Cure for common insomnia

Being the nightowl that I am, I was usually awake for the shipping forecast on BBC Radio 4 broadcast shortly before 1 am (BST). I still listen to the BBC in the evening to fall asleep, but it's BBC World on NPR and they don't broadcast the shipping forecast, which is a total bummer.

What's so soporific about the shipping forecast? Well, first you get treated to the most delightful piece of easy-listening music ever composed, aptly named "Sailing By", that just conjures up images of white-crested waves, gentle sea breezes, and the occasional spray of salt water in your face. Listen for yourself:

http://mp3.juno.co.uk/MP3/SF210480-01-02-16.mp3

This is followed by a fairly monotonous yet melodic reading of names of sea areas that are all more or less obscure to the non-seafaring listener, along with mysterious strings of adjectives and numbers that mean nothing to the non-meteorologist (or initiated sailor, I suppose).

You can find a link to the broadcast here

http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/coast/shipping/

though I'd like to warn you that seeing a map of those sea areas takes away some of the mysterious effects of that soothing non-referentiality of the string of sounds. For some strange reason, the latest broadcast didn't include the music, so you may not get the full effect.

Also, if you need to fall asleep before 1 am BST, I'd highly recommend 'Today in Parliament', with its highly stylized introductory recording of the parliamentary call to order:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/bbc_parliament/3081534.stm?focuswin