REVIEW: THE LIBERATOR CHRONICLES – VOLUME 8 (BLAKE’S 7) / AUTHOR: SIMON GUERRIER, MARC PLATT, JAMES GOSS / PUBLISHER: BIG FINISH / STARRING: GARETH THOMAS, JAN CHAPPELL, JACQUELINE PEARCE, PETER MILES, DAN STARKEY, JEMMA CHURCHILL / RELEASE DATE: MAY 31ST

The Liberator Chronicles is a range of stories each featuring a subset of characters from Blake’s 7, allowing for greater dramatic focus. Unlike some of the previous sets, this collection of three CDs tells three unconnected stories.

The first tells the story of how Servalan set up the President and the consequences of an assassination attempt. It is a story of power and politics superbly performed by Jacqueline Pearce. We learn about the power and attraction of the President and also how far Servalan will go in the pursuit of her goals.

The second, Sea of Iron by Marc Platt, focusses on Cally, who is receiving telepathic messages that cause her to seek her old tutor. Learning his fate means that Cally falls into the hands of Servalan and the Federation and has to travel to the Goliath System where she learns just what her people are prepared to do. We also gain some powerful insights into who Cally is and what drives her.

Finally, in Spoils by James Goss, Blake gets the chance to see a vision of his future – after he has defeated the Federation. This starts as a gentle, comfortable story that grows as it progresses. The device of having non-original actors (Starkey and Miles) as key characters seems odd at first but then it allows them to play multiple parts as we learn how Cally, Jenna, Avon and Villa fare in Blake’s vision of the future. Wonderful.

All three stories are strong and both President and Spoils are amongst the best Blake’s 7 stories Big Finish has ever released. This is a highly recommended collection.