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Central Intelligence: Kim Cattrall, Ed Harris Headline BBC Audio Drama

Kim Cattrall and Ed Harris star in Central Intelligence, a 10-episode audio drama podcast from the BBC that covers the history of the CIA.

Kim Cattrall is definitely no longer on any Sex and the City sequel, and Ed Harris is headlining Central Intelligence, a new 10-episode audio drama podcast from the BBC that covers the history of the CIA from its formation after the Second World War up to 9/11. Central Intelligence tells the true insider story of the CIA from the perspective of Eloise Page (Cattrall), who joined on the agency's first day in 1947 and became one of its most powerful women. Narrating in hindsight, Eloise takes the listener on a journey spanning the staggering world events that shaped her career, as well as portraying her relationships with early CIA leaders Allen Dulles (Harris) and Richard Helms (Johnny Flynn).

The series offers listeners a chance to be a fly-on-the-wall to the heated debates and decisions that shaped world history and continue to have ramifications in the present day. Told with the polite but sharp, brutally honest, questioning mind she was famous for, in an organization that was long run by a 'male, pale and Yale' hierarchy of men, Eloise is a compelling witness to the ambitions, values, strengths, and weaknesses of a string of early CIA leaders whose decisions – good and bad – have shaped the world we live in.

Cattrall shared, "I was pleased to be asked to join BBC Radio 4's Central Intelligence. A very well-written, factual and entertaining history of the Central Intelligence Agency from its uncertain inception. A human story full of false starts, gaffs, blunders, and, thankfully, triumphs on the world stage. A thrilling story of Russian Roulette. I was engrossed learning the true story of how this vital agency grew and prospered before and during the Cold War."

Alison Hindell, Radio 4's Commissioning Editor for Drama and Fiction, added, "Radio 4's commitment to audio drama is unrivalled, with more than 250 hours of world-class productions brought to audiences each year, broadcast daily on Radio 4, reaching nearly five million listeners every week and even more on BBC Sounds. With Central Intelligence, Radio 4 and Limelight listeners are in for a treat: it's so exciting to have world-class casting of this calibre to complement the bold ambition of this powerful drama serial. Audio drama is unique in the way it transports us to different places and times, and this ambitious series will give an intimate insider's view of some of the most remarkable events of the last century."

John Scott Dryden noted, "Goldhawk has built a reputation for dramas based on real-life, world-changing events such as the collapse of Lehman Brothers bank, the Greek Debt Crisis. This is bigger. The story of the CIA told from insiders' accounts and declassified documents, feels huge and important and casts a light on the world we live in today."

Central Intelligence is part of Radio 4's popular Limelight strand of unmissable drama serials, which regularly rank in the top ten most-listened-to programmes on BBC Sounds. Listeners can subscribe to Limelight on BBC Sounds to hear the first episode on 13th September, with weekly episodes to follow on BBC Radio 4, but all ten episodes are now available for streaming worldwide.

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