A four-part, four-and-a-bit hour Warhammer 40,000 audio drama, Gav Thorpe’s Our Martyred Lady sees Inquisitor Greyfax and Saint Celestine working together (begrudgingly, in Greyfax’s case) to combat a far-reaching plot that harks back to the Reign of Blood. When the head of the Ecclesiarchy makes an unprecedented decision, the consequences are far-reaching – including a very public attempt on the Ecclesiarch’s life. It falls to Celestine and Greyfax to protect the Ecclesiarch, uncover who (or what) was behind the attack, and ensure that nothing – neither the politics of the Ecclesiarchy nor the machinations of Chaos – can undermine the stability of the Imperium.
Like Realmslayer before it, this demonstrates Black Library’s expansive approach to audio – not only is it over four hours long (plus an hour’s bonus content in the form of cast and author interviews) but it features a 13-strong cast led by the phenomenal Emma Gregory as Celestine and none other than Catherine Tate as Greyfax. It’s an ambitious story to suit the high production values, dealing with the conflict between the Inquisition and the Ecclesiarchy and the precarious balance between the various component organisations within the Imperium, and particularly the role that faith has to play. It especially rewards old-school 40k fans, as Gav makes excellent use of his long familiarity with the setting to take classic themes and reflect them in the current setting – if you like a bit of the history and politics of 40k, you’ll find much to enjoy here.
The expanded length (compared to a 60-minute audio) provides room for characters to breathe and develop, and while there’s a considerable cast of interesting characters Gav sensibly keeps the focus very much on Celestine and Greyfax. Their complex relationship forms a powerful heart to the story as the two warriors – both dedicated servants of the Imperium but wildly differing in their approaches – gradually learn to trust each other (to a certain extent) over the four episodes. Tate’s versatility and experience show in a confident, complex performance, while Gregory’s ability to effortlessly move from calm and centred to rousing and impassioned frequently raises goosebumps, and the interplay between the two of them brings that dynamic to life phenomenally well. The rest of the cast deliver typically polished performances as well, highlights being Ramon Tikaram’s powerful Custodian Longinus and Richard Reed’s zealous, driven Ecclesiarch Deacis.
As well as Black Library’s commitment to the audio medium, this ably demonstrates Gav’s skill in writing narration-free audio stories and the incredible quality of the voice cast, direction, music and sound design. The strong religious overtones provide a perfect opportunity to generate a beautifully immersive backdrop via music and atmospherics, and it’s as effective and engaging an audio as Black Library have ever released. Thankfully the storytelling matches the production values, with the four episodes neatly combining as a single hugely entertaining story. There’s an occasional reference to wider goings-on in the Imperium which jars just a little (it definitely helps to be up to date with recent 40k events), and David Sibley’s spy Kyrillos could have done with a little more development, but those are very minor issues with a powerful story which balances its grand, sweeping scope with effective touches of humour and an outstanding pair of central characters.
