Otherworld (radio)

“Watchers” is a program from the American radio anthology series Radio Tales. The anthology series adapted classic works of American and world literature for the radio. The series was a recipient of numerous awards, including four Gracie Allen Awards from the Foundation of American Women in Radio and Television (in 2004, [ [http://www.awrt.org/press-releases/2004/Press_Release_%20Announce_Winners.pdf "AWRT Press Release"] AWRT.org. Accessed March 21, 2008] 2003, [ [http://www.npr.org/about/press/030402.gracie.html "NPR Productions Win Gracie Allen Awards"] NPR.org. Accessed March 21, 2008] 2001, [ [http://web.archive.org/web/20011126020253/www.awrt.org/awards/2000GracieWinners.html "2001 Gracie Allen Award Winners"] AWRT.org, as indexed by the Internet Archive at Archive.org. Accessed March 21, 2008] and 1998 [Hear Here: "Tales by American Masters". AudioFile Magazine, pg. 8, Feb/March 1999, Vol. 7, No. 5.] ) a New York Festivals WorldMedal, [ [http://web.archive.org/web/20050207122048/http://www.newyorkfestivals.com/res/pdf/2004RPwinners.pdf "2004 Winners, Radio Programming and Promotion, New York Festivals"] NewYorkFestivals.com, as indexed by the Internet Archive at Archive.org. Accessed March 21, 2008] and a Golden Reel Merit Award. [ [http://web.archive.org/web/20010802161539/www.nfcb.org/2001reelsinfo.html "NFCB Announces 2001 Golden Reel Award Winners"] NFCB.org, as indexed by the Internet Archive at Archive.org. Accessed March 21, 2008] The "Otherworld" program from the Radio Tales series was an adaptation of the short story "The Remarkable Case of Davidson’s Eyes" written by H. G. Wells.

Broadcast history

The Radio Tales production of “Otherworld” was first broadcast via National Public Radio on October 9, 2001. [National Public Radio: "NPR Quarterly Edition Fall 2001". NPR Marketing, Vol. VII, No. IV] The program encompassed one half-hour installment that was distributed to NPR member stations as part of the NPR Playhouse cultural series. Since November 28th, 2002, the entire Radio Tales series has aired in reruns on the Sonic Theater channel (163) of the XM Satellite Radio service. [ [http://www.xmradio.com/onxm/features/sonictheater.xmc "Sonic Theater"] XMRadio.com. Accessed May 22, 2008.] The “Otherworld” program debuted on XM Satellite Radio on November 29, 2003.

Production information

The program was produced and script edited by series producer Winnie Waldron, who also served as the on-air host. [ [http://www.winifredphillips.com/wp_bio.html "Winifred Phillips Official Site: Biography"] Winifredphillips.com. Accessed May 19, 2008.] Composer Winifred Phillips created over twenty-eight minutes of music for the program, and also performed as the featured actress. [ [http://www.mninter.net/~jstearns/nprPH.html#top "NPR Playhouse - January - March, 2001"] MNinter.net. Accessed March 21, 2008.] “Otherworld” was part of the sixth year of Radio Tales on NPR Playhouse [National Public Radio: "NPR Quarterly Edition Fall 2001". NPR Marketing, Vol. VII, No. IV] .

Opening narration

Plot summary

Sidney Davidson is discovered in the larger laboratory at the Technical College – it appears that a loud crack of lightning from the storm outside has caused him to accidentally smash an expensive electrometer. The narrator (a fellow researcher at the college) realizes that Davidson has been profoundly changed -- he stumbles blindly around the room, muttering about a beach, and a ship at anchor nearby, and about how he seems to be up to his neck in sand but somehow able to move freely. Hearing the narrator’s voice startles him badly, for he can see no one around him, and though he can feel the narrator’s hand when it touches his arm, he can only see the beach and the wash of the tide, and the name of the vessel which he reads aloud: "The Cruttwell".

The narrator takes him home and cares for him, for he is completely unable to take care of himself in his condition. Going up a flight of stairs fills him with vertigo, for it seems to him as though he is ascending high into the air over his imaginary island, which the narrator dubs his "‘Otherworld’". Davidson mentions that he can no longer see the ship at anchor, although he never noticed it depart. Thinking that fresh air will do him good, the narrator procures a wheelchair, and pushes Davidson slowly down a gently sloping road… but after a time Davidson begs to be taken back. Later he tells the narrator that to him it seemed he was sinking deep into the ocean’s inky depths, which at first was fascinating but soon became horrifying as he encountered a shipwreck surrounded by fish that were feeding hungrily on something he could not quite see.

Three weeks pass, and Davidson’s condition begins to fade. He is slowly able to perceive the real world around him, until his unknown island fades completely from sight. Two years later, Davidson and the narrator have a casual conversation with a lieutenant in the Royal Navy, who shows them some photographs of various ships, until Davidson exclaims that one of them is the ship he had seen in his vision. Atkins confirms that the ship was named "“The Crutwell”", and that it had actually been off an island near New Zealand at the time of Davidson’s illness. The ship had sunk there (for unknown reasons), and Atkins had been amongst the rescuers sent to look for survivors. Atkins confirms all the details of the island as Davidson perceived them. The narrator speculates that the electrometer might have enabled Davidson’s eyes to engage in a unique variety of remote viewing, due perhaps to a power surge caused by the lightning.

References

External links

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* [http://www.radiotales.com/ The Official Radio Tales® Web Site]
* [http://www.audioville.co.uk/store/view_productcategory.php?Id=59 Radio Tales® Full Series - Streaming Audio Excerpts]
* [http://www.xmradio.com/onxm/channelpage.xmc?ch=163 XM Satellite Radio – Information on the Sonic Theater Channel]