Audiobooks narrated by Miriam Margolyes

Workers' Tales: Socialist Fairy Tales, Fables, and Allegories from Great Britain

A collection of political tales-first published in British workers' magazines-selected and introduced by acclaimed critic and author Michael Rosen In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, unique tales inspired by traditional literary forms appeared frequently in socialist-leaning British periodicals, such as the Clarion, Labour Leader, and Social Democrat. Based on familiar genres-the fairy tale, fable, allegory, parable, and moral tale-and penned by a range of lesser-known and celebrated authors, including Schalom Asch, Charles Allen Clarke, Frederick James Gould, and William Morris, these stories were meant to entertain readers of all ages-and some challenged the conventional values promoted in children's literature for the middle class. In Workers' Tales, acclaimed critic and author Michael Rosen brings together more than forty of the best and most enduring examples of these stories in one beautiful volume. Throughout, the tales in this collection exemplify themes and ideas related to work and the class system, sometimes in wish-fulfilling ways. In "Tom Hickathrift," a little, poor person gets the better of a gigantic, wealthy one. In "The Man Without a Heart," a man learns about the value of basic labor after testing out more privileged lives. And in "The Political Economist and the Flowers," two contrasting gardeners highlight the cold heart of Darwinian competition. Rosen's informative introduction describes how such tales advocated for contemporary progressive causes and countered the dominant celebration of Britain's imperial values. The book includes archival illustrations, biographical notes about the writers, and details about the periodicals where the tales first appeared. Provocative and enlightening, Workers' Tales presents voices of resistance that are more relevant than ever before.

Michael J. Rosen, Michael Rosen, Michael Rosen - Editor (Author), John Telfer, Lisa Coleman, Michael J. Rosen, Michael Rosen, Miriam Margolyes, Peter Kenny, Ric Jerrom, Samuel West (Narrator)

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Von Ribbentrop's Watch (Bbc Radio 4 Saturday Play)

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast drama by Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran. Originally broadcast in the 'Saturday Play' slot on 8 November 2008. Wine shop owner Gerald desperately needs money: his business is failing and the landlord has raised the cost of the lease. When he inherits a watch that used to belong to wartime Nazi Joachim Von Ribbentrop he believes that his financial troubles are over. But it sparks conflict with his wife and brother, who question the ethics of the potential sale. Gerald is played by Allan Corduner, Ruth by Harriet Walter, Lila by Miriam Margolyes, David by Nicholas Woodeson and Sasha by Sophie Winkleman. Produced by Sally Avens.

Laurence Marks, Maurice Gran (Author), Allan Corduner, Full Cast, Harriet Walter, Harriet Walters, Miriam Margolyes, Nicholas Woodeson, Sophie Winkleman (Narrator)

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Vanity Fair

Looking with vicious wit at dazzling high-society and criminal low-life, privilege and ambition, this is a classic yet anything but stuffy. 'Oh, those women! They nurse and cuddle their presentiments, and make darlings of their ugliest thoughts...' Self-serving social climber and anti-heroine Becky Sharp will do anything to raise her status and attain wealth and standing with smart Society. Clever, lively and resourceful, orphan Becky is the the total opposite of her naive and sentimental schoolmate Amelia Sedley, a pampered, yet good-natured girl from a wealthy family. As both women build lives for themselves in London, Thackeray decadently satirises the corruption and flaws of 19th-Century English Society.

William Thackeray (Author), Miriam Margolyes (Narrator)

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Troy

The siege of Troy has lasted almost ten years. Inside the walled city, food is becoming scarce and the death toll is rising. From the heights of Mount Olympus, the gods keep watch. But Aphrodite, goddess of love, is bored with the endless, dreary war, and so she turns her attention to two sisters: Marpessa, who is gifted with god-sight and serves as handmaiden to Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world; and Xanthe, who is kind and loving and tends the wounded soldiers in the Blood Room. When Eros fits an arrow to his silver-lit bow and lets it fly, neither sister will escape its power. With vitality and grace, Adèle Geras breathes personality, heartbreak and humor into this classic story, told through the eyes of the women of Troy.

Adele Geras (Author), Miriam Margolyes (Narrator)

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Troubletwisters

Jaide and Jack Shield's lives are changing in a very, very strange way. The weather is turning against them. Magical disasters occur when they're around. And a mysterious explosion has just destroyed their house . . . from the inside. Without knowing why, the twins are stolen away to live with Grandma X - a relative they've never, ever met. At Grandma X's house, things are even stranger. Weather vanes point in the opposite direction of the wind. Doors appear and disappear. Cats talk. Jaide and Jack Shield don't know the reason behind all this strangeness. They don't know that they're troubletwisters, and that they must defend the world against a dark, evil force. The time has come for them to discover the truth - and the powers that come with the truth. Are they ready?

Garth Nix and Sean Williams (Author), Miriam Margolyes (Narrator)

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The Wordsmiths at Gorsemere: The Complete Series 1 and 2: The BBC Radio 4 Comedy

A BBC Radio 4 parody of the lives of the Romantic poets by Sue Limb, writer of the hit comedy Gloomsbury. An everyday story of towering genius, set in and around the Lakeland retreat of William and Dorothy Wordsmith. The Wordsmiths have not long settled in their sublime cottage, when they are visited by the inebriate Samuel Tailor Cholericke and the lascivious Lord Biro, followed by numerous other romantically-inclined writers and leech-pedlars who arrive at the door of Vole Cottage. Dorothy must manage the increasingly chaotic household (assisted by Stinking Iris), while William focuses on his latest masterpiece, 'The Withered Turnip'. Set against an elegant musical background of trilling sheep. Starring Denise Coffey as Dorothy Wordsmith, Geoffrey Whitehead as William Wordsmith, Simon Callow as Samuel Tailor Cholericke, Miriam Margolyes as Stinking Iris and Tim Curry as Lord Biro. Cast: Dorothy Wordsmith: Denise Coffey William Wordsmith: Geoffrey Whitehead Samuel Tailor Cholericke: Simon Callow Stinking Iris: Miriam Margolyes The Leechpedlar: Chris Emmett Lord Biro: Tim Curry Teresa Sanseveria: Helen Atkinson Wood Percy Jelley: Hugh Thomas Mary Godwit: Alison Fiske Charles Lump: Nicholas le Prevost Mary Lump: Julia Hills Thomas de Quinine: Nickolas Grace Sir Walter Spott: Bill Paterson Mary Wordsmith: Iris-Gemma Morlay John Sheets: Nicky Henson Sara Cholericke: Angela Pleasance William Bloke: John Shrapnel Announcer: Eugene Fraser Music by Stephen Oliver , sung by Cantabile Produced by Jonathan James-Moore

Sue Limb (Author), , Denise Coffey, Geoffrey Whitehead, Miriam Margolyes, Simon Callow, Tim Curry (Narrator)

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The Witness For Prosecution

Soon to be a major new London theatre show, The Witness for the Prosecution follows the hapless Leonard Vole as he learns he has been accused of murdering a wealthy widow in order to get his hands on the inheritance. His predicament is made even worse when he discovers his wife to be the chief witness against him.The trial proceeds with a number of unexpected twists. This classic BBC radio drama stars Hywell Bennett as Leonard, and Miriam Margolyes as his chief accuser.

Agatha Christie (Author), , Full Cast, Hywell Bennett, Miriam Margolyes, Stephen Moore (Narrator)

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The Slide

'Listen! Quiet! Everybody stand still for a minute. There's something. Can't you hear it?' During an abnormal heatwave in March, the air becomes thick and dull. Nothing moves - you can almost hear the silence. Something was bound to happen... Redlow, a new town in Kent, was the dream of self-made man, Hugh Deverill, MP. At a crowded and restless town meeting, Janet Marshall faints due to the stifling atmosphere. She is helped by her friend Dr Ken Richards - just as a sudden earthquake tears the room apart. A long, deep crack in a road is discovered nearby, and powerful tremors are felt along the South Coast. When torrents of seething mud start emerging from the fissure, scientist Josef Gomez is called in: the mud contains a special organism that can control people's minds. And it can kill. Declared a disaster area, Redlow becomes a state of emergency. Then other fissures appear... Long absent from the BBC archives, this digitally remastered recording of The Slide features Roger Delgado, who went on to play The Master in Doctor Who.

Victor Pemberton (Author), , David Spenser, Maurice Denham, Miriam Margolyes, Roger Delgado (Narrator)

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The Sit Crom: The complete BBC Radio 4 comedy series

Autumn, 1646. The English Civil War is raging, and there’s trouble ahead for Sir John and Lady Anne Firebasket. There’s a Roundhead platoon camping out in the barn, a perplexed priest hiding behind the panelling and, unbeknown to the Firebaskets, their scullery maid Mercy is actually a disguised aristocrat (and Royalist spy) named Melissa Fortescue-Bottomley. While Mercy steels herself to carry out a deadly mission, pious steward Tobias Thynne rails against the Devil’s vegetables and Father Francis takes to the rooftops in a borrowed nightgown for a rendition of ‘Ave Maria’. With the whole household suffering from severe domestic derangement, it’s a bad time for General Cromwell to show up – and then news arrives that the fugitive King Charles has also decided to pay a visit... As confusion reigns, Sir John takes to drink, Lady Anne takes to her bed and the New Model Army take up their muskets. Will Firebasket Hall survive the hostilities? Scripted by Sue Limb (Gloomsbury, The Wordsmiths at Gorsemere), The Sit Crom features a wealth of comedy acting talent including Joss Ackland as Sir John Firebasket, Miriam Margolyes as Mercy and Alun Armstrong as Captain Arise Higgs. Produced by Jonathan James-Moore Music by Colin Sell Cast Sir John Firebasket – Joss Ackland Lady Anne Firebasket – Denise Coffey Tobias Thynne – Clive Merrison Mercy, alias Melissa – Miriam Margoyles Father Francis/Old Thomas – Nickolas Grace Slow Ned/King Charles – Chris Emmett Gazebo Fogg – Jack Klaff Captain Arise Higgs – Alun Armstrong Posthumous – Nicky Henson Lettice – Jane Whittenshaw Counter Tenor – Peter Hayward General Cromwell – Bert Parnaby Colonel Thundery – Peter Howell The New Model Army – The cast First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 6 October-10 November 1990

Sue Limb (Author), Alun Armstrong, Clive Merrison, Denise Coffey, Joss Ackland, Miriam Margolyes (Narrator)

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The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie

Famous novel made into a cult film, and one of only 25 books chosen for the first ever World BookNight in 2011. A liberated young schoolteacher at an Edinburgh girls' school during the 1930's instructs her girls on the ways of life. Ignoring the more mundane subjects, she teaches them of love, politics and art, with some shocking consequences.

Muriel Spark (Author), Miriam Margolyes (Narrator)

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The Oscar Wilde BBC Radio Drama Collection: Five full-cast productions

The collected BBC radio productions of the major works of Oscar Wilde, plus bonus play by Neil Bartlett Loved for his flamboyant personality, sparkling wit and brilliant epigrams, Oscar Wilde was a comic genius and a literary icon. This collection reflects the many facets of his dazzling talent. Here are dramatisations of his only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, a Gothic tale of a gilded aristocrat who makes a dangerous pact, as well as four scintillating social comedies - Lady Windermere's Fan, A Woman of No Importance, The Importance of Being Earnest and An Ideal Husband. Among the distinguished casts are Ian MacDiarmid, Joely Richardson, Edward Fox, Diana Rigg, Martin Clunes, Michael Hordern and Judi Dench. Moving examples of his correspondence are revealed in The Letters of Oscar Wilde and De Profundis, read by Simon Callow and Simon Russell Beale respectively, and his most famous poem, The Ballad of Reading Gaol, is performed live by stars including Ian McKellen, Neil Tennant and Stephen Fry. In addition, a bonus drama, In Extremis by Neil Bartlett, starring Corin Redgrave and Sheila Hancock, reimagines Oscar Wilde's hastily arranged sitting with a society palm reader, a week before the trial that would cost him so dearly.

Oscar Wilde (Author), , Diana Rigg, Ian Mckellen, Judi Dench, Martin Clunes, Martin Jarvis, Michael Sheen, Miriam Margolyes, Simon Russell Beale, Stephen Fry (Narrator)

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The Man Born To Be King: A BBC Radio 4 drama collection

Dorothy L. Sayers' classic play cycle based on the life and times of Jesus Dorothy L. Sayers was best known for her mystery novels featuring aristocratic amateur sleuth Lord Peter Wimsey. But she was also a poet, playwright and committed Christian, and in The Man Born to Be King she combined art and evangelism to powerful effect, making the story of Christ accessible, relevant and every bit as thrilling as her detective fiction. Written specially for the BBC Radio, the play cycle caused huge controversy for its depiction of Christ as a character, and its use of contemporary speech instead of Biblical language. However it proved extremely popular with listeners, who wrote in to thank Sayers for making Jesus real to them and reigniting their interest in his remarkable story. Based on the four Gospels, it includes one story of the Nativity, six plays about Jesus' life and ministry, and five Passion Plays telling of Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem, the Last Supper, Jesus' arrest and trial before Pontius Pilate, the Crucifixion and the Resurrection. Backed up with a sweeping musical score, these immersive dramas surprise and shock us anew and provide fresh, illuminating insight into 'the greatest story ever told'. The plays included are Kings in Judea, The King's Herald, A Certain Nobleman, The Heirs to the Kingdom, The Bread of Heaven, The Feast of Tabernacles, The Light and The Life, Royal Progress, The King's Supper, The Princes of This World, King of Sorrows and The King Comes to His Own. Cast and credits Written by Dorothy L Sayers Adapted by/Producer: Raymond Raikes The Evangelist (John Bar-Zebedee): Gabriel Woolf Jesus: John Westbrook Joseph/ Jacob Ben-Issachar: Norman Shelley Simon Bar-Jonah (Simon Peter): Stephen Jack Judas Iscariot: Alan Wheatley Matthew: Nigel Stock Herod The Great: Robert Eddison Nicodemus: John Wyse Ephraim: Denys Blakelock Shadrach: Malcolm Hayes Rabbit Solomon: John Gabriel Phoebe: Caroline Monkhouse Flavius: Trader Faulkner Calpurnia: Penelope Lee Mary Virgin: June Tobin Mary Magdalen: Mary Wimbush Martha: Marjorie Westbury Lazarus: Richard Hurndall Benjamin Ben-Hadad: Ralph Truman Joseph, kinsman to Jesus: Haydn Jones Simeon, kinsman to Jesus: Wilfrid Carter Baruch the Zealot: Francis de Wolff Baruch's Wife: Vivienne Chatterton Gestas: John Laurie Dysmas: Russell Napier Simon of Cyrene: Rodney Dias Proclus, a Roman Centurion: Trevor Martin Roman soldier: Bruce Beeby Roman soldier: Harvey Hall Joseph of Arimathea: Howieson Culff Calaphas, High Priest of Israel: Heron Carvic Salome, mother to James and John: Henzie Raeburn Mary Cleophas: Molly Rankin Balthazar, King of Ethiopia: Paul Danqdah Melchior/ A Zealot: Michael Kilgarriff Casper: James Dale Philip: Rolf Lefebvre Thomas Didymus/ Father: Philip Leaver Mother: Wynne Clark Miriam, child: Elizabeth Proud Isaac, child/a slave boy: Daniel Rose Hannah: Hester Paton-Brown James Bar-Zebedee: John Glen Andrew Bar-Jonah: John Boxer Hezekiah, secretary/ Roman Soldier: John Baker Annas, father-in-law to Caiaphas: Edward Atienza Pontius Pilate, Governor of Judaea: Alec Clunes Claudia Procula: Mary Law Captain Elihu: Keith Alexander Eunice, a Syro-Phoenician: Elizabeth Morgan Cleophas: Harry Hutchinson Portress at the High Priest's House: Miriam Margolyes Zillah, her daughter: Jo Manning-Wilson Issacher, servant: Hugh Dickson Susannah, mother to the Bride groom: Betty Baskcomb Rebecca, friend to Susannah: Gladys Spencer/ Janet Burnell Other cast: Ian Frost, Janette Richer, Nan Marriott-Watson, Janette Richer, Peter Marinker, Raf de la Torre, James Thomason, John Forrest, Michael Goldie First broadcast BBC Home Service 19th, 26th Jan, 2nd, 9th , 16th, 23rd Feb, 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd, 28th, 30th March 1975 ©2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Dorothy L. Sayers (Author), Full Cast, Gabriel Woolf, John Laurie, John Westbrook, Mary Wimbush, Miriam Margolyes, Norman Shelley (Narrator)

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Audiobooks Narrated by Miriam Margolyes