George Bernard Shaw has 10 audiobooks on Listento.it, narrated by 46 narrators, with an average listener rating of 4.6★ across 41 ratings. The most-rated is Pygmalion.
Pygmalion
Summary
A star-studded BBC radio production of Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion - plus bonus drama The ‘B’ Word, telling the story of the play’s scandalous opening night.
Irascible phonetics professor Henry Higgins makes a bet with his friend Colonel Pickering that he can train Cockney flower girl Eliza Doolittle to talk ‘like a lady’ and pass as a duchess at the Ambassador’s Ball. As the day of reckoning approaches, can Eliza convince the assembled aristocrats that she’s one of them? And what will become of her afterwards?
This effervescent radio version of Shaw’s classic comedy features a stellar cast, including award-winning comedians Alistair McGowan as Henry Higgins, Morgana Robinson as Eliza Doolittle and Al Murray as Alfred Doolittle.
Also featured on this release is The ‘B’ Word, written by and starring Alistair McGowan as Bernard Shaw. Centring on the shocking opening night of Pygmalion - the first time that the word ‘bloody' was used on the British stage - it also explores the passionate love-hate relationship between Shaw; his leading man, Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree and his leading lady, Mrs Patrick Campbell, who played the 19-year-old Eliza Doolittle at the age of 49.
Cast and credits
'Pygmalion'
Henry Higgins……………………Alistair McGowan
Eliza Doolittle……………………Morgana Robinson
Alfred Doolittle……………………Al Murray
Colonel Pickering……………………Hugh Fraser
Mrs Higgins……………………Siân Phillips
Mrs Pearce/Maid……………………Charlotte Page
Mrs Eynsford-Hill……………………Georgie Glen
Clara Eynsford-Hill……………………Maeve Bluebell Wells
Freddy Eynsford-Hill.....……………………Tom Forrister
Nepommuck……………………David Sturzaker
Ambassador……………………John Dougall
Ambassador's wife……………………Sarah Ridgeway
Bystander……………………David Sterne
Written by Bernard Shaw
Produced and directed by Emma Harding
'The ‘B’ Word'
Bernard Shaw……………………Alistair McGowan
George Alexander……………………David Sturzaker
Mrs Patrick Campbell.....……………………Charlotte Page
Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree……………………Richard McCabe
Charlotte Shaw……………………Georgie Glen
Merivale……………………Philip Fox
Gurney/Fishman……………………Simon Ludders
Bell……………………Charlie Clements
Maid……………………Sarah Ridgeway
Written by Alistair McGowan
Produced and directed by Emma Harding
©2018 BBC Worldwide Ltd (P)2018 BBC Worldwide Ltd
Man and Superman
Summary
Man and Superman was the first drama to be broadcast on the BBC's Third Programme on October 1, 1946. To celebrate Radio 3's 50th anniversary, the play was directed by Sir Peter Hall, and preserved for all time in this lush audio dramatization. 'A comedy and a philosophy', Man and Superman is based on the Don Juan theme, and using all the elements from Mozart's Don Giovanni, Shaw reordered them so that Don Juan becomes the quarry instead of the huntsman. Boasting an outstanding cast including Ralph Fiennes, Juliet Stevenson, Dame Judi Dench, John Wood, Nicholas Le Prevost, and Paul Merton, this release includes an exclusive interview with director Sir Peter Hall.
©2012 AudioGO Ltd (P)1998 AudioGO Ltd
Pygmalion
Summary
Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw Presented by The Online Stage In the Greek legend, a sculptor, Pygmalion, created a statue of a woman so beautiful that he fell in love with it. Later the goddess Aphrodite responded to his earnest prayers and brought the statue, named Galatea, to life. Shaw's Pygmalion is a fussy unmarried professor of phonetics, Henry Higgins, who claims that he could train an uneducated person off the street to speak so that he or she could pass as a member of the aristocracy. His Galatea is Eliza Doolittle, who sells flowers at Covent Garden and whose father is a dissipated but cunning vagrant. Higgins finds Eliza a surprisingly apt pupil, but with her new found skill in elocution comes a streak of independence, which threatens to upset the complacent harmony of his domestic life. Like many of Shaw's plays, Pygmalion includes a preface, as well as an afterword in which Shaw relates the further history of Eliza as she learns how to incorporate her training by Higgins into her new lifestyle. Cast: Narrator: Grace Garrett Eliza Dolittle: Arielle Lipshaw Henry Higgins: Jeff Moon Colonel Pickering: Denis Daly Clara Eynsford-Hill: Amanda Friday Mrs. Eynsford-Hill and Mrs Pearce: Sara Morsey Bystander and Mrs. Higgins: Sarah Mitchell Sarcastic Bystander and Alfred Dolittle: Alan Weyman Parlour-Maid: Sarah Bacaller Freddy Eynsford-Hill: Mark Crowle-Groves Audio edited by Denis Daly
Public Domain (P)2018 The Online Stage
Don Juan in Hell
Summary
The play Don Juan in Hell originated as Act 3, Scene 2, of Man and Superman and is a spirited debate between Heaven and Hell. It was written by Irish playwright and a master of social commentary George Bernard Shaw (1856 – 1950), who is probably most famous for Pygmalion amongst his 60 plays. Shaw was the only person to ever win a Nobel Prize in literature and an Oscar.This famous performance features Charles Boyer as Don Juan, Charles Laughton as the Devil, Cedric Hardwicke as the Commander, and Agnes Moorehead as Doña Ana.
©2010 Horse's Mouth (P)2010 Horse's Mouth
You Never Can Tell
Summary
You Never Can Tell was originally born out of a bet that Shaw couldn't write a "seaside comedy" (a popular theatrical genre at that time). The result is perhaps the most surprising of Shaw's plays, complete with marital mayhem, tangled romance, and even doubtful dentistry. Despite the play's lighthearted tone, it's really another of Shaw's brilliantly observed social treatises, this time in the guise of a light comedy. An L.A. Theatre Works full-cast recording featuring: James Callis, Siobhan Hewlett, Nicholas Hormann, Martin Jarvis, Christopher Neame, Moira Quirk, Susan Sullivan, Simon Templeman, and Matthew Wolf. Directed by Rosalind Ayres and recorded before a live audience.
Public Domain (P)2015 L.A. Theatre Works
Arms and the Man
Summary
Arms and the Man by George Bernard Shaw: Presented by The Online Stage. In Biography for Beginners, a collection of sarcastic quatrains about various celebrities, Edmund Clerihew Bentley wrote: Mr Bernard Shaw Was just setting out for the war, When he heard it was a dangerous trade And demonstrably underpaid. This rather unkind stanza is illustrative of Shaw's convenient pacifism, which forms the major theme of this play. For Shaw, war was an anachronistic form of barbarism - in his view, people ought to be able to resolve their differences through intelligent and spirited discourse. The action of the play, which occurs during a conflict on the Balkans, is initiated by the discovery by Raina, the daughter of an military officer, of a man who has taken refuge in her bedroom. Unfortunately, the man belongs to the opposing army. How will she deal with a notional enemy who behaves with such quixotic courtesy? Cast Narrator - Noel Badrian Captain Bluntschli - Rob Goll Major Petkoff - Peter Tucker Officer/ Major Sergius Saranoff - Jeff Moon Catherine Petkoff - Sarah Mitchell Nicola - Craig Franklin Raina Petkoff - Amanda Friday Louka - Anna Grace Audio edited by Denis Daly
Public Domain (P)2019 The Online Stage
Pygmalion
Summary
One of Shaw's most enduring works, Pygmalion is an insightful comedy of class relations and perceptions, as played out between a Cockney flower girl and the irascible speech professor who has taken her on as a pet project. Described by critics as "a play of great vitality and charm", Pygmalion inspired the award-winning stage and film productions of Lerner and Loewe's musical, My Fair Lady. An L.A. Theatre Works full-cast performance featuring Roslyn Alexander, Shannon Cochran, Denise du Maurier, Rebecca MacLean, David New, Kenneth J. Northcott, Nicholas Pennell, Nicholas Rudall, Ben Whitehouse, and Laura Whyte.
Public Domain (P)1995 L.A. Theatre Works. All Rights Reserved
Man and Superman
Summary
Man and Superman was the first drama to be broadcast on the BBC's Third Program on October 1, 1946. To celebrate Radio 3's 50th anniversary, the play was directed by Sir Peter Hall, and preserved for all time in this lush audio dramatization. "A comedy and a philosophy", Man and Superman is based on the Don Juan theme, and using all the elements from Mozart's Don Giovanni, Shaw reordered them so that Don Juan becomes the quarry instead of the huntsman. Boasting an outstanding cast including Ralph Fiennes, Juliet Stevenson, Dame Judi Dench, John Wood, Nicholas Le Prevost, and Paul Merton, this release includes an exclusive interview with director Sir Peter Hall.
©1998 AudioGO (P)2012 AudioGO
The George Bernard Shaw Collection
Summary
Eight of George Bernard Shaw's most memorable plays in one splendid collection: Mrs. Warren’s Profession: Shaw pits a clever heroine against a memorable gallery of rogues in this superbly intelligent and still shocking comedy, which was banned for eight years from the English stage after its London debut. Performed by Shirley Knight, et al. Arms and the Man: The beautiful, headstrong Raina awaits her fiancé’s return from battle – but instead meets a soldier who seeks asylum in her bedroom. Performed by Anne Heche, et al. Candida: Shaw’s warm and witty play challenged conventional wisdom about relationships between the sexes, as a beautiful wife must choose between the two men who love her. Performed by JoBeth Williams, et al. The Devil’s Disciple: A young hero who disdains heroism makes the ultimate sacrifice for honor and country during the American Revolution. Performed by Richard Dreyfuss, et al. Major Barbara: This sparkling comedy traverses family relations, religion, ethics and politics - as only Shaw, the master dramatist, can! Performed by Kate Burton, Roger Rees, et al. The Doctor’s Dilemma: A well-respected physician is forced to choose whom he shall save: a bumbling friend or the ne’er-do-well husband of the woman he loves. Performed by Martin Jarvis, Paxton Whitehead, et al. Misalliance: A self-made millionaire and his family invite their future in-law for a visit to their estate. In this delightfully clever play, issues of gender, class, politics, and family are all targets for Shaw’s keen wit. Performed by Roger Rees, Eric Stoltz, et al. Pygmalion: Shaw’s beloved play about an irascible speech professor who decides to mold a Cockney flower girl into the darling of high society. Performed by Shannon Cochran, et al.
©2010 L.A. Theatre Works (P)2010 L.A. Theatre Works
Saint Joan
Summary
Saint Joan by George Bernard Shaw Presented by The Online Stage According to George Bernard Shaw, Joan of Arc was in fact one of the first Protestant martyrs. She was one of the first apostles of nationalism, and the first French practitioner of Napoleonic realism in warfare. She also refused to accept the specific woman's lot, and dressed and fought and lived as men did. Shaw's exploration of the story of this ingenuous and eponymous heroine is set in six scenes and an epilogue, which takes place on 1456, when the church cleared Joan of the charge of heresy and condemned her accusers of corruption. The ghost of Joan appears and, later, an emissary from the year 1920, to announce Joan's canonization. This production also includes a very condensed version of Shaw's lengthy preface. Cast: Narrator and Duchess de la Trémouille - Anna Grace Robert de Baudricourt, Sentry and Courcelles - Graham Scott Joan - Amanda Friday Bertrand, D'Estivet and Gentleman - Jeff Moon Archbishop and First Assessor - David Stifel De la Trémouille, John de Stogumber and Executioner - Denis Daly Steward and Warwick - Alan Weyman La Hire, Second Assessor and English Soldier - Phil Benson Bluebeard and Ladvenu - David Shears Charles (Dauphin) - Tom Saer Dunois and Third Assessor - Andy Harrington Cauchon - Peter Tucker Inquisitor - Noel Badrian Page - Sarah Bacaller Audio edited by Denis Daly
Public Domain (P)2020 The Online Stage