RADIO CHOICE

THE wide-apart eyes, the dreamy expression and the slow movements of the sloth make them endearing creatures. These treeclimbing animals — which can hardly move on land, but are adept swimmers — are found in Central and South America. In the first of a new series of NATURAL HISTORIES (RADIO 4, 11AM), Brett Westwood and Joanna Pinnock encounter a mother and baby sloth, and find out for themselves why these creatures exert such a charm over us humans.

SUE LIMB, who penned the radio satire Gloomsbury, brings us the new, fourpart drama SKELETONS IN THE CUPBOARD (RADIO 4, 11.30AM). Alison Steadman (pictured) and Morwenna Banks play sisters Maureen and Lesley, who are having to face up to the painful duty of clearing out their late

mother’s house. They’ve just about got on top of things when a man named David (Nigel Planer) stops by the house and asks if they’re planning to sell. Maureen hopes so, but Lesley has other plans . . .

A GROUP of musicians from great British and Russian music schools have joined forces to form the Britten-Shostakovich Festival Orchestra, under the baton of the British conductor Jan Latham-Koenig. Catherine Bott features music from the orchestra’s inaugural tour in THE FULL WORKS CONCERT (CLASSIC FM, 8PM).