Survivors: A World Away – news
The classic 1975-1977 post-apocalyptic BBC TV series Survivors
Big Finish have today (9 June 2016) released the fourth series of original Survivors audio dramas. Series four serves up four new stories from writers Ken Bentley, Louise Jameson, Christopher Hatherall and Matt Fitton, and features, amongst a full cast, Ian McCulloch (Greg Preston), Lucy Fleming (Jenny Richards), Louise Jameson (Jackie Burchall), Zoë Tapper (Evelyn Piper) and Ramon Tikaram (Theo).
Listen to the series four trailer:
The imminent release of the fourth series of original Big Finish Survivors audio adventures is covered in a four-page, full-colour feature in the latest issue of the free-to-download Vortex magazine (No 88). In the article, script editor and script writer Matt Fitton reflects:
Survivors is one of the hardest things to do, because it is rooted in the real world and deals with tough issues. You get to ask very moral questions. At the same time, it’s also one of the most rewarding series to work on. It’s always a thrill to go back to the world of Survivors
Kenny Smith. 2016. ‘Begin Again’, Vortex, No 88, pp.12-15. https://www.bigfinish.com/vortex/v/88
Big Finish have published the slipcase cover artwork for the fifth series of Survivors audio adventures, which will be released (in CD and digital download formats) in November 2016.
As well as images of Jenny Richards (Lucy Fleming), Greg Preston (Ian McCulloch) and new character Carol Baker (Neve McIntosh), the series five cover will be the first to feature Abby Grant (Carolyn Seymour).
Series five of Survivors audios can be pre-ordered from the Big Finish site. Series four of Survivors audio adventures will be released later this month, and remains available for pre-order (alongside the previous three series and the Survivors audio-book).
Following the success of its first run, a new season of original dramas (and selected repeats) begins on BBC Radio 4 today (22 May 2016) on the theme of Dangerous Visions: ‘uneasy reflections of the future’. The season, which run until mid-June, includes dramas with dystopian, utopian and post-apocalyptic settings.
Original highlights include: a new version of John Wyndham’s The Kraken Awakes, a contemporary reimagining of William Morris’ utopian classic News from Nowhere, a two-part adaptation of Aldous Huxley’s chilling dystopian vision Brave New World, and a set of four new short dramas under the title Dark Vignettes.
Dramas being repeated under the Dangerous Visions rubric include: Jane Rogers’ The Testament of Jessie Lamb, Graham White’s adaptation of J G Ballard’s The Drowned World, and Nick Perry’s London Bridge.
See the BBC Radio 4 website for full details of all programmes in the Dangerous Visions season; where there’s also the chance to play the Am I Living in a Post-Apocalyptic Dystopian Hinterland? quiz.
Audio drama specialists have revealed the cover artwork for the fourth series of original Survivors audio dramas to be released (in CD and digital download formats) in June 2016.
For the first time in the Big Finish Survivors series, this series’ cover features characters from the original TV series – Jenny Richards (Lucy Fleming) and Greg Preston (Ian McCulloch) – who are featured alongside new characters government official Evelyn Piper (Zoë Tapper) and settlement leader Theo (Ramon Tikaram).
Series four will be released in June 2016, and is available for pre-order on the Big Finish site. The first three series of Survivors audios are still available for purchase, alongside the audiobook version of Terry Nation’s 1976 Survivors novel. Series five will be released in November 2016.
This weekend (23-24 January 2016) audio-drama specialists Big Finish are offering ‘Apocalypse Now’ special deals on the whole of the current Survivors range and the Night of the Triffids audio adaptation. If you’ve yet to experience the wonder of these post-apocalyptic audio adventures, this weekend is the ideal time to become fully immersed and bag a bargain in the process! But be aware that the ‘end is nigh’: the special offers end at 12noon on Monday 25 January 2016.
This weekend you can enjoy special savings on the end of the world, with offers on our favourite apocalypses…
Until noon Monday January 25th, you can pick up some dark tales after the fall of humanity with our Apocalypse Now offers. We start the weekend with the award-nominated Survivors: Series 1, our continuation of Terry Nation's cult BBC TV series.
Starring Lucy Fleming, Ian McCulloch, John Banks, Louise Jameson, Chase Masterson and Sinead Keenan, this terrifying box-set takes place in and around the original TV series, which chronicled a deadly plague wiping out most human life on Earth. With people forced to make terrible sacrifices in order to survive, can mankind start again?
Featuring stories written by Matt Fitton, Jonathan Morris, Andrew Smith and John Dorney, you can buy Survivors: Series 1 today for just £15 on CD, or £12 to download. And remember, when you choose to buy this release on CD directly from Big Finish, you will also unlock instant access to a digital copy for download.
Also available is our audiobook reading of Terry Nation's original novel, read by series star Carolyn Seymour. Adapting and expanding on the first series of TV episodes, you can own this today for just £10 on both CD or to download.
Finally we go from one cult apocalypse to another, with a full-cast adaptation of The Night of the Triffids by Simon Clark. A sequel to John Wyndham's classic horror The Day of the Triffids, this double-disc CD story stars Sam Troughton and Nicola Bryant, surviving on the Isle of Wight while the carnivorous and semi-intelligent Triffids continue to engulf the mainland. You can buy and download the story today for just £5 on both CD and to download.
All three titles can also be picked up as part of our Apocalypse Bundles – which also contain Survivors Series 2 and Series 3, together at a reduced price of just £85 on CD or £75 to download. But hurry, the special prices must end noon Monday 25th January.
(Or at the end of the world. Whichever comes first…)
Scheduled for release in June 2016, Big Finish have today (2 December) confirmed the episode titles, summaries and scriptwriters for the four episodes of the fourth series of Survivors audio adventures.
Based on Terry Nation’s cult post-apocalyptic drama, Survivors: Series 4 presents a quartet of new stories from the world of the original television programme.
After the harrowing events of Survivors: Series 3, the new series finds Greg (Ian McCulloch) and Jenny (Lucy Fleming) out on the road, reaching out to other survivors on behalf of the Whitecross Community. Their journey will bring them back into contact with Jackie (Louise Jameson) and Molly (Fiona Sheehan) – and a new community headed by Theo, an inspirational leader played by Ramon Tikaram (UNIT: The New Series, The Prisoner, Happy Valley).
‘I’m delighted that the first three series met with such acclaim,’ says producer David Richardson, ‘and I’m very excited by the new story lines that script editor Matt Fitton and his team of writers have been spinning. There are plenty of shocking twists and turns yet to come…’
Survivors: Series 4 comprises four full-cast dramas, and also features bonus behind-the-scenes interviews with cast and crew.
4.1 The Old Ways by Ken Bentley
The Government has plans for a national state of emergency. But when Evelyn Piper and her colleagues shelter in the Tartarus bunker, they discover no amount of planning can prepare for the reality of the Death…
4.2 For the Good of the Cause by Louise Jameson
One old friend calls on Greg and Jenny to look after another. Together, they visit a utopian community where the inspirational Theo seems to have founded the perfect way of life…
4.3 Collision by Christopher Hatherall
When the old world collides with the new, casualties are unavoidable. While Greg and Theo work together for the future, Jenny tries to save lives – with the help of a troubled young man called Michael…
4.4 Forgive and Forget by Matt Fitton
As long-buried crimes surface, resentment and recrimination threaten to destroy the peace of the Foundation. Jenny, Jackie and Molly have their own trials to bear, and Greg confronts the truth of this new world head on. For some, nothing will ever be the same…
Survivors: Series 4 is due for release in June 2016, with Series 5 following in November 2016. Both series can be pre-ordered today for just £25 each on CD, or £20 to download. And remember, when you choose to buy this release on CD directly from Big Finish, you will also unlock instant access to a digital copy for download.
Big Finish have just released the much-anticipated third series of Survivors audio adventures! The new four-part series is available to buy in both digital download and CD formats.
We’ll be posting interviews with cast and crew and reviews of all four episodes on the Survivors: Big Finish mini-site shortly!
The battle for survival continues. the third box set based on the cult television series is available now…
It begins with just a few people falling ill. Another flu virus that spreads around the globe. And then the reports begin that people are dying…
When most of the world's population is wiped out, a handful of survivors are left to pick up the pieces.
Cities become graveyards. Technology becomes largely obsolete. Mankind must start again…
Big Finish’s third box set based on Terry Nation‘s classic post-apocalyptic series, Survivors: Series 3 presents four new stories from the world of the original television programme.
Beginning in the early days of the plague, before focusing on the survivors of a decaying London, these new plays promise to be some of the most terrifying stories Big Finish has ever produced, as we again ask the question – how far would you go to survive?
1: Cabin Fever by Jonathan Morris
After weeks of searching for her son across a devastated Britain, Abby Grant and her allies head into London in pursuit of new leads. One of the party is quarantined, holed up with a fever. They remember the very first days of the Death, and the actions of a man called John Vincent…
2: Contact by Simon Clark
A lonely voice on the radio calls out across the ether. Maddie Price is a long way from home, but not yet ready to give up hope.
3: Rescue by Andrew Smith
When his friends' lives hang in the balance hundreds of feet above London, Jimmy Garland leads a daring rescue mission into the capital.
4: Leaving by Matt Fitton
Down on the coast, plans are being made to reach out across the world. It could mean a new beginning for some, and the long-awaited chance to return home for others.
Big Finish proudly present Carolyn Seymour, Richard Heffer, Chase Masterson, John Banks, Fiona Sheehan, Andrew French, Paul Thornley, Damian Lynch, Miranda Raison, Lisa Bowerman, Christopher Hatherall, James Joyce, Louisa Clein and John Voce in Survivors: Series 3 – available to buy and download today.
(Please note – Survivors contains adult material and is not suitable for younger listeners).
The first two series of Survivors are still available to order now – with the first episode of the award-nominated Survivors: Series 1 now online to download for free. An audiobook reading of Terry Nation's original novel is also available, performed by Carolyn Seymour. As with all Big Finish website CD purchases, where possible a download copy is instantly and exclusively available upon buying.
The battle for survival will continue in 2016 with Survivors: Series 4 and Series 5, available to pre-order now.
Audio drama company Big Finish have published the cover artwork for the third series of Survivors audio adventures scheduled for release in November 2015 (and available for pre-order).
The design features the characters (l-r) of Daniel Connor (John Banks), Maddie Price (Chase Masterson), Molly (Fiona Sheehan) and Vinnie Vincent (Paul Thornley), and the background shows the iconic image of London’s Post Office Tower.
A list of published credits for series three has also been extended:
Written By: Jonathan Morris, Simon Clark, Andrew Smith, Matt Fitton
Directed By: Ken Bentley
Cast: Carolyn Seymour (Abby Grant), Richard Heffer (Jimmy Garland), Chase Masterson (Maddie Price), John Banks (Daniel Conner), Fiona Sheehan (Molly), Andrew French (Dalton Roberts), Paul Thornley (John Vincent), Damian Lynch (Marcus), Miranda Raison (Janet), Lisa Bowerman (Gloria), Christopher Hatherall (Tyler), James Joyce (Jonathon), Louisa Clein (Pam), John Voce (Walter)
Producer David Richardson | Script Editor Matt Fitton | Executive Producers Jason Haigh-Ellery and Nicholas Briggs
A new interview with John Banks (Daniel Connor) discussing his work on the second series of Big Finish Survivors audio dramas has now been added to the Survivors: A World Away Big Finish mini-site. In the interview Banks expresses his delight at the reception of the first series:
I’ve looked on the Big Finish forum and at other places and seen some of the things that people have said about it – and that’s been fantastic. And, obviously, new series have been commissioned – so we must be doing something right. It certainly gives you confidence going in; knowing that there is an audience who are wanting things to continue and to find out what will become of these characters.
The second series of Survivors audios is available from the Big Finish shop, along with all the other current entries in the range.
