Welcome to another scintillating edition of the Classic Newsnight podcast. All right then, let's cut the hyperbole and tell you what's in it. The fifth Mostly Mozart Festival has just got underway at the Barbican in London, and Bob Jones has been investigating a project in which Mozart's music is used as the starting point for improvisation. We have our regular weekly check-up with the Classic FM doctor, Rob Hicks; and we meet the Welsh soprano, Elin Manahan Thomas, whose debut CD has just hit the shops. And speaking of Wales, one of Chris Powling's book choices this week involves a Welsh author he tells me writes like a dream. So stop dreaming and start clicking!

This week, we investigate whether family doctors are guilty of wasting their patients time by indulging in idle chit chat - according to researchers in the US, its a real problem. As England becomes the latest country to ban smoking in public places, Classic FMs roving reporter, Tracey Spurrier, travels to Ireland, to see how the three-year-old ban on smoking there is working out. Bob Jones tells us about a unique musical composition based on the sound of sampled church bells, and last, but not least, Classic FMs resident bookworm, Chris Powling, has his regular weekly reading recommendations for us.

Welcome to the latest edition of the Classic Newsnight podcast. If you missed something on the programme earlier in the week, this is your chance to catch up. Bob Jones takes a look at an interactive project called Voicelab; we learn how coffee can help sufferers of a rare eye condition, from our resident doctor, Rob Hicks; the Music Director of Crouch End Festival Chorus explains why theyre doing choral arrangements of songs by the Beach Boys; and we get some good advice on recent reading matter with Classic FMs resident bookworm, Chris Powling.

Welcome to the Classic Newsnight podcast. This time, we're investigating how the classical music industry is responding to the opportunities and challenges presented by the computer. Our resident doctor, Chris Powling, explains how, for teeneagers, the fear of going blind could be a more powerful deterrent to smoking than all the other dangers put together. We find out about a new competition with a prize that's truly out of this world: a trip into space, and we learn about the latest attempt to make opera more accesible - it's called "Arias on Ice"!

Welcome to the new edition of the Classic Newsnight podcast. This week - and I kid you not - we meet the tenor whos twice been voted Icelands sexiest man; we also find out why China is tipped to be the driving force in classical music in the twenty first century; Doctor Rob Hicks warns us once again about the dangers of using sunbeds; and our resident bookworm, Chris Powling, recommends three titles for our delectation.

Welcome to the Classic Newsnight podcast; and amazingly, it's our last one of January!

This week, Doctor Rob Hicks explains how owning a dog can improve your health; we hear from the German pianist who's just made a recording on the very piano Franz Liszt owned and played at his home in Bayreuth; and we meet the author, Conn Iggulden, who's recently achieved a first in the history of UK book selling - topping both the fiction and non-fiction hardback bestsellers chart simultaneously. Listen now!

In this week's podcast, our resident bookworm, Chris Powling, waxes lyrical about a recipe book for opera lovers; the FT's Economics Reporter, Jamie Chisholm, explains why reports on the death of inflation appear to have been premature; Doctor Rob Hicks discusses yet another fortuitously discovered benefit for taking aspirin; and Classic Newsnight's roving reporter, Bob Jones, meets the Education Secretary, Alan Johnson, to talk about the Government's ten million pound boost for singing. I hope you enjoy listening.

This week, our podcast answers the searing questions: should you stop having milk in your tea? Believe it or not, that's one for the Classic FM doctor, Rob Hicks. We also ask the FT's Economics Correspondent why all bar one of the so-called experts in the City failed to predict the latest rise in interest rates. Add to that a bunch of paperbacks, as recommended by our resident bookworm, Chris Powling, and a chat with the distinguished accompanist, Julius Drake, and you have an online listen not to be missed.

Weve lined up something extra special for the first podcast of 2007. For starters, theres a chance to win a copy of pianist Stephen Houghs critically acclaimed CD, The Spanish Album. But if that doesnt thrill you, our resident bookworm, Chris Powling, has something that will: Chris has chosen four thrillers to get the new year off to a flying start. Theres some good news from Classic FMs resident doctor, Rob Hicks, especially if you suffer from high blood pressure and feel you have to deny yourself the odd glass of wine or beer. And we meet the conductor, Stephen Layton, who, together with Polyphony and the Britten Sinfonia, has just released a second album of choral music by the American composer, Morten Lauridsen. I bet you cant resist clicking on that download button, can you?

Welcome to the final Classic Newsnight podcast of 2006. And please forgive me for mentioning exercise at this time of year, but whether we like it or not, researchers keep finding new reasons why we should al become more active, and our resident doctor, Rob Hicks, is about to add his ten penneth.

If you have a book token burning a hole in your pocket, youll need some advice on what to buy with it, and who better to ask than Classic FMs resident literary aficionado, Chris Powling? And if opera is your thing, you might like to invest in a copy of Caroline Leachs pictorial history of Welsh National Opera: Caroline will be telling us about the first sixty years of this now internationally acclaimed company.

And finally, as those irritating TV news-reading types are wont to say, Classic FMs resident composer, Patrick Hawes, tells us about his latest piece: Stargazer. All of which, in my opinion, adds up to a great listen; but as always, you must be the judge of that. I hope you enjoy it.