Showing results by publisher "BBC Audio" in Fantasy

Saleem Sinai is born on the stroke of midnight on 14th-15th August 1947, at the exact moment that India and Pakistan become separate, independent nations. From that moment on, his fate is mysteriously handcuffed to the history of his country. But Saleem's story starts almost 30 years earlier, when his grandfather, Dr Aadam Aziz, falls in love with a woman concealed behind a perforated sheet. That pivotal moment in Kashmir in 1919 sparks a series of bizarre events that will lead to the birth of a boy with an extraordinary destiny.

Ursula K. Le Guin was one of the most revered and influential writers of the 20th century. Her Earthsea books have sold millions of copies and been translated into numerous languages, while her trailblazing novel The Left Hand of Darkness was a landmark in feminist science fiction and ranks among the greatest SF novels of all time. This BBC collection brings together the magical radio retellings of both these seminal classics.

A brand new two-part special from the fantastical drama series set in a world almost, but not quite, like our own. Paul Hilton stars as William Palmer, the immortal, reluctant and unthanked hero protecting mankind from an enemy they resist believing in: the Grey Folk.

The complete BBC Radio 4 satirical comedy series about a seasoned presenter of travel documentaries, Brian Gulliver, who finds himself in a hospital's secure unit after claiming to have experienced a succession of bizarre adventures. In series one we hear about Brian's travels in Gelbetia, a country run by doctors; Juradia, where every other person is a lawyer; Osminia, a land where marriage is outlawed; Sham, a country where alternative therapies abound; Erosia, which has a very different view of sexual politics; and Jampoa, where fame definitely equals fortune.

A trio of terrifying radio tales starring Roger Delgado, Vincent Price and Honor Blackman. Author, playwright and TV producer Victor Pemberton was probably best known as a script editor and writer for Doctor Who, and as the inventor of the Doctor's trademark sonic screwdriver. But he also created numerous dramas for radio, among them the three cult classics included here.

Every year, on the winter solstice, the small town of Melcombe observes an annual custom, the roots and meaning of which are lost in the mists of time. A torchlit procession to the ancient tomb of Cairndale Knapp, overlooking the town, puts the old sun to bed and greets the new sun in the morning, restoring balance to the year. This year, however, Mr Sam Notice has bought the Knapp and has set about landscaping it.

In these 34 intriguing episodes, leading historian Christopher Andrew rewrites history, considering what might have transpired if pivotal events had turned out differently. By altering a single, plausible fact, he explores alternative futures where the Spanish Armada landed on English soil, Pontius Pilate freed Jesus, the Nazis occupied Britain and many more.

The TARDIS lands the Doctor and Martha in the Lake District in 1909, where a small village has been terrorised by a giant, scaly monster. The search is on for the elusive "Beast of Westmorland", and explorers, naturalists, and hunters from across the country are descending on the fells. King Edward VII himself is on his way to join the search, with a knighthood for whoever finds the Beast.

In these four supernatural dramas, first broadcast on radio in 1984, a house hides more than meets the eye; a B & B landlady helps her guests forget their troubles; a Japanese man inadvertently awakens a vengeful spirit; and a mother and baby become unsettled in remote mill.

Originally published in 1943, The Glass Bead Game was Herman Hesse’s last novel. It was hailed as his magnum opus, and was instrumental in securing him the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1946. Set in a utopian future society, it explores themes of knowledge, individualism, creativity and spirituality, and has inspired contemporary thinkers from authors to game designers. Narrated by Derek Jacobi, this two-part radio drama tells the story of Joseph Knecht (Tom Ferguson), plucked from obscurity as a young orphan, admitted to the finest elite school and groomed for greatness.

Written by an anonymous storyteller in the 13th Century, and describing events between 960 and 1020, Njáls saga is one of the great works of medieval literature. The longest and most celebrated of the Icelandic sagas, it deals with family honour, vengeance and a vicious blood feud spanning almost 50 years. Based on the classic translation by Magnus Magnusson and Hermann Pálsson, this gripping dramatisation centres around two friends.

The BBC TV soundtrack of the acclaimed Jackanory multi-voice reading of The Hobbit. Broadcast to mark the 3000th programme of the much-loved children's series Jackanory, The Hobbit was transmitted over two weeks and 10 episodes in 1979. It told the gripping story of Bilbo Baggins and his band of dwarves, who are on a quest for the treasure guarded by the fearsome dragon Smaug. As he leaves his cosy hobbit-hole and travels into the wild, Bilbo's adventures begin.

In The Unquenchable Thirst of Dracula, one of seven 'unmade movies' available on audio, it is 1934, and young Englishwoman Penny is travelling by train across India in search of her missing sister. En route, she meets sibling artistes Prem and Lakshmi, who have been hired by a Maharajah and his wife, the Rani, to entertain their aristocratic European guest. But evil lurks in the hidden caverns beneath the ancient palace, where the acolytes of a fiendish blood cult await their next human sacrifice....

Written by Sebastian Baczkiewicz and Steve May, these gripping plays take in all the famous Arthurian legends, from Lanslot’s tryst with Gwenfar to the quest for the Holy Grail. Ben Whishaw and Philip Glenister star as Arthur, with Ian McDiarmid as Merlin, Jane Lapotaire as Morgan, Eve Myles as Gwenfar and Andrew Scarborough as Lanslot.

The Doctor and Martha arrive at Castle Extremis, which is about to play host to the signing of a peace treaty. But not everyone wants the war to end. Who is the little girl who haunts the castle? Who is the hooded figure that watches from the shadows? And what is the secret of the legendary Mortal Mirror?

Responding to an advert apparently worded for him alone, Captain Mike Yates (retired) is reunited with a ghost from the past. But why has the Doctor, that mysterious traveller in Time and Space, sent for his former UNIT acquaintance? Trapped by a horde of vicious creatures in an apparently innocuous English country cottage, the two old friends are on the brink of an enormous adventure.

The TARDIS arrives at Heathrow Airport at a moment of crisis: a Concorde aeroplane has inexplicably vanished while in flight. The Doctor, Tegan and Nyssa join the crew of a second Concorde that sets out to simulate the fateful journey of the missing supersonic jet...but an old enemy in disguise is lurking at their destination. Seeing is believing, they say - but the Doctor and his friends realise that it just isn't that simple.

First broadcast on BBC1 in 1968, The Dominators sees the TARDIS materialising on the planet Dulkis, currently under threat from two alien Dominators and their robotic servants, the Quarks. Their intention is to turn the planet into a radioactive mass, fuel for their space fleet. The pacifist Dulcians refuse to retaliate, until the Doctor, Jamie, and Zoe arrive. Can they help save both the planet and its people in time?

Victorian adventure writer Henry Rider Haggard is most famous for his novel King Solomon’s Mines, which launched the ‘Lost World’ genre of SF, featuring the discovery of long-forgotten or legendary civilizations. His follow-up, She, was also hugely successful, and has been hailed as ‘one of the great classics of fantasy fiction’. The radio dramatisations of both tales are collected here, with casts including Tim McInnerny, Adjoa Andoh, Finlay Robertson, Oliver Chris and Mia Soteriou.

Unabridged readings of four spine-tingling stories. This suspenseful anthology collects together four gripping tales of gruesome scientific experiments and chilling supernatural events - all read in full by some of the very best voice actors. With over 18 hours of electrifying listening, tracked by chapter, these classic tales will have you on the edge of your seat.