Happy Birthday Planet Skaro Audios!

[Si Hunt]

I'm actually a week late, but it's near enough....

Five years ago, on 21st January 2006, a group of determined and fresh faced Planet Skaro posters met up in Sawbridgeworth and recorded a play, "Echoes of the Protii".

Since then we have continued to write, record and produce Doctor Who audio in our spare time - resulting in around 20 plays. There have been many, many contributors over the past five years, and I'd just like to take the chance to say Thank You to everyone who has helped bring to life our stories and characters. Especially our faithful Doctor Who, Paul Monk.

As for the future? We've all come along way in five years! There's not always the time there once was, but we've still got some amazing things planned, and in particular some stories coming up this year that will blow you away!

Happy Birthday, everyone who has been involved with the PS Audios!

Si.

[SiHart]

Five years? Wow!

I remember the first session really clearly, but the preparation even more so. For the nights before, me and Steve had a run through at home, playing all the characters ourselves in a variety of different voices- the Doctor was a poor impression of Sylvester McCoy, Rob was played like Arcturus (see, it could have been worse) but Vera... Vera was always Vera! I really wasn't sure I could pull off playing her, but I think I just might have done!

Our little one off has come a long way since then. We've done some great plays, raised hundreds of pounds for charity (and thank you all so much for the huge contribution Protii raised for Great Ormond Street. My whole family were touched enomously by your generosity) and had a lot of laughs along the way too.

Don't forget you can still listen to the plays on the website, with hopefully more pages to be added soon.

Happy Birthday to the PS Audios!

Si xx

[Andrew Curnow]

Five years eh - so Paul's already done longer than Billy, Pat, and... well, in fact longer than anybody other than Tom, and as long at the mighty Pertwee and Mr Tennant. That's what I like in my Doctors, a bit of staying power!

[Andrew Curnow]

I can remember being terribly, even absurdly, excited when I knew my copy of Echoes of the Protii was on the way, and I vividly remember listening to it with a mix of delight, excitement and occasionally total bewilderment. There was no real precedent for this, so I guess I hadn't quite anticipated the particular style of the Planet Skaro Audio team. The Doctor and the sense of alien evil were very recognisable - but mixed with a bit of sex, a bit of soap, a bit of nonsense, and a whole heap of fun.

I've been gradually relistening to the PS stories (next up is Christmas Spirits) and I'm sure nobody will mind saying that coming back to it, Protii sounds very 'basic' in comparison to what came later. But at the time, I was very impressed that Si had managed to stitch it all together - from our own little contribution, I knew that he'd got different recordings from different sources, and had mixed them altogether, often within a single scene. For a first time, it was amazingly ambitious, and just like the revived TV show in 2005, it manages to put that ambition across with great confidence (even if, behind the scenes, maybe that confidence wasn't always felt).

Then came Soap, which was already a huge leap forward - another 'stitching' job, this one was even more ambitious, and is the one I've probably most enjoyed listening to again. It even more embodies that PS style, and the little 'soap scenes' mixed in are a great touch - and parts 2 & 3 have some of my all-time favourite cliffhangers, the script structuring just right and combined with spot on production. Tim's "Old Charlie" voice at the end of part 3 is really chilling.

I'm not going to go through all the stories, but with each new release it's seemed to me that there's been some greater 'technological innovation' - or maybe just, the more you do something the better you get at it. So each release has sounded more and more professional and refined than the one before. The type of stories may have changed, maybe becoming in some ways a little more serious as they've gone along - but that sense of fun and wonder and excitement has remained. And because they're made and performed by people I know, there's a great delight in spotting who's playing what part, hearing (for example) Si Hart popping up as the computer voice of the future (brilliant running gag there by the way) and then 'next week' turning up as the villain.

They've been exciting, funny, surprising, even moving (the final scene between Brian and Nick in Magical History Tour is simply performed, but is very touching indeed), and looking back I kind of wish I'd made more of an effort to be involved. It's always a thrill to find there's a new episode coming up, and I'm really looking forward to the next few stories.

Keep up the good work, guys & gals, and happy 5th birthday!!

[Paul Monk]

5 years! 5 YEARS! BLiiiiiiiiiiiiimey as Rob might say. I can't believe its that long ago. I've had enormous fun during that time. That first session I was terrified. I mean how do you play the Doctor?
But I'm glad I did. Here's to another 5 years.