Maid Marian and her Merry Men, Series 1
by Tony Robinson; dir. David Bell (BBC, 1989)
One-of-a-kind children’s comedy with a penchant for slow-rapped beatbox scene-setting (courtesy of Danny John-Jules). Episodes rattle along through a gamut of small-scale absurdisms, over-the-top, self-aware characters, corny anachronisms and genuine wit. Tony Robinson brings Blackadder vibes as the villainous Sheriff of Nottingham.
Blackadder: The Cavalier Years
by Richard Curtis & Ben Elton; dir. Mandie Fletcher (BBC, 1988)
This 15-minute Comic Relief special is by far the best of the Blackadder one-offs. Though Stephen Fry’s King Charles is a bit laboured, Rowan Atkinson plays Blackadder Version 2.5 with sardonic, simile-prone precision, ably supported by Tony Robinson as the dogsbody Baldrick.
Charmed Life
by Diana Wynne Jones (Macmillan, 1977); audiobook read by Tony Robinson (AudioGO, 2011)
Jones deftly establishes a parallel world in which magic is commonplace, and a cast of characters where the identity of the villain—and even that of the protagonist!—remains convincingly ambiguous. Tony Robinson’s audiobook reading elevates the story to a new level.