The Well of Loneliness & The Trial that Gripped a Nation

The pioneering novel of lesbian love and attraction brought to life by a full cast. Includes exclusive content. A baby girl named Stephen Gordon, is born to well-to-do parents. She grows from a young tomboy into a thoughtful woman who feels 'different'. Stephen is understood by her father but alienated from her mother. Bucking against the conventions of society she turns down an offer of marriage and forms a passionate attachment to an American woman. Gradually, Stephen realises she will never fall in love with a man – but will she be an outcast? In pursuit of love and experience, Stephen takes herself to bohemian Paris, a far cry from the strict confines of British society. She joins the ambulance corps in the First World War. It’s here she meets Mary and, when they become lovers, she takes a fatal step in deciding their future. First published in 1928, Hall’s novel has become a classic, telling the story of one woman’s desperate attempt to be loved and to love against all odds. To complement this stunning adaptation, writer Shelley Silas, in The Trial of the Well of Loneliness, tells the gripping story of how Hall’s pioneering novel, though not sexually explicit, became the centre of a 1928 obscenity trial. This original drama explores how the novel remains an iconic portrayal of lesbian relationships and contains the passionate plea: "Give us also the right to our existence." This download edition also features an exclusive edition of The Essay: Journeys to the Grave. A reflective, restorative and often playful journey in search of the final resting place of a literary hero. Diana Souhami steps into Radclyffe Hall’s tomb in London’s Highgate Cemetery, where the author resides with her lover, her lover’s husband and their dog Tulip – an aptly unconventional set-up in death as in life. ©2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd Cast and credits The Well of Loneliness Dramatised by Sarah Woods Written by Radclyffe Hall Directed by Melanie Harris Music composed and played by Odaline de la Martinez Violinist - Janet Foust Cellist - Andy Wardale Stephen - Valerie Edmond Young Stephen - Alexandra Bateman Mary/Collins/Angela - Amanda Root Anna/Valerie - Roberta Kerr Puddle - Sarah Park Martin - Paul Warriner Jamie/Violet - Katy Cavanagh Brockett - Malcolm Hebden Philip - Rob Pickvance Colonel Antrim - Russell Dixon Young Violet - Sara Kaplan Young Roger - Thomas Hudson Ralph - Martin Reeve First Broadcast BBC Radio 4, 9 May 1999 The Trial of the Well of Loneliness Written by Shelley Silas Directed by Emma Harding Radclyffe Hall - Kate Fleetwood Una, Lady Troubridge - Anastasia Hille Stephen Gordon - Laura Christy Gilchrist Thompson - Will Kirk Sir Chartres Biron - Neil McCaul Eustace Fulton - Clive Hayward Norman Birkett - Rick Warden James Melville - Tony Turner Desmond McCarthy - Greg Jones Court Clerk - Adam Courting Court Actress - Scarlett Courtenay Puddle - Jessica Turner Additional research documents courtesy of Morris Ernst Papers, Harry Ransom Center and the University of Texas at Austin First Broadcast BBC Radio 4, January 2020 The Essay: Journeys to the Grave Written and presented by Diana Souhami First Broadcast BBC Radio 4, 15 June 2022