December - a flurry of activity!

Currently having great fun recording three Doctor Who audio dramas, including a story involving The Sontarans!

Amazingly, the cover artwork for Heroes of Sontar is already viewable:



Hopefully, we'll all be able to get to the studios next week to finish recording, despite the deep and still falling snow!

Industrial Evolution

'19th century Lancashire: where the white heat of the Industrial Revolution burns hottest at Samuel Belfrage's brass mill, a mill plagued by more than its fair share of work-related injuries.

While Thomas Brewster struggles to secure a fair deal for Belfrage's overworked hands, fellow travellers the Doctor and Evelyn follow the Copper King to Liverpool, there to discover the unexpected truth about Belfrage's business.

Back in Ackleton, the local MP voices the fears of many when he says that the machines are taking over. He's more right than he knows…'

RELEASE DATE: 31st March 2011

If you would like an autographed copy of Industrial Evolution, please click the link below:

tenthplanetevents: Industrial Evolution signed by John Banks

coming soon to an audio galaxy near you...

“Axos calling Earth. Fuel system exhausted. Request immediate assistance.”

Many years ago, the vast space parasite Axos attempted to suck the planet Earth of its energy. Now it’s all but forgotten – a dried-up husk, marooned in orbit, still stuck in the time loop it was placed in by Earth’s defender, the Doctor.

Forgotten, that is, except by space tourism billionaire Campbell Irons – who’s hatched a plan to solve the world’s energy crisis by reviving Axos, and transmitting its power back to Earth. But the crew of the spaceship Windermere aren’t alone aboard the parasite. The Doctor has returned, to correct an error of decades past…

And Axos is waiting.  

CAST:

Colin Baker (The Doctor), Maggie Stables (Evelyn Smythe), John Pickard (Thomas Brewster), Bernard Holley (Voice of Axos), John Banks (Campbell Irons/Svenni Nilson), Andree Bernard (Joanna Slade), Chook Sibtain (David Brock), Peter Forbes (Craig Swanson), Duncan Wisbey (Philippe Lefevre)
 

RELEASE DATE: 28th February 2011

_________________________________________________________________

CAST:

Paul McGann (The Doctor), Sheridan Smith (Lucie Miller), Niky Wardley (Tamsin Drew), Graeme Garden (The Monk), Carole Ann Ford (Susan Campbell), Jake McGann (Alex Campbell), John Banks (Seb Andrews) Nicholas Briggs (The Daleks)

SYNOPSIS:

'Hello! Doctor, it's me. Lucie. Lucie Miller…'

Lucie Miller needs the Doctor's help. The whole planet Earth needs his help. But he is nowhere to be seen.While Lucie struggles to survive a terrible sickness, an even greater threat to the human race is about to be unleashed.And this will be the second Dalek invasion of Earth the Doctor's grand-daughter has had to endure.

'You must accept the reality of your situation. You have been defeated.'

 RELEASE DATE:
28 February 2011

November 2010

Hello! An eclectic update for this month; on Wednesday the 10th, the Mervyn Stone novels, Geek Tragedy, DVD Extras Include Murder and Cursed Among Sequels, written by the prodigiously funny and talented Nev Fountain, were officially launched onto an unsuspecting world. Those of a keen-eyed disposition may observe a familiar face or two on the dust jacket of each book....

To further whet the appetite of an already baying and enthusiastic public, I've been playing Mervyn in Big Finish's monthly pod-casts, which are still available on their web site, should you wish to hear them. Also available will be a video recording of me reading a chapter from the first book at the launch party; follow a link to the BF FaceBook site and it should be there sometime soon. Nicola Bryant also read a chapter from the book and I guess she'll be on FaceBook too.

It was a very festive occasion and a great opportunity to catch up with the wider Big Finish Family, and indeed to meet some people for the first time. Sylvester McCoy was there and in top form; he's currently rehearsing a production of Evelyn Waugh's Decline And Fall at The Old Red Lion in Islington, which plays from 30th November to 8th January. Claire Vousden was also there, a touring buddy from Don't Look Now; really good to see her again; I think the whole event went very well and was a great success - hope the books are a similar success for Nev.

Earlier in the week, I was deeply honoured to have been asked to take part in a Remembrance Day Special, broadcast on the Suzanne Hunter Show for Brooklands Radio. My friend John Silke and I had been on her regular morning show back in October, talking about George and the Magic Radio, John's book for children, during which, I'd read some of the story on air. This time, Suzanne asked me to read the two pieces reproduced below. Apparently, the broadcast was very well received and is scheduled to be repeated on Sunday.

The First Armistice:

"The first stroke of eleven produced a magical effect. The tram cars glided into stillness, motors ceased to cough and fume, and stopped dead, and the mighty-limbed dray horses hunched back upon their loads and stopped also, seeming to do it of their own volition. Someone took off his hat, and with a nervous hesitancy the rest of the men bowed their heads also.Here and there an old soldier could be detected slipping unconsciously into the posture of 'attention'. An elderly woman, not far away, wiped her eyes, and the man beside her looked white and stern. Everyone stood very still ... The hush deepened. It had spread over the whole city and become so pronounced as to impress one with a sense of audibility. It was a silence which was almost pain ... And the spirit of memory brooded over it all."



   Armistice by John Banks

           

               In Flanders' Fields                       

                                                      

In Flanders' fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place: and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders' fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe;

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high,

If ye break faith with us who die

  We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

     In Flanders' Fields
         
                                                                                                                           John McCrae 1915

   In Flanders Fields by John Banks

______________________________________________________

My friend and co-director of our Small Coin Theatre Company, Rachel Illingworth, has just directed a piece for the 'Rapid Write Response' project at Theatre503 in London, called Suffer Little Children and written by Patrick Hinton. The play went very well and attracted a capacity audience, so, many congratulations to Rachel, Pat and the company for having done such an excellent job.

 ...and that's just about all for now; looking forward to working with Ken Bentley and the rest of the company on a new Doctor Who drama later this month - can't wait!

The Hobbit - Radagast the Brown

Congratulations to Sylvester McCoy on being cast as Radagast the Brown in the forthcoming Hobbit movie/s. I've had the great pleasure of working with Sylvester on a number of Big Finish audio dramas, throughout which, he has been great fun to work with.

Aenarion

Artwork by Jon Sullivan

 The Sword of Khaine resides upon the Blighted Isle, veiled in mystery and guarded by forces both living and dead. Despite the warnings, Aenarion rides out upon his dragon Indraugnir to seek the prize in order to save his homeland of Ulthuan. The journey is fraught with danger, and Aenarion must confront daemons, spirits and the elemental forces of nature itself if he is to succeed. But in drawing the blade from the Black Anvil, he will unleash the ancient and malevolent force that will tear the elven race apart…

Scheduled for release in October 2010 from Games Workshop: Warhammer

Beth Chalmers narrates and plays the female characters, I play the male characters.

Online reviews & comments:

‘It was awesome! Beth Chalmers and John Banks create a new world of elves and demons which spring to life as you hear this story. Gav Thorpe hammered out an almost perfect audio drama.’ 

'Beth Chalmers’ voice is enchanting and the voices by John Banks make the male characters easily identifiable by dialogue alone.'

'Same actors did “Throne of Lies”, if this is going to have the same level of added coolness then it got even better. From ‘Allo ‘Allo to Ulthuan eh..what a trip !'

'I thought this was brilliant! The voice acting for Aenarion was great'

 

September 2010

CAST:
Sylvester McCoy (The Doctor), Sophie Aldred (Ace), Philip Olivier (Hex), Stephen Chance (Sir William Abberton), Maggie O’Neill (Captain Lysandra Aristedes), Philip Dinsdale (Sergeant Jarrod), Ingrid Oliver (Helen/Oracle) John Banks (Corporal Matthews/Pilot)

SYNOPSIS:
 
1999: Leaving her infant son behind, a young mother named Cassandra Schofield departs Bolton, seeking a better life amid the lights of London.

2004: Despite the best efforts of the time-travelling Doctor, 'Cassie' Schofield dies on Dartmoor, a vampirised victim of the sinister organisation called The Forge.

2021: All grown up, and a nurse at St Gart's Hospital, Thomas Hector Schofield – known as 'Hex' – meets, and becomes a companion to, that time-travelling Doctor… but remains unaware that his alien friend knew his mother, and watched her die.

1854: In the Crimean War, Hex takes a bullet, and is seriously injured. The Doctor promises to return him to St Gart's.

2025: Now. In a London ravaged by a deadly contagion… destiny awaits.

Scheduled for release in September.

August 2010

July turned out to be quite a busy and interesting month. I worked on four Doctor Who stories and, once again, had some very happy times with all the fantastic Big Finish cast and production crew. It really is a joy to collaborate with such talented and professional people; 'work' takes the form of an easy exchange of ideas and the creative process becomes stimulating, rewarding and hugely enjoyable. 


Now that August is here, I'm delighted (and not a little terrified) at the prospect of recording a third audio book for The Games Workshop in their Warhammer series. The reason for my slight sense of trepidation is that for the first time, I'll be 'performing' the book solo, narrating and playing all the characters. Fingers crossed!

I'm also very much looking forward to the release, later this month, of  Throne of Lies.

By the way, have you noticed how everyone seems to be talking about...

Mervyn Stone ? ? ?

To find out what all the fuss is about, follow this link : Nev Fountain

All for now - who knows what the rest of the month might bring.............

Throne of Lies

 Throne of Lies

                                      Artwork by Jon Sullivan 

The Night Lords are among the most feared Chaos Space Marines in the universe.They prey on their victims from the shadows, stalking the faithful of the FalseImperium in their ultimate quest to destroy the Emperor. The warband of the Exalted, travelling aboard The Covenant of Blood, are recovering from the events at Crythe Primus. But their dark crusade against the loyal Imperial forces continues, and they will leave a trail of blood and terror behind them.

Released in August 2010 from Games Workshop: Warhammer 

Online reviews & comments:

'John Banks & Beth Chalmers did an amazing job with the voice overs, really bringing the characters to life.'

'John Banks has the largest chunk of narrative duties and really makes the story his own.' 

'There are many great audio dramas but somehow this one, to me, stood a step above the rest' 

'Speechless - worth every penny, every second!! I listen to it constantly!!!'


‘The voice acting is top notch, the production values are phenomenal’

'The atmosphere given over in this "book" is brilliant and the actor voicing it is great. With the sound effects and background music thrown into the mix its a very VERY good listen'

'Throne of Lies is one of the best audio books I have ever heard - the voice acting is second to none! 5/5 A++'

'Best BL Audio period. Best voice acting, best story...'

'...some great voice talent which really brings this Night Lords tale to life.'

'Beside some of the best voice acting and sound effects, the story is incredible.'

'The story is excellent and quite dramatic. But the best feature is the reading actor who really brings the story to life.'

'It oozes with great atmosphere, style and setting. From the growling heavy booming voices of the Night Lords to the crackling vox transmissions between the ships, it makes good use of sound effects to give the story that extra bit of “oomph!” to make it great.'
 

‘Top notch voice acting and sound effects.’

'The voice cast also deserves kudos for great work. Beth Chalmers, who was the companion of the seventh Doctor and has featured in many BBC productions voices the female cast members: Octavia the Navigator, the Huntress and M’Shen, the assassin who killed Konrad Kurze. John Banks, who has an extensive theatre background and television work, does the narration and all male cast members, giving especially the Astartes a deep, scary voice that befits these power armoured giants. Both deliver their lines and narration well enough, this isn’t just someone reading from the pages of a book, but putting actual feeling into it.' 

'Give us more of John Banks and Beth Chalmers'

click this link to access the official trailer: The Black Library - Throne of Lies  

July 2010

A very brief update for July; I'm currently back in the studio working with some highly talented and interesting people, recording more, as yet, top secret Doctor Who stories. All will be revealed..... at some time!

Nevermore, Highlander and Jago & Litefoot

Here are details of some forthcoming Big Finish Productions:

Nevermore

CAST: Paul McGann (The Doctor), Fenella Woolgar (Morella Wendigo), Michael J Shannon (Senior Prosecutor Uglosi), Emilia Fox (Berenice), Eric Loren (Pilot),      John Banks (Ravens) 

SYNOPSIS:

A bizarre manifestation in the Control Room forces the TARDIS onto the Plutonian shores of the irradiated world Nevermore, whose sole inhabitant is the war criminal Morella Wendigo – a prisoner of this devastated planet. But the Doctor and his new companion aren’t Morella’s only visitors. Senior Prosecutor Uglosi fears the arrival of an assassin, after the blood of his prize prisoner. An assassin with claws…There’s no escape from Nevermore, whose raven-like robot jailers serve to demonstrate Uglosi’s macabre obsession with the works of the 19th century horror writer Edgar Allan Poe. An obsession that might yet lead to the premature burial of everyone on the planet’s surface – wreathed in the mist they call the Red Death!

RELEASE DATE: 31st. August 2010

Highlander

Methos. Kronos. Silas. Caspian. Four names that struck terror into the hearts of men, women and children for centuries when they rode the lands under the name The Four Horsemen.

The second series of Highlander audio adventures takes an in-depth look at these four people; their origins, their secrets, and what made them the bloodthirsty killers they became. Highlander season two is a box set containing four CDs, each one relating the tale of one of the Horsemen.

CAST:
Valentine Pelka (Kronos), Richard Ridings (Silas), Marcus Testory (Caspian), Peter Wingfield (Methos), Toby Longworth (Dilijan), Tracy-Ann Oberman (Violetta/Elena), John Banks (Simon/Dorn/Nurse)

SYNOPSIS:

For centuries, they battled the forces of light, raping, pillaging and terrorising their way across the globe. Then, through the betrayal of one of their number, the Four Horsemen rode no longer. But before their ultimate end, each was the target of a very personal vendetta striking to the core of the Horsemen's seemingly unbreakable bond. Now the secret history of Kronos, Silas, Caspian and Methos can finally be revealed...

    RELEASE DATE: 31 January 2011


Jago & Litefoot

 

Online comments & reviews:

J & L: The Bloodless Soldier:

'A perfect blend of humour and drama, performances brilliant all round, and incredible sound work. 

A breathtaking beginning!'

'This is one of the best stories Big Finish have ever produced. Ever.'

'This series really is one of the best things BF have ever produced. Everyone involved should be proud.'

Series One of Jago & Litefoot is available now.

June 2010 & Dead Funny 2002

Since the last update a few weeks ago, I've attended my first Doctor Who convention, Utopia 2010, which was great fun. Great also to meet so many dedicated Doctor Who and Big Finish fans and thanks to them for coming along and making the event such a success. It was good to see others from the wider 'family' of Big Finish, particularly Charlie Ross who I worked with on City of Spires. Charlie did a great job of chairing the discussion forums we had throughout the day and kept things ticking along very smoothly.

Changing the subject completely; in 2002, I played Richard in Terry Johnson's play, Dead Funny. Directed by Damian Cruden and Richard Twyman, we opened the play at York Theatre Royal and transferred it to the Octagon Theatre in Bolton. The cover of the printed text summarises the play:

The death of Benny Hill provides the impetus for this comedy about impotence, sex therapy and the English sense of humour. Eleanor wants what Richard won't give her. Richard wants to be left in peace. Benny would rather rest in peace, but for tonight, at least, his fans won't let him.

I mention all this now, because I've just received some photographs from Simon Warner of our production and here they are: Sherry Baines played Eleanor, Robin Hooper played Brian, Nick Lane played Nick and Fiona Wass played Lisa.

As honorary chairman of the Dead Funny Society, Richard pays tribute to the recently deceased Benny Hill by impersonating him. In the final photograph, the Society party is in full swing and its members decide to perform the Morecambe and Wise classic, Boom! Ooooh! Ya ta ta ta!

'The acting is first rate… wonderfully played by John Banks as Richard – his impersonation of Eric Morecambe is worth the admission money alone.'

Blue Remembered Hills

Rummaging through boxes in the garage, as I was the other day, ostensibly looking for the remains of my LP collection, I inevitably found a number of things I hadn't been looking for.

In addition to the LPs, I also found a folder relating to a production of Dennis Potter's Blue Remembered Hills from 1994, which had been produced at The Everyman Theatre in Cheltenham, playing there and touring Gloucestershire, including Potter's native Forest of Dean. The action of the play takes place in the Forest of Dean and the dialect is very specific and quite tricky to replicate accurately. We really wanted to get it right, especially as we were taking the production to a number of Forest venues. Fortunately, we had the help of a number of local cast members and the professional coaching of Andrew Jack. 

We were all very proud of the show and it went down well with our audiences, both at the theatre and on tour. Very sadly, Dennis Potter died in '94 and so the Everyman staged a memorial evening in celebration of his life and work, arranged and directed by David Hill. There were of course a number of readings and anecdotes from people who had worked with Potter and we performed a scene from our play, which was very well received. It had already been our idea to try to re-mount the play in London and on the night, we asked many of the 'stars' to support our bid by signing a declaration that they had seen some of the show and thought it a good idea to have it play in London; we asked for no financial contribution.

Here's the list of 'sponsors': Kenith Trodd, Piers Haggard, Renny Rye, Lynda La Plante, Alan Plater, Gemma Craven, Kika Markham, Corin Redgrave, John Shrapnel, Janet Henfrey, Lyndon Davies, Giles Thomas, Douglas Heshall, Imelda Staunton, Jim Carter, Bernard Hill, George Baker, Frank Finlay, Maggie Steed and Alan Bates.

With such support, we thought our idea had every chance of being realised and felt sure that it would be a success. Dan Crawford of The King's Head, Islington came on board to produce; the plan was to play at The King's Head and hopefully transfer to a West End Theatre. I've just been looking at the reams of costings and administrative notes we had compiled in our attempt to get the show into production. You can maybe guess that it all ended in tears; indeed it did. Three days before rehearsals were due to start, Dennis Potter's literary agent withdrew the performance rights; apparently there had been interest in staging a production of the play somewhere else by a more established company. The 'somewhere else' turned out to be the National Theatre. We were deeply upset and annoyed, as indeed was Dan, who realised what a good idea we'd had.

This photograph is of me playing 'John'. Also in the cast were: Angela Bain, Annie Sutton, Steven Deproost, David Kennedy, Peter Rylands and Julian Protheroe. 

In its review, The Gloucestershire Echo said: 

"Right down to the minutest detail, from the fidgeting and fumbling to stuttering and snorting, every single member of the cast recaptures those childhood mannerisms to perfection. It is one of the most intense, amusing and painful hours I can ever remember.The whole thing leaves you as breathless as the cast. It is a simple play - and one which is quite simply brilliant."

Warhammer

Earlier this month, I recorded two audio books for The Games Workshop as part of their Warhammer series. In the first, Aenarion, I played Aenarion and various other roles with Beth Chalmers narrating. In the second book, Throne of Lies, Beth took the leading role and I narrated and played the remaining characters. Lisa Bowerman directed brilliantly and made a challenging piece of work great fun to do. Thanks to Beth and to Lisa and to Producer David Richardson; more details and artwork coming soon.

The History Channel: Bedlam

Broadcast from Thursday 18th March 2010

(click image to expand view)

Doctor Who: City of Spires

CAST: Colin Baker (The Doctor), Frazer Hines (Jamie McCrimmon), Georgia Moffett (Alice), Richard Earl (Victor), James Albrecht (Major Heyward), Russell Floyd (Sergeant Rilke), Sam Graham (Guthrie), Charlie Ross (Rob), John Banks (Red Cap & The Overlord)

SYNOPSIS:
Arriving in a hail of musket fire, the Doctor unexpectedly finds himself in the highlands of Scotland, where the ruthless Black Donald and his band of rebels are fighting the Redcoats. But the highland warriors no longer fight for the Jacobite cause and the English officers answer only to the mysterious Overlord. What has happened to Scotland and why are its moors littered with advanced, oil-pumping technology?

Reunited with his faithful companion Jamie McCrimmon, the Doctor must venture into the sinister City of Spires to find the answers. But standing in his way is the deadly Red Cap…

Scheduled for release in April.

The Song of Megaptera

CAST:

Colin Baker (The Doctor), Nicola Bryant (Peri), John Benfield (Captain Greeg), Neville Watchurst (Stennar/Manus), John Banks (The Caller/Ship's Computer), Susan Brown (Chief Engineer/Chanel), Toby Longworth (Stafel/1st Security Guard), Alex Lowe (Axel/2nd Security Guard)

SYNOPSIS:
Deep space in the distant future, and Captain Greeg and his crew are hunting mile-long Space Whales on a vast harvesting ship. By pure accident, they also capture the TARDIS.

The Doctor and Peri must use all their wits to survive. But what is the creature running loose in the ship's bowels? And can the Doctor save Megaptera before its song is extinguished forever?

Scheduled for release in May

Online reviews & comments:

The Caller:

'There is a nice sub-plot with a fungal techno shaman which adds tension through the story and the shaman is a pretty interesting character with one of the best alien voices in a while.'

Computer:

'John Banks has a great time as the computer who's personality gets switched multiple times; settling on a psychopathic game player who rattles forth l33t speak. Yes it's silly but it raised several smiles and the injokes for gamers sit unobtrusively in the background.' 

The Coming of The Long Distance Duck

I noticed that this episode of Allo, Allo was on BBC 1 yesterday and I think it's possibly the first one I worked on at the Elstree studios, where Nouvion town square and Cafe Rene had a permanent home. Below is a 'screen-cap' from the original episode.

The Start

Lost Theatre Company have recently moved into their new permanent building in Wandsworth, after 25 years as an itinerant organisation. To celebrate the fact and to launch the theatre, they held a 'Five Minute Play Festival' for new writers in December; our contribution was a play called The Start and here are a couple of images of Robert Heard and me from the dress rehearsal. Directed by Rachel Illingworth for our Small Coin Theatre Company.

Jago and Litefoot

The first season of Jago and Litefoot has now been recorded, and the box set of four stories is due for release in June 2010. It is currently available at a special discounted pre-order price of £30. Click on the Big Finish link for further details.

I was in two of the stories, The Bloodless Soldier and The Similarity Engine and had great fun working with such a fabulous company, including Christopher Benjamin and Trevor Baxter and a wonderful director, Lisa Bowerman, who made the whole event a joy. I also took part in the first of the Christmas podcasts from BF which might still be available via their web site if you are interested.

The Jago and Litefoot series follows directly on from the Companion Chronicle The Mahogany Murderers, and comprises four stories:





The Bloodless Soldier by Justin Richards
Directed by Lisa Bowerman
Guest cast: John Banks, Alex Lowe and Robin Bowerman
In which a group of soldiers return from duty overseas and bring a terrible evil with them...

The Bellova Devil by Alan Barnes
Directed by Lisa Bowerman
Guest cast: Stephen Thorne, Peter Silverleaf and Duncan Wisbey
In which Jago and Litefoot investigate a dead man who appears to have died before.

The Spirit Trap by Jonathan Morris
Directed by John Ainsworth
Guest cast: Janet Henfrey and Lex Shrapnel
In which Jago and Litefoot visit a psychic.

The Similarity Engine by Andy Lane
Directed by Lisa Bowerman
Guest cast: Matt Steer
In which an old enemy reveals his masterplan.

The box set includes a bonus fifth disc with an extensive 'Making of' documentary. There are interviews with all the cast and the production team, behind the scenes clips, plus exclusive extracts from the Writer's Notes read by Lisa Bowerman.