The Book of Kells

"Someone who meddles with time."

Writer: Barnaby Edwards

Format: Audio

Released: September 2010

Series: EDA 4.04

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Tamsin

Synopsis

'Anyone who's prepared to kill for a book interests me.'

Ireland, 1006. Strange things have been happening at the isolated Abbey of Kells: disembodied voices, unexplained disappearances, sudden death. The monks whisper of imps and demons. Could the Lord of the Dead himself be stalking these hallowed cloisters?

The Doctor and his companion find themselves in the midst of a medieval mystery. At its heart is a book: perhaps the most important book in the world. The Great Gospel of Columkille. The Liber Columbae.

Verdict

The Book of Kells was an excellent audio adventure to continue along the fourth series of the Eighth Doctor Adventures! This was a really strong story and probably my favourite so far of what is shaping up to be a rather excellent series. I liked the sudden impact in the way things started with the TARDIS being drawn off course in pretty abrupt fashion and this meaning that the Doctor and Tamsin were going to be stuck in their new surroundings for at least a day was good because that opened up the opportunity for exploration which the Doctor was very much a fan of. I think this pairing are growing together and their relationship is really developing well, as is Tamsin's character as a whole in the companion role. I'm impressed with her more and more and she's a good deal of fun. I love her clumsy nature accompanied by the brash confidence that isn't exactly merited yet given her lack of experience travelling alongside the Doctor. Her glee in getting to produce a jack-in-the-box moment was wonderful. She's a lot of fun and that's a fantastic attribute in a companion. I was a big fan of the setting for this episode as it isn't often we get an adventure set in 11th century Ireland! It was a famous time though and this episode actually providing the historical explanation for the disappearance of the Book of Kells was brilliant. I'm a fan of the Doctor's involvement in human history and Tamsin starting to realise what life was like as she realised she was destined to actually be involved in this historical event was magnificent. I thought it worked well in the explanation and I've actually seen the Book of Kells first hand on one of my three trips to Dublin. I remember thinking of this story when visiting because I knew of it so getting to now listen to it brought back some good memories. Of course, one of the highlights of the story is the return of the Monk in wonderful style and I love the Doctor's confusion as to who is actually his old adversary. He initially thinks it to be Brother Bernard and after reeling off a big speech about his past with the Monk referencing the likes of The Time Meddler and The Daleks' Master Plan, the reaction from this helpless monk was terrific. He had no clue. I would have suspected the Abbott was the Monk all along as that just seems a right fit but it was still a fun moment at the reveal. The Monk is one of my all time favourite villains so getting a new incarnation here is absolutely most welcomed. Him having his own sort of protege in the form of Lucianus was intriguing and the post-credits scene where he was actually revealed to be Lucie Miller was not at all expected! That was quite stunning and I'm sure we'll be coming back to that in the series at some point. The Monk falling victim to the old switch getting highlighted was fun because that's just so typical of him and him mentioning that the Doctor devised a cunning plan was humorous. The idea of his DIY time scoop was great and that explaining events of Situation Vacant and Nevermore with a Time Lord involvement was very good, if a little quick. The dead Vortisaur was an unexpected inclusion that was used well in showing that time was very much a factor in the episode. As a whole, this was a wonderful return for the Meddling Monk who was back up to his old tricks and now alongside Lucie Miller somehow! Overall, a great story.

Rating: 9/10