Word of Mouth

Michael Rosen discovers how the Vikings changed English. These invaders brought with them the words knife, gun, slaughter, ransack and anger. But then they settled, using their anger, verbs and great hair to transform our grammar, and our understanding of the landscape. With author Eleanor Rosamund Barraclough and historical linguist Laura Wright.Producer: Melvin Rickarby

Michael Rosen explores the sound and rhythm of English with acclaimed poet Glyn Maxwell. From nursery rhymes and nonsense poetry to Shakespeare and Bob Dylan. Producer: Melvin Rickarby

Michael Rosen explores the strange history of 'The', the most influential word in English. It's used more than twice as much as any other English word, and has given philosophers centuries of head-scratching. So how did a word which means nothing, and didn't even exist in Old English, come to dominate our language? With linguists Laura Wright and Jonathan Culpeper, and philosopher Barry Smith.Producer: Melvin Rickarby

Michael Rosen asks what the earliest language was and how it evolved. Michael joins linguist Dr Laura Wright on a journey to meet our meat-scavenging, fire-harnessing ancestors to discover the primal sources of language. There are thousands of languages today - is it possible to trace them back to a single ancestor? With anthropologist Robert Foley and linguist Maggie Tallerman. Producer: Melvin Rickarby

Michael Rosen meets acclaimed poet Raymond Antrobus. Winner of the 2018 Ted Hughes award for new work in poetry, his collection The Perserverence brings together autobiographical poems on race, deafness and family. He joins Michael Rosen to discuss language, sign language and deafness.Producers: Melvin Rickarby and James Cook

Damian Le Bas talks to Michael Rosen about the Romani language and his experience with using it. Damian is the author of The Stopping Places: A Journey Through Gypsy Britain. Producer Beth O'Dea

Can a series of images be 'read' like a series of words? What makes something a language? We have written, spoken and signed languages, but could the sequences of images we see in comics also qualify? Michael Rosen explores the visual language of comics and graphic novels, with comics theorist and cognitive researcher Neil Cohn, author of The Visual Language of Comics. Producer: Mair Bosworth

Jeffrey Boakye talks to Michael Rosen about exploring black British identity, including his own, through the words used by and about black men and women. Jeffrey's the author of Black, Listed and of Hold Tight: Black Masculinity, Millennials & the Meaning of Grime. Producer Beth O'Dea

Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright look into the weird and wonderful world of biscuit names while munching some in the studio with Anastasia Edwards, author of Biscuits and Cookies, A Global History. Why is it a Garibaldi and how about a Jammie Dodger? Producer Beth O'Dea

Michael Rosen talks to Eddy Canfor-Dumas and Peter Osborn about how improving our dialogue is good for everything, from helping excluded children to resolving conflict. Producer Sally Heaven.