The Day of the Triffids (1957 Sci-Fi Post-Apocalyptic Radio)

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. The Day of the Triffids is a 1951 post-apocalyptic novel by the English science fiction author John Wyndham. After most people in the world are blinded by an apparent meteor shower, an aggressive species of plant starts killing people. Although Wyndham had already published other novels using other pen name combinations drawn from his real name, this was the first novel published as "John Wyndham".

The story has been made into the 1962 feature film of the same name, three radio drama series (in 1957, 1968 and 2001) and two TV series (in 1981 and 2009). It was nominated for the International Fantasy Award in 1952, and in 2003 the novel was listed on the BBC's survey The Big Read. It was the inspiration for the zombie movie 28 Days Later. In 2021, the novel was one of six classic science fiction novels by British authors selected by Royal Mail to feature on a series of UK postage stamps.

Summary
The protagonist is Bill Masen, a biologist who has made his living working with triffids—tall, venomous, carnivorous plants capable of locomotion. Due to his background, Bill suspects they were bioengineered in the Soviet Union and accidentally released into the wild. Because of the excellent industrial quality of oil produced by and obtained from the triffids, there is heavy triffid cultivation around the world.

The narrative begins with Bill in hospital, his eyes bandaged after having been splashed with triffid poison from a stinger. During his recovery he is told of an unexpected green meteor shower. The next morning, he learns that the light from the unusual display has rendered any who watched it blind (later in the book, Bill speculates that the "meteor shower" may have been orbiting satellite weapons, triggered accidentally).

After unbandaging his eyes he finds the hospital in chaos, with staff and patients without sight. He wanders through a chaotic London full of blind inhabitants and meets wealthy novelist Josella Playton, whom he rescues after discovering her being forcibly used as a guide by a blind man. Intrigued by a single light on top of the Senate House in an otherwise darkened city, Bill and Josella discover a group of sighted survivors led by a man named Beadley, who plans to establish a colony in the countryside. They decide to join the group.