Showing results by narrator "Jan Francis" in All Categories

Julian, Dick, Anne, George and Timmy the dog find excitement and adventure wherever they go in Enid Blyton's most popular series. In book 19, the Famous Five travel to Demon's Rocks and discover a very old and valuable gold coin. Demon's Rocks is famous for its stories of bountiful treasure, but if the myth is reality, who does the treasure belong to? The Five are determined to find out, but first they need to know who else is exploring Demon's Rocks for the treasure....

Jan Francis reads Johanna Spyri's classic tale of the adventures of a little Swiss girl. Ever since her mother died, Heidi has been looked after by her aunt Dete. But now Dete is moving to Frankfurt, and Heidi must go and live with her grandfather in a hut high up in the Swiss mountains. There she meets Peter the goatherd and his blind grandmother, and the three become great friends. Heidi loves her new, carefree life - but then her aunt returns to take her away from everyone she loves.

Julian, Dick, Anne, George and Timmy the dog find excitement and adventure wherever they go in Enid Blyton's most popular series. In book 11, the Famous Five are on an adventurous holiday in horse-drawn caravans. They discover a ruined castle that looks deserted. But is that a face at the window? Or is it a trick of the light? Just who is hiding in the castle?

The Fifth Form is putting on a pantomime, and Darrell's writing it! But Cinderella doesn't always go smoothly. Which girl will get to play the lead? And who on earth is writing the producer anonymous letters? New girl Amanda doesn't really fit in at Malory Towers. She's headstrong and arrogant - but is fantastic at games! Amanda's destined to swim for the Olympic team - but will she make it?

A major motion picture adaptation by Studio Ghibli, creators of Spirited Away and Arrietty. Anna hasn't a friend in the world - until she meets Marnie among the sand dunes. But Marnie isn't all she seems.... Sent away from her foster home one long, hot summer to a sleepy Norfolk village by the sea, Anna dreams her days away among the sandhills and marshes.

Wrongly accused of theft and exiled from a religious community many years before, the embittered weaver Silas Marner lives alone in Raveloe, living only for work and his precious hoard of money. But when his money is stolen and an orphaned child finds her way into his house, Silas is given the chance to transform his life. His fate, and that of the little girl he adopts, is entwined with Godfrey Cass, son of the village Squire, who, like Silas, is trapped by his past.

Jock was supposed to have died in the Paddington train crash. Minty had received a letter from the railway company. But, curiously, the police hadn't been in touch. And Jock had gone off with all her savings. Then Jock's ghost starts reappearing to Minty: at home, at work, even in the cinema. He even touches her. Minty started to carry a knife. If he wasn't made of shadows, would he bleed?

The BBC TV soundtrack of the acclaimed Jackanory multi-voice reading of The Hobbit. Broadcast to mark the 3000th programme of the much-loved children's series Jackanory, The Hobbit was transmitted over two weeks and 10 episodes in 1979. It told the gripping story of Bilbo Baggins and his band of dwarves, who are on a quest for the treasure guarded by the fearsome dragon Smaug. As he leaves his cosy hobbit-hole and travels into the wild, Bilbo's adventures begin.

Dawn Buckle spends most of her days trying to get people to notice her. But whether at home or at school, it's as if she's completely invisible. And that's exactly what makes her the ideal recruit for S.H,.H. (Strictly Hush Hush) - a secret intelligence agency. How the world's most forgettable girl transforms herself into a world-class spy and tracks down a surprising secret agent will delight listeners.

When Bet is first asked to go into the meadow to read aloud - apparently to no one - she wonders why. To her surprise, her audience is a little mole. But no ordinary mole. This is a mole who can speak, is over 300 years old, and has an incredible tale to tell. So begins an enchanting tale of deep secrets, extraordinary magic, and beautiful friendship between Bet and the Little Gentleman in Black Velvet.

The English language has grown into the world’s pre-dominant spoken language, containing over one million words. Its sources are rich and diverse, having absorbed words from other cultures and times without hesitation. With such talents as Shakespeare, Keats, Shelley, Kipling, Blake, and many other classic poets using this most flexible language to render their thoughts and visions, it is no wonder that the beauty and reach of English entrances us.

Becky loves Sam, the pony who lives in the field next to her school. She's thrilled when her class are told they can look after him. Everyone enjoys being with Sam, until something terrible happens. Can Becky help her perfect pony when it really matters?

Daniel Defoe's classic satire, read by Jan Francis. Defoe's rumbustious story tells the tale of Moll Flanders - her seductions, marriages and liaisons, and her journey to her mother in Virginia, where it becomes clear that Moll has, without realising, married her own brother. Our resourceful heroine goes to and from America meeting (and sometimes marrying) highwaymen, pickpockets, and dastardly rogues in a wonderful picaresque romp that is one of the most enjoyable and enduring classic novels.

There are six of the Bone children and, when their parents are drowned on the Titanic, everyone wonders what will become of them. But Binnie is determined not to let the family be split up, and she stands up to all the well-meaning offers from relatives to take charge. Her love holds the family together through its ups and downs. Then the First World War starts - and Binnie's brothers are desperate to go and fight for their country.

The first girl had a bite mark on her neck, but they traced the DNA to her boyfriend. But the tabloids got hold of the story and called the killer 'The Rottweiler' and the name stuck. The latest murder takes place very near Inez Ferry's antique shop in Marylebone.

A growling lion spends the morning at school and frightens the school bully; a little boy saves a mouse’s life; Totty spends the night with a ‘man-eating manatee’; a crooked little finger gets Judy into trouble; and the Great Sharp Scissors cause havoc! These are just some of the surprises in store in this charming collection of nine lively tales.

English Poetry, Volume 2 – An Introduction. The English language has grown into the Worlds pre-dominant spoken language. It’s estimated there are over one million words with which to do this. Its sources are rich and diverse, absorbing from other cultures and times without hesitation.

After listening to a tape about the Creeper, a horrific creature formed from the ashes of a murdered man and bent on revenge against all wrongdoers, Lucy gets scared. Now the Creeper is loose, and Lucy fears she will be a victim.

Westminster Abbey has seen much during its long, rich history: the coronations of Kings and Queens, the burials of Prime Ministers. However, it is also a church that remembers the men and women of the arts. Dedicated writers and poets who spoke so eloquently that the nation wished to remember them with plaques upon its walls so that all who travelled here could remember, too. Their works are worth remembering, and here, in these volumes, their wise words speak, too, and for us all. In volume 2 we collect together John Clare to DH Lawrence.