Who listens to radio 4?

I pick and choose my programmes on BBC Sounds. I can listen to a whole book that way, all episodes back to back - probably about half Radio 4 and half Radio 4 Extra. As MOnica says, the documentaries are very good. Listening to them as a podcast, you can wind back and listen again if your mind has wandered, or if you didn't catch something.

I never did follow The Archers, although my mother did.

The writing on I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue seems to have deteriorated these days. Has anyone else noticed this?

I listen mostly to local radio. And a lot of the World Service, often in the night.

The reporting on world wide issues together with programmes covering science, arts etc is still reasonable, but much else has deteriorated in quality I think.

WWM2 I agree with you on the science and art programmes etc, but the rest deteriorated years ago. I gave up on the Archers the night of the 60th anniversary - 10 years ago - drama and humour well before that.

It is so sad, as I consider that 20-30 years ago it was an absolute flagship.

I listen to the World service if I am awake at night and love the Outlook series, so much so I try to stay awake so I hear the whole programme! I also enjoy the witness history series. I am not a fan of Melvin Bragg but some of the topics covered are fascinating although some of his contributors can be very dry! I think I just need to listen to more programmes online rather than live.

I do listen to Radio 4 but also to 5Live in the morning, sometimes switching between the two. I like programmes such as From Our Own Correspondent and Crossing Continents and even - occasionally - Woman's Hour, though at my age, I often feel I've heard it all before. My middle-aged son sometimes enjoys an afternoon play when working from home and has even been known to listen to Woman's Hour, but is another devotee of 5Live and has, several times, contributed to phone-ins.

I used to listen all the time to Radio 4. Sadly I think pursuit by the right wing of the Tory party and threats to funding have tamed Auntie and I choose carefully and listen to podcasts of the more informative programmes.
Emma Barnett seemed like a breath of fresh air. Woman's Hour always jams in too many items and rarely gives time for a serious discussion where the subject is listened to rather than immediately argued with. The Irish Times Women's podcast is much better.

Radio 6 is a revelation if you like music and being invited to broaden your tastes.

Since being in Australia, I listen to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) where interviewers still listen and intelligence abounds. Nightlife and Life Matters are both excellent programmes /podcasts.

Try Times Radio a relatively new channel but is already attracting a lot of Radio 4 listeners. Discovered it by accident.

DH and I listen to radio 4 and there are lots of programmes that we enjoy. It actually wakes us at 5.50am, each morning as we've chosen the radio option as our alarm setting on our clock radio.
If I couldn't listen to Radio 4 I might consider the World Service as an alternative, otherwise for me there isn't a substitute.

I listen to Radio 4. The BBC is a key feature of our national landscape and needs protection from politicians who resent its accuracy and precision in reporting news and current affairs.

I only listen to Radio 4, but not comedy (except I’m sorry I haven’t a clue), GQT and Any Questions/Answers. Particularly like In Our Time, Today, World at One, PM, the Archers and Woman’s Hour

Have switched to Times Radio in the mornings now - far less annoying than Radio 4. The presenters actually listen to the contributors rather than constantly interrupting them, and, in my opinion, the reporting is far more balanced. Signal can be a bit patchy at times - bizarrely when the sun is shining! Can't work that one out, but reception is far better on dark, murky mornings.

Another one here finding fewer and fewer programmes I enjoy. Even Woman's Hour usually gets switched off part way through. Used to love the vast majority of afternoon plays but now only like the occasional one and the comedy shows aren't what they used to be or ,maybe, I'm just getting old.
Still tune in for the Archers though!

I only listen to it at night. I go to bed at 10 and find the talking helps send me off to sleep lol

I would listen to R4 in preference to others despite being invited to choose my own desert Island discs for local radio
However it can be unfunny and repetitive. Start the week is on twice a day.
I always enjoy poetry please and the Michael Rosen programme. Word of mouth
Clare Balding I like and Crowd Science

I heard that same programme M0nica I think it was on the world service in the night.

When I despair I switch to radio Scotland for a while until that annoys me much more especially their theme tunes.

I listen to The Archers, Desert Island Discs, the late night quizzes on Saturdays, but not much else. I listen to radio 2 during the day but the choice if music so boring and same. At bedtime and early mornings I always have radio 5live on. They have some very interesting discussions and phone ins interspersed with sport. Problem is that when there’s a big sporting event taking place like the Ashes or the Ryder Cup that takes over even though they have another station dedicated to sport. That’s when I turn to radio 4, only to be disappointed. I dont want music programmes, I want interesting talk programmes and there aren’t many dedicated talk programmes that aren’t either very political or just boring.

Having turned into an Owl in my sleeping habits, I drift off to sleep to the world service, and before that to the shipping forecast which is somehow soothing. Familiarity? The fascinating names of the areas? Not sure. I also like Saturday live, Desert Island discs, Womans Hour but not regularly. Prefer to pick and choose. Their plays and comedies are almost always a turn off or instantly forgettable.
I've taken to listening to audible books to fill the gap. I use blue tooth earphones and whichever room I go to I listen seamlessly.

As far as we're concerned, we'd pay a license fee for Radio 4 alone. It is the background music to our lives and only gets switched off in the evenings. Not all dramas have captivated our full attention but many have and we've discovered many new authors through various readings and other programmes. We would be bereft without Radio4...and rely on the Shipping forecast to send us back to sleep if woken during the night....

I listen to some radio 4, enjoy woman’s hour if I catch it and always listen to the Archers, I also enjoy open book. I’ve got into podcasts on sounds recently like many of you - just binge listened to Nuremberg which I though was brilliant.

I'd always listened to R4 as the backdrop to my life but no more. Even the Today programme is pretty boring now. One short run-through of Covid news per hour is enough, there is a lot of other news to cover.
The BBC seem to be ending some shows that I like such as Quote Unquote but still continuing with the boring stuff. I'm sick to the back teeth with
Melvin Bragg, Question Time, Any Answers. Do we have to have to many politicians strutting their self-important stuff.
And don't get me started on the many repeats of old comedies, especially those involving Spike Milligan.
I also gave up on the Archers some years ago, as have many ex Archers addicts I know.
Why can't we have good dramas, so many now are Welsh/Irish (humdrum and predictable stuff) or French classics - which I'm happy enough to hear once, but not the constant repeats.

On our dog walk this morning OH told me he'd ordered a Blue Tooth speaker for me so I can listen to online programmes and have good quality sound. Bless him! So sorry Radio 4 I think I'll be a much more occasional listener once it arrives. So who is their target audience, I'm still puzzling over this???

Like Lupin, I’ve always loved the soothing quality of the shipping forecast. However, since my son started working on a trawler several years ago, there are a couple of fishing areas that I dread coming round when I know he’s out at sea working in them. I used to be able to find lots of interesting stuff to listen to on R4 and especially R4 Extra (better when it was R7 imo) but now struggle to find anything to download. I thought it was just me. The quality has been diminishing over the last few years, I feel. I listened to the Archers from being tiny, but gave up when the two Grundy bros were fighting over the same woman. It just descended too much into a soap opera for me. Shame.

The factual programmes are great. Enough said.

i have never listened to radio 4 preferring to listen to my local radio station as i like their music.
my ex listened to radio 4 especially in the car - 5 minutes of this was enough to send me to sleep! i often wondered if he did it deliberately!