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Blake's 7: The Liberator Chronicles #1
The Turing Test, Solitary and Counterfeit
Three enhanced audiobooks performed by the stars of the classic BBC television series. These stories are set during Series 1.
The Turing Test by Simon Guerrier
Starring Paul Darrow as Avon and Michael Keating as Vila
Avon and Vila go undercover at a top secret research establishment.
Solitary by Nigel Fairs
Starring Michael Keating as Vila and Anthony Howell as Nyrron
Vila is alone and amnesiac. Why have his friends turned against him?
Counterfeit by Peter Anghelides
Starring Gareth Thomas as Blake and Paul Darrow as Avon
Blake investigates a mining facility, unaware that his sworn enemy is close by...
Written By: Simon Guerrier, Nigel Fairs and Peter Anghelides
Directed By: Lisa Bowerman
The Turing Test by Simon Guerrier
Starring Paul Darrow as Avon and Michael Keating as Vila
Avon and Vila go undercover at a top secret research establishment.
Solitary by Nigel Fairs
Starring Michael Keating as Vila and Anthony Howell as Nyrron
Vila is alone and amnesiac. Why have his friends turned against him?
Counterfeit by Peter Anghelides
Starring Gareth Thomas as Blake and Paul Darrow as Avon
Blake investigates a mining facility, unaware that his sworn enemy is close by...
Written By: Simon Guerrier, Nigel Fairs and Peter Anghelides
Directed By: Lisa Bowerman
- GenresScience FictionAudiobook
Audio CD
First published February 1, 2012
2 people are currently reading
21 people want to read
About the author
Simon Guerrier
168 books60 followersSimon Guerrier is a British science fiction author and dramatist, closely associated with the fictional universe of Doctor Who and its spinoffs. Although he has written three Doctor Who novels, for the BBC Books range, his work has mostly been for Big Finish Productions' audio drama and book ranges.
Guerrier's earliest published fiction appeared in Zodiac, the first of Big Finish's Short Trips range of Doctor Who short story anthologies. To date, his work has appeared in the majority of the Short Trips collections. He has also edited three volumes in the series, The History of Christmas, Time Signature and How The Doctor Changed My Life. The second of these takes as its starting-point Guerrier's short story An Overture Too Early in The Muses. The third anthology featured stories entirely by previously unpublished writers.
After contributing two stories to the anthology Life During Wartime in Big Finish's Bernice Summerfield range of books and audio dramas, Guerrier was invited to edit the subsequent year's short story collection, A Life Worth Living, and the novella collection Parallel Lives. After contributing two audio dramas to the series, Guerrier became the producer of the Bernice Summerfield range of plays and books, a post he held between January 2006 and June 2007.
His other Doctor Who work includes the audio dramas, The Settling and The Judgement of Isskar, in Big Finish's Doctor Who audio range, three Companion Chronicles and a contribution to the UNIT spinoff series. He has also written a play in Big Finish's Sapphire and Steel range.
Guerrier's work is characterised by character-driven humour and by an interest in unifying the continuity of the various Big Finish ranges through multiple references and reappearances of characters. As editor he has been a strong promoter of the work of various script writers from the Seventh Doctor era of the Doctor Who television series
Guerrier's earliest published fiction appeared in Zodiac, the first of Big Finish's Short Trips range of Doctor Who short story anthologies. To date, his work has appeared in the majority of the Short Trips collections. He has also edited three volumes in the series, The History of Christmas, Time Signature and How The Doctor Changed My Life. The second of these takes as its starting-point Guerrier's short story An Overture Too Early in The Muses. The third anthology featured stories entirely by previously unpublished writers.
After contributing two stories to the anthology Life During Wartime in Big Finish's Bernice Summerfield range of books and audio dramas, Guerrier was invited to edit the subsequent year's short story collection, A Life Worth Living, and the novella collection Parallel Lives. After contributing two audio dramas to the series, Guerrier became the producer of the Bernice Summerfield range of plays and books, a post he held between January 2006 and June 2007.
His other Doctor Who work includes the audio dramas, The Settling and The Judgement of Isskar, in Big Finish's Doctor Who audio range, three Companion Chronicles and a contribution to the UNIT spinoff series. He has also written a play in Big Finish's Sapphire and Steel range.
Guerrier's work is characterised by character-driven humour and by an interest in unifying the continuity of the various Big Finish ranges through multiple references and reappearances of characters. As editor he has been a strong promoter of the work of various script writers from the Seventh Doctor era of the Doctor Who television series
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
May 15, 2025
Here are three audio stories that spin off from the BBC science fiction series Blake's 7.
The first story is a reasonably entertaining one, but the other two are quite lacklustre. Despite good work from some of the original cast (Gareth Thomas/Paul Darrow/Michael Keating) the stories never really come to life.
The first story is a reasonably entertaining one, but the other two are quite lacklustre. Despite good work from some of the original cast (Gareth Thomas/Paul Darrow/Michael Keating) the stories never really come to life.
November 4, 2014
First let me say, I'm thrilled that Big Finish have acquired the rights to Blake's 7. While I did sample some of B7 Enterprises remake audios and found them good, nothing can beat the original cast and setting. While I wish these were all full cast dramas, I of course realize that would be insanely expensive and impractical from a production standpoint. That said, I'm very much looking forward to what Big Finish has up it's sleeve. Since this release contains three stories, let me break my review down.
The Turing Test
This excellent opener features both Paul Darrow and Michael Keating as Avon and Villa respectively. The premise of Villa pretending to be a scientist who has invented an android played by Avon is a brilliant conceit. While I felt the setup could be mined for massive amounts of comedy gold, it is downplayed for the most part, which makes sense given the rest of the story. Basically this is all about Avon falling in love with a female android. The story is very well crafted and emotionally mature. I found the ending to be very touching. If I had any criticism, it's that Avon's character development at the end is a bit heavy handed, but I'm not sure it shouldn't be that way. Four out of five stars.
Solitary
This story features Michael Keating as Vila once again, along with a new character created for the audios, an Auron scientist, Gustav Nyrron. While Nyrron's past is played up as mysterious, his story line takes a back seat to Vila. The two share what is essentially a therapy session, with Nyrron as counselor and Vila as semi-amnesiatic patient. This is a fitting setup for a two-hander and while the final twist has been seen before in other stories of this ilk, the fact that it's interwoven into Vila's character development keeps the whole affair from feeling stale. Four out of Five stars.
Counterfeit
Out of the three stories in this box set, it is this one that feels the most like an episode of the series and that's not necessarily a good thing. The play sets out to subvert the tropes of a paint-by-numbers Blake's 7 episode. We have a secret base/prison, a project/item of great tactical value to the Federation, and the overly convenient arrivals of Travis and Servalan. The subversion in this case of course, without giving too much away, is that none of these things are quite what they seem. While I appreciate the idea, sadly the journey of the story feels much more mundane. In the end, when it comes to these audio plays, it's not the plots or tropes that make a play compelling, it's the journey of the characters. They cannot be killed or changed in any major way since they exist in the space between episodes. What can be achieved however, is the expanding and elucidating of these characters as people. The plot, and how the characters react within it, should be beholden to that primary goal. It also didn't help that I guessed one of the twists right away, and that the same twist is used twice. Three out of Five stars.
All in all, this set is a superb launching pad for their line of Blake's 7 two-handers. I can't wait to see what's next for the range.
The Turing Test
This excellent opener features both Paul Darrow and Michael Keating as Avon and Villa respectively. The premise of Villa pretending to be a scientist who has invented an android played by Avon is a brilliant conceit. While I felt the setup could be mined for massive amounts of comedy gold, it is downplayed for the most part, which makes sense given the rest of the story. Basically this is all about Avon falling in love with a female android. The story is very well crafted and emotionally mature. I found the ending to be very touching. If I had any criticism, it's that Avon's character development at the end is a bit heavy handed, but I'm not sure it shouldn't be that way. Four out of five stars.
Solitary
This story features Michael Keating as Vila once again, along with a new character created for the audios, an Auron scientist, Gustav Nyrron. While Nyrron's past is played up as mysterious, his story line takes a back seat to Vila. The two share what is essentially a therapy session, with Nyrron as counselor and Vila as semi-amnesiatic patient. This is a fitting setup for a two-hander and while the final twist has been seen before in other stories of this ilk, the fact that it's interwoven into Vila's character development keeps the whole affair from feeling stale. Four out of Five stars.
Counterfeit
Out of the three stories in this box set, it is this one that feels the most like an episode of the series and that's not necessarily a good thing. The play sets out to subvert the tropes of a paint-by-numbers Blake's 7 episode. We have a secret base/prison, a project/item of great tactical value to the Federation, and the overly convenient arrivals of Travis and Servalan. The subversion in this case of course, without giving too much away, is that none of these things are quite what they seem. While I appreciate the idea, sadly the journey of the story feels much more mundane. In the end, when it comes to these audio plays, it's not the plots or tropes that make a play compelling, it's the journey of the characters. They cannot be killed or changed in any major way since they exist in the space between episodes. What can be achieved however, is the expanding and elucidating of these characters as people. The plot, and how the characters react within it, should be beholden to that primary goal. It also didn't help that I guessed one of the twists right away, and that the same twist is used twice. Three out of Five stars.
All in all, this set is a superb launching pad for their line of Blake's 7 two-handers. I can't wait to see what's next for the range.
June 30, 2019
What can I say? I ship it.
Blake's 7, a/k/a "the OTHER British sci-fi show that was on PBS in the '70s and '80s," is an acquired taste. A band of anti-hero criminals on the run from an oppressive government do their best to gum up the works of said government while cracking wise with each other and navigating their own inner and team conflicts. Although it never really hit it big in America -- there wasn't even a U.S. DVD release -- Blake's 7 was beloved enough in Great Britain to merit the Big Finish treatment. For the uninitiated, Big Finish is a delightful company that produces radio plays of all the "hidden," "lost," and other interstitial adventures of popular British shows, thus extending the canon for the fandom and racking up big bucks for BF.
Everybody on the same page now? Okay.
The Liberator Chronicles take their name from the ship Blake and his crew use to cruise the galaxy, and this first installment of those "lost" adventures from Season 1 are, in order, delightful, interesting, and kinda meh. In order:
"The Turing Test" - Everybody on Team Avon will be delighted to learn that Paul Darrow still gives great voice. In this episode, Avon and Vila attempt to steal an android named Fourteen, whose intelligence is as close to human as the Federation's been able to get thus far. Avon is quite taken with Fourteen, not just because of her advanced technology, but because, for the first time in his long, lonely life, he recognizes a kindred spirit. Five stars, will listen again.
"Solitary" -- this one's a Vila episode, with a lot of twists and turns. Vila wakes up in solitary confinement, and he can't remember why. As he struggles to piece together recent events, it becomes clear that an alien intelligence is somehow involved. Three and a half stars: Michael Keating is also in great voice, sounding even more like Vila than PD sounds like Avon (and that's saying a lot). The plot, however, is a bit tiresome for all but the biggest Vila fans.
"Counterfeit" -- This one drags a bit, most likely because it's hard to make a space adventure out of a bunch of bureaucrats sitting around their offices talking. The Liberator crew travels to a distant mining colony to learn about a new element, illusium, the Federation has supposedly discovered. Blake teleports down to the mine to get the scoop, and -- as often happens when Blake is bumbling around -- things go pear-shaped. The clever escape from the colony is the best part of the whole episode, and Gareth Thomas is not in great voice, so only Team Blake will truly enjoy it. Two stars.
Can you tell where my sympathies lie? My library has access to this through Hoopla, and I'm most grateful. Big Finish does high-quality productions, and it's lovely to have a chance to cover new ground with some old favorites. Recommended for the fandom.
Blake's 7, a/k/a "the OTHER British sci-fi show that was on PBS in the '70s and '80s," is an acquired taste. A band of anti-hero criminals on the run from an oppressive government do their best to gum up the works of said government while cracking wise with each other and navigating their own inner and team conflicts. Although it never really hit it big in America -- there wasn't even a U.S. DVD release -- Blake's 7 was beloved enough in Great Britain to merit the Big Finish treatment. For the uninitiated, Big Finish is a delightful company that produces radio plays of all the "hidden," "lost," and other interstitial adventures of popular British shows, thus extending the canon for the fandom and racking up big bucks for BF.
Everybody on the same page now? Okay.
The Liberator Chronicles take their name from the ship Blake and his crew use to cruise the galaxy, and this first installment of those "lost" adventures from Season 1 are, in order, delightful, interesting, and kinda meh. In order:
"The Turing Test" - Everybody on Team Avon will be delighted to learn that Paul Darrow still gives great voice. In this episode, Avon and Vila attempt to steal an android named Fourteen, whose intelligence is as close to human as the Federation's been able to get thus far. Avon is quite taken with Fourteen, not just because of her advanced technology, but because, for the first time in his long, lonely life, he recognizes a kindred spirit. Five stars, will listen again.
"Solitary" -- this one's a Vila episode, with a lot of twists and turns. Vila wakes up in solitary confinement, and he can't remember why. As he struggles to piece together recent events, it becomes clear that an alien intelligence is somehow involved. Three and a half stars: Michael Keating is also in great voice, sounding even more like Vila than PD sounds like Avon (and that's saying a lot). The plot, however, is a bit tiresome for all but the biggest Vila fans.
"Counterfeit" -- This one drags a bit, most likely because it's hard to make a space adventure out of a bunch of bureaucrats sitting around their offices talking. The Liberator crew travels to a distant mining colony to learn about a new element, illusium, the Federation has supposedly discovered. Blake teleports down to the mine to get the scoop, and -- as often happens when Blake is bumbling around -- things go pear-shaped. The clever escape from the colony is the best part of the whole episode, and Gareth Thomas is not in great voice, so only Team Blake will truly enjoy it. Two stars.
Can you tell where my sympathies lie? My library has access to this through Hoopla, and I'm most grateful. Big Finish does high-quality productions, and it's lovely to have a chance to cover new ground with some old favorites. Recommended for the fandom.
October 18, 2019
Having dual narrators sort of bridges the gap between standard audio book and full radio drama - it works surprisingly well and gives a chance to do some great character development.
The highlight here is the first story The Turing Test - which is an amazing story as well as great character exploration of Avon.
Solitary focuses on Vila and which Keating is great, the story failed to interest me and didn't really enhance Vila's character.
Counterfeit pulls it back a bit. While the plot isn't the strongest, it is very much a Blake's 7 story with some nice character moments and dialogue.
Blake's 7 fans should be delighted with the Liberator Chronicles because it's just like getting a whole new bunch of episodes 30 years on and even if Solitary is a bit weak, overall the standard is exceptionally high.
Recommended.
The highlight here is the first story The Turing Test - which is an amazing story as well as great character exploration of Avon.
Solitary focuses on Vila and which Keating is great, the story failed to interest me and didn't really enhance Vila's character.
Counterfeit pulls it back a bit. While the plot isn't the strongest, it is very much a Blake's 7 story with some nice character moments and dialogue.
Blake's 7 fans should be delighted with the Liberator Chronicles because it's just like getting a whole new bunch of episodes 30 years on and even if Solitary is a bit weak, overall the standard is exceptionally high.
Recommended.
February 12, 2022
I watched the first 9 episodes of Blake’s 7 before listening to this. Thought the first two episodes of the show were a good setup, the next few were okay, episode 8 was REALLY good, and I enjoyed the one after. Liberator Chronicles turns out to be in the vein of Doctor Who’s Companion Chronicles, which I should’ve expected. Each story is mainly narrated by one character, and a second one pops up occasionally. The stories weren’t very engaging to me. The vast majority of Companion Chronicles I’ve listened to were more interesting than these. It’s a shame when one’s favorite part is just the theme song, which isn’t new. I probably won’t be continuing with Liberator Chronicles, which is probably good given that I already buy so much Big Finish releases.
August 9, 2019
These were really neat. A little shorter than an episode, with one main character/voice focused on and doing most of the narration. I don't quite know the characters well enough to recognize their voices instantly, but they're careful to name everyone else or have the character be named early on so that you don't have to actually check the summary.
Gareth Thomas's (Blake) voice sounded old, more than the other actors. It made me a little sad, since he died a couple of years after this series was released.
Gareth Thomas's (Blake) voice sounded old, more than the other actors. It made me a little sad, since he died a couple of years after this series was released.
September 25, 2020
Loved these stories.
I'm a fan of Blake's 7, even though I'm well aware of the over the top rediculous nature of the whole thing. In fact, that's probably the appeal of the liberator chronicles for me. Dramatic readings of anything normally end up being funny anyway but something as ott as Blake's 7 can only get more melodramatic and humourous when formats such as these are used.
Lots of fun. Can't wait to listen to the rest of them. If they're as funny and nostalgic as this one, it should be good.
I'm a fan of Blake's 7, even though I'm well aware of the over the top rediculous nature of the whole thing. In fact, that's probably the appeal of the liberator chronicles for me. Dramatic readings of anything normally end up being funny anyway but something as ott as Blake's 7 can only get more melodramatic and humourous when formats such as these are used.
Lots of fun. Can't wait to listen to the rest of them. If they're as funny and nostalgic as this one, it should be good.
July 8, 2021
Never more than two people at a time.
The third story is a glorified audiobook with minor sound effects.
Overall, enjoyable but I thought it would be higher than companion chronicle level, so maybe that is on me.
The third story is a glorified audiobook with minor sound effects.
Overall, enjoyable but I thought it would be higher than companion chronicle level, so maybe that is on me.
May 11, 2016
The Liberator Chronicles es una propuesta interesante aunque algo irregular; se trata de "audiolibros mejorados" en los que suele haber dos, tres o pocos más personajes a la vez y están narrados por uno de los habituales de B7 con otro de "comparsa" para que los diálogos queden bien. Son más "historias cortas" de corte más psicológico o intimista que las aventuras de Classic Audio Adventures. De las tres me quedo primero con "The Turing Test" (narrada por Paul Darrow) por su genial premisa (Avon haciéndose pasar por un androide a las órdenes de Vila) y por el trabajo de los actores. Luego vendría "Solitary" (narrada por Michael Keating) en la que Vila parece estar amnésico y un científico de Auron lo trata y "Counterfeit" (narrada por Gareth Thomas) que es la más mediocre de todas, ya que no deja de ser un émulo de aquellos capítulos de "Travis buscando a Blake" de la serie, pero de los reguleros, no los buenos. En general el trabajo de actores y sonido es excelente, pero el formato de antología es lo que tiene,algunas historias son mejores que otras. Me muero por saber si hay alguna narrada por Travis, ojalá.
July 1, 2018
"The Turing Test" - "Solitary"
/cries a bit; /very happy person
/cries a bit; /very happy person
May 21, 2019
Forgettable filler - average 1.5/5.
1.1 The Turing Test - acceptable Avon and Vila duet 2.5/5.
1.2 Solitary - pretty dull and overstretched 1.5/5.
1.3 Counterfeit - non even fan fiction 0.5/5.
1.1 The Turing Test - acceptable Avon and Vila duet 2.5/5.
1.2 Solitary - pretty dull and overstretched 1.5/5.
1.3 Counterfeit - non even fan fiction 0.5/5.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews