Macbeth

By: William Shakespeare

Narrated by: Sir Anthony Quayle, Robert Hardy, not specified

Macbeth is a tragedy by William Shakespeare about a regicide and its aftermath. It is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy and is believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1606. This is a classic audiobook recording read by Sir Anthony Quayle, Robert Hardy and other cast members.

Promised a golden future as ruler of Scotland by three sinister witches, Macbeth murders the king to ensure his ambitions come true. But he soon learns the meaning of terror – killing once, he must kill again and again, and the dead return to haunt him. A story of war, witchcraft and bloodshed, Macbeth also depicts the relationship between husbands and wives, and the risks they are prepared to take to achieve their desires.

©2009 HarperCollins Publishers; (P)2009 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic reviews

This must be one of Shakespeare's best plays. His style has developed in this text, compared with his earlier plays (Macbeth was written in 1606, just ten years before Shakespeare's death). Macbeth is superbly tragic, and gives a brilliant display of man's need for power, however he gains it.

Macbeth - Unintelligible as an audiobook

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

The audio of a stage play simply does not work. Would be better presented as a narrated audio drama.

What was most disappointing about William Shakespeare’s story?

The story itself is wonderful, but is unitelligible in this format. The audio deteriorates toward the end of the first book, then becomes intolerable in the second book.