Showing results by narrator "Ben Allen" in All Categories

Too many popular histories seek to establish heroes, pioneers and martyrs but as Huw Lemmey and Ben Miller argue, the past is filled with queer people whose sexualities and/or dastardly deeds have been overlooked. We all remember Oscar Wilde, but who speaks for Bosie? What about those 'bad gays' whose un-exemplary lives reveals more than we might expect? Part-revisionist history, part-historical biography and based on the hugely popular podcast series, Bad Gays subverts the notion of gay icons and queer heroes.

In the aptly named borough of Foulsham, Grandfather Umbitt Iremonger has found a way of making everyday objects assume human shape, and turning real people into objects. Lucy Pennant has been discarded as a clay button, abandoned in the Heaps. Meanwhile, Clod has been turned into a gold coin and is being passed as currency through the town. Everywhere people are searching for Clod, who, it is believed, has the power to bring the mighty Umbitt down.

This is the true story of a Londoner who gives up his job as an estate agent in the city, moves to the wilds of Exmoor, starts a smallholding and becomes self-sufficient, with a few bumps along the way. Simon's journey from urbanite to self-sufficient smallholder is brimming with incidents - some funny and some tragic - leading him to question Mother Nature, himself, the food he eats and his role in it all.

Following a drunken misunderstanding, Simon Dawson gave up his job in the city, moved to the wilds of Exmoor and became an accidental self-sufficient smallholder with an array of animals. But that was years ago now. Following up on his first book, Pigs in Clover, this is the story of what happens when he suddenly realises that his life is changing all over again. He's not quite the spring chicken that he used to be: he is, horror of horrors, getting older.

The Classic Crime Collection is a collection of 12 classic detective novels, read by an esteemed cast of award-winning narrators. Included here are stories by some of the most iconic crime writers in history, including Arthur Conan Doyle; Wilkie Collins; Josephine Tey; AA Milne; and more.

Nicole and Tom's lives are changed overnight by a ten-million-pound lottery win. Before they know it they've moved into a state-of-the-art Glass Barn conversion in the stunning grounds of Lancaut Manor in Gloucestershire. But their dream quickly turns into a nightmare when Tom is found dead in the swimming pool, with a nasty wound on the back of his head. Someone close to home must be responsible. But other than the young couple who live in the Manor, and their housekeeper in the Coach House next door, there's no one around for miles.

The War Collection: Essential Battlefield Classics is a collection of 13 works of fiction, philosophy, military strategy, and epic poetry, read by esteemed cast of award-winning narrators. Included here are novels from Ernest Hemingway; military strategy from Sun Tzu and Carl von Clausewitz; essays from Orwell; philosophy from Freud, and epic poetry from Homer, amongst much more.

Jago is a kid from a rough part of London who has worked hard to get a job in a bank. Marcantonio is a member of the 'Ndrangheta crime families from Southern Italy. He is in Germany to learn how to channel their illicit millions towards legitimate businesses. When Jago witnesses Marcantonio commit a vicious assault, he is drawn into the middle of a delicate surveillance operation.

While contemplating his life and deeming himself ridiculous, a man on the verge of suicide is interrupted by a young girl begging for his help. In his dark mood, he brushes her away, but when he returns home to commit the act he cannot move past his feelings of guilt over his treatment of the girl.

Who would imagine a little gold ring could lead to kidnap, torture and even murder? How could the curse of the Pharaohs come to Falmouth? The year is 1923, and a young Cockney woman appears in Falmouth. Inspector George Bartlett and Constable Archibald Boase think she's harmless enough - until she and they are caught up in a seemingly endless cycle of mayhem and deceit.

Shakespearean is a rich, brilliant and superbly drawn portrait of an extraordinary artist, one of the greatest writers who ever lived. Through an enthralling narrative, ranging widely in time and space, McCrum seeks to understand Shakespeare within his historical context while also exploring the secrets of literary inspiration and examining the nature of creativity itself.

The inhabitants of Eden are untouched by death. In the garden they care for their orchards and the land, and give thanks for their good fortune, because they know that beyond the garden walls is a world where disease and hunger rampage. Eden is overseen by angels—their bodies covered in blue iridescent feathers, their beaks sharp and curved. It is a pleasant place where no one wants for a thing. But, as this story begins, something is wrong in Eden. Because years after Adam and Eve left the garden, another inhabitant has escaped…

Paige Henley has always dreamed of owning a bakery, but her busy life in New York City has never left much room for following her heart. So, when she’s given the chance to move to Port Landon to set up her own bakery, she’s ready to take a leap of faith and make her dreams a reality. When single dad and local veterinarian Cohen Beckett enters Paige’s bakery for her grand opening, there’s an undeniable connection, and Paige can’t help but notice an unfamiliar feeling in her chest.

This lively and informative exploration of the heart offers a perfect mix of medical fact and amusing anecdote. A prospective cardiologist and former paramedic - as well as one of Germany's most successful science-slammers - von Borstel relates his own experiences to provide a personal insight into the human side of heart medicine while clearly explaining the science behind cardiac disease and healthcare for the heart.

Renaissance Venice is a furnace of ideas and ambition. Artists flock here, not just for wealth and fame, but for revolutionary colour. Yet artist Giorgione 'Zorzo' Barbarelli's career hangs in the balance. Competition is fierce, and his debts are piling up. When Zorzo hears a rumour of a mysterious, other-worldly new pigment, brought to Venice by the richest man in Europe, he sets out to acquire the colour and secure his name in history. Winning a commission to paint a portrait of the man's wife, Sybille, Zorzo thinks he has found a way into the merchant's favour.

Meet Inspector George Bartlett and Constable Archibald Boase in their first investigation together. In the closing months of 1921, Bartlett and Boase have a missing girl on their Falmouth patch. Before long they find themselves drawn into a murder investigation when another girl is found dead on a local beach. We meet the Pengelly family, unwittingly drawn in through their daughter's involvement with the prime murder suspect, and find ourselves involved in mysterious goings-on at Penvale Manor.

Collected here are some of Dostoyevsky's finest letters to his family and friends, as-well as reminiscences from those close to him. This audiobook also includes thoughts on his life and work from his contemporaries (including Ivan Turgenev and Leo Tolstoy). These letters give an insight into the work, life, and psychology of one of the greatest writers of all time.

Set in a walled garden, whose inhabitants live an eternal and unblemished life, Eden opens with a summons. The gardeners of Eden are called by their masters, the angels, to see a dead body. It is that of a bird, a creature who has strayed beyond the garden walls. Outside, where there is poverty and sickness and death, this bird has met a fate that couldn’t have befallen it within the safe haven of the garden. And why would anyone want to leave? Eden is a place of immortality and plenty—bountiful fields and orchards and lakes, a place where the lord’s bidding is done.

Rob Stone comes back from the horrors of the First World War with a ruined face and a broken heart. Lonely, unable to forget the things he has seen, and haunted by the ghost of his dead Captain, all that Rob has left is a picture of the Captain's family. Rob sets out to find them, hoping that by bringing them the picture, he can bring peace to the Captain's ghost - and to his own troubled heart.

The Complete Charlotte Brontë Collection includes Brontë's 4 finished novels and a selection of her poetry. Read by an incredible cast comprising of Rachel Atkins; Ben Allen; Kristin Atherton; and Emma Gregory, this collection is the perfect opportunity to delve beyond Jane Eyre and discover Charlotte Brontë's complete writings.