bobod
Chancellery Guard
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Post by bobod on Apr 4, 2016 8:39:49 GMT
This week's Quentin story is London's Burning by someone called Joe Lidster.
"I’m gonna dance for you, gonna dance your cares away…”
1941: As bombs fall on the city of London, Quentin Collins is reunited with his old friend, Rose. Trapped in an Underground station, she claims to have no memory of him. So he tells her how they met… 1906: Music hall star Rosie Fay is the talk of the town. But what connects her to the cases of spontaneous human combustion plaguing London’s ladies of the night? And why is Quentin so interested in the song she sings?
Starring David Selby as Quentin Collins and Louise Jameson as Rosie Faye.
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bobod
Chancellery Guard
Likes: 2,759
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Post by bobod on Apr 6, 2016 8:54:14 GMT
Listened to this one on the way to work, best of the Quentin listhenthru so far.
Lovely work from Lou and David and a really lively piece from Joe that intrigues with the 'why doesn't Rosie remember aspect?' as well as the two parallel stories. And nice character scenes to play but still the piece has its own driving plot(s) to make it an entity in its own right.
"I'm gonna dance for you..."
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Post by omega on Apr 6, 2016 8:58:17 GMT
It's some great material for Louise Jameson, who gets to play not only Rosie Faye, but Amelia and her mother, all very different characters. Good introspection for Quentin, and allowing him to realise he can live life the fullest instead of brooding on his past. The plot threads, from the framing sequence to the spontaneous combustion are compelling.
Just a question, but was Jade's husband Count Petofi?
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Post by Rob Morris on Apr 6, 2016 11:06:45 GMT
It really is great this one isn't it?
I think what really hit home for me is that the villain of the piece has become so for very personal and emotional reasons, rather than just being a moustache-twirling villain because they're inherently evil.
It makes for a much more satisfying character and means the plot and resolution evolve beautifully.
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Post by silverednickle on Apr 6, 2016 13:35:47 GMT
"Sometimes I wonder how much of our lives are ruled by fate. Is there some greater being bringing us all together- the Collins, the Rakosis, the Fayes?"
This story effectively brought back the colorful Faye family, who appear in a few of the other Dark Shadows audios. Hopefully more are to come.
I really enjoyed this story. If memory serves, London's Burning and The Night Whisperers both came out at the same time. The pairing was interesting, both having their long-living leads narrate a past adventure to a friend and both stories sort of permeating into each other.
London's Burning played off many Dark Shadows motifs. It even kept up with the tradition of "I'm Gonna Dance with You" always being interrupted. Probably more so because the full song would take up more than 10% of the episode and as much fun as each rendition was, there are better places to use the acting talents of the Fayes.
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Post by Trace on Apr 7, 2016 0:34:25 GMT
Oh fun to revisit this one!! Is it Joe's first foray into the DS canon? I think it was, and I was SO impressed with him as a writer....who woiuld have thought at the time he'd be producing the whole bit for us?
I loved this story. I cried the first time and I cried again this time. Lou was SO good as Rosie...and how could we NOT fall in love with her? I seem to recall Joe saying at the time that Rosie was written with her in mind, correct? A brilliant bit of casting! The story is creepy and scary, suspenseful and touching, funny and nostalgic. The Faye girls that we knew of, Pansy and Leticia, were such fun on the show, and Rosie continues that tradition. Colorful and brash, they always were smarter than one would first imagine. They just knew things--and whether it was clairvoyance or just good old common sense, you just always know what you're gonna get from them. No nonsense, in your face truthfulness, a lot of heart, and a good song!
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bobod
Chancellery Guard
Likes: 2,759
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Post by bobod on Apr 7, 2016 8:24:51 GMT
I enjoyed London's Burning so much yesterday, I ended up listening to The Creeping Fog today.
Naughty bobod.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Apr 9, 2016 21:11:35 GMT
I have to agree that this is the best audio in this listen-through. It is a lovely acted, written and sounding piece of drama. 10 out of 10 for me.
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Post by kimalysong on Apr 11, 2016 0:34:05 GMT
Sorry I am a bit late for this. I did really enjoy this one. I loved Louise and the song she sang in this story is now stuck in my head. It's actually remarkable to me how many different characters I have heard Louise play across the Big Finish ranges.
However I personally disagree that this stands out compared to the first two. I guess it didn't for me. Don't get me wrong I really liked this story too but too is the operative word.
I am very much looking forward to The Creeping Fog this week.
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Post by barnabaslives on Apr 11, 2016 4:42:08 GMT
I don't doubt that some of my sense of this story being extra special probably comes from watching so much of the original series, where Pansy Faye owns the song and Nancy Barrett owns the Faye characters and it easily becomes very iconic. Were this not such an outstanding story by Joe and such a truly wonderful performance by Louise, I'm sure I'd still be screaming "Sacrilege!" at the very thought of anyone but Nancy playing a Faye or singing that song ("I'm Gonna Dance For You" by Dark Shadows TV series composer Robert Cobert). That's an amazing feat in itself, but I find the story very emotionally engaging in general also - it covers a lot of ground from heartwarming to tragic to being downright good and scary.
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bobod
Chancellery Guard
Likes: 2,759
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Post by bobod on Apr 11, 2016 10:43:00 GMT
I don't doubt that some of my sense of this story being extra special probably comes from watching so much of the original series, where Pansy Faye owns the song and Nancy Barrett owns the Faye characters and it easily becomes very iconic. Were this not such an outstanding story by Joe and such a truly wonderful performance by Louise, I'm sure I'd still be screaming "Sacrilege!" at the very thought of anyone but Nancy playing a Faye or singing that song ("I'm Gonna Dance For You" by Dark Shadows TV series composer Robert Cobert). That's an amazing feat in itself, but I find the story very emotionally engaging in general also - it covers a lot of ground from heartwarming to tragic to being downright good and scary. I've had Matthew Waterhouse sing it to me live, no matter how much I asked him to stop... |
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Post by omega on Apr 11, 2016 11:04:03 GMT
I don't doubt that some of my sense of this story being extra special probably comes from watching so much of the original series, where Pansy Faye owns the song and Nancy Barrett owns the Faye characters and it easily becomes very iconic. Were this not such an outstanding story by Joe and such a truly wonderful performance by Louise, I'm sure I'd still be screaming "Sacrilege!" at the very thought of anyone but Nancy playing a Faye or singing that song ("I'm Gonna Dance For You" by Dark Shadows TV series composer Robert Cobert). That's an amazing feat in itself, but I find the story very emotionally engaging in general also - it covers a lot of ground from heartwarming to tragic to being downright good and scary. I've had Matthew Waterhouse sing it to me live, no matter how much I asked him to stop... So we can add singing talent, lack of to Andrew Cunningham's list of personality flaws. |
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Post by barnabaslives on Apr 12, 2016 1:13:55 GMT
So I says to myself today, if I like this that much why don't I actually listen to it, so I managed to make the opportunity and gave it a spin. Enjoyed it as much as ever, this being like the sixth or seventh time I've heard it.
I think I'm still catching little things I hadn't quite caught before each time I listen to it, too - that or I'm starting to imagine things.
Also managed to catch the new Big Finish podcast with Joe and Davy. Interesting as always and great to hear that it sounds like Blood & Fire is coming along!
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