The Le Fanu Ballads

Available for 285 days

Neil Brand has bridged the two time periods of Sheridan Le Fanu's 19th Century ghost stories and our world today in this supernatural adaptation. It begins in a basement nightclub in the heart of Dublin called Sheridan's. In its dark brick interior, a small stage is surrounded by tables, the MC takes to the stage and a beautiful young woman, Nuala O'Brien - the Siren of the Second Sight - sings her ballad. Her eyes scan the upturned faces in the audience below her, until they fix on a face. For four of the people who come to this club, a Royal Naval sailor, an au pair, an artist and a judge, this visit will change their lives. They will find themselves trapped in a story sprung from the tortured mind of Le Fanu himself. The MC ..... Paul Chahidi Lady Justice Horobin/Madam Crowl ..... Haydn Gwynne Lewis/Gordon Starkey ..... Jonathan Forbes Nuala/Laura ..... Ruth Everett James Barton/McCrone ..... Matthew Durkan Pamela/Jeanette/Rosie ..... Alexandra Hannant Grace/Meg Wyvern ..... Rebecca Crankshaw Yelland ..... Chris Jack Gerald Dow /Court Clerk ..... Michael Begley Vanderhausen/Workman/Captain Jenner ..... Neil McCaul Music composed and played by Neil Brand, with Nuala's Ballad sung by Ruth Everett. * Neil is a composer, writer, radio playwright, presenter and broadcaster specialising in silent film and film music. Director: Tracey Neale First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2022.