The potential combination of Sherlock’s Benedict Cumberbatch and Doctor Who’s David Tennant would be high on any Anglophile’s wishlist – for virtually any kind of production, whether it was a children’s cartoon, a BBC period drama or a Shakespeare play.
Sadly, the schedules of both these stars are so crowded now that seeing them perform in, well, anything together any time in the even vaguely foreseeable future seems like a pretty big pipe dream. Luckily, that wasn’t so true a few years ago.
Way back in 2003, before either of these actors had ever played the Doctor or the consulting detective, the pair was cast in a BBC Radio Four production of Jane Austen’s classic Mansfield Park. And since it’s highly likely that you had no idea who either of these gentlemen were at the time, you probably missed out on it. But, not to worry – the radio version is about to get a special repeat broadcast. Radio 4 is pulling the production out of the station archives to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the classic novel’s publication, and also probably just to make a lot of fans around the world very happy.