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His Dark Materials: The Complete BBC Radio Collection cover art

His Dark Materials: The Complete BBC Radio Collection

By: Philip Pullman
Narrated by: Terence Stamp, Bill Paterson, Kenneth Cranham, Adrian Scarborough, full cast
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Summary

All three BBC radio dramatisations of the best-selling fantasy trilogy - plus bonus material.

A breathtaking epic spanning multiple worlds, His Dark Materials follows the adventures of Lyra Belacqua and Will Parry, two children catapulted into a life-or-death struggle to save the future of the Cosmos. 

In Northern Lights, 11-year-old Lyra discovers dark forces at work involving kidnapped children and a mysterious substance called 'Dust'. With her shape-shifting daemon, Pantalaimon, she leaves her Oxford college home and embarks on a dangerous journey to the frozen North, aided by armoured bears, Gyptians and a witch-queen.... 

The Subtle Knife sees 12-year-old Will finding an opening into the haunted world of Cittàgazze, where daemon-destroying Spectres roam. There he meets Lyra, and together they acquire the most powerful weapon in all the universes - an object many would kill to possess. 

In The Amber Spyglass, a colossal war is brewing in Heaven, and Lyra and Will have been separated. They must find each other and journey onward - even into the World of the Dead.... 

These thrilling dramatisations feature an all-star cast, including Lulu Popplewell, Terence Stamp, Bill Paterson, Kenneth Cranham and Adrian Scarborough. 

Also included is a bonus documentary, World Book Club, in which Philip Pullman answers readers' questions about Northern Lights

©2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

What listeners say about His Dark Materials: The Complete BBC Radio Collection

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

sadly too rushed

I love Philip Pullmans series of the dark materials and the audio versions. Although it was nice listening to another production it was cut back too much. I feel the depth was completely lost and some of the important story lines were just not there. Great cast and portrayal of the characters. I just wish they'd done the full version.

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11 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Disappointed!

I cannot listen to this collection
on audio, and it's not one for the radio either. There are so many things that are happening that I don't know what is going on.
You can only hear the effects, you really need to see them.
I suspect that everyone who listened to this and gave it a 5*,
probably watched these stories
on the television. Plus, the continual whispering is very annoying! Lyra swears to "bloody" much too, especially for a children's book! But good narration Philip Pullman.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Children's version.?

Glad I bought this on an audio book of the day, would not have wanted to waste a credit on it. I have the full version audios, which are excellent, but like to listen to different variations of books in a collection. This was rather disappointing. Lyra sounded as if she was bored reading the script no soul at all, very bland. The Harpy, Gracious wings, having given the best performance. I thought it strange that the voices hadn't changed at all as the children grew older, bit weird Lyra kissing and falling in love with Will, still sounding like a 12 year old. Am sure one of the Mulifa sported a Welsh accent?

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Not just for children

Brilliant interview with Philip Pullman answered many nagging questions that I’ve had for many years

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Story as good as ever, but radio play too swift

I love the stories but the nature of the radio play tended to not linger or fully explain what was happening. The voice of Lyra grated on me too!

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

loved it

It was a whistle stop tour of the 1st 3 books. I really enjoyed it. the characters were all great and I found myself overly involved with the story! I think I should have listened to the full books first, as, obviously, much of the details are sped along for a dramatisation, but I thoroughly enjoyed it nonetheless.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Massively abridged

Disappointed that this version appears to be mostly just the characters reading their lines, with the majority of Pullman’s narrative removed.

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Great book ruined in this performance.

It’s so condensed it’s hard to follow. Bought this because the book was great but I didn’t get to finish it. This bears little resemblance to the well crafted story it actually is. It’s almost unfollows or - might be ok if you’ve seen it on tv, but I can’t finish this. Don’t waste a credit unless you know the story inside out and don’t mind very babyish voices if the cast (not their fault).

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Sub Standard

I got this audiobook after watching it the television show. I’d hoped to get a better understanding of the story properly. All I can say is thank goodness I’d watched it because I don’t think I would have understood the narrative at all without it. It’s so heavily cut down that it’s lost its heart and depth of the story. A real disappointment.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Great performances of poorly adapted source

Loved the books growing up, and enjoyed the performances of the talented cast.

Story was condensed to a spark notes list of major plot points.

Without prior knowledge of the source material character growth seems rushed and some characters come across as psychotic.

With knowledge of the source material I kept thinking of the many lost opportunities eith the scenes.

If you have the credits, go for the full books.

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