AuthorNoel Coward
NarratorFull Cast
Duration11h 55m
CategoriesAdult Fiction, Music and the Arts
PublisherBBC Audio
VersionUnabridged
Seven BBC radio full-cast productions of Noël Coward's classic plays – plus bonus material including a profile of Coward and extracts from his diaries
Renowned for his wit, style and sophistication, Noël Coward was one of the greatest playwrights of the twentieth century. His plays, set in the glittering world of high society in which he lived, are much admired and have remained in the popular theatre repertoire to this day.
This collection brings together the very best radio adaptations of Coward's works, encompassing sparkling comedies of manners Private Lives and Hay Fever, farcical ghost story Blithe Spirit, and daring ménage à trois drama Design for Living. Here, too, is his controversial first hit The Vortex; the poignant Still Life (the inspiration for the film Brief Encounter); and the semi-autobiographical Present Laughter.
Among the star-studded cast are Helena Bonham-Carter, Bill Nighy, Judi Dench, Celia Imrie, Roger Allam, Harriet Walter, Paul Rhys, Stephanie Cole and Paul Scofield.
Also included is a BBC World Service profile of Noël Coward, comprising interviews, musical extracts and archive clips; and the BBC Radio 4 programme 'From His Diaries', featuring a selection of passages from Coward's journal read by Simon Cadell.
Author: Noel Coward
Author Noel Coward
Narrator Full Cast
Duration 1h 28m
Paul Scofield and Patricia Routledge star in Noel Coward's classic comedy of manners. Private Lives was written in 1930 and has been a mainstay of British theatre ever since. This sharply funny play of reversals focuses on Elyot and Amanda, a passionate but feuding couple who divorced five years before. Now, on the first night of their honeymoons w...
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Author: Noel Coward
Author Noel Coward
Narrator Various
Duration 1h 16m
The lights of a yacht on the French Riviera are reflected in the water and in the eyes of four hilariously mismatched lovers. PRIVATE LIVES shimmers with wit, romance, desire and bittersweet truth.
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Author: Noel Coward
Author Noel Coward
Narrator Full Cast, John Moffatt, Rosemary Leach
Duration 1h 26m
John Moffatt and Rosemary Leach star in this BBC Radio 4 production of Noel Coward's patriotic play about the ups and downs of a working-class family between 1919 and 1939 'This Happy Breed' opens in 1919, when the Gibbons family have just moved to their smart new home in the suburbs of South London. Against a background of social change and nation...
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An Interview With Angela Chadwick
Author: Books Listening
Author Books Listening
Narrator Angela Chadwick
Duration 18m
We speak to debut author Angela Chadwick about her award-winning novel, XX.
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Author: Books Listening
Author Books Listening
Narrator Amy Lloyd
Duration 28m
We chat to the author of popular thriller novels One More Lie and The Innocent Wife.
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Author: Noel Coward
Author Noel Coward
Narrator Full Cast
Duration 1h 27m
Peggy Ashcroft and Tony Britton star in this 1971 BBC Radio production of Noel Coward's classic comedy about a disastrous weekend house party. Judith Bliss is a famous actress who, after a string of successful roles, has retired to her country retreat. Missing the adulation of her public, she has has invited a fan over for a weekend of uninterrupte...
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An Interview With Sue Moorcroft
Author: Books Listening
Author Books Listening
Narrator Sue Moorcroft
Duration 50m
We chat to the best-selling fiction author whose novels include Just for the Holidays and A Christmas Gift. Photo credit Charlotte Barnes.
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Author: Debbie Harry
Author Debbie Harry
Narrator Clem Burke
Duration 8h 53m
Debbie Harry is a musician, actor, activist and the iconic face of New York City cool. As the front-woman of Blondie, she and the band forged a new sound that brought together the worlds of rock, punk, disco, reggae and hip-hop to create some of the most beloved pop songs of all time. With all the grit, grime, and glory recounted in intimate detail...
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Author: Daniel Levitin
Author Daniel Levitin
Narrator Daniel Levitin
Duration 11h 46m
Brought to you by Penguin. Using musical examples from Bach to the Beatles, Levitin reveals the role of music in human evolution, shows how our musical preferences begin to form even before we are born and explains why music can offer such an emotional experience. Music is an obsession at the heart of human nature, even more fundamental to our spec...
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Author: Uwe Schutte
Author Uwe Schutte
Narrator Sam Peter Jackson
Duration 6h 14m
Brought to you by Penguin. The story of the phenomenon that is Kraftwerk, and how they revolutionised our cultural landscape 'We are not artists nor musicians. We are workers.' Ignoring nearly all rock traditions, experimenting in near-total secrecy in their Dsseldorf studio, Kraftwerk fused sound and technology, graphic design and performance, mo...
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