New Dr Who audio adventure series set to save Barney Kiernan’s pub

The latest edition of an alternative Dr Who audio adventure will be played outside Barney Kiernan’s old pub on Little Britain Street as part of 2023’s Bloomsday celebrations in Dublin.

‘Lost in the Wake’ written by Lee Ravitz, is the latest part of the audio series The Lost Doctor – which conjures a wholly imaginary other trajectory for Dr. Who, on the premise that the UK theatre maverick Ken Campbell was chosen for the role, rather than the original BBC's Dr. Who, Sylvester McCoy. An experimental actor, writer and director, Ken Campbell has been described as a "one-man dynamo of British theatre." He starred in the 1980s sitcom In Sickness and in Health, and an episode of Fawlty Towers, as well as movies like The Tempest, Breaking Glass, Letter to Breznev, A Fish Called Wanda and Creep (2004). He died on August 31st, 2008.

The 'Lost in the Wake' episode of The Lost Doctor features the characters of James Joyce (played by Roddy McDevitt), William Blake, and Aleister Crowley among others, in what's been described as a "dreamlike" homage to Joyce's complicated meisterwerk, Finnegans Wake,. The episode will officially premiere upstairs at The Stags Head, Dublin, on Thursday, June 15th.

As those familiar with Joyce's most iconic and influential book will know, Barney Kiernan’s pub plays a key role in the ‘Cyclops’ chapter, in Joyce’s Ulysses – but the building has been dormant for several years now. Producer Tommy Calderbank is hoping to build a campaign to save the literary landmark.

“Coming from Liverpool," Tony said, "I’m well aware of civic neglect of old buildings and the ignoring of key heritage assets in need of rejuvenation.

“I see Dublin suffers from the same attitude. But given the obvious cultural and economic benefits of Bloomsday, this one is really baffling.”

Irish people often take Joycean Dublin for granted, but the Liverpudlian producer is having none none of that complacency!

“Barney Kiernan’s pub is a really important location in Ulysses," Calderbank asserts, "making it a cultural treasure in the realm of world literature. I’ll be there on Bloomsday to draw attention to its plight. I’m urging anyone who truly cares about preserving Joyce’s legacy and the heritage value of old Dublin to help me help youse to Save Barney Kiernan’s Pub!”

Credit: Andy Teebay

For those unfamiliar with the project, The Lost Doctor imagines the late theatre maverick, Ken Campbell, in the production’s titular role.

“When Ken died in 2008," Calderbank explains, "I felt moved to do something in his honour. I found out he’d auditioned for the role of the Doctor but was rejected as the producers thought he’d scare the kids.

“Sylvestre McCoy got the job instead,” he continues. “So our premise is: what if Ken WAS the Doctor? Using a combination of original Ken audio and the vocal talents of amongst others Tom Baker, we’re imagining Ken’s ‘lost run’ on the show.

“There’s a whole host of brilliant, creative people involved now, all doing it for the love of Ken and Dr Who.”

You can tell that Calderbank is having fun with the project.

“It’s a real creative blast," he observes. "And as this 14th episode is our take on the Wake, where better to debut it than Dublin?”

'Lost in the Wake' is set to make its debut in The Parlour Bar upstairs at The Stags Head on Thursday, June 15th from 8pm - 11.23pm. Entrance fee of 5 euro applies. The next day (Bloomsday) it will be played at noon outside Barney Kiernan's pub.