A brand new audio-only special based on Doctor Who’s The Greatest Show in the Galaxy is releasing on December 4th, and it stars Sylvester McCoy — the Seventh Doctor himself. Children of the Circus reunites the remaining living cast of the original Doctor Who serial with Sophie Aldred, Chrisopher Guard, Dee Sadler, and Ian Reddington joining McCoy, alongside musician and Doctor Who superfan Toyah Willcox.
Produced by AUK Studios, Children of the Circus will be released 35 years to the day that The Greatest Show in the Galaxy was first broadcast. A limited edition 2 x CD set is available now from AUK Direct. You can listen to a trailer for the special below.
Once upon a time, there was a circus.
A Psychic Circus, to be precise. A glorious haven for the misfits of the universe.
But then, as is so often the way, it was hijacked by a trio of malevolent Gods.
Things grew unpleasant.
Now, years later, the Gods are gone, but the scars of those who survived the Circus remain. After all, you can’t change the past.
Unless you’re the Children of the Circus… and you’re willing to sing.
Children of the Circus also features voice work from Daisy Dunlop, Verity White, Kenton Hall, Barnaby Eaton-Jones and Ian Kubiak, with special guest appearances from Ricco Ross, Jessica Martin, Deborah Manship, Chris Jury, Gian Sammarco, Daniel Peacock and Dean Hollingsworth.
Barnaby Eaton-Jones also directed and produced Children of the Circus and was fascinated from an early age with The Greatest Show in the Galaxy and Steven Wyatt’s work on Doctor Who. “There was such a wild mix of horror, science fiction, music, and fantasy, that it blew my adolescent mind,” says Eaton-Jones. “I had wanted to revisit some of the characters and introduce new ones. With the permission of Stephen Wyatt (who came up with the title for this new production), and the help of writer Kenton Hall and actor/musician Christopher Guard, we were able to create something rather unique in the audio medium.”
Songwriter Christopher Guard added: “Steven Wyatt blessed us, Kenton Hall siezed his cosmic pen, and the rest is mystery. Unravelled. With music”.
Children of the Circus wouldn’t be a proper sequel without the return of Sylvester McCoy. The actor behind the Seventh Doctor is reunited with Sophie Aldred (who portrayed the Doctor’s companion Ace), but the pair don’t appear as many would expect. McCoy plays The High Poet — a charming new role for the actor. Sylvester McCoy calls his new role “a joy” to play, saying: “To return to the worlds of Stephen Wyatt’s imagination, but as a wholly new character called The High Poet, means I get to be involved with the Psychic Circus rather than fighting against it!”
Joining the established cast is musician, 1980s icon, and Doctor Who enthusiast Toyah Willcox. Toyah performs multiple roles as The Band of Infinite Harmony and is thrilled to be a part of this world, saying: “Seriously, it was wonderful to play THE BAND and equally wonderful to hear this rather fab story unfold, a rock and roll odyssey of comic proportions”.
Children of the Circus is released as a limited edition 2 x CD set on December 4th. It is available now from AUK Direct.