...AND THE BEST RADIO

SUNDAY DAVID BOWIE DAY RADIO 6 MUSIC, FROM 7AM

On the fifth anniversary of Bowie’s death, a full day of celebration starting with Radcliffe And Maconie from 7am, in which Mark Radcliffe shares recordings of his many meetings with the iconic star. At 1pm, David Bowie Star Special is a 1979 programme where Bowie (below) chose his favourite music, from Little Richard to The Mekons. At 4pm, Amy Lamé looks at the effects of the legend’s genderbending persona.

MONDAY HOW THE IRISH SHAPED BRITAIN RADIO 4, 8PM

In a three-part historical journey of conquest and rebellion, immigration, integration and assimilation, Fergal Keane argues that some of the most valued elements of Britishness have actually been indebted to the Irish. From 19th Century theatre to today’s pop culture, Irish immigrants and their descendants have also made their presence felt in business, politics and sport.

TUESDAY DRAMA: LIVES IN TRANSIT RADIO 4, 2.I5PM

Rosemary Jenkinson’s play is based on the true story of a Somali woman torn between the bureaucracy of Dublin and London in her quest for asylum after fleeing rape and violence in her native land.

THURSDAY THE HOURS RADIO 4 EXTRA, 10AM & 3PM

Michael Cunningham’s Pulitzerwinning adaptation of

Virginia Woolf’s Mrs Dalloway was turned into an Oscar-winning (for Nicole Kidman as Woolf) film in 2002. The novella follows three women – Woolf in 1923, a suburban wife in 1949 and a smart Greenwich Village woman in the 1990s – and weaves in such themes as mental illness, parental guilt, the trials of creativity, friendship, AIDS and loss.

THE FORUM: A HISTORY OF MERMAIDS WORLD SERVICE, 10.05AM & 12.05AM

Bridget Kendall and guests discuss sea folklore and various versions of the mermaid from around the world, from the sirens of Greek mythology to the selkies of Scottish legend and water spirits known as Mami Wata in parts of Africa and the Americas.

RADIO 3 IN CONCERT RADIO 3, 7.30PM

Live from Hoddinott Hall in Cardiff, Douglas Boyd makes his debut conducting the

BBC National Orchestra of Wales in a concert featuring two Mendelssohn works, including his overture The Hebrides (Fingal’s Cave). There’s also William Alwyn’s Pastoral Fantasia For Viola And Strings, a pre-war paean to simpler times in

England, with Lawrence Power.

FRIDAY SKELETONS IN THE CUPBOARD RADIO 4, 11.30AM

Return of Sue Limb’s comedy series with

Alison Steadman and Morwenna Banks as sisters Maureen and Lesley, who have now found happiness in rural France (where Nigel Planer plays a local handyman). But grief over the death of the sisters’ parents intrudes and the pair return home to deal with their mother’s empty house – and dispose of a body…