Showing results by publisher "BBC Audio" in Comedy & Humour

One of the 21st century's most celebrated authors, Hilary Mantel won the Booker Prize twice: for 2009's Wolf Hall, the first in her phenomenally successful Thomas Cromwell trilogy, and its 2012 sequel Bring Up the Bodies. The third novel in the series, 2020's The Mirror and the Light, won the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction. This collection includes three of her best works of contemporary fiction, ranging from the Gothic to the blackly comic.

In three series of fast-paced comedy, packed with brilliant banter and quickfire improvisation, Jason Byrne shares his experiences of education, relationships, sport, food, money, ageing, work and much, much more. From going on a first date to the birth of his children, from poo in the school playground and 'When Mediums Have Sex' to getting in trouble with the police, Jason probes a new theme with each new episode. As first heard on BBC Radio 2, there's top-notch stand-up, madcap sketches, plus special guests.

When the middle-class Empsons move from London to picturesque Winterleaf Gunner, they find themselves totally unprepared for country life - and utterly reliant on Winston. Handyman, village poacher, scholar, gentleman romantic and out-and-out rogue, Winston transforms their lives, fixing up their dilapidated house, introducing them to the works of Kingsley Amis - and giving Nancy a lesson in love.

Jeremy Hardy and friends are an irrepressible gang of jolly japesters who are always up for laughter and merriment. Luckily, they all live near to each other: which means craziness is never far away. So good they named it twice, this zany sitcom was initially known as Unnatural Acts, before returning for its third series as At Home with the Hardys. But though the title may be different, the high jinks are as wacky as ever.

Michael (Marcus Brigstocke) and Maxine (Kerry Godliman) Wilson and their teenage daughters, Lola and Cat, (plus their bearded dragon Chomsky, and about 150,000 bees) have resolved to live a cleaner, greener, serener life. They are attempting to live ethically...whatever that means.

British comedy actor and star of The Fast Show, Down The Line and Bellamy's People, Simon Day showcases various characters in half-hour comedies set around a fictional small provincial theatre. In each episode, one of Simon's characters come to perform at The Mallard, a small provincial theatre somewhere in the UK. We hear the highlights of that night's show, along with the back stage and front of house goings on at the theatre itself.

From his tiny room at Hampton Court, the royal chronicler records the comings and goings of the King of England, his six Queens—and his six mothers-in-law. Introducing us to these redoubtable ladies, he relates the surprising part they played in the destiny of Henry VIII and his unfortunate wives. We meet Catherine of Aragon's duenna, Dona Elvira; Lady Boleyn, whose gentleman admirer threatens danger for her daughter Anne; and Lady Margaret, whose attempt to overturn hundreds of years of tradition leads to a dramatic confrontation.

The spoof hardboiled thrillers with Wales's top private investigator dramatised by BBC Radio. This marvelous collection of Malcolm Pryce's acclaimed Aberystwyth Noir radio productions are set in an alternative version of Aberystwyth, where the streets are filled with veterans of the Patagonian War (Wales's answer to Vietnam), the Druids are mob bosses, and the ice cream is...unusual, to say the least.

Double Emmy-nominated actor, comedian and writer Nick Mohammed is well known for his portrayal of Nate in Ted Lasso and his stage and screen performances as his critically-acclaimed alter ego Mr Swallow. For radio, he has written and starred in four fantastic comedy series, collected together in this audio anthology and co-starring Anna Crilly (Lead Balloon) and Colin Hoult (After Life).

This sparkling comedy show written by Jeremy Front (writer of the Charles Paris mysteries for Radio 4) stars Jeremy and Rebecca Front as Jack and Millie Lemman - an older couple who are fully engaged with contemporary life whilst being at war with the absurdities of the modern world...

Regulars Stephen Fry and John Sessions are joined by Lenny Henry, Dawn French, Hugh Laurie, Enn Reitel, Griff Rhys Jones, Kate Robbins, Rory Bremner and Jon Glover as they battle their way through a succession of games and romp through a world of literary styles, TV theme tunes, and film genres. Chairman Clive Anderson desperately tries to hold the whole thing together and the guests make it up as they go along in this riot of improvisation, which is often funnier than many scripted shows.

Multi-award-winning storyteller Sarah Kendall brings her critically acclaimed, funny and moving live shows to audio. In the first trilogy of shows, each takes us on a trip, giving us a unique snapshot of small-town life in Australia in the late '80s and early '90s. At a time when most people were seeing Australians through the filter of Home and Away and Neighbours, Sarah presents a darker underbelly to the stereotype of the sun-loving, happy-go-lucky Aussie teenager.

Newsreader and ‘Godfather of Radio 4’ Brian Perkins and Spitting Image impressionist Kate Robbins star in this Sony Award-winning satirical show, set on New Year’s Eve at the turn of the millennium. As the Nineties come to a close, they recall the tumultuous, earth-shattering events of the years 1994-1999.

Recorded in front of a live audience at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, this fantastic anthology features a host of diverse short stories, composed and performed by a veritable Who's Who of stand-up comedians. By turns hilarious and irreverent, poignant and bittersweet, together they make up a superb selection box of tasty treats.

Dave is one of Irwell Cars' best drivers, although his life doesn't always reflect that. A run-down office with an uncertain future, Irwell Cars isn't offering Dave much—except the chance to pine after Lind, the long-suffering radio operator and his secret crush, and panic over what will become of him if the firm closes. Add in a crucial darts match, a 'Brief Encounter' themed date night, some former school bullies and a rather difficult omelette, and Dave is beginning to feel like even his pick ups are bringing him down...

Clued-up listeners will already be familiar with I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue, the only authentic antidote to panel games. Ardent fans, and those with less well-indulged ears, are in for a treat with this eighth collection of episodes which, as ever, muddy the line between ad-lib and sheer mayhem.

Immensely popular and hugely influential, The Goon Show changed the face of British comedy. This 14th and final collection returns to the programme's fourth series and includes the episodes 'The History of Communications', 'The Kippered Herring Gang', 'The Tooth-Paste Expedition', 'The Case of the Vanishing Room', 'The Greatest Mountain in the World', 'Collapse of the British Railways Sandwich System', 'The Case of Agent X2 (aka The Silent Bugler)', 'The Story of Brain [sic] (aka Western Story)', 'The Saga of the Internal Mountain' and 'Bank of England Robbery'.

Award-winning jokesmith and self-confessed idiot Stephen K. Amos teams up with some of the world's sharpest comic minds to compile a dummies' guide to being a modern human. From raising children and having a mid-life crisis, to first impressions and facing your fears, who better than a bunch of comedians to lead us through life's existential maze?

Paul Sinha loves a quiz. Not only is he the sixth-ranked quizzer in the UK, he's also a regular on Radio 4's long-running Round Britain Quiz and a resident Chaser on ITV's The Chase. In these collected BBC shows, Paul offers us his unique perspective as a quizmaster, stand-up star, ex-GP and second-generation migrant, as he takes a comedic look at British culture, history, nationalism and sport.

Roger is a writer of children's books, and all he wants is a quiet life. But when his wife, Julia, has to stay in hospital, Roger has to deal with his own complications: his difficult mother-in-law, her companion, Otto, and pressures from the publisher about the work he may or may not be about to hand in. It should be easy enough for a grown man to cope at home alone, but no one wants to make it simple for him, whether it's battles to get into Julia's visiting hours or temptations Roger never expected to face at his age.