Next Thursday June 29th 2017 the creator of Doctor Who, Sydney Newman is showcased in a BBC Radio 3 programme entitled “Free Thinking” which airs at 22.00 (BST)

Matthew Sweet looks at the Canadian influence on British TV in the early 1960s, when he’s joined by Sydney Newman biographer, Ryan Danes, and Graeme Burk who has contributed to the publication of Newman’s memoirs. Newman was instrumental in setting up Armchair Theatre, The Avengers and Doctor Who and The Wednesday Play at a time when broadcasting around the world was in an excitingly fluid state.

The British-Trinidadian poet Vahni Capildeo talks about her Forward Prize winning collection Measures of Expatriation and about the inaugural Ledbury Forte Poetry Prize for Second Collections to be announced at the this year’s Ledbury Poetry Festival.

Presenter: Matthew Sweet
Guests:
Graeme Burk ‘Head of Drama: The Memoir of Sydney Newman’ by Sydney Newman (Author), Ted Kotcheff (Foreword, Contributor), Graeme Burk (Contributor) out in September
Ryan Danes ‘The Man Who Thought Outside the Box: The Life and Times of Doctor Who Creator Sydney Newman’ out now
Vahni Capildeo ‘Measure of Expatriation’ out now. The Ledbury Poetry Festival runs from 30th June to 9th July 2017

Profile of Sydney Newman is Part of Canada 150: a week of programmes marking the 150th anniversary of the founding of the nation. You can find concerts and other broadcasts on the Radio 3 website.

You can find more links to discussions about TV history focusing on Dr Who, The Avengers and an interview with Tony Garnett on the Free Thinking website. They are all available to download as Arts and Ideas podcasts.

Producer: Jaqueline Smith.