour bus for the West End stage - and now has written a fantasy trilogy! And Dave Fishwick - the real Dave behind the hit Netflix film 'The Bank of Dave' - shares his inspiring life story, which all started with a chip butty... All that plus, the Inheritance Tracks of much-loved TV presenter Ade Adepitan. Presenters: Nikki Bedi and Huw Stephens.
Producer: Lowri Morgan.

Jul 5, 2025 • 1h 3min
Judy Murray, Defne Suman, Richard Turner, Rick Edwards
Mother of champions and former tennis star and coach herself... Judy Murray has swapped a killer forehand for the mighty pen. Richard Turner is a cult survivor who knows a thing or two about love bombing, gaslighting and the prosperity gospel, but it was his autism diagnosis that opened his eyes to the truth. Defne Suman, is an acclaimed Turkish author, and hatha yoga teacher, whose novels unearth forgotten histories and turn memory into literature with sociological insight. All that plus the Inheritance Tracks of the 5Live presenter and noughties teen tv icon…Rick Edwards. Presenters: Nikki Bedi and Huw Stephens
Producer: Lowri Rhiannon Morgan

Jun 28, 2025 • 1h 3min
Sir Lenny Henry, William Ivory, Aoife Ní Bhriain, Nick Grimshaw
Dudley’s finest, Sir Lenny Henry, has always used his comedic and acting talents to infuse characters with humour and heart - his Comic Relief work turned laughter into social impact and he now has a list of ‘brilliant things’ to share.Violinist and Daughter of Dublin Aoife Ní Bhriain has, through her music, blended traditional Irish sounds with modern innovation, turning cultural roots into contemporary expressions. And, hailing from Nottingham, former refuse worker turned screenwriter William Ivory’s discusses a cannon of films, which include Made in Dagenham, and lifts the curtain on how he elevates the mundane and gives voice to the overlooked. All that plus, to get into the festival mood, the Inheritance Tracks of 6 Music’s Breakfast presenter Nick Grimshaw.Presenters: Nikki Bedi and Kiri Pritchard-McLean
Producer: Gareth Nelson-Davies

Jun 21, 2025 • 1h 3min
Adeel Akhtar, Terry Deary, Charlotte Philby, Limahl
Double BAFTA winning and shapeshifting actor Adeel Akhtar has been seen on screen in Murdered by My Father, Sherwood and Fool Me Once and on stage he’s currently playing a politician in The Estate. Terry Deary is the bestselling author of Horrible Histories and has now written his first adult crime thriller…Actually, I’m A Murderer. And Charlotte Philby is the investigative journalist, author of spy thrillers, and has uncovered the women behind her grandfather's double life as one of the Cambridge Five. All that...plus the “Never Ending” Inheritance Tracks of Kajagoogoo star and singer Limahl. Presenters: Nikki Bedi and Huw StephensProducer: Catherine Powell

Jun 14, 2025 • 1h 3min
Kwame Kwei-Armah, George Egg, Mohammad Belal, Fearne Cotton
Actor, director and playwright Kwame Kwei-Armah on the big decisions he’s faced from changing his name to the Herculean task of writing a super-hero musical.Mohammed Belal... Who became England's first paralysed surgeon after a cycling accident. He faced years of rehabilitation to return to work.George Egg who mixes comedy and cooking and says good nosh doesn’t have to be posh and how cooking helped him after the death of his father.Inheritance Tracks are picked by DJ-turned-novelist Fearne Cotton...Presenters: Kiri Pritchard-MCLean and Jon Kay
Producer: Catherine Powell

Jun 7, 2025 • 1h
David Baddiel, Leyla Kazim, Mikey Please, Suzi Ruffell
A man who serves up laughs and heart in equal measure - teller of stories David Baddiel is a comedian, author, screenwriter and presenter who has most recently taken inspiration from the humble burger.Mikey Please is the BAFTA winning short film maker. His stop-motion magic with Aardman Studios conjured the Oscar-nominated Robin Robin and has just won the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize. And fresh from one of her many eating sprees, the globe-trotting foodie and sustainability sage Leyla Kazim joins us. The Food Programme presenter and judge on MasterChef reveals why she is relocating to Portugal for some ‘purposeful living’. All that plus we have the supreme Inheritance Tracks of comedian - and now memoirist - Suzi Ruffell.Presenters: Nikki Bedi and Jon Kay
Producer: Catherine Powell

May 31, 2025 • 1h 1min
Ashley Walters, Rhys Darby, Helen Lederer, Georgia Mann
Ashley Walters, the powerhouse actor, producer and rapper, who’s delivered unforgettable performances in Top Boy and the recent global Netflix hit Adolescence, his memoir unveils a tapestry of his inner workings, woven with candour and introspection.Rhys Darby is one of New Zealand’s finest comedy exports. Famous for his boundless curiosity and for blending quirky wit and brilliance he’ll tell us about being a real-life soldier and on-screen pirate. Plus his current stand-up tour. And Helen Lederer joins us. The actor-writer-comedian who is busy rehearsing for her performance in Fawlty Towers on stage. Plus we have the Inheritance Tracks of the broadcaster and writer Georgia Mann. Presenters: Nikki Bedi and Jon KayProducer: Gareth Nelson-Davies