Speechification

I’m posting this episode of the Museum of Curiosity mostly because of the way Clive James talks about fighter planes. Eloquent, interesting, informed. What’s slightly depressing is the way your typical Radio 4 studio audience and panel is either amazed by or sniggering at the idea of someone being interested in, or informed about, things like planes. Or, as with Philip Pullman’s contribution, tools. Ah well. Worth a listen. MP3 here.

“What is it about Queenslanders (the house, not the people)? They’re cold in winter, hot in summer, prone to white ant attack and in need of constant work, but many thousands of people wouldn’t live in any other kind of house”

A great documentary about the unique domestic architecture of Queensland (here are a few of my photos of Queenslanders from a couple of years ago; or the Wikipedia definition if you prefer), but this is really about stories, memory, domestic life, families, Australia, and so on. Somewhat nostalgic, but that’s how people feel about these things - rarely is a city, and state, so uniquely entwined with a particular kind of building. Very nice work by Tony McGregor. (Listen out for the crows, and also for Steve Godstone, with whom I have shared several good conversations about David Peace and Liverpool vs Spurs, but here talks beautifullly about building, structure, Australian hardwoods and suchlike.)

ABC Radio National: 360: An almost practical guide to living with Queenslanders [mp3]

“A bit of a documentary, a bit of a panel game, and a lot of archive: if it was an animal it would be a platypus.” That’s how Sir David Attenborough describes this little oddity (although he could be describing Radio 4 itself). If you like this, you should check out ‘Beardyman And The Mimics‘ for more animal-noise action.

David Attenborough hosts a celebration of bird impersonator Percy Edwards, who enjoyed a 70-year career impersonating birds and beasts. The programme combines the strange story of Percy’s life with archive of his impersonations, interviews with those who knew him and a quiz. Guests include Bill Oddie and the comedian Alex Horne.

Thanks to Matt for the tip. [MP3]

If you’re interested in work or life or mixing the two in the way most are obliged to these days, you’ll like this. One of Radio 3’s almost-always excellent five-part series of The Essay, this one presented by Professor Hugh Cunningham. It’s about the ‘work-life balance‘ but Cunningham doesn’t waste any time explaining how contingent the phrase is and how recently it is that we were concerned more with ‘leisure’ than wih ‘life’. This is episode one of five.

In 1929 the Rockefeller Institute published a scientific study of a “typical American city.” Middletown: A Study in Modern American Culture took an intimate look at church, school, family and work in Muncie, Indiana. Never intended to be generalised, Muncie nevertheless became a symbol of “average” or “real” America - and one of the most studied places on Earth.

In Hard Times in Middletown Stephen Smith reports from Muncie on how the economic crisis is affecting the people who defined the American middle class - and finds that many are struggling. None more so, perhaps, than Ashley, whose run of bad luck assumes almost unbelievably horrific proportions during recording.

There’s more info on Roy and Ashley, and many of the others, at American Radio Works, from where the original programme was sourced.

Crossing Continents episodes are available as an official podcast, but I didn’t want anyone to miss this, so am reposting here. [MP3]

It’s always worth having a dig around on the BBC World Service site. There are some excellent documentaries there, and they tend not to expire. So I can just point to their MP3 here. This is a show from August 2008 about Medina Wasl - a large scale recreation of a set of Middle Eastern villages, built by the US military in California, for practising fighting and peace-keeping amongst civilian populations.

A lovely programme about tiny things. And about Percy Smith - one of the pioneers of natural history film-making. MP3 here. You can watch an example of his films here.

Last Word is almost always a treat, and particularly when they have such good material. Here’s an extracted eight minutes on Clement Freud, writer, journalist, MP, gambler, father, husband, and, definitely not least, star of Radio 4. [MP3]

Annotation: Clement Freud’s funniest joke, courtesy of the Telegraph/BoingBoing.

I have a weakness for people talking fondly and appreciatively about their craft, and this Tommy Cooper doc is full of them, with the added bonus that they’re all either comedians or magicians. Barry Cryer’s appreciation is particularly telling: “That chaos was totally professional.” [MP3]

To celebrate 50 years of the Antarctic Treaty, Tom Heap reports on the unique agreement that has kept the southernmost continent not only free of conflict and exploitation, but made it a model of scientific practice and co-operation. [MP3]