Al Murray is a Perrier Award-winning comic, TV personality and, as 'The Pub Landlord', the author of the bestselling The Pub Landlord's Book of British Common Sense and Think Yourself British. Most recently, he has taken on the leadership of the Free United Kingdom Party (FUKP).

Al Murray

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.

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

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 Ayckbourn

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

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 Clark

Alan Clements

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 Connor

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 Cowell

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Suk Pannu

Meera Syal stars as Slough's answer to Miss Marple: a curious Indian chef who finds herself mixed up with murder 
 
Meera Syal is Mrs Sidhu, an Indian caterer with a highly active imagination and her own brand of crime solving - enough of a brand, in fact, that the local police have a file on her 'observations'. 
 
The first series, Murder with Masala, sees Mrs Sidhu catering an upscale Berkshire wedding at Lapsley Hall, where a bridesmaid goes missing. Calling in her contact Inspector Burton, Mrs Sidhu finds herself investigating the family's playboy son, the mysterious butler, and even Lord and Lady Lucas themselves. While simultaneously dealing with her argumentative son and her wily supplier, Mrs Sidhu must uncover the truth about the whole wedding party before it's too late. 
 
In the second series, Mrs Sidhu's Dangerous Highland Game, the sleuthing chef travels up to Scotland, catering for a billionaire at a remote shooting estate. But soon the client is missing and the estate is cut off by bad weather. Will Mrs Sidhu's clues give Inspector Burton a helping hand, or a headache? And is she there to reveal the truth about Castle Tannoch - or are they all just there as quarry for an entirely different type of hunt? 
 
Starring Meera Syal (Goodness Gracious Me, Broadchurch), Justin Edwards (The Thick of It, In and Out of the Kitchen) and Amy Morgan (Call the Midwife, Ten Percent), Mrs Sidhu Investigates is currently being adapted for TV, and is perfect for fans of Agatha Raisin and Father Brown. 
 
Cast 
Mrs Sidhu - Meera Syal 
Josh / Inspector Burton - Justin Edwards 
Jemma / Briony - Amy Morgan 
Mr Varma / Lord Lucas - Vincent Ebrahim 
Mrs Broghan / Lady Lucas - Rachel Atkins 
Tez / Sergeant - Hamza Jeetooa 
Sir Alex / Zukhov - John Sessions 
Jane / Kirsty - Hilary Maclean 
Robert / PC Williamson - Okorie Chukwu 
Callum - Gordon Kennedy 
 
Production credits 
Written by Suk Pannu 
Edited by Leon Chambers 
Produced by Gordon Kennedy 
Directed by Marilyn Imrie 
An Absolutely Production for BBC Radio 4 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 Extra on the following dates: 
4 October - 25 October 2017 (Murder with Masala) 
14 June - 5 July 2019 (Mrs Sidhu's Dangerous Highland Game) 
 
©2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Mrs Sidhu Investigates

Two BBC Radio 4 comedy crime dramas

Edward Rowett

Comedy drama set in Hardacre's, the worst advertising agency in London 
 
For three decades, Rupert Hardacre was one of the big beasts of advertising: he worked hard, played hard, and lived hard. But he fell harder... 
 
Driven out of every reputable agency in town for drinking all their whiskey and sleeping with all their wives, he used the remains of his fortune to found Hardacre's, the best (and only) advertising agency on the M25. Now he's so confident that his name alone will take him back to the top, he's happy to leave all the actual work to the creative department. 
 
But for the Hardacre organisation, there's more chaos than creativity. The entire creative team is made up of two fresh-faced and utterly clueless graduates, the new accounts chief Amanda is terrifying everyone, and their permanently disengaged receptionist Laura doesn't appear to know (or care) what's going on. 
 
On a good day, Rupert and the Hardacre team will be coming up with ads for industrial adhesives, cast iron stoves, and jewellery for dogs. But can they beat the competition and rebuild their reputation to crawl back up the greasy ladder to success? Will old friends in the industry be their saving grace - or their downfall? And most importantly, can Rupert ever get a decent glass of whiskey? 
 
Starring Nigel Havers (Downton Abbey, Coronation Street), Josie Lawrence (Whose Line Is It Anyway?, Eastenders) and Mathew Baynton (Ghosts, The Wrong Mans), the charming and hilarious Reluctant Persuaders won Best Scripted Comedy at the BBC Audio Drama Awards 2016, and is perfect for fans of In and Out of the Kitchen and Fags, Mags and Bags. 
 
Written by Edward Rowett 
Produced by Gordon Kennedy 
Directed by Alan Nixon 
An Absolutely Production for BBC Radio 4 
 
Cast 
Rupert Hardacre - Nigel Havers 
Amanda Brook - Josie Lawrence 
Joe - Mathew Baynton 
Teddy (Series 1, 3 and 4) - Rasmus Hardiker 
Teddy (series 2)/Frederick - Kieran Hodgson 
Laura/'Gram Woman - Olivia Nixon 
Charles Blackwell - Martin Jarvis 
Laurie Patterson - Frances Barber 
Lake - Rebekah Staton 
Ace - Oliver Chris 
Doctor/WPC/Crystal/Client/Waitress - Holly Morgan 
Jordan - Richard Goulding 
Bill Lessing - Mark Evans 
Barista - Andrew Nolan 
Elgin - James Northcote 
Mikey - Esh Alladi 
Christmas Ad Voice Over - Gordon Kennedy 
MC/Narrator - Victoria Rigby 
Waitress - Olivia Penhallow 
Bartender - Mark Evans 
Tube Announcer - David Fairs 
Book Launch Host - Edward Rowett 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 Extra on 15 September - 6 October 2015 (Series 1), 6 April - 27 April 2017 (Series 2), 4 October - 8 November 2018 (Series 3), 2 March - 6 April 2021 (Series 4) 
 
©2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Reluctant Persuaders: The Complete Series 1-4

A BBC Radio 4 comedy drama

Marcella Evaristi

David Tennant, Sarah Alexander and Mark Bonnar star in all three series of the bittersweet comedy about shared parenting 
 
'Razor-sharp dialogue, disarming charm and excellent cast' - Radio Times 
 
Tangled love lives, secret affairs, frozen eggs and roving eyes - it's time to meet the Millers! 
 
The Go-Betweenies takes a candid look at a divorced North London family through the prism of two siblings (14-year-old Lucy and 10-year-old Tom) who schlep with varying degrees of enthusiasm between two sets of homes: Mum's comfy Highgate house and Dad's rackety new rental on the Holloway Road. 
 
Mimi and Joe are determined to be double, not single, parents: supportive, hands-on and as good as any traditional set-up - and with five divorces between them, they've certainly had enough practice. Joe's given up the booze and done the Twelve Steps, and Mimi's hoping her third marriage, to American playwright Harry, will soon get started. It's all going wonderfully well - so why is Lucy hopped up on energy drinks, while Tom's obsessed with counting sultanas? 
 
As the kids deal with befriending losers, unfortunate crushes, heartbreak and existential crises, their parents find themselves grappling with their feelings for each other - not to mention a new, hairy Gobetweenie... 
 
Written by Marcella Evaristi, The Go-Betweenies stars David Tennant and Mark Bonnar as Joe, Sarah Alexander as Mimi, Phoebe Abbott as Lucy and Finlay Christie as Tom, with a fantastic ensemble cast including Stuart Milligan, Morwenna Banks, Doon Mackichan, David Troughton and Charlotte Ritchie. 
 
Written by Marcella Evaristi 
Produced by Gordon Kennedy 
Directed by Marilyn Imrie 
An Absolutely Production for BBC Radio 4 
 
Cast 
Joe - David Tennant (Series 1)/Mark Bonnar (Series 2 & 3) 
Mimi - Sarah Alexander 
Tom - Finlay Christie 
Lucy - Phoebe Abbott 
Harry - Stuart Milligan 
Bobby - Stephen Critchlow 
Stevie - Ben Baker 
Ms Smart - Morwenna Banks 
Donald - Gordon Kennedy 
Katy - Ophelia Davidson (Series 1 & 2)/Jenna Cook (Series 3) 
Helen - Tracy-Ann Oberman 
Jennifer - Emily Bruni 
Freddie - Oliver Dillon (Series 1 & 2)/Harry Nowell (Series 3) 
William - Nicky Henson 
Chris/Older Tom - Daniel Boyd 
Sophia - Juliet Cadzow 
Vicky - Doon Mackichan 
Harry - Guy Paul 
Ruth - Valerie Cutko 
Mr Thompson - David Troughton 
Tuberose - Charlotte Ritchie 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 6 May-27 May 2011 (Series 1), 6 July-10 August 2012 (Series 2), 18 October-22 November 2013 (Series 3) 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The Go-Betweenies: The Complete Series 1-3

Julian Dutton

Peter Baynham

All three series of the BBC Radio spoof boys' magazine - plus Winter and Christmas Specials 
 
Nominated for a British Comedy Award for Best Radio Comedy, The Harpoon is a nostalgic, spiffing spoof of adventure story papers for boys from yesteryear - but on the wireless. In the style of publications such as the Boys' Own Paper - but with its tongue firmly in its cheek - it features a veritable feast of thrilling serials, 'How-Tos', readers' letters and patent cures - all introduced by 'your old chum, the Editor'. 
 
Flick through its pages to find out about whaling for the under-fives, broadcasting secrets, the complete story of evolution from Little Blobby Thing to Homo Erectus Britishus Imperius and great beverages from history. There's also a star-spangled American issue (howdee y'all!), a 'Laughing through the Depression' budget edition, a lovingly hand-tooled issue incorporating Lathe Monthly and a special wartime edition which asks such pertinent questions as Do you know your submarines? Are you bored with your biscuits? and, most importantly, Are you German? 
 
Also included is a bumper winter edition of the Empire's favourite magazine and a rip-roaring Yuletide special, with snow-capped lettering and a silver sixpence hidden in the middle. Hip hip! 
 
Written by Julian Dutton and Peter Baynham and starring Alistair McGowan, Julian Dutton, Peter Baynham, Susie Brann, Mary Elliott-Nelson and Bryonie Pritchard, The Harpoon is wacky, fast-paced and packed with fun and frolics. Subscribe now! 
 
Production credits 
Written by Julian Dutton and Peter Baynham 
Produced by Sarah Smith 
Performed by Susie Brann, Alistair McGowan, Mary Elliot-Nelson, Julian Dutton, Peter Baynham and Bryonie Pritchard 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 7-28 September 1991 (Series 1), 14 December 1991 (Winter Special), 21 December 1991 (Christmas Special), 22 July-12 August 1992 (Series 2), 17 February-10 March 1994 (Series 3) 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The Harpoon

A BBC Radio spoof magazine for boys

Neil Brand

The fast-talking glamorous musical drama set in a 1930s Chicago radio studio 
 
A radio caper set in Hollywood's Golden Age, Big Broadcast sees radio station WKAZ's most successful programme, 'The Hour of Charm', face trouble from gangsters, sponsors, moral guardians and politics, not to mention Chicago's own winters. 
 
When an acrimonious songwriting couple are facing threats from notorious gangster Brannigan, will a song save the day? Sometimes the hour can seem long when you're radio staff - so what happens when Chicago snow traps you in the building completely? A new manager plans to change the whole format of the show, but a deep-voiced celebrity could use his charm to stop the manager in his tracks. And when the station is threatened with closure by the League of Decency, Katharine Hepburn herself comes to the rescue with her inimitable style. 
 
Starring Samantha Spiro (Sex Education, Game of Thrones), Josie Lawrence (Whose Line Is It Anyway?, Eastenders), and Susannah Fielding (This Time with Alan Partridge, Black Mirror), this joyful, nostalgic musical drama will transport you to a different time and place. 
 
 
Written by Neil Brand 
Music by Neil Brand 
Directed by David Hunter and Jessica Dromgoole 
 
Cast 
Samantha Spiro - Myrna (Series 2-3) 
Josie Lawrence - Jean Forsythe 
Nigel Harman - Grant Thornhill 
Sam Dale - Arthur Clarke (Series 1-2) 
Sean Baker - Brannigan 
Joanna Monro - Myrna (Series 1) 
Jane Whittenshaw - Sadie 
Stuart McLoughlin - Billy 
Jim Norton - Harry 
Paul Heath - Jamie 
Roslyn Hill - Georgia 
Bettrys Jones - Caitlin 
Ian Conningham - Doug/Jimmy Cagney/Cary Grant/Robert F. Winkler 
Chris Jarman - Paul Robeson 
Ryan Early - Arthur Clarke (Series 3) 
Ryan Whittle - Jerry 
Kerry Gooderson - Dixie 
Stephen Hogan - Princeton 
Emma Handy - Jess 
Elizabeth Counsell - Grace Stibbens 
John Lightbody - Stupendo 
Lauren Cornelius - Norma Chaffey 
Susannah Fielding - Katharine Hepburn 
Neil McCaul - Arthur Clarke (Series 4) 
Bettrys Jones - Barbara Meek 
Heather Craney - Ramona Fairfax 
Hasan Dixon - Jerry Soundguy 
Clive Hayward - Preston Lanister 
Franchi Webb - Danny Folly 
BBC Singers - Margaret Cameron, Charles Gibbs, Olivia Robinson, Stephen Jeffes, Helen Neeves, Katherine Nicholson, Chris Bowen, Jamie W Hall, Nancy Cole, Jimmy Holliday 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on the following dates: 
1 June 2011 (Series 1) 
24 December - 25 December 2014 (Series 2) 
21 October - 28 October 2018 (Series 3) 
20 December - 27 December 2020 (Series 4) 
 
©2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Big Broadcast

A BBC Radio full-cast caper

Christopher Reason

A gripping psychological BBC drama series about a probation officer who uncovers an abuse scandal 
 
When the body of 17-year-old Jackie Shaw is found in a shallow grave, it sends shockwaves through her small West Yorkshire community. Rumours of murder and systematic sexual abuse are rife, and the town's MP, Samuel Stokes, is adding fuel to the fire with his campaign against a so-called 'Asian grooming gang'. 
 
Probation officer Rachel Collier deals with paedophiles on a daily basis: so when she hears that her teenage daughter, Chloe, has become friendly with 24-year-old Tariq, she's concerned where it might lead. But that's not her only worry: she's also struggling to deal with her husband's adultery, her feelings for her Catholic priest, Father Fitzgerald, and her new client, Peter, a sex offender whose victim was Jackie's best friend. 
 
Then three local men, the Jamali brothers, are arrested for murder. The police are confident that the gang's ringleaders are behind bars - but Peter insists that the trio are innocent, and the real perpetrators are being protected. As Rachel investigates what seems to be an establishment cover-up, she places herself and her family in danger - and discovers that nothing, and no-one, is what they seem... 
 
Written by award-winning dramatist Christopher Reason, this intriguing thriller stars Rosie Cavaliero as Rachel, with a star cast including Shaun Dooley, Shannon Flynn and Sacha Dhawan. 
 
Production credits 
Written by Christopher Reason 
Directed by Sasha Yevtushenko 
 
Cast 
Rachel - Rosie Cavaliero 
Paul - Shaun Dooley 
Chloe - Shannon Flynn 
Peter - Nicholas Murchie 
Father Fitzgerald - Finlay Robertson 
Leo - Martin Savage 
Stokes - John Dougall 
Mrs Monroe/Samantha - Karen Bartke 
DJ - Catriona McFarlane 
Reporters - John Bowler &amp; Alison Belbin 
Tariq - Sacha Dhawan 
Lydia - Elizabeth Berrington 
Bishop - John Bowler 
Moz - Jayson Benovichi-Dicken 
Nikki - Katherine Rose Morley 
Newsreaders - Alison Belbin, Catriona McFarlane, John Bowler &amp; Karen Bartke 
Waiter - Gavi Singh Chera 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 23 February-23 March 2017 
 
 
©2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Inappropriate Relationships

A BBC Radio 4 Crime Drama

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

James Casey

25 episodes from the long-running BBC comedy series starring the legendary Les Dawson 
 
For over a decade between 1974 and 1985, lugubrious funnyman Les Dawson had radio audiences in stitches with his hit comedy show Listen to Les. 
 
Included in this collection are 25 vintage episodes, showcasing the gravel-voiced master of mirth at his very best. All your favourite characters are here, including gossip-loving housewives Cissie and Ada; chat show host Cosmo Smallpiece; the elegant Sophisticates and the hilariously dismal Desponds - as well as Wotan, Man of Steel; the debut appearance of comic discovery Justin Jest; and a rare interview with boxer Sugar Albert Ackroyd. 
 
You'll hear tales of 1920s gangsters, Britain's first space hero, and Leonard Shufflebottom: a man so thin, he was once used as a dipstick. Les also pays tribute to a feisty barber and a sheep-headed publican, presents his very own versions of Dallas and Columbo, reflects on the British sense of humour - and reveals how the mother-in-law joke was invented... 
 
Packed with deadpan one-liners, melancholic monologues, side-splitting sketches and unforgettable piano sing-alongs, these classic shows are sure to have your tear ducts prickling with laughter. 
 
NB: Some of the humour on this recording reflects the era in which it was first broadcast 
 
Production credits 
Performed by Les Dawson 
With Roy Barraclough, Colin Edwynn, Daphne Oxenford and Eli Woods 
Written and produced by James Casey 
Music by Brian Fitzgerald 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 2, 11 August 1974-17 March 1985 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Listen to Les

A BBC Radio 4 vintage comedy

Lynne Truss

Three series of funny natural history tales from Lynne Truss, featuring a star cast of narrators 
 
Recorded in front of a live audience, these wry, funny tales introduce us to the varied creatures who make their homes on the shoreline, in garden ponds and in our attics. In 18 comic monologues, they reveal the truth about what life is really like in their respective habitats - and it's much more eventful than you might think... 
 
Tidal Tales from the Rock Pool features salty stories from a roving, joke-loving Periwinkle (Bill Wallis); a house-proud Hermit Crab (Geoffrey Palmer); a figure-conscious Sea Anemone (Alison Steadman); a tough talkin' Goby Fish (Sean Power); a poetic, love-struck Limpet (Samantha Bond) and a diligent Lugworm (Tony Robinson). 
 
In Gossip from the Garden Pond, we peek between the lily pads to meet a Tadpole who loves wiggling and doesn't want to grow up (Julian Rhind-Tutt); a beautiful, highly-sexed Dragonfly (Alison Steadman); a hotly pursued Water Boatman (Sandi Toksvig); a ferocious Great Diving Beetle (David Ryall); a timid, arachnophobic Garden Spider (Amanda Root) and a self-righteous Great Pond Snail (James Fleet). 
 
And in Rumblings from the Rafters, we venture into the draughty attic of a rambling old house in Amersham to hear from a subversive, head-banging Death Watch Beetle (Bill Paterson); a bossy, stressed Queen Wasp (Alison Steadman); a fast-thinking, acrobatic House Fly (Lee Mack); a big-hearted Soprano Pipistrelle Bat (Pam Ferris); an Edible Dormouse who's convinced he's a Russian spy (Hugh Dennis) and a Peacock Butterfly with a feisty past (Amanda Abbington). 
 
Written and introduced by Lynne Truss, with wildlife soundscapes by Chris Watson, these hugely entertaining, surprisingly informative anthropomorphic tales teem with drama and adventure - you'll never look at a rock pool, pond or roof space in the same way again... 
 
Written and introduced by Lynne Truss 
Produced by Sarah Blunt 
Sound design by Chris Watson 
 
Tidal Talk from the Rock Pool 
The Periwinkle and the Hermit Crab 
The Anemone and the Goby Fish 
The Limpet and the Lugworm 
 
Gossip from the Garden Pond 
The Tadpole and the Dragonfly 
The Water Boatman and Great Diving Beetle 
The Garden Spider and Great Pond Snail 
 
Rumblings from the Rafters 
Death Watch Beetle and Queen Wasp 
House Fly and Soprano Pipistrelle Bat 
Edible Dormouse and Peacock Butterfly 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 1-15 May 2012 (Tidal Talk from the Rock Pool), 7-21 Sept 2014 (Gossip from the Garden Pond), 26 June-10 July 2016 (Rumblings from the Rafters) 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Natter from the Natural World

A BBC Radio Comedy Collection

Jim Poyser

Jim Poyser's BBC radio riotous six-part comedy of time travel and delight 
 
 
Jason Slater is a very average twenty-first-century English teacher from Cheadle Hulme, but somehow wakes up after a few drinks in nineteenth-century Macclesfield. Apparently, he's now Tarquin, third son of Lord Belport, with a faithful valet, a suspicious brother, a spurned ex-girlfriend (who's now going out with his brother) - and no obvious way he'll ever get back home again. 
 
From toasted sandwich makers and the perfect beer, to root canals and royal visits, can Jason - Tarquin, that is - change the course of history and make 1834 his playground? Or will all his modern sentiments and inventions cause total disaster for the rest of time - or at least the rest of his life)? A fun comedy of historical proportions, 1834: Time Travelling Teacher is created by the writer of Stockport: So Good They Named It Once and The Architects. 
 
 
 
Cast 
Jason Slater: Michael Begley 
Ned: Joe Caffery 
Hoskins: Kenneth Alan Taylor 
Lord Belfort: Mark Chatterton 
Henry: James Nickerson 
Luddite/Highwayman: Toby Hadoke 
Millicent: Julia Rounthwaite 
Stubbs: Glenn Cunningham 
Duke of Cranmere: John Craig 
Queen Victoria: Caroline Harding 
 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on the following dates: 
11 June - 16 July 2003 
 
Production credits 
Written by Jim Poyser 
Directed by Polly Thomas 
 
©2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

1834 Time Travelling Teacher

A BBC Radio 4 Comedy

Ian Brown

James Hendrie

All 12 episodes of the fun-packed 1980s sketch show 
 
Ever since that first primordial fireball exploded in the void countless aeons ago, people have been doing comic sketches on the radio. And this is no exception. 
 
These two mouth-watering series feature a whole host of tasty takeaway skits and shenanigans, from 'The Man At Parties No-One Wants To Talk To' and 'Britain's Stupidest Postman' to sauna novices, the perfect Proms punter and Batman in his dotage. Other highlights include regular characters Mr Makesalotofmistakes, who can't seem to get anything right, and smug yuppies Richard and Dulcie ('Rich and Dull') Perrier. 
 
Plus, a new, no-nonsense controller turns Radio 3 on its head; Hamlet competes in the ITV gameshow The Prince is Right; and we peek inside the uncensored biography of England's greatest naval officer, Horatio Nelson. There're also some cinematic delights that you won't see at your local multiplex, including British nostalgia-fest A Handful of Audience; the first Eskimo science fiction film Sledge Runner, starring Harrison Fjord; and horror spoof Appointment With Mild Anxiety - not to mention the tour de force that is Dr Terror's House of Pizza... 
 
Performed by a stellar cast including Brenda Blethyn, Robert Bathurst, Mike Grady, Jonathan Kydd, Enn Reitel, Felicity Montagu, Jim Broadbent and Morwenna Banks, this piping hot comedy show is served with extra relish, added capers and a guest side salad of Jonathan Ross and Janine Duvitski. 
 
Cast and credits 
Written by Ian Brown and James Hendrie 
With additional material by Malcolm Williamson 
Starring Brenda Blethyn, Robert Bathurst, Mike Grady, Jonathan Kydd, Enn Reitel, Felicity Montagu, Jim Broadbent and Morwenna Banks 
With special guests Jonathan Ross and Janine Duvitski 
Produced by David Tyler and Paul Mayhew-Archer 
Title music by Guy Jackson 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 17 November-22 December 1987 (Series 1), 12 November-17 December 1988 (Series 2) 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Dial M for Pizza

A BBC Radio 4 comedy

Andrew Palmer

A historical romp with regal trips to the pub, medieval battle toys, and not-so-arranged marriages 
 
 
In Jim the Great, Jimmy Edwards stars as the titular medieval chieftain who has more on his plate than whatever the huntsman's brought in... 
 
From using the Venerable Bede to research the King's (perhaps questionable) ancestry and attempting to build himself an empire as cheaply as possible, to settling a debt with a Viking by way of a duel and accidentally losing his Kingdom before becoming a grumpy galley slave rowing to Rome, King Jim's adventures are history as you've never heard it before. 
 
A classic comedy from the writer of Take Me To Your Reader and Drop Me Here, Darling, and with a fantastic cast including June Whitfield, Chris Emmett, David Ryall and Joan Sanderson, this is the perfect listen for a little royal entertainment. 
 
Cast 
Jimmy Edwards - Jim the Great 
Joan Sanderson - Queen Esmerelda 
Other roles played by: 
Julian Orchard 
John Baddeley 
Ronald Baddiley 
David Ryall 
Jon Glover 
Chris Emmett 
Kenneth Connor 
Fred Harris 
Alexandra Dane 
Douglas Blackwell 
Nicolette McKenzie 
June Whitfield 
 
Production credits 
Written by Andrew Palmer 
Produced by Edward Taylor 
 
©2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Jim the Great

A BBC Radio Comedy

Robert Webb

David Mitchell

All five series of the award-winning sketch show - plus standalone comedy Daydream Believers 
 
'Fresh and full of invention' The Telegraph 
 
Welcome to the inside-out world of Mitchell and Webb, a strange and surreal place populated by misfits, eccentrics, talking animals and a few stray Radio 4 arts programme presenters. 
 
Included here are all five series of their fantastically skewed comedy show, packed with offbeat sketches and peculiar characters. Meet seedy snooker commentators Ted and Peter; poorly matched crime-fighting duo Angel Summoner and BMX Bandit; a cop who doesn't get results but, by God, he does things by the book; and some nervous Nazis who've just noticed their caps have skulls on them... 
 
Find out what James Bond is really like as a party guest; thrill to The Surprising Adventures of Sir Digby Chicken-Caesar; and play the maths quiz that everyone is talking about, but no one understands - Numberwang! In addition, you can listen to the Alpine Archers on Radio Switzerland; join Raymond Terrific and his panel of boffins on Big Talk; and tune in to the exciting new reality show Make Me a Celebrity Centaur, featuring soap stars, cutting-edge surgery and some horses. 
 
Absurd, imaginative, and very funny, this acclaimed series won a Sony Silver Award and led to the hugely successful TV series That Mitchell and Webb Look. It stars David Mitchell and Robert Webb, with Olivia Colman, James Bachman and Sarah Hadland. 
 
Also included is the half-hour sci-fi comedy Daydream Believers, in which David Mitchell and Robert Webb star as tetchy novelist Ray and his gormless flatmate Colin and, in a parallel space adventure concocted by Ray, as Baron Amstrad and his retro-looking android Info. The supporting cast incudes Olivia Colman, Mark Benton, Simon Greenall and Mark Evans. 
 
Production credits 
That Mitchell and Webb Sound 
Written by and starring David Mitchell and Robert Webb 
With Olivia Colman, Sarah Hadland and James Bachman 
Produced by Gareth Edwards 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 28 August-2 October 2003 (Series 1), 10 February-17th March 2005 (Series 2), 24 May-28 June 2007 (Series 3), 25 August-29 September 2009 (Series 4), 26 November-17 December 2013 (Series 5) 
 
Daydream Believers 
Written by and starring David Mitchell and Robert Webb 
With Olivia Colman, Mark Benton, Simon Greenall and Mark Evans 
Produced by Gareth Edwards 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 2, 5 May 2007 
 
NB: Contains humour that some listeners may find offensive 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

That Mitchell and Webb Sound: The Complete Series 1-5

The BBC Radio 4 comedy show

Various

The hilarious BBC Radio comedy show where every sketch has been written by the public 
 
The complete series of the ground-breaking comedy series, which called for submissions from members of the public. With over 12,000 sketches sent in from 1,500 different people, The Show What You Wrote spans such diverse comedy topics as Crime & Thriller, Kitchen Sink, Body & Soul, and Geography, and features sketches about heaven's unexpectedly strict dress code, the Shopping Forecast, the grammar police, and some very literal highwaymen. 
 
Starring John Thomson (The Fast Show, Cold Feet), Jason Manford (8 Out of 10 Cats, QI), and Janice Connolly (Phoenix Nights, Coronation Street) and enjoying special appearances from Gyles Brandreth, Chris Addison, Shobna Gulati, Ben Crompton and Rob Rouse, among others, this brilliant sketch series will never let you look at rock-climbing, night-clubbing, or post-apocalypse dating the same way again... 
 
 
Cast 
John Thomson 
Helen Moon 
Gavin Webster 
Fiona Clarke 
Janice Connolly 
Jason Manford 
Gyles Brandreth 
Chris Addison 
Ben Crompton 
Darren Kuppan 
Rob Rouse 
Shobna Gulati 
Chris Jack 
 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on the following dates: 
27 June - 18 July 2013 (Series 1) 
14 August - 4 September 2014 (Series 2) 
8 December - 29 December 2015 (Series 3) 
 
Production credits 
Script Editing by Jon Hunter 
Produced by Carl Cooper, Alexandra Smith, Ed Morrish and Paul Sheehan 
 
Written by Greg Jennings, Jack Bernhardt, Elise Bramich, Peter Brush, Alex Buchanan, Simon Carter, Andy Flood, Robert Frimston, Edward Rowett, Gabby Hutchinson Crouch, Peter Jump, Adam Perrott, Melissa Phillips, Eddie Robson, Paul Solomons, Jimmy Weeks, Jess Bunch, Ash Williamson, James Boughen, Dominic Burgess, John Dennett, Richard Felber, Andy Fell, Stephen Holford, Caspian James, Nathan King, Nick Hall, Matt Oakley, John-Luke Roberts, Adam Lebovits, Alex Clissold-Jones, James Allnutt , David Simpson, Andrew Spence, Callum Scott, Charlie Mizon, Dave McKeon, Eleanor Green, Graham Kilvington, Kev Core, Matthew Smith, Michael DeFroand, Phil Collinge, Rob Hayes, Sam Gore, Simon Copley, Oliver Taylor, Simon Ounsworth, Tom Neenan, Chris Allen, Steve Bugeja, Alex Collier, Andy Fury, Jez Gee, Lucy Guy, Mike Haskins, Katherine Knowles, Maeve Larkin, Sarah Page, Tom Austin, Liam Beirne, James Bugg, Ash Caton, Josh Cluderay, Stu Cooper, Rob Gilroy, Emma Payne, Andrew Stephenson, Mike Whalley, Bridget Burgoyne, Will Cooper, Owen Cooper, Max Davis, Stuart Doherty, Gil Gilmore, Sam Hudson, Carl Jones, Rob Marshall, Sean Fee, Helen Green, Joe Hodgson, Daniel Hooper, David McIver, Matthew Radway, Owen Seddon, Emlyn Williams, Pete Barrett, Martin Alcock, Joshua Bolland-Burrell, Matthew Carr, David Catstrey, Tom Crowley, Jason Jillings, Lucias Malcolm, Harry Roth, Ben Behrens, Dave Bibby, Keith Carter, Lou Conran, Dan Hobson, Jon Bridle, Scott Kingsnorth, Steve Nelson, Christopher Stanners, Claire Wetton, Mark Cowling, Jay Droch, Neil Hickey, Tony Hickson, Dan Kiss, Roxy Muldoon, David Salisbury, Cassie Atkinson, Tim Craig, Sarah Glenister, Jack Hall, Dai Hill, Rose Johnson, Sean Lindsay, Derek Martin, Darshan Singh, Rob Smyth, Owen Archlimb, Stefan Arif, Matt Harvey, Andrew Jones, Rob Keeley, Oliver Ley, Ciaran Murtagh, Lev Parikian and Chris Tindall 
 
©2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The Show What You Wrote

A BBC Radio 4 Sketch Comedy

Alison Leonard

Alison Leonard's warm-hearted gentle comedy about the life and trials of a woman priest in a small Welsh town 
 
When the Reverend Elaine Metcalfe is inducted as the vicar of Pontvale, she hopes the job will have more to it than lending out spare sets of keys. She soon discovers there's plenty of challenges in her new home - not least the daily needs of her parishioners, which range from community theatre productions, arranging a wedding and a funeral for the same day, and local scandal over the vicar's culottes. 
 
On top of that, the Rev Metcalfe is also dealing with a local man who may be hearing angels, her ex-husband's opinions of the vicar's green activism, and church superiors watching her every move. Moving, warm and full of characters, this sweet series is perfect for fans of The Vicar of Dibley. 
 
 
Cast 
Christine Pritchard - Rev Elaine Metcalfe 
Sue Jones Davies - Sian 
Hywel Morgan - Phil 
Steve Hodson - Mr Hudson 
Simon Harris - Gareth 
Michael Povey - Rev Melvyn Johns 
Jilly Bond - Christina 
Manon Edwards - Gwen 
Kristin Milward - Sheila 
Clare Isaac - Tash 
Rhodri Hugh - Bryn 
Simon Ludders - Adam 
Nia Davies - Puck 
Dafydd Wyn Roberts - Ellis 
Marilyn Le Conte - Josie 
Sharon Morgan - Freda 
Oliver Senton - Sergei / Colin / Tom 
 
 
Originally broadcast on Radio 4: 
23 February - 30 March 1995 
 
 
Production credits 
Written by Alison Leonard 
Produced by Alison Hindell 
 
 
©2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

After Eden

Peter Flannery

Adam Usden

Peter Flannery's adaptation of his own iconic BAFTA award winning TV series - with a brand new final episode by award-winning writer Adam Usden 
 
'A stunning state-of-the-nation social commentary' The Telegraph 
 
First broadcast in 1996, Our Friends in the North was one of the most highly acclaimed TV shows of the 1990s. It launched the careers of Daniel Craig, Christopher Eccleston, Gina McKee and Mark Strong, won numerous awards including three BAFTAs, and is widely regarded as a modern classic. 
 
Now, 26 years later, Peter Flannery has recreated his epic saga for radio. Ambitious in scale and scope, the drama follows the fortunes of four friends over three decades, beginning in 1964. Drawing on real-life controversies from the Sixties and Seventies, it tackles corporate, political and police corruption in the 1960s, the Soho porn empires of the 1970s, the nouveau riche and the Miners' Strike of the 1980s and the rise of New Labour in the 1990s. A final episode by Adam Usden brings the story up to the present day, picking up on several characters from 26 years before and showing them dealing with familiar challenges including housing conditions, young people's engagement with politics and father/son relationships. 
 
Starring four talented young actors - Norah Lopez Holden, James Baxter, Luke MacGregor and Philip Correia - this powerful, poignant audio retelling immerses us in the world of Tyneside pals Mary, Nicky, Geordie and Tosker, as they face personal, political and social upheaval, experience triumph and tragedy, and make decisions that will change their lives forever. 
 
Production credits 
Written by Peter Flannery 
Episode 10 written by Adam Usden and dedicated to the memory of Warren Usden 
Produced by Melanie Harris 
Executive Producer: Jeremy Mortimer 
Trainee Production Co-ordinator: Emma O'Mahoney 
Studio Engineer: Paul Clark 
Sound Design: Eloise Whitmore, Jon Nicholls, Paul Cargill and Steve Brooke 
A Sparklab production for BBC Radio 4 
 
Cast 
Mary/Julia/Francine - Norah Lopez Holden 
Nicky/Young Anthony/Christopher Collins - James Baxter 
Geordie/Ray/Anthony - Luke MacGregor 
Tosker/DI Salway/Toby Roddy - Philip Correia 
Felix - Trevor Fox 
Florrie/Sandra/Claudia Seabrook/Psychiatrist/Mrs Wilkinson - Tracey Wilkinson 
Austin Donohue/Charlie/Claud Seabrook/DI Cockburn/Colin Butler/Christopher - Tom Goodman-Hill 
Eddie Wells/Arthur Watson/Commander Harold Chapple - James Gaddas 
Bede Connor/Benny Barratt/Chief Constable Roy Johnson/Alan Roe/The Close Encounterer - Tony Hirst 
John Edwards - Maanuv Thiara 
DS Conrad/Priest - Andrew Byron 
Ernie/Sir Colin Blamire/Asst Commander Fieldson - Des Yankson 
Helen/Paula/Lucille/Alison/Elaine/Alice - Eve Shotton 
Commissioner Jellicoe/Superintendent - Darren Kuppan 
Sean Collins - Alfie Williams 
Amy - Bryony Corrigan 
Roy - David Leon 
Kira - Lucy Aiston 
Wazza - Noel Walton 
Mike - Tom Machell 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 17 March-9 June 2022 
 
©2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Our Friends in the North

Based on the landmark BBC TV drama

Mervyn Stutter

Former lovers Pam and Merv open a cyber section in their Vodka and Veggie Café in this BBC comedy series 
 
When Merv and Pam got divorced, that should have been the end of their relationship. But here they are, trying to turn a veggie-and-vodka bistro in a cyber cafe, while Merv is still living in Pam's front garden in a small caravan. 
 
Merv's dreams of being a rock star failed a long time ago, so the Cyber Pass is now his only hope - although his customers mainly consist of a washed-up actor eager for a free drink and the local community policeman; plus their staff of Nev, the twenty-something teen who runs the cafe's IT and still lives with his parents, and Chantal, the South African waitress obsessed with plastic surgery and lifestyle consultants. Throw in some midlife-crisis communes, a biological clock, Pam's ever-absent new husband, and a dead chicken, and who could say Merv isn't still living the dream? 
 
With John Challis, Mervyn Stutter, Lill Roughley, Tracy-Ann Oberman and Martin Freeman, this series is from the same acclaimed writer as Love 40 - New Balls Please and Waterloo Sunset and perfect for fans of Clare in the Community and Fags, Mags and Bags. 
 
 
Cast 
Merv - Mervyn Stutter 
Pam- Lill Roughley 
Dibden- John Challis 
PC Dilkes (Series 1) - Christopher Etteridge 
PC Dilkes (Series 2) - Michael Mears 
Chantal - Tracy-Ann Oberman 
Nev (Series 1) - Martin Freeman 
Nev (Series 2&3) - Gyuri Sarossy 
Geoffrey McGivern - various 
 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on the following dates: 
23 November - 14 December 2001 (Series 1) 
19 March - 18 April 2003 (Series 2) 
14 May - 18 June 2004 (Series 3) 
 
Production credits 
Written by Mervyn Stutter 
Music by Mervyn Stutter 
Performed by Swamp Things 
Produced by Mario Stylianides (Series 1&2) and Simon Nicholls (Series 3) 
 
©2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 
 
 
"Written by the extremely funny Mervyn Stutter, this comedy series has a laugh every other line. Expect to see this on TV soon!" - Jane Anderson, Radio Times 
 
"This is the comic voice of the Baby Boom."- The Telegraph 
 
"It's a scream! Terribly funny and really well written. I haven't heard a sitcom like that and as funny on Radio 4 for a long long long time." - Dillie Keane

Getting Nowhere Fast : Series 1-3

Ged Parsons

Christopher Marlowe turns government spy in these four comedy crime dramas 
 
Murder and intrigue are all in a day's work for Kit Marlowe, England's leading playwright and undercover agent in Her Majesty's Secret Service. Amid the squalor and splendour of Elizabethan London, he probes a series of baffling mysteries, aided by his trusty underworld accomplice Bartholomew Ratsbane. 
 
The Curious Case of the Curs'd Quayside - Two of the navy's finest warships have been mysteriously sunk while moored in harbour. Sent by spymaster Sir Francis Walsingham to investigate, can Marlowe find the saboteur before more ships are scuppered? 
 
The Turbulent Tale of the Troubl'd Tragedy - Spring, 1590, and the keen-witted spy is faced with two tricky cases. Who has stolen Mighty Meg from the Tower, and why has an unknown patron funded the worst play ever written? 
 
The Perplex'd Plot of the Perilous Plague - Fleeing the epidemic that is ravaging London, Christopher Marlowe takes refuge with Walsingham at the Palace of Whitehall. But it seems the plague has followed them to the very heart of government... 
 
The Murky Mystery of Murder at St Marks- When an eminent professor receives a death threat, Marlowe sets off to his Cambridge college to make enquiries. But no sooner has he arrived than the dons start dropping like flies. Can the murderer at large be outwitted? 
 
Dominic Jephcott stars as Marlowe in these light-hearted comic mysteries, with Bill Wallis as Ratsbane, Paul Brooke as Sir Francis Walsingham and guest appearances from Roy Hudd, Hugh Bonneville (credited as Richard Bonneville), Peter Serafinowicz and Hugh Dennis. 
 
Written by Ged Parsons 
Produced and directed by Richard Wilson 
 
Cast 
Marlowe - Dominic Jephcott 
Bartholomew Ratsbane - Bill Wallis 
Sir Francis Walsingham - Paul Brooke 
Admiral Downing/Beaumont - Garard Green 
Captain Curtis/Dr Heywood - Brian Bowles 
Captain Barnaby - Julian Dutton 
Ned Peake - Roy Hudd 
Fortescue - Simon Godley 
Trump - Lionel Jeffries 
Squires - Daniel Strauss 
Gloriana Nonsuch - Victoria Carling 
Faversham - Ronald Herdman 
Ripley - Richard Bonneville 
Dr Valentine - Hugh Dennis 
Dr Darras - Peter Serafinowitz 
Sir Hubert Sharpe - Gordon Reid 
Mistress Parker - Sarah Thomas 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 9-30 December 1993 
 
© 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The Christopher Marlowe Mysteries

Four BBC historical crime comedies

Mary Elizabeth Braddon

Three classic stories from the 'Queen of Sensation Fiction' - plus bonus documentary 
Mary Elizabeth Braddon was one of the most important and influential female novelists of the 19th Century, and the founder (alongside Wilkie Collins) of the popular 'sensation fiction' genre. This collection features her best-known novel, Lady Audley's Secret, a thrilling tale of bigamy, murder and arson that outraged Victorian society on its first release - and was an instant bestseller. Also included are two atmospheric short stories and an edition of Sensational Women exploring her life and work. 
 
Lady Audley's Secret - Lucy Graham gains all the wealth she desires through her marriage to the devoted Sir Michael Audley. But her newfound security is threatened when young lawyer Robert Audley sets out to uncover the truth about her hidden past. Hattie Morahan, Charlotte Emmerson, Alex Wyndham and Sam Dale star in this electrifying dramatisation. 
 
 
The Cold Embrace - When Josef, a handsome young German artist, betrays his delicate fiancée, her vengeance is eerily appropriate... This chilling adaptation of Mary Elizabeth Braddon's ghostly story stars Stephanie Turner, Jonathan Firth and Alison Pettitt. 
 
Samuel Lowgood's Revenge - An impoverished clerk discovers that his rival in love has defrauded their employer. But what should he do with this knowledge? Barbara Flynn reads Braddon's 1861 tale of jealousy and retribution. 
 
Sensational Women: Mary Braddon - Sarah Dunant takes a look at the notorious sensation author, who was condemned for rotting the moral fibre of a whole generation of young women. 
 
First published 1860 ('The Cold Embrace'), 1861 ('Samuel Lowgood's Revenge'), 1862 (Lady Audley's Secret) 
 
Cast and credits 
Written by Mary Elizabeth Braddon 
 
Lady Audley's Secret 
Mary Braddon - Hattie Morahan 
Lucy, Lady Audley - Charlotte Emmerson 
Sir Michael Audley - Sam Dale 
Phoebe Marks - Lizzy Watts 
Luke Marks - Benjamin Askew 
Robert Audley - Alex Wyndham 
George Talboys - Joseph Kloska 
Alicia Audley - Perdita Weeks 
Lieutenant Maldon - Jonathan Tafler 
Mr Dawson/Landlord - Paul Rider 
Mrs Vincent - Charlotte West-Oram 
Tonks - Deborah McAndrew 
Dramatised by Theresa Heskins 
Directed by Julie Beckett and Fiona Kelcher 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 20 April-1 May 2009 
 
The Cold Embrace 
Mary Braddon - Stephanie Turner 
Josef - Jonathan Firth 
Gertrude - Alison Pettitt 
Father - John Hartley 
Postmaster - Ioan Meredith 
Passenger - Hugh Dickson 
Woman - Carolyn Jones 
Fisherman - Chris Pavlo 
Parisienne - Tracy-Ann Oberman 
Dramatised by Christopher Hawes 
Produced by Marion Nancarrow 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 26 June 1997 
 
Samuel Lowgood's Revenge 
Read by Barbara Flynn 
Produced by Rebecca Nicholson 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 18 November 1998 
 
Sensational Women: Mary Braddon 
Presented by Sarah Dunant 
Extracts read by Sally Beauman 
Produced by Lore Windemuth 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 30 October 1996 
 
© 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Mary Elizabeth Braddon: Lady Audley’s Secret & more

A BBC Radio 4 Gothic Drama Collection

Barry Grossman

Jonathan Coy stars as the much-married King in this unreliable Tudor history 
 
'A brilliant concept... does exactly what it says on the tin' The Times 
 
From his tiny room at Hampton Court, the royal chronicler records the comings and goings of the King of England, his six Queens - and his six mothers-in-law. Introducing us to these redoubtable ladies, he relates the surprising part they played in the destiny of Henry VIII and his unfortunate wives. 
 
We meet Catherine of Aragon's duenna, Dona Elvira, whose introduction of paella, flamenco and bullfighting to his home leads Henry to seek his pleasures elsewhere; Lady Boleyn, whose gentleman admirer threatens danger for her daughter Anne; and Lady Margaret, whose attempt to overturn hundreds of years of tradition leads to a dramatic confrontation. There's also meddling matriarch Mrs Loew, whose devious dealmaking costs Henry dear; good-time grandmother Duchess Agnes, who encourages Catherine Howard to play the field - and neglect her husband; and Catherine Parr's mother, whose impact on the King's court will be life-changing for Henry - and for his Chancellor, Thomas Cromwell... 
 
Created by Barry Grossman (The Attractive Young Rabbi), this tongue-in-cheek historical spoof stars Jonathan Coy as King Henry VIII, with a star cast including Carla Mendonça, Lydia Leonard, Jasmine Hyde, Marcia Warren and Geoffrey McGivern. 
 
Production credits 
Created and written by Barry Grossman 
Episode 3 written by Jim Eldridge and Episode 4 by Rene Basilico 
Produced by John Fawcett Wilson 
Music composed by Jim Parker 
 
Cast 
Henry VIII - Jonathan Coy 
Thomas Cromwell - Milton Johns 
Chronicler - Alfred Burke 
Catherine of Aragon - Carla Mendonça 
Dona Elvira - Sheila Steafel 
Wolsey - John Rowe 
Pope - Stephen Greif 
Lady Boleyn - Diane Fletcher 
Anne Boleyn - Lydia Leonard 
Maurice Crumb - David Holt 
Jane Seymour - Jasmine Hyde 
Lady Margaret - Eve Matheson 
Sir John - John Webb 
Antonio - Jonathan Kydd 
Anne of Cleves - Sasha Pick 
Mrs Loew - Aletta Lawson 
Court fool - Chris Emmett 
Hans Holbein/Sir Richard - Peter van Dissel 
Catherine Howard - Helen Longworth 
Duchess Agnes - Marcia Warren 
William of Winchelsea - Geoffrey McGivern 
Simon of Southwark - Gyuri Sarossi 
Catherine Parr - Rachel Atkins 
Mother - Sally Grace 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 17 November-22 December 2003 
 
©2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The Six Mothers-in-Law of Henry VIII

Giovanni Boccaccio

Terry Jones introduces ten dramatisations of choice Florentine Fancies, adapted from Giovanni Boccaccio's classic human comedy by the BBC 
 
Monty Python star and medieval historian Terry Jones presents ten BBC Radio dramatisations of tales from Giovanni Boccaccio's humane and comic masterpiece. 
 
Composed in the early 1350s, in the wake of the Black Death, The Decameron comprises 100 short stories from all over the world, reset by Boccaccio among the flourishing merchant classes of Renaissance Italy. Their universal themes - love, sex, religion, fate, morality - resonate with us to this day, and their witty, satirical, bawdy voice sounds utterly modern. Beautifully realised in vivid, vernacular prose, they have become a bedrock of our storytelling tradition, mined ever since by authors from Chaucer to Shakespeare, Keats, Molière and Thomas Mann. 
 
The scene is the onset of the Black Death, Italy and a group of seven young women and three young men escape to the countryside to shelter in a secluded villa just outside of Florence in order to escape the Plague. There, they tell each other tales from all over the world. 
 
These ten radio retellings are performed by a stellar cast, including John Finnemore, Ingrid Oliver, Geoffrey Streatfeild, Lydia Leonard, Tim McInnerny, Samuel Barnett, Neil Pearson, Louise Brealey, and Tameka Empson. 
 
Cast and credits 
Saint Ciappelletto 
Ciappelletto - Colin McFarlane 
Musciatto - Sam Dale 
Holy Friar - Michael Bertenshaw 
The Burgundians - Monty d'Inverno & Paul Heath 
Doctor - Ian Conningham 
 
Federigo and His Falcon 
Federigo degli Alberighi - John Finnemore 
Monna - Ingrid Oliver 
Elena - Carrie Quinlan 
Beppo - Shaun Mason 
Niccolo - Adam Thomas Wright 
 
How Elena Blew Hot and Cold 
Elena - Lydia Leonard 
Violante - Elaine Claxton 
Rinieri - Cyril Nri 
Pyrrhus - Paul Heath 
 
How to Get It Off Your Chest 
Zeppa - Ian Conningham 
Mrs Zeppa - Hannah Genesius 
Spinelloccio - Shaun Mason 
Mrs Spinelloccio - Bettrys Jones 
Narrator - Jude Akuwudike 
 
Kind Hearts and Bayonets 
Mithridanes - Samuel Barnett 
Nathan - Sam Dale 
Beggarmaid - Bettrys Jones 
 
The Sweetest Young Man in Perugia 
Pietro - Tim McInnerny 
Madam - Hannah Genesius 
Pandara - Jane Slavin 
Masetto - Monty d'Inverno 
Ercolano - David Acton 
 
The Wager 
Musciatto - Michael Bertenshaw 
Ambrogiuolo - Geoffrey Streatfeild 
Bernabo - Paul Ritter 
Zinevra - Louise Brealey 
Sultan - Jude Akuwudike 
Captain - Shaun Mason 
 
A Job for the Boys 
Masetto - Neil Pearson 
Sister Donna - Tameka Empson 
Sister Lisa - Rhiannon Neads 
Hildegard - Jane Slavin 
Nuto - Sam Dale 
Steward - Michael Bertenshaw 
 
Love Lies Sleeping 
Silvestra - Laura Molyneux 
Beppo - Rudi Dharmalingam 
Giovanni - Joseph Drake 
Mother - Jane Slavin 
Rinaldo - David Acton 
 
A Quiet Night in Naples 
Andreuccio - Gunnar Cauthery 
Filomena - Roslyn Hill 
Scarabone - Shaun Mason 
Neighbour - David Acton 
Ludo - Paul Heath 
Bruno - Ian Conningham 
Sister Lisa - Elaine Claxton 
Sister Donna - Hannah Genesius 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 1-12 December 2014 
 
Written by Giovanni Boccaccio 
Adapted by Robin Brooks 
Music arranged and performed by Robert Hollingworth and Paula Chateauneuf 
Translations by Silvia Reseghetti 
Script consultant: Guyda Armstrong 
Produced and directed by Jonquil Panting 
 
© 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Decameron

A BBC Radio drama adaptation of the Renaissance classic

Lucy Clare

Ian Davidson

A riotous sitcom about a mother battling to get her adult children to leave home 
 
In this wonderful, fraught, witty, real comedy about a middle-aged mother desperate to begin her post-children life, Stella is wondering why those grown-up children are all still in her house. Dreaming of retiring to a life in the countryside with her husband, instead she's dealing with four extra people in the house, rooms that urgently need de-junking, surprise pregnancy tests, difficult neighbours and a mother who really isn't helping anything. 
 
When she attempts to clear the useless clutter from the house, Stella realises it's her children who really need to go; if she can't move to the country, then she's going to make sure the country will move to her; and when it finally seems like at least one child is moving out, that's the perfect moment for Stella's mother to decide she's moving in. Stella feels like the family chaos will never end... 
 
Cast 
Penny Downie - Stella (Series 1 &amp; 2) 
Pippa Haywood - Stella (Series 3) 
Duncan Preston - Patrick 
Claudie Blakley - Alison 
Bruce MacKinnon - Rick 
Catherine Shepherd - Xanthe 
Daniela Denby-Ashe - Egg 
Rita Davies - Mother 
Russell Bently - Fergus 
 
Production credits 
Written by Lucy Clare and Ian Davidson 
Produced and Directed by Elizabeth Freestone 
 
Originally broadcast August-September 2003 (Series 1), November-December 2004 (Series 2) and January-February 2006 (Series 3) 
 
 
© 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P) 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Ring Around the Bath: Topsy-turvy family life

A BBC Radio 4 comedy series 1-3

John Mortimer

An irresistible collection of sparkling stories featuring John Mortimer's beloved comic creation 
 
Horace Rumpole is the most erudite, astute, and seldom defeated of barristers in the annals of the Old Bailey. In these 32 dramas, arranged in order of broadcast, four distinguished actors don the wig and white band to portray our hero as he recalls his long, eventful career. 
 
Timothy West stars as the older Rumpole in eight cases in which he proves, despite scurrilous rumours to the contrary, that he is alive, well and as adept as ever at getting to the heart of crimes ranging from sexual assault to terrorism. He also has hopes of becoming a QC at last - but his marriage to She Who Must Be Obeyed is under pressure... 
 
Joining Timothy West for another seven legal adventures, Benedict Cumberbatch plays the young, feisty, devastatingly acute Rumpole. We flash back to the 1950s, as he meets and marries Hilda, embarks on his first big murder case 'alone and without a leader', and defends clients including an aristocrat, a shoplifting clergyman and a gardener accused of blackmail. 
 
Returning as young Rumpole, Cumberbatch takes us through six more curious cases. It is 1964, and Horace takes on a new pupil - Phyllida Trant, the 'Portia of our Chambers' - only to find himself becoming smitten with her. Forced to consider the path his life has taken, he comes close to giving up the law... 
 
With the Sixties swinging, Julian Rhind-Tutt gives us a Rumpole in his prime, recounting ten tales which find the tireless defender swapping sides to appear for the prosecution; coming to the aid of a doctor accused of unprofessional conduct; and suffering the indignity of wrongful arrest. We leave him facing a life-changing decision: after many years of falling in and out of love with both women, will he finally leave Hilda to be with Phyllida? 
 
Also included is a special 90-minute Christmas episode starring Desmond Barrit, in which Rumpole indulges in a little seasonal, charitable blackmail and solves an audacious crime at the panto. 
 
Production credits 
Written by John Mortimer 
Adapted by Richard Stoneman 
Directed by Marilyn Imrie. 
A Catherine Bailey production for BBC Radio 4 
Sax quartet version of Gershwin's 'They Can't Take That Away From Me' arranged by Julie Hodge and performed by 'Sax' (Luiza Beddoes, Kate Mylnar, Janine Ng and Julie Hodge) 
Pantomime music written by Neil Brand 
 
Cast 
Older Horace Rumpole - Timothy West/Desmond Barrit 
Young Horace Rumpole - Benedict Cumberbatch/Julian Rhind-Tutt 
Hilda - Prunella Scales/Joanna David 
Young Hilda - Jasmine Hyde/Cathy Sara 
Phyllida - Cathy Sara/Patience Tomlinson 
'Soapy Sam' Ballard - Michael Cochrane 
Claude Erskine-Brown - Nigel Anthony 
Fig Newton - David Shaw-Parker/Geoffrey Whitehead 
Bonny Bernard - Bruce Alexander/Nicholas Le Provost/Matthew Morgan 
Judge Bullingham - Christopher Benjamin/David Shaw-Parker/Stephen Critchlow 
Liz Probert - Elaine Claxton 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4 between 25 December 2001 and 9 May 2018 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Rumpole: A BBC Radio Collection

32 BBC Radio full-cast dramas

Alexander McCall-Smith

Rachel Joyce

Charles Dickens

Anton Chekhov

Leo Tolstoy

Elizabeth Gaskell

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

An all-star cast attend a mysterious private club in this hilarious parody of classic horror tales 
 
Membership of the exclusive Mausoleum Club isn't for the faint of heart. The Honorable Clarence Green wants in, but to join he must first hear the spine-chilling stories of the existing members, before enthralling them with one of his own. But are their stories fact or fiction? And will Green still want to join after hearing the horrors they have to tell? 
 
A brilliantly unexpected and macabre comedy series parodying classic Victorian stories in episodes such as 'A Study in Starlets', 'The Turn of the Knob' and 'The Pet and the Pendulum', Tales from the Mausoleum Club brings to life strange tales of mystery objects, spooky country mansions, West Country paganism and unholy animal projects. 
 
This creepy collection of thirteen episodes opens with the standalone pilot episode, 'The Demon Cakestand of Beastley Chase', starring Stephen Fry. The following two series - Tales from the Mausoleum Club and The Fall of the Mausoleum Club - feature more stunning casts including Terence Stamp, Timothy Spall, Andrew Sachs, Alison Steadman, Jim Broadbent, Roy Hudd, Miranda Richardson, Martin Jarvis and Spike Milligan. It is a compilation of curses, hauntings, monsters and (hysterical) laughter. So... will you dare to join the Mausoleum Club? 
 
Written by Ian Brown and James Hendrie 
Music by Max Harris 
Produced by Paul Spencer 
 
Contents 
 
Pilot episode: The Demon Cakestand of Beastley Chase 
 
Tales from the Mausoleum Club: 
The Inaudible Man 
Heart of Skegness 
A Study in Starlets 
The Turn of the Knob 
Soldiers Three: India Nil 
Jess of the B'ournevilles 
 
The Fall of the Mausoleum Club: 
The Pet and the Pendulum 
The Charge of the Boys' Brigade 
Trevor Island 
The Prunestone 
The T Machine 
Bleak Horse 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on the following dates: 
22 December 1984 (The Demon Cakestand of Beastley Chase) 
3 January - 7 February 1987 (Tales from the Mausoleum Club) 
7 September - 12 October 1988 (The Fall of the Mausoleum Club) 
 
©2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Tales from the Mausoleum Club

13 full-cast curious tales

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

Lucy Montgomery

A multi-paced, one-woman Fast Show showcasing the exceptional talents of Lucy Montgomery 
 
'Full of surprises' The Telegraph 
 
Fresh from her success in Tittybangbang, Down the Line and Bellamy's People, human chameleon Lucy Montgomery stars in her very own radio sketch show, packed with comic characters galore. 
 
Meet Maisie and Daisy, the posh private school girls with a unique way of explaining popular culture; jilted bride Wendy, who's determined to give her wedding speech despite her groom's absence; and 'Can-do Candi' Karmel, the 80-year-old diva who won't let old age stop her performing. There's also the acupuncturist who's determined to ensure her clients are relaxed, the humble Cockney charlady who knows her place, and the police officer who can't find the right words. 
 
Find out why the Mona Lisa's been dumped by the Laughing Cavalier (and why Peter Andre is the most dangerous man in the world), hear an alternative take on Gardeners' Question Time; learn how to talk to teenagers in a language they'll understand - and discover the many perks of being Tim Vincent's mum... 
 
Written and performed by Lucy Montgomery, this witty, wonderfully-observed sketch show also features Philip Pope, Sally Grace, Waen Shepherd, Natalie Walter and Iris Walker. 
 
Production credits 
Written by Lucy Montgomery, with additional material by Barunka O'Shaughnessy, Steven Burge, Jon Hunter, Holly Walsh, Dan Tetsell, Joe Wilkinson, Fay Rusling, Abigail Burdess, Suk Pannu, Andy Wolton and Joseph Morpurgo 
Script Editor: Dan Tetsell 
Music by Philip Pope 
Produced and directed by Katie Tyrrell 
 
With Philip Pope, Sally Grace, Waen Shepherd, Natalie Walter and Iris Walker 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 24 November-15 December 2010 (Series 1), 26 July-16 August 2011 (Series 2) 
 
© 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Lucy Montgomery's Variety Pack

Lyndon Mallet

Frances Barber and David Bamber star in this light-hearted sitcom about the diary-writing inhabitants of 11 Hare Lane 
 
When newly widowed Jessica decides to rent a room to recently divorced Rex, she's a little apprehensive. She's never had a lodger before, and he's not used to being a tenant. Neither are quite sure how their relationship works - and to make things trickier, they're wildly different people. But unbeknownst to either of them, they share a secret - they both keep a diary. 
 
Taking turns to read from their respective journals, they relate their thoughts, hopes, dreams and first impressions of each other, which are somewhat less than flattering. He finds her aloof, she thinks he's too eager to please - and when his dodgy DIY skills leave her seething, she retaliates by letting his room to mature student Charles, a tall, attractive blond who looks like a poet. 
 
Relegated to the boxroom by 'Lord Byron', and beset by work frustrations and a demanding ex-wife, Rex is left feeling disheartened. Meanwhile, Jessica makes a shocking discovery about her late husband that leaves her questioning everything she thought she knew about their marriage. Living parallel lives under the same roof, can Rex and Jessica learn to rub along together? And as they fill up their diaries with their deepest feelings, will they ever get around to confiding in one another? 
 
Adapted by Lyndon Mallet from his acclaimed novel of the same name, this warm, gentle comedy drama stars Frances Barber as Jessica and David Bamber as Rex. 
 
Production credits 
Written by Lyndon Mallet 
Directed by Kate Valentine and Peter Kavanagh 
Original music by Simon Cryer 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 11-18 September 2000 (Episodes 1 &amp; 2), 10 September-1 October 2001 (Episodes 3-6) 
 
Cast 
Jessica - Frances Barber 
Rex - David Bamber 
 
 
©2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The Hare Lane Diaries

A BBC Radio 4 Comedy Drama

Collin Johnson

A retired widower has his quiet life turned upside down when he mysteriously comes into a large windfall 
 
Julius Hutch has planned to spend his retirement years 'pottering' and worrying about his bills, but wakes one morning to discover a foreign merchant bank has put four million pounds into his account - and won't take it back. So Julius, a humble man, sets out to spend the money helping other people, and wooing Pauline, the local bank teller. Up against an enormous banking corporation and an unsavoury property developer, Julius soon discovers that rather than being crushed by these financial giants as he would have been in the past, he is rendered rather more delightfully impervious by his new-found wealth. 
 
A wonderful comedy about family, late-in-life romance, environmentalism, and justice against faceless conglomerates, Capital Gains is written in letters, speeches and emails between friends, lovers, and enemies. Perhaps the little man may just triumph at last... 
 
 
Cast 
Julius Hutch .... Peter Jones 
Mrs Pauline Tone .... Celestine Randall 
Kate .... Justine Midda 
Sexton Lewis .... Jeffrey Wickham 
News Reader/Haiku Jack .... Collin Johnson 
Peter Fang ..... Peter Whitman 
Sir Gainford Blounty .... Stephen Thorne 
Dahlia Sprout ..... Jillie Meers 
Ted Smoothie .... David Holt 
The Colonel ..... Hugh Dickson 
Liz Dangerfield .... Toni G Barry 
Himself ..... Brian Perkins 
Other parts are played by Collin Johnson, David Holt, and Brian Perkins 
 
Production credits 
 
Written by Collin Johnson 
Produced and Directed by Andy Jordan & David Blount 
 
Originally broadcast on BBC Radio 4 
Series 1: 6th April - 27th April 1995 
Series 2: 25th July - 14th August 1997 
 
©2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Capital Gains

Steve Waters

A gripping BBC Radio 4 dramatisation of the 1970's Iranian Revolution 
 
Something is coming. What is on the horizon for the people of Iran? Can America's friendship with Iran survive? From Jimmy Carter's optimistic visit to Tehran in December 1977 to the trial of the state's enemies in 1979, this nine-part drama tells the story of the Iranian Revolution, where protestors took to the streets in support of the exiled religious leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, and the Shah requested help from an America already torn apart by its own conflicts. 
 
In a time of hope, of tyranny, of change, of oppression, in a tale of power, betrayal and fear, this true story will transport you to the 1970s, when the Iranian Revolution would change the world - forever. 
 
Featuring Dame Diana Rigg (Game of Thrones, All Creatures Great and Small), Bijan Daneshmand (The Night Manager, The Boy from Aleppo that Painted the War) and Carolyn Pickles (Broadchurch, Land Girls). 
 
Cast 
Narrator - Diana Rigg 
The Shah - Bijan Daneshmand 
President Carter - Nathan Osgood 
The Ayatollah Khomeini - Selva Rasalingam 
Zbigniew Brzezinski - Sam Dale 
William Sullivan - Tony Turner 
Farah Pahlavi - Nathalie Armin 
Rosalynn Carter- Carolyn Pickles 
Nassiri - Peter Polycarpou 
Mehdi - Moe Bar-El 
Haikaz / Sadegh Ghotbzadeh - Philip Arditti 
Gary Sick - David Seddon 
Warren Christopher - Don Gilet 
Molly - Saffron Coomber 
Sharpour Bakhtiar - Peter Polycarpou 
General Gharabaghi / General Oveissi - Vincent Ebrahim 
Carole Bauman - Clare Corbett 
Sadegh Khalkhali - Bhasker Patel 
Ebrahim Yazdi - Paul Chahidi 
Hassan - Amir El-Masry 
Joan - Alexandra Constantinidi 
Iraj - Ashley Kumar 
Ahmad - Ronny Jhutti 
Amir - Dana Haqjoo 
Shirin - Afsaneh Dehrouyeh 
Nargess - Sara Zeymour 
 
Production credits 
Written by Steve Waters 
Composer- Ghanvar Khaleghi 
Sound Design - Caleb Knightley 
Produced and Directed by Marc Beeby 
 
'Exactly the type of drama at which the BBC excels' Guardian 
 
Originally broadcast January-March 2019 
 
©2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

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