Theta Sigma
Captain
- Joined
- 26 Apr 2006
- Messages
- 2,572
- Age
- 44
Live 34 is the debut audio story for writers James Parsons and Andrew Stirling-Brown featuring the Seventh Doctor, Ace and Hex, released in September 2005 by Big Finish.
This is not a typical Doctor Who story as the narrative is told as radio broadcasts meaning there is the absence of the Doctor Who theme, incidental music and cliffhangers. In place of the usual structure for a four parter are four seperate news bulletins with the first three telling listeners at the end to tune in next time.
With this adventure being made as radio broadcasts it meant that the Doctor, Ace and Hex only makes fleeting appearances throughout the story and we only know what they have been doing based on what they have said in their interviews.
Therefore the story is dominated by news presenter Drew Shahan played by real-life broadcaster Andrew Collins (who has popped up in Doctor Who Confidential) and reporter Charlotte Singh played by Zehra Naqvi. Both were excellent in their performances in the story.
William Hoyland makes for a very good villainous leader in Premier Jaeger* and what a revelation on what the truth is about him.
If there is a minor niggle it is that the election were referred to as a presidential election even though the election
was for the office of Premier. I mean has the word "presidential" being generically used to describe any popular election of a government leader.
The format of having the story told as radio broadcasts was done very well. The fleeting appearances of the Doctor and his companions make this a Doctor-lite adventure and was released some nine months before the first Doctor-lite episode of the current TV series Love & Monsters was first broadcast in June 2006.
In fact I would like to see the current TV series adapt this format but as a live TV news broadcast instead of a radio one for a future Doctor-lite episode.
*Coincidentally on my DVD pace for the current TV series I am currently seeing the rule of another villainous leader Harold Saxon.
Another thing is that I listened to Live 34 on Christmas 2008 just as 2008 was about to come to an end and 2008 was when season 34 was shown. Quite appropriate the number 34.
This is not a typical Doctor Who story as the narrative is told as radio broadcasts meaning there is the absence of the Doctor Who theme, incidental music and cliffhangers. In place of the usual structure for a four parter are four seperate news bulletins with the first three telling listeners at the end to tune in next time.
With this adventure being made as radio broadcasts it meant that the Doctor, Ace and Hex only makes fleeting appearances throughout the story and we only know what they have been doing based on what they have said in their interviews.
Therefore the story is dominated by news presenter Drew Shahan played by real-life broadcaster Andrew Collins (who has popped up in Doctor Who Confidential) and reporter Charlotte Singh played by Zehra Naqvi. Both were excellent in their performances in the story.
William Hoyland makes for a very good villainous leader in Premier Jaeger* and what a revelation on what the truth is about him.
If there is a minor niggle it is that the election were referred to as a presidential election even though the election
was for the office of Premier. I mean has the word "presidential" being generically used to describe any popular election of a government leader.
The format of having the story told as radio broadcasts was done very well. The fleeting appearances of the Doctor and his companions make this a Doctor-lite adventure and was released some nine months before the first Doctor-lite episode of the current TV series Love & Monsters was first broadcast in June 2006.
In fact I would like to see the current TV series adapt this format but as a live TV news broadcast instead of a radio one for a future Doctor-lite episode.
*Coincidentally on my DVD pace for the current TV series I am currently seeing the rule of another villainous leader Harold Saxon.
Another thing is that I listened to Live 34 on Christmas 2008 just as 2008 was about to come to an end and 2008 was when season 34 was shown. Quite appropriate the number 34.