The Silent Scream

Fourth Doctor Adventures #6.3

Released: 22 March 2017

Listened: 7/5/22

The Doctor and Romana visit 1930s Hollywood, which at the time is full of silent movie stars suddenly unemployed because they’re not suited for talkies. And there’s something out there made of celluloid and stealing actresses’ voices. James Goss is the writer, and as you might expect, it’s a love letter to the silent film era, with lots of sympathy for silent film actors trying to stay relevant. And of course it’s a little bit meta as there’s talk of lost film reels hidden in back rooms, but also whether the Doctor and Romana’s regular lives are actually “adventure stories.” K-9 becomes a GPS about 60 years early. Of course, there are lots of actors trying out American accents, and on the whole, it comes off better than usual for Big Finish, so well done them. The ending is a little more deus ex sonic than I’d like, but there is at least an effort made at handwaving it. A decent story.