The BBC Arts Hour with Mona Arshi / Andrew Garfield
Andrew Garfield talks about how he came to sing in the musical movie Tick Tick Boom. Halle Berry reveals the martial arts training she undertook to play a fighter for her film Bruised. Emily Ratajkowski reflects on whether an actress’s good looks can sometimes get in the way of securing roles.
Director Mike Leigh tells how his art school experience influenced him as a film maker. Actors Liam Murray Scott and Dimetri Goritsas discuss appearing in London’s West End, in the play The Shark Is Broken, about the making of the film Jaws. Nigerian poet, author and academic Timothy Ogene on his satirical novel Seesaw. Poet Mona Arshi talks about writing her debut novel Somebody Loves You.
Writers Amitav Ghosh and Nina Mingya Powles discuss literature concerning climate change.
The BBC Arts Hour with Chibundu Onuzo / Vin Diesel
As always, had a ton of fun being back on the BBC Arts Hour with Nikki and fellow guest Nigerian novelist Chibundu Onuzo. The show airs on Saturday July 10 at 8:06pm local time wherever you are on the BBC World Service (except in Africa) and will be available shortly afterwards through BBC Sounds.
Topics include Action hero Vin Diesel on the ninth film in the Fast and Furious franchise, US National Ambassador for young people’s literature, author Jason Reynolds, on getting boys to read, Director Aleem Khan on his film After Love, about a Muslim convert who discovers her husband had a double life, Actor David Oyelowo on his directorial debut film, The Water Man, Nigerian novelist Chibundu Onuzo talks about her novel Sankofa, which tells the story of a woman who goes in search of the West African father she never knew, Argentinian ballerina Marianela Nunez explains how she keeps the classic roles fresh and Composer and singer Arooj Aftab demonstrates how her Pakistani heritage inspires her music.
The BBC Arts Hour with Angie Thomas
The White Tiger director Ramin Bahrani and two of its stars Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Adarsh Gourav discuss their new movie.
New Zealand actress and comedian Rose Matafeo explains how comedy can get lost in translation. Nadia Nakai, South Africa’s biggest female rapper, talks about her evolving career in music. French actress Camille Cottin, star of the hit comedy show Call My Agent, tells us how close to reality it is. Novelist Monique Roffey explains some Trinidadian vernacular from her 2020 Costa Award-winning novel The Mermaid of Black Conch. And there’s music from Québécois band Le Vent du Nord from this year’s Celtic Connections Festival.
Nikki Bedi’s studio guests this week are British-Lebanese writer and film producer Nasri Atallah, and bestselling American author Angie Thomas joins us down the line from Jackson, Mississippi to discuss Concrete Rose, the prequel to her chart-topping novel The Hate U Give.
(Photo: Angie Thomas. Credit: Valerie Schmidt)
The BBC Arts Hour with Stormzy
Nikki Bedi is joined in the studio by opera star Danielle de Niese who talks about the urbanisation of her latest soprano role in Fiona Shaw’s production of Massanet’s Cendrillon and her wish list of collaborations with hip hop stars. British-Lebanese writer and filmmaker Nasri Atallah joins discussion of highlights from this week’s BBC arts coverage including Stormzy’s headlining set at the Glastonbury Festival. Oscar winning director Danny Boyle and his lead actor Himesh Patel discuss their film Yesterday which creates a world where everyone has forgotten the Beatles’ music except one young singer! Hollywood star Keanu Reeves talks about his role in upcoming computer game Cyberpunk2077, theatre director Emma Rice talks about adapting Enid Blyton’s classic Malory Towers stories for the stage and Homeland actor David Harewood is candid about his experience of revisiting a breakdown he had 30 years ago, for the documentary film, Psychosis and Me.
The BBC Arts Hour with Emilia Clarke
This week on The Arts Hour with Nikki Bedi, British actress Emilia Clarke on her first new role following the massive TV series Game of Thrones, Hollywood actor director Emilio Estevez on movies with a political heart and Turkish novelist Elif Shafak explains how she writes in two languages.
The star of the Disney mega hit Frozen, Idina Menzel, discusses reprising her role as Elsa for Frozen 2, Australian actress Mia Wasikowska talks about her latest film, the dark and creepy fairytale Judy and Punch, and there’s music from Senegalese kora player Diabel Cissokho.
Joining Nikki in the Arts Hour studio are writer Alex Michaelides who has followed his successful screenplays with a best-selling debut novel, The Silent Patient, and author and film maker Nasri Atallah.
The BBC Arts Hour with Steve Carell
In The Arts Hour with Nikki Bedi, a rich festival of film. Hollywood actor Steve Carell talks about his extraordinary role in Welcome to Marwen. The multiple Oscar winning sound editor Walter Murch reminisces about working with Marlon Brando. Moonlight director Barry Jenkins discusses If Beale Street Could Talk, a moving, romantic adaption of James Baldwin’s classic novel. Also on the programme this week Mike Diamond and Adam Horovitz of the Beastie Boys' on their memoir. And joining Nikki in the studio is author Jean McNeil, who’ll will be talking about her Antarctic memoir Ice Diaries, and the British-Lebanese writer and broadcaster Nasri Atallah.
The BBC Arts Hour with Colin Farrell
On The Arts Hour this week with Nikki Bedi, Irish actor Colin Farrell talks about working with Tim Burton on his remake of the Disney classic Dumbo. Director James Cameron on his latest blockbuster Alita: Battle Angel, drawn from the cult manga series. Hindi cinema legend Zeenat Aman talks about her life on screen and playing unconventional women. Malaysian writer Tash Aw on his new novel We The Survivors, which unpicks the rate of change in East Asia, and there’s stirring music from Cameroonian superstar Blick Bassy. Nikki Bedi also talks to the Italian theatre maker Cecilia Gragnani about her play Diary of An Expat and is joined in the studio by British Lebanese writer and filmmaker Nasri Atallah.