Shaun McKenna has 3 audiobooks on Listento.it, narrated by 16 narrators. The most-rated is Home Front: The Complete BBC Radio Collection, Volume 1.
Eleanor Rising
Summary
A thrilling dramatic account of one of Europe's most extraordinary women, Eleanor of Aquitaine, based on historical fact, legend - and rumour. Wife and mother to a dynasty of kings, crusader, prisoner and formidable political operator, Eleanor of Aquitaine is a thoroughly modern woman, despite living almost 900 years ago. Intelligent, witty and independent, she is tough enough to forge her own destiny - and subtle enough to shape the world to her will. We first meet her at 15, when she has one ambition: to become Duchess and ruler of the Aquitaine, the richest province in France. But the men around her have other ideas. A young woman with so much power is too great a threat, so she is quickly married off to the heir to the throne, the devout, sexually repressed Dauphin. The wedding feast is barely over before she finds herself facing an imminent attack, a kidnap attempt and a midnight escape on horseback. Surviving to become Queen of France, she moulds her young husband into a fit King - but in wielding her influence, she makes powerful enemies, who are determined to bring her down. Yet somehow she manages to stay one step ahead, even as she embarks on a scandalous Crusade - and falls madly in love with another King, Henry II of England.... Written by award-winning dramatist Shaun McKenna, this epic drama stars Rose Basista as Eleanor, Cecilia Appiah as Petronilla, and Joel McCormack as the Dauphin. Written by Shaun McKenna Directed and produced by Marc Beeby and Gemma Jenkins Cast Eleanor - Rose Basista Petronilla - Cecilia Appiah Duke William - John Lightbody Archbishop Laroux/Theobald - Roger Ringrose Pierre - Luke Nunn The Dauphin - Joel McCormack Abbot Suger/Cardinal Yves - Carl Prekopp First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 9-13 November 2020 (Series 1), 5-9 April 2021 (Series 2)
©2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd
Home Front: The Complete BBC Radio Collection Volume 3
Summary
Series 11-15 of the major BBC Radio 4 drama charting life on the home front during the First World War- plus special extended episode 'Home Front: A Fragile Peace'.
First heard on radio between 4 August 2014 and 9 November 2018, each episode of Home Front is set exactly 100 years before the broadcast date, and each follows one character’s day. Together they create a mosaic of experience from a wide cross section of society, mixing historical fact with enthralling fiction to explore how ordinary people coped with daily life in wartime Britain.
Back in Folkestone, the residents are dealing with the aftereffects of a devastating air raid. Howard Argent is kept busy at the Bevan while Ulysses Pilchard experiments with electroshock therapy. Meanwhile, women’s suffrage, prostitution and unmarried mothers are hot topics, and Kitty Lumley experiences the sharp end of intolerance.
In Tyneside, ripples from the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution lead to a rise in union activity, and the factory faces the threat of strike action from the munitionettes.
And in Devon, women, children and prisoners of war are being put to work on the land. With Britain on the brink of starvation, summer 1918’s harvest is crucial - but conscientious objectors, unwilling or unable to help, arouse fury.
As the Great War moves towards its end, can the wounded communities back home find some sort of peace, however fragile?
Tackling themes including trauma and madness, industrial unrest, morality and sexuality, surrogate labour and the outbreak of peace are some of radio’s foremost dramatists including Katie Hims, Shaun McKenna and Sarah Daniels. Among the extensive cast are Helen Schlesinger, Kathryn Beaumont, Roy Hudd and Billy Kennedy, with guest appearances from Geoffrey Palmer and Mark Heap. Also included is 'Home Front: A Fragile Peace', a special 75-minute episode which flashes forward to explore the lives of the characters on 10 November 1919.
©2018 BBC Worldwide Ltd (P)2018 BBC Worldwide Ltd
Home Front: The Complete BBC Radio Collection, Volume 1
Summary
Series 1-5 of the groundbreaking BBC Radio 4 drama charting life on the home front during World War One
First heard on radio between 4 August 2014 and 9 November 2018, each episode of Home Front is set exactly 100 years before the broadcast date, and each follows one character’s day. Together they create a mosaic of experience from a wide cross section of society, mixing historical fact with enthralling fiction to explore how ordinary people coped with daily life in wartime Britain.
The story begins in Folkestone, as the first troops march off to the front lines. Soon, families such as the Grahams and the Wilsons begin to feel the impact of war, as the wounded return and first Belgian refugees, then Canadian troops, arrive in the seaside resort. In addition, the White Feather and suffragette movements grow in popularity, and a tide of grief increasingly leads people to thoughts of the hereafter.
Industrial Tynemouth, meanwhile, is experiencing a quite different war. The factories and shipyards are at peak production, and more women are joining the workforce. At the munitions factory, owner Geoffrey Marshall and his family must adapt to the changing times - as must workers like Fraser and Edie Chadwick.
Tackling themes including the outbreak of war, recruitment, industry, profiteering and spiritualism are some of radio’s foremost dramatists including Katie Hims, Sebastian Baczkiewicz and Shaun McKenna. Among the extensive cast are Michael Bertenshaw, Keely Beresford, Freddie Fox, Ami Metcalf, Edmund Wiseman, Barbara Flynn, Mark Stobbart and Toby Jones, with Dame Harriet Walter making a cameo appearance as Emmeline Pankhurst.
©2018 BBC Digital Audio (P)2018 BBC Digital Audio