Word of Mouth
Episodes
The Shipping Forecast: Internet Fandom
11 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Gretchen McCulloch, Internet Linguist, author of Because Internet and the host of the Lingthusiasm podcast, talks to Michael Rosen about what it is to...
Speech and Language Therapy
04 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Michael talks to speech and language therapists Fiona Gillies and Tara Millan-Brophy. Fiona has been helping Michael with his rehabilitation post Covi...
Coinages
27 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Michael talks to Ralph Keyes about some of the unusual circumstances in which words and phrases are coinedProducer for BBC Audio in Bristol : Sally He...
Romance Fraud
20 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Dr Elisabeth Carter talks to Michael about the language used by fraudsters who fake romantic relationships online for monetary gain Producer Sally Hea...
Changing Names
13 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and BBC presenter Ben Boulos talk about how we change namesProduced by Sally Heaven for BBC Audio in Bristol
Alphabetical Order
06 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and historian Judith Flanders talk about how we categorise things, using alphabetical order and more.Produced by Sally Heaven for BBC Au...
LGBTQIA+ slang
16 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Chloe Davis, creator of The Queen's English dictionary of LGBTQIA+ slang, talks to Michael about shade, fierce, and the importance of etymology. Produ...
Hilary Mantel in conversation with Michael Rosen
09 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Hilary Mantel, author of the Wolf Hall Trilogy, talks in depth to Michael Rosen about her life in writing and language. Producer Beth O'Dea Also avai...
Bulls and Bears: animal metaphors in business language
02 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen finds out from journalist Dhruti Shah why there are so many terms relating to animals in the business world. From dragon kings to yak sh...
Being a Polyglot
01 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Alex speaks 15 languages fluently. Does he have a special gift or could we all do this? Plus, what does 'to Donald Duck' mean in Hungarian? Producer S...
Adam Bradley: The Poetry of Pop
26 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Literary critic Adam Bradley talks to Michael about pop lyrics, melody and performance, and how they all work together. Producer Sally Heaven.
How to Disagree
12 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and philosopher Darren Chetty explore ways of disagreeing that could help to unite us, and provide a more productive way of communicatin...
Talking Disability
05 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen is back. In the first in a new series, he meets actress and campaigner Samantha Renke and asks her how we talk about disability. Produce...
Protest Slogans
25 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Playwright Sabrina Mahfouz, sitting in for Michael Rosen, talks about the provocative language of protest slogans with artist Zoe Buckman and writer S...
Black masculinity and language
18 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Teacher and writer Jeffrey Boakye, sitting in for Michael Rosen, and poet and writer JJ Bola, look at the construction of black masculinity in contemp...
Talking to Strangers
11 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Do you enjoy having a random chat to a stranger? Professor Tanya Byron sitting in for Michael Rosen explores the benefits and barriers to talking to...
Othering through the centuries: Translation to acronyms
04 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Playwright Sabrina Mahfouz, sitting in for Michael Rosen, talks to producer Tobi Kyeremateng and classicist Professor Katherine Harloe about othering ...
Words Used About Women
28 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Spinster, slut, bird, cat lady, ladette, hussy, bossy, goddess, wife. Guest presenter Nikki Bedi (sitting in for Michael Rosen) talks to Professor Deb...
The language of power and inequality in education and leadership
21 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Teacher and writer Jeffrey Boakye, sitting in for Michael Rosen, talks with charity strategist, writer and educator Iesha Small. They explore the lang...
The Language of the Pandemic
14 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Professor Tanya Byron sitting in for Michael Rosen examines the language of Covid-19 with author Mark Honigsbaum. Since the outbreak of coronavirus we...
The power of telling stories
18 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen talks to storyteller Clare Muireann Murphy about how telling and listening to stories can transport both the teller and their audience i...
Sindhu Vee
11 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Michael talks to comedian Sindhu Vee about her life in language. Why hearing Nepalese, a language she no longer speaks, can make her cry, how she uses...
Real Talk
05 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen talks to conversation analyst Elizabeth Stokoe about the science of talk. Why infinitesimal pauses and saying hello matter, and the choi...
Communicating Climate Change
05 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
From the greenhouse effect, through global warming to climate chaos, Michael Rosen talks to George Marshall about the best ways to communicate what's ...
NHS language use
28 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen talks with Sara Wilcox, NHS content designer, about how they decide which words to use on the NHS website. Consultant Dr Hugh Rayner des...
Lying
21 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright talk to Professor Dawn Archer about her work in evaluating deception: is it possible to tell when someone might be l...
Metaphors
07 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen returns to explore how metaphors shape our lives with author James Geary. We live, breathe and think in metaphors and communication woul...
Anglo Saxon
27 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen explores the origins of English in the Anglo-Saxon world. Ancient riddles, poems and a multi-cultural Britain, in the company of histor...
The Language of Science
20 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen looks at how English is used in Science. From the florid writings of the 17th century to modernist poetry and school experiments. With...
Gabriel Gbadamosi
13 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen meets London-born writer Gabriel Gbadamosi, to talk Dickens and dialect. With historical linguist Laura Wright they look at Gabriel's no...
Philosophy in English
06 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen looks at philosophy in English, from 17th century ideas to modern corporate slogans, via the daffodils of William Wordsworth. With histo...
Vikings
30 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen discovers how the Vikings changed English. These invaders brought with them the words knife, gun, slaughter, ransack and anger. But t...
Glyn Maxwell
23 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen explores the sound and rhythm of English with acclaimed poet Glyn Maxwell. From nursery rhymes and nonsense poetry to Shakespeare and B...
The most powerful word
17 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen explores the strange history of 'The', the most influential word in English. It's used more than twice as much as any other English word...
The First Language
16 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen asks what the earliest language was and how it evolved. Michael joins linguist Dr Laura Wright on a journey to meet our meat-scavengin...
Raymond Antrobus
16 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen meets acclaimed poet Raymond Antrobus. Winner of the 2018 Ted Hughes award for new work in poetry, his collection The Perserverence b...
Romani
14 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Damian Le Bas talks to Michael Rosen about the Romani language and his experience with using it. Damian is the author of The Stopping Places: A Journe...
The Language of Comics
07 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Can a series of images be 'read' like a series of words? What makes something a language? We have written, spoken and signed languages, but could the ...
Jeffrey Boakye on black-related words
30 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Jeffrey Boakye talks to Michael Rosen about exploring black British identity, including his own, through the words used by and about black men and wom...
Biscuit Names
23 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright look into the weird and wonderful world of biscuit names while munching some in the studio with Anastasia Edwards, a...
Listen and learn: how to make better conversation
19 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen talks to Eddy Canfor-Dumas and Peter Osborn about how improving our dialogue is good for everything, from helping excluded children to r...
Dyslexia
12 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen talks in depth about dyslexia: what it is, how to understand it and useful advice for parents and teachers, with expert Professor Maggie...
Talk of the Town: How Places Got Their Names
05 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
From Ashby-de-la-Zouch to Zennor, via Great Snoring, Lost and Nempnett Thrubwell, Michael Rosen is joined by linguists Dr Laura Wright and Professor R...
Solving crime with forensic linguistics
29 Jan 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Dr John Olsson talks to Michael Rosen about how he uses forensic linguistics, specifically authorship analysis, to solve crimes including murder, fals...
Demystifying the language of the courtroom
22 Jan 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Family law barrister and chair of The Transparency Project Lucy Reed talks to Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright about the language of the courtroom an...
How to talk funny with Elis James
15 Jan 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen talks to comedian Elis James about how to make language funny. In Elis' case, this is both the English language and the Welsh language, ...
Raymond Williams' Keywords
23 Oct 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen talks to academic Colin MacCabe and Dr Laura Wright about Raymond Williams' 1976 book Keywords: A Vocabulary of Culture and Society, whi...
Communication and Dementia
16 Oct 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen finds out how best to communicate with people with dementia. Professor Alison Wray shares her new research about the ways in which langu...
T-Shirt Slogans
09 Oct 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen discusses slogan T-shirts with fashion historian Amber Butchart and fashion identity commentator Caryn Franklin. What do the words we we...
Multicultural London English
02 Oct 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright talk about the Multicultural London English (MLE) dialect with Somali born journalist Ismail Einashe. Listen to thi...
Lane Greene on Editing
25 Sep 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Lane Greene talks to Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright about the joys of editing and how it can improve writing. Lane Greene is The Economist's Johnso...
Give 'em an inch... imperial and metric
18 Sep 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Laura Wright talk to maths writer Rob Eastaway about imperial and metric measurements. How and why do they co-exist in the United Ki...
Stephen Fry and Michael Rosen talk language
11 Sep 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Stephen Fry talks to presenter Michael Rosen about their mutual obsession with language: the particular joys they both find in speech and in writing a...
Shop Names
22 May 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Laura Wright look at the history behind and witty wordplay used in shop names, with guest Greg Rowland of The Semiotic Alliance, whi...
How to talk like a Samaritan
15 May 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen talks to Mark Harris and Darran Latham, who volunteer for the Samaritans, about the ways in which talking and listening can best be used...
The Words That Saved Me
08 May 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Laura Wright talk to Sally Bayley, author of Girl With Dove, about how words both mystified and rescued her during a highly unusual ...
Me, Myself & AI
01 May 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Dr. Laura Wright are joined in the studio by a virtual assistant and Tom Hewitson - conversation designer for the likes of Siri, Ale...
Naming Emotions
24 Apr 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen talks to Dr Tiffany Watt Smith about the words we use to try and describe our emotions, and what that can tell us about the way we feel ...
Not My Type
17 Apr 2018
Contributed by Lukas
How do fonts change the meaning of a message? What was Comic Sans invented for? Why was Obama's first election campaign so typographically bold? And w...
Words Apart
10 Apr 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Word of Mouth returns with a special programme in which Michael Rosen and guests Marina Warner and Barry Smith discuss the state of language and publi...
Haggard Hawks
20 Feb 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Why do we 'let the cat out of the bag' or 'go the whole nine yards'? What is a hackle and why might it be raised? What does it mean to 'fribble'? Or t...
Language and Gender Identity
13 Feb 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright are joined by CN Lester, author of 'Trans Like Me: A Journey for All of Us' to talk about language and gender identi...
Naming Diseases
12 Feb 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Laura Wright explore how diseases are named and the political, economic and social impact of disease names past and present. Joining...
Best wishes, kind regards or none of the above?
31 Jan 2018
Contributed by Lukas
We used to sign off letters using "yours faithfully" or "yours sincerely", then email came along and it was all "kind regards" and "best wishes". Now,...
Michael Gets Voice Training
23 Jan 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Vocal coaches Gillyanne Kayes and Jeremy Fisher, authors of This is a Voice, give Michael Rosen a workout. They get him to read against natural pitch ...
Hello! Is it me you're looking for? - The art of greetings
16 Jan 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright are back with a new series of Word of Mouth, and appropriately enough they're starting with Hellos. And greetings. F...
Pub Names
24 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
From The Red Lion to the Bucket of Blood, how did your local get its name? Michael Rosen asks Word of Mouth's resident linguist Dr Laura Wright about ...
Language and Our Genes with Dr Steve Jones
18 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright talk to geneticist Steve Jones about how language is used to talk about genetics, and how genetics influences langua...
Autism and Communication
10 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen finds out what the rest of society can learn about communication from people on the autism spectrum, by getting an insight into a differ...
Wild Words
10 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
The writer Robert Macfarlane (author of Landmarks, The Old Ways, The Wild Places and Mountains of the Mind) believes that the language we use to talk ...
Are we all speaking football?
02 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Lifelong Arsenal supporter Michael Rosen and football-uninterested Dr Laura Wright talk to Adam Hurrey about the language, and in particular, the clic...
Malorie Blackman on Language
19 Sep 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Malorie Blackman, author of Noughts and Crosses, talks in depth to Michael Rosen about language: the writing that has shaped her and how she's used la...
Eat My Words: How to Describe Food Flavours
12 Sep 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Laura Wright ask Great British Menu judge Andi Oliver and author of The Flavour Thesaurus Niki Segnit how they describe the flavours...
David Walliams on writing for children
23 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
David Walliams talks in depth to Michael Rosen about how he writes his children's books like Mr Stink and The Boy In The Dress. His acute awareness of...
Game On: The Language of Video Games
16 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
With 99% of 8-15 year olds playing video games, Michael Rosen & Dr Laura Wright explore how gaming is influencing language and storytelling. From ...
The Postbag Edition
09 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright answer listeners' questions from the Word of Mouth inbox and postbag. They're joined by guests, Katherine Fry and Ro...
Cucks, snowflakes and virtue signalling: the new US political lexicon
02 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright interview the eminent US linguist George Lakoff about the new political words coming out of the US right now, mainly...
Jacqueline Wilson talks to Michael Rosen about language
25 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Writer Jacqueline Wilson talks to Michael Rosen about her love of language and how she came up with the idea of Tracy Beaker. She describes her imagin...
How Countries Got Their Names
18 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright find out how countries - including this one - got their names, and what they mean. Why isn't Greenland green? How is...
Frenchified: The Influence of French on English
11 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen & Dr Laura Wright find out how much of our language comes from French roots, from Anglo-Norman onwards. A Sunday lunch menu from The...
Like, Totally Awesome: The Americanisation of English
28 Feb 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen is joined by writer Matthew Engel and linguist Dr Lynne Murphy to discuss the Americanisation of English. Is the pace of Americanisation...
Emoji: The Future of Language?
21 Feb 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Is emoji really the world's fastest growing language? (And can it really be said to be a language at all?) Who gets to decide which pictograms get add...
Intonation: The Music of Speaking
14 Feb 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Laura Wright explore the tunes we sing when we are speaking - without even realising it. Sound artist John Wynne extracts the melodi...
Pet or Pest? The revealing words we use about animals, and dog names
07 Feb 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Laura Wright on the language we use to talk about animals - and the names we give our dogs. Do the words used show changing attitude...
Words Roadshow in Birmingham
31 Jan 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and linguist Esther Asprey answer questions about interesting local and family words from listeners at a Words Roadshow at the Birmingha...
Susie Dent on Language
18 Oct 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Laura Wright talk to Susie Dent, lexicographer and word lover known for her expert contribution to Countdown and 8 Out of 10 Cats Do...
Reading: The Science and the Pleasure
11 Oct 2016
Contributed by Lukas
As part of the BBC LovetoRead campaign, Michael Rosen talks about his first experience in reading, with Dr Laura Wright, and how and what he reads now...
Snotrils and Jumpolines: Kids' Invented Words
04 Oct 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright explore the words that children invent and reimagine, from snotrils and jumpolines, to Farmer Christmas and the hipp...
Small Talk
27 Sep 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Pointless chit chat or vital social lubricant? Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright talk small talk with psychotherapist and writer Philippa Perry, autho...
Directions: North South East and West
20 Sep 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen & Laura Wright discover how different ways of talking about directions in other languages show differences in ways of thinking. Prof...
Lost Words and Secret Connections
13 Sep 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Have you ever wondered why there's no word for that universal affliction of early morning worry & wakefulness? Or how to describe the act of eking...
Break Ups and Brexit
06 Sep 2016
Contributed by Lukas
How do you find the right words to make- or break- a personal relationship? Or to leave a political union, for that matter? To consider the clichés a...
Punctuation
24 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen talks to Keith Houston about punctuation symbols and how they came to exist. Keith is the author of Shady Characters: Ampersands, Interr...
Andrew Graham-Dixon on the naming of art movements
17 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and art critic Andrew Graham-Dixon take a tour through the naming of art movements. Surrealism, Impressionism, the Renaissance, the Pre-...
Snuck and Sung: Irregular Verbs
10 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright explore irregular verbs with Dr Marcelle Cole, and a contribution from Steven Pinker. What are they, where did they ...
Roald Dahl's Language
03 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen on a new Roald Dahl dictionary collecting the amazing words he invented - like squackling, and wondercrump! With Dr Laura Wright and dic...
PR - How Not To Do It
26 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright talk PR with Public Relations practitioner Hamish Thompson. He's collated examples of the words and phrases used in ...
Metaphors for the Past: From Dinosaurs to Victorian Values
19 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen and Dr. Laura Wright talk to Dr Ross Wilson about how we talk about historical eras in order to define the way we live now, and how we'v...
House Names
12 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Rosen talks to Dr Laura Wright about her new research on popular house names, from Foo Choo Villas to Nutty Hagg to Orchard Cottage, and what ...
Steven Pinker on Language
05 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Professor Steven Pinker joins Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright in the studio for a wide-ranging talk about his love of, and life working in, language...