Crackling over the ether from more than half a century ago comes this production of Wilde’s 1895 comedy of identity, fraternity, class, money and love. Practically every line is a Wildean epigram, some of which live on (“I hear her hair has turned quite gold from grief”), though others fall resoundingly flat. Gielgud, as Jack, and the rest of the 1952 cast (including the renowned Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies as Gwendolen) find real characters under the blizzard of paradoxical aphorisms, and Edith Evans, once past the looming tyranny of the “handbag” line, is a magnetic Lady Bracknell. The sound quality is patchy, and the diction strangulatedly posh to modern ears, but enjoyment is guaranteed. There is a rare recording at the end of Gielgud reading poetry.
(Naxos £10.99, CDs, 1hr 50 mins)