19 February 2025

By Tim Koch

Tim Koch finds that learning to scull can be a drama.

In a world where traditional media is struggling for survival, much of it has responded by becoming increasingly populist. While populism has its place, I would suggest that its place is not absolutely everywhere. 

In Britain, Public Service Broadcasting has not been immune from this race to the bottom but some outposts are fighting a spirited rearguard action, notably BBC Radio 4. Its speech-related programs include news, drama, comedy, science and history and attract a weekly audience of over nine million. Inevitably, it is criticised by some for being “too middle class”. This, it seems, is a bad thing.

That Radio 4 is a British Institution is often illustrated by the common story that, in the event of threatened nuclear war, captains of submerged Royal Navy submarines carrying nuclear missiles would, in addition to other safeguards, check that Radio 4 was still broadcasting to confirm that the UK had not been annihilated.

Should submarine commanders wish to take their minds off possible nuclear Armageddon, I would suggest that they tune into Drama On 4, a slot that regularly broadcasts 45-minute dramas, many of them original works.

Intriguingly for HTBS Types, a two-hander broadcast on Drama On 4 on 13 February had the tagline, A romance with some rowing thrown in.

The drama was titled Only One Word for Love and mostly takes place in a double scull with coach Dylan in the bow and student Daisy at stroke. The BBC summarised it thus:

When lexicologist, Daisy, decides to learn how to scull as part of her recovery from a mastectomy, she discovers her coach is as tongue-tied as she is garrulous.

Over ten lessons as Daisy swaps lexicological nuggets for tips on her technique we discover why Dylan is so monosyllabic and witness as they both begin to define themselves other than by what they have lost.

Only One Word for Love was written by Peter Souter and Susie Dent. British readers may know Susie as the resident lexicographer on the Channel 4 game show, Countdown (while the term “game show” is pejorative, Countdown is actually a programme that requires participants to have some degree of intelligence and learning).

Only One Word for Love is available on demand for those able to access BBC Sounds.

Possibly, a play based around lexicography and a sculling course is like Dr Johnson’s dog walking on his hind legs; you are surprised to find it done at all. Words and rowing are two of my favourite things, so I very much wanted to like this piece.

Rowers are rarely happy when filmmakers, broadcasters and the like attempt to depict their sport and those who allow inaccuracy to spoil entertainment will not enjoy Only One Word for Love.

However, I would suggest that such people look beyond such things as clunky aquatic sound effects, random coaching commands given without conviction and a student that sculls at firm pressure on her second lesson.

Further, it would be churlish to point out that having someone engaging in constant unrelated chatter while supposedly learning to scull is not recommended. Daisy’s garrulousness is rather essential to the story and drama is not only “real life with the boring bits cut out”, it is also real life with some real bits cut out.

My verdict? Only One Word for Love is entertaining enough. Daisy has booked ten lessons and during each we learn a little more about each character and enjoy some wordplay. There is a running joke that Daisy the lexicologist initially keeps saying “rowing” when she should say “sculling” (though the difference between the two is never explained). It is not entirely clear where the story is going until near to the end when there is suddenly a Richard Curtis “Four Weddings” style conclusion. There are worse ways to spend 45-minutes.