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Myths Reimagined: Troy Trilogy, Dionysos & More
- A BBC Radio Full-Cast Dramatisation Collection
- Narrated by: full cast, Michael Sheen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Diana Rigg, Lindsay Duncan, Roger Allam, Toby Stephens, David Harewood, Paul Scofield
- Length: 8 hrs and 41 mins
- Radio/TV Programme
- Categories: Literature & Fiction, Classics
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ONE OF THE BEST AUDIOBOOKS I OWN
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England, 1647. Oliver Cromwell's New Model Army has routed the Royalists, and the king, having fled to Scotland, has been ransomed, sent back across the border and imprisoned. It seems the war is over, but there is trouble ahead. Parliament wants to disband the army and install its own militia - an act that looks, to Cromwell's loyal soldiers, like outright betrayal.
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Absolutely riveting. A tour de force.
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David Hare: A BBC Radio Drama Collection
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Writer and director David Hare is one of England's leading political dramatists, celebrated for his many award-winning plays analysing the morality of contemporary Britain. This collection comprises some of his most acclaimed pieces, as well as a fascinating radio interview with Hare himself.
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The House
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Suave, unflappable and ambitious, veteran politician Charles Bannister knows his way around the corridors of power. As chief whip, he's adept at keeping MPs in line and squashing potential scandals—aided by his brother-in-law, MI6 Agent Henry Colvil, who whispers useful titbits of information in his ear. His position seems invincible—but nothing is forever, and when the tides of politics turn, Charles finds himself under threat. In these six series, we follow his fortunes and those of his close friend Home Secretary Dougal Baxter. Together, the duo rise, fall and rise again.
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TOP NOTCH
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George Bernard Shaw
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Essential for a Shaw Fan
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Fantastic collection
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Masters' India Saga
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ONE OF THE BEST AUDIOBOOKS I OWN
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Cromwell vs the Crown: God’s Revolution
- A BBC Radio 4 Full-Cast Historical Drama
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- Narrated by: full cast, Bernard Hepton, Nigel Anthony, and others
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England, 1647. Oliver Cromwell's New Model Army has routed the Royalists, and the king, having fled to Scotland, has been ransomed, sent back across the border and imprisoned. It seems the war is over, but there is trouble ahead. Parliament wants to disband the army and install its own militia - an act that looks, to Cromwell's loyal soldiers, like outright betrayal.
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Absolutely riveting. A tour de force.
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David Hare: A BBC Radio Drama Collection
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Writer and director David Hare is one of England's leading political dramatists, celebrated for his many award-winning plays analysing the morality of contemporary Britain. This collection comprises some of his most acclaimed pieces, as well as a fascinating radio interview with Hare himself.
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The House
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Suave, unflappable and ambitious, veteran politician Charles Bannister knows his way around the corridors of power. As chief whip, he's adept at keeping MPs in line and squashing potential scandals—aided by his brother-in-law, MI6 Agent Henry Colvil, who whispers useful titbits of information in his ear. His position seems invincible—but nothing is forever, and when the tides of politics turn, Charles finds himself under threat. In these six series, we follow his fortunes and those of his close friend Home Secretary Dougal Baxter. Together, the duo rise, fall and rise again.
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TOP NOTCH
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George Bernard Shaw
- A BBC Radio Drama Collection
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Overall
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George Bernard Shaw - or Bernard Shaw, as he preferred to be known - was one of Ireland's foremost dramatists and thinkers. His plays range from contemporary satires to historical allegories, and are infused with ideas, insight, wit and wisdom. Included here are some of his best works, adapted for radio and brought together in reverse chronological order in one statement collection.
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Essential for a Shaw Fan
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The Leo Tolstoy BBC Radio Drama Collection
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- Narrated by: Simon Russell Beale, Amanda Redman, Emily Mortimer, and others
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Fantastic collection
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Great listen!
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Castle of the Hawk: An Epic Chronicle of the Habsburg Dynasty
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Mike Walker's epic chronicle of the Habsburg dynasty, one of the most influential and distinguished royal houses of Europe which was to rule most of Europe, as well as much of the New World, for 600 years. Hawk Rising: Brugg, 1230. Duke Rudolf of Habsburg is determined to become Holy Roman Emperor and to found a dynasty. But then a stranger arrives at the Castle of the Hawk as tutor to his son.
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Brilliant
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Dorothy L. Sayers was best known for her mystery novels featuring aristocratic amateur sleuth Lord Peter Wimsey. But she was also a poet, playwright and committed Christian, and in The Man Born to Be King, she combined art and evangelism to powerful effect, making the story of Christ accessible, relevant and every bit as thrilling as her detective fiction.
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A dated masterpiece!
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Victoria Station
- A BBC Radio 4 Full-Cast Drama
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In these two series, set on selected dates in January 1895 and December 1896, we follow the day-to-day shenanigans of Bridgford station master Joe Braddock and his staff, along with a motley crew of passengers and passers-by. Each episode is a self-contained drama, as well as telling the ongoing story of the crises and challenges tackled by the team, and their rivalries, enmities, friendships and burgeoning romances.
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LOVE THIS - EXCELLENT LITTLE STORIES - MORE PLEASE AUDIBLE
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Tumanbay: The Complete Series 1-4
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Tumanbay: the wealthiest city on Earth. The beating heart of a vast empire. A city of dreams, where those who once arrived as slaves now hold power, and merchants, artists and warriors live side-by-side in peace. But this magnificent city is under threat. A rebellion in a far-off province, led by 'Queen' Maya, is gathering strength - and a mysterious force is devouring the empire from within.
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Excellent!
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The Complete Earthsea Series & The Left Hand of Darkness
- 3 BBC Radio Full Cast Dramatisations
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Ursula K. Le Guin was one of the most revered and influential writers of the 20th century. Her Earthsea books have sold millions of copies and been translated into numerous languages, while her trailblazing novel The Left Hand of Darkness was a landmark in feminist science fiction and ranks among the greatest SF novels of all time. This BBC collection brings together the magical radio retellings of both these seminal classics.
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Adaptation is a travesty...
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Birkett
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Norman Birkett KC (1883-1962) was a real-life Rumpole - a distinguished and highly skilled lawyer who had numerous successes in the courtroom during his long career. This collection covers some of his most famous cases of the inter-war years, including the dramatic trial of Buck Ruxton; the notorious Dennistoun affair; and the peculiar events surrounding the mysterious cyclist Ronald Light.
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Extremely good
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Fortunes of War
- A BBC Radio 4 Full Cast Dramatisation of the Complete Balkan Trilogy
- By: Olivia Manning
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Story
1939, and naïve young newlywed Harriet Pringle arrives in Bucharest with her husband, Guy - just as Europe is about to rip itself apart. She believes she knows everything about the man she has married, but soon realises she knows nothing. Guy is oblivious to her needs and desires, seeming only to care about his job as a university lecturer, his friends and the beautiful, voluptuous Sophie. Struggling to build a life in a strange city, in the face of imminent invasion, Harriet feels bereft - and increasingly isolated.
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A most excellent listen.
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The Recall Man
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Returning to his home town of Middlesborough on a six-month attachment to the Teesside police, criminal psychologist Joe Aston is called in for seven unusual and baffling cases. As a specialist in the controversial field of 'recovered memory', his skills are crucial: only he can uncover the truth by persuading victims, witnesses and suspects to remember what they'd rather forget.
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Boring
- By Phil on 28-06-22
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Unmade Movies: Hammer Horror's The Unquenchable Thirst of Dracula
- A BBC Radio 4 Adaptation of the Unproduced Screenplay
- By: Anthony Hinds
- Narrated by: Michael Sheen, Anna Madeley, Nikesh Patel, and others
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- Unabridged
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In The Unquenchable Thirst of Dracula, one of seven 'unmade movies' available on audio, it is 1934, and young Englishwoman Penny is travelling by train across India in search of her missing sister. En route, she meets sibling artistes Prem and Lakshmi, who have been hired by a Maharajah and his wife, the Rani, to entertain their aristocratic European guest. But evil lurks in the hidden caverns beneath the ancient palace, where the acolytes of a fiendish blood cult await their next human sacrifice....
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This was brilliant!
- By AndyRyan82 on 17-06-22
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His Dark Materials: The Complete BBC Radio Collection
- Full-Cast Dramatisations of Northern Lights, The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass
- By: Philip Pullman
- Narrated by: Terence Stamp, Bill Paterson, Kenneth Cranham, and others
- Length: 7 hrs and 45 mins
- Original Recording
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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.
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Disappointed!
- By Michelle Dixon on 03-02-22
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Clare in the Community: The Complete Series 1-6
- A BBC Radio 4 Comedy
- By: Harry Venning, David Ramsden
- Narrated by: Sally Phillips, Alex Lowe, Liza Tarbuck, and others
- Length: 16 hrs and 43 mins
- Original Recording
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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.
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Love it
- By M Ryan on 27-05-22
Summary
A collection of acclaimed radio retellings of Greek and Roman myths.
Andrew Rissik's powerful, uncompromising reimaginings of classic tales from Roman and Greek history were hailed as masterpieces when they first aired on BBC radio. Told in contemporary speech, they revitalised the ancient myths, making them fresh, relevant and accessible to a modern-day audience. This collection brings them together on audio for the first time, with stellar casts including Michael Sheen, Paul Scofield, Lindsay Duncan, David Harewood, Eleanor Bron, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Diana Rigg, Roger Allam, Toby Stephens, Anton Lesser and Robert Hardy.
The Troy Trilogy - praised by one critic as 'the greatest radio drama [anyone] could ever hear', this three-play sequence tells the tragic, timeless tale of the events leading up to and following the fall of Troy. In King Priam and His Sons, a child is born to Priam and his wife, Hekabe, but the gods foretell disaster if he is allowed to live.... The Death of Achilles resumes the story in the final year of the war, as Achilles quarrels with his supreme commander, Agamemnon. And in Helen at Ephesus, Troy has fallen, and as Agamemnon returns to face the judgement of his wronged wife, Klytemnestra, Menelaos and Helen must begin the long spiritual journey towards forgiveness and self-knowledge.
Dionysos - based on Euripides' The Bacchae, this dark, provocative drama is the first of three plays examining the conflict between religion and state. Charismatic cult leader Dionysos arrives in Thebes preaching a gospel of wine and ecstasy. Threatened by his popularity, King Pentheus orders his arrest....
The Art of Love - the second of the three-play cycle sees Roman poet Ovid sent into exile when his subversive ideas about love and freedom challenge the authority of the ageing Emperor Augustus.
Resurrection - in the final play of the trilogy, the Roman governor of Judea, Pontius Pilate, clashes with troublesome, itinerant preacher Yeshua Ben Youssef.
Cast and credits
Written by Andrew Rissik
Directed by Jeremy Mortimer
The Troy Trilogy
Toby Stephens, James Hayes, Oliver Cotton, Ian Hogg, Emma Fielding, Cassandra Sperry, Deborah Findlay, Michael Maloney, Geraldine Somerville, Paul Scofield, Lindsay Duncan, James Laurenson, Geoffrey Whitehead, Abigail Docherty, Jean-Marc Perret, Michael Sheen, Saeed Jaffrey, David Harewood, Julian Glover, Eleanor Bron
Music by Nick Russell Pavier and David Chilton.
Singer: Mia Soteriou.
First broadcast BBC Radio 3: 28th November 1998 (King Priam and His Sons), 29th November 1998 (The Death of Achilles, Helen at Ephesus)
Dionysos
Chiwetel Ejiofor, Toby Stephens, Paul Scofield, Diana Rigg, Roger Allam, Pip Donaghy, Bruce Purchase, Jeffery Kissoon, Trevor Martin, Anna Carteret, Mali Harries, Yolanda Vazquez and Mia Soteriou
Music by Mia Soteriou.
First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 20th April 2003
The Art of Love/Resurrection
Stephen Dillane, Juliet Aubrey, Penny Downie, Robert Hardy, Peter Eyre, Ian McNeice, James Laurenson, Ioan Meredith, Damian Lynch, Anton Lesser, David Calder, Julia Ford, Sam Dastor, Raad Rawi, John Rowe, Mia Soteriou, Chris Moran, James Hayes, Jon Glover and Danny Sapani
Music by Mia Soteriou.
Musicians: Mia Soteriou, Steve Bentley Kline, Merlin Shepherd, William Lyons
First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 11th April 2004