Angst! Plastic

By Martin Jameson
First broadcast – BBC Radio 4 – 18/08/21

In today’s ‘zeit’ the ‘geist’ is everywhere: environmental catastrophe; conspiracy theories; populism; fake news; the age of the algorithm; nationalism; racism; social exclusion. Not to mention pandemics.

As the world teeters on the edge of various self-made apocalypses, Angst! takes a satirical sideways look at our own naked fears. Five separate but connected half-hour ‘what if?’ stories all told under the watchful eye of the enigmatic Timor Greer.

Microplastics can be found everywhere from the snows of Mount Everest to the placenta of unborn babies. They pollute our seas and the very air we breathe, threatening the future of the planet. So when a plastic-eating enzyme is created that can munch through an Evian bottle in 2.93 seconds that should be a giant step in the fight against climate change. Or at least it would be if the enzyme wasn’t self-replicating. And if it didn’t fall into the wrong hands and end up at the bottom of the sea.

Treve ….. Reece Shearsmith
Judith ….. Rosie Cavaliero
Adam ….. Will Howard
Eve ….. Skye Lourie
Dale …. Joshua Akehurst
Fargeas ….. Ben Crowe
Timor Greer ….. Cyril Nri

Other voices are played by the cast

Sound design ….. Steve Bond & Adam Woodhams

Production manager ….. Anna de Wolff Evans
Executive producer ….. Sara Davies
Series creator ….. Martin Jameson

Produced & directed by Nicolas Jackson

An Afonica production for BBC Radio 4