Off script

There's a tiny piece of Radio 4 that escapes 'listen again' every weekday. When the early newsreader wrests control of the network back from World Service at around 0520, the Great Digital Tape Recorder is off, until after the Shipping Forecast has finished at 0530.

I suspect Susan Rae knows this. A couple of weeks ago, she referred to herself and weather forecaster Helen Willetts as the Cagney and Lacey of early morning radio ("in the fight against crime the female of the species can be as deadly as the male").

This morning Susan's introduction offered "more news than you can shake a stick at", and noted that forecaster Darren Bett had "seaweed".  Let not the crushing boot of compliance stifle this free-thinking; it can only improve audience figures.