Sweet Talk for BBC Radio 4

BBC Sounds, available now

Mystery Machine podcast hosts Matthew Heawood and Kennedy Fisher investigate the disappearance of Henry Akeley – whose home is near the infamous Rendlesham Forest…

I came to this eight-part podcast with no knowledge of its predecessor, The Case of Charles Dexter Ward, although we’ve reviewed the Albion plays by its creator, Julian Simpson (director of the Flesh two-parter for Matt Smith’s Doctor). It’s a little bit like starting the Star Wars saga with The Empire Strikes Back, in that the story does make sense without that foreknowledge, but those who followed the original podcast will pick up a lot more without the need for the recapitulation that is skilfully handled as appropriate. There’s no question, though, that the first series is now safely on my iPod ready for listening…

The main attraction was the mention of the Rendlesham Forest incident, which I covered for a book on conspiracy theories nearly a decade ago – it’s not something that’s had anywhere near the attention I’d’ve expected for an occurrence that is sometimes known as the British Roswell. What Julian Simpson does here is use that incident from Christmas 1980 (when American airmen believed they saw UFOs – I won’t spoil it here) as the launchpad for a highly entertaining series that somehow manages to include numbers stations, the Elder Gods, arcane rituals, conspiracy theories of all shapes and sizes, secret Government Organisations, and a whole cast of characters who might not be what they seem, without any of it feeling forced.

The story focuses around podcasters Matthew and Kennedy, and Simpson uses every trick of the podcast medium – you really won’t be sure what is real and what isn’t (at least one element may surprise you by its veracity – see the interview with Simpson coming to SFB in the very near future). There’s black humour (and a very cheeky but inevitable end of episode cliffhanger) and even the occasionally deliberate hokey line works in context.

The sound design by David Thomas is all-encompassing and, particularly in the later episodes, will send shivers up your spine as it incorporates strong performances from Jana Carpenter and Barnaby Kay as Kennedy and Matthew, with Star Cops’ David Calder suitably enigmatic as the missing Akeley, and Nicola Walker delivering the exposition in an engrossing way.

If you know your HP Lovecraft, you’ll recognise elements that Simpson uses and transposes across the Atlantic from the original tale, but they are cleverly interwoven into the ongoing narrative. There’s plenty of set-up for a third season – and, returning to the Empire Strikes Back analogy, the definite equivalent of a carbonite Han Solo in terms of exactly what has happened in the final episode…

Verdict: Absolutely engrossing listening – one of the characters uses an analogy of being on a train ride and finding your ticket is non-transferable… You won’t want to get off this! Highly recommended. 9/10

Paul Simpson