Radio choice

MONSIGNOR QUIXOTE Mon 11.30am-12noon R4

Graham Greene's picaresque novel relates the adventures of a Spanish village priest who, accompanied by his "Sancho Panza", the Communist ex- mayor, sets out to do battle with 20th-century Spain. In this four-part adaptation, Bernard Cribbins stars as the wide-eyed innocent. The theme music is by the flamenco guitarist Paco Pena.

LONG LIVE THE DEAD PARROT Tues 11.30am-12noon R4 Nothing dates a person more precisely than being able to recite sketches from Monty Python, that idiosyncratic force in British comedy which emerged on BBC TV 30 years ago. This is the definitive account of Python's birth, as told by John Cleese, Terry Jones and Michael Palin. Just remember this: no one expects the Spanish Inquisition.

DO ELEPHANTS WEEP? Wed 9-9.30pm R4 And do fish feel happy? Apparently they do. Darwin was one of the first scientists to explore animal emotions, and famously wrote about an elephant's propensity to "cry". Here Prof Chris McManus challenges our preconceptions about lower forms of life. He also broadens the issue to question the rightness of farming or experimenting upon any sentient creature.

DEAR GERALD Thurs 2.15-3pm R4 A play based on the letters sent home to London by a 12-year-old boy after his evacuation to Johannesburg in 1940. While his parents endured rations and the Blitz, Gerald spent five years in the lap of luxury, being taken on safari, learning to ride, play tennis and make ice-cream. It's the detail in the letters, and their completeness (not one was lost) that make his account fascinating.

AFTERNOON PLAY: RITES OF PASSAGE Fri 2.15-3pm R4 A black comedy, written by Nick Burbridge, about a teenager who goes into the local Ear, Nose and Throat hospital to have an operation. On the ward are three older men due for the same operation and, over the next few days, their personalities entwine through a mingling of conversation with each other and their experiences under anaesthetic. With Gerard Horan and Robert Glennister.