Bang-Bang-a-Boom!

An astonishing display…

Really?

…of leaping to hasty conclusions.

The Seventh Doctor and Melanie Bush

Synopsis

Dark Space 8 – an advanced monitoring station floating serenely among the stars. Its crew – a dedicated and highly-skilled group of professionals, calmly going about their vital work. Its mission – to boldly host the Intergalactic Song Contest.

With representatives from myriad worlds competing, the eyes of the universe are on the station. But dark deeds are afoot aboard Dark Space 8… and people are starting to die.

The haughty Queen Angvia, the gaseous gestalt Gholos, disposable pop idol Nicky Neumann, erratic Professor Fassbinder and the icily-efficient Dr Helena Harcourt ­ all are suspects. Could old political rivalries be manifesting themselves among the contestants? Is this the work of a breakaway terrorist faction? Or has someone just got it in for singer-songwriters?

With peace in the galaxy hanging by a thread, it’s vital that the mystery is solved ­ and fast! Can Dark Space 8’s unconventional new commander, with the help of his personal pilot, Mel, find the murderer in time to prevent a major intergalactic war?

Or will it be nul points for the entire universe…?

Review

Bang-Bang-a-Boom! is definitely on the lighter side of the Doctor Who spectrum. It is a parody of the Eurovision Song Contest, Star Trek and Space 1999. Whilst I have watched the first two, I’m less familiar with the third, so any direct references to that flew right over my head.

Given that, the tone is humorous and camp, especially when it comes to the Intergalactic Song Contest, but I felt that this undermined both the whodunit plot at the heart of this story and the wider story about the peace talks between Golos and Angvian Empire. We are told that these talks between neighbouring empires is important to prevent all-consuming war, and there is hostility between Gholos and Angvia on Dark Space 8, and the peace talks are important enough to set up a decoy event. That’s something that the tone struggled to convey effectively to me. The comedic tone also started to grate by the use of the repeated dramatic sting the story insists on using on the discovery of another corpse. Whilst it may have raised a wry smile on first use, it is extremely wearing by the time that you get to the perceived and actual death of Fassbinder. Another element that I did not feel worked well was Logan, a reference to Terry Wogan, who for many is the definitive Eurovision commentator. Roberts and Hickman’s script never really truly delivers the same level of barbs that Wogan would deliver. Listening to this story in 2024, this character feels like an odd inclusion. Modern Who does feature real life references and people, which does age poorly, but is arguably there to engage the casual viewer, whilst Big Finish is a niche where the casual listener almost doesn’t exist, as consumers have to make a conscious decision to consume their audio dramas. I am of an age to remember Terry Wogan on Eurovision, but those who are only a few years younger than me will have grown up only knowing Graham Norton playing that role.

There are some good ideas at the heart of Bang-Bang-a-Boom! but unfortunately, they do get bogged down in the difficulties with the tone. The murder mystery is solid enough, and the ultimate motives behind Loozly are quite serious – arguably coming from out of left field. I quite liked the idea of this seemingly silly event and the competitors unknowingly being used as delegates for the peace talks, which take place telepathically. Unfortunately, I don’t think Roberts and Hickman are really interested in those ideas though.

The story takes a rather unjustifiable snobby stance towards Star Trek, and the tone is rather ill-tempered. At the time this story was written and produced, Nemesis was about to come out in cinemas and Enterprise was on television, which may explain why Dark Space 8 is shown to be falling apart, but it does strike me as odd to parody a successful franchise in this way, especially considering that Doctor Who had been on hiatus for around 13 years. The crew of Dark Space 8 are portrayed as being flawed and incompetent. These are Doctor Harcourt, played by Sabina Franklyn, and Professor Fassbinder, played by Graeme Garden, and both are pretty forgettable roles and get lost in the story at points. This was disappointing for me, as I grew up listening to Garden on I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue, so was delighted to see him in this, but the role does him little favours. The score also evokes Star Trek, but does little more than make overt reference to it.

This story feels as though it is not suited to the Seventh Doctor, and may have been better suited to his predecessor. McCoy does give this his all, but save for a few moments does feel a bit uncertain. Sometimes this is intentional, like in his scenes with the over the top Angvia, played by Patricia Quinn, but otherwise he and his Doctor feel like an uncomfortable fit for this story. Whilst it is clearly designed to be a story for the Season 24 Doctor, complete with mixed up proverbs, this story feels like a step too far for a younger Doctor. Bonnie Langford does shine though as Mel, who investigates whilst the Doctor is busy acting as the Commander, and forming a nice bond with Nicky Newman, Earth’s entry for the contest.

Verdict: A promising idea bogged down in unfunny parody, Bang-Bang-a-Boom is messy in the extreme. 2/10

Cast: Sylvester McCoy (The Doctor), Bonnie Langford (Melanie Bush), Sabina Franklyn (Dr Eleanor Harcourt), Graeme Garden (Professor Ivor Fassbinder), Vidar Magnussen (Lieutenant Strindberg), Nickolas Grace (Loozly), Patricia Quinn (Angvia), Anthony Spargo (Nicky Newman), Jane Goddard (Geri/Cyrene), David Tughan (Logan), Gareth Jenkins (News anchorman), Barnaby Edwards (Robot waiter/Tannoy voice), Nicholas Pegg (Ice Warrior juror/Announcer), Gareth Jenkins and Andy Hardwick (The Breebles) and Nicholas Briggs (Continuity announcer).

Writer: Gareth Roberts and Clayton Hickman

Director: Nicholas Pegg

Music by: Andy Hardwick and Gary Jenkins

Parts: 4

Release Date: 19 December 2002

Monthly Range Release Number: 39

Behind the Scenes

• The title is a play on Lulu’s Eurovision winning song Boom-Bang-A-Bang. The story is a parody of the Eurovision Song Contest and, in the character of Logan parodies long-standing commentator Terry Wogan.
• This is the first Big Finish story to feature the period-correct version of the theme tune.

Cast Notes

• Sabina Franklyn also played Wanda Rothman in Situation Vacant (The Eighth Doctor Adventures) and multiple roles, including President Beel, in Judoon in Chains (Classic Doctors, New Monsters).
• Graeme Garden would go on to play a new incarnation of the Monk for Big Finish in the Eighth Doctor Adventures, and would also appear in Max Warp.
• Vidar Magnussen played Professor Harket in Project: Lazarus.
• Nickolas Grace played Albert Einstein in the minisode Death is the Only Answer. He has also appeared in multiple Big Finish stories, including Sword of the Chevalier (The Tenth Doctor Adventures), Gallery of Ghouls (The Fourth Doctor Adventures) and Human Resources (The Eighth Doctor Adventures).
• Patricia Quinn played Belazs in Dragonfire.
• Anthony Spargo has also appeared in Immortal Beloved, The Eight Truths and Worldwide Web (The Eighth Doctor Adventures) and served as a Dalek Operator in Army of Ghosts, Daleks in Manhattan and The Stolen Earth/Journey’s End.
• Jane Goddard has played a number of roles for Big Finish, most notably Alpha Centauri in The Bride of Peladon, Run (The Ninth Doctor Adventures) and the box set Peladon.
• Gareth Jenkins also played the Krills in Dust Breeding and a Waiter and a Prisoner in Dust Breeding.
• Barnaby Edwards and Nicholas Pegg both serve as Dalek operators in modern Doctor Who. They also direct and act in multiple Big Finish stories.

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