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The series that takes a look at books, plays and stories and how they work. John Yorke explores Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, one of the world’s greatest novels.

In this third and final part on Anna Karenina, John focuses on Tolstoy and his world, in order to come to an understanding of the true sense of his achievement in writing a novel that has been at the forefront of world literature since its publication nearly 150 years ago.

The 1870s were a time of seismic social change in Russia and, in Anna Karenina, Tolstoy’s meticulous and subtle descriptions of the daily lives and concerns of his characters reflect his own turmoil in the face of a world that was in upheaval. ‘How does one live well?’ is the profound question at the heart of the novel.

John Yorke has worked in television and radio for 30 years, and he shares his experience with Radio 4 listeners as he unpacks the themes and impact of the books, plays and stories that are being dramatized in ±«Óãtv Radio 4’s Sunday/Saturday Drama series.

From EastEnders to the Archers, Life on Mars to Shameless, he has been obsessed with telling big popular stories. He has spent years analysing not just how stories work but why they resonate with audiences around the globe and has brought together his experience in his bestselling book Into the Woods.

As former Head of Channel Four Drama, Controller of ±«Óãtv Drama Production and MD of Company Pictures, John has tested his theories during an extensive production career working on some of the world’s most lucrative, widely viewed and critically acclaimed TV drama. As founder of the hugely successful ±«Óãtv Writers Academy, John has trained a generation of screenwriters - his students have had 17 green-lights in the last two years alone.

Contributors:
Rosamund Bartlett, Tolstoy biographer and translator of new Oxford World Classics edition of Anna Karenina.
Dr. Sarah Hudspith, Associate Professor in Russian at the University of Leeds
Linda Marshall-Griffiths, writer and adapter of new radio drama of Anna Karenina
Readings by Jules Wilkinson

Credits:
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, trans. Constance Garnet, 1901 William Heinemann

Produced by Lore Windemuth
Executive Producer: Sara Davies
Researcher: Nina Semple
Production Manager: Sarah Wright
Sound by Ian Hunter
A Pier production for ±«Óãtv Radio 4

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