Comedy of the Week

Give us what we want, or else! It’s how small children approach Halloween, and increasingly how everyone else approaches politics - with menace, ultimatums and threats.
Comedian Matt Forde convenes a special Halloween Focus Group in front of a live theatre audience and asks if politics is now just one long game of Trick-or-Treat.
Joining him to make idle threats and scare the locals are The Spectator’s Isabel Hardman, Malawian-born stand-up Daliso Chaponda and MP Jess Phillips. Together they work out who’s knocking, what they’re after, and whether it’s ever wise to hide behind the sofa and pretend you’re not in.
Written and performed by Matt Forde
Additional writing from Karl Minns, Katie Storey and Richard Garvin
Producer: Richard Garvin
Co Producer: Daisy Knight
Broadcast Assistant: Eunice Oshiguwa
Sound Design and Editing: David Thomas
An Avalon production for BBC Radio 4

In this episode we meet a bipedal hominin with a gambling problem, argue with a conspiracy-theorist ostracod and discover the best use for our surprising grip strength.
Randy Feltface’s Human Handbook is a groundbreaking four-part stand-up series where Randy fixes his ping-pong ball gaze upon the evolutionary journey of Earth’s most baffling beings
Randy Feltface has been seen on Netflix, ABC, NBC, and has a huge and devoted following across the globe (1m+ social media followers, 1.6m TikTok followers, 833k subscribers, 79m YouTube views). His hour-long specials are YouTube cult classics, his world tours are sold out sensations, and he's the only Radio 4 presenter to be entirely made of felt.
With Alex Papps and Chiara Goldsmith
Produced and directed by David Tyler
A Pozzitive production for BBC Radio 4

Join Russell Kane as he rummages through nature’s police files, potentially exposing that glossy sinister feathered felon: the Crow.
Let’s face it, Gwyneth Pal-crows have one of the worst reps of all birds. Think about it: Penguins? Lovely. Puffins? Legends! Crows? DEATH.
Helping Russell sort the caw-caws from the jackdaws, are comedian Desiree Burch and the Natural History Museum’s Principal Curator of Birds, Dr. Alex Bond.
Are Crows ‘Bad News with Wings’ or ‘Feathered Fantastics’? Listen with your ears to find out.
Written by: Eve Delaney, Ruth Huskisson and Christina Riggs.
Additional material: Angela Channell and Catherine Beazley.
Researcher: Catherine Beazley
Sound Recordist: Gareth Wood
Digital Editor: Jerry Peal
Production Coordinator: Liz Tuohy
Executive Producer: Paul Smith
Producer: Simon Nicholls
Evil Animals with Russell Kane is a BBC Studios Production for BBC Sounds.

In this episode, the 2005 General Election inspires Glenn to stand in his school’s own mock election, as the candidate with the most unlikely set of policies ever.
Perhaps best-known for his outrageously brilliant one-liners on Mock The Week, Glenn delivers a tale of comic mishaps and extraordinary scenes interwoven with a big event in history – and looks back through his almanac to find out other strange connections to the day as well.
Written by Glenn with additional material by Katie Storey (Have I Got News For You, Mock The Week, The Last Leg) and produced and directed by David Tyler (Cabin Pressure, Armando Iannucci’s Charm Offensive, and many more).
A Pozzitive production for BBC Radio 4

Paul Merton interviews a variety of guests from the world of comedy and entertainment to find out what they would send to Room 101.
Kicking off the series, Miles Jupp attempts to banish touchscreens, people who take the aisle seat on a train when the window seat is available, and people who do not park well.
To hear more episodes from this series, search "Room 101" on BBC Sounds.
Additional material by John Irwin and Suki Webster
Producer: Claire Broughton
A Hat Trick production for BBC Radio 4