Joseph Delaney used to be an English teacher, before becoming the best-selling author of the Spook's series, which has been published in 30 countries and sold over 4.5 million copies worldwide. The first book, The Spook's Apprentice, was adapted into a major motion picture starring Jeff Bridges and Julianne Moore.

Joseph Delaney

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Michael McStay

The collected BBC Radio 4 crime dramas featuring Inspector Coleman and Sergeant Astor 
 
Like his actor namesake, Ronald Coleman is a suave, well-spoken English gentleman. But although he's a movie buff, Coleman is no film star - he's a copper, and a Detective Inspector to boot. Together with his down-to-earth Scottish partner, DS Fred Astor, he sets about solving cases on two very different patches - rural Kirkcaldy and inner-city Southampton. 
 
Death Beach sees Hollywood director Curt Zorack's film shoot interrupted by the death of one of the cast. But is it suicide or murder? In Death of a Mean Cornet, a jazz musician and old friend of Sergeant Astor is found dead of a heroin overdose. It looks like an accident, but Fred's not convinced. In Death Against the Odds, two murders in one night cause Inspector Coleman and Sergeant Astor to lose some sleep - and long for the days when sheep-rustling was the worst crime they had to deal with. 
 
Death of a Hooligan finds the two detectives working together at South Hants Central, and probing the suspicious death of a football fan; while in A Day at the Races, Sergeant Astor falls among thieves, and Inspector Coleman has one of his infamous hunches. In No Harm Done, the duo are faced with a wall of silence when a resident of the notorious Gantry Estate is found badly beaten. And in Fools Rush In, an IRA terrorist is released from Parkhurst prison - and promptly disappears. How is he connected to the mysterious Irishman causing parking problems on a suburban street? 
 
These enthralling crime dramas star Stephen Thorne as Coleman and Joe Dunlop as Astor, with a supporting cast including Diana Bishop, Frances Jeater and Nicholas Boulton. 
 
Production credits 
Written by Michael McStay 
Produced and directed by Jane Morgan and Ned Chaillet. Theme music by Stephen Warbeck 
Starring Stephen Thorne as Inspector Coleman and Joe Dunlop as Sergeant Astor 
 
Death Beach 
Cast: Peter Vaughan, Mary Miller, David King, Nigel Carrington, Vincent Brimble, Jonathan Oliver, James Greene, Michael McStay, Jane Whittenshaw, Sue Broomfield, Ben Onwukwe, Stephen Garlick, Nicholas Gilbrook 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 13 October 1990 
 
Death of a Mean Cornet 
Cast: Kate Binchy, Maria Miles, James Grant, Paul Barber, Tony Armatrading, Michael McStay, Sidney Cole, Peter Gunn, John Forgeham, Terence Edmond, David Learner, John Webb, Matthew Sim, Mark Straker, Nicholas Murchie, Jonathan Tafler 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 18 July 1992 
 
Death Against the Odds 
Cast: Peter Gunn, Phyllis Logan, James Warwick, Morag Hood, Elaine Collins, Diana Bishop, 
John Fleming, Pauline Yates, John Webb, David Holt, Dominic Letts 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 21 August 1993 
 
Death of a Hooligan 
Cast: Diana Bishop, Frances Jeater, Nicholas Boulton, James Kerry, Dominic Curtis, Tom Bevan, Peter Kenny, Paul Panting, Hakeem Kae-Kazim, Gareth Armstrong, James Taylor 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 16 May 1994 
 
A Day at the Races 
Cast: Diana Bishop, Frances Jeater, Nicholas Boulton, John Hartley, Larry Dann, McCartney Brown, Breffni McKenna, Gareth Armstrong, David Jarvis, David Sinclair, James Taylor, 
Don McCorkindale. 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 23 May 1994 
 
No Harm Done 
Cast: Diana Bishop, Frances Jeater, Nicholas Boulton, Tony Osoba, Elaine Claxton, Pauline Letts, Dexter Fletcher, Simon Schatzberger, Deborah Berlin, Toby Jones, Sidney Cole, Peter Acre, Matthew Morgan, Gavin Muir, David Jarvis, Danny Schiller, Susannah Corbett 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 30 May 1994 
 
Fools Rush In 
Cast: Diana Bishop, Frances Jeater, Nicholas Boulton, Anthony Jackson, Marianne Morley, Sally Kinghorn, Rachel Atkins, Michael Onslow, Tom Bevan, Paul Panting, Lyndham Gregory. 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 6 June 1994 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Inspector Coleman and Sergeant Astor

Seven BBC Radio Crime Dramas

Peter Flannery

Olivia Poulet

Laurence Dobiesz

Karen Laws

Melanie Harris

Hannah Silva

Dan Rebellato

Tim Dawson

Gemma Bedeau

Ishy Din

Derron Sandy

Kyle Hernandez

Elisha Efua Bartels

Lucy Montague Moffatt

Thirteen plays about human connection, from some of BBC Radio's best writers exploring love, family, romances and life's ups and downs 
 
This diverse collection of stories centres around family dynamics, relationships both romantic and platonic, and the diverse ways ordinary people navigate the vicissitudes of everyday life. 
 
Ranging from modern fairy tales to coming-of-age dramas, they feature a wide variety of styles, and are scripted by an array of writers from award-winning dramatists to first-time authors. Here are stories of meeting and parting; hope and heartbreak; grief and forgiveness; and the endless possibility of change. 
 
We meet the couple racing to secure their IVF treatment; the wide-eyed young Conservative whose awakening is more than just political; the teenager who discovers a secret that threatens his entire extended family; the ex-offender transformed through his friendship with a photographer, and many more captivating characters. These engrossing dramas let us venture into their worlds; giving us an intimate insight into their lives and loves. 
 
Among the casts are Jaime Winstone, Sean Gallagher, Rhea Bailey, Mina Anwar, Ciarán Griffiths and Harry McEntire. 
 
Cast and credits 
All plays are Sparklab productions for BBC Radio 4 and Radio 3. 
Produced by Melanie Harris and Executive Produced by Polly Thomas, Jeremy Mortimer & Jo Meek. 
 
#blessed 
Cast: Olivia Poulet, Laurence Dobiesz, Ayesha Dharker, Valmike Rampersad, Fenella Woolgar 
Written by Olivia Poulet and Laurence Dobiesz. Directed by Susannah Tresilian. 
 
Indigo Children 
Cast: Lizzy Clark, Jaime Winstone, Luke Jerdy, Sylvestra Le Touzel 
Written by Hannah Silva. Directed by Jude Kelly 
 
My Life Is a Series of People Saying Goodbye 
Cast: Sean Gallagher, David Annen, Will Payne, Fenella Woolgar, Frances Grey, Jenny Jules 
Written by Dan Rebellato. Produced and Directed by Polly Thomas 
 
Not for Turning 
Cast Nicola Holt, Henry Devas, Andrew Bentley, Ashley Gerlach, Toby Hadoke 
Written by Tim Dawson. Directed by Lawrence Till 
 
The Ladies Room 
Cast: Rhea Bailey, Lisa Livingstone, Lois Chimimba 
Written by Gemma Bedeau. Directed by Melanie Harris 
 
Whose Baby? 
Cast: Gurjeet Singh, Mina Anwar, Perveen Hussain, George Bukhari, Sid Akbar Ali 
Written by Ishy Din. Directed by Julia Ford. 
 
1963 
Cast: Andy Clark, Curtis Appleby, Ross Waiton, Jill Dellow, Micheal Ajao 
Written by Peter Flannery. Directed by Melanie Harris 
 
Carifesta 2019: Mr Singh 
Cast: Keegan Maharaj, Rhesa Samuel, Idrees Saleem, Tafar Lewis, Khadijah Kirton, Israel Nunes Children from the Quays Foundation, Maloney, Trinidad & Tobago. 
Written by Derron Sandy. Directed by Melanie Harris 
 
Carifesta 2019: Aron 
Cast: Levee Rodriguez, Errol Fabien, Anand Lawkaran, Jayron Remy, Tishanna Williams, Nickolai Salcedo. Written by Kyle Hernandez. Directed by Melanie Harris 
 
Carifesta 2019: Water More Than Flour 
Cast: Mandisa Granderson, Conrad Parris, Kimmy Stoute-Robinson, Arnold Goindham 
Written by Elisha Efua Bartels. Directed by Melanie Harris 
 
Karin and Andrew 
Cast: Eve Shotton, Ciarán Griffiths, Darren Kuppan, Melissa Jane Sinden 
Scripted and directed by Melanie Harris. 
 
In His Kiss 
Cast: Niamh McGowan, Harry McEntire, Kimberly Hart-Simpson 
Written by Lucy Montague Moffatt. Directed by Julia Ford 
 
The Reality Tunnel 
Cast: Sarah Miele, Sam Newton 
Written by Karen Law. Directed by Melanie Harris 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

#Blessed and other stories of love and friendship

13 BBC Radio Dramas

Eoin McNamee

A collection of suspenseful dramas from award-winning Northern Irish writer Eoin McNameeEoin McNamee is the author of 19 novels, two trilogies for young adults and three thrillers written under the pseudonym John Creed, one of which won him the Ian Fleming Steel Dagger Award. He has also written several screenplays and TV scripts, as well as numerous plays for Radio 4. Included here are eight of his acclaimed thrillers, exploring hard-hitting issues such as human trafficking, racism and nationalism through compelling stories of murder, revenge and intrigue. Among the star casts are Adrian Dunbar, Niamh McGrady, Denise Gough, Frances Tomelty, Bronagh Gallagher, Amybeth McNulty, David Caves and Claire Dunne.The Haunted Road sees police camera operator Leslie Burden assisting in the hunt for a young Polish woman – but his interest in this missing persons case soon spirals into obsession. In the Imison Award-winning The Road Wife, a truck driver gives a lift to a female Asian hitchhiker, but gets more than he bargained for when his truck is stopped by immigration officers. Intends to Take Action, co-written by Jimmie Potter and Eoin McNamee, revolves around a Belfast man who is forced to uproot his family for their protection, following a police warning that he has been targeted by a paramilitary organisation. Belfast is also the setting for No Trampy Immigrants, a shocking tale of rioting and racist violence inspired by events which took place in the city in the summer of 2009.North of Riga is a contemporary fairytale of magic and myth set in a Northern Irish fishing port, where a lonely 13-year-old girl befriends a mysterious hairdresser whom the locals believe to be a Latvian witch. In The Comets, 11-year-old Kirstie goes missing shortly after her mother’s death – but what does a story about an old and fragile pair of wings have to do with her disappearance? The Lights centres on a retired policewoman diagnosed with MS, who finds herself in the midst of a migrant trafficking ring – and the gangmaster is someone a little too close to home. And in Swans, it’s a race against time to locate a young child being smuggled through Dublin airport. But is it an inside job?Cast and creditsWritten by Eoin McNameeContentsThe Haunted RoadThe Road WifeIntends to Take ActionNo Trampy ImmigrantsNorth of RigaThe CometsThe LightsSwans© 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The Haunted Road & more

Eight Full-Cast BBC Crime & Mystery Dramas

Mary Cooper

Jonathan Tafler

Anna Linstrum

Alistair McGowan

Elizabeth Lewis

Robin Brooks

Lucy Caldwell

Sarah Wooley

Stephen Wakelam

Frances Bingham

David Pownall

Katie Hims

Ian Billings

Sian Ejiwunmi-Le Berre

Judith Adam

18 biographical dramas based on the lives and loves of celebrated writers 
 
These surprising, revealing dramas take a behind-the-scenes look at some of our best-loved authors, mingling fact and fantasy to explore their extraordinary hidden lives. From love affairs, friendships and family relationships to traumas, tragedies and journeys of self-discovery, we glimpse the unwritten worlds that shaped their unforgettable fiction. Among the star casts are Andrew Scott, Toby Jones, Richard Dormer, Glenda Jackson, Bella Ramsey, Julia Davis, Ian McDiarmid, Haydn Gwynne, David Threlfall, Alistair McGowan, Tom Goodman-Hill, Hattie Morahan, Rosie Cavaliero, Julian Rhind-Tutt, Paul Ritter and Lia Williams 
 
Jane and Tom - Writing to her sister, Jane Austen describes her love for Tom Lefroy - a love that would lead to Pride and Prejudice. 
 
When Fanny Met Germaine - A delightful romp through the passionate, scandalous friendship between two 18th Century writers: Fanny Burney and Mme de Stael. 
 
Comrade Ackland - Dorset, 1936. Newly returned from an illicit trip to Civil War Spain, Sylvia Townsend Warner and her lover Valentine Ackland have an unexpected visitor.... 
 
Tongues of Fire - 1913. When a Nobel laureate visits Dublin's Abbey Theatre, fireworks erupt between WB Yeats and Sean O'Casey. 
 
A Year at the Races - Approaching the end of his career, Groucho Marx meets a wisecracking fan determined to teach him new comedy tricks. 
 
Spike and the Elfin Oak- A comic fantasy inspired by Spike Milligan's madcap attempts in the mid-1960s to preserve a curious sculpture in Kensington Gardens. 
 
Everybody's Got Conditions - Casting Bette Davis in his play The Night of the Iguana proves the biggest mistake in Tennessee Williams' career... 
 
I Believe I Have Genius- Humble and obscure, young Charlotte Brontë travels to Brussels to study at a girls' school. 
 
Marian and George - Marian Evans (aka George Eliot) must choose between her adored brother and the love of her life... 
 
Lying Low - An intriguing drama imagining what happened to Samuel Beckett during his mysterious three weeks in Folkestone in 1961. 
 
A Terrible Beauty - WB Yeats travels to France to propose to beautiful Maud Gonne, soon after her husband's execution in the 1916 Easter Rising. 
 
The Watcher on the Wall - Dramatised from his letters, this is the story of Louis MacNeice's transatlantic love affair and the poetry it inspired. 
 
Edith Sitwell in Scarborough - Returning to her birthplace, Edith Sitwell sets out to wreak revenge. 
 
Mrs Tolstoy - A five-part drama charting the tempestuous marriage between Leo and Sofya Tolstoy. 
 
The 'B' Word - The opening night of George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion causes a scandal and sparks a passionate love/hate triangle... 
 
The Rules of Palship - The young Noël Coward demanded fierce loyalty from his friends - but did he live up to his own high standards? 
 
The Lost Road - A playful tribute to the long friendship between CS Lewis and JRR Tolkien and how it influenced their respective masterpieces. 
 
Luxembourg Gardens - Re-imagined from Katherine Mansfield's stories, letters and journals, this Mansfieldesque play explores her last day in Paris, where she is dying of consumption aged 34. 
 
Copyright © 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Behind the Author's Desk: Dramas of Famous Writers' Real Lives

A BBC Radio 4 drama collection

H G Wells

Yevgeni Zamyatin

Franz Kafka

Aldous Huxley

George Orwell

John Wyndham

Full-cast dramatisations of six masterpieces from the founding fathers of dystopian fiction 
 
Dark and disturbing, provocative and prescient, dystopian literature has long captured our imagination with its nightmarish visions of forbidding future worlds. Included here are six classic novels of time-travel, totalitarianism and terror, written by some of the masters of speculative fiction and adapted for radio with all-star casts. 
 
The Time Machine by HG Wells - A Victorian inventor takes a fateful journey into the far future, where mankind has diverged into two species - the Eloi and the Morlocks. Robert Glenister and William Gaunt star in this pioneering science fiction adventure. 
 
We by Evgeny Zamyatin - In a post-revolutionary future, OneState is ruled according to the principles of rationality. The penalty for dissent is death. But when engineer D-503 meets the beautiful 1-330, he begins to question everything... Starring Anton Lesser, Don Warrington and Brigit Forsyth. 
 
The Trial by Franz Kafka - Josef K is an ordinary man who lives a quiet life. Then, one morning, he is awoken by two men and arrested - but what is his crime? Mike Gwylim stars in this gripping dramatisation by Hanif Kureishi. 
 
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley - It's 2116 and Helmholtz Watson and Bernard Marx are token rebels in a society where eugenics, promiscuity and happiness are gently enforced. Into this world comes an outsider, John, who will show the duo what rebellion really means... Starring Justin Salinger, John Coy and Milton Lopes. 
 
Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell - Winston Smith works for the Ministry of Truth, rewriting history to suit the Party. When he finds love with Julia, he awakens to new possibilities - but free thinking is forbidden, and Big Brother is always watching... Christopher Eccleston and Pippa Nixon star in Orwell's chilling tale. 
 
The Chrysalids by John Wyndham - In a post-apocalyptic world devastated by genetic mutation, the God-respecting people of Waknuk regard deviation as the work of the Devil. Young David and his friends can communicate by telepathy: but as Mutants, they must hide their powers or face the consequences of discovery... Starring Matthew Beard, Verity-May Henry and Emma Cunniffe. 
 
First published 1899 (The Time Machine), 1921 (We), 1925 (The Trial), 1932 (Brave New World), 1949 (Nineteen Eighty-Four), 1955 (The Chrysalids) 
 
(P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. © 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Classic Dystopias: A BBC Radio Drama Collection

The Time Machine, We, The Trial, Brave New World, Nineteen Eighty-Four, The Chrysalids

Gary Brown

Leah Chillery

David Hodgson

Alan Harris

Anna Mary Murphy

Lavinia Murray

A series of inter-linked plays exploring birth, marriage and death through the prism of a Welsh Register OfficeIsn't it strange that the registering of life's most important moments happens in a sterile municipal office? Everyone's got a story to tell about how they got there. Listen for the first time to this spectacular collection of six funny, quirky and moving plays that start in a Register Office and end in a birth, marriage or death.In Uncle Harry, Mark’s life is nicely well-ordered until a passing comment from Uncle Harry sends him on a quest to discover his true identity. This is a comedy about grief and the true meaning of family.Losing my Penny is a story of love, secrets and family. Leo is in love with Penny and plans to marry her but Penny's possessive father has other ideas. Leo has secrets of his own which threatens to ruin everything.Teddy is on his stag night in the comedy Time and Tide. He wakes up naked and handcuffed to a lamp post. So far, so normal. But then he realises that something very weird has occurred which makes him question everything…A Certain Date is a surreal and darkly comic exploration of the meaning of death. Geoff Levine, aka the Slim Reaper, is a pest control technician. All day long he kills rats and other vermin but when he meets Mystic June, she tells him something that will alter the rest of his life – what's left of it anyway.An unexpected family secret is unearthed in Nine Lives, when Beth's elderly father Patrick claims never to have been born because he's lived forever. As Beth tries to untangle the truth of her father's birth, she uncovers more than she bargained for.Lastly, Elephants all the Way tells the story of Harper, who works in a zoo. He is a simple soul but his life is complicated. His wife is desperate for a baby, and his angry dad is a bare knuckle boxer. Then the ground starts to shift - literally…Engaging, funny and thought provoking, these six plays were recorded by BBC Wales. This brilliant series of modern dramas showcase some of Wales’s best acting talent. Download all six plays now for a mesmerising listen.Episode 1 - Uncle HarryWritten by Gary Brown 
Directed by Helen PerryMark - Dylan Edwards 
Uncle Harry - Ewan Bailey 
Elaine - Denise Black 
Helen - Katherine Jakeways 
Lionel - Christian Patterson 
Charlotte - Rachel Redford 
Dad - David CannEpisode 2 - Losing my PennyWritten by Leah Chillery 
Directed by Gary BrownLeo - Don Gilet 
Penny - Verity May Henry 
Rita - Kathryn Hunt 
Henry - Conrad Nelson 
Duchess - Tupele Dorgu 
Bartholomew - Fiona ClarkeEpisode 3 - Time and Tide Written by David Hodgson 
Directed by Gary BrownOld Man - Will Tacey 
Teddy - Alan Morrissey 
Lawrence - Will Ash 
Megan - Hannah Wood 
Brankin - Sean Mason 
Jess - Harriet Chandler Judd 
Shaffy - Hamilton BerstockEpisode 4 - A Certain DateWritten by Alan Harris 
Directed by Helen PerryGeoff - Julian Lewis Jones 
Valmai - Sara McGaughey 
Sandy - Katy Owen 
Mystic June - Lisa Palfrey 
Doctor Ramis - Richard Mitchley 
Pigeon - Sion Pritchard 
King Rat - Michael BertenshawEpisode 5 – Nine Lives Written by Anna Maria Murphy 
Directed by James RobinsonBeth - Eiry Thomas 
Patrick - Peter Marinker 
Bill - Christian Patterson 
Mrs Knowles - Sharon Morgan 
Miriam/Janet - Eirlys Bellin 
Reg/Harold - Matthew GravelleEpisode 6 – Elephants All the Way Up Written by Lavinia MurrayDirected by Gary BrownHarper - Graeme Hawley 
Yolanda - Kate Coogan 
Dad - Seamus O'Neill 
Carlos - Chris Jack 
Arlo/Turtle - Lloyd Peters 
Grayson/Turtle -Malcolm Raeburn 
Woman/Turtle - Lisa Allen©2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Hatch, Match and Dispatch

Six Full-Cast Original BBC Radio Dramas

Elizabeth Bowen

A collection of full-cast dramas from one of Ireland's foremost writers - plus Elizabeth Bowen's thoughts on the novelist's craft 
 
Elizabeth Bowen was one of the 20th century's most distinctive writers. An associate of the Bloomsbury Set, she was a keen observer of upper-middle-class life and relationships. Best known for her novels of the Anglo-Irish gentry and wartime London, her fiction displays recurring themes of loss, rootlessness and displacement. This collection contains five of Bowen's best-loved works, and hears from the author herself in three radio talks on the art of novel-writing. 
 
The Heat of the Day - London, 1942. When Stella discovers that her lover, Robert, is suspected of selling secrets to the enemy, she finds herself caught between two men: one a potential spy, the other a blackmailer... A compelling tale of love, espionage and betrayal, in one of the quintessential depictions of London during World War II, starring Harriet Walter, Michael Maloney and Bill Nighy. 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 28 Nov 1998 
 
The House in Paris - Even as she lays dying, scheming Madame Fisher manipulates the lives of young Henrietta and Leopold. But will her own secrets and lies ever be revealed? Sara Kestelman stars in this enthralling story of deception, scandal and death. 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 3-17 Jul 1994 
 
The Last September - 1920, Danielstown, County Cork. Poised on the brink of womanhood, Lois flirts and dances with English officers at society parties- but the Troubles are closing in, and her world is about to change irrevocably. This evocative coming-of-age tale stars Anna Healy and Greg Wise. 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 9-16 Sep 1996 
 
The Confidant - Starring Cathy Belton and Fionnuala Murphy, this penetrating short story, set in 1920s Cork, revolves around a couple in a clandestine relationship and the woman who keeps all their secrets. 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 2 Nov 1998 
 
The Demon Lover - Mrs Drover nervously returns to her deserted London house in the Blitz to find a letter on the hall table - a reminder of a special rendezvous she cannot fully recollect... Maggie Steed stars in Elizabeth Bowen's eerie ghost story. 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 17 Jul 1997 
 
Truth and Fiction - In these three talks about the art of writing fiction, Elizabeth Bowen discusses the importance of story, people and time in establishing a novel's 'truth'. 
First broadcast BBC Home Service Basic, 26 Sep-10 Oct 1956 
 
NB: Due to the age of the source material, the sound quality of Truth and Fiction may vary 
 
The Last September copyright &copy; Elizabeth Bowen 1929, 1952 
Copyright renewed 
The House in Paris copyright &copy; Elizabeth Cameron 1935 
Copyright &copy; renewed by Elizabeth D. C. Cameron 1963 
The Heat of the Day copyright &copy; Elizabeth Bowen 1948 
Copyright &copy; renewed by Spencer Curtis and Graham August Watson 1976 
'The Confidant' and 'The Demon Lover' copyright &copy; 1923, 1945 
Copyright &copy; Curtis Brown Ltd, 1980 
 
 
&copy; 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Elizabeth Bowen: A BBC Radio Full-Cast Drama Collection

The Heat of the Day, The House in Paris and More

Jane Austen

A female-centred collection of four dramatisations celebrating Jane Austen’s classic novels - plus bonus series When I Met Jane Austen 
 
On 16 December 1775, a literary icon was born. Jane Austen’s groundbreaking novels pioneered the romantic comedy genre and put women front and centre, depicting their innermost thoughts and feelings. To celebrate her 250th anniversary, here are four new dramas, focusing on the fabulous, flawed, funny and fascinating women who blaze out from her books. Full of her characteristic wit and biting comedy, they feature star-studded casts including Tamsin Greig, Isabella Laughland, Luke Thompson, Miles Jupp, Adjoa Andoh, and Ben Hardy. 
 
Pride and Prejudice – Featuring one of the best-loved heroines in literature – lively, quick-witted Elizabeth Bennet – this dramatisation tells the story of the five Bennet sisters’ romantic escapades, as they endeavour to fulfil their mother’s dreams and marry well. 
 
Sense and Sensibility – When their father’s death turns their world upside down, rational, reserved Elinor Dashwood and her impulsive, emotional sister Marianne leave their old lives behind and embark on a voyage of romantic discovery. 
 
Northanger Abbey – Seventeen-year-old Catherine Morland is a kind, honest and unworldly young woman with a head full of Gothic novels and little experience of the real world. So when wealthy, handsome Henry Tilney invites her to Northanger Abbey, she is determined to discover its dark secrets... 
 
Mansfield Park – Aged just nine, Fanny Price is sent away from her impoverished parents to live with her rich relatives at Mansfield Park. Shaped by family and adversity, this displaced child becomes a fiercely moral young woman with an unshakable conscience – and as she navigates the complexities of love and jealousy, her true strength of character is revealed. 
 
When I Met Jane Austen – Ten of the world’s most prominent authors and thinkers talk to Jane Austen biographer Paula Byrne about when they first encountered the great writer. Featuring contributions from David Baddiel, Andrew Davies, Amy Heckerling, Marlon James, Philippa Perry, Gurinder Chadha, Val McDermid, Colm Toibin, Katherine Rundell and Kate Atkinson. 
 
 
Cast and credits 
Written by Jane Austen 
 
Pride and Prejudice 
Starring Tamsin Greig, Isabella Laughland, Luke Thompson, Miles Jupp, Rosie Cavaliero, Lucy Doyle, Kitty O’Sullivan, Gaia Wise, Imogen Front, Louis Landau, Toby Regbo, Adjoa Andoh, Catherine Bailey, Josh Bryant-Jones, Sasha McCabe, Jasmine Hyde, Clive Haywood, and Sarah Thom 
 
Dramatised by award winning writer Rachel Joyce 
Produced by Tracey Neale 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 6 Dec 2025 
 
Sense and Sensibility 
Starring Tamsin Greig, Madeleine Mantock, Rose Basista, Ben Hardy, Enyi Okoronkwo, Richard Goulding, Ava Talbot, Jasmine Hyde, Carolyn Pickles, Clive Hayward, Django Bevan, Sasha McCabe, and Bethan Rose Young 
 
Dramatised by Claudine Toutoungi 
Produced by Anne Isger 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 6 Dec 2025 
 
Northanger Abbey 
Starring Madeleine Gray, Will Howard, Cecilia Appiah, Ella Smith, John Heffernan, Scarlett Courtney, Jasmine Hyde, Josh Bryant-Jones, and Django Bevan 
 
Dramatised by Clara Glynn 
Produced by Gaynor Macfarlane 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 2-9 Nov 2025 
 
Mansfield Park 
Starring Lydia Wilson, Bryan Dick, Tala Gouveia, Tom Mothersdale, Janice Acquah, Madeleine Worrall, Joshua Riley, John Hollingworth, Samuel Valentine, Faith Alabi, and Hollie Burgess 
 
Dramatised by Clara Glynn 
Directed by Gaynor Macfarlane 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 10-17 Jul 2022When I Met Jane Austen 
Presented by Paula Byrne 
With David Baddiel, Andrew Davies, Amy Heckerling, Marlon James, Philippa Perry, Gurinder Chadha, Val McDermid, Colm Toibin, Katherine Rundell and Kate AtkinsonProduced by Maggie Ayre 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 8-19 Dec 2025 
© 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Jane Austen: The 250th Anniversary Collection

Four Full-Cast BBC Radio Dramatisations

G.K. Chesterton

A. E. W. Mason

Victor Whitechurch

Edgar Wallace

Marie Belloc Lowndes

Anna Katharine Green

Josephine Tey

A collection of thrilling tales from the Golden Age of Detective Fiction, including six full-cast dramas and a short story read by Benedict Cumberbatch 
 
In the first half of the 20th century, the detective story exploded in popularity. Innovative authors penned whodunits, whydunits and clue-puzzle stories, and introduced iconic sleuths, creating works that would later become classics. This Golden Age, which reached its height during the 1920s and ’30s, saw the crowning of the ‘Queens of Crime’, the formation of the Detection Club and the laying down of new rules of crime writing – and the fiction produced during this period has had lasting appeal and influence, fundamentally shaping the ‘cosy crime’ novels of today. 
 
This collection gathers together seven sensational stories from Golden Age authors – some well-known, others unjustly overlooked – beginning with three by founding members of the Detection Club. The Blue Cross by G.K. Chesterton features the first appearance of one of the best-loved detectives in fiction: Father Brown, as he pursues arch-villain and master of disguise Flambeau. Andrew Sachs stars as the insightful cleric, with Olivier Pierre as his wily nemesis. 
 
In The House of the Arrow by A.E.W. Mason, starring Richard Pasco and Moir Leslie, a young woman living in Dijon is accused of murder, leading her lawyer to call in the Sûreté’s best officer, Inspector Hanaud. 
 
Narrated by Benedict Cumberbatch, The Affair of the German Dispatch-Box by Victor Whitechurch sees daring Edwardian sleuth Thorpe Hazell using his locomotive expertise to solve an ingenious and audacious railway crime. 
 
A legendary assassin and vigilante returns from the dead in The Ringer by Edgar Wallace, and Scotland Yard must find him before he exacts his revenge. David Davis stars as the ‘Gaunt Stranger’, and Alexander John as the tenacious Inspector Wembury. 
 
In An Unrecorded Instance by Marie Belloc Lowndes, Hetty Mingle ignores her dying mother's advice about fortune hunters – but will she end up regretting it? Starring Mary O’Farrell and Brenda Bruce. 
 
The Golden Slipper by Anna Katharine Green finds New York debutante (and reluctant detective) Violet Strange tasked with investigating four rich young women suspected of multiple thefts. Teresa Gallagher stars as the socialite sleuth, with Crawford Logan as her client, Driscoll. 
 
Concluding this collection is Miss Pym Disposes by Josephine Tey, which finds psychologist Lucy Pym investigating a death at a women’s physical education college. Starring Julia Foster as Miss Pym and Joan Sims as her friend, headmistress Henrietta Hodge, this dark, engrossing psychological thriller is a late Golden Age gem. 
 
First published 1910 (The Blue Cross), 1912 (The Affair of the German Dispatch-Box), 1915 (The Golden Slipper), 1924 (The House of the Arrow, An Unrecorded Instance), 1929 (The Ringer), 1946 (Miss Pym Disposes) 
 
© 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The Golden Age: Mystery and Murder

Seven BBC Radio Adaptations of Classic Crime Mysteries

Oscar Wilde

Arthur Conan Doyle

Virginia Woolf

A treasure chest of timeless short stories by some of the world's greatest authors 
 
Suspense and horror 
1 The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire - Arthur Conan Doyle 
2 The Signalman - Charles Dickens 
3 Lost Hearts - MR James 
4 The Sealed Room - Arthur Conan Doyle. 
5 Mrs Badgery - Wilkie Collins 
6 Wailing Well - MR James 
7 The Open Window - Saki 
8 How it happened - Arthur Conan Doyle 
9 The Tell-Tale Heart - Edgar Allan Poe 
10 The Cone - HG Wells 
11 A Haunted House - Virginia Woolf 
12 Rats - MR James 
13 The Oval Portrait - Edgar Allan Poe 
14 Tarquin of Cheapside - F. Scott Fitzgerald 
15 One Crowded Hour - Arthur Conan Doyle 
16 The Mezzotint - MR James 
17 The Masque of the Red Death - Edgar Allan Poe 
 
Love 
18 The Kiss - Kate Chopin 
19 Eleonora - Edgar Allan Poe 
20 About Love - Anton Chekhov 
21 The Lovers - Hans Christian Anderson 
22 Love - Guy De Maupassant 
23 The Sphinx Without a Secret - Oscar Wilde 
24 A Wedding Gift - Guy De Maupassant 
25 Kew Gardens - Virginia Woolf 
26 The District Doctor - Ivan Turgenev 
27 Happiness - Guy De Maupassant 
28 A Blunder - Anton Chekhov 
29 The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky - Stephen Crane 
30 In a Far-Off World - Olive Schreiner 
31 The Cook's Wedding - Anton Chekhov 
32 The Recruit - Honore de Balzac 
33 The Nightingale and the Rose - Oscar Wilde 
34 Pyramus and Thisbe - Ovid 
35 Aunt Hetty on Matrimony - Fanny Fern 
36 A Country Cottage - Anton Chekhov 
37 Marriage a la Mode - Katherine Mansfield 
38 The Statue of Limitations - Ernest Dowson 
39 The Dilettante - Edith Wharton 
 
Humorous 
40 Tobermory - Saki 
41The Mesmeric Mountain - Stephen Crane 
42 The Children's Joke - Louisa May Alcott 
43 At The Siren - Anton Chekhov 
44 The Garden Party - Katherine Mansfield 
45 The Cask of Amontillado - Edgar Allan Poe 
46 The New Dress - Virginia Woolf 
47 How I Built Myself A House - Thomas Hardy 
48 The Model Millionaire - Oscar Wilde 
49 A Pair of Silk Stockings - Kate Chopin 
50 At The Barbers - Anton Chekhov 
51 A Respectable Woman - Kate Chopin 
 
Folk &amp; Fable 
52 The Happy Prince - Oscar Wilde. 
53 The Elves and the Shoemaker - The Brothers Grimm 
54 The Emperor's New Clothes -Hans Christian Andersen 
55 The Tongue Cut Sparrow - Yei Theodora Ozaki 
56 Finn and the Scottish Giant - Harold F. Read 
57 The Postmaster - Rabindranath Tagore 
58 The Toys of Peace - Saki 
59 The Selfish Giant - Oscar Wilde 
60 The Flower Gatherer - Edward Thomas 
61 Araby - James Joyce 
62 The Interlopers - Saki 
63 Tom Thumb - The Brothers Grimm 
64 The Kabuliwalah - Rabindranath Tagore 
65 The Monkey's Paws - WW Jacobs 
 
Christmas 
66 The Little Match Girl - Hans Christian Andersen 
67 Papa Panov's Special Christmas - Leo Tolstoy 
68 Christmas Storms and Sunshine - Elizabeth Gaskell. 
69 The Gift of the Magi - O'Henry 
70 At Christmas Time - Anton Chekhov 
71 A Dill Pickle - Katherine Mansfield 
 
Classic Tales 
72 The Yellow Wallpaper - Charlotte Perkins Gilman 
73 The Fall of Lord Barrymore - Arthur Conan Doyle 
74 The Necklace - Guy De Maupassant 
75 Holiday Group - EM Delafield 
76 Three Questions - Leo Tolstoy 
77 The Cop and the Anthem - O'Henry 
78 The Fly - Katherine Mansfield 
79 The Christening - DH Lawrence 
80 After the Race - James Joyce 
81 The String Quartet - Virginia Woolf 
82 Two Friends - Guy De Maupassant 
83 An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge - Ambrose Bierce. 
84 A Gentleman Friend - Anthon Chekhov 
85 Ma'ame Pelagie - Kate Chopin 
86 Second Best - DH Lawrence 
87 El Verdugo - Honore de Balzac 
88 The Story of an Hour - Kate Chopin 
89 The Man of No Account - Bret Hart 
90 The Piece of String - Guy De Maupassant 
©2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

BBC Classics: Ultimate Story Collection

90 unmissable tales

Denise Mina

Full-cast dramas and short stories from bestselling author Denise Mina, plus a bonus interview 
 
An acclaimed novelist, playwright and comic book writer, Denise Mina has won numerous awards, including the CWA John Creasy Dagger for Best First Crime Novel and the Theakstons Old Peculiar Crime Novel of the Year Award (twice). Her 'Paddy Meehan' series has been adapted for BBC TV, and she has presented numerous television and radio programmes. Included here are six of her stories, as heard on BBC Radio, plus a bonus biographical programme. 
 
The Dead Hour - Glasgow, 1984. Called out to a domestic dispute involving a female lawyer, cub reporter Paddy Meehan accepts a bribe to keep the story out of the papers. But when the woman is found dead the next day, Paddy feels compelled to investigate. Starring Amy Manson. 
 
Three Fires - Focussing on the rise and fall of fanatical Dominican preacher Girolamo Savonarola, Denise Mina turns her satirical eye on Renaissance Florence and the events leading up to the Bonfire of the Vanities. Kieran Hodgson reads this gripping historical tale. 
 
'Squirrels are Pretty from Far Away' - Alice is disturbed by the squirrels infesting her new home, but when she is accused of a crime it is the squirrels who come to her rescue. Read by Tracy Wiles. 
 
'In a State of Nature' - A murder under Tanzanian skies, and a beautiful young woman is left rootless after her rich, kindly lover disappears mysteriously at a roadside petrol station. Read by Emma Currie. 
 
Hurtle - Three financial dealers are trapped in a plummeting lift during a major trading scandal. But did someone deliberately cause the lift to malfunction? Starring John Kielty, Crawford Logan and Alexandra Mathie. 
 
The Meek - Baby Simone has Down's Syndrome, and her mother is convinced she has special powers. Is she traumatised, or is Simone really leading a parallel life in a world where superheroes exist and are being hunted down? Meg Fraser and Sarah Gordy star in this dark, surreal drama. 
 
Inspecting Detectives - Ex-detectives Tom Wood and Peter Ritchie give Denise Mina the 'good cop, bad cop' treatment to find out what makes her tick, grilling her on her life, her writing, and her portrayal of police work. 
 
Text copyright © Denise Mina 2002 ('Squirrels are Pretty from Far Away', 'In a State of Nature'), 2003 (Hurtle), 2006 (The Dead Hour), 2009 (The Meek), 2022 (Three Fires) 
All rights reserved 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Denise Mina: A BBC Radio Collection

The Dead Hour, Three Fires & more

Leo Tolstoy

Charlotte Brönte

Gustave Flaubert

William Shakespeare

Colette

Alessandro Manzoni

Radclyffe Hall

Emily Brontë

Elizabeth Gaskell

Edith Wharton

Thomas Hardy

Twelve dramatisations of the best love stories ever written, performed by star casts 
 
Treat yourself to this stunning collection of classic stories of love, loss, obstacles overcome and desperate attraction. This is a beautiful, moving and at times thrilling listen which takes you on a journey through the greatest tales of romance ever told. These unmissable, dramatised novels feature stellar performances from fantastic casts including Vanessa Kirby, Hiftu Quasem, Kate Philips, Rory Kinnear, Toby Jones, John Hurt and David Tennant. 
 
Anna Karenina is Leo Tolstoy's powerful drama of desire, transgression and heartache. Starring Kate Philips (Wolf Hall), Alfred Enoch (Harry Potter) and Rory Kinnear (James Bond films). 
 
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë is a fantastic mix of injustice, romance, passion and danger wrapped up in a glorious love story. Starring Amanda Hale (Catastrophe) and Tom Burke (Strike). 
 
Gustave Flaubert’s Madame Bovary is a masterpiece of betrayal and wantonness - the first great novel of adultery. Starring Sarah Smart (Wallander), Jude Akuwudike (Gangs of London) and James D’Arcy (Broadchurch) with John Hurt (Harry Potter) as the Narrator. 
 
Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. In a town full of hatred, where the streets ring with the Capulet-Montague feud and swords are too easily drawn, Romeo and Juliet find each other, fall in love, and never let go. Starring Trystan Gravelle (Mr Selfridge), Vanessa Kirby (Mission Impossible), David Tennant (Broadchurch) and Paul Ready (Motherland). 
 
Chéri by Colette is the story of a love affair between a courtesan and a man half her age, set in Paris before the First World War. Starring Frances Barber (Silk) and Joseph Millson (The Last Kingdom) with Lindsay Duncan (Birdman) as the Narrator. 
 
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen remains one of the world’s favourite novels, dealing with the timeless issues of love, social class and money with a witty, clever - though flawed - heroine at its heart. Starring Pippa Nixon (Unforgotten), Jamie Parker (The Crown) and Toby Jones (The Detectorists). 
 
The Betrothed by Alessandro Manzoni is an icon of Italian literature: the story of two lovers who want nothing more than to marry but are beset by the hazards of war, bread riots and the machinations of a nameless crime lord. Starring Hiftu Quasem (Killing Eve) and Ian Dunnett Jnr (Masters of the Air). 
 
The Well of Loneliness by Radclyffe Hall, written in 1928, is a pioneering novel about love and attraction between women. Starring Valerie Edmond as the enigmatic Stephen. 
 
Wuthering Heights is Emily Brontë's iconic love story. Heathcliff and Cathy's love is the beating heart of the story, set against the backdrop of the bleak Yorkshire moors. Starring Chloe Pirrie (Temple) and Ben Batt (Shameless). 
 
North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell explores social conscience, ideological difference and love in a mill town in the 1800s. Starring Emily Mortimer (The Pursuit of Love) and David Threlfall (Shameless). 
 
The Age of Innocence is Edith Wharton’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about a passionate life-long love affair which breaks all the rules of the restrictive high society of 1870's New York. Starring Susan Lynch (Happy Valley) and Kellie Bright (Eastenders). 
 
Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy is a story of the belief in true romance and the power of money and love. Starring Alex Tregear (Silk: The Clerk’s Room), Toby Jones (The Detectorists) and Patrick Kennedy (Boardwalk Empire). 
 
This stunning collection is packed with the best romance stories written in the last 500 years – a fully dramatised, unmissable listen featuring some of the biggest names of stage and screen. 
 
©2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Classic Love Stories: A BBC Radio Drama Collection

12 Full-Cast Dramatisations including Wuthering Heights, now a major film

Michael Payne

Debbie Cook

Dennis Ashton

Stephen Mulrine

Sarah Maxwell

Five fantastical tales, each with a magical twist 
 
Discover a lady with a taste for immortality, a man who becomes a dragon, a man-eating witch and a modern retelling of Beauty and the Beast. Perfect for fans of fantasy, these epic tales are packed with magical elements, fantastical creatures, and heroic conflicts between good and evil.In Lady Faustus by Michael Payne, the town gossips have only one subject of conversation - the mysterious Lady Faustus. The conjectures about her and her origins are boundless. But a certain handsome young lieutenant finds that the truth about her is far stranger than any fiction. Starring Rula Lenska as Lady Faustus and James Aubrey as Franz.Debbie Cook’s The Beast of Long Mindham stars Jon Glover as John Tillner. John doesn’t believe in dragons – who does, these days? But then he meets a witch who offered to turn him into one. Will John be tempted…?There is a legend that King Arthur will return to save England from great danger. The Peril by Dennis Ashton tells the story of what happens when George, son of George, is made King. The year is 1940, and the Battle of Britain is at its height...Ivan the Fool and Vasilisa the Wise by Stephen Mulrine features a man-eating witch, a talking doll, a dead princess and a live skeleton. Ivan is determined to marry the beautiful Vasilisa, no matter what the obstacles. But, as the saying goes, the course of true love never did run smooth…The Good, the Bad and the Slightly Unprepossessing by Sarah Maxwell is a modern retelling of Beauty and the Beast set in America, with multi-millionaire 'Heartless' Harrison Hope. With his six-inch nails and hair and beard to the ground, he is very much the Beast and - well, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, isn't it?©2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

High Fantastical

Five Full-Cast BBC Radio Dramas

Aphra Behn

Susanna Centivre

William Congreve

Delarivier Manley

John Vanburgh

George Farquhar

A dazzling collection of comedies from the later Restoration period 
 
England's 'Glorious Revolution' of 1688 and the reign of new monarchs William and Mary signified a turning point for Restoration comedy with laws being passed to restrict playwrights' freedoms. The latter years are marked by a shift towards more moral storylines, mixing humour with social and political issues, alongside the lighthearted 'comedy of manners'. 
 
The works in this collection bring together these complementary styles, full of humour while also focusing on hard hitting themes. We open with a 1688 piece by Aphra Behn, England's first professional female writer. Oroonoko is a powerful critique of the slave trade centring around a betrayed African prince. Adapted for BBC Radio, it stars Leo Wringer. 
 
A pre-eminent Restoration dramatist, William Congreve was renowned for his witty dialogue and brilliant characterisation, exemplified in the plays The Old Bachelor, The Double-Dealer and Love for Love. As heard on BBC Radio, these sparkling satirical portraits of romance, deception and the battle of the sexes star James Dale, Nicholas Parsons, Michael Spice and Maxine Audley. 
 
In her 1696 tragedy The Royal Mischief playwright and pamphleteer Delarivier Manley tackled gender politics rather than party politics. This BBC Radio adaptation stars Sian Thomas as the transgressive princess Homais, whose unrestrained sexual desire represents a threat to both the monarchy and the patriarchy. 
 
A loveless marriage is under the spotlight in The Provok'd Wife, John Vanburgh's outspoken 1697 comedy of sex, debauchery and revenge that is Restoration comedy at its finest. Saskia Reeves stars as Lady Brute, with Julian Rhind-Tutt as confirmed bachelor Heartfree. 
 
Irish playwright George Farquhar stormed the London stage with his 1699 comedy The Constant Couple, featuring a wealthy heiress seeking revenge, and the three rivals vying for her hand. Its popularity was mainly due to its rakish hero, Sir Harry Wildair, played in this BBC dramatisation by Alec Clunes. It is followed by William Congreve's The Way of the World, a comic masterpiece that exposes the grasping falsity of fashionable London society. Sheila Hancock stars, with Alex Jennings, Robert Glenister, Frances Barber and Indira Varma. 
 
Susanna Centilivre's 1705 comedy The Basset Table explores several hot topics of the time: the rise of science, gambling and female education. Featuring two strong, independent heroines determined to dodge unwanted marriages, this delightfully exuberant comedy stars Eleanor Bron and Danielle Allan. 
 
Concluding this collection are George Farquhar's two most popular plays. The Recruiting Officer, starring Paul Higgins and Lisa Dillon, is set in Shrewsbury during the War of the Spanish Succession, where wives are recruited while soldiers are wooed. Meanwhile, in The Beaux' Stratagem, starring Simon Treves and Dale Rapley, two rakes arrive in Lichfield from London in search of fortune... 
 
 
Content list 
 
Oroonoko 
First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 24 August 1990 
 
The Old Bachelor 
First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 3 Jun 1966 
 
The Double-Dealer 
First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 17 Jan 1969 
 
Love for Love 
First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 18 Feb 1965 
 
The Royal Mischief 
First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 28 Oct 1990 
 
The Provok'd Wife 
First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 12 Dec 2004 
 
The Constant Couple 
First broadcast BBC Network Three, 9 Jun 1967 
 
The Way of the World 
First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 27 Apr 2003 
 
The Basset Table 
First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 10 Aug 1990 
 
The Recruiting Officer 
First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 18 Dec 2011 
 
The Beaux' Stratagem 
First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 19 Feb 1990 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Intrigue and Satire: Later Restoration Comedies

11 BBC Radio Full Cast Productions including The Recruiting Officer and The Way of the World and more

R.D Wingfield

A collection of vintage thrillers from popular crime writer RD Wingfield 
 
Well known as the creator of Inspector Jack Frost, RD Wingfield scripted numerous twisty, suspenseful dramas for BBC Radio between 1968 and 1995. Many of the thirteen tales in this collection were originally thought to be lost, but thanks to the diligent efforts of Keith Wickham and the Radio Circle, who tracked down the missing audio, they are once again available to enjoy. 
 
In Cat and Mouse Game, a wealthy woman goes missing, and her husband is suspected of murder. Ambitious security officer Hastler has a lot to lose when a surveillance operation goes wrong in Saturday Roster, and in Nightmare, a killer has escaped from a psychiatric ward and may be returning to the scene of his crime. Blood Money finds a branch manager forced to deal with a ransom demand, while Better Never than Late features a policeman on the brink of retirement determined to crack an unsolved kidnapping case. 
 
Warring colleagues Davenport and Desmond discover the advantages of working together in Compensating Error, and in Slow Fuze, an unexploded bomb proves to be a golden opportunity for Major Derry. The Tenth Anniversary concerns the strange disappearance of a detective inspector exactly a decade after the famous Monkstead murders, Death of the Insured sees a terminally ill private eye hired to find an errant husband, and Balance Brought Forward and The Night They Deliver The Money both focus on bank directors faced with potential disaster. Smiling and Beautiful Death, meanwhile, centres around a concussed motorist, a mysterious midnight funeral and a village full of sinister locals… 
 
Capping off our collection is the six-part serial The Killing Season, written under the pseudonym Arthur Jefferson and set in a sleepy town experiencing an unprecedented Christmas crime wave. Among the casts of these intriguing dramas are Nigel Havers, Frances Jeater, Leslie Sands, Garard Green, Deryck Guyler and Andrew Sachs. 
 
With warm thanks to Keith Wickham and the Radio Circle 
 
Cast and credits 
Written by RD Wingfield 
 
Contents 
 
Cat and Mouse Game 
Saturday Roster 
Nightmare 
Blood Money 
Better Never Than Late 
Compensating Error 
Slow Fuze 
The Tenth Anniversary 
Death of the Insured 
Balance Brought Forward 
The Night They Deliver the Money 
Smiling and Beautiful Death 
The Killing Season 
Written by Arthur Jefferson (pseudonym of R.D Wingfield) 
 
© 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

R.D Wingfield: Nightmare and Other Thrillers

13 Full-Cast BBC Radio Dramas

Robert Barr

Edgar Allan Poe

Julius Chambers

R. Austin Freeman

Arthur B Reeve

Matthias McDonnel Bodkin

Jacques Futrelle

Arthur Morrison

Ernest Bramah

Louisa Pirkis

Anna Katherine Green

The complete collection of all 16 episodes from this gripping BBC Radio crime series 
 
Inspector Lestrade of Scotland Yard was made to look a fool in the Sherlock Holmes stories. Now he gets his own back, introducing sixteen tales of detectives whose abilities rival that of the great Sherlock Holmes. 
 
Starring James Fleet (Series 1, 3 and 4) and Tim Piggott-Smith (Series 2) as Lestrade, with casts featuring Andrew Scott, Paul Rhys, Anton Lesser, Honeysuckle Weeks, Rupert Vansittart, John Sessions, Marcia Warren and Tim McInnerny. 
 
Dramatised for radio by Chris Harrald, these stories are written by masters of the crime and thriller genre, all contemporaries of Arthur Conan Doyle. 
 
They include: 
 The Murders on the Rue Morgue by Edgar Allan Poe 
The Problem of Cell 13 by Jacques Futrelle 
Murder By Proxy by Matthias McDonnel Bodkin 
The Mystery of Redstone Manor by Catherine Louisa Pirkis 
The Problem of the Superfluous Finger by Jacques Futrelle 
The Clue of the Silver Spoons by Robert Barr 
The Intangible Clue by Anna Katharine Green 
The Game Played in the Dark by Ernest Bramah 
The Kinght's Cross Signal Problem by Ernest Bramah 
A Snapshot by Matthias McDonnel Bodkin 
Seven, Seven, Seven - City by Julius Chambers 
The Moabite Cipher - by R Austin Freeman 
The Clairvoyants - by Arthur B Reeve 
The Stanway Cameo Mystery - Arthur Morrison 
The Secret of Dunstan's Tower - Ernest Bramah 
The Mystery of the Scarlet Thread - Jacques Futrelle 
 
Directed by Sasha Yevtushenko (Series 1) and Liz Webb (Series 2, 3, 4) 
 
 
(c) BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 2021 
(p) BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 2021

The Rivals: Tales of Sherlock Holmes’ rival detectives

16 BBC Radio full-cast dramas

Michael Gilbert

Ten full-cast vintage BBC Radio crime dramas featuring Michael Gilbert’s most enduring characters, including Mr Calder and Mr Behrens, Inspector Hazlerigg and Inspector Petrella 
 
A treat for any fan of crime dramas, this collection stars legendary voices including Prunella Scales, Maurice Denham, Peter Gilmore, Carleton Hobbs and James Bolam. 
 
Smallbone Deceased: When Marcus Smallbone, a trustee of a large trust fund, disappears, it at first causes irritation in that most eminent firm of solicitors, Horniman, Birley and Craine. When his body is discovered in one of the firm's deed-boxes, irritation turns to shock and shock to fear as one by one, the members of staff come under suspicion… Starring Hywel Bennett as Inspector Hazlerigg. 
 
After the Fine Weather: In the tiny province of Lienz, a bishop is assassinated in the presence of his people. Laura Hart saw the crime, but she finds that in the tangled world of international frictions you might tell the truth but it's difficult to be believed – and dangerous when you are... Starring Prunella Scales. 
 
Double Double: Mr. Behrens and Mr. Calder belong to a very secret organisation headed by Mr. Fortescue – an organisation even more secret, and apparently more deadly, than the celebrated M.I.5. In this story, a terrorist group is plotting to assassinate a visiting Sheikh. Starring Stephen Murray as Calder, Peter Howell as Behrens and Carleton Hobbs as Fortescue. 
 
On Slay Down: Counter-intelligence agents Calder and Behrens are back, and this time the story begins with a tea-party. But the host and his guest come from the world of espionage... and there is work to be done. Read by Geoffrey Beevers. 
 
The Last Chapter: A man is found dead in circumstances which point to suicide – but was it suicide? Starring Maurice Denham, James Bolam and Anna Cropper. 
 
Flash Point: Will Dylan is an electoral favourite – intelligent, sharp and good-looking. Jonas Killey, a small-time lawyer, is hounding Dylan in the hope of bringing him into disrepute. But no government can afford bad press during a general election, and Jonas finds himself pursued by those who want to keep him quiet… Starring Brian Haines and Alan Rowe. 
 
This gripping collection also presents five full-cast detective stories written for radio, starring Peter Gilmore as Inspector Petrella. A missing baby, a strange suicide, a mysterious arson, a protection racket run by an elusive master criminal, and a large cache of money discovered during an office block demolition all feature, and Detective Inspector Petrella is on the case… 
 
Michael Gilbert was one of the most prolific writers of the 20th century. He published over 30 novels and 185 stories during his lifetime. His stories encompass police procedurals, spy novels, short stories, courtroom dramas, classical mysteries, adventure thrillers, and crime novels. He was called the ‘Grandmaster’ by the Mystery Writers of America and given the Diamond Dagger from the Crime Writers' Association for lifetime achievement. This is an audio treat for anyone looking to listen to a thrilling full-cast production of classic crime drama. 
 
Please note: several of the programmes in this collection are vintage radio recordings. Given the age of these productions, the sound quality may vary. 
 
©2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Smallbone Deceased & other stories

11 Full-Cast Vintage BBC Radio Crime Dramas

James Follett

A collection of full-cast sci-fi dramas from the late, great James Follett, introduced by Follett himself and featuring his bestselling series Earthsearch 
 
Novelist, playwright and screenwriter James Follett wrote over 25 novels, more than 50 radio dramas and numerous TV scripts, including several episodes of Blake’s 7. He was one of the most borrowed authors in UK libraries, and his works have been translated into over a dozen languages. 
 
This anthology includes his finest radio plays and series – including many that have never previously been available before. Framing the collection is the special BBC7 programme Men, Martians and Machines, in which Follett himself introduces us to several of his most popular pieces, providing fascinating behind-the-scenes back stories and tracing the origins of Earthsearch through the evolution of his radio work. 
 
Described by Follett as ‘probably the quirkiest thing I've ever written’, The Devil to Pay features a driver who crashes his car in the desert, and a camper who pulls him from the wreckage. Norman Rodway and Derek Seaton star in this short playlet with a wicked twist. 
 
In The Man Who Invented Yesterday, starring Alan Rowe, a scientist is delighted when his DNA experiments come to fruition. 
 
In The Destruction Factor, a corporation’s new plant strain mutation escapes the lab and causes havoc. Starring T P McKenna, Paul Copley, Rosalind Adams and Clifford Rose. 
 
Next up are Follett’s acclaimed space dramas Earthsearch and Earthsearch II, charting the adventures of the crew of the starship Challenger. Among the ensemble cast are Sean Arnold, Amanda Murray, Kathryn Hurlbutt and Haydn Wood. 
 
The Bionic Blob and its sequel The Bionic Blob and the Stolen Wavelengths tell the story of a ‘Thing’ from outer space who becomes the unlikely sidekick to a private eye on Earth. Sandra Dickinson and Ed Bishop star. 
 
The Doppelganger Machine, set in 1933 and starring Peter Pratt and Hector Ross, sees a plane flying Christmas mail from France to England landing at an unexpected airport – and decade. 
 
In The Twisted Image, a dead woman is found in the boot of a Rolls-Royce, but the clues don’t add up... Douglas Blackwell and Peter Wickham star in this futuristic whodunit. 
 
In the post-apocalyptic disaster thriller Ice, starring Sean Barrett, Carol Drinkwater and Anthony Hyde, a giant iceberg breaks away from the Antarctic and drifts inexorably towards New York. Can the US military avert disaster? 
 
NB: Due to the age of some of the recordings, the sound quality may vary 
 
© 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P) 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Men, Martians and Machines: A BBC Radio Sci-Fi Collection

10 Full-Cast Dramas including Earthsearch

Alan Bennett

A unique collection of eight Alan Bennett stories, read by the author. Alan Bennett is one of Britain's best-loved authors and an acclaimed storyteller. This exclusive compilation includes eight of his best tales, collected together for the first time. 
 
Here is his celebrated, iconic memoir The Lady in the Van; as well as two fascinating autobiographical accounts of his family and childhood. Uncle Clarence sees Bennett visiting the grave of a relative who died in Flanders in 1917; while in Hymn he joins forces with composer George Fenton and the Medici String Quartet to explore his musical memories. 
 
Bennett's incisive, acute observations shine through in his fiction too, with wry, moving and darkly humorous meditations on death (Father! Father! Burning Bright and The Laying On of Hands), sex (The Shielding of Mrs Forbes) and middle-age ennui (The Clothes They Stood Up In). His gift for affectionate satire reaches its pinnacle in The Uncommon Reader, a delightful tale in which the Queen discovers the pleasures of literature. 
 
Poignant, compassionate, wise and witty, the stories included are The Lady in the Van, Uncle Clarence, The Clothes They Stood Up In, Father! Father! Burning Bright, Hymn, The Laying On of Hands, The Uncommon Reader and The Shielding of Mrs Forbes. Duration: 13 hours approx.

Alan Bennett: Stories

Read by Alan Bennett

Alexander McCall-Smith

Rachel Joyce

Charles Dickens

Anton Chekhov

Jeremy Front

A sparkling seasonal anthology of BBC dramas and readings 
 
Christmas is the perfect time to curl up with a good story, and this cracking collection brings you 30 wonderfully diverse tales inspired by this most special of seasons. From Santa Claus, gift-giving and family gatherings, to an unexpected encounter in a snowstorm and an alternative take on the Nativity, they're sure to get you in the festive mood. 
 
Here are modern readings of classics such as Charles Dickens' 'A Christmas Tree', Anton Chekhov's 'At Christmas Time', Hans Christian Andersen's 'The Fir Tree', O Henry's 'The Gift of the Magi', Elizabeth Gaskell's 'Christmas Storms and Sunshine' and Leo Tolstoy's 'Papa Panov's Special Christmas'. Alongside them is some superb short fiction by contemporary authors, including Stella Duffy ('South'), Paul McVeigh ('Daddy Christmas'), Laura Barnett ('Survivors'), and nine delightful stories by Alexander McCall Smith. Among the stellar narrators are Don Gilet, Nina Sosanya, Hannah Gordon, Stephanie Cole and Meera Syal. 
 
Interspersed with these are a range of spellbinding plays, including Rachel Joyce's poignant Christmas by the Lake; festive action comedy Lena Marsh, Live and Schticking! by Jeremy Front; a very unusual and very dangerous Santa in The Morpeth Carol by Timothy X Atack; and Robert Hudson and Marie Phillips' epistolary animal tale, Some Hay in a Manger, introduced by Stephen Fry. All feature star casts including Niamh Cusack, Robert Lindsay, Sam Troughton, Clare Corbett, Tamsin Greig and Joel Fry. 
 
Heartwarming and heartfelt, comic and bittersweet, moving and magical, these fantastic, evocative stories are a real Christmas treat. 
 
Note: Chapter metadata updated in January 2023. 
 
Contents 
Christmas by the Lake by Rachel Joyce 
Christmas Short Stories by Alexander McCall Smith: 
· 'Motordrome' 
· 'The Revenge, or Otherwise, of Herbie Bontemps' 
· 'How to Escape in Gaelic' 
· 'The Colourful Life of Cousin Grace' 
· 'Good President Wenceslas' 
The Christmas Present by Ben Crompton 
Christmas Compass: Series 1: 
· 'North' by Malachy Tallack 
· 'South' by Stella Duffy 
· 'East' by Ruth Thomas 
· 'West' by Mike McCormack 
A Time to Dance by Lucy Gannon 
Christmas Compass: Series 2 by Alexander McCall Smith 
· 'Winter Journey' 
· 'In the DRC' 
· 'Primatologist' 
· 'On The Island' 
Midnight at Christmas by Elliott Kerrigan 
'The Fir Tree' by Hans Christian Andersen 
'At Christmas Time'by Anton Chekhov 
'Papa Panov's Special Christmas' by Leo Tolstoy 
Some Hay in a Manger by Robert Hudson and Marie Phillips 
'Daddy Christmas' by Paul McVeigh 
'Christmas Storms and Sunshine'by Elizabeth Gaskell 
The Morpeth Carol by Timothy X Atack 
'Survivors' by Laura Barnett 
Lena Marsh, Live and Shticking!by Jeremy Front 
'A Christmas Tree' by Charles Dickens 
'The Gift of the Magi' by O Henry 
Get Santa by Peter Gibbs 
'Home' by Christine Dwyer Hickey 
 
© 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

A BBC Christmas Collection

30 Festive Dramas and Stories

Sarah Millican

Joe Lycett

Bridget Christie

Susan Calman

Jon Richardson

Russell Kane

James Acaster

Mark Watson

Jenny Eclair

Aisling Bea

Romesh Ranganathan

Dane Baptiste

Shazia Mirza

Sanjeev Kholi

Angela Barnes

A cracking collection of comic monologues, written and read by leading comedians 
 
Recorded in front of a live audience at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, this fantastic anthology features a host of diverse short stories, composed and performed by a veritable Who's Who of stand-up comedians. By turns hilarious and irreverent, poignant and bittersweet, together they make up a superb selection box of tasty treats. 
 
Among the all-star line-up, Romesh Ranganathan tells a comic tale of unrequited love among the orangutans; Susan Calman takes a wry look at office politics; Jon Richardson explores the perils of internet dating; and Sarah Millican takes us into the worlds of a compassionate undertaker's assistant and an elderly woman who fears she's becoming invisible. 
 
Russell Kane recalls his tempestuous ex; Aisling Bea recounts the dark, funny tale of a pensioner with murder in mind; Robert Florence reveals the shady doings of the Scottish branch of the Illuminati; and satirist John O'Farrell asks, 'what if Judas had written the Gospels'? 
 
Also sharing their fantastic fiction are a wealth of other literary comics, including Sanjeev Kohli, Joe Lycett, Bridget Christie, James Acaster, Jenny Eclair, Shazia Mirza and Mark Watson. Short story fans, rejoice: here are five hours of some of the most charming, absurd, dark, thoughtful and funny tales you'll ever find in one place. 
 
Contents: 
1. May Contain Nuts by Janey Godley 
2. The Hair of the Dead by Sarah Millican 
3. Gone Phishing by Jon Richardson 
4. The Woman Who Sniffed by Susan Calman 
5. Just When You Thought It Was Safe to Be in the Green by Patrick Monahan 
6. On the Dot by Shazia Mirza 
7. Stairlift Us Up Where We Belong by Sarah Millican 
8. Spooky and the Van by Joe Lycett 
9. A Difference of Opinion by Bridget Christie 
10. The Three Times I Dumped Eleanor, and the Manner of Her Death by Russell Kane 
11. Sorry For Your Loss by James Acaster 
12. Club Sandwich by Mark Watson 
13. The Understudy by Jenny Eclair 
14. Kill Dilly by Aisling Bea 
15. I Bought a Monkey To Stand Out in the New York Art Scene by Sanjeev Kohli 
16. Love and Orangutans by Romesh Ranganathan 
17. Bad Fairytale by Grainne Maguire 
18. The Gospel According to Judas by John O'Farrell 
19. Pick Me Up by Angela Barnes 
20. Apocalypse Soon by Dane Baptiste 
21. Cats Who Walk Like Gentlemen by Robert Florence 
 
Production credits: 
Produced by Kirsteen Cameron 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 25 August 2009-6 September 2015 
 
© 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Comic Fringes

21 short stories by top comedians

Luigi Pirandello

A selection of plays by the award-winning Italian playwright – Luigi Pirandello 
 
Luigi Pirandello was an Italian playwright, novelist, and short-story writer, winner of the 1934 Nobel Prize for Literature. This collection features a selection of his most renowned plays. 
 
Six Characters in Search of an Author - The 1921 play about the nature of theatre and the problems of theatricality, in which six characters, whose author has abandoned them mid-process, turn up at a rehearsal and demand to be played by the actors present in order to resolve their tragedy and become 'real'. 
 
The Rules of the Game - A town in Italy, 1919: Leone and Silia, man and wife, live apart, and Guido is Silia's lover. There is an uncanny lack of jealousy on Leone's part, for he seems a man without any emotional cares whatever: to him it is all a game. It can still be a dangerous game.... 
 
Henry IV - A madman is shut up in a villa in Italy following an accident at a carnival. Twenty years later his friends come to visit him. Is he still mad, or is he sane? What is madness? What is sanity? 
 
'First Night' - A short storyThe phenomenal casts in these productions include: Juliette Binoche, Maurice Denham, Cherie Lunghi, Charles Grey, Oliver Ford Davies, Ben Daniels, Martin Jarvis and Mary Wimbush.

Six Characters in Search of an Author & other plays

Three Full-Cast BBC Radio Productions

Francis Durbridge

For thirty years the fictional crime novelist and detective Paul Temple, together with his Fleet Street journalist wife Steve, solved case after case in one of BBC Radio's most popular series. They inhabited a sophisticated world of chilled cocktails and fast cars, a world where Sir Graham Forbes, of Scotland Yard, usually needed Paul's help with his latest tricky case.   Flying home from a lecture tour of America, Paul Temple encounters Mike Langdon who is seeking to persuade his employer's spoilt daughter Julie to give up her boyfriend, pop-singer Tony Wyman.   Meeting Paul at the airport, Steve is drugged and kidnapped. She is released without harm - but mysteriously in possession of a coat, bearing the label 'Margo'.   As Mike seeks Paul's help, the Temples enter into a dangerous web of lies and murder.

Paul Temple And The Margo Mystery

Charles Chilton

The final series of Charles Chilton’s classic 1950s sci-fi trilogy and the gripping 1981 sequel 
 
Written by veteran radio producer Charles Chilton, Journey into Space kept Light Programme listeners enraptured between 1953 and 1958. Almost eight million people tuned in to the interstellar adventures of Jet Morgan and his intrepid crew, making it the last UK radio drama serial to beat television in the ratings. This audio collection contains the complete Series 3 of the groundbreaking trilogy, as well as the special 90-minute sequel The Return from Mars. 
 
The World in Peril – Continuing the suspenseful story begun in The Red Planet, this 20-part serial, set in 1972, follows Jet and his comrades as they return to Mars with orders to discover all they can about the impending Martian invasion of Britain. Stretched to their limits, they take on the awesome Martian power – and when they discover the astounding secret of the invasion plan, they must race against time to warn a defenceless Earth… Starring Andrew Faulds, Guy Kingsley-Poynter, Don Sharp and Alfie Bass. 
 
The Return from Mars – It’s an ordinary afternoon at London Landing Control. Suddenly, a voice breaks across another aircraft’s frequency: ‘This is the spaceship Discovery’… To the controller’s astonishment, Jet Morgan and his crew are re-entering the Earth’s atmosphere – more than 30 years after they went missing, presumed dead. What happened to Jet and friends during those years? Consulting his diary, Jet begins to tell their astonishing story… Starring John Pullen, Ed Bishop, Nigel Graham and Anthony Hall. 
 
Production credits 
Written and produced by Charles Chilton 
Music composed and orchestra conducted by Van Phillips 
 
The World in Peril 
Jet Morgan – Andrew Faulds 
Lemmy Barnett – Alfie Bass 
Doc – Guy Kingsley-Poynter 
Mitch – Don Sharp 
Other parts played by David Jacobs, Alan Tilvern, John Cazabon, Fred Yule and Pat Campbell 
 
First broadcast BBC Light Programme, 26 September 1955-6 February 1956 
 
The Return from Mars 
Jet Morgan – John Pullen 
Lemmy – Anthony Hall 
Doc – Ed Bishop 
Mitch – Nigel Graham 
Cassia – Elizabeth Proud 
Nichols – Patrick Barr 
Wrist radio/Countdown voice – David Bradshawe 
Pilot/Talian – Graham Faulkner 
Controller/Radio voice – Stephen Garlick 
Videophone/Junior officer – John McAndrew 
Control/Sotteer 2 – Sion Probert 
Sotteer 1/Harry – Christopher Scott 
Supervisor/Radio – John Webb 
 
Script by Charles Chilton 
Directed by Glyn Dearman 
 
First broadcast on the BBC Light Programme, 7 March 1981 
 
© 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

Journey into Space: The World in Peril & The Return from Mars

The Classic BBC Radio Sci-Fi Drama

Gwyn Thomas

Six full-cast dramatisations of the genius Welsh writer's novels, with 8 more story readings 
 
Gwyn Thomas, celebrated as one of Wales’s greatest writers in the English language, was a prolific author whose works spanned novels, short stories, plays for stage, radio, and television. 
 
This collection features his notable novel All Things Betray Thee, set in the early industrial era of South Wales, which explores the personal and societal impacts of industrialization through the eyes of a travelling harpist. Additionally, this collection includes a selection of his other works, showcasing his ability to capture the essence of Welsh life and his engaging storytelling. 
 
Content List: 
Dramatisations: 
All Things Betray Thee 
The Alderman 
He Knows, He Knows 
Gazooka 
The Entrance 
The Giving Time 
 
& Readings: 'Life in Meadow Prospect' (4 stories), 'The Cavers', 'Arrayed like one of these', 'Hugo My Friend', 'Little Fury'

Gwyn Thomas: A BBC Radio Collection

Six Full-Cast Dramatisations including All Things Betray Thee

Alison Plowden

Nine gripping dramas that delve into the turbulent, thrilling history of the Tudor eraAffairs and assassinations. Conflict and chaos. Power and plots. The tumultuous Tudor period is one of the most iconic and fascinating chapters in British history. In these ten atmospheric dramas, we get a glimpse into the inner workings of Tudor England – and rediscover the key characters we have grown to love and hate. Featuring world-renowned actors, these gripping, historically accurate tales are packed with excitement.A Pattern of Tudors - the story of Cardinal Wolsey who built Hampton Court, and Henry VIII who took it from him.True and Lawful Queen - Katherine of Aragon’s refusal to divorce Henry VIII sparks a chain of events that leads to the Reformation.Black Queen to King’s Castle - the ghost of Anne Boleyn tells her own story of the events that led to her execution.The Babington Plot - Told from the perspective of the conspirators, this is an enthralling account of the 1586 plot to assassinate Elizabeth I and return England to Catholic rule under Mary, Queen of Scots.La Princesse de Clèves - a playful adaptation of Madame de Lafayette's classic novel of intrigue and love set in the 16th Century and following the dangerous liaisons of a beautiful young lady newly presented to Court.Gold’s Fool - the true story of how Queen Elizabeth I was misled by alchemists into believing that the Arctic black rocks of Baffin Island were rich in precious ore.Mary Stuart - we learn of the extraordinary relationship between Elizabeth I and her rival cousin, the imprisoned Scottish queen.Edward, Edward - seen entirely through the eyes of children, this shows how Edward VI, crowned king at the age of nine, finds himself powerless in a world ruled by adults.The Nine Days Queen - the tragic story of the trial of Lady Jane Grey. Crowned Queen of England in 1553 aged 16, she was imprisoned in the Tower nine days later, and was dead within a year.Among the stellar cast of these remarkable dramas are Phyllida Nash, Michael Hordern, David Troughton, Izzy Meikle-Small, Stephen Greif, Burn Gorman, Roger Lloyd Pack, Kathleen Helme and Melody Grove.© 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The Tudor Crown

A BBC Radio 4 Drama Collection

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