Anton Lesser
2) Tom Jones
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Tom Jones was abandoned as a baby by his mother. When Tom falls in love with Sophia Western, their union is vehemently opposed by her wealthy father. In despair, Tom joins the army for a brief duration, finds a servant in a barber-surgeon named Partridge, beds two older women, and very nearly kills a man in a duel. Eventually the secret of Tom's birth is revealed, giving him one more chance at love with Sophia.
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Laurence Sterne's most famous novel is a biting satire of literary conventions and contemporary eighteenth-century values. Renowned for its parody of established narrative techniques, Tristram Shandy is commonly regarded as the forerunner of avant-garde fiction. Tristram's characteristic digressions on a whole range of unlikely subjects (including battle strategy and noses!) are endlessly surprising and make this one of Britain's greatest comic
...5) Hard times
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"Hard Times is perhaps the archetypal Dickens novel, full as it is with family difficulties, estrangement, rotten values and unhappiness. It was published in 1854 and it is the story of the family of Thomas Gradgrind, and occurs in the imaginary Coketown, an industrial city inspired by Preston. Gradgrind is a man obsessed with misguided 'Utilitarian' values that make him trust facts, statistics and practicality more than emotion and is based upon...
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Spring 1972 brings with it a new start for Morse, having taken time out to deal with the drink. His return to CID coincides with a gruesome discovery in a college garden. The investigation leads him and Thursday to a celebrated orchestra and when a second tragedy hits, they uncover a web of secrets at the company's core. Meanwhile, London business is left on Oxford's doorstep when a known informant is found murdered in an abandoned warehouse.
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Hamlet, set in Denmark, tells the story of the titular prince and his supposed madness after his uncle Claudius kills his father, marries his mother, and takes the throne. Shakespeare's most popular and most performed play, Hamlet has spawned countless interpretations and continues to intrigue audiences with its timeless themes of revenge and moral corruption.
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An old watchmaker in Holland. His two daughters, Corrie and Betsie. Simple, ordinary people. Yet these three unlikely heroes became the center of a major underground operation: To hide Jewish refugees from the occupying Germans. These kindly, law abiding people broke every rule in the book to save the lives of the men, women and children being hunted by the Nazis. Their home became a hiding place, but the cost of their bravery was betrayal and in...
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"Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven." Blind, broken by the death of his wife and bitterly disappointed by the Restoration, Milton dictated his sweeping biblical epic Paradise Lost to a series of helpers. While the struggle between God and Satan rages across the cosmos, the human tragedy of Adam and Eve the temptation and fall is movingly depicted in language unsurpassed in its musicality and beauty. A staggering and audacious undertaking...
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This production is part of a famous series produced by BBC of all of William Shakespeare's plays. The resulting films, renowned for their loyalty to the text, utilized the best theatrical and television directors and brought highly praised performances from leading contemporary actors. The bitter Trojan War drags on - the Greeks blame Achilles' apathy for low morale, while Troy's hero Hector challenges one of the enemy to a personal duel. And after...
11) The courier
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English
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The true story of a British businessman unwittingly recruited into one of the greatest international conflicts in history. Forming an unlikely partnership with a Soviet officer hoping to prevent a nuclear confrontation, the two men work together to provide the crucial intelligence used to defuse the Cuban Missile Crisis.
12) Disobedience
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English
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Ronit (Rachel Weisz) returns to the Orthodox Jewish community that shunned her decades earlier for an attraction to a childhood friend Esti (Rachel McAdams). Once reunited, their passions reignite as they explore the boundaries of faith and sexuality. Winner of Best Supporting Actor (Alessandro Nivola) and nominated for Best British Independent Film at the **British Independent Film Awards.** Official Selection at the **Toronto International Film...
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Meet Hans Litten, the brilliant young lawyer who dares to cross-examine Adolf Hitler in a Berlin courtroom in 1931. Litten's goal: to expose Hitler's true character and murderous plans, and halt the rapid rise of the Nazi Party. His reward: the red-hot hatred and fatal revenge of a hostile witness. It sweeps you into this little-known, true story of collision between the future Fuhrer's blatant contempt for the law, and Litten's brave but futile attempt...
15) Kindred
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English
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A psychological thriller rippling with suspense, KINDRED follows vulnerable mother-to-be Charlotte (played by Tamara Lawrance) as she is taken in by her recently deceased boyfriend's mother (Fiona Shaw) and her stepson (Jack Lowden), who seem increasingly obsessed with her every move. Plagued by mysterious hallucinations, Charlotte's suspicions grow about Margaret and Thomas' intentions for her unborn child.
16) Wolf Hall
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English
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Thomas Cromwell is a brutal blacksmith's son who rises from the ashes of personal disaster and deftly picks his way through a court where 'man is wolf to man.' King Henry VIII is obsessed with protecting the Tudor dynasty by securing his succession with a male heir to the throne. Told from Cromwell's perspective, "Wolf Hall" follows the complex machinations and back room dealings of this pragmatic and accomplished power broker who must serve king...
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It's Christmastime in London, and overworked Bob Cratchit and his family, including poorly Tiny Tim, find joy and cheer even in poverty. Meanwhile Bob's boss, the selfish, miserly old Ebenezer Scrooge, is deeply bitter about the festive season. However, when Scrooge is visited by the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come, the error of his ways is revealed with haunting clarity. Dickens's timeless classic, which has popularised phrases...
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"The Happy Prince and Other Stories" is a collection of whimsical, fantastical, and deeply moral tales by Oscar Wilde, the renowned nineteenth century Irish poet and playwright. Though best known for his plays and the novel "The Picture of Dorian Gray", Wilde was an accomplished and talented author of children's stories and fairy tales. This collection includes many of his most enduring short stories: the sad and beautiful "The Happy Prince", where...
19) The exception
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A German soldier tries to determine if the Dutch resistance has planted a spy to infiltrate the home of Kaiser Wilhelm in Holland during the onset of World War II, but falls for a young Jewish Dutch woman during his investigation.