Performance audiobooks

The Passionate Pilgrim

By: William Shakespeare

Narrated by: Edith Evans

Length: 52 minutes

Abridged: No

The Passionate Pilgrim was an anthology of twenty poems attributed to William Shakespeare but which present-day scholars think just five of these poems were written by the Bard. Here, the most popular four poems, The Passionate Pilgrim, Sonnets To Sundry Notes of Music, A Lover's Complaint, and The Pheonix and The Turtle are read by Edith Evans,... Read more

Richard Burton reads The Rape of Lucrece

By: William Shakespeare

Narrated by: Richard Burton

Length: 58 minutes

Abridged: No

Richard Burton reads Shakespeare's narrative poem about the legendary Lucretia Read more

Timons of Athens

By: William Shakespeare

Narrated by: William Squire

Length: 2 hours 3 minutes

Abridged: No

William Squire, Corin Redgrave, Derek Jacobi and Trevor Nunn perform Shakespeare's play about the fortunes of an Athenian named Timon Read more

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

By: L. Frank Baum & Jerry Robbins

Narrated by: Jerry Robbins & The Colonial Radio Players

Length: 1 hour 52 minutes

Abridged: No

One of the true classics of American literature. Originally published in 1900, it was the first truly American fairy tale, as Baum crafted a wonderful fantasy, peopled with memorable characters — a cornfield scarecrow, Tin Woodman, and a humbug wizard. Follow the adventures of young Dorothy Gale and her dog, Toto, as their Kansas house is... Read more

The Taming of the Shrew

By: William Shakespeare

Narrated by: Hilton Edwards

Length: 2 hours 15 minutes

Abridged: No

Unabridged cast performance of Shakespeare's comedy about the courtship of Petruchio, a gentleman of Verona, and Katherina, the headstrong, obdurate shrew. Read more

Twelfth Night

By: William Shakespeare

Narrated by: Various Narrators

Length: 2 hours 14 minutes

Abridged: No

Shakespeare's comedy is performed by a cast including Derek Godfrey, Patrick Garland, Prunella Scales and Peter Pears. Read more

Henry IV

By: William Shakespeare

Narrated by: Ian McKellen

Length: 2 hours 42 minutes

Abridged: No

Sir Ian McKellen, Corin Redgrave and Derek Jacobi perform Shakespeare's historic play about Prince Hal's journey toward kingship, and his ultimate rejection of Falstaff. Read more

Bar Mitzvah Boy

By: Jack Rosenthal

Narrated by: Hugo Raine

Length: 54 minutes

Abridged: No

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation of Jack Rosenthal’s award-winning television play, starring Hugo Raine. At the tender age of thirteen Eliot Green is about to become a man - in the Jewish religion at least. In synagogue, in front of the whole congregation, he will read and sing in Hebrew from the Torah (the Hebrew scrolls) - this after a... Read more

Shakespeare's Cymbeline

By: William Shakespeare

Narrated by: Full Cast

Length: 2 hours 30 minutes

Abridged: No

A BBC Radio 3 full-cast dramatisation of Shakespeare’s classic ‘Cymbeline’, starring Bill Wallis. Originally broadcast in December 2006 as part of the ‘Drama on 3’ collection. Shakespeare's play, set during the Roman invasion of Britain, centres around the banishment of the man who has incurred the wrath of the king by secretly marrying his... Read more

Blue Wonder

By: Ronald Frame

Narrated by: Clare Corbett, Jamie Glover & Full Cast

Length: 1 hour 29 minutes

Abridged: No

A BBC Radio full-cast drama which tells a story of love and deception set during the Cold War. Written by Ronald Frame for BBC Radio Scotland and broadcast on BBC Radio 3 as part of the 'Drama on 3' collection in September 2008. Throughout the period of the Cold War in the late 1960s and early 1970s, 'romeo spies' were operating, targeting... Read more

The Three Musketeers

By: Alexandre Dumas

Narrated by: Full Cast

Length: 2 hours 45 minutes

Abridged: No

A BBC Radio 4 dramatisation of Alexandre Dumas’s swashbuckling epic, starring Jamie Glover, Robert Glenister and Timothy Spall. ‘All for one and one for all’ ... 17th Century France. Dashing young swordsman D’Artagnan heads for Paris, dreaming of serving the King as a member of his elite guard. On arrival, he meets the three musketeers –... Read more

Lamia

By: John Keats

Narrated by: Charlotte Emmerson, Jonathan Keeble, Paterson J...

Length: 44 minutes

Abridged: No

A BBC Radio 4 dramatic adaptation of Keats' sensual narrative poem ‘Lamia’, about the ill-starred love affair of the serpent Lamia, and the innocent mortal Lycius. Featuring original music by John Harle, and singer Sarah Leonard. With Paterson Joseph as the Narrator, Charlotte Emmerson as Larnia, Tom Ferguson as Lycius and Jonathan Keeble as... Read more

Mum's On The Run The complete series

By: Alexis Zegerman

Narrated by: John Gordon Sinclair, Alexis Zegerman, Christin...

Length: 2 hours 47 minutes

Abridged: No

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast comedy by Alexis Zegerman about the hectic life of a single mother, originally broadcast 25 August - 29 September 2010.

'Mum's on the Run' is a modern-day twist on the single-family situation. It follows the hectic life ('What life?') of single mum, Jen. Mother of two, Master of none - Jen seems to spend most of her time... Read more

God Rest You Merry The Story Of Christmas In Words (Vintage Beeb)

By: Chris Emmett

Narrated by: Andrew Cruickshank, The Saint Martin Singers & ...

Length: 51 minutes

Abridged: No

God Rest You Merry, a daily programme of readings and music for Christmas week, was first broadcast on the BBC Home Service in 1961 and has been repeated in various forms over the years since then. Now, with this recording, listeners can hear again the series of programmes as a whole, including some of their favourite poems and carols. The... Read more

Pericles (BBC Radio 3 Drama On 3)

By: William Shakespeare

Narrated by: Benjamin Zephaniah, Helen Longworth & Tom Mannion

Length: 1 hour 39 minutes

Abridged: No

A BBC Radio 3 full-cast dramatisation of Shakespeare’s classic ‘Pericles’, starring Tom Mannion. Originally broadcast in November 2005 and repeated as part of the ‘Drama on 3’ collection in November 2008. Shakespeare's romantic adventure full of tyrants, incest, murder, knights, teenagers, pirates, brothels, sublime poetry, young love, a great... Read more

The Poetry of Shakespeare

By: William Shakespeare

Narrated by: John Gielgud

Length: 40 minutes

Abridged: No

A collection of Shakespeare's poetry including A Lover's Complaint, The Passionate Pilgrim, and a selection from The Sonnets. Read by Sir John Gielgud, Dame Edith Evans, Robert Donat, Anthony Quayle and Claire Bloom. Read more

Prospero, Ariel, Reith and Gill

By: Gary Brown

Narrated by: Alison Pettitt, David Seddon, Jonathan Glover, ...

Length: 43 minutes

Abridged: No

Gary Brown's BBC Radio 4 full-cast comedy dramatisation about artist Eric Gill's clash with the BBC over his famous sculpture of Prospero and Ariel, starring Anton Lesser as Eric Gill and Tim McInnerny as Sir John Reith, the first Director General of the Corporation. Originally broadcast in the ‘Afternoon Play’ slot on Wednesday 9 June 2010. ... Read more

The Merchant of Venice

By: William Shakespeare

Narrated by: Hugh Griffin

Length: 2 hours 19 minutes

Abridged: No

Hugh Griffin, Harry Andrews, Ian Holm and Roy Dotrice perform Shakespeare's tragic comedy. Read more

The People's Post

By: Dominic Sandbrook

Narrated by: Dominic Sandbrook

Length: 3 hours 21 minutes

Abridged: No

A 15-part BBC Radio 4 series exploring the origins of the Post Office, how it became a cherished national institution, and how it adapted to globalisation and commercialisation. It's called Royal Mail but it should be known as the People's Post. Launched in 1516 by Henry VIII, it was intended to support royal communications and bolster... Read more

Sir John Gielgud's Favourite Scenes from Shakespeare - Abridged

By: William Shakespeare

Narrated by: John Gielgud

Length: 1 hour 11 minutes

Abridged: Yes

Sir John Gielgud performs his favourite scenes from A Midsummer Night's Dream, Macbeth, Much Ado About Nothing, Cymbeline, The Taming of the Shrew, Julius Caesar, The Tempest, Romeo and Juliet and many more. Read more

Perry Mason and the Case of the Velvet Claws

By: Erle Stanley Gardner & M. J. Elliott

Narrated by: Jerry Robbins & The Colonial Radio Players

Length: 1 hour 31 minutes

Abridged: No

Thanks to a bungled robbery at a fancy hotel, the already-married Eva Griffin has been caught in the company of a prominent congressman. To protect the politico, Eva's ready to pay the editor of a sleazy tabloid his hush money. But Perry Mason has other plans. He tracks down the phantom fat cat who secretly runs the blackmailing tabloid—only to... Read more

Doctor Cerberus

By: Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa

Narrated by: Steven Culp, Pamela Gray, Simon Helberg, Jamiso...

Length: 1 hour 55 minutes

Abridged: No

A coming-of-age, coming-out cocktail with a twist of terror. Thirteen-year-old Franklin Robertson is trying to survive adolescence. His parents don’t understand him, his brother torments him, he has no friends, and he’s more interested in the high school quarterback than any girl. The one bright spot in his life is the glow of the... Read more

Barrymore

By: William Luce

Narrated by: Jerry Robbins & The Colonial Radio Players

Length: 1 hour 36 minutes

Abridged: No

John Barrymore was the black sheep of America’s most illustrious acting family. Celebrated for his charisma and matinee idol looks, he was for awhile America’s most popular actor. Famous for his stage roles in Richard III and Hamlet, he also made more than fifty films. But alcoholism soon dissipated his talents, and he became known more for his... Read more

Von Ribbentrop's Watch (Bbc Radio 4 Saturday Play)

By: Laurence Marks & Maurice Gran

Narrated by: Allan Corduner, Harriet Walter, Miriam Margolye...

Length: 1 hour 26 minutes

Abridged: No

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast drama by Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran. Originally broadcast in the ‘Saturday Play’ slot on 8 November 2008. Wine shop owner Gerald desperately needs money: his business is failing and the landlord has raised the cost of the lease. When he inherits a watch that used to belong to wartime Nazi Joachim Von Ribbentrop he... Read more