In Our Time: A companion to the Radio 4 series: The companion to the Radio 4 series

In Our Time: A companion to the Radio 4 series: The companion to the Radio 4 series

by Melvyn Bragg (Author), Melvyn Bragg (Author), Melvyn Bragg (Author)

Synopsis

Melvyn Bragg's In Our Time series regularly enlightens and entertains substantial audiences on BBC Radio 4. For this book he has selected episodes which reflect the diversity of the radio programmes, and takes us on an amazing tour through the history of ideas, from philosophy, physics and history to religion, literature and biology. We can discover the reasons for the fall of the Byzantine empire, and why women were persecuted as witches in the seventeenth century. What happened in the peasants' revolt? What shape is the origin of life? Where does our calendar come from? We can unearth the influence of great Islamic thinkers, prime numbers, Socrates and Tectonic plates. Melvyn Bragg orchestrates the ideas of leading academics in each field so that the dynamic and lively discussion from the programmes comes through vividly on the page. In Our Time brings to life the signposts of history, the moments that significantly changed the world as we know it, and the individuals and ideas that made us what we are today.

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More Information

Format: Hardcover
Pages: 608
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Published: 17 Sep 2009

ISBN 10: 0340977507
ISBN 13: 9780340977507

Media Reviews
'These transcripts select a treasure-trove of discussions from a decade of the Radio 4 jewel.' -- the Independent 'there's no doubt that his broadcasting has provided an increasingly rare and valuable service in our anti-intellectual culture by supplying spaces to think. In Our Time is by far the best example of his contribution.' -- Guardian 'Melvyn Bragg's matchless colloquies on Radio 4' -- Stephen Fry 'The best programme coming out of the entire corporation these days' -- David Sexton, Sunday Telegraph 'Melvyn Bragg's consistently superb In Our Time' -- John Banville 'What might be the best radio programme ever' -- Oliver Burkeman, Guardian 'Bragg's excellent radio programmes on the subject ...are the basis of this history of English over the past 1,500 years.' -- Guardian on The Adventure of English 'Always readable, often thought-provoking, and consistently entertaining.' -- Independent on The Adventure of English 'This is a highly readable, jargon-free treatise on a notoriously prickly subject. Bragg's affection for his subject is infectious.' -- Observer on
Author Bio
Melvyn Bragg has written several works of non-fiction (as well as his bestselling novels): ON GIANTS SHOULDERS, based on his BBC radio series, 12 BOOKS THAT CHANGED THE WORLD, and THE ADVENTURE OF ENGLISH. He was born in 1939 and educated at Wigton's Nelson Tomlinson School and at Oxford where he read history. He is controller of Specialist Factual & Arts at ITV and President of the National Campaign for the Arts and Mind, and in 1998 he was made a life peer. He lives in London and Cumbria.