Front Row Folgen

Bestselling crime novelist Ann Cleeves joins Samira Ahmed to discuss the return of her no-nonsense Northumberland crime-fighter, Detective Inspector Vera Stanhope, in the Rising Tide.What gets books on the shelves of some of our biggest chain retailers? Tonight Front Row lifts the lid on the behind-the-scenes payments that influence what you get to see and buy.Composer James B.Wilson gives an insight into his writing process, ahead of the premiere of a new piece he's written for the last night of the Proms.Presenter: Samira AhmedProducer: Nicki PaxmanImage: Novelist Ann Cleeves Photographer credit: Marie Fitzgerald

The BBC Proms is celebrating what would’ve been Aretha Franklin’s 80th birthday, and leading the tribute is American singer-songwriter Sheléa. She's a protegee of Quincy Jones who also found a mentor in Stevie Wonder, and names Natalie Cole and Whitney Houston as some of her inspirations. Sheléa shares Aretha Franklin’s influences of gospel, jazz and soul, and her skills to play the piano and turn her voice to a variety of styles. She performs live in the studio and demonstrates the power of Aretha’s voice as well as her own.For our Thursday review Larushka Ivan-Zadeh and Olivia Laing have been watching Official Competition, a comedy film starring Penélope Cruz, Antonio Banderas and Oscar Martínez which takes aim at the film industry and its stars, and Red Rose, a BBC3 teen horror drama set in Bolton looking at the power of smartphones to shape young lives.Torn is a new BBC Radio 4 series exploring ten key moments in the history of fashion, from the allure of mauve to the rebellion of mini-skirts. Presenter Gus Casely-Hayford, curator, historian and the inaugural director of V&A East, joins Shahidha for a whistlestop tour of fashion’s cultural hits and environmental misses over five centuries.Presenter: Shahidha Bari Producer: Sarah Johnson

When Gregory Doran was appointed Artistic Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company in 2012, his stated ambition was for the company to stage the entire canon of plays in the First Folio, the first printed collection of Shakespeare’s plays. Ten years on and having just completed his plan, with the premiere of a new production of All's Well That Ends Well, he joins Nick Ahad to reflect on the changing nature of his relationship with the Bard. Nick visits Birmingham to see the rehearsals for WASWASA – Whispers in Prayer, an art installation and performance by artist Mohammed Ali which explores the act of Islamic prayer in a secular society.Taiwan has a new cultural landmark, the Taipei Performing Arts Centre. Arts critic Debra Craine was in the Taiwanese capital for the opening of the state of the art building, designed by Dutch architects Rem Koolhaas and David Gianotten. Debra joins Nick Ahad to discuss why the Taipei city government commissioned the £185 million complex for theatre, dance and opera.Presenter Nick Ahad Producer: Ekene AkalawuImage: Gregory Doran in rehearsals, 2021 Photographer credit: Ellie Kurttz/ RSC