Dracula: Part 1

1/2 Launching a month's focus on The Gothic Imagination, Bram Stoker's disturbing vampire tale of horror, in a new version by Rebecca Lenkiewicz. Told through letters, journal entries, and other found testimony, this is the story of the brief reign of terror of an uncivilised monster in Victorian Britain.

The Gothic Imagination on Radio 4 and 4 Extra, is reclaiming original gothic creations from the clichés they have become, and introducing three new works into the canon. For all the fireworks of blood, flesh and horror, Frankenstein reveals itself as the story of parenting and abandonment, and Dracula, as a supernatural fable reflecting a harrowing fear of female sexuality, and the treatment meted out to the insane pervert who unleashes it for pleasure.

Narrated by various characters, and with different 'takes' on the progress of the story, this is an all action adventure story, with ghosts, ghouls, lunatics, and seriously gripping chase sequences. Adapting it in just two hours takes the audience on a thrilling ride through the dark psyche of Victorian England.