Listen "That Hideous Strength - Episode 2"
Episode Synopsis
John Yorke looks at C.S Lewis’s novel That Hideous Strength, the third in a trilogy of science fiction works. Published in the aftermath of World War Two it offers a bleak vision of a world where unchecked scientific research is masking much more sinister aims. A couple, Jane and Mark Studdock, are set on different paths, both threatened by external and internal forces on a dark journey into a dystopian nightmare.In the second of two episodes, John looks at the context in which That Hideous Strength was written and asks how the terrible events of the Second World War coloured CS Lewis’s vision of the future.John Yorke has worked in television and radio for 30 years, and he shares his experience with listeners as he unpacks the themes and impact of the books, plays and stories that are being dramatised in BBC Radio 4’s Sunday Drama series. As former Head of Channel Four Drama and Controller of BBC Drama Production, he has worked on some of the most popular shows in Britain - from EastEnders to The Archers, Life on Mars to Shameless. As creator of the BBC Writers Academy, he's trained a generation of screenwriters - now with over 70 green lights and thousands of hours of television to their names. He is the author of Into the Woods, the bestselling book on narrative, and he writes, teaches and consults on all forms of narrative - including many podcasts for R4.Contributors:
Professor Robert Maslen, University of Glasgow
AN Wilson, author of CS Lewis A BiographyReadings: Matthew Gravelle
Sound: Sean Kerwin
Production Hub Coordinator: Nina Semple
Producer: Mark Rickards
Executive Producer: Caroline RaphaelA Pier production for BBC Radio 4
Professor Robert Maslen, University of Glasgow
AN Wilson, author of CS Lewis A BiographyReadings: Matthew Gravelle
Sound: Sean Kerwin
Production Hub Coordinator: Nina Semple
Producer: Mark Rickards
Executive Producer: Caroline RaphaelA Pier production for BBC Radio 4
More episodes of the podcast Opening Lines
The Last of the Mohicans - Episode Two
04/01/2026
The Last of the Mohicans - Episode 1
28/12/2025
Joy in the Morning
23/12/2025
Sense and Sensibility - Episode Two
20/12/2025
Sense and Sensibility - Episode One
20/12/2025
Pride and Prejudice - Episode Two
14/12/2025
Pride and Prejudice - Episode One
13/12/2025
The Princess Bride
30/11/2025
The Wind in the Willows
16/11/2025
Northanger Abbey - Episode Two
02/11/2025
ZARZA We are Zarza, the prestigious firm behind major projects in information technology.