Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Fourteen tapes, packed in two boxes (and sold as two separate parts, too), just manage to contain the compelling but rambling sprawl that is Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Four books on, JK Rowling has set herself free from the tight structure that shaped the first three titles and has written a story of more extravagant invention: the Quidditch world cup, a glorious take-off of its footballing counterpart; Dobby and Winky, the elves released from slavery and struggling to find a way of living in the free world; Rita Skeeter the hellish journalist with the Hello touch; the heavily stereotypical wizarding schools from France and Eastern Europe are just four of the new additions to the now-familiar world of Hogwarts School and its huge cast milling around Harry Potter and his friends Ron and Hermione. And all this set against a chilling opening revealing the growing power of Lord Voldemort matched by a conclusion which proves how truly dangerous he has become. Rowling's control slips just occasionally but Stephen Fry never falters. His skilful reading of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is totally irresistible. He encompasses the huge and complex plot with subtlety, setting off the hilarity of the mass wizarding activity at the World Cup against the extreme menace of the raising of the Dark Mark and maintaining that balance of humour and terror to the very end.