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Terry Pratchett: BBC Radio Drama Collection
- Seven BBC Radio 4 Full-Cast Dramatisations
- Narrated by: Martin Jarvis, Sheila Hancock, Anton Lesser, Alex Jennings, Philip Jackson, Mark Heap, full cast
- Length: 13 hrs and 13 mins
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Terry Pratchett: BBC Radio Drama Collection
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Summary
A collection of the full-cast BBC Radio dramatisations of novels by Terry Pratchett.
Somewhere on the frontier between thought and reality exists the Discworld, a parallel time and place which might sound and smell very much like our own, but which looks completely different....
Published for the very first time are seven full-cast BBC Radio dramatisations of Terry Pratchett’s novels, with star-studded casts including Martin Jarvis, Sheila Hancock, Anton Lesser, Philip Jackson, Alex Jennings and Mark Heap.
Mort
Hopeless young peasant Mort is hired as an apprentice to Death. He'll have free board, use of the company horse and being dead isn’t even compulsory. In fact, it's a dream job - until he discovers that it can be killer for his love life....
Wyrd Sisters
Three witches meet on a blasted heath. A king is cruelly murdered. A child heir and the kingdom’s crown are both missing. But Granny Weatherwax finds that meddling in royal politics is a lot more complicated than certain playwrights would have you believe....
Guards! Guards!
In Ankh-Morpork, the Haves and the Have-Nots are about fall out. Again. The Night Watch’s Captain Vimes is used to this but when the Have-Nots find the key to a lethal, dormant weapon that even they don’t understand, he knows it’s time so sober up.
Eric
When precocious young Eric Thursley summons a demon from the loathsome pit to fulfil his every wish, he wants what everyone wants – immortality, to rule the world and have the most beautiful woman love him. Instead he gets Rincewind, the Disc’s most incompetent wizard.
Small Gods
On the Discworld, Gods are as numerous as herring roe, all elbowing for space at the top. In such a competitive environment, you need an acolyte and fast. For the Great God Om, Brutha is the Chosen One, or at least the only One available....
Night Watch
Living in the past is hard. Dying in the past is incredibly easy, especially when there is a serial killer on the loose who targets coppers. Commander Sam Vimes of the City Watch is back in his own rough, tough past and he has a job to do.
Bonus Story
In addition to these Discworld novels, this collection also includes a full-cast dramatisation of Only You Can Save Mankind, from the Johnny Maxwell series. As an alien fleet crosses his computer screen, Johnny prepares to blow the ScreeWee into a million pieces....
Critic reviews
"The voice cast is fantastic." (Starburst)
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What listeners say about Terry Pratchett: BBC Radio Drama Collection
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- colin mann
- 12-11-18
If you Love and have read Terry Pratchett
You're going to hate this. The disc world novels are cut to pieces like never before. The characters we love are here but the plots and humour have been mercilessly cut to pieces to fit a radio slot. Treat yourself to the unabridged Audible books if you would like to experience Disc World in all its beauty and humor.
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145 people found this helpful
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- mike
- 13-11-18
SAVE YOUR MONEY AND BUY THE UNABRIDGED AUDIOBOOKS
i'm just about half way through this collection so far. I've read/listened to & thoroughly enjoyed all the Discworld books, but this collection of radio plays is AWFUL.
Sound quality is poorer than the audiobooks, I generally listen to audiobooks when driving & with this collection I have to have the volume up as high as possible without it distorting.
I like to think I'm of average intelligence, but if i hadn't already read the books I think i would have a job to follow the storylines because of the poor editing into a play format.
It's difficult to give a fair rating for the permance & performers because I'm struggling to enjoy the plays because of bad writing and production. Also as a minor annoyance, no one has bothered to title the chapters which makes navigating through the collection annoying.
I would not recommend this collection to any of my friends that like Sir Terry's works & can't believe that my first ever bad review of an Audible book is about Discworld.
SAVE YOUR CASH AND STICK TO THE BOOKS/AUDIOBOOKS
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71 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 02-11-18
Excellent radioplay renditions of Pratchett's work
For all its many failings it cannot be doubted that the BBC knows how to do radio drama, and with these full-cast radio play versions of some of Pratchett's best writings they have pushed the bar even higher than before. These really are very, very good, with just the right level of dryness and subtlety mixed with slapstick that makes Pratchett's humour so good to read. The characters all seem true to how Pratchett imagined them (for example casting Melvyn Hayes as Nobby Nobbs in 'Guards! Guards!' was a work of genius) and the actors really seem to understand the world that their characters inhabit and take on their mantles as if born to the play the role. In essence these radio plays are Terry Prachett's books brought to life with only the very subtlest of changes necessary to work in the medium of radio and nothing more. If you like reading Pratchett then you'll like listening to these radio plays.
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67 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Sanjeev Gupta
- 02-11-18
Wonderful adaptations
A brilliant set of adaptations of some of Sir Terry’s Discworld novels. Cast are all strong and the performances are admirable.
I do think that Death could have had a stronger voice to go with the capitalisation used in the books, but that is a personal preference.
Really pleased with the purchase.
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36 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- LJP7
- 27-11-18
A mixed bag of abridged stories of varying quality
I (probably naively) didn't realise that these are significantly abridged versions of the full stories - at 7 for the price of 1 though, that's fine. my favourite was the second-to-last story of time travel. Some of the voice actors throughout these tales are excellent; all were at least good. Unfortunately a couple of the stories are so shortened I struggled to follow what was happening - particularly in Wyrd Sisters. Beware those who listen to audiobooks whilst going to sleep; several moments are VERY LOUD! Also note that the final story isn't a Discworld novel, and sounds more like an episode of Doctor Who.
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31 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- C.Har
- 29-03-19
Fantastic value for fantastic content
As a big fan of all of Terry Pratchetts works this was an amazing find. I had had my doubts about audiobooks, but the BBC full cast dramatisations are absolutely brilliant. They take you much further than a standard audio read out of a book could. My only negative would be that they finished so soon due to me binging them.
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9 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Zoe
- 11-11-18
Fantastically entertaining!
As a die hard pratchett fan I LOVE these! I didn't realise that I needed Mark Heap as Rincewind in my life until this very moment. I really like that there are some of the less popular books are included as well as the more popular guards and witches. It's a nice refresher to hear them anew. I definitely recommend listening to these.
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8 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Kira Adams
- 14-07-19
A mixed bag, but very good overall
You really do get good value for your credit in this collection of radio dramas. However, I found that they were inconsistent in their quality.
I thought that Mort was excellent, perhaps because it was a rather simple story that translated well into a script. In particular, voice actor for Death was very good. Overall this was probably the best of the set.
Wyrd Sisters, in my opinion, did not translate into an audio drama very well. Even having read the book, I found the story rather confusing, and it was desperately in need of a narrator. The voice actors of the witches gave good performances though.
Guards! Guards! was pretty good, although it did cut out all the information about Carrot’s dwarf background which was kind of disappointing. I loved the sound effects for the swamp dragons. Carrot’s fake Welsh accent was pretty annoying, but Vimes’s actor was excellent.
Eric was an entertaining enough bit of nonsense. The story isn’t very good because it was originally written as a short picture book. However, casting Mark Heap as Rincewind was pure genius and I would give my right arm to hear him in the other Rincewind stories.
Small Gods I found incredibly boring. I read the book many years ago and felt the same way about it then. It’s a pointless story that doesn’t relate to any of the other Discworld novels, and it just isn’t entertaining. It didn’t hold my attention at all, and I was desperate to skip ahead.
Night Watch wasn’t bad, but it was an odd choice for adaptation, being the 5th Watch story. You’ll miss out a lot of context if you aren’t familiar with Men at Arms, Feet of Clay, Jingo, and The Fifth Elephant. The story felt rather “bare bones” and nowhere near as good as the novel. Also Vimes’s voice actor wasn’t as good as the previous one.
It’s hard to judge Only You Can Save Mankind because it’s clearly aimed at children. It was ok I guess. Probably kind of out of date for today’s kids.
Overall, definitely worth listening to, but if you want the full stories, you will have to buy the individual novels. Fingers crossed that one day we will get full-cast unabridged Discworld audiobooks!
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7 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Paul Ransted
- 11-12-18
Great but needs editing for this format
The acting and production are great, as expected from the BBC. However having the credits and still in the episodic form is not suitable for this format. I loved the discworld stories and remembered the books. However the last one is not discworld and I know why I never purchased the book, acting in the last was good but not my type of subject at all.
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 09-12-18
Mainly good
Loved all discworld stuff really good adaptations but think was opposite of save best till last as last two titles not as good as the others
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- sph
- 09-11-18
Get the unabridged audiobooks, instead
While the performers gave each of these abridged versions of Discworld novels their best, the audiobook originals are far, far better. These radio plays are such abbreviated renditions that the stories barely hold together, and, in truth, sometimes they don't. The magic and weirdness of the Discworld that make Pratchett's books such rare treasures are lost in the rush and jumble of these very short plays. Do yourself a favor and listen instead to the excellent, unabridged audio versions of each of these remarkable books. You'll be so glad you did.
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177 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Art_VT
- 01-11-18
Cut too much, and most of the jokes.
Each story is about 2 hours, and to get a 11 hour book to fit in a 2 hour story, much of the extraneous stuff has to be removed. Extraneous is all the interpersonal stuff that makes Terry Pratchett books so much fun. If you knew the story to begin with the radio plays are a nice reminder (allowing that you did not look forward to, and miss the parts that were removed), I think you would be happier to get the entire book and enjoy it.
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60 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jacobus
- 14-11-18
Radio drama + Terry Pratchett = MAGIC
Yes, it is not the complete text of the books, but I still enjoyed revisiting some of the best Discworld stories through this collection of BBC Radio 4's dramatisations. You will meet the Weird Sisters, Mort, get acquainted once again with the Small Gods, feel the Ankh Morpork cobbles under your feet while patrolling with Captain Vimes of the Night Watch dealing with dragons. "Guards! Guards!" and suddenly you travel back in time becoming the impeccable Sgt Keel. But just for the fun of it, the collection has one non-Discword story in it... helping you to remember WHY you love the disc world.
I really enjoyed these dramatisations. It is an excellent tribute to the work of Sir Terry Pratchett whose whit and unexpected take on things we miss so dearly. Buy this if you want to go on a trip through memory lane. Enjoy the radio dramas for what it is, radio dramas. Then I can guarantee you, you won't be disappointed.
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25 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Amanda Cook
- 07-11-18
Wasn't Sure At First
Most of it was delightful but Guards Guards was unfortunate. I understand having to change some things to make it work for radio but it didn't work for Guards Guards and Carrot was all wrong I feel.
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24 people found this helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Michael
- 02-11-18
It's not "by Terry Pratchett"
This is a dramatized performance based on Terry Pratchett books. The books are shortened and pretty much only dialogs are left.
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21 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Animated Puppets
- 11-03-19
The Good, Bad, and Overall...
The Good: Nice dramatization of the stories we know and love.
The Bad: This comes across more as Fan Fiction due to the changes in the stories. More than just abridged, the stories have been changed. Sadly, some of the changes were what made the originals so great so it was disappointing to see 2 dragons in love flying off into the sunset.
Overall: Treat it as Fan Fiction dramatized and you can still enjoy it. Highly anticipated this release but was left a bit disappointed in the final product. Overall rating 3 Ankh Morpork Sausages... and I'm cutting me own throat.
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14 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Georgia Shopper
- 11-11-18
Just ok
I'm a huge fan of Terry Pratchett, but this collection made me rather sad. "Guards, Guards" was the best of the group, but I've actually heard that one several times before purchasing this collection. I was hoping to find some new favorites among the others. But no... These were all wonderful books, so I blame the adaptations. I feel like all that was wonderful about the books was removed for these radio versions. "Guards, Guards" was good. At least that one was somewhat funny. The others were not. Overall I'd say skip this and buy an audio version of one of Terry Pratchett's books instead.
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12 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Eric De Terville
- 03-07-20
Discworld-ish
If you are looking for some good BBC Radio Plays this is a good deal. Hardcore Pratchett fans may want to pass this one by. The stories are adapted for broadcast and therefore shorter and rather bare bones in detail.
A well done series of plays and an entertaining listen if leaving something to be desired.
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9 people found this helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Mary K. O'connor
- 04-09-19
Adore Terry Prachett, BUT not this book...
This compilation was very difficult to listen to/hear-perhaps it was because it originally was a BBC Broadcast? Regardless, hard to understand some of the lines, accents hard to follow, especially when they mumbled. Music came on loud, then voices hushed-very hard to listen to.
Loved Mort, tho the ending was a little disappointing. Other stories not that great.
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8 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Shawn G
- 13-11-18
Terry's characters brought to life
This collection is amazing. It is a little odd to have Death's voice change in some of the stories but overall, I highly recommend this for anyone who loves Terry's work. #Inspiring #Magical #Satire #Funny #Heartfelt #tagsgiving #sweepstakes
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6 people found this helpful