Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Preview

£0.00 for first 30 days

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Bookcases

By: Martyn Wade
Narrated by: Maggie Steed, Michael Cochrane, Joan Sims, Elizabeth Spriggs, David Horovitch, Charles Simpson, Geoffrey Whitehead, full cast
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £7.99

Buy Now for £7.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Summary

The complete series one and two of the historical comic sitcom about an embattled Victorian publishing company.

London, 1853, and the sedate religious publishing house of Spavin and Spavin is about to experience a radical shake-up. Vivacious actress Cordelia is on the hunt for a husband and has her eye on Gerald, one of the firm's partners, while her son, Primus, has ambitions to take over the firm. And when he does, it'll be out with the Bibles and in with the best sellers - starting with Charlotte Brontë's latest blockbuster....

Full of grand plans, he sets about wooing a wealth of other writers, including explorer Richard Burton, Charlotte Bronte and struggling novelist Wilkie Collins (who takes quite a shine to Cordelia). He even hires an assistant, Simeon, to manage publicity, and attempts to win a literary award by fair means or foul. But Primus' enthusiasm doesn't go down too well with Gerald's mother Edith (the firm's other partner), who is strongly opposed to the company publishing fiction. Worse, his willingness to spend the company's money has pushed Spavin and Spavin to the edge of bankruptcy....

Hoping for salvation from financial ruin, Primus turns to luminaries such as Prince Albert and Charles Dickens - but could the crock of gold he's searching for be right under his nose?

Written by Martyn Wade (The Little Ottleys), this delightful, tongue-in-cheek comedy stars Michael Cochrane as Primus and Maggie Steed as Cordelia, with a cast including Elizabeth Spriggs, Charles Simpson, David Horovitch, Joan Sims and Ioan Meredith.

Production credits

Written by Martyn Wade

Directed by Cherry Cookson

Music composed by Paul Mottram

Violinist: Paul Mottram

Cast

Primus - Michael Cochrane

Cordelia - Maggie Steed

Gerald - David Horovitch

Edith - Elizabeth Spriggs

Reverend Brontë/Prosser - Geoffrey Whitehead

Charlotte Brontë - Sarah Jane Holm

Mrs Gaskell/Emily Brontë/Katie Joiner/Mrs Prosser - Frances Jeater

Equity/Waiter/George Eliot/Thackeray - David Antrobus

Richard Burton - Norman Rodway

Wilkie Collins - David Timson

Simeon - Charles Simpson

Prince Albert/Smiles/Trollope - Ioan Meredith

John/Rossetti/Cab driver - Stephen Critchlow

Mrs Quirk - Joan Sims

Lizzie Siddal - Becky Hindley

Mrs Beeton - Rachel Atkins

Beeton - Gerard McDermott

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 20 August-10 September 1998 (Series One), 7-28 January 2000 (Series Two)

©2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

Nebulous: The Complete Series 1-3 cover art
The Rivals: Tales of Sherlock Holmes’ Rival Detectives cover art
Victoria Station cover art
Clayton Grange: Series 1 & 2 cover art
North East of Eden cover art
The Sit Crom cover art
HighLites: Series 1-6 cover art
Life, Death & Sex with Mike and Sue cover art
A Life of Bliss cover art
Ed Reardon's Week: Series 1-4 cover art
1834 Time Travelling Teacher cover art
The Wordsmiths at Gorsemere: The Complete Series 1 and 2 cover art
Rent: The Complete Series 1-4 cover art
Fags, Mags, and Bags: Series 1-4 cover art
Wordaholics: The Complete Series 1-3 cover art
Shush!: The Complete Series 1 and 2 cover art

What listeners say about Bookcases

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    3
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    3
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    3
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

THE BRILLIANT GEOFFREY WHITEHEAD

Maggie Steed and Liz Sprigs are two of the most over rated over played very limited actresses who ruin so many otherwise good plays/films. OK Steed was perfect in Shine On Harvey Moon playing a trollop which seems to be her limit, just as Sprigs is only good at playing old bag Dickens characters. If it was not for Geoffrey Whitehead and Rachel Atkins BookCases would be unbearable, but Geoffrey saves the day.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Wonderful!

A joy to listen too. Maggie Stead and Elizabeth Spriggs amazing - such voices! The story engaging and denouement just what I wanted.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!