Holmes calls on Watson late one evening to tell him about a case that he has been working on, and also to invite him to be a witness to the final stage of the investigation. Colonel James Barclay, of The Royal Mallows based at Aldershot Camp, is dead, apparently by violence, and his wife Nancy is the prime suspect. Holmes and Watson never disappoin...

A story in Conan Doyle's famous 'Professor Challenger' series. In this story he encounters a Russian scientist who has created a machine that not only disintegrates humans but also re-assembles them. He is selling his plans to the country that made the highest offer but first Professor Challenger wants to test out the machine himself.

Sherlock Holmes is dying of a rare Asian disease, and desperately needs the help of a sworn enemy. Watson must try to get to the bottom of this mystery, and save Holmes' life. Written with Arthur Conan Doyle's characteristic ingenuity, this Holmes mystery is not one to miss.

Sherlock Holmes arrives at a large, dark, seemingly deserted house with Dr. Watson. Heavily loaded carriages with luggage are visible outside the house. Our intrepid team find a window ajar, and climb into the apartment where they find they are not alone. Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes Adventures are legendary classics of crime writing, and a...

The murder by suspected poisoning of Mr. Weatherby at the guest house at No. 9, Hill Crescent, points the finger of suspicion at a number of likely suspects. Crime writer Mr. Lattimer is on the case, noticing details around the house that the detectives seem to have overlooked. But what will Mr. Lattimer do with his all-important 'inside' informati...

A classic short story by Mark Twain, originally broadcast in the Afternoon Reading slot on BBC Radio 4 on 10 November 2010, to accompany the Autobiography of Mark Twain (aired on Book of the Week). Read by Stuart Millligan. This is the second of three of Twain's classic short story broadcasts featuring the McWilliamses, with his familiar trademark...

A classic short story by Mark Twain, originally broadcast in the Afternoon Reading slot on BBC Radio 4 on 9 November 2010, to accompany the Autobiography of Mark Twain (aired on Book of the Week). Read by Stuart Millligan. This is the first of three of Twain's classic short story broadcasts featuring the McWilliamses, with his familiar trademarks...

Edward Hardwicke reads, says Publishers Weekly, with "unadorned old-school stiff upper lip".

Two recently-rediscovered Hercule Poirot short stories by Agatha Christie, read by David Suchet. In 2004, a remarkable archive was unearthed at Agatha Christie's family home, Greenway - 73 of her private notebooks, filled with pencilled jottings and ideas. Hidden within this literary treasure trove were two rare, never-before-published short storie...

The fictionalised recreation of Denis Noble's 'eureka moment': the point at which the pioneering biologist came to understand the machinations of the human heart. The BBC National Short Story Award 2011 is managed in partnership with Booktrust.

Simmering tensions come to a head as three friends take a road trip across Canada. Animal Brooks wants Vic, but Vic and Duncan are an item. Violence threatens when a playful dig from a stranger pushes Duncan to react... The BBC National Short Story Award 2011 is managed in partnership with Booktrust.

Following a lengthy mission into space, a newly returned astronaut readjusts to daily life and his wife struggles to negotiate his changed and shifting rhythms. The BBC National Short Story Award 2011 is managed in partnership with Booktrust.

Playing upon our most primal fears, Stephen King draws us into his sinister world - a place where sane men and women see their lives shattered, their realities distorted and destroyed. Now, listeners can probe even deeper into the mind of the master storyteller of the macabre, with this third unabridged production of 5 classic short stories, from K...

Set in 1960s Sydney, the presence of a luxurious liner seems to offer Trudy and her young husband, James, a tantalising opportunity to fulfil their dreams... The BBC National Short Story Award 2011 is managed in partnership with Booktrust.

While marvelling at the way in which her mind responds to the near-death experience of a sugar beet smashing through the windscreen of her car, a young woman becomes mildly irritated by the two men who have stopped to help her. The BBC National Short Story Award 2011 is managed in partnership with Booktrust.

Three short stories written and performed by leading new comedians at The Pleasance Theatre in Edinburgh as part of the Festival Fringe. In May Contain Nuts, by Janey Godley, a woman glimpses her own mortality when she calculates that only twenty-seven years separate her from her cantankerous father. The Hair of the Dead, by Sarah Millican, is a mo...

Three more short stories which capture the atmosphere of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Recorded live at The Pleasance last week, leading comedians perform their own work in front of a packed audience. The Woman Who Sniffed, written and read by Susan Calman, is a wry look at office politics. Just When You Thought It Was Safe to be Green, written an...

A series of three brand new short stories written and performed by leading comedians. Stairlift Us Up Where We Belong, written and read by Sarah Millican, is a poignant and funny monologue exploring the tricky turning point in a woman's life, when she goes from being thought of as useful to becoming invisible. In Spooky and the Van, written and rea...

With his black hat, huge umbrella, unwordly simplicity and 'beaming but breathless geniality', Father Brown is one of fiction's best-loved amateur detectives. Short and tatty, but with the wisdom and insight to unravel the most wayward of criminal minds, he has entertained generations. Here, the High Priest of detection becomes involved in four int...

With his black hat, huge umbrella, unwordly simplicity and 'beaming but breathless geniality', Father Brown is one of fiction's best-loved amateur detectives. Short and tatty, but with the wisdom and insight to unravel the most wayward of criminal minds, he has entertained generations. In Series 1, the High Priest of detection becomes involved in s...

With his black hat, huge umbrella, unwordly simplicity and 'beaming but breathless geniality', Father Brown is one of fiction's best-loved amateur detectives. Short and tatty, but with the wisdom and insight to unravel the most wayward of criminal minds, he has entertained generations. In 'The Blue Cross', the cream of London's police force and Fra...