Radio column: Ships in the night are sleeper hits

If, like me, you have trouble sleeping; if at night your brain starts fidgeting in your skull like a recalcitrant toddler, pin-balling from one deranged thought to the next without a care for the exhausted body that houses it, then the radio is probably your best friend.
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Book review: Autobiography, By Mary Quant

Don't believe the old saw "If you can remember the Sixties, you weren't there". Mary Quant remembers everything and she was the Sixties, having single-handedly created the look – the miniskirts, the hotpants, the PVC macs, the skinny-ribbed sweaters – that defined Swinging London.
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Radio column: By royal appointment

The Art of Monarchy on Radio 4 began with a small black-and-white photograph. In it was a two-year-old girl standing in front of a large ivy-smothered house and staring daggers at the camera.
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Obituary: Whitney Houston

Whitney Houston, who has died at the age of 48, was a dazzling performer who blazed a trail for a new generation of black female singers, from Beyoncé Knowles to Mary J Blige. In her Eighties heyday, Houston became the queen of the power ballad and single-handedly invented the concept of the pop diva. Even the sappy production and anodyne lyrics of her biggest singles couldn't dent her reputation as an artist of unrivalled vocal talent.
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Stay The Night: Castaway Cottage, Whitstable

Fiona Sturges stayed at a stylish former fisherman's cottage and made sure the well-equipped kitchen enjoyed a good rest as well. Read more...

Papa don't preach: Older women still rock

Madonna's Super Bowl show has drawn criticism for nothing other than the material girl's age. Fiona Sturges is indignant
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Radio column: No domestic bliss from the suburban sitcoms

What pops into your head when you think of sitcoms? Middle-class households filled with Ikea furniture? Acne-dappled teenagers slumped on sofas delivering withering put-downs to their parents? Neighbours with personality disorders who don't knock before coming into the house? Scripts so rotten that their terrible stench lingers in the memory for years to come?
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Radio column: Balding's golden moments

I've never liked sport. As a person whose job basically involves listening to stuff, and whose spine has become embedded in the sofa like an ancient fossil, the last thing I want to do is have my nose rubbed in other people's physical accomplishments.
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Do The Doors still light your fire?

Few bands divide opinion like Jim Morrison's seminal Sixties outfit. As a commemorative DVD and album are released, two of our music critics offer opposing views.
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Radio column: The delights of a shore-fire success

How has Desert Island Discs done it? How has it survived decades of culls and re-branding to become a broadcasting institution, seemingly impervious to change and yet still crushing the competition with ease?
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Lana Del Rey: A beguiling beauty who's more than a one-hit wonder

Since the singer's Video Games became a YouTube hit, her backstory has been the target of endless sniping. Just enjoy the mesmerising music, says Fiona Sturges
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Radio column: I'm sorry, but the celebrity satirists haven't got a clue

Radio 2's Hot Gossip is a panel show hosted by Claudia Winkleman about celebrity tittle-tattle, but not in the shameless we-don't-care-if-you-think-we're-shallow sense. It is, in fact, propelled by shame.
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Radio column: The voice of the people - Derbyshire vs Vine

Victoria Derbyshire or Jeremy Vine? It's a bit like asking whether you're a cat or a dog person. If you are disposed to radio phone-in shows then chances are you have a preference.
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Book review: The Last Holiday: A Memoir, By Gil Scott-Heron

In the latter half of his life, Gil Scott-Heron was in bad shape. This once prolific, articulate and highly politicised writer and musician, best known for "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised", had entered a creative cul-de-sac.
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Radio column: The stylus gurus spinning a good yarn

Being a radio DJ is a cinch nowadays. Where once upon a time a DJ had to haul crates of records into work, now they can simply take in their iPod, set it to shuffle and then lie down for an executive nap.
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