William Hogarth's A Harlot's Progress & Marriage a la Mode

A scandalous full-cast dramatized romp through Hogarth’s famous paintings, bringing to life the story in – and behind – each canvas


Listen to this double helping of laugh-out-loud comedy featuring an all-star cast including Stephen Mangan, Annabel Scholey (The Split), Sheila Reid (Benidorm) and Will Keen (His Dark Materials and The Crown) as they bring alive the life and times of William Hogarth and the stories revealed - and concealed - in his famous sequence of engravings.

This enchanting and hilarious collection is comprised of two audio treats. In the first, A Harlot’s Progress, it’s 1732 and a young, undistinguished painter abandons his classical training and sets out to tell the tale of a country girl''s downfall on the streets of London in a series of paintings. Innocent Moll Hackabout, the story’s heroine, arrives in London and is swiftly taken in by procuress Mrs Needham. She becomes a city trader’s courtesan but falls for a famous highway man. As she descends into a life of prostitution, penury and misery, painter William’s life in 18th century London is just beginning…
In Marriage a la Mode the story continues and Mr and Mrs Hogarth return with another romp through a series of classic engravings as a marriage made in the Bank of England unites the aristocratic Squanders with the bourgeois Grubpumps, to the disgust of both bride and groom. Hogarth engraves the disastrous consequences of marrying for money rather than love as the wealthy newlyweds indulge every desire - if only they desired each other. Affairs, transgressions, debts, deceit and murder are only a part of this pacy and hilarious adventure that culminates in very different endings for the Squanders, Grubpumps and Hogarths.
Writer Jonathan Myerson is a renowned TV and radio dramatist. His animated film The Canterbury Tales won a BAFTA Award and four primetime Emmys and he has also written scripts for several British television drama series including The Bill, Holby City, EastEnders, Jupiter Moon and The Legend of William Tell.
A Harlot’s Progress
Cast and credits
Written by Jonathan Myerson
Directed and produced by Jonquil Panting
William Hogarth - Will Keen
Jean - Shella Reid
Moll - Liz White
London girl - Amelia Lowdell
London girl - Annabel Scholey
Mrs Needham - Rosemary Leach
Charteris - Crawford Logan
Gourlay - Gerard McDermott
Wagondriver - Stephen Critchlow
Giuseppe - Paul Reynolds
Solomon - Nickolas Grace
Bess - Amelda Brown
James/Dr Rock - Ben Crowe
Client/Joshua - Geoffrey Beevers
First Broadcast BBC Radio 4, 6th - 10th February 2006
Marriage a la Mode
Cast and credits
Written by Jonathan Myerson
Directed and produced by Jonquil Panting
William Hogarth - Will Keen
Jane Hogarth - Rebecca Johnson
Charles - Stephen Mangan
Emily Grubpump (Later Countess Squander) - Anna Madeley
Grubpump - Robin Soans
Sylvester Silvertongue/Sir Andrew - John Dougall
Old Squander/Misaubin - Sam Dale
Mrs Wisebourne - Nichola McAulffle
Tyers - Anthony Glennon
Clarissa - Poppy Friar
Missus - Rachel Bavidge
Steward - Mark Straker
Simmy - Jasmine Callan
Little William - Jordan Clarke
First Broadcast BBC Radio 4, 26th - 2nd March 2007
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