Episode 1

Susan Layton's engagement is announced.

Her fiancé, Teddie Bingham, is stationed with his regiment in Mirat and is sharing his quarters with Captain Ronald Merrick.

The last days of the British Raj in India as the Second World War leads inevitably towards independence.

Paul Scott's classic series of novels dramatised by John Harvey.

Sarah Layton ...... Lia Williams
Mildred Layton ...... Geraldine James
Susan Layton ...... Alex Tregear
Teddie Bingham ...... Nicholas Boulton
Nigel Rowan ...... Benedict Cumberbatch
Ronald Merrick ...... Mark Bazeley
Lady Manners ...... Irene Sutcliffe
Count Bronowski ...... Gary Waldhorn
Fenny Grace ...... Selina Griffiths
Pandit Baba ...... Nadim Sawalha
Ahmed Kasim ...... Shiv Grewal
Hari Kumar ...... Prasanna Puwanarajah
Gopal ...... Bhasker Patel

Other parts played by:

Stuart McLoughlin
Robert Hastie

Music by Raiomond Mirza.

Director: Jeremy Mortimer

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2005.