BBC Literary Archive

Front Row | Depictions of Christ from Dorothy L Sayers to James Frey

Resistance | BBC Radio 4 | 2011 | 28'05''

Mark Lawson examines dramatic and literary portrayals of Jesus Christ, from Dorothy L Sayers' landmark r...

James and the Giant Peach

James and the Giant Peach | BBC One | 1976 | 45'28''

An adaptation of the classic children's novel by Roald Dahl, starring Bernard Cribbins. James Henry Trotter had been living with his terrible aunts...

Time Shift | M.R. James

BBC Four | 2004 | 29'10''

Documentary on the life and works of MR James, considered by many to be England's finest writer of ghost stories.

M.R. James: Ghost Writer

BBC Two | 2013 | 58'55''

Mark Gatiss steps into the mind of M.R. James, the English master of the supernatural tale, attempting to uncover the inspiration behind stories tha...

Art That Shook The World | S01E02: James Joyce’s Ulysses

Ulysses | BBC Four | 2001 | 47'18''

Today, poet and critic Tom Paulin examines the work of James Joyce, whose writing, once banned for obscenity, ...

Talking Books | PD James

BBC News | 2010 | 23'51''

Razia Iqbal interviews P.D. James.

Andrew Marr’s Great Scots: The Writers Who Shaped a Nation | 01: James Boswell

BBC Two | 2014 | 59'23''

Andrew Marr looks at James Boswell, a man torn between his patriotic duty and his desire...

My Life in Verse | James Berry and black British poetry

BBC Two | 2009 | 4'53''

James Berry discusses his poem 'To Travel This Ship' from the book 'Windrush Songs'.

Henry James | The Turn of the Screw (2018)

The Turn of the Screw | BBC Radio 4 | 2018 | 56'56''

A terrifying tale about a governess who protects two children against what she thinks are forces of evil. Stars John Lynch.

Henry James | The Turn of the Screw (2004)

The Turn of the Screw | BBC Radio 4 | 2004 | 56'57''

Are two children under an evil influence? Or is it in the imagination of their governess? Stars Cathy Sara and Joseph Tremain.

Desert Island Discs | James Cordon

The History Boys | BBC Radio 4 | 2012 | 57'47''

James Corden, actor and writer of Gavin and Stacey, is Kirsty Young's castaway is the actor and writer. As a child he longed to act - he f...

A Good Read | Esther Rantzen & Oliver James

Wise Children | BBC Radio 4 | 2003 | 27'05''

Sue MacGregor and her guests - broadcaster, Esther Rantzen and psychologist, Oliver James - entertain an audience in The Bar...

James Naughtie – I Love to Read | Atonement

Atonement | BBC Radio 4 Extra | 2016 | 14'39''

As part of the BBC's #LovetoRead celebrations, James Naughtie delves into the archives in search of books that made him int...

Saturday Review | Keira Knightley & James McAvoy in Atonement

Atonement | BBC Radio 4 | 2007 | 8'59''

Keira Knightley and James McAvoy star in a film adaptation of Ian McEwan's novel Atonement, directed by Jo...

James Joyce – Blind Date With Bloomsday

Ulysses | BBC Radio 4 Extra | 2011 | 27'26''

A literary landmark and it's effect on a city; an examination of how Dublin has embraced Ulysses. With Peter White.

Start the Week | James Joyce

Ulysses | BBC Radio 4 | 2020 | 27'48''

Andrew Marr discusses Ulysses and the legacy of Joyce with writers Edna O'Brien, Colm Toibin and Mary Costello.

The Culture Cafe | James Joyce and the Lass of Aughrim

Ulysses | BBC Radio Ulster | 1982 | 24'53''

Celebrating Ulysses at 100 by revisiting a very special 1982 documentary, featuring Ted Hickey looking at Joyce's rela...

Witness History | James Joyce and Ulysses

Ulysses | BBC World Service | 2022 | 9'00''

It's 100 years since one of the most influential novels of the 20th century was published. Hear the memories of some of the great I...

The Talk Show with Clive James | Jeanette Winterson

Oranges are Not the Only Fruit | BBC Two | 1990 | 40'57''

Clive James hosts discussion prog with guests Jeanette Winterson (Author) David Mamet (playwright) and Deborah Moggach.

Book of the Week | James Joyce – A Biography: Episode 1

Ulysses | BBC Radio 4 | 2011 | 13'37''

Joyce's early life in Dublin, full of japes with friends and then an eye to exile. Narrated by Jim Norton with ...

James Joyce’s Ulysses

Ulysses | BBC Radio 4 | 2012 | 5'36''

Stephen Dedalus and Buck Mulligan look out over Dublin Bay. It is 8.00 am on the 16th June 1904. With Andrew Scott, Kevin Trainor and Stephen Rea...

The Turn of the Screw (1994)

The Turn of the Screw | BBC Four | 1994 | 1'58'44''

Based on the Henry James ghost story and recorded at Glasgow's Tramway.

Bloomsday

Ulysses | BBC One | 1964 | 1'37'01''

Adaptation by Allan McClelland of James Joyce's Ulysses, with Milo O'Shea as Bloom, June Tobin as Molly and Simon Ward as Stephen Dedalus.

The Murder Room

The Murder Room | BBC One | 2005 | 1'27'52''

Two part television series adapated from the suspenseful P.D. James murder mystery, featuring Martin Shaw as detective Adam Dalgliesh. Following the murder o...

Free Thinking | Bloomsday, Dalloway Day and 1922

Ulysses | BBC Radio 3 | 2022 | 44'11''

A theatre company who travelled Britain in a van in 1922, how James Joyce's eyesight troubles influenced his writing of Ulys...

Martha’s Streets by Dermot Bolger

Ulysses | BBC Radio 4 Extra | 2004 | 13'43''

Dermot Bolger's touching story of how James Joyce's Ulysses influenced and inspired one woman's life.

Night Waves | Ulysses

Ulysses | BBC Radio 3 | 2009 | 43'26''

Bidisha discusses whether James Joyce's Ulysses could be a self-help guide in disguise,

Open Book | Making it new? Literature of the Twenties Special

Ulysses | BBC Radio 4 | 2021 | 27'35''

Johny Pitts explores the books of the 1920s with Alison McLeod, Bill Goldstein, James Clammer and Jo Hamya - as...

Open Book | Open Book’s guide to Ulysses

Ulysses | BBC Radio 4 | 2022 | 27'48''

Chris Power is joined by Colm Toibin and Merve Emre to explore the enduring legacy of James Joyce's Ulysses, as this ground-br...

The Essay | Reading Ulysses: Anne Enright on Telemachus

Ulysses | BBC Radio 3 | 2022 | 14'02''

Anne Enright selects the first episode of James Joyce's Ulysses, closely deciphers the opening pages, and examines th...

The History Hour | Ulysses

Ulysses | BBC World Service | 2022 | 8'10''

This year is the 100th anniversary of Ulysses by James Joyce, one of the most influential novels of the 20th Century. Ulysses is the story of on...

The Movie Cafe | 19/11/2009

Ulysses | Radio Scotland | 2009 | 9'47''

Maverick American director Joseph Strick talks about his film Ulysses - an adaptation of James Joyce's novel - from which the BBFC demanded 29 cu...

Ulysses Today

Ulysses | BBC Radio 4 | 2012 | 43'06''

Mark Lawson chairs a discussion about the powerful influence of Ulysses today and in the years since its publication in 1922, with guests including Anne Fogart...

Omnibus | Whistle and I’ll Come to You

Oh, Whistle, and I'll Come to You, My Lad | BBC One | 1968 | 41'56''

An ancient whistle dating back to the times of the Knights Templar spells danger for the man who finds it. Classic MR James chil...

Children of Men (2006)

The Children of Men | BBC Two | 2023 | 1'38'56''

In a chaotic future Britain where no child has been born for years, a loner helps the world's only known pregnant woman to safety.

Roald Dahl’s Revolting Recipes | 03: Mudburgers

James and the Giant Peach | BBC One | 1997 | 13'58''

Series in which chef Gary Rhodes creates dishes inspired by Roald Dahl's children's books.

Roald Dahl’s Revolting Recipes | 05: Mosquitoes’ Toes

James and the Giant Peach | BBC One | 1997

Series in which chef Gary Rhodes creates dishes inspired by Roald Dahl's children's books.

Roald Dahl’s Revolting Recipes | 07: Hot Frogs

James and the Giant Peach | BBC One | 1997 | 13'37''

Series in which chef Gary Rhodes creates dishes inspired by Roald Dahl's children's books.

Roald Dahl’s Revolting Recipes | 09: Crispy Wasp Stings

James and the Giant Peach | BBC One | 1997 | 13'38''

Series in which chef Gary Rhodes creates dishes inspired by Roald Dahl's children's books.

David Copperfield (1986)

David Copperfield | BBC One | 1986 | 28'16''

Ten episode series written by James Andrew Hall, directed by Barry Letts and produced by Terrance Dicks for the BBC. Nominated for a BAFTA in the Ch...