PublicationStatus

Brand

Format

AgeRange

Series

Imprint

CategoryLabel

Sean Grundy

After ten years, Peter leaves Gillian for Laura. Distraught, Gillian goes round to Peter's parents to be consoled. They take her in - then things go a little weird. Starring Diane Morgan, Colin Hoult, Janine Duvitski, John Henshaw, Zoe Gardner, Zahra Barri, John Biddle, Tony Marshall, Christine Hall and Sean Grundy. Written by Sean Grundy. Director: Alison Crawford.

In The Family

A BBC Radio 4 dramatisation

Bernard Shaw

When phonetics tutor and linguist Henry Higgins meets Cockney flower girl Eliza Doolittle, he makes a bet with his friend Colonel Pickering that he can teach her to speak so well that she will be able to pass herself off as a Duchess at a society ball. Eliza agrees, seduced by promises of chocolates and taxi rides - but her transformation from caterpillar to butterfly will not be easy, and the process will take its toll on both Eliza and Higgins... Written in 1912, Pygmalion enjoyed instant success and was adapted as the hit musical My Fair Lady, starring Audrey Hepburn and Rex Harrison. Among the star cast in this 1986 adaptation are Simon Cadell, Imelda Staunton, Rachel Gurney and Edward Hardwicke.

Pygmalion (Classic Radio Theatre)

Charles Dickens

In the polluted and poverty-ridden Coketown, Louisa and Tom Gradgrind endure a cold and loveless childhood at the hands of their self-satisfied and unimaginative father Thomas. Starved of affection, Louisa is forced into a miserable marriage with the self-made industrialist Josiah Bounderby, thirty years her senior, whilst Tom descends into a secret life of theft. Into such squalor and misery comes Sissy Jupe, a child of the circus whose ailing father Sleary has deserted her. When she is adopted by Tom Gradgrind, the generous hearts of Sissy and her circus colleagues help combat the pervading gloom and offer the hope of redemption and eventual happiness. This full-cast BBC Radio dramatisation stars John Woodvine, Tom Baker and Anna Massey.

Hard Times

Simon Guerrier

Annie has learned quite a bit about her new friend Gemma: she's from Bristol, she used to work in a pharmacy, and she's never forgiven herself for the suicide of her teenage son. She also died ten years ago and doesn't know why she's come back through that door. Perhaps it has something to do with the new road they're building through the rundown part of town. The plans are sparking protests, and Annie knows those derelict houses hold a secret in Gemma's past. Will stopping the demolition help Gemma be at peace again? Annie, George and Mitchell get involved in the road protest, but they're more concerned by mysterious deaths at the hospital. Deaths that have also attracted the attention of the new Hospital Administrator... 
Featuring Mitchell, George and Annie, as played by Aidan Turner, Russell Tovey and Lenora Crichlow in the hit series created by Toby Whithouse for BBC Television.

Being Human

The Road

Gary Russell

An archaeological dig in 1936 unearths relics of another time... And - as the Doctor, Amy and Rory realise - another place. Another planet. But if Enola Porter, noted adventuress, has really found evidence of an alien civilization, how come she isn’t famous? Added to that, since Amy’s been travelling with him for a while, why does she think the Doctor is from Mars? As the ancient spaceship reactivates, the Doctor discovers that nothing and no-one can be trusted. The things that seem most real could actually be literal fabrications - and very deadly indeed. Who can the Doctor believe when no one is what they seem? And how can he defeat an enemy who can bend matter itself? Read by Arthur Darvill, who played Rory in Doctor Who, this exciting adventure features the Eleventh Doctor, Amy and Rory, as played by Matt Smith, Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill in the hit BBC TV series.

Doctor Who: The Glamour Chase

Cath Staincliffe

In this drama by Cath Staincliffe, probate researchers Dan and Rachel search backwards through the family line to find the true heir and get a slice of the fortune. But their quest leads them to uncover a broken family with a terrible secret. Henry Gaunt has died leaving a sizeable estate but no will. His step-sister can't inherit and there are no known kin. The step-sister doesn't know much about Henry's father: she thinks he died in the Second World War when Henry was a small child. Dan and Rachel's investigation leads to a surprising discovery. Producer: Nadia Molinari.

Legacy Blood On The Mountains (Woman's Hour Drama)

Anthony Trollope

This novel, described as a '... brilliantly choreographed legal thriller' (Mail on Sunday), centres on the pathos of the main character, Lady Mason. Youthful marriage choices, middle-aged marital crisis, love and loss revolve around the legal action and the complex portrayal of Lady Mason, who is both sympathetic and wily. The novel proposes a standard of morality higher than that embodied in the practice of an English court of law. With its concern for social issues and its extensive coverage of middle-class and landed life, 'Orley Farm' is a novel that demands attention in the rich field of nineteenth century fiction. Trollope wrote in his Autobiography that his friends considered this 'the best I have written'. With Tim Pigott-Smith as Anthony Trollope and Samantha Bond as Lady Mason, this production also stars Ronald Pickup, Dan Stevens, Amanda Root, Jonathan Christie and Lydia Leonard. Directed by Tracey Neale.

Orley Farm (BBC Radio 4 Classic Serial)

Wynyard Browne

A BBC Radio 4 production of Wynyard Browne’s classic play about a 1950s family homecoming at Christmas. 
It is Christmas Eve and the family are gathering at Reverend Martin Gregory’s Norfolk vicarage. A soldier son destined for Oxbridge, two elderly aunts with a passion for chatter, a cousin with a military background and a pair of daughters who are both hiding secrets join the vicar to celebrate the festive season. 
But family tensions soon come to the fore, and as skeletons tumble from closets, the vicar finds his Christmas spirit sorely tested and is forced to reconsider all the values he holds dear... 
The Holly and the Ivy was adapted as a successful film starring Ralph Richardson and Celia Johnson. Among the distinguished cast in this 1971 production are Stephen Murray, John Samson, Jane Knowles, Isobel Black and Geoffrey Beevers. 
©2011 AudioGO Ltd (P)2011 AudioGO Ltd

The Holly And The Ivy (Classic Radio Theatre)

Beryl Reid

Beryl Reid, OBE, (1919-1996) was one of Britain's much-loved comedy actresses. She won a BAFTA for Best Actress and received a lifetime achievement award at the British Comedy Awards. 
 
 In this collection we hear - in her own words - about other funny women, as well as some of her well-known roles in The Belles of St Trinian's and Smiley's People, and the reaction to her role in The Killing of Sister George. She discusses her radio career and Educating Archie, as well as going to dancing school at 4 years old, becoming a success and playing the eccentric. She's also open about the challenge of maintaining relationships, her lack of confidence and having no regrets. 
 
 Due to the age and nature of this archive material, the sound quality may vary. 
 
©2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Beryl Reid In Her Own Words

Agatha Christie

Theo is determined to seek happiness with her husband's business rival, Vincent. Having fled London for Paris, however, she soon learns of Richard's financial collapse - and discovers that rather more than just his job is at stake. Starring Emilia Fox as Theo, Alex Jennings as Richard and Julian Rhind-Tutt as Vincent. Dramatised by Mike Walker.

Magnolia Blossom

Scotland, 1745. The Doctor, Ben and Polly arrive in Scotland after the Battle of Culloden and meet a band of Highlanders who are fleeing in defeat. Their Laird is injured and the three offer to help tend his injuries. Polly and Kirsty McLaren, the Laird's daughter (played in a guest appearance by Hannah Gordon) go to fetch some water but while they are gone the others are captured by Redcoat troops.   Things become worse when the group is taken again - this time by the crooked Solicitor Grey, who is part of the West Indian slave trade. The prisoners, Ben amongst them, are bundled on board the Annabelle where the wicked Captain Trask issues dire threats of drowning.   Meanwhile the Doctor is on dry land confusing all and sundry in a variety of disguises. However, his bumbling manner hides a sharp brain and eventually he, Polly and Ben are reunited in the TARDIS together with the young piper Jamie McCrimmon, who went on to become one of the most popular companions of the series.

Doctor Who: The Highlanders (TV Soundtrack)

Sarah Naomi Lee

Philippa is a librarian from a long line of librarians. When her father dies and her mother loses her wits, Philippa tries the only language Vera understands, that of the Dewey cataloguing system, to guide her back to sanity. Starring Olivia Colman as Philippa, Sheila Reid as Vera, Caroline Guthrie as Sheila and Paul Rider as Alistair. Written by Sarah Naomi Lee. Directed by Jessica Dromgoole.

Dewey Eyed

Man and Superman was the first drama to be broadcast on the BBC's Third Programme on October 1st, 1946. To celebrate Radio 3's 50th anniversary, the play was directed by Sir Peter Hall, and preserved for all time in this lush audio dramatisation. 'A comedy and a philosophy', Man and Superman is based on the Don Juan theme and, using all the elements from Mozart's Don Giovanni, Shaw reordered them so that Don Juan becomes the quarry instead of the huntsman. Boasting an outstanding cast including Ralph Fiennes, Juliet Stevenson, Dame Judi Dench, John Wood, Nicholas Le Prevost and Paul Merton, this release includes an exclusive interview with director Sir Peter Hall.

Man & Superman

Edith Wharton

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation of Edith Wharton’s 1913 satire of marriage and money in early-20th century American society. The play follows the beautiful Undine Spragg as she arrives in New York and sets her sights on Ralph Marvell, then travels to Paris where she meets a charming French aristocrat. Will Undine ever find real happiness?   Starring Rebecca Night as Undine Spragg and Barbara Barnes as Mrs Spragg. Also included in the cast are Lorelei King, Jonathan Keeble, William Houston, Lucy Gaskell, Paul McCleary, Provence Maydew, Tom Hollander, Dan Stevens, Tessa Nicholson, Olwen May, Joseph Kloska and Daniel Rogers. Dramatised by Jane Rogers and directed by Nadia Molinari.     ‘The Custom of the Country’ was originally broadcast as the ‘Classic Serial’ from 3 - 17 January 2010.

The Custom Of The Country

Alexis Zegerman

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast comedy by Alexis Zegerman about the hectic life of a single mother, originally broadcast 25 August - 29 September 2010. 
 
'Mum's on the Run' is a modern-day twist on the single-family situation. It follows the hectic life ('What life?') of single mum, Jen. Mother of two, Master of none - Jen seems to spend most of her time as an unpaid chauffeur to a 15-year-old teenage existentialist son, Toby, and a tonally challenged recorder-practising 11-year-old daughter, Felicity, whilst also coping with the jazz musician ex-husband, the fiercely competitive and annoying downstairs neighbour and a huge crush on her son's history teacher. 
 
Episode 1 follows how Jen manages to drop the kids off at school at the beginning of the day but ends up collecting them from a nightclub at the end of it. Volunteering to do the Crocodile Walk into school to get brownie points with the other mothers is not Jen's idea of fun in torrential rain. 
 
In episode 2 a quiet parent's evening becomes a farcical attempt by Jen and ex-husband Keith to recreate the execution of Charles I. 
 
When Jen starts trying to date again in episode 3, things are bound to go awry. She manages to get involved in a complicated online mix up which involves the neighbours and the kids' teacher. 
 
In episode 4 Jen has trouble with mice, cats and the local constabulary. 
 
In episode 5 the desire to impress Mr Rigby and silence nagging children persuades Jen to attempt some charitable work. But a botched attempt to give blood and a disastrous baking error lead only to further humiliation. 
 
Jen has at last secured a semi-date with Mr Rigby in episode 6 but then realises that it's bonfire night and she's promised the kids fireworks in the garden. Their date turns to farce as both Mr Rigby and the ex-husband turn up and neighbour Vivienne is almost hospitalised by a dodgy rocket. 
 
Stars Ronni Ancona as Jen, John Gordon Sinclair as Mr Rigby, Alexis Zegerman as Shelley, Christine Kavanagh as Vivienne and Kevin Eldon as Keith. Also included in the cast are Amy Dabrowa, Alexander Heath, Amaya Rowlands, Pip Woolley, Iain Batchelor, Jude Akuwudike and Sam Dale. 
 
Produced by Alison Vernon-Smith.

Mum's On The Run The complete series

Starring Ronni Ancona

Emma Thompson

Dame Emma Thompson, DBE, is one of Britain's most acclaimed actresses and scriptwriters. In this collection we hear - in her own words - about her early career as a comic and scriptwriter. She discusses some of her most famous works, including Fortunes of War, Sense and Sensibility, Remains of the Day and Nanny McPhee, and explains how she has managed to remain grounded during her rise to fame as an actress. 
 
She also touches on more personal topics, including the importance of her family and friends in her life, the difficulty of being a woman in the world of Hollywood, her struggle with infertility and her charity work during the HIV and AIDs epidemic in Africa during the 1990s. 
 
The interviews included are taken from: Wogan, BBC One (first broadcast 7 October 1987); Pebble Mill, BBC One (first broadcast 14 February 1996); Hard Talk, BBC News 24 (first broadcast 19 December 2003); Phil Jupitus, BBC Radio 6 Music (first broadcast 12 October 2005), Jonathan Ross, BBC Radio 2 (first broadcast 25 February 2006), Desert Island Discs, BBC Radio 4 (first broadcast 28 March 2010). 
 
Due to the age and nature of this archive material, the sound quality may vary. 
 
©2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Emma Thompson In Her Own Words

Carla Lane

Myra Taylor

These adaptations of four 1974 episodes of the BBC1 comedy series The Liver Birds feature two incompatible Liverpudlian girls, Beryl and Sandra. What they have in common are a tiny flat, boyfriend problems, and a passion for the latest fashion. In the title episode, it's Beryl's birthday, and Sandra is planning a surprise party for her. Among her presents she gets a hamster in the post from Robert - but then Thingy goes missing, and the hunt is on to find the rogue rodent. Starring Polly James and Nerys Hughes.

Liver Birds - Anybody Here Seen Thingy

John Mortimer

When Lewis Luby (Jeremy Irons) comes to, late at night in an Italian hospital, he finds himself lying under the monstrous big toe of God. Surely there has been some mistake: Luby, who has never for one moment believed in the immortality of the soul, cannot possibly be in heaven!  John Mortimer had the idea for 'Mr Luby's Fear of Heaven' when he first visited the Santa Maria della Scala hospital in Siena and saw patients lying in beds under ceilings decorated with 15th-Century frescoes depicting Heaven and Hell. The play was first produced for BBC Radio 3 in 1976, with John Gielgud in the title role. Later that year it was presented on stage as part of a double bill 'Heaven and Hell', with Denholm Elliot as Luby.  This BBC Radio 4 'Afternoon Play' production, starring Jeremy Irons as the protagonist, was first broadcast 31 December 2008 and repeated 15 February 2011. Stephen Critchlow, Marsha Fitzalan, Chris Pavlo, Donnla Hughes, Dan Starkey and Flaminia Cinque also feature amongst the cast.

Mr Luby's Fear Of Heaven

Gerda Stevenson

Maria is an Englishwoman who has fallen in love with her husband Iain's Highland heritage - but there's a shock in store for them when they take a trip home to his mother's island croft. It is Hogmanay, and Iain has just received news of his mother's death. He and Maria set off from Edinburgh to attend the funeral. They drive north in blizzard conditions. Eventually they reach Iain's mother's house, where brother James, sister-in-law Ishbel, and the church elders are gathered. In the aftermath of this family crisis Maria's love affair with the island way of life will be severely tested. Written by Gerda Stevenson. Starring Juliet Stevenson as Maria and Iain MacRae as Iain, with David Walker, Carina MacLeod and Angus Peter Campbell. Producer/director: Bruce Young.

The Apple Tree

Alexandre Dumas

A BBC Radio 4 dramatisation of Alexandre Dumas’s swashbuckling epic, starring Jamie Glover, Robert Glenister and Timothy Spall.  ‘All for one and one for all’ ...  17th Century France. Dashing young swordsman D’Artagnan heads for Paris, dreaming of serving the King as a member of his elite guard. On arrival, he meets the three musketeers – Athos, Porthos and Aramis – and the four men soon become fast friends.  Together, they strive to outwit the murderous schemes of power-hungry Cardinal Richelieu, and save the Queen from a plot to dishonour her. Their adventures take them on a perilous journey through the French countryside and across the Channel to England...  Now a major motion picture starring Logan Lerman, Matthew Macfadyen, Luke Evans and Ray Stevenson, The Three Musketeers is a thrilling action-adventure full of duelling, danger, courage and camaraderie.  This BBC Radio 4 version was dramatised by James Saunders.

The Three Musketeers

Christoper Thompson

Peter Reynolds

Pam Ayres

Pam and Gordon Grant are a couple at odds running a rural garden centre. While Pam still feels young and is determined to avoid the slippery slope into middle-age, Gordon seems keen to dive in - slippers first.   Pam’s ally at the garden centre is teenager Carol, a girl more than happy to speak her mind. If only, Gordon complains, there was something in her peroxide head apart from boob jobs, alco-pops, Johnny Depp and bronzed chests smothered in baby oil... Naïve deputy manager Dave, though older than Carol, is smitten. Luckily, he has Pam to advise him on the route to Carol’s heart: like pointing out that metal detecting is NOT a good idea for a hot date! And how could the garden centre survive without the ancient and, quite frankly, bizarre Roy, the highly inaccurate singer of pop songs and runner-up in the Gloucester beauty pageant?   Will Pam’s last fling at life, adventure and fun overcome Gordon’s passion for comfortable trousers, caravanning and penny-pinching? Let battle among the begonias commence!

Pam Ayres In Potting On

Judy Upton

Resourceful mum Shanice is persuaded by her next-door neighbour, Evie, to take up the bizarre sport of jelly wrestling to make ends meet in this BBC Radio 4 'Afternon Play'. Becky, AKA 'Azaria The Amazon', shows Shanice the ropes, and she is soon wowing the rowdy stag night audiences with her slams and smackdowns. By night she's bikini clad 'Alice Malice', by day she's mum to gymnastics-mad Alex and a devoted daughter to her disabled, ex-army dad.   When these two worlds threaten to collide, it reawakens a painful episode from Shanice's childhood which threatens to tear apart her cherished family life and leads to a show-down with the father she adores.   'Jelly Babes' was written by Judy Upton, and stars Sally Orrock as Shanice, Nadine Marshall as Becky and Jane Whittenshaw as Evie. Also featuring amongst the cast are David Seddon¸ Sam Dale and Ryan Watson. 'Jelly Babes' was originally broadcast on 13 April 2011.

Jelly Babes

Noel Coward

This sharply funny play of reversals focuses on Elyot and Amanda, a passionate but feuding couple who divorced five years before. Now, on the first night of their honeymoons with their new partners, they find that they are all staying in the same hotel on the French Riviera. Fireworks are inevitable...   The roles of the two ex-spouses are brilliantly recreated by Paul Scofield and Patricia Routledge, while Coward's scintillating repartee epitomises all the glamour and sophistication of life between the wars for society's spoilt darlings.

Private Lives (Classic Radio Theatre)

Alan Bennett

The humorous and moving tale of Miss Shepherd, an eccentric old lady who, by a bizarre series of twists and turns, lived in the author’s garden for many years. Alan Bennett reads his own acclaimed work, recently adapted as a West End smash hit starring Maggie Smith as the eccentric old lady.

The Lady In The Van

Dolly Bantry, mistress of Gossington Hall, is enjoying a pleasant doze when suddenly her dreams take a strange turn. The housemaid Mary is telling her that there is a body in the library...   When she wakes up, she finds that it is true. But who is the strange young blonde dressed in an evening gown who is lying strangled on the library hearth rug?   Enter St Mary Mead's resident sleuth, Miss Marple. With her keen eye for the complexities of human nature and her observational skills, she studies the body closely and makes mental notes. But even she cannot provide an immediate explanation.   The police hunt through reports of missing persons, and before long the identity of the victim becomes obvious. What is not apparent, however, is how she ended up on the Bantrys' library floor.   Sifting every word from the suspects and exploring every possible motive, Miss Marple slowly comes to a shocking conclusion.   Agatha Christie's puzzling mystery is dramatised with a full cast including Richard Todd, Pauline Jameson and Jack Watling.

The Body In Library

Philip de Gouveia

Evie, a phenomenally bright but socially marginalised fifteen year-old, has had it with Western Civilization. Self-educated in the ideas of the Luddites, Mao and T.E. Lawrence, she wants to launch a mission against technology and the damage she believes it has wrought on the human race. She's taken a look at human history and decided it's time things changed. For good. But can she get her mobile-addicted classmates to join with her?

Children's Crusade Memoirs Of A Teenage Radical

Thomas Hardy

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation by Jon Sen of Thomas Hardy's tragic tale of star-crossed lovers in the West Country. 
 
'Two on a Tower' is Hardy's ninth novel and contains perhaps his most complete treatment of the theme of love across the class and age divide, and also the fullest expression of his fascination with astronomy and science. This story of passion and sacrifice begins when Lady Viviette Constantine discovers the handsome young astronomer Swithin St Cleeve on the lonely tower on her estate. 
 
Starring Maggie O'Neill as Lady Constantine, Blake Ritson as Swithin St Cleeve, Conrad Nelson as Parson Torkingham and with Amy Humphreys, Stephen Tomlin, Pauline Jefferson, Richard Heap and Carter Dowland. 
 
Directed by Stefan Escreet.

Two On A Tower (Bbc Radio 4 Classic Serial)

Mike Tucker

Earth, 2099, and global warming is devastating the planet. In a desperate attempt at preservation, the governments of the world have removed vast sections of the Arctic and Antarctic and set them inside huge domes. When the TARDIS arrives, the Doctor and Martha soon discover that it's not only ice and snow that has been preserved beneath Snowglobe 7. While Martha struggles to help with an infection sweeping through the Dome, the Doctor discovers an alien threat that has lain hidden since the last ice age... Georgia Moffett, who played the Doctor's daughter Jenny in the Doctor Who episode The Doctor's Daughter, reads this exciting adventure featuring the Tenth Doctor and Martha, as played by David Tennant and Freema Agyeman in the hit BBC TV series.

Doctor Who: Snowglobe 7

Harriett Gilbert

To tie-in with Radio 4's new versions of the Raymond Chandler classic thrillers aired in February 2011, Harriett Gilbert presents a reappraisal of the life and legacy of the man from Upper Norwood who invented the PI as we know him.  'I needed a drink, I needed a lot of life insurance, I needed a vacation, I needed a home in the country. What I had was a coat, a hat and a gun.'  Philip Marlowe has become, in many people's minds, the archetypal American detective anti-hero, yet his creator was educated at English public school, took the Civil Service exam and started a career in the Admiralty. This re-examination of the greatest crime writer of all time assesses him as an uneasy Englishman abroad and analyses his love-hate relationship with Hollywood, as well as his writing.  Interviewees include the best-selling writer Sarah Dunant, who was inspired to write crime after reading Chandler as a teenager; Professor John Sutherland; David Thomson (the leading film critic who also went to school at Dulwich); and David Fine, author of a book about mythic LA.  Originally broadcast on 3 February 2011, 'A Coat, a Hat and a Gun' is presented by Harriett Gilbert, presenter of 'The World Book Club' on the World Service. She is also a writer, huge Chandler fan and daughter of Chandler's solicitor.

A Coat, A Hat And A Gun

Jane Marple is being treated to a few days' holiday by her niece, staying at Bertram's Hotel - a dignified, establishment tucked away in a back street of busy Mayfair. It is a place where sedate upper-class ladies, retired military gentlemen and the higher echelons of the clergy can indulge in the comforts of a bygone age.   But Miss Marple begins to feel uneasy. Something sinister lurks beneath the polished veneer. Why are so many major crimes associated in some way with the hotel and those eminently respectable people staying there?   Instead of rest and relaxation, Miss Marple finds herself hard at work as she attempts to discover what goes on behind closed doors.   Siân Phillips and Maurice Denham are among the cast of this absorbing mystery, starring June Whitfield as Miss Marple.

Showing results for: ‘Danielle Steel’

Filters

Category

Age

Publication Date

Format

Series

Imprint

Follow penguin

Follow ladybird

Follow puffin

Sign up to the Penguin newsletter