Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Dolya Gavanski

Ed Stoppard

Eleanor Bron

Full Cast

Matthew Marsh

A BBC Radio full-cast adaptation

Ed Stoppard stars as obsessive pianist Alexei in this modern-day take on Dostoevsky's classic The Gambler 
 
When brilliant but penniless pianist Alexei is hired to tutor the 10-year-old daughter of Russian oligarch Mikhail, he is drawn into a world of chance, obsession and violence. Hopelessly infatuated with Mikhail's beautiful stepdaughter Polina, he vows to do anything to win her love: and so begins his involvement in a dangerous, high-stakes game... 
 
Seduced by the lure of the roulette wheel, and embroiled in the complications and machinations of Polina and her family, Alexei's life takes a dark turn. The unexpected arrival of Mikhail's mother Anastasia from Russia offers hope of rescue from financial ruin: but an obsession with risk-taking threatens to destroy everything... 
 
This lively reimagining, set in contemporary London, was written by Dolya Gavanski, who also plays Polina. Ed Stoppard (Home Fires) stars as Alexei, with Eleanor Bron (A Little Princess) as Anastasia and Matthew Marsh (Love, Lies and Records) as Mikhail. 
 
Production credits 
Adapted by Dolya Gavanski, from Fyodor Dostoevsky's The Gambler 
Directed and produced by John Dryden 
Original music composed by Sacha Puttnam 
All music performed by Sacha Puttnam 
Casting: Toby Whale 
Script Editor: Mike Walker 
Sound Design: Steve Bond 
A Goldhawk Production for BBC Radio 4 
 
Cast 
Alexei - Ed Stoppard 
Mikhail - Matthew Marsh 
Polina - Dolya Gavanski 
Vika - Isabella Blake Thomas 
Astley - Graham Seed 
Francois - Orlando Seale 
Katie - Lucy May Barker 
Inokenti - George Lasha 
Masha - Irina Karatcheva 
Mullighan - Jay Taylor 
Office Worker - Alana Ramsey 
Blake - Timothy Walker 
Anastasia - Eleanor Bron 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 17-24 November 2013 
 
© 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 
(p) 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Dolya Gavanski

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