Superspy George Smiley (Alec Guinness) has for some time been in 'retirement' - some say due to his mishandling of the Czech scandal. However, the retiring masterspy finds himself summoned back to the 'Circus' (British secret service) when it transpires that an enemy infiltrator is at work in the department.

Wartime drama starring Alec Guiness as Peter Ross, an RAF reconnaisance photographer assigned to trace and destroy an Italian convoy threatening to invade Malta. As the Luftwaffe threatens, Ross's romance with a local girl hangs in the balance.

Roy Boulton directs this classic adaptation of the Graham Greene novel detailing the activities of a group of thugs in 1930s Brighton. Pinkie Brown (Richard Attenborough) is the head of a gang of small time crooks who make their money from a protection racket centred around Brighton race course. Pinkie is known for his short fuse and brutality, so his murder of a rival, Fred (Alan Wheatley), is very much in character. Pinkie believes, nonetheless, that he has got away with the crime until the promptings of a suspicious local woman, Ida (Hermione Baddeley), threaten to have the case reopened. Since only one person can identify him as the murderer, the waitress, Rose Brown (Carol Marsh), Pinkie comes up with an ingenious solution - marry Rose to stop her testifying against him. But will things go to plan?

Offbeat 1960s Hammer Studios fantasy horror. When Captain Lansen (Eric Portman)'s leaky cargo ship is blown off course, the crew members find themselves in a mysterious, fog-shrouded ocean where the seaweed eats human flesh and mutated crab-like creatures with huge claws are on the loose. The surviving crew and passengers then encounter a band of Spanish conquistadors who think it is still the 1500s and the Inquisition is still in progress.

Submerge yourself in classic BBC Dickens dramatisations that, like the great novelist's work, have stood the test of time.

The majesty of Charles Dickens' storytelling is captured in this DVD boxset that brings together BBC dramatisations of eight of the acclaimed author's classic novels. From the touching 1985 dramatisation of the semi-autobiographical Oliver Twist to the moving A Christmas Carol that sidesteps mawkish sentimentality and instead, offers viewers an affecting and sincere drama, each TV adaptation will delight fans of the author – and win over a generation of new ones.

Starring a wealth of celebrated actors including Maggie Smith, Bob Hoskins, John Mills and many more, the Charles Dickens Collection celebrates the author's work with authentic and beautifully-played mini TV-series from a broadcaster that is world-renowned for its adaptations.

In chronological order, the adaptations featured in this set are:

• A Christmas Carol (1977)
• A Tale of Two Cities (1980)
• The Pickwick Papers (1985)
• Oliver Twist (1985)
• Martin Chuzzlewit (1994)
• Our Mutual Friend (1998)
• David Copperfield (1999)
• Great Expectations (1999)