‘Ang on. Something’s a bit fishy here. Big Finish, despite flagging audience figures, is bringing back Sapphire and Steel for a third season of audio plays. Thing is, the first one doesn’t star either David Warner or Susannah Harker. Instead, it stars Blair McDonough as Steel and Anna Skellern as Sapphire. And they’re Australian – you can tell from the trailer.
No doubt it’s an attempt to do something clever, in light of the fact Sapphire and Steel sort of get killed off at the end of the last story. Have Sapphire and Steel been recast to appeal to the overseas market (Australia being more or less the only country that ever showed Sapphire and Steel except the UK)? Do I care, given I never especially liked David Warner or Susannah Harker in the roles?
Trouble is, the Big Finish site sort of ruins the illusion the recasting might be permanent:
And the next story lists DW and SH as S&S, as do the others. Of course, that could be the elaborate double bluff.
Still, it’s nice to see Big Finish being experimental, taking chances, playing with formats, etc.
