Shadwell is selected from Sylvia Townsend Warner's collection, Winter in the Air. In this story, the death of Mrs Probus threatens a precarious future for her long time servant, Shadwell.

The stories in Winter in the Air were written between 1938 and 1950. They capture the mood and atmosphere of the times, and the lot of women in mid twentieth century England. Sylvia Townsend Warner is less well known today, but in her time was a prolific writer of novels, short stories and poetry. She also wrote a biography of T.H. White. These stories remind us that she was a sharp, insightful, and vivid storyteller.

The reader is Susannah Harker
Abridged by Richard Hamilton
Produced by Elizabeth Allard. Show less