The House of the Spirit Levels
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An epic six-part comedy saga with a star cast, from master storyteller and satirist Nick Revell
When Tony Hardstaff breaks the bank playing ‘Snap!’ at the St Petersburg Casino, he is swept up in a maelstrom of romance and adventure. Seduced by the sultry Natassia Fillipovna Karamazov – a woman with curves so perfect they could make a geometry professor spontaneously combust – Tony is caught in flagrante by the Russian mafia, and flees for his life.
Taking the first plane out, Tony returns to his ancestral home in Grimesdale, and to the bosom of the family he left a decade earlier. But the prodigal son is not welcomed with open arms. His ruthless 183-year-old father Obadiah is less than thrilled to see him, his sister Jane is so shocked, she suffers a nosebleed, and his mother Alice is so upset, she drops dead on the spot.
To cap it all, Tony’s Brontë-obsessed ex-sweetheart has gone round the bend, his best mate Dave is now leader of the Morris Dancing Survivalist Militia, and the town he grew up in is under threat… Forced to grapple with wandering corpses, canine spirit guides, old flames and eastern European heavies, Tony goes on the run once again. But can he escape the clutches of the past?
Magical realism meets Northern family saga in this surrealistic comedy, told in flashback and travelling between Venezuela, Russia and west Yorkshire. Written by and starring Nick Revell as Tony, it features a stellar cast including Morwenna Banks, Alistair McGowan, Peter Serafinowicz, Alison Steadman and Claire Skinner.
NB: Contains some dated attitudes and language
Production credits
Written by Nick Revell
Produced by Paul Schlesinger
Music composed by Paul Mottram
Cast
Tony – Nick Revell
Natassia Fillipovna – Morwenna Banks/Tracy-Ann Oberman
The Narrator – Alistair McGowan
Mrs Yepanchin/Mrs Womersley – Joanna Brooks
Ivan – Jonathan Kydd
Sergei/Jeff – Peter Gunn
Kropotkin/Dave/Carl – Peter Serafinowicz
Vladimir/Elder/Shrink – Chris Pavlo
Obadiah – David Swift
Alice – Maggie Steed
Jane – Alison Steadman
Joanna – Natalie Walter
Emily – Claire Skinner
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4, 1 May-5 June 1997
© 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd
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