Ruth Wilson to narrate His Dark Materials audiobook series

Ruth Wilson is to narrate an audiobook series of ‘His Dark Materials’.

Produced and published by Penguin Audio, the ‘Luther’ star, 42 - who played the evil Mrs. Coulter in the BBC’s TV adaptation of Philip Pullman’s books - promises to whisk listeners away into the world of the award-winning author’s trilogy of fantasy novels, including ’Northern Lights’, ‘The Subtle Knife’ and ‘The Amber Spyglass’.

In a statement, she said: “I fell in love with Philip’s world of ‘His Dark Materials’ when I first read the books: they're so complex in their themes and playing Mrs. Coulter on screen allowed me to explore themes deeper than just her villainy: narcissism, freedom, motherhood, imagination.

“Having the opportunity to narrate this series of audiobooks and delve further into Philip’s profoundly intricate world was an honour and a pleasure.”

The books follow the coming-of-age of two youngsters, Lyra Belacqua and Will Parry, as they venture and battle their way through a series of parallel universes.

Pullman praised ‘The Affair’ actress for her performance as Mrs. Coulter in the BBC programme, and added he was “very lucky” to have her involved in both the TV and audiobook adaptations of his work.

He said: “I was delighted when I learned that Ruth Wilson was going to narrate the new audio edition of ‘His Dark Materials’.

I enjoyed her TV performance so much, and I learned from that - and from talking to her separately - how much thought she puts into every characterisation.

“Her voice is naturally rich and attractive, and she can vary it with the tiniest possible intonation here or emphasis there and make the story live as vividly in the ear of the listener as I hoped it would have in the eye of the reader.

“I count myself very lucky that she was involved in both TV and audio.”

As well as providing the narration for the audiobooks, Wilson and Pullman recorded a sit-down chat about the novels, which will be featured in the upcoming version of ‘The Amber Spyglass’.

These new unabridged editions of ‘His Dark Materials’ will be available at the same time as the original recordings, which featured a full cast.

'Northern Lights' publishes on 5th September, with the next two books coming in early 2025. All audiobooks can be pre-ordered https://linktr.ee/hdmaudiobooks.