Audiobooks Narrated by Garry Cooper

Yukio Mishima: A BBC Radio Collection: The Damask Drum & more

"Enter the haunting, beautiful and provocative world of Yukio Mishima, one of Japan's greatest writers, whose extraordinary life ended as dramatically as his fiction Considered one of the greatest Japanese writers of the twentieth century, Mishima fused traditional Japanese aesthetics with modern ideas in works that explored sexuality, death, and political change and broke cultural boundaries. His extraordinary life was as provocative as his fiction, culminating in his ritual suicide by seppuku following a failed coup attempt in 1970. This BBC Radio collection offers a rare opportunity to experience both Mishima's unforgettable storytelling and the remarkable life behind it. In The Damask Drum, Mishima reimagines a classical Noh play as a haunting tale of unrequited love and longing, using ancient traditions to reflect on modern Japan. The Peacocks follows a lonely young boy whose fascination with the magnificent birds in his uncle's garden becomes an awakening to beauty, desire and the constraints of family life. In The Swaddling Clothes, a young wife and mother is haunted by the image of a newborn baby wrapped in newspaper, in a powerful exploration of guilt, motherhood and social inequality. The Pearl is an elegant tale in which the disappearance of a single pearl exposes hidden tensions, deception and the chaos of human interaction. In Thermos Flasks, a chance reunion between a businessman and his former geisha lover leads to a night that has unexpected consequences… Together, these haunting stories explore love, obsession, honour, identity and mortality - themes that defined both Mishima's writing and his remarkable life. Also included are two exclusive programmes examining the man behind the legend. Death at Midday explores Mishima's place in Japanese literature and the events surrounding his extraordinary death on 25 November 1970, the day he completed his final novel. Witness History: The Death of Yukio Mishima features the recollections of his friend and biographer Henry Scott Stokes, who was living in Japan at the time and reflects on Mishima's enduring fascination with ritual suicide. Combining unforgettable drama with illuminating documentary, this unique collection is an introduction to one of the twentieth century's most brilliant, enigmatic and influential literary voices. ©2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd"

Yukio Mishima (Author), Elizabeth Bell, Garry Cooper, Geoffrey Beevers, John Church, John Moffatt, John Shrapnel, Meg Davies, Nigel Stock (Narrator)

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The Last Days of Troy: A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation

"Lily Cole stars as Helen of Troy, ‘the face that launched a thousand ships’, in Simon Armitage’s vivid, visceral adaptation of Homer’s Iliad and Virgil’s Aeneid For ten years, the Greeks have been laying siege to Troy to win back their abducted queen, Helen. But as the war drags on, and the battlefields run scarlet with blood, the opposing forces are entrenched in a bitter stalemate. As Gods and mortals squabble amongst themselves for the spoils of war, the exhausted warriors go to extreme lengths in a desperate grab for victory… Dramatised by multi-award-winning poet and playwright Simon Armitage, The Last Days of Troy was first produced as a stage play at the Manchester Royal Exchange and Shakespeare’s Globe, and this radio version features the original cast. Both a tense action adventure and a powerful commentary on the futility of war, it brings Homer’s ancient myth to dynamic life and explores themes that still resonate today, in a world locked in cycles of conflict and revenge, East versus West and with the same dangerous combination of pride, lies and self-deception that fuelled the Trojan War. ‘Armitage was the real star, with his vivid and muscular dialogue and occasional flashes of humour…The Last Days of Troy was a powerful reflection on the folly of men and the cruelty of war.’ – Independent Cast and credits Agamemnon..................................................................David Birrell Achilles..................................................................Jake Fairbrother Zeus..................................................................Richard Bremmer Odysseus..................................................................Colin Tierney Hera..................................................................Gillian Bevan Andromache/Thetis................................................Claire Calbraith Hector..................................................................Simon Harrison Helen..................................................................Lily Cole Paris..................................................................Tom Stuart Athene/Briseis..................................................................Francesca Zoutewelle Priam..................................................................Garry Cooper Patroclus..................................................................Brendan O’Hea Astyanax..................................................................Luca Rawlinson Original music by Alex Baranowski Directed for radio by Susan Roberts First directed for The Royal Exchange Theatre by Nick Bagnall"

Simon Armitage (Author), Brendan O’hea, Claire Calbraith, Colin Tierney, David Birell, Francesca Zoutewelle, Garry Cooper, Gillian Bevan, Jake Fairbrother, Lily Cole, Luca Rawlinson, Richard Bremmer, Simon Harrison, Tom Stuart (Narrator)

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