Manufacturer: Big Finish Productions

Written By: John Dorney

RRP: £14.99 (CD) / £12.99 (Download)

Release Date: November 2013

Reviewed by: Nick Mellish for Doctor Who Online

Review Posted: 30th November 2013

“London. The end of November, 1963. A time of change. The old guard are being swept away by the white heat of technology. Political scandals are the talk of the town. Britain tries to maintain its international role; fanatics assassinate charismatic politicians and Group Captain Ian Gilmore is trying to get his fledgling Counter-Measures unit off the ground.

When his life is saved by a familiar umbrella-bearing figure, he knows something terrible is going on.  Whilst Rachel investigates an enigmatic millionaire and Allison goes undercover in an extremist organisation, Gilmore discovers a sinister plot with roots a century old.

The Doctor and Ace are back in town. A new dawn is coming. It's time for everyone… to see the Light.”

* * *

This must have been a difficult play to be created, make no mistake.  It has to meet six very important criteria, namely:

 

To satisfy and not isolate anyone who hasn’t listened to Counter-measures.

To satisfy anyone who has listened to Counter-measures and not make them feel that the series or its concepts have been diluted by their inclusion in a Doctor Who release.

To satisfy the fans of Remembrance of the Daleks who are looking forward to the various characters’ reunion after all these years.

To satisfy the fans of John Dorney, one of the most popular writers and performers which Big Finish have to offer.

To satisfy the fans of the 1963 trilogy (though ‘trilogy’ is a strong word when it’s the year and nothing more which link up the stories).

And, finally, to stand up to closer-than-usual scrutiny, being as this is the release for November 2013, Doctor Who’s fiftieth birthday month.

 

Quite a challenge.  I wouldn’t have blamed anyone for turning it down; nor would I have blamed it if it had been a release which missed the mark: quite frankly, it’d be nigh-on impossible to write without the pressure of November 2013 on the back, however right or wrong that may be.

     Thankfully, none of that happens, and 1963: The Assassination Games is a very strong release indeed, easily ticking all of the above boxes with little fuss.  The opening episode is essentially an episode of Counter-measures, with the team going about their business whilst two people they never thought they’d see again (the Doctor and Ace) pop up from time to time to nudge them on their way.  It’s a lovely set-up, and in many ways I wish that the rest of the story had followed suit: I rather like the idea of a Doctor-lite story featuring characters from a spin-off range, and the Seventh Doctor feels particularly suited to that sort of behind-the-scenes approach.

     That’s not to say that the rest of the story disappoints though– far from it.  Over the course of its four episodes, it slowly works its way from Counter-measures territory to Doctor Who terrain, finished up in an episode which feels like it’s jumped fresh out of Season 25, with stunts, bike chases, and a big evil from ancient times.  Throw into that brilliant performances from all the leads, Sylvester McCoy and Sophie Aldred particularly channeling their old performances well, and you have a very satisfying story which sates the desires of the (not necessarily exclusive, but you never know) fan bases of both series.

     The very best thing this story could do is persuade fans to listen to Counter-measures, and help it gain a wider audience: it would be nice to see it run to another couple of series at the very least as there is a lot of potential in there.

     The 1963 trilogy has given Big Finish some of its strongest stories for a while, with some very memorable characters, situations and performances.  When people look back on November 2013, many will recall sitting in cinemas with 3-D glasses and bathing in the wonder of The Day of the Doctor, but for us lucky few, we’ll also remember listening to The Common Men being The Beatles, Samantha Bérat giving us a heartfelt performances for a frankly bizarre character, and Chunky Gilmore being reunited with his most-trusted Doctor at long last.

     Thank you, Big Finish, and Happy Birthday, Doctor Who.

 

 

Manufacturer: Big Finish Productions

Written By: Jonathan Morris

RRP: £14.99 (CD) / £12.99 (Download)

Release Date: October 2013

Reviewed by: Nick Mellish for Doctor Who Online

Review Posted: 31st October 2013

“November 1963, and the Soviet space programme reigns supreme. Having sent the first animals, then the first men beyond Earth's atmosphere, now they're sending a manned capsule into orbit around the Moon.

Just as Vostok Seven passes over into the dark side, however, its life support system fails. Only the intervention of the Sixth Doctor and Peri, adopting the identities of scientists from Moscow University, means that contact with the capsule is regained.

But something has happened to the cosmonaut on board. She appears to have lost her memory, and developed extreme claustrophobia. Maybe she’s not quite as human as she used to be…”

* * *

The year is 2013 here at the time of writing this, but it stubbornly remains 1963 in the land of Big Finish now, with this, the second of their 1963 Main Range trilogy, taking us to Russia, Earth and far beyond…

 

     Whereas Fanfare from the Common Men was nostalgic for the birth of The Beatles and the explosion of the huge cultural shift they were at the epicentre of, The Space Race is focussed instead on... well, on the space race.  Ahem.  It takes us far away from the cosy nostalgia of England, screaming fans and musical genius to Kazakhstan, espionage and scientific genius.  It all feels a bit more serious, a bit less cosy, a lot more dangerous, cloaking a landscape in which women and men aspire towards being the first to visit the Moon and beyond, to stake their claim upon the wider universe... if they can stop betraying and killing one another first.  At the heart of this tale of great aspiration is the petty mechanics of politics, and humanity’s shamefully cruel streak.  It makes a nice contrast and reminds you of both the best and worst that mankind has to offer simultaneously.

  

   It also manages to take a potentially really, really silly plot device, and make it both sad and terrifying, which is exactly what Doctor Who is so very good at.  It comes as no surprise to me that Jonathan Morris pulls it off so well here whilst writing an article in the 50th Anniversary celebratory edition of Doctor Who Magazine about the show’s quirks and central facets.  He knows his subject back to front, and plays it out somewhat beautifully.

 

     His script is well supported, too, by a great cast.  It almost goes without saying that Nicola Bryant and Colin Baker are both brilliant (but I’m going to say it here anyway, and hope it doesn’t come across as too sycophantic), but I was most impressed by Samantha Béart, who is so key to the story and walks the lines in just the right way.  That said, I loved her as Random in the final radio series of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and, more recently before financial woes led to it being cancelled, the stage show of that same series, so it’s not such a surprise that she impressed me here, too.  It would be great to hear more of her in the future, so touch wood.

 

     It didn’t all work for me, I’ll be honest.  There’s a potential love interest for Peri, which is wrapped up rather clumsily, or rather not really at all: it just sort of stops without any consequence, which was a pity.  That said, it’d be hard to deal with that strand without annoying the continuity purists, so perhaps Morris was wise.  I know that there are still people out there, baying for poor Nev Fountain’s blood after writing the frankly marvellous The Kingmaker, which just goes to show that some people are wrong.

 

 

     What 1963: The Space Race really shows though is that Big Finish have chosen a good theme to work with, one with lots of potential and drama.  1963 was an important year for the world, not just for Who fans, and I’m intrigued to see how Big Finish wrap things up next month.

 

 

Manufacturer: Big Finish Productions

Written By: Nicholas Briggs

RRP: £14.99 (CD) / £12.99 (Download)

Release Date: October 2013

Reviewed by: Matthew Davis for Doctor Who Online

Review Posted: 25th October 2013

November 23rd 1963 proves to be a significant day in the lives of all eight Doctors…

It's the day that Bob Dovie's life is ripped apart…

It's also a day that sets in motion a catastrophic chain of events which forces the first eight incarnations of the Doctor to fight for their very existence. As a mysterious, insidious chaos unfolds within the TARDIS, the barriers of time break apart…

From suburban England through war-torn alien landscapes and into a deadly, artificial dimension, all these Doctors and their companions must struggle against the power of an unfathomable, alien technology.

From the very beginning, it is clear that the Master is somehow involved. By the end, for the Doctors, there may only be darkness.

* * *

So here it is at last! The Light at the End is Big Finish’s tribute to the 50th anniversary of our favourite television show and was it worth the wait? The answer is a resounding YES!

The Light at the End is everything you could have hoped for from an anniversary story; multiple Doctors, many companions and a truly exciting story which celebrates the past fifty years with unashamed joy.

Unlike previous releases, Zagreus and The Four Doctors, we get to see all the Doctors interacting with each other throughout the whole story. 

As with past multi Doctor stories there are the inevitable moments such as criticism of taste in fashion , differences of opinion on TARDIS decor and some squabbling. Writer Nicholas Briggs chooses to pair Doctors together before everyone eventually gets together for the final part of the story. This makes for some rather interesting team ups, especially when the Fourth and Eighth Doctor get together. Tom Baker and Paul McGann make a wonderful pairing and they play off each other to great comic effect. Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy also make a brilliant pairing that is somewhat reminiscent of Patrick Troughton and Jon Pertwee from The Three Doctors, which creates some more wonderful moments.

One of the biggest surprises about the story is that all the classic Doctors make an appearance and I do mean all of them. How this is achieved I wouldn’t dream of spoiling by telling you but Big Finish must be commended for taking on such a risky and delicate matter and achieving a lovely tribute to those wonderful actors no longer with us.

The Light at the End surely must feature the largest cast of guest stars in any single Big Finish release. The cast includes many Companions of the past from Carole Ann Ford to the very welcome return of India Fisher and many more lovely surprises. Wisely, unlike other anniversary specials of the past, Briggs uses them in small but wonderful moments and little flashes of memory - it pulls at the fans’ heart strings and no one outstays their welcome.

The Companions themselves have a really great part to play but ultimately this is a story about The Doctor. That is not to say the companions are wasted; they play a really important part in the story and Ace’s descriptions of each of the Doctor’s incarnations is worth the purchase price itself.

The cast are on exceptional form and an extraordinary script makes this a top notch audio drama.

Briggs must be singled out for great praise. The Light at the End in the hands of a lesser writer could have been a mess. The temptation of an anniversary story is to succumb to all our fan dreams and fill the story with so many references, characters and monsters that the story is crushed under its own weight (I’m looking at you Dimensions in Time!). I take my hat off to Briggs for not only creating a superb script which serves all the Doctors and their legacy but for writing a cracking story in its own right. 

Having The Master as the sole antagonist is a smart move on Brigg’s part, especially as he has been such an important part of The Doctor’s history. This choice of foe gives the story a clear sense of direction and enhances the impact of its message. We are reminded throughout just how important The Doctor is and the impact that he has on those around him and the Universe as a whole is inescapable.

Just as we are reminded that The Doctor has impacted on the lives of those he meets in his stories, so too are we reminded of the importance he has had to us as listeners. We wouldn’t be listening to this story if hehad not had an impact on us at some point in our lives. This is something that Briggs understands completely, as he is one of us; a true fan. He doesn’t just love the show, he truly understands what makes it important and it is this understanding that really shines through.

The Light at the End really is a wonderful tribute to the power of Doctor Who and its legacy and this is one release you really cannot be without.

Here’s to the next 50 years...

Manufacturer: Big Finish Productions

Written By: Eddie Robson

RRP: £14.99 (CD) / £12.99 (Download)

Release Date: September 2013

Reviewed by: Nick Mellish for Doctor Who Online

Review Posted: 23rd September 2013

If you remember the Sixties, they say, then you can’t have been there.

The Doctor remembers the Sixties. That’s why he’s taking Nyssa on a trip back to November 1963. Back to where it all began. Back to the birth of the biggest band in the history of British music. Back to see those cheeky lads from Liverpool...

Mark, James and Korky. The Common Men. The boys who made the Sixties swing with songs like Oh, Won’t You Please Love Me?, Just Count To Three and Who Is That Man.

The Doctor remembers the Sixties. And there’s something very wrong with the Sixties, if the Beatles no longer exist…

* * *

So, it’s 2013, the year of the big 5-0. Ever since the series came back to our screens in 2005 and did exactly what Doctor Who, Paul McGann’s solo (so far) televised adventure, didn’t do, people have been counting down the days until November 23rd 2013 reached us, in which time we’ve had a whole host of new Doctors and more Big Finish than you can shake a stick at. (Please don’t shake sticks at Big Finish; they’re rather lovely.)

Now we’re in 2013 at long last, it’s time for the celebrations to begin and the nostalgia to kick in, and kick in big time.  We’ve had stamps, postcards, jigsaws, a host of e-books, Dalek toys and William Hartnell popping up in The Name of the Doctor (though what he’s doing wearing his ‘Earth’ clothes before he’s ever reached Totter’s Lane is a mystery) amongst many other kisses to the past.  Big Finish meanwhile have given us more than anyone else, with their forthcoming anniversary special The Light at the End, the Destiny of the Doctor range of stories which link past and present, and now this trilogy of stories under the 1963 umbrella, and what better way to start it than Eddie Robson does here?

We’re back to the first year of the show, centring a play round a throwaway reference to a band name-checked in the very first episode.  It could all fall flat and feel either forced or, worse, corny, but it doesn’t because Robson is too good a writer to let that happen.

The basic premise, that someone or something has removed The Beatles from time and replaced them with a similar but ultimately lesser band, is a good one, and it allows the play to let rip with some incredible music (the musical suite extras on the first disc are nine minutes of pure loveliness), some nice Beatles humour (a character named Sadie here, the Doctor mentioning All You Need Is Love there, a riff on John Lennon’s famous comment to the Queen et al. to rattle her jewellery) and a really enthusiastic performance from Peter Davison in the lead role.

Never one to give anything less than his all, even when the scripts don’t deserve such effort, Davison is on fire throughout here, rushing from scene to scene with a tangible energy and zeal, whilst Sarah Sutton is equally enthused, playing Nyssa with just the right level of alien bewilderment and a seriousness that hides a wry sense of humour.  The guest cast is similarly strong, Mitch Benn being especially impressive as Not-John-Lennon-Definitely-Not-Please-Don’t-Sue, or Mark as he’s known to his friends.

Where the play really succeeds though is in the script, which is tight and clever, with enough clues to keep you guessing and enough answers to keep you wanting to find out even more as the play unfolds. The ending is neat, too, and doesn’t leave you feeling cheated: we’ve not got ourselves a hexachromite gas situation here, nor is there a Myrka in sight, thank goodness.

Robson successfully hits that fine balance between kissing the past and striding towards the future, and certainly kicks off this latest trilogy in a fine way.  If the other two can match this play’s sense of joy, celebration and innovative energy, then we’ll be in for a treat these coming months. Let’s just hope the Companion Chronicles’ forthcoming celebratory trilogy has as impressive a beginning as 1963 has.

Manufacturer: Big Finish Productions

Written By: Nicholas Briggs

RRP: £10.99 (CD) / £8.99 (Download)

Release Date: June 2013

Reviewed by: Matthew Davis for Doctor Who Online

Review Posted: 13th July 2013

'These creatures have ravaged half the cosmos. They're experts at this kind of thing. Nothing can stand in their way.'

The Doctor and Romana find themselves in the Proxima System, where enigmatic Conglomerate CEO Cuthbert has been conducting his infamous 'experiment'. An experiment which might accidentally rip the universe apart.

Meanwhile, living conditions on Proxima Major have become harsh and hostile. Climate change has turned the landscape into a freezing wasteland and an alien power has condemned much of the population to life inside internment camps. For those still clinging to their freedom, the struggle for survival is now beyond desperate and outsiders such as the Doctor and Romana are only seen as a threat.

What is Cuthbert really up to in the Proxima System, and just how does he expect the dreaded Daleks to fit into his plan?

* * *

The mysterious and scheming Cuthbert returns in the first of a two part finale for the second series of The Fourth Doctor Adventures. 

The problem with any two part story is that it is difficult to review without having the story as a whole, but The Dalek Contract is a fun and intriguing set up for next month’s concluding story.

The Daleks are used well, working as Cuthbert’s hired hands but it is almost certain that they have their own agenda at hand.

The cast is on excellent form with Tom Baker providing a fine balance of madness and profound insight. It is worth noting that this story was one of the earliest recorded and you can hear that he has found his Doctor again after a slight shaky start. 

It is coming closer to the last adventure that we will have with Mary Tamm’s Romana which will be very sad indeed. Tamm is excellent in this as her incarnation of Romana finally gets to meet the Daleks. Her interaction with Baker in the opening scenes is wonderful and shows what a great partnership they made as Doctor and companion.  

The highlight of the cast is of course David Warner who returns as Cuthbert, a man who seems more concerned with brown sauce being on his chips instead of worrying whether the Daleks have more nefarious machinations than just being his hired security force.

The supporting cast is on excellent form too with Toby Hadoke returning as Cuthbert’s rather toady right hand man Mr Dorrick and a great performance from Dominic Mafham as Chidak who shares a lovely scene with the Doctor about the importance of hope against the Daleks.

Whatever the Dalek’s insidious plans are and Cuthbert’s true nature, The Dalek Contract is certainly a very good set up for what is to come next month.

Manufacturer: Big Finish Productions

Written By: Simon Barnard & Paul Morris

RRP: £8.99 (CD) / £7.99 (Download)

Release Date: June 2013

Reviewed by: Matthew Davis for Doctor Who Online

Review Posted: 13th July 2013

At the Doctor's request, Sergeant Benton is investigating ghosts and missing people in Kettering, while undercover as a local councillor

And that's how he comes to meet Margery Phipps.

An alien incursion in the town hall leads them on a journey to a terrible future – where Margery discovers how she changed a world, and the life of a whole civilisation hangs in the balance…

* * *

As The Companion Chronicles begins the journey towards its final season, this current one concludes with the debut of John Levene returning to reprise his role as UNIT member Sergeant Benton. Quite why it has taken so long to get a Benton story for the Chronicles is baffling as he is one of the most memorable characters from the UNIT years of the show.

Making their debut for Big Finish too are writers Simon Barnard and Paul Morris who are better known for supernatural comedy adventure series The Scarifyers. Based on their credentials it is no surprise that Council of War has some very funny moments with some very clever in-jokes.

The structure of the story is told seamlessly well between both Benton’s perspective and the character of Margery Phipps played exceptionally well by Sinead Keenan. Keenan’s performance is one of the best things about Council of War and her portrayal of Margery is utterly charming.

What about John Levene? Even though he sounds nothing like he did all those years ago, Levene still puts in a very good performance. Full of energy and character, he makes a nice addition to the range and I do hope that before The Companion Chronicles comes to an end we will get to see more of him.

The story feels a little like a Third Doctor adventure to begin with but this very much becomes Benton’s show. 

Barnard and Morris cast him as a James Bond like character, but one very unsure of himself out of uniform. It gives Benton an interesting vulnerability as he thinks the undercover work is more suited to Mike Yates rather than himself. He is just a soldier and the story does give Benton a chance to be just that towards its conclusion.

Margery Phipps is an interesting character, cast as a women’s rights campaigner stuck like a fish out of water in a council of seasoned male politicians. She is an idealist and both she and Benton make an odd but well fitted pairing. 

The story has a rather barmy premise, but it is great fun and the cast has a jolly good time playing up to all of the madness going about. Its conclusion does suggest that we might see more of these characters in a further adventure and with the final season of The Companion Chronicles just a month away, let us hope that this is the case.

Council of War is an entertaining if not perfect Companion Chronicle but a great debut at Big Finish for John Levene and a new writing team.

Manufacturer: Big Finish Productions

Written By: Jonathan Morris

RRP: £14.99 (CD) / £12.99 (Download)

Release Date: June 2013

Reviewed by: Matthew Davis for Doctor Who Online

Review Posted: 13th July 2013

Twenty-five years ago, with Richter's Syndrome running rampant throughout the galaxy, the brilliant biochemist Nyssa, formerly of Traken, bade a painful farewell to her young family... and set off into the space, in search of a cure for this deadly disease.

She never returned.

Now, her grown-up son continues her work on the penal colony of Valderon, still desperate to make the breakthrough that eluded his presumed-dead mother.

So when the TARDIS lands on Valderon, bringing the Doctor, Tegan, Turlough and Nyssa to its fortress prison, the scene is set for a painful reunion... but not only for Nyssa. The Doctor's past is about to catch up with him too...

* * *

This season of Fifth Doctor stories has focused primarily on the companions and for its closing chapter we have a very emotional and dramatic story about Nyssa. 

The great problem when trying to write a review of Prisoners of Fate is that there are so many revelations and surprises that to go into too much detail would be to spoil your enjoyment terribly. The great plot threads surrounding Nyssa that began in way back in Cobwebs finally come to their dramatic conclusion. 

This story feels very much like an extended version of a finale in the recent television episodes.

There is high emotion, paradoxes and great universal danger. Amidst all this Prisoners of Fate is a very personal story for Nyssa and her lost family, more specifically her son Adric. Their relationship and destiny are at the real heart of this story and it never feels over shadowed by the paradoxical nature of it all.

Jonathan Morris is a highly gifted writer, who not only knows his Doctor but can add such wonderful new things to the already existing mythology which enrich it further for long time fans. He offers tantalizing glimpses of the Doctor’s past and future, all of which is essential to one of the great plot twists in the story.

The entire cast is on incredibly fine form and Sarah Sutton’s performance is just wonderful. The story has a wide range of emotions for Nyssa which Sutton carries off beautifully. It is certainly the highlight of an already impressive audio adventure.

Prisoners of Fate certainly sets up the future for this TARDIS team on audio and it will be very interesting to see what happens next.

Do your best to avoid any spoilers and enjoy a brilliant conclusion to a highly enjoyable trilogy.

Manufacturer: Big Finish Productions

Written By: Eddie Robson

RRP: £8.99 (CD) / £7.99 (Download)

Release Date: May 2013

Reviewed by: Matthew Davis for Doctor Who Online

Review Posted: 30th May 2013

The TARDIS lands in the city of Tromesis on Earth – but it’s a world far from the one that the Doctor, Jamie and Zoe recognize.

The buildings are ruined, the streets deserted. And against the devastation they see a ghostly mirror image of another place – the city as it was before disaster hit.

People vanish here, and huge metal birds attack from the sky.

Can the Doctor find the future, in a place that doesn’t have one?

* * *

In the latest Companion Chronicle from Big Finish, Frazer Hines once again plays both Jamie and The Second Doctor. This is an impersonation he has become famous for and with good reason as it is rather uncanny. At the beginning of the play, it feels more like a full cast audio drama in parts as Hines plays The Second Doctor as if Patrick Troughton is playing directly opposite Jamie. In fact the recent Companion Chronicles that Hines has been a part of seems to be specifically tailored to allow him to do this impression. It is always fun to hear but I wouldn’t like to see the impersonation overshadow the brilliant work he does as Jamie McCrimmon.

Despite some nice input from Wendy Padbury this is very much Hines’ show. He carries not only the narrative duties but the whole story is told from Jamie’s point of view. You feel somewhat sorry for Padbury because as wonderful it is to hear her once again as a younger Zoe, you begin to get the feeling she was called in simply so Hines didn’t get a sore throat playing two main characters and some supporting roles.

The Apocalypse Mirror has, at its heart, a very interesting and rather conceptual idea, but to reveal too much would be to spoil the revelations. This is a particularly idea-driven story and it is a refreshing change to the standard good versus evil-driven plot.

Eddie Robson has written an interesting story which is an excellent showcase for Frazer Hines, but it suffers somewhat from the lack of material for his co-star. Fortunately Hines’ energetic performance makes for an enjoyable listen.

Manufacturer: Big Finish Productions

Written By: Jonathan Morris

RRP: £10.99 (CD) / £8.99 (Download)

Release Date: May 2013

Reviewed by: Matthew Davis for Doctor Who Online

Review Posted: 30th May 2013

On their mission to explore the Mariana Trench at the very bottom of the ocean, the deepest and most inhospitable place on Earth, the crew of the deep sea vehicle Erebus make an unusual and startling discovery.

A battered blue police box.

As the Doctor, Romana and K9 join them on their journey, the submariners soon discover that the TARDIS is not the only unusual find lurking on the sea floor.

Super-intelligent squid, long-lost submarines and their miraculous occupants are only the start of their troubles. The Goblins are coming. And they won't let anyone out alive.

* * *

In sharp contrast to his season opening story, The Auntie Matter, Jonathan Morris takes us into the depths as The Fourth Doctor, Romana and K-9 descend to the bottom of the Mariana Trench.

Phantoms of the Deep is a thoroughly creepy play dripping with both atmosphere and tension. At its core this is a base under siege story, which Doctor Who has done many times before. The uniqueness of the location gives the story strong appeal and Morris doesn’t disappoint as he utilises the deep ocean floor and all its weirdness to pepper the play with memorable moments.

The main cast really are excellent here - especially Tom Baker who is his usual witty and mad self, but with that edge of seriousness when events take a dramatically dangerous turn.

Once again Mary Tamm is wonderful as Romana but if I had to pick the real star in this story, it is K-9. Since this season began K-9 has been stuck on the sidelines but now finally gets to do something important. I don’t think enough credit is given to John Leeson as an actor, because even though he may just be voicing a robot dog, it is very difficult to get an audience to invest in a character that could quite easily become cartoonish. Leeson’s performance is a master class in subtly and understatement. He generates real warmth with his portrayal of K-9 and when the robot dog is taken over by a murderous outside intelligence in this story, Leeson’s execution is genuinely unnerving. 

The play is an excellent showcase for the leads but not so much for the supporting characters. Given a four part adventure, there would have been more time for Morris to develop them, but the constraints of a two part story does affect the plot. It is difficult for me to believe one character’s willingness to sacrifice their life, especially when their reason for doing so comes completely out of nowhere.

Having said that, the cast do brilliantly with the material and the strongest of which is Alice Krige as Dr Patricia Sawyer. Her performance is rather understated but within lies an unspoken strength, which, given more time to breathe would have been very interesting to develop.

The other star of Phantoms of the Deep is the superb sound design of Jamie Robertson. One of the greatest additions to recent Big Finish releases, his work on this play’s underwater atmosphere really is a highlight of an already excellent production.

Phantoms of the Deep is a very fine play, and despite some weaknesses in supporting characterisation, the whole product makes for a highly entertaining Fourth Doctor Adventure.

Manufacturer: Big Finish Productions

Written By: Paul Magrs

RRP: £14.99 (CD) / £12.99 (Download)

Release Date: May 2013

Reviewed by: Matthew Davis for Doctor Who Online

Review Posted: 30th May 2013

The TARDIS brings the Doctor, Tegan, Turlough and Nyssa to the University of Frodsham, close to where the warrior queen Æthelfrid fought a desperate and bloody rearguard action against the savage Danes. Over a thousand years later, in 1983, battle is still being raged, with student activists taking on savage funding cuts… and disrupting a conference about Æthelfrid convened by history professor John Bleak.

Meanwhile, over in the Physics Department, Dr Philippa Stone is working night and day on a top-secret project – but can her theoretical time machine really be the solution to the university's problems?

Present and past are about to collide – and the results, as the TARDIS crew is about to discover, will be far from academic!

* * *

This season of Fifth Doctor adventures has put the companion at centre stage of the story. Last month’s Eldrad Must Die concentrated on Turlough and in The Lady of Mercia we have a very Tegan-centric story.

I must admit that I am not Tegan’s biggest fan. On television I found the character to be rather annoying, but recently in the audio adventures I have warmed to her a lot more. This, I think, is down to the writing which has done the character more justice. Paul Magrs has written a tale which plays both to the character’s strengths and weaknesses. 

The Lady of Mercia is essentially a historical story framed within a science fiction context. The time machine built in the University laboratory is merely a device to propel some of our characters into the main story in the dark ages whilst sending another back to the future. Despite the implausibility (he says reviewing a Doctor Who story) that a university scientist could invent a time machine in 1983, it acts as a neat little device to move the story along. 

Magrs has taken what we know of the Dark Age Queen Æthelfrid and created an intriguing story that adds a few twists to the facts. He plays upon a familiar trope with the classic series’ historical stories where a member of the TARDIS crew ends up impersonating a figure from history. In this case it is central to Tegan’s progression through the story. How she reacts to being cajoled by Æthelfrid into impersonating her daughter to help her keep face with the people of Mercia is great fun.

It is rather touching to see Tegan get so into her role that she starts looking upon Æthelfrid as a mother figure and dangerously adopts the Queen’s battles as her own. Janet Fielding’s performance is fantastic throughout and we see how Tegan’s impatient nature gets her into very serious trouble especially in the climactic scene in York Minster. The scene is one of impending disaster and the main cast do an excellent job of making us feel that it could all go horribly wrong at any second.

The supporting cast is tremendous, the highlight being Rachel Atkins who’s no-nonsense portrayal as Æthelfrid is both witty and incredibly powerful. The other members of the cast do have some fun sub plots to play with, such as student protests and illicit student / lecturer affairs - one of which Turlough is amusedly caught in the middle of. They are lovely moments of comedy in amongst the grand and tense historical drama being played out.

The Lady of Mercia is a very entertaining adventure and a great chapter in this latest trilogy for The Fifth Doctor.

Manufacturer: Big Finish Productions

Written By: Steve Lyons

RRP: £8.99 (CD) / £7.99 (Download)

Release Date: February 2013

Reviewed by: Matthew Davis for Doctor Who Online

Review Posted: 12th March 2013

The TARDIS has landed in a futuristic space casino, where the Doctor, Ben, Polly and Jamie find fun, games… and monsters everywhere. There are vicious robot dogs, snake-headed gangsters from the Sidewinder Syndicate and a mysterious masked woman called Hope.

In this place, time travellers are to be tracked down and arrested. Yet, as events spiral out of control, time may be Polly's only ally…

* * *

After last month’s reflective and very dark The Flames of Cadiz, we get a little light relief with House of Cards the first of this year’s Companion Chronicles to feature The Second Doctor. 

Despite Jamie’s involvement, this is very much Polly’s story and Anneke Wills has great fun taking centre stage. Usually when Frazer Hines is involved in a Companion Chronicle, his quite brilliant Patrick Troughton impression is never far behind. But this time there is a distinct absence of it, perhaps as to not overshadow Polly’s story, as, in fact, nearly all of The Doctor’s interactions in House of Cards take place with her.

Steve Lyons has written a great little time travel story and has fun in creating a rather ghoulish Casino and it’s unique inhabitants, where snake eyes are not just on the dice. The plot is neatly constructed and has the feel of a Steven Moffat “timey wimey” scenario. It's a nice example of how the new series bleeds into versions of the old one and vice versa.

When I reviewed last year’s Companion Chronicle by the same author, The Selachian Gambit, I was disappointed at how the use of Polly and Anneke Wills were a little wasted, the character being reduced to making the tea at one point. I’m happy that Lyons has written a story which showcases Polly’s strengths and it is a cracker.

House of Cards is good, old fashioned, fun Doctor Who adventure and well worth your attention.

Manufacturer: Big Finish Productions

Written By: William Gallagher

RRP: £14.99 (CD) / £12.99 (Download)

Release Date: February 2013

Reviewed by: Matthew Davis for Doctor Who Online

Review Posted: 12th March 2013

Welcome to Tantane Spaceport – where the tribes of Business and Economy have been at war for all of four hundred years...

Welcome to Tantane Spaceport – where a terrible creature called the Wailer prowls the corridors around the Control Tower, looking to eat the unwary...

Welcome to Tantane Spaceport – where there is one Arrival: a battered blue Police Box containing the time-travelling Doctor and his companion, Mel...

Welcome to Tantane Spaceport – where there are no Departures. Ever.

* * *

Spaceport Fear has an intriguing premise and its opening episode does generate a certain amount of atmosphere, but unfortunately the whole play doesn’t really come together at the end.

In the behind the scenes interviews, we are told that Spaceport Fear was a quick replacement for a story that fell through. Unfortunately it shows, as elements of this play either plod along or feel very rushed. For instance, the peculiar speech of the inhabitants of the Spaceport, such as airport terminology becoming part of everyday slang is never picked up by The Doctor or Mel. They just seem to accept that these two tribes are called Economy and Business without as much as an audible raised eyebrow. This is a shame as it is this rather fun language that provides many of the play’s laughs and it would have been nice for The Doctor to have made some comment on it.

Overall once the central villain of the piece is revealed, a lot of the tension so marvellously set up in the first episode loses some of its momentum. I for one wanted to know how this civilisation and its warring factions came to be and how they existed for over 500 years rather than what was lurking outside the spaceport.

One thing that cannot be faulted is the cast, as Bonnie Langford continues to impress as Mel and guest star Ronald Pickup brings a delightful sinister glee as Elder Bones. The supporting cast is fantastic with Big Finish regular Beth Chalmers doing an excellent job of playing two completely different roles so well you don’t even notice.

Colin Baker’s Doctor is “in a state of transition” as the actor himself chooses to describe the character in the behind the scenes extras. He is not as mellow but not as rude, but one cannot feel, and to which Baker makes very clear, that we are all tired of a brash Sixth Doctor. Yes he does have some withering put downs but the development of the character of the Big Finish team and Baker’s performance has redefined this Doctor and the occasional glimpse of what came before is fine, but I prefer to move on.

Spaceport Fear is a very good idea and with more time to develop, this could have been a very strong play. Sadly it is just an average one.

Manufacturer: Big Finish Productions

Written By: Nicholas Briggs

RRP: £10.99 (CD) / £8.99 (Download)

Release Date: February 2013

Reviewed by: Matthew Davis for Doctor Who Online

Review Posted: 12th March 2013

Sheridan Moorkurk has just been elected president of Earth... but the harsh realities of who really runs the planet are just beginning to dawn on her. And what's more, she's starting to hear voices.

Meanwhile, the Doctor and Romana encounter a mass of aliens heading to Earth... Aliens who have already made the mistake of upsetting the infamous Cuthbert, all-powerful CEO of The Conglomerate, by destroying one of his space platforms.

Will the Doctor and Romana be able to avert inter-species war that will destroy all life on Earth?

* * *

After last month’s The Auntie Matter, The Fourth Doctor and Romana are back in a story which promises to have dire consequences for the rest of this season.

Unusually for this series, The Sands Of Life is three-part release of a story that will be continued in March’s War Against The Laan. The Fourth Doctor Adventures have until this point been two part stories but The Sands Of Life has so much to set up that the third part is very welcome. It also allows some breathing room for the characters as the disadvantage with a two part story is that things can get a little rushed.

The story is intriguing and the cast is fantastic too. Tom Baker is firing on all cylinders now and seems so comfortable back in the role of The Fourth Doctor that you know if someone tries to take it away from him, he will go down fighting. Suitably mad and serious at the same time, and his reaction to a comment about badgers is priceless.

After the last story, it is lovely to hear Mary Tamm’s Romana working more closely with Baker’s Doctor. Even though they do get separated by circumstances, it is nice to hear the two characters working together and even teasing one another. It is yet another sad reminder that this is one of the last times we will hear the pairing on audio due to Mary Tamm’s recent passing, but it is something to be treasured.

It is really lovely to hear John Leeson back as K9, and this time alongside his first master. Baker seems to relish the reunion too and their conversations flow as if they never were apart.

Baker has found another sparring partner in the character of Cuthbert wonderfully played by Big Finish regular David Warner. The character is a wonderful play on a tycoon that has power over and beyond government and to see him pout in his place somewhat by Baker’s Doctor is a joy.

An excellent supporting cast compromises Toby Hadoke and Hayley Atwell as Mr Dorrick and President Moorkurk.

If there can be any criticism about this release it is some of the sound design, especially in the temporal effects created by the Laan. Some of the warping sounds used to create this effect can go on for quite a while and drag a little when you’re really anxious to hear just what is going to happen next in the story.

Nicholas Briggs has put together a very mysterious little tale with more intrigue to come in the next story. The problem with a story in two parts is that it is difficult to judge the whole story until you hear the complete product. If this release is anything to go by, I am looking forward to the next release already.

Manufacturer: AudioGO

Written By: Terry Nation

RRP: £13.25 (CD) / £6.79 (Download)

Release Date: 1st November 2012

Reviewed by: Matthew Davis for Doctor Who Online

Review Posted: 11th February 2013

On Skaro, the home world of the Daleks, the Doctor encounters the militaristic Movellans - who have come to Skaro on a secret mission - whilst his companion Romana falls into the hands of the Daleks themselves.

It soon becomes apparent that the Daleks have returned to their abandoned home city with a crucial objective, one which they hope will give them the advantage in a strategic war. When the Doctor realises what the Daleks are up to, he is compelled to intervene.

But he has not bargained for the Movellans having a few secrets of their own, and soon he, Romana and the human refugee Tyssan are wondering who exactly they can trust.

Moreover, will they be able to avert the Daleks from their self-proclaimed destiny?

* * *

AudioGO continues its Doctor Who range by issuing this audio soundtrack for Lalla Ward’s debut story as Romana. The first story to take place after the epic Key to Time season and the one that sees the return to the series of the creator of The Daleks, Davros.

It is difficult for me to review this release as I must admit Destiny Of The Daleks is not one of my favourite Tom Baker stories. It is certainly not the weakest of Terry Nation’s Dalek stories but this is where The Daleks began to be over shadowed by the continuing presence of Davros, such is the shadow cast by him in the excellent Genesis Of The Daleks.

It doesn’t help that Davros has been recast and whilst giving it his all, David Gooderson cannot quite match the tour de force that was Michael Wisher. 

Previous audio soundtrack releases have been fantastic, due to the fact that they provided a way for fans to experience Doctor Who stories that have been lost in the visual format. Destiny Of The Daleks did not suffer the same fate so I find this release to be somewhat unusual. 

If there are any benefits to listening to the soundtrack it is that a lot of the humour that Douglas Adams peppered the script with becomes more obvious, and, (lets be honest), the rather ridiculous looking Movellans gain a bit more weight as characters when we cannot see them.

Destiny Of The Daleks is not a bad story and it is rather fun in places with some intriguing ideas, and the narration by Lalla Ward is lovely and very well placed throughout. 

What makes this release more interesting are the inclusion of the original TV camera scripts which can be viewed as Colour PDF files and a nice interview with Lalla Ward where she speaks rather movingly about Mary Tamm and Douglas Adams.

The Destiny Of The Daleks soundtrack is not an unwelcome release but if you like this story and wish to experience it in another format then this is certainly for you.

Manufacturer: AudioGO

Written By: Terrance Dicks

RRP: £13.25 (CD) / £12.29 (Download)

Release Date: 1st January 2013

Reviewed by: Matthew Davis for Doctor Who Online

Review Posted: 11th February 2013

Stepping out of the TARDIS into Victorian London, Leela and the Doctor are confronted by menacing, diabolical horrors shrouded within the swirling London fog - a man's death cry, an attack by Chinese Tong hatchet men, giant rats roaming the sewers, young women mysteriously disappearing...

The hideously deformed Magnus Greel, conducting a desperate search for the lost Time Cabinet, is the instigator of all this evil. Posing as the Chinese god, Weng-Chiang, Greel uses the crafty Chang, and the midget manikin, Mr Sin, to achieve his terrifying objectives.

The Doctor must use all his skill, energy and intelligence to escape the talons of Weng-Chiang.

* * *

The Talons of Weng-Chiang is considered and in my opinion rightly so, to be one of the great classics of Doctor Who. A perfect mash of Sherlock Holmes, Fu-Manchu and classic pulp adventure, it remains a master stroke in the show’s history and one of the crowning achievements of writer Robert Holmes.

AudioGO have released an audio book version of Terrance Dicks' novelisation of the story and like its television counterpart it is rather wonderful.

Terrance Dicks’ novelisation is excellent as he retains enough of Holmes’ original dialogue whilst crafting the narrative into an exciting and tantalising adventure. If Dicks had been writing in the 1930s, he would’ve made an excellent pulp writer as this story moves along at a cracking pace and never gets dull. It helps that the original story was so strong to begin with but that doesn’t diminish the great skill it takes to translate a great story from the screen to the page.

Christopher Benjamin is the perfect narrator for this adventure, as he tackles each role with gusto especially when returning to the part of Henry Gordon Jago which he originated. Benjamin’s work on the Big Finish spin off series Jago and Litefoot has prepared him well for the task, as at times it almost seems like Jago himself is relating his own adventure to a captive audience. He captures Tom Baker’s Doctor’s snappish nature rather well and his interpretation of Magnus Greel is a brilliant evocation of Michael Spicer’s original performance. He is also able to play Li H’sen Chang in a way that is reflective of John Bennett’s performance but not as an obvious racial stereotype.

The sound design and music is sublime as it is rather evocative of Dudley Simpson and the sound of a screeching giant rat makes the whole sequence in the sewer far more unnerving than the rather laughable rat puppet on television ever could.

This audio book version of Doctor Who And The Talons Of Weng-Chiang is an excellent production and one that this reviewer will quite happily listen to again in the future.