Michael Sheen has narrated 14 audiobooks on Listento.it by 18 authors, with an average listener rating of 4.6★ across 3,780 ratings. The most-rated is The Sandman.
The Sandman
Summary
Please note: This content is not for kids. It is for mature audiences only. Just like the original graphic novels, this audio adaptation contains explicit language and graphic violence, as well as strong sexual content and themes. Discretion is advised. Hailed by the Los Angeles Times Magazine as “the greatest epic in the history of comic books”, The Sandman changed the game with its dark, literary world of fantasy and horror - creating a global, cultural phenomenon in the process. At long last, Audible and DC present the first-ever audio production of the New York Times best-selling series written by acclaimed storyteller Neil Gaiman (who also serves as co-executive producer). Adapted and directed by multi-award-winner (and frequent Gaiman collaborator) Dirk Maggs, and performed by an ensemble cast with James McAvoy (It, Parts One and Two, X-Men: First Class, Split) in the title role, this first installment of a multi-part original audio series will transport you to a world that re-writes the rules of audio entertainment the way that The Sandman originally re-defined the graphic novel. When The Sandman, also known as Lord Morpheus - the immortal king of dreams, stories and the imagination - is pulled from his realm and imprisoned on Earth by a nefarious cult, he languishes for decades before finally escaping. Once free, he must retrieve the three “tools” that will restore his power and help him to rebuild his dominion, which has deteriorated in his absence. As the multi-threaded story unspools, The Sandman descends into Hell to confront Lucifer (Michael Sheen), chases rogue nightmares who have escaped his realm, and crosses paths with an array of characters from DC comic books, ancient myths, and real-world history, including: Inmates of Gotham City's Arkham Asylum, Doctor Destiny, the muse Calliope, the three Fates, William Shakespeare (Arthur Darvill), and many more. A powerhouse supporting cast helps translate this masterwork into a sonic experience worthy of its legacy, including Riz Ahmed, Kat Dennings, Taron Egerton, Samantha Morton, Bebe Neuwirth, Andy Serkis, and more. Setting the stage for their performance is an unprecedented cinematic soundscape featuring an original musical score by British Academy Award winner James Hannigan. Fans will especially revel in a new twist for the audio adaptation: Neil Gaiman himself serves as the narrator. Follow him as he leads listeners along a winding path of myths, imagination and, often, terror. Even in your wildest dreams, you’ve never heard anything like this.
©2020 DC. All Rights Reserved. The Sandman and all related elements are trademarks of DC Comics. (P)2020 DC Comics and Audible
The Book of Dust: La Belle Sauvage
Summary
An instant New York Times best seller!
2018 Odyssey Honor
2018 ALSC Notable Children’s Recording
The Washington Post Best Audiobook of 2017
Slate Best Audiobook of 2017
Booklist Editor’s Choice Audio for Youth
AudioFile Best YA Audiobooks of 2017
"Too few things in our world are worth a seventeen year wait: The Book of Dust is one of them." (The Washington Post)
Philip Pullman returns to the parallel world of his groundbreaking novel The Golden Compass to expand on the story of Lyra, "one of fantasy's most indelible characters." (The New York Times Magazine)
Malcolm Polstead is the kind of boy who notices everything but is not much noticed himself. And so perhaps it was inevitable that he would become a spy....
Malcolm's parents run an inn called the Trout, on the banks of the river Thames, and all of Oxford passes through its doors. Malcolm and his daemon, Asta, routinely overhear news and gossip, and the occasional scandal, but during a winter of unceasing rain, Malcolm catches wind of something new: intrigue.
He finds a secret message inquiring about a dangerous substance called Dust - and the spy it was intended for finds him.
When she asks Malcolm to keep his eyes open, he sees suspicious characters everywhere: the explorer Lord Asriel, clearly on the run; enforcement agents from the Magisterium; a gyptian named Coram with warnings just for Malcolm; and a beautiful woman with an evil monkey for a daemon. All are asking about the same thing: a girl - just a baby - named Lyra.
Lyra is the kind of person who draws people in like magnets. And Malcolm will brave any danger, and make shocking sacrifices, to bring her safely through the storm.
"The book is full of wonder.... Truly thrilling." (The New York Times)
Note: This audiobook was recorded from the UK edition.
©2017 Philip Pullman (P)2017 Listening Library
The Book of Dust: The Secret Commonwealth
Summary
The number one New York Times best seller! Return to the world of His Dark Materials - now an HBO original series starring Dafne Keen, Ruth Wilson, Andrew Scott, and Lin-Manuel Miranda - in the second volume of Philip Pullman’s new best-selling masterwork, The Book of Dust. The windows between the many worlds have been sealed, and the momentous adventures of Lyra Silvertongue’s youth are long behind her - or so she thought. Lyra is now a 20-year-old undergraduate at St. Sophia’s College, and intrigue is swirling around her once more. Her daemon, Pantalaimon, is witness to a brutal murder, and the dying man entrusts them with secrets that carry echoes from their past. The more Lyra is drawn into these mysteries, the less she is sure of. Even the events of her own past come into question when she learns of Malcolm Polstead’s role in bringing her to Jordan College. Now, Lyra and Malcolm will travel far beyond the confines of Oxford, across Europe and into the Levant, searching for a city haunted by daemons, and a desert said to hold the truth of Dust. The dangers they face will challenge everything they thought they knew about the world, and about themselves. Praise for The Book of Dust "It’s a stunning achievement, this universe Pullman has created and continues to build on." (The New York Times) "Pullman’s writing is simple, unpretentious, beautiful, true. The conclusion to The Book of Dust can’t come soon enough." (The Washington Post)
©2019 Philip Pullman (P)2019 Listening Library
Jeff Wayne's The War of The Worlds: The Musical Drama
Summary
When H. G. Wells first published The War of The Worlds in 1898, the novel quickly became a sci-fi classic. The story of extraterrestrials from Mars invading Earth captured the public’s imagination, inspiring a famed 1938 radio broadcast with Orson Welles, several feature films, countless video games, and a best-selling musical concept album by Jeff Wayne in 1978, among others. Immersing listeners in a world that is as thrilling as it is desolate, Jeff Wayne’s eerie and pulsating score brings the suspense, drama, and urgency of Wells’s original novel to a fever pitch in this Audible Original Drama. Michael Sheen headlines an ensemble cast of talented performers that also includes Taron Egerton, Adrian Edmondson, Theo James, and Anna-Marie Wayne. ©2018 Music Masters: Sony Music Entertainment ©2018 Existing compositions: Universal Music Publishing Group, Jeff Wayne Music (Publishing) Ltd ©2018 Newly composed music: Jeff Wayne Music (P)2018 Audible, Ltd
©2018 Newly composed music: Jeff Wayne Music (P)2018 Audible, Ltd
Oedipus the King
Summary
In the hands of Sophocles, the master dramatist, the anguished tale of a man fated to kill his father and marry his mother retains its power to shock and move beyond any Freudian reference. In this new translation, performed by an outstanding cast led by Michael Sheen, the searing inevitability facing Oedipus proves as shocking as it was 2,500 years ago when it was first presented in the theatre at Athens. Translated by Duncan Steen.
©1999 NAXOS AudioBooks Ltd. (P)1999 NAXOS AudioBooks Ltd.
The Oscar Wilde BBC Radio Drama Collection
Summary
A sparkling collection of the major works of the ever-adored Oscar Wilde, with incredible casts including Judi Dench, Martin Clunes, Michael Sheen, Miriam Margolyes, Ian McDiarmid, Joely Richardson, Penelope Keith, Martin Jarvis, Diana Rigg, Simon Russell Beale, Sheila Hancock, Ian McKellen and Stephen Fry.
This collection includes:
The Picture of Dorian Gray: a dramatisation of Wilde’s sole novel, about the unsettling youth of Dorian Gray and the ravaged picture in his attic. Starring Jamie Glover, Ian McDiarmid, Steven Pacey.
Lady Windermere’s Fan: a comic play about a woman who suspects her husband is having an affair. Starring Joely Richardson and Penelope Keith.
A Woman of No Importance: a devastating drawing room comedy about the rakish Lord Illingworth, notorious for his skill as a seducer while his female conquests must hide their shame in seclusion. Starring Martin Jarvis, Diana Rigg and Annette Crosby.
The Importance of Being Earnest: a dazzling comedy about mistaken identities and secret engagements. Starring Judi Dench, Martin Clunes, Michael Sheen and Miriam Margolyes.
An Ideal Husband: a play about the plight of a politician desperate to hide a secret about his past. Starring Noel Johnson, Ronald Lewis and Jane Wenham.
Plus bonus programmes featuring Wilde’s letters and poetry:
De Profundis: Simon Russell Beale reads correspondence from Oscar Wilde to his lover Lord Alfred Douglas, while in Reading Gaol in 1897.
The Ballad of Reading Gaol: a live benefit performance of Oscar Wilde's celebrated poem, read by Ian McKellen, Neil Tennant, Stephen Fry, Bette Bourne, Tom Wakefield and Malcolm Sinclair.
In Extremis by Neil Bartlett: a play that reimagines Wilde’s hastily arranged sitting with a society palm reader, a week before the trial that was to cost him so much. Starring Corin Redgrave and Sheila Hancock.
©2019 BBC Worldwide Ltd (P)2019 BBC Worldwide Ltd
The Picture of Dorian Gray
Summary
The beautiful young Dorian Gray has his portrait painted by society artist Basil Hallward. Admired by all, the dazzling, wealthy, handsome young man has everything anyone could wish for, or so it appears. Oscar Wilde's novel is a masterly study of moral corruption, a tour-de-force of suspense and surprise.
Public Domain (P)2009 Naxos
Lady Windermere's Fan
Summary
Oscar Wilde's first play confronts the hypocrisy of public "morality" compared with genuine, private kindness. When it opened in 1892, Lady Windermere's Fan was an instant success and now, more than a century later, it continues to be revived frequently. The reasons for its popularity are not difficult to identify: the play's witty dialogue contains many of Wilde's most quoted aphorisms, its stylish setting provides opportunities for elegant presentation, and its cast of memorable characters play out a story which is genuinely moving. This new audio production brings together a full cast worthy of Wilde's creative genius. The full list of narrators includes: Samuel West, Michael Sheen, Derek Waring, Peter Yapp, Nicholas Boulton, Benjamin Soames, Rod Beacham, Emma Fielding, Sarah Badel, Elaine Claxton, Delia Paton, and Juliet Stevenson.
©1997 NAXOS AudioBooks Ltd. (P)1997 NAXOS AudioBooks Ltd.
StarChaser
Summary
In the third and final book in the TodHunter Moon series, Tod must find a replacement Egg of the Orm before the Castle - and all its Magyk - disappears forever. Perfect for fans of Angie Sage's original Septimus Heap series and Brandon Mull's Fablehaven series. Almost one year ago, Alice TodHunter Moon left her PathFinder village to become Apprentice to ExtraOrdinary Wizard Septimus Heap. Now, in faraway lands, the Castle is in peril. The brilliant blue stone is crumbling to dust, and both the witch Marisa and the wicked Red Queen have their eyes on the throne. But as Tod sets off on a hazardous journey to find a new Keystone, her life may be in the greatest danger of all. Can she save the Castle while evading the fate that befell her mother? This epic finale to the series praised by Kirkus as "fast-paced, fully satisfying, and ExtraOrdinary" celebrates how hard work, selflessness, and the courage to be who you are can create a harmony that spans the seas and stars.
©2016 Angie Sage (P)2016 HarperCollins Publishers
Great Poets of the Romantic Age
Summary
"The Tyger"… "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud"…"Ode to the West Wind"…"The Rime of the Ancient Mariner"…"Ode to a Nightingale"…"We’ll go no more a-roving"…"The Peasant Poet" ‘All good poetry,’ wrote Wordsworth, ‘is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings’ and this was to be one of the hallmarks of the Romantic poets. With a dynamic spirit, these great English poets made a conscious return to nostalgia and spiritual depth. Each chose a different path, but they are united in a love of moods, impressions, scenes, stories, sights and sounds. In this collection of more than forty poems are some of the finest and most memorable works in the English language.
©1994 Naxos AudioBooks (P)1994 Naxos AudioBooks
The Great Poets
Summary
Naxos AudioBooks continues its new series of Great Poets, represented by collections of their most popular poems in one program. Although John Keats had a short life, he produced a series of outstanding poems, many of which appeared first in letters to his sister. He was largely unappreciated during his lifetime and died in Rome at the age of 26. Most of his 150 poems were written in just nine extraordinary months in 1819. This selection contains some of his finest works, including the principal "Odes", "La Belle Dame Sans Merci", "Old Meg", and "Much Have I Travelled".
©2007 Naxos Rights International (P)2007 Naxos Rights International
BBC Radio Shakespeare: A Collection of Six Tragedies
Summary
Six full-cast BBC Radio productions of Shakespeare's classic tragedies. Treachery, betrayal and fatal power struggles are among the themes of these six iconic productions of Shakespeare's timeless tragedies. Featuring all-star casts, they are introduced by Sir Richard Eyre. Hamlet Shakespeare's powerfully poetic tragedy of murder, madness and revenge stars Michael Sheen as the prince of Denmark, with Kenneth Cranham as Claudius and Juliet Stevenson as Gertrude. Macbeth In this notorious 'Scottish play', a lust for power and the prophecy of three witches transform a brave nobleman into a traitor and murderous tyrant. Ken Stott stars as Macbeth and Phyllis Logan as Lady Macbeth. King Lear The tragic consequences of evil triumphing over truth and of the vanity of old age, are set in motion when Lear banishes his favourite daughter, Cordelia, from court. Starring Corin Redgrave as King Lear, with David Troughton, Geraldine James and Robert Glenister. Othello Evil cunning perverts a once noble mind, as heroic General Othello is destroyed by both his own jealousy and the machinations of the devious Iago. Ray Fearon stars as Othello, with James Frain as Iago. Romeo and Juliet An updated version of Shakespeare's tragedy of feuding families and doomed love, set in modern Verona and starring Douglas Henshall as Romeo and Sophie Dahl as Juliet. Cymbeline When Cymbeline discovers his daughter Imogen's secret marriage to Posthumus, he banishes her husband. But Posthumus' boasts of his wife's chastity provoke lachimo to attempt her seduction. Bill Wallis stars as Cymbeline.
©2020 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2020 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd
BBC Radio Shakespeare
Summary
BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.
Those decades of experience come to fruition in this production. The intimacy of radio gives full rein to the power of Shakespeare's language, taking the listener into the very centre of Hamlet's emotional and moral turmoil.
Revitalised, original, and comprehensive, this is Shakespeare for the new millennium.
©1999 BBC Worldwide Ltd (P)1999 BBC Worldwide Ltd
A Champion's Mind
Summary
Pete Sampras is arguably the greatest tennis player ever, a man whose hard-nosed work ethic led to an unprecedented number-one world ranking for 286 weeks, and whose prodigious talent made possible a record-setting 14 Grand Slam titles. While his more vocal rivals sometimes grabbed the headlines, Pete always preferred to let his racket do the talking. Until now. In A Champion's Mind, the tennis great who so often exhibited visible discomfort with letting people "inside his head" finally opens up. An athletic prodigy, Pete resolved from his earliest playing days never to let anything get in the way of his love for the game. But while this single-minded determination led to tennis domination, success didn't come without a price. The constant pressure of competing on the world's biggest stage - in the unblinking eye of a media machine hungry for more than mere athletic greatness - took its toll. Here, for the first time, Pete speaks freely about what it was like to possess what he calls "the Gift." He writes about the personal trials he faced - including the death of a longtime coach and confidant - and the struggles he gutted his way through while being seemingly on top of the world. Among the book's most riveting scenes are an early devastating loss to Stefan Edberg that led Pete to make a monastic commitment to delivering on his natural talent; a grueling, four-hour-plus match against Alex Corretja during which Pete became seriously ill; fierce on-court battles with rival and friend Andre Agassi; and the triumphant last match of Pete's career at the finals of the 2002 U.S. Open. In A Champion's Mind, one of the most revered, successful, and intensely private players in the history of tennis offers an intimate look at the life of an elite athlete.
©2008 Pete Sampras (P)2008 Random House, Inc.