Old enemies, new adventures...

Oh, such excitements to come! Although I'm currently feeling a bit buried by work - in a good way - I've decided to take a quick break from the mountain of line learning I have left to do for next week's opening of The Blind and The Intruder, so that I can post this 'teaser' information about a Dr Who audio recorded last July, The King of Sontar. I remember this as being a thoroughly enjoyable project with a great script, a wonderful cast and lots of laughs in the 'green room'. We did actually do some work believe it or not and I'm keenly looking forward to hearing the finished story.

This is my third Sontaran adventure and second with the fantastic Dan Starkey, who, for me and many others, is the definitive Sontaran voice; it's a great thrill to hear his voice in the studio through the headphones and always brings a huge grin to my face - which isn't always appropriate of course. I think it comes from a sense that with Dan on board in full Sontaran mode, we're onto a winner and that's always a good feeling.

And so, without further preamble, this is what Big Finish have said about The King of Sontar:

They're back! The Sontarans return for the first release in our third series of full cast audiobook adventures starring Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor - and here's the cover!

Dowcra base. The third Elite Sontaran Assassination Squad closes in on its target. A dozen trained killers, but even they will be unable to bring down the invincible Strang…

Manipulated by the Time Lords, the TARDIS also arrives on Dowcra. And the Doctor is set to encounter the greatest Sontaran ever cloned...


Doctor Who: The King of Sontar leads the third series of Fourth Doctor Adventures, starring Tom Baker as the Doctor (on screen 1974-1981) and Louise Jameson as Leela, his TV companion back in 1977 and 1978.

The pair are joined by a cracking cast for the story, including Sapphire & Steel alumnus David Collings, David Seddon, Jenny Funnell, legendary Big Finish stalwart John Banks and, of course, the wonderful Dan Starkey, TV and audio Sontaran extraordinaire, as the regal Strang.

Written By: John Dorney

Directed By: Nicholas Briggs

The King of Sontar is scheduled for release in January 2014 

* * * * * * * * * * *

I mentioned above that there were 'excitements to come' and indeed there are! As well as everything else going on at the moment, I'm also currently recording a fascinating Dr Who story with a truly brilliant cast and had a wonderful day in the studio yesterday working with a couple of genuine Dr Who legends. Recording concludes on Monday when I'll be working with yet another legendary actor and star of classic tv Dr Who - such a privilege!

But even that isn't main source of my excitement. Unfortunately, I'm not able to reveal more at the moment although I hope you'll believe me when I say there are some amazing things to come - "such stuff as dreams are made on"...

However, for the moment...

 " Our revels now are ended. 

These our actors, 

As I foretold you, were all spirits, and
Are melted into air, into thin air:"

I must also now melt away and get back to learning lines!

Maeterlinck: The Blind and The Intruder - Transfer

... a sunny and reasonably tranquil afternoon in May. I say 'reasonably tranquil' as the first hint of sunshine here in deepest Surrey, tends to bring out a desire in certain people to play with a seemingly endless variety of power tools - the gentle twitter of bird song doesn't stand a chance!

I'm taking a sneaky break from cold learning a shed load of lines for The Blind & The Intruder, mentioned previously on this web site, but in the context of other people taking part. If you've read the reviews I posted, you'll know that the overall production generated a very positive response from critics - The Guardian's Michael Billington was even moved to send out an enthusiastic 'tweet' about it. All this being the case, the two plays have been invited to extend their run by transferring to The Tabard Theatre in West London ( link: Tabard Theatre ).

One of the original cast members is unavailable for the transfer and I have accepted the challenge of taking over from him for the rest of the run.


Now, I like a challenge as much as the next enthusiastic actor and it's good to get out of one's comfort zone from time to time. When I first started acting in London Fringe Theatre at the beginning of my career several decades ago, I acquired a bit of a reputation for being able to pick up the reins of a show pretty quickly and learn the lines super fast. This brought me lots of work and some invaluable experience; however, it's been a while since I've had to assimilate so much in such a relatively short time and I think it fair to say that I've well and truly left anything that might be described as my 'comfort zone'!

Tarquin Productions in association with the Tabard Theatre presents:

THE BLIND & THE INTRUDER
by Maurice Maeterlinck

Two plays. Two views of the world.
One terrifying subject: the blindness of humankind to the
mysteries of our existence.

Following a sell out and critically acclaimed run at the Old Red Lion Theatre in Islington, The Blind & The Intruder transfers to the Tabard Theatre for a limited two week run prior to a national tour.

“A fascinating collector's item... you can detect the influence on
the work of Beckett.”
Michael Billington - The Guardian

THE BLIND places us amongst a group of blind people in a wasteland, abandoned by their guide, searching for any clues to their whereabouts. Lost, lonely and scared, they are prepared to put their faith in anyone - or anything - that may help them, even if they cannot see the consequences of their actions.

THE INTRUDER follows a household in crisis. As the Mother lies ill after childbirth and the family sit waiting for any news, the blind Grandfather hears a presence amongst them that none of the family can see. As the presence becomes more noticeable, are there greater forces at work than merely an old man's imagination?
 

Maurice Maeterlinck's 1911 Nobel laureateship cited THE BLIND and THE INTRUDER as two of his seminal works. A proponent of the Symbolist movement, with an unprecedented awareness of the human condition enveloped in a black sense of humour, Maeterlinck's simple but effective style of writing is rarely performed in the UK.

Directed by Benji Sperring & Rachel Illingworth

@Tarquin_UK

As well as that, I've also got a couple of Dr Who stories to work on for Big Finish later this month and some other things which will take up the few seconds of time I might have left over. I keep telling myself that it's good to be busy, goodness knows, I moan about being not busy, however, I 'm just hoping that I haven't bitten off more than I can chew...