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File on 4 Investigates

File on 4 Investigates

BBC Radio 4 500 episodes Latest Jun 9, 2026

A documentary series that investigates stories at home and abroad, producing original journalism. Each episode uncovers new information and provides in-depth reporting on a range of topics.

Episodes

Tricked into pregnancy? The Liv Nervo story Jun 9, 2026 2266 Liv Nervo is one of the world’s most successful female DJs, who along with her twin sister, make up NERVO. She was starting a family with a man she believed was the love of her life - but at six months pregnant, she discovered he had been living a double life. She says she entered the relationship under false pretences and wouldn't have consented to sex had she known the truth about his other rela
Hair Strand Tests in the Family Court May 26, 2026 2227 Hair Strand Tests can show if parents have been using drink or drugs. Such tests play can a central part in Family Court hearings every year as judges decide whether children should go into care or not. Some barristers have been raising the alarm over the way the tests are presented and interpreted in the Famly Court. And, for the first time, File on 4 Investigates talks to mothers who nearly los
Adding Up: How Councils meet the costs of Special Educational Needs May 19, 2026 2247 As the government plans major reform of the England's Special Educational Needs system, File on 4 Investigates goes back to the floor, spending time with councils as funding decisions are made and with families trying to navigate a system in flux. From home-schoolers in Whitley Bay to getting on board a school bus in Hackney, we'll hear about the challenges of delivering services to tens of thousa
Locked and Downloaded: The rise in 3D printed guns May 12, 2026 2280 Police have dealt with scores of cases involving home-made 3D printed guns in the UK in the last three years. Data obtained by File on 4 Investigates from the National Crime Agency shows that criminals and extremists have attempted to manufacture the weapons. We hear from police who successfully prosecuted a group who had manufactured printed firearms to sell on to criminal gangs. As Adrian Goldbe
Duped in Dubai May 5, 2026 2339 Finance professionals who paid thousands for training courses in Dubai seemingly endorsed by a government official say they were duped by the British businessman behind them. Participants in the 12-week “accelerator” programmes say they provided little in the way of useful training, while the millions in potential investment offers promised to graduates never materialised. File on 4 Investigates a
Searching for Soldier Dad Apr 28, 2026 2244 DNA detectives track down the British soldiers who fathered children in Kenya then disappeared, leaving the children and their mothers without support. With exclusive access to every stage of this cutting-edge process, we follow as a team of lawyers and a leading geneticist travel to Kenya. We witness the groundbreaking legal and scientific detective work used to find the missing military dads.
The Experiments Apr 20, 2026 2199 Jack Butcher investigates allegations that children in West German welfare institutions were subjected to widespread medical abuse, including medical experiments.During the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, many children found themselves in West Germany's sprawling network of children's institutions. In recent years, Germany has been shocked by revelations that some were used as guinea pigs for powerful new
Are white working class girls falling behind? Apr 14, 2026 2231 White disadvantaged girls are being overlooked, school leaders are warning. Whilst white working-class boys remain one of the worst performing group in their GCSEs, white girls from low income homes aren’t much further behind them. File on 4 Investigates has worked with the BBC Data team to compare 2025's GCSE results in England with those of 2019. The team found that white working class girls in
Sunshine and Secrets: The hidden side of IVF Mar 31, 2026 2236 What happens when the sperm or egg donor you choose isn’t the one you get? Northern Cyprus is a sun-soaked haven for affordable IVF. But behind the glossy clinic websites, parents are discovering their chosen sperm or egg donors might not have been used. For File on 4 Investigates Anna Collinson follows parents searching for answers and children wondering where they have come from. File on 4 Inves
The battle for hearts and lungs: Transplants in trouble. Mar 24, 2026 2258 The UK was once a world leader in heart and lung transplantation. Pioneering surgeons attracted patients from all over the world. But the NHS has not kept pace with medical and technological developments and today the UK lags far behind most similar countries. It carries out fewer transplants and a lack of resources mean it doesn’t routinely use modern technologies. Many of the health service’s
Fight on the Right: The MAGA Civil War Mar 10, 2026 2295 President Donald Trump won multiple elections thanks to support from the Maga movement - but cracks have begun to emerge in the broad coalition of America's political right. The schism first emerged online as Maga supporters-turned-detractors began to criticise President Trump, saying he has failed to deliver on campaign promises they voted for. Maga congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene - once one
Bogus self-employment - who pays the price? Mar 3, 2026 2247 As the government’s flagship Employment Rights Act (2025) comes into force, File on 4 Investigates a loophole worrying experts: bogus self-employment. We discover hundreds of workers on government contracts are said to be wrongly classified as self-employed. This we are told is the tip of the iceberg as more employers increasingly choose to put workers on self-employed contracts rather than employ

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