Roundup

The Ben Lawers Historic Landscape Project [30min]

The flanks of Ben Lawers on the northern side of Loch Tay in the Central Scottish Highlands form a desolate landscape. But 200 years ago a population of nearly 1500 was scratching out a living from the thin, cold, wet soil. The mystery is why their society collapsed and indeed how it established in the first place. For the past four years, a multidisciplinary team of archaeologists has been excavating, surveying and analysing to try and find some answers. They call it the Ben Lawers Historic Lan

A Dangerous Pilgrimage [2min]

Seventy-six people died last week when a hostel collapsed in Saudi Arabia; the victims were in the country for the annual Muslim pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca. Josh Levin of Slate explains why there have been so many deaths during the hajj over the years.

Name This Era [11min]

For lack of a better name, the current era is often referred to as the Post-Cold War Period. Unlike iconic eras like the Great Depression, the Renaissance or the Nuclear Age, the current time has yet to be defined. Guest: Richard Haass, president of the Council on Foreign Relations and former State Department director of policy planning.

Students Fight Sedition Charges from 1919 [8min]

Law students at the University of Montana are trying to clear the names of 74 Montanans convicted of sedition in 1918 and 1919. The journalism professor heading the project and a law student writing the clemency petitions discuss the effort. Guests: Clemens Work, University of Montana Professor of Journalism and author of the new book Darkest Before Dawn: Sedition and Free Speech in the American West; and Katie Olson, Law Student at the University of Montana.

'The Phantom' Sets All-Time Mark on Broadway [7min]

Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom on Broadway became the longest-running show in Broadway history Monday. The streak of 7,486 shows over nearly 18 years breaks the uber-composer's own record, which he set with Cats. Since 1988, 11 million people have seen The Phantom on Broadway, where the show has netted more than half a billion dollars in tickets. And, almost 18 years since it opened, it's still playing at near capacity. Lines of ticket holders snake around the block befor

Simone de Beauvoir & Jean-Paul Sartre [9min]

In her classic feminist manifesto, The Second Sex, written in 1949, Simone de Beauvoir wrote a chapter on what happens to women when they fall in love. Everything, suddenly, revolves around the new man in her life -- they abandon own judgement, even their entire life -- to him. Beauvoir’s own relationship with Jean-Paul Sartre was, famously, an unconventional one. So what was the relationship between the writings of this prolific couple, and their real lives? Guest Hazel Rowley is the au

The Harry Belafonte Story 3rd of 4 [30min]

A new four part series presented by Whoopi Goldberg telling the life and times of the singer, actor, political activist and social historian -- the first person to sell a million albums, the first ever black television producer and the man behind the American Band Aid.

David Starkey on St Paul [15min]

Dr David Starkey argues that five major Christian figures distorted, even betrayed, the Christian faith as envisaged by Jesus. Defenders argue back. 1/5. St Paul.

Agincourt, 2nd of 5 [15min]

Henry begins preparations to reclaim his territories in France. He has 12 ships, but he needs 700. Jane Lapotaire reads Juliet Barker's book about the battle of Agincourt and the events leading up to it, Agincourt: The King, the Campaign, the Battle.

Robert Johnson Letter [7min @ 13:07]

We may never know if legendary bluesman Robert Johnson actually sold his soul to the devil, or if he was poisoned to death by a jealous husband. But for a man whose twenty-seven year life is shrouded in mystery, there is one thing we now know for sure: the exact location of his classic 1937 Dallas sessions. For years, music historians have long wondered if his legendary final session actually took place in an old Art Deco building in downtown Dallas. Now, thanks to the discovery of a letter writ

Lou Rawls: More to Life than Music [6min]

Last Friday, singer Lou Rawls died of cancer in Los Angeles. Rawls, long-known for his silky baritone, organized the yearly United Negro College Fund telethon nearly three decades ago. The televised fundraiser is said to have raised more than $15 million dollars in pledges. Host Ed Gordon recalls memorable moments from the talented singer/philanthropist.

Reach Out and Joust Someone [6min]

Jousting is an activity associated more with the Middle Ages than with modern recreation. And yet would-be knights still spend their days pursing errant behavior, right here in the good old U.S.A. There are even enough proponents to make up two factions: those who pursue jousting as a legitimate sport, and those who see jousting as simply crowd-pleasing theater. Brothers Randy and Jason Sklar specialize in coverage of just such offbeat pursuits... even one that most weekend warriors wouldn't tou

Touring Cezanne's Cultural Roots [7min]

A bucolic escape from busier ports of call, Aix-en-Provence in the south of France is known for olive oil, lavender, garlicky foods... and the master painter Paul Cezanne. Cezanne's death 100 years ago will be observed this year with art exhibitions in Washington, D.C., and Provence. Cezanne had a complicated personality. He was considered a "lunatic" by fellow townspeople and was known as a loner. He hated his family, calling them "the nastiest people in the world." They wer

David Cannadine on JFK's Legacy [10min @ 1:06]

The hope and optimism about the future that will forever be associated with John F Kennedy live on, says historian David Cannadine in his weekly column. Since 2000, he's been a trustee of the Kennedy Memorial Trust, which was established in the aftermath of the assassination of President John Kennedy in Dallas on 22 November 1963.

Intelligent Designs on Evolution [52min]

Questions about our origins as a species have been plaguing us as humans, prodding us as scientists and dividing us as Americans for more than a hundred years, if not for all time. Gallup polls show that nearly half of Americans believe God created man 10,000 years ago, as the Bible says, and another third believe man evolved, but God had a hand in it. At the same time, only a third of the American public believe Darwin's theory of evolution is supported by evidence. Yet nearly all scientists an

Reason Behind the Rhyme: 'Little Jack Horner' [4min]

Host Debbie Elliott and Chris Roberts dissect the meaning of the nursery rhyme"Little Jack Horner." It's about a real estate swindle in 16th-century England. Roberts is the author of Reason Behind the Rhyme: Heavy Words Lightly Thrown.

Agincourt, 1st of 5 [15min]

Exploring the kingdom Henry V inherited from his father, Henry IV. Jane Lapotaire reads Juliet Barker's book about the battle of Agincourt and the events leading up to it, Agincourt: The King, the Campaign, the Battle.

Recruiting the Reich [30min]

Uncovering evidence of Britain 's secret deals with senior Nazis at the end of World War 2. A trail of specially released documents lead to a tale of prisoners of war, tortured and then turned all in the name of King and Country. A file dated"February 1948" has been specially released to the BBC Radio 4 programme"Document" under The Freedom of Information Act; it makes disturbing reading, with allegations of abuse, and torture committed by British intelligence officers soon after World Wa

Dust Bowl Stories from 'The Worst Hard Time' [9min]

During the Great Depression, many people fled the drought-stricken region that stretched from Nebraska to the Texas panhandle. The struggles of those who stayed are the subject of a book by New York Times reporter Timothy Egan.

Celebrating the Battle of New Orleans [4min]

On this day [January 8th] 191 years ago, American troops commanded by Gen. Andrew Jackson defeated British soldiers in the Battle of New Orleans. Chalmette Battlefield, the site of the battle, is in one of the areas hardest hit by Hurricane Katrina. The National Park Service reopened the battlefield for the first time since the storm on Saturday.