Episode 1

Written by Pearl S Buck, dramatised by Mary Cooper with MW Sun.

Pearl S Buck grew up in China, the daughter of missionaries, and composed The Good Earth in Chinese before translating it into English. The novel won the Pulitzer Prize and became a best-selling sensation in Depression-era America, and went on to shape how a generation of Western readers understood China.

The story follows Wang Lung and O-Lan, who meet and marry on the same day. O-Lan, once a slave in the House of Hwang, the richest family in the village, brings the same hard, steady work to Wang Lung's small farm that she once gave her masters, even as the Hwangs squander their fortune on opium. Together, Wang Lung and O-Lan build a life from the land and raise their children. But the land does not stay kind. When drought brings famine, the family is driven to desperate action to survive.

Wang Lung . . . . . Chris Lew Kum Hoi
O-Lan . . . . . Chipo Chung
Earth . . . . . Gana Bayarsaikhan
Father . . . . . Liam Woon
Uncle . . . . . Bruce Wang
Ching/Buyer . . . . . Windson Liong
Gatekeeper/Fruit seller . . . . . Jon Chew
Old Mistress . . . . . Pik Sen Lim

Original music composed by Ruth Chan.

Directed by Shan Ng.

Produced by Pauline Harris for BBC Audio Drama North.