Join Amazon Prime and get unlimited Free One-Day Delivery. Already a member? Sign in.

 

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
   
More Buying Choices
16 used & new from £2.24
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
   
An Englishman Abroad: Starring Michael Gambon and Penelope Wilton (BBC Radio Collection)
 
See larger image 
Share your own customer images
Publisher: learn how customers can search inside this book.

An Englishman Abroad: Starring Michael Gambon and Penelope Wilton (BBC Radio Collection) [Audiobook] (Audio CD)

by Alan Bennett (Author)
4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
Price: £5.00 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In stock.
Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk. Gift-wrap available.

Only 1 left in stock--order soon (more on the way).

Want guaranteed delivery by Wednesday, July 15? Choose Express delivery at checkout. See Details
14 new from £2.24 2 used from £13.86
Other Editions: RRP: Our Price: Other Offers:
Audio Cassette (Audiobook) 9 used & new from £2.99

Frequently Bought Together

Customers buy this book with Alan Bennett, Triple Bill by Alan Bennett

An Englishman Abroad: Starring Michael Gambon and Penelope Wilton (BBC Radio Collection) + Alan Bennett, Triple Bill
Price For Both: £9.84

Show availability and shipping details

  • This item: An Englishman Abroad: Starring Michael Gambon and Penelope Wilton (BBC Radio Collection) by Alan Bennett

    In stock.
    Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk.
    This item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions

  • Alan Bennett, Triple Bill by Alan Bennett

    In stock.
    Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk.
    Eligible for FREE UK delivery on orders over £5 with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Alan Bennett, Triple Bill

Alan Bennett, Triple Bill

by Alan Bennett
5.0 out of 5 stars (3)  £4.84
The Clothes They Stood Up in (BBC Radio Collection)

The Clothes They Stood Up in (BBC Radio Collection)

by Alan Bennett
4.5 out of 5 stars (4)  £7.00
The Laying on of Hands (BBC Radio Collection)

The Laying on of Hands (BBC Radio Collection)

by Alan Bennett
4.7 out of 5 stars (7)  £6.65
Forty Years on: BBC Radio 4 Full Cast Dramatisation (BBC Radio Collection)

Forty Years on: BBC Radio 4 Full Cast Dramatisation (BBC Radio Collection)

by Alan Bennett
4.5 out of 5 stars (2)  £12.72
The Uncommon Reader

The Uncommon Reader

by Alan Bennett
4.4 out of 5 stars (76)  £3.49
› Explore similar items

Product details

  • Audio CD
  • Publisher: BBC Audiobooks Ltd (6 Aug 2001)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0563535792
  • ISBN-13: 978-0563535799
  • Product Dimensions: 13.6 x 12.4 x 1 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 16,255 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in these categories:

    #12 in  Books > Audio CDs > Authors A-Z > B > Bennett, Alan
    #18 in  Books > Fiction > Authors, A-Z > B > Bennett, Alan
    #18 in  Books > Audio CDs > Poetry & Drama

    •  Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

Product Description

Product Description
Michael Gambon is Guy Burgess and Penelope Wilton the actress Coral Browne in Bennett's re-telling of a real-life incident. Whilst touring 'Hamlet' Moscow with the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre in 1958, Browne is astonished to have Burgess appear in her dressing room. Having disappeared from England in 1951 together with fellow diplomat Donald Maclean, spy Burgess is a wanted man. Bennett's take on the encounter is both poignant and comic, and the play examines his life in exile, his love of England and his even greater love of Russia. This full-cast dramatisation was originally broadcast on BBC World Service.

Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
Check the boxes next to the tags you consider relevant or enter your own tags in the field below
(1)
(1)
(1)
See all 4 tags...

Your tags: Add your first tag
 
See most popular tags

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

An Englishman Abroad: Starring Michael Gambon and Penelope Wilton (BBC Radio Collection)
53% buy the item featured on this page:
An Englishman Abroad: Starring Michael Gambon and Penelope Wilton (BBC Radio Collection) 4.0 out of 5 stars (1)
£5.00
The Laying on of Hands (BBC Radio Collection)
16% buy
The Laying on of Hands (BBC Radio Collection) 4.7 out of 5 stars (7)
£6.65
Alan Bennett, Triple Bill
12% buy
Alan Bennett, Triple Bill 5.0 out of 5 stars (3)
£4.84
The Lady in the Van (BBC Audio)
11% buy
The Lady in the Van (BBC Audio) 5.0 out of 5 stars (7)
£6.99
Explore similar items
 

Customer Reviews

1 Review
5 star:    (0)
4 star:
 (1)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.0 out of 5 stars (1 customer review)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
4.0 out of 5 stars "The English never liked unconcealed appetites, and I had no restraint.", 15 Dec 2008
By Mary Whipple (New England) - See all my reviews
(TOP 10 REVIEWER)   
Author Alan Bennett's fascinating introduction to this play explains how he learned about a meeting between Guy Burgess, one of the Cambridge Five spy ring, who escaped to Moscow in 1956, and Coral Browne, an Australian actress touring Moscow with the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre's production of Hamlet. One evening, Burgess, a disheveled alcoholic, burst, unannounced, into her dressing room where he was violently ill in her sink. When he finally left, he also absconded with her soap, cigarettes, makeup, and her own drink. Despite this less than auspicious meeting, she agreed to meet him for lunch the next day at his apartment. It is this real-life meeting, lunch, and its aftermath that provide the action for this play.

Though Burgess has been in Moscow for two years, he has nothing to do, has never learned Russian, and has discovered that the gay scene, of which he was a part in England, does not exist in Moscow. His only "friend" is a state-assigned young lover who plays the balalaika. As Burgess and Coral converse over lunch, they listen to an old recording by Jack Buchanan, again and again, he thinking of the past, while she remembering Jack Buchanan as the man she thought she would marry. Neither has much interest in politics. Burgess is starved for "gossip" from home, and both find Moscow dull. Burgess is particularly anxious to have Coral Browne take his measurements for his former Savile Row tailor so he can have him some new suits made. The suits in Moscow lack "style.

The plight of the exile, be it political or social, has always been a main theme for Bennett, and though he does not write this 1983 play to drum up sympathy for Burgess, who died in Moscow in 1963, just seven years after defecting, he succeeds in raising questions about one's sense of identification with one's country--where does it originate and why, and, ultimately, does such identification with this concept of "country" make sense if the country's positions are alien to whatever else one believes?

In this BBC production, Michael Gambon makes Burgess a plausible, understandable character, while Penelope Wilton, as Coral Browne, is an excellent foil. Coral is no intellectual, nor is she political, so her role here is to bring out Burgess so that he becomes more understandable to the audience. In this she succeeds admirably. This play, now twenty-five years old, brings to life that period in which people looked for spies behind every corner and looked toward the Soviet Union as "the enemy." Those days are gone forever. The production is now a bit dated, as a result of more recent terror, but Bennett's look at what inspires citizens to betray their country is pertinent and important. n Mary Whipple

The Uncommon Reader
The Lady in the Van: Play (Faber plays)
Bed Among the Lentils (Acting Edition), one of my favorite short plays
The History Boys (A Play), better than the film
The History Boys: The Film
Talking Heads


Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)


Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Only search this product's reviews


Customer Discussions

 Beta (What's this?)
This product's forum (0 discussions)
  Discussion Replies Latest Post
  No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
  [Cancel]


Active discussions in related forums
   
Related forums

Listmania!

Create a Listmania! list

Look for similar items by category

Feedback

The Body Shop

The Body Shop - Vitamin C Skin Boost
Protect and boost your glow with The Body Shop Vitamin C Skin Boost.

›Shop The Body Shop

  

Beauty without the Beast

Olay Regenerist Daily 3 Point Treatment Cream
From au naturel to party glam, we have all the best names in cosmetics and skincare.

›Discover Beauty at Amazon.co.uk

  

We've Got Converse

Converse
Stock up on your favourite styles with great deals on Converse shoes.

›Shop Converse

  

Treat Someone

Amazon.co.uk Gift Certificates--available in any amount from £5 to £500 With an Amazon.co.uk Gift Certificate, you can get them what they want (even if you don't know what that is).

›Learn more about Gift Certificates

  
Ad

Where's My Stuff?

Delivery and Returns

Need Help?

Your Recent History

  (What's this?)
You have no recently viewed items or searches.

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.

Look to the right column to find helpful suggestions for your shopping session.
Continue Shopping: Top Sellers

amazon.co.uk Amazon Home
International Sites:  United States  |  Germany  |  France  |  Japan  |  Canada  |  China
Business Programs: Sell on Amazon  |  Fulfilment by Amazon  |  Join Associates  |  Join Advantage
Customer Service  |  Help  |  View Basket  |  Your Account
About Amazon.co.uk  |  Careers at Amazon
Conditions of Use & Sale |  Privacy Notice  © 1996-2009, Amazon.com, Inc. and its affiliates