''Alpha'' and ''Omega'' are two radio plays written by
Mike Walker Mike Walker is the name of:
Sports
* Mike Walker (rugby union) (1930–2014), Scottish rugby union player
* Mike Walker (English footballer) (born 1945), former English footballer
* Mike Walker (Welsh footballer) (born 1945), former Welsh footbal ...
, first broadcast on the
BBC World Service
The BBC World Service is an international broadcasting, international broadcaster owned and operated by the BBC, with funding from the Government of the United Kingdom, British Government through the Foreign Secretary, Foreign Secretary's o ...
in 2001 and 2002 respectively, and later on
BBC Radio 4 and
BBC 7. The plays address religious and philosophical issues like the existence of God, and the question of what separates humans from robotic automata.
''Alpha'' won the Best Radio Drama Award in the 2001
Sony Radio Awards. ''Omega'' won two Worldplay awards in 2002, for Best Script and Best Production.
["Omega wins two out of three Worldplay radio awards"](_blank)
BBC Press Office, 18 October 2002
Both plays star
David Calder as the lead actor, featured music composed and played by David Chiltern, and were produced by Gordon House.
Alpha
Themes
''Alpha'' examines issues of
artificial intelligence from the viewpoint of established Christian teaching on the
soul and human existence in the world. It addresses the existence of God and whether humans have free will or are nothing more than human automata.
Plot
The main character in ''Alpha'' is a priest employed by the
Vatican as a sort of
troubleshooter.
An all-knowing computer appears to have an independent life of its own - an abomination for those who believe in a supreme creator. Father Marquez is sent to interrogate ‘Alpha’ to decide whether or not it can be allowed to exist. During their conversations, Marquez finds out far more than he expects about both Alpha and - much more disturbingly - himself.
Omega
Themes
''Omega'', focuses on belief in God and in
miracles, contrasting these issues with the central character's belief in
structure
A structure is an arrangement and organization of interrelated elements in a material object or system, or the object or system so organized. Material structures include man-made objects such as buildings and machines and natural objects such as ...
and reality. It addresses the question of what separates human beings from automata.
Plot
The central character of ''Omega'' is a
civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing ...
whose daughter has miraculously survived a car crash, and who comes to question his very existence.
It tells the story of John Stone, who is building the world’s tallest tower rising above London. He discovers God after his daughter makes a miraculous recovery from a car crash. But did a miracle really take place? Perhaps John's whole life is a fiction and he's merely the plaything of a group of controlling scientists.
Omega - Mike Walker
BBC Radio 4 Extra. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
References
Fictional computers
British science fiction radio programmes
{{BBC-radio-stub