Arthur Wood (composer)

Arthur Henry Wood (24 January 1875 – 18 January 1953) was an English composer and conductor. Wood is known for his 1924 work “Barwick Green”, the signature theme for the BBC Radio 4 series The Archers. Wood initially learnt to play the violin, before later learning to play the flute and piccolo which became his primary instruments. Petticoat Fair, and Fancy Fair, the latter two dating from about 1918. Apart from “Barwick Green”, his works are now rarely performed. The couple had five children including Peggy Ann Wood, an actress, director and theatre manager. Wood moved to live in London in 1903, and in 1907 moved into 20, Arlington Gardens in Chiswick, Middlesex (present-day London). In 2012 Wood’s grand-daughter led an unsuccessful campaign to have a blue plaque erected on the building, which has been converted into flats. Notes References External links * *Item about Woods on BBC Radio 4’s Front Row, 24 June 2011, at 18m27s. By chance, the clip begins with the final seconds of the evening’s The Archers, so Barwick Green is heard.