Sunset Song

Gerda Stevenson's dramatisation of the 1932 novel by Lewis Grassic Gibbon, set in north-east Scotland before and during the First World War. Episode 1: Chris Guthrie is torn between her love of the land and her ambition to become a teacher. As Chris' domineering father struggles with the harshness of the land, her mother's fear of childbirth leads her to despair. A full cast dramatisation. Directed by David Ian Neville.Episode 2: After her father's death, Chris is determined to stay and work the farm alone if need be. Joined by Ewan Tavendale in marriage and on the farm, Chris gives birth to a son. But the outbreak of the First World War brings devastating change to her family, the rural landscape and the community. A full cast dramatisation. Directed by David Ian Neville.

Lewis Grassic Gibbon

Lesley Hart

Liam Brennan

Amy Manson

Robin Laing

Finn Den Hertog

Bridget McCann

Gordon Brandie

Full Cast

Two Full-Cast BBC Radio Dramatisations from A Scots Quair

Full-cast BBC adaptations of Lewis Grassic Gibbon's classic Scottish novel and its sequel - plus a bonus programme about the story's evocative setting 
 
Scottish writer Lewis Grassic Gibbon is best-known for A Scots Quair, a trilogy of novels comprising Sunset Song, Cloud Howe and Grey Granite that are considered to be among the most important works of the 20th century Scottish Renaissance. Featured here are the BBC Radio dramatisations of the first two novels, as well as a special documentary feature exploring the landscape and legacy of Sunset Song. 
 
Sunset Song - Set in north-east Scotland before and during the First World War, this moving adaptation tells the story of Chris Guthrie, a farmer's daughter growing up in the crofting village of Kinraddie. With a domineering father and a mother worn out by childbirth, Chris's upbringing is painful, and she is torn between her love of the land and her dream of becoming a teacher. When she falls in love with Ewan Tavendale, she decides to remain on the farm - but the outbreak of war brings devastating change to her family and community... Starring Lesley Hart as Chris Guthrie. 
 
Cloud Howe - The Great War is over, and Chris is starting a new life with her husband. When she and her family move to the mill town of Segget in Aberdeenshire, they find themselves embroiled in the small town's epic class struggle during the run-up to the General Strike. Amy Manson stars as Chris, with Robin Laing as Robert. 
 
Sunset Song: Return to the Mearns - On the 75th anniversary of Lewis Grassic Gibbon's death, Mark Stephen and Euan McIlwraith explore the Mearns, asking how the people who live there regard the landscape today and whether Gibbon's masterpiece Sunset Song lives on. 
 
First published 1932 (Sunset Song) and 1933 (Cloud Howe) 
 
Sunset Song 
Chris Guthrie - Lesley Hart 
John Guthrie - Liam Brennan 
Jean Guthrie - Bridget McCann 
Will Guthrie - Gordon Brandie 
Mistress Munro - Estrid Barton 
Long Rob - Matthew Zajac 
Chae Strachan - Douglas Russell 
Kirsty Strachan - Shonagh Price 
Margot Strachan - Sally Reid 
Ewan Tavendale - Finn den Hertog 
Rev Colquohoun - Fraser Sivewright 
Rev Gibbon - Keith Hutcheon 
Dramatised by Gerda Stevenson 
Directed by David Ian Neville 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 15-22 March 2009 
 
Cloud Howe 
Chris - Amy Manson 
Robert - Robin Laing 
Else - Pearl Appleby 
Dalziel - Liam Brennan 
Alec - Philip Cairns 
Jock - Stephen Duffy 
Ewan - Roderick Gilkison 
Leslie - Ralph Riach 
Ake - Iain Robertson 
Miss M'Askill - Wendy Seager 
Mowat - Nick Underwood 
Dramatised by Donna Franceschild 
Directed by Kirsty Williams 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 25 January-1 February 2015 
 
Sunset Song: Return to the Mearns 
Presented by Mark Stephen and Euan McIlwraith 
First broadcast BBC Radio Orkney, 6 February 2010 
 
© 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

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