Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Offer ends May 1st, 2024 11:59PM GMT. Terms and conditions apply.
£7.99/month after 3 months. Renews automatically.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Classic Radio Sci-Fi: BBC Drama Collection cover art

Classic Radio Sci-Fi: BBC Drama Collection

By: Stanislaw Lem,Karel Čapek,Mary Shelley,Arthur Conan Doyle,H. G. Wells
Narrated by: William Gaunt,full cast,Robert Glenister,Joanne Froggatt
Get this deal Try for £0.00

Pay £99p/month. After 3 months pay £7.99/month. Renews automatically. See terms for eligibility.

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Listeners also enjoyed...

The 39 Steps and Other Richard Hannay Adventures cover art
Ghost Stories: Stephen Fry's Definitive Collection cover art
The H G Wells BBC Radio Collection cover art
John Wyndham: A BBC Radio Drama Collection cover art
Sherlock Holmes: The Complete BBC Collection cover art
Sherlock Holmes: The Carleton Hobbs Collection cover art
Robert Louis Stevenson: A BBC Radio Drama Collection cover art
BBC Classics: Ultimate Story Collection cover art
Slayers: A Buffyverse Story cover art
Earthsearch cover art
The Quatermass Memoirs cover art
Dan Dare: The Audio Adventures - Season 1 cover art
Vintage BBC Radio Horror: The Slide, Night of the Wolf & Dark cover art
The Man in Black: The Complete Series 1-4 cover art
Fear on 4 cover art
Sergeant Cribb cover art

Summary

Five seminal science fiction classics are brought vividly to life in these gripping BBC Radio dramatisations, with casts including Robert Glenister, William Gaunt, Carleton Hobbs and Joanne Froggatt.

Frankenstein (1994) is adapted from one of the first science fiction novels, Mary Shelley's tale of a scientist who tries to play God and creates a monster.

The Time Machine (2009) dramatises one of the first stories to feature time travel, HG Wells' thrilling tale of an inventor who discovers a dystopian future.

The Lost World (1975) is based on a classic fantasy adventure story by Arthur Conan Doyle, whose notion of dinosaurs roaming our world was the inspiration for Jurassic Park.

R.U.R. (1989) is a radio production of Karel Kapek's thought-provoking play which introduced the word robot to the English language.

Solaris (2007) dramatises Stanislaw Lem's pioneering ghost story set in space, both a suspenseful thriller and a philosophical meditation on guilt and the human condition.

Accompanying this collection is a bonus PDF file featuring extensive sleeve notes by Andrew Pixley. Duration: 10 hours approx.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2017 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2017 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

What listeners say about Classic Radio Sci-Fi: BBC Drama Collection

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    57
  • 4 Stars
    32
  • 3 Stars
    6
  • 2 Stars
    3
  • 1 Stars
    2
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    50
  • 4 Stars
    22
  • 3 Stars
    8
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    3
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    51
  • 4 Stars
    24
  • 3 Stars
    6
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    2

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Two great - Two fine - One really bad


Let’s start things off on a positive note. Solaris (2007) and The Time Machine (2009) are both enjoyable stories dramatised by the BBC. The others not so much.

Frankenstein (1994) is fine, but I’ve already heard the adaptation by Big Finish which is also available on Audible and is far superior (starring Arthur Darvill). Would have enjoyed this production more if I hadn’t heard anything to compare it against.

Same issue with The Lost World (1975). I’ve already got the BBC’s more recent production (2011) and it is much better. Starring David Robb

R.U.R., Rossum’s Universal Robots (1989). There is a good story hidden there, but it is terribly dated. Especially the portrayal of the lead female, Helena Glory. Was glad when it ended. Won’t be listening to it again. Ever.

Previously these five dramatisations were available separately so although I really enjoyed only two of them, for me at least, it still seems good value. Looking forward to reading other reviews of R.U.R.. Do others agree, is it really as bad as I thought it was?

Overall 3-1/2 stars

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

20 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
  • LJ
  • 31-10-19

Constant problem

Love all these stories so no problem there. But when you have multiple stories in one book why can’t the chapters be labelled. There is no way to tell where each one starts. Surely they can be named rather than just Chapter 1 etc.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

12 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Only listened to Frankenstein so far...

This great tale was not served well by the strange performances - at one point Frankenstein sounded like someone doing a bad impression of Prince Charles and the monster...well... Do you remember that episode of Blackadder with the actors in it - total luvvies..? Enough said. ‘Ah...daahhling...see how I place...the back of my hand....so very...very dramatically on .... my fore...head. And how I .... place gaps in the...sentences, but only....where no....gap should exist?’ Drama school nonsense. Looking forward to the other stories in the compilation tho!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Good collection!

Overall, a good collection! I enjoyed Solaris a lot, followed by the Time Machine. Probably, my lea set favorite was Frankenstein.

Here would be my breakdown:

Frankenstein - Ok
The Time Machine - Good
The Lost World - Ok
R.U.R - Good
Solaris - Great

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great classics Condensed.

How could any one who likes these classics not enjoy this? It was great feeling nostalgic as these dramas covered some of my favourite classic sci-fi in a radio drama format. I had not even read RUR before, but I will after listening to these.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

worth buying just for Solaris

shame they put Solaris on last as it's worth buying just for this great version of the classic. tale

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Shame

Usually a great lover if the old BBC Sci fi radio dramas, unfortunately the stories here are not performed to greatest.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent stories brilliantly narrated

Excellent stories brilliantly narrated. All narrators are excellent and acting is very good. just long enough to be interesting and enjoyable.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great imaginative stories

Loved the stories and imaginative role play and strong characters. Great sound effects and quality of narrative.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great series of stories based on timeless classics

what a fab series. well dramatized. Great acting. timeless classics. I shall look for more in the series

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!