TV Gold

During last year BBC Audio released three titles in a new ?Classic Radio Sci-Fi? product range and I have to say that at the time I personally wasn?t that keen and didn?t take that much notice primarily because of the running time and wondering when I would find time to listen to them.

We enter 2007 we another three titles and, seeing that this was a series that would apparently continue to explore the vast unexplored recesses of BBC radio drama, I thought I?d tentatively have a listen to one of the new releases to see if I was missing anything. I obtained a copy of ?The Chrysalids? & ?Survival?, two audio plays written by John Wyndham and originally broadcast on Radio 4 back in the 1980s and slipped it onto my CD player over the weekend. Although not that familiar with Wyndham?s work I am aware of his legendary status amongst Science Fiction writers and was certainly impressed with what had been achieved in these radio dramatisations. Coming to ?The Chrysalids? totally impartial there was an indeed a very convincing ?old world? feel to the initial portion of this story both in the script and incidental music effects. As someone whom is steeped in listening to a wealth of Big Finish releases (e.g. Doctor Who, The Tomorrow People, Sapphire & Steel) over the years I certainly felt that these BBC plays stood up remarkably well in establishing a convincing audio environment to the listener particularly with water rushing and (possibly excessive) horse galloping during ?The Chrysalids?. As a keen fan of The Tomorrow People I could certainly see similarities between the ?mutant individuals? use of ?mind sharing? (replete with imaginative audio effects) in"?The Chrysalids" and the telepathic contact that the ?homo superior? of the Thames television series employed.

For me the best radio science fiction series I have heard so far, particularly from Radio 4, has to be James Follet?s imaginative two series of ?Earthsearch? (loving re-released on CD during 2004 and well worth the money if you get the chance!) which centred on the Challenger crew of Telson, Sharna, Darv and Astra attempting to find Earth after a prolonged deep space mission. For other fans of this twenty episode early 80s epic serial ?The Chrysalids? provides the welcome surprise appearance of ?Earthsearch? stars Amanda Murray (Sharna) here appearing as Rosalind and Kathryn Hurlbutt (Astra) as Anne.

One thing I would mention about this release is that for those of you not familiar with these stories this release does not offer a clear cut disc split between the stories. ?The Chrysalids? runs for about ninety minutes, therefore taking up all of disc one and half of disc two. Now I haven?t mentioned ?Survival? yet but it is undoubtedly the appearance of Nicholas Courtney as space ship passenger Temple that convinced me to choose this title and although his contribution is fairly minimal in such a short story as this it is a fairly important one. A rather tense ?bottle? story with a group of passengers trapped in space with limited provisions turning to cannibalism makes for a very effective drama. Without spoiling it for anyone who hasn?t heard this it is pregnant lady Alice (played by Karen Ascoe) whom delivers the unexpected and rather grizzly final plot twist.

On the strength of what I?ve heard from this double story release I am certainly more likely to explore other titles in the range sometime in the future, probably starting with ?The Midwich Cuckoos? and would certainly recommend this new BBC audio series to other Sci-Fi fans. The BBC should certainly be commended for exploring this hitherto unexplored resource of science fiction entertainment and although we?ve so far only got six releases on sale there are undoubtedly many other classics just waiting for the same treatment. Long may the ?Classic Radio Sci-Fi? release range continue!(http://www.bbcworldwide.com/spokenword/ComingUp.htm)

...and I bet you all thought there was no more to say on the subject!

I guess it was primarily listening to the ninety odd minute long story ?The Chrysalids? that started me thinking just what else might be out there for the BBC to release under this recently created ?Classic Radio Sci-Fi? product range. In the booklet sleeve notes of this particular title I was delighted to see mention of Arthur C Clarke?s dramatically tense and claustrophobic ?A Fall of Moondust? which was undoubtedly, in my opinion, one of the finest science fiction dramas Radio 4 ever broadcast and reminded me of my own listening memories of the 80s.

I remember that in particular during 1989 I used to spend a lot of Saturday evenings turning away from the television and instead tuning into the feature length dramas being aired by Radio 4. In my pre-teens years this was an imaginative and highly enjoyable time to listen wide eyed to the radio and amongst those I heard during that year I set the tape deck on my parents hi-fi unit to capture some of what I thought were the best examples of these feature length dramatisations. Now of course with a live broadcast there was no convenient intermission on offer so it was always a case of looking for an opportune moment where the dialogue breaks so that I could quickly stop the tape, open my deck, flip the tape over and recommence recording. For the most part this approach didn?t, I feel, unduly affect the general flow of the story but of course it certainly made for tense recording sessions! Amongst those I still have seven TDK audiocassettes (with self styled catalogue numbers indicating in which order they were recorded) of varying lengths from those far off evenings (further embellished by occasional complete story outlines, illustrations and cast lists taken from the corresponding Radio Times), of which four indeed fall into the realm of Science Fiction and as such are undoubtedly worth mentioning as potential targets for future ?Classic Radio Sci-Fi? releases.

Flicking through my small collection we find ?With A Wimper To The Grave? by Wally K. Daly which the inlay card to my TDK AD 90 cassette (RCT4013) has the following synopsis transcribed from the pages of the Radio Times:-

?To combat the threat of an alien invasion, the nations of the Earth have formed a World Council. The aliens have given certain humans extraordinary ?Sixth-Sense? powers. But when these powers are abused the aliens prepare to leave and abandon the Earth to its fate. But are they really going? And what is the fate awaiting the peoples of the Earth??

This story certainly commanded some highly impressive acting talent in the cast with big names like former Doctor Who actor Patrick Troughton as George, Timothy West as 642, Donald Hewlett (familiar from his ?It ?Aint Half Hot Mum? sit com role) as A.P.Smith and Maureen O?Brien (best known for her appearance in early Doctor Who as first Doctor companion Vicki) as Sally Harris. Aside from these noteworthy appearances ?With A Wimper To The Grave? features a large acting line-up with the remaining participants as follows:- John Shrapnel (as Tom Harris), Angela Thorne (Marge), Manning Willson (Alien Controller), Moir Leslie (Baby Sam/Gloria), Arnold Diamond (Doctor), Henry Stamper (Charles), Peter Wickham (Silkin), Robert Dawes (Geoffrey Palmer), Peter Alra (Alien), Margot Boyd (Vera), Clive Panto (Ray/Pilot), Katherine Parr (Sally?s Mother), Crawford Logan (David/Paul), Michael Jenner (Corporal/Vince), Mark Rolston (Foreign Pilot/Barry). Aside from this the cover of my audio cassette finds me gluing the illustration cut from the page of Radio Times which shows a youngster standing over a unconscious figure whilst out of his/her head another figure emerges practically flying out of his/her hair! Below this bizarre graphic the words ?Tom walks through his child?s mind to talk to the aliens ? what is it they really want?? to further intrigue the potential listener.

Although to my knowledge not featuring any particular familiar names another imaginative entry that captured my interest (and valuable tape space!) was ?The Sport of Angels? by Ken Whitmore (RCT4016). No illustration this time however returning once more to the pages of Radio Times I transcribed the following:-

?Given the right stimulants Dawn Bembow discovers that she can project herself through time and space. The Ministry of Defence Chiefs think that she should be encouraged to investigate Russia?s military intentions, but the Prime Minister has other ideas.?

Filling out this TDK AD-X 60 audio cassette the cast of this production consisted of Frank Middlemass (Alistair), Jane Lowe (Jane), Miriam Margolyes (Dawn Bembow), Susan Sheridan (Godfrey), Kay Adshead (Gladys), David Sumner (Mablethrope), Peter Wheeler (Prime Minister/New Reader), Randal Herley (Colonel Bryant) with directing duties handled by Alfred Bradley.

The first story I recorded using a TDK AD90 audiocassette (RCT4011), was ?Project Genesis? written by Paul Faith and undoubtedly the main star of this production is the Cult TV series actor Ed Bishop as an American scientist. Again returning to the Radio Times I copied out:-

?The year:2007. An intelligence far beyond our own understanding from the star system Sirius B, has been observing the moral progress of our planet and decides the time has come to decisive intervention. Having stopped the European war of 1998, it now offers to provoke the next leap in human evolution ? but where may that ?leap? if taken lead to??

as an indication of what this tape contained. No cast details or story illustration were used in the preparation of my tape cover however I distinctly remember a sequence where the alien being whom takes on the persona of a humanoid girl joins Ed Bishop?s American character and a Russian representative to a type of ?concentration camp? where she performs the miracle of restoring sight to a blind man!

Correspondingly Ed Bishop also features in the final story I recorded as he plays Police Officer Elijah Baley in ?The Caves of Steel? written by science fiction legend Isaac Asimov (RCT4017). This story, dramatised by Bert Coules had Bishop?s Elijah Baley character teamed up with Daneel (played by Sam Dastor), an android and together they feature in a story which as the Radio Times puts it:-

?New York ? the Future: The murder of a Spacer creates a crisis that could destroy the Earth?.

From the small cutting from this publication the remaining cast of this imaginatively realised thought provoking drama consisted of:- Matt Zimmerman (Enderby), Beth Porter (Jessie), Christopher Good (Fastolfe), Vincent Brimble (Joe), Ian Michie (R. Sammy), Brian Miller (Shopkeeper), Boris Hunka (Ben), Elizabeth Mansfield (Clousarr), Susan Sheridan (Announcements) whilst additional details given were Technical Presentation by Tim Sturgeon and Wifredo Acosta and the play was directed by Matthew Walters.

So what of the other three plays which gained TDK 90 audiocassette preservation? Well just to be completist about it I guess there is a vague science fiction aspect to Christopher Russel?s ?Logic and Futility? (RCT4015), a story which concerns

?A Victorian inventor of a calculating engine which proved to be the forerunner of the modern digital computer ? a man 100 years ahead of his time. How very differently he would have been treated today?.

David Buck plays Charles Babbage in this strangely captivating chronological tale about one mans enormously expensive obsession with gaining scientific success. Intriguing spy games are the particularly engaging aspect of ?The Geneva Run? written by Michael Davies (RCT4014) whose premise of

?A British armaments expert going missing at the Geneva talks. Has she defected or been kidnapped??

is certainly, in my opinion, delivered with realistic dramatic pace. Last and by no means least the ?chilling almost fireside evening tale? feeling story of ?The Killing? by John Ashe (RCT4012) completes my brief collection of Radio 4 drama plays. Another transcription of

?After years of shady business Dealings, Hicks is about to sell his companies to an American oil millionaire for just under £5 million, but will he be able to do so? His past is ?catching up on him like a jet plane? and a former associate, having escaped from a Belgian prison, is on his way to kill him??

puts some ?story premise meat on the captured audio bones? with the setting of the play being a charming large rural cottage set out in the midst of the English countryside. No recorded details regarding the cast list however listening to the story it seems more than likely that the clearly nervous and highly agitated Hicks is undoubted played by David Warner. His character?s apprehension about the possible intrusion of former deadly enemy Spooner has a very real danger of upsetting his wealthy potential investor and his charming dutiful Deep South accent inflected wife. Although, in my opinion, none of these particularly fall into the science fiction context they are however certainly indicative of the impressive skills of BBC radio audio drama in painting a convincing, engaging picture of a dramatic and entertaining script through believable cast performances and appropriate use of suitable sound effects, made long before companies such as Big Finish have made such productions common place.

Just in case anyone is struggling to find old classic radio shows on a format suitable for today, may I suggest <www.OTRCAT.com> The service is first class and the list seemingly endless. I got an old Paul Temple from there as well as the radio version of Spycatcher. Worth a try in case the Beeb are not publishing your favourite. Good hunting.

Sarah Tarrant wrote:During last year BBC Audio released three titles in a new ?Classic Radio Sci-Fi? product range and I have to say that at the time I personally wasn?t that keen and didn?t take that much notice primarily because of the running time and wondering when I would find time to listen to them.

We enter 2007 we another three titles and, seeing that this was a series that would apparently continue to explore the vast unexplored recesses of BBC radio drama, I thought I?d tentatively have a listen to one of the new releases to see if I was missing anything. I obtained a copy of ?The Chrysalids? & ?Survival?, two audio plays written by John Wyndham and originally broadcast on Radio 4 back in the 1980s and slipped it onto my CD player over the weekend. Although not that familiar with Wyndham?s work I am aware of his legendary status amongst Science Fiction writers and was certainly impressed with what had been achieved in these radio dramatisations. Coming to ?The Chrysalids? totally impartial there was an indeed a very convincing ?old world? feel to the initial portion of this story both in the script and incidental music effects. As someone whom is steeped in listening to a wealth of Big Finish releases (e.g. Doctor Who, The Tomorrow People, Sapphire & Steel) over the years I certainly felt that these BBC plays stood up remarkably well in establishing a convincing audio environment to the listener particularly with water rushing and (possibly excessive) horse galloping during ?The Chrysalids?. As a keen fan of The Tomorrow People I could certainly see similarities between the ?mutant individuals? use of ?mind sharing? (replete with imaginative audio effects) in"?The Chrysalids" and the telepathic contact that the ?homo superior? of the Thames television series employed.

For me the best radio science fiction series I have heard so far, particularly from Radio 4, has to be James Follet?s imaginative two series of ?Earthsearch? (loving re-released on CD during 2004 and well worth the money if you get the chance!) which centred on the Challenger crew of Telson, Sharna, Darv and Astra attempting to find Earth after a prolonged deep space mission. For other fans of this twenty episode early 80s epic serial ?The Chrysalids? provides the welcome surprise appearance of ?Earthsearch? stars Amanda Murray (Sharna) here appearing as Rosalind and Kathryn Hurlbutt (Astra) as Anne.

One thing I would mention about this release is that for those of you not familiar with these stories this release does not offer a clear cut disc split between the stories. ?The Chrysalids? runs for about ninety minutes, therefore taking up all of disc one and half of disc two. Now I haven?t mentioned ?Survival? yet but it is undoubtedly the appearance of Nicholas Courtney as space ship passenger Temple that convinced me to choose this title and although his contribution is fairly minimal in such a short story as this it is a fairly important one. A rather tense ?bottle? story with a group of passengers trapped in space with limited provisions turning to cannibalism makes for a very effective drama. Without spoiling it for anyone who hasn?t heard this it is pregnant lady Alice (played by Karen Ascoe) whom delivers the unexpected and rather grizzly final plot twist.

On the strength of what I?ve heard from this double story release I am certainly more likely to explore other titles in the range sometime in the future, probably starting with ?The Midwich Cuckoos? and would certainly recommend this new BBC audio series to other Sci-Fi fans. The BBC should certainly be commended for exploring this hitherto unexplored resource of science fiction entertainment and although we?ve so far only got six releases on sale there are undoubtedly many other classics just waiting for the same treatment. Long may the ?Classic Radio Sci-Fi? release range continue!(http://www.bbcworldwide.com/spokenword/ComingUp.htm)

ADDITIONAL : had a chance to listen to ?Project Genesis? over the weekend and gleamed further details to what I?ve already said. The stories main characters are Englishman Professor James Michael Gerard, American Doctor Max Raynor (Ed Bishop), and Russian Comrade Annea Alenska. These three characters escort Sophia (a Sirus B alien whom materialises in humanoid form inside security establishment Projection Theatre 27 (bit like a Star Trek holodeck!)) to Bisham Wood Isolation Camp where prisoners are digging a deep recessed fallout shelter. The inhabitants of the camp are temporarily blinded to ensure their obedience however Sophia lifts the vein of darkness from Ryan, a working class northerner whom disbelieves the visiting girls assertion that she can help them to achieve their objective, that of escape. Sophie initiates a protest strike amongst the subservient work force which forces the Isolation Camp commandant to call in three units of the military ?S.R.G.? squad whom have a particularly ruthless means of effecting suppression of insurrectionist sentiment. Lastly we are told that Sirus B exists inside a White Dwarf star.

I've noticed that a couple more titles have recently cropped up on the play.com website in this 'BBC Classic Radio Sci-Fi' release strand...

The Kraken Awakes for 6th of August http://www.play.com/Books/AudioBooks/4-/3337133/Classic_Radio_Sci_Fi_The_Kraken_Wakes/Product.html

Childhood End also for a 6th of August release http://www.play.com/Books/AudioBooks/4-/3337128/Classic_Radio_SCI_FI_Childhood_End/Product.html

Further to my previous post, yep I've got my copy of "Childhoods End" and yeah I can recommend it to anyone...

Now, back to what I want to say about another one audio cassette taped stories with...

On Saturday I gave my tape copy of “The Caves of Steel” a listen and from what I heard I was able to add further details to the Radio Times clipping I had which gave a one sentence description and cast list. In my opinion Ed Bishop is excellent casting as his American inflection to the stories lead character Elijah Baley leads some credence to the New York location. The typical Police Department environment is supplemented by fellow work colleagues Joe (Vincent Brimble) and the slow-witted robot R Sammy (Ian Michie) with Matt Zimmerman portraying a believable over worked responsibility-laden Commissioner Julius Endery. Home life for Elijah consists of his wife Jessie (real name is infact Jezebel which she prefers to ignore due to its notorious historic connotations) played by Beth Porter and son Ben (Boris Hunka). The murder victim that Elijah and Daneel (played with consummate believable dispassionate skill by Sam Dastor) are investigating is Roj Sarton, a robotics designer. Although a fascinating and dramatically engaging piece I guess most people will pretty soon make the connection between this murder and the mention of the Medievalist cult to whom leads our investigative duo to Francis Clousarr (Elizabeth Mansfield), a New York Yeast employee and member of this secretive group. There is one interesting sequence during the latter stages of the story where Bailey and Daneel are making the escape from vengeful Medievalist cult members where they are ‘riding the strips’ (a more extensive use of modern day pedestrian walkways) which takes them close to the Williamsburge power plant located somewhere in the nearby Space Town. When all things are considered this is indeed a truly excellent radio dramatisation of a story that illustrates the science fiction writing genius of Isaac Asimov and its release as part of the BBC Classic Sci-Fi CD release brand is, in my opinion, long overdue and I wait its eventual arrival with growing impatience!

Just to update you guys if you don't know about this but 'phase three' of the 'BBC Classic Radio Sci-fi' titles are being released on 7th January 2008.

You can find all the details, amongst other places, here... http://www.play.com/Books/AudioBooks/3-/2207/2-/Promo.html?dpr=2207

IMO looks like a great treble on offer this time round and although I'll probably eventually get round to nabbing a copy of 'Solaris' the real 'jewel in the crown' of not just this batch but of the entire range so far is 'A Fall of Moondust' which I have particularly fond memories of.

Long may this range continue to expand!!!

The 14th of August 2008 will see another trio of 'BBC Classic Radio Sci-Fi' titles being added to the collection and they are, in no particular order...

http://www.play.com/Books/AudioBooks/4-/5479059/Classic-Radio-Sci-Fi-The-Lost-World/Product.html# (good if you like Jurassic Park)

http://www.play.com/Books/AudioBooks/4-/5479074/Classic-Radio-Sci-Fi-Frankenstein/Product.html (worthy addition due to its WHO-Brain of Morbius DVD title tie-in)

http://www.play.com/Books/AudioBooks/4-/5479065/Classic-Radio-Sci-Fi-R-U-R/Product.html (this is the one that really caught my interest and is now on preorder!)