Elizabeth Taylor: A BBC Radio Collection

Full-cast dramatisations of three acclaimed novels by Elizabeth Taylor – including Mrs Palfrey at the Claremont – plus 17 readings of her short fiction

Described by Antonia Fraser as ‘one of the most underrated novelists of the 20th century’, Elizabeth Taylor was much admired for her witty, acutely observed stories of middle-class life. She never achieved widespread recognition during her lifetime – perhaps due to the fame of her Hollywood namesake – but since her death in 1975, her work has been rediscovered. This collection showcases the very best of her oeuvre, as heard on BBC Radio.

Shortlisted for the Booker Prize, Mrs Palfrey at the Claremont is the poignant tale of an elderly lady who moves into a genteel London hotel and strikes up an unlikely friendship with a young writer. Jean Anderson stars as Mrs Palfrey in this 1974 adaptation, with Tony Robinson as Ludo. In A Wreath of Roses, starring Angela Pleasence, a violent and disturbing incident at the start of her holiday proves to be a memory Camilla cannot escape, while In a Summer Season sees wealthy widow Kate marrying a younger man, provoking gossip among her conventional 1950s community. Kate Buffery stars in this moving drama about love and the transience of happiness.

Taylor’s short stories, a number of which appeared in The New Yorker and Harper’s Bazaar, are regarded by many as her crowning achievement. Included here are 15 of them, beginning with three tales read by Joanna Tope – ‘The Idea of Age’, ‘Plenty Good Fiesta’ and ‘The Blush’. The rest of the stories are read by David Troughton, Joanna David, Sarah Badel, Sheila Mitchell, Fiona Walker, Ann Windsor, Rosemary Leach, Shireen Shah and Cécile Chevreau respectively.

Two 13-part Woman’s Hour serials conclude our compilation. In The Wedding Group, read by June Barrie, two rebellious young people, each escaping their families, make an unhappy marriage. And in The Sleeping Beauty, read by Nigel Anthony, a 50-year-old bachelor becomes smitten with an enigmatic recluse – but both of them are nursing secrets...

Contents

Dramatisations:
Mrs Palfrey at the Claremont
A Wreath of Roses
In a Summer Season

Short Stories:
The Idea of Age
Plenty Good Fiesta
The Blush
The Letter Writers
The Benefactress
Hotel du Commerce
Spry Old Character
A Dedicated Man
The Devastating Boys
Sisters
Swan Moving
Simone
Flesh
Gravement Endommage
In and Out the Houses
The Wedding Group
The Sleeping Beauty

© 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P) 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd