Ruislip & Eastcote & Northwood Gazette
Lynda La Plante opts to go into forensic detail
Famous crime writer enlists experts to dive into the minutiae of crime fighting methods
Listening to the DeaD
PRIME Suspect author Lynda La Plante fronts this absorbing exploration of forensic techniques in solving crimes.
With 33 novels and 150 hours of TV to her name, she has spent many hours researching police procedure and tales of her experiences are interspersed with interviews with experts.
These are conducted by CSI Cass Sutherland, a long-time adviser of Lynda’s, and cover everything from fibre analysis to how the discovery of DNA transformed the entire field.
Where to start: Pollen expert Prof Patricia Wiltshire was working in the archaeology department at University College London when she started being called in to help solve murders including the dreadful Soham case in 2002. on forensics on Lynda’s website at http:// lyndalaplante.com/listening-to-the-dead/
the FiLm Programme
THIS podcast is worth recommending for a single episode – the one in which bestselling author Frank Cottrell-Boyce talks so passionately about the 1983 film Local Hero that it makes you want to put on the TV, step inside the screen and live forever in the fictional Scottish village it’s set in.
Local Hero, about an oil company trying to buy up a village on the coast of Scotland, has woven its way into Frank’s life from the moment he and his wife unknowingly spotted members of the film crew during their honeymoon. He is surprised – and almost struck dumb with awe – in this podcast by his interview being crashed by director Bill Forsyth.
It’s wonderful to hear the man whose London Olympics opening ceremony has lived long in the hearts of those who watched it, being so moved, inspired and indeed humbled by someone else’s work.
Where to start: As well as the above episode, the podcast covers a range of films and issues within the industry.
Ben Bailey Smith looks at the problem of nepotism in the class system and the British Film Industry; there’s a great episode on Derek Jarman’s arthouse film The Garden; and the latest on Earl Cameron, one of the first black actors to star in a British film, is fascinating.
Where to find it: BBC Sounds or all the usual podcast apps.