大象传媒

Elizabeth Bowen's mysterious story of power and control - as compelling today as when written in 1925.

Two woman - one young, one older - come face to face in the doorway of a Regent Street restaurant. The older woman, Mrs Windermere, grasps Esme's wrists, draws them towards her bosom, and cries in her deep tremolo, 'My dear!' She regards the younger woman with a strange intensity and gently massages the wrists with her thumbs. Unsettling! These two have previously met in Italy.

But there's something decidedly odd about Mrs Windermere - her effect on Esme is almost hypnotic. They take a table upstairs and soon Mrs Windermere is discussing Esme's marriage, and suggesting some surprising changes to her marital status quo. The young woman finds herself being unwillingly drawn in to something peculiar and distasteful. But can she escape the clutches of this strangely controlling personality?

Reader: Sarah Badel

Producer/Director: Martin Jarvis
A Jarvis & Ayres Production for 大象传媒 Radio 4.