Showing results by publisher "BBC Audio" in Dystopian

It's 2116, and Bernard Marx and Helmholtz Watson are token rebels in an irretrievably corrupted society where promiscuity is the norm, eugenics a respectable science, and morality turned upside down. There is no poverty, crime or sickness - but no creativity, art or culture either. Human beings are merely docile citizens: divided into castes, brainwashed and controlled by the state and dependent on the drug soma for superficial gratification.

Full-cast dramatisations of six masterpieces from the founding fathers of dystopian fiction. Dark and disturbing, provocative and prescient, dystopian literature has long captured our imagination with its nightmarish visions of forbidding future worlds. Included here are six classic novels of time-travel, totalitarianism and terror, written by some of the masters of speculative fiction and adapted for radio with all-star casts.

Philosopher, pacifist, psychonaut and prophet Aldous Huxley was one of the 20th century’s pre-eminent intellectuals and writers. The author of over 50 books, he was nominated for the Nobel Prize nine times, and elected Companion of Literature by the Royal Society of Literature in 1962, a year before his death. Known for his mordant satire and visionary ideas, Huxley spanned the period from post-First World War disillusionment to mid-century mysticism, and the works in this collection reflect his literary evolution.

Wally K. Daly was a prolific, award-winning dramatist, whose writing credits included Casualty, Juliet Bravo and Doctor Who. He wrote 38 radio plays during his 30-year career, across a range of genres including comedy, horror and science fiction. This collection includes his best-known SF serial, The Scream Trilogy, and three other thrilling sci-fi dramas.

Winston Smith works for the Ministry of Truth in London, chief city of Airstrip One. Big Brother stares out from every poster and the Thought Police uncover each act of betrayal. When Winston finds love with Julia, he discovers that life does not have to be dull and deadening and awakens to new possibilities. Despite the police helicopters that hover and circle overhead, Winston and Julia begin to question the Party.

The complete first and second series of the Orwellian sitcom starring Robert Lindsay and David Threlfall. In this parody of George Orwell’s dystopian classic, everyman Edward Wilson finds his life taking a sinister turn when he becomes embroiled in mysterious government machinations.

It’s 2025, and advances in gene therapy have led to the eradication of many once-common diseases. But the ability to engineer and re-engineer the brain has provoked fear – for it means that a truly artificial consciousness is within reach. The idea that humans may no longer be the only sentient species is so unthinkable that legislation is hastily passed, rigorously controlling genetic experiments. But there are certain people who seek to circumvent the law...

When Jake signs up to a personal training programme that promises to turn the meekest man-boy into an alpha male, he doesn’t have a clue what he’s getting himself into. Two years later, his sister Maya sets out to uncover the truth. Life-changing events come thick and fast as The System’s true intent is revealed. In the shadowy world she uncovers, everything can shift in a heartbeat.

First published in 1921, Karel Capek's ultra-prescient play R.U.R has become a classic of dystopian literature, giving us the word 'robot' and inspiring movies and TV series from Blade Runner to Westworld. Set in Capek's 1920s version of the future, this radio reimagining blends music, comedy and drama to tell the story of a world dominated by mechanisation and the pursuit of profit.

It is the near-future, and drug resistance has taken hold. Antibiotics are no longer available, and in the war between humanity and bacteria, one little girl is in the front line.... 10-year-old Sarah is not allowed to play outside. But one day, she and her brother break the rules and go into the nearby woods, where she scratches her knee. The wound gets infected, and soon becomes life-threatening. Now Sarah’s in a coma, in an isolated room in hospital. Her family and medical team are hoping this will stop the infection - but they’re running out of time.