Showing results by narrator "Simon Mattacks" in All Categories

Everyone remembers where they were when they heard that AJ Silver had died. In summer 1996, there was no avoiding the story that America's biggest teen pop sensation had plunged to his death on a rollercoaster at a family-run amusement park in rural England. Now, 27 years have passed, and – even if you’re too young to remember the event – you’ve probably heard AJ Silver's songs topping the charts again. So what better time to take a forensic look at what happened that summer?

1957. A catastrophe occurs at the pharmaceutical lab in Coventry where 16-year-old Wilf is working for the summer. A catastrophe that needs to be covered up at all costs. 2017. Phiney is shocked by the death of her grandfather, Wilf, who has jumped from a railway bridge at a Coventry station. Journalist Mat Torrington is the only witness. Left in utter disbelief, with a swarm of unanswered questions, Phiney, Mat and Wilf's wife, Dora, begin their own enquiries into Wilf's death.

Thomas Finbow is sent to help with a tragic fire at one of his master's tenant farms, but is soon embroiled in something far more sinister. The body of Simon Haylock is dragged from the blazing barn - and it appears he was dead before the fire even started. All is not well on the Berkshire Downs, as a number of fearful murders are discovered, baffling the authorities and striking fear into villagers' hearts.

In 1995, 12-year-old Sidney Parsons was savagely murdered by two boys his own age. No reason was ever given for this terrible crime, and the 'Demonic Duo' who killed him were imprisoned until their release in 2002, when they were given new identities and lifetime anonymity. Online journalist Scott King investigates the lead-up and aftermath of the killing, uncovering dark and fanciful stories of demonic possession, and encountering a village torn apart by this unspeakable act.

Asked to name a great physicist, most people would mention Newton or Einstein, Feynman or Hawking. But ask a physicist and there’s no doubt that James Clerk Maxwell will be near the top of the list. Maxwell, an unassuming Victorian Scotsman, explained how we perceive color. He uncovered the way gases behave. And, most significantly, he transformed the way physics was undertaken in his explanation of the interaction of electricity and magnetism, revealing the nature of light and laying the groundwork for everything from Einstein’s special relativity to modern electronics.

Eighty-one-year-old Eddie Wakefield is found brutally murdered at the nursing home where he lives. Crudely carved into his flesh - while he was still alive - is the number 15. Detective Jack MacIntosh and his team are determined to track down the ruthless killer of this frail elderly man. But the investigation is leading nowhere. Then the second body is discovered. The victim was stabbed to death in their own home.Again, the number 15 is etched into the dead man's flesh.

In The Heretic’s Handbook, the internationally bestselling author of The Secret History of the World has collected and codified ancient, secret wisdom from around the world, formulating a complete philosophy on how to live a happy and successful life. An acclaimed author and public speaker, Black shows how this body of knowledge has been declared ‘heretical’ both by the established church and by today’s atheistic intellectual elite.

When pop megastar Zach Crystal dies in a fire at his remote mansion, his mysterious demise rips open the bitter divide between those who adored his music and his endless charity work, and those who viewed him as a despicable predator who manipulated and abused young and vulnerable girls. Online journalist Scott King, whose Six Stories podcasts have become an internet sensation, investigates the accusations of sexual abuse and murder that were levelled at Crystal before he died. But as Scott begins to ask questions and rake over old graves, some startling inconsistencies emerge.

Rory Connor was a gambling man and he had a gambler's luck. From the day he was born, his mother had known that Rory would be the one to make something of his life. At seven years old he was earning money from odd jobs and by 14 he was in full-time work. By the time he was 19, he had escaped the factory to become a rent-collector. Now, at 23, ambition was in full flow and he was always looking to bigger and better games to play.

Avalon is under siege. A shadowy cabal, headed by a mysterious figure known only as "My Liege", has launched a series of deadly attacks across the globe, catching innocent human bystanders in the crossfire. Emerging from the debris of battle, Nate Garrett, the 1600-year-old sorcerer also called Hellequin, and his friends must stop My Liege once and for all. But powerful forces stand in their way. To save Avalon, they will need to enlist the help of Mordred, once Nate's greatest nemesis.

Having devoted his studies to optics and refraction, an impulsive scientist named Griffin has rendered himself invisible. Unable to reverse the effects, his struggle to survive grows desperate until he realizes that there are benefits to living out of the public eye. Increasingly isolated, he soon spirals into a life of crime and degenerates into madness. He can't see that he has become his own worst enemy.

After a chance meeting in the pub, Roger Morgan-Grenville and his friend Duncan decide to take up beekeeping. Their enthusiasm matched only by their ignorance, they are pitched into an arcane world of unexpected challenges. Coping with many setbacks along the way, they manage to create a colony of beehives, finishing two years later with more honey than anyone knows what to do with. By standing back from their normal lives and working with the cycle of the seasons, they emerge with a new-found understanding of nature and a respect for the honeybee and the threats it faces.

In 1889, satirist Jerome K. Jerome fully intended to write a serious travel guide when he and his two best friends embarked on a boating trip up the river Thames to Oxford. But his musings on landmarks and local history were soon hijacked by his own digressive, waggish voice. And so, what began as a peaceful and edifying two-week exploration soon floated upriver into farce - aided, quite naturally, by a portly ration of cheese, some very bad weather, and a dog named Montmorency.

As the boss of a high-end nightclub in the West End and with a never-ending string of gorgeous women on his arm, Tony is the darling of the tabloids. However, despite his success, the little boy who lived on the streets is never far away. Desperate for respect, he’s driven to achieve more and more. Most of all, he craves the acceptance of Ralph Gold and to become a bigger part of his extensive web of organised crime.

What do you do when the doctor says you could die at any moment? Well...after you’ve made a cup of tea, of course. Nathan James is young, successful and has the world at his feet. Unfortunately, he’s also about to die—which ruins things somewhat. And now he’s staring imminent death in the face, Nathan is having to rethink some of his life choices very hard. Then Nathan falls in love with a charming girl called Alison, which is a really stupid thing to do. Because how can you give your heart to someone when it might be about to stop?

In Battenbun, Northumberland, there live four Puddleton men - Grandpop, Old Popo, Pop and Peter. Three of them have two things in common: a squint in one eye and in the other, a glint for the opposite sex. Peter, his mother's only joy, has no squint and no eye for women either - until one day a customer calls at his garage on the edge of the village. The village hadn't seen anything like her before, and wasn't certain it wanted to, and from the moment of her arrival, things began to happen. An eel is found in a pond where none had been known to visit before.

During Britannia's tribal age, vengeance is brutal, bloody and will come for even those who think themselves invincible. Family feuds must be settled, whatever the cost. Both Seeress Meddi of the Eorlingas and Wærmund of the Gyrwe have old scores to settle. Meddi for her tribe to survive and thrive, and Waermund to cast himself from his father's shadow once and for all. But unbeknownst, Meddi and Wærmund share a common enemy who threatens them both – the elusive Elen and her ally is someone Wærmund has travelled the breadth of Britannia to outrun.

Premier League footballer Gabe Savage is on the way to one of the most important matches of his life when he gets a phone call from his wife. She has been kidnapped along with their young son. And the message from her captors is brutal: 'If your team wins, your family dies.' With the kickoff only hours away, there is only one person Gabe can turn to - his brother, Ray, a vicious London gangster. But a dark family secret means that he hasn't spoken to Ray for years. Can Ray help? And will he?

Following a tip-off from a contact in the Dutch Security Service, HARPA Director James Gates tasks his deputy, Amy Fox, to raid a container ship and secure a cache of smuggled biblical relics. Among the haul, they hope to find an enigmatic statue made by John the Apostle and the answer to a riddle about the Apocalypse.

When ex-army officer and UNESCO archaeologist Max Hunter is sent to Normandy on the trail of England's missing crown jewels, he thinks he's in for a few easy weeks. But when the ancient Mont Saint-Michel abbey is attacked by gunmen, Hunter and his research assistant Lauren Lane are forced to flee for their lives with a mysterious treasure chest hidden for centuries inside the abbey. After evading the assassins, Hunter and Lauren find something inside the chest with world-changing consequences.