Wednesday, 25 January 2012

The Epic of Gilgamesh




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This edition provides a prose rendering of The Epic of Gilgamesh, the cycle of poems preserved on clay tablets surviving from ancient Mesopotamia of the third millennium B.C.

One of the best and most important pieces of epic poetry from human history, predating even Homer's Iliad by roughly 1,500 years, the Gilgamesh epic tells of the various adventures of that hero-king, including his quest for immortality, and an account of a great flood similar in many details to the Old Testament's story of Noah.

The translator also provides an interesting and useful introduction explaining much about the historical context of the poem and the archeological discovery of the tablets.


1997 Edition 

Mark Twain - The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

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The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain is a popular 1876 novel about a young boy growing up in a small town along the Mississippi River.
The story is set in the town of "St Petersburg", inspired by Hannibal, Missouri, where Mark Twain grew up.

In the story's introduction, Twain notes:
"Most of the adventures recorded in this book really occurred; one or two were experiences of my own, the rest those of boys who were schoolmates of mine. Huck Finn is drawn from life; Tom Sawyer also, but not from an individual, he is a combination of the characteristics of three boys whom I knew, and therefore belongs to the composite order of architecture."

William Shakespeare - The Taming of the Shrew

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The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare 

This hearty comedy has always been a favourite with audiences. 

Three suitors pursue Bianca Minola, but her father won't let her marry until her older sister, Katherine, is married. Kate is wilful, loud, volatile and above all, shrewish. 
Her suitor Petruchio is stern, jolly, and somewhat odd. A match made in heaven? 

The play has an all-star cast including:
Bob Peck, Cheryl Campbell, Moira Leslie, Robert Glenister, Stephen Tompkinson, Douglas Hodge, Christopher Fairbank, Michael Deacon, Anthony Jackson, Willam Simons, John Badley, and Paul Copley. Music composed by Mia Soteriou. 
Directed and adapted for radio by Jeremy Mortimer.

First broadcast on Radio 3 in 1988
Length: 1 hr, 59 mins

Isaac Asimov - Nemesis




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One of the last novels written by Asimov before he died. classic in every sense of the word if one is into sci-fi.


Joseph Campbell - The Grail Legend


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Those already familiar with Joseph Campbell will know he was the foremost authority on the psychological reading of Mythology in the twentieth century. 

Most famous perhaps (the power of television!) for an American PBS series with Bill Moyers, though in my opinion, tapes of his regular lectures are really the best introduction. 

This is a MP3 rip of a tape series (hence the A and B sides for those who remember them) of a lecture on the Grail Legend. King Arthur's round table of equal Knights, going out to seek the Holy Grail is literally the stuff of Myth. Just remember, those setting out on their life's quest might do worse than remember the Knights of the Round Table, who on setting out, thought that it would be ignoble to travel in a group, each took their own turning into the forest "where he saw the forest was the thickest and there was no way or path...."

Philip K. Dick - Galactic Pot Healer







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Another quality unabridged gem from the masterful Philip K. Dick. comes complete with all the totalitarian futuristic paranoia one could want. despite the cover image, Cthulhu/ Ultros are not included.

William Shakespeare - the Merry Wives Of Windsor



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One of my more favored Shakespeare comedies along the lines of "Arsenic and Old Lace" or even Impulse. this version was done by the BBC back in '03, so it has the usual excellent music and actors one would expect from the Beeb.

H.G. Wells - Collected Science Fiction




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This is H.G. Wells at his best, delving into fantastic and strange worlds.

The Time Machine, perhaps Wells' best known work, tells the story of the first time traveler. In the distant future the human race has evolved into two beings: the gentle Eloi and their dreaded cousins, the Morlocks, masters of the underworld.

From Stories of the Unusual:
"The Country of the Blind" takes place in a hidden valley where it would seem that a man with sight would be king.


"The Diamond Maker" tells of a fortune that might have been.

"The Man Who Worked Miracles" recounts the problems of defying nature.
In "Aepyornis Island", a man has a special relationship with a prehistoric bird.


"The Strange Orchid" tells of the macabre appetite of an exotic plant.
"The Cone" is a shocking story of revenge.
"The Purple Pileus" deals with a life-altering fungus.
"The Truth About Pyecraft" is a classic that explains why an overbearing fat man wears lead underwear.
"The Door in the Wall" captures the pathos of lost youth.


Read by Ralph Cosham
Total Length: 7.5 hours

Tuesday, 24 January 2012

BBC R3 Documentary - 'Enoch Soames Day'

[Enoch Soames by Max Beerbohm]


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June 3, 1997.
British Museum Reading Room.

While waiting for the ghost in the reading room to
appear David Benedictus and Tom Brown give the back
ground to Enoch Soames, and descibe how Enoch Soames'
Day used to be celebrated.

Shades of Hari Seldon.


BBC R4 - 'In The Glenn Miller Mood'



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Tribute programme broadcast to celebrate the hundredth anniversay of Glenn Miller's birth.

Simon Townley talks to musicians to find out why audiences remain in the mood for Miller.


Broadcast March 2, 2004

Christopher Lee - Fireside Tales



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Broadcast originally on the BBC, this is Dracula/Saruman the White doing five creepy old tales of horror. Though there is a Poe one, I personally would have loved to have had him doing a Lovecraft tale.

Beowulf




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The one and only; completely unabridged. This is the epic narrative poem that has continued on for generations and for good reasons. great father Tolkien himself adapted the dragon in it for his novel The Hobbit.

Mark Leyner - My Cousin, My Gastroenterologist




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Hands-down the funniest and most engaging cyberpunk listen i've ever come across. Blend up Burroughs and Gibson and you'll have an idea of where you are headed.

Arthur Conan Doyle - Sherlock Holmes: The Adventure of the Dancing Men





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One of my absolute favorite Holmes stories penned by Sir Doyle; this story may induce one to start encoding everything. Read by one of the greatest voices to ever grace the part of Holmes ever, namely Edward Raleigh.

William Shatner - Up Till Now (2008)





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Autobiography by Shat which covers his entire career as an actor/renaissance man. Trek, TJ Hooker, Shakespeare, Yul Brenner, 911 and much more are all discussed hilariously here-in. read by William Shatner himself.

Philip K. Dick - Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?






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This is the book that the movie Blade Runner is based on. A sci-fi novel by famous author Philip K. Dick.

Total length: 2 hours, 52 minutes

Max Brooks - World War Z




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Max Brooks again proves that he is indeed the Romero of zombies in literature. excellent "history" of what happened in the future zombie invasion. read by Max Brooks and some others including Mark Hammill.

Sun Tzu - The Art Of War



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Slightly abridged version of the classic treatise on war.

Memory: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford)



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Memories are an integral part of being human. They haunt us, we cherish them, and in our lives we collect more of them with each new experience.

Without memory, you would not be able to maintain a relationship, drive your car, talk to your children, read a poem, watch television, or do much of anything at all. Memory: A Very Short Introduction explores the fascinating intricacies of human memory. Is it one thing or many? Why does it seem to work well sometimes and not others? What happens when it "goes wrong"? Can it be improved or manipulated through techniques such as mnemonic rhymes or "brain implants"? How does memory change as we age? And what about so-called recovered memories--can they be relied upon as a record of what actually happened in our personal past?

This book brings together our most recent knowledge to address (in a scientifically rigorous but highly accessible way) these and many other important questions about how memory works, and why we can't live without it. About the Author Jonathan Foster is Senior Research Fellow in Cognitive Neuroscience, Edith Cowan University. He is the author of Neuroimaging and Memory; Memory: Anatomical Regions, Physiological Networks and Cognitive Interactions; and the co-editor of Memory: System, Process or Function?

Joel Rosenburg - The Sleeping Dragon




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First book of a trilogy about some college students that get transported into a Warhammer-ish fantasy universe and learn to survive in it. somewhat like the old D&D cartoon show, but way better. fantasy pulp goodness at its best.

John Steinbeck - Of Mice And Men




3 Discs | ISBN 10: 1565117700 | 110.43 MB | ENG | September 1992


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Of Mice and Men is a novella by Nobel Prize winning author John Steinbeck, first published in 1937, which tells the tragic story of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced Anglo migrant ranch workers in California during the Great Depression.

Based on Steinbeck's own experience as a bindle stiff in the 1920s (before the arrival of the Okies he would vividly describe in The Grapes of Wrath), the title is taken from Robert Burns's famous poem, To a Mouse, which is often quoted as: "The best-laid plans of mice and men go oft awry." Though it remains required reading in many American, Australian, British, New Zealand and Canadian high schools, Of Mice and Men has been the frequent target of censors for what some consider "offensive" and "vulgar" language, and appears on the American Library Association's list of the Most Challenged Books of 21st Century.

William Shatner - Star Trek Memories



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Much like Nimoy's book, this account by Shat follows many production battles, stories and the like about the early days of Star Trek that he presents in his usual narrative grace. read by William Shatner.

Leonard Nimoy - I Am Spock



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Mr. Spock presents a audio affirmation that he is also a man named Leonard Nimoy. very funny book; lots of spock/nimoy banter and neat looks into olden Trek days. read by Leonard Nimoy.

Star Trek: TNG - Dark Mirror



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Excellent Mirror Universe story involving Picard coming to grips with his evil "twin". read by Q (John De Lancie).

Star Trek: TNG - Imzadi



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Time paradoxes and love triangles come to a head with this classic Trek tale about Deanna Troi. read by William Riker (Jonathan Frakes)

Star Trek: DS9 - Fallen Heroes



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Sisko and the crew of DS9 are invaded by a hostile force that threatens to destroy everything. read by Rene Auberjonois.

Twin Peaks - the Tapes of Special Agent Dale Cooper

Diane - Twin Peaks Tapes of Agent Cooper


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Diane...It is 3:41PM and i'm posting to you these collected recordings I made from Twin Peaks. Additionally i've included some supplements that were made elsewhere.

Star Trek - Preserver (Mirror Universe Trilogy)



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Final book of the Mirror Universe Trilogy finds Kirk in a literal race against time as he struggles against the forces of the Terran Empire. read by William Shatner.

Star Trek - Dark Victroy (Mirror Universe Trilogy)



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Book two of the Mirror Universe Trilogy finds Captain Kirk facing his demons as manifested in his counterpart, Tiberius Kirk. read by William Shatner.

Star Trek - Spectre (Mirror Universe Trilogy)



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Book one of the Mirror Universe Trilogy finds Starfleet confronted by a vast threat not of their universe. read by William Shatner.

Star Trek - The Return



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Captian Kirk returns from the grave which he was left in at the end of the Star Trek: Generations. read by William Shatner.

Monday, 23 January 2012

Alien Voices - Complete




Alien Voices, Inc. was formed in 1996 to create multi-media works of science fiction and fantasy. Its three founding members were actor/director Leonard Nimoy, actor/director/writer John de Lancie, and award-winning writer/producer Nat Segaloff. The first two Alien Voices audio titles were published in the spring of 1997 by industry leader Simon & Schuster Audio: H.G. Wells's THE TIME MACHINE and Jules Verne's JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH. December 1997 heralded the release of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's THE LOST WORLD. May 1998 brought Wells' THE INVISIBLE MAN, and in November 1998, THE FIRST MEN IN THE MOON was released. The first of two Star Trek® titles, SPOCK VS. Q, starring Leonard and John in the very first occurrence of these two Star Trek characters meeting, was released in October 1999. The second, SPOCK VS. Q: THE SEQUEL (of course!) appeared in December 2000.

Nimoy and de Lancie headline the dramas. The casts have included actors and actresses from various Star Trek television and feature film series, among them: Susan Bay, Roxann Dawson, Richard Doyle, Robert Ellenstein, Marnie Mosiman, Ethan Phillips, Andrew Robinson, Dwight Schultz, William Shatner, Armin Shimmerman, and Jean Simmons.

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Journey to the Center of the Earth






The Lost World





Spock Vs. Q






Spock Vs. Q - Bonus Video Disc





Spock Vs. Q - The Sequel





The First Men In The Moon





H.G. Wells - The Invisible Man





H.G. Wells - The Time Machine





H.G. Wells - War of the Worlds 





Enjoy! - Archivist


Alien Worlds

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"Slowly rotating, at the edge of deep space, one thousand kilometers beyond the atmosphere of 21st century Earth, is the Arthur C. Clark astronomical observatory Star Lab. Here, Star Lab research director Mora Cassiday, along with scientists and technicians of the International Space Authority, watch over the countless suns, planets and star systems that fill the universe."

Alien Worlds was produced and broadcast in 1979 and deals with the interplanetary peacekeepers on Star Lab. It was created by Lee Hansen, who also produced and directed all 26 broadcast episodes in two seasons. The series was syndicated and both seasons were often broadcast back-to-back.

The science fiction show was first syndicated by Watermark Inc. after Lee Hansen was hired as their creative director. After advancing the concept of an action-adventure dramatic radio series, Lee began developing the concept in the fall of 1978. Watermark premiered the first episode, "The Sun Stealers", on January 7, 1979.

The series gained popularity thanks to its relatable characters, full symphonic soundtrack, realistic sound effects, high production values and documentary style format. Eventually over 500 top-rated US FM radio stations, along with stations in New Zealand and Australia aired the series. Between 1979 and 1980, 26 half-hour programs were broadcast at various times on weekends, where they gained favorable worldwide press acclaim. Alien Worlds was soon heard on a weekly basis by millions of fans and was eventually carried by over 1500 top-rated FM radio stations worldwide. The series' sponsor was Peter Paul, Cadbury which advertised Cadbury Caramello chocolates touting their caramel centers.The ISA, or International Space Authority, is a governing body of space development and exploration. Organized by all earth nations, it advances humans into deep space. Their base is officially named "The Arthur C. Clarke Astronomical Observatory" or "Starlab." Commissioner White commands the base, and under his command aboard Starlab are Research Director Dr. Maura Cassidy along with Starlab's Director of Operations, Jerry Lyden, and two ISA Pilots affectionately know as "rocket jockies" Captains Jon Graydon and Buddy Griff.


Cast
* Roger Dressler as Narrator & Commissioner White
* Linda Gary as Maura Cassidy
* Bruce Phillip Miller as SET Captain Jon Graydon
* Cory Burton as Starlab Controller Jerry Lyden
* Chuck Olsen as SET Captain Buddy Griff

Alan Watts - Out of Your Mind




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In order to come to your senses, Alan Watts often said, you sometimes need to go "out of your mind." Perhaps more than any other teacher in the West, this celebrated author, former Anglican priest, and self-described "spiritual entertainer" was responsible for igniting the passion of countless wisdom seekers to the spiritual and philosophical delights of Asia and India. Now, with Out of Your Mind: Essential Listening from the Alan Watts Audio Archives, you are invited to immerse yourself in twelve of this legendary thinker's pinnacle teaching sessions on how to break through the limits of the rational mind and begin expanding your awareness and appreciation for "the Great Game" unfolding all around us.

Out of Your Mind brings you six complete seminars carefully selected from hundreds of recordings by Alan Watts' son and archivist Mark Watts that capture the true scope of this brilliant teacher in action. On these superb, digitally restored recordings, you will delve into Alan Watts' favorite pathways out of "the trap of conventional awareness," including:

• "The art of the controlled accident"what happens when you stop taking your life so seriously and start enjoying it with complete sincerity

• How we come to believe "the myth of myself" that we are "skin-encapsulated egos" separate from the world around us and how to transcend that illusion

• Why we must fully embrace chaos and the Void to find our deepest purpose

• Unconventional and refreshing insights into the deeper principles of Buddhism, Hinduism, and Western philosophy, plus much, much more

Whether you're completely new to Alan Watts or familiar with his work, here is a rare opportunity to experience him at his best improvising brilliantly before a live audience on Out of Your Mind: Essential Listening from the Alan Watts Audio Archives.

The Nature of Consciousness (CDs 1, 2) Have you ever seen an "inch" or touched an "hour?" Alan Watts reveals how our idea of the "self" is no more real than these abstract concepts and how to "untrain" ourselves from its limitations.

The Web of Life (CDs 3, 4) The universe is an infinite and intertwined tapestry of phenomena, yet most of us experience only a few spare threads. Look more closely at the "warp and weave" of creation, suggests Watts, and you may discover an astonishing wealth of meaning.

The Inevitable Ecstasy (CDs 5, 6) Pleasure and suffering, fear and exuberance Watts explores the surprising relationships among these universal experiences and the "inevitable ecstasy" they lead to.

The World As Just So (CDs 7, 8) "Any lecture on Zen will always be something of a hoax," begins Alan Watts, "because it deals with a domain of experience that by nature cannot be talked about!" Watts then proceeds to offer us a remarkably lucid and immediate explanation of this enigmatic "pathless path."

The World As Self (CDs 9, 10) At the heart of Hinduism, India's expansive spiritual world view, is the idea that we are all manifestations of one Actor "playing hide and seek" with Itself. Here, listeners explore the great unfolding drama we've cast ourselves in, and where the plot may be leading.

The World As Emptiness (CDs 11, 12) This third offering in Alan Watts' celebrated "World As" series invites us to face our fears about death -the Void that we normally run from-to discover that "we are as much the ocean as we are the individual waves on the water."

Megaupload is Dead, I'm replacing some links.


Dear Readers,

Some links to our modest audio archive were on megaupload, I'm re-uploading them to another file hosting site. It'll take more than some mildly intimidating bureaucracy to stop our enthusiasm for great broadcasts and audio stories.

Sincerely,


Your Archivist.

Sunday, 8 January 2012

BBC R4 Documentary - Swing When You're Laughing






Humphrey Lyttleton examines the links between
comedy and jazz '... two art forms that have
more in common than you might first imagine.'


The above paragraph tanslated: ZIB BAP BEDOODAP BAY ZIBBIDY BOOPAP!

Another unrelated note, my brother and I can sing all the scat in that jungle book song.

Produced by Stephen Garner
Presented by Humphrey Lyttleton
Broadcast October 21, 2003

BBC R4 - Blue Notes, Cold Nights




Thanks to films like "Round Midnight" we all know about black American musicians escaping racism and putting down roots in Paris. But the story of the African-American and African presence in Scandinavia has been one of Europe's best-kept secrets. Country blues singer-guitarist Eric Bibb, who learned his craft in the coffee houses of Greenwich Village but has spent much of his career in Sweden and Finland, explains how jazz and blues players such as trumpeter Don Cherry - step-father of R&B star Neneh Cherry - built new lives in exile. Dexter Gordon - the star of '"Round Midnight" was one of the pioneers, settling in Copenhagen in the early 1960s. Over the decades generous state support for musicians has helped the music scene in the region to flourish. But now that the host nations are facing their own immigration crisis, will musicians continue to find a welcome? And how easy is it to sustain creativity thousands of miles from your roots?

BBC R4 - Yeti's Finger





High up a remote Himalayan Mountain in Nepal is a Buddhist monastery. The monks say there is no doubt yeti's roam the high forest, they see and hear them and they sometimes even attack people. The tantalising prospect of being the first to prove that this mythical ape like creature actually exists has been the goal many explorers - but the beast has always evaded capture. Then the discovery of a supposed yeti's hand kept in the monastery set off a remarkable chain of events that drew in a mountain explorer, an American oil tycoon, a Hollywood film star and a high tech lab for forensic science in Scotland. But is it a yeti?

Some people will go to extraordinary lengths to be the first. Tom Slick, an American oil tycoon, had the money and the desire to try to prove that yetis really do exist. He used his vast wealth to mount expeditions, sending off climber and explorer Peter Byrne into the most remote areas of the Himalayas to follow any leads he came across, and one seemed worth investigating further - a hand of a "yeti" in Pangboche monastery in Nepal. Byrne did a deal with the monks and replaced one finger of the hand with a human finger and arranged to have the yeti finger smuggled back to London.

How the finger actually reached London is a most bizarre tale that involved Hollywood film star James Stewart concealing it in his wife's lingerie case. And then the trail went cold. Slick died, Byrne went onto other things and the finger was lost to the world until it was found by chance in a forgotten collection of curiosities in the Royal College of Surgeons in London. New scientific techniques are now applied to see if the yeti's finger really is what it claims to be - or if not - what on earth has a finger like that?

Presenter: Matthew Hill
Producer: Mary Colwell
Editor: Julian Hector

Saturday, 7 January 2012

BBC R4 - Bob Kingdom's 'Dylan Thomas: Return Journey'




Bob Kingdom's one man show about Dylan Thomas based
on Thomas' prose and verse.

Kingdom gives what used to be called a 'tour de force'
[a useful phrase which seems to have dropped from use],
and shows that, in another life, Dylan Thomas could have
made a good living on the stand-up circuit.


.

BBC WS - Your World: Down and Out in Paris and London



With a fierce debate raging across Europe over public finances, this documentary has gone back to basics to compare conditions for the poor today with life before the introduction of the welfare state.

We've re-traced the steps of the author George Orwell who, in 1929, stepped from his own life of privilege into a battle against dirt and hunger, for his work published as Down and Out in Paris and London.

When he lived in France, Orwell was often starving and desperate for money, but when he crossed the Channel to seek his fortune in Britain, the novelist lived the life of those who'd fallen even lower - he became a tramp on London's streets.

This of course, was more than 80 years ago - on the eve of the Great Depression - yet, as Emma Jane Kirby found out, as Europe tries to fend off another financial crisis, it's still very possible to follow Orwell's footsteps.

BBC R2 - The Devil's Christmas



Hope you had a good Christmas and New Years, hope you enjoy this little collection of stories (albeit a little late!)

The Devil's Christmas
Read by Christopher Eccleston
Produced by Frank Stirling
==============================


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Doctor Who star Christopher Eccleston reads a series of stories with a sting in the tail for Christmas

Episode 1: The Signalman
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Charles Dickens's eerie tale of a railway tunnel haunted by the ghost of a winter's death that is yet to come.

Episode 2: The Necklace
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In this story by Guy de Maupassant, a young wife yearns, like Cinderella, to go to the Twelfth Night ball. Her husband gets hold of a coveted invitation and she borrows a priceless necklace from a friend. What happens at the party, however, ruins their lives for ever...

Episode 3: Thurlow's Christmas
--------------------------------
John Kendrick Bangs's short story, Thurlow's Christmas, is about a demon, a mysterious stranger and a magical manuscript. Or is it..?

Episode 4: The She-Wolf
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Munro Saki, a master of black comedy, provides tonight's final ghoulish offering, The She-Wolf. At a winter house party, one unbearable guest claims to be a master of the dark arts. But there is consternation all round when he turns his hostess into a wolf and can't turn her back again.


Duration: 60 Mins (Each episode 15 Mins)