A trilogy of classic plays by Pierre Augustin Caron De Beaumarchais, including The Barber of Seville, The Marriage of Figaro and The Guilty MotherForerunner to the renowned operas, The Figaro Plays by Pierre Augustin Caron De Beaumarchais are a celebration of how intelligence and wit can bring any servant level with their aristocratic masters. Considered scandalous in their time, the plays went on to be adapted b...

Full-cast radio adaptations of three of Rumer Godden's bestselling novels, plus a bonus interview with the authorRumer Godden is well known for her acclaimed novels for adults and children. She wrote over 60 works in her lifetime, nine of which were made into films. Included here are dramatisations of three of her classic tales, as well as a fascinating interview with the renowned author.Black Narcissus - A group of nuns establishi...

Discover Diana Wynne Jones’ Magicians of Caprona – the second title in the Chrestomanci series, read by Nickolas Grace.In the worlds of Chrestomanci, anything can happen. This adventure takes place in the Italian Dukedom of Caprona, where spells are as slippery and as tricksy as spaghetti!Casa Montana and Casa Petrocchi look after the magical business in the Dukedom of Caprona, watched over by its magnificent guardian statue, the Angel. The families have been feuding for ye...

It’s San Francisco, 1928, and Sam Spade is a wisecracking, womanising Private Investigator. Missing husbands and unfaithful wives are his usual stock-in-trade, but when the beautifully distressed Miss Wonderley calls he gets involved in a dangerous caper most people would run a mile from. Miss Wonderley asks Sam’s partner, Miles Archer, to shadow Floyd Thursby, whom she maintains has kidnapped her sister. But then Archer is shot dead, and Miss Wonderley’s story turns out to be a lie – just...

An everyday story of sheep, sin and scholarship under the shadow of the Long MyndWritten by Sue Limb (Gloomsbury, Skeletons in the Cupboard), this pastoral sitcom follows six months in the life of the Jones family, who live on a small farm in rural Wales.We join them in September - the start of the farming year - as daughter Megan, a brainy 'plain Jane', sets her sights on Mr Bootle - only to find he's really just interested in birdwatching. Decemb...

It looks like Tim, the world’s worst private detective, and Nick, his brainy kid brother, are in trouble again. They’re dead broke. But money is the least of their worries when a mysterious man bursts into their office and offers Tim a wad of cash for his coat. Minutes later, the stranger is dead and Nick and Tim are left to puzzle over his final words. What could he have meant by "suff bee suff-iss"? Or was it "south by southeast"? Neither one seems to make much sense, but the Diamond bro...

Tom Falconer is in trouble. Pursued by the notorious criminal Ratsey, Tom soon finds himself alone and hungry on the streets of London. Luckily enough, the mysterious Dr Mobius soon recruits Tom to play an important role in a play to be performed in front of Queen Elizabeth. Tom knows there’s something not right about Mobius, but he’s willing to take a risk in order to keep his neck out of Ratsey’s murderous hands. Little does Tom realise that Mobius’s dark secret will trap him in the midd...

The man in the photo is so blurry it's impossible to make out what he really looks like. And that was before he was run over by a steamroller! His name was Lenny Smile and he ran a children's charity called Dream Time, financed by millionaire author Joe Carter. Now Carter wants to know just what happened to Smile – and to the money. Unfortunately for him, he's hired the Diamond Brothers – Tim, the world's worst private detective, and his wise-cracking younger brother Nick – to solve the my...

When the vertically challenged Johnny Naples entrusts Tim Diamond with a package worth over three million pounds, he’s making a big mistake. Tim Diamond is the worst detective in the world. Next day, Johnny’s dead, Tim feels the heat, and his smart younger brother, Nick, gets the package – and every crook in town on his back!

When the Diamond Brothers receive an invitation to a school reunion on a remote Scottish island, things seem to be looking up. But Nick’s got a bad feeling, and it’s not indigestion. And when he meets their fellow guests, the feeling only gets worse – especially when they start dying in ever more bizarre ways!

Someone is trying to destroy David Eliot's school. A year ago, he'd have been happy to see the end of Groosham Grange and its ghoulish teachers. Now, he's on course to win the Unholy Grail, a cup of magical power presented to the star pupil. But a series of suspicious mishaps sees the gap between David and new boy Vincent King narrow alarmingly. Someone, it seems, is trying to stop David winning – and, worse, threatening Groosham Grange itself!

Twelve-year-old Joe Warden isn’t happy. Sure, he’s rich, but his parents don’t care about him. His grandmother should make everything better, except that Joe’s granny is a nightmare. She’s not just physically repulsive, she’s horribly mean. Everyone thinks she’s just a dotty old woman, but Joe knows the truth. He’s seen behind her mask and glimpsed the wicked glimmer in her eyes – she is pure evil. And now she’s out to get Joe, unless he can stop her and her band of nasty grannies first.