Showing results by publisher "BBC Audio" in Entertainment & Performing Arts

Award-winning comedian Josie Long has performed nine hit stand-up shows at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, subsequently touring them around the UK and internationally. This BBC Radio series was adapted from her hit 2009 stage show, and finds her attempting to unravel the mysteries of the universe through ad hoc research. Using the knowledge she's gleaned, she gives us the lowdown on her selected subject - with the help of her special guests, who join in with questions, illustrations and interruptions.

Improv masters Josie Lawrence and Jim Sweeney perform hilarious off-the-cuff sketches based entirely on audience suggestions No script, no props and living by their wit - in this side-splitting series, two of the funniest stars of The Comedy Store Players and Whose Line Is It Anyway? join...

For over a decade between 1974 and 1985, lugubrious funnyman Les Dawson had radio audiences in stitches with his hit comedy show Listen to Les. Included in this collection are 26 vintage episodes, showcasing the gravel-voiced master of mirth at his very best. All your favourite characters are here, including gossip-loving housewives Cissie and Ada; chat show host Cosmo Smallpiece; the elegant Sophisticates and the hilariously dismal Desponds—as well as Wotan, Man of Steel; the debut appearance of comic discovery Justin Jest.

Three further series of flagship comedy The Now Show presented by Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis: with their characteristic wit and satirical flair, Hugh Dennis, Steve Punt and a plethora of special guests crack wise at all things news, using topical sketches, stand-up, songs and chat to bring a smile to your face.

Vanessa Redgrave is an Oscar-winning actress, well known for her theatre appearances and roles in such films as Howards End and Mrs Dalloway, as well as her political activism. She discusses her life and achievements in this collection of BBC Radio and TV interviews.

Sir Derek Jacobi is an award-winning actor who is famous for his many roles on television, film and on stage. He received a Tony Award for his performance as Benedick in the RSC's production of Much Ado About Nothing and is probably most famous for his TV roles in Cadfael and I, Claudius. In this collection, we hear, in his own words, about his influences, his school years and early acting performances, as well as the many roles he has played.

Regarded by many as the greatest actor of the 20th century, Laurence Olivier enjoyed a stellar career in film, theatre and television, winning multiple awards along the way from the 1920s to the 1980s. In this absorbing collection of archive interviews he discusses his schooldays and early acting career, his drama training, his spells as actor-manager running the Old Vic and the National Theatre (which he helped create), his wartime service and his friendship and collaboration with fellow actors, including John Gielgud and Ralph Richardson.

Sir Stirling Moss, OBE, is a legendary British racing driver. In this collection we hear - in his own words - about his family and upbringing, on starting out and his early career choices and why he became a racing driver. He discusses being a businessman, his relationships and the bittersweet feelings that occur with racing. He also touches on the many dangers involved with the sport, including the loss of friends. Stirling talks about his crash in 1962 - including his injuries and recuperation - as well as his celebrity lifestyle, his continuing popularity and reaching 70.

Beryl Reid, OBE, (1919-1996) was one of Britain's much-loved comedy actresses. She won a BAFTA for Best Actress and received a lifetime achievement award at the British Comedy Awards. In this collection, we hear - in her own words - about other funny women, as well as some of her well-known roles in The Belles of St Trinian's and Smiley's People, and the reaction to her role in The Killing of Sister George.

Newly rebranded Deer Park Academy is struggling to turn itself around after being placed in special measures. Hoping to inspire the students (and tick the 'creative learning' box for the next Ofsted inspection), the headmaster decides to put on a production of Romeo and Juliet. But inspiration can be dangerous, and when has-been ex-TV star Geoff Cathcart is brought in to direct, he opens a Pandora's box of problems.

Award-winning writer and comedian Mark Steel aims to put the world to rights in these 15 episodes, as he comes up with radical proposals to improve our lives and sort out our social ills. From the economy to transport, housing, crime and our current age of pessimism, Mark’s got a brilliant idea that’s sure to fix the problem. Each show sees him using witty, persuasive arguments and short, sharp sketches to present his case, as he contends that having a job should be illegal, everyone should have to be gay for two years, and nobody should have to go to school until they’re 36.

A sparkling selection of one-off comedy shows from Radio 4's Sunday night Stand Up Specials season Since 2018, BBC Radio 4 has been making the nation laugh with its Stand Up Specials strand, featuring fantastic half-hour sets from a host of celebrated comedians. This wide-ranging collection...

A fascinating collection of rare and remastered radio and TV material starring Tony Hancock. This second treasury of rare archive material is spearheaded by four newly restored radio episodes of Hancock's Half Hour, all from 1956: 'The New Secretary', 'Anna and the King of Siam', 'The Stolen Petrol' and 'The Expresso Bar'. Starring alongside Tony Hancock are Sid James, Bill Kerr, Hattie Jacques and Kenneth Williams.

The History Plays is a series of five two-hander plays by Vent author Nigel Smith, which are imagined conversations at key moments in recent history, moments that have permanently changed the British psyche. Starting with Mick Jagger's conviction for drug possession and the surprising pro-Jagger line taken in a Times editorial through the fragmented morality of John Stonehouse, the Indian summer of patriotism over the Falklands, the death of Diana, and the end of the Blair years, The History Plays are a satirical and thoughtful exploration of huge social forces.

A collection of three stories to mark the Leap Year by Laura Marney, Ruth Thomas and Alan Spence. The Leap Year Tales are: 'Aw Wrong' by Laura Marney: Facing the imminent birth of their first child, a couple take steps to try to influence the course of nature. Read by Gabriel Quigley. 'February Alone' by Ruth Thomas: An intended romantic lunch goes strangely awry. Will a gift of lingerie help save the hour?

The events of 1950-1999 are described by the people who saw them happen, from the Festival of Britain in 1951 through to the dawn of a new millennium at the end of 1999. In between are the eras of the Angry Young Men, the Teddy Boys and the Punk Rockers; the arrival of rock and roll and the permissive society; the advent of industrial strife in England and sectarian unrest in Northern Ireland; the rise to power of Margaret Thatcher; the miners' strike, three-day week and Winter of Discontent; the Queen's Silver Jubilee....

Robert Glenister and Ian McDiarmid star in a gripping BBC Radio 4 dramatisation of William Peter Blatty’s classic horror novel ‘When a radio play is this good, the devil really is in the details’ Radio Times Summoned to a case of apparent possession, Father Karras is at first sceptical...

**Ian McKellen was the WINNER of the BBC Audio Drama Award 2015 for Best Actor in an Audio Drama (for Eugenie Grandet)** Sir Ian McKellen reads The Valley of Fear, the last of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's four Sherlock Holmes novels. The mystery begins with a coded warning of imminent danger...

Five interlinked short plays for Woman's Hour around the theme of separation, based on experiences submitted to the programme by listeners. In 'Empty Nest', Sheila is inconsolable when her daughter leaves home for a gap year. Can an eccentric elderly neighbour help her to feel needed again? In 'Fatima the Catima', Karen tries to keep normal family life going and her anxieties at bay while her husband is fighting in Afghanistan.

Five dramas by Katie Hims exploring the symbolism and significance of the wedding dress. In 'True Love', Maggie's dress is so beautiful she can't bear to take it off. In 'The Rescue', Lauren resorts to drastic measures to stop her sister getting married. In 'The Scarecrow', Carla suddenly finds herself the object of attention for all the village men. In 'Janey's Big Day', Janey is unprepared for quite how involved her mother is in her wedding plans.