LIVE 34 (audio story)

This audio is one of several of Big Finish's "experimental" audio stories. Like The Natural History of Fear, it does not follow a conventional narrative or audio story structure. The entirety of the story is made up of news or media broadcasts and while the Doctor does appear in all four episodes, Ace does not appear until the second episode and Hex does not appear until the third.

Publisher's summary[[edit] | [edit source]]

"You're listening to LIVE 34."

"LIVE 34 — news on the hour, every hour — LIVE 34 — broadcasting to Colony 34 all day, every day — LIVE 34 — constantly updated every minute of every hour — LIVE 34 — sport, weather, business, local news, interplanetary affairs — LIVE 34 — live, independent, accurate, comprehensive — LIVE 34 — all news, all day, every day — LIVE 34."

"Reports are coming in of an explosion..."

"On the line now is the leader of the FDP..."

"The President is about to begin his address..."

"We can see bodies in the wreckage..."

Plot[[edit] | [edit source]]

to be added

Cast[[edit] | [edit source]]

Crew[[edit] | [edit source]]

Cover Art - Lee Binding
Director - Gary Russell
Music and Sound Designer - David Darlington
Producers - Gary Russell and Jason Haigh-Ellery
Writer - James Parsons and Andrew Stirling-Brown

Worldbuilding[[edit] | [edit source]]

Individuals[[edit] | [edit source]]

Ace uses stun grenades.

Planets[[edit] | [edit source]]

Wareing tells Ace that Earth was abandoned "centuries ago".
Colony 34 is one of 49 colonies located in a vast solar system with two suns. It has a First, Second and Third City. It has at least two moons. Its day is 25 hours long and there are at least nine months in a year. The colony was founded more than 200 years earlier.

The Doctor's items[[edit] | [edit source]]

The Doctor has a 1952 Vincent Black Lightning motorbike with "improvements" such as automatic transmission and GPS.
The Doctor loans Hex his umbrella, which he uses to protect himself and Charlotte from the rain.

Notes[[edit] | [edit source]]

LIVE 34's story is told in the style of a series of news broadcasts. It takes place over the course of 16 days.
During the "channel surfing" sequences that act as a title sequence, a brief snippet of the Seventh Doctor's theme is heard.
Thematically, this story is the reverse of The Happiness Patrol. This time, instead of following the TARDIS crew as they foment rebellion and topple a tyrant, we see the revolution from the perspective of the innocents on the planet.
Unusually, Ace does not appear until the second episode and Hex does not appear until the third. Besides the Doctor, Drew Shahan is the only character to appear in all four episodes.
This audio and Thicker Than Water were released in the same month, starting a Big Finish tradition of releasing two main range stories each September.
This story is unusual in that it does not feature the TARDIS until the end when it is heard taking off.
This audio drama was recorded on 22 and 24 June 2005 at the Moat Studios.
When Ace talks about setting up the explosion, she says: "I was supposed to blow only the bloody doors." This is a reference to Michael Caine's famous quote from the 1969 film "Italian Job".

Continuity[[edit] | [edit source]]

Ace refers to her younger brother Liam McShane, whom she met for the first time in San Antonio on Ibiza on 14 May 1997. (AUDIO: The Rapture)
Hex once again mentions that he was raised by his grandmother Hilda Schofield. (AUDIO: The Harvest)

External links[[edit] | [edit source]]

Official LIVE 34 page at bigfinish.com
LIVE 34 at the Doctor Who Reference Guide
DisContinuity for LIVE 34 at Tetrapyriarbus - The DisContinuity Guide