Big Finish Productions has today confirmed the cast of 2016 Doctor Who spin-off ‘Class’ will reunite for six new audio stories.
Spread across two volumes, ‘Class: The Audio Adventures‘ is due for release in August 2018. All six stories are set during the original run of the TV series. Big Finish regular Scott Handcock takes on director and producer duties while also penning one of the scripts.
Attendance
The entire main cast will reprise their roles with Greg Austin as Charlie, Fady Elsayed as Ram, Sophie Hopkins as April, Vivian Oparah as Tanya, Jordan Renzo as Matteusz and Katherine Kelly as Miss Quill.
Penmanship
Along with Handcock, who will write the final story ‘Tell Me You Love Me’, volume one will feature Roy Gill’s ‘Gifted’ and Jenny T Colgan’s ‘Life Experience’. Volume two will kick off with ‘Everyone Loves Reagan’ by Tim Foley, ‘Now You Know…’ by Tim Leng and closes with ‘In Remembrance’ by Guy Adams.
Physical Education
But it’s not just familiar faces slated for a return. The series will find the students of Coal Hill Academy crossing paths with characters from the Doctor Who universe. Such as Sophie Aldred reprising her role as Ace, companion to the Seventh Doctor. Ace has a history with Coal Hill School having beaten up a Dalek in its corridors back in ‘Remembrance of the Daleks’. With the Daleks also set to appear in the ‘Class’ audio series, it sounds like they want to another round with Ace’s baseball bat.
On setting up Ace vs Daleks Round Two, Scott Handcock said, “Of course I couldn’t resist linking up to the Doctor Who universe, and bringing Ace and the Daleks into the world of Class has been an absolute treat. And for full authenticity, we’re lucky to have series composer Blair Mowat return to the world of Class as well.”
Music
Mowat composed the score for the original TV run of ‘Class’ and has been a mainstay on Big Finish’s ‘Torchwood’ range. The man has form when it comes to scoring audio revivals of Doctor Who spin-offs!
Nicholas Briggs, executive producer and voice of the Daleks, said, “Big Finish has a strong tradition of venturing into all areas of the Doctor Who universe, so it’s great that we’re invading Coal Hill Academy too. We’ve had so many requests from listeners about us producing audio drama based on Class, so this is something we’ve been keen to do for some time. For me, personally, it’s going to be great to bring some good, old fashioned exterminating to the format!”
History
Announced in late 2015 and debuting in October 2016, ‘Class’ was about five students at Coal Hill Academy. Alma mater of the Doctor’s granddaughter and former workplace of the Doctor’s companion, the school has been a hotbed of weird goings-on for decades. With the arrival of mysterious Miss Quill, Coal Hill’s alien past hits back big-time. Though popular on iPlayer, showrunner Patrick Ness departed the show soon after its lukewarm reception on BBC One. In September 2017, BBC Three confirmed that the show would not be renewed for a second series.
Want to feel slightly older? Check out my coverage of the ‘Class’ premiere event!
Mathematics
Each volume of ‘Class’ is available for pre-order now at £20 on CD or £15 on download from the Big Finish website. They will remain at this price until general release when it will be available for £23 on CD or £18 on download. Both volumes can be ordered as a bundle for £38 on CD and £28 for download. All CD purchases from the Big Finish website unlock an exclusive download copy via the website and app.
