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Return of the Freaker
Bigger, longer, uncut than Coffee Brand Coffee
True & Honest Fan
kiwifarms.net
- Joined
- Jan 19, 2020
Anyone who guessed Big Finish was going to get pozzed, congratulations!
https://nerdist.com/article/doctor-who-rebecca-root-first-transgender-companion/
Rebecca Root on Playing DOCTOR WHO’s First Transgender Companion
by Riley Silverman • Jun 12 2020
0 COMMENTS
For years now, Big Finish audio dramas have allowed Doctor Who fans to travel with their favorite Doctor long after they’ve left the show. They’ve provided listeners with countless hours of content from the Time Lord’s adventures, as well as those of their noteworthy companions, and even a few one-off standouts who have gotten fresh days in the sun. The audio serials have also allowed writers to dig deep into areas less explored on the show, like the Time War, the subject of a large selection of Big Finish dramas.
The audio series allows for other avenues of exploration as well. Big Finish dramas can bring fresh new writers into the world of Doctor Who storytelling, like Lizbeth Myles, longtime cohost of the Verity podcast who began penning Big Finish Doctor Who audios last year.
This month, the audio series will mark a milestone in trans representation for the series. It’s the next in a series of trans voices to be involved with the long-running show. Bethany Black appeared in the television series in the ninth season’s “Sleep No More” as Number 474, a synthetically created human laborer known as a Grunt. On the writing front, Lilah Sturges, Juno Dawson, and Niki Haringsma have written Doctor Who comics and novels.
Now, with the upcoming audio series “Stranded,” part of Paul McGann’s Eighth Doctor Adventures, Doctor Who will introduce the first openly transgender character into the canonical narrative: Tania Bell, portrayed by British actress Rebecca Root. Root previously starred on the BBC comedy series Boy Meets Girl, making her the first trans actress to star in a sitcom. Nerdist spoke with her about her new role.
Nerdist: You’ve done a few different dramas already for Big Finish’s Doctor Who line, what’s your approach to acting for an audio-only format? How does it differ from your work as a screen actor?
Rebecca Root: Acting for audio really only differs in that you don’t have to learn your lines—something of a relief when life is super busy—and you don’t need to move about as much. Apart from that, I approach an audio role as I would any other. Certainly, I have to prepare my voice rigorously and do all the character homework I would do for any other character.
You were pretty highly praised for your performance as Sable in “Zaltys.” How does your character in “Stranded” differ from her?
RR: Was I? Thanks! Well, for a start, Sable was an alien, and Tania Bell is human…I would also say Sable was a bit of a badass, while Tania is much nicer. I hope that comes across!
“Stranded,” as its name implies, is an earthbound story. “Zaltys” was an alien world, and you were a Gallifreyan in the Time War series. If you had your pick your next Doctor Who setting, where would it be? Another alien world? The future, the past?
RR: I would love to see a story set in the distant future, in a different galaxy/universe, to see whether the human race got their crap together and survived being such idiots. Similarly, it would be fun to do something set in the past to see if you could influence humanity’s idiocy differently…
Your character in “Stranded,” Tania Bell, is the first trans companion for the Doctor in canonical Doctor Who. Does that influence your performance at all?
RR: Not really. She’s a person like all the other people I have played and hope to play in the future. She’s not perfect, but she’s not a mess, and certainly, I don’t think her gender identity has any influence on her behavior in the story.
What would it have meant for you as a kid to have had a character like Tania adventuring alongside the Doctor?
RR: It would have been amazing to see a Trans person in a show like Doctor Who. In fact, to see a Trans person period would have been amazing. But I [grew] up in the ’70s and society was differently populated back then, and gender ID was not really “a thing.”
Is there any hope of Tania continuing to adventure with the Eighth Doctor after “Stranded”?
RR: I hope so, very much. Perhaps even in a spinoff too, somewhere along the line, somewhere in time…
Riley Silverman is a contributing writer for Nerdist. She can be found on Twitter and Instagram. Her comedy album Intimate Apparel is available in digital formats.
https://nerdist.com/article/doctor-who-rebecca-root-first-transgender-companion/
Rebecca Root on Playing DOCTOR WHO’s First Transgender Companion
by Riley Silverman • Jun 12 2020
0 COMMENTS
For years now, Big Finish audio dramas have allowed Doctor Who fans to travel with their favorite Doctor long after they’ve left the show. They’ve provided listeners with countless hours of content from the Time Lord’s adventures, as well as those of their noteworthy companions, and even a few one-off standouts who have gotten fresh days in the sun. The audio serials have also allowed writers to dig deep into areas less explored on the show, like the Time War, the subject of a large selection of Big Finish dramas.
The audio series allows for other avenues of exploration as well. Big Finish dramas can bring fresh new writers into the world of Doctor Who storytelling, like Lizbeth Myles, longtime cohost of the Verity podcast who began penning Big Finish Doctor Who audios last year.
This month, the audio series will mark a milestone in trans representation for the series. It’s the next in a series of trans voices to be involved with the long-running show. Bethany Black appeared in the television series in the ninth season’s “Sleep No More” as Number 474, a synthetically created human laborer known as a Grunt. On the writing front, Lilah Sturges, Juno Dawson, and Niki Haringsma have written Doctor Who comics and novels.
Now, with the upcoming audio series “Stranded,” part of Paul McGann’s Eighth Doctor Adventures, Doctor Who will introduce the first openly transgender character into the canonical narrative: Tania Bell, portrayed by British actress Rebecca Root. Root previously starred on the BBC comedy series Boy Meets Girl, making her the first trans actress to star in a sitcom. Nerdist spoke with her about her new role.
Nerdist: You’ve done a few different dramas already for Big Finish’s Doctor Who line, what’s your approach to acting for an audio-only format? How does it differ from your work as a screen actor?
Rebecca Root: Acting for audio really only differs in that you don’t have to learn your lines—something of a relief when life is super busy—and you don’t need to move about as much. Apart from that, I approach an audio role as I would any other. Certainly, I have to prepare my voice rigorously and do all the character homework I would do for any other character.
You were pretty highly praised for your performance as Sable in “Zaltys.” How does your character in “Stranded” differ from her?
RR: Was I? Thanks! Well, for a start, Sable was an alien, and Tania Bell is human…I would also say Sable was a bit of a badass, while Tania is much nicer. I hope that comes across!
“Stranded,” as its name implies, is an earthbound story. “Zaltys” was an alien world, and you were a Gallifreyan in the Time War series. If you had your pick your next Doctor Who setting, where would it be? Another alien world? The future, the past?
RR: I would love to see a story set in the distant future, in a different galaxy/universe, to see whether the human race got their crap together and survived being such idiots. Similarly, it would be fun to do something set in the past to see if you could influence humanity’s idiocy differently…
Your character in “Stranded,” Tania Bell, is the first trans companion for the Doctor in canonical Doctor Who. Does that influence your performance at all?
RR: Not really. She’s a person like all the other people I have played and hope to play in the future. She’s not perfect, but she’s not a mess, and certainly, I don’t think her gender identity has any influence on her behavior in the story.
What would it have meant for you as a kid to have had a character like Tania adventuring alongside the Doctor?
RR: It would have been amazing to see a Trans person in a show like Doctor Who. In fact, to see a Trans person period would have been amazing. But I [grew] up in the ’70s and society was differently populated back then, and gender ID was not really “a thing.”
Is there any hope of Tania continuing to adventure with the Eighth Doctor after “Stranded”?
RR: I hope so, very much. Perhaps even in a spinoff too, somewhere along the line, somewhere in time…
Riley Silverman is a contributing writer for Nerdist. She can be found on Twitter and Instagram. Her comedy album Intimate Apparel is available in digital formats.
- Joined
- Aug 9, 2014
I’ve known about this for ages. As long as it doesn’t get in the way of storytelling, I really don’t care.
- Joined
- Nov 2, 2018
Radio drama directors everywhere should be baying for this moron's blood.
- Joined
- Sep 13, 2018
It always gets in the way of storytelling because you're supposed to acknowledge the existence of a trans character. The "best" example of that is the trans character in ME;Andromeda. The first time you met that character, she tells you that she used to be known by a male name, your character never asked about that subject, you only wanted to know what she was doing in the Milky Way before joining the expedition. Trannies and gamejournos got upset, they patched the dialogue 2 times before removing every mention of her trans identity.
The Valeyard
kiwifarms.net
- Joined
- Jul 16, 2017
Here's hoping the new companion kills herself after being deadnamed by a Dalek.
- Joined
- Oct 27, 2017
8's companions do seem to have a significantly higher than average mortality rate...
- Joined
- Aug 9, 2014
I really do feel for the Eighth Doctor. He barely appeared in the TV show and his Big Finish run, while generally top quality storytelling, is an unending stream of misery.
His first two companions chronologically get kidnapped by Davros and used as weapons against him. One of them ends up dead.
He thinks his first companion in release order leaves him, while she actually ends ups travelling with the Sixth Doctor (who will never remember their adventures together).
The companion after that has to blow herself up to stop the Daleks.
The companion after that lives a horrible life on earth after leaving him, then has to sacrifice herself to stop the Daleks again.
Liv and Helen have survived so far, but I wonder where that will lead. Bliss has also unfortunately survived. I will not shed any tears when she goes.
His last companion dies in a spaceship crash and the Doctor has to effectively kill himself to fight the Time War.
As River Song said in The Legacy of Time, "This one lives a long life, not all of it happy". Understatement of the century.
Honka Honka Burning Love
In Clown World, the only god is the one who Honks.
True & Honest Fan
kiwifarms.net
- Joined
- Aug 29, 2019
- Joined
- Aug 9, 2014
This is Big Finish, not Chibnall. The writing's generally more competent.
Also, anyone saying that this is the event where Big Finish went "pozzed" has obviously never listened to any of their behind the scenes interviews or looked at the Twitters of anyone who works there. Hell, months ago, they subtly threw James Dreyfus under the bus because of comments he made about trans people. He's the only Big Finish Master not showing up in the Masterful boxset. Even the Unbound Master's in there.
- Joined
- Dec 28, 2014
So instead of "EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!" all Daleks have to do is say "YOU'RE A MAN! YOU'RE A MAN!" and they don't even need to vaporize you because their victims just commit suicide immediately.
Quintex96
kiwifarms.net
- Joined
- Jan 15, 2019
If only they would write it like that
You all know the inevitable Dalek story will like this:
-Doctor accidentally misgenders the companion and gets confused when thet angry
-They thn arrive on an alien planet
-Daleks have conquered and enslaved a planet of not-humans
-Forcing them to work in camps
-Doctor arrives with comtrannion
-Said tranny gets caught by a Dalek
-"IDENTIFY"
-Companion says their name
-Dalek gets confused as their biological structure doesn't allign with their identity
-Prisoners rise up and begin misidentifying themselves to confuse the Daleks, leaving them defenseless while others attack
-Doctor congratulates companion on thinking uo such a clever trick
-"It wasn't a trick Doctor, I was just being who I am"
-The Doctor concedes that he was wrong and apologises for misgendering them at the start
- Joined
- Oct 27, 2017
The Cybermen are potentially even more triggering than the Daleks when you think about it. For one thing, they're all men. They don't even have a concept of a female gender. (Shitty Torchwood episodes written by Chinballs aside.)
Imagine being an MtF tranny and somehow not killing yourself, only to be cyberized and forcefully transitioned back into a cyberman against your will.
Imagine being an MtF tranny and somehow not killing yourself, only to be cyberized and forcefully transitioned back into a cyberman against your will.
- Joined
- Feb 3, 2013
I've read somewhere that the BBC Eighth Doctor Adventures novel line is slightly more fucked up
We can always count on the British to be pussies that we pirate from
- Joined
- Oct 27, 2017
Don't forget the android companion he created during the time war, because he was so tired of losing so many companions. (Which makes me think there's even more death to come.) The android companion died too. https://tardis.fandom.com/wiki/Ria_(Lies_in_Ruins)
- Joined
- Aug 9, 2014
Yes, but they thought opening with a regeneration scene would be too confusing for newcomers. If you mean whether they thought about bringing him on as a full time Doctor, I don’t think that was ever on the cards.
They were probably right about not opening with a regeneration scene. While I’m grateful the Movie gave us a regeneration for the Seventh Doctor (even if he went down like a bitch), it’s probably one of the myriad reasons that film never found an audience.
- Joined
- Sep 10, 2016
The companions from the TV movie can’t even be used in any Doctor Who media because of copyright reasons. Which sucks because I met their actors at a con once and they are super nice and so passionate about the series.
- Joined
- Aug 10, 2019
You really missed the obvious joke on this one."MUST DILATE! MUST DILATE!"
- Joined
- Jul 30, 2017
This just makes me wish all the more that if they couldn't get #9 for the big 50th crossover, that #8 should have been the one to execute the Moment.
All love to John Hurt, I just REALLY wish McGann had been given his moment to shine.
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