Talking Heads (BBC Radio Collection)

Bennett, Alan; Routledge, Patricia; Cole, Stephanie; Walters, Julie; Hird, Thora; Massey, Anna

ISBN 10: 0563558946 ISBN 13: 9780563558941

Publisher: BBC Physical Audio, 2002

Synopsis

Performed by the author and five of Britain's leading actresses, Alan Bennett's tales are full of quirky, insightful detail that bring the characters vividly to life. From Julie Walters' portrayal of an actress seeking fame to Anna Massey's alcoholic vicar's wife, these individuals are linked by their self-delusion, desperation and vulnerability. In these compelling pieces, Bennett displays the wry observation, knowing irony and tender understatement that have ensured his rightful place at the forefront of contemporary writing. The stories included are: ‘A Chip in the Sugar’ read by Alan Bennett; ‘A Lady of Letters’ read by Patricia Routledge; ‘Bed Among the Lentils’ read by Anna Massey; ‘Soldiering On’ read by Stephanie Cole; ‘Her Big Chance’ read by Julie Walters and ‘A Cream Cracker Under the Settee’ read by Thora Hird.

3 CDs. 3 hrs 15 mins.

About this title

Review:

Alan Bennett's award-winning series of six television monologues, Talking Heads, may have been first aired in 1988, but over a decade later it is still impossible to read these deeply moving and affectionate scripts without hearing the voices of the actors who played them. Maggie Smith as the alcoholic vicar's wife finding a semblance of happiness in an affair with an Indian shop owner, Patricia Routledge as the poisonous neighbour, Julie Walters as the over-the-hill dolly bird auditioning for a porn film and of course Thora Hird as Doris, the old lady alone in her home having fallen and broken her hip. All great performances and all made possible by Bennett's wonderfully observant and poignant scripts. Bennett rightly notes in his introduction to the pieces that, maybe apart from Doris, his narrators are artless in that they "don't quite know what they are saying and are telling a story to the meaning of which they are not entirely privy". But through their artlessnes they reveal more about Britain today and the stresses and strains placed upon ordinary people, than any number of docu-soaps that now claim to show us real life. --Nick Wroe

Review:

"Talking Heads places Alan Bennett in the highest tier of English dramatic writers" (New York Times)

"His finest achievement - indeed masterpiece wouldn't be too strong a word" (The Daily Telegraph)

"Bennett's genius is his ability to satirize humanely. [His] prose is like stained glass: if you stare at it, you see things you missed" (New York Times Book Review)

"It's hardly a revelation to say that Alan Bennett has proved himself a master of the modern dramatic monologue... One of the finest dramatic achievements of the past few decades." (Scotsman)

About this edition

• Publisher: BBC Physical Audio
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0563558946
• ISBN 13: 9780563558941
• Binding: Audio CD