Front Row

As the acclaimed 1976 Roman Empire drama series I Claudius returns to television screens, classicist Natalie Haynes and cultural critic Charlotte Higgins discuss the reasons for its success, whether its historical inaccuracies are any bar to its enjoyment, and if it stands the test of time. Plus conductor, curator, and composer Jules Buckley discusses his Stevie Wonder Prom celebrating 50 years of the ground-breaking album Innervisions.And why is it often so hard to buy tickets for big gigs, like Taylor Swift’s Eras tour? We talk to ticketing security expert Reg Walker, and to Martin Haigh of ticketing system provider Total Ticketing and a previous head of Ticketmaster Asia.Presenter: Tom Sutcliffe Producer: Harry Parker

Front Row is live from Dynamic Earth in Edinburgh for festival season, presented by Kate Molleson. Scotland’s own Grammy award-winning violinist Nicola Benedetti will be with us to share her vision for this year’s Edinburgh International Festival, as she makes her debut as Festival Director. Kate will also be joined on stage by the Pulitzer Prize winning novelist Colson Whitehead to discuss Crook Manifesto, the latest instalment in his Harlem saga, set in 1970s New York. We’ll have music from the Scottish folk singer Karine Polwart with pianist Dave Milligan, ahead of their appearance at the Book Festival.Glasgow comedian Susie McCabe will share stand-up from her new Fringe show exploring her womanhood, Femme Fatality. Novelist and fellow Glaswegian Andrew O’Hagan will reflect on making his directorial debut, as he brings his new play The Ballad of Truman Capote to the Fringe.Presenter: Kate Molleson Producer: Kirsty McQuire

As the death toll from wildfires in Hawaii rises, The Beekeeper of Aleppo author Christy Lefteri explains how similar tragedies in Greece inspired her new novel The Book of Fire. Battersea Arts Centre’s Artistic Director and CEO Tarek Iskander, critic Andrzej Lukowski and theatre consultant Amanda Parker discuss what could be behind the current exodus of artistic directors from theatres across the UK. Curator Rachel Dedman and artist Aya Haider reflect on the roots of the striking needlework in Material Power, an exhibition of Palestinian Embroidery.Presenter: Samira Ahmed Producer Paula McGrath

György Ligeti: on the 100th anniversary of his birth, we celebrate the Hungarian-Austrian composer and the 2023 Proms performances of his work - music which was famously used by filmmaker Stanley Kubrick in The Shining and A Space Odyssey. Pianist Danny Driver, and music critic, author and librettist Jessica Duchen join Tom to discuss.Plus we review La Cage Aux Folles - the musical story of a gay couple running a drag nightclub, and new Italian film L'immensita, starring Penelope Cruz - about a young girl in 70s Rome who yearns to be a boy, Our reviewers are theatre critic David Benedict, and writer, editor and podcaster Thea Lenarduzzi. Presenter: Tom Sutcliffe Producer: Emma Wallace

Mercury Prize winning and Oscar-nominated artist Anohni returns with a soulful new album, My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross, released under the moniker Anonhi and the Johnsons for the first time.The artist Michael Moebius is preparing to launch another legal battle to protect his intellectual property, after successfully suing 399 companies for infringing his copyright in a landmark lawsuit. To discuss why artists and designers need better protection, Nick Ahad is joined by US lawyer Jeff Gluck and Margaret Heffernan, Chair of the Design and Artists Copyright Society.Playwright Nathan Queeley-Dennis is in Edinburgh appearing in his debut play, a monologue which won the Bruntwood Prize last year. Nathan tells Nick about writing and performing Bullring Techno Makeout Jamz, a love letter to Brimingham, barbers and love itself.Presenter: Nick Ahad Producer: Ekene Akalawu

On the 50th anniversary of the release of the martial arts film Enter The Dragon, actor and filmmaker Daniel York Loh and Bruce Lee’s biographer Matthew Polly discuss the star of the film, Bruce Lee, and his continuing influence across culture.As reality TV remains a staple of our television schedules, Carolyn Atkinson reports on the work that television production companies are now doing to support the mental wellbeing of the members of the public who become contestants on their shows.The author, poet and sound recordist Seán Street talks about how the challenge of describing the sounds of nature in words makes us listen differently, and why it may encourage us to care more for our environment. His new book is Wild Track - Sound, Text and the Idea of Birdsong.Presenter: Samira Ahmed Producer: Paul Waters

When you fall in love how do you know it’s for real, and not just the result of chemicals in your brain? Lucy Prebble’s play The Effect is back at the National Theatre - Tristan and Connie fall in love during a clinical trial for a new antidepressant and wonder if their passion is merely drug-fuelled.The Welsh band Adwaith play their online hit Fel I Fod (How To Be) – just before the Camarthen band appear at the National Eisteddfod. And could it be true that the art of criticism is dying? Theatre critic Mark Shenton believes it might be – but social media influencer Mickey-Jo Boucher says he’s bringing in new audiences. Head critic and reviews editor at The Stage Sam Marlowe says the art of reviewing is evolving and there’s room for both approaches.Presenter: Tom Sutcliffe Producer: Harry Parker

The South African soprano Masabane Cecilia Rangwanasha talks to Front Row ahead of returning to the Proms this Saturday to sing Strauss’s Four Last Songs with the National Youth Orchestra.Critics Sharlene Teo and Max Liu review Joy Ride, the feature film debut of Adele Lim, who also wrote Crazy Rich Asians - and also Ann Patchett’s new novel Tom Lake, a story about how we tell the story of our lives – and how we fill the inevitable gaps. And the composer and conductor Carl Davis has died. His film and television successes include the themes for the BBC’s 1995 adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, ITV's landmark history series the The World At War, and the TV adaptation of Far Pavilions. He wrote part of the Liverpool Oratorio with Paul McCartney to mark the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic’s 150th anniversary. The composer and author Neil Brand joins us to celebrate the work of Carl Davis. Presenter: Tom Sutcliffe Producer: Paul Waters

A new Welsh version of the comedy hit Fleabag is about to premiere at the National Eisteddfod in Boduan. Branwen Davies’ adaptation of the one-woman show for Theatr Clywd has been given the thumb’s up by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, who wrote and starred in the original version ten years ago at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. It was later turned into an award-winning BBC television series. Davies says she wanted to create a Welsh voice for Fleabag rather than do a word-for-word translation. Her Fleabag talks about her interactions with men in English – but it’s the Welsh language she shared with her dead mother that reveals her most honest and vulnerable moments. Just over halfway through Leeds2023, the city's year-long celebration of culture, Nick visits one of the major commissions - Moon Palace. A new social sculpture and working mobile observatory created by artists Heather Peak and Ivan Morison. They took inspiration from the man known as the "father of civil engineering", John Smeaton, who was born in East Leeds nearly 300 years ago and as well as building his own observatory, designed and built many bridges, canals, water mills, and lighthouses across the UK. And how is social media transforming comedy? Comedian Abi Clarke who’s in Edinburgh did standup for a year but gained more than 900,000 followers on TikTok after posting sketches since the pandemic. Comedy promoter Toby Jones believes it’s a bigger revolution than television and takes comedy directly to consumers, helping to improve diversity and build audiences without so much financial risk.Presenter: Nick Ahad Producer: Ekene Akalawu

As the Booker Prize longlist is announced, literary critic Alex Clark takes us through the contenders for the £50,000 literary award for fiction, to be announced on 26th November.In September, a treasure trove of personal items belonging to Freddie Mercury - from fine art to furniture and fashion - will be sold at auction. In the run up to the sales, the collection will go on display to the public at Sotheby’s New Bond Street Galleries. Ahead of the exhibition, Samira gets an exclusive tour of Freddie’s on and off-stage wardrobe by entertainment memorabilia specialists, Wallace and Hodgson.A new report into Scottish theatre is calling for a commercially driven theatre company specialising in new work to be established in Scotland. To find out why, we’re joined by David Brownlee, chief executive of the arts data specialists Data Culture Change, theatre critic of the Scotsman Joyce MacMillan, and Patricia Stead who's executive director and Joint CEO of the Tron Theatre company in Glasgow.Presenter: Samira Ahmed Producer: Paula McGrath