Drama on 3 - The Idylls of the King

An adaptation by Michael Symmons of Alfred Lord Tennyson's The Idylls of the King, narrated by Tim Pigott-Smith and broadcast to mark the bicentenary of the poet's birth. In this extraordinary epic poem, Tennyson transforms Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur, infusing the legend of King Arthur with a passionate intensity. Told here in five acts, the central arc of the narrative encompasses Arthur's arrival, his relationship with Lancelot and Guinevere, the Holy Grail, the last tournament and his death. Narrator/Tennyson ...... Tim Pigott-Smith Arthur ...... Jonathan Keeble Lancelot ...... Simon Harrison Guinevere ...... Kathryn Hunt Lord Astolat/Bedivere ...... Malcolm Raeburn Leodogran/Churl ...... Terence Mann Lavaine/Tristram ...... Tom Ferguson Dagonet ...... Russell Dixon Elaine ...... Elen Rhys Music by Paul Carghill Directed by Susan Roberts.