Episode 1
Margaret Atwood turns a tantalising fairy tale into a dark modern story, as three old university friends discover a secret they had hoped was buried forever resurfacing.
by Margaret Atwood
dramatised by Sarah Wooley
1/2
In Margaret Atwood's brilliant and contemporary re-working of the Grimm's fairy story, three old university friends
are about to be shockingly reminded of a dark secret from their pasts - which they had hoped was buried forever....
Zenia ..... Tanya Moodie
Roz ..... Teresa Gallagher
Tony ..... Barbara Barnes
Charis ..... Isabella Inchbald
West ..... David Reakes
Billy ...... Tayla Kovacevic-Ebong
Uncle Vern ..... Rupert Holliday-Evans
Produced and directed by Marion Nancarrow
In "The Robber Bride" Margaret Atwood brilliantly turns this Brothers Grimm fairytale on its head, by re-casting all the roles as female. In the original tale, the Robber Bridegroom steals young maidens for his own ends, but Atwood casts the bridegroom as a predatory woman (described by Lorrie Moore in the New York Times as "Richard III with breast implants") and looks at the effects her manipulation has on three female friends in Toronto, as they go through university and into their adult lives, between 1967 and 1990.
Canadian born British actress Tanya Moodie stars as Zenia.
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Credits
| Role | Contributor |
|---|---|
| Zenia | Tanya Moodie |
| Roz | Teresa Gallagher |
| Tony | Barbara Barnes |
| Charis | Isabella Inchbald |
| West | David Reakes |
| Billy | Tayla Kovacevic-Ebong |
| Uncle Vern | Rupert Holliday-Evans |
| Author | Margaret Atwood |
| Adaptor | Sarah Wooley |
| Director | Marion Nancarrow |
| Producer | Marion Nancarrow |
Broadcasts
- Sun 18 Feb 201815:00BBC Radio 4
- Sat 24 Feb 201821:00BBC Radio 4
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