The Chronicle – Book Three (July to September)

This is history... but not as you know it! At Waterloo, women are stripping the corpses of their valuable shoes and stockings yet the Highlanders are left in mass graves with their coarse tartan socks still on. Roy Strong attending a private dinner with the Prime Minister notes that Margaret Thatcher in floaty chiffon is "the apotheosis of the boss's wife, with the appeal of cosmeticised putty." Even at the coronation of George IV, Queen Caroline, who is denied entry to the Abbey, is observed looking like "a blowsy landlady". As for the nude revue 'Oh Calcutta', it is noted that "there are some parts of the anatomy over whose movements the choreographer has no control”. Join Fanny Kemble as she travels at break-neck speed aboard Stephenson's Rocket and Joyce Grenfell as she washes her tennis balls and bakes them in the oven while Lord Byron conducts a fiery seaside funeral of his close friend Shelley.

“It’s WONDERFUL. In fact, I would describe it as one of the all-time audio greats... an unmissable five-star production.” (The Guardian)

“I recommend the reader to hunt down and buy this series wherever it may be found.” (The Spectator)

Dramatised and performed by a distinguished cast of over 30 actors, including Charles Dance, Harriet Walter, David Suchet, Timothy West, James Bolam, Maureen Lipman, Robert Powell, Jenny Agutter, Joss Ackland, Eleanor Bron, John Sessions, Imogen Stubbs.

Also available as part of the CHRONICLE BOX SET, over 11 hours of audio bliss.