We’re going to experiment a little for a few weeks, with a weekly companion to our twice-a-week Square Eyes TV previews as part of TV Today’s ongoing commitment to also covering the radio. Do let us know what you think, either in the comments or via tvtoday@thestage.co.uk.
We’ll be concentrating, as we do in our TV coverage, on drama and comedy, with occasional forays into documentary and music. A quick proviso: I haven’t yet heard any of these productions, so I’m going to have to go on equal parts of the reputation of those involved, and my own gut instincts…
The Saturday Play: The Last Confession Radio 4, Saturday, 2.30pm
David Suchet reprises his portrayal of Cardinal Giovani Benelli, in this adaptation of Roger Crane’s Vatican-set thriller. Benelli is a good man who, upon looking into the circumstances surrounding the 33-day reign and death of Pope John Paul I, which played at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket last year.
The Archive Hour: King of Comedy Radio 4, Saturday 8.00pm
Angus Deayton presents a tribute to the late Geoffrey Perkins, who tragically died in a road accident at the end of August. From Hitch-Hikers’ Guide to the Galaxy to Radio Active, I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue and The Fast Show, Perkins was at the heart of British comedy. In many ways, it’s a tragedy that there’s an only an hour to devote to such a remarkable career.
Elaine Paige on Sunday Radio 2, Sunday 1.00pm
La Paige’s guest star this week is Broadway and West End star Brent Barrett.
Drama on 3: Tulips in Winter Radio 3, Sunday 8.00pm
Timothy Spall, Ben Meyjes and Angela Pleasance star in Michelene Wandor’s play, which imagines a fantasy world where philosopher Baruch Spinoza (Meyjes) appears within Rembrandt’s famous painting, Night Watch and meets various other faces from history including Oliver Cromwell and the spy who gave his name to Downing Street. With Spall appearing as a larger-than-life Rembrandt, this could be an intriguing work.
The Penny Dreadfuls Present: More Brothers Faversham BBC7, Sunday 11.00pm
BBC7’s original commission, a spoof of Victorian melodramas, returns for a second series.
The Color Purple Radio 4, Monday-Friday 10.45am (repeated 7.45pm)
Apparently this is the first UK adaptation of Alice Walker’s novel, serialized in ten parts this week and next by Pat Cumper. Nadine Marshall plays Celie, who as a teenager is raped by the man she believes to be her father, but in time grows up to be a strong, contented woman. Nikki Amuka-Bird, Nina Sosanya and Eamonn Walker also star.
Ed Reardon’s Week Radio 4, Monday 11.30am
The misanthropic writer returns for a new series of the award-winning sitcom by Christopher Douglas (who also plays Reardon) and Andrew Nickolds. Unmissable.
Tina C Goes Down Under: the Aborogynal Monologues Radio 4, Wednesday 11.00pm
Chris Green’s outrageous comic Country and Western creation tours Australia, exploring the country’s obsession with country music. This Englishman’s impersonation of a Tennessee woman trying to do an Australian accent promises to make for unique listening.
Oooh, Ed Reardon, Geoffrey Perkins and The Penny Dreadfuls. I shall be listening to them... thanks for the heads-up.