Marley Was Dead

Marley Was Dead Fri, 24 Dec 2010, 20:00 on BBC Radio 4

David is featuring in Marley Was Dead, as Bob Cratchit, which will be broadcast on Christmas Eve, details as follows:

Synopsis By John Nicholson and Richard Katz.
A Christmas Carol, but not as you've ever heard it before. An all-star cast gather to bring Dickens' timeless classic to life.
Narrator . . . . . John Nicholson
Scrooge . . . . . Richard Katz
Cratchit . . . . . Javier Marzan
Farhana . . . . . Sirine Saba
Claire . . . . . Sophie Russell
Oliver . . . . . Joshua Swinney
Martha . . . . . Martha Katz
Jesse . . . . . Jesse Katz
Produced by Steven Canny.
Directed by Sasha Yevtushenko.

Marley Was Dead is a wonderful piece of spoof radio. It's 9.02pm on Christmas Eve, and listeners are about to hear a starry cast performance of A Christmas Carol from St Martin in the Fields, introduced by Jonathan Dimbleby. At least, they think they are... Jonathan Dimbleby, speaking from the balcony, introduces the production and the stellar cast: Sir Ian McKellen as Scrooge, Sir Patrick Stewart as the Narrator, David Tennant as Bob Cratchit, and so forth. Sir Simon Rattle is conducting. But a few seconds into the play itself - just after listeners hear the famous opening lines "Marley was dead" - things take an unexpected turn for the worse. What follows next is screwball comedy in the finest tradition. Marley Was Dead is written and narrated by John Nicholson and Richard Katz, who also star as the Narrator and Scrooge respectively. Javier Marzan plays Bob Cratchit. Special guests include: Jonathan Dimbleby; Richard Madeley; Jane Horrocks; Chris Evans; Charlotte Green; Edward Kelsey; Peter Purves; Gwyneth Williams; and Dara O Brian. The play is devised by one of the UK's most exciting touring comic theatre companies, Peepolykus (pronounced: people-like-us). "Peepolykus should receive subsidy from the NHS to tour the country and bring a delight to audiences with shows that dispel stress, anxiety and depression" The British Theatre Review "In comedy terms, what Peepolykus can do is limitless" Variety.
Duration 60 minutes

The Radio Times says: While Matt Smith is starring in a Doctor Who version of A Christmas Carol on TV, his predecessor David Tennant is to feature in this enthralling live adaptation too.

Thanks to Carolyn Pellow