England – Page 9

The Forgotten Enemy by Arthur C. Clarke

SFFaudio Online Audio

The Forgotten Enemy by Arthur C. Clarke

The Forgotten Enemy - from Avon Science Fiction And Fantasy Reader, January 1953 - Illustration by John Giunta

This is the third time I’ve posted about this wonderful podcast episode. The last time was just last year. But I’ve just come across another wonderful illustration, this time from a reprinting in an issue of Avon Science Fiction And Fantasy Reader, so I’ve just had top post about it again. It’s highly recommended listening.

A Bite of Stars, a Slug of Time, and Thou – The Forgotten Enemy
By Arthur C. Clarke; Read by Elisha Sessions
1 |MP3| – Approx. 1 Hour [UNABRIDGED]
Podcaster: A Bite Of Stars A slug Of Time And Thou
Podcast: 2008
In a bleak snow and ice covered London, a lone survivor faces isolation, polar bears and loneliness. But even his one hope, the idea that a rescue team is crossing the Atlantic ice sheet isn’t enough to stave off The Forgotten Enemy. First published in December 1948, in an issue of King’s College Review.

First broadcast in 2008 on Resonance FM 104.4 FM in London, U.K, The Forgotten Enemy is an excellent Arthur C. Clarke tale. Set in London, it tells of solitary man waiting for rescue. He can almost hear the helicopters. Yes, the helicopters. The slow, loud, helicopters coming inevitably from the north. But what of the terrible white menace that threatens his lonely existence? Can he survive?

One aspect of the tale may remind you of 28 Weeks Later, another may remind you of The Day After Tomorrow. But fear not, this story pays far greater dividends than either of those.

In the discussion that follows the story is described as a “cozy calamity” and it’s compared to Who Goes There? and A Pail Of Air. It is a wonderful podcast – all around!

Here’s the accompanying art, by Clothier, from the New Worlds printing:

The Forgotten Enemy by Arthur C. Clarke

Posted by Jesse Willis

Review of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke

SFFaudio Review

Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell
By Susanna Clarke; Read by Simon Prebble
32 Hours – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Published: 2004
Themes: / Fantasy / Magic / England /

Mr. Norrell is a fusty but ambitious scholar from the Yorkshire countryside. He is also the first practical magician in hundreds of years. What better way to demonstrate his revival of British magic than to change the course of the Napoleonic wars? Jonathan Strange discovers, to his dismay, that he is a natural magician. Because he “feels” his magic rather than depending on books as Mr. Norrell does, they wind up representing two distinctly different ways of doing British magic. Clarke deliberately used a style that calls to mind Jane Austen or Charles Dickens and thus transports the reader to a time gone by when spelling varied, footnotes could be long and involved, manners were paramount, and when it is possible to believe in such a thing as British magic.

I tried this book several times but either wasn’t in the right mood or was expecting something different. Hannah read it, loved it, shoved it on my nightstand, and nagged me about it (with that hopeful, wistful, little puppy look that a mom can’t say no to…). Once I began reading I couldn’t understand why I didn’t warm to it before … the writing is charmingly understated and amusing. Set in England during the Napoleonic war, it is about magic, English practitioners of magic, books about magic, and the Raven King.

However, once I was well into the book I got bogged down with the many wayside visits and long footnotes that added atmosphere but didn’t seem to advance the story. That is when I picked up the audio book from the library. Once I was listening, I began enjoying it immensely more than before. I think I do better with meandering books when on audio for some reason. Eventually I almost became addicted and couldn’t stop listening.

At the end the book suddenly picked up the pace with one thing happening after another. It ended in an unexpected way with some story lines being firmly concluded while others were left to drift off. Usually this would bother me but, in a sense, it was very true to real life, which makes me reflect upon the fact that the way the story was told was very like having someone tell it to you in person. They take little byways of explanation that may not have too much to do with the story and then come back to the point. In listening to the book this made for a delightful and somehow restful story.

This was wonderfully narrated by Simon Prebble whose dulcet tones and perfect pacing helped make the long sentences easily understood and who emphasized the humorous bits without overdoing it. There is no doubt that his narration is the key element that not only got me to the end of the book, but actually left me sad when it ended. Recommended but only for those who do not object to long, meandering stories with a lot of footnotes.

Posted by Julie D.

BBCR4 + RA.cc: The Hound Of The Baskervilles (1988)

Aural Noir: Online Audio

One of (if not the most) adapted novels in the history of cinema is The Hound Of The Baskervilles. I myself love the novel and have seen at least a half dozen screen adaptations. But the latest adaptation I’ve witnessed is my new favourite.

Bert Coules’ 1988 BBC Radio adaptation is absolutely fantastic. It keeps nearly every scene I like from the novel. Better yet, it’s use of sound, to both cut from scene to scene and to drive the action forward, is absolutely masterful. Audio drama of this quality is just that step above. It’s truly wondrous listening!

According to the notes on RadioArchive.cc (where I got it) this version has never been rebroadcast on the radio. That’s a big shame, it’s an absolute treasure!

Even more strangely this adaptation is actually the first of two separate Bert Coules adaptations of Hound done for BBC Radio.

The torrent is HERE.

The Hound of the Baskervilles
Adapted from the novel by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; Performed by a full cast
2 MP3 Files via Torrent – Approx. 110 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Broadcaster: BBC
Broadcast: 1988

Cast:
Sherlock Holmes … Roger Rees
Dr John H Watson … Crawford Logan
Sir Henry Baskerville … Matt Zimmerman
Dr James Mortimer … Peter Craze
Jonathan Stapleton … Jonathan Tafler
Beryl Stapleton … Caroline Gruber
Barrymore … Richard Tate
Mrs Barrymore … Barbara Atkinson
Mrs Hudson … Barbara Atkinson
Arthur Frankland … Norman Bird
Laura Lyons … Moir Leslie
Postmaster … John Baddeley

Violinist: Katherine Adams
Script by: Bert Coules
Produced and directed by: David Johnston

The Hound Of The Baskervilles - original iIllustration

Posted by Jesse Willis

LibriVox: The Outlaw Of Torn by Edgar Rice Burroughs

SFFaudio Online Audio

Submitted for your approval…

The Outlaw Of Torn
By Edgar Rice Burroughs; Read by Richard Kilmer and Susan Umpleby
19 Zipped MP3 Files or Podcast – Approx. 7 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: March 31, 2010
The story is set in 13th century England and concerns the fictitious outlaw Norman of Torn, who purportedly harried the country during the power struggle between King Henry III and Simon de Montfort. Norman is the supposed son of the Frenchman de Vac, once the king’s fencing master, who has a grudge against his former employer and raises the boy to be a simple, brutal killing machine with a hatred of all things English. His intentions are partially subverted by a priest who befriends Norman and teaches him his letters and chivalry towards women.

Otherwise, all goes according to plan. By 17, Norman is the best swordsman in all of England; by the age of 18, he has a large bounty on his head, and by the age of 19, he leads the largest band of thieves in all of England. None can catch or best him. In his hatred for the king he even becomes involved in the civil war, which turns the tide in favor of de Montfort. In another guise, that of Roger de Conde, he becomes involved with de Montfort’s daughter Bertrade, defending her against her and her father’s enemies. She notes in him a curious resemblance to the king’s son and heir Prince Edward.

Finally brought to bay in a confrontation with both King Henry and de Montfort, Norman is brought down by the treachery of de Vac, who appears to kill him, though at the cost of his own life. As de Vac dies, he reveals that Norman is in fact Richard, long-lost son of King Henry and Queen Eleanor and brother to Prince Edward. The fencing master had kidnapped the prince as a child to serve as the vehicle of his vengeance against the king. Luckily, Norman/Richard turns out not to be truly dead, surviving to be reconciled to his true father and attain the hand of Bertrade

Podcast feed: http://librivox.org/rss/3632

iTunes 1-Click |SUBSCRIBE|

[thanks also to Richard Kilmer, Laura Caldwell, mim@can and Annise]

Posted by Jesse Willis

New Releases: Rivers Of London by Ben Aaronovitch

New Releases

I talked to Ben Aaronovitch about his paperbook novel, Rivers Of London, back in SFFaudio Podcast #086. The audiobook, exclusive to Audible, is now available!

Rivers of London
By Ben Aaronovitch; Read by Kobna Holdbrook-Smith
Audible Download – Approx. 9 Hours 58 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Orion Publishing Group Limited
Published: April 8, 2011
Provider: Audible.com
Sample |MP3|
My name is Peter Grant and until January I was just probationary constable in that mighty army for justice known to all right-thinking people as the Metropolitan Police Service (as the Filth to everybody else). My only concerns in life were how to avoid a transfer to the Case Progression Unit – we do paperwork so real coppers don’t have to – and finding a way to climb into the panties of the outrageously perky WPC Leslie May. Then one night, in pursuance of a murder inquiry, I tried to take a witness statement from someone who was dead but disturbingly valuable, and that brought me to the attention of Inspector Nightingale, the last wizard in England. Now I’m a Detective Constable and a trainee wizard, the first apprentice in fifty years, and my world has become somewhat more complicated: nests of vampires in Purley, negotiating a truce between the warring god and goddess of the Thames, and digging up graves in Covent Garden… and there’s something festering at the heart of the city I love, a malicious vengeful spirit that takes ordinary Londoners and twists them into grotesque mannequins to act out its drama of violence and despair. The spirit of riot and rebellion has awakened in the city, and it’s falling to me to bring order out of chaos – or die trying.

Posted by Jesse Willis

A Bite of Stars, a Slug of Time, and Thou: The Forgotten Enemy by Arthur C. Clarke

SFFaudio Online Audio

It isn’t often I recycle an old posts. Why would I? They’re all still there! And if there’s something new about one I’ll typically just update the original rather than repost it. But, I’m confident that there are enough people out there, reading this blog now, that never saw our original 2008 coverage of the wonderful podcast/radio series called A Bite of Stars, a Slug of Time, and Thou. Because of that, and the fact that you’d be really missing out, this post can be one of the exceptions – a reminder that there’s a tonne of great old stuff in our archives, and out there on the internet.

One aspect of the tale may remind you of 28 Weeks Later, another may remind you of The Day After Tomorrow. But fear not, this story pays far greater dividends than either of those.

In the discussion that follows the story is described as a “cozy calamity” and it’s compared to Who Goes There? and A Pail Of Air. It is a wonderful podcast – all around!

A Bite of Stars, a Slug of Time, and Thou – The Forgotten Enemy
By Arthur C. Clarke; Read by Elisha Sessions
1 |MP3| – 1 Hour [UNABRIDGED]
Podcaster: A Bite Of Stars, A Slug Of Time, And Thou
Podcast: 2008
In a bleak snow and ice covered London, a lone survivor faces isolation, polar bears and loneliness. But even his one hope, the idea that a rescue team is crossing the Atlantic ice sheet isn’t enough to stave off The Forgotten Enemy. First published in December 1948, in an issue of King’s College Review, later republished in New Worlds.

Podcast feed: http://freakytrigger.co.uk/slugoftime-podcast/feed/

Here’s the accompanying art from the new worlds publication:

The Forgotten Enemy by Arthur C. Clarke

Posted by Jesse Willis