What happens
A naval commanding officer and his crew patrol a fog-bound northern coast during the First World War. Their warship finds a neutral Scandinavian steamer, the Coaster, hidden in the fog in a sheltered field, and the officer grows suspicious after a boarding party reports a plausible story of engine failure. He goes aboard himself to question the master, a robust Scandinavian who seems shaken and evasive. The recording is part of the Theatre Royal series, broadcast by NBC in 1953 and hosted by Laurence Olivier, with Ralph Richardson reading Joseph Conrad's story The Tale.
A northern coast during the First World War, in fog near a sheltered field of water.
Characters: Naval commanding officer, Master of the Coaster, Officer in charge of the boarding party, Scandinavian engineer
Listen for: The commanding officer's growing suspicion as he questions the Scandinavian master aboard the Coaster.
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.