You're about to listen to a BBC podcast, but this is about something else you might enjoy.

My name's Katie Lecky and I'm an assistant commissioner for on demand music on BBC Sounds.

The BBC has an incredible musical heritage and culture and as a music lover, I love being part of that.

With music on sounds, we offer collections and mixes for everything, from workouts to

helping you nod off, boogie in your kitchen, or even just a moment of calm. And they're all

put together by people who know their stuff. So if you want some expertly curated music in your life,

check out BBC Sounds. This is a download from the BBC. To find out more, visit BBC.com.ukuk slash radio four.

Hello, with the eyes of the world on London, from the Queen's recent Diamond Jubilee to the

approaching Olympics, we felt it was the perfect time to explore the capital's rich and varied literary history,

and the role London has played in inspiring so many great writers across the centuries.

It's the starting point of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales,

the heart of many of Dickens' evocative novels.

Martin Amos trawled the streets in London fields,

and more recently it's been the setting for John

Lancaster's capital. In his book, London The Biography, author Peter Akroyd described the city as

going beyond any boundary or convention. It contains every wish or word ever spoken, every action

or gesture ever made, every harsh or noble statement ever

expressed. In other words, fecund territory for a novelist. We're here in a room for London, an

amazing boat that's been erected on the top of the Queen Elizabeth Hall on the South Bank. Out

of its immense windows, the city spreads before me old and new, from the seat of power, the Palace of Westminster, with Big Ben keeping time alongside, to the London eye spinning imperceptibly to my left.

Covent Garden and the heart of theatre land lie across the river, while to my right the shard and the gherkin pierced the sky, icons of the modern city.

And of course, running below me,'s timeless archery, the Thames,

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