During the lockdown imposed by the coronavirus crisis, Big Finish is releasing free downloads of full-cast audio dramas – or #lockdownloads – for a limited time.  

Every Monday, a new story (or episode from a box set collection) can be downloaded exclusively from the Weekly Deals page.

These stories can be unlocked by anyone who has registered for a Big Finish account (which is free to create) and played on the Big Finish listening app (which is free to install).  

Each story will be available for one week only, and comes accompanied by a special discount offer on related titles.  

This week’s free title is:  

Jeremiah Bourne in Time part one, written by Nigel Planer 

This fantasy comedy-drama was originally released in July 2018 as part of the Big Finish Originals series – new, original full-cast audio series launched to celebrate the company’s 20th anniversary. It features a star-studded galaxy of guest cast, including Sophie Thompson, Annette Badland, Celia Imrie, Tim McInnerny, and Nigel’s old housemate from The Young Ones, Christopher Ryan.  

Nigel Planer said: “Jeremiah Bourne in Time is a very personal take on how I see the world. I’ve been working on it since about 1857 and I think it’s just about ready to share. This was one of the most fun experiences of my writing and acting life, give it a listen.” 

Jeremiah Bourne is a boy with a remarkable gift. He can travel in time. Not by using a time machine, or stepping through a dimensional portal. It just happens to him, as though by accident. One minute he’s in the present day, the next, he’s a hundred years in the past, standing in the London of 1910. 

Jeremiah has two questions; how did he get there – and how can he get back? On his quest for the answers, he enlists the help of Phyllis Stokes of The Society for Theosophical Research and her equally eccentric brother, Roger Allcot Standish, magistrate, spiritualist and dedicated nudist. He encounters the sadistic Mr and Mrs Grout and the ruthless Ed Viney, thief, gang member and slitter of throats. And he arouses the disapproval of Clementina Quentinbloom, the head of a home for ‘Fallen Girls’, by befriending Daisy Wallace, a girl ahead of her time. 

Can Jeremiah get home? What is the connection between Clementina’s establishment and Doctor Henry Davenant Hythe, the humanitarian and eugenicist? And does Jeremiah’s gift of time travel have something to do with his mother’s sudden disappearance, all those years ago...

Big Finish listeners can get 50% off the complete four-hour series of Jeremiah Bourne in Time at the Weekly Deals page. Plus, there is 30% off the usual bundle price of the Big Finish Originals range, which contains seven original drama series (including the forthcoming sci-fi epic, The Human Frontier by Nicholas Briggs). 

You can listen to the full series trailer below.

These deals are available here for a limited time only and will expire at 23:59 (UK time) on 17 May 2020.  

Further free stories will be released over the next three weeks.  

Please note that Big Finish is currently operating a digital-first release schedule. The mailout of collector’s edition CDs will be delayed, but all purchases of CD releases unlock a digital copy that can be immediately downloaded or played on the Big Finish app from the release date.