Tag: Tansy Rayner Roberts

Spin-offs: The Sarah Jane Adventures

For part two of our Doctor Who spin-offs mini-series, we move in to Bannerman Road and see if we know where to look to find a whole universe of adventure, right here at home… Yes, hosts Ben McKenzie, John Richards and Petra Elliott talk all about The Sarah Jane Adventures with special guests Djoymi Baker, George Ivanoff and – for this podcast edition only – Tansy Rayner Roberts!

The Splendid Chaps Adventures

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:06:02 — 38.3MB)

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Want to ask us questions about The Sarah Jane Adventures? Great – let us have them! As mentioned last episode, each of our spin-off episodes includes extra content, since we just couldn’t fit enough into the single live podcast to do all three shows justice – and for our final spin-off episode, we’ll be answering questions from you, our listeners, posed right here on the web site! Add your questions in the comments below.

And we’re having a good old fashioned Splendid Chaps giveaway, too. Our favourite questions will win a prize! Comment on any of our first three spin-off episodes to be in the running; we’ll give a final cut-off date when episode three (the next one) is released.

Nine/Women

Splendid Chaps finally makes it to new Who! Hosts Ben McKenzie, John Richards and Petra Elliott discuss Christopher Eccleston and women in Doctor Who (and didn’t we need more time for that huge topic!) with guests Karen Pickering, Celeste Liddle and Tansy Rayner Roberts! It’s the ninth live Splendid Chaps episode, recorded at the Gasometer Hotel in Melbourne on September 15, 2013. Plus there are prizes, a tonne of audience questions, and a surprise musical performance from two of the chaps! Oh, and a word of warning: this one gets a bit more sweary than usual. But what do you expect? We’re Australians!

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Don’t forget you can go into the draw to win Christopher Eccleston’s first season of Doctor Who on DVD, courtesy of our friends at BBC on DVD! To enter the draw, just comment on this episode at splendidchaps.com. Were you won over by Eccleston, or do you think he’s a creep? Who are your favourite women from Doctor Who? If we’d had another hour, what do you think we should have covered in our continuing chat about women in Who? Comment by October 12 to be in the running, and we’ll announce the winner at the recording of Ten/Sex on October 13.

Nine/Women (live show)

Young London woman Rose Tyler is at work when she is surprised by animated shop dummies, but she is saved by a mysterious man in a leather jacket who calls himself the Doctor. Though he tells her to forget him, she discovers he is a legend, the subject of Internet conspiracy theories: he has appeared throughout human history, and wherever he goes, death and destruction follow. Tough, resourceful, at times silly but with uncompromising morals, this Doctor has seen much and survived terrible losses. But he’s also alone – until he inspires Rose to realise her potential and save him, and the planet, in return…

Splendid Chaps is a year-long celebration of Doctor Who‘s fiftieth anniversary: eleven live performances recorded as podcasts in which your brains will be fed, your funny bones tickled, and your hearts opened (yes, both of them!). Our ninth major episode brings us finally to new Who, that time when the seemingly impossible happened and the show returned! Russell T Davies reinvented the Doctor by casting renowned TV and film actor Christopher Eccleston, famous for serious roles in dramas like Cracker, Our Friends in the North and Elizabeth. His simultaneously light-hearted and tortured portrayal of a man who has lost everything won over old and new fans alike, though the revelation after the smash success of the first episode that he would only be staying for one year took fans and media by surprise. Despite his short stay in the role, Eccleston defined the new era of Doctor Who and laid the groundwork for the format that persisted ever since.

Just as important to new Who was new companion Rose Tyler, played by pop star turned actor Billie Piper. For some she was a revelation compared to the “scream queens” of the past; but is this a fair assessment? We take as our theme women in Doctor Who: was having a proactive and near equal status companion for the Doctor really such a radical idea? Has Doctor Who been as terribly sexist as has often been claimed? Are the women in the show as varied and multifaceted as the men? And is the modern series really better in its portrayal of women than the old?

Hosts Ben McKenzie, John Richards and Petra Elliott are joined by a panel including feminist organiser and writer Karen Pickering (Cherchez la Femme), author and podcaster Tansy Rayner Roberts (Galactic Suburbia, Verity!) and National Indigenous Organiser for the National Tertiary Education Union, Celeste Liddle (Rantings of an Aboriginal Feminist), plus a musical performance, giveaways and other excellence!

Space: The Gasometer Hotel, 484 Smith Street, Collingwood (corner of Alexandra Parade)
Time: Sunday, September 15; recording starts 5 PM
Accessibility: We regret that this venue is not wheelchair accessible.
Tickets: $15 (plus booking fee where applicable)
Bookings: via trybooking.com or at the door (subject to availability)
Podcast: “Nine/Women” released on the 23rd of September, 2013.

Six/Clothes

Hosts Ben McKenzie, John Richards and Petra Elliott discuss Colin Baker and clothes in Doctor Who in the sixth (well, okay…ninth) live Splendid Chaps episode, recorded at Agent 284 in Melbourne on June 15, 2013. Our guests for this episode are writer and podcaster Tansy Rayner Roberts (Galactic Suburbia, Verity!) and fangirl and theatre professional Zen Fletcher. We’ve spared you a narration of the cosplay competition (surprisingly visual for a podcast, is Splendid Chaps) but we do have too many prizes (we’ve gone maaaaaaad!) and musician Tim Cav bravely attempts to redeem that most infamous of Doctor Who tracks, “Doctor in Distress”. Massive thanks this episode to our sound engineer, David Ashton, and to John, who does all the editing, for delivering an excellent recording despite serious technical difficulties on the day.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:17:02 — 35.3MB)

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Don’t forget you can go into the draw to win a (Region 4) DVD box set of Trial of a Time Lord by commenting on this episode below! Are you a big Colin fan? Think Peri is the best companion ever? Tell us how we got it wrong! And we’d love to hear your thoughts on costumes and outfits from the show, and see photos of your best Doctor Who cosplay. Comment by July 13 to be in the running, and we’ll announce the winner at the recording of Seven/Religion on July 14.

Six/Clothes (live show)

While visiting Androzani Minor, youthful explorer the Doctor and his friend Peri are accidentally poisoned and caught up in a civil war. Risking life and limb for his friend, the Doctor finds an antidote just in time to save Peri – but there’s only enough for one. He regenerates, but the poison makes the process difficult, and he emerges unstable and belligerent, suffering violent outbursts and unpredictable mood swings before finally settling into his new, brash persona. Arrogant, bombastic and larger than life, this new Doctor sees himself as superior to those around him, always willing to give his opinion and correct mistakes as well as right wrongs. Yet he still retains the curiosity and good intentions of his predecessor – something that shows more often as he re-establishes his friendship with Peri… 

Splendid Chaps is a year-long celebration of Doctor Who‘s fiftieth anniversary: eleven live performances recorded as podcasts in which your brains will be fed, your funny bones tickled, and your hearts opened (yes, both of them!). Our sixth outing discusses the sometimes controversial Sixth Doctor, played by actor Colin Baker. Better known for playing villains and bullies – including Time Lord Commander Maxil in the Peter Davison story Arc of Infinity – Baker dug into the character’s past, bringing back some of William Hartnell’s arrogance and pomposity in order to offer a different take to his good-natured predecessor. It was a turbulent time to become the Doctor, though, as the show was suspended for 18 months, put on trial by the powers that be, and finally forced to make drastic changes – including firing the lead actor.

Most people, of course, remember Six for that outfit, and so this episode we discuss Clothes. Few programs have as broad-ranging a costume design remit, with new worlds, eras and civilisations needing to be created every week. Not to mention that an eccentric Time Lord and his companions need to find clothes that are practical in any situation, from soulless steel corridors to rocky alien landscapes, polar caps and the inside of volcanoes. Oh, and they need to be fashionable in any era… It’s a big ask, and as The Discontinuity Guide reminded us, there were fashion victims as well as triumphs.

Hosts Ben McKenzie, John Richards and Petra Elliott are joined by writer and podcaster Tansy Rayner Roberts (Galactic Suburbia, Verity), and theatre professional, fangirl and cosplayer, Zen Fletcher. We’ll also have a special musical performance, prizes, surprises – and a fashion show!

Yes, we want to see your best cosplay and Doctor Who related sartorial creations – and there will be prizes on offer. So come along dressed as your favourite Doctor, companion, villain, or anything you like related to Doctor Who – we’ll let you show off your work and you might just win a prize for your trouble!

Space: Agent 284, 284 Smith Street, Collingwood
Time: Saturday, June 15; recording starts 4 PM
Accessibility: We regret that this venue is not wheelchair accessible.
Tickets: $15 (plus booking fee where applicable)
Bookings: via trybooking.com or at the door (subject to availability)
Podcast: not yet available; released 23rd of June, 2013.