The Whispers of Terror (Sixth Doctor & Peri)

The Whispers of Terror is a fine piece of Doctor Who and an exceptional piece of audio drama. In my humble opinion. Well, not so much humble as just mine.

I recommend you listen to it on headphones to appreciate the full aural glory of it. Set in a Museum of Aural Antiquities this is one of those Big Finish stories that takes full advantage of its audio status to add atmosphere and power to the piece.

It helps that Colin Baker has a fantastically brilliant voice for audio and that in this story you can begin to get a glimpse of what the Sixth Doctor could have been if he hadn't been knee-capped from the off by that ridiculous costume and an indifferent to hostile BBC Management. This is what we might have got if the BBC had cared.

Yes, the Sixth Doctor is pompous, bombastic and loud. But he's also clever, witty and rather endearing underneath all the bluster. He's certainly keen to do the right thing. And for me he's always been Doctorish. Even in the television years I liked Colin Baker's performance. In fact despite my love for Tom Baker it was Colin Baker that made me a Doctor Who fan in the proper sense. I was always a fan of the programme but there was something about Colin Baker's Doctor that pushed me over the edge into the whole deep Doctor Who thing and wanting to go back to the past. It was during Colin Baker's era that I'd borrow those six or seventh generation VHS copies of Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker stories that were virtually unwatchable when I think about it now.

Colin Baker was also the first Doctor I ever actually met in the flesh. One of the advantages of living in High Wycombe. He was brilliant.

In a way it is one of the worst things about the BBC's treatment of Doctor Who in the Eighties is that Colin Baker who wanted to be the Doctor and could have been a great Doctor given the chance. The fact that Big Finish have given him and new lease of Doctor Who life can only be applauded. It gives people a chance to see what might have been and gives Colin Baker a bit of kudos he so richly deserves.

End of rant.

He's ably supported by Nicola Bryant as Peri, who seems to pick up on her old companion ways with no trouble at all. One of the problem with the television Sixth Doctor and Peri relationship was that it always seemed too hostile to be true. They were always bickering. There's some of that snark here but it feels like the kind of friendly piss taking that (my) good friends do to each other. There's more of a feeling of warmth.

Plus poor old Nicola doesn't get squeezed into the most revealing costume they can possibly find in order to keep the 'Dads' happy.

The Whispers of Terror features great performances from Lisa Bowerman as Beth Pernell, Matthew Breher as Visteen Krane, Peter Miles aka Nyder as Curator Gantman, Steffan Boje as Stengard and Nick Scovell as Detective Berkeley all of which compliment what's Colin Baker and Nicola Bryant are doing.

And that's all I'm going to say. If you've ever said 'I don't like Colin Baker's Doctor' you should really listen to this. I might be alone in this (and I'm not prepared to have THAT canon argument right now) but to me you can't judge the Fifth, Sixth, Seventh or Eighth Doctor's on their television work alone. They've be given extended lives by Big Finish. Extended and better lives in a way because with audio drama you don't need to suspend your disbelief when looking at an over-lit obvious set or a man in a monster costume. It's audio. You're own brain can do it for you.

Open you minds to the audio people.

You'll thank me in the end.

You really will.

Sisters of the Flame - Vengeance of Morbius (8th + Lucie Miller)

With Sisters of the Flame - The Vengeance of Morbius another season of the Eight Doctor and Lucie Miller comes to an end. And it ends on a fine cliffhanger too, which I will try not to spoil.

Sisters of the Flame is effectively a Doctor lite story as the Doctor 'disappears' after dodging the Time Scoop, arriving on a mysterious space vehicle and getting grabbed, which leaves Lucie all alone. She's scared and worried, which makes her even more belligerent than usual.

Especially in her scenes with Rosto, the Giant Centipede Police Officer, who is bought in to investigate her stowawaying. Rosto (played rather brilliantly by Star Trek: DS9's Alexander Siddig) turns out to be a great character and after he rescues Lucie from an attempted kidnap attempt Lucie and he form a team. Investigators a-go-go. And Lucie apologises to Rosto for some rather unpleasant language she used on their first meeting.

Sheridan Smith is brilliant as Lucie Miller. All fizz and fight, although she does basically walk into her own kidnapping through failing to pay attention to passing Time Lord Straxus (Nickolas Grace).

It's the Time Scoop and Straxus that indicate the full risk of what's going on. The Time Lords appear to be in full flight. Gathering up every Time Lord they can find and bringing them back to Gallifrey.
In the meantime it appears that the Sisterhood of Karn (actually based on this story they should really be known as the Sisterhood Formerly of Karn as they've been booted off their own planet by billionaire Zarodnix (Kenneth Coley) to make way for....well...you can probably guess.) have been killing every Time Lord that falls into their hands, which is rather scooted over except that its clearly made at least one of them incredibly blood thirsty.

It turn out they've got the Doctor. And they want Lucie too. They want the Doctor and Lucie to kill them and they want that because Zarodnix is trying to bring Morbius back. Hence the Time Lord panic and the Sisterhood's murderous spree. It's not good.

The Vengeance of Morbius brings us in touch with the new, improved not quite Chop Suey Emperor Morbius, played with the right combination of intelligence, arrogance and cold blooded madness by Samuel West. Who is rather good.

I won't tell you how Morbius is bought back. Or how the Doctor defeats him. Or what happens. Just to say that there's some very clever stuff in The Vengeance of Morbius including a serious bit of timey-wimey stuff.

It's nice to get another glimpse of Morbius. I've always found him rather intriguing as a villain and in The Brain of Morbius we don't get to see him at his best. I think the television series has been uncomfortable about re-visiting him because of all that stuff about past regenerations when the Doctor and Morbius go mind-to-mind. There's controversy about who they are, although I think it is clear that the production team meant them to be earlier incarnations of the Doctor as an in-joke. Obviously no one expected us to analyse the story to death so it was just supposed to be a throw away moment but alas not.

However the point is whoever the current showrunner is can easily just turn around and say, "Sorry, they weren't the Doctor. Don't worry about it. Nothing to see here. Oh look and Morbius is back." Continuity is what we make of it.

Next up I'll solve the UNIT dating problem.

Or not.

Anyway...back to the story. Everyone seems to be having fun. There's some good performance, its nicely paced over the two stories being all about the setting of scene, introductions and explanation in the first episode but increasing the tension nicely as we hit the end of The Sisters of the Flame before picking up speed, tension and pathos as we make our way through The Vengeance of Morbius before ending rather brilliantly.

So listen and enjoy. The Eighth Doctor and Lucie Miller stories are turning into something rather good. McGann seems to be enjoying and to me he is THE Big Finish Doctor. All the others got - decent-ish - runs of television episodes whilst poor old McGann got Doctor Who: The TV Movie. So to me if you want to see the potential of McGann's Doctor you need to listen to his Big Finish stories.

And actually I'm starting to think that audio is the great medium for drama. It requires a bit more concentration, a bit more effort and allows us as listeners to stretch our imaginations in order to 'see' what's on offer, such as Giant Centipede Police Officers. It pays careful listening. It rewards it.

So if you haven't already listened to the Eighth Doctor audios do so now. That is an order.

Phantasmagoria (Fifth Doctor + Turlough)

If The Sirens of Times was a 'getting the band back together' multi-Doctor taster then Phantasmagoria should be considered the first proper Big Finish release. One Doctor (the Fifth),  one Turlough in a four part adventure with cliffhangers, grand-guignol villains with suitably evil laughs and a suitably impressive guest cast.

Written by and featuring Mark Gatiss (as Jasper Jeakes) it's not a bad little story this. The setting is London, 1707 and we begin our tale at the Diabola Club where Jasper Jeakes, Edmund Carteret (Jonathan Rigby) and Quincy Flowers (David Walliams) are playing cards but Carteret is bored and is keen for something more adventurous. He flounces out but finds himself drawn into a game with Sir Nicholas Valentine (David Ryall).

Meanwhile in another part of town the Doctor and Turlough turn up in the house of antiquarian Dr Samuel Holywell (Steve Wickham). Their sudden manifestation into his home is explained by the Doctor who states they've come to deliver the TARDIS to him. As usual in the situation the Doctor ends up making himself at home.

And then....well then all sorts of shenanigans happen involving an alien murderer, a couple of other aliens, a Maid, a Highwayman by the name of Major Billy Lovemore and a lot of people disappearing.

It's all rather fun and it does have the right feel of the Fifth Doctor's era even if Davison (obviously) sounds a bit older and his Doctor a bit wearier. I could be reading too much into this but I do think Davison has taken the opportunity to change his performance as the Fifth Doctor. He's on record as saying he thought he was too young for the part when originally cast and that he felt he'd be better when he got older. Now he is older and he's doing something a bit different. It's rather good.

Oh and I like the way the story stays true to the Fifth Doctor's era by having him invite strangers - in this case Dr Holywell and Hannah - into the TARDIS again, which he seems to do on a semi-regular basis in his television stories.

I think Mark Strickson sounds a little rusty on this as if he's still feeling his way back into both acting and Turlough. I always liked Turlough as a companion though so as it is all eminently forgivable.

The guest cast is lovely.

David Ryall gives Sir Nicholas Valentine the requisite moustache twirling nastiness and has definitely mastered the 'evil laugh', which is essential in a part like that.

Mark Gatiss gets his teeth into Jasper Jeakes, which shouldn't be difficult as he wrote the script. David Walliams is good to as Quincy Flowers (and does a short turn too as Watchman Ned Cotton). I like Steve Wickham's Dr Holywell to who copes magnificently with the Doctor's explanations and you could see Dr Holywell joining the Doctor for a couple of trips in the TARDIS.

Julia Dalkin also does fine work as the maid Hannah Fry, whose importance to the story gradually becomes clear.  There seems to be a standard period drama maid voice that must be taught in drama courses up and down the country and Dalkin gives it a nice trot out in this story.

There's a little horror here to, especially in the final episode where we get to wonder in the alien space ship. Actually there's a few bits and pieces in this story where it reminds me of The City of Death, although nowhere near as witty.

Overall though this is a rather fun and a good introduction to the Big Finish oeuvre and a new old Fifth Doctor.





You can buy Phantasmagoria from Big Finish here for only £5. That's 'only' the cost of a pint. London prices obviously.

Sirens of Time (5th, 6th & 7th Doctors)

Gallifrey is in trouble. The Knights of Velyshaa are about to invade. They've better weapons than the Time Lords. Vansell, a Celestial Intervention Agency operative, has arrived to warn them. But he might be too late.

And somewhere, somewhen the Doctor is involved.

Or Doctors.

Yes, it's the Three Doctors again. Except this time it's the Fifth, Sixth and Seventh and this time they're on audio. Welcome to the first ever Big Finish release from all the way back in 1999. When men were men etc.

Unusually for a multi-Doctor story it takes three episodes for the Doctors to come together. Each has an individual adventure and his own problems to deal with first whilst in the background (and indeed foreground) The Doctor is being manipulated.

The problem with 'The Sirens of Time' is that it doesn't quite know when to stop piling enemies in. There's a kind of desire to build to some kind of ultimate threatgasm that means just as we think we know what we're up against up pops another possibly bigger threat.

Or is it just a bluff? Or double-bluff? Or just a load of nonsense.

In a sense it doesn't matter a jot. Like all multi-Doctor stories (well, almost all) the plot is irrelevant to the fun of getting them all together. Surprisingly, especially considering the Sixth Doctor's involvement, the Doctor's are generally civilised to each other. There's a little mocking but in the end the scale of the threat, the mess that they're in and the rather terrible realisation that they might just have meddled a little too much keeps them on good behaviour.

It's nice to hear all the old Doctors again. Davison is the only one of the three that sounds drastically different. He's vocally aged and it helps actually. He sounds wearier, which almost suits the Fifth Doctor. Colin Baker is on fine form as the Sixth Doctor. As fresh as a daisy and relishing getting another chance at being the Doctor. He's got a point to prove and it shows. Finally Sylvester McCoy is also little changed. His Doctor seems a little more thoughtful but it is his initial adventure that kick starts the events of this tale.

As I said it isn't the best Doctor Who story ever but it does a job. It reminds us of each of the Doctors, re-introducing some of the greatest hits and foibles. It gives each of them a moment in the sun without any of them being over or under used.

It's also the best place to start with Big Finish who have reduced all their first 50 releases to a mere £5 on CD. Or less for the downloads. I'd snap 'em up if I were you.

Whilst I love Doctor Who in its original home, television; I think Big Finish have done an admirable job of keeping the Classic Series alive & kicking on audio. If you've never listening then you should do so. Hopefully as I blog these stories it'll encourage you to stick a toe into the waters.

You can't go wrong starting here but there is much more to come.

An Interview with India Fisher

Maltby Street Market Cakes Ahoy!!


I thought I'd kick off The Audio Centurion with something a little different. So after I visited discovering India Fisher's rather good cake stand at Maltby Street Market (actually Ropewalk) I sent a few questions to her via e-mail (with the assistance of The Terrible Zodin Fanzine), which India Fisher kindly took the time to answer.
 
So thanks to India Fisher for her time and patience.
 
This is my first attempt at an interview so all dumb questions are entirely my fault.
 

1. How did you get into acting?

I’ve always wanted to be an actress, I can’t remember wanting to be anything else. I think Carrie Fisher had a profound effect on me. If we had the same surname then maybe one day I could be Princess Leia too! I started by going to acting classes outside school (as my school didn’t do things like Drama only proper subjects!) and I entered lots of festivals as a kid and got the bug from there. I did English and Drama at Uni and then decided not to go to Drama school but just tried to get work and eventually got myself an agent.

2. How did you end up getting the part of Charley?

Jason Haigh-Ellery came to a show I was doing up in Edinburgh called NewsRevue. He asked me to audition for Big Finish. So I did. They gave me the part of Peril Bellamy in a Peter Davidson and then months later I got a call asking if I’d like to be Paul McGann’s companion.

3. Is there much of you in Charley or is she completely different to you?

I’d like to think we’re both tenacious and ballsy. But then again I’ve never actually been faced with a scary monster so I might turn out to be an utter wimp. It’s hard to separate the two for me now really, as I feel over the years the writers have been great at melding things they see in me into the character of Charley. Although of course they don’t see me first thing in the morning before I’ve had a cup of coffee, they only see the nice India.

4. Did you know much about Doctor Who before you came on board? Had you seen Paul McGann's TV Movie?

Anyone of a certain age in the UK knows Doctor Who from their childhood. Tom Baker is the mental image I have when I say Dr Who, big hair, big hat, big scarf, big voice. I was never an ardent viewer, I was too busy playing with my Sindy dolls, and by the time I got old enough to get sci-fi Star Wars had hooked me. But Dr Who is part of the British TV pantheon, I knew what I was getting into when I started working for Big Finish, and it was great to be bringing new stories to the fans at a time when the BBC didn’t seem to be interested in Dr Who anymore. And yes I had seen Paul’s movie before I started working with him. But I was a massive fan of Withnail and I so that was more important really for me.

5. Were you told much about Charley's story Arc (as opposed to her Aunt. Sorry)?

Nope. I was kept as much in the dark as you were. In the first few seasons I used to get a new script and skip to the end to see if she died! And it was an utter surprise to me when they said I was coming back with Colin’s Doctor.

6. How did it feel switching Doctor's? How did it change Charley's role?

I was thrilled as I thought Charley was gone forever. Working with Colin was wonderful, he really is a lovely man and such fun to be in the studio with. It altered Charley dramatically too, she became older and wiser (which was no bad thing as I had been playing her for 7 odd years so she aged with me in some respects). But her time with the 8^th Doctor after C’rizz’s death and towards the end altered her view of The Doctor, she realized that no matter how much he meant to her, she would always just be one in a long line of companions to him, and he’d become numb to the deaths and departures of his companions over the decades. She stopped idolizing him and saw him as more of an equal. And then when she saw what she thought was him die she felt she couldn’t tell the 6^th Doctor that she knew his fate, so that in turn gave her an inner power. She was more in control, she thought she knew what to do for the best for him. And that ultimately meant erasing her from his memory. She was protecting him rather than the other way round. At that point I felt Charley became a woman.

7. Did you have fun?

Yes of course it was great fun. I always have fun when acting, it beats getting a proper job!

8. What is your favourite Big Finish play (that you've acted in or otherwise)? Why?

I loved Neverland as Charley’s story was coming to a climax. But I don’t really have a favourite.

9. Do you listen to your own stories?

Not really, I just can’t get past the thing that everyone has when they hear their own voices.

10. I found 'Scherzo' - the first of the Divergent Universe Arc with just you and Paul McGann - quite a tough listen as there's a lot of emotional stuff going on there. Was it hard to play?

No it was brilliant. I loved Scherzo and was so touched that Rob Shearman had written it as a thank you for Chimes of Midnight. We recorded it as a proper play, in as much as we rehearsed it once and did it in its entirety in one take. I love playing the emotional stuff and thought it was brilliantly written, my only worry was that I wouldn’t do it justice.

 11. After 'Scherzo' C'rizz came on board. Did that change Charley & the way you played her?

No. I loved working with Conrad and we became very close friends. But it didn’t alter Charley’s character. It obviously altered the dynamic of the Doctor and Charley as it became a threesome. But things had to move on.

12. I tried your excellent scones & home made raspberry jam on Saturday so is the stall going to be a regular thing?

Glad you liked them. We’re in talks to try and make it a regular thing so fingers crossed…

13. Have you read any of the 'Short Trips' which feature Charley? Did you find it weird reading in prose abut a performance you gave on audio?

Nope sorry I haven’t.

14. Would you like to try writing for Charley/Big Finish yourself?

God no. I leave that up to the professionals.

15. What's the most important thing you learned on your journey as the Eighth Doctor's companion between 2001 & 2007?

That you don’t have to hold your breath when it’s not your line! When I first started out I used to step away from the mike to breathe in between my lines as I didn’t want to ruin other people’s lines, then it was pointed out to me that we were all on separate tracks and no-one would hear me breathing anyway!!

16. What projects are you working on currently?

I’m still voicing Masterchef and Celeb Masterchef. I record various talking books and do odds and sods of voiceover work. But my main project at the moment is I’m pregnant, so I’m currently working on growing a baby – weird!

17. I see Nick Briggs is talking about stand alone Charley stories. Do you know much about this? Are you allowed to talk about it?

All I know is that it’s happening – am very excited to know more.

18. Have you ever looked at your Wikipedia entry? How inaccurate is it?

No but someone once came up to me and said “ooh we grew up in the same town” – so I replied “oh you’re from Stoke are you?” and they say “no Lytham St Anne’s” with a confused expression. I hadn’t a clue where Lytham St Anne’s was let alone it being the place I grew up. But she said she’d seen that was where I was born on my Wikipedia! So god alone knows where they get their information from. For the record I was born in London and moved to Staffordshire when I was 3 months old, and grew up in Stoke.