The Disagreeable Man

W. S. Gilbert (1836 - 1911)

LibriVox volunteers bring you 26 recordings of The Disagreeable Man by Sir W. S. Gilbert. This was the Fortnightly Poetry project for June 10, 2012.

The Bab Ballads are a collection of light verse by W. S. Gilbert, illustrated with his own comic drawings. Gilbert wrote the Ballads before he became famous for his comic opera librettos with Arthur Sullivan. In writing the Bab Ballads, Gilbert developed his unique "topsy-turvy" style, where the humour was derived by setting up a ridiculous premise and working out its logical consequences, however absurd. The Ballads also reveal Gilbert's cynical and satirical approach to humour. They became famous on their own, as well as being a source for plot elements, characters and songs that Gilbert would recycle in the Gilbert and Sullivan operas. The Bab Ballads take their name from Gilbert's childhood nickname, and he later began to sign his illustrations "Bab".

Nothing else quite like the Ballads has ever been produced in the English language. They contain both satire and nonsense, as well as a great deal of utter absurdity. The Ballads were read aloud at private dinner-parties, public banquets and even in the House of Lords. The ballads have been much published, and there are even recordings of readings of some of them. ( Summary by Wikipedia )

Genre(s): Multi-version (Weekly and Fortnightly poetry)

Language: English

Section Chapter Reader Time
Play 01 The Disagreeable Man - Read by AG April Gonzales
00:02:01
Play 02 The Disagreeable Man - Read by ALP Algy Pug
00:02:11
Play 03 The Disagreeable Man - Read by AS acousticwave
00:01:48
Play 04 The Disagreeable Man - Read by CC Chris Caron
00:02:22
Play 05 The Disagreeable Man - Read by CMP CaprishaPage
00:02:30
Play 06 The Disagreeable Man - Read by DF Daniel Frosh
00:01:51
Play 07 The Disagreeable Man - Read by EEP Ernst Pattynama
00:02:17
Play 08 The Disagreeable Man - Read by EZWA Ezwa
00:01:51
Play 09 The Disagreeable Man - Sung by EZWA Ezwa
00:02:22
Play 10 The Disagreeable Man - Read by FS fshort
00:02:27
Play 11 The Disagreeable Man - Read by JCM Jason Mills
00:01:50
Play 12 The Disagreeable Man - Read by JD Jack Daniel
00:01:53
Play 13 The Disagreeable Man - Read by JM2 Jannie Meisberger
00:02:02
Play 14 The Disagreeable Man - Read by JN Julia Niedermaier
00:01:37
Play 15 The Disagreeable Man - Read by KLN Kirsten Nelson
00:01:34
Play 16 The Disagreeable Man - Read by LAH Lee Ann Howlett
00:01:51
Play 17 The Disagreeable Man - Read by LLW Leonard Wilson (1930-2024)
00:02:28
Play 18 The Disagreeable Man - Read by MFS Mark F. Smith
00:02:21
Play 19 The Disagreeable Man - Read by MG Martin Geeson
00:02:46
Play 20 The Disagreeable Man - Read by MP Mateo Palfreman
00:01:45
Play 21 The Disagreeable Man - Read by PJW Patrick Wallace
00:01:45
Play 22 The Disagreeable Man - Read by RN ravenotation
00:02:43
Play 23 The Disagreeable Man - Read by RPB Rafael Phoenix Blayze
00:01:58
Play 24 The Disagreeable Man - Read by RWH Robert Hoffman
00:01:58
Play 25 The Disagreeable Man - Read by UM ekzemplaro
00:02:00
Play 26 The Disagreeable Man - Read by WT Winston Tharp
00:01:54