In 1975, a gangly black 16-year-old from Dudley, decked out in floppy bow tie and Frank Spencer beret, appeared on our TV screens for the first time. So began the transformation from apprentice factory worker to future national treasure of Sir Lenny Henry. In his long-awaited autobiography, Lenny tells the extraordinary story of his early years an...

An audio newsletter containing Listening Books news, audiobook reviews, a quiz and an interview with actor and audiobook narrator, Hugh Fraser. 02.15 - Listening Books Update 06.25 - Interview with Hugh Fraser 20.45 - Audiobook Reviews 39.35 - Book Quiz

BILL BRYSON presents a fascinating exploration of THE HISTORY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. This highly entertaining BBC Radio 4 series is written and presented by Bill Bryson and based on his bestselling book, Mother Tongue. In it he romps through the history of Britain to reveal how English became such an infuriatingly complex - but ultimately world-b...

Includes: Two Interviews from The Parkinson Show. Between and 1971 and 1982, Michael Parkinson interviewed some of the greatest show business talents in more than 500 episodes of Parkinson.

With the Rolling Stones, Keith Richards created the riffs, the lyrics and the songs that roused the world. Over four decades, he lived the original rock and roll life: taking the chances he wanted, speaking his mind, and making it all work in a way that no one before him had ever done. Now, at last, the man himself tells us the story of life in the...

Playwright, actor, singer, songwriter, poet and scriptwriter, Sir No‰l Coward used his `talent to amuse' to spectacular effect for almost sixty years. Sir Laurence Olivier, Lord Mountbatten and Joyce Carey are just some of the voices heard paying tribute to the elegant star in this audio biography which is linked by the broadcaster and criti...

Gerard Hoffnung was an artist, musician, broadcaster, raconteur - and genius. A true Renaissance Man, the multi-faceted Hoffnung crammed a great deal into his tragically short span. Using much previously unreleased archive material, this audio biography, presented by Humphrey Lyttelton, looks at every aspect of his life and career. From his childho...

BBC Radio 4's extraordinary evocation of the experience of moonrise over the Severn Estuary, by award-winning poet Alice Oswald. Originally broadcast as the 'Afternoon Play' on 10 March 2011. Set to original music by Roger Goula, the subject of 'A Sleepwalk on the Severn' is moonrise, which happens five times in different forms: new moon, half moon...

Art historian Philip Mould discusses the art chosen by Government ministers in this BBC Radio 4 broadcast from 26 January 2011. Becoming a Minister has many perks, but one they can see every day is the art hanging in their office, often borrowed from the Government Art Collection. Art historian Philip Mould speaks to new ministers about what they c...

This fascinating collection of archive interviews with the acclaimed playwright, whose centenary was celebrated in 2011, begins in 1969 with a radio appearance on Out This Week. It culminates with an interview for Kaleidoscope in 1977, recorded a few months before his death. Inbetween are several major radio features on Rattigan's life and work, in...

An affectionate profile of Dick Barton - Special Agent, presented by John Hosken, including interviews with Noel Johnson, star of the Dick Barton radio series. Dick Barton is the radio character who refuses to lie down. Although it is over fifty years since the daily serial was dropped to make way for The Archers, fans still talk about their hero's...

A special audiobook of interviews featuring some famous names in the world of Shakespeare performance. Discussing their experience of Shakespeare at school and how they have been inspired to pursue careers that involve his work, this is a lovely resource for students who struggle with the Bard's works.

Across six decades, Sir Tom Jones has maintained a vital career in a risky, unstable business notorious for the short lives of its artists. With a drive that comes from nothing but the love for what he does, he breaks through and then wrestles with the vagaries of the music industry, the nature of success and its inevitable consequences. Having rec...

In It's Only a Movie, the incomparable Mark Kermode showed us the weird world of a film critic's life lived in widescreen. Now, in The Good, The Bad and The Multiplex, he takes us into the belly of the beast to ask: 'What's wrong with modern movies?' If blockbusters make money no matter how bad they are, then why not make a good one for a change? H...

To avoid fainting, keep repeating It's only a movie ...only a movie If you grew up believing that Planet of the Apes told you all you needed to know about politics, that Slade in Flame was a savage expos‚ of the pop world, and that The Exorcist revealed the meaning of life, then you probably spent far too many of your formative years at the c...

Over the past seven years, Bruce Springsteen has privately devoted himself to writing the story of his life, bringing to these pages the same honesty, humor, and originality found in his songs. Born to Run will be revelatory for anyone who has ever enjoyed Bruce Springsteen, but this book is much more than a legendary rock star's memoir. This is a...

Phil Collins gained fame as both the drummer and lead singer for Genesis and continues to enjoy worldwide success today. He's one of only three recording artists who have sold over 100 million albums both as solo artists and separately as principal members of a band - the other two being Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson. Revered as a drummer, he'...

Penguin presents the unabridged, downloadable audiobook edition of the revealing, inspirational memoir from the British winner of the Tour de France. The Climb tells the extraordinary story of Chris Froome's journey from a young boy in Kenya, riding through townships and past wild animals, and with few opportunities for an aspiring cyclist, to his...

In his own words, the heavyweight champion of the world pulls no punches as he chronicles the battles he faced in and out of the ring in this fascinating memoir edited by Nobel Prize-winning novelist, Toni Morrison. Growing up in the South, surrounded by racial bigotry and discrimination, Ali fought not just for a living, but also for respect and r...

Unblock your natural creativity with help from Reflections on the Artist's Way, Julia Cameron's groundbreaking audiotape on unleashing your inner artist. Her unique system helps instill the creativityhabit, while yielding powerful results. God's greatest gift to you, she teaches, is your creativity. It is a divine expression, which can be repaid on...

Johnny Marr was born in 1960s Manchester to Irish emigrant parents and knew from an early age that he would be a musician. Forming his first band at thirteen, Marr spent his teenage years on the council estates of Wythenshawe playing guitar, devouring pop culture and inventing his own musical style. It wasn't until the early eighties, when Marr tur...