One fine day, A.D. 70, Sosia Camillina quite literally runs into Marcus Didius Falco on the steps of the Forum. It seems Sosia is on the run from a couple of street toughs, and after a quick and dirty rescue, P.I. Falco wants to know why. Falco finds out that Sosia, the niece of a highly placed senator, holds the secret to a stockpile of silver pig...

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation of Jacqueline Wilson's favourite character, Tracy Beaker, who lives in a children's home. Ten-year-old Tracy is smart and full of energy but more than anything she wants love. In "The Story of Tracy Beaker", Tracy doesn't know where her mum lives but that doesn't stop her having long imaginary conversations wit...

'There is No Such Thing as Free Food' finds Precious Ramotswe, owner and founder of The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency, preoccupied both professionally and personally by the subject of food. 'The Best Profession for a Blackmailer' sees Mr Polopetsi, part-time mechanic and would-be assistant detective, taking on a case of his own; while Mma Makutsi f...

Six extraordinary adventures, never revealed before, starring Simon Callow as Sherlock Holmes and Nicky Henson as Dr Watson, written by John Taylor. 'The Wandering Corpse': The professor claimed he knew how to resurrect the dead. Now he's dead and his body's missing from the coffin. 'The Horror in Hanging Wood': The victim's arm has been wrenched h...

In the heyday of the Roman Empire, a small accounting error has left Marcus Didius Falco sharing a cell with a large rat. But the Empire's most hard-done-by investigator is finally bailed out, and promptly accepts a commission to help a family of freed slaves fend off a professional bribe... A third instalment of the Marcus Didius Falco mysteries s...

'A Very Rude Woman' finds Precious Ramotswe facing change at The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency, while Mr J.L.B. Matekoni meets the rudest person in all Botswana. 'Talking Shoes' sees a new detective taking on a case for the Agency, while Mma Ramotswe, among others, has a problem with high blood pressure.

BBC Radio 4 has a new star on his hands. No-one knows where he's from - "As a child, I always remember my father saying to me 'Son, to pay for your education your mother and I had to make a lot of sacrifices.' Because they were both druids." No-one can predict what he gets up to -"I'm not getting on with my yoga teacher at the moment ... which freq...

Tons of award-winning comedy (as seen on TV) from the brilliant Victoria Wood and lots of other people, some of whom are still in work. Julie Walters, Alan Rickman, Dora Bryan, Jim Broadbent, Celia Imrie, Hugh Lloyd and many more join Victoria Wood in this positively bloated bumper collection oozing with songs, sketches and monologues. A revolution...

These are masterly readings, by renowned thespian Paul Schofield, of two substantial works of poetry by T.S. Eliot. The Wasteland, first published in 1922, is one of Eliot's most influential works and has long been on the syllabus for A-Level English Literature. The Four Quartets consists of four long poems, first published between 1935 and 1942....

1994 saw one of Peter Cooks most acclaimed performances since his 1960's heyday. Chris Morris' surreal and inventive questions brought out the very best of eccentric aristocrat Sir Arthur Streeb-Greebling - a character whom Cook had carried with him through Beyond the Fringe and Not Only.But Also.to his latter years. These five interviews recall St...

It's the beginning of the summer holidays and William and the Outlaws see an endless expanse of gloriously carefree days stretching ahead but how to fill them? The six classic adventures contained in this unabridged reading are: William and the Holiday Centre - William's Treasure Trove - William and the Cottage - William Tackles the Job - William a...

Alan Bennett's distinctive readings of children's stories have become classics in their own right. His interpretations of the wonderful characters that people Lewis Carroll's extraordinary novels are, as ever, exactly right.

Richard Curtis' and Ben Elton's award-winning comedy in which Rowan Atkinson as the ubiquitous Blackadder, ably hampered by Tony Robinson as the loyal Baldrick, wreaks havoc throughout the centuries. Hugh Laurie, Stephen Fry, Robbie Coltrane, Rik Mayall and Miranda Richardson are some of the guest stars joining in the fun.

In Blackadder II, England's Golden Age is treated to the schemes and strategems of Edmund, Lord Blackadder as he curries grace and favour from the stark raving mad Queen Bess.

In Blackadder the Third, the fortunes of the family have plummeted rather with Blackadder employed as butler to the Prince Regent. With such an imbecilic Lord and master, however, there's plenty of scope for deviousness and manipulation.

Dickens' classic tale of kindness, truth and virtue completely ruined by having a member of the Blackadder family involved. Stuffed with deeply horrible people and groaning with cartloads of seasonal bottom jokes, it manages to squeeze a Victorian Blackadder and his Elizabethan, Regency and Space Age relatives into a huge pie of entertainment which...

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation of Evelyn Waugh's tragi-comic novel of the lives and loves of the English aristocracy. The action moves between 1944 and 1923, to tell the story of Charles Ryder and his infatuation with the decadent Sebastian Flyte.

In this 30-part BBC Radio 4 series, astronomer Heather Couper charts the history of our understanding of the universe. Her journey begins at the beginning as people first gaze in wonder at the life-giving Sun, the wandering planets and the changing phases of the Moon. Along the way we meet the ancient astronomers, as well as many pioneering scienti...

'Genius Series 3' sees Dave Gorman and celebrity guests Charlie Brooker, Matthew Wright, Gyles Brandreth, Rob Newman, Germaine Greer and Simon Munnery chew over ridiculous, unworkable but sometimes genius inventions, schemes and policies of the public. Genius invites listeners to air those incredible concepts that strike you just before falling int...

The complete BBC Radio 2 series from Perrier Award nominated duo Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement features Rob Brydon and Neil Finn. Flight of the Conchords are Bret McKenzie (guitar and vocals) and Jemaine Clement (vocals and guitar) and they're New Zealand's fourth best folk guitar-based jazz, techno, hip-hop duo. Over six episodes we follow the...

Set in Martha's Vineyard, 'The Ghost' tells the story of a writer who accepts the request to ghost-write the memoirs of Britain's former Prime Minister. He soon realises he has made a mistake. The ex-Prime Minister turns out to be a man with many secrets.