Fish Fingers and Custard Issue 1 - Fish Fingers and Custard Fanzine

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Fish Fingers and Custard Issue 1
Journey To The Forbidden Planet –
A Rebecca’s World Review
After hearing that Big Finish, mostly known for its extensive range of Doctor Who audio
dramas, was to do an audiobook of Terry Nation’s 1976 novel, Rebecca’s World, my
thoughts drifted towards a book, gathering dust on my bookshelf.
I was at Primary School and every few days, at the end of the day, the teacher would read
a bit out of a book. One of those books was Rebecca’s World and from the moment the
teacher read it, a 10-year old me loved it. I loved it so much that I ‘borrowed’ it from the
school library and never returned it! It’s now 14 years overdue, thankfully I don’t think
schools fine you for returning books late! Not that I’m going to return it now!
Nation, famed for his Daleks, wrote the story for
his daughter Rebecca in 1976 and it’s very much a
story that is perfectly made for a parent to read to
their child. Despite being re-printed on a number
of occasions, copies of book are rare and sell for
more than £10 on Ebay. So it’s a really good idea
for Big Finish to produce an audio version. I was
left wondering though, whether or not they had
tried to get the rights to the printed version, as it’s
likely to sell more copies than an audiobook. Just
out of interest - my copy is a 1994 re-print, that I
won’t be selling - as it has a ‘St. Marks C.E
Primary School’ stamp on the inside cover!
The narrative follows a bored little girl (Rebecca, obviously!) who goes against her
father’s wishes, sneaks into his study and plays around with his telescope. After looking
at a star, she finds herself on a strange world where there are no trees – just glass
buildings, owned by the wicked Mister Glister. Glister is able to exploit the people as the
world is under constant threat from creatures known as ‘Ghosts’. Together with her new
found friends (Grisby, Captain K and Kovak) Rebecca must find a way of stopping the
Ghosts from taking over, end Mister Glister’s tyranny and hope that she can get home!
The audio is performed (rather than read) in the same manner that the book is written –
each character is well-developed, everything has a purpose and the story itself moves at a
decent pace. Paul Darrow (who played Avon in Nation’s television series, Blakes’ 7) is
excellent as the narrator and provides a wide array of voices, so you know which character
is which! The underlying sound affects provide an extra layer to the story and it wasn’t
something I was expecting, but they certainly help to pull you into the story that little bit
more!
One thing that you pick up from the story is that Nation has written in a couple of
‘lessons’ for children. There are warnings against bad habits, boredom and politeness, as