Tracking a nexus point in time the Sixth Doctor meets Dr Evelyn Smythe, a history lecturer whose own history seems to be rapidly vanishing.
Tracking a nexus point in time the Sixth Doctor meets Dr Evelyn Smythe, a history lecturer whose own history seems to be rapidly vanishing.
THE MARIAN CONSPIRACY
After the masterpiece that was The Fearmonger, Big Finish marked its next release with a number of firsts: the first audio historical, the first sixth Doctor audio set post-Trial, and the first audio to feature new companion Evelyn Smythe, portrayed by Maggie Stables. Yet unlike most episodes with such extensive lists of content requirements, The Marian Conspiracy works incredibly well, offering a softer characterization for the Doctor and an entertaining historical setting.
This is, without question, the most lighthearted script of BF’s first six releases. From the absolutely hysterical opening scene in Evelyn’s lecture hall to the concluding scenes featuring the salvation of Leaf and Crow, virtually every line is delivered with either an innocent smile or a knowing smirk. Indeed, the plot matches the depth of the dialogue, featuring little more than a typical plot-to-poison-the-Queen seen in a million other historical dramas. The play opens with the Doctor panicking over the impending damage to the space-time continuum, and throughout the play we hear Evelyn drifting in and out of existence as the moment of her change grows nigh. But though this conflict is resolved by the conclusion of the play, no explanation is offered as to why Evelyn’s history has been changed — even if the problems were paradoxically caused by the Doctor and Evelyn traveling back in time in the first place, it would have been nice to receive some sort of explanation.
Furthermore, the tone of the play seems somewhat contradictory. Jovial scenes speculating on the Doctor’s role in Evelyn’s ancestry are counterpointed with deeply dramatic scenes of Queen Mary battling her conscience or sentencing people to their deaths by burning; I appreciate the aim to evoke the comical air of the Hartnell historicals, but Rayner seems to have missed something: not every Hartnell historical was comical. While stories such as The Reign of Terror dealt with serious subject matter, serious airs were never adopted — here, we see material comparable to that of The Massacre of St. Bartholomew’s Eve examined with The Romans-type humor. Scenes featuring the Doctor contemplating his own fallibility, though beautifully written, thus jar with the rest of the play.
Author Jacqueline Rayner’s strength, I gather, lies with characterization, and this is certainly borne out by the audio. Colin Baker headlines the masterful characterization on display here, showing a quiet, contemplative side never seen on television. His relationships with those around him, though argumentative at times, is much more friendly, and his trademark bellowing anger is almost never on display — but yet everything works perfectly. It is apparent that Baker is much more comfortable with this portrayal of the Doctor, and each time I hear him in the role on audio, I find myself regretting that this Doctor was never seen on screen.
The real star of the show, though, is Maggie Stables, bringing Evelyn Smythe to the stage for the first time. It’s all been said before, but the idea to give the sixth Doctor an older companion was a stroke of genius: Evelyn keeps his natural bombast in check while simultaneously allowing him an intellectual foil. Her age adds another wrinkle to the fabric of the plays: this is not a companion capable of fleeing Daleks at high speed, forcing the writers to invent alternate roles for the companion to fulfill. She also has an absolutely sweet personality, reminding the listener of a kindly old grandmother: this is a person with whom it would be a joy to travel.
Other characters are standard historical ciphers: Jez Fielder and Sean Jackson perform an amusing double act as Leaf and Crow, while Nicholas Pegg offers menace and nobility in equal servings as the Rev. Thomas. Barnaby Edwards’ comedy French accent as de Noailles seems inappropriate, however, undercutting an otherwise admirable performance. Anah Ruddin’s Queen Mary is an amazing portrayal, keeping with the Doctor Who tradition of uncharacteristic depictions of historical figures. One wonders, though, if this Mary is perhaps too tolerant — the Doctor is heard to get away with a great deal of flippancy in her presence, for one thing, and I find it hard to believe that she would be quite so lenient with Sarah at the conclusion, even given her pregnancy.
On the production front, The Marian Conspiracy is another success for BF. Gary Russell draws excellent performances from his cast, and Alistair Lock’s sound design is as accomplished as his stellar work on The Fearmonger. The score fits well with the tone of the play, though it illustrates the uneasy mixture of tones, shifting from whimsical to threatening in seconds.
This is the significant problem with The Marian Conspiracy: its shifting tones. The characters are simply too fluffy and the situations simply too grim for the two to mix well, leading to an uncomfortable combination which comes across as greatly unnatural. Despite this flaw, this remains an accomplished play that recharacterizes a contentious Doctor while introducing a new companion with aplomb; had Rayner’s script more firmly decided on which side of the line to fall, it would have been a masterpiece. What was released, though, remains one of the strongest offerings of Big Finish’s early run.
8/10