Nigella Lawson has written eleven bestselling cookery books including the classics How to Eat and How To Be A Domestic Goddess – the book that inspired a whole new generation of bakers. These books, and her TV series, have made her a household name around the world. 
 
www.nigella.com 
@Nigella_Lawson

Nigella Lawson

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Paul M. Levitt

Bob Sinfield

What drove Harry Houdini - magician, escapologist, and one of the most famous men in the world? 
 
Whether it was escaping from handcuffs, a straitjacket or from a box filled with water, Houdini wowed audiences with his seemingly death-defying performance... This BBC Radio collection shares the story behind the trickery: in two fascinating full-cast dramas about the life of Harry Houdini, and in particular his public campaign to expose fraudulent spiritual mediums. 
 
In the stunning full-cast dramatisation Houdini, a man is naked against the world, bound in chains, deprived of all help. Performing a death defying escape from a galvanised iron can, filled with water and secured with massive locks. Failure means a drowning death! This is the gripping story of the master magician, escapologist, and at the time of his death in 1926, one of the most famous men in the world. Michael Maloney stars as Houdini, with Graham Crowden as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Lorelei King as Bess. 
 
Houdini, the showman, longed to believe that he might be able to communicate beyond the grave with his beloved mother, but knew far too much about the trickery and faking of the stage to be easily convinced. The Witch of Beacon Hill is the true story of how Harry Houdini tried to debunk psychics and mediums. Attending séances in disguise, accompanied by a reporter and a police officer he debunked the most famous and celebrated Boston medium Mina Crandon, also known as ‘Margery’. This radio drama tells Margery’s story, and the story of how Houdini set out to disprove her claims. Starring Shelly Thompson as Margery and Nigel Anthony as Houdini. 
 
This double edition collection comes with a bonus episode of Harry Houdini: Escape artist and showman with Rajan Datar. Through interviews, Datar charts the life and career of the legendary Houdini, with writer and biographer Adam Begley, Dr Matthew Solomon, and Dr Katharina Rein.Cast and credits 
 HoudiniWritten by Bob SinfieldProduced by Graham PassHarry Houdini - Michael MaloneySir Arthur Conan Doyle - Graham CrowdenBess - Lorelei KingLady Conan Doyle - Gwen TaylorDash - Jack KlaffWhitehead - Dan StraussDr Steves - Dick VosburghFirst Broadcast BBC Radio 2, Oct 1996The Witch of Beacon Hill Written by Paul M LevittDirected by Martin JenkinsLeroi Crandon - John Woodvine'Margery the Medium’ - Shelly ThompsonHarry Houdini - Nigel AnthonyJames Bird - Kerry ShaleCaldwell/Rand - Vincent BrimbleGray/Munn - Brian MillerMrs Corbridge/Mrs Weiss - Helen HortonCollins/Rubin - Joe DunlopGeorge - Ian TargettCaroline Churchill/Mrs Stinson - Hilda SchroderWinifred Churchill - Barbara AtkinsonHenry/Interviewer - Paul DowningLaura - Jane SlavinFirst Broadcast BBC Radio 4, 30 Sep 1989The Forum: Harry Houdini: Escape artist and showmanPresented by Rajan DatarProduced by Fiona ClampinFirst Broadcast BBC World Service, 30 Dec 2021©2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Houdini & The Witch of Beacon Hill

Two Full-Cast BBC Radio Historical Dramas

Steven Appleby

All twelve episodes of the absurdist series based on Steven Appleby’s comic strip – plus a Christmas Special'No one is more talented or original' Richard Ingrams, SpectatorCartoonist Steven Appleby asks where reality ends and fantasy begins, as he gives us his distinctly abnormal insights into everyday life. In these two series, he takes a look at a few of life’s fundamental topics, including Love, Death, Science, Truth and Oceanography.From seeking romance when his wife elopes with the electric kettle to searching for the hidden meaning of life, said to be written on a sausage, he takes us on a personal journey through his memories, experiences, dreams and fantasies to reveal his own idiosyncratic version of normality.Along the way, he discovers that his kids are actually alien tourists visiting Earth on a rowdy package holiday; signs a pact with the Devil to to reverse the ageing process (and look more like Richard Burton), undergoes surgery to explore his brain’s inner workings; and proves once and for all that dinosaurs could read, write and ride bicycles. But will his attempts to tell the absolute truth prove to be a less-than-wise career move?Also included is a festive special episode, Steven Appleby’s Normal Christmas, in which Steven meets Santa and learns that Christmas isn’t just about receiving...Paul McCrink and Mark Perry star as Steven, with Steven Appleby as himself and Rachel Atkins, Ewan Bailey, Nigel Betts and Rosalind Paul as the figments of his imagination.CreditsWritten by Steven ApplebyCover drawing by Steven ApplebyProduced by Toby SwiftStarring Paul McCrink and Mark Perry as Steven and featuring Rachel Atkins, Ewan Bailey, Nigel Betts, Rosalind Paul and Steven ApplebyFirst broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 8 August-12 September 2001 (Series 1), 19 February-26 March 2003 (Series 2), 23 December 2004 (Steven Appleby’s Normal Christmas)© 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

Steven Appleby's Normal Life: The Complete Series 1 and 2

A BBC Radio 4 Sitcom

Monica Ali

A stunning BBC radio adaptation of Monica Ali's bestselling, Booker-shortlisted novel 
 
1985. Uprooted from her home in Bangladesh, 18-year-old Nazneen is sent to London for an arranged marriage with a much older man. Her new life is strange and bewildering - the busy streets and crowded tower blocks of the East End are a world away from the rural village she grew up in, and she struggles to adapt to living with her self-important husband, Chanu. 
 
Back in Bangladesh, Nazneen's sister Hasina has eloped with the man she loves, and been disowned by her family. Homesick and isolated, Nazneen reads her letters with envy, longing to have such independence and romance for herself. As the years pass, she devotes herself to becoming a dutiful wife and mother - and then she meets a passionate young radical, Karim, and finds herself drawn to him. Can she finally decide to take charge of her destiny? 
 
Monica Ali's stunning debut has become a modern classic. Published in 2003, its themes of immigrant identity and integration, racism and nationalism, free will and fate still resonate with us today. Dramatised by leading playwright Tanika Gupta, this enthralling adaptation was shortlisted for a BBC Audio Drama Award, and stars Anneika Rose, Zubin Varla, Chetna Pandya, Hiftu Quasem, Nina Wadia and Nikesh Patel. 
 
Written by Monica Ali 
Dramatised by Tanika Gupta 
Directed by Anne Isger 
Sound by Caleb Knightley, Ali Craig and Pete Ringrose 
Production Co-ordination by Luke MacGregor 
Production Assistance by Hannah O'Reilly 
A BBC Audio Production 
 
Cast 
Nazneen - Anneika Rose 
Chanu - Zubin Varla 
Razia - Chetna Pandya 
Hasina - Hiftu Quasem 
Mrs Islam - Nina Wadia 
Dr Azad - Neil D'Souza 
Karim - Nikesh Patel 
Tariq - Ragevan Vasan 
Shahana - Rameet Rauli 
Bibi - Riti Suthar 
Secretary - Gavi Singh Chera 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 7-14 August 2022 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Brick Lane

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation

Elizabeth Jane Howard

Sarah Daniels

Lin Coghlan

Penelope Wilton narrates BBC Radio 4’s epic dramatisation of the treasured family saga 
 
Elizabeth Jane Howard’s five book chronicle of the upper-middle class Cazalet family begins in 1938, as siblings Hugh, Edward, Rupert and Rachel join together for another family holiday at Home Place, their house in the Sussex countryside. 
 
During the course of The Light Years, Marking Time, Confusion, Casting Off and All Change, the progress of their lives, and those of their children, will be charted. As their stories unfolds we gain a vivid insight into the lives, hopes and loves of three generations during the Second Word War and beyond. 
 
Dramatised by Sarah Daniels and Lin Coghlan, and with a large cast of actors across all five books, this remarkable radio event adds a new dimension to Elizabeth Jane Howard’s extraordinary chronicles. The first four Cazalet novels sold over a million copies, with the fifth being published in 2013, shortly before the author’s death.

The Cazalets

The epic full-cast BBC Radio dramatisation

A. S. Byatt

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation of A.S. Byatt's 'Frederica Quartet', plus selected short stories and a fascinating talk by the author 
 
Inspired by the novels of D.H. Lawrence, particularly The Rainbow and Women in Love, this ambitious quartet from Booker Prize-winning novelist A.S. Byatt charts the lives of the Potter family between 1953 and 1970. Set against the changing social and political landscape of England in the '50s and '60s, it follows the heroine, Frederica, from precocious teenager to TV talk show host, and from her Yorkshire home to the heart of swinging London. 
 
The Virgin in the Garden sees the Potters preparing to celebrate Elizabeth II's coronation, while Frederica auditions for a play about Elizabeth I written by the beautiful Alexander Wedderburn. Will she win the part, and Alexander's heart? In Still Life, Frederica's ambitions - both academic and sexual - come to fruition, as she gains a place at Cambridge University to study English - and men. In Babel Tower, she has given up her carefree, independent lifestyle - but as the Sixties' cultural revolution explodes and the quest for personal and public freedom becomes all-important, will settling down bring her happiness? And in A Whistling Woman, as events build to a tragic climax in Yorkshire, back in London, Frederica is faced with a difficult choice... These acclaimed adaptations star Rosemary Leach, Hannah Watkins and Indira Varma as Frederica. 
 
Also included are four fantastic short stories: 'The July Ghost', dramatised with a star cast including Kate Buffery and Clive Owen; and 'Rose-Coloured Teacups', 'Gode's Story' and 'A Stone Woman', read by Anna Massey, Sheila Mitchell and Penelope Wilton respectively. Plus, in Finding A Voice, A.S. Byatt reflects on her approach to her work, explaining where her desire to write came from and how she honed her craft. 
 
Track listing 
1: Introduction 
2-9: The Virgin in the Garden 
10-16: Still Life 
17-24: Babel Tower 
25-31: A Whistling Woman 
32: The July Ghost 
33: Rose-Coloured Teacups 
34: Gode's Story 
35-37: A Stone Woman 
38: Finding a Voice 
 
© 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 
(p)2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 
 
Text copyright © AS Byatt 1978 (The Virgin in the Garden), 1985 (Still Life), 1987 ('The July Ghost', 'Rose-Coloured Teacups'), 1994 ('Gode's Story'), 1996 (Babel Tower), 2002 (A Whistling Woman)

The Frederica Quartet: The Virgin in the Garden, Still Life, Babel Tower & A Whistling Woman

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation plus selected short stories

John Fowles

Full-cast dramatisations of John Fowles' three best-known novels, with star casts 
 
John Fowles won international acclaim for his innovative, allusive novels The Collector, The Magus and The French Lieutenant's Woman. All were critical and commercial successes, translated into several languages and adapted as feature films. This collection brings together the BBC Radio adaptations of these three modern classics, with stellar casts including Judi Dench, Charles Dance and John Hurt. 
 
The Collector - When a lonely, obsessional office clerk wins a fortune on the football pools, he turns from collecting butterflies to 'collecting' a beautiful art student... This dark, disturbing dramatisation stars Judi Dench and Nigel Anthony. 
 
The Magus - Disillusioned young graduate Nick Urfe accepts a teaching post on an idyllic Greek island. There, he meets the mysterious Maurice Conchis, and becomes embroiled in a world of bizarre encounters and psychological tricks. As reality and illusion intertwine, what strange game is Conchis playing with Nick? Tom Burke, Charles Dance and Hayley Atwell star in this eerie, Lynchian drama. 
 
The French Lieutenant's Woman - Lyme Regis, 1867. Gentleman naturalist Charles Smithson is engaged to be married to the respectable Ernestina - but when he falls in love with notorious social outcast Sarah Woodruff, his complacent snobbery is shattered. Narrated by John Hurt, this multi-layered tale of forbidden passions in Victorian Dorset stars Jonathan Firth and Emily Bruni. 
 
 
Text copyright © John Fowles 1963 (The Collector), 1966, 1977 (The Magus), 1969 (The French Lieutenant's Woman) 
 
The Collector 
Miranda - Judi Dench 
Clegg - Nigel Anthony 
Other parts played by Douglas Blackwell, Martin Friend, Jane Knowles and John Rowe 
Adapted by David Parker 
Produced by Richard Wortley 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 31 July 1972 
 
The Magus 
Nick - Tom Burke 
Conchis - Charles Dance 
Lily - Hayley Atwell 
Alison - Anna Skellern 
Margaret - Josie Taylor 
Mitford - David Seddon 
Meli - Chris Pavlo 
Rowena - Lynsey-Anne Moffat 
Anton - Maarten Dannenberg 
German Colonel - Bodo Friesecke 
Greek resistance fighter/Ticket seller - Andreas Karras 
Lily de Seitas - Beth Goddard 
Kemp - Rachel Atkins 
Briggs - Michael Shelford 
Mrs Marks - Elaine Claxton 
Benji - Rudi Goodman 
Adapted by Adrian Hodges 
Produced and directed by Heather Larmour 
Harpsichordist: Maggie Cole 
Recorder player: Martin Feinstein 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 20 March-3 April 2016 
 
The French Lieutenant's Woman 
Narrator - John Hurt 
Charles - Jonathan Firth 
Sarah - Emily Bruni 
Ernestina - Kelly Reilly 
Mrs Tranter - Elizabeth Spriggs 
Dr Grogan - TP McKenna 
Mrs Poulteney/Mrs Endicott - Susan Jameson 
Sam - Nick Sayce 
Mary - Ella Smith 
Dairyman/Mr Freeman - Gerard McDermott 
Mrs Fairley/Mrs Rogers - Colleen Prendergast 
Ostler/Montague - Wayne Foskett 
Prostitute - Sophie Roberts 
Curate - John Cummins 
Dramatised by Graham White 
Produced by Peter Kavanagh 
First broadcast BBC World Service, 23-30 September 2006 
 
© 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. 
(p) 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

John Fowles: The Collector, The Magus & The French Lieutenant’s Woman

Three BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisations

William Holland

Eric Pringle

A BBC Radio dramatisation of the real-life diaries of a West Country village parson, writing at the turn of the 19th Century 
 
'A good diary can provide an unsurpassed entry into society, and the diary of William Holland is a very good diary indeed' The Spectator 
 
On October 25th, 1799 - his 18th wedding anniversary - cantankerous Somerset parson William Holland begins his diary, chronicling events at the vicarage and in the small farming community of Over Stowey. He would keep it for the next 19 years, candidly recording the small trials of day-to-day life - from chaotic church services and unruly locals to lazy servants and irksome in-laws. 
 
As the new century dawns, he finds himself dealing with parish problems and domestic dramas: including a madman in the poorhouse, a drunkard in the pulpit, and his wife's prattling cousin in the house. At harvest time, he has his work cut out collecting tithes from the local farmers, and his troubles are further compounded by an escaped cow, some curious medical complaints, and an audacious plum-plunderer... 
 
Paying a social visit to Bath with his family, the hectic pace has him longing for the relative peace and quiet of home. And back at the parsonage, his life is transformed when his manservant Robert resolves to give up drinking and womanizing. But will it last? 
 
Full of humorous observations and comic incident, this delightful journal paints a unique picture of a wonderful collection of characters, and the entertaining and often hilarious things that happen to them. Dramatised by Eric Pringle, it is brought to life by a full cast of well-known actors, and stars Ronald Pickup as William Holland, Rosemary Martin and Rowena Cooper as his wife, Mary, and Gavin Muir as Robert. 
 
Production credits 
Written by William Holland 
Dramatised by Eric Pringle 
Directed by Cherry Cookson 
 
Cast 
William Holland - Ronald Pickup 
Mary - Rosemary Martin/Rowena Cooper 
Robert - Gavin Muir 
Miss Dodwell - Tessa Worsley 
Mr Amen - Gordon Gostelow 
Farmer Morle - David Collings 
William Frost/Farmer Landsey - David Timson 
Rector Reekes/Ben Hunt - John Hartley 
Thomas Poole/Farmer Trant/Porter - Stephen Critchlow 
Mrs Southcomb - Margaret Courtenay 
Farmer CottleMr Lewis - Andrew Branch 
Margaret/Hannah/Betty/Little Will - Jane Whittenshaw 
Sally Hill/Grace - Caroline Strong 
With Tilly Gaunt, Giles Fagan and Ben Crowe 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 7-21 February 1996 (Series 1), 29 October-12 November 1999 (Series 2) 
 
© 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Paupers and Pig Killers from the diaries of William Holland

A BBC Radio 4 comedy drama

Maeve Binchy

A collection of full-cast dramatisations and readings from the bestselling author 
 
‘There’s nobody like Binchy for warming the cockles’ Times 
 
Maeve Binchy was one of Britain’s best-loved storytellers and this compilation of her finest fiction, as heard on BBC Radio, demonstrates all the warmth, wit and compassion that made her so popular. 
 
Firefly Summer is a moving, humorous novel about a sleepy Irish town facing monumental change, dramatised in six parts with a full cast including David Soul and Lorcan Cranitch. 
 
No Nightingales, No Snakes features full-cast dramatisations of five Maeve Binchy short stories, with a distinguished cast including Niamh Cusack, Sam Dale and Harry Towb. 
 
The Garden Party contains four short stories specially commissioned for BBC Radio 4, read by Niamh Cusack, Dervla Kirwan, Doreen Hepburn and Stella McCusker. 
 
The Homecoming comprises four more stories exclusively written for BBC Radio 4, read by Sean Campion, Joanna Myers, Patricia Hodge and Kate Binchy. 
 
Dealing with families, friendship, love, loss, sorrow and joy, these stories will delight all Maeve Binchy fans. Duration: 6 hours approx

Maeve Binchy: Collected Stories

Collected BBC Radio adaptations

Alex Y. Ferguson

A lively comedy drama about a young boy growing up in 1930s Tyneside with the help of his favourite uncle 
 
Lecky Ferguson is growing up in a penniless but close-knit family in Jarrow. He relies on his imaginative Uncle Freddie for explanations of the world’s many mysteries. Packed with humour and adventure, this award-winning full-cast drama tells the life of a young man that is far from ordinary. 
 
There are adventures with new-fangled electricity and a fistfight with the rag and bone man, not to mention the time that Uncle Freddie became the Pineapple King. They meet a Romanov princess at the chippy and share a seaside trip with an exiled Leon Trotsky in a stolen tram. Plucky Lecky shoots down a biplane with his catapult and meets a mysterious French airman, and there’s also the small matter of the Prince of Wales, who they manage to rescue from the Tyne. 
 
Based on events from the author’s own childhood, Alex Y. Ferguson's hilarious and heart-warming series is both a passionate evocation of the poverty of 1930s Jarrow and a laugh-out-loud tale of a childhood full of family warmth, surreal delights and magical moments. 
 
Starring Alex Y. Ferguson as the Narrator, with Art Davies (Series 1-2) and Shaun Prendergast (Series 3-6) as Uncle Freddie, and Karl Boyd (Series 1), Simon Henderson (Series 2), Gareth Brown (Series 3-5) and Jamie Bell (Series 6) as young Lecky Ferguson. 
 
Alex Y. Ferguson is a national award-winning writer with Silver and Gold Awards from the Writers’ Guild. My Uncle Freddie, ran for six series on Radio 4 and won the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain’s Award for Comedy & Light entertainment in 1997. 
 
©2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

My Uncle Freddie: The Complete Series 1-6

A Full-Cast BBC Radio Comedy Drama

Harry Venning

David Ramsden

The first six series of the Sony Award-winning sitcom about a social worker with all the right jargon, but none of the practical solutions 
 
'Completely engaging... beautifully observed characters and lots of very funny material' The Sony Judges 
 
Meet Clare Barker, the social worker who likes nothing more than sorting out other people's problems (while failing to deal with her own). Wracked with guilt over being white, middle-class and heterosexual, she has a dedicated social conscience (unless it's inconvenient for her) and lives to interfere in other people's lives - both on a personal and professional basis. Bearing the brunt of her control freakery and lack of self-awareness are her family, colleagues and long-suffering teacher partner, Brian - all of whom have their own frustrations, disappointments and dramas. 
 
In these six series, Clare and Brian try to shore up their rocky relationship, as Brian contemplates proposing, persuades Clare to attend couples counselling, and considers splitting up. Will their baby son, Thomas Paine, bring them back together - or will new nanny Nali prove a further obstacle to domestic bliss? Meanwhile, the Sparrowhawk Family Centre is threatened with closure, and the team are joined by new member Libby - 'an Aussie and a lesbo', proud to be both, and after Clare's job... 
 
Based on the long-running cartoon strip in the Guardian's 'Society' section, this wonderfully entertaining series stars Sally Phillips as Clare and Alex Lowe as Brian, alongside an ensemble cast including Nina Conti, Richard Lumsden, Ellen Thomas, Gemma Craven, Liza Tarbuck, Andrew Wincott and Sarah Kendall. 
 
 Production credits 
Written by Harry Venning and David Ramsden 
Produced by Katie Tyrrell 
Executive Producer: Paul Schlesinger 
 
Cast 
Clare - Sally Phillips 
Brian - Alex Lowe 
Megan/Nali - Nina Conti 
Ray - Richard Lumsden 
Irene - Ellen Thomas 
Helen - Gemma Craven/Liza Tarbuck 
Simon - Andrew Wincott 
Libby - Sarah Kendall 
 
Other parts played by members of the cast 
 
With Paul Chequer, Emily Wachter, Nicholas Boulton, Helen Longworth, Stephan Hogan, Richenda Carey, Alex Tregear, Sartaj Garewal, Bharti Patel, Delroy Brown, Vicki Pepperdine, John Cummins, Gerard McDermott, George Harris, Roy Hudd, Brigit Forsyth, Phil Davis, Christine Kavanagh, Lewis MacLeod, Mel Hudson, Geraldine McNulty, Mark Straker, Joseph Kloska, Martin Hyder, Shaban Arifi, Anna Bengo, Rad Lazar, Ben Onwukwe, Sam Pamphilon, Lloyd Thomas, Donnla Hughes, Chris Pavlo, Philip Pope, Rosemary Leach, Doreen Mantle, Jess Robinson and Paterson Joseph. 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 26 November-31 December 2004 (Series 1), 4 November-9 December 2005 (Series 2), 18 December 2006-22 January 2007 (Series 3), 16 January-20 February 2008 (Series 4), 18 February-25 March 2009 (Series 5), 31 May-5 July 2010 (Series 6) 
 
© 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P) 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Clare in the Community: The Complete Series 1-6

A BBC Radio 4 Comedy

Paul Mayhew-Archer

All 19 episodes of the BBC radio comedy about an aspiring actor with dreams of stardom 
 
Young actor Robert Wilson is desperately seeking work – and he’s prepared to do almost anything for his big break. He’s convinced that he’s only one audition away from fame and fortune: but while he builds castles in the air, his agent Desmond and girlfriend Sue try their best to bring him back down to earth. 
 
In these three series, Robert gets a part as a chauffeur (except he can’t drive), gets carried away in a romantic leading role and gets his party politicals in a bit of a pickle. Plus, his role in a seedy sex farce leads to a sticky situation with Sue’s parents; his job performing in a prison means he finally has a captive audience; and his appearance on children’s TV causes his flat to be surrounded by press – but is that an actor’s dream, or an actor’s nightmare? 
 
Written by Paul Mayhew-Archer, who went on to co-write The Vicar of Dibley and Mrs Brown’s Boys, this lively comedy was a huge success on radio, and transferred to TV in 1991 for one series. John Gordon Sinclair plays Robert, with Caroline Quentin and Gina McKee as Sue.

An Actor’s Life for Me: The complete series 1-3

Amanda Whittington

The award-winning story of Skye and Dexter and their ordinary/extraordinary life 
 
Skye lives in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, with her little brother Dexter and Spider the cat. Their mum, Jak, isn't around much - she's on and off the booze, so it's up to Skye to look out for Dexter, play with him, and make sure he's clothed and fed. He likes it best when she plays her guitar, an electric guitar she found under a heap of clothes in her mum's bedroom. The bailiffs didn't take it even when they came back for the telly. 
 
When we first meet them, Skye is eleven years old, and Dexter two-and-a-half. Through seven series, we follow their highs, lows and struggles to survive through Skye's eyes, as she battles to keep her dysfunctional family together. 
 
From coping with Jak's alcoholism and Dexter's special needs, to being taken into care by social services, getting excluded from school, trying to home educate Dexter during the Covid crisis, falling in love and coming to terms with her sexuality, she has far more on her plate than any young person should have to deal with. 
 
And as Skye turns 18 and prepares to face the challenges of adulthood, we bid farewell to her in a special one-off finale. 
 
Dark, delightful, funny, heartbreaking and heart-warming, this authentic, truthful drama won Best Drama Series/Serial at the BBC Audio Drama Awards 2016. It was developed through close collaboration with BBC Children in Need and projects they fund (including Home-Start UK, Hull Children's University, Voice of Young People in Care, Can Cook, Footsteps 2000, Young Carers' Transition Project and SAYiT) and was inspired by long-term research and ongoing voluntary work with children and families in Gainsborough. 
 
 
Written by Amanda Whittington (series 1-7) and Sarah Daniels (Finale) 
Guitar: Pip Moore and Tom Constantine 
Music by Black Sabbath, the Smashing Pumpkins, Beyoncé, The Breeders and David Bowie performed by Tom Constantine 
Poem by Octavia Bettis 
Directed by Mary Ward-Lowery 
 
Cast 
Skye - Sydney Wade 
Dexter - Elsa Rodgers/Alfie Johnson-McCann 
Jak - Una McNulty 
Evan - Samuel Holland 
Alice - Jane Thornton 
Mags - Sarah Parks 
Lin - Martha Godber 
Joe - Bill Rodgers 
Uncle Dean - Peter Caulfield 
Amber - Liz Godber 
Ant - John Elkington 
Boy - Harry Steel 
Dog Man - John Elkington 
Shelagh - Sarah Parks 
Kim/Clare - Jane Godber 
Shanice - Zoe Johnson 
Leanne - Etta Fusi 
Mia - Julie Riley 
Mr Doshi - Tayla Kovacevic-Ebong 
Nasty Girl - Octavia Bettis 
Pearce - Beau Anten 
Alex - Don Gilet 
Alisha - Megan Huntley 
Alice - Lauren Bowler 
Scarlett - Scarlett Courtney 
Ryan - Adam Courting 
Aiden Hardy - Will Kirk 
Ed - Mark Addy 
 
(p) 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 
© 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

D for Dexter

The complete BBC Radio full-cast drama

Fanny Burney

A BBC radio drama adaptation of Fanny Burney’s best-known novel, plus a dramatisation of her diaries 
 
Before Jane Austen, there was Fanny Burney. In the 1780s, she was England’s most celebrated female author, having achieved extraordinary success with two hit novels. She went on to become a royal servant, marry an exile from the French Revolution and undergo a gruelling mastectomy without the aid of anaesthetic – all events chronicled in her diaries, which were published posthumously to great acclaim. Contained here are dramatisations of her first and most famous novel, and her remarkable journals and letters. 
 
Evelina – Initially published anonymously, Fanny Burney’s witty epistolary account of a young woman’s introduction to the beau monde took Georgian London by storm. Brought up by her guardian since her mother died in childbirth and her father refused to acknowledge her, Evelina has spent her childhood in rural seclusion. But a letter from her grandmother and an invitation to London lead her into the dangerous and unfamiliar world of the Ton, where she meets a collection of fops, dandies and dastardly rakes – as well as the dashing Lord Orville. Can she navigate the traps and challenges of fashionable society to find true love? Laura Doddington stars as Evelina in this 10-part dramatisation of Burney’s satirical comedy of manners. 
 
Dear Little Burney – Beginning in 1778, when Evelina catapulted Fanny Burney to fame, this 15-part adaptation of her letters and diaries vividly portrays the most momentous events of her extraordinary life. From adjusting to her sudden celebrity to becoming wardrobe mistress to Queen Charlotte, witnessing George III’s madness, spending ten years in France during the Napoleonic Wars and enduring an agonising operation, we are swept up in her joys, anxieties and disappointments – and given an intimate glimpse into everyday life in 18th century London and Paris. Starring Juliet Aubrey as Fanny, with Timothy West, Eleanor Bron, Robert Whelan and June Barrie. 
 
Evelina first published in 1778 
Diaries and letters first published 1842-1846 
 
Production credits 
Written by Fanny Burney 
Adapted by Jennifer Howarth 
Produced and directed by Sara Davies 
 
Cast 
Evelina 
Evelina – Laura Doddington 
Mr Villars – Philip Manikum 
Caroline/Mrs Mirvan/Prostitute – Jacqueline Tong 
Lady Howard/Mrs Selwyn – Phyllida Nash 
Mr Lovel/Mr McCartney – John Mackay 
Lord Orville – Ian Kelly 
Sir Clement Willoughby – Andrew Collins 
Captain Mirvan/Sir John Belmont – Mark Buffery 
Madame Duval – Stephanie Cole 
Mr Branghton – Chris Harris 
Tom Branghton – Stuart Crossman 
Polly Esther – Ruth Elliott 
Monsieur du Bois/Officer/Coachman – James Anderson 
 
 
Dear Little Burney 
Fanny – Juliet Aubrey 
George III – Timothy West 
Queen Charlotte – Eleanor Bron 
Susan – Kate Seaward 
Dr Burney – Robert Whelan 
Charles/George – Chris Garner 
MrsThrale – Liz Morgan 
Mr Fairly/Mr Kemble – Andrew Hilton 
Prince of Wales – Andrew Collins 
Mrs De!any/Mrs Siddons – June Barrie 
Lowndes – David Collins 
Gent!eman – Paul Dodgson 
Miss Dewe – Caitlin Hobbs 
Dr Johnson – Bill Wallis 
Mrs Schwellenberg – Kim Hicks 
d'Arblay – Thierry Harcourt 
With Cornelius Garrett, Claire Marchionne, Angela Barlow, Ric Jerrom, Rob Hutchinson and Joshua Boyden 
 
 
© 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Evelina & Dear Little Burney

Two BBC Radio Full-Cast Dramatisations

Leo Tolstoy

Charlotte Brönte

Gustave Flaubert

William Shakespeare

Colette

Jane Austen

Alessandro Manzoni

Radclyffe Hall

Emily Brontë

Elizabeth Gaskell

Edith Wharton

Thomas Hardy

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

Classic Love Stories: A BBC Radio Drama Collection

12 Full-Cast Dramatisations

Series 7-12 of the Sony Award-winning sitcom featuring the splendidly self-obsessed social worker - plus Christmas and Edinburgh Festival Specials 
 
'An impressive cast and some genuinely funny writing make this a must' The Stage 
 
Well-meaning do-gooder Clare Barker is back, and dealing with more office politics, troublesome clients and domestic dramas. Secretly regarding herself as a cross between Mother Theresa and Wonder Woman, she's got all the right jargon for every problem, but never any practical solutions. However, in today's 'Big Society' there are plenty of challenges out there for an involved, caring social worker (or even Clare)... 
 
These six series find her struggling once again to control both her professional and private life. At the Sparrowhawk Centre, Clare finds herself in hot water on more than one occasion; and the team find themselves moving offices, facing up to possible redundancies, bidding a fond farewell to old colleagues and welcoming new ones. And at home, Clare's relationship with Brian is as thorny as ever. As we follow the duo through break-ups, wedding bells, separations and reconciliations, can they finally find happiness - or does fate have other ideas? 
 
Sally Phillips stars as Clare, with a stellar cast including Alex Lowe, Sarah Thom, Nina Conti and Gbemisola Ikumelo. Also included are a special instalment recorded live at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, 'In Treatment', and a one-off Christmas outing, 'Christmas With... Clare Barker', featuring guest star Hugh Bonneville. 
 
Production credits 
Written by Harry Venning and David Ramsden 
Produced by Katie Tyrrell (Series 7-8 and Edinburgh Special) and Alexandra Smith (Series 9-12 and Christmas Special) 
A BBC Studios production 
 
Cast 
Clare - Sally Phillips 
Brian - Alex Lowe 
Megan/Nali - Nina Conti 
Ray - Richard Lumsden 
Helen - Liza Tarbuck/Pippa Haywood 
Simon - Andrew Wincott 
Libby - Sarah Kendall 
Joan - Sarah Thom 
Mrs Singh - Nina Wadia 
Cilla - Gbemisola Ikumelo 
 
Other parts played by members of the cast 
 
With Sophie Thompson, Gerard McDermott, Simon Bubb, Victoria Inez Hardy, Georgia Lowe, Nathan Caton, Stefan Ramsden, Adam Billington, Eleanor Crooks, Will Howard, Robert Blythe, Ben Crowe, Bharti Patel, Patrick Brennan, Robert Blythe, Adam Nagaitis, Paul Stonehouse, Stephanie Racine, Peter Mitchell, Hannah Gordon, John Norton, Arthur Hughes, Alex Tregear, Carolyn Pickles, Hugh Bonneville, Shaun Mason, Lizzie Roper, Karl Theobald, Anil Goutam, Eleanor Curry, Amelia Lowdell, Neet Mohan, Elliot Steel, Dustin Demri-Burns, Clare Perkins, Alison Belbin, Sean Baker, Colin Hoult, Amita Dhiri, Alex Macqueen, Elizabeth Bennett, Nicola Ferguson, Emma Sidi, Rebecca Root, George Fouracres, Jenny Bede, Jenny Murray and Tony Way. 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 23 September-28 October 2011 (Series 7), 2 January-6 February 2013 (Series 8), 27 August 2013 ('In Treatment'), 8 January-12 February 2014 (Series 9), 29 December 2014 ('Christmas With... Clare Barker'), 10 July-14 August 2015 (Series 10), 15 November-20 December 2016 (Series 11), 24 September-29 October 2019 (Series 12) 
 
© 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P) 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Clare in the Community: The Complete Series 7-12

C.P. Snow

The full-cast BBC Radio adaptation of C. P. Snow's epic series about the English establishment across the twentieth century 
 
'A vivid portrait of British academic, political and public life' Guardian 
 
'A very considerable achievement... It brings into the novel themes and locales never seen before (except perhaps in Trollope)' Anthony Burgess 
 
In 1920s Leicester, Lewis Eliot must escape the drudgery of a council clerk's office and his provincial lower class background to begin his decades-long rise to power. As the years pass, and Lewis progresses to successful London lawyer, to Cambridge don, to wartime service in Whitehall, to senior civil servant and finally retirement, he faces in his own life and the lives of those around him collapsing marriages, terrible illness, the politics of academia, Nazism, nuclear weapons, the price of power, and the ever-present realities of war. 
 
The New York Times praised the book series, saying, 'through [them] as in no other work in our time we have explored the inner life of the new classless class that is the 20th century Establishment'. John Betjeman claimed the books were 'as full of life as life itself'. The Strangers and Brothers series captures perfectly the ever-present battle between political and personal integrity Lewis must face, as well as all the upheaval and social change of the two world wars and the decades that followed. 
 
This adaptation stars David Haig and Adam Godley as Lewis Eliot, Bill Wallis as George Passant, Juliet Aubrey as Margaret Davidson, Stephen Moore as Herbert Getliffe, and Danny Webb as Percy Hall, with a full cast including Jeremy Swift, David Tennant, Anne-Marie Duff, Iain Glen, Claire Skinner and Tim McInnerny. 
 
Directed by Jeremy Howe and Sally Avens 
Dramatised by Jonathan Holloway 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, January-June 2003 
 
Full cast: 
Narrator/Lewis Eliot - David Haig 
Young Lewis Eliot - Adam Godley 
George Passant - Bill Wallis 
Marion - Laura Doddington 
Sheila Knight - Anastasia Hille 
Herbert Getliffe - Stephen Moore 
Percy Hall - Danny Webb 
Charles March - Jamie Glover 
Leonard March - John Standing 
Katherine March - Carla Simpson 
Ann Simon - Emma Woolliams 
Mrs Getliffe - Suzanna Hamilton 
Revd Knight - Brett Usher 
Young Francis Getliffe - Andy Taylor 
Winslow - Clive Merrison 
Young Brown - Philip Franks 
Roy Calvert - Adam Levy 
Young Jago - David Calder 
Nightingale - Jeremy Child 
Chrystal - Matthew Marsh 
Crawford - Hugh Quarshie 
Mrs Jago - Joanna Monroe 
Sir Horace Timberlake - Ian Hogg 
Young Hector Rose - Rupert Vansittart 
Houston Eggar - Peter Marinker 
Willy Romantovski - Kenneth Collard 
Gilbert Cooke - Anthony Calf 
Margaret Davidson/Margaret Eliot - Juliet Aubrey 
Rosalind - Anne-Marie Duff 
Betty Vane - Carla Simpson 
Martin Eliot - Tim McInnerny 
Walter Luke - Jeremy Swift 
Irene - Claire Skinner 
David Rubin - Rolf Saxon 
Sawbridge - Adrian Scarborough 
Edgar - Andrew Wincott 
Captain Smith - Sean Baker 
Sir Hector Rose - John Carlisle 
Sir Thomas Beville - Robert Laing 
Austin Davidson - David Collings 
Jago - Sean Barrett 
Dawson Hill - Peter Blythe 
Skeffington - David Acton 
Francis Getliffe - Geoffrey Whitehead 
Brown - Jonathan Coy 
Donald Howard - David Tennant 
Roger Quaife - Iain Glen 
Lord Collingwood - Ronald Pickup 
Caro Quaife - Julia Watson 
Lord Gilbey - John Woodvine 
Diana Skidmore - Avril Clark 
Phillips - Richard Firth 
Osbaldiston - David Leonard 
Brodzinski - Christopher Rozycki 
Ellen Smith - Emma Bown 
Monteith - Paul Venables 
Trafford - Stephen Critchlow 
 
© 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Strangers and Brothers

An epic BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation

Rachel Joyce

Collected radio plays and short stories by Rachel Joyce 
 
Rachel Joyce captured the hearts of millions with her bestselling debut novel, which told the moving tale of an ordinary man, Harold Fry, who embarks on an epic journey to deliver a message and save a life. But Harold’s story began its life on radio, in the award-winning play which opens this collection: To Be A Pilgrim, starring Anton Lesser, Anna Massey and Niamh Cusack. 
 
Here, too, is an adaptation of the companion novel, The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy, with Sophie Thompson as Queenie; as well as a collection of linked Christmas tales, A Snow Garden and Other Stories, read by the author herself. 
 
Also featured here are eleven more superb radio productions, each showcasing Joyce’s characteristic empathy, compassion and understanding of the human heart. Including a dark modern fairytale set in Baghdad, a Brief Encounter-style romance and the heartbreaking story of the Lindbergh baby, they are: Painting Mrs Jones, Feather, Kissing Shadows, Talking, Take One Night, The Porter and the Three Ladies, The Art of Balance, Little Lower than the Angels, The Wall, and The Memory Thief. 
 
Life-affirming, touching and redemptive, these magical dramas explore themes of friendship, connection, the role of memory in our lives and the true nature of happiness. Among the star casts are Lindsay Duncan, Sophie Thompson, Shaun Dooley, Kenneth Cranham, Stephen Tompkinson and Lia Williams. 
 
This special edition also features Rachel Joyce in conversation with Niamh Cusack.

An Unlikely Pilgrimage: The Radio Dramas of Rachel Joyce

A BBC Radio Collection of Fifteen Full-Cast dramatisations and readings

Ian McMillan

All 36 episodes of the maverick literary quiz 
 
Poet Ian McMillan is our host in this gleeful game of literary tomfoolery, outrageous parody and biting wit. Joining him for some lighthearted competitive wordplay are a quartet of writers and comedians, all ready and eager to run riot through the halls of great literature. 
 
Their bookish challenges include 'New Beginnings and Endings', which sees them topping and tailing well-known literary works to produce some very tall tales, 'Sound Effects', where they have to guess a book title from a mélange of sounds, and 'Conversation Consequences', where they imagine some unlikely meetings between fictional characters. Mrs Malaprop shares a Jacuzzi with Eliza Doolittle, Inspector Clouseau takes Blanche Dubois to a dance and The Dong with the luminous nose honks hooters with Cyrano de Bergerac... 
 
In addition, the panellists seize the chance to liberate famous authors from their individual genres and turn them loose on something different. Among their freewheeling stylings are Hunter S Thompson writing a public school prospectus, John Betjeman creating the copy for a Ford Probe brochure and Franz Kafka dispensing self-help advice in his Little Book of Calm. 
 
Wreaking havoc with the literary canon are Roger McGough, Miles Kington, Mark Thomas, Dillie Keane, John Hegley, Rory Motion, Mark Radcliffe, Arthur Smith, David Stafford, Helen Lederer, Sophie Hannah, Simon Armitage, Stuart Maconie, Linda Smith and Mark Steel. 
 
Presented by Ian McMillan 
Devised by Marc Jobst 
Produced by Marc Jobst and Viv Beeby 
 
NB: contains some dated attitudes and language 
 
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 31 October-5 December 1995 (Series 1), 18 February-25 March 1997 (Series 2), 14 October-18 November 1997 (Series 3), 2 July-6 August 1998 (Series 4), 25 November-30 December 1998 (Series 5), 22 June-27 July 1999 (Series 6) 
 
 
(p) 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 
© 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Booked!: The Complete Series 1-6

The BBC Radio 4 literary panel game

Laurie Lee

A collection of full-cast dramatisations plus interviews with Laurie Lee 
 
Laurie Lee was a poet, novelist and screenwriter renowned for his bestselling autobiographical trilogy Cider With Rosie, As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning and A Moment of War. Among the best loved memoirs in the English language, the books chart Lee’s life from his boyhood summers in a remote Cotswold village to joining the Republican International Brigade during the Spanish Civil War. Included here are dramatisations of the first two volumes, alongside a specially written radio play and four fascinating interview programmes. 
 
Cider with Rosie – Recorded on location in and around the Slad valley in Gloucestershire, this lyrical, evocative account of Laurie Lee’s childhood in the West Country just after the First World War stars Tim McInnerny and Niamh Cusack. 
 
As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning – It is the mid-1930s and 19-year-old Laurie sets out on foot to London, but soon finds himself en route to Spain. Accompanied by his trusty fiddle, he walks the length of the country – but as he reaches Almunecar, the Spanish Civil War begins… Featuring recordings made in Spain, this irresistible tale stars Jonathan Keeble as Laurie Lee. 
 
I Call Me Adam – Laurie Lee retells the story of the Bounty mutineers, as they occupy Pitcairn Island and try to create a new life there. Produced by the celebrated poet and playwright Louis MacNeice, this bloodthirsty take on what happened to Fletcher Christian and his crew stars Ralph Truman and Wilfred Babbage. 
 
Literary Walks: Laurie Lee – The poet and author takes Christopher Somerville on a stroll around Slad, where he grew up and where Cider with Rosie is set. 
 
Through My Window: Laurie Lee – Casting his eye over the countryside seen from his window, Laurie Lee waxes lyrical over the view that inspired his most famous work. 
 
Laurie Lee’s Long Sleep – This interview with Christopher Cooke from 1989 sees Lee discussing his own sense of mortality. These thoughts are accompanied by a reading of poems and tributes from his 1997 Thanksgiving Service. 
 
Laurie Lee’s final interview – In this last radio interview, recorded in 1997 by BBC Radio Gloucestershire's Mark Hurrell, Laurie Lee talks about the inspiration for Cider With Rosie, his epic walk from Stroud to Spain and his love for the landscape around his beloved home village. 
 
Text copyright © Laurie Lee 1959 (Cider with Rosie, I Call Me Adam), 1969 (As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning) 
 
Credits 
Written by Laurie Lee 
 
Cider with Rosie 
Dramatised by Nick Darke 
Music arranged and performed by Paul Burgess 
Directed by Viv Beeby and Jeremy Howe 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 12-19 Apr 1998 
 
As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning 
Dramatised by Christopher Denys 
Music arranged and played by Chris Leslie 
Directed by Peter Leslie Wild 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 27 Aug 2000 
 
I Call Me Adam 
Production by Louis MacNeice 
 
First broadcast BBC Third Programme, 1 Nov 1959 
 
Literary Walks: Laurie Lee 
Produced by Jude Howells 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 22 Sep 1985 
 
Through My Window: Laurie Lee 
Produced by John Harrison 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 5 Aug 1981 
 
Laurie Lee’s Long Sleep 
Produced by Chris Eldon Lee 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 25 Oct 1997 
 
Laurie Lee’s final radio interview 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 28 Apr 2014 
 
© 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Laurie Lee: A BBC Radio Collection

Cider with Rosie, As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning & more

Peter Ackroyd

Stunning all-star adaptations of Ackroyd's intriguing London stories 
 
A superb collection of dramas guaranteed to thrill and entertain from best-selling author Peter Ackroyd. Set in the heart of London, these star-studded adaptations feature parallel investigations into killings across two centuries, black magic, haunted houses, holy ghosts and a stunning performance by Simon Callow as the magnificent Charles Dickens. 
 
Novelist, biographer and critic, Peter Ackroyd, has cemented his place at the heart of the culture and history of London. This fantastic collection is full of vitality from a world-class author and stellar cast. 
 
Hawksmoor - London, 1711: Nicholas Dyer, an 18th-century architect, builds churches to the glory of God, but he is hiding a dreadful purpose. Nicholas Hawksmoor, a detective in contemporary London, is called to investigate a series of brutal murders. The key lies deep in the past, but will the detective be able to solve the case before another life is lost...? Philip Jackson, best known for his role as Chief Inspector Japp in the TV and radio productions of Poirot, stars in the title role. 
 
The House of Doctor Dee - Matthew Palmer is left an old house in London's Clerkenwell. Once owned by an Elizabethan scholar who was reputedly involved in black magic, the house hides dark secrets. Featuring Philip Glenister, best known for his role in Life on Mars and Eastenders' Tracy-Ann Oberman. 
 
The City Speaks - A unique series of dramas based on Ackroyd's short story in which the Virgin Mary makes an appearance in the City of London. The stories range from humorous to highly emotional, from heart-warming to bizarre: Canary Wharf resembles the Emerald City, voodoo goddesses wander the streets of East London casting evil before them, and a tube station exists beneath the capital, but doesn't appear on any map... Featuring Peter Marinker, Adjoa Andoh and Jamie Foreman. 
The City Speaks was a co-production between BBC Radio Drama and Film London Artists’ Moving Image Network (FLAMIN). 
 
The Mystery of Charles Dickens - Simon Callow delivers an outstanding performance of Peter Ackroyd's one-man show portraying both Charles Dickens and many of his best-loved characters. Readings from his novels interweave with Dickens' own words in an incisive, compassionate and unforgettable journey. This collection features an exclusive introduction by Simon Callow. 
 
©2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Tales of London: Hawksmoor and others

Four BBC Radio 4 Dramas

A major BBC Radio dramatisation of Elizabeth Gaskell's famous Victorian novel of pride, prejudice, politics and passion 
 
When 19-year-old Margaret Hale is uprooted from her home in the rural South of England and transplanted to the industrial North, she struggles to adapt. Smoky, grimy and ugly, Milton seems like a different country - one run by men with very different beliefs to her own, like charismatic mill owner John Thornton. 
 
A self-made entrepreneur and pragmatic capitalist, Thornton represents everything the idealistic Margaret hates. Witnessing the conditions at his mill, her social conscience is awakened, and she clashes fiercely with him over his ruthless treatment of the workers. But when a strike turns into a violent riot, and Thornton is put in danger, Margaret is forced to face up to her conflicted feelings. Can the duo overcome their ideological differences and find love? 
 
Also included is the fascinating programme In Our Time: North and South, in which Melvyn Bragg and guests examine how Margaret Hale's experiences echo the author's own life, and discuss Gaskell's insights into social conflicts and the changing world in which she lived. 
 
Written by Elizabeth Gaskell 
Dramatised by Lin Coghlan 
 
Cast 
Margaret ­- Patsy Ferran 
 Mr Hale - Paul Chahidi 
 Mrs Hale - Ruth Everett 
 Dixon - Felicity Montagu 
 John Thornton - James Cartwright 
 Mrs Thornton - Pooky Quesnel 
 Higgins - Sean Gilder 
 Bessy - Olivia Barrowclough 
 Aunt Shaw - Joanna Monro 
 Henry Lennox - Jonathan Forbes 
 Henderson - David Hounslow 
 Boucher - Lloyd Thomas 
 Frederick - Colin Ryan 
 Mr Bell - Roger Ringrose 
Mrs Boucher - Evie Killip 
 Leonards - Luke Nunn 
 
Directed by Sally Avens 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 4-18 September 2022 
 
In Our Time: North and South 
Presented by Melvyn Bragg 
With Sally Shuttleworth, Dinah Birch and Jenny Uglow 
Produced by Simon Tillotson 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 9 March 2017 
 
© 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

North and South

E.R. Braithwaite

E.R Braithwaite was a unique writer, a Guyanese-born British-American novelist, writer, teacher and diplomat best known for his stories of social conditions and racial discrimination against black people. Upon graduating from Cambridge, he found himself barred from work as an engineer because of racism. Unable to find an alternative, he took a job as a teacher at St George-in-the-East school in London’s East End, which was recovering from the battering it had taken during the war. This experience formed the basis of his autobiographical novel- To Sir, with Love. This collection features 3 of his key titles brought together as modern dramatizations. Braithwaite's work brings awareness to the racial prejudice individuals faced after the inequality experienced during the war years. The writing is alert, alive, and full of wonderful characters. The work feels fresh, and the commentary on life remains relevant to modern life in the 21st Century.

E.R. Braithwaite: A BBC Radio Collection

Three Full-Cast Dramatisations including To Sir, With Love

Rumer Godden

Full-cast radio adaptations of three of Rumer Godden's bestselling novels, plus a bonus interview with the author 
 
Rumer Godden is well known for her acclaimed novels for adults and children. She wrote over 60 works in her lifetime, nine of which were made into films. Included here are dramatisations of three of her classic tales, as well as a fascinating interview with the renowned author. 
 
Black Narcissus - A group of nuns establishing a remote mission in an old palace in the Himalayas is warned that it is no place for a nunnery. And as the Sisters' tragic destiny unfolds, those prophetic words are soon proved right. Sinead Cusack and Lesley Sharp star in this atmospheric dramatisation of Godden's 1939 novel, famously adapted as an Oscar-winning film by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. 
 
The Greengage Summer - When their mother falls ill during a holiday to France, the Grey children are left to entertain themselves. Over the course of the long, hot summer, they are caught up in an adult world of deception and lies... Starring Ellie Beaven, Abigail Docherty and Michael Maloney. 
 
The Dark Horse - Set in Calcutta in 1933, this is the story of a thoroughbred racehorse, a jockey seeking a second chance, a shrewd Mother Superior and a miracle - all based on true events. Geoffrey Whitehead, Indira Varma, Dearbhla Molloy and Ioan Meredith star in this heartwarming drama. 
 
Third Ear - Recorded in 1992, this illuminating Radio 3 interview sees the octogenarian Rumer Godden talking to Geoffrey Baskerville about how her life and beliefs are reflected in her writing. 
 
Text copyright © The Rumer Godden Literary Trust 1939 (Black Narcissus), 1958 (The Greengage Summer), 1981 (The Dark Horse) 
 
Black Narcissus 
Sister Clodagh - Sinead Cusack 
Sister Ruth - Lesley Sharp 
Mr Dean - David Rintoul 
Dilip Rai - Ronny Jhutti 
Sister Briony - Susan Engel 
Sister Philippa - Jenny Lee 
Sister Honey - Rachel Atkins 
The General/Father Roberts - Sam Dastor 
Ayah - Indira Joshi 
Mother Dorothea/Sister Adela - Carolyn Jones 
Con - Alastair Danson 
Kanchi - Sumitra Bhagat 
Joseph Anthony - Dhiraj Prasai 
Dramatised by April de Angelis 
Music by Elizabeth Parker 
Directed by Sally Avens 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 13 December 1997 
 
The Greengage Summer 
Cecile - Ellie Beaven 
Joss - Abigail Docherty 
Hester - Ciara Janson 
Eliot - Michael Maloney 
With Luke Newbury, Claire Marchionne, Rachel Atkins, Theo Fraser Steele, Sean Baker, Jenny Lee, Brian Parr and Chris Wright 
Dramatised by Dawn Lowe Watson 
Directed by Sally Avens 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 25 May 1988 
 
The Dark Horse 
Sister Morag - Dearbhla Molloy 
Levantine - Nickolas Grace 
Ted - Ioan Meredith 
John Quillan - Gareth Armstrong 
With Geoffrey Whitehead, Indira Varma, Siobhan Stamp, Frances Jeater, Nitin Chandra Ganatra, Richard Rees and David Antrobus 
Dramatised by Liane Aukin 
Directed by David Hunter 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 5 September 1988 
 
Third Ear 
Presented by Geoffrey Baskerville 
With Rumer Godden 
Produced by Vivien Devlin 
First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 12 May 1992 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Rumer Godden: Black Narcissus, The Greengage Summer & The Dark Horse

Three Full-Cast BBC Radio Dramatisations

Marcy Kahan

Stephen Mangan and Claire Skinner star in the final series of the popular BBC Radio 4 comedy drama. 
 
 ‘A wise and witty feast for the senses‘’ Gillian Reynolds, The Daily Telegraph 
 
 Bill works as an economist in a right-wing institute giving succour to bankers and businessmen. Bella teaches yoga, waters the plants in Canary Wharf and holds Proust seminars for retirees. Years ago they shared a flat before Bill got married and moved to America. Now he's back and feeling a little off-kilter, so he decides to rekindle his friendship with Bella. 
 
 Once a month they get together for lunch, where they talk about everything from politics to Proust, parenting and the perils of online dating. The only thing they've never discussed is how much they love each other... 
 
 In Marcy Kahan's delightful “platonic romantic comedy”, we join Bill and Bella as they meet, eat and disagree about everything; and, in this final series, end up ordering room service in a hotel room after too much tapas.

Lunch: Series 5

BBC Radio 4 comedy drama

Iris Murdoch

Full-cast dramatisations and a reading of works by Iris Murdoch, plus a bonus interview with the author herself 
 
Booker Prize-winning author Iris Murdoch is renowned for her sublime fiction, exploring themes such as art, passion, morality and human freedom. Included in this collection are adaptations of two of her finest novels and a reading of her only published short story, as well as an edition of Writers Revealed in which Murdoch discusses her ideas and beliefs. 
 
The Sea, The Sea 
Charles Arrowby, celebrated actor, writer and director, has retired from his London world and come to the sea to become a hermit and draft his memoirs. But the past will not let him rest… This dramatisation of Murdoch’s most famous novel, which won the Booker Prize in 1978, stars John Wood as Charles and Joyce Redman as Hartley. 
 
A Severed Head 
When Martin Lynch-Gibbon's wife runs off with her analyst and his best friend, Palmer Anderson, the three characters attempt to behave in a civilised manner. But there is the matter of Martin's mistress and Palmer's sister to contend with – and undoubtedly the thin veneer of civilisation will crack… Iris Murdoch’s blackly comic satire on analysis and amorality stars Julian Rhind-Tutt, Victoria Hamilton and Matthew Marsh. 
 
Something Special 
Young Irishwoman Yvonne passionately believes that there is more to life than marriage to Sam, a respectable tailor's apprentice. But a night out in Dublin forces her to confront reality… Read by Catherine Cusack. 
 
Writers Revisited: Iris Murdoch 
Iris Murdoch talks about faith, religion and the creative process in conversation with Rosemary Hartill.

Iris Murdoch: The Sea, The Sea, A Severed Head & Something Special

A BBC Radio Collection

Winsome Pinnock

Roy Williams

Rex Obano

A major BBC Radio series charting the history of post-war Britain through the lives of Hope Kiffin, Eunice Lamming and Gloria de Soto, bound forever by one moment in 1946. 
 
London, 1946. Struggling to cope with the idea of raising her daughter in a hostile environment, African-Caribbean nurse Hope makes the difficult decision to entrust her precious baby to her best friend, Eunice, to take back home to Antigua. But their plan goes disastrously wrong. 
 
In the decades that follow, all of them will witness - and play a part in - the seismic changes rocking the British Isles, as the old establishment crumbles, immigration builds and the country adjusts to the realities of a post-war, post-colonial future. 
 
This compelling series interweaves brilliant intimate domestic stories, told from multiple perspectives, that together illuminate the emergence of modern Britain. Written by leading Black playwrights Roy Williams, Rex Obano and Winsome Pinnock, it stars Danielle Vitalis as Hope, Shiloh Coke as Eunice/Faith and Pippa Bennett-Warner as Gloria, with a full cast including Martins Imhangbe, Stefan Adegbola, Emma Handy and Hasan Dixon. 
 
 
Production credits 
Written by Roy Williams, Rex Obano and Winsome Pinnock 
Musical Director: Peter Ringrose 
Produced and directed by Mary Peate and Jessica Dromgoole 
 
Cast 
Jim - Martins Imhangbe 
Hope - Danielle Vitalis 
Eunice/Faith - Shiloh Coke 
Gloria - Pippa Bennett-Warner 
Clement/Waiter - Stefan Adegbola 
Waitress/Ida/Matron/Ag - Emma Handy 
Trevor - Gary Beadle 
Neville - Chris Jack 
Olubuki - Rex Obano 
Martina - Clare Perkins 
Gerard/Dennis/Musician - Hasan Dixon 
Stephens/Johnnie/Florist - Ian Dunnett Jnr 
Post Mistress/Millie - Jane Whittenshaw 
Sallow/Neighbour - Roger Ringrose 
Lorraine - Lizzy Watts 
Bert - Ben Crowe 
Caleb - Dermot Daly 
Parent - Cecilia Appiah 
 
© 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 
(p) 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Faith, Hope and Glory: Series 1 and 2

An epic BBC Radio 4 drama

Joan Aiken

BBC Radio full-cast dramatisations of three of the classic novels from Joan Aiken's 'Wolves Chronicles' 
 
One of the finest storytellers of her time, Joan Aiken wrote over 100 books for both adults and children. Among her best-known works are the 'Wolves Chronicles', a sequence of novels set in an alternate 19th century England ruled by Stuart kings. Included here are three tales from that magical, wolf-infested world - The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, Black Hearts in Battersea and The Story of Is. 
 
The Wolves of Willoughby Chase - Winter, 1832. The great manor of Willoughby Chase lies blanketed by snow, and predators lurk in the darkness. With the opening of the Channel Tunnel, ravenous wolves have overrun the country, and young Bonnie Green can hear their hideous howling. But she and her cousin Sylvia soon find themselves facing an even greater danger, in the shape of their devious governess, Miss Slighcarp. Aided by their friend Simon, can they foil her evil plan? 
 
Black Hearts in Battersea - Determined to become a painter, Simon sets off to London - but no sooner has he arrived than he becomes caught up in a fiendish Hanoverian plot to overthrow the King. Kidnapped and sent away to sea, he faces shipwreck, assassination plots, attacks by wolves and a hair-raising hot air balloon escape. With the help of fellow orphan Sophie, and the resourceful Dido Twite, will he save the day? 
 
The Story of Is - Sent by King Richard IV to search for his missing son, Dido Twite's sister Isabett takes the Playland Express to the north of a divided England. There, she finds an underground city where children work as slaves in vast coal mines. This is the domain of Gold Kingy, a man who will stop at nothing in his pursuit of power - but he has reckoned without Is and her newfound friends... 
 
These spellbinding adventures feature a star cast, including Gosford Park's Emily Watson, Game of Thrones' Joe Dempsie and legendary actor and comedian Rik Mayall. 
 
Text copyright © Joan Aiken 1962 (The Wolves of Willoughby Chase), 1964 (Black Hearts in Battersea), 1992 (Is) 
Production credits 
Written by Joan Aiken 
 
The Wolves of Willoughby Chase 
Cast: Jane Lapotaire, Emily Watson, Abigail Docherty, John Rowe, John Turner, Gavin Muir, Kristen Milward, Tom Bevan, Jilly Bond, Eva Stuart, David Antrobus, Ian Masters, Derek Waring, George Parsons, Elaine Claxton, Natasha Pyne, Becky Hindley 
Dramatised by Eric Pringle 
Directed by Cherry Cookson 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 30 December 1994 
 
Black Hearts in Battersea 
Cast: Joe Dempsie, Nicola Miles-Wildin, Emerald O'Hanrahan, John Rowe, Sheila Reid, Ben Crowe, Annabelle Dowler, Rhys Jennings, Tessa Nicholson, Sam Pamphilon, Nigel Hastings, Bruce Alexander, Joseph Cohen Cole, Piers Wehner, Kate Layden, John Biggins, 
Ewan Hooper 
Dramatised by Lin Coghlan. Directed by Marc Beeby 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 23-24 December 1999 
 
The Story of Is 
Cast: John Rowe, Alison Pettitt, Rik Mayall, Freddie Jones 
With John Hartley, Gordon Reid, Rachel Atkins, Alastair Danson, Robert Harper, Gerard McDermott, Anthony Ofoegbu, Leila Campbell, George Maguire, Jenny Lee, Stephen Thorne, Carolyn Jones, Iwan Thomas, Christopher Scott, Richard Pearce, Tom Bevan, Brian Parr and children from the Italia Conti School 
Dramatised by Eric Pringle. Directed by David Blount. Music by Neil Brand 
 
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 15 March-5 April 1998 
 
© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, Black Hearts in Battersea & The Story of Is

Three BBC Radio Children’s Classic Full-Cast Dramatisations

Louisa May Alcott

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation of the evergreen classic novel by Louisa May Alcott. 
 
With their father away fighting in the American Civil War, the four March girls are facing a lean Christmas with their mother. But the sisters’ close bond and determination to make the best of things enables them to find happiness despite their poverty. 
 
As the years go by we follow their fortunes as they journey into womanhood. Meg the beauty, Jo the tomboy, shy Beth and precocious Amy will encounter adventure, hardship, joys and disappointments, and learn to meet the challenges of life as they become independent and make their way in the world. While marriage and motherhood may beckon for the sisters, their most enduring love is always for each other. 
 
First published in 1868 and never out of print since, this iconic coming-of-age tale is a perennial favourite that has touched the hearts of generations of readers. This moving BBC Radio 4 dramatisation stars Natasha J Barnes, Julianna Jennings, Bryony Hannah and Samantha Dakin as Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy, with Tara Ward as Mrs March and Alex Lanipekun as Laurie.

Little Women

BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation

Annie McCartney

A BBC Radio 4 kitchen comedy by Annie McCartney, starring James Nesbitt as the Fridge. ‘Staring into the Fridge’ was originally broadcast as the ‘Afternoon Play’ on 13 September 2010.  With two twenty-something children and a dubious boyfriend eating her out of house and home, Maggie (Annie McCartney) is beginning to lose the will to live. She feels she has no one to talk to or to listen. But all of that is about to change when she hears a voice speaking to her from the corner of the kitchen. It seems that the only one who understands her predicament is her Fridge (James Nesbitt). But unlike poor beleaguered Maggie, this Fridge has got 'attitude' and is determined to help her get her life back on track!  Also stars Marcella Riordan, Mark Lambert, Katy Gleadhill, Jonathan Harden and Richard Orr. Directed by Eoin O'Callaghan.

Staring Into The Fridge

A BBC Radio 4 dramatisation

Lee Hall

The listener response to this play when it was first broadcast as part of the 'God’s Country' series was overwhelming and it has gone on to become an audio bestseller.Performed by Becky Simpson, Spoonface is a young autistic Jewish girl who, learning that she is terminally ill, contemplates the meaning of life and death in a dramatic monologue interwoven with operatic extracts from the magical voice of Maria Callas.It was awarded Best Drama and Talkie of the Year at the 1997 Talkie Awards and was described by Gillian Reynolds in the Daily Telegraph as ‘Funny, intense and poetic’. By the author of Billy Elliott.Written by Lee Hall. Lee Hall has asserted his moral rights (including the right to be identified as the author) in the Work. All rights reserved. Applications for performance or other use should be made to Judy Daish Associates Limited, 2 St Charles Place, London W10 6EG.

Spoonface Steinberg

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