Immortal Beloved (Doctor Who audio)
Encyclopedia
Immortal Beloved is an audio drama based on the long-running British
science fiction television
series Doctor Who
. This audio drama was produced by Big Finish Productions
and was broadcast on BBC 7
on 21 January 2007.
land the TARDIS
next to a cliff in what appears to be ancient Greece
. Two star-crossed lovers, Kalkin and Sararti, have been preparing to kill themselves nearby, but the Doctor and Lucie prevent this, and soon anachronistic helicopters surround them all. One of the soldiers who disembark, General Ares, is gravely injured in the ensuing struggle. The Doctor just about saves his life and he, Lucie, Sararti and Kalkin are taken back to a grand palace, where to their horror they witness the ailing Ares' mind being transferred into the body of another man, one of the soldiers, who has expected this and is entirely willing to so sacrifice himself to his 'destiny'. The Doctor confronts Zeus
, the autocratic ruler of this strange society where guns are labelled as magic wands and the hi-tech mind-transfer device is an 'incarnation chamber'. Zeus admits that he is not really a god, and reveals that they are on a lost Earth colony planet in Lucie's distant future. Generations ago, he and his wife Hera, along with many others, some now long gone, landed here and he has gone on to create a society based upon Greek myth. He explains that he was the pilot of the original colony ship, and Kalkin is not his son, but his next-in-line clone
, who has rebelled against his fate. (The next clone after that, Ganymede, is by contrast committed to his cruel destiny, but is too young for a transfer.) The ruling class, the remains of the original crew – the 'gods' – use their machine, which the Doctor insists has long been outlawed as an abomination – to transfer their minds periodically into their clones, giving them practical immortality. Zeus has appeared welcoming, but lusts after Lucie despite insisting that he and Hera have a thousand-year-old love. He reveals himself to be a madman, and demands that the Doctor use the TARDIS to fetch parts to repair the immortality machine, as it has become worn out and they are now without space-travel capabilities. The Doctor very reluctantly agrees after Zeus threatens to hurt Lucie – even to clone her repeatedly and torture each Lucie to death for all eternity. When Hera suffers a heart attack, her mind transfer into the unwilling Sararti fails, leaving Sararti in control of her body. Pretending all is well, she suddenly stabs Zeus, so that he requires an immediate transfer into Kalkin's body. The Doctor appears to go along with this under pressure from Ares and the loyal soldiers, but ensures that it fails. Though Lucie and Sararti at first fail to appreciate this ruse, the Doctor and the new Zeus – Kalkin, of course – convince them that the lovers can secretly take on his and Hera's roles. They insist that they will stop using the machine as the Doctor and Lucie take their leave. Lucie is optimistic, but the Doctor reminds her that these two are essentially younger versions of the tyrannical pair they have helped to overthrow...
. The crew of a generational spaceship posing as gods using high-tech science masquerading as god-like powers and maintaining 'immortality' by migrating minds between bodies. By way of homage, the name of the character Kalkin is a reference to one of the names given to the central protagonist in Zelazny's novel.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
science fiction television
Science fiction on television
Science fiction first appeared on a television program during the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary world not limited by the constraints of reality; this makes television an excellent medium...
series Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
. This audio drama was produced by Big Finish Productions
Big Finish Productions
Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays based, primarily, on cult British science fiction properties...
and was broadcast on BBC 7
BBC 7
BBC Radio 4 Extra, formerly known as BBC 7 and BBC Radio 7, is a British digital radio station broadcasting comedy, drama, and children's programming nationally 24 hours a day. It is the principal broadcasting outlet for the BBC's archive of spoken-word entertainment...
on 21 January 2007.
Plot
The Doctor and Lucie MillerLucie Miller
Lucie Miller is a character in a series of audio plays produced by Big Finish Productions for BBC7 based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
land the TARDIS
TARDIS
The TARDISGenerally, TARDIS is written in all upper case letters—this convention was popularised by the Target novelisations of the 1970s...
next to a cliff in what appears to be ancient Greece
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
. Two star-crossed lovers, Kalkin and Sararti, have been preparing to kill themselves nearby, but the Doctor and Lucie prevent this, and soon anachronistic helicopters surround them all. One of the soldiers who disembark, General Ares, is gravely injured in the ensuing struggle. The Doctor just about saves his life and he, Lucie, Sararti and Kalkin are taken back to a grand palace, where to their horror they witness the ailing Ares' mind being transferred into the body of another man, one of the soldiers, who has expected this and is entirely willing to so sacrifice himself to his 'destiny'. The Doctor confronts Zeus
Zeus
In the ancient Greek religion, Zeus was the "Father of Gods and men" who ruled the Olympians of Mount Olympus as a father ruled the family. He was the god of sky and thunder in Greek mythology. His Roman counterpart is Jupiter and his Etruscan counterpart is Tinia.Zeus was the child of Cronus...
, the autocratic ruler of this strange society where guns are labelled as magic wands and the hi-tech mind-transfer device is an 'incarnation chamber'. Zeus admits that he is not really a god, and reveals that they are on a lost Earth colony planet in Lucie's distant future. Generations ago, he and his wife Hera, along with many others, some now long gone, landed here and he has gone on to create a society based upon Greek myth. He explains that he was the pilot of the original colony ship, and Kalkin is not his son, but his next-in-line clone
Cloning
Cloning in biology is the process of producing similar populations of genetically identical individuals that occurs in nature when organisms such as bacteria, insects or plants reproduce asexually. Cloning in biotechnology refers to processes used to create copies of DNA fragments , cells , or...
, who has rebelled against his fate. (The next clone after that, Ganymede, is by contrast committed to his cruel destiny, but is too young for a transfer.) The ruling class, the remains of the original crew – the 'gods' – use their machine, which the Doctor insists has long been outlawed as an abomination – to transfer their minds periodically into their clones, giving them practical immortality. Zeus has appeared welcoming, but lusts after Lucie despite insisting that he and Hera have a thousand-year-old love. He reveals himself to be a madman, and demands that the Doctor use the TARDIS to fetch parts to repair the immortality machine, as it has become worn out and they are now without space-travel capabilities. The Doctor very reluctantly agrees after Zeus threatens to hurt Lucie – even to clone her repeatedly and torture each Lucie to death for all eternity. When Hera suffers a heart attack, her mind transfer into the unwilling Sararti fails, leaving Sararti in control of her body. Pretending all is well, she suddenly stabs Zeus, so that he requires an immediate transfer into Kalkin's body. The Doctor appears to go along with this under pressure from Ares and the loyal soldiers, but ensures that it fails. Though Lucie and Sararti at first fail to appreciate this ruse, the Doctor and the new Zeus – Kalkin, of course – convince them that the lovers can secretly take on his and Hera's roles. They insist that they will stop using the machine as the Doctor and Lucie take their leave. Lucie is optimistic, but the Doctor reminds her that these two are essentially younger versions of the tyrannical pair they have helped to overthrow...
Cast
- The DoctorDoctor (Doctor Who)The Doctor is the central character in the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who, and has also featured in two cinema feature films, a vast range of spin-off novels, audio dramas and comic strips connected to the series....
— Paul McGannPaul McGannPaul McGann is an English actor who made his name on the BBC serial The Monocled Mutineer, in which he played the lead role... - Lucie MillerLucie MillerLucie Miller is a character in a series of audio plays produced by Big Finish Productions for BBC7 based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
— Sheridan SmithSheridan SmithSheridan Smith is an English actress and singer who is best known for her contributions to the British sitcoms Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps, Gavin & Stacey and Benidorm. She has also become a recognised face in West End theatre, where she has appeared in Little Shop of Horrors,... - Zeus — Ian McNeiceIan McNeiceIan McNeice is a prolific English screen, stage, and television character actor.-Early life:McNeice was born in Basingstoke in Hampshire. McNeice's acting training started at the Taunton School in Somerset, followed by two years at the Salisbury Playhouse...
- Hera — Elspet GrayElspet GrayElspeth Jean Gray, Baroness Rix is a Scottish actress, known for her work on British television in the 1970s and '80s...
- Kalkin — Anthony Spargo
- Sararti — Jennifer HighamJennifer HighamJennifer Higham is a British actress who has played numerous roles in theatre, television and film.Higham attended Misbourne School in Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire...
- Tayden/Ares — David Dobson
- Ganymede — Jake McGannJake McGannJake McGann is an English actor. He is the second and younger son of actor Paul McGann and Annie Milner. He has an elder brother, Joseph , born in 1988...
Production and casting
- Ian McNiece would later play Winston ChurchillWinston ChurchillSir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
in the revived series episodes The Beast BelowThe Beast Below"The Beast Below" is the second episode of the fifth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was written by showrunner Steven Moffat and broadcast on BBC One and BBC HD on 10 April 2010....
, Victory of the DaleksVictory of the Daleks"Victory of the Daleks" is the third episode in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It is written by Mark Gatiss and first broadcast on BBC One on 17 April 2010....
and The Pandorica OpensThe Pandorica Opens"The Pandorica Opens" is the twelfth episode, and first in a two-part story, in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who, broadcast on 19 June 2010. The Doctor's friends send him a warning; he deals with a message on a cliff, a mysterious box and a love story that...
in 2010.
Influences
Immortal Beloved has clearly been inspired by Roger Zelazny's Hugo Award-winning novel Lord of LightLord of Light
Lord of Light is an epic science fiction/fantasy novel by American author Roger Zelazny. It was awarded the 1968 Hugo Award for Best Novel, and nominated for a Nebula Award in the same category. Two chapters from the novel were published as novelettes in the Magazine of Fantasy and Science...
. The crew of a generational spaceship posing as gods using high-tech science masquerading as god-like powers and maintaining 'immortality' by migrating minds between bodies. By way of homage, the name of the character Kalkin is a reference to one of the names given to the central protagonist in Zelazny's novel.
Trivia
- Elspet Gray previously appeared in the Doctor Who television story Arc of InfinityArc of InfinityArc of Infinity is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four twice-weekly parts from 3 January to 12 January 1983...
as Time Lady Thalia. - Jake McGann (Ganymede) is Paul McGann's son, and this was his first acting role. He returns in An Earthly ChildAn Earthly ChildAn Earthly Child is a Big Finish Productions audiobook based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It is free to those whose subscription includes Plague of the Daleks.-Plot:...
and Relative DimensionsRelative DimensionsRelative Dimensions is an audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. This audio drama was produced by Big Finish Productions.-Plot:...
, where he plays Alex Campbell, Susan'sSusan ForemanSusan Foreman is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. The granddaughter and original companion of the First Doctor, she was played by actress Carole Ann Ford from 1963 to 1964, in the show's first season and the first two stories of the second season...
son and the Doctor's great grandson. - Paul McGann, Sheridan Smith and Ian McNeice would all later appear together again in the Jonathan CreekJonathan CreekJonathan Creek is a British mystery series produced by the BBC and written by David Renwick. Primarily a crime drama, the show is also peppered with broadly comic touches...
episode "The Judas TreeThe Judas Tree (Jonathan Creek)"The Judas Tree" is the twenty-seventh episode of the British crime drama series Jonathan Creek. The feature-length episode was written and directed by series creator David Renwick, and premiered on BBC One on 4 April 2010...
".