Illuminated

On a hot summer’s day in 1991, a violent crime took place that shook Consett, a town in the North East of England. When threatened with the legal demolition of a property he owned, a former steelworker called Albert Dryden went on a murderous rampage, killing the council’s chief planning officer and seriously wounding a policeman and a journalist. Furthermore, the brutal crime was filmed and broadcast on national news.
But what made the crime even more perplexing was its controversial aftermath. While the majority of people condemned Dryden’s actions, a vocal minority came to see him as something of a folk hero. This wasn’t the usual morbid fascination that can sometimes gather around certain violent criminals; it was admiration. Crowds cheered outside his court hearings and “Free Albert Dryden” posters were not an uncommon sight around town – even songs were written about him.
How can a cold-blooded killer ever gain public support? Writer Joe Zadeh takes a close look at details surrounding this incident in an attempt to examine these rare yet recurring moments in history, when moral values turn upside down and everyday citizens find themselves excusing the most horrific crimes.
Written and presented by Joe Zadeh
Producer: Hunter Charlton
Mixing Engineer: Alex Portfelix
Composer: Jess Howard
Executive Producer: Ant Adeane
Photograph: Albert Dryden taken by Michael Peckett
An Ember production for BBC Radio 4.

The young British poet Saili Katebe was born in landlocked Zambia, and grew up with an imagined beach in his mind. Palm trees would grow in the golden sands. The sun would shine all day, and naturally there’d be romance.
Moving to the UK as a teenager, Saili visited a real beach for the first time. He was underwhelmed by the hazy sun and soft ice cream, and the sea at low tide was so far away he could hardly see it, let alone swim in its weedy shallows.
Over the years though, Saili has come to appreciate the quiet charms of the beaches around him as places rich in stories. In Voices from the Beach he listens to lives shaped by the beach in unexpected ways. There’s the ice cream seller, who once fled her own landlocked country. Now her Mr Whippy Van now brings joy along the south coast.
‘It’s an honour to keep the tradition alive,’ she says. ‘I couldn’t live without the sea now.’ Then there’s the fisherman ‘born on the beach’ who tried to move away but couldn’t get his bearings without the sea.
Voices from the Beach features chance encounters and casual conversations with many other people out on the beaches at Bognor Regis, Littlehampton, Dover, Lyme Regis, Brighton and Weston Super Mare.
Music Jon Nicholls
Produced by Jon Nicholls with Monica Whitlock
Photograph: Troon beach by Monica Whitlock
A Storyscape production for BBC Radio 4

When Laura's sister could no longer care for her daughter, Laura had a few hours to decide. If she said yes, she would become a parent again overnight, no training, no paid leave, no warning. If she said no, the little girl would go into care.
She said yes. Most families do.
My Sister's Daughter weaves Laura's story, told through the small, exhausting, tender details of a life rearranged, with the voice of Jo, now in her forties, looking back at her own childhood in kinship care. When Jo's mother died, a quiet constellation of adults closed around her: a stepfather, grandparents, aunts. Nobody called it kinship care, it didn’t have a name then. They just stepped in, and stayed.
Together, Laura and Jo illuminate a world that is largely invisible, not because it is rare, but because it is so deeply woven into how families survive. There are over 130,000 children in kinship care in England and Wales right now. Most are there because someone said yes in a moment of crisis, with no time to think and very little support to follow.
This is a programme about what that decision really means for the children who receive it, and for the adults who give it.
It’s also about what it leaves behind, for the people who care, and for the children who grow up inside it.
Produced and presented by Jo Meek
Executive Producer - Eloise Whitmore
A Naked production for BBC Radio 4

“Each one of us, we’re a constant radio station communicating and receiving. It’s just that we’re not taught how to read, how to interpret the energies and intuitions we pick up. The tarot card is a really important component in this… " Ben Okri
Tarot cards are rich in visual symbolism and the stories they tell help people make sense of the ups and downs of human experience. They’ve been around for hundreds of years - from simple card games to fortune-telling, divination tools, the occult and intuitive storytelling.
In this episode of Illuminated, we join four artists at their private readings to hear how tarot is part of their creative practice.
The Queen of Wands: Comedian and writer Jessica Knappett drives to Harrogate to meet Carla Greenwood who has news of an ominous block in her work.
Madame Sosostris: Writer Ben Okri has borrowed ‘the wisest women in Europe’ as a character for his latest novel. Where did she come from?
Five of Coins: Musician, writer and actress Lola Kirke is about to go on stage in Manchester. Jen Cownie asks her if the Five of Coins card tells a story about feeling like an outsider.
Pentacles: Poet and generative intelligence designer Adam Martin is embarking on a new project. Is he on the right path?
With Ben Okri, Jessica Knappett, Adam Martin, Lola Kirke, Jen Cownie, Carla Greenwood and Diane Whiteley.
Editor.............................. Ross Burman
Producer......................... Alexandra Quinn
Executive Producer......... Kris Dyer
A Rakkit production for BBC Radio 4

World champion Strongwomen Lucy Underdown, Rebecca Roberts and Donna Moore redefine what it means to be strong. They reveal what we can all learn from these record-breaking athletes, while also challenging what it really means to be powerful woman.
Contributors: Rebecca Roberts, Lucy Underdown and Donna Moore
Produced by Justine Potter
Executive Producer: Geoff Bird
A Savvy production for BBC Radio 4