Programme Information

In a Memphis hotel room back in 1974, American singer-songwriter Suzi Quatro declined an invitation from "The King" himself to visit him at his Graceland home.

Thirty-five years later, as part of BBC Radio 2's Elvis Season, Suzi returns to Memphis to finally make that long-delayed visit and explore her life-long obsession with Elvis, the connection she feels with him and his influence on her career.

Suzi says: "To finally be going to Graceland after all these years... Wow, what a journey it was, very, very emotional. I was in tears many times as I traced the footsteps of Elvis Presley, who was and is the reason I do what I do."

On the way to Graceland, in an attempt to discover the man behind the image, Suzi visits Elvis's birthplace in Tupelo, Mississippi. She meets some of his childhood friends, who share some of their precious memories, including the reason why Elvis was hopeless at fishing and the moving story behind the final resting place of his still-born twin brother Jesse.

In Memphis itself, Suzi sees the council flat that was the Presley's first big city home, his school and the places where he made his first music, and meets the girl who Elvis walked home from school every day for four years. Then it's on to Beale Street, where Elvis found his musical direction; Sun Studios, where he made his first recordings; and Audobon Drive where he bought his first house.

Life-long friend George Klein offers a personal insight into the Presley psyche, before Suzi finally makes that long-delayed, and highly emotional, visit to Graceland itself.

Presenter/Suzi Quatro, Producer/Mark Hagen

BBC Radio 2 Publicity

Face The Facts Ep 1/6

Thursday 7 January

12.30-12.55pm BBC RADIO 4

Following the deaths of six people in a high rise fire in London last July, presenter John Waite investigates the safety failures exposed in tower blocks, in the first of a new series of Face The Facts.

The six deaths revealed poor to non-existent fire safety standards in some similar residential buildings. At many there was no fire risk assessment, and one has even been condemned as too unsafe for people to live in. Some apartments have been expensively refurbished – seemingly with little consideration for fire safety in communal areas.

Face The Facts reveals one tower block which had been visited by the Fire Service on a regular basis because of broken lifts – yet only after the London fire did it become clear that the building was unsafe.

Presenter/John Waite, Producer/Andrew Smith

BBC Radio 4 Publicity

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Many areas of British industry will have had cherished creative dreams scrapped this year because of the financial downturn. Hard times can mean years of research being painfully binned but, because of industrial secrecy, often no one can tell the full story at the time.

The Killing Of The TSR2, dramatised by Robin Brooks, tells the true story of the TSR2, the world-beating British-built fighter jet that never was. Twenty years ahead of its time technologically, the jet was scrapped overnight by the Labour government in 1965 after just one supersonic test flight.

At the end of the Fifties, the British aircraft industry embarked on an ambitious project to produce a revolutionary military aeroplane, a Cold War warrior. It had to perform multiple roles – tactical, strike and reconnaissance – but its main purpose, come Armageddon, was to fly in under the Russian radar and drop a nuclear device on enemy missile silos with precision.

The British designers and engineers rose to the challenge, creating a world-beating prototype, years ahead of its time, a strange and beautiful machine. The test pilots were highly impressed, but the project was dogged with teething troubles and costs were spiralling astronomically. While the TSR2 prototype was making its most successful test flight, the Conservative government fell and new Labour Chancellor Dennis Healey, in his first budget, wielded the axe with ruthless speed. The project was destroyed.

The Killing Of The TSR2 features Ewan Bailey in the multiple roles of Wing Commander Roland Beamont, John F Kennedy and Harold Wilson; and Jon Glover as Harold Macmillan and Sir Cyril Musgrave. The cast also includes Bruce Alexander as Sir George Edwards, and Joseph Cohen-Cole as Davis. Also featuring are Piers Wehner, Nigel Hastings, John Biggins, Rhys Jennings, Kate Layden and Emerald O'Hanrahan.

Producer/Jonquil Panting

BBC Radio 4 Publicity

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House On Fire Ep 1/6

Thursday 7 January

11.00-11.30pm BBC RADIO 4

When first-time buyers Matt and Vicky set their heart on the same two-bedroom house in Brixton, they realise neither of them can afford it by themselves.

Once their parents have helped them out, they agree to pool their resources and buy the property together. What could go wrong? She seems friendly and intelligent, and is definitely easy on the eye. He seems kind, funny and is undeniably cute. Not only is this a sensible financial move, it could end up being a great way of making a new friend for life. Or it could turn out to be the worst move they ever made?

House On Fire is a comedy series about two strangers who buy a house together, and then discover that they hate each other. Stuck together, but too financially intertwined to extricate themselves, Matt and Vicky must put up with each other's annoying habits before they lose their minds. Constantly at loggerheads, occasionally at war, each pulls out all the stops to try make the other leave.

Secretly, they might love each other – but if they do, they've got a funny way of showing it.

Vicky Johnson is played by Emma Pierson; Matt South by Jody Latham; Vicky's father, Colonel Bill, is played by Rupert Vansittart; Matt's mum by Janine Duvitski; Matt's dad by Philip Jackson; and Donny by Sebastian Cardinal.

Producer/Clive Brill

BBC Radio 4 Publicity

Eleanor Oldroyd is joined by some top sports correspondents to discuss the week's top sporting stories in The Headline Hour.

Then, from 9pm, David Davies introduces England's Lost Leaders, a special report examining the lack of successful England managers at the top of the Premier League.

Presenter/Eleanor Oldroyd, Producer/Ben North

BBC Radio 5 Live Publicity

Test Match Special

Thursday 7 January

8.15am-4.00pm BBC RADIO 5 LIVE SPORTS EXTRA

Test Match Special presents ball-by-ball commentary of the final day's play of the third Test between South Africa and England, live from Newlands, Cape Town.

Jonathan Agnew leads the commentary team alongside Simon Mann and Gerald de Kock, with expert summary from Ashes-winning former England captain Michael Vaughan, Geoffrey Boycott and Duncan Fletcher.

Producer/Jen McAllister

BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra Publicity

Gideon Coe plays a 2001 concert from Elbow and Prefab Sprout recorded live in 1985. He also plunders the archive for sessions from Toots And The Maytals, jangly Scots Camera Obscura, noughties techno-rock from Fujiya And Miyagi and Curly Hair's September 2009 session for Marc Riley.

Presenter/Gideon Coe, Producer/Frank Wilson

BBC 6 Music Publicity

The New Year event at Parkside is in full swing, as the drama continues. Shazia has to admit that she's impressed with Deepika's range of activities but does Mary feel the same way?

Jaggy confirms Darren's worst suspicions, just as Deepika grabs him to announce the name of the raffle winner who gets to train with Rangers for the day. As Darren takes to the stage Jaggy walks off to make a call about where he stands on the next poker game.

Shazia is played by Shobu Kapoor, Deepika by Babita Pohoomull, Mary by Carole Nimmons, Jaggy by Jay Kiyani, Darren by Samuel Kindred and Cyrus by Nigel Hastings.

BBC Asian Network Publicity

Victor Schonfeld is renowned for his 1982 theatrical documentary The Animals Film, narrated by Oscar-winner Julie Christie, which was instrumental in drawing attention to animal suffering at human hands.

More than 25 years later, Schonfeld returns to this subject in the second part of this series, to question whether any progress has been made in this area, and to ask whether human relationships with other species is still as exploitative.

Victor asks whether the hopes of the animal rights movement can ever be realised, given current trends in meat-based diets, industrialised factory farming and scientific research on live animals.

The series features revealing dialogues with leading figures in the United States and elsewhere, to gain insights into the limitations and potential of an evolving social change movement.

Presenter/Victor Schonfeld

BBC World Service Publicity