April
2004
(Please note that the prices shown are recommended
retail prices only)
For a month-by-month guide to titles
published since November 2000, take a look
at our previous releases page
Click on title links for more information and to buy.
Available from 5 April 2004
| Cutting
a Dash
(Eats, Shoots & Leaves)
Hear the BBC Radio 4 series that inspired the bestselling book.
In these five programmes, Lynne Truss explores the changing fashions
in punctuation. She accompanies the founder of the Apostrophe
Protection Society through Berwick Street Market on a hunt for
the ‘greengrocer’s apostrophe’, enters the classroom
to hear how children learn punctuation, and finds out whether
anyone punctuates text messages. Talking to writers and experts
like Fay Weldon and David Crystal, she discovers the origins of
the comma in Greek drama and Gregorian chant, considers the case
for ‘semicolonic irrigation’ and asks how a writer’s
choice of punctuation expresses tone of voice. Looking into the
future, she wonders if ‘emoticons’ will put colons,
commas and apostrophes on the endangered species list. This is
essential listening for anyone who loves language.
1 CD, 1hr 10mins, ISBN 0563 525029 £8.99
1 cassette,
1hr 10mins, ISBN 0563 525967 £8.99 |
|
| Eyewitness:
1900s
Eyewitness provides a rare opportunity to hear the history of
the 20th century described by those who were actually there. Tim
Pigott-Smith weaves together fascinating clips taken from the
BBC archives – many previously unbroadcast – with
an insightful commentary written by Joanna Bourke, Professor of
History at Birkbeck College.
The century began with British troops at war in South Africa,
then Queen Victoria's death prompted thousands to line the streets.
The coronation of Edward VII lent the nation a mood of glamour
and gaiety. The programme offers fascinating insights into life
in the 1900s – the manners, fashion, discipline, religion,
alcohol and sport. The voices of ordinary people are mixed with
those whose names still resonate today: writer Compton Mackenzie,
playwright Ben Travers, Marconi the radio pioneer, suffragette’s
daughter Sylvia Pankhurst, and Violet Bonham-Carter.
3CDs, 3hrs 30mins, ISBN 0563 530901 £17.99 |
|
Just
William Live on Stage 2
Martin Jarvis performs two full-length William stories that were
recorded live on stage at the Cheltenham Festival in 2003. In
William and the Lost Tourist, William is struggling to
memorise some lines from Shakespeare when a beautiful, young American
finds herself in his village by mistake. In The Leopard Hunter,
William has his work cut out trying to avoid family friend Mr
Falkner who manages to annoy the entire Brown household. That
is until William comes up with his own unique solution to the
problem.
1 CD, 55mins, ISBN 0563 524952 £8.99
1 cassette,
55mins, ISBN 0563 524901 £7.99 |
|
| The
Nation's Favourite Poems of Celebration
From the big events such as getting married and giving birth to
the smaller but still significant pleasures of the sight of a
rainbow or the feel of a pair of warm socks, there are many moments
of happiness to be cherished in our lives. Touching on such diverse
topics as love, friendship, the pleasures of the senses, nature
and the changing seasons, poets both classic and modern find cause
for celebration in this selection of popular poems.
Sylvia Plath marvels at the miracle of her child in You're.
Shakespeare, John Donne and many others celebrate the power
of love, while Walt Whitman and Anne Finch find enjoyment in solitude.
Here are much-loved classics such as To Autumn, Upon
Julia’s Clothes, Sonnet from the Portuguese XLIII,
I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud and The Lake Isle of
Innisfree as well as more recent favourites like Love
is, As Sweet and Smothering Sunday. Read
by David Thorpe, Celia Imrie, Nigel Anthony and Rachel Atkins.
2 CDs, 2hrs, ISBN 0563 530898 £12.99 |
|
| The
Private World of Kenneth Williams
David Benson, who won acclaim for his one-man show portraying
Kenneth Williams, reads extracts from the actor's famous diaries
in this extended version of the radio series first broadcast on
BBC Radio 4. Archive clips from Round the Horne, Beyond
Our Ken and other shows reveal the full originality of Williams'
comic genius and succeed in making a very private person a little
more public. This Radio Collection version features material additional
to the original Radio 4 broadcast.
'What makes this worth listening to...is David Benson's readings
from Williams's diaries.' Radio Times
2 CDs, 2hrs 5mins, ISBN 0563 529369 £12.99
2 cassettes,
2hrs 5mins, ISBN 0563 529350 £10.99 |
 |
| Round
the Horne, The Collector's Edition
Series 4
This collector's edition of the fourth and final series of the
classic radio comedy features all 16 episodes remastered and restored
to their most complete versions. Added extras include the 1967
Christmas Special and The Bona History of Julian & Sandy,
a bonus programme presented by Maureen Lipman.
9 CDs, 9hrs approx, ISBN 0563 528265 £69.99 |
|
Spanking
New on 7
This is digital BBC7's first original comedy series and to make
it the producers had to sit through 250 comedy acts. It's a hard
life for BBC producers, isn't it? The final 28 comedians made
it to BBC7's weekly Comedy Zone night and this release features
the best from the first series, including material not featured
in the original BBC7 broadcasts. Hosted by Robin Ince (Radio 4's
The In Crowd), this CD showcases the funniest men and
women who may become the big names of the future: Alex Horne,
Miles Jupp, Natalie Haynes, Howard Read and Andy Zaltzman.
Spanking New on 7 has an edgier and more adult feel than other
BBC comedy broadcasts. It's as close to being in a comedy club
as you can get but without the overpriced beer and hecklers!
1 CD, 1hr 10mins, ISBN 0563 523875 £8.99 |
 |
The
Waste Land & Four Quartets
These are masterly readings, by renowned thespian Paul Schofield,
of two substantial works of poetry by T.S. Eliot. The Wasteland,
first published in 1922, is one of Eliot's most influential works
and has long been on the syllabus for A-Level English literature.
Four Quartets consists of four long poems, first published
between 1935 and 1942. They are linked by common themes, and are
individually: 'Burnt Norton', 'East Coker', 'The Dry Salvages'
and 'Little Gidding'.
2 CDs, 1hr 35mins, ISBN 0563 523352 £12.99
1 cassette,
1hr 35mins, ISBN 0563 523301 £8.99 |
 |
|
Available from 19 April 2004
|
| D-Day
Despatches
This unique collection to commemorate the 60th anniversary of
the invasion in June uses original recordings from the BBC sound
archives to capture history as it happened on the frontline. It
brings together despatches from the BBC war correspondents who
brought up-to-the-minute, graphic descriptions of the largest
seaborne invasion in modern history – and one of the world's
most tightly kept secrets. Now on CD for the first time, these
reports from land, sea and air, as well as the Normandy beaches
reveal the courage of those who were part of the invading force
and those who documented it.
1 CD, 50mins, ISBN 0563 523913 £9.99 |
 |
| Dick Francis
Enquiry
A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation of Dick Francis's thriller
set among the greed and betrayal of professional horse racing.
Kelly Hughes, a leading jump jockey, and trainer Dexter Cranfield
have been suspended indefinitely for throwing a race for personal
gain. Hughes is devastated and sets out find out who rigged the
evidence against him with the help of Cranfield's daughter. This
exciting dramatisation stars William Nighy, Philip Voss, Selina
Cadell and Tony Osoba.
2 CDs, 1hr 35mins, ISBN 0563 523719 £12.99 |
|
| Richmal Crompton
Just
William 4
Now on CD, 12 stories selected and read by Martin Jarvis:
William Goes Shopping / Violet Elizabeth Runs Away / William
and the Real Laurence / The Outlaws and the Hidden Treasure /
William and the Fairy Daffodil / The Best Laid Plans / Mrs Bott’s
Hat / William Starts the Holidays / William Plays Santa Claus
/ William and the Snowman / Revenge is Sweet / William and the
Black Cat.
Also included on this CD is a bonus interview with Richmal Crompton
recorded in 1968.
4 CDs, 2hrs 55mins, ISBN 0563 524960 £15.99
|
|
| Marriott Edgar
The Lion & Albert
Thora Hird, Roy Castle, Les Dawson and many others read a collection
of classic Marriott Edgar monologues including the famous The
Lion & Albert tale about a young boy who went to the
zoo and was swallowed by a lion. Some of the other 16 stories
are Sam’s Racehorse, The Channel Swimmer
and The Magna Charter. These are brilliant gems of rhyming
fun from a golden comic era.
2 CDs, 2hrs, ISBN 0563 52491X £12.99
|
 |
| Georges Simenon
Maigret's
Little Joke
Georges Simenon’s French detective has four more cases to
solve in these brand new BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisations
starring Nicholas Le Prevost as Inspector Maigret.
The stories are The Yellow Dog, Maigret and the Burglar's
Wife, Inspector Cadaver, and Maigret's Little Joke.
4 CDs, 3hrs, ISBN 0563 524162 £15.99
2 cassettes,
3hrs, ISBN 0563 524111 £10.99 |
|
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