Audiobooks narrated by Maggie Smith

"Instant New York Times bestselling author and poet Maggie Smith returns with a new collection of poems on the sometimes-blurry distinction between mind and body, and how the self shifts and moves through time and space. The title of Maggie Smith's new collection comes from the eponymous poem: You ask what I'll miss about this life. Everything but cruelty, I think. But you want one specific thing, so here—I'll miss my body. I'll miss its companionship, how it's traveled with me, never leaving me—& by me, I mean my mind. My soul? My self? I don't know what to call it, and besides, my body hasn't traveled with me. I've traveled inside it. Do I wear it or does it carry me? Is the body a suit or a suitcase? Within, poems turn over the strange relationships between the body and the mind, the self and the world. With her signature tenderness and clarity of observation, and with stunning swoops of imagination, Smith considers—and reconsiders—what it is to be human: Does one life matter in the grand scheme of space and time? How can it be that we are the same people we were ten, twenty, or thirty years ago, but also different people? And could there be more to life, just beyond the borders of we can experience? Each poem is an ode to the power of our minds and proof that both a life and a self, whether within a suit or a suitcase, is infinitely expandable."

Maggie Smith (Author), Maggie Smith (Narrator)

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Humour and Madness: Early Restoration Comedies: Nine BBC Radio Full Cast Productions including The Rover, The Country Wife and more

"A sparkling collection of nine witty full-cast comedies from the early Restoration era Raunchy, risqué and rebellious, early Restoration comedies were a breath of fresh air for 17th century theatregoers. With Charles II restored to the throne in 1660, Oliver Cromwell's ban on stage performances was rescinded, and for the first time, women were invited to tread the boards as actresses. Playwrights developed a new style of social comedy, packed with amorous escapades, bawdy humour, wicked wit and sexual innuendo. This scintillating anthology showcases six leading lights of early Restoration drama, beginning with George Etherege, the creator of the 'comedy of manners': The Man of Mode, an irreverent portrait of the fops and libertines that populated London's beau monde; and She Wou'd If She Cou'd, a racy, fast-paced romp mocking society's double standards for men and women. Among the casts are Derek Jacobi, Anna Massey, Ian Richardson, Prunella Scales and Hattie Jacques. Also poking fun at hypocrisy and immorality was William Wycherley. However, his comedies were considered far more daring - especially The Country Wife, which was judged too obscene to be staged in its original form for over 200 years. Centred around a notorious rake who resorts to deception to pursue a naïve married woman, this effervescent BBC radio dramatisation stars Jonathan Pryce and Maggie Smith. Male playwrights were not the only ones penning scandalous dramas during this period. Aphra Behn, Britain's first professional female writer, was a poet, spy and the most prolific playwright of the 1670s and '80s. Her sex comedy The Rover, featured here, revolves around love, lust, intrigue and mistaken identity, and stars Julia Ford, Suzan Sylvester and Juliet Aubrey. England's first Poet Laureate, John Dryden, dominated Restoration literature to such an extent that it came to be known as the Age of Dryden. His 1677 play All For Love, a powerful reworking of Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra, is regarded as his finest work. John Turner and Barbara Jefford star in this heroic tragedy. A rival of Dryden, Edward Ravenscroft was the first British playwright to introduce characters from the 'commedia dell' arte' into his farces. His seminal comedy The London Cuckolds, featuring three ridiculous husbands, three beautiful wives, and one dissolute young cad, was hugely popular, and this BBC adaptation retains all the original's ribald wit. It stars Carleton Hobbs, Norman Shelley and Madi Hedd. Thomas Otway achieved his greatest success in the last five years of his life. Three of his acclaimed works appear here: his 1683 comedy The Soldier's Fortune and its sequel The Atheist, focussing on disbanded army officers looking for sex and money, and his masterpiece Venice Preserved, a dark political thriller about power, revolution, love and betrayal. The ensemble casts feature Dennis Quilley, John Rowe, Michael Turner and Donald Wolfit. Content list The Man of Mode First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 27 Jun 1986 She Wou'd If She Cou'd First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 6 Sep 1968 The Country Wife First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 22 Dec 1985 The Rover First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 22 Jan 1995 All For Love First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 7 Jul 1983 The London Cuckolds First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 30 Dec 1974 The Soldier's Fortune First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 24 May 1981 The Atheist First broadcast BBC Radio 3, 31 May 1981 Venice Preserved First broadcast BBC Third Programme, 10 Aug 1960 © 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd"

Aphra Behn, Edward Ravenscroft, George Etherege, John Dryden, Thomas Otway, William Wycherley (Author), Anna Massey, Carleton Hobbs, Denys Hawthorne, Derek Jacobi, Frances Jeater, Full Cast, Harriet Walters, Jonathan Pryce, Maggie Smith, Prunella Scales (Narrator)

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Alan Bennett: Plays: BBC Radio dramatisations

"12 full-cast BBC Radio productions of Alan Bennett’s beloved plays, starring Maggie Smith, Imelda Staunton, Judi Dench, John Gielgud, Alex Jennings, Patricia Routledge, Thora Hird, Prunella Scales and many more Over the course of his distinguished career, Alan Bennett has received multiple awards and honours, including two BAFTAs, four Laurence Olivier Awards, two Tony Awards, an Academy Award nomination, and a British Book Award for Author of the Year in 2006. This collection includes: - Forty Years On (tracks 1-4) - A Visit from Miss Prothero (track 5) - Say Something Happened (track 6) - Kafka's Dick (tracks 7-8) - Two in Torquay (track 9) - The Last of the Sun, with a special introduction by Alan Bennett (tracks 10-12) - The Madness of George III (track 13- - The History Boys (track 15-16) - An Englishman Abroad (track 17-18) - A Question of Attribution (track 18) - The Lady in the Van (track 19-20) - Cocktail Sticks (track 21) ©2016 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2016 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd"

Alan Bennett (Author), Full Cast, John Sir Gielgud, Maggie Smith, Patricia Routledge (Narrator)

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The Lady in the Van: A BBC Radio 4 adaptation

"Maggie Smith stars in this BBC radio adaptation of Alan Bennett's highly acclaimed autobiographical stage play An eccentric old lady moves into a quiet street in Camden Town. There she remains, installed in her van in glorious self-sufficiency, until the council instructs her to move on. Then a kind homeowner invites her to move her van into his garden – where she stays for the next fifteen years. This is the fascinating story of the genteel vagrant who found a unique place in Alan Bennett's life and writing. But the drama is as much about the author himself as Miss Shepherd. Why did Alan Bennett let her commandeer his driveway? Was he acting out of kindness, weakness, or hidden guilt over not spending enough time with his own mother? Did he always subconsciously plan to exploit Miss Shepherd for literary profit? Thought-provoking and moving, The Lady in the Van tackles profound questions about social responsibility, homelessness and mental illness with a lightness of touch characteristic of Bennett the master storyteller. With a full cast including Adrian Scarborough, Marcia Warren and Alan Bennett, this bitter-sweet comic tale stars Maggie Smith as Miss Shepherd. Now a major BBC feature film, starring Maggie Smith and Alex Jennings."

Alan Bennett (Author), Alan Bennett, Full Cast, Maggie Smith (Narrator)

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The Country Wife

"Considered too obscene to be staged in its original form for nearly 200 years, William Wycherley’s bawdy comedy tells the tale of Mr Horner - a notorious rake who spreads the false rumour that he is impotent in order to gain free access to other men’s wives. When he meets the young, innocent Margery Pinchwife, the ‘country wife’ of the title, the scene is set for scandal... This sparkling 1985 BBC Radio production stars Maggie Smith as Margery Pinchwife, with an all-star cast including Jonathan Pryce, John Duttine, John Moffatt, Harriet Walter and Michael Aldridge. '... a delight for its sparking wit and the window it offers into Restoration manners and morals' - Times."

William Wycherley (Author), Full Cast, Jonathan Pryce, Maggie Smith (Narrator)

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Audiobooks Narrated by Maggie Smith

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