The Wind In The Willows (BBC Children's Classics)

By: Kenneth Grahame

Narrated by: Dramatisation

Length: 2 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's Summary

Many of the original cast from Alan Bennett's acclaimed National Theatre production appear in this special dramatisation for BBC Radio 4 including Richard Briers as Rat, Adrian Scarborough as Mole, and Terence Rigby as Albert with Alan Bennett as the narrator. A wonderful, highly-acclaimed dramatic performance of a classic novel.

©1989 Kenneth Grahame

Charming - Not just for kids

This is an excellent production. Some of Britain's best contempory actors give voice to some wonderful animal characters. Music and sound effects add to this production's ability to transfer you to the Wild Wood, the Open Road or to Toad Hall. Slow and gentle, its great for even young children, while being well-crafted enough to smooth the brow of a harrassed adult.

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

My first kid friendly audio book

I needed a change of pace from what I regularly download, and so I chose this beloved children's classic. Though I like the musical numbers, I'm slightly disappointed that the Piper at Dawn chapter got omitted. Anyway, I chose wisely, I think.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

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What did you love best about The Wind in the Willows (Dramatised)?

The actors were superb. Of course, anything with Richard Briars will be top-notch.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

This was NOT true to the book, nor was it much like the BBC dramatization. It is interesting to see how someone can do a "take-off" on such a classic. This dramatization is more of a very funny performance featuring the bachelor/gay lifestyle. (Think the British comedies "Savage" or "Two Old Guys.")

What about Dramatisation’s performance did you like?

The book is a wonderful classic, but this performance is an interpretation, and a very amusing one, but is not true to the book, exactly. If you are very familiar with the material, you will enjoy it very much, since everyone has thought along these lines with this book. In this performance, the actors allowed themselves to continue along these less-than-completely innocent interpretations.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

This is a take-off on the classic, not a true rendition of "The Wind in the Willows." Rather than a magical children's story, this performance presents a sort of wonderful satire on gay/bachelor lifestyle (think the British comedies "Savage" or "Two Old Guys.") It is quite charming, and very amusing, but is not presented as the original children's story.

Any additional comments?

Get this for yourself, not your kids. They (hopefully) won't get it, but you will enjoy it. I wish the original BBC dramatization of this book would become available. It was FANTASTIC. (I ordered this because my tape of the original finally broke.) This is an interesting interpretation, but either find the old version, or purchase the unabridged performance available from Audible (it is fantastic, too) if you want to hear a rendition in the spirit of the original.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Classic Fun!

I still think it would help to read or listen to the full length unabridged version first to help your mind fill in the blanks, but overall it was a much better listen than a single reader trying to do all the characters.

Good Children's Story

I bought this for my child to listen to. It was a hit! We have listened to it twice now.

Perfection

Brilliant story brilliantly cast and all the characters/animals have personalities just like people we all know - so cleverly observed. Made me want to re read the original.

The Ultimate Dramatisation

What did you like most about The Wind in the Willows (Dramatised)?

I love this dramatisation of the wind in the willows it is the best i have heard of this classic story with a full cast and sound effects you wont find any better than this production.

Who was your favorite character and why?

All the characters of the wind in the willows are my favourite but i do love toad as many will agree as he seems to be everyones favourite.

What does Dramatisation bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

The cast members make this dramatisation come to life as does the sound effects i suppose its a complete package. The songs are great and its probably the best version of this classic tale.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I have listened to this many times and i even bought the audio CD from amazon.

Any additional comments?

I will never get tired of listening to this dramatisation its just fantastic.

A classic

I remember this from childhood and wanted to download so my son could enjoy it as I did. He is a little young to follow the story but enjoys the narration and in time I know he will love it. The great thing is it's entertaining for adults to listen to and an absolute classic unlike some more modern audiobooks for children. 100% recommend, beautiful narration. Loved it.