"Director: Paul Kafno"

• Les Miserables | DVD | (30/10/2000) from £14.70   |  Saving you £5.29 (35.99%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The 10th-anniversary-concert video of the international musical sensation Les Misérables might be the best thing to appease fans until a full-fledged movie comes along. Or it might be even better, as feature films are often subject to extra musical casting considerations and this 1995 dream cast is superb. Reprising their roles from the original London company are Colm Wilkinson (Valjean), Michael Ball (Marius) and Alun Armstrong (Thenardier). From Broadway come Judy Kuhn (Cosette), Lea Salonga (Eponine) and Michael Maguire (Enjolras); from a later London production comes Ruthie Henshall (Fantine); and from Australia comes Philip Quast (Javert). Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg's score vividly captures the passion of Victor Hugo's epic tale of pre-Revolutionary France, combining tear-jerking ballads ("I Dreamed a Dream", "Bring Him Home") and rousing anthems ("Do You Hear the People Sing"). The format of this concert is closer to that of a dramatic cantata rather than a fully staged production; the singers stand at their microphones with an orchestra and chorus behind them, but they do wear costumes and participate in some movement. At certain points, such as the climax of the barricade scene, the video switches to action from a stage production. The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra sounds great, and it can be thrilling when 200 choristers (dressed in logo T-shirts) rise to their feet for a full-company number such as "One Day More". Also, subtitles provide date and scene information and help move the story along. This 147-minute version contains footage not seen before, most notably the encore in which a progression of 17 actors who have played Valjean around the world share "Do You Hear the People Sing?" Each sings a line in his native language, a testament to the enduring power of this show to audiences everywhere.--David Horiuchi, Amazon.com

• The Thames Shakespeare Collection | DVD | (03/10/2016) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  This collection features superlative television productions of four of Shakespeare's best-loved plays. Featuring electrifying performances from some of Britain's most accomplished actors and leading RSC players, these productions bring Shakepeare's work vividly and faithfully to life. MACBETH Ian McKellen and Judi Dench lead the RSC cast in Trevor Nunn's stunning production of Shakespeare's tale of a Scottish general whose hunger for kingship leads to a reign of terror. ROMEO & JULIET Joan Kemp-Welch directs Christoper Neame and Ann Hasson in a BAFTA-nominated adaptation of Shakespeare's tragedy of young lovers destroyed by a feud between two families. TWELFTH NIGHT Richard Briers and Frances Barber lead the Renaissance Theatre Company in this much-loved comedy of mistaken identity and unrequited desire, staged to huge acclaim by Kenneth Branagh. KING LEAR Patrick Magee gives a tour de force performance as the elderly king who descends into madness after disposing of his estate between his treacherous daughters Regan and Goneril.