The Essay

Writer and scholar Lauren Elkin describes the very particular grey of a rainy Paris in the time of year that the French revolutionary government called Pluviôse, the month of rain. She talks about the way a particular quality of grey sheen was captured by the French Impressionists, and with it a sense of melancholy. It's a vision that recurs in art and film, from Gustave Caillebotte's 1877 Paris Street, Rainy Day, to the recent Christophe Honore film, Les Chansons d'Amour. Elkin describes the latter as appearing to have been shot through a very realistic grey-green "Paris in the rain" filter, which gives it a power and mood rooted in its setting.

In the third of her curated series of essays about the way rain is experienced across the globe, Nandini Das introduces the Australian poet and environmentalist Mark O'Connor. Mark explores the uniquely Australian experiences of rain, which include the vivid smell of it. The word petrichor was coined by Australian scientists to try and capture the odour of rain on arid lands, but there's more than just petrichor in the air, and there's also great variety in the ways in which different parts of Australia experience rain, from the flash downpours and run-offs in the so-called 'Top End', to the agonising expectation of the farms in the south and the exultant rain chorus of Queensland frogs.

When the rains of the fifth month, samidare, arrive in Japan it seems they'll never stop. In the second of Nandini Das's curated series of essays on rain and the way it's experienced across the globe, she invites art historian Timon Screech to introduce us to the rains of Japan where he now lives.The rains that flood country and city alike are also known as the plum rains, plumping up the fruit in time for the later ripening and harvest. He talks about rain depicted in Japanese literature, particularly the Haiku, in which the sound of rain is experienced in terms of taste - the bitterness of the plum rains. And we discover the significance and symbolism of the umbrella in Japanese culture and art, including their place in nightmare imagery.

Nandini Das, Professor of Early Modern Literature and Culture at Oxford, brings us stories and personal experiences of rain and the way it informs and combines with different cultures across the globe. Each of the five essays takes a particular sense and location as focus, beginning with Nandini's native India and the sound of rainfall. She recalls the deafening, thundering rains of the monsoon season in Kolkata, and the language that captured its power. She recalls how the inherited myths and stories of India have always been informed by the uneasy balance of the country's rain and searing heat. And she recounts the musical dramas in which raags are used to call the rains and Bengali nursery rhymes carry its sound, 'brishti porey tupur tapur' (pitter-patter falls the rain).

Legendary broadcaster James Burke reveals unexpected connections between his twin passions of science and classical music. In this final essay he leads us, via steam engines, precision instruments, waterworks and iron coffins, to the modern orchestra.

Legendary broadcaster James Burke reveals unexpected connections between his twin passions of science and classical music. Today's essay ranges from Carolina pine trees, chintz, bowler hats and skyscrapers - and ends on the ivories.

Legendary broadcaster James Burke reveals unexpected connections between his twin passions of science and classical music. Today’s essay includes Italian electricity, a German baron and his séances, French carpet-making and your fridge. All on the way to the compositions of Claude Debussy.

Legendary broadcaster James Burke reveals unexpected connections between his twin passions of science and classical music. In this essay he links planetary orbits, new kinds of arithmetic, the teeny-weeny, and of course fake Scottish literature arriving naturally enough at the Romantic movement.

Legendary broadcaster James Burke reveals unexpected connections between his twin passions of science and classical music. In this first exploration he brings together such arcane stuff as organisms that might not exist, Newton and colour, French encyclopedias and a freemason’s opera.

Geoffrey Colman invites us to join him on a walk through a day as an acting coach.Geoffrey is an acting coach, educator, broadcaster and former professor of acting at the Royal Central School of Speech of Drama, and in this series of Essays he takes listeners inside the rehearsal rooms and onto the stages of his professional life to address key questions about acting.In this final Essay, Geoffrey describes a series of interactions inside the world of acting - a pop star trying to get in to the business, an actor trying to perfect a role, a stage star who keeps getting stuck on a particular line, and an out of work actor who's obviously struggling. As he does, he brings together all the ideas from this series of Essays, to present a picture of acting and the acting industry today.Producer: Giles Edwards

Geoffrey Colman describes the ways in which reality TV has changed acting.Geoffrey is an acting coach, educator, broadcaster and former professor of acting at the Royal Central School of Speech of Drama, and in this series of Essays he takes listeners inside the rehearsal rooms and onto the stages of his professional life to address key questions about acting.In this Essay, Geoffrey describes the many ways in which reality TV has changed acting, discussing reality, truth and constructed reality.Producer: Giles Edwards

Geoffrey Colman explores the differences between acting on stage and on screen.Geoffrey is an acting coach, educator, broadcaster and former professor of acting at the Royal Central School of Speech of Drama, and in this series of Essays he takes listeners inside the rehearsal rooms and onto the stages of his professional life to address key questions about acting.In this third Essay, Geoffrey discusses the differences between acting on stage and on screen - the difference, according to Sir Laurence Olivier, between handling a sword and a cup of tea. Geoffrey argues that they are completely different propositions, with completely different technical skills required to master each. Actors who can do both stage and screen are, he concludes, truly exceptional artists, because they are very much working in two different art forms. But if they are done well, no one even notices. Producer: Giles Edwards

Geoffrey Colman asks what students learn in drama schools, as he continues his series of Essays on acting.Geoffrey is an acting coach, educator, broadcaster and former professor of acting at the Royal Central School of Speech of Drama, and in this series of Essays he takes listeners inside the rehearsal rooms and onto the stages of his professional life to address key questions about acting.In this second Essay Geoffrey asks what students learn in drama schools. Taking us inside the rehearsal rooms and drama school auditions of his professional life, he'll show how the history of acting tuition continues to inform practice today. But he also reveals how recent movements have upended some of that received wisdom, and challenged the intensely personal way in which graduates are assessed.Producer: Giles Edwards

Geoffrey Colman considers the art of acting, and in this first of a new set of Essays asks: what makes a great actor?Geoffrey is an acting coach, educator, broadcaster and former professor of acting at the Royal Central School of Speech of Drama, and in this series of Essays he takes listeners inside the rehearsal rooms and onto the stages of his professional life to address key questions about acting.In this first episode Geoffrey asks what makes a great actor. With awards season approaching, he's interested in asking what makes for an award-winning performance. As he touches on acting technique, building a character and even an equation for great acting, Geoffrey discusses vulnerability and an actor's ability to make the audience believe.Producer: Giles Edwards

In the last programme in a series celebrating the joys of Essex, surely the most maligned of counties, writer Gillian Darley explores the unsung delights of mid-Essex, with a trip along the Essex Way.Known recently for the pneumonic blondes and diamond geezers of television's The Only Way Is Essex, as well as the peroxided 'Essex Girls' of the 80s, Essex seems to have an image problem. John Betjeman called it 'a stronger contrast of beauty and ugliness than any other southern English county'. This series explores the contrasts of this boundary county, this interzone, which has become a parody of itself.Reader and writer: Gillian Darley is the author of Excellent Essex. She is a writer, broadcaster and architectural campaigner, with an OBE for her services to the Built Environment and its Conservation. Producer: Justine Willett

In the next in a series celebrating the joys of Essex, surely the most maligned of counties, writer and social historian Ken Worpole explores Essex as a place of retreat and refuge. Known recently for the pneumonic blondes and diamond geezers of television's The Only Way Is Essex, as well as the peroxided 'Essex Girls' of the 80s, Essex seems to have an image problem. John Betjeman called it 'a stronger contrast of beauty and ugliness than any other southern English county'. This series explores the contrasts of this boundary county, this interzone, which has become a parody of itself.Reader and writer: Ken Worpole is an acclaimed writer with books on architecture, landscape, planning, design, and social history. He was a founder-member of openDemocracy, and is a senior professor at The Cities Institute, London Metropolitan University.Producer: Justine Willett

In the next in a series exploring the joys of Essex, surely the most maligned and misunderstood of counties, writer and poet Lavinia Greenlaw takes us back to the formative landscape of her childhood - a place that she rejected for so long...Known recently for the pneumonic blondes and diamond geezers of television's The Only Way Is Essex, as well as the peroxided 'Essex Girls' of the 80s, Essex seems to have an image problem. John Betjeman called it 'a stronger contrast of beauty and ugliness than any other southern English county'. This series explores the contrasts of this boundary county, this interzone, which has become a parody of itself.Reader and writer: Lavinia Greenlaw is an acclaimed poet and novelist. Producer: Justine Willett

In the next in a series exploring the joys of Essex, surely the most overlooked and misunderstood of counties, AL Kennedy takes on a watery journey through the rivers, mudflats and reed beds of the county she now calls home.Known recently for the pneumonic blondes and diamond geezers of television's The Only Way Is Essex, as well as the peroxided 'Essex Girls' of the 80s, Essex seems to have an image problem. John Betjeman called it 'a stronger contrast of beauty and ugliness than any other southern English county'. This series explores the contrasts of this boundary county, this interzone, which has become a parody of itself.Reader and writer: AL Kennedy is an acclaimed novelist and short story writer.Producer: Justine Willett

Kicking off the series exploring the joys of Essex, surely the most maligned and misunderstood of counties, singer-songwriter Billy Bragg reflects on the borderland between London and Essex that fuelled his childhood imaginationJohn Betjeman called Essex 'a stronger contrast of beauty and ugliness than any other southern English county'. But, known recently for the pneumonic blondes and diamond geezers of TV's The Only Way Is Essex, as well as the peroxided 'Essex Girls' of the 80s and the Tory-loving 'Basildon Man' of the 90s, Essex seems to have become a parody of itself. But Billy Bragg thinks otherwise...Reader and writer: Billy Bragg is a singer, songwriter and activist. Producer: Justine Willett

Radio 3 presenter Jess Gillam celebrates the composer whose music unexpectedly helped her though lockdown, Johann Sebastian Bach,

Radio 3 presenter Jumoké Fashola celebrates the singer-songwriter whose music and life story helped her to find her own voice, the American Nina Simone

Radio 3 presenter Ian Skelly celebrates the composer who helped him see humanity as integrated with nature, the Frenchman Jean Mouton

Radio 3 presenter Elizabeth Alker celebrates the first "unclassified" composer, the Russian Sofia Gubaidulina

Radio 3 presenter Hannah French celebrates the composer who liberates her from "imposter syndrome", the Venetian Barbara Strozzi

Radio 3’s veteran jazz broadcaster Geoffrey Smith concludes his series on perceptions of jazz in Britain, told through his own experience as an American settling in the UK fifty years ago. In 1963 the great tenorist Sonny Rollins provided one of the high points of Geoffrey's jazz life in a gig at the Minor Key in Detroit. Fresh from the famous sabbatical which produced his album The Bridge, he was in towering form. Nearly four decades later in October 1999 Rollins came to London for a performance at the Barbican just a few days after the fatal rail crash outside Paddington station. At the start of the concert he announced he wanted to dedicate it to the people who had died, "in hopes that they are somewhere listening." Then he played with unforgettable power and invention - Rollins at his best, than which there is nothing greater in jazz. And in the succeeding years, every time he returned to the Barbican, he produced a concert at that same peerless level, leaving his audience crying for more. Geoffrey Smith reflects on the connection this great American musician forged with his British audience over this series of astonishing performances.

Writer and broadcaster Geoffrey Smith continues his series on the changing perceptions of jazz in Britain, by taking a closer look at the celebrated British pianist and composer Stan Tracey. Stan was an abiding presence in Geoffrey's jazz media life, as reviewer and interviewer, and Geoffrey thinks of him not just as a paragon of British jazz, but of jazz in Britain. He was the real thing, a jazz muso to the bone, totally committed to the music. And to him that's what it was. He once told Geoffrey that when he went out to a gig, he didn't say to himself "I'm going to play some jazz", but "I'm going to play some music." Jazz was his music virtually from the time he heard it, trailing down the stairs from the flat above his family home. His route to jazz keyboard went through an accordion - with which he happily played pass-the-hat gigs in pub - to achieving his own style on piano, following trips to New York as a member of shipboard bands in ‘Geraldo's Navy’. He later became house pianist at Ronnie's Scott's and a musician's favourite - the great Sonny Rollins once asked, "does anyone here realise how good he is?" Geoffrey pays tribute to a British player with an unmistakably quirky, determined personal style.

Geoffrey Smith continues his series on changing perceptions of jazz in Britain, focusing on the visits of two celebrated American artists, Duke Ellington and Bud Freeman.Britain has always been a favourite destination for American jazz stars. It played a key role in the career of Duke Ellington, whose visit here in 1933 generated such enthusiasm among the musical elite that it convinced him to attempt more ambitious musical works. Equally smitten by the mix of British history, culture and style was the legendary Chicago saxophonist Bud Freeman, whose British affinity took roots in the 20s when he and his fellow Chicago jazz pioneers adopted the Prince of Wales as their model for dress and behaviour, and honoured him with their composition, Prince of Wails. Bud settled in London in the late 70s, when Geoffrey became his regular companion for city strolls and got to know him well.

Writer and broadcaster Geoffrey Smith continues his series on the changing perceptions of jazz in Britain, focusing on the audience. In a culture obsessed with interpreting social signs, the British are fascinated by jazz as style, attitude, behaviour. In the 1920s, jazz was the vogue music of the Bright Young Things: the Prince of Wales himself was fond of sitting in on drums with visiting Americans. On the other end of the political spectrum, the Marxist historian Eric Hobsbawm saw the music as the epitome of working class art. And the fixation with the purity of jazz's folk roots drove the trad jazz boom of the 1950s, a playing style that was once seen as a sign of hip progressive politics. For Geoffrey, all this signifying makes it harder to get through to the music.

Radio 3’s veteran jazz broadcaster Geoffrey Smith reflects on the changing perceptions and appreciation of jazz in Britain, through his own experience as an American settling in the UK fifty years ago. In this first programme Geoffrey questions the British term ‘jazzer’ and its jokey connotations which are in sharp contrast to the genre’s more serious Stateside identity as American classical music. There, the genealogy and pedigree of the genre is more complex, going back to the rich musical mix of New Orleans. As John Lewis of the Modern Jazz Quartet once said, "We didn't have Bach, Beethoven or Mozart, so we needed to create a music that could do all the things that music can do". But to the British, argues Geoffrey, the essential value of jazz is precisely that it isn't classical. Geoffrey reminds us that the two genres overlap in key expressive features, and that the immortal names in their respective pantheons have much in common.

Writer and broadcaster Lindsay Johns ends his series of essays on cities influenced by African migration in Cape Town.Making his way around a city he knows intimately, respects abundantly and loves profusely, Lindsay asks what it means to be Capetonian. From the city's tragic racial history and its legacy, to the wave of migration from elsewhere in Africa, this is a place whose identity is constantly shifting. And as he concludes his series of essays, Lindsay ponders his own ambivalent feelings towards this demographic, political, social, spiritual change. Producer: Giles Edwards

Writer and broadcaster Lindsay Johns continues his tour of great cities influenced by their relationship with Africa in Fort-de-France, the capital of the Caribbean island of Martinique.On an island where, as he puts it, Gallic efficiency and Cartesian rigour rub shoulders with local Creole flavour, all in the enervating tropical heat, Lindsay examines the question of identity. Fort-de-France, says Lindsay, looks to Paris for her modus vivendi and to Africa for her raison d’être. So was the decision of Martinique’s most famous son - the poet, playwright, polymath, founder of the Negritude literary movement, politician and former Mayor of Fort-de-France, Aimé Césaire - to stave off independence and remain part of France, the right one? On his walk around the city Lindsay encounters French waiters, BMW-driving witch doctors, and a decapitated lady, as he considers this question.Producer: Giles Edwards.

Writer and broadcaster Lindsay Johns continues his series of essays examining five great world cities through the prism of their relationship with Africa. In the Jamaican capital, Kingston, this different lens leads to a focus not on pristine beaches, sunshine and cricket, but instead on rebellion and spirituality.Lindsay considers Jamaica's history, intimately inter-woven with the tragedies, iniquities and horror of slavery; but also one defined by those who have refused to accept that status quo, from Queen Nanny to Marcus Garvey. And as he walks the city's streets, from downtown to New Kingston, where Jamaica's thriving community of entrepreneurs, business people and scientists is based, he ponders Kingston's spiritual connections with East Africa - and Ethiopia - and how profoundly they have affected the city.Producer: Giles Edwards

In the second of his essays on great cities which have been influenced by African migration, writer and broadcaster Lindsay Johns takes a walk around Philadelphia.It's a city whose history is tied up with notions of America and of freedom, and as he wanders the streets of Philadelphia, Lindsay ponders the relationship between these two powerful ideas. They're not always easy to reconcile in Philadelphia - where the chronic racialised street homeless situation, the city’s poverty and stark racial divide leave him feeling a distinct lack of 'Brotherly Love' - in a city which takes that as its moniker. As Lindsay considers some of the philosophical questions which arise, he also reflects upon a community of African migrants making their home in the city with its own fascinating and surprising relationship with Philadelphia.Producer: Giles Edwards.

Writer and broadcaster Lindsay Johns introduces his new series of essays on five great cities which have been influenced by African migration, as he discusses Marseille.Looking for inspiration to Ian Fleming's 'Thrilling Cities', Lindsay wants to eschew the loud, brash main avenues and explore instead the quiet back alleys, abandoning tourist sites in favour of lesser known, more local and edgier haunts. But he also wants to ditch the colonial mindset always looking for European influence, and instead examine how these cities have been affected by migration from Africa.And in Marseille, the first of his five, Lindsay finds it all: a truly Franco-African metropolis, infused with gastronomic, religious, linguistic, musical, sartorial and literary influences from the other side of the Mediterranean.Producer: Giles Edwards

Opera singer Peter Brathwaite used lockdown creatively. Responding to the Getty Museum’s social media challenge to reproduce a work of art using only household items, he embarked on an extraordinary project: to recreate as many artworks depicting black people as possible, posting the results on social media using the hashtag #BlackPortraiture. Over 80 artworks later, Peter’s remarkable recreations of art spanning eight centuries have made a huge impression, particularly in their relevance to the Black Lives Matter movement.As part of Black History Month on BBC Radio 3, Peter explores five of his recreations in depth, digging deeper into the stories of the black people he has brought to life. He also shares discoveries he has made about himself, his Barbadian heritage and ancestry, through the processes of researching and recreating each portrait.In this final episode we meet artist Sonia Boyce, whose 1982 self-portrait Rice n Peas celebrates her Black British identity through the medium of food.

Opera singer Peter Brathwaite used lockdown creatively. Responding to the Getty Museum’s social media challenge to reproduce a work of art using only household items, he embarked on an extraordinary project: to recreate as many artworks depicting black people as possible, posting the results on social media using the hashtag #BlackPortraiture. Over 80 artworks later, Peter’s remarkable recreations of art spanning eight centuries have made a huge impression, particularly in their relevance to the Black Lives Matter movement.As part of Black History Month on BBC Radio 3, Peter explores five of his recreations in depth, digging deeper into the stories of the black people he has brought to life. He also shares discoveries he has made about himself, his Barbadian heritage and ancestry, through the processes of researching and recreating each portrait.In this fourth episode we meet a formerly enslaved African who has just been granted his freedom following Abraham Lincoln's 1863 Emancipation Proclamation, as depicted by Scottish artist Thomas Stuart Smith in his portrait The Pipe of Freedom.

Opera singer Peter Brathwaite used lockdown creatively. Responding to the Getty Museum’s social media challenge to reproduce a work of art using only household items, he embarked on an extraordinary project: to recreate as many artworks depicting black people as possible, posting the results on social media using the hashtag #BlackPortraiture. Over 80 artworks later, Peter’s remarkable recreations of art spanning eight centuries have made a huge impression, particularly in their relevance to the Black Lives Matter movement.As part of Black History Month on BBC Radio 3, Peter explores five of his recreations in depth, digging deeper into the stories of the black people he has brought to life. He also shares discoveries he has made about himself, his Barbadian heritage and ancestry, through the processes of researching and recreating each portrait.In this third episode we meet Emmanuel Rio, horn player and gardener in the employ of Emperor Francis I of Austria, as depicted by Austrian artist Albert Schindler in 1836.

Opera singer Peter Brathwaite used lockdown creatively. Responding to the Getty Museum’s social media challenge to reproduce a work of art using only household items, he embarked on an extraordinary project: to recreate as many artworks depicting black people as possible, posting the results on social media using the hashtag #BlackPortraiture. Over 80 artworks later, Peter’s remarkable recreations of art spanning eight centuries have made a huge impression, particularly in their relevance to the Black Lives Matter movement.As part of Black History Month on BBC Radio 3, Peter explores five of his recreations in depth, digging deeper into the stories of the black people he has brought to life. He also shares discoveries he has made about himself, his Barbadian heritage and ancestry, through the processes of researching and recreating each portrait.In this second episode we meet the anonymous boy who appears in the extravagant 17th-century painting The Paston Treasure, a still life that documents a wealthy family's lavish collection of objects – including a human being.

Opera singer Peter Brathwaite used lockdown creatively. Responding to the Getty Museum’s social media challenge to reproduce a work of art using only household items, he embarked on an extraordinary project: to recreate as many artworks depicting black people as possible, posting the results on social media using the hashtag #BlackPortraiture. Over 80 artworks later, Peter’s remarkable recreations of art spanning eight centuries have made a huge impression, particularly in their relevance to the Black Lives Matter movement.As part of Black History Month on BBC Radio 3, Peter explores five of his recreations in depth, digging deeper into the stories of the black people he has brought to life. He also shares discoveries he has made about himself, his Barbadian heritage and ancestry, through the processes of researching and recreating each portrait.In this first episode we meet Joseph Johnson, the maimed Georgian street performer and former sailor whose act involved wearing an enormous model of a ship on his head.

Five essays reflect on the impact of the Puritan Pilgrims setting sail on the ship the Mayflower 400 years ago, from Plymouth in England heading west to “the New World”. Writers look at what the anniversary means to Americans in 2020, and create portraits of some of the key players: two of the passengers, and two of the Native Americans who met them.The tale of the 'Pilgrim Fathers' became part of the foundation myth of the United States. On the 400th anniversary of their setting sail, Nick Bryant (BBC New York correspondent) gives an overview of what the anniversary means in America this year, at a time when that myth is under scrutiny more than ever, and Margaret Verble (Cherokee writer, her book ‘Maud’s Line’ a finalist for the 2016 Pulitzer) explores the motivations of Tisquantum, Native American ally and translator to the Pilgrims. Michael Goldfarb (American author, journalist and broadcaster) writes a portrait of John Alden, the crew member turned colonist, Rebecca Fraser (Historian and author of ‘The Mayflower: the Families, the Voyage, and the Founding of America’) uncovers the story of Susanna White-Winslow, Mayflower passenger, and David Silverman (American historian and author) looks at the decisions facing Metacom: a child when the Mayflower landed, he would become a resistance leader.David J Silverman, American historian and author of ‘This Land Is Their Land’, recounts the life of Metacom, son of Massasoit, who broke the peace his father had forged with the settlers and waged a resistance that would change the course of American history.

Five essays reflect on the impact of the Puritan Pilgrims setting sail on the ship the Mayflower 400 years ago, from Plymouth in England heading west to “the New World”. Writers look at what the anniversary means to Americans in 2020, and create portraits of some of the key players: two of the passengers, and two of the Native Americans who met them.The tale of the 'Pilgrim Fathers' became part of the foundation myth of the United States. On the 400th anniversary of their setting sail, Nick Bryant (BBC New York correspondent) gives an overview of what the anniversary means in America this year, at a time when that myth is under scrutiny more than ever, and Margaret Verble (Cherokee writer, her book ‘Maud’s Line’ a finalist for the 2016 Pulitzer) explores the motivations of Tisquantum, Native American ally and translator to the Pilgrims. Michael Goldfarb (American author, journalist and broadcaster) writes a portrait of John Alden, the crew member turned colonist, Rebecca Fraser (Historian and author of ‘The Mayflower: the Families, the Voyage, and the Founding of America’) uncovers the story of Susanna White-Winslow, Mayflower passenger, and David Silverman (American historian and author) looks at the decisions facing Metacom: a child when the Mayflower landed, he would become a resistance leader.Rebecca Fraser, author of ‘The Mayflower: The Families, the Voyage, and the Founding of America’, imagines the little recorded life of Susanna Winslow, a woman who gave birth on board the Mayflower and founded a new generation.

Five essays reflect on the impact of the Puritan Pilgrims setting sail on the ship the Mayflower 400 years ago, from Plymouth in England heading west to “the New World”. Writers look at what the anniversary means to Americans in 2020, and create portraits of some of the key players: two of the passengers, and two of the Native Americans who met them.The tale of the 'Pilgrim Fathers' became part of the foundation myth of the United States. On the 400th anniversary of their setting sail, Nick Bryant (BBC New York correspondent) gives an overview of what the anniversary means in America this year, at a time when that myth is under scrutiny more than ever, and Margaret Verble (Cherokee writer, her book ‘Maud’s Line’ a finalist for the 2016 Pulitzer) explores the motivations of Tisquantum, Native American ally and translator to the Pilgrims. Michael Goldfarb (American author, journalist and broadcaster) writes a portrait of John Alden, the crew member turned colonist, Rebecca Fraser (Historian and author of ‘The Mayflower: the Families, the Voyage, and the Founding of America’) uncovers the story of Susanna White-Winslow, Mayflower passenger, and David Silverman (American historian and author) looks at the decisions facing Metacom: a child when the Mayflower landed, he would become a resistance leader.Michael Goldfarb, American journalist, broadcaster and author of 'Emancipation: How Liberating Europe's Jews from the Ghetto Led to Revolution and Renaissance', considers the life and legacy of John Alden, the Mayflower ship's cooper who became a settler.

Five essays reflect on the impact of the Puritan Pilgrims setting sail on the ship the Mayflower 400 years ago, from Plymouth in England heading west to “the New World”. Writers look at what the anniversary means to Americans in 2020, and create portraits of some of the key players: two of the passengers, and two of the Native Americans who met them.The tale of the 'Pilgrim Fathers' became part of the foundation myth of the United States. On the 400th anniversary of their setting sail, Nick Bryant (BBC New York correspondent) gives an overview of what the anniversary means in America this year, at a time when that myth is under scrutiny more than ever, and Margaret Verble (Cherokee writer, her book ‘Maud’s Line’ a finalist for the 2016 Pulitzer) explores the motivations of Tisquantum, Native American ally and translator to the Pilgrims. Michael Goldfarb (American author, journalist and broadcaster) writes a portrait of John Alden, the crew member turned colonist, Rebecca Fraser (Historian and author of ‘The Mayflower: the Families, the Voyage, and the Founding of America’) uncovers the story of Susanna White-Winslow, Mayflower passenger, and David Silverman (American historian and author) looks at the decisions facing Metacom: a child when the Mayflower landed, he would become a resistance leader.Margaret Verble, author of the Pulitzer finalist novel ‘Maud’s Line’ and ‘Cherokee America’, considers the life and legacy of Squanto, a Native American man who acted as an interpreter and guide to the Pilgrim settlers, whose motives have been blurred by history.

Five essays reflect on the impact of the Puritan Pilgrims setting sail on the ship the Mayflower 400 years ago, from Plymouth in England heading west to “the New World”. Writers look at what the anniversary means to Americans in 2020, and create portraits of some of the key players: two of the passengers, and two of the Native Americans who met them.The tale of the 'Pilgrim Fathers' became part of the foundation myth of the United States. On the 400th anniversary of their setting sail, Nick Bryant (BBC New York correspondent) gives an overview of what the anniversary means in America this year, at a time when that myth is under scrutiny more than ever. Among the other essays this week, Margaret Verble (Cherokee writer, her book ‘Maud’s Line’ a finalist for the 2016 Pulitzer) explores the motivations of Tisquantum, Native American ally and translator to the Pilgrims, Michael Goldfarb (American author, journalist and broadcaster) writes a portrait of John Alden, the crew member turned colonist, Rebecca Fraser (Historian and author of ‘The Mayflower: the Families, the Voyage, and the Founding of America’) uncovers the story of Susanna White-Winslow, Mayflower passenger, and David Silverman (American historian and author) looks at the decisions facing Metacom: a child when the Mayflower landed, he would become a resistance leader.In the first essay this week Nick Bryant gives his personal reflections on what the 400th anniversary of the Mayflower means to Americans – from Trump supporters to Native American activists - creating a picture of the USA in 2020 and the anniversary's place in it.

Dina Rezk from the University of Reading looks at politics and the role of humour as she profiles Bassem Youssef, “the Jon Stewart of Egyptian satire”. As protests reverberate around the world, she looks back at the Arab Spring and asks what we can learn from the popular culture that took off during that uprising and asks whether those freedoms remain. You can hear her in a Free Thinking discussion about filming the Arab Spring https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0005sjw and in a discussion about Mocking Power past and present https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000dzww You can find of Dina's research https://egyptrevolution2011.ac.uk/ New Generation Thinkers is a scheme run by BBC Radio 3 and the Arts and Humanities Research Council to select ten academics to turn their research into radio. Producer: Robyn Read

New Generation Thinker Brendan McGeever traces the links between anti-Semitism now and pogroms in the former Soviet Union and the language used to describe this form of racism. Brendan McGeever lectures at the Pears Institute for the Study of Antisemitism at Birkbeck University of London. You can hear him discussing an exhibition at the Jewish Museum exploring racial stereotypes in a Free Thinking episode called Sebald, anti-semitism, Carolyn Forché https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m00050d2 New Generation Thinkers is a scheme run by BBC Radio 3 and the Arts and Humanities Research Council to select ten early career academics each year to turn their research into radio. Producer: Robyn Read

Prison breaks loom large in both literature and pop culture. But how should we evaluate them ethically? New Generation Thinker Jeffrey Howard asks what a world without prison would look like. His essay explores whether those unjustly incarcerated have the moral right to break out, whether the rest of us have an obligation to help - and what the answers teach us about the ethics of punishment today. Jeffrey Howard is an Associate Professor in the Political Science Dept at University College, London, whose work on dangerous speech has been funded by the British Academy and the Leverhulme Trust. You can find him discussing hate speech in a Free Thinking Episode https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0006tnf New Generation Thinkers is a scheme run by BBC Radio 3 and the Arts and Humanities Research Council to select ten academics who can turn their research into radio. Producer: Luke Mulhall

Earlier periods of history have seen more people with scarring to their faces from duelling injuries and infectious diseases but what stopped this leading to a greater tolerance of facial difference ? Historian Emily Cock considers the case of the Puritan William Prynne and looks at a range of strategies people used to improve their looks from eye patches to buying replacement teeth from the mouths of the poor, whose low-sugar diets kept their dentures better preserved than their aristocratic neighbours. In portraits and medical histories she finds examples of the elision between beauty and morality. With techniques such as ‘Metoposcopy’, which focused on interpreting the wrinkles on your forehead and the fact that enacting the law led to deliberate cut marks being made - this Essay reflects on the difficult terrain of judging by appearance.Emily Cock is a Leverhulm Early Career Fellow at the University of Cardiff working on a project looking at Disfigurement in Britain and its Colonies 1600 – 1850.You can hear her discussing her research with Fay Alberti, who works on facial transplants, in a New Thinking podcast episode of the Arts & Ideas podcast called About Face https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p080p2bcNew Generation Thinkers is a scheme run by BBC Radio 3 and the Arts and Humanities Research Council to select ten academics each year to turn their research into radio.Producer: Alex Mansfield

Earlier periods of history have seen more people with scarring to their faces from duelling injuries and infectious diseases but what stopped this leading to a greater tolerance of facial difference? Historian Emily Cock considers the case of the Puritan William Prynne and looks at a range of strategies people used to improve their looks from eye patches to buying replacement teeth from the mouths of the poor, whose low-sugar diets kept their dentures better preserved than their aristocratic neighbours. In portraits and medical histories she finds examples of the elision between beauty and morality. With techniques such as ‘Metoposcopy’, which focused on interpreting the wrinkles on your forehead and the fact that enacting the law led to deliberate cut marks being made - this Essay reflects on the difficult terrain of judging by appearance.Emily Cock is a Leverhulm Early Career Fellow at the University of Cardiff working on a project looking at Disfigurement in Britain and its Colonies 1600 – 1850. You can hear her discussing her research with Fay Alberti, who works on facial transplants, in a New Thinking podcast episode of the Arts & Ideas podcast called About Face https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p080p2bcNew Generation Thinkers is a scheme run by BBC Radio 3 and the Arts and Humanities Research Council to select ten academics each year to turn their research into radio.Producer: Alex Mansfield

Jade Halbert lectures in fashion, but has never done any sewing. She swaps pen and paper for needle and thread to create a dress from a Jean Muir pattern. In a diary charting her progress, she reflects on the skills of textile workers she has interviewed as part of a project charting the fashion trade in Glasgow and upon the banning of pins on a factory floor, the experiences of specialist sleeve setters and cutters, and whether it is ok to lick your chalk. Jade Halbert is a Lecturer, Fashion Business and Cultural Studies at the University of Huddersfield. You can find her investigation into fashion and the high street as a Radio 3 Sunday Feature https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000gvpn and taking part in a Free Thinking discussion called The Joy of Sewing https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0002mk2 New Generation Thinkers is a scheme run by the BBC and the Arts and Humanities Research Council to select ten early career academics to turn their research into radio. Producer: Torquil MacLeod