Big Finish is well known for its audio dramas in the Doctor Who and Torchwood universe, but the company is also regularly releasing original content. Today, they are releasing an epic science fiction story called The Human Frontier. The story is written and directed by Nicholas Briggs and produced by David Richardson. Pepter Lunkuse (Exographer Anna Swift) and Genevieve Gaunt (Commander Daisy Bailey) play two pioneers of future space colonisation and are joined by Mark Elstob (Pilot Robert Harrigan), Lucy Briggs-Owen (‘Nilly’), Clive Wood (President Triton), and Nicholas Briggs (Hans Dendrick).
The Human Frontier is composed of four one hour-long episodes:
Two sets of Earth colonists, both setting out for the planet ND492.
One crew takes the long route, sleeping for 1,000 years, in secret, on a ship called The Human Frontier.
The other crew set off hundreds of years later, at hyper speed.
When the sleepers wake as they approach the planet, the hyper-speed crew have been living there for 300 years already – and they have no clue the ‘sleepers’ are about to arrive.
Part 1: The Possibility of Life
Anna and Daisy wake up at two different points during their 1,000 year journey. Once for an alien encounter and once for a dire emergency. But sleeping for centuries can affect the mind in strange ways. Meanwhile, on the planet Triton, a president is about to fall from grace.
Part 2: Nowhere Near Neptune
Anna is glad of her implanted AI ‘Nilly’ for company. How else will she get through the coming ordeal?
Part 3: Machine Minds
A devastating conflict in Earth’s past has ramifications, even centuries later.
Part 4: Control
With The Human Frontier now in orbit, is the past about to repeat itself?
Actor Pepter Lunkuse said: “Anna goes on a really epic journey from a girl just falling in love to losing her lover, from having to save the world to understanding what it means to be human. And I got to wear a spacesuit!”
Actor Genevieve Gaunt added: “It’s been fantastic. We’ve been fighting aliens, I’ve been falling in love, I’ve been falling asleep, I’ve been waking up, I’ve been running around. I can’t believe this is work! This is just heaven. Nick Briggs is a great director, but he’s also written this. It’s wonderful, and we’re exploring new territory. Really exciting. It has been an explosive adventure.”
Writer/director Nicholas Briggs said: “A phrase I overuse, but it is true, is that for me it’s beyond exciting. I felt such joy and fear simultaneously. I’m not one for white-knuckle rides but I’ve done a couple, and this felt rather like that. The experience in the studio was fantastic. Everyone picked up on the amount of emotion I had invested in this, and all of them ran to my aid, fully supportive. Our great producer Emma Haigh was also there at every moment to help. It was one of the most heartening experiences of my life so far.”
You can watch the trailer here:
The Human Frontier is now available to purchase as a digital download exclusively from the Big Finish website. You can also buy it as part as a bundle including all the original Big Finish releases.
