Home Truths (Doctor Who: The Companion Chronicles) [Audiobook] [Audio CD]

fifth in the latest series of talking books called doctor who: the companion chronicles. these are doctor who stories read by an actor who played one of the doctors companions on tv, telling an untold story for the character.

they run for roughly seventy minutes, split into two episodes. the reader will voice all characters save one other who is done by another voice actor. and the main reader will usually do fairly decent takes on how the other main characters in the story, such as the doctor or any other companions, would have spoken.

this story features jean marsh returning the role of sara kingdom, who was a short lived companion on tv to the first doctor who. she appeared midway through a twelve part story and died at the end of it. and this story is set during a gap between two episodes of that one.

the disc begins with a trailer for the forthcoming next release in the range - but doesnt say what it's title is - and has a seven and a half minute interview on the last track with the two main actors and the director.

the story involves a man travelling to a lonely house in the fens, and meeting a lady called miss kingdom there. she has a tale to tell him. that he wants to hear. about the doctor and steven and sara and the time they visited the house. and what happened when they did.

thus a lot of the story involves a conversation between miss kingdom and the man, who is voiced by the other actor, and when we get to the story of what happened when the doctor visited, she relates it to him.

this strives hard for atmosphere, trying to have miss kingdom describe the events as if it were a dream, and this plus the constant return to the characters having the conversation do mean the first episode is a bit slow to get going. but it's just about intriguing enough to make you want to know what happens next. the atmosphere is quite effective also.

part two does eventually deliver, answering the big question 'how can sara be here when she died?' in a clever manner, and allowing her to have, as happens in a few of these stories, a bit of an epiphany as well. the end is very nicely done, and has a moral dilemma that gives you food for thought.

a release that will probably benefit from more than one listen. it's slow to get going, but it's well worth it in the end

Working my way through the back catalogue of Big Finish's "Companion Chronicles" in something approaching their order of release, "Home Truths" was a tale that I couldn't wait to tackle. The preceding twelve releases played it safe, using popular companions to tell traditional, even quite wistful tales that smacked of their respective eras. "Home Truths," conversely, was the first to push the envelope; the first to inflame.

Half of those listening balked at the merest suggestion that ruthless Space Security agent Sara Kingdom was a bona fide companion, "Doctor Who" fans' penchant for pigeon-holing friends and allies into rigid categories having proved something of a divisive sport over the years. And even if she were a 'proper' companion, she died at the end of her only television story, making her recital of an adventure many years after the event a tricky proposition, to say the least.

However, despite - or perhaps even because of - the fences facing, "Home Truths" has to be regarded as a stupendous success in anybody's book. Simon Guerrier's script turns each and every potential pitfall into a boon, making for one of the most original, unsettling and thought-provoking "Companion Chronicles" that I've heard.

For me, the most alluring aspect of this story was the rare opportunity to look beneath the surface of an intriguing companion that I knew precious little about. Whilst I'd watched the surviving episodes of "The Daleks' Master Plan" and listened to the rest, going into "Home Truths" I still didn't feel like I really knew the character. Hell, with just nine episodes under her belt, I was more familiar with the likes of Sabalom Glitz than I was Sara.

Nevertheless Sara has always fascinated me - there is just so much about her that sets her apart from her peers, particularly her fluffy 1960s counterparts. How many companions have been killed on the telly? How many have murdered their brothers? Sara ticks both boxes, and that's just the tip of the iceberg. Guerrier does a tremendous job here of exploring the character's anguish - indeed, as the story progresses it becomes more and more plain that the entire plot is built upon it. I particularly like how Guerrier draws us into Sara's way of thinking, allowing us to see the universe through her black and white, "night constable" eyes, and also how he conveys the pressures and neuroses that come with a career spent putting right what has gone wrong, and seeing only the worst in everybody.

Furthermore, Guerrier's plot is almost as compelling as his superlative characterisation, working on two different levels as the narrative weaves between the two-hand audio drama of the present and the now-customary recounting of the past. Naturally it is the events of the past that form the story's main focus, as Jean Marsh recounts a previously untold adventure featuring the Doctor, Steven and Sara from between their yuletide frolics in "The Feast of Steven," and the resumption of their mission to halt the Daleks' wretched plot in "Volcano." However, the fully dramatised sections work every bit as well as the narration, particularly in the second episode as Robert's true purpose and the final, tantalising line of the blurb - "Hear the old woman's story. Then decide her fate" - are reconciled to agonising effect.

Marsh's voice fits the creepy, claustrophobic tale like a glove, holding my interest through even the story's slowest sections. Director Lisa Bowerman and sound designers Richard Fox and Lauren Yason have also done a superlative job with the post-production, evoking the feel of paranormal television series such as "The Twilight Zone" and "The Outer Limits."

Of course, those reading this review who haven't yet listened to "Home Truths" will no doubt be curious to learn how Sara is able to relate this tale from beyond the grave. Whilst I don't intend to spoil the story's final revelation here, I will say that Guerrier does a truly masterful job of resolving both threads of his "Companion Chronicle" in one fell swoop. "Home Truths"' ending is both effective and intelligent, and it's one that could only have worked so well in this medium. It's not entirely unexpected, I'll concede, but I don't think that it's supposed to be. "Home Truths" isn't about a last-minute swerve - it's about dawning realisations; about the gradual comprehension of home truths.

Altogether then, "Home Truths" is a story that indubitably warrants its soaring reputation. In fact, I enjoyed it so much that I'm tempted to bump up its sequel, "The Drowned World," to pole position on my shopping list. I'd like to see somebody vie that Sara Kingdom isn't a 'proper' companion now...

Originally published on "The History of the Doctor," February 2010. Reproduced with kind permission.

Like a Machen ghost story, this is a note perfect, compact tale that is an absolute joy to listen to. It will want you leaving more Companion Chronicles with Sara Kingdom thanks to the incredibly strong performance by Jean Marsh. The series best of this Big Finish cashflow improver.