Sybil, or The Two Nations

Synopsis

Benjamin Disraeli’s powerful, polemical story of love across the class divideChosen by The Guardian as one of the best 100 novels of all time, Disraeli’s classic 1845 ‘condition-of-England’ novel exposes the inequality and exploitation endemic in 19th century Britain, and the vast gulf between the haves and the have-nots.It centres on Charles Egremont, a member of the landed gentry and newly elected MP. With a glittering future ahead of him, he is in need of a suitable wife, and his brother, the Earl of Marney, is keen that he should marry Lady Joan Fitz-Warene. The heiress to Mowbray Castle, she brings with her a considerable fortune: but from the moment Charles sets eyes on Sybil Gerard in the ruins of Marney Abbey, he can think of no-one else.Sybil is beautiful, graceful and ethereal – and the daughter of a Yorkshire millworker. When her father, a militant Chartist, shares with Charles his theory of the ‘two nations’ of rich and poor, Charles’ eyes are opened, and he disguises himself as a reporter to investigate the plight of the working classes. As he falls deeper in love with Sybil, and discovers what life is really like for the less fortunate, he determines to use his position to effect change. But those in power are not easily swayed, nor is Sybil’s heart easily won...Starring Richard Derrington as Charles, with Sorcha Cusack as Sybil, this absorbing historical drama vividly evokes both the luxurious life of the aristocracy and the grinding poverty of the farm labourers, miners and factory workers struggling for existence on the other side of the social divide.Production creditsWritten by Benjamin DisraeliDramatised by Frederick BradnumDirected by Vanessa WhitburnEpisode List:1: Marney Town and Marney Abbey2: Mowbray Town and Mowbray Castle3: Mowedale and Hellhouse4: The Chartists and the Aristocracy5: Love and Conspiracy6: Of Destruction and ReconciliationCastCharles Egremont – Richard DerringtonWalter Gerard – Alan DobleLord Marney – Michael N HarbourStephen Morley – Terry MolloyBenjamin Disraeli – Richard PascoLady Marney/Lady Deloraine – Patricia GallimoreArabella Marney – Kathryn HurlbuttSir Vavasour Firebrace – Robert DorningMother Superior – Penelope LeeTaper/Bingley/Sinister man – David VannTadpole – David PeartMr Pugh – Bill BellamyLord Milford/Brewer – Kim DurhamCaptain Grouse/Lawyer – Scott CherryMountchesney/Constable/Tanner/Field – Peter HarloweBerneers/Peer/Youth – Jonathan OwenLord Mowbray/Juggins – Stephen HancockLady Joan/Caroline – Elizabeth ProudLady Maud/Harriet – Hedli NiklausLady Mowbray – Eileen BarryAubrey St Lys – Clive MarloweDandy Mick/Youth – Paul CopleyDevilsdust – Alan DevereuxChaffing Jack/Police Inspector – William EedleWidow Carey – Mary WimbushMrs Warner – Pauline SiddleMaria/Dame – Carole BoydBishop Hatton – Roger HumeMrs Hatton – Joyce LathamNixon/Jermyn/Diggs – James KerryMr Trafford/Waghorne/Sergeant – Michael BiltonMrs Trafford – Shirley StelfoxScrubbynose – David ConnerBaptist Hatton – Peter TuddenhamJulia – Anna LindupGirls and boys of Mowedale and Hellhouse – Members of the Forest Youth Theatre, WalsallFirst broadcast BBC Radio 4, 13 November-18 December 1983© 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd