BBC Radio 4 FM Schedule Monday 31 August 2026

Schedule

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On air
Early
Morning
Afternoon
Evening
Late

Early
1. 00:00
  Midnight News—31/08/2026
  National and international news from BBC Radio 4
2. 00:15
  Crossing Continents—Brazil’s gambling addiction
  Millions of Brazilians have become problem gamblers after an explosion in online betting.
3. 00:45
  Bells on Sunday—All Saints church in Little Cornard, Suffolk
  Bells on Sunday comes from All Saints church in Little Cornard, Suffolk
4. 00:48
  Shipping Forecast—31/08/2026
  The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.
5. 01:00
  Selection of BBC World Service Programmes—31/08/2026
  BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
6. 05:00
  News Summary—31/08/2026
  National and international news from BBC Radio 4
7. 05:04
  Last Word—Dolly Parton: From the Smoky Mountains to Glastonbury Legend
  Also, journalist Dierdre McSharry, Professor Pat Easterling and rugby's Sir Billy Boston.
8. 05:34
  Shipping Forecast—31/08/2026
  The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.
9. 05:43
  Prayer for the Day—No comment
  A reflection and prayer to start the day with Canon Simon Doogan
10. 05:45
  Farming Today—31/08/2026: Wildlife corridors
  Anna Hill discovers farmer-created wildlife corridors across Norfolk.
11. 05:57
  Weather—31/08/2026
  The latest weather reports and forecasts for farmers
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Morning
1. 06:00
  Today—31/08/2026
  News and current affairs, including Sports Desk, Weather and Thought for the Day.
2. 09:00
  The Great Crime Mystery—3. Listen and Learn
  The risk from violence is the lowest it's probably ever been; how can we keep it that way?
3. 09:30
  How Did We Get Here?—No World Order, 6: A Multipolar World
  6/6Where next for the rules-based order?
4. 10:00
  Woman's Hour—Women and Water
  We celebrate the many different ways water shapes women's lives.
5. 11:00
  Understand—All Kinds of Minds, 2. Growing Up Neurodivergent
  2/4What does it mean to grow up neurodivergent in a school system under strain?
6. 11:45
  You Do Not Have to Say Anything—Episode 1: There's Been an Allegation
  Arrest: the shift from person to suspect, from ordinary citizen to ‘the accused’.
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Afternoon
1. 12:00
  News Summary—31/08/2026
  The latest national and international news from BBC Radio 4.
2. 12:04
  You and Yours—Help to Buy, Poor Mobile Signal, Beach Hut Sales
  Help to Buy, poor mobile signal and beach hut sales.
3. 12:57
  Weather—31/08/2026
  The latest weather forecast
4. 13:00
  World at One—31/08/2026
  News, analysis and comment from BBC Radio 4
5. 13:45
  Intrigue—A 9/11 Story, 1. Neighbours
  1/11A neighbour offers help when two Saudi men want to rent a flat in San Diego.
6. 14:00
  On air
  Listen live
  The Archers—30/08/2026
  Fallon feels out of place.
  Listen live
7. 14:15
  Fags, Mags and Bags—Series 11, Grumpy-Pumpy Doo-Dah McGraw
  2/6Comedy set in a Scots-Asian corner shop. Written by Sanjeev Kohli and Donald McLeary.
8. 14:45
  New Storytellers—New Storytellers, The T-shirt
  3/40Kept at the bottom of a drawer for years, a T-shirt sparks the sharing of a painful memory
9. 15:00
  Great Lives—Ruby Tandoh on Brian Jacques author of the Redwall series
  Ruby Tandoh picks the author of the Redwall series, Brian Jacques.
10. 15:30
  You're Dead to Me—Medieval Korea: from the Goryeo to Joseon periods
  Join Greg and his guests in medieval Korea to learn about the Goryeo and Joseon dynasties.
11. 16:00
  Currently—The Dictators' Survival Guide
  Why Xi Jinping's purge of China's most senior military general matters to us all.
12. 16:30
  Soul Music—I Will Always Love You
  Written by Dolly Parton... sent stratospheric by Whitney Houston.
13. 17:00
  PM—31/08/2026
  Full coverage of the day's news
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Evening
1. 18:00
  Six O'Clock News—31/08/2026
  National and international news from BBC Radio 4
2. 18:30
  Unspeakable—Series 4, 1. No Worries If Not
  1/6Excessive modesty, not being a bother, and channeling your inner-dog.
3. 19:00
  The Archers—31/08/2026
  Alan loses his temper.
4. 19:15
  Front Row—The Birth of Television: A Forgotten History
  Samira Ahmed and guests discuss the forgotten history of the early days of television.
5. 20:00
  The Briefing Room—Are Gen Z movements reshaping politics?
  Young people are protesting around the world but about what and are they winning?
6. 20:30
  BBC Inside Science—The day of the datacentres
  The datacentres are coming, potentially in the hundreds.
7. 21:00
  The Great Crime Mystery—3. Listen and Learn
  The risk from violence is the lowest it's probably ever been; how can we keep it that way?
8. 21:30
  How Did We Get Here?—No World Order, 6: A Multipolar World
  6/6Where next for the rules-based order?
9. 22:00
  The World Tonight—31/08/2026
  In depth reporting, intelligent analysis and breaking news from a global perspective
10. 22:45
  A Working Mother by Agnes Owens—Episode 1
  1/5Ten years after the Second World War, Betty craves freedom from domestic responsibility.
11. 23:00
  Limelight—There's Something I Need to Tell You, 2. Big Problem
  2/5Death in Dubai, a secret agent, the police... With very strong language.
12. 23:30
  Everything Is Fake—Everything Is Fake and Nobody Cares, 6. F For Fake
  Jamie and Jimmy explore where fakery goes next – but can you tell which is which?
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Late
1. 00:00
  Midnight News—01/09/2026
  National and international news from BBC Radio 4
2. 00:30
  You Do Not Have to Say Anything—Episode 1: There's Been an Allegation
  Arrest: the shift from person to suspect, from ordinary citizen to ‘the accused’.
3. 00:48
  Shipping Forecast—01/09/2026
  The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.
4. 01:00
  Selection of BBC World Service Programmes—01/09/2026
  BBC Radio 4 joins the BBC World Service.
5. 05:00
  News Summary—01/09/2026
  National and international news from BBC Radio 4
6. 05:04
  Currently—The Dictators' Survival Guide
  Why Xi Jinping's purge of China's most senior military general matters to us all.
7. 05:34
  Shipping Forecast—01/09/2026
  The latest weather reports and forecasts for UK shipping.
8. 05:43
  Prayer for the Day—The first to throw a stone
  A reflection and prayer to start the day with Canon Simon Doogan
9. 05:45
  Farming Today—01/09/26 Crisis loans, pasture for drought resilience, river DNA testing
  Farmers press for interest-free loans from a government bank.