A Box of Delights
Airing on BBC Radio Ulster on Sunday 18th October 2026 - A concert of music and readings from with John Toal, the Ulster Orchestra and guests
Back by popular demand on Radio Ulster: Sunday 18th October 2026
Available on BBC Sounds for 30 days after broadcast
A celebration of imagination, storytelling and the joy of reading, this concert weaves together beloved film and television music, poetry and literary readings. Featuring music from Harry Potter, Matilda, Paddington, The Wizard of Oz and more, it brings favourite books and characters vividly to life through music and words.
A Box of Delights - for Book Week 2022 – and beyond
"A book is a door; on the other side is somewhere else."
Jeanette Winterson
Credits
John Toal (presenter), Zeb Soanes (narrator)
Sarah Richmond (mezzo-soprano)
Neil Martin (pipes)
Julia Dearden (reader), Aoibhéann McCann (reader)
The Ulster Orchestra - Stephen Bell (conductor)
Programme
Peace Fanfare for Children – Arthur Bliss
Welcome and introduction, including New Eyes Each Year by Philip Larkin
Overture fromRobin Hood, Prince of Thieves – Michael Kamen
Books Have Helped Me by Joseph Coelho
Overture fromMary Poppins – Marc Shaiman (arr. Gavin Sutherland)
I Opened A Book by Julia Donaldson
The Sprout and The Procession of Celestial Beings fromThe Tale of Princess Kaguya - Joe Hisaishi (arr. Graeme Stewart)
Scenes from Paddington Bear’s First Concert – Herbert Chappell Zeb Soanes(narrator)
Don’t Go Into the Library by Alberto Ríos
To the Library and Beyond from Matilda – David Newman
The Book Lovers by Frank Ormsby
All Love Can Be fromA Beautiful Mind – James Horner (arr. Graeme Stewart) Sarah Richmond (mezzo-soprano) from This New Noise by Charlotte Higgins
A medley of memorable themes for the BBC’s centenary – arr. Graeme Stewart
from A Velocity of Being by Rebecca Solnit
Harry’s Wondrous World from Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone – John William
Interval
Introduction, including The River in the Sky by Clive James
The Wizard of Oz Suite – Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg (arr. Tyzik)
In a Cardiff Arcade, 1952 by Gillian Clarke
Overture fromCamelot – Lerner and Lowe
from Enquiry Desk, Scottish Poetry Library by Andy Jackson
Newfoundland from The Brendan Voyage – Shaun Davey Neil Martin (Uilleann Pipes)
from Adult Fiction by Ian McMillan
Miss Marple – Ken Howard and Alan Blaikley (arr. Kenny Woodman) Miss Marple Theme – Ron Goodwin
from Why You Should Read Children’s Books by Katherine Rundell
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang – Sherman & Sherman (arr. Townend)
Jabberwocky – Paul Campbell Zeb Soanes (narrator)
from Gandalf’s letter to Frodo Baggins in The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkein
Pure Imagination from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory– Leslie Bricusse & Anthony Newley (arr. Richard Balcombe) Sarah Richmond (mezzo-soprano)
Reading the Classics by Brian Patten
Theme from Swallows and Amazons (BBC television) – Alfred Elms
from A Velocity of Being by Andrew Solomon
Fairytale from Shrek – Harry Gregson-Williams, John Powell, Gavin Greenaway Wedding fromBridget Jones’s Baby – Craig Armstrong (arr. Graeme Stewart)
from Bookworm: A Memoir of Childhood Reading by Patricia Craig
Overture fromBeauty and the Beast – Alan Menken
from A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (Chapter 5: The End of It)
A Carol Symphony (3rd Mvt) – Victor Hely-Hutchinson
