Herman Melville: A BBC Radio Drama Collection: Three Full-Cast Dramatisations including Moby-Dick

The collected BBC full-cast adaptations of the works of Herman Melville, plus a bonus biographical programme about his life and work

Herman Melville was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance period. He is best known for Moby-Dick, the opening line of which - ‘Call me Ishmael’ - is one of the most famous opening lines in literature.

This BBC collection features lively full-cast dramatisations of three of Melville’s best-known works:

Moby-Dick: The sailor Ishmael's narrative of the maniacal quest of Captain Ahab for vengeance against Moby Dick, the giant white sperm whale that bit off his leg.

Bartleby, the Scrivener: A man employed as a copyist in a firm of lawyers starts behaving strangely. It begins with him announcing there are aspects of his work he’d 'prefer' not to do – although he’s excellent at the actual work. But then the list of things he’d rather avoid doing becomes more sinister...

Billy Budd, Sailor: Herman Melville's famous story of an innocent and handsome sailor, left unfinished on his death in 1891. Billy Budd is a sailor who inadvertently kills his false accuser. The ship's Captain recognizes Billy's lack of intent, but the law of mutiny requires him to sentence Billy to be hanged.

Also included is a documentary programme, The Strange Journey of Herman Melville: a profile of author and one-time sailor who fell out of favour during his lifetime and whose reputation was only re-established after his death.