Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
Cast: Jana Carpenter, Barnaby Kay, Nicola Walker, Mark Bazeley, David Calder, Ben Crowe, Gabrielle Glaister, Ferdinand Kingsley, Nicola Stephenson, Edie Simpson, Robert Glenister, Ben Crowe, Stephen Mackintosh, Karl Johnson, Phoebe Fox, Phoebe Francis Brown.
The enigma that is H.P. Lovecraft is perhaps lost on modern readers, for in is writing it is possible to see just how far ahead of his time he was, and whilst the notion of his own personal beliefs arguably kept his name from being investigated by readers long after his untimely passing, only the adventurous reader seems to dare go deep into the world created by the writer.
Compared to modern day giants, Lovecraft remains under the radar as such, only the perplexity of his brilliance continues to astonish and when given opportunity for that voice to be heard in an adaption of his work, it must be one taken with a sizeable amount of intrigue and willingness to be taken on a journey into the mind of one America’s most rewarding writers.
It is the dichotomy of life that sees Lovecraft both lauded and disowned by those who sit as guardians of the nation’s moral compass when it comes to past indiscretions and opinions, and whilst we cannot defend the man in his early formation of mind, we can look to the work with a greater degree of subtle passion, and with Julian Simpson forging ahead with his adaption of The Whisperer in Darkness, the second of his inspiring reworkings of the fiction from Lovecraft’s pen, what becomes clear is just how precious the backdrop and history of the tales are.
The Whisperer in Darkness is haunting, it is fierce, it is a lullaby to the strange and a love letter to the bizarre, and with the return of actors such as Barnaby Kay, Jana Carpenter, and Nicola Walker to the fore and examination of the production interpreted as a podcast, there is a lot for the listener to fathom, to digest and freely look into of their own volition.
The disappearance of Henry Akeley might sound routine, but as the information comes directly from that of the renowned Eleanor Peck, the opportunity to investigate what sits at the heart of the mystery is one that cannot be ignored, and in true Lovecraft style, that mystery is one that gets deep under the skin of those who find themselves at odds with Britain’s heritage of worshiping at the alter not that designed for holy use.
The tale leads directly on from its predecessor, The Case Of Charles Dexter Ward, and in that sense of continuality the listener is exposed to the point of continuality, of the unbroken existence that binds fiction together in all its genres and modes.
A tremendous audio drama that will shake the listener to the core and have them question the binary system of faith. The Whisperer in Darkness is a prime example of willing to take a step forward in to the realm of knowledge.
Ian D. Hall