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Hidden Persuaders is the third audio play in the Kaldor City series. Written by Jim Smith and Fiona Moore, it follows the attempts of the Church of Taren Capel to commit an act of terrorism to further their cause.
Publisher's summary
"Nothing is yet known of the terrorists' demands, but Security remain poised to act instantaneously on any information received."
Terrorism is on the increase and -- amidst a media frenzy -- hostages are being taken. The Church of Taren Capel are fighting back and nobody in Kaldor City is safe. Who is behind the cult's remarkable success, and what is their next target? Most importantly, when it comes to politics, who really has the most to gain?
Kaldor City - Hidden Persuaders uses characters and concepts from Chris Boucher's Doctor Who novel Corpse Marker to tell a gripping tale of corruption and media manipulation.
Cast
(in order of appearance)
- Landerchild - Peter Miles
- Uvanov - Russell Hunter
- Packard - Nicholas Courtney
- Carnell - Scott Fredericks
- Iago - Paul Darrow
- Justina - Patricia Merrick
- Blayes - Tracy Russell
- Rull - Trevor Cooper
- Cotton - Brian Croucher
- Crane - Jim Smith
- Manzerak - David Bickerstaff
- Paullus - David Collings
- Guido - Robert Lock
- Bextor - Alistair Lock
- Voice - Tony Lang
- Leighton - Mark Thompson
- Caitlion - Alison Taffs
- Corda - Scott Andrews
- Berganza - Alan Stevens
- Damon - Mickey Barnard
- Zala - Jasmine Breaks
- Voc Voices - Bruce McGilligan
References
Individuals
- Iago uses a cover story of his mother dying in order to get time off from Uvanov's employ. She apparently lives alone in Zone 5.
- Guido is the best flierman currently in Uvanov’s employ, he usually pilots flier 372
- Iago isn’t covered by company insurance to pilot a Flier.
- Rull's pay-packet has the following deductions:
- 4% for pension contribution.
- 2% for access to the staff canteen.
- 15% for damages that include vomiting down the back of the main frame computer, various fliers that have been wrecked, a Supervoc he severely damaged.
- 0.5% to the Larson Project. Cotton has the same deduction to the Larson Project. The Finance Department inform Rull they are taking 0.5% funding from everyone’s salaries. Rull has it traced to Firstmaster Landerchild.
- According to Cotton’s file he is an excellent shot and in good physical condition, but hasn’t turned up for work on time in 6 years.
- Iago last met Leighton 3 months ago in Uvanov’s office.
- Leighton is unable to spell the words: “unique”, “revolutionary” and “ambidextrous”.
- Uvanov officially makes Iago his 'Personal Security Consultant'. This includes a pay rise and a flier for his own use.
- The news channel will be speaking with Thrate Corda’s family.
- Diss Pitter died in a flier explosion alongside his longtime companion Cailio Techlan. Pitter’s daughter (Sel Pitter, also known as Padil) was kidnapped by a distant faction four years ago and found dead a year later. He found suggestion that his daughter had been ‘turned’ by her captors profoundly distasteful. Uvanov had Diss Pitter killed, as he considered him a threat.
Objects
- Plasma bullets were not tax deductible. Uvanov agrees to make them tax dedutable from now on.
- There are five 'Z9' explosive packs missing from company stores. Iago plants the explosives on something the size of a Storm Mine.
- Cotton comments on Justina's painting of a red pentagram.
- Manzerak uses a stun kill on its lowest setting.
- A flier is equipped with heat detectors.
- Leighton was inventor of the six-handed multi-tasker, a robot so heavy it fell through the floor.
Kaldor City
- A single day on Kaldor lasts 26 hours.
- Iago has the flierman take him to the middle of Zone 7 and has him land miles away from any settlement.
- Westair Township is situated in Zone 5. Its population is 4523.
- On the front of the letter from Leighton to Uvanov there is a Zone 5 courier stamp.
Oxgenator Four
- Oxygenator Four supplies about 30% of Kaldor City’s additional oxygen requirements. If it is disabled everyone in the eastern sector will find breathing difficult.
- Damon is the security chief.
- Carlo Latca is one of the higher ranking supervisors.
- Berganza is always forgetting his security code into 'Oxgenator Four'. Corda’s security code is 398477. It will open the arms locker containing respirators, stun kills and plasma rifles
- Plasma Rifles are used for perimeter security only as projectile weapons can’t be used inside the building around volatile chemicals.
- The Church of Taren Capel's attack on 'Oxgenator Four' coincides with a security drill.
- The use of firearms is prohibited under subsection 4b of the Health and Safety protocol.
- Soma Gas is used inside 'Oxgenator Four' by security against the terrorists.
- Rull thinks it's the Anti Robot Front who have attacked 'Oxgenator Four'. They are usually responsible for things like that. None of the terrorist groups are security trained.
- The surveillance network has been hacked into the porn channel.
Blind Heart Desert
- A storm mine picked up Taren Capel’s skull a couple of years back in the Blind Heart desert.
- The Tarenists belive Taren Capel walked away free into the Blind Heart Desert, and one day he will return as a god to judge them all.
Tarenists
- The Tarenists are highly dangerous anti robot fundamentalist group operating out of the sewerpits.
- Iago destroyed a tarenist operation known as The Hands of Capel.
- Uvanov received a death threat from 'The Hands of Capel'.
- Blayes has been supplying the Tarenists with technical advice for the past 5 months.
- Whenever Taren Capel's name is mentioned it is followed with “humanity be in him”
- A vocal initialization code used by Blayes is "In the name of the false god, Taren Capel". The robot follows this with “Humanity be in him”.
- Tarenists belive Taren Capel will return.
- Uvanov is using the Tarenists to get rid of his political rivals.
- Uvanov declares 'The War Against Tarenism. As Carnell points out, it has an unfortunate acronym. Uvanov deliberately chose the title in order to give pseudo-sophisticates something to snigger at. It allows them to think that they are smarter than he is.
- Diss Pitter was a strong opponent of social toleration being extended to Tarenists.
- A Tarenist cell known as The Church of Taren Capel has claimed responsibility for the terrorist attacks that have occurred in Kaldor City during the last 3 months.
- Some of the members of the Gentlemen's Oasis, including Landerchild, think 'The Church of Taren Capel' is a front for the human freedom organization.
- Carnell doesn’t have biographs on any members of 'The Church of Taren Capel'.
Allusions
- Voc Robot choristers sing Abide with Me at Diss Pitter’s funeral.
- "You’d shoot an orphan in the face to win a game of musical chairs during a children’s tea party." – Uvanov on Iago.
- "This is real life... not a work of fiction. Real life seldom appears coherent." – Carnell summing up recent events.
Notes
- The title of the story is derived from The Hidden Persuaders by media theorist Vance Packard and is partially an attempt to introduce some of the themes of his work into the series. The reporter, Zala Vance, and the newsreader, Danl Packard, featuring in this story are named after him.[1]
- Writer Jim Smith got the idea for the story, involving oxygen production, during the writing of AUDIO: Occam's Razor:
- "In order to justify a joke we had in the script, Alan and I did some research into rhubarb. The idea was to find a reason why they'd have taken rhubarb to a Colony world. During this ridiculous research, entirely undertaken to justify a line that made us laugh I found out that rhubarb is the second-best oxygen-producing plant there is. That is it converts carbon dioxide into oxygen more efficiently than any plant on Earth except one… so I had this semi-comic idea of all these industrial rhubarb farms on Kaldor producing oxygen. This got me thinking about the idea of air-as-utility like water or gas, and I just thought, 'What would we do if someone turned the oxygen off?' For a while the working title for the script was 'The Rhubarb Conspiracy' - even though there's actually no mention of rhubarb in the finished script."[2]
- A specially recorded audio trailer was released to promote this story taking the form of a short monologue as read in character by Paul Darrow as Iago.[3]
- The copyright notice printed on the CD release of this production states: "Unauthorised copying, hiring, renting, public performance and broadcasting is strictly prohibited or Leighton will sell you a crap robot."
- This story was part of a recording block that also consisted of: AUDIO: Taren Capel, and AUDIO: Checkmate.[4]
- The play reintroduces the character of Poul from TV: The Robots of Death, again played by David Collings, here going under the name of Paullus. The next play confirms it is the same character.
- The CD cover art was designed by Andy Hopkinson.
- The third edition of Mad Norwegian Press' reference work AHistory gives a year of 2890 for the events of this story.
Continuity
- This story opens with an announcement of the deaths of the characters Padil, Diss Pitter, and Cailio Techlan from PROSE: Corpse Marker. In that story, Padil was affiliated with the Tarenists, Diss Pitter was Firstmaster Chairholder of The Company Board, and Cailio Techlan was Uvanov's executive assistant.
- 'Z9' explosives were previously used in TV: The Robots of Death, and by the Doctor to destroy SASV1 in PROSE: Corpse Marker.
- Rull’s investigation into the Larson project pays off in the next audio, AUDIO: Taren Capel.
- Cotton comments on Justina's painting of a red pentagram. It previously featured in AUDIO: Occam's Razor. This is foreshadowing the emergence of the Fendahl. (AUDIO: Checkmate)
- Iago now considers himself to be Uvanov’s 'personal assassin'. In AUDIO: Death's Head Iago considered his title to be 'personal security consultant', whereas Uvanov previously considered him to be his 'personal bodyguard'.
- Iago took a holiday sometime last year, just before he started working for Uvanov. It lasted one day and ended up with the Hotel being burnt down. Uvanov sent in a team of trigger-happy thugs to apprehend Iago. (AUDIO: Occam's Razor)
- The attendant seen at the Gentlemen’s Oasis in AUDIO: Death's Head is revealed here to be an agent for The Church of Taren Capel, named here as Manzerak.
- The existence of Taren Capel's skull is revealed. A fake skull covered in contact poison featured in AUDIO: Death's Head
- There seems to be some confusion as to have long its been since AUDIO: Death's Head.
- Blayes has been supplying the Tarenists with technical advice for the past 5 months. (Uvanov gave instructions for Blayes to be manipulated into becoming their rebel leader at the end of AUDIO: Death's Head.)
- The Tarenists have claimed responsibility for the terrorist attacks that have occurred in Kaldor City during the last 3 months.
- Iago last met Leighton 3 months ago in Uvanov’s office. Who Uvanov mistakes for Hume. (Hume died in Uvanov’s office in AUDIO: Death's Head)