Customer Reviews:
 This play has restored my faith in Doctor Who audio November 1, 2007
This is everything a good a Doctor Who should be. It was riveting and enjoyable from beginning to end. Time passed swiftly as I listened (in stark contrast to 'Dust Breeding' which I would not recommend). The characterisations were good; Sylvester was very reminiscent of his t.v. persona and Mel (thankfully) was very different and very good. It was also very atmospheric throughout and the incidental music was appropriate and evocative. It even had a strong educational aspect as per the original (long forgotton) tv remit. Heartily recommended.
 The return of the historical! September 4, 2007
I am a person who likes the historical Doctor Whos. Some people dont seem to get along with historicals, but i do. William Hartnell's historicals were some of the strongest stories in his time as being the doctor. And its good to have a revival of just a historical for an audio story. This story manages to be exciting and action packed without having to rely on aliens or robots. Really entertaining actually. Deserves good reviews.
hot stuff July 20, 2006
an audio adventure for the seventh doctor who, accompanied by his companion mel. the former is played by sylvester mccoy and the latter by bonnie langford.
The story runs for four episodes of approx twenty five minutes duration each, and is spread across two discs.
In the present, archaeologists at pompeii call in UNIT because they've found something strange buried in the ruins. a blue police box..
In the past, the tardis arrives in pompeii shortly before the eruption of the volcano. the doctor thinks time has caught up with him at last and won't leave. Can mel save the day?
The two actors in the leads here were not popular on tv in these roles, but that was down to the quality of the material they had. bonnie langford in this is a revelation for anyone who saw her tv appearances. mel is written to her strengths - honest, determined, won't quit - and she turns in some superb acting as a result. There's a good cast of well drawn supporting characters and you will care about what happens to them as the story unfolds.
And you will not forget their final scenes in a hurry.
This was released a long time before the current tv dr who story set in pompeii and the two have no connection other than the location. There are no science fictional elements in this other than the tardis, but that doesn't matter. It's a gripping audio, and a really engrossing story, and it's worth 5/5
The re-evaluation of Melanie Bush begins April 12, 2006
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
"Two thousand years ago, a cataclysmic volcanic eruption wiped the Roman city of Pompeii from the face of he Earth. It also buried the Doctor's TARDIS...
"Arriving in Pompeii one day before the disaster, the Doctor and Mel find themselves separated from their ship and entangled in local politics. With time running out, they fight to escape from the shadow of Mount Vesuvius. But how can they succeed when history itself is working against them?"Who'd have thought that Bonnie Langford's Mel could ever be anything but an annoying screamer? But with The Fires of Vulcan, writer Steve Lyons achieves the remarkable - he writes a well-conceived story in which Mel stays true to character but doesn't scream once. It makes you realise how badly put together much of Season 24 really was while the series was still running on television. Instead, Mel becomes a plucky soul who refuses to give up even when a depressed Doctor believes them to be doomed. At the end of the day, it's due to Mel's tenacity that the duo manage to escape Mount Vesuvius without being buried in the pyroclastic explosion.
Astonishing transformation of Mel aside, The Fires of Vulcan is an enjoyable Hartnell-style historical with a variety of suitably decadent but also human characters. Apart from the rather pointless addition of the gladiator Murranus, the characters and performances all hit the right notes (with the best support coming from Gemma Bissix as the slave girl Aglae). The portrayal of Pompeii as a thriving Roman city is interesting to hear and there is, as ever, excellent and atmospheric sound design and a decent score.
Historicals can be dull, but The Fires of Vulcan keeps the listener interested and to hear Mel as she should have been written is refreshing.
 A Bit of a Duffer July 15, 2005
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
First of all I must say that I like historicals more often than not and am pleased that Big Finish make regular trips to the past, this being about the fifth. This however is without a doubt the most ambitious yet. I have to confess to being a big Steve Lyons fan and look forward to all the stuff he puts out. On with the story, first of all I'm going to be controvershal, I like season 24 and whatever people say, as a seven year old it got me hooked. However this story is a lot more serious and has a very good twist in its plot. Due to this plot we get to see the seventh Doctor in emotions we are used to, but he isn't and seems at odds with the depression he has. Mel on the other hand is chirpy and her exploration of the culture, people and city of Pompeii is amoungst the best in the story. There are a lot of good moments such as when the pace finally picks up and the scene in the priestesses home. However I would have prefered it if the entire god sub-plot had been dropped. There is also one thing that nagged me, why The Doctor went back to the inn near the end. Now, I'm going to discuss the ending, be warned it is going to annoy all listeners. I wont give it away but think about the scene in 'Neighbours' when Daffney died with Des by her bedside. The ending is clever but made me think, 'Steve Lyons, you cheeky little sod.' When my sister heard it however she thought 'OI LYONS, NO, MAJOR COP-OUT.' The ending will annoy people but its a question of how much and it spoils a really good story.
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