Doctor Who – The Monthly Adventures

#074. LIVE 34 ~ 10/10

◆ An Introduction

BigFinish had a reputation for doing some really experimental stories during the Gary Russell era, but I feel like their imaginative streak has sadly been worn down ever since he left the company back in 2006; the experimental flame is now kept alive, primarily, by the Torchwood audios.

Out of all those adventures to play with the format and do something truly imaginative, I think it’s fair to say that this is the most well-known and revered.

Sit back and relax, the news programme is about to begin… and nothing will ever be the same again on Colony 34!

◆ Publisher’s Summary

"You're listening to LIVE 34."

"LIVE 34 | News on the hour every hour | LIVE 34 | Broadcasting to Colony 34 all day every day | LIVE 34 | Constantly updated every minute of every hour | LIVE 34| Sport, weather, business, local news, interplanetary affairs | LIVE 34 | Live, independent, accurate, comprehensive | LIVE 34 – all news, all day, every day | LIVE 34..."

"Reports are coming in of an explosion..."

"On the line now is the leader of the FDP..."

"The President is about to begin his address..."

"We can see bodies in the wreckage..."

◆ The Seventh Doctor

‘LIVE 34’ is among the greatest scripts ever written for BigFinish, and I am absolutely euphoric that Sylvester McCoy gave one of his best performances for this adventure. Kudos McCoy, you done amazingly here!

The Doctor is totally opposed to any action which leads to the loss of life. If he could speak to those responsible for the bombings, he would remind them that blowing things up is not the answer (at least not in this case). He understands their frustration, but there are better and more subtle ways of achieving their goal than big bangs. He also believes that they are risking playing into the hands of the government and being blamed for things they didn’t do. The Doctor condemns Jaeger and his government as an abhorrence; they sicken him!

◆ Ace

Interestingly, Sophie Aldred doesn’t appear until the second episode of ‘LIVE 34’, but she instantly captures your attention as the rebel queen of Colony 34. Fantastic performance!

Ace is a better title than Rebel Queen. She’s had several names, but it’s the one she has decided she likes the best; it’s her name (and thus ends the “Just McShane” story arc). She hasn’t killed anyone, and neither have any of her friends, because they’re trying to stop the killing!

◆ Hex

Unfortunately, ‘LIVE 34’ doesn’t really feature our TARDIS newbie that much – with Olivier being absent until the third episode – but his charming Liverpudlian tones are a welcome addition. He puts on a brilliant show in this story.

Hex kicks off episode three by chowing down on some chips and gravy, claiming that it’s a delicacy where he comes from (well I’m hungry now). Some people do die, but it’s part of his job as a paramedic. As long as he can say he did everything he could, that’s the important thing. Hex became a paramedic because of his gran; his dad worked on the docks and got made redundant, losing what he thought would be a job for life… so he took his gran’s advice to get a job that would always be in demand, and thought medicine would be a pretty safe bet. He trained as a nurse, and now he’s a paramedic.

◆ Story Recap

Arriving on Colony 34, our dynamic trio quickly discover that this world is home to the worst corruption, fraud, oppression and murder imaginable. After being settled, it was realised by the government that there were fewer natural resources than originally thought, and the planet was soon plunged into an energy crisis. It would be an understatement to say that public confidence in the government was at an all time low.

Premier Leo Jaeger has been postponing elections on 34 for over half a decade, by any means necessary – staging fake terrorist attacks, having rogue elements disappeared and abusing the emergency powers act to ban all unsanctioned gatherings. But now he can’t postpone the election any longer, not if he wants to persuade his people that the fuel crisis is a fake… and he even has the perfect scapegoat for all the government’s illegal activities; the newly formed Freedom & Democracy Party.

With the Doctor taking charge of the FDP, Ace becoming a so-called warrior queen to the people of the slums, and Hex doing some snooping as a paramedic, the trio hope to get enough information to bring down the corrupt Jaeger Administration… but nothing can prepare them for the truth of what is happening on Colony 34.

◆ Power, Corruption & Lies

‘LIVE 34’ continues the trend of BigFinish nailing their experimental adventures by having the entire narrative framed as a series of news broadcasts, reporting on Colony 34’s corruption.

Speaking of corruption, the titular news station actually gets corrupted itself as the story goes on – with investigative reporter Ryan Wareing being murdered by government officials after exposing the squalor and poverty in the slums, but it’s made to look like a suicide. The station’s shareholders all end up withdrawing from the corporation by the end of the third episode, leading to it being picked up by the state, which means this once independent news outlet becomes another mouth piece for the Jaeger Administration propaganda machine!

James Parsons and Andrew Stirling-Brown have came up with a really interesting framing device, and one that is perfectly executed. It’s sometimes quite frightening how realistic the broadcasts seem!

Impartiality within the news is a topic that does keep getting attention here in the UK, with the BBC being accused of political bias on several occasions in the last few years. This is an incredibly clever story, because it’s one that will always be relevant – journalism is absolutely rife with corruption, and it likely always will be. It really is a sad fact of life.

◆ Sound Design

David Darlington deserves heaps of praise for the work he has done on this story, fleshing out Colony 34 as a sad and dangerous world, where the government has absolute control, and will stamp you out if you get in the way! The sound design here is absolutely phenomenal.

Static as a radio is tuned into the news broadcasts. The emergency services close in on the site of the explosion in District F, their sirens blaring as flames crackle amidst the rubble. Clicking cameras from members of the press observing Jaeger’s speech. A massive explosion at a vehicle manufacturing factory causes car alarms to set off streets away from the blast. Screaming bystanders can be heard as another part of the factory crumbles and crushes people already trapped under the rubble. Shouting members of the public at an FDP rally. Barking stray dogs wander through the slums, all the while water trickles through the open sewer. The rumbling of an old fashioned motorbike, used by Ryan Wareing to escape government security. Chaos erupts at an FDP rally in District J, as a gunman attempts to assassinate the Doctor! Rain pours down onto a plastic tent protecting an excavation site at the hospital. People sing and dance, celebrating Jaeger’s electoral victory and chanting pro-Jaeger slogans. After the Doctor exposes the truth about Premier Jaeger, the crowds turn nasty and begin rioting… before beating him for all that he has done!

◆ Music

David Darlington is also providing the score for ‘LIVE 34’, which is strangely absent. This story is made all the more realistic and harrowing by its complete lack of incidental music, aside from the incredibly catchy jingle that accompanies the news broadcasts.

◆ Conclusion

“Otherwise it stops being news and simply becomes propaganda!”

Following in the footsteps of ‘The Fearmonger’, the Seventh Doctor is gifted yet another magnificent political adventure… albeit with a much darker tone this time. Colony 34 is home to some of the worst corruption imaginable, and we get to hear its despotic government overthrown by the Doctor, Ace and Hex.

‘LIVE 34’ is another of BigFinish’s incredible experimental adventures, and I just love the idea of framing the narrative in a series of news broadcasts. It adds some real grit to this story of political uprising, this tale of bodies being burnt to solve an energy crisis… did I mention that this was a really dark script?

I’m going to leave you all with a controversial statement, that also happens to be about the highest praise I can give to a story. I genuinely think that this is a better adventure than ‘The Chimes of Midnight’.