1963: Fanfare for the Common Men

"Who are the Beatles?"

Writer: Eddie Robson

Format: Audio

Released: September 2013

Series: Monthly Adventures 178

Featuring: Fifth Doctor, Nyssa

Synopsis

If you remember the Sixties, they say, then you can't have been there.

The Doctor remembers the Sixties. That's why he's taking Nyssa on a trip back to November 1963. Back to where it all began. Back to the birth of the biggest band in the history of British music. Back to see those cheeky lads from Liverpool...

Mark, James and Korky. The Common Men. The boys who made the Sixties swing with songs like Oh, Won't You Please Love Me?, Just Count to Three and Who Is That Man?

The Doctor remembers the Sixties. And there's something very wrong with the Sixties if the Beatles no longer exist...

Verdict

Fanfare for the Common Men was an excellent way to kick off the 1963 trilogy to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of Doctor Who! It's quite mad that I have only now reached the fiftieth anniversary stories in my run through this incredible range of Monthly Adventures, but it's better late than never. This was a stellar way to kick off the celebrations and the very idea of going deep into The Common Men after their brief mention with Susan in An Unearthly Child is just magnificent. It's exactly what I would like from an audio anniversary story where just about anything could happen. The pairing of the Fifth Doctor and Nyssa were brilliant and it was nice for the former to want to show the latter all about the Beatles and the musical craze that ensured in the Sixties. Of course, it wouldn't quite be that straightforward as Nyssa was swooped to Hamburg in the past and the Doctor took his time in finding out when and where she was. I love the concept of the Beatles being replaced as a means of changing history and The Common Men fitting into that role was excellent. The format of the story was fantastic and it almost felt partially like a documentary which was really cool. The whole thing was well done with the little interviews and anecdotes from each of the band members. Mark, James and Korky were all great characters and the relationship they had with each other was terrific. It felt like there was genuine friendship there which is what you want in a band I would imagine! They took their incredible fame in their stride so Korky's relationship with Nyssa in particular was really nice to see. He didn't take advantage of his fame and was willing to help Nyssa out with a drink and a place to see as she didn't have any money. They were all just likeable guys. Rita quickly became another fond character as she joined forces with the Doctor to try and find Nyssa and reach 1957 where the course of history had changed. It was the focal point so naturally it was time locked to keep people like the Doctor out in an aim to keep the new version of history on track. I thought Lenny made a strong villain and his desire for The Common Men to ascend together after a decade of planning kind of came crashing down in a flash when one band member didn't make it. A single one alone was no good and so the fact Mark killed James was going to be problematic. I thought the idea of feeding on fame and gaining energy from the photos of their huge events was very good and definitely something I was on board with. They could do the Beatles in everything except the songs. Sadia siding with Lenny as her fandom went to the extreme was predictable but still a very strong moment. I thought it was fun for Nyssa to not have use of the TARDIS translation circuit after being separated in time, she was rather happy about hearing English everywhere when the Doctor arrived to rescue her. I thought having two versions of Lenny was good stuff and the Doctor's casual and calm threat was amusing as he knew he'd already won by calling in the authorities to deal with Lenny, but he offered him a chance anyway knowing full well it wouldn't be accepted. Especially with the lack of details he provided on their last chance! He did get to offer Lenny a chance at life though and whilst he would suffer the fate he caused to so many in having his memory wiped, he would still. That was something he couldn't pass up. It was a strong end to what was a marvellous adventure. The Doctor even remembering Susan playing the record of the less popular Common Men in the true version of history was a nice touch. Speaking of which, I thought the decision to have the physical CDs looking like old records was tremendous. That really was spectacular. Overall, a brilliant story! 

Rating: 9/10