

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

Jul 8, 2017 • 1h 25min
Alexei Sayle
Alexei Sayle talks about his Imaginary Sandwich Shop and forthcoming appearance at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.Martine Wright lost both her legs in the 7/7 London bombings and went on to represent Great Britain in the London Paralympics in 2012. Unbroken by Martine Wright is out on the 13th July.Cyrus Todiwala is a chef and restaurateur who has followed the spice route from Bombay to London. Mr Todiwala's Spice Box is out now.Barn the Spoon is an artisan spoon carver, teacher, author and co-founder of Spoonfest. Spon: A Guide to Spoon Carving and the New Wood Culture by Barn the Spoon is out now.JP meets electronic dance music duo Orbital.Plus the Inheritance Tracks of Alan Partridge. Alan chooses Who Put The Bomp by Barry Mann and the theme from Grandstand by Keith Mansfield. A-ha!

Jul 1, 2017 • 1h 25min
Judy Murray
Judy Murray talks about her family and their tennis story - and her subsequent projects from dancing the Viennese Waltz at the Tower Ballroom, Blackpool, to heading the women's tennis coaching initiative She Rallies.
Jamie Chadwick has just become the youngest British female racing driver to sign for a Formula 1 feeder series team. She explains how she got into the sport and became the first female and youngest racing driver to win a British GT championship.
Wolfgang Puck has catered to the Oscars for 23 consecutive years. With the 35th anniversary of his flagship restaurant Spago this year, he recalls his culinary career.
JP Devlin meets James Shepherd-Barron, the son of the inventor of the ATM, which celebrates it's 50th anniversary this week.
The prize-winning author Adam Nicolson describes his childhood at Sissinghurst and how his visits to the Hebridean Islands sparked his fascination with seabirds.
And the actress and singer Ute Lemper shares her Inheritance Tracks: Where Have All The Flowers Gone, performed by Marlene Dietrich, and The Rose performed by Bette Midler.Knowing the Score: My Family and Our Tennis Story is out now.
Wolfgang Puck is hosting Spago pop-up at CUT at 45 Park Lane until 1st July.
The Seabird's Cry, The Lives and Loves of Puffins, Gannets and Other Ocean Voyagers, is out now.
Ute Lemper will be performing the album 9 Secrets at the Cadogan Hall on 15th September; and will also be touring her 'Last Tango in Berlin - The Best of Ute'.Producer: Louise Corley
Editor: Eleanor Garland.

Jul 1, 2017 • 1h 25min
Henry "Blowers" Blofeld, Tom Chaplin, Kiri Pritchard-Mclean, Jess Walkup
Aasmah Mir and the Rev Richard Coles chat with cricket commentator Henry "Blowers" Blofeld, Keane singer Tom Chaplin on his solo career, comedian Kiri Pritchard-Mclean & British Antarctic winter base commander Jess Walkup. We also hear interior designer Nicky Haslam's inheritance tracks and from the World Egg Throwing Championships in Lincolnshire.Producer: Paul Waters
Presenters: Aasmah Mir and Rev Richard Coles.

Jun 17, 2017 • 1h 25min
Foxton Locks Festival; Lee Hall; Thomasina Miers
A Canal Themed Programme with the Rev. Richard Coles on location from Foxton Locks in Leicestershire for the festival. He is joined by the Canal Laureate, Luke Kennard; Lynne Berry of the Canal and River Trust and volunteer and canal enthusiast, Derek Harris, performs from his one man show. Aasmah Mir presents in London where her guests include: the playwright Lee Hall, who recounts his canal adventure and reveals the growing collection that is over-running his basement; and the cookery writer and former winner of Masterchef, Thomasina Miers, who gives her top tips for cooking on canal boats and discusses her passion chillies and street food. JP visits Braunston Marina in Northamptonshire to meet Pete and Karen Flockhart, to hear how they first met on a narrowboat, and now make fenders and other ropework in their workshop overlooking the junction of the Grand Union and Oxford canals. Leicester born singer Englebert Humperdinck shares his Inheritance Tracks, with a rather fitting tribute to his dad for Father's Day this weekend.The Foxton Locks Festival at Foxton in Leicestershire -17 - 18 June 2017 - 10.00am - 5.00pm.Our Ladies of Perpetual Succour is at The Duke of York's Theatre in London.Producer: Louise Corley
Editor: Eleanor Garland.

Jun 10, 2017 • 1h 25min
Oz Clarke
The Rev. Richard Coles and Aasmah Mir are joined by the wine writer and broadcaster Oz Clarke; TV presenter and author of "The Grief Survival Guide" Jeff Brazier; former England cricketer and Director of Surrey Women's Cricket Ebony Rainsford-Brent and mathematician Dr Hannah Fry. Plus Bron Campbell and Holly Ford who opened a cake shop in a phone box. And garden designer Dan Pearson shares his Inheritance Tracks.Oz and Armonico Drink to Music at Harrogate Festival (1 July), Buxton Festival (10 July) and Lichfield Festival (11 July).
The Grief Survival Guide: How to Navigate Loss and All That Comes With It by Jeff Brazier is out now.
Dr Hannah Fry and Ant Anstead present 'Britain's Greatest Invention' on BBC Two, 15 June.Producer: Tim Allen.
Editor: Eleanor Garland.

Jun 3, 2017 • 1h 25min
Robert 'Judge' Rinder; Amelia Dalton; Professor Clare Brant; Daragh O'Malley.
Presenter and barrister Robert 'Judge' Rinder; actor Daragh O'Malley; Clare Brant, professor of 18th century literature and culture and ship's captain Amelia Dalton join Aasmah Mir and the Revd Richard Coles.Robert 'Judge' Rinder is a criminal law barrister and television court judge who is best known for his role on the reality courtroom series Judge Rinder - the British version of the American show Judge Judy. He came to widespread attention performing on Strictly come Dancing in 2016. He presents Judge Rinder's Crime Stories on ITV.Daragh O'Malley is an actor who stars in Maxim Gorky's the Last Ones at the Jermyn Street Theatre. He is best known for his role as Patrick Harper opposite Sean Bean in the television series Sharpe from 1992 to 2008. His film and television roles range from Withnail and I to The Long Good Friday and Waking The Dead to Silent Witness while his theatre work includes Dancing at Lughnasa and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. The Last Ones is at the Jermyn Street Theatre, London.Clare Brant is professor of 18th century literature and culture at King's College London. She has curated Dear Diary: A Celebration of Diaries and their Digital Descendants. The exhibition explores what motivates diarists and charts the ways in which paper diaries have been joined by phones and tablets as our means of keeping track of daily life. Dear Diary is at King's College London in Somerset House.After the death of her son, Amelia Dalton took a step that would change her life forever. She transformed a neglected Arctic fishing boat into a chic expedition ship to run cruises to the Western Isles. Along the way, she had to navigate bloody-minded fisherman, red tape, bank loans and shareholders - and gained the respect of the tough, hard-working island community. She's written about her adventure in her book, Mistress and Commander, published by Sandstone Press.Also in the programme, writer Anthony Horowitz shares his Inheritance Tracks.Producer: Paula McGinley.

Jun 2, 2017 • 1h 25min
Adrian Lester, James May, Marawa Ibrahim, Lottie Muir
Actor Adrian Lester, star of Sky drama Riviera; TV presenter and author of The Reassembler, James May; record breaking hula hooper and author of The Girl Guide, Marawa Ibrahim; plus cocktail gardener Lottie Muir from the Midnight Apothecary.

May 20, 2017 • 1h 60min
Nicola Adams and Les Dennis
Aasmah Mir and Suzy Klein are joined by the boxer and Olympic gold champion Nicola Adams, who talks about her boxing career and work as an extra in programmes including Coronation Street. Actor Les Dennis, spent three years on the Street playing burglar-turned-romeo, Michael Rodwell. He explains why he shaved his head for his latest role as Uncle Fester in The Addams Family. Survival expert, Megan Hine, is the woman who helps keep Bear Grylls safe. She describes how she contracted Lyme disease, was chased through the jungle by an armed drug gang and had to abseil past bears.
Rochdale born singer and call centre worker, Jack Randle, is the first Briton to be selected to enter the 'Sinatra Idol Contest' held in Hoboken, New Jersey. He reveals what he'll be singing.
Martin Kemp shares his Inheritance Tracks. He chooses Long Distance Love performed by Little Feat and Jumping Jack Flash by The Rolling Stones.Believe - Boxing, Olympics and my life outside the ring, by Nicola Adams, is out now.
The Addams Family is currently on a tour of the UK and Ireland.
Jack Randle takes part in the Sinatra Idol Contest in Hoboken on 15 June.
Mind of a Survivor, What the Wild Has Taught Me About Survival and Success, by Megan Hine.

May 13, 2017 • 1h 27min
Sharleen Spiteri
Sharleen Spiteri was just 21 when she found herself and her band Texas at number 8 in the charts with I Don't Want A Lover. Almost 30 years later, she's still writing and recording - back with Texas since 2013 after a spell as a solo artist. Her new album Jump on Board is out now. Texas will play the Isle Of Wight Festival on Saturday 10th June and the UK tour kicks off on 11th September in Cardiff. So many 50th anniversaries this year, and not least among them the Summer of Love, when nearly 100,000 long haired layabouts (quote) travelled to San Francisco to change the world. Reviews are mixed, concerning their success, among them Nick Campion's. He's an academic specialising in the cultural history of astronomy and astrology (indeed he used to do the horoscopes in a daily paper) - and his book The New Age in the Modern West looks back to that fabled time. Well, she might not have made it quite to San Francisco, but Esta Charkham did it make it to Holborn and joined the cast of Zigger Zagger, the National Youth Theatre's landmark play about football hooliganism. It lit up theatre land in the summer of 1967. Now Esta wants to reunite the original cast. So far she has traced 43 of the original 87 members. If you are one or know someone who was a cast member email us at saturdaylive@bbc.co.uk with Zigger Zagger in the subject lineYou might think that the Reverend Kate Bottley spends her life watching TV for Channel 4's Gogglebox but she's too busy for that. A priest in North Nottinghamshire, a regular presenter on Songs of Praise, wife, mum of two, dog owner and flash mob conductor. She talks about growing up in Sheffield, the priesthood and being a bit of a geek.Jason Blyth has a fantastic connection to Eurovision. He's a music teacher from Perth who loves Eurovision so much that he wrote a song for it. He's in our Dundee studioThis week the Inheritance Tracks comes from Jazzie B. DJ and producer and one of the founding members of the Grammy-winning musical collective Soul II Soul. In the summer of 1989 their hits 'Keep on Movin' and 'Back to Life' seemed to be blasting out from every passing car. The band's mix of reggae, soul, dub and hip hop emerged from the world of sound systems and their maxim "A happy face, a thumpin' bass, for a lovin' race" got us all into the groove... Soul to Soul are on Tour now
Next Tuesday as part of the Summer of Love Revisited at the Albert Hall, Jazzie B will be in discussion about the black music counterculture of the 1960s and 70s. It's Eurovision tonight so we want to hear from you. Some people love it, others less so. What are your memories of watching Eurovision? Have you ever been? Do you have an interesting connection? Get in touch and don't forget to leave a number in case JP Devlin wants to call you EMAIL: saturdaylive@bbc.co.ukTEXT: 84844TWEET: #bbcsaturdaylivePresenters: Aasmah Mir & the Rev. Richard Coles
Producer: Maire Devine.

May 6, 2017 • 1h 25min
Dame Penelope Keith
Actor Dame Penelope Keith; interior designer Nicky Haslam; writer Alex Wheatle and conservationist Dr Amy Dickman join Aasmah Mir and the Revd Richard Coles.Dame Penelope Keith, best known for her television roles in the Good Life and To The Manor Born, celebrates village life in the Channel 4 series Hidden Villages and is currently on a quest to find Britain's Village of the Year.Interior designer and socialite Nicky Haslam is performing his cabaret show - featuring songs by Cole Porter, Kurt Weill and Irving Berlin - at the Pheasantry in London in May and June. His company has designed homes for Mick Jagger, Bryan Ferry, Rod Stewart, Ringo Starr, Charles Saatchi and Rupert Everett among others. Alex Wheatle is a writer of young adult fiction who won the Guardian's children's fiction prize in 2016. His latest book, Straight Outta Crongton, is the third instalment of his Crongton series of novels. Dr Amy Dickman is a conservation biologist with a particular interest in the maintenance of threatened wildlife populations on human-dominated land and how to resolve human-wildlife conflict. She is director of Ruaha Carnivore Project (RCP), a community-based lion conservation initiative in Tanzania. Actor Dennis Quaid reveals his Inheritance Tracks and talks about his love of music and performing with his band, the Sharks. He stars in A Dog's Purpose which is on general release.The Hot 8 Brass Band from New Orleans have been playing together for 20 years, performing at community parades and funerals. The band's founder and sousaphone player Bennie Pete discusses the band's early years and celebrates their music and sense of unity which has held them together during the good times and the bad. The band are touring the UK. Producer: Paula McGinley
Editor: Eleanor Garland.


