The Archers is BBC Radio 4's "longest running drama" (Independent, 2011) and has been providing entertainment of real stories for over 67 years. It fits the radio 4 remit by providing a "wide range of other speech output including drama" (BBC Trust, 2016) but why has it been running for so long and what makes this drama engaging for its listeners? The episode I listened to was from back in 2013 when Bridge Farm's dairy herd was sold. This programme was grounded in factual research to ensure the programme sounded realistic for the viewers. The writer for The Archers visited a farm's cattle sale because there is "no way a writer could conjure scenes like this out of the imagination" (Solazzo, 2013). This quote shows that in every detail of the programme, in-depth research has been done to immerse the audience in as much realism as possible. The Archers covers a wide range of topics from "domestic violence and dementia to robotic cow mil...

This week I have been doing the groundwork for a factual programme for my Content Delivery University assignment which needs me to research and create a short feature for Channel 4's Food Unwrapped. I'm going to be sharing with you my experiences of doing research and ringing people to find out information and potentially get some contributors for my feature. Firstly, I needed to think about what food am I going to research. Coming up with ideas can be difficult but I remembered something my parents told me when I was younger 'if you eat cheese before bed it'll give you nightmares'. Then I had a light bulb moment! So I began my research into does cheese really give you bad dreams? Using 'newsstand' (a university resource), I began sifting through newspaper articles and websites all about cheese and its dreamy qualities. I found that there hadn't been much research done on the subject as the British Cheese Board state that their study is "a fi...

The Man Who Squeezes Muscles: Searching for Purple Aki is a short documentary on BBC Three that was first shown on 12th September 2016. The documentary shows a hunt for the infamous and mysterious Akinwale Arobieke, also known as Purple Aki (BBC, 2016). The programme opens with presenter narrating as he walks through a poorly lit underpass. This choice of opening location creates enigma and sets the tone of the programme to be an insightful investigation into the "urban legend" (Nissim, 2016). Through the mise-en-scene of graffiti, litter dirt and it all looking very urban it creates the feel of a rough environment for the viewer and sets up what they see and the tone for the rest of the documentary. This documentary "resonates with young people" (BBC, n.d.) as said in BBC Three's commissioning guide because it tackles a subject that "[stimulates] strong emotion and [provokes] reactions" due to Purple Aki being "somewhere between myth and re...

A Mixtape for Gus was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in October 2014 (BBC, 2014) and is presented by young composer and musician, Emily Levy, as she delves into the life of her late brother using the mixtapes he made and conversations with some of his friends (BBC, 2014). This programme fits BBC Radio 4's commissioning guide through the use of music and clever actuality to create emotion it engages the "listeners seeking intelligent programmes" (BBC, n.d.). The actuality of the tapes "clattering in the background" (Getintothis, 2016) and her feelings heard, through the sobs and sniffles, add a layer of emotion to the story of the programme, engaging the listeners. The music used by Levy creates a sense of attachment to Gus through the songs by linking with her memories of him. Not only has the music got a special connection for her to Gus, it also offers a nostalgic look into the music of the past and I think this contributes to the success of the programme because ...

Taboo is a “historical drama” (Hughes, 2017) that follows a man who “comes home to bury his father, revive an incestuous bond with sister Zilpha and claim his inheritance” (Duguid, 2017). Originally broadcast “at 9:15pm on BBC One” (Littlejohn, 2017) in January and repeated in March on BBC 2. This programme is suitable for this timeslot because it contains strong language, “harrowing moments” (Hughes, 2017) and subject matter such as “incest and exorcisms” (Hughes, 2017) that are not be suitable for younger viewers if broadcast at an earlier time due to Ofcom’s rules to “protect viewers from offensive and harmful content” (Ofcom, 2013). This drama is typical for BBC Two because it is required to give “an edgy, angled perspective on the world” (BBC, n.d.) with “complex and demanding tales” (BBC, n.d.) which Taboo does by providing the audience “grime and torment” (Hughes, 2017) through the storylines of each episode where the characters need to overcome obstacles to accomplish ...

Quake, a “new audio drama” (Reynolds, 2017) from Radio 4 is about how “the search for survivors begins after a deadly earthquake” (Graham, 2017). This new form of audio drama is “made up of 12 short form audio pieces” (Graham, 2017) and uses the innovative virtual reality technology to tell a gripping story and “illustrates how digital communication methods can help save lives” (BDH, n.d.). The series is “not on radio but online” (Reynolds, 2017), using VR and animations bringing the story to life which is new for Radio 4 as it is its “first virtual reality radio” (BDH, n.d.), winning the “PRIX EUROPA Award for innovation” (BDH, n.d.). This shows how the BBC has taken the first step “into the digital revolution” (Reynolds, 2017) leading the way for others to follow and making this unique for the BBC. BBC Radio 4 should provide a “mixed speech service, offering in-depth news and current affairs and a wide range of other speech output” (BBC, n.d.) and Quake does this by “highlightin...

My Week as a Muslim, a Channel 4 documentary “that aims to give a frank insight into the everyday lives of British Muslims, including the anti-Islamic sentiments they often encounter” (Jones, 2017). The documentary follows Katie Freeman who “is frightened of Muslims” (Nicholson, 2017), as she “puts on makeup and changes her clothes in order to pass as a Muslim” (Khan, 2017) to open her eyes on how life is like for a Muslim woman. This programme was broadcast on 23 October 2017 on Channel 4. Due to some language and sensitive subjects covered in the documentary it was shown at 9pm.  Channel 4 “wanted to do something bold and experimental” (Khan, 2017) when creating this documentary that fits their commissioning guide for a documentary that, “says something about society now” (4 Commissioning, n.d.). In true Channel 4 fashion, this documentary was highly controversial and was “widely criticised for ‘brownface’” (Jones, 2017), however, it was still broadcast   as they ar...