Al Murray's alter ego, The Pub Landlord, is one of the most recognizable and successful comic creations of the past twenty years, and Murray, who has won numerous awards and accolades, continues to fill arenas and theatres around the world. 
 
He is also the author of many successful books including Watching War Films with My Dad and Command, a sharply entertaining analysis of the key allied military leaders in the Second World War. He is well known for co-hosting the hugely popular Second World War history podcast, We Have Ways of Making You Talk with fellow bestselling military author James Holland. 
 
Arnhem: Black Tuesday is his first history book about a single campaign.

Al Murray

Actor and director Al Pacino is a unique and enduring figure in the world of American stage and film. He grew up in New York City’s South Bronx, attended the School of Performing Art, and studied acting at the Herbert Berghof Studio with Charles Laughton and the Actors Studio with mentor Lee Strasberg. 
 
 
He has been nominated for the Academy Award nine times, for movies including The Godfather, Dog Day Afternoon, Serpico, The Godfather Part II, and The Irishman, and won the Oscar for Best Actor in 1992 for Scent of a Woman. He has been nominated for the Golden Globe Award nineteen times, and won four, and has been nominated for three Tonys and won two. 
 
 
Pacino has been awarded the Kennedy Center Honor, the American Film Institute Life Achievement Award, the National Merit of Arts from President Obama, and the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award for Lifetime Achievement in Motion Pictures.

Al Pacino

Al Pittampalli

Al Rodin is a writer and illustrator from London. He studied children's book illustration at Cambridge School of Art and received the 2019 Sebastian Walker Prize. Al enjoys working with a wide variety of materials including acrylic, watercolour and collage. His paintings have been exhibited in galleries around Europe and Asia, and he was selected for lllustrators' Exhibition at the Bologna Children's Book Fair in 2019. Little Echo is his first book.

Al Rodin

Al Smith

Alain Gheerbrant

Alain de Botton is the bestselling author of fifteen books, including The School of Life: An Emotional Education, How Proust Can Change Your Life, The Consolations of Philosophy, The Art of Travel and The Course of Love. He is the founder of The School of Life (theschooloflife.com).

Alain de Botton

Alaina Urquhart is the science-loving co-host of the chart-topping show Morbid: A True Crime Podcast. As an autopsy technician by trade, she offers a unique perspective from deep inside the morgue. Alaina hails from Boston, where she lives with her wonderful husband, John, their three amazing daughters, and a ghost Puggle named Bailey. She is about 75 percent coffee, and truly believes she and Agent Clarice Starling could be friends. 
 
Before writing her first psychological horror novel, she received degrees in criminal justice, psychology, and biology. When she isn't hosting Morbid, she hosts the Parcast original show Crime Countdown, and a horror movie podcast called Scream!. Her days are usually spent either recording or eviscerating. The way she sees it, when she hangs up her microphone for the day, it's time to let the dead speak.

Alaina Urquhart

Alaine Hood

Alan Alda

Alan Ayckbourn

Born in London in 1939, Alan Ayckbourn is one of  the world's most popular and prolific playwrights. He has written 74  full length plays and more than 20 other revues and plays for children.  He is also an acclaimed director. Alan Ayckbourn was awarded a CBE in  1987. Ten years later to the day, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II  'for services to the theatre.'

Alan Baker

Alan Barker

Alan Beattie

Alan Bennett is one of Britain's best-loved and most highly acclaimed writers. He has written widely for radio, television and theatre. His latest play, The History Boys, won several awards, including Evening Standard and Critics' Circle Awards for Best Play and the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play. It also won six Tony Awards, including Best Play, following an extremely successful transfer to Broadway. In 2006 Bennett was named Author of the Year at the British Book Awards for Untold Stories, his collection of memoirs and diaries.

Alan Bennett

Alan Bennett's television series Talking Heads has become a modern-day classic, as have many of his works for the stage, including Forty Years On, The Lady in the Van, The Madness of George III (together with the Oscar-nominated screenplay The Madness of King George) and an adaptation of The Wind in the Willows. The History Boys won the Evening Standard and Critics' Circle awards for Best Play, The Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play and the South Bank Award.

Alan Bishop

ALAN BOOTH was born in London in 1946 and travelled to Japan in 1970 to study Noh theatre. He stayed, working as a writer and film critic, until his untimely death in 1993.

Alan Booth

Alan Brazil is a Scottish broadcasting legend and former football player, most notably for Ipswich Town, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United and internationally for Scotland. He played as a forward before being forced to retire due to a recurring back injury. 
 
After retirement, Alan moved into media presentation, initially on television, before a career in radio where for many years he has presented the Alan Brazil Sports Breakfast show on TalkSPORT.

Alan Brazil

Alan Bullock

Alan Carr is one of Britain's most successful and treasured comedians. His unique humour and effortless stage presence have earned him a catalogue of awards including Best Chat Show host at the publicly voted for 2015 National Television Awards, winner of the 2013 BAFTA for Best Entertainment Performance and 2013 British Comedy Award for Best Comedy Entertainment Personality. In previous years he has garnered a clutch of awards, from the 2012 National Television Award for Best Talk Show and the 2012 Loaded LAFTA Award for Best Stand-up to the 2010 TV Choice Awards for Best Entertainment Show. There were also nominations for Best New British Comedy &amp; Best Comedy Entertainment Personality at the 2009 British Comedy Awards. 
 
The success of the first series of his own chat show, 'Alan Carr: Chatty Man', in the summer of 2009, led to Channel 4 commissioning 16 further series' as well as numerous Christmas Specials and New Year Specstaculars. In September 2013, the 100th episode aired with A-list guests Justin Timberlake and Rihanna. Guests from past series include: Lady Gaga, Britney Spears, Cameron Diaz, Vin Diesel, Adele, Grace Jones, Naomi Campbell, Hugh Grant, Drew Barrymore, Robin Williams, David Walliams, Mariah Carey, Russell Brand, Samuel L Jackson, Miley Cyrus, Robbie Williams, Bette Midler, Sharon Osbourne, One Direction, Gok Wan and Miranda Hart. 
 
The DVD of Alan's 2007 debut stand-up show, 'Tooth Fairy Live' topped the HMV charts and was a Christmas 2007 top seller. 
 
His best-selling debut autobiography 'Look Who It Is' was published in September 2008 by HarperCollins. 
 
In 2011, Alan travelled the country with his second live tour. 'Spexy Beast Live' was a 33-date arena tour and culminated in the successful DVD of the same name. 
 
Throughout 2015, Alan hit the road once again and performed at over 150 sold-out theatre's across the UK and Ireland with his 'Yap, Yap, Yap!' live show. His third stand up DVD 'Alan Carr - Yap Yap Yap! Live' was released by Universal Pictures (UK) in November 2016. 
 
2016 has also seen Alan go global with international performances of his Yap Yap Yap! live show throughout Scandinavia, Montreal (at the prestigious Just For Laughs Comedy Festival) and can currently be seen on tour this summer in New Zealand and Australia this summer, with two shows at the iconic Sydney Opera House. 
 
Alan also hosts Channel 4's flagship fundraising show 'Stand Up To Cancer' which in 2014 went on to raise an amazing £14 million for Cancer Research. Alan returns once again to host 'Stand Up To Cancer' on Channel 4 this October. 
 
Alanatomy: The Inside Story is Alan's second memoir, and will be published by Penguin in October 2016.

Alan Carr

Alan Clark

Alan Clements

Alan Connor is the author of Two Girls, One on Each Knee: The Puzzling, Playful World of the Crossword ("witty, charming, encyclopaedic and highly readable" - Spectator) and The Joy of Quiz ("An absolute delight" - Mail on Sunday). He has made quizzes for various TV shows and newspapers and written comedy including BBC Film's The Rack Pack, A Young Doctor's Notebook (Jon Hamm and Daniel Radcliffe) and Have I Got News For You.

Alan Connor

Alan Connor has been the question editor for BBC2's Only Connect and Richard Osman's House of Games. He is the author of books for Pointless and The Traitors and is the puzzle consultant for the BBC1 drama Ludwig. He writes puzzles for various newspapers and has written for Charlie Brooker series and Have I Got News for You. His favourite quiz question is: What word was intentionally omitted from the screenplay of The Godfather?

Alan Cowell

Alan Curtis

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William Shakespeare

Christopher Marlowe

Martin Jenkins

Ben Jonson

Richard Burton narrates this famous dramatic chronicle of the English Crown, a treasure of the BBC radio archive published on CD for the very first time. 
 
Vivat Rex is the landmark drama series first broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1977. Over the course of 26 instalments, each one narrated by Richard Burton with a full cast, the fortunes of the English Crown are followed through 225 years of British history, from Edward II’s accession in 1307 to the birth of Elizabeth I. This first volume includes the first 13 instalments, beginning with John Hurt’s portrayal of Edward II. 
 
The stellar cast includes John Hurt, Paul Eddington, Keith Michell, Derek Jacobi, Michael Redgrave, Maureen O’Brien, Patrick Troughton, Timothy West, Robert Hardy, Martin Jarvis, Anthony Quayle, Robert Harris, Robert Powell, June Whitfield, Roy Dotrice, Billie Whitelaw and Colin Baker. Each drama is adapted by Martin Jenkins from the works of Shakespeare, Marlowe and their Elizabethan contemporaries, and each includes a stirring musical score by Christopher Whelen. Also included in this collection are bonus interviews with Vivat Rex writer, producer and director, Martin Jenkins, studio manager Enyd Williams and actor Martin Jarvis, first broadcast on BBC Radio 4 Extra.

Vivat Rex: Volume One (Dramatisation)

Landmark drama from the BBC Radio Archive

Neil Gaiman

Terry Pratchett

**Neil Gaiman was the WINNER of the BBC Audio Drama Award 2015 for Outstanding Contribution to Radio Drama** 
 
A full-cast BBC Radio 4 dramatisation of Terry Pratchett &amp; Neil Gaiman’s celebrated apocalyptic comic novel, with bonus length episodes and outtakes. 
 
According to the Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch, the world will end on a Saturday. Next Saturday in fact. Just after Any Answers on Radio 4…. 
 
Events have been set in motion to bring about the End of Days. The armies of Good and Evil are gathering and making their way towards the sleepy English village of Lower Tadfield. The Four Horsepersons of the Apocalypse - War, Famine, Pollution and Death - are assembling. 
 
Witchfinder Shadwell and his assistant Newton Pulsifier are also en route to Tadfield to investigate unusual phenomena in the area, while Anathema Device, descendent of prophetess Agnes Nutter, tries to decipher her ancestor’s cryptic predictions. 
 
Atlantis is rising; fish are falling from the sky; everything seems to be going to the Divine Plan. 
Everything, that is, but for an unlikely angel and demon duo, who have been living on Earth for several millennia and have become rather fond of the place. If they are to prevent Armageddon they’ve got to find and kill the one who will bring it about: the Antichrist himself. There’s just one small problem: someone seems to have mislaid him… 
 
Adapted, sound designed and co-directed by Dirk Maggs (Neverwhere, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy) this first ever dramatisation of Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman’s novel features a large cast including Peter Serafinowicz, Mark Heap, Josie Lawrence and Paterson Joseph.

Good Omens

The BBC Radio 4 dramatisation

Jane Austen

In this BBC radio full-cast dramatisation of one of Jane Austen's most beloved works, Fanny Price finds her life isn't going as she would have wished... 
 
Fanny grows up mostly miserable in Mansfield Park, where she has always been treated as inferior to her vivacious cousins. However, over time her steadfast and kind character make her an indispensable part of the household. Her cousin Edmund has always been her ally but navigating Mary Crawford and Mrs Norris proves difficult... 
 
Published over 200 years ago, Mansfield Park remains one of the British nation's favourite novels. Among the star cast in this radio production are Felicity Jones, David Tennant, and Benedict Cumberbatch. 
 
This title is part of the BBC's Jane Austen collection. 
 
© 2020 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (p) 2020 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Mansfield Park

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation

E F Benson

Aubrey Woods

Barbara Jefford is the hilariously outrageous Lucia in this BBC Radio 4 dramatisation of the novel by E.F. Benson. Lucia is the uncrowned queen of 1920s provincial society, the Everest of social climbers and the most delicious of snobs. In the pastoral serenity of the village of Riseholme, Lucia and her unforgettable cronies face up to an Indian guru, spiritualism and a cultural usurper. 
 
E.F. Benson's wickedly witty satires on the rivalries of English middle-class life have elevated Lucia's extravagant exploits to cult comedy status.

Queen Lucia

In this BBC radio full-cast dramatisation of one of Jane Austen's most beloved works, Mrs Bennet is determined to see her five daughters married off and secure a future for them all. 
 
When the wealthy Mr Bingley arrives in the neighbourhood, Mrs Bennet wastes no time in making his acquaintance. His friend Mr Darcy, however, discourages Mr Bingley from marrying Jane Bennet, and also appears to snub her sister Elizabeth. 
 
When Elizabeth hears that Mr Darcy himself is of poor character, her innate prejudice of him is reinforced, and she roundly refuses his unexpected proposal of marriage. But then, when she discovers that she was misinformed, Elizabeth wonders if she can ever hope to see Mr Darcy again.... 
 
Published over 200 years ago, Pride and Prejudice remains one of the British nation's favourite novels. Among the star cast in this radio production are Amanda Root, Pippa Nixon, Samantha Spiro and David Troughton. 
 
This title is part of the BBC's Jane Austen collection. 
 
© 2020 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (p) 2020 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Pride and Prejudice

Kenneth Branagh and Alex Kingston star in Shakespeare's tragedy of love and power. 
 
As part of BBC Radio 3's celebration of the 450th anniversary of the birth of William Shakespeare, Kenneth Branagh and Alex Kingston star in this brand new production. 
 
Lovers, politicians, superstars. Antony &amp; Cleopatra is Shakespeare’s late and epic tragedy of mature love, and the catastrophic fall from grace and power that it brings about. Irresistibly drawn together, the couple are surrounded by friends, enemies, admirers and critics, none of who remain unscathed by the folly and heartbreak of this magnificent pair. As empires clash around them, their destiny seems inevitable: to love each other ‘til death and even beyond. 
 
Produced by BBC Cymru Wales for BBC Radio 3, this radio production also features Geoffrey Streatfeild, Nigel Anthony, Don Gilet and Peter Polycarpou amongst its cast.

Antony and Cleopatra

Drama

Tobias Smollet

Yvonne Antrobus

Tobias Smollet's uproarious satire of 18th-century life, dramatised by Yvonne Antrobus. Squire Bramble and family embark on their whistle-stop tour of Great Britain. They encounter adventure, mayhem and the enigmatic Humphry Clinker. Episode 2: The family is stranded. Bramble is keen to continue their grand tour, but how can they leave London when Humphry is in gaol?Episode 3: The Bramble family's adventures continue as they begin the long trip home, a journey full of surprises and unexpected revelations.Starring Nigel Anthony and full cast. Directed by Marc Beeby.

Expedition Of Humphrey Clinker

Henry James

Adapted by Graham White from the Henry James novel which centres on the predicament of Lambert Strether, a fifty-something New Englander lately arrived in Paris. Henry Goodman stars as the hapless protagonist in a novel many critics find James' finest. Episode 1: Strether has been sent to the city to persuade the fun-living son of his wealthy fiancee back home in Woolett to return home. But now Strether too falls under the spell of Paris.Episode 2: Strether had hoped to persuade the fun-living son of his wealthy fiancee to return home to New England. But now Strether has fallen under the spell of the beautiful Mme de Vionnet. More ambassadors are sent by the angry fiancee to bring both men home. With a full cast. Directed by Peter Kavanagh.

The Ambassadors (Classic Serial)

Victor Hugo

Adaptation of Victor Hugo's classic tale set in 15th-century Paris, dramatised in a collaboration between the BBC and Graeae, the disabled-led theatre company. Starring deaf actor David Bower, artistic director of Signdance Collective. Quasimodo, the deformed bell ringer, hides away in the bell tower of Notre Dame Cathedral, friendless and ashamed of his appearance. When the bewitching gypsy Esmeralda arrives in Paris, Quasimodo falls in love with her from afar.Starring David Bower and full cast. Directed by Polly Thomas.

The Hunchback Of Notre Dame

Rachel Joyce

Henry James's novel, dramatised by Rachel Joyce. Young and beautiful, Isabel Archer thinks that she is in control of her fate. Little does she know, however, that others behind the scenes are pulling the strings. The beautiful and free-spirited Isabel Archer is now a very rich woman. Two men have declared their love for her but she does not want to be married. Resolved to enjoy her fortune, she begins her travels. Starring Anna Maxwell Martin,  Haydn Gwynne, Robert Bathurst, Gayle Hunnicutt and full cast. Pianist Duncan Walsh Atkins. Directed by Tracey Neale.

The Portrait Of A Lady (Classic Serial)

Linda Marshall Griffiths

By Henry James Dramatised by Linda Marshall Griffiths. Episode 1: Kate and Merton need money. Milly needs love. How far will they go to get what they want?  Kate Croy is in love with Merton Densher; a poor writer. Her rich aunt Maud disapproves. Maud has offered Kate a wealthy existence but if Kate chooses to marry Merton she risks losing it all. When American Heiress Milly Theale steps into her London society, Kate sees a way out. Episode 2: Milly confides in Kate that she believes herself to be gravely ill and Kate begins to see a way for her and Merton to have a future.  When Merton returns to London, Kate sets out to bring her lover and her friend together. With Kate's assurances that there is nothing between them, Milly allows herself to hope that Merton may be the one great passion in her short life.Episode 3. Milly, now gravely ill, is staying in Venice. Kate's plan to bring Merton and Milly together is gaining pace. But Merton begins to realise that his own feelings for Milly are much deeper than he knew. Lord Mark's arrival threatens everything and Merton and Kate aren't prepared for the consequences. Will Milly change their lives irrevocably? Starring Anna Maxwell Martin, Lyndsey Marshall and full cast.Starring Lyndsey Marshall and full cast. Directed by Nadia Molinari.

The Wings Of The Dove (Classic Serial)

Henry Fielding

This is Stephen Wyatt's adaptation of Henry Fielding's classic comic adventure.  Episode 1: The wealthy Squire Allworthy steps into bed and finds an infant wrapped between his sheets. Episode 2: Tom is banished from the home in which he has spent his entire life. Episode 3: Tom follows his true love Sophia to London and receives an invitation to a masked ball.

Tom Jones (Classic Serial)

Michael Butt

D.H. Lawrence

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation of D. H. Lawrence's classic story about working class love, loss and hardship. Sensitive, intellectual Gertrude Coppard married miner Walter Morel for his rich, ringing laugh and colourful character. But now, years later, she finds there is little behind the bluster and their marriage has become riddled with disillusionment. Instead, Gertrude pours all her love and attention into her two sons, William and Paul. Determined that they will not go down the pit and lead the same life as their father, Gertrude encourages the boys to succeed and is rewarded when they both secure jobs as clerks. But then tragedy strikes: William becomes ill with pneumonia and dies. In her grief, Gertrude draws even closer to her surviving son and the bond between the two becomes so strong that, even as Paul is torn between two loves of his own, he cannot fully break away from his mother.

Sons And Lovers

Charles Dickens

Tom Baker reads Charles Dickens' timeless seasonal story. 
 
Charles Dickens' story of solitary miser Ebenezer Scrooge, who is taught the true meaning of Christmas by the three ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future, has become one of the timeless classics of English literature. First published in 1843, it introduces us not only to Scrooge himself, but also to the memorable characters of underpaid desk clerk Bob Cratchit and his poor family, the poorest amongst whom is the ailing and crippled Tiny Tim. 
 
In this captivating recording, Tom Baker delivers a tour-de-force performance as he narrates the story. The listener joins Scrooge on Christmas Eve, witnesses the visitation of Marley's ghost, and is given a glimpse of the many homes and lives which Scrooge has touched in his wretched life to date. 
 
With atmospheric sound design, this ultimately uplifting tale is a festive delight to be treasured and listened to again and again. 
 
Duration: 3 hours approx

A Christmas Carol

A BBC Radio Reading

Leo Tolstoy

Tolstoy's story of one woman's fate is brought powerfully to life in this BBC Radio full-cast dramatisation starring Teresa Gallagher and Toby Stephens. Anna Karenina enjoys a privileged and aristrocratic lifestyle as the wife of influential government official Alexy Karenin. Yet their ten-year marriage is devoid of tenderness, and when Anna falls in love with the handsome Count Vronsky they embark upon a deep and passionate affair. Reflecting the social conditions of the era in which it was written, Tolstoy's masterpiece sets a doomed love story against a harsh and unforgiving backdrop.

Anna Karenina

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation of Henry Fielding's rollicking comic masterpiece. Found one evening in the bed of the rich and benevolent Mr Allworthy, baby Tom grows up in the guardianship of the kindly squire. He develops into a good-hearted fellow who is nonetheless resented by Allworthy's mean-natured heir and nephew, Blifil. Tom's naive inability to resist a pretty face lands him in hot water when the gamekeeper's daughter declares herself pregnant. Since Tom has fallen in love with the squire's daughter, Sophia, who is herself betrothed to Blifil, the foundling finds himself banished from the Allworthy household. In pursuing the runaway Sophia to London, Tom embarks upon a series of riotous, and frequently amorous, adventures. However further trouble, and the revelation of his true identity, await him in London. Starring Anton Lesser as Tom, with Annette Crosbie, Hannah Gordon, Sarah Badel and Martin Jarvis.

Tom Jones

David Copperfield is the story of a boy growing to maturity in the affairs of the world and of the heart, surrounded by some of Dickens' most memorable characters: David's eccentric great-aunt; Miss Betsey Trotwood; the ever-optimistic Mr Micawber; jolly Peggotty and her willing husband Barkis; the charming Steerforth; the ever so 'umble Uriah Heep and the foolishly innocent Dora. But will David finally find happiness with the faithful Agnes Wickfield, whom he has known since childhood? And is her own future secure, threatened as it is by Uriah Heep, her father's clerk? Starring Miriam Margolyes, Timothy Spall, Phil Danielsl and Sheila Hancock.

David Copperfield

Virgil

A BBC Radio 4 dramatisation of Virgil's sweeping epic, starring Ralph Fiennes as Aeneas and Derek Jacobi as the Narrator. One of the classics of all time, The Aeneid was Virgil's last and greatest work. In it, he recounts in vivid imagery the legendary origin of the Roman Empire. The story begins after the Greeks have destroyed the city of Troy. The Trojan Prince Aeneas, defeated and depressed, leads his remaining citizens to a new land and a new destiny foretold by the Gods. The journey to the west coast of Italy is full of adventure, love, betrayal and suffering. On the island of Carthage, Aeneas meets Queen Dido who shelters his people. The two fall in love, but their happiness comes to a tragic end. Once in Italy, all seems hopeful, but soon rivalries develop between Aeneas and local powers and war breaks out... Translated by C. Day Lewis and with a star cast including Anna Massey, Gina McKee, Diana Quick and Eleanor Bron.

The Aeneid

A BBC Radio 4 dramatisation of Dickens' heart-stopping historical adventure set in the French Revolution and featuring the gentle Charles Darnay and the dissolute Sydney Carton. The action switches between London and Paris during the nightmare of The Terror - and in the shadow of Madame Guillotine - in this Sony award-winning drama that captures the joy and anguish of those corrupt and turbulent times. 
Starring Charles Dance as Syndey Carton, with John Duttine, Charlotte Attenborough, Barbara Leigh-Hunt, John Moffatt, Richard Pasco and Maurice Denham. Dramatised by Nick McCarty. Directed by Ian Cotterell.

A Tale Of Two Cities

James Joyce

The young poet Stephen has been recalled from Paris to Dublin to be at his mother’s deathbed. But he refuses her dying wishes: to kneel and pray for her. Now, holed up in his Martello tower outside the city walls, he has to suffer the taunts of Buck Mulligan by day and, by night, the vision of ‘her eyes, shaking out of death to shake and bend my soul.’ Timelessly evocative, Ulysses is far more than the story of Stephen Dedalus’ journey through Dublin. It is a huge, rich portrayal of human life. In this magnificent, highly accessible, part reading part dramatisation - which includes the famous Molly Bloom soliloquy - the power and truth of Joyce’s vision is as potent as ever. Ulysses stars Stephen Rea and Sinead Cusack, with an introduction by Seamus Heaney. ‘The best book at bedtime’ - Sunday Telegraph.

Ulysses

A BBC Radio 4 ‘Book at Bedtime’ recording of Samuel West reading from the novella ‘The Aspern Papers’ by Henry James, set against the decaying grandeur of Venice. Originally broadcast 26 April - 4 May 2010.  Henry James took as inspiration for his tale ‘The Aspern Papers’ the story of a mistress of Byron's who outlived the poet into lonely old age. He transposed the setting to Venice and cast the city he loved as a character in a taut narrative of literary theft and deception.  The lure of previously unseen papers relating to the long-dead poet Jeffrey Aspern brings one of his literary editors to Venice in the grip of an obsession. He broaches the palazzo of Aspern's ancient and discarded lover, Miss Juliana Bordereau, and deceives the fluttering middle-aged niece, Miss Tina, into believing he wants to lodge with them in order to cultivate the garden in his quest to secure the elusive letters and papers.  Read by Samuel West. Abridged and produced by Christine Hall.

The Aspern Papers (BBC Radio 4 Book At Bedtime)

Oscar Wilde

Algernon Moncrieff, a bachelor-about-town, has invented an invalid friend called Bunbury in order to get out of tiresome family engagements. At the same time, his friend Jack Worthing has invented a wicked brother called Ernest to disguise his own misdemeanours. When Algernon poses as Ernest to win the heart of Cecily Cardew, confusion reigns, and it takes the discovery of an old black handbag to reveal the truth...   Oscar Wilde’s dazzling comedy about mistaken identities and secret engagements still delights audiences over a century after its first performance in 1895.   This BBC Radio production, first broadcast in 1977, features Jeremy Clyde as Algernon, Richard Pasco as Worthing, Prunella Scales as Cecily and Maurice Denham as the Rev. Canon Chasuble, and is the first broadcast of the original four-act version of the play.   The Classic Radio Theatre range presents notable radio productions of much-loved plays by some of the most renowned playwrights, and starring some of our finest actors.

The Importance Of Being Earnest

John le Carré

George Smiley is one of the most brilliantly realised characters in British fiction. Bespectacled, tubby, eternally middle-aged and deceptively ordinary, he has a mind like a steel trap and is said to possess ‘the cunning of Satan and the conscience of a virgin’.   When word reaches 'The Department' - an ailing section of British intelligence - that Soviet missiles are being installed close to the West German border, it seems the perfect opportunity to show Control and Smiley, their rivals over at the Circus, that The Department still has value. Former spy Fred Leiser is lured back from retirement to investigate, and manages to cross the border into East Germany in a dangerous night-time operation.   But the world has changed since The Department's glory days during the Second World War. The harsh realities of the Cold War now prevail, and there is no place for heroes...   Starring the award-winning Simon Russell Beale as Smiley, and with a distinguished cast including Ian McDiarmid and Philip Jackson, this compelling dramatisation perfectly captures the atmosphere of le Carré's chilling novel of deception and betrayal.

The Looking Glass War

H.G. Wells

Wells' thrilling story of an inventor who travels in time and discovers a nightmarish dystopian future has been adapted several times for TV and film. This first ever UK radio adaptation, starring Robert Glenister as the Time Traveller and William Gaunt as H. G. Wells, brings Wells' fascinating ideas and extraordinary visions to vivid life.   It opens in 1943, when Wells is recording a talk for the Home Service in which he questions mankind's future. After the broadcast, he spends the evening with American journalist Martha, and tells her the astonishing news that his bestselling book The Time Machine was not fantasy but fact.   Wells explains that he was actually present at the dinner party in Richmond fifty years earlier, when the Time Traveller returned from his first fateful journey into the future. He reveals to Martha the full story of the Time Traveller's encounter with the Eloi and the Morlocks - and what really happened to him afterwards...

The Time Machine

Classic Radio Sci-Fi

Daniel Defoe

Young Robinson Crusoe has a burning ambition to be a sailor. Paying no attention to his parents’ warnings he runs away to sea to embark on a series of thrilling adventures: struggles with Barbary pirates, a shipwreck and the extraordinary meeting with Man Friday... Roy Marsden plays the older Robinson Crusoe looking back on a life of recklessness, daring and adventure – and the survival of twenty-eight years, two months and nineteen days on a desert island. Based on the real-life adventures of Alexander Selkirk, Robinson Crusoe was one of the very first adventure stories to be published in English literature. It remains as gripping today as it did on first publication in 1719, and this enthralling dramatisation perfectly evokes the excitement and adventure of the original book.

Robinson Crusoe

BBC Audio presents Mansfield Park, Jane Austen's perceptive study of middle class morals in the 19th century. Jane Austen's unlikely heroine Fanny Price is plucked from her impoverished family and brought up by wealthy relatives at Mansfield Park. 
 
When two outrageous and flirtatious guests arrive at Mansfield Park, Fanny's moral compass is shattered. How will Fanny continue to appear meek and cheerful, whilst being forced to re-examine her entire life? 
 
Starring Hannah Gordon, Amanda Root and Michael Williams. 
 
© 2020 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (p) 2020 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Herman Melville

‘Moby Dick’ was first published in Britain as 'The Whale' in 1851. It is an extraordinary book, made up of 135 chapters, all written in a variety of styles - from sailors’ slang to biblical prophecy and Shakespearian rant.   Ishmael, the narrator, tells of the adventures of Captain Ahab in his relentless quest to seek revenge on the white whale that bit off his leg. Full of allegory and symbolism, ‘Moby Dick’ is an epic tragedy of tremendous dramatic power and narrative drive.  This large-scale adaptation, recorded in America, skilfully reproduces the unique mixture of adventure, myth, history and philosophy in Melville's epic tale.

Moby Dick (Classic Drama)

Thomas Hardy

The story of Tess Durbeyfield, the most tragic of Thomas Hardy's heroines. Adapted by Alan Sharp for BBC Radio 4. 
 
John Durbeyfield (Keith Barron) learns that he is descended from the aristocratic Norman family of d'Urbervilles. He encourages his daughter, Tess (Claire Rushbrook), to befriend the family of Stoke d'Urbervilles where she meets Alec d'Urberville (Adam Godley). 
 
Tess is ultimately seduced by Alec and the effects of their affair creates dramatic ripples in Tess's life. In an attempt to make a fresh start, Tess begins work in Wessex at the Talbothay's farm where she encounters Angel Clare (James D'Arcy), the younger son of a parson, who asks her to marry him. Torn between her love for Angel and the events of her past, Tess is faced with the choice to confess all to Angel or bury the memories when an old face reappears culminating in the spiral of tragedies. 
 
Director: Mary Peate 
Music: Composed by Sylvia Hallett 
Violin: Isabel Watson

Tess Of The D'urbervilles

'They came in cylinders as dreaded falling stars; they were the ultimate killing machines...'   When a Martian spacecraft crash-lands near Woking, mankind is terrorised by aliens in tall, armoured capsules that stalk the countryside on three legs. The frightening machines wreak havoc on London and the Southern Counties with their heat-rays, and survivors are driven underground.   Yet it all began in the calm of an observatory... While scanning the heavens, scientist John Nicholson sees a shower of meteorites heading towards Earth. But what he is witnessing is, in fact, the beginnings of an invasion. Soon, dense black smoke wipes out vast numbers of the population and Nicholson tells how he was plunged into a paralysing nightmare of stark terror and utter destruction.   Martin Jarvis, Peter Sallis and Anthony Jackson also feature in this thrilling six-part, full-cast dramatisation of H.G. Well's classic novel - an immensely atmospheric recording based on one of the most influential stories ever told.

The War Of The Worlds

Kenneth Grahame

When Mole goes boating with the Water Rat instead of spring-cleaning, he discovers a new world.   As well as the river and the Wild Wood, there is Toad's craze for fast travel and motor-cars that leads them all on a timeless adventure.

The Wind in the Willows

Dragonborn

Dragoneye

Dragonlance Destinies

Dread Pirate Fleur

Dream Master

Drenai Novels

DropZone

Duggee's Little Library

Dungeon Crawler Carl Series

Duty Calls

A gripping three-part series based on real historical events. Three Roman legions massacred. Three Imperial Eagles lost. One man vies for revenge.

Eagles of Rome

For thirty years, the O’Donnels have ruled the East End, but there’s a price to pay for this power, and it’s usually in blood.

Eastend Trilogy

Easterleigh Hall

Eat Around Italy

Eat Around Spain

Eat Right For Blood Type

Ebb and Flo

Ed Reardon's Week

Elemental Emergence

Elfies Spellbook

Eliot Biographies

Emma Trilogy

Emma and James

Empire of Salt

In the Swedish town of Engelsfors, a mysterious forcedraws seven teenagers together. They are the Chosen Ones, and they have been chosen to drive back the demons that threaten to overwhelm the world

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