William Makepeace Thackeray

19th Century fairy tale criticising the attitudes of the monarchy and those at the top of society and challenging their ideals of beauty and marriage Two royal orphans regain their crowns with the help of the rose and the ring.

No one is better equipped in the struggle for wealth and worldly success than the alluring and ruthless Becky Sharp, who defies her impoverished background to clamber up the class ladder. Her sentimental companion Amelia, however, longs only for caddish soldier George. As the two heroines make their way through the tawdry glamour of Regency society, battles - military and domestic - are fought, fortunes made and lost. The one steadfast and honourable figure in this corrupt world is Dobbin with his devotion to Amelia, bringing pathos and depth to Thackeray's gloriously satirical epic of love and social adventure.

Best known today for his comic masterpiece, Vanity Fair, W. M. Thackeray was regarded in his time as the only rival to his contemporary, Charles Dickens. This collection includes Vanity Fair starring Stephen Fry as the Narrator, with Emma Fielding as Becky, Katy Cavanagh as Amelia and Toby Jones as Jos. Barry Lyndon starring Gerard McSorley and Andrew Scott alongside Shelia Hancock and Kenneth Cranham The Yellowplush Papers starring Adam Buxton. Pendennis starring Dominic Guard Arthur, with Hugh Dickson as The Writer. The Newcomes starring Simon Lack, Carleton Hobbs and Nigel Grahame. Bonus material includes Al Murray on Thackeray - Comedian Al Murray talks about his great-great-great-grandfather, William Makepeace Thackeray, and why he thinks Vanity Fair is still relevant today and James Naughtie and a group of readers chat to Andrew Davies about Thackeray's classic novel, Vanity Fair, which he adapted for BBC TV in 1998.