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Drama on 4

Freezing to Death (and How to Avoid It)

Duration: 44 minutes

First broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 FMLatest broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 FM

Drama by Abigail Youngman based on the true story of probably the worst (and coldest) wedding night ever. In 1739 Empress Anna Ivanovna had an ice palace built on the River Neva in St Petersburg. An exceptionally cruel woman and inveterate match-maker, she arranged the marriage of two of her jesters: Prince Mikhail Golitsyn and Avdotya Buzhenina, a hunchback peasant woman. After a lavish ceremony, the happy couple were forced to spend the night in the ice palace. This is the story of how two very different characters attempt to survive extreme adversity.

Cast:

Mikhail / Old Mikhail.....................Karl Theobald
Avdotya.............................................Mandeep Dhillon
Traveller / Grigori Petrovich..........John MacKay

Writer....................................................Abigail Youngman
Studio Manager................................Iain Hunter
Director................................................Alison Crawford

With thanks to Yelena Alexander for guidance on Russian language and culture. Show less

Contributors

Old Mikhail:
Karl Theobald
Traveller:
John MacKay
Grigori Petrovich:
John MacKay

Genres

About this data

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