High Table, Lower Orders: The Complete Series 1 and 2

The BBC Radio 4 comedy drama

By: Mark Tavener

Narrated by: Full Cast, Geoffrey Palmer, Jonathan Coy, Michael Maloney, Michelle Fairley, Samuel West, Sharon Small

The complete first and second series of Mark Tavener’s BBC Radio 4 comedy thriller set in a crisis-ridden Cambridge college

When prominent don and celebrity TV historian Peter Devanti dies after dining at High Table, his colleague Gilbert suspects foul play and invites his former student Simon Harrison, a disillusioned health and safety officer, to investigate. Meanwhile, Simon’s former girlfriend Zoe, a freelance journalist, arrives to write an article about Devanti’s death: reopening old wounds for Simon. After another college member dies, more skullduggery is uncovered, and Simon must find out which of the many suspects is a murderer – while also trying to get back with Zoe and keep his day job...

A year later, the college is recovering from the Devanti affair, but struggling for cash and riven by arguments between traditionalists and modernisers. Simon, now bereft of a job, jumps at the chance to become a don – but soon finds himself embarking on another murder investigation after a student is caught cheating and his accuser is found hanged. Can Simon unmask the killer before they strike again?

Written by Mark Tavener (In the Red, Absolute Power), this brilliant black comedy stars Geoffrey Palmer as Gilbert, Samuel West as Simon and Sharon Small as Zoe, with Rebecca Front as Patricia, Michelle Fairley as Roisin, Michael Maloney as the Dean and Jonathan Coy as Bernard.

Produced by Dawn Ellis

Amusing series

Not gripping mysteries but the academic background is amusing enough to keep listening. Would have liked to hear more.

Easy listening

Light and entertaining. Great listen for long drive. Enjoyed the dramatization very much. Highly recommend.

True, How True

I spent 35 years as a university teacher and administrator, two years of which at a university in the UK. As Sayer’s law suggests: ‘University politics are so vicious because the stakes are so low.’ “High Table, Lower Orders” captures this with searing wit and deadly accuracy! Alpha Plus, Plus!

Wonderful!!

What wonderfully clever and entertaining stories! I thoroughly enjoyed the wit, sarcasm and all to lovable and the not so endearing characters! The stories in themselves were great but the performance brought them to life in a way that painted an incredibly vivid picture of the characters and their struggles. I would recommend this audio book to anyone who enjoys a smartly written whodunnit with a big dose of British humor!

Fun Murder mysteries

2 murder mysteries set at Cambridge. It was a fun, lighthearted, enjoyable listen - similar to other BBC radio productions.