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Jeff Wayne's The War of The Worlds: The Musical Drama

By: H. G. Wells, Jeff Wayne
Narrated by: Michael Sheen, Taron Egerton, Theo James, Adrian Edmondson, Anna-Marie Wayne
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Summary

When H. G. Wells first published The War of The Worlds in 1898, the novel quickly became a sci-fi classic. The story of extraterrestrials from Mars invading Earth captured the public’s imagination, inspiring a famed 1938 radio broadcast with Orson Welles, several feature films, countless video games, and a best-selling musical concept album by Jeff Wayne in 1978, among others.

Immersing listeners in a world that is as thrilling as it is desolate, Jeff Wayne’s eerie and pulsating score brings the suspense, drama, and urgency of Wells’s original novel to a fever pitch in this Audible Original Drama. Michael Sheen headlines an ensemble cast of talented performers that also includes Taron Egerton, Adrian Edmondson, Theo James, and Anna-Marie Wayne.

©2018 Music Masters: Sony Music Entertainment

©2018 Existing compositions: Universal Music Publishing Group, Jeff Wayne Music (Publishing) Ltd

©2018 Newly composed music: Jeff Wayne Music (P)2018 Audible, Ltd
©2018 Newly composed music: Jeff Wayne Music (P)2018 Audible, Ltd
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Immerse yourself in The War of The Worlds

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Listen to an immersive audio drama

The Eve of the War
  • The Eve of the War
Discovery of the Martians
The Eve of the War
  • The Eve of the War
Heat Ray
The Eve of the War
  • The Eve of the War
Opening
  • The Eve of the War
  • Discovery of the Martians
  • The Eve of the War
  • Heat Ray
  • The Eve of the War
  • Opening

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Characters and cast

George, The Journalist, is our main narrator and lead character. George is a philosopher and is educated, resourceful, energetic and interested in everything. He is also one of the first to notice some oddities occurring on the Martian landscape and to make the correlation that the Martians are indeed launching an invasion. Despite the relative stoicism he displays throughout the story, prolonged exposure to the atrocities that the alien invaders inflict upon humanity however takes a serious toll on his sanity.

Michael Sheen spent much of his early career on the stage, with his performances in Amadeus and Look Back in Anger being nominated for Olivier Awards. Michael has become better known as a screen actor, in particular through his roles in various biopics such as Tony Blair in The Queen, as Kenneth Williams in BBC Four's Fantabulosa!, and David Frost in Frost/Nixon. In 2013, he received a Golden Globe nomination for his role in Masters of Sex.
The unnamed Artilleryman was separated from the rest of his combat unit when he was unhorsed. Escaping the heat rays of the Martian war machines he wanders into the garden of The Journalist. When the danger escalates and they need to escape, his military training, caution, and prudence prove to be exceedingly useful in their survival across the battle ravaged landscape.

Taron Egerton rose to fame thanks to his roles in films such as Kingsman: The Secret Service and the sequel Kingsman: The Golden Circle Taron has starred as the title role in Eddie the Eagle, and showed off his musical prowess in the animated film Sing. Taron also plays the title role in the 2018 film Robin Hood.
The Parson is a cowardly, highly strung, weak-willed character, who, much like The Artilleryman, remains unnamed for the duration of novel. This is a man struggling to reconcile his religion with the terrible events of the invasion and he differs with the Journalist constantly, often refusing to comply with sensible requests such as rationing supplies or behave sensibly when the need for calm is paramount. Despite this though he refuses to part with The Journalist.

Theo James rose to fame in the The Divergent Series film trilogy. Some of Theo’s credits include the crime-drama series Golden Boy as well as the films Underworld: Awakening and Underworld: Blood Wars. He starred as Will Younger in the Netflix Original film, How It Ends.
In Jeff Wayne’s The War of the Worlds: The Musical Drama, Carrie, who is married to The Journalist is a more prominent character than in HG Well’s novel. After Carrie goes to stay with relations in Leatherhead, The Journalist’s movements, bearing and reasons for doing things are spurred on by his concern for her. Carrie becomes the main narrator and lead character for two episodes of the story.

Anna-Marie Wayne was born on the day Jeff Wayne's album, The War of the Worlds, entered the music charts. Anna-Marie has appeared on film, TV, radio and stage but The War of the Worlds fans will recognise her from Jeff Wayne's musical version of The War Of The Worlds, Alive On Stage, in which she plays Carrie opposite Liam Neeson.
Ogilvy, an eminent astronomer, is one of the first few to take notice of the Martians and he begins by investigating a meteor that turns out to be a Martian “cylinder” or transport tube, but he is initially skeptical of his findings.

Adrian Edmondson is perhaps best known for his comedic roles in the television series The Young Ones and Bottom, which he wrote together with his long-time collaborative partner Rik Mayall. Adrian also appeared in The Comic Strip Presents... series of films throughout the 1980s and 1990s. In the 2000s, he made numerous appearances on our TV screens and more recently has concentrated increasingly on music, forming a band, The Bad Shepherds, and performing and writing for the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band.

Jeff Wayne

Michael Sheen

Taron Egerton

Adrian Edmondson

Anna-Marie Wayne

Theo James

Behind the scenes with the cast of Jeff Wayne's The War of The Worlds

Michael Sheen, Taron Egerton and Jeff Wayne on recording Audible's musical drama
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Dramatisations First Contact Thought-Provoking Funny
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Critic reviews

"The science-fiction classic undergoes a fantastic modernization, thanks to Jeff Wayne's energetic score and a cast of talented narrators. Michael Sheen capably steps into the character of the unnamed journalist and imbues his narration with steady calm as he recounts the Martian invasion of England. A varied cast coupled with subtle sound effects keeps the drama feeling fresh and dynamic. The musical score complements the story by punctuating the arrival of the Martians and other thrilling moments but also highlights the story's isolating atmosphere. Score and narration combine with high production values, resulting in a unique audio drama that enhances the original story." (AudioFile Magazine)

Martians through the ages

1897
HG Wells' novel The War of The Worlds is published and examines humanity’s struggle for survival in the face of an alien invader, drawing on themes of industrialisation, the expansion of the British Empire, and the relentless advance of technology.

1938
Orson Welles' adaptation of The War of The Worlds airs for CBS Radio and becomes infamous for the media frenzy it caused, with reports of deserted streets and listeners suffering heart attacks.

1976
After reading HG Wells’ novel just once Jeff Wayne is immediately entranced and sets about creating his musical interpretation.

1978
Jeff Wayne’s Musical Version of The War of The Worlds is released in the UK on June 9th and becomes a worldwide success. The album has since gone on to sell more than 15 million copies and has charted in 22 countries.

2005
Steven Spielberg’s War of The Worlds film starring Tom Cruise releases.

2006
The War of The Worlds – Alive On Stage! launches in April, breaking box office records and winning huge critical acclaim. The biggest touring show on earth, the spectacular production is part live musical concert, part theatre, part multimedia, multi-sensory experience.

2012
After several years of planning, The War of The Worlds enters a brand new era in 2012, with the release of a double album and tour known as The New Generation.

2016
Forty years after first starting work on his musical interpretation of The War of The Worlds, the epic production is brought to life in London’s West End at the Dominion Theatre.

2018
To mark the 40th Anniversary of Jeff Wayne’s original album, Michael Sheen, Taron Egerton, Theo James, Adrian Edmondson and Anna-Marie Wayne bring to life HG Wells’ original story accompanied by Jeff’s epic, emotive and sensational score in the audio drama Jeff Wayne’s The War of The Worlds: The Musical Drama.

What listeners say about Jeff Wayne's The War of The Worlds: The Musical Drama

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Profile Image for DHeppell_UK

Oooo Laaaa

If you like the original musical version by Jeff Wayne, then this is a must, the mix of Story, Drama and Music, is Nostalgic and brilliantly retold.

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Profile Image for alanbestwick

I've read,heard,& watched live war of the worlds for years ( since i was eighteen,im 55 now),this version was absolutely fantastic.
i was expecting slightly updated version,but this is completely different,i would recommend this to all who are thinking of buying this.this is a musical come drama.top marks for all involved in making this.this is a version people will listen to for years to come.
i was blown away by this.

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Profile Image for D. Smith

Brilliant New Version

I have loved The War of the Worlds since I was 10 and we were played it at school, I've read the book, seen the films and totally geeked out over the martians.

This new adaptation brings a dialogue familiar in the book alongside the atmosphere of Jeff Wayne's musical and I love it.

It's as haunting and scary as previous versions and I love it, my only complaint...it's only 5 1/2 hours long and I'm going to have to listen to it on repeat.

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Profile Image for Mike Smith

Brilliant

Loved the original and loved this too. Michael Sheen is great and sounds so like Richard Burton at times its uncanny

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Profile Image for Rodger

Absolutely Brilliant addition to The original

Fantastic story and works brilliantly without any singing (which remain in mind). Can't get enough.

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Profile Image for Bryan Ronan

Michael Sheen Shines

I loved everything about this adaption of Jeff Wayne's musical version of War Of The Worlds. Every cast member is in great form but Michael Sheen and Taron Egerton are phenomenal. My only issue (as someone who has listened to the original album) is that I was singing along to all of the scores of the music interspersed with the story. That meant I missed a line or two here and there. As a fan of both the original HG Wells story and Jeff Wayne's adaption I couldn't recommend this highly enough

To note: The audio of this would sometimes keep skipping constantly on my phone but played flawlessly through my echo dot. It's a little bit odd because nothing else on audible has an issue on my phone. It's probably an issue of my phone but just in case it's not I thought I'd better mention it.

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Profile Image for Sefotron

Amazing Performance Marred by Invasive Remixes

Let me start by saying that I love the original War of the Worlds album, having grown up with it and listened to it hundreds of times. I have also read, and loved the novel many times. I'm a huge fan of War of the Worlds.

Right.

I really enjoyed this. The actors were absolutely perfect, and I have nothing negative to say about them. It's also wonderful that this version tells a version of the story in line with the book. Indeed, if it wasn't for the way the music is used, this would have been perfect.

These are tunes I love, and some of the new versions were lovely and well used. However, much of it was cheesy, even cringey; "Ministry of Sound does War of the Worlds", and it often killed immersion instantly. The music was also often just poorly used, shoehorned into moments where it s not needed and wrecked the atmosphere. Yeah, maybe tone it down a bit.

Still this is well worth getting.

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Profile Image for Deborah Rickus

war of the world

great story just a real shame that the music was a bit loud in places and couldn't hear the story, which spoilt it a bit for me.

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Profile Image for Merlin

Clunky.

Feels like music has been just stuck on. Not using the vocals was a mistake.

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Profile Image for Jordan

Possibly the best HG Wells Adaptation in history?

Brilliant. Beautifully adapted to an incredibly high standard, with a brilliant cast, those iconic musical cues - and perfectly capturing that horror and dread that the martians bring with them. It was amazing to hear the music recontextualised into such a consistently superb version of the story, and really flex those period chops that so many adaptations miss.

Cannot recommend this enough.

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