‘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 ...

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 ...

Benedict Cumberbatch reads five stories featuring the famous vegetarian railway detective, Thorpe Hazell, as heard on BBC Radio 4.In The Affair of the German Dispatch-Box, Hazell hatches a daring plan to retrieve a highly sensitive government document before it reaches the German Ambassador.In Sir Gilbert Murrell's Picture, When an entire wagon containing valuable paintings disappears from a goods train, Hazell's skill is needed.In The Affair o...

Benedict Cumberbatch reads Ian Kelly’s biography of one of the most beguiling and controversial individuals of any age.In this fascinating biography of the notorious libertine, Ian Kelly draws on documents by Casanova, his friends and his lovers (male and female) in order to bring fresh insights to the man’s life and world. The sights and smells of Eighteenth Century Europe are brought keenly to life, as are the colourful incidents of Casanova’s life. As the young cleric he embarke...

Original plays and dramatisations from the award-winning novelist and playwright, plus bonus documentary Viewing the Century: Michael FraynA renowned playwright, novelist, journalist, memoirist and translator, Michael Frayn has had a varied and prolific literary career spannning over seven decades. His play Noises Off was one of the 20th century’s most beloved and successful plays, and he has been lauded for his dramas and prose fiction exploring ...

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...

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.

Winner of Audiobook of the Year at The Specsavers National Book Awards 2018Penguin presents the audio edition of The Order of Time by Carlo Rovelli, read by Benedict Cumberbatch.The bestselling author of Seven Brief Lessons on Physics takes us on an enchanting journey to discover the meaning of timeTime is a mystery that does not cease to puzzle us. Philosophers, artists and poets have lon...

The ultimate, full-cast dramatisations of Homer’s two epic Greek masterpieces, with exceptional casts including Derek Jacobi, Christopher Eccleston, Tim McInnerny and Benedict CumberbatchREDISCOVER THE EPIC MYTHS BEFORE YOU SEE CHRISTOPHER NOLAN'S MAJOR MOTION PICTUREAttributed to the Greek poet Homer, The Iliad and The Odyssey are among the greatest and most influential works of the past 3000 years, often claimed as the cornerstones of We...

A collection of thrilling tales from the Golden Age of Detective Fiction, including six full-cast dramas and a short story read by Benedict CumberbatchIn the first half of the 20th century, the detective story exploded in popularity. Innovative authors penned whodunits, whydunits and clue-puzzle stories, and introduced iconic sleuths, creating works that would later become classics. This Golden Age, which reached its height during the 1920s and ’30s, saw the crowni...

A collection of thrilling tales from the Golden Age of Detective Fiction, including six full-cast dramas and a short story read by Benedict CumberbatchIn the first half of the 20th century, the detective story exploded in popularity. Innovative authors penned whodunits, whydunits and clue-puzzle stories, and introduced iconic sleuths, creating works that would later become classics. This Golden Age, which reached its height during the 1920s and ’30s, saw the crowni...

In this BBC radio full-cast dramatisation of one of Jane Austen's most beloved works, Fanny Price finds her life isn't going as she would have wished...Fanny grows up mostly miserable in Mansfield Park, where she has always been treated as inferior to her vivacious cousins. However, over time her steadfast and kind character make her an indispensable part of the household. Her cousin Edmund has always been her ally but navigating Mary Crawford and Mrs Norris proves difficult......