In The Beginning

In the sixth episode of this epic saga inspired by the Mamluk slave-dynasty of Egypt, Tumanbay is in chaos after the murder of a highly placed individual. Heaven and her slave companion find themselves prisoners of a nomadic tribe in the desert. Having failed in his duty of keeping the Palace safe, Gregor attempts to unlock the secret of the missing reliquary and find out why it is worth killing for.

Tumanbay, the beating heart of a vast empire, is threatened by a rebellion in a far-off province and a mysterious force devouring the city from within. Gregor (Rufus Wright), Master of the Palace Guard, is charged by Sultan Al-Ghuri (Raad Rawi) with the task of rooting out this insurgence and crushing it.

Cast:
Gregor......................Rufus Wright
Heaven.....................Olivia Popica
Wolf..........................Alexander Siddig
Cadali.......................Matthew Marsh
Ibn............................Nabil Elouahabi
Maya's Envoy............Nadir Khan
Madu.........................Danny Ashok
Daniel........................Gareth Kennerley
Slave.........................Akin Gazi
Boy............................Darwin Brokenbro
Al-Ghuri......................Raad Rawi
General Qulan............Christopher Fulford
The Hafiz....................Antony Bunsee
Bello...........................Albert Welling
Boy.............................Darwin Brokenbro
Manel.........................Aiysha Hart
Shamsi, Maid, Sabira.......Laure Stockley
Rajik...........................Akbar Kurtha
Pamira........................Nathalie Armin

Music - Sacha Puttnam
Sound Design - Steve Bond, Jon Ouin
Editors - Ania Przygoda, James Morgan
Producers - Emma Hearn, Nadir Khan, John Dryden

Written by Mike Walker
Directed by John Dryden

A Goldhawk production for BBC Radio 4