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n 1997, columnist and novelist Thomas Hart is 51. He lives in a small town in Essex called Aldleigh. It's home to the Essex Chronicle where he works, has a Strict Baptist chapel where he worships, and a derelict country house which he believes to be haunted. He has a best friend called Grace - also a chapel-goer - who is 34 years his junior.

With the Hale-Bopp comet approaching, his editor at the Essex Chronicle asks for a column about astronomy, which sends Thomas on a new, long journey of discovery.

Spanning a period of 20 years, this is a story about love, friendship and faith, and what happens when these things are challenged.

And it is also about astronomy.

Episode 5
When Grace returns from the Blackwater she brings an unexpected guest to her 18th birthday party.

Sarah Perry is the author of the novels After Me Comes The Flood, the award-winning The Essex Serpent, Melmoth, and the non-fiction Essex Girls. Enlightenment is her fourth novel.

Writer: Sarah Perry
Reader: Nicola Walker
Abridger: Jeremy Osborne
Producer: Jeremy Osborne

A Sweet Talk production for 鲍鱼tv Radio 4