Audiobooks narrated by Alex Jennings

The Crown: The Official Companion - Elizabeth II, Winston Churchill, and the Making of a Young Queen

The official companion to the critically acclaimed Netflix drama about the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, The Crown by Peter Morgan, featuring additional historical background and exclusive images. Starring Claire Foy as Queen Elizabeth II and John Lithgow as Winston Churchill, Netflix's original series The Crown, created by Peter Morgan and growing out of his Oscar-winning movie The Queen starring Helen Mirren, paints a unique and intimate portrait of Britain's longest-reigning monarch. This official companion to the show's first season is an in-depth exploration of the early years of Elizabeth II's time as Queen, complete with extensive research, additional material, and exclusive, beautifully reproduced images. One of the show's most powerful themes is that royals do not choose their duty; it is thrust upon them. Princess Elizabeth never expected her father to die so suddenly, so young, leaving her not only a throne to fill but a global institution to govern. Crowned at twenty-five, already a wife and mother, follow the journey of a woman learning to become a queen while facing her own challenges within her own family. This is the story of how Elizabeth II drew on every ounce of strength and British reserve to deal with crises not only on the continent but at home as well. Written by bestselling historical biographer Robert Lacey, who also serves as the show's historical consultant, this official companion provides an in-depth exploration from behind the palace gates. Relive the majesty of the first season of the hit show, with behind-the-scenes photos, meticulously researched images from the time, and more.

Robert Lacey, Robert Lacey (Author), Alex Jennings, Alex Jennings (Narrator)

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20,000 Leagues Under The Sea

Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea is an action-packed story of a voyage into the unknown - an enthralling mixture of 'fact' and fiction. Although Jules Verne is describing the most fantastic of events, he gives credence to them by packing the novel with details and dates. To add further weight, the narrator is a man of science - the respected Professor Aronnax. It is through his empathy with Captain Nemo that the reader comes to know the fallen, tortured soul who has condemned himself ceaselessly to roam the seas. His story elevates a good, rip-roaring yarn into fine tragedy.

Jules Verne (Author), Alex Jennings, Alex Jennings (Narrator)

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Military Gazette - Navy

The Military Gazette, is a vivid portrait of military life through the centuries, as lived by the generations of men and women who took part. We eavesdrop on some of the most turbulent and colourful events, from bow & arrow to atomic bomb, we draw on the first hand experiences of Englishmen and women, as they provide a fascinating and often moving description of the British at war. The Navy edition journeys from the Anglo Saxon Chronicle's account of a Viking invasion to a young sailor's grief at the death of Horatio Nelson; from the Spanish Armada to the Battle of Jutland and from organised press gangs to murderous mutinies we share the personal experiences of life in the British Navy. Narrated by Eileen Atkins; Cheryl Campbell; Nigel Davenport; Alex Jennings; Richard Johnson; Hugh Laurie; Michael Maloney; Geoffrey Palmer; Michael Pennington; Prunella Scales; Samuel West, and John Wood.

Various Artists, Various Artists (Author), Alex Jennings, Alex Jennings, Cheryl Campbell, Eileen Atkins, Geoffrey Palmer, Hugh Laurie, Michael Maloney, Michael Pennington, Nigel Davenport, Prunella Scales, Prunella Scales, Richard Johnson, Samuel West (Narrator)

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Military Gazette - Army

The Military Gazette is a vivid portrait of military life through the centuries, as lived by the generations of men and women who took part. We eavesdrop on some of the most turbulent and colourful events, from bow-and-arrow to atomic bomb, and we draw on the first-hand experiences of Englishmen and women, as they provide a fascinating and often moving description of the British at war. In the Army edition we follow the fortunes of the British soldier from the Roman invasion of Britain to his defeat at Dunkirk, from the terrible horrors of the Battle of Culloden to his courage against the Zulu's at Rourke's drift, from heroes to cowards we hear their stories as they move implacably from bows to bayonets. Narrated by Eileen Atkins; Cheryl Campbell; Nigel Davenport; Alex Jennings; Richard Johnson; Hugh Laurie; Michael Maloney; Geoffrey Palmer; Michael Pennington; Prunella Scales; Samuel West, and John Wood

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Sports Gazette - Sports Edition

The Sporting Gazette is a rousing gallop through the British sporting calendar of the last nine hundred years in the company of chroniclers, diarists and letter-writers as we eavesdrop on some of the most memorable events in the colourful history of British sport, as performed by an outstanding cast of actors. The Sports edition journeys from sword fights to boxing and jousting to motor racing, we join such diverse characters as A. A. Milne, Dick Francis, Queen Victoria, Kenneth Wolstenholme, Tony Jacklin and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle as they share their experiences of England winning the 1996 world cup; the very first game of rugby football; Roger Bannister breaking the four-minute mile, a game of cricket on horseback in 1794 and the death of England's finest cricketer W.G. Grace. Narrated Eileen Atkins; Cheryl Campbell; Nigel Davenport; Alex Jennings; Richard Johnson; Hugh Laurie; Michael Maloney; Geoffrey Palmer; Michael Pennington; Prunella Scales; Samuel West, and John Wood.

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Sporting Gazette - Pastimes

The Sporting Gazette is a rousing gallop through the British sporting calendar of the last 900 years in the company of chroniclers, diarists and letter-writers as we eavesdrop on some of the most memorable events in the colourful history of British sport, as performed by an outstanding cast of actors. This Pastimes edition eavesdrops on some of the most fascinating events in the colourful history of the British at play; from Pitt the younger playing a game of marbles to Sir Donald Campbell's fatal attempt at the waterspeed record; Sir Francis Chichester's single handed voyage around the world and Lord Louis Mountbatten's first hand experience of a cock fight in India; from hunting with King James I to swimming the Channel with Captain Webb. Narrated Eileen Atkins; Cheryl Campbell; Nigel Davenport; Alex Jennings; Richard Johnson; Hugh Laurie; Michael Maloney; Geoffrey Palmer; Michael Pennington; Prunella Scales; Samuel West, and John Wood

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Elizabeth

A fresh, thrilling portrait Guy's Elizabeth is deliciously human.-Stacy Schiff, The New York Times Book ReviewA groundbreaking reconsideration of our favorite Tudor queen, Elizabeth is an intimate and surprising biography that shows her at the height of her power. Elizabeth was crowned at twenty-five after a tempestuous childhood as a bastard and an outcast, but it was only when she reached fifty and all hopes of a royal marriage were dashed that she began to wield real power in her own right. For twenty-five years she had struggled to assert her authority over advisers who pressed her to marry and settle the succession; now, she was determined not only to reign but also to rule. In this magisterial biography of England's most ambitious Tudor queen, John Guy introduces us to a woman who is refreshingly unfamiliar: at once powerful and vulnerable, willful and afraid. In these essential and misunderstood forgotten years, Elizabeth confronts challenges at home and abroad: war against the Catholic powers of France and Spain, revolt in Ireland, an economic crisis that triggered riots in the streets of London, and a conspiracy to place her cousin Mary Queen of Scots on her throne. For a while she was smitten by a much younger man, but could she allow herself to act on that passion and still keep her throne? For the better part of a decade John Guy mined long-overlooked archives, scouring court documents and handwritten letters to sweep away myths and rumors. This prodigious historical detective work has made it possible to reveal for the first time the woman behind the polished veneer: wracked by insecurity, often too anxious to sleep alone, voicing her own distinctive and surprisingly resonant concerns. Guy writes like a dream, and this combination of groundbreaking research and propulsive narrative puts him in a class of his own.'Significant, forensic and myth-busting, John Guy inspires total confidence in a narrative which is at once pacey and rich in detail.' -- Anna Whitelock, TLS From the Hardcover edition.

John Guy (Author), Alex Jennings, Alex Jennings (Narrator)

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Desert Island Discs: 70 years of castaways

For seventy years now Desert Island Discs has managed that rare feat, to be both enduring and relevant. By casting away the biggest names of the day in science, business, politics, showbiz, sport and the arts, it presents a cross-sectional snapshot of the times in which we live. As the decades have passed, the programme has kept pace; never frozen in time yet always, somehow, comfortingly the same.' Kirsty YoungBBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs celebrates its seventieth birthday in 2012. Since the programme's deviser Roy Plomley interviewed comedian Vic Oliver in January 1942, nearly 3,000 distinguished people from all walks of life have been stranded on the mythical island, accompanied by only eight records, one book and a luxury.Here the story of one of BBC Radio 4's favourite programmes is chronicled through a special selection of castaways.Roy Plomley, inventor of the programme as well as its presenter for over forty years, quizzes the young Cliff Richard about these rather frenzied movements' the 1960s pop sensation makes on the stage. Robert Maxwell tells Plomley's successor Michael Parkinson that I will have left the world a slightly better place by having lived in it.' Diana Mosley assures Sue Lawley that Adolf Hitler was extraordinarily fascinating' and had mesmeric blue eyes. And Johnny Vegas tugs Kirsty Young's heart-strings with his account of a childhood so impoverished that family pets were fair game: My dad had always claimed that rabbits were livestock, but we'd never eaten one before.'Desert Island Discs is much more than a radio programme. It is a unique and enduringly popular take on our lives and times, and this book tells in rich detail the colourful and absorbing story of an extraordinary institution.

Sean Magee (Author), Alex Jennings, Alex Jennings, Juliet Stevenson (Narrator)

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Charles Dickens: A Life

Claire Tomalin (Author), Alex Jennings, Alex Jennings (Narrator)

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The Kraken Wakes

Journalist Mike Watson and his wife, Phylis, trace it back to the strange showering lights they noticed on the final day of their honeymoon cruise: lights which appeared to land and disappear into the water. Reports mount of similar sightings all over the world. Governments embark on missions to investigate the sea, but ships disappear and diving crews never return to the surface. Something deep in the ocean does not want to be disturbed. The Kraken Wakes is a tale of humanity's efforts to resist alien invasion, narrated by Mike, who unfolds the story as experienced by the couple - from the earliest signs of trouble, to the conflict between the sea-dwelling creatures and the human world. John Wyndham's classic science-fiction masterpiece is powerfully brought to life in this unabridged production.

John Wyndham (Author), Alex Jennings, Alex Jennings (Narrator)

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The Day of The Triffids

Bill Masen works with triffids - an animalistic plant with poisonous venom, a wicked stinger and the ability to move around on three 'legs'. Hospitalised when he succumb to triffid venom in a lab accident, Masen misses seeing a world-changing night - a quirk of fate may just save his life...Strongly influenced by H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds, Wyndham's post-apocalyptic novel displays some similarities to Wells' seminal sci-fi work. Yet, it remains an enduring classic in its own right, bursting with imagination and startling inventiveness.

John Wyndham (Author), Alex Jennings, Alex Jennings (Narrator)

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Beyond Good and Evil

Continuing where Thus Spoke Zarathustra left off, Nietzsche's controversial work Beyond Good and Evil is one of the most influential philosophical texts of the nineteenth century and one of the most controversial works of ideology ever written. Attacking the notion of morality as nothing more than institutionalised weakness, Nietzsche criticises past philosophers for their unquestioning acceptance of moral precepts. Nietzsche tried to formulate what he called 'the philosophy of the future'. Alex Jennings reads this new translation by Ian Johnston.

Friedrich Nietzsche, Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (Author), Alex Jennings, Alex Jennings, JD Evans, Roy McMillan (Narrator)

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Audiobooks Narrated by Alex Jennings