SUNDAY

A History of Religious Affairs through 50 Years of Conversations & Controversies

Written by: Edward Stourton and Amanda Hancox

Published by: SPCK

Price: £29.99

Published to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the flagship Sunday show on BBC Radio 4, this book highlights some of the most significant interviews in the programme’s long history.

Written by its current presenter Stourton and Hancox, an award-winning former executive producer of the ethics and religion department at the BBC World Service, the work has condensed some of the key scripts from the programme and pulled them together under five headings which reflect the changing times over the lifespan of the programme and consider issues from the ordination of women, the changing faces of religion in Britain to the impact of 9/11 on the world. Hancox was granted permission to trawl the BBC archives and research and read scripts from some of the key moments of the programme’s history to help present a fascinating reflection of the change in tone and mood of all matters faith from the late 20th century through the earliest years of the 21st century. Readers can have a permanent record of the words of some of the world’s leading faith figures on a range of influential issues.

The work has garnered praise from many people of faith across a broad spectrum, with perhaps the strongest endorsement from Andrew Copson, CEO of Humanists UK: ‘Not much can get a humanist out of bed on a Sunday morning, but Radio 4’s Sunday programme does the job. In this book, some of the most revealing and compelling of its ever-insightful reports remind us how lucky we are to have it still on air.’

Lynne McNeil