DISCOVERY: THE CURIOUS CASES OF RUTHERFORD AND FRY - 6. WHY DO BIRDS SING? (320kbs-m4a/19mb/27mins)
BBC World Service broadcast: 17th June 2019
"What happens to the human voice as we age? If I hear a voice on the radio, I can guess roughly how old they are. But singer's voices seem to stay relatively unchanged as they age. Why is this?" All these questions were sent in by Jonathan Crain from Long Island in New York.
Doctors Adam Rutherford and Hannah Fry discover how the human voice is produced and listen to how our voice sounds when it emerges from our vocal cords. Acoustic engineer Trevor Cox, author of Now You're Talking, explains why German and French babies have a different accent. And neuroscientist Sophie Scott describes what happens when boys' voices break, and why a similar thing can happen to women during the menopause.
Finally, our voices often change dramatically in later life, as demonstrated by comedy impressionist Duncan Wisbey. Expect cameos from David Attenborough, Dumbledore and Paul McCartney.
Bird Song
"Winter is finally over and the birds are all singing their hearts out at dawn. What is all the noise about? And why are some songs so elaborate?" asks Tony Fulford from Cambridgeshire in the UK.
We find out how birds produce multiple notes at once, which one has the widest repertoire of songs, and why males like to show off quite so much. Plus, we talk to researcher Lauryn Benedict about the project which aims to solve the mystery of why female birds sing.
Featuring interviews with RSPB president and nature presenter Miranda Krestovnikoff, and world-renowned birdsong expert and sound recordist, Don Kroodsma from the University of Massachusetts. TV archive courtesy of The One Show, BBC TV.
Please send your cases for consideration for the next series to curiouscases@bbc.co.uk.
Presenters: Adam Rutherford, Hannah Fry
Producer: Michelle Martin.
(Photo: Eurasian Wren (Troglodytes troglodytes). Credit: Getty Images)
SLOW RADIO - FAIR WINDS (320kbs-m4a/66mb/29mins)
BBC Radio 3 broadcast: 28th August 2022
Fair Isle sits between Orkney and Shetland and is the most geographically remote inhabited island in the UK with a population of around 60 people. The world-famous Fair Isle knitting patterns originate from there, and are still in production to this day on the island. It is also a stopping off point for migratory birds, and, as a result, is a mecca for bird watchers who visit the island to try and spot a 'blow in'.
Inge Thomson is a musician and composer who was brought up on Fair Isle and spent her childhood playing in rock pools and birdwatching. Her music has been influenced deeply by not only the traditional music of Fair Isle, but the sounds she grew up hearing around her - lapwings, the ever present and changing wind and the sea around her.
In this Slow Radio piece, producer Helen Needham accompanies Inge to Fair Isle after an absence of eight months. They explore the island together, from clifftop to cave, capturing the unique sounds of this special place. They also stop by the knitting studio of Marie Bruhat to capture her at work on her contemporary Fair Isle pieces. And finally we hear a sound composition created specially for BBC Radio 3 by Inge featuring sounds from Fair Isle.
Produced in Aberdeen by Helen Needham
Sound Composition by Inge Thomson
Mixed by Ron McCaskill
DAVID ATTENBOROUGH - ADVENTURES OF A YOUNG NATURALIST (OMNIBUS) (320kbs-m4a/156mb/68mins)
BBC Radio 4 Extra broadcast: 24th January 2021
An alarming encounter with a caiman in Guyana.
In the 1950s, David Attenborough, the naturalist and broadcaster grasped a life changing opportunity which led him to travel the world finding rare and elusive animal species for London Zoo and filming the expeditions for the BBC TV series, Zoo Quest.
Abridged in five parts by Richard Hamilton. Omnibus edition.
Producer: Elizabeth Allard.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2017.
BEARDYMAN AND THE MIMICS (320kbs-m4a/64mb/28mins)
BBC Radio 4 Extra broadcast: 23rd September 2021
Champion beatboxer "Beardyman", aka Darren Foreman, is a master of vocal artistry.
He's able to make all manner of noises, including entire percussive music tracks, using only his mouth, throat and tongue. Darren's been inspired by the Lyrebird, king of the animal mimics and able to replicate sounds ranging from a kookaburra's laughing call to a tourist's camera shutter to a chainsaw.
In fact, he's been so mesmerised by this bird's Oscar-worthy performance, that he's venturing on a personal journey to unveil the secrets of animal vocal mimicry.
Along the way, he'll encounter ornithologist and musican Bill Oddie, birdsong scientific experts and a whole new world of sounds.
Producer: Kirsty Henderson
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2008.
SOUNDS NATURAL - BERNARD CRIBBINS (320kbs-m4a/68mb/29mins)
BBC Radio 4 Extra broadcast: 29th April 2022
From the Meadow Pipit to the Red-Backed Shrike.
Actor Bernard Cribbins talks to Derek Jones about his love of bird watching, fishing and the importance of conservation.
Aided by recordings from the BBC Sound Archive.
Producer: John Burton.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 1972.
DISCOVERY - WILD INSIDE: GREAT GREY OWL (320kbs-m4a/62mb/27mins)
BBC World Service broadcast: 28th November 2022
One of the world's large owls by length, the Great Grey Owl is an enigmatic predator of coniferous forests close to the Arctic tundra. It's most often seen hunting around dawn and dusk, when it perches silently at the edges of clearings. But as Prof Ben Garrod and Dr Jess French delve deep inside to understand its true secret to survival, they find the deep feathery coat belies a deceptively small head and body that‘s evolved unbelievably powerful abilities to silently detect and ambush unsuspecting prey.
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