Which Crooked House recording should you buy?
A Christie standalone — no Poirot, no Marple — where only one of the editions on sale is the novel: two are simplified retellings for people learning English, and there is a radio play beside them.
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Agatha Christie · 4 Audible UK recordings compared
Short answer
Hugh Fraser, and it is not close — his is the only complete recording of this book on Audible UK. Both the Peter Kenny and the Roger May listings are Collins graded readers, meaning Christie's text rewritten to a restricted vocabulary for English learners. They are not abridgements, and the search results show nothing more than a level code under each title to say so.
The recordings, compared
| Narrator | Length | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hugh Fraser Our pick | 5 hrs 45 mins | Complete novel | The complete novel, and the only one here. Fraser played Hastings on television. |
| Peter Kenny | 3 hrs 41 mins | Collins graded reader (B2+) | NOT the novel, despite the plain listing: the title, the web address and the product page heading are all just "Crooked House", with only "B2+" beneath the title, so opening it is not enough unless you read the description. Kenny is a fine narrator — best known for the Witcher — which makes this one especially easy to buy in good faith. |
| Roger May | 2 hrs 54 mins | Collins graded reader (B2) | NOT the novel either. Audible's own product slug says "Crooked-House-B2-Collins-Agatha-Christie-ELT-Readers". |
| Anna Maxwell Martin, Rory Kinnear and a full cast | 1 hr 46 mins | Full-cast dramatisation | A radio adaptation with a very good cast. |
The recording we recommend is also on Audiobooks.com — the same Hugh Fraser reading, listed at 5 hrs 45 mins when we checked on 11 September 2026. Their one-credit plan is listed at £7.99 a month before applicable taxes, and its credits expire after three months — the two models compared. We earn a commission on that link.