Big Finish

Review: Doctor Who – Stranded 4

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Review by Jacob Licklider

Just over one year ago, in March 2021, the Main Range ended from Big Finish Productions as the box set format took root before being firmly established for 2022. Now, one other long running institution from Big Finish Productions is at an end, the 16 part, four disc set, Eighth Doctor miniseries which has been the format of Eighth Doctor releases for nearly a decade. Dark Eyes, Doom Coalition, Ravenous, and Stranded have all been released to acclaim and here we are with Stranded 4, the final set in this style.

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Review: Doctor Who – Mind Of The Hodiac

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Review by Jacob Licklider

There isn’t often the opportunity to see some of the first work of an author that has gone on to make an impact. Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson had both early works published in some form (Jordan’s being published by hid wife and Sanderson publishing a first draft as a Kickstarter reward), yet with Big Finish it’s almost surprising that something like Mind of the Hodiac hasn’t happened sooner. Russell T. Davies found the initial script for Part One and storyline for Part Two in a box in 2020 when Emily Cook was doing the Lockdown watch-alongs on Twitter which he wrote at some point between 1986 and 1987 before even making it into TV, the first script he sent to the Doctor Who Production Office which was, of course, rejected. In finding the script, pictures were posted on Twitter of some of the pages as a treat and in Davies’ mind that was the end of that. But then Scott Handcock, director and writer for Big Finish, contacted Davies with Emily Cook in tow as one of the newer producers to acquire a copy of the script (apparently physically and not just scanned into a computer if the behind the scenes interviews are correct in its implication). Continue reading →

Review: The Fourth Doctor Adventures – Solo

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Review by Jacob Licklider

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Audio Review: The Worlds of Blake’s 7 – Bayban the Butcher: Bayban Ascending

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Review by Ian McArdell

Bayban Ascending is the latest tie-in audiobook release for The Worlds of Blake’s 7, Big Finish’s spin-off range exploring wider elements in the Federation universe. While born of necessity, due to the sad passing of a number of core cast members, the range has opened up all sorts of interesting stories away from the Liberator.978-1-83868-607

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Review: Doctor Who – The 8th Of March: Protectors of Time

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Review by Jacob Licklider

The Eighth of March was a special release on International Women’s Day 2019 to celebrate the female characters of Doctor Who, essentially serving as example episodes for various series from (mostly new) female writers: The Paternoster Gang, The Diary of River Song, UNIT, and a story set in the Virgin New Adventures. Here we are, three years later and for International Women’s Day 2022, a three disc follow up has been released in the form of The Eighth of March: Prisoners of Time, exploring Lady Christina, Jenny: The Doctor’s Daughter, a Romana spin-off, and a tribute to The Sarah Jane Adventures with two new writers, Abigail Burdess and Nina Millns and an opening story from Lizbeth Myles (who has been contributing to Big Finish since 2014). Like the previous box set, this is an incredibly versatile set as the only real brief is that there is a female lead and it is set in the Doctor Who universe, giving the writers free rein on what they wish to play with. There also are two female directors assigned to this release, Louise Jameson tackling the first episode while Helen Goldwyn directs the other two, both bringing their distinct style to give each story its own flair.

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Audio Review: Space 1999 Volume 2 – Earthbound

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Review by Ian McArdell

Earthbound is the second volume of regular adventures for Big Finish’s reimagining of Space: 1999. Striking a happy balance between old and new, it provides an original character-based adventure, plus a smart re-working of a television which turns it into a high-stakes two-parter.

Mooncatcher

First up, writer Marc Platt provides an original episode. It begins with the first child being born on Moonbase Alpha. While most are thrilled, Paul Morrow is concerned about the age gap between the baby and the next youngest person on the base. As Commissioner Simmons comments, they’re no longer a base and now a colony.

Celebrations are disrupted by a transmission, which is soon followed by many others. Despite the fact that they sound like either a plea for help or a warning, Morrow and Professor Bergman are keen to investigate – a mission agreed to despite Commander Koenig’s misgivings.

What follows is a story of delusions and dreams, one which explores the backstories of both Morrow and Bergman as they find themselves pulled into the heart of the mysterious ‘Delta One’ object. It’s also a cautionary tale for Professor Bergman’s boundless curiosity as their discovery comes to endanger the whole base.

This story is a terrific showcase for Glen McCready as the unlucky-in-love Paul Morrow, with Big Finish stalwart Jane Slavin guesting as his fiancé Jeanette. Plus, of course, the delightful enthusiast that is Clive Hayward’s Professor Victor Bergman.

Earthbound / Journey’s End

Earthbound adapts the television episode of the same title, expanding it across two episodes, with the second part named Journey’s End.

While on the television series, Commissioner Simmons was purely a guest role for Roy Dotrice, who played the character in two episodes, on audio the role has been expanded. Timothy Bentinck’s superb iteration of the character has been a thorn in the side of Koenig and his crew, with events leading to this story.

Using all his political acumen, Simmons effectively stages a coup – demanding, with the base’s armed security personnel on his side, that the whole population of Alpha should consider his assertion that their mission should focus on getting back to Earth, rather than on looking for a new home among the stars. In order to diffuse the situation, Koenig agrees to put the question to a vote.

Despite all the logical arguments to the contrary, such as whether the Earth survived the Moon’s departure, the impossibility of creating a faster-than-light drive and the strain it would put on an already stretched crew, Simmons proceeds to run rings around Koenig, Dr Russell and Professor Bergman. Playing on a heady mix of cryogenics and hope, he (narrowly) wins the argument.

The Brexit parallels are writ large here, unsubtly but in entertaining fashion, by writers Iain Meadows (who is also the sound designer) and Nicholas Briggs (who also directs and script edits). Weeks in, the lack of delivery of Simmons’ promises become a problem for his followers; the ‘sunlight uplands’ for Alpha include accusations and threats of physical violence. It’s into this environment that a Kaldosian ship arrives, bound for Earth and with the potential to take someone with them.

With a developed sub-plot beefing up Dr Russell’s connection with the Kaldosian Captain Zantor (Barnaby Kay), terrific head-to-heads between Simmons and Koenig, this is an impressive reimagining of Earthbound. It cleverly plays with the expectations for those familiar with the television series, but in a way that I imagine is not at all off-putting for those coming to it fresh.

In Summary

In another satisfying boxset, the audio version of Space: 1999 again benefits from the pacer treatment that this modern adaptation provides; the 1970s show could be glacial at times. As ever, Iain Meadow’s sound design in on point to evoke the feel of the series and Joe Kraemer provides an absorbing score. Heightened emotions form an essential component too (longing looks are a tough sell on audio) as the attraction between John Koenig (Mark Bonnar) and Helena Russell (Maria Teresa Creasey) is tackled head on.

Given where the story concludes, it seems certain there are plans for more. While I’m being deliberately circumspect to preserve the surprises, the decisions taken here open up the story in interesting ways so I really hope so.

If you haven’t jumped on board yet, now’s the time – this Moon is really going places!

Space:1999 Volume 2: Earthbound is available on CD and download from Big Finish.
Order on CD from Forbidden Planet

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Review: UNIT Nemesis – Agents of the Vulpreen

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Review by Jacob Licklider

There is something interesting about the way UNIT: Nemesis has been developing. The first set was quite a nice surprise with an introduction to the basic players and what makes them work. It was also good to see Kate and Osgood given more in depth characterisation than anything that Steven Moffat gave them. UNIT Nemesis: Agents of the Vulpreen moves beyond setting the stage and characters, giving us a look into what the four set miniseries is actually trying to accomplish and the story it is trying to tell. This is essentially UNIT’s chance to prove itself at thwarting a large alien conspiracy to invade the Earth, this set seeing the preliminary invasion being the main thrust of the story. It picks up from Between Two Worlds and explores what the ark is, what the Eleven was doing, and what happens to the captured Jacqui McGee who almost immediately returns in the first episode. It’s somehow a more focused set than Between Two Worlds as well, with only one episode feeling as if it is more of a diversion from what the set as a whole is attempting to accomplish for the furthering of the Nemesis story arc. The nemesis of the title is heavily implied to be the Eleven, who has his presence somehow increased here despite being in quite a lot of the first set.

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Classic Doctor Who actor dies

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British actor Stewart Bevan, best known for his performances in both film and television has died aged 73.

His extensive career include the films Brannigan (1975), The Ghoul (1975), House of Mortal Sin (1976), Ivanhoe (1982), Chromophobia (2005) and The Scouting Book for Boys (2009) while on television, he is best known for playing Clifford Jones in Doctor Who (1973) and Ray Oswell in Emmerdale (1977).

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Audio Review: Survivors – New Dawn 2

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Review by Ian McArdell

Survivors: New Dawn sees three further adventures for Abby Grant and Jenny Richards. Some twenty years on from the initial outbreak of ‘The Death’, this sequel series has caught us up with the two remaining central characters from the show.978-1-83868-771-7

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Review: The Ninth Doctor Adventures – Old Friends

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Review by Jacob Licklider

This has been a review that I’ve let percolate in my mind for a few days. The first season of The Ninth Doctor Adventures has come to a close in a perfect parallel to Series 1 and building from genuinely humble beginnings. It is also quite difficult to discuss as it’s serving as a prequel to Series 1, ending with Old Friends implying a lead into Rose. This along with Lost Warriors, and to a lesser extent Respond to All Calls, have been an examination of the Ninth Doctor’s trauma along with other characters he meets on his lonely travels. Old Friends is a contemplative box set with two stories, a single hour long episode and one two episode serial, both parallels to Boom Town and Bad Wolf/The Parting of the Ways. This has been a long time coming and is honestly an odd box set to review, because it’s a box set that almost blind sided me with what it was doing and how things ended up the way they were. The covers of the sets have been mimicking the four individual releases of Series 1, from blue to red to green to purple for the finale. This ended up being an interesting example of priming listeners for what exactly to expect with these sets.

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