Philip Pullman
- Key Stage 3
Read by: Bob Rollett
Duration:
Benny, Thunderbolt, Bridie, Sharky and the Peretti twins are a mixed bunch of vagabonds and urchins who come together to form the New Cut Gang in two comic tales of stolen silver and skulduggery.
- Key Stage 2
Read by: James Goode
Duration: 1 hr
Aladdin is a shiftless good-for-nothing boy until he unwittingly acquires a magic lamp inhabited by a genie - and the adventure that follows both makes his fortune and makes him a man.
- Key Stage 3
Read by: Miscellaneous
Duration: 14 hrs 50 mins
Will and Lyra, whose fates are bound together by powers beyond their own worlds, have been violently separated. But they must find each other, for ahead of them lies the greatest war that has ever been - and a journey to a dark place from which no one has ever returned . . .
- Key Stage 2
Read by: Anton Lester
Duration: 1 hr 30 mins
Tick, tock, tick, tock! Some stories are like that. Once you've wend them up, nothing will stop them ...
A tormented apprentice clock-maker, a deadly mechanical knight in armour - and the sinister Dr Kalmenius, who some say is the devil ... Wind up these characters, fit them into a story on a cold winter's evening, with the snow swirling down, and suddenly life and the story begin to merge in a peculiarly macabre - and unstoppable - way.
Almost like clockwork ... - Key Stage 3
Read by: Bill Nighy
Duration: 30 mins
On a dark winter's night in 1970, Horley and Grinstead huddle for warmth in the Senior Common Room of a college in Oxford. Conversation turns to the two impressive works of art that Horley has recently added to his collection. What the two men don't know is that these pieces are connected in mysterious and improbable ways; and they are about to be caught in the cross-fire of a story which has travelled time and worlds.
- Key Stage 2
Read by: Mark Gatiss
Duration: 5 hrs 9 mins
The very first children's novel by Philip Pullman, Count Karlstien is a deliciously terrifying, wickedly funny adventure. All Souls' Eve is a night when nobody in the village of Karlstein dares to leave their homes. For that is the night that Zamiel, the Demon Huntsman, prowls through the forests in search of his prey...
This year, however, the Huntsman doesn't need to go searching. He knows exactly where to find his human prey. Ten years ago, he made a deal with the Count of Karlstein - and now the Demon Huntsman has come to collect his prize... Count Karlstien has offered up the lives of his two young nieces, Lucy and Charlotte. Lucky for the orphaned sisters, the Count's maid, Hildi, has heard his evil plan and is determined that they will not be this year's prey - not on her watch...
- Key Stage 2
Read by: Lolita Chakrabarti
Duration: 2 hrs
What Lila wants to be more than anything else in the world is...a Firework-Maker! But firework-making is not just about being able to make Crackle-Dragons and Golden Sneezes. There is also one special secret: every Firework-Maker must make a perilous journey to face the terrifying Fire-Fiend! Not knowing that she needs special protection to survive the Fire-Fiend's flames, Lila sets off alone. Her friends, Chulak and Hamlet - the king's white elephant - race after her. But can they possibly reach her in time?
- Key Stage 2
Read by: Robert Glenister
Duration: 3 hrs
The New Cut Gang is a group of urchins ranging from six-year-old Sharky Bob to 13-year-old Bridie Malone. They inhabit the streets around Lambeth Walk and the New Cut, in 1892. In this second adventure, £10,000 worth of silver is stolen from the Gas-Fitters' Hall and the New Cut Gang are immediately on the case. They enlist the help of Orlando, the strongest man in the world, and the Gas-Fitters' Ball provides them with the perfect opportunity to expose the villain.
- Contemporary Fiction
Read by: Philip Pullman
Duration: 3 hrs 30 mins
In this ingenious retelling of the life of Jesus, Philip Pullman re-imagines the most influential story ever told. He offers a radical new take on the myths and the mysteries of the Gospel truth and the resulting church that has so shaped the course of the last two millennia.
- Fantasy Stories
Read by: Sam West
Duration: 10 hrs 30 mins
In this beautiful book of classic fairy tales, award-winning author Philip Pullman has chosen his fifty favourite stories from the Brothers Grimm and presents them in a'clear as water' retelling, in his unique and brilliant voice.
From the quests and romance of classics such as 'Rapunzel', 'Snow White' and 'Cinderella' to the danger and wit of such lesser-known tales as 'The Three Snake Leaves', 'Hans-my-Hedgehog' and 'Godfather Death', Pullman brings the heart of each timeless tale to the fore, following with a brief but fascinating commentary on the story's background and history. In his introduction, he discusses how these stories have lasted so long, and become part of our collective storytelling imagination.
These new versions show the adventures at their most lucid and engaging yet. Pullman's Grimm Tales of wicked wives, brave children and villainous kings will have you reading, reading aloud and rereading them for many years to come. - Key Stage 3
Read by: Miscellaneous
Duration: 8 hrs
A breathtaking epic spanning multiple worlds, His Dark Materials follows the adventures of Lyra Belacqua and Will Parry, two children catapulted into a life-or-death struggle to save the future of the Cosmos.
In Northern Lights, 11-year-old Lyra discovers dark forces at work involving kidnapped children and a mysterious substance called 'Dust'. With her shape-shifting daemon, Pantalaimon, she leaves her Oxford college home and embarks on a dangerous journey to the frozen North, aided by armoured bears, Gyptians and a witch-queen...
The Subtle Knife sees 12-year-old Will finding an opening into the haunted world of Cittàgazze, where daemon-destroying Spectres roam. There he meets Lyra, and together they acquire the most powerful weapon in all the universes - an object many would kill to possess.
In The Amber Spyglass, a colossal war is brewing in Heaven, and Lyra and Will have been separated. They must find each other and journey onward - even into the World of the Dead...
These thrilling dramatisations feature an all-star cast, including Lulu Popplewell, Terence Stamp, Bill Paterson, Kenneth Cranham and Adrian Scarborough.
- Key Stage 2
Read by: Robert Glenister
Duration: 3 hrs
I was a Rat! Roger insists, and insists . . . In fact, when Bob the cobbler and his washerwoman wife, Joan, find the young boy abandoned on their doorstep, these are the only words he says. And he does have ratty behaviour, it's true.
Staying with Bob and Joan, however, Roger learns quickly to behave more like a human child. They try to find his parents, but the orphanage, police and hospital all have nothing on their records about a lost boy in the city. What is the truth? As more and more people find out about Roger the mysterious rat-boy he faces more and more danger. But sometimes help comes from the most unexpected of places . . . - Key Stage 3
Read by: Michael Sheen
Duration: 12 hrs 30 mins
Eleven-year-old Malcolm and his dæmon, Asta, live at the Trout Inn near Oxford. Across the River Thames, which Malcolm navigates using his beloved canoe, La Belle Sauvage, is Godstow Priory where the nuns live. Malcolm learns they have a baby with them by the name of Lyra Belacqua. Malcolm and Lyra are caught up in a terrifying adventure that takes them into a new world. Volume 1 of 'The Book of Dust' series.
- Key Stage 3
Read by: Philip Pullman
Duration: 1 hr
Follows Lyra and her daemon Pantalaimon in their attempt to help Ragi, another daemon, to find a healing cure from an infamous Oxford alchemist. As they get close to the alchemist’s house Lyra senses that she is walking into a deadly trap.
- Key Stage 3
Read by: Olivia Colman
Duration: 47 mins
Two years after the events of His Dark Materials, Lyra and her daemon Pantalaimon sit high on the roof of Jordan College, gazing down on the streets of Oxford. But their peace is shattered by a flock of enraged starlings, who seem intent on knocking another bird out of the sky - a bird that Lyra and Pan quickly realise is a witch's daemon. The daemon carries worrying tidings of a terrible sickness spreading in the north, and claims that only Lyra can help him - but is he really friend, or foe?
- Key Stage 3
Read by: Miscellaneous
Duration: 11 hrs 55 mins
'Without this child, we shall all die.' Lyra Belacqua lives half-wild and carefree among the scholars of Jordan College, with her daemon, Pantalaimon, always by her side. But the arrival of her fearsome uncle, Lord Asriel, draws her to the heart of a terrible struggle - a struggle born of stolen children, witch clans and armoured bears. As she hurtles towards danger in the cold far North, Lyra never suspects the shocking truth: she alone is destined to win, or to lose, the biggest battle imaginable.
- Key Stage 3
Read by: Philip Pullman
Duration: 2 hrs 15 mins
Another wonderful tale from the world of "His Dark Materials" giving us an extraordinary insight into the very first meeting of those two legends and friends, Lee Scoresby and Iorek Byrnison. As they cement a friendship that will continue throughout their lives, the tensions and pressure lead to a deadly conclusion…
- Key Stage 1
Read by: David Harewood
Duration: 30 mins
A sparklingly original reimagining of this classic fairytale from one of the most respected talents in children's books. Discover the tale of Puss in Boots as you've never experienced it before....Imagine how Jacques feels when he learns that his older brothers have inherited the mill and the donkey, and all he's got is the cat!
Well, he's not fed up for long, because he soon discovers that Puss is no ordinary cat....Not only can he talk (which is pretty unusual for a cat), but he's also got brains. And he's got a plan - a plan that involves Jacques, a Royal Princess and a very large fortune!
However, there are some things that Puss hasn't included in his plan, such as a very hungry Ogre, some sleepless Ghouls and more than a touch of magic....
- Key Stage 4
Read by: Kaye Topping Smith
Duration: 7 hrs 30 mins
If you've not yet met Sally Lockhart, prepare to be bowled over. The beautiful, smart 16-year-old can ride like a Cossack and shoot like a demon - and now she's braving terrible danger to hunt down her father's killer! Her journey will take her from the grimy streets of London to a Maharajah's Indian palace and the opium dens of China, unravelling a rich and colourful mystery at whose heart is a priceless jewel soaked in blood...
- Key Stage 3
Read by: Michael Sheen
Duration:
Lyra is now twenty years old, and Malcolm is a man with a strong sense of duty and a desire to do what is right. They must travel far beyond the edges of Oxford, across Europe and into Asia, in search for what is lost - a city haunted by dæmons, a secret at the heart of a desert, and the mystery of the elusive Dust. Volume 2 of 'The Book of Dust' series.
- Key Stage 3
Read by: Olivia Colman
Duration: 26 mins
Lyra and her daemon Pantalaimon have left the events of His Dark Materials far behind. In this snapshot of their forever-changed lives they return to the North to visit an old friend, where we will learn that things are not exactly as they seem...
- Key Stage 3
Read by: Adjoa Andoh
Duration: 9 hrs 9 mins
An elderly lady loses her money on an investment; a conjuror is pursued by thugs; and a clairvoyant mentions the name of the richest man in Europe and his mysterious company. Seemingly unconnected events set Sally Lockhart on the trail of an evil far more awful than she could ever imagine.
- Key Stage 2
Read by: Miscellaneous
Duration: 1 hr 41 mins
Rose and Lily and their little brother Ned live in an orphanage - a terrible place, where the porridge is thin and cold, and nobody smiles. One dark and stormy night, they decide enough is enough, and they run away. But hiding in the shadows, as they make their way through the dangerous back streets of London, is Mack the Knife: the most villainous of villains...
Hiding above the streets, leaping through the air, is Spring-Heeled Jack. He dresses like the devil and his name creates shivers in people, but he is ready for action against the evil-doers and scallywags of the city's dark streets - Mack the Knife included - and he might just be able to save the orphans.
- Key Stage 3
Read by: Miscellaneous
Duration: 8 hrs 53 mins
From the world of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials - now a major critically acclaimed BBC series. She had asked: What is he? A friend or an enemy?
The alethiometer answered: He is a murderer. When she saw the answer, she relaxed at once. Lyra finds herself in a shimmering, haunted otherworld - Cittagazze, where soul-eating Spectres stalk the streets and wingbeats of distant angels sound against the sky. But she is not without allies: twelve-year-old Will Parry, fleeing for his life after taking another's, has also stumbled into this strange new realm.
On a perilous journey from world to world, Lyra and Will uncover a deadly secret: an object of extraordinary and devastating power. And with every step, they move closer to an even greater threat - and the shattering truth of their own destiny.
- Key Stage 2
Read by: Robert Glenister
Duration: 2 hrs 30 mins
Lambeth, South London, 1894. Meet the New Cut Gang - Sharky Bob, Benny, Thunderbolt, Bridie and the Peretti twins: the greatest detectives since Sexton Blake. They inhabit the streets around Lambeth Walk and the New Cut, in 1894, a place bristling with gangsters, bookies, pickpockets, horse thieves and the occasional policeman. But who's passing counterfeit coins 'round Lambeth? Surely not Thunderbolt's dad, who's just been arrested....
- Key Stage 3
Read by: Terrence Hardiman
Duration: 14 hrs 30 mins
In a respectable tea-shop in London, a girl with a pistol is holding off three men. Sally Lockhart is fighting for her child - a child who is suddenly not hers any more. Sally is now twenty-five, and somebody wants to destroy her. She is unmarried - but she receives divorce papers from a man she has never even met, let alone married. Who is this evil stranger? His trap is so well-laid that she is powerless to disprove his lies. Now he has been awarded custody of her precious daughter. Driven from her home, desperately trying to understand what's happening, Sally is prepared to fight for her family's freedom. Even if it turns out to be a fight to the death.
- Key Stage 4
Read by: Anton Lesser
Duration: 8 hrs 57 mins
Sally Lockheart’s friend, Jim Taylor, solves a mystery when he finds Adelaide, a missing girl who is about to become the Crown Princess of Razkavia. The Princess is in danger from unknown enemies and Jim is employed as her bodyguard.
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