Feedback

The audience response programme presented by Andrea Catherwood.

More cuts have been announced for BBC Radio - this time, it's the archive repeats station Radio 4 Extra that is set to close. Listeners have contacted Feedback with their opinions on the plan.

Matthew Parris - journalist, ex-politician, and longtime presenter of Great Lives on Radio 4 - has recently taken his last bow presenting the biographical programme. For two decades he's welcomed celebrities into the studio to discuss the lives of prominent figures they admire, and now he joins Andrea for a discussion about his standout moments...

It's been a week since the BBC announced the latest round of cuts to Radio 4, and you've been in touch to express your surprise and dismay at the axing of You and Yours, Open Country, Free Thinking, The Artificial Human and Thinking Allowed. Andrea Catherwood hears your opinions, and talks to Lisa Webb, a consumer lawyer from Which?, who weighs in on what the end of You and Yours could mean for consumer advice and rights in the public sphere.

We also hear a nomination for our Interview of the Year award - this time it's from...

Feedback returns for a new series and a new raft of cuts to BBC Radio 4 has just been announced - including consumer affairs programme You and Yours, which has been on air for 56 years.

Thinking Allowed, Free Thinking, The Artificial Human, and Open Country are all set to go too. It's part of a wave of savings worth £500m, announced by the Corporation earlier this year.

But how will this affect radio listeners? Andrea Catherwood hears your reaction, and speaks to Patricia Nicol, radio and culture columnist for the Times, and Simon O'Hagan, writer for t...

Andrea Catherwood puts listener comments to environmental journalists Lucy Taylor and Dan Ashby, whose latest series Dead Rabbit uncovers the shady world of illegal hare coursing, in collaboration with nature broadcaster Chris Packham.

Feedback calls on two more voices for our VoxBox to share their thoughts on Radio’s 4 Farming Today. Young farmers Emily Mosley and Nathan Greenwood reflect on how well the station’s long-running agricultural current affairs show serves the farming community and wider audiences.

Following a suggestion from a listener, Andrea interviews pianist Colin Sell, who has accompanied comedians on I’m Sorry...

The 2026 BBC Proms season is underway, and so presenter Andrea Catherwood heads to the Royal Albert Hall to talk to Radio 3 controller Sam Jackson to discuss this year's schedule, which includes a prog rock themed concert and appearances from international orchestras such as the Berlin Philaharmonic and the Spanish National Orchestra. We present him with your comments and critiques, and ask if the Proms are under any pressure from the cuts facing the BBC.

We also hear more of your thoughts about the recent round of BBC Radio 4's quiz pilots, which broadcast over summer.

...

If you're a longtime Radio 4 listener, you'll know the important place that quizzes occupy in the schedule. That's why listeners have been in touch with Feedback to share their thoughts about a range of pilots for new quizzes that could potentially find a home on the network. Andrea Catherwood hears your views and talks to two hotshot quizzers - one a Mastermind champion - who give their opinions on whether or not these pilots get top marks.

Radio 1 has announced a round of changes to the station's schedule and presenter line-up, with some on-air talent due to...

Evan Davis, usually found behind the microphone for Radio 4's PM, has been travelling around England and Wales recording people's opinions on the big things that divide us as a society - from immigration, to language, to class. It was all for a short series called Common Ground, part of ongoing programming from Radio 4 on the topic of social cohesion. But what did listeners think? Evan joins Feedback presenter Andrea Catherwood to discuss his goals in making the series and the nature of listener responses.

You're Dead To Me is one of BBC Audio's most popular podcasts...

The radio drama Life and Time finished its third series recently. The six inter-linked plays explore the experiences of prisoners and prison staff. The main theme running through all the plays is the system of imprisonment for public protection sentences - IPPs. These were open-ended sentences with no fixed release date, which was instead decided by parole boards. Listeners have been getting in touch with their thoughts and critiques and Andrea Catherwood puts your views on the series to its award-winning writer James Fritz.

It was recently announced that 6Music would be getting an extension - Indie...

The BBC recently reported that they'd tracked down Twana Jamal, one of the most prolific people smugglers in recent history - who had previously been arrested in France but was living and working in the UK. The investigation was carried out by journalists Sue Mitchell and Rob Lawrie for Radio 4's Intrigue series To Catch a King, and they found Jamal ahead of the police or the Home Office.

This sparked a question from a listener - about how journalists interact with authorities to uncover serious crimes. Presenter Andrea Catherwood sits down with journalist Sam Poling, whose...

Andrea Catherwood hears your comments on the cuts to BBC Radio 4 news programmes and talks to a former Radio commissioner about her experience of bringing in changes to Radio 4.

Also, our listeners share their views on the news coverage over the past few weeks as Keir Starmer announced his resignation as Prime Minister and Andy Burnham, the newly elected MP for Makerfield, arrived at London Euston station to a press pack.

And a recent distressing episode of a dog attack on sheep in The Archers has motivated listeners to get in touch.

A...

It's a new series of Feedback. Andrea Catherwood sits down with Misha Glenny, former foreign correspondent and investigative journalist to talk about taking on the reins of In Our Time, following Melvyn Bragg's departure from the programme last year. Did Misha's long years in the fields of academia, Investigative journalism and being a BBC Foreign correspondence prepare him from taking on topics that range from cybernetics to Handel's Messiah?

We also received a comment from a listener who feels that the Today programme is changing editorially with too much chat between presenters.

And coverage of...

Recent headlines have announced that the BBC is set to implement a massive wave of cuts across all of its programming, in order to make a saving of £500 million. The first of these major cuts has just been announced and listeners will soon notice the effects of these changes, with Radio 4 programmes like much-loved The World Tonight being axed. But who's making these choices, and why weren't listeners consulted first? Andrea Catherwood talks to John McAndrew, the Director of BBC's Live and Daily News to get some answers.

Radio 4 might not be the first place you look t...

It's the end of this series of Feedback, and Andrea Catherwood is talking to someone who has just brought his own long run at the BBC to a definitive close. Fergal Keane has covered conflicts and events all over the world as a BBC News correspondent, and now he's stepping away. Andrea asks him for his reflections on bearing witness to many world conflicts for 37 years at the Corporation.

And last week we spoke to Jonathan Kanagasooriam, the person in charge of strategy for a new raft of video podcasts from BBC Sounds. You've been in touch...

The BBC has just released a new raft of visualised podcasts - podcasts productions that you can watch as well as listen to. Some are being released on YouTube and some on iPlayer, but all have audio-only versions available on BBC Sounds too. It's part of a strategy to grow listenership beyond the audiences that usually listens to linear radio. But is it where everything is ultimately headed? Andrea Catherwood talks to Jonathan Kanagasooriam, Managing Editor for Podcast Strategy and Video Podcasts at BBC Sounds, about how he's catering for those who like to watch podcasts.

And...

Listeners have been telling us their thoughts about a recent episode of Radical with Amol Rajan, in which he interviewed Dr Suzanne O'Sullivan, a physician specialising in neurology and clinical neurophysiology. It was an in-depth discussion about the potential dangers of "over-diagnosis" - but some listeners felt that Dr O'Sullivan's views could have been challenged more. We get some answers to your questions.

A long-running and award-winning Radio 4 drama series has just come to an end. Faith, Hope and Glory has run for 43 episodes since 2021, and has recently wrapped up telling its ambitious, generation-spanning story about the...

Andrea Catherwood meets with Paddy O'Connell, longtime presenter of Broadcasting House. But this time we're going behind the scenes as Paddy has granted the Feedback team special access to the programme's inbox - and like Feedback's listeners, Broadcasting House's listeners have a lot to say. And how do you get the balance right when reporting on news during a day that is supposed to be dedicated to calm? Paddy gives his thoughts.

And some listeners had questions about a recent episode of Any Answers. Why did it only deal with one subject?

Finally, it's time...

Since the conflict between the US, Israel, and Iran began at the end of February. Feedback has received a steady stream of comments from listeners about the tone of the BBC's coverage. We've also been discussing news avoidance from people who are starting to turn off the radio because of a prevalence of negative headlines. Andrea Catherwood takes a look inside the newsroom with the BBC's Director of News Content Richard Burgess.

We've also received many comments in response to our piece last week about a recent episode of Woman's Hour, with listeners offering a different perspective...

In light of the death of Jenni Murray who presented Radio 4's Woman's Hour for 33 years, listeners reflect on the impact she made on their lives over the decades.

We also discuss controversy on Radio 4's Woman's Hour, with many listeners questioning the programme's choice of guests for a discussion on “the manosphere” last week.

Reflecting on another much loved BBC broadcaster, Radio Times journalist Simon O'Hagan talks about Radio 2 presenter Liza Tarbuck's decision to step back from the programme which she has presented for the past 14 years. We also hear what Liza means to her...

A recent episode of Radio 4's Inside Health, presented by James Gallagher, reported a groundbreaking advance in the biomedical study of ME - myalgic encephalomyelitis, sometimes known as chronic fatigue syndrome. On Feedback, we've heard from listeners with ME who were encouraged by the good news but wanted more personal stories that gave a message of hope. Andrea Catherwood talks to Dr Charles Shepherd, honorary medical advisor to the ME Association, about the change in attitudes to ME.

It's also a big moment for all fans of Radio 4 Extra - it's time for another All Request Weekend...

Illuminated is Radio 4's home for powerful, original audio storytelling - and recently we've heard from listeners who were moved by a documentary called Functioning, about the effect of alcohol addiction on two women's lives. Andrea Catherwood talks to the programme's producer Jodie Taylor, and Radio 4 documentary commissioner Hugh Levinson, and hears a remarkable insight into how the programme came to be.

Feedback's listeners are pretty clued up when it comes to giving their thoughts to the BBC, but we came across one last week who seemed to know more than most - as it turned out...

The main news this week has been about the US-Israel attacks on Iran - but how is BBC Radio handling its coverage? We'll hear from you on the situation.

And in light of that, is there a chance that more and more people might be switching the news off? BBC Radio 4 recently aired a series of programmes all about positive news items, which many listeners felt was a relief to hear. Presenter Andrea Catherwood talks to Nic Newman, a founding member of the BBC News website and currently a Senior research associate with the Reuters Institute for...

The war in Ukraine is still raging on, but is BBC Radio's coverage being faded out? Regular episodes of hugely popular Ukrainecast stopped before Christmas 2025, although the BBC has stated that they will produce pop-up episodes at particularly urgent moments in the conflict. But what do you think? We hear from listeners and Andrea Catherwood talks to Olga Tokariuk, journalist and Academy associate at Chatham about the impact that Ukrainecast made.

There's been some buzz around a recent episode of Any Questions? which broadcast from Dumbarton. The programme in front of a live audience was interrupted several...

All year long we've been asking listeners to send in their nominations for Feedback's Interview of the Year, and finally the time has come to crown the winner.

In this special episode of Feedback, Andrea Catherwood will hear your nominations for the BBC Audio Interview of the Year - any conversation from across BBC radio or podcasts that inspired, surprised, or stopped you in your tracks.

We'll also reveal the interview that was judged the best by our listener judging panel - and talk to the winner.

Presenter: Andrea Catherwood Producer: David Prest...

The Reith Lectures are one of the most anticipated broadcasts in the radio year, and the conversation around this year's iteration, presented by Dutch historian Rutger Bregman on the theme of 'Moral Revolution', has been making headlines. Bregman complained on social media that one of his lines was edited out of the broadcast of the first lecture - and it set your tongues wagging. Andrea Catherwood catches up with the lectures' commissioner Hugh Levinson to ask about the decisions behind this year's series.

And it's 70 years since From Our Own Correspondent - or FOOC = was first broadcast...

What can you say on the radio these days? For some listeners, instances of swear words and racialised language do not belong on Radio 4. Andrea Catherwood sits down with "king of the bleep" Roger Mahony, the Head of Editorial Standards for Radio 4, Radio 4 Extra and On Demand Speech, to discuss listeners' concerns and ask how the decision to give certain words the green light gets made.

And listeners were entranced by a recent Illuminated documentary presented by poet Paul Farley about hearing loss and hearing aids. We put your points to the documentary's producer Geoff Bird.

Mark Steel's In Town has just completed it's 14th series, and listeners from Shetland to Rutland and beyond have been tuning in. But what do they make of it? And what goes into putting each episode together? Mark joins presenter Andrea Catherwood on Feedback to answer your questions and unravel how the programme works.

Some listeners also had questions about Radio 4's Materials of State, which is being broadcast this week. The first programme in the series covered the story of the UK's national flag - listeners claimed calling it the Union Jack was wrong. Malcolm Farrow...

There's been a raft of programming out on BBC Radio 4 and 5 Live over the past week about fatherhood. Feedback's heard from listeners to one particular series on Radio 4 - Father Figuring, presented by comedian Darren Harriott. In the series, Darren attempts to untangle his feelings about his complicated relationship with his own dad, and work out what makes a good father today. Andrea Catherwood puts your comments to him.

BBC Radio Scotland has seen some big changes in the past week, as the current late night music programming is set to be changed. Veteran presenters Iain Anderson...

Following resignations of the BBC’s Director General and the CEO of BBC News in light of accusations of institutional bias in the organisation, Andrea Catherwood puts listener comments about the integrity of the BBC and its coverage of the scandal to the former Radio 4 Controller Mark Damazer.

As the story on Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor continues to play out, the Senior Royal Correspondent Daniela Relph shares how she navigates a story of this sensitivity and magnitude. We pose listeners’ responses, including a query over naming conventions.

And there's a moving conversation on 6 Music that’s been nomina...

In last week's episode of Feedback, we spoke to BBC Radio 4 Comedy and Entertainment commissioner Julia McKenzie about Call Jonathan Pie in the 6.30pm comedy slot. In this week's entirely listener-led programme, we'll hear your comments and reaction to last week's interview.

And two listeners, Abi and Clare, discuss Radical with Amol Rajan in our Vox Box. The relatively new podcast has Amol sitting down with some of the leading lights in tech, politics and more, for big conversations designed to help you, as the programme descriptions suggests, to 'win the future'. But is it as radical...

A series of Call Jonathan Pie is being repeated on BBC Radio 4, and it's been scheduled for the primetime 6.30pm comedy slot on Thursdays, albeit with edits to the version available on BBC Sounds. However, some listeners have contacted Feedback to complain that the content of some episodes wasn't appropriate for tea-time listening. Andrea Catherwood sits down with Radio 4 Commissioning Editor for Comedy and Entertainment Julia McKenzie, to discuss the comments and asks why it was broadcast in this slot.

And there's another nomination for the annual interview round up, Feedback's Interview of the Year. This time...

Saturday Live is a staple of BBC Radio 4's weekend schedule, and for years it was presented by Reverend Richard Coles and Nikki Bedi. Andrea interviewed Richard as he departed in 2023 when the programme moved to Cardiff. The lead presenter post was covered in the interim by Nikki Bedi with different co-hosts. Now, Adrian Chiles has entered the chat, as the new presenter of Saturday Live. Feedback listeners have been telling us what they think of this change. Andrea Catherwood puts your comments to Colin Paterson, Head of Audio for BBC Wales and the West of England.

...

With a summer of political turmoil over, and party conference season near an end, Andrea Catherwood talks to Chris Mason about how BBC audio coverage has reflected the key political players. The Feedback inbox has been receiving messages that question the amount of coverage given to Nigel Farage's Reform UK party. Chris responds to your questions and weighs in on what he says is a change in UK politics we haven't seen in decades.

And our search for BBC audio's best interview of 2025 continues. One listener has nominated an interview conducted by presenter Evan Davies in a...

The first episode in a new series of Feedback, presented by Andrea Catherwood.

A recent edition of File on 4 Investigates went inside the migrant hotels at the centre of anti-immigration protests in England to talk to residents about their experiences. But listeners were divided in what they thought of the documentary. The journalist who made programme, Sue Mitchell, joins Andrea to answer your comments and questions.

While Feedback was off air we heard the news that veteran presenter Melvyn Bragg would be stepping down from presenting In Our Time after 27 years at the programme's helm...

It's the final episode of this series of Feedback, and we're ending it with a look at one of BBC Radio's high-end dramas - Central Intelligence. It follows the life of Eloise Page, who was a real-life CIA operative, and stars Kim Cattrall, Ed Harris, and Stephen Kunken. Stephen joins Andrea and director and writer John Scott Dryden to respond to listener comments and discuss what it's like to tell the story of the CIA.

Artificial Intelligence is quickly becoming more and more embedded in everything around us, and radio is no different. Cliff Fluet, a partner...

It's been almost two years since the most recent conflict between Israel and Palestine broke out, and it has generated almost constant radio news coverage, as well as plenty of challenges for BBC journalists while reporting. BBC News International Editor Jeremy Bowen joins Andrea Catherwood from Jerusalem to answer listener questions about the coverage of the conflict and the ongoing crisis in Gaza.

Radio consultant Matt Deegan returns to discuss the recent RAJAR figures on radio listening. Matt gives his view of the data across all radio in the UK.

And listeners share their thoughts...

With news of starvation in Gaza making headlines, Today presenter Nick Robinson conducted an interview with Israeli Government Spokesperson David Mencer that divided listeners and lit up our inbox. We hear what you had to say.

Andrea Catherwood talks to radio futurologist James Cridland about BBC.com and the BBC app, the two platforms offered as alternatives to overseas listeners after the closure of BBC Sounds outside of the UK. Listeners from around the world give their honest reviews of the website and app as they get to grips with them. And we get some answers to...

Comedian Tony Hawks is a lucky man - and that's why, in a recent series for Radio 4, he's been discussing how he's looking into alternatives to leaving an inheritance for his son once he's gone. Plenty of listeners got in touch with questions and comments on Tony Hawks Is Giving Nothing Away, and presenter Andrea Catherwood puts them to Tony directly.

We also hear the second part of our conversation with BBC Radio 3 Controller Sam Jackson, who talks to Andrea about this year's Proms, and the part he plays in the UK's arts sector.

And...

Listeners have been turning to weather bulletins over the last few weeks to find out if the forecast is going to be full of blazing sunshine or torrential rain. But should weather forecasters reflect widespread concerns about climate change in their reports? Lead BBC Weather Presenter and Meteorologist Simon King joins Andrea Catherwood to explain.

BBC Radio 3 controller Sam Jackson returns to answer more listener questions about BBC Radio's home of classical music, following a surge in listener numbers and a 'Station of Year' ARIA Gold award.

And two listeners, Sion and Ella, arrive in...

It's official. BBC Sounds will close to listeners overseas on 21st July. Andrea Catherwood puts your questions about the proposed alternatives to Director of BBC Sounds, Jonathan Wall.

And the BBC's Chief International Correspondent Lyse Doucet's recent reports from Tehran struck a real chord with listeners. Lyse joins Andrea in the studio to explain the challenges of working under Iran's reporting restrictions.

Presenter: Andrea Catherwood Producer: Rebecca Guthrie Assistant Producer: Liza Greig Executive Producer: David Prest

A Whistledown Scotland production for BBC Radio 4

Radio 4 has a new health and wellness offering, What's Up Docs? It's a weekly podcast helmed by twin brothers Dr Chris and Dr Xand Van Tulleken, covering everything from low testosterone to creaky knees. But has its chatty style been a hit with listeners? and how are they getting on with a podcast being transmitted as part of the Radio 4 schedule? Presenter Andrea Catherwood puts your thoughts to Rhian Roberts, Head Commissioner for Podcasts and Formats.

In an unstable world, you might want to distance yourself from busy news schedules by taking a trip to somewhere else...