Home | Friends of Radio 3 (FoR3) (original) (raw)

The news pages are not currently being updated as Friends of Radio 3 is no longer active as a campaigning group.

**BBC Radio 3

“In these days of ‘managerialism' and relentless commercial competition – not to men tio _n the BBC’s own controversial attempts to compete with its commercial rivals – Radio 3 will continue to be at risk.” (_Humphrey Carpenter, The Envy of the World)

From the time that the BBC Third Programme was first conceived – immediately after the war – as a cultural network for classical and other musics, for the spoken arts and for discussion on topics of cultural significance, there have been people needed, and ready, to defend its quality, range and scope from inimical cultural agendas.

The Third's successor, Radio 3, has also had to face threats to its intellectual integrity: FoR3 is no more than the latest (and longest-surviving) listener group established to defend this valuable BBC service.

May 19, 2017: Two steps forward, one step back

A poor RAJAR result for Quarter 1, but two very comfortable quarters last year mean that the yearly average for 2016/17 stands up well. More here …

June 15, 2017: Review: On This day

This year's annual BBC Music Day was not as awful as in past years. Radio 3 was allowed to do its own thing and offered six short dramatic monologues illustrating life-changing moments in the lives of six very different individuals, each one built round a piece of classical music. No compromising of Radio 3's unique purpose.More here …

<strong=">Radio 3 listings: Andrew Slater's listings website has direct links to the iPlayer which function once the programme has been broadcast. There are also downloadable pdfs (in 6pt, 3 cols per page, and 8pt, 2 cols per page, depending how many pages you prefer). The listings will be automatically updated on Friday evenings and the website will gradually displace the old Mediafire archive.

**Now iPlaying: Sunday Feature: Samurai culture

Japan experts Rosina Buckland and Oleg Benesch have included Kabuki Theatre, drums and horns in a show about the influential Japanese warrior class. Chris Harding presents.

Now iPlaying: Royal Scottish National Orchestra

The Royal Scottish National Orchestra, with Thomas Søndergård and horn virtuoso Felix Klieser, play Mozart, Strauss and the mighty Bruckner 8 in Glasgow.

Available until 10th April.

Now iPlaying: Bacon in Moscow

The story of Francis Bacon’s ground-breaking 1988 exhibition in the USSR. With Timothy Spall and Luke Morris. Written by Stephen Wakelam, based on the memoir by James Birch.
(Repeated on R4, as R3 has now abandoned drama.)

Available until 5th January 2029.

**Now iPlaying: Jazz Record Requests: International Women's Day

Alyn marks International Women's Day with a special edition featuring music from harpist Dorothy Ashby and vocalists Etta James, Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald.

Available until 7th April.