The Arts Hour

BBC World Service
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  • ARTS
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

The best global arts coverage from across the BBC.

Episodes

  1. 2 DAYS AGO

    Oscar nominated cinematographer Adolpho Veloso

    Nikki Bedi is joined by critic Katie Puckrik to discuss cultural highlights of the week: Oscar winning British actor Riz Ahmed on his film adaptation of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, set in London Hollywood star Kristen Stewart on her directorial debut, The Chronology of Water Japanese composer Dai Fujikura talks about turning Hokusai’s famous painting, The Great Wave, into a new opera Author Sadiqa Johnson reveals how the real history of a Black American GI in Germany inspired her latest novel Oscar nominated Brazilian cinematographer Adolpho Veloso, tells Nikki Bedi about his filming techniques for Train Dreams And Kirsty Sinclair Dootson explains her dual fascination with the mid twentieth century explosion in colour film coinciding with social and political changes in India. (Photo: Adolpho Veloso. Credit: Courtesy of Adolpho Veloso)

    49 min

  2. 13 FEB

    Oscar and BAFTA nominated actor Wunmi Mosaku

    Nikki Bedi is joined by American comedian Josh Sharp and critic Rhianna Dhillon to discuss cultural highlights of the week: Oscar and BAFTA nominated Nigerian British actor Wunmi Mosaku on her role as Hoodoo priestess Annie in the film, Sinners American filmmaker Jared Bush on returning to his animated animal kingdom for Zootopia 2 Norwegian novelist Karl Ove Knausgaard on the unsympathetic protagonist of his latest novel, The School of Night Oscar winning American screenwriter Eric Roth talks about his debut play, an adaptation of the 1952 Western, High Noon Comedian Josh Sharp explains the creative process behind his one man stage show, ‘ta-da!’ which blends personal stories from his life with a 2000 slide power point presentation And Iranian filmmaker Sepideh Farsi recounts her experiences of making films in restrictive circumstances (Photo: Wunmi Mosaku attends the 31st annual Critics Choice Awards in Santa Monica, California, U.S., January 4, 2026. Credit: REUTERS/Mike Blake)

    49 min

  3. 6 FEB

    Author Daniyal Mueenuddin

    Nikki Bedi talks to Daniyal Mueenuddin, the Pakistani-American author behind one of the year’s most anticipated novels, This Is Where The Serpent Lives. They discuss how it weaves a panoply of different characters with a kaleidoscopic overview of Pakistan’s social upheaval and rural/urban conflicts following independence. Plus Bidisha joins as this week’s cultural critic, discussing Richard Linklater, French New Wave cinema, Albanian folk music, the films of Iranian auteur Jafar Panahi, the photography of Peter Hujar and one of world’s biggest selling genre’s: “romantasy”. (Photo: Daniyal Mueenuddin. Credit: Chris Blonk)

    49 min

  4. 30 JAN

    Film-maker Akinola Davies Jnr

    Nikki Bedi is joined by film-maker Akinola Davies Jnr and film critic Larushka Ivan Zadeh to discuss cultural highlights of the week: Oscar winning Mexican director Guillermo del Toro on the influence of a religious upbringing on his films American singer and actor Andra Day on her role in the movie Is This Thing On....and the day Stevie Wonder telephoned her German film-maker Werner Herzog on his survival films US director Paul Feig talks about adapting the bestselling book The Housemaid for the big screen British Nigerian writer director Akinola Davies Jnr tells Nikki about the making of his debut feature film, My Father’s Shadow, set on the day of the 1993 Nigerian elections And British actor Claire Foy discusses training with birds of prey for her role in H is for Hawk. (Photo: Godwin Egbo, Chibuike Marvellous Egbo, and Sope Dirisu in My Father's Shadow (2025). Credit: MUBI)

    48 min

  5. 11/07/2025

    Coming soon: The Arts Hour podcast

    Nikki Bedi introduces the Arts Hour podcast. Your weekly cultural companion, featuring guests and opinions on what's happening in art, theatre, film, TV, music and more. Find us at bbc.com or wherever you get your podcasts.

    1 min
  • 5 Episodes

About

The best global arts coverage from across the BBC.

Information

  • Creator
    BBC World Service
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    5
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © (C) BBC 2026
  • Show Website
    The Arts Hour
  • Provider

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