Archive on 4

Brilliant stories told using archive from the BBC and beyond.

Radio 4,699 episodes

Episodes

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Richard Rogers, Catalyst
Tom Dyckhoff looks back through the archive at the life and work of Richard Rogers.
17 Dec 2022,57 mins
Liz Truss’s Big Gamble
Nick Robinson discovers the inside story of the UK's shortest ever premiership.
03 Dec 2022,57 mins
FDR's Four Freedoms
Professor David Reynolds on what Roosevelt's Four Freedoms speech means today.
26 Nov 2022,57 mins
Hendrix: Everything but the Guitar
When you think of Jimi, you think guitar. But there are so many other layers to consider.
19 Nov 2022,57 mins
Our Archive Century
Breaking News
A celebration of the stories, style and insights of the BBC archives.
29 Oct 2022,57 mins
Our Archive Century
Science
A celebration of the BBC archives and what they tell us about science and scientists.
05 Nov 2022,57 mins
Our Archive Century
The Arts
A celebration of a hundred years of BBC the archives and their importance to the Arts.
12 Nov 2022,57 mins
The Battle of the Brows
Philip Hensher looks at how debates over culture have played out at the BBC and beyond.
22 Oct 2022,57 mins
The Art of Habit
Author and journalist Lynsey Hanley tells the story of the rise of sociology in Britain.
15 Oct 2022,57 mins
Kate Bush: The Power of Strange Things
NPR music journalist Ann Powers pays tribute to the inspirational talent of Kate Bush.
01 Oct 2022,57 mins
Paul Verhoeven's American Futures
Explore the American futures of Paul Verhoeven from Robocop to Starship Troopers.
10 Sep 2022,57 mins
The Queen's English
Martha Kearney on the way the Queen’s voice and words shaped how we remember her reign.
09 Sep 2022,57 mins
Mr Lucas’s Diaries
Mark Gatiss delves into the diaries of George Leo John Lucas.
27 Aug 2022,57 mins
10 Years of The Digital Human
Aleks Krotoski celebrates a decade of The Digital Human live from the Edinburgh Festival.
20 Aug 2022,57 mins
Tobacco and Me
How much has the tobacco industry changed over the last 50 years? Peter Taylor reports
13 Aug 2022,57 mins
In Praise of Clichés
Steve Punt asks why so many of us have been singing from the same hymn sheet.
06 Aug 2022,57 mins
Generation Games
From Pong to Pokémon, what have video games ever done for us? Keza MacDonald finds out.
30 Jul 2022,57 mins
Brum Britain
As the Commonwealth Games arrive, is it time for the UK's Second City to become its First?
23 Jul 2022,57 mins
London 2012: From Waste Land to Gold Rush
The extraordinary story of how London came to host the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
16 Jul 2022,57 mins
A Hard Look at Soft Power
Does soft power still wield force in a time of brutal displays of hard power in Ukraine?
09 Jul 2022,57 mins
Fifty Years of Pride
Damian Barr examines how Pride has helped bring about change for the LGBTQ+ community.
02 Jul 2022,57 mins,
Kissinger's Century
Henry Kissinger, adviser to US presidents for 6 decades, reflects on his life and career.
25 Jun 2022,57 mins
Ziggy Stardust at 50
Celebrating the golden jubilee of David Bowie’s The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust.
11 Jun 2022,57 mins
Encounters with Elizabeth
Tales of meetings - official and unexpected - with Queen Elizabeth II.
04 Jun 2022,57 mins
Over The Top
What does it mean to be too much, excessive or extra? Kit Green celebrates extravagance.
27 May 2022,53 mins
A Succession of Repetitive Beats
The rave that changed Britain, 1992's Castlemorton Common festival in West Worcestershire.
14 May 2022,57 mins
We're All Living in OK Computer Now...
An examination of the prophetic qualities of Radiohead's OK Computer, 25 years on.
07 May 2022,57 mins
Russia's Restless '90s
Tim Whewell examines how the tumult in Russia in the 1990s forged the system we see today
30 Apr 2022,57 mins
To Barbra
Dame Maureen Lipman celebrates the radical career of Barbra Streisand.
23 Apr 2022,57 mins
50 Years Without a Clue
Greg James presents a compilation of the long-running, self-styled antidote to panel games
16 Apr 2022,57 mins