Christopher Pennock, Lisa Richards returning to Collinsport

"The Enemy Within" was one of the best surprises from Big Finish in 2013. Not only did the episode feature a terrific performance from Christopher Pennock, it also included the incarnation of Cyrus Longworth from DARK SHADOWS' central timeline.

In the original series, Longworth was a Henry Jekyll-esque scientist, whose alter ego John Yaeger caused quite a bit of trouble in "Parallel Time" Collinsport. But Longworth was one of a handful of PT characters that didn't have counterparts in the main timeband. Big Finish corrected that oversight, introducing the character into Collinsport Prime in the episode "The Fall of the House of Trask."

If you thought Yaeger was a nasty piece of work in the original series, he's nothing compared to the secret lurking within Longworth 2.0. The character (as well as Lisa Richards as Sabrina Jennings) is set to return this year in "Deliver Us From Evil" and I'm pretty excited about it.

From Big Finish:

Following the announced release of "Panic" and "The Curse of Shurafa," in May and June, comes "In The Twinkling Of An Eye" by new writer, Penelope Faith. The story stars Marie Wallace as Jessica Griffin, the landlady of the Blue Whale in Collinsport. Jessica has recovered from her recent attack and is now back behind the bar and back to her usual gossipy self. However, when a mysterious stranger (played by Ryan Wichert) arrives in town, could a secret from her past be revealed? The story also sees the return of Alexandra Donnachie as local teen Jacqueline Tate.

August’s release is "Deliver Us From Evil" by Aaron Lamont - writer of  "The Haunted Refrain" and "Beyond The Grave" - and sees the return to DARK SHADOWS of Christopher Pennock as Cyrus Longworth and Lisa Richards as Sabrina Jennings. Amy Cunningham (Stephanie Ellyne) meets up with her estranged sister-in-law, Sabrina, who tells her of what happened ten years before when she was reunited with Cyrus and the two were confronted by serial killers Alfie Chapman (Simon Kent) and Danielle Rogét (Brigid Lohrey). Cyrus and Sabrina previously appeared in the drama "The Enemy Within" and Alfie and Danielle previously appeared in "Beneath The Veil."

“I’m very proud of these two releases,” said co-producer Joseph Lidster, “because they couldn't be more different from each other. 'In The Twinkling Of An Eye' is a very poetic, beautiful character study whereas 'Deliver Us From Evil' is a dark, twisted tale of what happens when a man with the son of the Devil in his head and his ex-werewolf ex-girlfriend meet a young British serial killer and his possessed-by-an-18th-century-serial-killer-girlfriend. At Christmas.”

DARK SHADOWS cast members star in MADAME LaSOEUR

A new film from Ansel Faraj is now streaming for free on Youtube.

MADAME LaSOEUR is a short featuring original DARK SHADOWS cast members Jerry Lacy, Christopher Pennock, Lara Parker and Lisa Richards. Set during the 1960s, the film follows the investigation of Dr. Henry Markway (Lacy), who is searching for a man who disappeared during a séance conducted by spiritualist Madame LeSoeur.

Faraj has a number of films streaming at the official Youtube channel of Hollinsworth Productions. You can find the company online at www.hollinsworthproductions.com.

THE FLIP SIDE takes a closer look at the Blue Whale's jukebox

 

BIG FINISH has released cast and story details for its next DARK SHADOWS audiodrama. Titled THE FLIP SIDE, the episode stars original DS cast members NANCY BARRETT, KATHRYN LEIGH SCOTT, and LISA RICHARDS. Here's a quick synopsis:

"Carolyn Stoddard is lost. Widowed at an early age, she's the lonely rich girl, drinking her life away as her friends grow up and move on. But Carolyn's life is about to change. Because Carolyn is about to be given a set of choices. And those choices will determine whether she is allowed to live or die. It's closing time at the Blue Whale but for Carolyn Stoddard the night is far from over. It's time to face the music..."

The story, which focuses on the character of Carolyn Stoddard, was written by CODY QUIJANO-SCHELL, an author new to Big Finish.

“I'm a huge DARK SHADOWS fan and I love Carolyn,” says Quijano-Schell. “She's a whirlwind of a character. She transitions from being sweet and vulnerable to being a monstrous brat… often in the same scene. The moment she first appeared dancing in the Blue Whale is the exact moment I fell in love with Dark Shadows. The original instrumental pop music composed by ROBERT COBERT is phenomenal. The tracks gave scenes set in the Blue Whale such a distinctive texture. That’s why I was so excited to hear there would be a new original song written just to accompany my script!”

The story features a specially composed song by singer-songwriter SEAN McGHEE - one half of the band ARTMAGIC, with RICHARD OAKES from SUEDE, and shortly to go on tour with the legend that is Alison Moyet. “Sean's a very old friend, and an experienced songwriter and producer,” says co-producer David Darlington, “and when I saw that there was scope in The Flip Side for a specially-composed song, I knew that rather than bashing my own head against walls for days on end trying to come up with singable melodies and lyrics, I could get him to write it to order!”

“I don't usually write period pieces, but the chance to compose an imaginary 1970s radio hit for a ghost story was too much to resist,” says Sean. “I located my inner Carole King for the music and kept the lyrics close to the spirit of Cody's excellent script, and the result is a song called The Better Side. It's quite unlike anything I've done before... but that's part of the fun.”

Visit BIG FINISH for more details, and to hear a trailer for the upcoming episode. A full interview with Sean McGhee about his involvement in DARK SHADOWS can be found at www.artmagicmusic.com.

Cyrus Longworth, Sabrina Jennings return for THE ENEMY WITHIN

A few familiar faces are returning to Collinsport in the next DARK SHADOWS audio drama from Big Finish. CHRISTOPHER PENNOCK and LISA RICHARDS are set to star in THE ENEMY WITHIN, reprising roles from the 1970 Parallel Time story arc. Well, I think that's who they're playing ... Richards played a character named Sabrina Stuart on DARK SHADOWS, so it's safe to assume her character is somehow related to the events in parallel time. It looks like we're going to have to wait until later this month to find out.

Here's the official synopsis:

Cyrus Longworth has a secret. On the outside, he's the quiet handyman helping out with odd jobs. But his neighbours don't know about the voice inside his head.

Sabrina Jennings has a secret. She's just moved in across the street, here to teach at the local school. But her new husband is nowhere to be seen.

They could live happily ever after. But the dark secrets of Collinsport cast long shadows...

You can pre-order the adventure in two formats, compact disc or MP3 download, from the official BIG FINISH website. And CLICK HERE to listen to the episode's trailer.

Collinsport News Bulletins

LISA RICHARDS returns to the role of Sabrina Jennings in THE ENEMY WITHIN, a Dark Shadows audio drama coming in July from BIG FINISH. CHRISTOPHER PENNOCK and NANCY BARRETT are also slated to be part of that production.

KATHRYN LEIGH SCOTT announces a summer "blog tour" for her latest book, DOWN AND OUT IN BEVERLY HEELS.

LARA PARKER is planning a book tour for her novel DARK SHADOWS: WOLF MOON RISING later this summer and is looking for possible venues.

PATRICK McCRAY is halfway through the latest phase of THE DARK SHADOWS EXPERIMENT.

And last but not least, today marks the anniversary of the debut of DARK SHADOWS back in 1966. Here's how the show was presented to newspaper readers 47 years ago.