Showing results by narrator "Robert Hardy" in All Categories

The four seasons of the Wessex year form the backdrop for the delightful romance of Dick Dewy and Fancy Day. The ups and downs of their courtship are set alongside the story of the rustics who form the church choir.

Has Rumpole hung up his wig for good? Can it be? Yes, the beloved barrister is now retired (though far from retiring) and gently ripening to a rosy hue in the Florida sunshine. But a colleague's casual request for advice on a difficult case sends him winging back across the Atlantic, and before he's through, our hero will come up against a fanatical religious cult and a mysterious letter written in blood.

In these witty and comic stories, Horace Rumpole takes on a variety of clients and activities. He, of course, brings each case to a successful end, all the while quoting poetry and drinking claret.

Whether on land or at sea, can Jack Aubrey stay one step ahead of his enemies? With the Treaty of Amiens, England is at peace. At least for now. . . Accompanied by his friend, ship’s surgeon and spy Stephen Maturin, Captain Jack Aubrey has returned home to England and the life of a country...

Charles Strickland, a conventional stockbroker, abandons his wife and children for Paris and Tahiti, to live his life as a painter. While his betrayal of family, duty and honour gives him the freedom to achieve greatness, his decision leads to an obsession which carries severe implications.

In this, the first of Patrick O’Brian’s much lauded Aubrey–Maturin novels, discover a vibrant world conjured by a master storyteller, rich with detail and character. 1800. Napoleon Bonaparte is the biggest threat to peace yet seen. Newly promoted to command of his first ship, Captain Jack...

A ruthlessly ambitious Scottish lord siezes the throne with the help of his scheming wife - and a trio of witches. Anthony Quayle, Robert Hardy, Ian Holm, Stanley Holloway, and Jill Balcon star in an unabridged performance of Shakespeare's Macbeth.

Brought to you by Penguin. Revisit the world of Beatrix Potter in this timeless new audiobook edition. Featuring all 23 of the classic tales, this new collection features a range of award-winning and contemporary voices, including Olivia Colman, Tom Hardy, Lily James, James Acaster, David...

A satiric novel by Evelyn Waugh, published in 1930. Set in England between the wars, the novel examines the frenetic but empty lives of the Bright Young Things, young people who indulge in constant party-going, heavy drinking, and promiscuous sex. At the novel's end, the realities of the world intrude, with Adam Fenwick-Symes, the protagonist, serving on a battlefield at the onset of another world war.

Media mogul Lord Malan is the billionaire owner of The Blue Touch Paper, an old-fashioned, hard-right weekly magazine with traditional Conservative values. But the paper is so true blue, it’s losing its touch. Sales are falling and circulation is down – mainly because its core readers are either on the brink of death or foam-flecked with rage. It’s time for a new editor, and political commentator Anna is sure she’s a shoo-in for the position. Much to her disappointment, however, Malan picks a different candidate: Keith, the Guardian’s token Tory, who champions compassionate Conservatism.

The adventure continues . . . At the time of his death, Patrick O'Brian had begun to write the twenty-first book in his famous and much-loved Aubrey–Maturin series. The chapters he left behind are presented here, both in printed version and a facsimile of his manuscript, which goes several...

Thornton Wilder is one of America's most important literary figures. He won the Pulitzer Prize three times - for his novel The Bridge of San Luis Rey and the plays Our Town and The Skin of Our Teeth - and is the only person to be awarded the Pulitzer for both fiction and drama. Included here are four of his key works, set in different times and places, but sharing the same fundamental motifs - the universality of human experience and our search for life's meaning.

William Collins Books and Decca Records are proud to present ARGO Classics, a historic catalogue of classic fiction read by some of the world’s most renowned voices. Originally released as vinyl records, these expertly remastered stories are now available to download for the first time. This...

Can Captain Jack Aubrey and his crew defy the odds, and outmanoeuvre the French, to take two small but vital islands in the Indian Ocean? Life ashore on half pay, despite the joys of family life, is unlikely to satisfy a man of action such as Jack Aubrey. The sea calls to him. And so, when his...

On foreign shores, and far from home, a friend can become a foe in a heartbeat. Shipwrecked on an uninhabited island in the Dutch East Indies as the Napoleonic Wars rage on, circumstances look far from promising for Captain Jack Aubrey and his crew. And yet, having overcome the odds and...

How far will a man go in the name of revenge, honour, love or simple survival? Far from familiar seas, Captain Jack Aubrey and his crew must test themselves to the very limits of human endurance. Following a daring rescue, Jack Aubrey accepts a new command and a new commission to a far-flung...

On Desolation Island, with the known world out of reach, uneasy alliances are sometimes forged… Captain Bligh, of Bounty fame, is now governor of New South Wales and facing mutiny anew, having lost the support of local settlers. Jack Aubrey is commissioned to come to his rescue. With a...

To whom does one’s true allegiance lie? Jack Aubrey’s long service has at last been rewarded with promotion to the rank of commodore, and a squadron of ships to command. His new commission is twofold – first, inhibit the slave trade off the coast of West Africa, and then, on his return...

With factions on board, and multiple enemies to contend with, only the most careful navigation will save them. As he sails away from Port Jackson, Captain Jack Aubrey feels nothing but relief at leaving the penal colony and its inhabitants far behind. But, unknown to him, hidden among his crew...

There is a fine line between privateer and pirate, between friend and foe. With a beleaguered Britain already facing war on two fronts – against Napoleon’s armies in Europe but also against the young and vigorous United States – the objective of ship’s surgeon and spy Stephen Maturin is...