Radio choice Charlotte Runcie

Why Do We Sing? RADIO 4 EXTRA, 6.30AM & 1.30PM

Gareth Malone, who is effectively now the nation’s choirmaster, gives a whistle-stop tour of the history of singing, from prehistoric humans testing their vocal chords for the first time onwards through evolution and developing societies. Music is a key component of all world cultures, and here Malone explores its important role in all human communication and looks at how singing has changed over the millennia, from early wild grunts and experimental vocalisations to the complex arias of modern times. Assignment: Breaking China’s Love Triangles

WORLD SERVICE, 8.06PM

 In proof that there’s a market for pretty much any personal service you can think of somewhere in the world today, this documentary explores the emerging business in China of “mistress-dispelling”, the professional practice of separating cheating husbands from their girlfriends. Ed Butler meets private detectives and “marriage counsellors” who see themselves as helping couples to avoid divorce, and sits in on a mistress “stakeout”, while asking what it says about relationships in China today.