The Complete Series 1-3

Beauty of Britain

Christopher Douglas (Author) 
 Christopher Douglas is the author of Jardine, the biography of England test cricketer Andrew Jardine. With Andrew Nickolds, he is the co-creator of Ed Reardon, and stars in Ed Reardon’s Week. He also teamed up with Nigel Planer to create the character of ‘Nicholas Craig’, a classical actor who starred in the BBC Four series How to be Old with Nicholas Craig and whose autobiography I, An Actor, was published by Methuen in 2001. 
 
Nicola Sanderson (Author) 
 Nicola Sanderson is an actress and writer who played S.O.C.O. Joy Ackroyd in Law and Order: UK. She has also appeared in numerous other TV series including EastEnders, The Bill, Coronation Street and Holby City. With Christopher Douglas, she co-wrote the BBC Radio 4 comedy Beauty of Britain.

The complete series 1-3 of the BBC Radio 4 narrative comedy featuring Beauty Oolonga's adventures as a care worker, starring Jocelyn Jee Esien. 
 
Beauty of Britain breaks the embarrassed silence about what happens to us when we get old and start to lose our faculties. It shows the process in all its chaotic tragi-comedy but it does so from the point of view of a migrant worker, Beauty, whose Zimbabwean Shona background has taught her to respect age. Beauty sees Britain at its best, its worst and also sometimes without its clothes on running the wrong way down the M6 with a toy dog shouting 'Come on!' 
 
In first series Beauty discovers the glories of Weston-super-Mare's charity shops, has a disastrous crush on worship leader Wayne and looks after the elderly Mr Easterby, who has a new girlfriend and is behaving like a love-struck teenager. 
 
In the second series, Beauty’s employer, the Featherdown Agency, sends her to provide care for those who need it - and some who don't, but all of whom have relatives with guilty consciences. 
 
In the third and final series Beauty's mother pays her a visit, finds herself on the receiving end of a surprising proposal and wonders is Stephen, a charming English gent, is just like Hugh Grant in those movies. 
 
Jocelyn Jee Esien heads up a starry cast that includes Jenny Agutter, Felix Dexter, Pippa Haywood, Paterson Joseph, Julia Mackenzie, Felicity Montagu, Geoffrey Palmer and Clive Swift. 
 
Written by Christopher Douglas and Nicola Sanderson, 
Produced by Tilusha Ghelani.

Christopher Douglas

Full Cast

Lisa Coleman

Barunka O'Shaughnessy

Pippa Haywood

A BBC Radio 4 Sitcom

The complete 16th series of the hit comedy – including the 100th episode 
 
‘Matchless’ Julie Burchill, The Spectator 
 
Ed Reardon, washed-up writer, master of the diatribe and a man with the unfaltering ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, hits the milestone of his 20th anniversary on Radio 4. Still mourning his beloved feline companion, he finds solace in a new life partner – the offspring of Elgar. But he’s sorely in need of a new source of income now his wealthy Third Age writing-class students have all decamped to Dubai. 
 
Never one to be defeated, he clears out his storage cupboard to illegally sub-let it as an ‘opportunity for boutique capsule living’, tries to find an outlet for his long-forgotten radio play A Pigeon in Sainsbury’s, takes on the role of theatre critic for The Countrywoman magazine, and agrees to write a bottle episode of Jaz Milvain’s new show about two chalk-and-cheese cops who do things their own way. With commissions thin on the ground, he’s forced to become the ‘Writer in Residence’ at a nuclear power station: but unfortunately, his on/off romantic partner Maggie is on the other side of the fence protesting. And in the final episode of the series – the landmark 100th show – the curmudgeonly author makes the fateful decision to stop writing for good. Can Zadie Smith persuade Ed not to throw in the towel? 
 
First broadcast in 2005, Ed Reardon’s Week has garnered two Broadcasting Press Guild awards for Best Radio Programme, and attracted some of the UK’s finest actors as guest stars. Joining the roll call in this series are Adrian Scarborough, Robert Powell, Stephen Mangan and Joe Thomas, while regulars include Christopher Douglas as Ed, Lisa Coleman as Eli, Barunka O’Shaughnessy as Ping and Pippa Haywood as Maggie. 
 
Written by Christopher Douglas 
Produced by Dawn Ellis 
Production Co-ordinator: Katie Baum 
Sound: Jon Calver & Alison McKenzie 
 
Cast 
Ed Reardon – Christopher Douglas 
Eli – Lisa Coleman 
Christos/Uncle Beastly – Simon Greenall 
Ping – Barunka O’Shaughnessy 
Sheila/Francesca/Fifi/Kayleigh/Newsreader – Nicola Sanderson 
Ross – Dan Tetsell 
Simon – Joe Thomas 
Maggie – Pippa Haywood 
The Pigeon – Stephen Mangan 
Nick – Adrian Scarborough 
Michael Berkeley – Himself 
Willow – Eve Ponsonby 
Sir Peter – Robert Powell 
Jaz Milvain – Philip Jackson 
Jake – Sam Pamphilon 
Clare – Clare Perkins 
Devashree – Aasiya Shah 
Danny – Tom Stourton 
Kate – Robin Weaver 
Petroc Trelawney – Himself 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 30 June-4 August 2025 
 
© 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Christopher Douglas

Books by Christopher Douglas

Series by Christopher Douglas

Ed Reardon's Week

Follow penguin

Follow ladybird

Follow puffin

Sign up to the Penguin newsletter