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Mark Twain: A BBC Radio Drama Collection
Mark Twain: A BBC Radio Drama Collection
Oct 8, 2024 10:25 PM

Author:Mark Twain,Full Cast,Jason Isaacs,Kelsey Grammer,Tom Goodman-Hill,Inika Leigh Wright,Trevor White,Ed Bishop,Jon Glover

Mark Twain: A BBC Radio Drama Collection

BBC radio productions of Mark Twain's very best novels and short stories - plus bonus material

Mark Twain (real name Samuel Langhorne Clemens), was one of the foremost writers and humorists to come out of the United States. Hailed by William Faulkner as 'the father of American literature', he is renowned worldwide for his classic novels The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. This wide-ranging collection comprises dramatisations and readings of a host of his much-loved stories, from well-known works to less familiar gems.

The adaptations include Tony Award-winning Bryony Lavery's rhythmic reworking of The Million Pound Bank Note; The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, dramatised by award-winning playwright Marcy Kahan; and The Diary of Adam and Eve, Twain's affectionate satire about the battle of the sexes. They are performed by full casts including Trevor White, Mark Caven, Christopher Jacot, Inika Leigh Wright and Tom Goodman-Hill.

Among the readings are an abridged version of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, in which Ed Bishop brings Tom's escapades to colourful life; the little-known yarn The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County (read by Jon Glover) telling the tall tale of an inveterate gambler and a talented amphibian; and The Prince and the Pauper (read by Jason Isaacs), an abridgement of Twain's historical fantasy about two identical boys born on the same day - one rich, the other poor. And in Mark Twain Stories, Frasier star KelseyGrammer reads five of the great author's finest short stories.

Also included is Kaleidoscope Feature: The Further Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, charting the troubled 100-year history of Twain's controversial novel, which has gone from being banned to being beloved - and back again.

NB: Contains language that listeners may find offensive

Cast and credits

Written by Mark Twain. First published 1867 (The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County), 1868 (Cannibalism in the Cars), 1870 (The Facts in the Case of the Great Beef Contract, A Ghost Story), 1875 (The Experience of the McWilliamses with Membranous Croup, Niagara), 1876 (The Adventures of Tom Sawyer), 1881 (The Prince and the Pauper), 1884 (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn), 1893 (The Million Pound Bank Note), 1931 (The Private Life of Adam and Eve)

The Million Pound Bank Note

Dramatised by Bryony Lavery. Produced by Pauline Harris and Sharon Sephton

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 31 December 2011

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

Abridged by Brian Miller. Read by Ed Bishop. First broadcast BBC Radio 5, 20-31 May 1991

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Dramatised by Marcy Kahan. Directed by Ned Chaillet. First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 15-29 December 2002

The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County

Read by Jon Glover. Produced by Mitch Raper. First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 4 September 1978

The Diary of Adam and Eve

Dramatised by Martin Glynn. Produced by Jenny Stephens. Directed by Peter Leslie Wild

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 20 March 2005

The Prince and the Pauper

Read by Jason Isaacs. First broadcast BBC Radio 7, 17 October 2009

Mark Twain Stories: The Facts in the Great Beef Contract, A Day at Niagara, Cannibalism in the Cars, A Ghost Storyand Experiences of the MacWilliamses

Read by Kelsey Grammar. Abridged and produced by Duncan Minshull. First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 15-19 September 1997

Kaleidoscope Feature: The Further Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Produced by Paul Quinn. First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 25 May 1996

©2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Reviews

Warm, wise . . . A never-before-seen insight into one of Britain's greatest songwriters

—— Woman's Own

Think you know everything there is to know about the Take That megastar? Think again . . . Gary is as refreshingly honest about his career 'failures' as he is about his successes, which reveals a different side to the showman many of his fans know and love

—— Woman & Home

Hepworth captures the feeling of immediacy and excitement that exemplified the storied St John's Wood studio...An appropriately pacy chronicle of rapid cultural/technological evolution

—— Ian Fortnum , Classic Rock

The story of recorded music itself. Great details leap from every page

—— Tom Doyle , Mojo

Hepworth, one of the most authoritative music journalists and historians, brings the studio in suburban London to life

—— Big Issue

Genius. So great... Wonderful!

—— Jamie Laing , Private Parts

Oh, how I longed to be in California with the glamourous Riva siblings when I was reading this [...] I did not want this book to end!

—— Prima, Book of the Month

With Malibu Rising - a novel as redolent of California dreamin' as a Lana del Rey track - Jenkins Reid has lost none of her touch ... A stroke of genius ... Imagine Blue Water High and Selling Sunset had a lovechild, or Jackie Collins rewrote The O.C. , then combine these ingredients with warm, propulsive storytelling, and you'll get an inkling of this family saga's escapist magic ... Immersive and relaxing, as every great beach read should be.

—— Evening Standard

When the party starts, it's celebrity mayhem but the heart of the book is family, love and loyalty. I adored everything about this punchy and incisive take on fame and its consequences, from the sympathetic characters to the salty surf atmosphere.

—— Daily Mail

Think Selling Sunset with knobs on as Taylor Jenkins Reid again plunges us into the intoxicating, heat-heavy realm of intrigue of Malibu, this time amidst the world of the filthy rich.

—— 2021 look ahead , BBC News

Perfect pure escapism.

—— Simon Savidge

A beautifully touching and thought provoking novel interspersed with Jenkins Reid's trademark wit and humour.

—— Essential Marbella Magazine

Malibu Rising is as much an impressionistic whirl of neon sunsets, acid-wash denim and high-cut bikinis as it is a grand set piece about a glamorous party ... Jenkins Reid has an easy, breezy style that serves melodrama on a daring scale . . . Never has so much sex, tragedy, celebrity and tanned skin been crammed into one thinking person's beach read. It's 365 pages of pure exhilaration.

—— The Times

Perfect for whatever holiday you hopefully get to take this summer.

—— Irish Independent

A riveting, propulsive bookwith characters that stayed with me, not because they are complicated but because they are so vivid ... Full of warmth and tenderness ... Deliciously escapist, conjuring the sun and the sand.

—— i paper

A gorgeous, sun-soaked novel that delves into the glamour and desperate hope of 1980s Malibu.

—— The Skinny

Fast-paced and addictive, Reid's vivid world-building provides the ultimate in summer escapism. With touches of 1980s glamour and scandal, Malibu Rising is another thrilling read from a talented writer, sure to delight old fans, as well as winning her new ones.

—— Independent

Perfectly evoking the sun-drenched and debauched backdrop that made Daisy Jones and The Six so immersive ... Addictive and fun, it's an essential addition to your summer reading list.

—— Stylist

Hot off the success of the immensely enjoyable 1970s band story Daisy Jones & The Six comes Taylor Jenkins Reid's latest, a superfun foray into the 1980s ... Delicious.

—— Sunday Telegraph, Novel of the Week

Simmering with sexual tension, this hugely enjoyable ensemble narrative turns on a raucous party.

—— Mail on Sunday

Malibu Rising is finely crafted commercial fiction, escapism in high definition, a quintessential beach read... If Nina Riva's party is the hottest ticket of the summer, then Malibu Rising is a front-row seat at the main event.

—— Irish Times

A gorgeous, sun-soaked novel that delves into the glamour and desperate hope of 1980s Malibu, and the saga of a family that will never be the same again.

—— The Skinny

The perfect summer novel, a vibrant story filled with sun, surfing, and flawed but lovable characters.

—— Daily Beast

After a year where most people stayed home, it's a great time to escape to the beach, even if only through Reid's writing.

—— Independent

This glamourous, compulsive novel is best enjoyed from your sun lounger with a cocktail in hand.

—— Good Housekeeping

A deliciously decadent tale of sex, tragedy, celebrity, surfboards and tanned skin in 1980s Malibu.

—— The Times

I absolutely loved her book.... It's an absolute blast to read

—— Alice- Azania Jarvis

JACKIE COLLINS, BUT BETTER Sacrilege to say "better", I know, but there we are. Set in the 1980s, Taylor Jenkins Reid's Malibu Rising is wonderfully written, intensely evocative and concerns the model/ surfer children of a rock star. Tons of glamour, tons of sharply observed insights about sibling relationships, plus a massive party. Beach read par excellence. See also her brilliant Daisy Jones & the Six, which is heaven (more rock stars).

—— Anonymous

When we picked up Malibu Rising, the new novel by Taylor Jenkins Reid, we could barely put it down

—— That's Life

You'll never want this book to end, it will suck you in and spit you out!

—— Muddy Stilettos
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