String of Pearls
Unknown
Play
Length 11 h 41 min
Chapters 39
First published 1846
The tale of Sweeney Todd has had many incarnations, most famously the stage and movie musical by Stephen Sondheim. But it all started in 1846 with a serialized telling of the story titled “The String of Pearls” in the weekly magazine “The People's Periodical and Family Library”. Called by some a romance, by others a horror story, it is one of the earliest murder mysteries. In “The String of Pearls”, Sweeney Todd is less sympathetic than in some of his later incarnations – a perfect villain, totally self-seeking with no redeeming qualities. How the deeds of Todd are uncovered and how he is brought to justice make a most intriguing tale, but one probably not suited for the very young and certainly not for the squeamish. (Summary by John Lieder).
Chapters
1
01 - The Strange Customer at Sweeney Todd's Read by musil 23:30
2
02 - The Spectacle Maker's Daughter Read by musil 20:45
3
03 - The Dog and the Hat Read by musil 23:25
4
04 - The Pie-shop in Bell Yard Read by Catharine Eastman 18:29
5
05 - The Meeting in the Temple Read by fablis310 17:29
6
06 - The Conference, and the Fearful Narration in the Garden Read by redabrus 26:45
7
07 - The Barber and the Lapidary Read by Christine Blachford 9:17
8
08 - The Thieves' Home Read by redabrus 27:17
9
09 - Johanna at Home, and the Resolution Read by redabrus 23:09
10
10 - The Colonel and His Friend Read by redabrus 35:57
11
11 - The Stranger at Lovett's Read by Christine Blachford 16:14
12
12 - The Resolution come to by Johanna Oakley Read by fablis310 31:32
13
13 - Johanna's Interview with Arabella Wilmot, and the Advice Read by redabrus 25:30
14
14 - Tobias's Threat, and its Consequences Read by HC 10:11
15
15 - The Second Interview between Johanna and the Colonel in the Temple Gardens Read by Christine Blachford 12:42
16
16 - The Barber Makes Another Attempt to Sell the String of Pearls Read by Christine Blachford 12:03
17
17 - The Great Change in the Prospects of Sweeney Todd Read by krithiga 13:17
18
18 - Tobias's Adventures During the Absence of Sweeney Todd Read by Lucy Burgoyne (1950-2014) 20:42
19
19 - The Strange Odour at St. Dunstan's Church Read by Lucy Burgoyne (1950-2014) 15:10
20
20 - Sweeney Todd's Proceedings Consequent upon the Departure of Tobias Read by Lucy Burgoyne (1950-2014) 19:43
21
21 - The Misadventure of Tobias. The Mad-House Read by Lucy Burgoyne (1950-2014) 14:25
22
22 - The Mad-House Cell Read by Jennifer Stearns 13:59
23
23 - The New Cook to Mrs. Lovett's Gets Tired of his Situation Read by Jason Mayoff 16:32
24
24 - The Night at the Mad-House Read by Christine Blachford 9:37
25
25 - Mr. Fogg's Story at the Mad-House to Sweeney Todd Read by John Lieder 37:20
26
26 - Colonel Jeffery Makes Another Effort to Come at Sweeney Todd's Secret Read by Jennifer Stearns 20:23
27
27 - Tobias Makes an Attempt to Escape from the Mad-House Read by redabrus 11:18
28
28 - The Mad-House Yard, and Tobias's New Friend Read by Christine Blachford 10:23
29
29 - The Consultation of Colonel Jeffery with the Magistrate Read by Jennifer Stearns 11:57
30
30 - Tobias's Escape from Mr. Fogg's Establishment Read by redabrus 45:07
31
31 - The Rapid Journey to London of Tobias Read by redabrus 8:04
32
32 - The Announcement in Sweeney Todd's Window. Johanna Oakley's Adventure. Read by Christine Blachford 9:29
33
33 - The Discoveries in the Vaults of St. Dunstan's Read by HC 15:02
34
34 - Johanna Alone. The Secret. Mr. Todd's Suspicions. The Mysterious Letter Read by Christine Blachford 9:22
35
35 - Sweeney Todd Commences Clearing the Road to Retirement Read by Jason Mayoff 10:41
36
36 - The Last Batch of the Delicious Pies Read by Cori Samuel 11:53
37
37 - The Prisoner's Plan of Escape from the Pies Read by HC 15:45
38
38 - Sweeney Todd Shaves a Good Customer. The Arrest Read by M. W. Jackson 14:07
39
39 - The Conclusion. Read by Aaron Elliott 12:34
From LibriVox, read by volunteers and in the public domain. LibriVox page (opens librivox.org) , the text (opens victorianlondon.org) , all files on the Internet Archive (opens archive.org) .
