London, England - Listeners tuning into a regular British radio show which broadcasts religious services will have an unexpected surprise this weekend -- a programme made up largely of silence.
BBC Radio's "Sunday Worship" usually features Christian services, but will this week be broadcast from a meeting held by Quakers, also known as the Society of Friends, the Daily Telegraph newspaper reported Saturday.
Quaker meetings are centred around a long period of quiet contemplation by the gathered participants -- usually lasting around an hour -- with no hymns, sermons, spoken prayers or priests.
The BBC has previously had little to do with broadcasting Quaker meetings lest listeners believe their radios have broken down, the report said.
The broadcaster's radio stations additionally have a technical back-up system which automatically transmits music in the event of a long silence, which it presumes is a technical fault.
Sunday morning's 40-minute programme will come from a Quaker school in Reading, west of London, and will include a period of silence, although a shorter one than usual, the report added.