Main content

Love, Laughter and Literature

The Syrian radio station making a joke of jihadis; a zoo in Northern Nigeria is a hotspot for lovers; the classic literary types of today's Russia and Japan's lonely young people

Pascale Harter introduces stories of rebels, jokers, lovers and conformists from around the world.

Would you dare to make a joke of jihad ... to a jihadi militia in control of your town? Mike Thomson recently spoke to a radio station boss from Idlib province, Syria, who's had to walk a fine line when trying to keep his programmes on air amid a civil war and diktats from Islamist rebel groups.

In Northern Nigeria, in a region buffeted by lethal attacks committed by the Boko Haram rebel group, Katerina Vittozzi finds that the hottest place in town for a romantic date in Maiduguri is now ... the zoo.

Jamie Coomarasamy is a lover of Russia and Russian literature - and on a recent visit back, he was struck by the way some archetypal Russian characters are still roaming the land despite decades of revolutionary change.

And Lucy Daltroff takes to the rail network in Japan - only to end up learning a great deal about why the country's population is shrinking, its families changing, and its young people less and less keen on coupledom and parenthood.

Photo: Syrian rebel fighters demonstrate fighting capabilities during a graduation ceremony in the northern Syrian city of Idlib on October 27, 2016. (OMAR HAJ KADOUR/AFP/Getty Images)

Available now

23 minutes

Last on

Sun 12 Feb 2017 22:06GMT

Broadcasts

  • Sun 12 Feb 2017 02:06GMT
  • Sun 12 Feb 2017 09:06GMT
  • Sun 12 Feb 2017 10:06GMT
  • Sun 12 Feb 2017 22:06GMT