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Hearthfall: Brian Kelly’s dark fantasy audio drama, and playing Corvo

Writer: Ryan Highley
Ryan Highley
Oct 26
6 min read

Updated: 9 hours ago

I play Corvo in Hearthfall, Brian Kelly’s independent dark fantasy audio drama. And I’d really like more people to hear it.


There’s a whole world here, built through performances, original music and sound design. The first season brings together 17 actors across ten chapters, with a complete audiobook running for around six hours and twenty-one minutes. Before talking about my part in it, I want to give some space to the project and the people who made it happen.


Official Hearthfall season-one artwork

Hearthfall season-one artwork. Source: Soundbooth



Welcome to Hearthfall


Two thieves enter a mage’s tower in search of a powerful artefact. A group of sibling mercenaries try to make their fortune in the city of Mercallis. A forsaken general searches for an end to a debt that refuses to let him go. Their stories cross, and decisions made in one place have consequences elsewhere.


The project’s named influences include The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, Baldur’s Gate III and The Witcher III. Its early presentation also draws on the discovery and shared imagination of Dungeons & Dragons, shaped into a scripted, fully dramatised story.



Hear the official trailer




From a two-part pilot to a full first season


Hearthfall’s announcement trailer appeared in September 2025, followed by its two-part pilot that October. In a later public update, Brian explained that those first episodes might have remained a standalone production. Instead, they became the beginning of a complete season.


The full first season was released as an audiobook on 1 October 2026 by Third Act Productions, under the author credit B. P. Kelly. It is now available through outlets including Soundbooth, Audible and Google Play Books.


what originally had the possibility of just being a standalone set of episodes has turned into a full season



Brian Kelly and the people building the sound


Brian Kelly, creator of Hearthfall

Brian is a video game and trailer composer. His starting point for Hearthfall was to bring the immersion of a game world into a purely audio experience, through professional acting, composition and sound design. He is the creator, writer, director and lead composer, credited on the project as audio lead.


The published production credits also name Liam Cameron as dialogue editor, Alfred Vienneau as sound designer, and Mike Christou for additional music. The artwork for the trailers is credited to Drew Button.


Hearthfall’s official FAQ states that generative AI is not used for its art, writing, voices, music or sound design. The project presents itself as a celebration of human artists and what they can build together.





An award for the early production


Hearthfall received a 2025 Vega Silver Award in Audio & Radio (Single), Radio Drama (Single Episode), entered by Third Act Music LLC. The award entry credits Brian Kelly, Sarah Nightingale, Shaun Mendum, Chris Tester and Ian Russell.




Playing Corvo: my side of the story


How I ended up playing Corvo


I’m still not completely sure how Brian found me. He might have heard a demo I’d put on Instagram, or seen something I’d done on YouTube. Something trickled through, and we ended up talking.


Quite early in the audition process, he mentioned Sarah Nightingale, whose work I’d been following for some time. Then I noticed Chris Tester was involved too. He’s someone I’ve enjoyed watching, both for his performances and for how cleverly he communicates about his work. There were quite a few names that made me think, “Oh, this is an interesting bunch of people.”


I initially auditioned for Orwen. I didn’t get him, but Brian came back to say he thought I could bring something interesting to Corvo.


We had a call to explore the character before recording, and I really enjoyed that conversation. Brian was presenting me with this highly manipulative semi-villain, with anger issues and an obsession with dramatic scenery.


So I said yes. I had to.


Finding Corvo’s voice


What I enjoy about Corvo is the contradiction. He’s intelligent, elegant and well spoken. There’s something unusual about his speech patterns, and he can be very deliberate about his words. He knows what he’s doing with them.


Then emotion gets in the way.


That switch is fascinating to play. One moment, he’s choosing exactly how to manipulate a situation. The next, anger starts taking over, and all that control becomes much less reliable. There are reasons for it, but I’ll leave those for people to discover.


His scenes have an intensity that I really enjoy. Finding the balance between his intelligence, his theatricality and the things he can’t quite keep under control gave me a lot to work with.


Why I want people to hear Hearthfall


There are things in Hearthfall that immediately feel close to me. I get Skyrim, Elder Scrolls and Guild Wars vibes from the atmosphere, the music and the sound. Those are my own associations, but they connect with worlds I’ve loved spending time in.


Fantasy tends to get me anyway. Between writing, running games and performing in actual plays, I spend quite a lot of my life there. Brian and I share a lot of those interests, and the music is really wonderful.


Above all, I want to thank Brian for trusting me with Corvo, and Sarah too. I believe they may have put in a good word for me, although I don’t know exactly how that conversation happened.


And look at the cast and crew. There are some great people involved.


Getting a first season heard takes time and a lot of work. I’m very happy to be part of this one, and I’d love to help it reach more people.



Meet the complete cast


These are the 17 performers listed in Hearthfall’s published cast. The names below link to their verified Instagram accounts, or their professional website where an Instagram account has not been confirmed.





Where to listen and how to support Hearthfall


You can start with the free pilot on the podcast platforms, or listen to the complete first season as an audiobook. Soundbooth offers the first chapter free and the full ten-chapter season to buy.


Free weekly podcast releases are announced to begin on 29 October 2026, on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and other podcast platforms. That rollout follows the complete audiobook release, so there are different ways to discover the story.


For anyone who wants to support the production, Third Act Productions has a Patreon with membership options and behind-the-scenes material. Listening, sharing the show with someone who enjoys fantasy, and leaving an honest review are useful ways to help it find its audience too.


Thank you to everyone listening, recommending and supporting this kind of independent production. It takes people giving it their time and attention.





More glimpses of the world



A world with room to grow


Brian’s public presentation for the Vega Awards described an ambition to build multiple seasons of character-driven stories. I’m looking forward to whatever comes next. For now, I’d love this first season to get the attention it deserves. Have a listen, meet these characters, and if it speaks to you, pass it on.



Ryan Highley is a British actor working internationally, across screen, video games and voice performance. In Hearthfall, he performs Corvo in English.



Official artwork and portraits sourced from Hearthfall and Third Act Productions. Cast and crew credits follow the project’s official website.

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