Sexton Blake: The Eight Swords & Other Stories

By: Donald Stewart

Narrated by: full cast, William Franklyn, David Gregory, Heather Chasen

William Franklyn stars as Sexton Blake, with David Gregory as his assistant, Tinker, in four original BBC Radio dramatisations from 1967. Lost from the BBC archives for over 40 years, these rediscovered episodes are presented for the very first time.

• 'The Eight Swords': when a woman is found dead at Paula's hair salon, Sexton Blake is called in to investigate.
• 'A Murder of Crows': over the past six weeks, two men have been murdered. And both shared the name George Crow.
• 'Double and Quit': the top-secret Department Seven recruit Sexton Blake as a special agent.
• 'You Must Be Joking': a friend from Blake's club dies the day after receiving a sinister limerick.

Plus a special bonus episode: 'Murder on the Portsmouth Road'. In one of Britain's earliest surviving drama recordings (from 1930), Arthur Wontner stars as Sexton Blake, tracking down a killer on a stormy night.

Warning: due to the archive and off-air nature of some of the source material, the sound quality may vary. Also, some of the language on this recording reflects the era in which it was first recorded.

©2017 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2017 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Great Comfort listen

These Sexton Blake radio dramas with the always great William Franklyn are a great comfort listen. I just wish the BBC wouldn't tack on an early recording from 1930. The quality is so poor and the production so out of date it's not worth putting on there.