Ian McKellen discusses playing King Lear, in this ebook taken from Shakespeare On Stage: Volume 2 - Twelve Leading Actors on Twelve Key Roles.In each volume of the Shakespeare On Stage series, a leading actor takes us behind the scenes of a landmark Shakespearean production, recreating in detail their memorable performance in a major role. They lead us through the choices they made in rehearsal, and how the character works in performance, shedding new light on som...

Ian McKellen discusses playing Macbeth, in this ebook taken from Shakespeare On Stage: Thirteen Leading Actors on Thirteen Key Roles.In each volume of the Shakespeare On Stage series, a leading actor takes us behind the scenes, recreating in detail a memorable performance in one of Shakespeare's major roles. They discuss their character, working through the play scene by scene, with refreshing candour and in forensic detail. The result is a masterclass on playing ...

A memoir from the writer of BENT with a foreword by Ian McKellenSherman takes us on a journey through America in the mid twentieth century, starting in New Jersey – where he was born in the 1930s to a Jewish immigrant family – ending on Broadway with the premier of his seminal play Bent starring Richard Gere. On route, we encounter other famous performers including Meryl Streep, Bee Gees, Joan Baez, but the scene-stealing character is always his father – a charismatic narcissist wh...

**The great epic of Western literature, translated by the acclaimed classicist Robert FaglesSoon to be a major motion picture directed by Christopher Nolan**Robert Fagles, winner of the PEN/Ralph Manheim Medal for Translation and a 1996 Academy Award in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, presents us with Homer's best-loved and most accessible poem in a stunning modern-verse translation. "Sing to me of the man, Muse, the man of twists and turns driven ...

A boy. A wolf. The legend lives on. In the Dark Time of midwinter, something is coming that will test the Clans as never before. Book eight of Michelle Paver's bestselling Wolf Brother series continues the dazzling adventure of Torak, Wolf and Renn - a story full of myth, menace, natural magic and exhilarating entertainment.In the Dark Time of midwinter, disaster strikes the Forest. Chaos rules. Bears woken from their dens prowl the shadowy valleys. Desperate clans battle for survi...

‘One of the best anthologies of the year… An arresting, deeply moving collection of the best of British poetry read by a star-studded cast’ The Independent. This exceptional anthology, based on Lord Owen’s published anthology Seven Ages Poetry for a Lifetime, features many of Britain’s leading actors who have all given their services for charity. Shakespeare’s ‘seven ages’ speech (read by Sir Ian McKellen) punctuates the programme which contains 150 poems read by forty actors. Michael Cain...

Sir Ian McKellen, William Squire, Trevor Nunn and Gary Watson perform Shakespeare's play that tells the story of King Henry V of England, focusing on events immediately before and after the Battle of Agincourt during the Hundred Years' War.

Riveting radio dramatisations of Charles Dickens' fifteen full-length novels.Charles Dickens is one of the most renowned authors of all time, and this digital volume of the dramatised canon of his work includes fifteen of his most popular novels.This collection includes the episodic adventure Nicholas Nickleby, comic tale The Pickwick Papers, poignant melodrama The Old Curiosity Shop, the much-loved Oliver Twist. Plus, th...

The collected BBC radio productions of the major works of Oscar Wilde, plus bonus play by Neil BartlettLoved for his flamboyant personality, sparkling wit and brilliant epigrams, Oscar Wilde was a comic genius and a literary icon.This collection reflects the many facets of his dazzling talent. Here are dramatisations of his only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, a Gothic tale of a gilded aristocrat who makes a dangerous pact, as well as four scint...

William Collins Books and Decca Records are proud to present ARGO Classics, a historic catalogue of classic prose and verse read by some of the world’s most renowned voices. Originally released as vinyl records, these expertly remastered stories are now available to download for the first time.All 17 of Shakespeare’s timeless comedies, performed by the celebrated Marlowe Dramatic Society and Professional Players.Young love, bawdiness, and exuberance are played out in these ...

Viper's Daughter is the seventh book in the award-winning series that began with Wolf Brother, selling over 3 million copies in 36 territories. Like them it can be read as a standalone story.For two summers Torak and Renn have been living in the Forest with their faithful pack-brother, Wolf. But their happiness is shattered when Renn realizes Torak is in danger – and she's the threat. When she mysteriously disappears, Torak and Wolf brave the Far North to find her. At the mercy of t...

**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, drawing the illustrious Sherlock Holmes and the faithful Dr. Watson to a secluded English country home. A trail of bewildering clues leads to sleuthing in the finest Holme...