BBC Radio 4 announces Today Christmas guest editors

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, ABBA's Björn Ulvaeus and Jamie Oliver volition beryllium among 7 guests to edit BBC Radio 4's Today programme implicit Christmas.

The amusement gives the editorial reins to high-profile names each Christmas.

Ex-cricketer Lord Ian Botham, Sir Jeremy Fleming, caput of GCHQ, Dame Sharon White, seat of the John Lewis Partnership, and technologist Anne-Marie Imafidon volition besides impermanent edit.

Episodes volition tally from 26 December to 2 January.

On Boxing Day, Lord Botham, whose Beefy's Charity Foundation supports a scope of causes, volition sermon the advances successful the attraction and diagnosis of puerility leukaemia.

Chef and campaigner Oliver volition usage his clip to look astatine ideas to amended children's health, talking to immoderate of the politicians helium has worked with implicit the years to tackle kid obesity and amended schoolhouse meals.

This Christmas volition beryllium Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe's archetypal successful the UK since she was released from jailhouse successful Iran aft being arbitrarily detained for six years.

In her show, she volition research however you clasp onto state successful hard times. The conception volition besides diagnostic reporting connected Iran and look astatine the government's efforts to escaped UK prisoners.

Sir Jeremy - the archetypal manager of Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) to edit Today - volition look astatine the opportunities and risks of data, ranging from quality to competitory sport.

Swedish vocalist and songwriter Ulvaeus volition see the aboriginal of Europe and volition look up to adjacent year's Eurovision - the opus contention which propelled ABBA to stardom successful 1974.

He volition besides research wherefore the opus contention and ABBA mean truthful overmuch to the LGBTQ+ community.

On New Year's Eve, Ms Imafidon, president of the British Science Association and writer of She's successful CTRL: How women tin instrumentality backmost tech, volition stock caller perspectives connected science, occupation solving and comedy.

Ms Imafidon is nary alien to the Today programme, having archetypal appeared connected it astatine the property of 11 erstwhile she was interviewed astir taking her GCSEs early.

The closing impermanent exertion volition beryllium Dame Sharon, who volition research however we tin enactment young radical leaving the attraction strategy into employment.

A assortment of high-profile radical person impermanent edited the programme successful the past.

Famous faces see Prof Stephen Hawking, Prince Harry, Greta Thunberg, Angelina Jolie, Sir Lewis Hamilton, Melinda Gates, Raheem Sterling and Benjamin Zephaniah.

Owenna Griffiths, exertion of the Today programme, said: "For astir 20 years the impermanent editors person transformed Christmas connected Today, creating immoderate of the astir memorable moments successful the programme's affluent past on the way.

"This twelvemonth is nary antithetic and I'm enormously grateful these impermanent editors person fixed up their clip to bring caller stories, unexpected perspectives and a small festive cheer to the Today audience."