Audiobooks narrated by Anna Chancellor

George Smiley is one of the most brilliantly realised characters in British fiction. Bespectacled, tubby, eternally middle-aged and deceptively ordinary, he has a mind like a steel trap and is said to possess ‘the cunning of Satan and the conscience of a virgin’. When a Russian émigré is found murdered on Hampstead Heath, Smiley is called out of retirement to exorcise some Cold War ghosts from his clandestine past. What follows is Smiley the human being at his most vulnerable and Smiley the case officer at his most brilliant; and it takes to a thrilling conclusion his career-long, serpentine battle with the enigmatic and ruthless Russian spymaster Karla... Starring the award-winning Simon Russell Beale as Smiley, and with a distinguished cast including Anna Chancellor, Lindsay Duncan, Maggie Steed, Alex Jennings and Kenneth Cranham, this enthralling dramatisation captures every nuance of le Carré’s complex and compelling novel - the final book in John le Carré’s Karla trilogy. ‘a radio triumph... Simon Russell Beale’s pitch-perfect master spy’ - Financial Times.

John Le Carré (Author), Alex Jennings, Anna Chancellor, Simon Russell Beale (Narrator)

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The Honourable Schoolboy

George Smiley is one of the most brilliantly realised characters in British fiction. Bespectacled, tubby, eternally middle-aged and deceptively ordinary, he has a mind like a steel trap and is said to possess ‘the cunning of Satan and the conscience of a virgin’. Smiley, now head of the Circus, must rebuild trust in the shattered organisation. He is also determined to destroy his nemesis, Karla, and his spy networks. He recruits Jerry Westerby, occasional spy, occasional news reporter, full-time romantic - the Honourable Schoolboy of the title - and despatches him to the Far East, where, amidst the corruption and decay of former colonies, a new battle is about to begin... Starring the award-winning Simon Russell Beale as Smiley, and with a star cast including Hugh Bonneville, Maggie Steed and Anna Chancellor, this gripping dramatisation perfectly captures the atmosphere of le Carré’s intricate, intriguing novel, the second in the Karla trilogy.

John Le Carré (Author), Anna Chancellor, Hugh Bonneville, Simon Russell Beale (Narrator)

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Shadowplay

From Irish PEN award-winning author Joseph O'Connor, Shadowplay explores the characters whose loves and lives inspired Dracula. 1878. The Lyceum Theatre, London. Three extraordinary people begin their life together. Henry Irving, the Chief, is the volcanic leading man and impresario; Ellen Terry is the most lauded and desired actress of her generation; and ever following along behind them in the shadows is the unremarkable theatre manager, Bram Stoker. Bram is wrestling with dark demons in a new city, in a new marriage, and with his own literary aspirations. As he walks the London streets at night, streets haunted by the Ripper and the gossip which swirls around his friend Oscar Wilde, he finds new inspiration. But the Chief is determined that nothing will get in the way of his manager's devotion to the Lyceum and to himself. And both men are enchanted by the beauty and boldness of the elusive Ellen. 'Joseph O'Connor is a very great artist and storyteller. The quotient of enjoyment in his extraordinary new novel is stupendous.' SEBASTIAN BARRY 'There are few living writers who can take us back in time so assuredly, with such sensual density, through such gorgeous sentences. Joseph O'Connor is a wonder, and Shadowplay is a triumph.' PETER CAREY, twice winner of the Booker Prize.

Joseph O'connor (Author), Anna Chancellor, Barry Mcgovern (Narrator)

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Daniel Deronda (Classic Drama)

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation of George Eliot's powerful novel starring Anna Chancellor as Gwendolen. From the moment he sees her at the roulette table, the young idealistic Daniel Deronda is drawn to Gwendolen Harleth, as she is to him. But Gwendolen - outwardly alluring and vivacious - is forced by circumstances into an oppressive marriage to the harsh aristocrat Henleigh Grandcourt. Daniel becomes torn between her and Mirah Lapidoth, a young Jewish woman he saves from suicide, and uncertain of his own parentage, becomes increasingly driven to find out who and what he is. When at last he discovers the truth of his own origins his future becomes clear. George Eliot's last novel, with its powerful themes of morality, provoked serious controversy on its publication. The darkness and complexity of Eliot's work are compellingly bound together in this enthralling dramatisation of one of literature's most emotionally intense masterpieces.

George Eliot (Author), Anna Chancellor, Full Cast (Narrator)

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The Secret Pilgrim

George Smiley is one of the most brilliantly realised characters in British fiction. Bespectacled, tubby, eternally middle-aged and deceptively ordinary, he has a mind like a steel trap and is said to possess ‘the cunning of Satan and the conscience of a virgin’. The Berlin Wall is down, the Cold War is over, but the world’s second oldest profession is very much alive. Smiley accepts an invitation to dine with the eager young men and women of the Circus’ latest intake; and over coffee and brandy, by flickering firelight, he beguilingly offers them his personal thoughts on espionage past, present and future. In doing so, he prompts one of his former Circus colleagues into a searching examination of his own eventful secret life. Starring the award-winning Simon Russell Beale as Smiley, and with a distinguished cast including Patrick Malahide as Ned, this engrossing dramatisation brings le Carré’s masterful novel vividly to life. 'A radio triumph... Simon Russell Beale’s pitch-perfect master spy' - Financial Times.

John Le Carré (Author), Anna Chancellor, Patrick Malahide, Simon Russell Beale (Narrator)

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The George Eliot BBC Radio Drama Collection: Five full-cast dramatisations including Middlemarch, Th

One of the greatest English authors of the 19th Century, George Eliot is renowned for her realistic storytelling and insight into the human psyche. This BBC Radio collection presents dramatisations of her five most famous novels, as well as an exploration of her life through her fictional characters. Adam Bede Summer, 1799, and in the Staffordshire village of Hayslope, one of Lisbeth Bede's sons has marriage on his mind... Eliot's haunting story of love betrayed and rewarded stars Thomas Arnold and Victoria Liddelle. The Mill on the Floss Free-spirited country girl Maggie Tulliver must look outside the love of her own family to find the fulfilment she craves. This classic tale of rejection and reconciliation stars Deborah Findlay, Jasmine Hyde, Tom Goodman-Hill and David Tennant. Silas Marner Reclusive, embittered miser Silas Marner finds salvation when he fosters a little foundling girl - but his life with Eppie is threatened when her biological father makes a claim on her... Starring George Costigan and Rebecca Callard. Middlemarch In 1830s England, passionate idealist Dorothea Brooke yearns to right society's wrongs. Starring Caroline Martin, Robert Glenister and Roger Allam. Daniel Deronda From the moment their eyes meet across a packed gaming room, Gwendolen Harleth and Daniel Deronda are irresistibly drawn to one another - and their fates become eternally and tragically entwined. Starring Anna Chancellor and Michael Perceval-Maxwell. In George Eliot: A Life in Five Characters, presenter Kathryn Hughes paints a portrait of the author through her key characters, as she talks to Eliot's biographer Philip Davis and authors Tessa Hadley, Sarah Moss, Sathnam Sangera, David Constantine and Kathy O'Shaughnessy. First published 1859 (Adam Bede), 1860 (The Mill on the Floss), 1861 (Silas Marner), 1871-72 (Middlemarch), 1876 (Daniel Deronda)

George Eliot (Author), Anna Chancellor, Caroline Martin, David Tennant, Deborah Findlay, George Costigan, Jasmine Hyde, Robert Glenister, Roger Allam, Thomas Arnold (Narrator)

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Audiobooks Narrated by Anna Chancellor