Showing results by narrator "Keith Barron" in All Categories

Jazz-loving Policeman Charlie Resnick is one of the most popular characters in contemporary crime fiction. This thrilling collection brings together three dramatisations and two original radio stories starring the Nottingham-based detective, all scripted by his creator, award-winning author John Harvey.

Acclaimed as 'the most thoroughly European of British crime writers' (Guardian), Nicolas Freeling was well known for his novels featuring Dutch sleuth Van der Valk and French policeman Henri Castang. Included in this collection are six stories showcasing both detectives, as well as a bonus programme exploring Van der Valk and his creator.

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast production of one of the earliest plays by Alan Bennett. The 1970s are a time of change, but Labour MP George Oliver feels stuck in one place: distrusting the ‘mawkish mentality’ of the young and fearing the encroaching life of the middle-aged, with little to look forward to but the imminent end of a not-very-interesting road.

Penelope Keith stars in the much-loved sitcom about an aristocrat forced to part with her family home. When her husband's death leaves her financially strapped, Audrey Fforbes-Hamilton has no choice but to sell her beloved Grantleigh Estate. With butler Brabinger in tow, she decamps to the tiny Old Lodge cottage, where she keeps a close - and disapproving - eye on the new squire: the nouveau riche Richard DeVere, a wholesale food magnate of Czech descent.

Every year in the United States there are fifteen thousand murders, give or take a few hundred. Of those, nearly forty percent go unsolved. In this six-part audio series, Christina Walsh is determined to change that. After struggling with the loss of her father, she sets out on a journey to bring the justice that has eluded her to the families of other victims. And she starts with a particularly strange case. The murder of world-renowned violinist Leona McPherson who mysteriously disappeared years ago after a concert at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles.

Roger is a writer of children's books, and all he wants is a quiet life. But when his wife, Julia, has to stay in hospital, Roger has to deal with his own complications: his difficult mother-in-law, her companion, Otto, and pressures from the publisher about the work he may or may not be about to hand in. It should be easy enough for a grown man to cope at home alone, but no one wants to make it simple for him, whether it's battles to get into Julia's visiting hours or temptations Roger never expected to face at his age.

A bold new dramatisation of Thomas Hardy’s classic, giving his story a 21st-century resonance. Tess Durbeyfield is driven by poverty to claim kinship with the wealthy D'Urberville family. But meeting her cousin Alec proves to be her downfall. This classic criticism of social convention is given a new treatment in this full-cast adaptation which blows away the shepherd's pipe and heritage stereotype, foregrounding Hardy's social and sexual radicalism.

John Durbeyfield (Keith Barron) learns that he is descended from the aristocratic Norman family of d'Urbervilles. He encourages his daughter, Tess (Claire Rushbrook), to befriend the family of Stoke d'Urbervilles where she meets Alec d'Urberville (Adam Godley). Tess is ultimately seduced by Alec and the effects of their affair creates dramatic ripples in Tess's life. In an attempt to make a fresh start, Tess begins work in Wessex at the Talbothay's farm where she encounters Angel Clare (James D'Arcy), the younger son of a parson, who asks her to marry him.

Winner of The Crime Writers' Association, Cartier Diamond Dagger, 2007.

Dana Matheison calls the police to report her flatmate, Nancy, missing. Dana's had a pretty grim Christmas herself: she's been sexually harassed by her boss, and may even have lost her job as well as her friend. Pretty soon the police have proof that Nancy was kidnapped, and then, as the New Year celebrations wind down, the first tape arrives - and Resnick knows they're dealing with a dangerous psychopath.

When a man is found in the middle of Alfreton Road in the early hours of a Sunday morning, stark naked and bleeding heavily from a chest wound, he is the latest victim in a series of vicious attacks on men. But enquiries in the mean streets of Nottingham's red-light district have brought the investigations to a dead end. But Charlie Resnick is the man for the job.

Sir Thomas Malory wrote his epic poem La Morte d'Arthur in 1470 and Arthur came to embody the ideal of chivalry with the interwoven stories of the Round Table, the Holy Grail and the glory of Camelot. Of course part of his story is that he will return, and in this recording he is splendidly recreated in a fine reading by Keith Barron. The stories are adapted from Malory by the popular children's writer Nigel Forde.

The Fables of Aesop have enchanted generations of children. Discover the pitfalls of lying with "The Boy who cried Wolf; the just desserts for selfishness with 'The Dog and his Shadow'; and the well-earned reward for virtue in 'Mercury and the Woodcutter'. Above all enjoy a good story in another outstanding recording in this series of Classic Children’s Stories.

Four of the greatest Greek legends produced in one magnificent collection - read and performed by Philip Bird, Keith Barron, Duncan Law, Stephanie Pack, and Kate Gielgud. Their outstanding performances introduce these timeless classics to a younger generation in a new and exciting way.