Woman's Hour Drama - Mrs Tolstoy By Stephen Wakelam.
In his fifties the great writer Leo Tolstoy has a spiritual crisis and converts to Christianity. He stops sleeping with his wife. They have ten children. Taking the vows of poverty and chastity literally Tolstoy wants to give everything away but Sofya has a large family to feed. This is the woman who transcribed 'War and Peace' six times and who fights off rivals on daily basis for a place at his side. For forty eight years, the Tolstoys tormented each other with love and hate. Ian McDiarmid and Haydn Gwynne star in this portrait of a tempestuous marriage.
Episode 1 True Happiness:
Leo Tolstoy has given up writing fiction and cut himself off from his children. Sofya wants to move the family to Moscow.
Episode 2 A Simple Life:
Sofya Tolstoy is pregnant again. Leo invites an aristocratic Christian disciple to stay. Is Sofya right not to trust him?
Episode 3 The Kreutzer Sonata:
Sofya copies a new manuscript. A disturbing tale about a man who murders his wife. Is it directed against her?
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Sofya Tolstoy ... Haydn Gwynne
Leo Tolstoy ... Ian McDiarmid
Chertkov ... Paul Ritter
Tanya Tolstoy ... Vineeta Rishi
Grigory/Taneev ... Sam Dale
Musician ... Michael Shelford
Vanya Tolstoy ... James Warner
Taneev ... Sam Dale
Directed by Claire Grove.
Broadcast on:BBC Radio 4, Monday 9th - Friday 13th August 2010
Duration: 5 x 15 minutes
Replies
Episode 4 Vanichka:
Leo Tolstoy is cold and formal with his wife, Sofya. She is increasingly attracted to a portly pianist who has come to the country for the summer
Episode 5 The Legacy:
Leo Tolstoy is old and ill. Sofya fights for control diary and papers. Will the marriage survive?
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