today’s radio

SOUNDS OF THE 70S

3PM, RADIO 2 HHH

The 1970s were good for David Soul and, as far as record sales were concerned, 1977 was particularly fine and dandy. In that year, Soul sold more singles than any other band or artiste. In this Mother’s Day special, the actor and musician joins Johnnie Walker to talk about the 1970s, playing hits from that decade and giving his new album, Gold, a bit of a plug.

WORDS AND MUSIC

5.30PM, RADIO 3 HHH

Jane Austen’s Mrs Bennet goes hunting for sons-in-law, and Lady Capulet tries to control daughter Juliet’s ill-starred life, in this selection of prose, poetry and music on the subject of mothers and daughters.

Marilyn Monroe (11pm, Radio 2)

EXPLICABLE ME

9PM, RADIO 2 HHH

Radio 2 is having a Funny Fortnight, road-testing a number of new comedy shows to see which ones might stay the course. Inevitably, panel shows are very much part of the mix, including this one, which has a team of comedians answering personal questions. It all gets a bit self-indulgent, but has its moments, including the observation that ‘Comedians are like rock stars who didn’t have enough friends to form a band.’

DON BLACK

11PM, RADIO 2 HHH

The presenter and lyricist Don Black pays tribute to songwriters and the singers who made their songs hits. Tonight, he features tracks from Barbra Streisand,

Kay Starr and Marilyn Monroe. There’s a lot of nonsense talked about Ms Monroe’s singing, with claims that she had to be dubbed in films. It’s true she didn’t have a big range or a big voice, but she pitched the notes just fine and knew, as we hear tonight, just how to deliver a lyric. SJ