Showing results by narrator "Andrew Sachs" in All Categories

An all-star cast attend a mysterious private club in this hilarious parody of classic horror tales. Membership of the exclusive Mausoleum Club isn't for the faint of heart. The Honorable Clarence Green wants in, but to join he must first hear the spine-chilling stories of the existing members, before enthralling them with one of his own. But are their stories fact or fiction? And will Green still want to join after hearing the horrors they have to tell?

The first ever publication of a long-lost episode of Hancock's Half Hour, featuring Peter Sellers - plus bonus material. Legendary sitcom Hancock's Half Hour ran for 102 episodes on BBC Radio between 1954 and 1959. Over 20 shows were subsequently lost - but now one of the funniest and most sought-after, 'The Marriage Bureau', has been rediscovered. The penultimate episode of Series 1, it features a unique appearance from Peter Sellers, standing in for Kenneth Williams. Available for the first time since its original broadcast in 1955, it sees Hancock looking for a job - and a wife...

Andrew Sachs reads Jonathan Swift's humorous and unforgettable tale of a strange man in some very strange lands. Gulliver had always wanted to see the world. But whenever he steps on board a ship, bad luck always seems near at hand. He is shipwrecked, abandoned, marooned and mutinied against - and each time lands in a strange and curious place.

Candide and his tutor Pangloss travel the globe trying to follow the philosophy "All is for the best in this, the best of all possible worlds". However, they are stung and let down at every turn, being robbed, tortured, and ridiculed, amongst other trials. On hearing about their often disasterous travels, a listener feels unfortunately less than empathetic, and can't help themselves laughing out loud at this very funny account of the trail our optimistic travellers take.

Andrew Sachs reads these four classic stories of suspense - "The Signalman" by Charles Dickens, "The Haunted Doll's House" by M. R. James, "The Room in the Tower" by E. F. Benson, and "The Bus-Conductor" by E. F. Benson. These spine-tingling tales, from the golden age of the ghost story, are sure to leave you with a creeping sense of dread.

Eight-year-old Noah's problems seem easier to deal with if he doesn't think about them. So he runs away, taking an untrodden path through the forest. Before long, he comes across a shop. But this is no ordinary shop: It's a toyshop, full of the most amazing toys, and brimming with the most wonderful magic. And here Noah meets a very unusual toymaker. The toymaker has a story to tell, and it's a story of adventure and wonder, and broken promises. He takes Noah on a journey. A journey that will change his life.

Mild-mannered Dr Hawley Harvey Crippen committed one of the most notorious English murders of the 20th century. In early 1910, he dismembered his wife's body and buried the remains in the coal cellar of the house they shared in Hilldrop Crescent, London. Arrested with his lover, Ethel Le Neve, who was disguised as his son, as they tried to escape to Canada aboard the SS Montrose. His subsequent trial at the Old Bailey was expected to be a mere formality, but Dr Crippen pleaded 'not guilty!', and so begins this strangely moving tale of passion and despair.

Thurstan, a young Norman and would-be Knight at the Court of King Roger in Palermo, has been in love since boyhood with Lady Alicia, now returned a widow from the Holy Land. Thurstan soon finds himself caught in a tangle of plots.

Andrew Sachs stars in this BBC Radio 4 'Afternoon Play' about painter Edward Lear. The Need for Nonsense was originally broadcast on 9 February 2009, and repeated on 17 January 2011.

Julia Blackburn's play captures the warm, heartfelt, and comic story of the Victorian poet and painter Edward Lear's lifelong friendship with his eccentric Greek servant, Giorgio, who inspired him to address the painful truths in his life while making us laugh.

Frank Delaney's language based panel quiz game series revolves around the English language. This upbeat, fun word battle sees a host of well-known contributors battling to say the word first. The series is filmed in front of a live audience at a wide range of literary festivals in the UK and live in the BBC Studios.

Having saved the city cats from a fate worse than death, Varjak Paw finds himself the elected and popular leader of a new gang - a gang that supports freedom and kindness for all. But will the pressure take its toll on this brave yet sometimes naive cat? Soon the city erupts in an all-out gang war as the evil Sally Bones attempts to control the lives of all cats. Horrified and outnumbered, Varjak and the others must fight for their freedom or die trying; can Jalal's Way really be the best way?

A fascinating glimpse into some of the most notorious crimes and trials of the last 100 years. Using the original trial transcripts, eyewitness accounts and contemporary newspaper reports, we witness the actual events that made each trial a cause célèbre of its day.

A novel about human relationships, focusing, unusually for Brookner, on two male characters. Hartmann and Fibich met at school and 40 years later they can no more think of living apart than of divorcing their wives. This book deals with their gradual coming to terms with the emotional gaps in their lives.

This hilarious full-cast series reveals the afterlife of some famous characters from children's fiction. George from Enid Blyton’s Famous Five reflects on her life - and reveals the fate of other members of the adventurous group of children - Julian, Dick, Anne and their dog Timmy. Cinderella's siblings speak out, giving their version of what happened after the ball, and the naive, golden-haired, Little Lord Fauntleroy is revealed as a grown-up, evil scoundrel.

Little Blighty is an idyllic part of the world, with a church, a market, a small school and a pub, The Cock and Bull. Village life is pretty uneventful, though the humdrum happenings include social turmoil, economic upheaval and vicious political squabbles - all presided over by the redoubtable head of the Parish Council and secretary of the Rotarians, Mrs Roberts.

Seven entertaining audio readings of best-loved children’s springtime stories for children of three years and over to enjoy over Easter! This audio download is a heritage-rich collection showcasing some of the best-loved characters in children’s literature. Compiled by HarperCollins Children’s Books, it features popular stories by John Bond, Nick Butterworth, Judith Kerr, David Walliams and Rob Biddulph.

Set in 1482, Victor Hugo's powerful novel of imagination, caprice, and fantasy is a meditation on love, fate, architecture, and politics, as well as a compelling recreation of the medieval world at the dawn of the modern age. In a brilliant reworking of the tale of Beauty and the Beast, Hugo creates a host of unforgettable characters, amongst them Quasimodo, the hunchback of the title, hopelessly in love with the gypsy girl Esmeralda; satanic priest Claude Frollo; Clopin Trouillefou, king of the beggars; and Louis XI.

Jules Verne’s career as a novelist began in 1863, when he struck a new vein in fiction—stories that combined popular science and exploration. In Around the World in Eighty Days, Phileas Fogg rashly bets his companions £20,000 that he can travel around the entire globe in just eighty days—and he is determined not to lose. Breaking the well-established routine of his daily life, the reserved Englishman immediately sets off for Dover, accompanied by his hot-blooded French manservant, Passepartout.

Quasimodo is abandoned as a baby on the steps of Notre Dame. He becomes a bell-ringer there, but in order to hide his grotesque features he spends his life virtually imprisoned in a tower. While there, he becomes obsessed by Esmerelda, a gipsy who dances in the square below. A tragic and moving tale.

Having lost her husband and only child to the war in Afghanistan, a young woman turns to an Irish couple for hope in the form of a miracle. But dark forces are at work, and the price to pay for salvation may be too much to bear.