2000 Tales:
A Celebration of Chaucer
2000 Tales
When a group of travellers take shelter from a storm in a motorway service station, they soon find that everyone has a story to tell. All this week, 21 writers celebrate Chaucer on the 600th anniversary of his death. Note that there were five Afternoon Plays on Radio 4, plus a Sunday Play on Radio 3 featuring a different selection.
In the Radio Times, 16 - 22 September 2000 the following is mentioned in an article on the Autumn programmes for Radio: "The 600th anniversary of the death of Chaucer is to be marked, fittingly, by stories. From 23 October, some of our finest actors, including Eleanor Bron, Joseph Fiennes and Warren Mitchell, will play travellers trapped by a storm in a motorway service station, entertaining each other with 2000 tales but in this case 21 writers are involved. The plan is that, together the tales will form a colourful picture of contemporary life."
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1. The Afternoon Play, 2000-10-23.
‘Prologue' by Sebastian Bacziewicz;
`The Funeral Orator's Tale' by Christina Reid;
`The Fisherman's Tale' by Nick Darke;
`The Disc Jockey who Used to Be a Nun's Tale - Prologue' by Marcy Kahan.
With Robert Glenister, Zita Sattar, Frances Tomelty, Carl Grosse and Eleanor Bron.
Directed by Jeremy Mortimer.
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2. The Afternoon Play. 2000-10-24.
`The DJ who Used to Be a Nun's Tale' by Marcy Kahan;
`The Old Wife's Tale' by Peter Sansom,
`The Banker's Tale' by Rukhsana Ahmad;
`The Old Girl's Tale' by Kara Miller.
With Zita Sattar, Eleanor Bron, Elizabeth Spriggs and Priyanga Elan, Mary Wimbush.
Directed by Jeremy Mortimer and Tracey Neale.
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3. Afternoon Play, 2000-10-25.
`The Teacher's Tale' by Glynn Maxwell;
`The Quiet Gentlemen's Barber's Tale' by Jeremy Front;
`The Slapper's Tale' by Sarah Daniels.
With Zita Sattar, Joseph Fiennes, Warren Mitchell and Lesley Manville.
Directed by Mary Peate.
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4. The Afternoon Play, 2000-10-26.
`The Politician's Tale' by Kara Miller;
`The Editor's Tale' by John Mortimer;
`The Good Woman's Tale' by Lin Coghlan.
With Zita Sattar, Barbara Leigh-Hunt, Mary Wimbush and David Swift.
Directed by Jeremy Mortimer and Tracey Neale.
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5. The Afternoon Play, 2000-10-27.
`The Pleasurewear Sales Rep's Tale' by Gill Adams;
`The Rector's Tale' by Andrew Rissik;
`The Publicist's Tale' by Sebastian Baczkiewicz.
With Jessica Stevens, Joss Ackland, Henry Goodman and Pip Donaghy, Zita Sattar.
Directed by Mary Peate.
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6. The Sunday Play on BBC Radio 3, 2000-10-29.
`The Prologue and Nisha's Tale' by Sebastian Backiewicz.
`The Colonel's Tale' by Leigh Jackson.
`The Actor's Agent's Tale' by Iain Heggie.
`Max's Tale' by Harwant Bains.
`The Tale of a Mother Feeding Her Child' by Mahesh Dattani.
`The Former Househusband's Tale' by Liz Lochhead.
`The Shepherd's Tale' by Barrie Keeffe.
`The Young Man's Tale' by Sally Pomme Clayton.
With Tim Pigott-Smith, Trevor Nichols, Melinda Walker, Maureen Beatty, Robert Glenister, Zita Sattar, Clare Corbett.
Directed by Mary Peate, Jeremy Mortimer and Tracey Neale.
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Above plays known to exist in VRPCC collections
