The Complete George Smiley Radio Dramas

BBC Radio 4 Full-Cast Dramatisation

By: John le Carré

Narrated by: full cast, Simon Russell Beale

Length: 18 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

The complete collection of acclaimed BBC Radio dramas based on John le Carré's best-selling novels, starring Simon Russell Beale as George Smiley. With a star cast including Kenneth Cranham, Eleanor Bron, Brian Cox, Ian MacDiarmid, Anna Chancellor, Hugh Bonneville and Lindsay Duncan, these enthralling dramatisations perfectly capture the atmosphere of le Carré's taut, thrilling spy novels. 'Call for the Dead' is the first Smiley novel, which sees him looking into an apparent suicide only to uncover a murderous conspiracy; 'A Murder of Quality' finds Smiley investigating a murder in a private school; 'The Spy Who Came in from the Cold' introduces Alec Leamas, a British intelligence officer whose East Berlin network is in tatters; 'The Looking Glass War' features former spy Fred Leiser, lured back from retirement to investigate a claim that Soviet missiles are being installed close to the West German border; 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy' is the first book in the Karla trilogy, and sees Smiley searching for a mole who has infiltrated the Circus; 'The Honourable Schoolboy' sees Smiley determined to destroy his nemesis, Karla, and his spy networks; 'Smiley's People' finds George Smiley called out of retirement to exorcise some Cold War ghosts from his clandestine past; and 'The Secret Pilgrim' sees Smiley invited to dine with the eager new recruits at the Circus. He offers them his thoughts on espionage and, in doing so, prompts a former colleague to re-examine his own eventful secret life.

©2016 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2016 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

A great collection of leCarre books

I can't believe this great collection is over. I enjoyed every minute of this radio drama.

Excellent, Intriguing

Kept me busy many afternoons. I would never be able to get get BBC radio programs any other way of this quality! I will definitely listen to More.

Entertaining, suspenseful, and very fun voice acting.

While some of the stories are slightly more enthralling than others, they’re all superb, and the voice acting and production are top-notch. These are not James Bond-esque action/spy stories. They’re Cold War cloak and dagger, slowly and deliberately paced stories with small bits of action surrounded by build up, with small details shared here and there to build suspense and suspicion.

A+

Great story recommend. . . Good dramatization. . . Good adaptation. . . Worthy of a listen. . . Looking forward to the next one!

Excellent production

Whether these are your first introduction to Le Carre or you have read the Smiley books these Radio Dramas are a great listening experience. They certainly inspired me to listen to the books again and maybe watch the films and tv versions. That Le Carrie’s ability to write stories still capture the imagination sixty plus years on is saying something. Do not hesitate to read the books if you haven't done so. I will listen to this selection again.

Excellent full cast recordings

This is about as good as audio drama gets. The stories require attention, and thought. The acting is superb.

Utterly compelling

Where does The Complete George Smiley Radio Dramas rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Definitely in the top tier

What other book might you compare The Complete George Smiley Radio Dramas to and why?

In the pantheon of BBC productions, this ranks with their Lord of the Rings.

What does full cast and Simon Russell Beale bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

George Smiley is such a wonderfully complex character, so frail in some ways and so utterly strong and humane in others. Beale's performance captured this in a way that brings le Carre's masterwork out of the page.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

It's been done, it wasn't as good.

Any additional comments?

The Bbc is justly famous for their radio productions of literature. The entire cast of this sprawling production is excellent, the music is precisely right, the audio production is, of course, beyond compare. All that serves to bring forth a story that was already amazing. I had read the Tinker Tailor books, but the performances here are now my definitive version.

love BBC radio performances

I love these BBC radio performances where it's really a play with a full cast. le Carre is a masterful storyteller. quiet wit and great characters. several stories are ready by famous actors, Patrick Malaheid, Brian Cox and Hugh Bonneville to name a few.

George Smiley's Dramatizations

Fantastic scripts and outstanding actors involved in the production. The dramatiizations are easily listened too multiple times.

A Brilliant Collection

The stories and performances were enthralling. I could not stop listening. The background music heightened the suspense, and captured the mood of the moment perfectly. A fantastic introduction to John le Carre, and a provocative picture of the Cold War, the British, and human nature.