You are seeing the choir of the Chapel Royal, Hampton Court Palace, at home.
Some years ago I went there with a friend to Matins because a friend of his was officiating. After the service my friend furtively returned his friend’s pyjamas. Very Church of England but actually the jim-jams had been left in a spare bedroom. But I digress.
Yesterday afternoon I listened to Choral Evensong from Hampton Court. On Saturday evenings or on catch up, I listen to opera; sometimes Sound of Cinema. The films of Clint Eastwood was on recently and I’m about to listen as we have just watched The Eiger Sanction (1975) on BBC Films.
Best of all is Private Passions. Michael Berkeley is possibly the last gentleman interviewer on radio or TV since Roy Plomley, 1914-1985. (Mr Plomley OBE invented and presented Desert Island Discs. It ran for 43 years and there are 1,791 editions.) Yesterday Lord Berkeley was in conversation with Hayley Mills. She chose beautiful music; Michael (if I may) asked his questions with exceptional sensitivity and even turned to a piano to remind her of Malcolm Arnold’s score for Whistle Down the Wind. All of this, so far, is broadcast on BBC Radio 3.
So different to the adversarial interviews on Today but presenter, Nick Robinson, has redeemed himself in thirty minute interviews on Saturday evenings on Radio 4: Political Thinking. This week he was talking with Chris Bryant MP who revealed a breadth I’d never imagined. These longish interviews give a valuable insight. Only a non-commercial radio station can deliver quality programmes like these, so, for all its faults, I say BBC – bravo.