Audiobooks by Samuel Pepys

Samuel Pepys - After the Fire: BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation

Kris Marshall (My Family) stars in this BBC Radio 4 dramatisation of the famous diarist's account of the aftermath of the Great Fire of London. Following on from the acclaimed radio dramatisation of Pepys' complete diaries, this further instalment of his chronicles focuses on events following the cataclysmic inferno that destroyed much of the capital four hundred years ago. When the Great Fire of 1666 was finally extinguished, little remained of London but smouldering rubble. Samuel Pepys witnessed firsthand the impact it had on the city and its people, and would be haunted by what he had seen for the rest of his life. Thousands of homes and many key buildings had been destroyed or damaged, including St Paul's Cathedral. Now aged 70, in poor health, and living with his servant Will in Clapham, Pepys remembers the devastation. He recalls burying his prize Parmesan to keep it safe, standing in Moorfield among the homeless as London burned, going out in his carriage to look at the ruins, and viewing the plans for the new city that would rise from the ashes – its centrepiece a magnificent cathedral that would be hailed as a masterpiece. Starring Kris Marshall as Samuel Pepys, this entertaining and enlightening adaptation by Hattie Naylor vividly conjures up the sights and sounds of Pepys' world. Duration: 1 hour 15 mins approx.

Hattie Naylor, Samuel Pepys (Author), , Hattie Naylor, Katherine Jakeways, Kris Marshall, Samuel Pepys (Narrator)

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The Diary of Samuel Pepys: The BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation

Kris Marshall and Katherine Jakeways star as Mr & Mrs Pepys in this BBC Radio 4 dramatisation of the world famous diaries.Samuel Pepys was 26 when he decided to start keeping a diary, in January 1660. For the next ten years he faithfully recorded the day's events and confessed his innermost thoughts. That diary has since become one of our most important, and fascinating, historical documents.Pepys gave us eyewitness accounts of some of the great events of the 17th century, including the Great Fire of London and the Second Dutch War. He also told us what people ate and wore, what they did for fun, the tricks they played on each other, what they expected of marriage, and even how they conducted love affairs. He described London - the frozen river Thames, the rising crime rate and the poverty - and recorded the details of his own life: his wife, rivals, lovers and friends, his work for the Navy, his drinking and social life.Over 350 years may have passed since Pepys first put pen to paper, but the man and his preoccupations feel surprisingly familiar. In this major BBC Radio dramatisation of the journals, the sights and sounds of his world are vividly conjured. This collection comprises all ten radio series plus a special Saturday Drama centring on the Great Fire of London.Featuring Kris Marshall and Katherine Jakeways, as well as; ewan Baily, Rebecca Newman, Matthew Gravelle, Manon Edwards, Blake Ritson, Dick Bradnam, Lee Mingo, Andrew Wincott, John Biddle, Stephen Marzella and Bendan Charleson.

Hattie Naylor, Samuel Pepys (Author), , Full Cast, Hattie Naylor, Katherine Jakeways, Kris Marshall (Narrator)

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Passages from the Diary of Samuel Pepys

The diary of Samuel Pepys is like no other book in the world. One reason is that its writer had no idea of making a book at all. He never dreamed of human eyes falling upon his blessedly frank and naked page. The record was a secret between himself and his own soul. To those who love humanity and vivid, unconscious writing, it is infinitely delightful and precious.

Samuel Pepys (Author), Fred Williams (Narrator)

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Passages from the Diary of Samuel Pepys

'The diary which Samuel Pepys kept from January 1660 to May 1669…is one of our greatest historical records and…a major work of English literature,' writes the renowned historian Paul Johnson. A witness to the coronation of Charles II, the Great Plague of 1665, and the Great Fire of 1666, Pepys chronicled the events of his day. His diary provides an astonishingly frank and diverting account of political intrigues, naval, church, and cultural affairs, as well as a quotidian journal of daily life in London during the Restoration. Pepys' vivid, unconscious style, originally written in a cryptic shorthand, reveals an ideal witness: honest, unpretentious, and true.

Samuel Pepys (Author), Fred Williams (Narrator)

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The Diary of Samuel Pepys

The Diary of Samuel Pepys is perhaps the most well known collection of reminiscences. He maintained it, in secrecy, from 1660, the year of the Restoration, until 1669 when fear of blindness prevented his daily labours. Though it covers less than a decade, it offers a lively and detailed insight into a period and a personality - for he noted events in both public and private life. Famous passages include descriptions of The Plague and the Great Fire of London. In this presentation, key sections are set in historical context.

Samuel Pepys (Author), Michael Maloney (Narrator)

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The Diary of Samuel Pepys

Samuel Pepys was born in London in 1633 and died in Clapham in 1703. In his life, he was Secretary of Naval Affairs and President of the Royal Society, mingling with the greatest of the land. He lived through civil war, plague, and the greatest fire London has suffered outside of the Blitz in World War II. In 1660, at the age of 27, he began a diary, chronicling one of the most colorful periods of the Restoration.

Samuel Pepys (Author), Alexander Spencer (Narrator)

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