Seriously... Folgen

On 1st August 2016, Texas became the first big American state to allow students aged over 21 to carry concealed handguns on campus. Ian Peddie explores the impact of the new law. This change is seen by many as a litmus test and, despite a few smaller states already having similar laws, where Texas goes America often follows. As with all American gun debates the issue is divisive, with many seeing this moment as pivotal in framing the nation's political and cultural relationship with weapons. Most educators in Texas oppose the legislation, Texas Senate Bill 11 (SB11). They fear an impact on teaching, where contentious topics such as religion and philosophy may now be avoided. But after notorious shootings at Virginia Tech, Columbine and the University of Texas, some students welcome the ability to defend themselves. British born Assistant Professor Ian Peddie has lived and worked in the USA for over 25 years. SB11 will change the context under which he lives and works and it's in that knowledge that he explores the impact of the new campus carry laws. We follow Ian into class at Sul Ross State University for the first day of the new law's introduction. On campus Ian meets students, faculty, and the police to gauge the mood of these new times. Later, Ian hears from protestors for and against the new law at the huge University of Texas in Austin. In a noisy atmosphere, the arguments are good natured but passionate. Throughout the programme Ian examines the fears, claims and discussions being held across universities, the state, and the nation. It will be illegal for lecturers to ask students if they are carrying weapons but it remains to be seen how that 'knowing but not knowing' might affect the class. A Like It Is Media production for BBC Radio 4.

The writer Olivia Laing presents an imaginative portrait of Arthur Russell.Arthur Russell was a cellist, a composer, a songwriter and a disco auteur. He was active in the New York downtown scene of the 1970s and was a frequent collaborator with the likes of Allen Ginsberg and Philip Glass. Although extremely prolific, his inability to finish projects is often cited as part of the reason that very little of his music was released during his lifetime.When Arthur Russell died in 1992 his Village Voice obituary read, "Arthur's songs were so personal that it seems as though he simply vanished into his music."Featuring: Mustafa Ahmed, Joyce Bowden, Steven Hall and Tom LeeProducer: Martin Williams

Exploring characters from literature, stage and screen, actor Toby Jones celebrates the mercurial world of the villain.There are the characters we love, and then there are the characters we love to hate. Some of the most memorable ones in drama and fiction are villains and our relationship with them can be deeper than the characters we're supposed to be rooting for.In this programme we tell the tale of this love - hate relationship with the baddie and discover that the villain is more than just a foil for the hero - they are a reflection of us all.Introducing the story in six chapters from his secret lair actor Toby Jones delves into a the vaults of villainy; from the hideous countenances to deranged governesses, from the dark side to the cads and femme fatales the programme brings into the spotlight a collection of evil doers and assesses whether they deserve sympathy, condemnation or anti-hero status.We live in the age of the anti-hero; characters which proliferate popular culture that are no longer simply goodies and baddies. They are cherished in critically acclaimed American dramas: Breaking Bad has Walter White and The Sopranos has the eponymous Tony. The anti-hero is a complex character. They can commit truly appalling, villainous acts - but we're encouraged to see the reasons behind those actions, to sympathise with them, to understand what makes them do what they do and to hope for redemption.As the Walter White's and Tony Soprano's emerge, this programme reconsiders classic villainy and analyses whether the increasingly popular anti-hero is threatening to unseat the villain and resign them to pantomime and comic book stories as serious drama abandons real baddies.As Toby Jones explores the wicked worlds of our favourite villains their nefarious natures are assessed by Shakespearean scholars Paul Edmondson and Carol Rutter, an academic specialising in Victorian fiction Professor John Sutherland, Comedy and film history Glenn Mitchell and actors Emily Raymond, Michael Roberts and Jonathan RigbyProduced by Stephen GarnerWith readings by Michael Roberts and Jessica Treen.