5 Best UK Actual Play Productions to Get Your Fantasy Adventure Fix

Hello, my name is Nick, and I am addicted to Actual Play productions!

For the uninitiated, Actual Play is a genre of entertainment where Tabletop Roleplaying Games (TTRPGs), such as Dungeons & Dragons (D&D), are played for an audience. Unlike games that you would play with your friends at home, these Actual Plays are produced for the purpose of entertaining others and telling a story. You can find these productions in podcast form, video series and, if you’re lucky enough, live shows.

This genre first emerged in the early 2000s but has become increasingly popular especially in the last decade. During that time, it has attracted professional voice actors, performers, game designers, producers and sound designers among many others. The result is beautifully crafted productions that meld the fantasy of the game with the improvised interactions between cast members.

Actual Play productions have become especially popular in the United States. Just have a look at the incredible success of productions such as Critical Role or Dimension 20. However, the Actual Play scene in the UK is on the rise with many talented individuals and groups creating incredible content that you’d be doing yourself a disservice to miss.

To help you get started, here are 5 top picks for UK based Actual Play Productions you should check out sooner rather than later. This is by no means exhaustive or the most popular Actual Plays, but rather some personal favorites of mine!

Oxventure

In 2017, YouTube channels, Outside Xbox and Outside Xtra got together to do a one-off Dungeons and Dragons game with friend of the channels, Johnny Chiodini. What started out as a one off experiment has turned into numerous seasons of Actual Plays over many years! Since then, their antics as a fun and chaotic adventure party with Johnny’s brilliant storytelling, characterization and ability to respond to their players’ hijinks has been hugely popular with fans old and new.

The cast of Oxventure from left to right: Ellen, Mike, Johnny, Andy and Jane.

Oxventure is now its own channel running multiple seasons with the team’s D&D adventures. Their combined cast now include Johnny Chiodini as the group’s Dungeon Master, along with Andy Farrant, Ellen Rose, Jane Douglas, Luke Westaway and Mike Channell. As well as D&D, they have also branched out into other games ran by other members of the team. Along with the core cast, they also frequently include guests from other channels in their adventures. They have even produced a charity music video, ‘Literally Everyone Else in the World’, where the characters serenade Dungeon Master Johnny in their dreams. And yes, it’s as wonderful and bizarre as it sounds!

At the time of writing, Oxventure is nearing the end of its supernatural wild west series of Deadlands, run by Andy. All these episodes are up on their YouTube and are well worth checking out! They also have a podcast of their shows along with behind the scenes stories with the cast. They will also be doing live performances on their Dungeons & Dragons series at Comic Con this year. They’ll be at London on Saturday October 28th and Birmingham on Friday December 1st.

If you would like to support the channels further, check out their Patreon and join the OX Supporters Club.

3 Black Halflings

3 Black Halflings are a group of podcasters/video makers who’s content explores diversity in Gaming. The Halflings themselves are Jeremy Cobb, Liv Kennedy and Jasper Cartwright. Their shows are played in D&D but set in African inspired fantasy settings. This includes the world of Wagadu where their multi-part campaign; The Curse of the Spider Queen is set. To use the words of Jeremy: “A world of magic, mystery and wonder that dares to ask, what if J. R. R. Tolkien blessed the rains down in Africa?”

Meet the 3 Black Halflings. From left to right: Jeremy, Liv and Jasper.

Jeremy, Liv and Jasper have terrific chemistry together as they celebrate the wonderful world of D&D and fantasy roleplay. They have also welcomed a host of other players and creators to join in the fun. You can frequently find guest players joining in their shows and having cozy interview-style chats. These chats are a joy to listen to as they discuss gaming stories and how to to bring everyone to the table for a good game! They recently had Outside Xbox‘s Andy Farrant on the show to talk about Deadlands and looking at human history through the medium of games.

Most of their shows can be found on their YouTube and all of them can be found in podcast form.

If you would like to support the Halfings further, you can go to their Patreon. The basic tier is free, but additional tiers give you exclusive behind the scenes content, ad-free episodes and the ability to give Jeremy a nickname!

Realms of Peril & Glory

Realms of Peril & Glory is an Actual Play podcast series with a high emphasis on quality drama and production value. The show is produced by Zack Fortais-Gomm who brings his experience in television and radio, as well as running games to create quality story-led episodes. 

The core performers of Realms of Peril & Glory. From top left to bottom right: Zack, Liz, James, Naomi, Maddy, Pip and Laura.

The regular cast include Pip Gladwin, Liz Campbell, Naomi Clarke, Maddy Searle, Laura Girling and James Barbarossa. James also creates original music for these productions, really bringing these stories to life!

Their most long running series has been Vael, set in the game, 13th Age. This magical saga boasts a rich narrative and involved plots that span multiple episodes. At the time of writing, their full first season of Vael is out along with several mini-series and recording has just begun for its second full season. However, the series that hooked me was their London Liminal Mystery series, set in the game, Liminal. A prominent feature of this game and this series is being caught between the world as we know it and the world of magic. 

The team have recently performed their first live show at the London Podcast Festival. This show was set in their Vael series and featured a surreal and hilarious story of unrequited love! For more information, check out the live show review.

There are many more productions in the pipeline, including another Vael mini-series called Carnival du Vael starring 3 Black Halfling‘s Jasper Cartwright. The first episode of this 3 part mini-series will be available on October 16th.

You can find their shows are available wherever your listen to podcasts and uploaded onto their YouTube where you can enjoy them with character art and as part of watch parties! You can also support them further on their Patreon. There, you can access perks like ad-free listening, exclusive episodes and voting on future content.

RPGeeks

If you like your Actual Play productions with an extra helping of science, then look no further than RPGeeks. Their team are made of four science communicators who all have a flair for games and storytelling. They include Shamini Bundell, Emily Bates, Ali Jennings and Simon Clarke.

RPGeeks presents The Absalom Files. From left to right: Shamini, Ali, Simon and Emily.

While they play a lot of games in fantasy and science fiction settings, they always bring in real world science into their sessions. As an extra treat, they also take time to talk about the science included in the show and how it was applied. It has the feeling of an episode of Star Trek but having Gene Roddenberry and LaVar Burton come out and talk to you at the end.

At the time of writing, they have just finished their 12-part series, The Absalom Files, which they played on Starfinder. Coming up, they’ve got a two-part show, Universally Acknowledged, a high society drama in space with guest GM, Edward Spence. This will be played on the game, Good Society and will guest star Liv Kennedy from 3 Black Halflings and Twitch Ambassador, Sam Seum. You can catch both parts on October 2nd and 9th respectively. Following that, they’ll be playing Kids on Bikes. This will feature guest game master, Realms‘ Zack Fortais-Gomm, and guest star Jasper Cartwright of 3 Black Halflings.

You can catch their shows live most Mondays at 7pm on their Twitch. You can also watch their shows prerecorded on their YouTube or listen to them in podcast form.

By supporting them on their Patreon, you can access a whole host of benefits. This includes show notes, behind the scenes footage, game raffles and even the chance to join in a home game with them!

Actual Play UK

I thought I’d save the most easy to google one for last! As the name suggests, Actual Play UK is a group that showcases UK based TTRPG performers and creators. They originally started as a Discord group, but have since grown into a production organization in its own right. They now run a whole variety of games and shows featuring creators from across the UK Actual Play scene.

The group’s founder, Jordan Carmichael, had a lot of praise for all the talented individuals that work on these productions. These include players and game masters as well as those working behind the scenes creating the graphics and making sure the streams run smoothly. As a group dedicated to showcasing talent in the UK Actual Play community, there are very welcoming to new talent. If you think you have something to offer them, be sure to head to their socials and get in touch!

As well as highlighting great TTRPG performers, Actual Play UK also shines a light on new games. This includes I’m Not Lion, an original game from Maddy Searle of Realms of Peril and Glory blending legal drama and animal puns! One of their current series, Viscid, features Delta Green from Arc Dream Publishers. There is also an upcoming episode will feature the second edition of Lovecraftesque from Black Armada. 

Actual Play UK is a great way of discovering new UK based Actual Play groups. If you want to add even more brilliant productions to your list, be sure to check them out! They usually stream new shows on their Twitch Friday evenings UK time. You can also watch them pre-recorded on their YouTube.

The Wider World of Actual Play in the UK

You may have noticed that all of these channels make a point of showcasing and supporting fellow Actual Play productions. That is very much the spirit of the Actual Play scene in the UK; a supportive and talented genre of entertainment, packed with creativity and promise. UK Actual Play productions are well worth subscribing to for their incredible story telling and entertainment potential. Some of these productions are still relatively undiscovered but will continue to grow with more engagement and more Patrons.

I am personally very excited to see Actual Plays taking up more space, not just online, but at live events like Comic Con and Dragonmeet. If this article has gotten you curious, be sure to check out any shows that have caught your interest. There are countless amazing productions I’ve no doubt neglected to mention. Be sure to shout out your favorites in the comments and keep your eye on KeenGamer for more coverage of this growing genre!