Radio Roundup, the MLK Day edition
Jan. 19th, 2021 04:07 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tealinBeen a while since I've done one of these ... but at the same time, it's been a while since I've been working on something that has allowed (or indeed necessitated) interesting words coming in my ears. But the last week or so I've been doing the most extremely basic colouring-in, so interesting radio has been essential.
Actually, the main thing I have to link here isn't radio at all, but rather a free(?!) course from Yale on African-American history. It goes without saying that I didn't learn much about it in school; for all my TV intake was heavy in history documentaries, they were mostly cheap imports from a British knacker's yard and so rather short on the existential struggles of Black America – and I'm not sure my interest would have been piqued if they were. There is a very long post about race, media, and unconscious bias brewing, so I will say no more here; suffice it to say that there's a gap in my knowledge that is overdue being fixed, and finding this link provided the perfect opportunity to fix it.
AFAM 162 with Prof. Holloway
If you want to go all-in, there are reading materials and everything on the site as well; I've mostly been listening to it as a 'radio' lecture, but I do highly recommend switching over to watching it when he's definitely showing something. It's not a bucket of laughs, but for the first time since getting into the Oregon Trail back in Grade 5 I find myself being inspired by American history, which had hitherto been little more than a history of acquisition, be it by war or purchase or just sheer bloodymindedness. It's like discovering a spinoff series that is better than the original, and even though I consider myself to be fairly well historically informed, it has completely upended my perspective on most things. Do give it a spin.
Having been deep in the guts of these lectures all day provided the most serendipitous moment when Poetry Please, a programme I don't dislike but only ever listen to by accident, came on while I was cleaning the kitchen. The guest was a sociology professor by day, Marvel writer by night, and being a Black woman from Chicago, laid down a killer hand of poems which I would not have understood nearly so well without the fresh contextualisation. Poetry Please with Eve Ewing
And then there's the usual roster of radio plays and whatnot ...
Journal of the Plague Year - Another not-exactly-radio, but made by someone from the radio! Daniel Defoe was only a wee bairn when the Great Plague hit London in 1665, but as an adult he researched the heck out of it and wrote this mock first-hand account. Simon read it, and I listened while sewing masks, back at the start of the pandemic, and I may have linked to it then. It has become no less relevant, and the excellent reading helps smooth over what might be awkwardly archaic language on the page. (Classical theatre training FTW!)
The Divine Comedy - Dante's epic poem of the afterlife is another gaping hole in my education, but a friend of mine is super into it, so I thought I'd give this a listen just to get my bearings. I'm sure a fan of the original would find it cringey, but I thought it rather good, so maybe you will too.
Sparks - I had trepidations about this musical which juggles grief with dating, but it turned out to be really touching and well-executed, with good tunes as well, so I pass it on to you.
London Particular - A three-part drama about living within layers of history; time travel is no new narrative conceit, but this does it in a fun way that goes some interesting places. It starts out a little slow, but by halfway through ep.3 I was hoping it would be a regular series.
Day of the Triffids - John Wyndham's classic is not actually about killer plants so much as what happens to society when it's had the rug pulled out from under it, and as such, it's as timely now as it's ever been.
Cadfael: Virgin in the Ice - This was probably my favourite episode of the TV series, to which I was devoted as a teen; usually this is bad news for radio adaptations, but Bert Coules works his mystery-radio magic so well I don't even mind that it's not Derek Jacobi in the lead.
Elephant in the Room - Panel show in which weirdo comedians measure up their likes, dislikes, and life experiences with public norms. Worth listening for the made-up names of respondents alone.
I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue - It's been an interesting year of live shows now being recorded in isolation – ISIHAC's recording tour was interrupted by the first lockdown, but the format actually made the transition to Zoom panel quite well, though the zaniness inherent in the show might be a good cover ...
Genius - Guests present to an certified genius (of some stripe or other) to ascertain if their ideas are, in fact, genius or not. Sadly the 'how to determine the opposite of anything' episode has expired, but they are all good. I especially recommend the Armando Iannucci one.
The Consultants - One of my regular favourites in the genre of Barmy Sketch Show. Often office-based but not always. Occasional songs.
What Does the K Stand For? - I have a bit of a soft spot for this sitcom about a first-generation Nigerian family in South London because it was airing when I first moved to London, and it was such a different perspective, with such strong characters.
The Brothers Faversham - Silly fake Victorian biographical sketches of an over-the-top family, with bonus "ads" and occasionally a surprisingly poignant moment.
Well, I'm off to continue getting schooled while doing my colouring-in (funny how they'd never let you do that in actual school), so, happy listening!
Actually, the main thing I have to link here isn't radio at all, but rather a free(?!) course from Yale on African-American history. It goes without saying that I didn't learn much about it in school; for all my TV intake was heavy in history documentaries, they were mostly cheap imports from a British knacker's yard and so rather short on the existential struggles of Black America – and I'm not sure my interest would have been piqued if they were. There is a very long post about race, media, and unconscious bias brewing, so I will say no more here; suffice it to say that there's a gap in my knowledge that is overdue being fixed, and finding this link provided the perfect opportunity to fix it.
AFAM 162 with Prof. Holloway
If you want to go all-in, there are reading materials and everything on the site as well; I've mostly been listening to it as a 'radio' lecture, but I do highly recommend switching over to watching it when he's definitely showing something. It's not a bucket of laughs, but for the first time since getting into the Oregon Trail back in Grade 5 I find myself being inspired by American history, which had hitherto been little more than a history of acquisition, be it by war or purchase or just sheer bloodymindedness. It's like discovering a spinoff series that is better than the original, and even though I consider myself to be fairly well historically informed, it has completely upended my perspective on most things. Do give it a spin.
Having been deep in the guts of these lectures all day provided the most serendipitous moment when Poetry Please, a programme I don't dislike but only ever listen to by accident, came on while I was cleaning the kitchen. The guest was a sociology professor by day, Marvel writer by night, and being a Black woman from Chicago, laid down a killer hand of poems which I would not have understood nearly so well without the fresh contextualisation. Poetry Please with Eve Ewing
And then there's the usual roster of radio plays and whatnot ...
Journal of the Plague Year - Another not-exactly-radio, but made by someone from the radio! Daniel Defoe was only a wee bairn when the Great Plague hit London in 1665, but as an adult he researched the heck out of it and wrote this mock first-hand account. Simon read it, and I listened while sewing masks, back at the start of the pandemic, and I may have linked to it then. It has become no less relevant, and the excellent reading helps smooth over what might be awkwardly archaic language on the page. (Classical theatre training FTW!)
The Divine Comedy - Dante's epic poem of the afterlife is another gaping hole in my education, but a friend of mine is super into it, so I thought I'd give this a listen just to get my bearings. I'm sure a fan of the original would find it cringey, but I thought it rather good, so maybe you will too.
Sparks - I had trepidations about this musical which juggles grief with dating, but it turned out to be really touching and well-executed, with good tunes as well, so I pass it on to you.
London Particular - A three-part drama about living within layers of history; time travel is no new narrative conceit, but this does it in a fun way that goes some interesting places. It starts out a little slow, but by halfway through ep.3 I was hoping it would be a regular series.
Day of the Triffids - John Wyndham's classic is not actually about killer plants so much as what happens to society when it's had the rug pulled out from under it, and as such, it's as timely now as it's ever been.
Cadfael: Virgin in the Ice - This was probably my favourite episode of the TV series, to which I was devoted as a teen; usually this is bad news for radio adaptations, but Bert Coules works his mystery-radio magic so well I don't even mind that it's not Derek Jacobi in the lead.
Elephant in the Room - Panel show in which weirdo comedians measure up their likes, dislikes, and life experiences with public norms. Worth listening for the made-up names of respondents alone.
I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue - It's been an interesting year of live shows now being recorded in isolation – ISIHAC's recording tour was interrupted by the first lockdown, but the format actually made the transition to Zoom panel quite well, though the zaniness inherent in the show might be a good cover ...
Genius - Guests present to an certified genius (of some stripe or other) to ascertain if their ideas are, in fact, genius or not. Sadly the 'how to determine the opposite of anything' episode has expired, but they are all good. I especially recommend the Armando Iannucci one.
The Consultants - One of my regular favourites in the genre of Barmy Sketch Show. Often office-based but not always. Occasional songs.
What Does the K Stand For? - I have a bit of a soft spot for this sitcom about a first-generation Nigerian family in South London because it was airing when I first moved to London, and it was such a different perspective, with such strong characters.
The Brothers Faversham - Silly fake Victorian biographical sketches of an over-the-top family, with bonus "ads" and occasionally a surprisingly poignant moment.
Well, I'm off to continue getting schooled while doing my colouring-in (funny how they'd never let you do that in actual school), so, happy listening!
