...hi John, yeah, it's a great part - a gangster. Yeah, a gangster, really mean; gritty. Oh - and he's a raccoon...

Sometimes I wonder if the guys at Big Finish - Mssrs Richardson, Briggs, Bentley, Dorney & Fitton - get together from time to time, share copious amonts of alcohol and devise characters commensurate with the phrase "...betcha Banksy can't play that!"

Who knows? Whatever the case may be, the 'challenges' that have so far come my way, include being required to play several Gestalt Entities ie, The Morass, a swarm of leeches, a sponge, a fog, several Metatraxi and Numlocks (could have been Tabshifts or Alt Gr Backspaces!) a whole host of other creatures and alien beings, a dingo, an octopus and most recently - a raccoon. A raccoon. Happy to pick up the gauntlet and run with it, I decided to make him Swiss - just for the fun of it! And here is the result:

Come to Ricosta! Tropical climate, untouched beaches, fabulous cuisine... and no extradition treaties. The perfect retirement planet for a certain type of 'business person' – such as Ms Melanie Bush, formerly the co-owner of the Iceworld emporium, now on the run from her former criminal associate's criminal associates...

Some other former associates of Ms Bush are abroad in this space Costa del Crime, however. Not long ago, the time and space traveller known as the Doctor arrived here, alongside his sometimes-criminal associate, the reformed juvenile offender Ace. But now the Doctor's gone missing – and Melanie Bush is about to learn that on the planet Ricosta, the wages of sin... are death.

 Sylvester McCoy The Doctor   Bonnie Langford Mel   Sophie Aldred Ace 

Ginny Holder Gloria/Secretary  Des McAleer Lefty Lonnigan  Stephen Hagan Nathan Later

 Harry Myers Atomon/Sperovore Banker/Steward 

John Banks Mayor/Sperovore Auditor/Sperovore Financer 

Other parts portrayed by the cast

Written by Matt Fitton
Directed by Ken Bentley  

This is quite an unusual addition to the Big Finish playlist and I'm very much looking forward to giving it a listen. In the meantime, I'm back in the BF studio next week for more fun; but that's...

...all for now, more just as soon as it happens!

...what's going on?

...a line from Eastenders or a classic album from Marvin Gaye? Your call; mercy, mercy me...

So this month of July brings some new stuff for the ears of the world to wrap themselves around and a few audio surprises to savour. I've also been in a variety of windowless rooms, otherwise known as recording studios, to lay down some heavy sci-fi/fantasy beats, for no other reason than to bring joy and enlightenment to the universe - well, someone had to give it a go.

The first thing to mention this month is the release of Only The Faithful, the fourth instalment of The Knights of Vengeance series from Games Workshop, in which I play Lord Relictor Ramus. Here are some details:

At last, the Hallowed Knights have cornered their quarry... but the vampire they seek has amassed an army of the dead, and the price of vengeance will be dear indeed.

After a gruelling journey, the warriors of the Hallowed Knights and Astral Templars have found their quarry in the Sea of Bones. During the hunt, Mannfred the vampire lord has raised a mighty undead host to protect the realmgate he has claimed.

Whilst Ramus of the Hallowed Knights seeks the vampire’s head and Vandalus of the Astral Templars wants to reclaim the realmgate, both must fight as one and alongside their orruk allies if they are to triumph. Against one of Nagash’s mortarchs, the test will be stern and only the faithful will prevail...

Performed by:

Gareth Armstrong, John Banks, Ian Brooker, Steve Conlin, Jonathan Keeble, 

Stephen Perring, Saul Reichlin and Luis Soto 

Written by David Guymer & Produced by Matthew Renshaw

One of the surprises I alluded to above, is that all four stories in this series are available together; whoda thought it?

As this is only the first week of July, the rest of the month's releases are, well, yet to be released. I will of course publish details here when they become available; in the meantime, here's news of an unabridged audio book I recorded recently for Hachette, which is scheduled for release on the 19th:

It's not easy to live in a world ruled by dragons. The taxes are high, and their control is complete.

But for one group of bold misfits, it's time to band together and steal back some of that wealth.
No one said they were smart.


Written by Jon Hollins and narrated by me, with a running time of 15 hours, 46 minutes.

* * * * *

There's much more to come this month, but for the time being and in time honoured fashion, I'll sign off by saying...

...all for now, more just as soon as it happens!

The Trouble With Crimson Angel Guards...

Oh dear, I see it's been a cheeky month since my last posting here! There's no excuse, absolutely no excuse for such a long delay in updating the blog... well, there is, there is an excuse, a very good one, in fact, the best excuse there is - I've been busy working! The downside to that mini revelation, is the usual caveat of saying that I can't talk about what I've been doing yet; does that ever get less boring to hear? No, I thought not, sorry, but as ever, all will be revealed as soon as possible.

In the meantime though, things that I also wasn't allowed to talk about when they were first recorded, can now be splashed across these cyber pages in all their glory, because they are now available for the listening pleasure of all those who actually derive 'listening pleasure' from them - ah, as neat a slice of tautology as you could hope to find!

Moving swiftly on; I think we're up to release number 33 now with this lates batch. Not the floods of early spring, but a gentle summer trickle to match the mood of the weather, which is a bit soggy and warm at the moment. So here goes - in order of release, sort of:

This month's first offering - and coming in at a whopping 32 hours & 14 minutes - is the third novel/audio book in Ian C. Esslemont's Malazan Series, produced by Neil Gardner and read by me for Penguin, Random House and now available from audible.co.uk:

The return of the mercenary company, the Crimson Guard, could not have come at a worse time for a Malazan Empire exhausted by warfare and weakened by betrayals and rivalries. Indeed, there are those who wonder whether the Empress Laseen might not be losing her grip on power as she faces increasing unrest as conquered kingdoms and principalities sense freedom once more.

Into the seething cauldron of Quon Tali--the Empire's heartland--marches the Guard. With their return comes the memory of the Empire--and yet all is not well with the Guard itself. Elements within its elite, the Avowed, have set their sights on far greater power. There are ancient entities who also seek to further their own arcane ends.

And what of the swordsman called Traveller who, with his companion Ereko, has gone in search of a confrontation from which none have ever returned?

As the Guard prepares to wage war, so Laseen's own generals and mages, the 'Old Hands', grow impatient at what they see as her mismanagement of the Empire. But could Laseen have outwitted them all?

Could she be using the uprisings to draw out and finally eliminate these last irksome survivors from the days of her illustrious predecesor, Kellanved?

* * * * *  

Next up is another audio book, this time from Games Workshop  - and coming in at a relatively paltry running time of 10 hours & 57 minutes - Angels of Caliban:

The First Legion go to war, and their primarch's brutal actions threaten to tear apart the fragile alliance of Imperium Secundus.

With the Dark Angels spread across a hundred systems, primarch Lion El’Jonson stands as Lord Protector of Ultramar – though his true motives are known to few indeed, and old rivalries on the home world threaten to tear the Legion in half. But when word comes of the Night Lords’ attack on Sotha, the Lion’s brutal actions bring Imperium Secundus once again to the brink of civil war.

Not even the most fearsome warriors of the Dreadwing, nor any arcane secret of the Order, can guarantee victory if he sets himself against his loyal brothers.

   Written by Gav Thorpe and Produced by Matthew Renshaw

* * * * *

...so, last and certainly least (in terms of running time!), the latest adventure of The Fourth Doctor, The Trouble With Drax:

Altrazar. The temporal Atlantis, a place lost to time. Believed by many to be a myth, it has long been the perfect location for the rich and powerful to hide away their most dangerous secrets.

Until now.

Because the somewhat crooked, not exactly honest, wheeler-dealer cockney Time Lord known as Drax has found a map that leads to its location. And, at the behest of a manipulative businessman, he's going to use it.

When the TARDIS is dragged out of the space-time vortex, its crew aren't best pleased to see the Doctor's old school friend, even less when he pressgangs them into joining a raid on the most secure safe-house in history. However with Romana and K9 held hostage, the Doctor has little choice but to agree. With Drax in tow, he heads for the planet.

Which is where the trouble starts.

 Tom Baker The Doctor    Lalla Ward Romana    John Leeson K9/Cabot  

Ray Brooks Drax    John Challis Rosser    Hugh Fraser Charles Kirkland/Shopkeeper 

Jane Slavin Shopkeeper 2    Miranda Raison Inspector Fleur McCormick    

John Banks Grunthar/Street-Cleaner

 Written by John Dorney
Directed by Nicholas Briggs 

* * * * *

And that is almost it for this posting; but there's just enough time to say that I'm currently preparing to record an audio book next week, followed the week after with a trip up to Games Workshop Head Quarters to record more audio drama narration and I'm really looking forward very much to all that.

Thanks for stopping by and I'll do my best to update again before too long!

...all for now, more just a soon as it happens!

...and in a late item of news...

...yes, late indeed! Late at night and late to post. The two releases described below actually became available last week, quite unexpectedly too I might add.

My only excuse for such tardy behaviour is that it's been a bit of a 'full on' week one way and another and I'm also now deep into preparation for quite a bit of Games Workshop activity next week, followed by a 'fantasy genre' audio book to be recorded the following week for Hachette, which is part of the Little, Brown Group for whom I recorded Nev Fountain's novel, Painkiller, last autumn - small world! I'm enjoying the slower pace of preparation for these recordings, as the last six or seven months have been almost too crazy for comfort. This new audio book, when recorded, will I think, be the 43rd audio recording (ie books & drama) since completing The Bible in mid November '15 - crazy indeed!

But onwards, ever onwards! And onwards in this posting to two very interesting releases (28 & 29 in this year's tally) from Games Workshop - here are some details:

Meduson: Ultimate Edition

A Horus Heresy anthology

Ten tales of the Tenth and their Shattered Legions allies bring the brutal guerilla war to life as the Sons of Horus hunt the leader of the insurgency – the infamous Shadrak Meduson.

Driven almost to the brink of self-destruction by the death of Ferrus Manus, the Iron Hands now seek vengeance for the many horrors of Isstvan V. Gathering survivors from the Raven Guard and the Salamanders aboard any vessels capable of warp travel, they wage a new campaign of annihilation against the traitor forces across the galaxy - a campaign masterminded by legendary warleader Shadrak Meduson.

In Meduson: Ultimate Edition, Black Library is proud to present seven short stories from the original anthology, as well as Grey Talon and The Either as full-cast audio dramas with complete production scripts. Finally, the defiant strength of the Iron Tenth begins to fall in the brand new story Hand Elect by Chris Wraight.

Meduson by Dan Abnett

Unforged and Unspoken by Guy Haley

Immortal Duty by Nick Kyme

Hand Elect by Chris Wraight

The Keys of Hel by John French

The Noose by David Annandale

Deeds Endure by Gav Thorpe

   

368-page hardback book with full-art matt PPC hardcover

Gloss dustjacket in the Horus Heresy series style with gold foiling and art by Neil Roberts

 

Includes 2 CDs contained in the endpapers

 Grey Talon by Chris Wraight. Running time 60 minutes. Performed by John Banks, Ian Brooker, Steve Conlin, Toby Longworth & Luis Soto.

 The Either by Graham McNeill. Running time 67 minutes. Performed by Gareth Armstrong, John Banks, Robin Bowerman, Ian Brooker, Steve Conlin, Toby Longworth, Luis Soto & Ramon Tikaram.

Great Red

 

Part 3 of the Knights of Vengeance audio drama series

In the Sea of Bones, the Hallowed Knights and their allies meet a worthy foe – and a possible ally – in the mighty Great Red and his Ironjawz horde...

The hunt for Mannfred von Carstein takes the Hallowed Knights and Astral Templars far into the hazardous Sea of Bones. It is here that Ramus of the Shadowed Soul and Vandalus, the ‘King of Dust’, meet a worthy foe: the Ironjawz. Led by the fearsome Great Red, this orruk tribe sees the intrusion of the Stormcasts as a challenge. War against the orruks would threaten their mission, so Ramus and Vandalus set out to broker an alliance – but Ironjawz only value strength and, to appease their savage nature, the Hallowed Knights and the Astral Templars must prove they are mighty enough to be considered allies...

Performed by:

 Gareth Armstrong, John Banks, Ian Brooker, Steve Conlin, Jonathan Keeble, Stephen Perring and Luis Soto

Written by David Guymer & Produced by Matthew Renshaw

* * * * *

And so to wrap up this late edition, I'd just like to say how pleased I am that the Tenth Doctor Adventures mentioned previously, seem to be being very well received, so thanks to all who have expressed such a positive reaction to these stories, of which, I am delighted to have been a part.

...all for now, more just as soon as it happens! 

David Tennant and Catherine Tate: The Tenth Doctor Adventures

How exciting is this!?!? Available from today, three stories featuring the fantastic David Tennant and Catherine Tate as The Doctor and Donna respectively - I just can't wait to listen to these stories and here, to whet your appetite, if such a thing were necessary, are synopses and some amazing artwork:

Technophobia

When the Doctor and Donna visit London’s Technology Museum for a glimpse into the future, things
don’t go to plan.

The most brilliant IT brain in the country can’t use her computer. More worrying, the exhibits are attacking the visitors, while outside, people seem to be losing control of the technology that runs their lives.

Is it all down to simple human stupidity, or is something more sinister going on?
Beneath the streets, the Koggnossenti are waiting. For all of London to fall prey to technophobia...

David Tennant (The Doctor), Catherine Tate (Donna Noble),  

Niky Wardley (Bex), Rachael Stirling (Jill Meadows), 

Chook Sibtain (Brian), Rory Keenan (Kevin), Jot Davies (Lukas)

Other roles played by the cast 

Written by Matt Fitton
Directed by Nicholas Briggs

Time Reaver

Calibris. The spaceport planet where anything goes. Where anyone who doesn't want to be found can be lost, and where everything has its price. Where betentacled gangster Gully holds sway at the smugglers’ tavern, Vagabond’s Reach.

The alien Vacintians are trying to impose some order on the chaos. Soon the Doctor and Donna discover why. An illegal weapon is loose on the streets. A weapon that destroys lives… Slowly and agonisingly.

The Time Reaver.

 

David Tennant (The Doctor), Catherine Tate (Donna Noble),  

Alex Lowe (Soren), Sabrina Bartlett (Cora), Terry Molloy (Rone),  

John Banks (Gully), Dan Starkey (Dorn)

Other roles played by the cast

Written by Jenny T Colgan
Directed by Nicholas Briggs 

Death and the Queen

Donna Noble has never been lucky in love.

So when, one day, her Prince does come, she is thrilled to have the wedding of all weddings to look forward to. Though the Doctor isn’t holding his breath for an invitation. And her future mother-in-law is certainly not amused.

But on the big day itself, Donna finds her castle under siege from the darkest of forces, marching at the head of a skeleton army.

When it looks like even the Doctor can’t save the day, what will Queen Donna do to save her people from Death itself?

 David Tennant (The Doctor), Catherine Tate (Donna Noble),  

Blake Ritson (Rudolph), Alice Krige (Queen Mum), Beth Chalmers (Hortense), Alan Cox (Death)

Other roles played by the cast

Written by James Goss
Directed by Nicholas Briggs 

 

 

Well, as I'm sure you can imagine, this was such a fabulous project to work on and I'm grateful indeed to Nick Briggs for having me in to play Gully in Time Reaver. It seemed to me that the 'stars' of the show were also savouring the time they had together in the studio, reprising such well regarded, and indeed, loved characters. 

The fun was had in getting things right and doing our very best to convey the drama of these stories; there was no 'phoning it in'; David and Catherine, as the true professionals they are, were thoroughly prepared and committed to the project and it was indeed a privilidge for me to share a studio with them - a bit daunting, especially playing such an extreme a character as Gully, but a pleasure nontheless. 

Thank you to all!

Here's a link to Paul Simpson's review, which came through via twitter at the crack of dawn this morning; again, thank you Paul!

 Sci-Fi Bulletin Review: Time Reaver

...all for now, more just as soon as it happens!

The Tenth Doctor Adventures: coming May 16th...

Calibris. The spaceport planet where anything goes. 

Where anyone who doesn't want to be found can be lost, and where everything has its price.

Where betentacled gangster Gully holds sway at the smugglers’ tavern, Vagabond’s Reach...

...new audio samples uploaded; it must be May!

So what's happening? Well, I had a really good time last week, recording a new series of audio drama with the ever fabulous Big Finish gang. As usual, I can't really give any further detail at the moment, although keen Twitter followers might well have joined the dots by now and have a pretty good idea of what's been going on. I will of course spill all the necessary beans just as soon as I'm able, but I'll end on the teasing note of saying how much I enjoyed working with BF friends & acquaintances old and new, some of whom, I haven't seen for quite some time. Great to catch up during working hours and very civilised to wander off together for a quick sherry or two at close of play.

After 26 audio releases so far this year, the pace has eased a little, although there's much more in the pipeline; much more! It 'may' be (May.. geddit? Oh, please yourselves...) that the unabridged NRSV Bible is to be released this month, all 74 plus hours of it and also perhaps, the first of the Malazan Empire novels, Dancer's Lament might be issued on CD. It's currently available as a download only, possibly from both Amazon and Penguin Random House. We shall soon see!

For various reasons, but all to do with self-promotion and getting the next job if I'm honest, I've uploaded some new material to Spotlight and to this web site, in the form of samples taken from some of the Games Workshop recordings I've been working on recently.

I love, I mean, really love recording the Warhammer stories and dramas; they are fascinating and beautifully written. Because both the audio books and dramas deal with such a finely crafted and well documented world and often in fantastic detail and use a language intended to convey the sheer majesty and scale of both the soldiers themselves and the vastness of space they inhabit, they can be unbelievably tricky to do. Giving voice to such larger than life characters such as the many Legions of Space Marines and their even larger than 'larger than life' Primarch's and the variety of other creatures and humans who also feature in the stories, can be a huge challenge.






In order to illustrate the point about the complexity and density of the language, I've just uploaded another audio sample from the opening chapter of The Harrowing, by Rob Sanders, a short story taken from the War Without End anthology, which I narrate in the voice of a character, 'Operative-unit 55/Phi-silon'. I hope you'll give it a quick listen and see what I mean. It's posted below. Allowing the narrative to sound 'conversational' is also quite a challenge, but enormously satisfying - if it all works! The Harrowing is a fantastic story and I really had fun recording it.






And that I think is about all for now. Of course, I couldn't post with out adding a graphic or two - how dull would that be, just acres of text to look at?!? So I've randomly added some Space Marine imagery to liven the whole thing up; two White Scars and two Ultramarines.

* * * * *

As a bit of a 'post script' and because this posting differs from the usual style/content of a regular update, I'm going to add a review for the audio book, Mr. Mac and Me that I happened to come across the other day and here it is:
 

In 1914, young Tom is disturbed, yet fascinated, by how his Suffolk coastal town is affected by the outbreak of war. The energy and enthusiasm of John Banks's performance key into the 13-year-old boy's active imagination and natural curiosity. Tom is especially drawn to the newcomers Mr. Mac--the real-life artist and architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh--and his wife, whose loving marriage is so different from what he sees at home. Banks's excellent use of volume and pacing builds tension as the authorities begin to suspect the Mackintoshes of treason and Tom, who has befriended the couple, is at a loss for what to do or believe. In addition, Banks's characterizations are spot-on; young or old, male or female, he has the inflections down pat.

by Esther Freud Read by John Banks
 
Fiction • 8.25 hrs. • Unabridged • © 2014  C.B.L. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine [Published: JULY 2015]

I am most grateful to 'C.B.L' for taking the time to write such a sympathetic and generous review of a book that I loved and thoroughly enjoyed recording.

Thanks also to C.B.L for a similarly generous review on the same AudioFile web site, for Ali Smith's How To Be Both, which I also narrated - thank you!

* * * * *

At the moment, I have two audio dramas to prepare, but the heat is off in comparison to the last six or seven months; so...

...all for now, more just as soon as it happens!

25 & 26...

...and still more audio stuff explodes onto an unsuspecting listening world! "Now what?" I hear you ask. Well, let me tell you! Two further releases from Games Workshop, namely, Fist of Mork, Fist of Gork, a full cast audio drama and The Path of Heaven, an unabridged audio book by Chris Wraight and narrated by me.

Here are some details and some fantastic artwork:

The Path of Heaven

The Khan returns! After the events of 'Scars', the White Scars Legion have chosen their loyalties. Now, after years of battle against the traitors, it's time to return to Terra and prepare for the inevitable invasion.

But first, Jaghatai and his warriors must brave a gauntlet of enemies and the terrors of the warp...

For too long had the Vth Legion ranged out beyond the sight of the wider Imperium, remaining ignorant of the Warmaster’s rebellion and the war that inevitably followed. Only once their primarch, Jaghatai Khan, had satisfied himself that the path before them was just and true did the White Scars choose a side, taking the fight to the traitors on every front.

But, four years later, the Legion’s unfettered spirit has been broken by relentless attritional warfare against the Death Guard and the Emperor’s Children – the Khan’s Stormseers must find a clear route to Terra if they are to take part in the final, apocalyptic battle.

  Narrated by John Banks

 Written by Chris Wraight and Produced by Matthew Renshaw

Audiobook running time 13 hours and 28 minutes

 * * * * *

Fist of Mork, Fist of Gork

 

Part 2 in the Knights of Vengeance audio drama series

The siege of Cartha is over, but the hunt for Mannfred von Carstein continues, and more savage enemies await the Stormcasts in the Carthic Oldwoods...

 

After a bloody triumph at the siege of Cartha, Lord-Relictor Ramus’ Hallowed Knights and the Astral Templars of Knight-Azyros Vandalus press on with their search for Mannfred von Carstein, but they soon learn that orruks, not ogors, hold sway in the Carthic Oldwoods. 

The Stormcast Eternals must overcome not only these brutish warriors, but also the will of their gods. Ramus and Vandalus must prevail against the fist of Gork and the fist of Mork if they are to forge a path to the Sea of Bones where their hated quarry awaits. 

Performed by Gareth Armstrong, John Banks, Ian Brooker, Jonathan Keeble and Luis Soto

Written by David Guymer and Produced by Matthew Renshaw

* * * * *

I think it 's about time to edit together some new audio samples, which, when completed, I'll post here and perhaps delete some of the older samples already posted below (scroll down, waaaay down). Many of the things I'd like to post are yet to be released, although that still leaves hundreds of hours of narration to consider. That's my work sorted out then! Speaking of work; I've had a few days 'off', but I'm delighted to be back with the Big Finish crew next week to record some more audio drama. A great story this one and a fabulous cast; but all top secret for the moment, which is why I will say...

...all for now, more just as soon as it happens!

...pleased 'tau' meet you!

Ooo, maybe a pun too far; "pleased 'tau' meet you"? But what can it refer to I wonder? Well, let's see.

Before we get into that, I just want to take a moment to mention a couple of other things, which in the general scheme of things, may not be very important or even interesting, but I'm trying to 'take in' what I've been doing over the past several months, because the time has gone by in a flash.

Since recording of The Bible came to an end in mid-November 2015, work has really cracked on apace and there have been few occasions when I haven't either been recording or peparing something to be recorded. To put that into some kind of perspective, since mid-November of last year, I've recorded 16 full length audio books, 17 short stories, 6 audio dramas and two narrated audio dramas. In the last two weeks I've recorded two audio books, narrated an audio drama and performed three roles in an audio drama. Last week's book was almost 800 pages in length and had 187 named characters. In the 7 Malazan Empire novels alone, we recorded roughly 7,000 pages of text and I had to create individual and recognisable voices for 583 named characters.

And now, for the first time in many months and before my brain explodes, I'm taking a break. Although, having completed my last project only yesterday, it already feels very odd not to have something to be reading...

              ..."and the other thing?"

                                                        "mmm? oh, yes, the other thing."...

There's a photo of me in the May edition of Doctor Who Magazine. I haven't had a chance to look at it yet (see above as to why...) but I'm quite thrilled by it. I know, I know; for many of my Doctor Who and Big Finish pals, being in DWM is a regular occurrance and no big deal, but for me, it's a new thing and consequently, quite a thrill. Have to see what it's all about, although I suspect it has something to do with David Tennant and Catherine Tate recording some new adventures with Big Finish, which I'm also in. But more of that next month!

Back to this month and details of a couple of new audio releases, (24 so far this year!). The 'big release' for me this posting is the Games Workshop audio book Blades of Damocles by Phil Kelly.

I've done quite a bit of work now with Games Workshop and I'm beginning to get a grip on the worlds of the Space Marines and The Legions and how they function and relate. So just when I think I'm making progress with who's who, along comes an entirely new alien race that I've never heard of - The Tau! And here they are...

Blades of Damocles:

Setting out to exterminate the upstart Tau Empire before they become the threat, the Ultramarines under Captain Atheus discover that the xenos may be more of a menace than they originally believed…

It is the 41st millennium, and an upstart alien empire has emerged on the Eastern Fringe. After a few skirmishes to retake human worlds from these blue-skinned invaders, the time has come to strike against the so-called Tau Empire. At the forefront of the Damocles Crusade stand the Ultramarines, commanded by Captain Atheus, the Chapter’s Lord Executioner. With his loyal sergeants Numitor and Sicarius by his side, Atheus vows to exterminate the aliens…

But the cunning xenos commanders, Farsight and Shadowsun, have other plans.

 

Audiobook running time 11 hours and 30 minutes.

 

* * * * *

The second release to be mentioned in this posting, is a follow up to the Fourth Doctor adventure mentioned previously, The Paradox Planet, which is titled The Legacy of Death. Once again, I'm not credited in the cast list, but as I remember, I played the reprising roles of Varchak and Warden. I'll amend as necessary when I've received my copy and had time to listen to it.

The Doctor, Romana and K9 have found themselves trapped in a temporal war. On Aoris, the past battles the future - and the future fights back!

With both sides of the war now capable of time travel, the conflict is about to enter a deadly stage. As the pieces of history lock into place, there is little the Doctor can do.

With more Time Tanks moving into combat, the endgame is approaching. The people of Aoris risk extinction at their own hand.

Can even the Doctor save the same planet twice in the same day?

Tom Baker The Doctor   Lalla Ward Romana   John Leeson K9 & Machina

Written by Jonathan Morris
Directed by Ken Bentley  

...all for now, more just as soon as it happens!

Knives to Peel...?

The empire is named for the tiny island and city of Malaz, now a sleepy, seedy backwater port. Tonight however, a once-in-a-generation Shadow Moon brings demon hounds and darker beings. 

Also, a prophecy promises the return of long missing Emperor Kellanved to the contended imperial throne. This night will determine the fate of the world.

A-HA! Thought I'd start this most cryptically titled update (knives? peel? - geddit?) with a synopsis; never done that before! "A synopsis?" I hear you ask, "but of what?". Of the third novel in Ian C. Esslemont's Malazan series of novels to be given the audio book treatment from producer extraordinaire, Neil Gardner and myself, that's "of what?". Released yesterday on an unsuspecting and entirely innocent public from Audible.co.uk. One further novel to record in this seven book series which we start next week, so lots of prep this weekend!

Below: ...recording Blood and Bone from The Malazan Empire series by Ian C. Esslemont 

"Over 7 books recorded since December, John Banks has had to create unique voices for 583 characters. Quite amazing!"
                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                           Neil Gardner - producer

Because I've been so busy over these last several, days, weeks etc, a couple of other audio book releases from Fantom Films have so far gone un-mentioned; so now is a perfect opportunity to set that to rights - and here they are:

Ignored by his dad, bullied by the teachers at his posh school, and picked on by the gang of kids who roam the stairways of his tower block home, Roland Wright thinks he has it pretty bad. Then, a broken lift hurls him into a strange kingdom where fantasy and reality meet, and Roland finds that his nightmare has only just begun.

 

  “The Juganet is a circle. The circle is a machine. The machine is a cross-over point. The point is a paramagnetic intersection. That is where I must be. Not here...”

Sky is a mixture of ecological fable, science fantasy and good, old-fashioned peril. An ethereal boy called Sky materialises on an Earth that is as unprepared for him as he is for it. He soon realises that he’s been brought to the wrong time and must seek out the Juganet to return to his correct place in reality. With the help of tearaway Arby Venner, his sister June and friend Roy he must race against time as Nature rejects Sky and the Earth’s immune system creates the evil Goodchild, who is out to stop him at all costs...

Based on one of the most memorable television series of the 1970s 

* * * * *

 ...aaand finally for this posting; the release of a box set of adventures from Big Finish, featuring Steed and Mrs. Peel from my favourite era of, the one and only... The AVENGERS!!!

1. Return to Castle De'ath by Simon Barnard and Paul Morris

Steed is left hanging, Emma pays the piper.

Steed and Peel return to the scene of an earlier adventure to find it much changed. Now a ski-resort, Castle De'ath is playing host to many new visitors - including a wealthy Prince targeted by assassins.
Assigned as bodyguards, the Avengers have to keep the Prince alive and discover which of the Castle's guests are behind the murderous plot - before they succumb to it themselves.

2. The Miser by Simon Barnard and Paul Morris

Steed has a nasty scare, Emma has a pressing engagement 

When the phrase 'sleeper train' takes on a very literal meaning, Steed and Peel witness the first action of The Miser, a terrifying extortionist. The race is on to stop his ambitious scheme - but in this case, appearances can be deceptive.

3. The Golden Dresses by Paul Magrs 

Emma hits the heights of fashion, Steed plumbs the very depths. 

The ladies of society can't get enough of Madame Zingara's Golden Dresses. Especially now their husbands have gone missing. Steed and Peel look into the world of haute couture to discover the dark secret of this latest craze. Can they pull it off with style?

4. The Norse Code by John Dorney

Steed has the horns of a dilemma, Emma milks her moment.

An agent has gone missing whilst holidaying in the Norfolk Broads. With an American nuclear bomb being stored in the region, Steed and Peel can't take any risks. But the last thing they expect to find on their boating trip is a Norse longboat. What are Vikings doing in East Anglia?

Julian Wadham John Steed     Olivia Poulet Emma Peel

Sam Kordbacheh Prince Abdul Bey    Shelia Reid Morag McIntosh/Matron  

Allan Corduner James McTaggart/Murdoch/Crabtree   Ruby Thomas Countess Beatrice of Burgundy 

Simon Greenall Colonel Augustus-Smyth   Jeremy Clyde The Miser   Graham Seed Dick North  

David Acton Montague Pratt/Air Marshall Cuthbert Fortescue 

John Banks Dave/Squire Trevithick/Train Guard   Phillip Pope Derek/Reg the Trainspotter/Newsreader 

Jacqueline Pearce Madame Zingara  Becky Wright Bunty/Nurse  Christopher Naylor Emil/Sailor  

 Nick Underwood Anton/Rough Sailor/Announcer   

Timothy Speyer Oswald English/Captain Jolleye/Radio Presenter 

Ewan Bailey Ivan Stevenson/Venka/Newsreader   Francesca Hunt Ingrid Thornton/Brunhilda  

Jot Davies Wellington - other parts played by the cast

Directed by Ken Bentley 

I love The Avengers and particularly the stories with Steed and Emma Peel; I am of the generation where the series was required viewing and I'm still watching all these years later - albeit in much higher definition! Really can't wait to listen to this collection and I'm deeply grateful to producer David Richardson and director Ken Bentley, for inviting me to come and play...

...all for now, more just as soon as it happens!

Knights of Vengeance & The Horus Heresy...

There seems to be no let up in the current frequency of audio releases - 18 of mine so far this year; surely such a pace can't be maintained???

Well, we'll see.

In the meantime, this week sees the release of two further Games Workshop productions; an audio drama, The Beasts of Cartha and an anthology of stories (a recording briefly mentioned in the March 4th posting) which I have narrated, under the umbrella title Eye of Terra. The production process on this anthology has been super speedy; we only completed recording on March 10th and the finished product was released just over a week later - quite amazing! In comparison, I've recorded a number of stories for Big Finish with a scheduled release date of several years hence...

Anyway; without further ado, here are some production details and some great artwork:

 Eye of Terra

The galaxy burns at Horus’s command, and the Imperium will never be the same again. This anthology gathers together tales of the primarchs and their sons, and the lengths to which their bitterness may yet drive them…

The galaxy burns at Horus’s command, and a billion more lives are lost with each passing moment – though it was not always so. Once, the title of Warmaster stood for honour, loyalty and a fierce pride in the strength of the Space Marine Legions. But perhaps by following the myriad lines of destiny and defiance that were already woven around the primarchs and their sons, we may yet come to understand the bitterness that can eat away at even the most steadfast of souls…

Eye of Terra includes:

The Wolf of Ash and Fire by Graham McNeill

Aurelian*, The Long Night and Massacre by Aaron Dembski-Bowden

Brotherhood of the Moon by Chris Wraight

Inheritor and Master of the First by Gav Thorpe

Vorax by Matthew Farrer

Ironfire by Rob Sanders

Red-Marked and Stratagem by Nick Kyme

Sins of the Father and The Herald of Sanguinius by Andy Smillie

The Eagle's Talon by John French

Iron Corpses by David Annandale

The Final Compliance of Sixty-Three Fourteen by Guy Haley

 *Aurelian is read by Toby Longworth

I was delighted to have been given the opportunity to work with producer Matt Renshaw on these stories, some of which, we had previously recorded as full cast audio dramas; slightly odd to narrate and play all the characters of a story one has already worked on in a different format, but an interesting challenge to play such a variety of characters. It was also a privilege to narrate scripts from such a fabulous team of writers and I can only hope that I've done justice to their work. Performing these stories is one thing, to write them and integrate them into the vast world of Warhammer is quite another and my admiration goes out to all of these hugely talented people.

* * * * *

The Beasts of Cartha

Part one of the new Knights of Vengeance audio drama series:

After their disastrous search for the Supreme Lord of the Undead, the Hallowed Knights are reforged and tasked with a new mission: to find and capture the vampire that betrayed them, Mannfred von Carstein…

After being reforged, Lord-Relictor Ramus of the Hallowed Knights is sent by Sigmar to capture the betrayer, Mannfred von Carstein. The quest brings Ramus to the Carthic Oldwoods of Ghur where he comes to the aid of the Astral Templars against a massive ogor horde. Victorious, but at great cost, Ramus discovers Mannfred is finally close at hand. Only with the help of the Astral Templars will the Lord-Relictor catch his quarry, but there are deadlier things in the woods than ogors, a fact the Stormcast Eternals soon discover.

Gareth Armstrong, John Banks, Jonathan Keeble, Stephen Perring and Luis Soto

Written by David Guymer

Directed by Matthew Renshaw

All four stories of this new series are also available as a subscription download: 

Following on from the previous series and the Hallowed Knights' confrontation with Nagash, they've been reforged and we get to see something we've never seen before in the Stormcasts: a very personal thirst for revenge...


At the end of The Bridge of Seven Sorrows, I was naturally concerned that Ramus had met his end and that would be the end of his story line. I had enjoyed playing him and although I've lost count of the number of audio dramas my characters have 'died' in, I was particularly sorry to see him go. How foolish of me; the clue is really in the series title "Stormcast Eternals"... "eternals"!

So, after a quick, if painful, re-forging, Ramus returns in better form than ever for these four new adventures and has even been 'promoted', now languishing under the splendid title 'Lord-Relictor Ramus of the Hallowed Knights' - how fab is that!?! Can't wait to give these stories a listen, although I'm finding it hard to keep up with the current glut of 'must hear' audio stuff - need more time!

* * * * *

After a few days away from the recording studio, I'm currently preparing four audio books to be recorded over the next four weeks; two further titles in Ian C. Esslemont's Malazan series and two more adventures with the Space Marines for Games Workshop; so, it's back to work for me!

Before I go, there's just enough time to wish you a very Happy Easter!

...all for now, more just as soon as it happems!

The Paradox Planet

"ahhh, yeaahhhss, The Paradox Planet, ha-ha!" Tricky to pull off a written impersonation of Tom Baker, as you can see.

A quick update this week to mention this latest Fourth Doctor release from Big Finish and here are some details:

Whilst travelling in the vortex, the TARDIS is struck by an advanced war machine - a Time Tank! Losing Romana, the Doctor and K9 pursue the Tank to Aoris, a world quite literally at war with itself.

Soldiers from the future are attacking the past of their own planet - gathering resources and stealing endangered species. But the past is not without weapons of its own - leaving deadly devices ready to trigger many years ahead after their enemies have been born.

Trapped at opposite ends of a temporal war, the Time Lords have two time zones to save. But who is in the right, and who in the wrong? And when history itself is against you, can anybody actually win?

Tom Baker The Doctor   Lalla Ward Romana   John Leeson K9/Machina  

Simon Rouse Drang Tom Chadbon Embery Paul Panting Fyrax Emma Campbell-Jones Shola Laura Rees Tyrus   Bryan Pilkington Lostar   Jane Slavin Medea   John Banks Valchak

Written by: Jonathan Morris
Directed by: Ken Bentley  

The story continues next month with  The Legacy of Death. Although uncredited on the BF web site, rest assured that Valchak and the Warden will be back!

...all for now, more just as soon as it happens!

The Heart of The Pharos

Good afternoon! And what a beautiful warm, sunny and calm afternoon it is. Calmness is an interesting state of being for me at the moment, as I'm now into my first 48 hours of calm since the last week of November 2015 and trying to come to terms with the fact that I actually have some 'free time'. "Why so?" I hear you ask.

Well, since 26th November to Thursday of the week just gone, I've recorded 13 audio books, 17 'short' stories, 5 audio dramas and a few other bits 'n' pieces that don't really fit into any specific category. Some of the audio books were over 800 pages long and one, over 1,000; even some of the 'short' stories have been the equivalent of a full cast audio drama. So far, five books into the Malazan series of novels, I've attempted to create voices for something like 450 characters and for Games Workshop, I think we must now be approaching the 70 to 80 mark in terms of character voices.

So; calm now, as I've got a gap over Easter, which will hopefully be time enough to allow my brain to slip back into neutral before preparing the next three audio books scheduled for recording in late March - early April.

Alongside all this frenetic activity, quite a few recordings are now being released and the latest from Games Workshop is the audio drama The Heart of The Pharos, which I narrated and played the part of Holguin. In some ways, it's a dramatised adjunct to the full length audio book Pharos, which became available a few weeks ago. Here are some details from The Black Library:

Young Oberdeii and Tebecai, Scouts of the Ultramarines 199th Company, descend into the depths beneath Mount Pharos in search of a dark truth... though it may haunt them for all time.

The Pharos stands as a beacon of light in the darkness, a whisper of hope in the silent void, a bastion of defiance in the face of treachery. Without it there could be no Imperium Secundus – why, then, do the masters of Ultramar know so little about its operation, or the dangers it could present?

    Gareth Armstrong, John Banks, Jim Barclay, Ophir Burton, Cliff Chapman & Steve Conlin

Written by L J Goulding

Produced by Matthew Renshaw 

There's much more to mention about things already done, things in the pipeline and exciting things to come, but as usual, I'll have to 'calmly' wait until I'm allowed to give specific details; and so that's...

...all for now, more just as soon as it happens!