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A group of friends reunite for an annual Doctor Who
convention in Belfast. But Northern Ireland's ongoing troubles,
together with relationship tensions between the pals and their
partners, make life difficult for the group and their guests
of honour...
This
double CD departs from the usual "clip show" format of previous
volumes of Doctor Who at the BBC to present three full-cast
radio dramas based around the real-life worlds of Doctor
Who. These are not Who stories per se, but rather
stories about the programme itself: the impact it has had
upon the lives of the people who have enjoyed watching it
and those who have worked on it.
The
first play, Regenerations, certainly isn't kids' stuff.
Adult themes such as the Belfast troubles, sexuality and love
are dealt with in Daragh Carville's script, as well as heated
debates - with strong language - about the efficacy of indulging
one's fantasies in science fiction when there are real-world
problems happening right now. Is fantasy merely a means of
burying one's head in the sand, or does it provide hope for
the future? Brian (Michael Colgan) points out how a mutual
love of Doctor Who broke down barriers and made fans
of Catholics and Protestants alike.
It is a testament to the impact of Russell T Davies that his
television work has shaped the world in which this audio drama
takes place. With its frank discussions of homosexuality,
it is clearly post-Queer As Folk. With its depiction
of fandom during those defensive years when no new Who
was being produced and fans were derided for their devotion
to a "dead" show (Regenerations was broadcast in December
2001), it is hard to imagine the play working in quite the
same way had it taken place after the debut of Davies' new
version of Doctor Who in 2005.
As
you might expect, all three plays make use of Who music,
including versions of the famous theme tune. Regenerations
is particularly inventive in this respect, using the cliffhanger
sting to provide witty punctuation to a dramatic moment.
The
play also includes character-defining quotations from the
First, Second, Fourth and Seventh Doctors. In the context
of the plot, these are part of the episodes being screened
at the convention, but they also happen to be of relevance
to the main characters and their situations.
The production also features guest appearances by Sophie Aldred
(alias Ace) and Tom Baker (the Fourth Doctor), who play themselves
as special guests at the convention. Some of Baker's lines
seem a little unlikely, but otherwise this story is well worth
listening to.
Delia Derbyshire was the delightful and unusual woman who
created the unique sound of the original Doctor Who
theme tune. Years later, she looks back upon her early days
at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop and her quest for artistic
fulfilment...
Blue
Veils and Golden Sands is, in my opinion, the strongest
play on these CDs. Long-term visitors to this site may recall
my disappointment that only a single clip from it was included
on the original Doctor
Who at the BBC release. I wanted to hear the
whole thing! Now that I have, I can assure you that the rest
of this 2002 production is as good as that clip led me to
believe.
Martyn
Wade's script drives home how talented and innovative Delia
Derbyshire was to create the renowned theme tune with remarkably
low-tech resources. Meanwhile, Sophie Thompson's performance
captures the composer's eccentricity, as her sometimes quavering,
sometimes shrill voice describes her peculiar relationship
with her parents, her attitude towards her accommodation ("Excuse
the slight mess") and possessions (years of poverty led her
to acquire a habit of reselling unopened gifts), her loneliness
and her tragic descent into alcoholism.
Like Regenerations, this play also deals with the relationship
between Who's creators and its fans, this time from
the artiste's point of view. Some of these enthusiasts come
across as rather creepy from the perspective of the timid
Derbyshire.
My
only criticism is that Sophie Thompson is not credited on
the CD sleeve. Credit is most certainly due.
Nigel English's obsession with Doctor Who is a source
of some concern to his mother. When he meets the girl of his
dreams at a convention, a girl whose flights of fantasy seem
even more fanciful than his own, life at home seems set to
change forever...
The final play, Dalek, I Love You, unfortunately isn't
in the same league as its two predecessors. This 2006 production
does have its moments, especially when Nigel (David Raynor)
and the alluring yet scary Isabella, AKA Romana (Fiona Clarke),
depart upon their various flights of fancy, but Colin Sharpe's
script is not as balanced or as subtle as Daragh Carville's
earlier depiction of fandom in Regenerations.
It is evident that Nigel is suffering from some sort of mental
illness: Isabella persuades him to stop taking his medication,
and his agitated recitation of story titles suggests autism.
So what are we supposed to make of the rather rushed ending
(which I won't spoil for you)? That Nigel's mother (Charlie
Hardwick) really is an alien aggressor? That it's OK to live
in a fantasy world? That Who fans are mentally unstable?
The
writer does nothing to overturn the latter stereotype, which
is hardly likely to endear his work to fans. He doesn't even
get his facts straight when his characters spout Who
statistics such as The
Faceless Ones and The
Evil of the Daleks being third season stories
(they weren't, they were transmitted during the fourth season)
and referring to entire serials as episodes. Am I starting
to sound a bit autistic myself? Maybe that's the reaction
Sharpe was after.
Whatever your opinion of Dalek, I Love You, this double
CD is undoubtedly worth playing, if only for the first two
stories.
Richard
McGinlay
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