The Tudor Crown
A BBC Radio 4 Drama Collection
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About this listen
Nine gripping dramas that delve into the turbulent, thrilling history of the Tudor era
Affairs and assassinations. Conflict and chaos. Power and plots. The tumultuous Tudor period is one of the most iconic and fascinating chapters in British history. In these ten atmospheric dramas, we get a glimpse into the inner workings of Tudor England – and rediscover the key characters we have grown to love and hate. Featuring world-renowned actors, these gripping, historically accurate tales are packed with excitement.
A Pattern of Tudors - the story of Cardinal Wolsey who built Hampton Court, and Henry VIII who took it from him.
True and Lawful Queen - Katherine of Aragon’s refusal to divorce Henry VIII sparks a chain of events that leads to the Reformation.
Black Queen to King’s Castle - the ghost of Anne Boleyn tells her own story of the events that led to her execution.
The Babington Plot - Told from the perspective of the conspirators, this is an enthralling account of the 1586 plot to assassinate Elizabeth I and return England to Catholic rule under Mary, Queen of Scots.
La Princesse de Clèves - a playful adaptation of Madame de Lafayette's classic novel of intrigue and love set in the 16th Century and following the dangerous liaisons of a beautiful young lady newly presented to Court.
Gold’s Fool - the true story of how Queen Elizabeth I was misled by alchemists into believing that the Arctic black rocks of Baffin Island were rich in precious ore.
Mary Stuart - we learn of the extraordinary relationship between Elizabeth I and her rival cousin, the imprisoned Scottish queen.
Edward, Edward - seen entirely through the eyes of children, this shows how Edward VI, crowned king at the age of nine, finds himself powerless in a world ruled by adults.
The Nine Days Queen - the tragic story of the trial of Lady Jane Grey. Crowned Queen of England in 1553 aged 16, she was imprisoned in the Tower nine days later, and was dead within a year.
Among the stellar cast of these remarkable dramas are Phyllida Nash, Michael Hordern, David Troughton, Izzy Meikle-Small, Stephen Greif, Burn Gorman, Roger Lloyd Pack, Kathleen Helme and Melody Grove.
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Anti-Heroes: A BBC Radio Drama Collection
- Five Full-Cast Dramatisations Including Macbeth, Emma & The Great Gatsby
- By: William Shakespeare, Alexandre Dumas, Jane Austen, and others
- Narrated by: Neil Dudgeon, Emma Fielding, Iain Glen, and others
- Length: 14 hrs and 11 mins
- Original Recording
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Ambitious. Ruthless. Unprincipled. With their blurred morals and relatable imperfections, it’s no wonder we find anti-heroes so appealing and fascinating. Featuring a mixture of male and female anti-heroes across England, Scotland, France and New York, these fantastic adaptations of five of the best-known and best-loved classics of literature follow some of these flawed, nuanced characters as they steal the spotlight and make their presence known.
By: William Shakespeare, and others
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The August Strindberg BBC Radio Collection
- 13 Full-Cast Productions including Miss Julie, The Father and The Dream Play
- By: August Strindberg
- Narrated by: Fiona Shaw, Andrew Garfield, Maurice Denham, and others
- Length: 19 hrs and 59 mins
- Original Recording
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Hailed by Arthur Miller as ‘the mad inventor of modern theatre’, Johan August Strindberg was a Swedish playwright, poet and novelist whose groundbreaking works mingled naturalism and psychology and paved the way for Expressionist drama. A prolific writer – penning over 60 plays, 19 novels and nine autobiographies – his turbulent life was marked by emotional conflict. This wide-ranging collection brings together 13 of his most important dramas and a semi-autobiographical ‘occult diary’, enhanced through stunning soundscapes and music composed by Strindberg himself.
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The Sand Leopard & Other Vintage Thrillers
- A Full-Cast BBC Radio Collection
- By: Berkely Mather
- Narrated by: John Rye, Hilda Schroder, Geoffrey Matthews, and others
- Length: 13 hrs and 3 mins
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Berkely Mather (real name John Evan Weston-Davies) was a British author who wrote sixteen novels ranging from historical adventures to espionage fiction. Included here are some of his best radio thrillers, beginning with The Sand Leopard, charting the exploits of Geth Straker, captain of the Peregrine. The trouble-hunting mariner is commissioned to sail to the Red Sea in search of sunken Second World War bullion – but are his two new crew members what they seem?
By: Berkely Mather
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The Medici: Bankers, Gangsters, Popes
- A BBC Radio 4 Full-Cast Drama
- By: Mike Walker
- Narrated by: full cast, Patrick Baladi, Sirine Saba, and others
- Length: 5 hrs and 40 mins
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Florence, 1415. Banker Cosimo Medici is looked down upon as a jumped up money-changer. Then he marries the noble Contessina de Bardi and becomes the richest man in Europe. But his wealth and power threaten the Florentine elite, who are determined to bring him down. However, the House of Medici cannot be crushed that easily. Sixty years and many violent deaths later, the family are the unquestioned, ruthless rulers of Florence.
By: Mike Walker
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Herman Melville: A BBC Radio Drama Collection
- Three Full-Cast Dramatisations including Moby-Dick
- By: Herman Melville
- Narrated by: Trevor White, Garrick Hagon, P J Brennan, and others
- Length: 5 hrs and 3 mins
- Original Recording
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Herman Melville was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance period. He is best known for Moby-Dick, the opening line of which - ‘Call me Ishmael’ - is one of the most famous opening lines in literature. This BBC collection features lively full-cast dramatisations of three of Melville’s best-known works.
By: Herman Melville
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The Cipher
- A BBC Radio 4 Full-Cast Drama
- By: Brett Neichin, Janina Matthewson
- Narrated by: Anya Cholatra, Chance Perdomo, Enzo Cilenti, and others
- Length: 5 hrs and 8 mins
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When the cryptic Parallax puzzle appears online, it quickly becomes the world's most talked-about conundrum. A complex, multi-level cipher, it has the brightest minds on the planet baffled: but who created it, and why Sixteen-year-old Sabrina is obsessed with cracking it - but when she does, she discovers it isn't a game. Caught up in a sinister global conspiracy, she becomes involved with a mysterious international task force, and is recruited to hunt down a serial killer who may not be from this world.
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Gripping storyline and great twists
- By Andrew Rice on 11-29-22
By: Brett Neichin, and others
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The Somerset Maugham BBC Radio Collection
- Eight Full-Cast Dramatisations and Readings
- By: W. Somerset Maugham
- Narrated by: Alex Jennings, Janet Maw, full cast
- Length: 15 hrs and 4 mins
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A collection of the BBC’s dramatisations and readings of W. Somerset Maugham’s fiction, with star casts including Alex Jennings, Dirk Bogarde, and Janet Maw.
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Entertaining radio adaptations
- By scout86 on 08-23-21
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The Algernon Blackwood BBC Radio Collection
- 17 Dramas and Supernatural Ghost Stories
- By: Algernon Blackwood
- Narrated by: Philip Madoc, Malcolm Hayes, Christopher Neame, and others
- Length: 12 hrs and 10 mins
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Described by H P Lovecraft as 'the one absolute and unquestioned master of weird atmosphere', Algernon Blackwood (CBE) was the acclaimed and prolific author of numerous ghost stories and horror tales. Throughout his lifetime, he wrote 14 novels, several children's books, a number of plays, and over 200 short stories. This anthology opens with a selection of stories featuring his most influential character, occult detective Dr John Silence.
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Occupation: Spy
- Eight Full-Cast BBC Radio Spy Thrillers
- By: Ted Allbeury
- Narrated by: Christian Rodska, James Bolam, Nigel Hawthorne, and others
- Length: 17 hrs and 42 mins
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Described by Len Deighton as ‘a classic writer of espionage fiction’, Ted Allbeury based his many acclaimed spy novels on his own real-life experiences. In World War II, he served as an intelligence officer with Special Operations Executive, and subsequently ran agents across the border between East and West Germany during the Cold War. He began writing in his fifties, and went on to pen over 40 bestselling books, five of which are dramatised here alongside three plays specially written for BBC Radio and two bonus documentaries.
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Classic spy thrillers
- By Thomas on 10-19-24
By: Ted Allbeury
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The Man Born to Be King
- A BBC Radio 4 Drama Collection
- By: Dorothy L. Sayers
- Narrated by: full cast, Gabriel Woolf, John Westbrook, and others
- Length: 8 hrs and 28 mins
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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.
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I would like a bit less dynamic range
- By Adam Shields on 02-23-23
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George Bernard Shaw
- A BBC Radio Drama Collection
- By: George Bernard Shaw
- Narrated by: full cast, Judi Dench, Ralph Fiennes, and others
- Length: 25 hrs and 48 mins
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George Bernard Shaw - or Bernard Shaw, as he preferred to be known - was one of Ireland's foremost dramatists and thinkers. His plays range from contemporary satires to historical allegories, and are infused with ideas, insight, wit and wisdom. Included here are some of his best works, adapted for radio and brought together in reverse chronological order in one statement collection.
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King Magnus and Prime Minister Proteus
- By SS on 07-06-23
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BBC Classics: Ultimate Story Collection
- 90 Unmissable Tales
- By: Oscar Wilde, Arthur Conan Doyle, Virginia Woolf, and others
- Narrated by: Sam Dale, Joseph Ayre, Carolyn Pickles, and others
- Length: 26 hrs and 4 mins
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A treasure chest of timeless short stories by some of the world's greatest authors.
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These are not full cast audio dramas
- By Mollie on 03-25-23
By: Oscar Wilde, and others
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Life and Intrigue in Tudor Britain
- A Collection of BBC Radio Historical Docu Dramas
- By: Alison Plowden
- Narrated by: Haydn Jones, Nigel Lambert, Pauline Letts, and others
- Length: 5 hrs and 57 mins
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Passion, power, sex and suspicious deaths – the Tudor story is one of drama and dysfunction, and it has kept us enthralled for over 400 years. In these six dramatised documentaries, we take a behind-the-scenes look at Tudor England and get to know the key characters we have grown to love and hate, such as Mary Tudor, Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots. Compiled from contemporary sources by Alison Plowman and featuring first-hand accounts and letters, these thrilling, historically accurate retellings bring this tumultuous era to vivid life.
By: Alison Plowden
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The Christopher Marlowe BBC Radio Drama Collection
- Seven Full-Cast Productions Including Doctor Faustus, Tamburlaine & The Jew of Malta
- By: Christopher Marlowe
- Narrated by: Conn O'Neill, Kenneth Cranham, Paterson Joseph, and others
- Length: 12 hrs and 42 mins
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Christopher Marlowe was most celebrated writer of his generation, surpassing even William Shakespeare during his lifetime. A playwright, poet, hellraiser, rebel and spy, he lived fast and died young, stabbed to death in a Deptford lodging house aged only 29. This definitive collection comprises all six of his groundbreaking plays.
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Marlowe wrote the plays - all of them
- By Charles Matheson on 12-06-22
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The Odyssey (Dramatized)
- By: Homer, Simon Armitage - dramatisation
- Narrated by: Tim McInnerny, Amanda Redman, full cast
- Length: 3 hrs and 49 mins
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"My fame is written in the heavens, and my fate too..." So speaks Odysseus as he starts to recount his struggles to sail home to Ithaca, in one of the greatest pieces of storytelling in Western literature. The Odyssey is his incredible traveller's tale, and also the story of his faithful wife Penelope who waits for him, besieged by suitors, and their son Telemachus who has a quest of his own.
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Excellent, but not an exam reference!
- By Joel D Offenberg on 12-27-09
By: Homer, and others
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Who Shot Ada Tansey? & Other Thrillers
- 14 Full-Cast BBC Radio Dramas
- By: Peter Whalley
- Narrated by: David Calder, Jason Done, Tracy Wiles, and others
- Length: 14 hrs and 38 mins
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Peter Whalley was Coronation Street’s longest-serving writer, scripting 601 episodes between 1979 and 2014. His other works included TV’s Albion Market and Castles, 40 radio plays and 10 novels, and in 2009 he was presented with a Special Achievement Award at the British Soap Awards. Collected here are 14 of his finest radio crime dramas and thrillers, with full casts including Lee Ingleby, Joanne Froggatt, Tracy Wiles, Robert Pickavance, Jason Done, Lyndsey Marshal, David Calder and Paula Tilbrook.
By: Peter Whalley