Radio alert! The Long Goodbye

Radio alert! Radio alert! The Saturday Play on Radio 4 tomorrow is the next installment in Radio 4's 'Classic Chandler' series, and is a dramatisation of The Long Goodbye. Put your feet up and get ready for an afternoon of pure enjoyment.

I really enjoyed the first few plays broadcast earlier this year, and this one again stars Toby Stephens as Marlowe. Hearing the words spoken out loud really makes you aware of how great Chandler's use of language was. Often parodied and frequently copied, he was far better than either his humorous or sincere imitators ever manage to be. The Long Goodbye was published in 1953, so it's a little later than the stories most people know best, but is still packed with dangerous dames, double-crosses and trips to shady places.

If you missed the earlier broadcasts, they're no longer on iPlayer but you can buy them as CDs or downloads from the BBC shop. (I'm not making any money off that link, just thought I'd provide it for anyone who wants those dramas.)