Us creatures knew not, but would soon be upset,
For a fortnight later, the news that they send,
Would be that our Dorian would soon come to his end.
But before that sad, unhappy and eventual day,
We are here to celebrate, to be happy and gay,
For on this day, a special treat was thrust upon us.
A two hour special called The Spirit Of Christmas
THE CONFESSIONS OF DORIAN GRAY REVIEW
THE SPIRITS OF CHRISTMAS (AND THE MINISODES)
By Jack Ryan
BEWARE: THIS POST CONTAINS SPOILERS. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK
Okay, very quickly my view on the minisodes. Our Christmas minisode Frostbite is a very nice and atmospheric, if abrupt, distraction by Mark B. Oliver, that shows great chemistry between Vlahos as Gray and Laura Doddington as the Woman in Blue, and it also manages to give off a great twist in the tale in the space of seven minutes. Scott Handcock's Trick or Treat, our Hallowe'en minisode, is a thrilling and terrifying single-hander that sees Gray attempt to remove a ghoul, portrayed by Aeysha Antoine, from his house on the dreaded night. Both are amazing, atmospheric and above all, GODDAMN FREAKIN' FREE!!! GO GET THEM NOW!!!! Now onto the main event...
Dorian Gray is happy. He is happier than he has ever been in a long long time. For he now enjoys his life, his lover has returned to him in the form of Toby Matthews, his vampiric soulmate, and it is Christmas. What's the worst that could happen?
That was rhetorical. We know exactly what the worst that could happen is, especially when Dorian and Toby are visited by a mad, psychotic and murderous Santa Claus. And if that wasn't enough, when Christmas Day arrives, Dorian and Toby book themselves into the Brigadoon Hotel.... which has been missing for nearly a hundred years.... and is full of memories personal and nightmarish..... and someone very special is waiting for our supernatural couple in Suite 13-09....
I don't think any of us were properly expecting this. Announced just around a year before its eventual release, this is a seasonal and horribly glorious surprise. After the brilliance that was Series 1's Christmas Special, Ghosts Of Christmas Past, this time we've a double episode special in modern times that attempts to show both Dorian's happier side and his continued attraction to Murphy's Law. Tim Leng's Desperately Seeking Santa (get it?) sees Dorian and Toby attempt to enjoy their first proper Christmas together whilst fighting of a dangerously psychotic Santa Claus who wants to get a 'present' from Dorian. Then in Alan Flanagan's All Through The House, our lovable duo decide to spend Christmas Day in the styled luxury of the Hotel Brigadoon. But they soon realise that not all is as it seems, as memories of history and the hotels inhabitants begin to become solid, and Dorian and Toby discover the inhabitant of Suite 13-09...... and he has a deal for them. Both of these hour long specials are a testament to these new writers to the series and their quick understanding of what this series is about, but also for their creative input into how the concept of Christmas can be twisted in this lovingly devilish world that Scott has created and directed.
And to help spread the Christmas cheer with this release, we are given a gloriously star-studded cast, with many returning to the series in either new roles or their old characters, including Ace herself, Sophie Aldred, Coronation Street's Bruno Langley, The Cube's Colin McFarlane, Guy Adams Jacqueline King, David Blackwell, Tom Allen, the glorious Lisa Bowerman, Tim Leng, Samantha Béart, Laura Riseborough, Sarah Ovens, Sakuntala Ramanee, Bianca Stephens, not to mention the amazing talents of David Warner, Miles Richardson, Katy Manning, Gabriel Woolf and the amazing Hugh Skinner. Every last person here, including the marvelous...
ALEXANDER BLOODY VLAHOS!!!!!
... are just perfect. Simply perfect. I literally cannot find any other words to describe this exceptional cast. The same can even be said of the geniuses behind the music and sound design, which fall to the talents of Neil Gardner on sound and the duo of Ioan Morris and Rhys Downing on music. And their efforts here are astounding, especially Morris and Downing's specially created Christmas jingle.
This was one of the most glorious Christmas presents Big Finish could have ever given us. Two fantastic festive tales of murder and devilry, with top notch Christmas-y music and songs, and a star studded cast that most TV shows would be dying for! In fact I'd say that this release alone has cemented The Confessions Of Dorian Gray into the mindset of the public and the delightful followers of ALEXANDER BLOODY VLAHOS!
Shame it has to end tomorrow...
VERDICT: 5/5 A devilishly creepy Christmas tale for all us Hedonists! ;D
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