A Tale Of Two Cities

Robert Lindsay stars in this BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation of the classic novel by Charles Dickens. From the echo of the first line ‘It was the best of times, it was the worst of times’ to the final ‘It is a far far better thing that I do than I have ever done’, Dickens’ classic novel of the French revolution tells a story of the redemptive powers of love in the face of cruelty, violence and neglect. Set in London and Paris, it shows the plight of the French people under the brutal oppression of the aristocracy in the years leading up to the revolution, and the corresponding savage brutality of the revolutionaries towards the former aristocrats in the years immediately following. Among the memorable characters are Charles Darnay, a French former aristocrat who falls victim to the indiscriminate wrath of the revolution, and Sydney Carton, a dissipated English barrister who tries to redeem his ill-spent life out of love for Darnay’s wife, Lucie Manette. In this moving, intricate tale spanning eight tumultuous years, Dickens orchestrates the wider political picture behind the story of Lucie, Darnay and Carton with his customary brilliance. This epic production, dramatised by Mike Walker, stars Robert Lindsay as Dickens, with Alison Steadman, Jonathan Coy, Andrew Scott, Paul Ready and Karl Johnson. Winner of the Bronze Sony Award for Best Radio Drama.

Great if you've read the book!

Started listening to the audio but was a little lost - then i read it first, then listened to it again and loved it more!! it's a great audio! wonderful performance!! perfect casting...

Dramatized and abridged version

I was disappointed because it was abridged. To be honest, I find it a little creepy when the narrator in these stories, try to soften their voices when they are reading the lines of the women characters. So that's why I tried the dramatized version of this book. For me, it just didn't compare to the book. I will probably try a different non-dramatized version some day.