If like me you are a bit of a Doctor Who nerd then you'll be aware that this year is a pretty big one. A children's television show created by a Canadian, directed by an Indian and produced by a driven and creative young female producer is perhaps not the most obvious production to have survived fifty years of changing television taste, but survive it has. Initially a TV show it has transcended a variety of media over the years spawning multiple books, a stage play, audio adventures, comic books and now - finally - improvisational comedy.
Normally the home to bold warriors, cunning elves, sly wizards and violent ogres Dungeon Crawl at the Trades Hall is a regular Wednesday evening of improvisational comedy often set in the world of Dungeons and Dragons and hosted by Ben McKenzie and Richard McKenzie (no relation). However, last night the time vortex opened and deposited the show into the realm of the Timelords.
With a brightly clad Ben McKenzie acting as Piebald Guardian (Dungeon Master is not a title for any Who adventure) four new and unusual Doctors were sent on an adventure to save the Universe.
Our cast of rogue Timelords included Scott Gooding as a very jaded and tired 512th incarnation; Vicky Kyriakis as a fan-baiting female eco-warrior incarnation; Toby Halligan as a Malcolm Tucker style incarnation swearing the aliens into defeat and Amanda Buckley as a literal medical interpretation of the character specialising in bi-cardial ailments.
The dice were rolled and in adventure after adventure our band of miscreant Timelords gamely fought off hipster lizards, sent a perfectly nice guy called Brutus off to kill Caesar and attended a mysterious garden party in a timeloop. At every turn they were ably hindered by the villainous machinations of Richard McKenzie in a variety of devious guises.
The improvisational nature of this show meant that nobody knew from moment to moment precisely who would say what or how they would act and that kept everything delightfully fresh.
My own personal highlights included the been-there-done-that attitude of Scott Gooding's Doctor; the cheesy medical-based puns from Amanda Buckley's Doctor and the vein-popping swearing anger of Toby Halligan's Doctor.
In the end it all turned-out to be a ploy by a lone Dalek to throw a surprise party for the Doctor which just wanted a hug (awww...).
This was a great way to spend an hour with comedy and geekery aplenty.
Although - it was slightly marred by the Dalek spilling my drink. Did I protest? Of course I bloody didn't!
Normally the home to bold warriors, cunning elves, sly wizards and violent ogres Dungeon Crawl at the Trades Hall is a regular Wednesday evening of improvisational comedy often set in the world of Dungeons and Dragons and hosted by Ben McKenzie and Richard McKenzie (no relation). However, last night the time vortex opened and deposited the show into the realm of the Timelords.
With a brightly clad Ben McKenzie acting as Piebald Guardian (Dungeon Master is not a title for any Who adventure) four new and unusual Doctors were sent on an adventure to save the Universe.
Our cast of rogue Timelords included Scott Gooding as a very jaded and tired 512th incarnation; Vicky Kyriakis as a fan-baiting female eco-warrior incarnation; Toby Halligan as a Malcolm Tucker style incarnation swearing the aliens into defeat and Amanda Buckley as a literal medical interpretation of the character specialising in bi-cardial ailments.
The dice were rolled and in adventure after adventure our band of miscreant Timelords gamely fought off hipster lizards, sent a perfectly nice guy called Brutus off to kill Caesar and attended a mysterious garden party in a timeloop. At every turn they were ably hindered by the villainous machinations of Richard McKenzie in a variety of devious guises.
The improvisational nature of this show meant that nobody knew from moment to moment precisely who would say what or how they would act and that kept everything delightfully fresh.
My own personal highlights included the been-there-done-that attitude of Scott Gooding's Doctor; the cheesy medical-based puns from Amanda Buckley's Doctor and the vein-popping swearing anger of Toby Halligan's Doctor.
In the end it all turned-out to be a ploy by a lone Dalek to throw a surprise party for the Doctor which just wanted a hug (awww...).
This was a great way to spend an hour with comedy and geekery aplenty.
Although - it was slightly marred by the Dalek spilling my drink. Did I protest? Of course I bloody didn't!
