S&d: Radio Plays, Radio Drama

I'll start with the most famous classic one: War of the Worlds
https://archive.org/details/OrsonWellesMrBruns

But I'm particularly searching for somethings more experimental and is less heavy on dialog and more about atmosphere and use of sound-scape, sonic-texture, and field-recording.

Has anyone listened to anything from the ZBS Foundation?
http://www.zbs.org/index_new.php/home

Moon Over Morocco seems intriguing.

BBC has a bunch.

This is something that's hard to get find info on.
Apart from Beckett what modernist playwrights were writing for the radio? There's a bunch of Steins plays recorded for radio on a site called Radio free stein. But beyond this I'm a bit clueless. I kind of have an idea that the BBC features dept was v interesting in the post war years.

Recommendations greatly appreciated, or, failing that, some sort of resource like a blog where this is covered.

Tom Stoppard had some.

Not sure where to listen to them online if anywhere but here is an amazon link to a recording of four of them:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tom-Stoppard-Radio-Plays/dp/071235123X

Alan Bennett did a quite a few. Amazon has a set of 12.

You might find some leads here: http://www.harryheuser.com/Wireless_Library.html

Joe Frank thread to thread! S/D: Joe Frank

hard to hear them because of rights issues. writers and actors each have their own set of agreements. not modern but bbc is currently putting up new adaptations of shakespeare. they've done measure for measure and the merchant of Venice.

this is excellent

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0017k7f

i mean.. it’s very silly but i liked it a lot

Is anybody listening to radio plays in 2026? I like listening to this show on KFAI, but it seems like something that could or should be flourishing online in the age of the podcast

https://kfai.org/program/sound-affects-a-radio-playground/

Some came out during the pandemic. Wallace Shawn's The Designated Mourner (on all the podcast channels too) is fantastic.

always worth mentioning ed reardon's week
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand/b006r5ck

(also available everywhere else)

but it seems like something that could or should be flourishing online in the age of the podcast

It absolutely did/does! Thrilling Adventure Hour is one that has a lot of big US alt comedy names; Welcome To Night Vale was briefly the biggest podcast in the world, surprising everyone including its (formerly not at all high profile) creators. I like the first one quite a bit, especially Beyond Belief, a Thin Man homage with a supernatural bent featuring Paul F Tompkins and Paget Brewster. The latter I could never get into, too much cutesy sub-Lynch shit imo, but then I also struggle because I think it like many radio plays has continuity and I'm very much a drop in and out listener.

there's also the global behemoth that is Rusty Quill.. Specifically the Magnus Archives but they have TONS of stuff. I haven't checked in w them recently but I assume they're still going strong

https://rustyquill.com

For awhile I was really into Midst - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/midst/id1681168186

Critical Role gobbled them up a couple of years ago but it's not an actual play podcast, it's improvised fiction - kind of hard to explain, but the voice actors know what the story beats are going to be, but they don't quite know how they're going to get there, so it creates an interesting febrile kind of atmosphere

One last one from me, Brian & Roger
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/brian-roger/id1437785324

Sorry one LAST one, this is tooting my own horn but I commissioned this one a few years ago. The artwork is from the guy who does Scarfolk

https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-sink-a-sleep-aid/id1536779644

I wasn't expecting much of response, thank you all!

these are more old-school but can be entertaining, especially on a late night drive

https://www.cbsrmt.com/synopsis.html/1974

nice, i love the old-school stuff of course

too much cutesy sub-Lynch shit imo

It's hard to find horror/sci fi shows that don't have a wacky bent for some reason.

that plus most pro-am podcast fiction is incredibly horny ime