American Legacy: Epic dramas of US politics

Four BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramas

Description of the book

Four gripping historical dramas centred around key figures who shaped America in the 20th century

Award-winning writer Mike Walker has created many acclaimed docudramas and historical dramas for Radio 4, including The Stuarts, Tsar, Caesar! and Plantagenet. This collection includes four nuanced dramas featuring a trio of controversial men who stamped their mark on American history: J Edgar Hoover, Lyndon Baines Johnson and Richard Baines Nixon. Among the casts are William Hootkins, Bob Sherman, Lorelei King, Nathan Osgood and Alex Lanipekun.

J Edgar Hoover - This four-part drama charts the rise and fall of the notorious FBI director. Beginning in 1919, when a young Hoover uses his reputation for anti-Communist zealotry to further his ambitions, it takes in his single-minded pursuit of criminals including 'Public Enemy Number One' John Dillinger; his struggles with Bobby Kennedy and his relationship with his longtime deputy and close companion Clyde Tolson.

LBJ - Inspired by real historical events, this two-part drama looks at the Kennedy administration, LBJ and the Vietnam War through the eyes of fictional journalist Lyle Weaver. Offered a job working as speechwriter to Vice-President Johnson, idealistic Lyle can't resist the chance to become an insider, helping to drive change. But the White House is riven by power struggles and, forced to take sides, he fails to consider the personal cost of being one on LBJ's people.

The Product - Vietnam, 1968. When their helicopter is shot down, a soldier and a reporter are stranded in the jungle. Battling together to reach safety, they share stories, and realise that they were part of opposing campaigns in the historic 1960 election which saw JFK narrowly defeat Nixon. Reflecting on a victory won through propaganda, dollars and dirty tricks, they recall the candidates they each supported - and consider the legacy of their choices.

American Faith: Richard Milhous Nixon's Road to Watergate - An epic, intimate drama recounting the life and extraordinary career of one of America's most fascinating and enigmatic Presidents: from his upbringing as a Quaker shopkeeper's son to his involvement in the 1970s Watergate scandal that rocked the nation and forced his resignation.

NB: Contains strong language and attitudes from the era in which these stories are set which would not be considered acceptable today.