The Wonderland Challenge: Alice In Wonderland

Alice jumps to her feet, knocking over the jury box in her hurry. Hastily, she replaces all the creatures who have fallen out onto the floor. The King tells her that "Rule Forty-two" bans from court anyone more than a mile high, but Alice refuses to leave.
 
 The King subjects the Knave to a meaningless grilling and then sums up the evidence with hilarious ineptness. The Queen announces that the Knave should be sentenced before the verdict is reached. Alice blares out, "Stuff and nonsense!" Shocked, the Queen shouts, "Off with her head!" Alice, now her full size, says, "You're nothing but a pack of cards!" Immediately, the whole pack soars into the air and rains down on her head.
 
 Alice wakes to find herself back on the riverbank, with her older sister brushing fallen leaves off Alice's face.
 
 Chapter 12 was wonderfully read by:
 
Phyllis Logan
Martin Delaney
Harriet Walter
Henry Goodman
Christopher Biggins
David Menkin
Andrew Zadrejko
Della Phillips
Patricia Hodge
Stephen McCarthy
Brad Shaw

Back on the croquet lawn, Alice and the Gryphon learn that the Knave of Hearts has been charged with stealing a plate of tarts. The bewigged King of Hearts is serving as judge in the trial, and 12 creatures make up the jury. The White Rabbit is acting as herald.
 
 "Consider your verdict," the King tells the jury before the trial even begins. It's clear the whole proceeding will be a shambles. In the midst of the confusion, Alice realizes that she's starting to grow again. The next witness is the Duchess's Cook, who refuses to give evidence and slips away in the confusion. Alice is startled to hear her own name being called as the third witness.
 
 Chapter 11 is wonderfully read by:
 
Mark Fernandes
Elizabeth jobling
Rebecca Courtney
Janine Cooper-Marshall
Will Harrison-Wallace
Jane Perry
John Challis
Ruth Jones
Jo Ashe (Narrator of the year)
Rosie Ashe

Though the Mock Turtle is crying almost too hard to talk, it manages to sob out that Alice has probably never heard of a Lobster Quadrille. When she agrees that she has not, the Mock Turtle becomes a vortex of energy. He and the Gryphon scream out instructions while "capering wildly about." With equal suddenness, they collapse and look mournfully at Alice. Then they dance solemnly around her, singing.
 
 The dancing over, they ask Alice to recite some lessons for them. She obediently does so, getting the words wrong. Then the Mock Turtle begins to weep out a song about turtle soup. In mid-song, someone calls, "The trial is starting!" The Gryphon takes Alice's hand and rushes her away.
 
 Chapter 10 is wonderfully read by:
 
  Elizabeth Bloom
  Ben Norris
  Jared Zeus
  Alexandra Metaxa
  Margaret Ashley
  Natalie Chisholm
  Eilidh Beaton
  Philip Labey
  Griff Rhys Jones
  Matthew Gravelle
  Michael Lumsden
  Cathy Smith
 Julia Winwood

Alice and the Duchess (who's been reprieved from execution) stroll around the garden together until the Queen commands Alice to return to the game. When the game dissolves because the Queen has put all the players under sentence of death, the Queen takes Alice to meet the Gryphon, who introduces Alice to the Mock Turtle.
 
 The Mock Turtle dolefully tells Alice a long, sad story about his education until the Gryphon interrupts and says, "Tell her something about the games."
 
 Chapter 9 is wonderfully read by:
 
Anna Bentinck
Mali Harries
Rory Barnett
T.Anthony Quinn
Malk Williams
Ewan Bailey
Andrew Pepper
Mitch Jenkins
Christina Kowalchuk
Arthur Darvill
Richard Wells
Philip Banks
Ian Pringle

At the garden entrance, Alice sees three gardeners painting some white roses red. Before they can finish, a royal procession begins filing in. Last to arrive are the most important: the King and Queen of Hearts and their court. All of these characters take the form of animated playing cards.
 
 Furious at everyone and everything, the Queen of Hearts constantly orders beheadings. Fortunately, the Queen is distractible, and Alice—along with the Duchess—joins the croquet game everyone has come to play. The game is thoroughly confusing; no one is following the rules. Alice complains about this to the Cheshire Cat when its head shows up in the sky above her. The Queen orders that this head also be cut off, but the Cheshire Cat disappears before anyone can decide how to carry out the order.
 
 Chapter 8 is wonderfully read by:
 
Joshua Manning
Laurel Lefkow
Mark Desebrock
Matthew Wycliffe
Angus Imrie
Antonia Beamish
Kevin McNally
Matt Beauman Jones
Annette Rizzo
Charlotte Sanderson
Rachael Beresford
Ben Stock
Emma Stannard
Charlie Brunton
Duncan Smith
Pearl Hewitt