Category: Terry Nation

Survivors Big Finish series two reviews

Work on updating and extending the manuscript of the forthcoming new edition of The End of the World? The Unofficial and Unauthorised Guide to Survivors has been taking priority over the last weeks… but reviews of each of the four episodes of series two of Big Finish’s Survivors audio adventures have now been published on the S:AWA Survivors Big Finish mini-site.

Big Finish - Survivors series two - front cover
Big Finish – Survivors series two – front cover

There are also exclusive series two interviews with Carolyn Seymour, Lucy Fleming, Ian McCulloch and John Banks.

The second series of Survivors audios is available from the Big Finish shop, along with all the other current entries in the range.

Richard Herring and Mark Gatiss (briefly) discuss ‘terrifying’ Survivors

In an October 2014 edition of Richard Herring’s Leicester Square Theatre Podcast, which features guest Mark Gatiss, the pair (briefly) discuss their shared 1970s’ obsession with Terry Nation’s Survivors, with Gatiss recalling his memories of series one episode Corn Dolly, which introduces Denis Lill’s character Charles Vaughan.

It’s gentle and largely dignified, as one would expect from two middle-aged men with colds and bad backs.

Thanks to Andy P for alerting the blog to this.

Big Finish release cover design for Survivors series three audios

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.

Big Finish - Survivors - series three - cover

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

Carolyn Seymour: new Big Finish Survivors interview

A new and exclusive interview with Carolyn Seymour, discussing her work on the series two of Big Finish’s Survivors audio dramas has been published on the Survivors: A World Away Big Finish mini-site. In the interview, Seymour says that Abby is:

still the same. She’s the one who has the tacit leadership quality, this innate leadership quality, that everybody responds to. She still “calling the shots”. She seems to be a little more willing to give it up this time. She seems to be listening to other people more, and isn’t given such complete control as she was before.

The second series of the acclaimed Survivors audios is available from the Big Finish shop, along with all the other current entries in the range.

Carolyn Seymour - Big Finish - Survivors - new interview

Wargames Illustrated: Gaming Survivors

The current issue of Wargames Illustrated magazine (Issue 333, July 2015), contains a four-page illustrated feature by Gary Mitchell which presents “some gaming ideas based upon a very British post-apocalypse world, complete with campaign and scenario ideas and character archetypes still to be found in similar works today.”

Mitchell suggests that Survivors “is gritty, realistic and bleak. It reflects technological meltdown, social collapse, nihilism and the prevailing pessimistic view of the future.” To explore the many gaming conflicts this scenario offers, Mitchell has designed “a campaign for a number of players. Although based upon the UK, Survivors could easily be adapted for any post-apocalyptic situation”.

The resulting game outline is not based on the characters or plotlines of Terry Nation’s original conception of Survivors, but draws inspiration from its setting. Those familiar with the culture and practices of wargaming will be able to distill the gaming opportunities outlined by Mitchell.

Wargames Illustrated: Gaming Survivors

Big Finish to release Survivors series two audios on 2 June 2015

Audio-drama specialists Big Finish have announced that series two of the acclaimed Survivors audio-adventures will be released (on CD and through digital download) on 2 June 2015.

Survivors – Series 2 is being released by Big Finish on June 2nd on both CD and Download, ahead of being released anywhere else in the world:

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…

1: Dark Rain by Ken Bentley. Introducing: Tim Treloar as Russell, Bernard Holley as Ridley Months after the plague, storms batter the country. As Abby resumes the search for her son, Jackie and Daniel fight for their lives.

2: Mother’s Courage by Louise Jameson. Introducing: Fiona Sheehan as Molly The search for Peter leads to Aberystwyth, and a community of women who have cut themselves off from the outside world. But what appears to be a safe haven could be nothing of the sort…

3: The Hunted by Ken Bentley. Introducing: Tim Bentinck as Irvin Warner Greg, Daniel and Russell need the help of survivalist Irvin Warner, who is hiding out in the Brecon Beacons. But predators are roaming in the barren countryside too…

4: Savages by Matt Fitton. Wounded, split apart and fighting for their lives, the survivors discover that survival isn’t everything…

Survivors – Series 2 is still available at the pre-order price of £25 (CD) and £20 (Download). A further three series have been announced, all of which are at the same pre-order prices.

Already available is our award-nominated first series of Survivors, and star Carolyn Seymour's haunting audiobook reading of Terry Nation's original novel.

Countdown to the release of series two of Big Finish's Survivors audios

Survivors – The Fourth Horseman – broadcast forty years ago today

Today (16 April 2015) is the fortieth anniversary of the original broadcast of “The Fourth Horseman” (the opening episode of the first series of Survivors). The first ever episode of Survivors was shown at 20:10 on Wednesday 16 April 1975 on BBC 1, and was seen by just over 7m viewers. “The Fourth Horseman” was written by Survivors‘ creator Terry Nation, directed by Pennant Roberts, and introduced the characters of Abby Grant (Carolyn Seymour) and Jenny Richards (Lucy Fleming) – the character of Greg Preston (Ian McCulloch) was introduced in the second episode (“Genesis”).

In The End of the World? The Unofficial and Unauthorised Guide to Survivors, the authors introduce their review of the episode as follows:

“The Fourth Horseman” must rank as one of Terry Nation’s finest single scripts, and sets an incredibly high standard for the drama that will follow. The opening episode of a new drama series imposes multiple challenges for the television writer: the series’ premise must be established; key characters introduced; and audience interest in the fate of the programme’s central characters secured. In the case of Survivors, Nation is required to achieve all that, whilst at the same time evoking a plausible picture of a global catastrophe using only the personal experiences of a few disparate individuals. In doing so, as Anthony Brown observed in DWB in 1993, he ‘avoids all the clichés of disaster fiction.’

The Fourth Horseman - titles

The Fourth Horseman - Abby Grant

The Fourth Horseman - Jenny Richards

Big Finish release Terry Nation’s Survivors audio-book today

Today (11 December 2014) Big Finish release the audio-book version of Terry Nation’s 1976 Survivors novel, voiced by none other than Carolyn Seymour (the original series’ Abby Grant). The audio is available to buy in both digital download and CD formats.

Carolyn Seymour’s chilling reading of Terry Nation’s Survivors novel is out today…

Big Finish are delighted to announce today’s release of Survivors by Terry Nation, a reading by TV series star Carolyn Seymour:

A deadly virus spreads across the world as quickly as the passenger jets that encircle it. Within weeks, most of the global population is dead.

The human race is thrown back into the dark ages. The few left alive must rely on the most basic skills to survive one day to the next.

Abby Grant ventures out into a strange new England, her husband dead, the fate of her son unknown. Jenny Richards flees London. Engineer Greg Preston arrives from abroad. Desperate lone travellers come together, their instinct to form a community, even if that means rebuilding civilisation from scratch. But not all who are left have such high ideals…

And while she has the chance of a new beginning, Abby cannot settle until she knows the truth. Has her son survived?

Survivors by Terry Nation is out today on CD or Download at the pre-order price until 1 January 2015. The next title in our award-nominated Survivors range is Survivors Series 2 in June 2015, with the acclaimed Survivors Series 1 released last June…

Survivors - Terry Nation - Big Finish - audiobook
Survivors – Terry Nation – Big Finish – audiobook

Big Finish confirm release of Survivors novel audio-book

Audio-drama specialists Big Finish have confirmed their intention to release an audio-book version of Terry Nation’s 1976 Survivors novel, to be read by Carolyn Seymour (Abby Grant). Survivors: Audiobook of Novel will be released as a 6-disc CD set and as a digital download. Both formats are available for pre-order, and will be released in December 2014.

Carolyn Seymour – star of BBC’s popular Survivors series – was in the UK last weekend for Big Finish Day 5 – and it’s been announced what else she was working on while here…

Big Finish are pleased to announce a release of the Survivors novel, written by series creator Terry Nation in 1976. Out in December it will be read by Carolyn Seymour – Abby Grant in the 1975 series, a role she reprised in a special appearance in Big Finish’s first Survivors release in June:

A deadly virus spreads across the world as quickly as the passenger jets that encircle it. Within weeks, most of the global population is dead.

The human race is thrown back into the dark ages. The few left alive must rely on the most basic skills to survive one day to the next.

Abby Grant ventures out into a strange new England, her husband dead, the fate of her son unknown. Jenny Richards flees London. Engineer Greg Preston arrives from abroad. Desperate lone travellers come together, their instinct to form a community, even if that means rebuilding civilisation from scratch. But not all who are left have such high ideals…

And while she has the chance of a new beginning, Abby cannot settle until she knows the truth. Has her son survived?

Survivors: Audiobook of Novel is available as a Download or 6-disc CD set, at a special pre-order price held until the end of December.

Survivors - audio book of Terry Nation's novel

Kasterborous: “Big Finish to release Nation Survivors novel as audio-book”

In its report on the Big Finish Day 5 Convention the Kasterborous web site reports that Big Finish will be releasing an audio-book version of Terry Nation’s 1976 Survivors novel (in addition to the already-announced three series of original Survivors audio-dramas, the first series of which was released in the summer).

In its list of ‘things we learned’ from the Big Finish Day 5, the Kasterborous site suggests:

Big Finish will be releasing an audio book of Terry Nation’s Survivors novel.

Big Finish confirmed the news on 16 September 2014.