When You're Gone, You're Gone
What do you think happens when you die? Composer Jocelyn Pook asks a handful of people to reflect on the great mystery we all struggle to come to terms with throughout our lives. This might seem like an incredibly obvious and well trodden path, but wit

David Hockney - New Ways of Seeing
David Hockney on his current fascination with new technology and on the Yorkshire landscapes of his childhood

A Dark History of British Gardening
Jenny Uglow challenges the orthodox story of a British obsession

Leonardo: Master of Ceremonies
Charles Nicholl reveals a lesser known, but astonishing aspect of the great "Renaissance Man's" work

Music at the Court of Catherine the Great
Through the music of Catherine the Great's court, biographer Virginia Rounding explores the transformation that the Empress led of a backward Slavic state into a cultural hub, the envy of 18th century Europe.

Thomas Lynch's Feast of Language
In this series of essays, celebrated poet, essayist and funeral director, Thomas Lynch, looks at five of his most beloved poets and examines how their poems have nourished and sustained him throughout his life

ZAHA
We follow the world's most famous female architect in her busiest year yet.

Why do Women Die in Opera?
Martin Kettle examines the surprisingly high death rate among female characters in opera...

The Glass Piano
Author and poet Deborah Levy conjures the magical world of a Bavarian princess.

The Glasgow Boys
Scottish writer and comedian A L Kennedy offers a profile of a group of daring young artists who rose to international fame by rebelling against the establishment.

The Good Old Days?
Billy Bragg explores the hidden history of music hall

Antony Gormley, Seminal Sculpture
Antony Gormley discusses the power of individual sculptures

Weather Reports You
Roni Horn collates oral weather reports from around the British Isles

Rebellion and Fear - Artists and the Great War
Richard Cork explores how the conflict figured powerfully in the lives and work of leading international artists and poets.

Richard Cork's Encounters With Artists
Richard Cork on Picasso, Louise Bourgeois, Roy Lichtenstein, Bridget Riley and Lucian Freud.