London Podcast Festival, November 30, 2019

 Alasdair Stuart reports from the live version of The Magnus Archives…

 Jonathan Sims is the new chief archivist at the Magnus Institute. The premier European paranormal research organisation, the Institute has thousands of statements from people who’ve had encounters with something…other than human. There’s just one problem; Jonathan’s predecessor had no manner of filing system at all and so, with no choice, he picks up a statement and records it. Once he’s done them all, he’ll at least know how to file them…

Jonny Sims’ and Alexander J Newall’s show is four seasons deep now and strides across tumblr and AO3 like a colossus made of feelings, fan art and conspiracy theories. What starts out as an anthology soon becomes a remarkably clever, painstakingly assembled serial as Jonathan and the Archive’s other staff find themselves drawn into events larger than themselves. To say anything in particular would be to spoil a glorious, squamous, surprise but please believe me when I say this is a show that rewards perseverance. And I should know, I had the singular honour of playing Peter Lukas, the season 4 villain. Well, I say villain…I still maintain Peter’s an unsung hero but I freely admit to being a little biased…

The Magnus Archives made their live debut this weekend as part of the London Podcast Festival and in doing so evolved in a way that was truly inspiring to see. I showed up purely to be an audience member but got pressganged first into the meet-and-greet before the show and second in the post-show Q&A. In both cases, I had the genuinely joyous experience of being told by a wide variety of strangers how grateful they were for me playing an absolute scumbag. That honestly made my week, especially as over a year ago when I started, the stage direction I was given was ‘Kilgrave, as played by Stephen Fry’.

Even without that massively pleasant surprise, the evening was a remarkable success. The show the team put on was a ‘greatest hits’ of sorts, following Sims on his first day in the job and reading some early statements. With a simple backdrop and some carefully chosen props, this was theatre at its most elemental and best; trusting the audience to paint the rest of the picture. It’s also a great on ramp for the show as a whole, opening with the first episode’s story and giving you everything you need to follow what comes next. In fact, for long term fans there was a banquet of subtle little nods to upcoming stories. Sims’ concerns about his desk, his first meeting with Martin and Tim and a surprisingly brilliant comedic interlude involving a dog. If you were a fan already, this was equal parts adorable and disturbing, much like the show itself. If you weren’t a fan already, you were by the end of the night.

Verdict: A precise, measured and relentless inventive first step onto the live stage for one of the best podcasts in the field. Keep an eye out for future shows and if you can’t wait (and you shouldn’t) start here… http://rustyquill.com/the-magnus-archives/