Front Row - 01/12/2009

Arts news and reviews with John Wilson. In a new exhibition, Earth: Art of a Changing World at the Royal Academy in London, 35 leading international artists have created artworks that respond to the theme of climate change. Among the artists featured are Mona Hatoum, Tracey Emin, Antony Gormley and Tacita Dean. Writer Iain Sinclair considers whether art has a place in the climate change debate. It is ten years since the Royal Opera House re-opened after a major refurbishment, a period considered by many to have been a critical success. Conductor and pianist Antonio Pappano looks back on a decade as the ROH's Director of Music. Mercury-nominated singer Florence and the Machine is in the charts with her cover of Candi Staton's song You've Got the Love. Florence Welch looks back on a year in which she's gathered a substantial number of awards and plaudits, including the Critics' Choice at the 2009 Brits. Sara Maitland is the third of Front Row's five interviews with authors shortlisted for the 2009 BBC National Short Story Award. The stories can be heard every day this week on Radio 4, with Sara Maitland's story Moss Witch being broadcast tomorrow.