Witness: Five Plays from the Gospel of Luke

Witness: Five Plays from the Gospel of Luke was a series of five 45-minute radio plays by Nick Warburton based on the Gospel of Luke, first broadcast from 17 to 21 December 2007 (i.e. in the week before Christmas Day) as part of BBC Radio 4's Afternoon Play strand. They were directed by Jonquil Panting. Jesus and the disciples were portrayed in regional accents, a trope in radio retellings of the Gospel stories since Dorothy L. Sayers' The Man Born to Be King. Upper class characters were presented in Received Pronunciation, city-folk in Jerusalem in London working-class accents, and Romans such as Pilate and the Centurion in an American accent.

Witness: Five Plays from the Gospel of Luke

Genre	Radio play Christian radio
Running time	45 minutes
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Language(s)	English
Home station	BBC Radio 4
Starring	Tom Goodman-Hill Peter Firth Paul Copley Paul Hilton Penelope Wilton Robin Soans Lorraine Ashbourne Rachel Atkins
Written by	Nick Warburton
Directed by	Jonquil Panting
Original release	17 December (2007-12-17) – 21 December 2007 (2007-12-21)

Each play was followed by a 15-minute documentary presented by Ernie Rea on the themes covered in the preceding play.

Episodes

1. The Lake - The calling of Peter and Andrew
2. Outsiders - Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Simon and other outsiders are embraced by Jesus
3. Jerusalem - Jesus and his disciples arrive in Jerusalem, and Judas decides to betray him
4. Tested - The Passion, as seen by Pontius Pilate, Caiaphas, Peter, and the Virgin Mary
5. Beginners - Mary recalls her son's birth in the days after the Crucifixion, and then the disciples witness the Resurrection

Cast

• Jesus - Tom Goodman-Hill
• Peter - Peter Firth
• Andrew - Paul Copley
• Judas - Paul Hilton (2-4)
• Mary - Penelope Wilton (4&5)
• Caiaphas - Robin Soans (3&4)
• Magdalene - Lorraine Ashbourne (2&5)
• Joanna - Rachel Atkins (2&5)

Episode 1

• Baptist - Stephen Greif
• Elder - Sam Dale
• Possessed man - John Lloyd Fillingham
• John - Simon Treves
• Woman - Laura Molyneux
• Tempter - Peter Marinker

Episode 2

• Woman - Maxine Peake
• Simon - Peter Marinker
• Friend of the sick man - Ben Crowe
• Child - Poppy Friar

Episode 3

• Rich man - Simon Treves
• Pharisee - Alex Lanipekun
• Martha - Joannah Tincey
• Zacchaeus - Sam Dale
• Tempter - Peter Marinker
• Woman - Anna Bengo
• Lawyer - Sam Pamphilon
• Child - Skye Bennett

Episode 4

• Baker - Ben Crowe
• Centurion - Peter Marinker
• Girl - Anna Bengo
• Guard - Lloyd Thomas
• Pilate - Colin Stinton

Episode 5

• Angel - Julian Bleach
• Simeon - David de Keyser
• Joseph of Arimathea - Ben Onwukwe
• Young Mary - Laura Molyneux
• Cleopas - Sam Pamphilon

External links

• Afternoon Play
• Redmond, Camilla (18 December 2007). "Radio review". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 December 2007.