A cBBC Radio 4 dramatisation of John le Carr‚'s fourth novel, starring Simon Russell Beale as Smiley and Piotr Baumann as Fred Leiser. When word reaches 'The Department' - an ailing section of British intelligence - that Soviet missiles are being installed close to the West German border, it seems the perfect opportunity to show Control and S...

In this BBC full-cast production of The Merchant of Venice, love, bigotry, greed, and justice are entwined.Shakespeare's classic play explores the eternal themes of love and hate, mercy and justice, with parallel stories centred on the moneylender, Shylock, and the lovers, Portia and Bassanio. Shylock's angry insistence on the repayment of his...

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast production of Homer's epic seafaring adventure, dramatised by poet Simon Armitage. In a twenty-year journey, fabulous fantasy mixes with extraordinary reality as Odysseus encounters enchantresses, nymphs, monsters, prophets and ghosts. From the temptations of the lotus flowers and the Sirens' song to the horrors of the Cyclo...

Two stories of love, lust, happiness and heartache from Britain's longest-running radio serial. Pub landlord Sid Perks is led astray when his keep-fit regime at the local gym leads to a steamy affair with Jolene Rogers, a country-and-western singer. For Emma Carter, choosing a husband is not so straightforward. She finds herself torn between loyal,...

In this BBC full-cast production of Antony and Cleopatra, the soldier and noble prince Mark Antony's enthralment with the Egyptian queen Cleopatra is proving controversial. Will the tumultuous relationship ultimately end in tragedy?Antony and Cleopatra is an intense love story, exploring the constant conflict between duty and emotion with char...

BBC Radio 4 dramatisation starring David Threlfall, Tina Kellegher and T. P. McKenna. 'Prodigal Son': In the first of this murder mystery series set in Dublin, Paolo Baldi, Franciscan priest and philosophy lecturer, accidentaly becomes involved in solving a murder at an Italian chip shop. 'Keepers of the Flame': Paolo Baldi, priest, philosophy lect...

This case involves the Fergusons, who Paul and Steve meet while on the way home from New York. They are flying to England to visit their son Richard, a student at Oxford University. But at the airport, there is shocking news: Richard has been murdered, found shot dead in his room. The only clues are a postcard from Harrogate signed `Jonathan', and...

In a thrilling case that takes Paul and Steve to exotic Egypt, Paul Temple is called in to investigate a mysterious murder. The twisting trail takes them from London to the back streets and nightclubs of Cairo...

A new BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation of Ian Rankin's novel. Rebus is ordered to join a team working on an old case, but someone on the team wants it to remain unsolved. Meanwhile, the murder of an art dealer draws Sergeant Clarke into an encounter with a notorious gangster - that Rebus is also investigating.

In this BBC full-cast production of Richard II, the male ego and narcissism of monarchs are hung out to dry...Written entirely in verse, the rhythms of the language in this epic tragedy encompass its themes of dignity and kingship with fitting grandeur and pathos, as the capricious and narcissistic Richard is brought to his own destruction.Sta...

The story unfolds through four middle class families - the Mehras, Kappoors, Khans and Chatterjis. Lata Mehra, a university student, is under pressure from her mother to get married. But not to just anyone she happens to fall in love with. There are standards to be met and finding a husband for Lata becomes a family affair in which all the members...

In these six pieces, Alan Bennett retains the gripping stories, intensity of delivery and masterly style of his original monologues. The suburban normality of the world his characters inhabit once again belies their lives of secrets, revelations, fears, crimes and passions. They tell their stories, and in doing so reveal more than they know of the...

In this BBC full-cast production of The Taming of the Shrew, the freedom and virility of women is frowned upon. Will Petruchio's quest to 'tame' his new wife succeed?Layers of assumed identity, elaborate role-playing, and acerbic exchanges of wit reveal the real relationship between men and women in this exuberant production of one of Shakespe...

In this BBC full-cast production of The Tempest, a magical storm washes some sailors up on a peculiar island, changing the course of their lives forever...Raging storms and rich beautiful music combine to magical effect in this production of Shakespeare's allegorical last play, where mystical forces work to restore harmony and order to an estr...

In this BBC full-cast production of Twelfth Night, Malvolio is looking for trouble - and revenge...Michael Maloney, Josette Simon and Anne-Marie Duff star in this fast and funny production of Shakespeare's most sparkling and optimistic comedy, when all the world is turned on its head and authority is usurped, when by civil...

In this BBC full-cast production of As You Like It, Rosalind is banished from the Royal court, heartbroken over Orlando. Will the two find a way to reunite?A comedy of wit, disguise and love, Shakespeare's tale about the enchanted world of the Forest of Arden remains as moving as it is funny.Helena Bonham Carter stars as Rosalind, with&nb...

'The Chief Justice of Beauty' finds the ladies hired by a beauty contest judge to check up on the integrity of the finalists in a forthcoming competition, following the embarrassing arrest for shoplifting of a previous winner. Meanwhile, Mma Ramotsweis worried about her fianc‚, Mr J. L. B. Matekoni. 'The Confession' sees Mma Ramotswe consulti...

In this BBC full-cast production of Coriolanus, allies and enemies become blurred just as Rome is in sight...Coriolanus tells of a proud Roman general who captures the town Corioli but subsequently falls from favour with the Roman people. He allies himself with the Volscians and leads an attack on Rome, but allegiances are won and lost be...

'The Daddy' introduces us to Mma Ramotswe as she embarks on her first case and takes on a new secretary, the resourceful and talented Mma Makutsi. Together, they must find the truth about a Daddy who appears to have returned from the dead - as well as investigating a wayward teenage girl and attempting to find a vanished child. 'The Bone' sees the...

Ed Bishop stars as Philip Marlowe in a powerful and atmospheric full-cast dramatisation of Raymond Chandler's classic noir novel. The first time Marlowe sets eyes on Terry Lennox, he is lying drunk in the passenger seat of a Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith. The next time, he's on Skid Row. After they share a few Gimlets, Marlowe thinks he seems like a ni...

Michael Sheen stars as Hamlet with Kenneth Cranham as Claudius, Juliet Stevenson as Gertrude and Ellie Beaven as Ophelia in the best-known and most powerful tragedy of modern times. BBC radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and...