Showing results by narrator "Annie Aldington" in All Categories

London, 1940. The war is raging across Europe, and 23-year-old Grace is devastated by the loss of her husband, Brian, at Dunkirk after only a year of marriage. Her secretary job at a law firm keeps her mind from dwelling on her sorrow, but when her boss, James, enlists in the air force Grace is left without work. Alongside her best friend, Helen, the Grace joins the War Office in a move that will change their lives forever.

London, 1940. After her fiancé breaks off their engagement, Evelyn decides to do her part for the war effort by signing up for construction work on Waterloo Bridge. Grieving after her little boy dies in an air raid, Gwen is completely lost when her husband sends their younger children to the countryside for safety. Enlisting as a construction worker, she is partnered with cheerful Evelyn. The two women strike up a heartwarming friendship.

Glenda Jenkins has been beaten by her husband, Harry, one too many times - and this time he's put her in a hospital bed. Battered and bruised, Glenda slowly makes her recovery. But she fears what awaits her back at home.... When Glenda meets kind hospital porter Frank, he offers her a lifeline she can't refuse. The pair decide to run away together, escaping the terror of Harry. But, fearing for her life, Glenda has to make the biggest sacrifice of all and leave her baby, Johnnie, behind.

Anna Craven grew up captivated by stories of her mother's childhood in Birmingham and of Kate's friend, Olivia. Theirs was a magical friendship and Anna always regretted that, with Olivia's tragic death during the war, she would never meet the woman her mother loved so deeply. But when Kate dies, she leaves her daughter one final story: the whole truth of her life with Olivia Kemp. Anna is shocked to discover how little she really knew about the mother with whom she once felt so close.

Abandoned, penniless and orphaned as young children, Bertram and Alice saved each other from a terrible fate. For seven long years they have been kept apart, Bertram, BJ to his friends, learning how to survive and then thrive in the penal colonies of Australia, and Alice growing her prosperous chain of bakeries in the Black Country town of Wednesbury. Now BJ’s sentence is nearly up and he has a choice to make. Queen Victoria’s England has changed since he’s been away and so has Alice. Should he leave behind the life he’s built and face the terrifying, months-long voyage back home?

With the odds stacked against her, Samantha Reynold is determined to prove she’s tough enough to be the boss. But when a secret from the past threatens to ruin Sam’s reputation, she suddenly feels very alone in this dark new world. There’s only one man she can turn to—rival club owner, Sebastian Stoker. Seb knows first-hand how secrets and lies can tear a family apart. He wants to protect Sam at all costs, but siding with her could threaten his own position as head of the Stoker family and risk accusations of betrayal.

North London, 1916. When Olivia Bone and Lieutenant Lucas Black shared a passionate kiss one summer's evening, it seemed as if their love might finally have a chance to bloom. But their brief happiness is cut short when Lucas is sent to fight on the front line, leaving Livvie uncertain if she'll ever see him again. And after a chance encounter with one of Lucas's old flames, Livvie is left doubting whether an ex-factory girl like her will ever fit into his world - and wondering if she would be better off protecting her heart.

When Jared Johnson first meets Clarice Connaught he saves her from the hands of her father, who is brutally beating her in the street. Never one to walk past someone in distress, Jared doesn’t hesitate to help. But who is this girl and what is her story? Jared Johnson started with nothing. At just twelve-years-old he was orphaned and homeless, but eight years later, Jared is a success. Running McGuire’s Rag & Bone Yard and surrounded by friends, all Jared needs now is to find the perfect girl to settle down with.

Margaret Woodruff is slowly dying in a care home. When her son is presented with the chance of exceptional care in her final months, he finds the offer hard to resist. Winifred is assigned to Margaret’s care. She’s a Helper: a new kind of carer that’s capable, committed and completely tireless - because she’s a synthetic human being. Under Winifred’s care Margaret’s health improves beyond everyone’s expectations, and Winifred begins to learn from Margaret what it means to be alive. But how will Winifred use what she learns from Margaret - and what does she truly want from her?

A tale of hardship and social injustice, Miss Purdy's Class by Annie Murray is a heartfelt saga with strong emotional relationships at its heart, read by actress Annie Aldington. In the New Year of 1936, Gwen Purdy, aged twenty-one, leaves her home to become a schoolteacher in a poor area of...

The most talented voice since Dilly Court - an absorbing, thrilling and romantic historical saga with characters you'll fall in love with. Mattie Maguire is a 26-year-old widow with an infant son. Since her husband, Brian, died three years before, she has struggled to keep the family's East End coal business solvent, as well as taking care of her troubled mother-in-law. But unbeknown to Mattie, life is about to get even tougher.

Sent to the workhouse as a child, all Ella Hathaway can remember is a voice whispering, 'Dearie, promise you will never forget what you saw. Your Ma was killed deliberate...and someone oughter pay for it.' When wealthy spinster Letitia Fairchild witnesses Ella being ill treated, she takes her in as a scullery maid. But as Ella grows up, she is determined to find the truth about her mother's death and appeals to Letitia for help, revealing her only personal possession, a black silk purse. Intrigued, Letitia agrees to begin a quest to solve the mystery of Ella's past.

Maryann Nelson's widowed mother, Flo, sees the opportunity to better her family by marrying the local undertaker, Norman Griffin. Though on the surface a caring family man, Maryann and her sister, Sal, soon discover that he has another side to him. For Sal, it is too much to bear and she escapes, leaving Maryann to take revenge on Griffin. The chance of a new life opens up when she befriends Joel Batholomew, who works on the canal. Aboard his narrowboat, she finds herself falling in love with her new life.

The Crying Game opens in 1944 and tells the story of Trixie - a girl who has only ever known turmoil. As a teenager, she covers up the terrible truth of her father's death and she and her pregnant mother go on the run. Little does she know that fate has more cruel twists in store.

Determined to build a life for her herself, Trixie becomes a singer in the pubs and clubs of Gosport - but her heart is still set on finding the little brother she had to leave behind years before. It will take Trixie many years and many tears before the truth can finally emerge - but will it finally give her the courage she needs to fall in love?

She should have been safe. But she never came home. Kath has lived on the same London estate for decades. Lately she’s become friendly with the little girl next door, who is often left alone for hours while her mum is at work. They have a system. When Mina gets home from school to the empty flat, she knocks on the wall three times. Knock, knock, knock. I’m home safe and sound. But one day Mina’s knock doesn’t come. Kath raises the alarm and the police begin the search. Kath was the only person looking out for Mina—now she might be the only one who can bring her home.

Nellie Murphy wants out of her family’s shadow–and an empire of her own. So when smooth-talking ex-con Radley Barratt offers her fast money and a chance to finally become someone, she takes it. But Radley isn’t what he seems. He’s married to Lisa, who runs a brothel and believes his promises of a fresh start. But he lied. . . He’s playing his own game–with Kenny Ruck and a ruthless crew of Russians. Then came the wildcard–a reckless woman with a score to settle.

When 12 year-old Jared Johnson’s little sister dies, just hours after his mother breathes her last after wasting away so her children could eat, he knows he is on own. Desperate to avoid the workhouse, he does everything he can to survive the inhospitable streets of Birmingham. Jared is blessed with the gift of the gab and soon attracts the attention of the King of the Tatters, Toby McGuire. Recognising a kindred spirit, Toby soon has Jared out on a cart hustling for rags.

Clara Fitzroy refuses to conform to convention. Her reckless behaviour has devastating consequences and an ill-judged liaison threatens to destroy everything she's hoped for. Clara has to make a decision that will change her life. Will she make the right one? She asks Daisy Carter, the hotel housekeeper, for help, but Daisy has problems of her own. A family relationship brings grief and heartache and a well meaning action ends in disaster. A life-changing moment, a heartbreaking choice.

The close, loving family life Rose has known is shattered when the country goes to war. Rose resolves to do her bit so, aged 16, she leaves home to train as a nurse in London. There she finds freedom, excitement and a different way of life. A brief encounter with a soldier opens her eyes to romance, but is he the man she thinks he is? Can first love survive long separation or will Rose discover that her heart belongs to another? When the war brings searing loss and heartbreak, can Rose find the strength to look to the future?

London, 1912. Identical twins Lester and Lillia Holdsworth are destined for the stage. Lester is a brilliant pianist, Lillia a magnificent opera singer. But their father has other ideas. Lester is sent to a military academy while Lillia must marry Lord Dalton - a self-righteous, pompous friend of her father's looking for a young wife to give him an heir. Yet their plans to defy their father's wishes are put on hold when war breaks out in 1914.