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The Heart is a Lonely Hunter
The Heart is a Lonely Hunter
Aug 2, 2025 6:58 AM

Author:Carson McCullers,Full Cast,David Bower,Coco Green

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter

Frequently cited as one of the great works of 20th-Century American fiction, The Heart is a Lonely Hunter is Carson McCullers’ remarkable first novel, published to instant acclaim when she was just 23.

Set in the 1930s, in a small mill town in the middle of America’s Deep South, it tells the story of Mick Kelly, a tomboy with a passion for music who dreams of buying a piano. On the cusp of womanhood, she is desperate to grow up, and feels misunderstood by everyone around her. So when lonely deaf-mute John Singer comes to stay as a lodger in Mick’s house, she is drawn to his kindness and sympathetic nature, and confides her secret hopes, dreams and ambitions to him.

But she is not the only person in town to become fascinated by Singer. Biff Brannon, the owner of the café where Singer eats every day; Doctor Copeland, an idealistic black doctor disturbed by racism and injustice; angry alcoholic Jake Blount – all pour out their hearts to him, seeking connection. He, in turn, transforms their disenchanted lives in ways they could never imagine…

Dramatised by poet and playwright Amanda Dalton, this powerful exploration of loneliness, alienation and the human need to love and be loved stars Coco Green as Mick and David Bower as Singer.

Cast

Mick Kelly ..... Coco Green

Bubber ..... Aaron Gelkoff

John Singer ..... David Bower

Biff Brannon ..... Michael S. Siegel

Jake Blount ..... Andonis Anthony

Alice Brannon ..... Laurel Lefkow

Portia Jones ..... Anna Jobarteh

Dr Benedict Copeland..... Delroy Brown

Etta Kelly ..... Lily Green

Willie Copeland/Deputy Sheriff..... Tachia Newall

Harry Minowitz ..... Eric Sirakian

Dramatised by Amanda Dalton

Directed by Susan Roberts

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 15-22 March 2020

Reviews

REVIEWS FOR LEGEND:
Legend doesn't merely survive the hype, it deserves it,

—— New York Times

The Secret Commonwealth is ablaze with light and life. The writing is exquisite; every sentence sings ... To read Pullman is to experience the world refreshed, aglow, in Technicolour

—— Independent

Lyra is all grown up in a rich, vivid sequel

—— Telegraph

Engrossing

—— Financial Times

Pullman's story is still thought-provoking ... This book elegantly weaves in live issues, from Europe's refugee crisis to facts in the post-truth era. And Pullman's prose is rewarding as ever

—— The Times

The novel gallops forward, full of danger, delight and surprise. Nearly miraculous, it seems, is Pullman's ability to sketch character, place and motive in just a few lines

—— New Statesman

A long, taxing, complex journey, laced with beauty, terror and philosophy

—— Metro

As ever, Pullman's story is complex and vast but home to some of the finest storytelling in the 21st century. Revel in whole new worlds and enjoy one of literature's most wonderful heroines before she comes to HBO and the BBC

—— Stylist

Pullman is confronting readers with the horrors of our own world reflected back at us. In The Secret Commonwealth he creates a fearful symmetry

—— The Herald

Pullman has created a fantasy world, made yet more satisfying in this new volume. This is a book for getting older with

—— Guardian

REVIEWS FOR LA BELLE SAUVAGE: THE BOOK OF DUST VOLUME ONE:

Fans of His Dark Materials will find themselves joyfully immersed in a familiar world . . . meanwhile, awaiting first-time readers is all the pleasure of commencing their own journey into this most captivating of universes at the very beginning of Lyra's story

—— Independent

No one else writes like Pullman . . . entirely worth the 17-year wait

—— Imogen Russell Williams, Metro

A rich, imaginative, vividly characterised rite-of-passage tale

—— Nicolette Jones, The Sunday Times

High-octane adventure accompanies ingenious plotting

—— The Times

A riotous read from the get-go ... An absolute tonic for our times

—— RTÉ Guide

F*cking fantastic. Patrick is a brilliant writer

—— Blindboy Boatclub , via Twitter

Lovely ... It's very worth reading

—— Dara Ó Briain , via Twitter

A wonderful book ... done with a gorgeous twist of humour and great emotional insight ... One of my books of the year

—— Ryan Tubridy , RTÉ Radio 1

Exquisite ... One of the funniest writers in Ireland

—— Irish Examiner

Immensely readable, warm, human and very, very funny

—— Irish Daily Star

Pixies were loud-quiet-loud. Patrick Freyne is funny-sad-funny. I really loved his new book

—— Ed O'Loughlin , via Twitter

Readers are sure to find themselves touched by Freyne's writing ... Delightful

—— Journal.ie

Freyne's thoroughly entertaining debut is a flash of warmth and wit in the darkness

—— Totally Dublin

Genuinely moving ... [It] will evoke warmth in anyone who isn't totally sociopathic

—— Hot Press

A delightful insight into the mind of the hilarious Patrick Freyne

—— Irish Country Magazine

So honest, so funny, and most importantly, 11/10 for self-deprecation

—— Sarah Breen

Brilliant ... An absolute mind hug

—— Niall Breslin

Freyne's radar is precision-honed to find the madness within the mundane

—— Sunday Independent

More moving that I ever expected and somehow funnier than I assumed

—— Emer McLysaght , Irish Times, Best Books of 2020

Captivating and moving.

—— Tablet, *Summer Reads of 2021*

Moving... Beneath the attention-seeking is a well-loved author who has gone through his cupboards, giving us all that he has.

—— Johanna Thomas-Corr , Sunday Times

A defiant and witty testimony to mortality and a tender remembrance of his friends and literary heroes… I’ve been reading and re-reading it this year

—— Times Literary Supplement, *Books of the Year*

Continues in the same superior vein as Restoration… The fusion of such an engrossing character, and the minutiae of another time, remains a marvel

—— Daily Telegraph

In this evocative and beautifully drawn novel of family and loyalty in the face of an uncertain future Tremain continues the story of a wonderfully unique character

—— Hannah Britt , Daily Express

Hugely enjoyable

—— Reader's Digest

Merivel’s hapless charm remains intact in this tour de force of literary technique

—— Sunday Telegraph (Seven)

A sequel that looks back to the earlier novel without ever quite recapturing its spirit is the perfect form in which to evoke that feeling of having to carry on, and of trying to make yourself have fun even with it eventually begins to hurt

—— Colin Burrow , Guardian

A marvelllously rollicking good read, and it is such a pleasure to meet Robert Merivel again. Rose Tremain brings the character to life in a way that makes you want to find out even more about the period. Enormously skilled and deft

—— Good Book Guide
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