Ted Hughes on Fishing and Thinking

This week Jarvis rowed in the Great River Race. On This Day, the UK agreed to hand over Hong Kong, nuclear war was narrowly avoided, tomatoes were shown not to be toxic and Francis Drake finished circumnavigating the globe. Jarvis apologises for his crackling records: "It's like a giant having a bowl of Rice Krispies in the background." Tony Blair talks about religion with Philip Dodd. A talk by Ted Hughes compares effective thinking to fishing. Lastly, an archive news report about Concorde and what its passengers ate for dinner. Birthdays: Anne Robinson, Johnny Appleseed, Anthony Blunt, Ricky Tomlinson (on falling in love with the banjo), Lynn Anderson, Andrea Dworkin (lecturing on race and pornography), Bryan Ferry, Winnie Mandela, Serena Williams, TS Eliot (we hear music based on his poetry and he reads The Dry Salvages) and Barnes Wallis. Valete: Levi Strauss and Bessie Smith.

Birthday Megamix

Whalesong greets us, because Jarvis has been whalewatching off the coast of Ireland with Marc Riley and Richard Hawley. Today is Talk Like a Pirate Day and Jarvis's birthday. He plays a birthday megamix, including poems by Sir John Betjeman and Dylan Thomas, Bernard Herrmann's score for Taxi Driver featuring the voice of Robert De Niro, Van Morrison's Coney Island and dialogue from the TV series Kung Fu. We hear the BBC Seasons Autumn track. Jarvis asks for songs that might encourage birth and thanks everyone for the good wishes and his caterpillar cake. Birthdays: Brian Epstein (describing how he dressed The Beatles), Lol Creme, Ferry Porsche, Twiggy, William Golding, Frances Farmer, Brook Benton, Bill Medley, Mama Cass, Freda Payne, Daniel Lanois, David Seaman, Jimmy Fallon, Patrick Marber, Eamon, Nile Rodgers and Adam West (discussing Batman's innocence).

Nick Cave

On This Day, Henry Hudson began exploring the Hudson River; Elizabeth Barrett eloped with Robert Browning; Switzerland became a federal state; Mahler's 8th Symphony premiered; the Lascaux cave paintings were found; the first integrated circuit was demonstrated; Steve Biko died in police custody; an aeroplane landed on the White House lawn - and Jarvis is recovering from the End of the Road festival. Nick Cave explains how he improvises lyrics; how working with a set of trusted musicians frees him to be creative; and how satisfying it can be to get certain words into songs. Then he discusses his attitude towards God and organised religion. And we hear an excerpt from his 1996 radio essay The Flesh Made Word. Birthdays: Louis MacNeice (Jarvis reads from Autumn Journal), Barry White, Richard Gatling, Maria Muldaur, George Jones (who'd do anything for a drink) and Maurice Chevalier. Valete: Johnny Cash and Anthony Perkins.

The Voyager Golden Record

On This Day, the Great Fire of London ended, Peter the Great announced a tax on beards and the first Opium War began. The Voyager 1 space probe was launched with a gold phonograph record onboard. Scientist Carl Sagan talks about NASA's intergalactic message in a bottle, its playlist, purpose and intended audience. Jarvis also mentions an artistic clubnight he attended and rants about Boris bikes. As the schools are about to go back, we hear from teacher Jamie Kelsey-Fry about an innovative GCSE Citizenship textbook he's written to inspire kids to get politically active. Birthdays: Chris Morris, Jack Daniel (?), Raquel Welch, John Cage (who has a Zen approach to Q&A sessions), Loudon Wainwright III, Al Stewart, Jesse James, Arthur Koestler (discussing science fiction), Werner Herzog and George Lazenby. Valete: Douglas Bader (he enthuses about aircraft engines).