Radio highlights

Issue 

The Songs and Stories of Australia: When the Poppy Blooms — Sonia Bennett and Australia's Poet Lorikeet Denis Kevans sing Australian songs from the World War I period. ABC FM Stereo, Fri Oct 2, 11.30 a.m.

Living for the City: Hubcaps and Hazy Days — Freeways, freeways, freeways ... If only we could see them through the pollution! Every Australian city is dominated by the car, so is there hope for our smog-choked suburbs? Yes! This program promises to provide real examples of cities that have reversed the freeway trends and are widening footpaths instead of roads. Triple J FM, Sun Oct 4, 6 p.m. (repeated Wed Oct 7, 9 p.m.).

Columbus: A Composition for Radio in Three Movements — The impact on South America of the arrival of Columbus is re-enacted. Material is drawn from the diaries of Columbus and de la Casas, the Mayan "Bible" Popol Vuh and Bird of Life, Bird of Death, in which Jonathon Evan Maslow observes the intrusion of civilisation into the native habitat of the quezal bird, whose red breast represents the death of the Mayans at the hands of the Spanish. ABC Radio National, Sun Oct 4, 8.15 p.m.

Come up to the Lab: Reconstructing Frankenstein — A radio phantasmagoria that observes the cultural, political and personal origins of Mary Shelley's novel, Frankenstein. ABC Radio National, Sun Oct 4, 10.10 p.m.

In the Mix: Reimagining the Americas — Mexican-born performance artist Guillermo Gomez-Pena explores the many possible readings of the Columbus legacy while Venezuelan cultural commentator Celeste Olalquiaga discusses the "Latinisation" of the US from her vantage spot in New York. ABC Radio National, Mon Oct 5, 10.05 a.m.

Out on Wednesday: Ralph McTell and Eric Bogle live — Two of the finest and most influential folk singers, who are not afraid to sing about political issues. ABC FM Stereo, Wed Oct 7, 8 p.m.

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