Dr Seren Griffiths takes a short walk on a sandstone ridge in Cheshire to connect thousands of years of human history, from Iron Age hill fort to Cold War listening posts. Show more

In the sharp light of calls for the decolonising of museums and art galleries, art critic Alastair Sooke explores the history and relevance of the movement known as primitivism. Show more

Seán Williams traverses painting and poetry, cultural classical music and popular song, gliding through the centuries to bring us a brief history of lake skating. Show more

New Generation Thinker Will Abberley reconsiders Richard Jefferies' The Pigeons at the British Museum and argues that an essay written in 1884 should be essential reading today. Show more

James Joyce's epic Ulysses is set within a single day. One hundred years after its publication writer James Marriott explores the long shadow of the one day artwork. Show more

Linton Stephens reflects on the life of the African American contralto Marian Anderson’s role as a symbol of the civil rights movement, guided by mezzo soprano Denyce Graves. Show more

Director Daniel Kramer explores John Adams' opera 'Nixon in China' on the 50th anniversary of the President's state visit in a feature combining art, reportage, music and politics. Show more

Mermaids continue to seduce us. New Generation Thinker Hetta Howes goes mermaid-hunting along the wild north Cornish coast to ask why their appeal continues in the 21st century. Show more

Susan Greaney draws parallels between the Neolithic peoples of Britain and the ancient Jomon civilisation of Japan, both of whom used circles of stone in ritual celebrations. Show more

Reflections on the life and work of the author Muriel Spark, through audio archive and contributions from those who knew her and her work. Show more

Writer Lesley Riddoch follows the 60th parallel north to see how climate change is altering the relationship between humans and the landscape in the far north. Show more

Is there a shared culture in the north of Europe? Eleanor Rosamund Barraclough encounters forests, saunas, brutal warfare, ABBA and bad jokes. Show more

Hayden Lorimer discusses ice with poets, musicians, explorers, doctors and physicists. With Lavinia Greenlaw, Jo Shapcott, Kathleen Jamie, Nick Drake and Gavin Francis. Show more

Writer Jeet Thayil follows in the footsteps of the beat poet Allen Ginsberg, who travelled round India in the early 60s inspiring the hippy generation's passion for Indian culture. Show more

Sarah Dillon is a literary detective on the hunt for the story behind the story of how great works were written. Dickens's Great Expectations reveals a tale of money and passion. Show more

Sarah Dillon explores the stories behind the stories of how great works were written, focusing on the arduous composition of Jean Rhys's Wide Sargasso Sea. Show more

The history of poetry in film is an alternative aspect of cinema. Matthew Sweet investigates. Show more

Andy Kershaw follows song collector Cecil Sharp's Appalachian trail in the spring of 1916, when he discovered a treasure trove of English folk songs he had never encountered before. Show more

Anthropologist David Sneath has been visiting Mongolia for over twenty years. He reports on how new political freedom and ideas are transforming ancient cultures. Show more

Rana Mitter investigates how South Korean culture has managed to punch above its weight across east Asia and beyond, with exports such as films, television and K-pop. Show more