New drama commissions announced by BBC Radio 4

BBC Radio 4 has announced new audio drama commissions including Central Intelligence, showcasing world-renowned talent.

Produced by Goldhawk Productions, Thoroughbred Studios and Rainfall Creations, Central Intelligence is part of Radio 4’s Limelight strand of drama serials. It tells the true insider story of the CIA from the perspective of Eloise Page (Kim Cattrall), who joined on the agency’s first day in 1947 and became one of its most powerful women.

Central Intelligence, starring Kim Cattrall, Ed Harris and Johnny Flynn begins on BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds on 13th September.

Other new commissions include King Lear, starring Richard Wilson and produced by Brill Productions, with more Shakespeare commissions to follow. New original dramas on Radio 4 include Breaking the Rules season, a series of one-off dramas exploring the theme of rule-breaking.

This autumn will see new adaptations of Charles Dickens’ Hard Times, Little Dorrit, and Our Mutual Friend.

Alison Hindell, Radio 4’s Commissioning Editor for Drama and Fiction says: “Radio 4’s commitment to audio drama is unrivalled, with more than 250 hours of world class productions brought to audiences each year, broadcast daily on Radio 4, reaching nearly five million listeners every week and even more on BBC Sounds.

“With Central Intelligence, Radio 4 and Limelight listeners are in for a treat: it’s so exciting to have world-class casting of this calibre to complement the bold ambition of this powerful drama serial.

“Audio drama is unique in the way it transports us to different places and times, and this ambitious series will give an intimate insider’s view of some of the most remarkable events of the last century.”