Doctor Who: Immortal Beloved Review

Released in April 2007, Immortal Beloved was the fourth Doctor Who audio in Big Finish's Eighth Doctor Adventures range. It stars Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor and Sheridan Smith as Lucie Miller. It is written by Jonathan Clements and directed by Jason Haigh-Ellery.

Big Finish's synopsis:

"Theosophy? Ha! Surely you mean theophany? Because we're not talking about real gods here, are we? We're talking about the appearance of gods. Your heavenly powers are a little too mechanical for my liking. And, if I may be so bold, Lord Zeus, your demeanor is not very godlike."

I started listening to this story expecting next to nothing, but I was pleasantly surprised to find out that it's actually very good.

The story starts with a loving couple, Kalkin and Sarati, umm... Standing on the edge of a cliff, about to kill themselves. Before the two get a chance to jump, they hear the TARDIS.

The entire cast is brilliant and they all provide believable performances. Paul McGann and Sheridan Smith are at their best so far, Ian McNeice does a wonderful job of Zeus, Elspet Gray's Hera is very good although a little underused, Jennifer Higham's Sararti is great, Anthony Spargo is excellent as Kalkin and David Dobson is good as Tayden. Paul's son, Jake McGann, plays Ganymede very well but he only gets one or two lines, unfortunately.

I'm not really sure what to think of the setting as we hardly know anything about it, other than the fact there's a palace. I do like what I imagined, though!

I think the engine of incarnation is an interesting idea.

Zeus is really, really, really creepy when he's in Lucie's room. After watching his comedic appearances as Winston Churchill in Series 5 and 6 of new Who, I wasn't expecting Ian McNeice to be able to act so creepily.

My favourite non-main character in this story is, without a doubt, Zeus. An excellent, chilling, performance.

Some good lines from Immortal Beloved are:
"Your clothes have gone see-through!" "As have yours', my lady. That is why we close our eyes."
"I am Zeus. Lord of the skies. Bringer of storms."
"What is this? The planet of idiots?"

Overall, the weakest story so far in this range but still incredibly entertaining. Definitely worth the money. I wouldn't recommend it as your first audio because I recommend listening to the Eighth Doctor Adventures in order. Then again, if you're already familiar with Lucie Miller, you should understand everything perfectly.

Overall Rating: 8/10

You can buy Immortal Beloved for £8.99 download or £10.99 CD here.