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Gemma Atkinson and Pedram Shojai

Gemma Atkinson fills us in on Strictly Come Dancing in Blackpool and we learn about the art of stopping time from former monk Pedram Shojai.

Gemma Atkinson fills us in on all the action from Strictly Come Dancing in Blackpool and how she felt stepping out to perform the American Smooth with Alijaz in the iconic ballroom. We get top tips for making the most of your heartbeats from former monk Pedram Shojai who has written a book on The Art of Stopping Time. It's International Radio 2 Calling on a Monday, with you telling us where you are listening around the world from Australia to Sweden! Rugby commentator Chris Jones reflects on the weekend's matches with Vassos in The Sport Locker. There's a 1960's Californian Top Tenuous inspired by Pedram, plus writer and Vicar Dave Tomlinson provides the daily Pause For Thought.

2 hours, 59 minutes

Last on

Mon 20 Nov 2017 06:30
大象传媒 Radio 2

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Clips

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Music Played

  • Simply Red

    Fairground

    • Simply Red Greatest Hits.
    • East West Records.

  • Pete Tong & Heritage Orchestra

    Sing It Back (feat. Becky Hill)

  • Annie Lennox & Al Green

    Put a Little Love in Your Heart

    • Scrooged O.S.T. (Various Artists).
    • A&M.

  • Frankie Valli

    Grease

    • Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons - Ve.
    • Polygram Tv.
    • 18.

  • Blossoms

    Charlemagne

    • (CD Single).
    • Virgin EMI.

  • Cyndi Lauper

    Girls Just Want To Have Fun

    • Fantastic 80's Disc 1 (Various Artis.
    • Columbia.

  • Leading Ladies

    One Night Only

    • Songs From The Stage.
    • EastWest.

  • Michael Jackson

    P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)

    • Thriller.
    • Epic.
    • 6.

  • Dickie Valentine

    Christmas Alphabet

    • It's Christmas.
    • Not Now Music.
    • 8.

  • P!nk

    Beautiful Trauma

    • (CD Single).
    • RCA.

  • Coldplay

    Hymn For The Weekend (feat. 叠别测辞苍肠茅)

    • A Head Full Of Dreams.
    • Parlophone.

  • Rita Ora

    Your Song

    • (CD Single).
    • Atlantic.

  • Jamiroquai

    Canned Heat

    • (CD Single).
    • Sony.

  • Harry Belafonte

    Jump In The Line

    • The Best Of.
    • Camden.
    • 16.

  • Tears for Fears

    I Love You But I'm Lost

    • Rule The World: The Greatest Hits.
    • Virgin EMI Records.

  • Petula Clark

    Downtown

    • The Ivor Novello Winners.
    • EMI.

  • The Kinks

    All Day And All Of The Night

    • The Journey - Part 1.
    • BMG.
    • 23.

  • Johnny Johnson & Bandwagon

    Breakin' Down The Walls Of Heartache

    • The Best Northern Soul All-Nighter (V.
    • BMG.

  • Toploader

    Time Of My Life

    • (CD Single).
    • Sony.

  • Plan B

    Heartbeat

    • (CD Single).
    • Atlantic.

  • ABC

    The Flames Of Desire

    • (CD Single).
    • EMI.
    • 001.

  • Mink DeVille

    Spanish Stroll

    • The Greatest Hits Of 1977 (Various).
    • Premier.

  • Gibson Brothers

    Cuba

    • Disco & Dance Party Hits (Various Artists).
    • BMG.

  • Stormzy

    Blinded By Your Grace, Pt. 2 (feat. MNEK)

    • Gang Sings & Prayer.
    • Merky Records.

  • Elvis Presley

    Return To Sender

    • Presley - The All Time Greatest Hits.
    • RCA.

  • Chuck Berry

    Johnny B. Goode

    • That's Rock'n'Roll (Various Artists).
    • EMI.

Pause for Thought

Pause for Thought

From Dave Tomlinson,聽writer and Vicar of St Luke鈥檚 Holloway in London:

聽Last week, I spent several days in Yorkshire leading a retreat which I entitled, 鈥業 Believe in Poetry, Art and Rock 鈥榥鈥� Roll 鈥� did God write any good tunes lately?鈥�

聽Retreats tend to have an image of being rather earnest and abstemious 鈥� good for the soul, maybe, but not exactly a barrel of laughs. Levity and irreverence were basic requirements at ours! We stared at beautiful paintings by the likes of Van Gogh, watched films, read poignant and amusing poems and looked at music videos by artists from Nick Cave to Moby, from Adele to Jay-Z 鈥� all in the magnificent setting of Upper Wharfedale.

Despite being a vicar, some of my best encounters with God have not been in churches or in religious activities but in art galleries, theatres, cinemas, concerts, and poetry books.

聽One of my greatest spiritual experiences was at a Moby concert in Camden. I go to a lot of gigs. But that night, Moby鈥檚 music and the crowd鈥檚 engagement and delight with it transported me. I felt a magical oneness with the music and with 2000 people in a 鈥榗athedral鈥� of sound and spirit. I鈥檓 quite sure we all left with smiling souls.

聽The word 鈥楪od鈥� is problematic. For some people, it鈥檚 cliche虂d and meaningless; for others, dangerous, toxic even. But 鈥楪od鈥� is just a way of pointing to a mystery we are all familiar with 鈥� the sense that there is something beyond the world of outward objects, of mundane reality. It doesn鈥檛 matter what we call this, but once we pause to notice it, to sense the wonder of things 鈥� the undeserved smile of a child, a glass of wine with friends, a good belly laugh, a warm hug, the sound of a blackbird singing at dusk 鈥� then we feel more fully alive.

聽We don鈥檛 need to be religious. 鈥楨arth鈥檚 crammed with heaven鈥�, the poet says. God is writing good tunes all the time, everywhere. Whether in city or countryside, in art, music or science, in love, pain, laughter and tears, our lives are framed with mystery. The important thing, I keep telling myself, is to live each moment, to give my life the attention it deserves, to look and listen, and relish every breath.... even on Mondays!

Broadcast

  • Mon 20 Nov 2017 06:30
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