TEHRAN- The 1932 British play “Dangerous Corner” written by J. B. Priestley has been turned into an audiobook in Persian and released on digital services and platforms.

The Persian audiobook has been directed by Bahman Vakhshour and produced at Avaye Chirok, a major Iranian institute that produces audiobooks.

Translated by Amir Deylamani, the audiobook features the voices of Bahman Vakhshour, Negin Bayrampur, Hura Emadi, Taranom Mehrnur, Sepideh Goudarzi, Hossein Haghparast, and Sina Abdolmaleki. The Persian print edition of “Dangerous Corner” has been published by Gusheh Publications in Tehran. 

“Dangerous Corner” is Priestley’s first solo play and the first of his plays in which he exploits the theory that there are other forms of time than the purely linear one.

Priestley had recently collaborated with Edward Knoblock on “The Good Companions” and now wished “to prove that a man might produce long novels and yet be able to write effectively, using the strictest economy, for the stage.” While it was praised highly by James Agate, “Dangerous Corner” received poor reviews, and after three days he was told that the play would be taken off, a fate that he averted by buying out the syndicate. It then ran for six months. Priestley's action was further vindicated by the worldwide success of the play.

Robert and Freda Caplan are entertaining guests at their country retreat. A chance remark by one of the guests ignites a series of devastating revelations, revealing a hitherto undiscovered tangle of clandestine relationships and dark secrets, the disclosures of which have tragic consequences. The play ends with time slipping back to the beginning of the evening and the chance remark not being made, the secrets remaining hidden and the “dangerous corner” avoided.

“Dangerous Corner” may be a little more than a box of clever theatrical tricks – Priestley himself thought so – but as an ensemble piece with some depth to the characterization, it has easily survived the decades since its first production, being constantly revived in both professional and amateur productions.

Like many of J.B. Priestley’s works, “Danger Corner” plays with the idea of time and circumstance, asking the all-important question: what if?

John Boynton Priestley (1894-1984) was an English novelist, playwright, screenwriter, broadcaster and social commentator.

His Yorkshire background is reflected in much of his fiction, notably in “The Good Companions” (1929), which first brought him to wide public notice. Many of his plays are structured around a time slip, and he went on to develop a new theory of time, with different dimensions that link past, present, and future.

In 1940, he broadcast a series of short propaganda radio talks, which were credited with strengthening civilian morale during the Battle of Britain. In the following years, his left-wing beliefs brought him into conflict with the government and influenced the development of the welfare state.

Priestley began placing his papers at the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas at Austin in 1960, with additions being made throughout his lifetime. The center has continued to add to the collection through gifts and purchases when possible. The collection comprises 23 boxes as of 2016, including original manuscripts for many of his works and an extensive series of correspondence.

The University of Bradford Library holds the J. B. Priestley Archive as part of its Special Collections. The collection includes scripts, journal articles, lectures, press cuttings, correspondence, photographs, and objects such as Priestley's iconic pipe. Most of the material in this collection was donated by the Priestley Estate.

SS/SAB