‘Louis Wain invented a cat style, a cat society, a whole cat world’. Broadcast in 1925 by H.G. Wells, these words characteristically foretold the future of the Wain cat which has, once more, become the century’s most recognisable image in cat art. During their heyday, in the time before the First World War, Louis Wain’s cats, dressed as humans, portrayed that stylish Edwardian world having fun: at restaurants and tea parties, going to the Race and the Seaside, celebrating at Christmas and ...

A collection of BBC radio full-cast dramatisations of Jane Austen's six major novels Jane Austen is one of the finest writers in the English language, and this volume includes all six of her classic novels.Mansfield Park: On a quest to find a position in society, Fanny Price goes to live with her rich aunt and uncle.Northanger Abbey: Young, naïve Catherine Morland receives an invitation to stay at the isolated Gothic mansion Northanger Abbey.Full chapter listing:

Benedict Cumberbatch reads these four new Sherlock Holmes stories by John Taylor'An Inscrutable Masquerade'/ 'The Conundrum of Coach 13'/ 'The Trinity Vicarage Larceny'/ 'The 10.59 Assassin'Inspired by Arthur Conan Doyle's original Sherlock Holmes stories, John Taylor has written four more mysteries featuring the world's greatest detective. Read by acclaimed actor Benedict Cumberbatch, these new adventures share all the suspense of the original tales.In a drawer in ...

Beneath the streets of London there is another London. A subterranean labyrinth of sewers and abandoned tube stations. A somewhere that is Neverwhere... An act of kindness sees Richard Mayhew catapulted from his ordinary life into the strange world of London Below. There he meets the Earl of Earl's Court, faces a life-threatening ordeal at the hands of the Black Friars, comes face to face with the Great Beast of London, and encounters an Angel. Called Islington. Accompanied by the mysterio...

Benedict Cumberbatch plays the young Horace Rumpole in this second stellar collection of court cases, also starring Timothy West as the older RumpoleRumpole and the Man of GodIt is 1959, and Rumpole must defend a clergyman accused of shoplifting who, although he clearly did not commit the crime, is curiously reluctant to be cross-examined under oath. Meanwhile, Hilda (she who must be obeyed) has big news…Rumpole and the Explo...

A thriller and love story set in 10th-century Japan.Lady Shonagon is an imperial courtesan, living at the court of the Japanese Emperor in the 10th century. When a series of disturbing thefts within the palace walls throws the court into confusion and unrest, Shonagon is appointed guide and assistant to Lieutenant Yukinari as he investigates.Together, Shonagon and Yukinari must solve the mysteries and escalating crimes that plague the Japanese court, and their romance bloss...

***"*In his remarkable performance of Edward St. Aubyn's newest novel, stage and screen actor Benedict Cumberbatch proves yet again that he is a master of pacing and characterization...When not delivering a silky, warm, and beautifully enunciated narration, Cumberbatch subsumes himself into a multiplicity of male and female roles." -- AudioFile Magazine, Earphones Award winnerDouble Blind follows three close friends and their circle through a year of extraordinary...

Benedict Cumberbatch plays the young, devastatingly acute Horace Rumpole in this third thrilling collection of court casesRumpole and the Old Boy Net: With the help of his new pupil, Miss Phillida Trant, Rumpole must defend Mr Napier Lee, who is charged with blackmail. But the alleged victim of the blackmail went to public school with the defendant, and Mr Lee won't sneak on his old school chum...Rumpole and the Sleeping Partners: After a ...

Benedict Cumberbatch plays Horace Rumpole in this fourth collection of dramatic court casesRumpole and the Bubble ReputationErskine-Brown is working on a sordid ABH and affray case which allegedly occurred in a Soho night club. When he and Rumpole visit the disreputable scene of the crime, they meet Maurice Machin, the editor of the Daily Beacon, whose paper is being sued for libel.Rumpole and the Age of Miracles

Cabin Pressure is set in the wing and a prayer world of a tiny, one-plane charter airline; staffed by two pilots, one on his way down, and one who was never up to start with. Whether flying actresses to Italy, cricketers to the Sahara, or a cat to Abu Dhabi, no job is too small, but many, many jobs are too difficult.Carolyn Knapp-Shappey, MJN Air's formidable boss, has employed two of the very cheapest pilots money can buy: Captain Martin Crieff, who's always wanted to fly...

Benedict Cumberbatch reads Franz Kafka's famous story of man-turned-insect, MetamorphosisWinner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2018After a night of troubled dreams, Gregor Samsa wakes to discover that he has turned into a huge, monstrous, cockroach-like creature, with an armour-plated back and multiple limbs.Gradually, he comes to terms with his new state - but his parents and sister are horrified and increasingly revolted. To the...

Sir Ian McKellen, fresh from his performance as Gandalf in Lord of the Rings is Prospero, and heads a strong cast in Shakespeare’s last great play. The wronged duke raises a tempest to shipwreck his old opponents on his island so that he can ensure justice is done. With Emilia Fox as Miranda, Scott Handy in the pivotal role of the sprite Ariel and Ben Owukwe as Caliban, this new production directed by John Tydeman, balances the magic and the earthiness with music playing a key role.