When Bartholomew "Barley" Scott Blair, a drink sodden publisher, fails to attend an audio book fair in Moscow, a manuscript is passed to one of his colleagues, by a woman named Katya. Aware that the manuscript appears to hold soviet secrets and unable to get hold of Barley, who is holed up in his home, in Lisbon, with a woman, his colleague takes the papers to the British secret service. Unable to tell if the contents are true of not the secret service track Barley down and bring him in for questioning. Only through him will they be able to verify the veracity of the information...

The Russia House (1994 - 3 hrs, 10 min) is a spy romance, produced by BBC radio, based on the original novel by John Le Carré and staring Tom Baker as Barley. The book was dramatized by Rene Basilico. The story was also turned into a motion picture with Sean Connery and Michelle Pfeiffer.

In these days of falling budgets and general austerity, it seems a good time to revisit the theatre of the mind, given that all the expensive environments can be created in the listeners mind and with the writing expertise of Le Carrie you know that you’re going to get a well written, taut, drama. In this case the author has woven together not only a compulsive spy thriller but also a realistic love story with an unlikely central character.

We are introduced to Barley, through gathered information, before we meet the character. With his history of running an unimpressive publishing house, seemingly through the charity of his aunts and his penchant for being drunk, he seems a most unlikely hero. However, his love of chess points to a calculating mind and Tom Baker's elegant portrayal immediately gives the impression that Barley is much like an iceberg - the parts he chooses to show hide a much greater hidden depth.

With his natural wit and normal loquaciousness held in check, Baker give a much more measured and life weary performance, which through the course of the tale redeems himself in the minds of the audience.

It goes without saying that Le Carré has produced a gripping and intricate plot, which has been translated to a BBC play very well, even if the love story section of the book is the least strong the whole thing is held together with Baker's performance.

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Charles Packer