Arts and Ideas

Tariq Ali and Daniel Karlin discuss the writer Kipling and authors Val McDermid and Louise Welsh explore the explosion in Scandinavian crime writing with Rana Mitter.

Playwright Mark Ravenhill and actor and writer Simon Callow discuss Faust with Matthew Sweet and Ian Mcmillan is in conversation with the conductor Robert Hollingworth about his favourite works of fiction and poetry.

Kate Mosse and Edmund de Waal discuss great French literary classics with Matthew Sweet, and Peggy Reynolds talks to Rana Mitter about the cello in literature, with musical illustrations.

Arianna Huffington talks about the launch of her online newspaper, the Huffington Post, in the UK. Veteran French filmmaker Bertrand Tavernier discusses his new historical drama set in the 16th century. Terry Charman and Kate Adie look at the Imperial War Museum in its 75th year. And a survey of Hollywood portraiture at the National Portrait Gallery.

Highlights from a Night Waves special as part of the Light Fantastic Festival weekend. Raymond Tallis and Armand Leroi discuss Raymond's new book, Aping Mankind. Paul Cartledge looks at the cultural collateral damage caused by military action against Gadaffi. New Generation Thinker Zoe Norridge on cultural responses to genocide memorial sites in Rwanda.

Nightwaves looks at the subject of internet anonymity, visits a new exhibition of work by Stanley Spencer in Warwickshire, and empire, enlightenment, and emotion – all come together in an eighteenth-century Scottish townhouse in a new book from historian Emma Rothschild

Acclaimed novelists Arundhati Roy and Siddhartha Deb look at India as an emerging superpower. Kevin Macdonald discusses his film made up of footage from ordinary people. American playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney explains why he wrote a play about a PR company. And is Retromania really that new?

Sherry Turkle on how new technology is changing the way we think and form relationships. Candace Allen reviews an exhibition of photographs, postcards and journalism of US lynchings. Director Asif Kapadia discusses his award-winning documentary about the controversial racing driver Ayrton Senna. A discussion about the changing role of Amnesty International.

Anne McElvoy talks to the Egyptian cultural historian Leila Ahmed about her new book which explores the resurgence of the Muslim veil and to three veteran war reporters who feature in a new Imperial War Museum North exhibition about the correspondent's life behind the frontline and the changing nature of war reporting. With Kate Adie, Michael Nicholson and Eric Thirer. As London’s Jewish Museum launches its Entertaining the Nation exhibition, Matthew is joined by actress and comedian Maureen Lipman and historian David Ceserani to reflect on the Jewish contribution to British entertainment and as Bob Dylan turns 70, Anne discovers why his recent work still has meaning from singer Barb Jungr and English academic, Daniel Karlin.

Francis Fukuyama talks about his new book. A discussion about train murders. Susannah Clapp on immersive theatre. And interview with Vidal Sassoon.

An overview of the legacy of Malcolm X, Diana Athill on her short stories, a new film from Chad and a celebration of the work of Chinese artist Ai Wei Wei.

Molly Dineen discusses her first collection of documentaries on DVD. Brian Christian talks about his book, The Most Human Human. A discussion on Bin Laden. Abbas Milani on his biography of the Shah of Iran.

Edward St Aubyn talks about his new book, At Last, the final in the Patrick Melrose series. Anatol Lieven discusses his new book, Pakistan, A Hard Country. Max Clifford is on the panel of guests talking about Super Injunctions and we talk about the world of the Luddite

Matthew Sweet dons his kinky boots to investigate the phenomenon of The Avengers, 50 years after its first transmission.

Michael Sheen talks about his role in the Passion Play in his home town of Port Talbot. Cameron Mackintosh discusses his latest musical, Betty Blue Eyes. Wim Wenders on his filmic ode to Pina Bausch and Matthew Sweet visits the new Turner Contemporary in Margate.