BBC Radio 4, December 11, 2020 and on BBC Sounds

Alice gets on a tube train at Savoy station – and ends up a long way from home.

The second episode of Nick Perry’s three-part tale starts off set on the day of broadcast (although it seems in a world without COVID) with Alice and her new friends making an illicit entry into the abandoned Savoy tube station. Alice peels off from the party, gets on a train that stops there… and wakes up in 1945.

Perry doesn’t go the “what larks, I’m in the past” route with the drama. Instead, Alice is subjected to what’s deemed the cutting edge in mental health treatment as of 1945, and be warned, it’s depicted graphically. Yet she refuses to accept that she’s “Elsie” – although it’s clear that Elsie has had similar episodes in the past – and maybe the proof she’s telling the truth is coming soon…

Scarlet Brookes gives a strong performance as Alice, with director Sasha Yevtushenko varying the pace to match the change in mood as the story progresses. The sound design is effective, from a deserted tube train to the party atmosphere.

Verdict: Questions continue to mount as this time travel drama doesn’t sugarcoat the past. 8/10

Paul Simpson