Showing results by narrator "Maureen O’Brien" in All Categories

Three classic radio productions from the BBC archives starring Nigel Hawthorne, Miriam Margolyes, Geraldine McEwan and a host of celebrated acting talent. These three legendary plays, performed by some of the best-known theatrical actors of the 20th century, are the perfect way to commemorate England's greatest dramatist.

In the title adventure, The Cloud Exiles ensnare the First Doctor and hope to steal his body for their own purposes, unless he can persuade them otherwise. Maureen O'Brien, Geoffrey Beevers, Katy Manning, Matthew Waterhouse, Janet Fielding, Toby Longworth and Tim Treloar read these energetic stories first published in book form between 1966 and 1985.

Mrs Gereth, a wealthy widow, is dreading the day that her son, Owen, gets married. She hopes that he will marry a woman who will appreciate their home and all of its treasures as she does. So she enlists the help of Fleda Vetch to try to corrupt the impending marriage of her son and Mona Brigstock - a philistine who is determined to marry Owen in order to inherit Mrs Gereth’s valuable possessions and home by any means. Meanwhile, Fleda hides her real feelings towards Owen. Even when he ends up feeling the same way, Fleda cannot bring herself to marry him as this would force him to break his engagement to Mona, and thus betray all of her own ideals.

On a radioactive moon on the outskirts of the Fourth Sector, the occupants of a besieged power station try desperately to hold the Daleks at bay. To this end they have apprehended a saboteur, spy, and traitor to the human race. His name is Steven Taylor. When the Doctor, Vicki and Steven first landed on the station, they little suspected the chain of events that would lead to Steven’s arrest. Now he must convince a young nurse, Chayla, and the station’s brutal Security Chief, Finn, that his intentions are honourable. But with every second wasted, the Daleks are gaining ground.

In this vintage six-part serial, first shown on BBC TV in February and March 1965, a strange magnetic force pulls the TARDIS down to the craterous surface of Vortis. The Doctor and his friends learn that the planet has been invaded, and the parasitic Animus is slowly enveloping it in a web-like domain. The giant ant-like Zarbi are under its control, whilst the butterfly-like Menoptra are battling to reclaim their planet.

An unabridged reading of this novelisation of a classic 1960s TV adventure for the First Doctor, as played by William Hartnell. Following a skirmish in deep space, two alien spacecraft have crash-landed on a barren planet in Galaxy Four. The Drahvins are a race of beautiful females led by the imperious Maaga. The Rills are hideous tusked monstrosities accompanied by their robotic servants, the Chumblies. When the Doctor arrives with Vicki and Steven in tow, he discovers that the planet will explode in two days' time.

An unabridged reading of this novelisation of a classic 1965 TV serial featuring the First Doctor, as played on TV by William Hartnell. The Tardis materialises on what, at first sight, appears to be a dry and lifeless planet serving only as a graveyard for spaceships. The Doctor, Ian, Barbara and Vicki discover a magnificent museum housing relics from every corner of the galaxy. These have been assembled by the Moroks, a race of cruel conquerors who have invaded the planet Xeros and enslaved its inhabitants.

Maureen O'Brien reads this thrilling novelisation of a classic Doctor Who adventure. From his one previous visit the Doctor remembers the inhabitants of the planet Dido as a gentle, peace-loving people. But when he returns, things have changed dramatically. It seems that the Didoi have brutally massacred the crew of the crashed spaceliner Astra.

Randolph Carter dreamt of a beautiful sunset city that he can never reach. But Randolph is no ordinary dreamer, he's experienced! Desperate to reach the city he quests across the dreamlands in search of the path that leads to the city. On his journey he encounters strange creatures, monsters, and even gods. This is one of H.P. Lovecraft's best-known and most well-loved stories.

When Professor Irene Hyde's Monday morning lecture at St Luke's University is rudely interrupted by a man named the Doctor, it's the beginning of an adventure she could never have dreamt possible. Soon they are hurtling backwards in time to 1806, where the crew of the trading ship Favorite, led by the 'Ice King' himself, Frederic Tudor, are being picked off, one by one, by a hideous monster that lurks in the shadows.

When the Doctor and his companions Ian, Barbara and Vicki enter a museum on the planet Xeros, they are astonished to find themselves displayed as exhibits! The TARDIS has jumped a 'time track' and offered them a glimpse of what the future could hold... The native Xerons are planning a rebellion against the occupying force of the Moroks who have invaded their world. The Doctor and his friends struggle not only to survive in the midst of battle, but to help change the future sufficiently to ensure their own freedom!

On board the star cruiser Amorist, the outcome of the war with the Daleks hangs in the balance. Kade knows what he has to do, but has he been told the truth?

Ceres. A tiny, unforgiving ball of ice and rock hanging between Mars and Jupiter. It's no place to live, and it takes a special kind of person to work there. The crew of the Cobalt Corporation mining base know exactly how deadly the world outside their complex is, but the danger isn't just outside anymore. The systems they rely on to keep them safe are failing, and the planet is breaking in. When the TARDIS strands Steven, Vicki and the Doctor on the base, they have to fight a foe they can barely comprehend to survive.

The Daleks are conquering our galaxy. Nothing can stop them. But Commander Agnes Landen has an idea. On the outer planet Talis Minor, Salus Kade is struggling to keep his colony alive. The last thing he needs is a war to fight. Directed by Nicholas Briggs.

The Earth Alliance is on the brink of victory in the Kedru System. But at what cost?

Meanwhile, deep within the Dalek Empire, Susan Mendes prepares for her latest mission.... Directed by Nicholas Briggs.

The Daleks have devised a plan that will deliver a decisive victory. General Landen and her fleet are all that stand in their way. And then there's Kade....

As a child, writer Maggie Wadey was aware her mother was different from her father and his family, and that the difference was do with her Irishness, but she knew nothing of her Tipperary background. Then, before she died, Agnes Kavanagh began to talk about the past. Gradually, Maggie began to piece together her mother’s early life. But it was only after Agnes's death that she discovered another story - a life and a secret hidden in layers of silence.

In this memoir, Maureen O'Brien reflects on the gospel story of the miracle of the loaves and fishes and what she learns about herself, the people around her, and a fragmented but still beautiful world. While she’s sharing her story of finding God’s love, she’s also sharing the stories of so many others, known and cherished by God even when the world leaves them shattered, finding their way through the world and feasting on the fragments of grace that are always in abundance if we learn to look, to see, to accept, to share.