{"id":890012,"date":"2026-06-24T18:29:13","date_gmt":"2026-06-24T18:29:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/890012\/"},"modified":"2026-06-24T18:29:13","modified_gmt":"2026-06-24T18:29:13","slug":"the-odyssey-alternative-audio-versions-with-ian-mckellen-and-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/890012\/","title":{"rendered":"‘The Odyssey’: Alternative Audio Versions With Ian McKellen and More"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tChristopher Nolan<\/a>\u2019s \u201cThe Odyssey<\/a>,\u201d opens in less than four weeks \u2014 just enough time to brush up on the details of the historic epic .<\/p>\n

\n\tOn Tuesday, ElevenLabs announced it was releasing a new 13-hour version<\/a> of Homer\u2019s classic with Michael Caine<\/a> \u201cnarrating.\u201d This version was created entirely by AI tools.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe AI audio firm is using Caine\u2019s voice to anchor a new, roughly 13-hour version of \u201cThe Odyssey\u201d weeks before Nolan\u2019s upcoming film hits theaters.<\/p>\n

\n\tBut as hunger for Homer-related content seems to be growing, did the world need an AI version?<\/p>\n

\n\tEarly reactions were not entirely favorable. One reader wrote<\/a>, \u201cEvery other easily spoken human was unavailable or what?\u201d Another said<\/a>, \u201cI don\u2019t get why this was necessary. He\u2019s no longer acting but as far as I know, he hasn\u2019t lost his voice, right? He could have done this in his PJs for all anyone would care.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tVarious translations of the printed book are available, along with numerous audio versions, none of which are official movie tie-ins. Among the popular narrations are those read by Ian McKellen, Claire Danes, Dan Stevens, Stephen Fry, Anthony Heald and Benedict Cumberbatch<\/a>. All come in under 15 hours (except for Heald\u2019s version), leaving plenty of time before seeing the film to get up to speed.<\/p>\n

\t\tIan McKellen<\/strong>\t<\/p>\n

\n\tRobert Fagles won the PEN\/Ralph Manheim Medal for his translation that was released in 1999. Jasper Griffin said in his New York Times Book Review that the book was \u201ca distinguished achievement.\u201d McKellen narrates the audiobook version, which has a listening length of 13 hours and 3 minutes. Listeners have said, \u201cMcKellen brings the characters to life,\u201d and \u201cIan McKellen perfectly represents Robert Fagles\u2019 grandiose poetry.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\tDan Stevens<\/strong>\t<\/p>\n

\n\tRobert Fitzgerald\u2019s translation of Homer\u2019s \u201cThe Odyssey\u201d ranks amongst the best modern versions. Fitzgerald\u2019s version was released in 1961 and has been the standard translation for generations of students and poets. Stevens, who played \u201cBeast\u201d in Disney\u2019s live-action \u201cBeauty and the Beast\u201d and Matthew Crawley on \u201cDownton Abbey,\u201d leads the narration, which has a listening length of 10 hours and 15 minutes.<\/p>\n

\t\tClaire Danes<\/strong>\t<\/p>\n

\n\tEmily Wilson is the first woman to translate the poem from Ancient Greek to modern-day English. Her rendition captures the poetic immediacy of the original text, while allowing listeners to experience \u201cThe Odyssey\u201d with an honesty and directness few other versions have achieved. Danes\u2019 unabridged audiobook spans 13 hrs and 32 minutes.<\/p>\n

\t\tStephen Fry<\/strong>\t<\/p>\n

\n\tThe witty actor and comedian released four books in which he reimagined Greek myths. The last book in the series is \u201cThe Odyssey,\u201d in which he follows Odysseus\u2019 journey. Accompanying the book is a 10 hour and 37-minute audio version which he narrates. The Guardian called his audiobook narration<\/a>, \u201cOne hell of a trip.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\tBenedict Cumberbatch<\/strong>\t<\/p>\n

\n\tAn abridged version by BBC Radio 4 features an all-star cast. Dramatized by poet Simon Armitage, the production stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Telemachus. who has a quest of his own. The Independent on Sunday said this version was, \u201cAs irresistible as gravity \u2026 a production so thrilling that it rapidly becomes unthinkable to press the stop \u2013 or even the pause \u2013 button.\u201d Janet McTeer, John Rowe and\u00a0 Frances Barber also star in this version from 2004 that runs 3 hrs and 49 minutes.<\/p>\n

\t\tAnthony Heald\t<\/p>\n

\n\tActor Heald has lent his voice to many audiobooks including many in the \u201cStar Wars\u201d universe. His titles include \u201cAgents of Chaos I: Hero\u2019s Trial,\u201d and \u201cIron Fist.\u201d Heald lends his narration to both of Homer\u2019s classics, \u201cThe Odyssey\u201d and \u201cIlliad.\u201d His unabridged version of both books come in at
25 hrs and 2 mins, and are based on the translations by W. H. D. Rouse.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Christopher Nolan\u2019s \u201cThe Odyssey,\u201d opens in less than four weeks \u2014 just enough time to brush up on…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":890013,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[33],"tags":[100118,185,171,32752,360892,67,132,68],"class_list":["post-890012","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-benedict-cumberbatch","tag-celebrities","tag-entertainment","tag-michael-caine","tag-the-oydssey","tag-united-states","tag-unitedstates","tag-us"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116806509824924445","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/890012","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=890012"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/890012\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/890013"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=890012"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=890012"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=890012"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}