Audiobooks Narrated by June Barrie

The Cinderella Service & Cinderella D-Day: Two BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramas

Samantha Bond stars in two captivating stories set around a hostel for Land Girls during World War Two Based in Devon in the 1940s, these two dramas follow the lives and loves of a group of young women, all from different backgrounds, but all determined to do their bit for King and country in the Land Army. Billeted in a hastily-converted farmhouse, they face cramped conditions and gruelling work - but there's always dances at the village hop and the chance of romance with a GI... The Cinderella Service It's 1943, and Alice Todd has just separated from her husband. With a ten-year-old son to care for, she accepts the position of Warden at a hostel for Land Girls: but is she up to the job? Looking after ten lively, independent women is hard, and when Alice's competence is questioned, she doubts her ability to cope. Will the loyalty and friendship of her girls persuade her to stick it out? Cinderella D-Day 1944. Alice is still busy running the Women's Land Army hostel, as well as taking tentative steps in her new career and a fledgling relationship. But the girls in her care are finding that life in wartime does not run smoothly. As the hostilities rumble on, there is happiness and heartbreak in store, and the hostel residents face danger and some stark personal choices... Created by Julia Stoneham - a regular writer on hit TV show The House of Elliott - these evocative wartime dramas star Samantha Bond as Alice, with a cast including June Barrie, Tilly Vosburgh, Becky Hindley and Deborah McAndrew. Directed by Tracey Neale Theme tune: 'This Time the Dream's On Me' by Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer, lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc The Cinderella Service Alice - Samantha Bond Edward-John - James Cohen Rose - June Barrie Annie - Tilly Vosburgh Mabel - Cathy Murphy Marian - Becky Hindley Winnie - Deborah McAndrew Martha - Rachel Lewis Taffy - Elaine Claxton Georgina - Annabel Mullion Chrissie - Teresa Gallagher Margery Brewster - Tessa Worsley Roger Bayliss - Peter Yapp Christopher Bayliss - Andrew Wlncott Ferdie - Bill Wallis Oliver Maynard/Fred - Ian Masters Ron Chapman - David Collings Mrs Bowden - Jilly Bond Nora - Abigail Docherty Andreas - Walter Van Dyke Ruben - David Antrobus Alec/John Boyce - Matthew Morgan James Todd - David Jarvis Mary Brewer - Eva Stuart Other parts played by members of the cast First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 5-19 April 1995 Cinderella D-Day Alice - Samantha Bond Rose - June Barrie Georgina - Louise Lombard Christopher - Adrian Lukis Annie - Tilly Vosburgh Marian - Becky Hindley Winnie - Deborah McAndrew Taffy - Elaine Claxton Martha - Rachel Lewis Mabel - Cathy Murphy Edward-John - Sam Collings Roger Bayliss - Ioan Meredith Margery Brewster - Tessa Worsley Ferdie - Bill Wallis Lionel Brewer - Alex Lowe Mary Brewer - Ann Beach Ruben - David Antrobus Marvin - Robert Harper Joan - Elaine Pyke Kiwi - Joanna Monro James - David Jarvis Dave - Dominic Taylor Eleanor - Abigail Docherty Beryl/Mrs Tucker/Fran - Janet Maw Lionel - Alex Lowe Fred - Denys Hawthorne Italian POW - Chris Pavlo Arthur - William Howard Other parts played by members of the cast First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 18 September-2 October 1996

Dramatised By Julia Stoneham (Author), Annabel Mullion, Becky Hindley, Cathy Murphy, Deborah Mcandrew, Ioan Meredith, Jilly Bond, June Barrie, Samantha Bond, Tilly Vosburgh (Narrator)

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The Summer House

Matt's mother kept all his childhood memories in a small box, amongst the many photos of Matt as a child. But something about those photos has always puzzled Matt. Is that really him? Why does he not remember those clothes and toys? And where, in the photos, is his sister Imogen? Imogen, meanwhile, is living with her husband and their baby in a rented cottage. Ever since her childhood she has loved the Summer House, a charming folly in the grounds of a beautiful and ancient house on Exmoor, and now they have the chance of buying it. But the Summer House provides the key to the strange and tragic secret which has affected Matt's whole life.

Marcia Willett (Author), June Barrie (Narrator)

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The Way We Were

Pregnant and grieving, twenty-something Tiggy arrives at the remote house of her friend Julia in the middle of a snowstorm. All alone, having lost her mate in a tragic accident, Tiggy finds refuge with Julia's warm and chaotic family. Nurtured and loved at last, Tiggy begins to live again as she eagerly awaits the birth of her son. But nearly thirty years later, when her son is about to become a father himself, the next generation discovers that there are some secrets of the past that still live on. 

Marcia Willett (Author), June Barrie (Narrator)

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The Prodigal Wife

The Keep—that beautiful, ancient family home where the Chadwick family has lived for generations—is still a haven from the heartbreaks and storms of life. Jolyon Chadwick, a famous television presenter, takes his new girlfriend, Henrietta, home to meet his extended family—and also to meet Marie, the mother who deserted him and his father many years ago, and who has now reappeared and seems to want forgiveness. Jolyon, however, is not in the mood for forgiveness—although his father, Hal, now married to his cousin and childhood sweetheart, feels a lingering guilt about Marie and wants them all to be friends. And Henrietta, still vulnerable from the breakup of her own parents’ marriage, is not sure whether she can move on. “[A] gentle, charming novel of indiscretion, grudges, love, and mortality…The plot clicks along with pleasant, cathartic rhythms and an intriguing mystery subplot.”--Publishers Weekly

Marcia Willett (Author), June Barrie (Narrator)

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Echoes of the Dance

Roly Carradine has found refuge in Cornwall, in the mellow stone house of his childhood. A broken marriage made Roly remove himself from his busy London life, and here in Cornwall he welcomes Kate, also seeking refuge from the grief of losing her husband, and young Daisy Quin, a dancer recovering from a back injury. Roly's son Nat, a garden designer with his own secret burden to bear, lives not far away and is plagued by the unsympathetic visits of his mother Monica, Roly's ex-wife. Roly, Kate, Daisy, and Nat all try to find resolution in the beauty and peace of the Cornish countryside.

Marcia Willett (Author), June Barrie (Narrator)

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