The Verb

Ian McMillan presents Radio 3's cabaret of the spoken word and new writing. On this week's programme: Pass the Frank... The Verb's Language Spy Alex Horne investigates the words we use for the TV remote control, from the Frank Zappa to the Dooffer to the Rees-Mogg. Saudade As a new collection of poetic responses to the Portuguese song form Fado is published, poets Carol Rumens and Fiona Sampson read their translations of classic lyrics, and reflect on the true meaning of the term Saudade - a kind of yearning that only Fado can express. Saudade: An Anthology of Fado Poetry is out now from the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. Lionel Shriver The Orange Prize winning novelist, author of the bestselling We Need To Talk About Kevin and now So Much For That, reads an extract from a new work in progress: Vermin. A couple's pleasure in their new home turns sour when they try to evict a nest of racoons living close by.