Best BBC Radio Mystery Dramas: Lord Peter Wimsey

This post details the definitive BBC radio dramatisations of 11 Lord Peter Wimsey books by Dorothy L Sayers.

These full-cast radio plays, star Ian Carmichael as the aristocratic amateur sleuth, Lord Peter.

For more classic crime fiction adapted into top BBC radio dramas, see my posts listed below.

Lord Peter Wimsey BBC Radio Dramas

Ian Carmichael stars as Lord Peter Wimsey in these definitive BBC radio dramatisations of Dorothy L Sayers’ classic crime novels. Aristocratic amateur sleuth Lord Peter Wimsey was the master creation of Dorothy L Sayers, widely acknowledged as one of the four original ‘Queens of Crime’. These full-cast adaptations – first broadcast on BBC radio between 1973 and 2010 include 11 of the 15 Wimsey books by Dorothy L Sayers. All 11 of the Lord Peter Wimsey BBC radio dramas are available in 3 volumes of BBC radio drama collections on audiobook platforms and audio CD, as detailed below. Perfect for fans of the Golden Age of crime fiction worldwide!

Produced by Simon Brett (author of the Charles Paris series), these acclaimed dramas also feature many well-loved BBC radio voice-actors including Peter Jones, Patricia Routledge, Joan Hickson, Miriam Margolyes, Joanna David, Sarah Badel and Warren Clarke. [Source: Amazon]

1. Whose Body?

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4: December 1973 | Main cast: Lord Peter Wimsey – Ian Carmichael, Bunter – Peter Jones, Dowager Duchess – Patricia Routledge, Mr Phipp – Norman Bird, Inspector Parker – Gabriel Woolf | Broadcast as 5 half-hour episodes.

Plot: Whose Body? is the tale that first introduced Lord Peter to the world, and sees him investigating the case of a corpse in a Battersea bathtub and a vanished oil millionaire. [Source: Amazon]

*Listen to Lord Peter Wimsey Whose Body? included on the BBC Radio Drama Collection Volume 1 available from UK Audible, US Audible and Apple Audiobooks.

2. Clouds of Witness

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4: February 1974 | Main cast: Lord Peter Wimsey – Ian Carmichael, Bunter – Peter Jones, Lady Mary Wimsey – Maria Aitken, Inspector Parker – Gabriel Woolf, Sir Impey Biggs – Brian Oulton, Grimethorpe – Bill Wallis | Broadcast as 8 half-hour episodes.

Plot: In Clouds of Witness, Lord Peter’s eldest brother stands accused of murder. In collaboration with Inspector Parker, Wimsey slowly uncovers a web of lies and deceit within his own family… [Source: Amazon]

*Listen to Lord Peter Wimsey Clouds of Witness included on the BBC Radio Drama Collection Volume 1 available from UK Audible, US Audible and Apple Audiobooks.

3. Unnatural Death

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4: May 1975 | Main cast: Lord Peter Wimsey – Ian Carmichael, Miss Climpson – Ambrosine Phillpotts, Inspector Parker – Gabriel Woolf, Bunter – Peter Jones, Mr Murbles – Malcolm Hayes, Mrs Cobling – Miriam Margolyes | Broadcast as 7 half-hour episodes.

Plot: Unnatural Death finds Peter probing the mysterious death of an elderly lady. He suspects foul play, and with the help of the indomitable Miss Climpson, sets about his investigations in deepest Hampshire… [Source: Amazon]

*Listen to Lord Peter Wimsey Unnatural Death included on the BBC Radio Drama Collection Volume 1 available from UK Audible, US Audible and Apple Audiobooks.

4. The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4: June 1975 | Main cast: Lord Peter Wimsey – Ian Carmichael, Bunter – Peter Jones, George Fentiman – Martin Jarvis, Mr Murbles – John Gabriel, Dr Penberthy – Christopher Emmett, Robert Fentiman – Allan Cuthbertson | Broadcast as 6 half-hour episodes.

Plot: In The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club, when General Fentiman is found dead at his club, Wimsey suspects foul play. Could he have been murdered for his money? [Source: Amazon]

*Listen to Lord Peter Wimsey The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club included on the BBC Radio Drama Collection Volume 2 available from UK Audible, US Audible and Apple Audiobooks.

5. Strong Poison

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4: May 1976 | Main cast: Lord Peter Wimsey – Ian Carmichael, Harriet Vane – Anne Bell, Judge – Carleton Hobbs, Dowager Duchess – Charlotte Mitchell, Attorney-General – Stephen Thorne, Sir Impey Biggs – Robert Gillespie | Broadcast as 6 half-hour episodes.

Plot: Strong Poison introduces Harriet Vane – a crime novelist on trial for murdering her lover. Wimsey knows Harriet is no femme fatale but an innocent victim embroiled in a diabolical plot… [Source: Amazon]

*Listen to Lord Peter Wimsey Strong Poison included on the BBC Radio Drama Collection Volume 2 available from UK Audible, US Audible and Apple Audiobooks.

6. The Five Red Herrings

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4: January 1978 | Main cast: Lord Peter Wimsey – Ian Carmichael, Bunter – Peter Jones, Parker – Stephen Thorne, Inspector MacPherson – Don McKillopp | Broadcast as 8 half-hour episodes.

Plot: Five Red Herrings sees Peter faced with six men, all of whom have a motive for killing argumentative Scottish painter Sandy Campbell. But who was the culprit? [Source: Amazon]

*Listen to Lord Peter Wimsey The Five Red Herrings included on the BBC Radio Drama Collection Volume 2 available from UK Audible, US Audible and Apple Audiobooks.

7. Murder Must Advertise

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4: January 1979 | Main cast: Lord Peter Wimsey – Ian Carmichael, Chief Inspector Parker – Allan Cuthbertson, Mr Tallboy – Edward de Souza, Miss Meteyard – Frances Jeater | Broadcast as 6 half-hour episodes.

Plot: Murder Must Advertise sees Lord Peter going undercover in an advertising agency to investigate the death of a copywriter. [Source: Amazon]

*Listen to Lord Peter Wimsey Murder Must Advertise included on the BBC Radio Drama Collection Volume 3 available from UK Audible, US Audible and Apple Audiobooks.

8. The Nine Tailors

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4: October 1980 | Main cast: Lord Peter Wimsey – Ian Carmichael, Bunter – Peter Jones, Ezra Wilderspin – John Church, Mrs Venables – Noel Dyson, Stephen Driver – Stephen Greiff | Broadcast as 8 half-hour episodes.

Plot: The Nine Tailors finds the aristocratic detective stranded in a remote village, where he is drawn into a case of stolen jewels and an unidentified body. [Source: Amazon]

*Listen to Lord Peter Wimsey The Nine Tailors included on the BBC Radio Drama Collection Volume 3 available from UK Audible, US Audible and Apple Audiobooks.

9. Have His Carcase

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4: October 1981 | Main cast: Lord Peter Wimsey – Ian Carmichael, Harriet Vane – Maria Aitken, Inspector Umpelty – Nigel Stock, Henry Weldon – Warren Clarke | Broadcast as 6 half-hour episodes.

Plot: In Have His Carcase, when Harriet Vane finds a body on the beach with his throat cut, Lord Peter must work out whether it was murder or suicide. [Source: Amazon]

*Listen to Lord Peter Wimsey Have His Carcase included on the BBC Radio Drama Collection Volume 2 available from UK Audible, US Audible and Apple Audiobooks.

10. Busman’s Honeymoon

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4: January 1983 | Main cast: Lord Peter Wimsey – Ian Carmichael, Lady Wimsey – Sarah Badel, Bunter – Peter Jones, Miss Twitterton – Rosemary Leach, Mrs Ruddle – Pearl Hackney | Broadcast as 6 half-hour episodes.

Plot: In Busman’s Honeymoon, newlyweds Harriet and Peter have their marital bliss disturbed by a body in the basement – and are once again embroiled in a murder investigation. [Source: Amazon]

*Listen to Lord Peter Wimsey Busman’s Honeymoon included on the BBC Radio Drama Collection Volume 3 available from UK Audible, US Audible and Apple Audiobooks.

11. Gaudy Night

First Broadcast on BBC Radio 7: June 2010 | Main cast: Lord Peter Wimsey – Ian Carmichael, Harriet Vane – Joanna David | Broadcast as 5 half-hour episodes.

Plot: Gaudy Night takes place at Harriet Vane’s old Oxford college, where a series of spiteful pranks and poison-pen letters have torn apart the academic community. With Lord Peter’s help, can she uncover the perpetrator? [Source: Amazon]

*Listen to Lord Peter Wimsey Gaudy Night included on the BBC Radio Drama Collection Volume 3 available from UK Audible, US Audible and Apple Audiobooks.

More Top BBC Radio Dramas

For the best BBC radio dramas for mystery fans, you might also like: Miss Marple BBC Radio 4 Full-Cast Dramatisations, starring June Whitfield – Listed in Order. And Charles Paris Radio Plays in Order starring Bill Nighy.

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