Which Wolf Hall recording should you buy?
Complete readings and an abridgement of Mantel's novel are sold under the same title — and a search for the title also turns up a different book called Wolf Hall.
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Hilary Mantel · 3 Audible UK recordings compared
Short answer
Ben Miles. He played Cromwell on stage before recording it, he reads the whole trilogy, and at 25 hours you are getting the actual book. Simon Slater is a perfectly good alternative unabridged reading if you prefer his voice.
The recordings, compared
| Narrator | Length | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ben Miles Our pick | 25 hrs 12 mins | Unabridged | The one to get, and it continues across Bring Up the Bodies and The Mirror and the Light so the trilogy stays in one voice. |
| Simon Slater | 24 hrs 15 mins | Unabridged | The earlier unabridged reading. Complete, and fine. |
| Dan Stevens | 7 hrs 11 mins | Abridged | Much shorter than the complete readings. Stevens is also one of the readers of two multi-book sets under Mantel's name; Audible's listing data marks both abridged, and neither is this book on its own. |
| Tim Gilbert | 2 hrs 1 min | Different book, same title | NOT Hilary Mantel's novel at all. This is Harper Fox's Wolf Hall, a different story under the same title, and it turns up when you search Audible for Wolf Hall. Until 11 September 2026 this page listed it as an abridgement of Mantel. |
The recording we recommend is also on Audiobooks.com — the same Ben Miles reading, listed at 25 hrs 12 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.