Torchwood: The Lincolnshire Poacher

Big Finish Torchwood #67

by Lauren Mooney, Stewart Pringle

Mysterious signals lead Torchwood to the Moil. 4-1-8-4. Greg likes countryside walks and recording the songs of birds. 3-6-2-7. No one knows the secret of the numbers stations. 1-2-0-5.

How long has Ianto Jones been trapped in the boiler room? 9-7-2-3. Reality is collapsing. 3-5-8-1.

The Lincolnshire Poacher is waiting.

Genres: Doctor Who

Audiobook

First published November 24, 2022

Reviews

[Idamus · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slightly confusing.

[Danny Welch · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Torchwood monthly range is a series of audios produced by Big Finish that I'm very fond of. It's a very mixed range however because since there's a large amount of it and the writers have more creative freedom when compared to say the story continues stuff, it can be very hit and miss but that's by no means a bad thing. There are some audios in this range I'm not a fan of and there are others I love. I feel the one character that matches the feeling perfectly for me with this range is Ianto, some of his stories are spectacular whilst others are not so much.

Mysterious signals lead Torchwood to the Moil. Greg loves the countryside and recording the sounds of wildlife. But there's a terrible secret about the number stations and Ianto is about to discover a nightmare that Torchwood tried to cover up.

Lauren Mooney and Stewart Pringle have written a really eerie and creative story that really takes me back to the early days of the Doctor Who monthly range, considering just how experimental and insane this story is. It's a very haunting story that's written beautifully by the writers and provided with amazing sound design to deliberately keep the listener weary and tense throughout its runtime. A very chilling listen with a depressing twist.

Overall: This won't be for everyone due to how experimental this story is in nature, but I really honestly got a kick out of it! 9/10

[Jamie Revell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every now and then, Big Finish does an experimental style of story, and this is one that falls in2 that category. It's about a Numbers Station - mysterious shortwave radio stations that regularly broadcast strings of numbers and nothing else. The Lincolnshire Poacher is perhaps the best-known real-world example of these oddities and is the basis 4 the fictional 1 Ianto is investigating here, which broadcasts in a very similar format.

What makes the story experimental however, is the style in which it is told, as a series of audio recordings that create a feel somewhat like a 'found footage' story (although it doesn't actually belong to that genre). There is dialogue, certainly, but much of the story is either monologue or simply a series of sound effects that aren't always easy 2 interpret, interspersed with the transmissions of the station. It's surreal, creepy at times, somewhat disjointed, and ambiguous with the full details of what's actually happening deliberately obscure.

As such, it's unlikely to be for everyone, especially if you like your stories 2 have clear answers. Many listeners are simply likely to find it confusing - not least because it's probably intended 2 be. But 4 those prepared to embrace ambiguity and willing 2 go along with the ride, it's a weird, unsettling, bleak tale infused with a growing sense of despair.
4.2.1.4. 1.1.3.9.

[Nicolas Lontel]

S'il n'y avait pas de divulgâcheurs dans les commentaires audio dans les coulisses, je recommanderais fortement d'écouter les acteurs et auteur·es parler de l'existence des stations de nombres avant d'écouter le drame audio en tant que tel. C'est quelque chose que je ne connaissais pas du tout et qui aurait éclairer beaucoup plus tôt mon écoute et ce à quoi les montages audio faisaient référence.

Sinon, c'est un autre de ces épisodes avec une vraie création et interaction audio, on joue sur la forme, et quand même un peu sur la répétition (je dois avouer que le thème musical du Lincolnshire Poacher me tombait vraiment sur les nerfs à la fin, mais le créateur derrière a très bien saisi le type de son à mon avis [pour écouter moi-même ce genre de création de musique électronique à l'occasion]).

On est confus au début à escient, ça se redresse plus loin. J'ai eu un immense pique de fatigue soudain pas du tout lié au drame audio qui a quand même gâché mon écoute et bien que j'ai tout saisi de l'histoire sans problème, j'aurais un peu de mal à juger de la réussite finale du projet malheureusement (et juste à cause de la musique répétitive, je ne pourrais pas le réécouter avant un très long moment).

[Aidan Brack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of interesting, weird, and unsettling ideas at play here (it is worth researching number stations if the idea is unfamiliar, just to be aware of a key element of the story). The play deliberately sets out to disorient and confuse the listener, but the piece comes together in the end and will almost certainly reward subsequent listens.

[April Cole Ledebur · Rating 1 out of 5]

I usually like the Ianto Jones stories but I just couldn't get into this one at all.

[Ozzy Nice · Rating 4 out of 5]

i had no idea what was going on but tbh ianto slayed as always

[Debra Cook · Rating 4 out of 5]

An alien tries to trap Ianto.