What happens
In revolutionary France, Charles Darnay awaits execution by guillotine in a prison cell, and a stranger in the cell beside him offers quiet company. The episode then steps back twenty-five years to England, where a mail coach carries news that recalls a long-imprisoned doctor, Dr. Manette, to life. Later, Darnay stands trial in London for treason, and Sidney Carton, a disheveled barrister, works to save him. The Lux Radio Theatre presents this adaptation of Charles Dickens' novel, starring Orson Welles and Rosemary De Camp, broadcast on March 26, 1945.
Paris during the French Revolution and London in 1768 and the years that follow
Characters: Charles Darnay, Sidney Carton, Lucy Manette, Dr. Manette, Jarvis Lorry, Mr. Stryver, John Barsad, Madame Defarge
Listen for: The contrast between Carton's bitter drinking and the sudden courtroom resemblance between him and Darnay, and Dr. Manette's shattered memory returning during the trial
Written from the episode itself; it never gives away the ending. Every recording is remastered for the stream: cleaned of rumble, hiss and mains hum (and the old TV whine where we found it), then levelled in two passes to steady broadcast loudness, so one show is never quieter than the next.