Audiobooks Narrated by Claire Benedict

Italo Calvino: A BBC Radio Collection: If On A Winter’s Night a Traveller, Marcovaldo & Invisible Cities

"Dramatisations of Calvino’s most famous works, starring Toby Jones and Mackenzie Crook, plus bonus programmes Italo Calvino was one of the 20th Century's great experimenters, who consistently pushed the boundaries of literature. His works ranged from fantasy and science fiction to folktales and neo-realism, but he is best known for If on a winter’s night a traveller, Marcovaldo and Invisible Cities. Radio adaptations of all three are collected here, alongside a comic short story by Calvino and two illuminating programmes about his ideas and writing. If on a winter’s night a traveller – Relax. Concentrate. Turn off your phone. You are about to listen to a radio adaptation of If on a winter’s night a traveller… Enter a labyrinth of ingeniously inventive audio worlds as you, the listener, turn detective in your attempts to get to the heart of the story. Prepare to become embroiled in a trans-global conspiracy of rogue translators, lost languages and disintegrating publishing houses, and be plunged into an epic caper of disappearance, double crosses and beautiful, authentic romance… Toby Jones, Indira Varma and Tim Crouch star in this reimagining of Calvino’s iconic, metafictional masterpiece. Marcovaldo – These five tales, adapted by Toby Jones from Calvino's enchanting short story collection, centre around Marcovaldo, a poor rural man living with his family in a big city in northern Italy. Included are Mushrooms in the City, Moon and Gnac, The Rain and the Leaves, The Wrong Stop and Smoke, Wind and Soap Bubbles, starring Toby Jones as the Narrator and Mackenzie Crook as Marcovaldo. Invisible Cities – Cecilia, Eusapia, Zobeide, Maurilia … Are these exotic, faraway places or just different names for the great Metropolis we all inhabit? Perhaps they are reflections of our own state of mind? In Claire Benedict’s readings from Calvino’s playful, profound novel, we voyage through the avenues and alleyways of his invisible cities – hidden cities, dead cities and cities which never end... Desire in November – Elderly porter Barbagallo’s search for winter clothes takes him into the salons of the rich – but what can Fabrizia’s furriers offer him? Tim Piggott-Smith reads this whimsical short story. Open Book: Italo Calvino’s Invisible Cities – Lauren Elkin and Darran Anderson take us on a tour of the imagined cities in Calvino’s seminal work, a majestic prose-poem in which a fictional Marco Polo recalls his own intrepid travels. Three Italian Writers: Italo Calvino – Paul Bailey looks at the life and career of the prolific writer described by a contemporary as 'the squirrel with the pen’, and reflects on his inexhaustible supply of ideas, allusions and visions. With readings by Benjamin Whitrow. © 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd"

Italo Calvino (Author), Claire Benedict, Full Cast, Indira Varma, Mackenzie Crook, Tim Crouch, Tim Pigott-Smith, Toby Jones (Narrator)

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The No.1 Ladies’ Detective Agency: The Complete BBC Radio Series

"The collected radio adaptations of Alexander McCall Smith's hugely popular novels, dramatised by the author himself 'Must-listen... simply wonderful' The Telegraph When Precious Ramotswe receives an inheritance from her father, she decides to set up Botswana's very first private detective agency - 'for the problems of ladies, and others'. Aided by the loyal, resourceful Grace Makutsi, and multiple cups of red bush tea, she sets out to investigate cases including missing husbands, wayward wives, unscrupulous con artists and unexpected deaths. She may not be an old-school investigator like her idol, Clovis Andersen, but her warm heart, empathetic nature and common-sense approach enable her to solve the most curious of mysteries - and win the heart of gentle motor mechanic Mr JLB Matekoni... Included here are all 35 stories from the acclaimed BBC radio series, written and adapted by Alexander McCall Smith from his own internationally bestselling books. These charming dramatisations are brought to life with vibrant, evocative African music and a first-rate cast, including Claire Benedict and Janice Acquah as Mma Ramotswe, Nadine Marshall as Mma Makutsi and Joseph Marcell and Ben Onwukwe as Mr JLB Matekoni. Written and dramatised by Alexander McCall Smith Produced and directed by Gaynor MacFarlane, Kirsty Williams and Eilidh McCreadie Cast Mma Ramotswe - Claire Benedict/Janice Acquah Mma Makutsi - Nadine Marshall Mr JLB Matekoni - Joseph Marcell/Ben Onwukwe Mr Polopetsi - Paterson Joseph/Steve Toussaint Mma Potokwani - Janice Acquah/Adjoa Andoh/Sarah Niles Phuti Radiphuti - Nyasha Hatendi/Jude Akuwidike Violet Sephotho - Anna Bengo/Sarah Niles Charlie - Jude Akuwudike/Tyronne Lewis/Maynard Eziashi Fanwell - Beru Tessema/Kedar Williams-Stirling With Gbemisola Ikumelo, Bhasker Patel, Ben Thomas, Peter Gevisser, Heather Imani, Tehmina Sacranie, Nancy Crane, Noma Dumezweni, Chuk Iwuji, Alibe Parsons, Emmanuel Ighodaro, Willie Jonah, William Gaminara, Aicha Kossoko, Don Warrington, Danny Sapani, Ndidi Ama, Ayesha Antoine, Sam Dale, Naomi Taylor, Mo Sesay, Babou Ceesay, Obi Abili, Eleanor Crooks, Kulvinder Ghir, Sudha Bhuchar, Amaka Okafor, Kai Francis-Lewis, Jason Barnett, Clare Perkins, Barbara Barnes, Saffron Coomber, Lorna Gayle, Debbie Korlay First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 10 September 2004-23 September 2019 Episode list: The Daddy The Bone The Maid Tears of the Giraffe The Chief Justice of Beauty The Confession The Kalahari Typing School for Men The Admirer How to Handle Men through the Application of Psychology House of Hope The Return of Note The Ceremony There Is No Such Thing as Free Food The Best Profession for a Blackmailer A Very Rude Woman Talking Shoes The Miracle at Speedy Motors Tea Time for the Traditionally Built The Seller of Beds An Exceptionally Wicked Lady Canoeing for Ladies A Late Van Just Glimpsed The Saturday Big Tent Wedding A Man from a Far Place The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection The Modern Husband Course The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon The Handsome Man's Deluxe Cafe The Dish of Yesterday This Is Not A Rubbish Boy The Woman Who Walked In Sunshine The Fat Cattle Club Precious and Grace House of Unexpected Sisters The Colours of All the Cattle © 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd"

Alexander McCall Smith (Author), Ben Onwukwe, Claire Benedict, Full Cast, Janice Acquah, Joseph Marcell, Nadine Marshall (Narrator)

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