Dr Jonathan Miller's series on The Nation's Health (9am, Radio 4) suggests that the seeds of the National Health Service were sown at the battle of Trafalgar. In the first of his six historical studies, it's made clear that humanity played little part in governmental concern for national wellbeing. With a complement of 1,000 on a vessel like Nelson's Victory, naval surgeons soon became horribly aware how few sailors were fit for service. Later, as the army fanned out to build the empire, the need for well-nourished recruits who had grown up in decent housing became economically vital.
Mike Thomson delves into the curious background of America's national anthem for Document (8pm, Radio 4). In 1814, Francis Scott Key, an American lawyer, had just secured a kidnapped Maryland doctor's release from British forces when he witnessed the Royal Navy's bombardment of Fort McHenry. The fort survived the gunfire and defiantly raised a huge American flag, prompting Key to write his famous lines about the rocket's red glare and all that. Someone later realised the verses would fit to the tune of an English boozing song, which may explain why it took 117 years for Congress to adopt them.
On a trip through North Carolina for Costing the Earth (9pm, Radio 4), Tom Feilden detects the first stirrings of a domestic backlash against President Bush's environmental policies. He hears of increasing concerns among local people about the steady depletion of their region's trees and fish.
