Single Spies
by Alan Bennett

Name: Single Spies
Brand: Alan Bennett
SKU: 9780573018916
Rating: 3.85 (84 reviews)

Single Spies Book Cover — Single Spies Cover

Highlights

Small Cast

Female

Male

Interior SetBritish Comedy

Awards & Recognition

Olivier Award

Winner! 1990 Olivier Award, Best Comedy

What readers are saying

Readers highlight the excellence of the two one-act plays, with many appreciating the clever writing and insightful portrayal of the Cambridge spies. The performances, particularly by Edward Fox, are noted as exceptional, contributing to an overall engaging theatrical experience. While some readers mention that the script doesn't fully capture the impact of watching the plays live, the overwhelming consensus is positive.

Clever writing and dialogueOutstanding performancesIntriguing character insightsReading isn't as engaging as watching

Synopsis

A critically acclaimed double bill of Alan Bennett plays, adapted for BBC Radio.

An Englishman Abroad - It is 1958, and in a squalid flat in Moscow, double-agent Guy Burgess is hiding from the world.

When he is visited by actress Coral Browne, he is overjoyed to see someone from his former life in England.

Starved for information, Burgess interrogates her about English society gossip.

A Question of Attribution - In 1956, Sir Anthony Blunt - pillar of the Establishment and respected Knight of the Realm - is working as Surveyor of the Queen's Pictures.

Perfectly at home in the corridors of Buckingham Palace, he frequently encounters Her Majesty as he works on her paintings, and has a special fondness for one particular Titian.

However, there is one small problem: the painting, like Blunt himself, is a fake.

Is the Queen aware that her enigmatic servant might also be other than he seems?

Poignant and moving, these two brand new adaptations feature Simon Callow, Brigit