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Ruth Rendell - People Don't Do Such Things

4 Extra Debut. 1979: Hapless accountant Arthur and wife Gwen's new friendship with Reeve takes a very sinister turn. Stars Reece Shearsmith.

It is 1979 and hapless accountant Arthur (a winning Reece Shearsmith) and his wife Gwen (Laura Pyper) have made a new friend.

Flashy novelist Reeve (Michael Maloney) is everything they're not - carefree, charismatic and seemingly irresistible. At first, his friendship seems to offer an enticing window into a world beyond their cloistered suburban existence, but it doesn't take long for the relationship to slip into rather more sinister territory. With unfussy performances and a rumbling documentary-style soundscape, the grimness of late-70s suburbia is palpable throughout.

From the moment colossal egotist Reeve arrives on the scene, it's clear that Arthur and Gwen don't stand a chance, and it's this festering inevitability, lurking in awkward pauses and fidgety middle-class tics, that gives this play its most haunting moments.

Dramatised by Mike Walker from a short story by Ruth Rendell.

Sound Design: Steve Bond

Directed by John Dryden
A Goldhawk Production for 麻豆官网首页入口 Radio 4.

45 minutes

Last on

Mon 6 Mar 2017 21:15

Credits

Role Contributor
Arthur Reece Shearsmith
Gwen Laura Pyper
Reeve Michael Maloney
Actor Rachel Atkins
Actor David Holt
Director John Dryden
Author Ruth Rendell
Adaptor Mike Walker

Broadcasts

  • Fri 8 Jun 2012 14:15
  • Tue 10 Mar 2015 14:15
  • Mon 6 Mar 2017 11:15
  • Mon 6 Mar 2017 21:15

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