Dark Waters

"Something so beautiful can come from something so deadly."

Writer: Steve Cole

Format: Short Story

Released: October 2023

Printed in: Ten Days of Christmas 09

Featuring: Tenth Doctor 

Synopsis

Return to the incredible days of Ten this Christmas...

For the Tenth Doctor, the festive season always brought adventure.

In fact, he's saved Christmas across space and time more times than we ever knew...

Join the Doctor (and Donna and Martha and Rose, and other friends old and new) for incredible tales of daring and danger. From Daleks plotting to save humanity to Sycorax working to exploit it... from star-narwhals massing on the Moon to a toy factory in space.

Because even in the jolliest of seasons there's a world or two to save.

Verdict

Dark Waters was an excellent story to conclude my reading of the Ten Days of Christmas collection! These short stories have been a real festive treat and it's always fun to delve back into the era of the Tenth Doctor. It's certainly not a bad way to round out the year of 2023 in terms of blogging! Finishing a book is always a nice feeling, even one that's made up of several adventures and isn't read in one go or block. They might have saved the best until last with this particular story that saw a welcomed return of Jackson Lake! I wasn't expecting that, especially not some fifty-plus years after the events of The Next Doctor had occurred. For the Doctor, it had only been a couple of months but for Jackson he now had a whole new life on the southern hemisphere after his retirement as a teacher in 1881. He'd scratched that travel itch in a big way by emigrating and his reaction when he recognised the Doctor not looking a day older than when he'd last seen him over half a century previously was golden. The Doctor didn't even recognise Jackson to start with so that moment of recognition and catching up with an old friend was touching. A quite lovely moment. Things did not stay lovely for long though as the Doctor revealed he was on the track of a Dalek time signature which instantly set the threat level to high. Jackson remembering details from the info stamp the Cybermen had stolen was good and with it momentarily making him believe he was the Doctor, he knew all about the Daleks. That's who the Cybermen had stolen the stamp from in the first place after all! I thought over fifty years after first meeting the Doctor was an awfully long time for an elderly Jackson to still be having adventures, but it was nice to be catching up. I thought the format of the story was excellent in that it was all told as a letter written by Jackson to Rosita which he'd hoped would get there in time for her Christmas. That's putting the Christmas theme very loosely on this story, but it was a really nice read and there were some genuine moments of affection and compassion there. He clearly did care about Rosita and certainly missed her. It's a shame we didn't get any reply from Rosita in this story to read her reaction to Jackson encountering the Doctor again, but his infectious enthusiasm was evident throughout the letter. Of course, it's not entirely believable that the chunks of dialogue would be included as they were, or even for Jackson to recall the exact words, but making efforts with Jackson apologising for the length of the letter was a nice attempt at realism. The Daleks did feature but not for long as the Doctor and Jackson used the equivalent of an electric fizzy drink well shaken to wipe them out, but I appreciated how fearful Jackson came across in his words. Their plan to use the geyser to eject particles into the atmosphere that would bind ions ready for the interplanetary journey Earth would take in The Stolen Earth which I thought was massively intriguing! It was almost like a prequel to that episode as far as the Daleks were concerned. That was a lot of fun. The Doctor had to let it happen because he knew what was in store a century from now, and explaining that to Jackson was nicely done. The image of them both escaping the eruption on a Dalek hovercraft was magnificent and I loved that the Doctor stayed once again for Christmas. He couldn't go breaking tradition! Overall, a terrific read to conclude what has been a very strong and consistent book. 

Rating: 9/10

The Big Store

"Put me in your police box and take me into custody!"

Writer: Steve Cole

Format: Short Story

Released: October 2023

Printed in: Ten Days of Christmas 08

Featuring: Tenth Doctor 

Synopsis

Return to the incredible days of Ten this Christmas...

For the Tenth Doctor, the festive season always brought adventure.

In fact, he's saved Christmas across space and time more times than we ever knew...

Join the Doctor (and Donna and Martha and Rose, and other friends old and new) for incredible tales of daring and danger. From Daleks plotting to save humanity to Sycorax working to exploit it... from star-narwhals massing on the Moon to a toy factory in space.

Because even in the jolliest of seasons there's a world or two to save.

Verdict

The Big Store was another great adventure to continue my way through the Ten Days of Christmas short story collection! I reach the penultimate story for the Tenth Doctor in the set and it was about time we came face to face with an old enemy. The Kraals may not seem the most obvious choice for a Christmas battle in prose, but when you consider the nature of toy production in space and the potential of a festive invasion through unwrapping unintended presents it's not that much of a surprise. I maintain that the story probably would have made more sense if this was a Nestene Consciousness and Auton outing, but making more sense doesn't necessarily mean it would be better. The Kraals provided a lot of humour without doing an awful lot which meant it wasn't easy to take them seriously, but I think that was kind of the point and is in part what made this a fun little read. I liked that a timeline was established for the Tenth Doctor's travels with this encounter coming soon after the events of Voyage of the Damned in his chronology. Talk about keeping up with the festive theme! He was still pondering on the death of Astrid which was nice to include and this is a gap that isn't explored enough. It always seems that if the Tenth Doctor is travelling solo it's during the period of the 2009 Specials, so to go here was a nice change. He had hoped for a new companion and we know he'll get one soon in the form of Donna, but at this moment he was alone and somewhat feeling it. I thought the toy factory in space idea was terrific and Midwinter as the head of the Gal Galaxy action figures was a really strong character. He was enthusiastic as you would hope for when it came to sales and his introduction of Gal as the prototype action figure was terrific. She was a fun character as essentially a toy filling the companion role, but she was much more than that as an android. Unfortunately, once that was revealed it was clear that the Kraals would be showing up as their appearance was spoiled in the DWM preview for this book. That is a bit of a shame but then I was also anticipating their arrival. And boy did it come with a chuckle! Skensal and Tayaka were pretty useless in all honesty as the Doctor basically eviscerated their plan and told them exactly what it was. They peered in small intervals to claim he didn't know the whole plan, but his spiel wasn't over and by the end he'd worked it all out. The mysterious ship that had ignored the red light being a police one was fun and the whole factory being a fake was perfectly Kraal. The story certainly steals from Kerblam! which is actually good as it's not on your normal everyday delivery service but rather a Christmas craze so that's a strong differentiation. It definitely does just work well and the emergence of the Super Galactic Gal to wipe out the Kraal software from the androids that would be presents and send them packing was nicely done. Midwinter's attempts to sell off the stock actually helped here with the super variants intended to go to the lucky buyers who may now be able to get to the real ship instead of being stuck. The Doctor getting to save in excess of twenty planets from invasion and everybody living certainly was a fine Christmas present for him! Overall, a great little read.  

Skensal and Tayaka

Rating: 8/10

The Hoxteth Time Capsule

"It's time to collect your memories."

Writer: Paul Davis

Format: Audio

Released: 29 December 2023

Series: Short Trips 13.X

Featuring: Sixth Doctor

Synopsis

George White experienced exciting, sometimes dangerous escapades throughout his professional and personal life. Now he loves to arrange public talks to share memories and pictures from his adventures around the world. At an event in Hoxteth, he meets a colourful stranger for the very first time. 

But if George can't recall ever meeting this man before, how can it be that the Sixth Doctor clearly appears in so many of the photographs that George took more than a decade ago?

Verdict

The Hoxteth Time Capsule was a lovely little Short Trip story to serve as this year's Paul Spragg Memorial Opportunity. I fancy myself as nothing close to being a writer but I have been tempted to enter this competition on more than one occasion, even though I have no idea in my mind. I wonder which TARDIS combination I'd go for? Probably something whacky and timey-wimey with multiple companions and Doctors that would just be too much for a Short Trip story. This one though was essentially perfect for the format as there weren't too many characters and it was in a nice contained setting. It was all the ingredients for a good listen and the forty-six minutes really did fly by! I think Colin Baker's narration had a lot to do with that as well as he really was tremendous. It always helps when you have an actor that is one of the main characters in the audio and that was the case here with the Doctor himself! The sixth incarnation on audio is rather different to the one we met on screen with the softer side clearly element, and we join the Sixth Doctor at a time where he's still pondering after losing Evelyn. My opinion on Evelyn over the last decade since I started the Monthly Adventures changed quite dramatically as her story was told and I grew up so I found it really touching for the Doctor to reflect on his travels with her and how he hurt her leading to her taking an extended break from the TARDIS. A lone Sixth Doctor could be dangerous but he's out to solve a mystery here. I thought George White was a strong character and just hearing his slideshow at the intimate Hoxteth event was great stuff. He was a likeable character and his confusion when a slide randomly appeared in his show despite him having presented it over thirty times was very fun. I liked the idea of the time capsule and the emergence of Asha was nicely done. George initially lied about knowing her but the Doctor was sensing something was amiss right from the off. I thought the alien involvement was good but it didn't get too much to the forefront. This was a strong character piece for George and I liked that he was the focus rather than the extraterrestrial threat. I did like their insistence on contracts and the litigation trickery there was good with signing away rights and then every signature on a cheque book or delivery meant you were put deeper into the fine print. It was fun stuff but the Doctor was a fine defence to have against contracts like this one! The time capsule coming into play was good and some of the imagery created was impressive. For a new writer, I was impressed with the descriptive nature of the story and I would certainly want to listen to more! As a whole, this was a fine story and I liked pondering on the future generations of the alien race hopefully being nicer than and learning from their parents. Who knows if that will be the case though! Overall, a great little listen. 

Rating: 8/10

The Voton Terror

"The whole spectrum of intelligent life in the universe was present in this one room."

Writer: Unknown

Format: Short Story

Released: September 1980

Printed in: Doctor Who Annual 1981

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Romana II, K9

Synopsis

The Doctor takes Romana and K9 to a very important event in history, the Intergalactic Federation Conference that would have a huge impact on the future of submicroscopic species, but taking the place of the Gallifreyan delegation isn't all that's straightforward.

Verdict

The Voton Terror was a somewhat average story to continue my way through the 1981 Doctor Who Annual! I think the story itself is actually pretty decent but the way it was presented unfortunately had an adverse effect on my enjoyment. The way it was formatted and the illustrations that accompanied it actually hampered it for the worse in my opinion which is a big shame. For a writer of a Doctor Who story to not know the correct spelling of the word swapped was a big issue for me that had me questioning things almost immediately, and in terms of presentation it didn't get much better. The usual issues of the illustrations were present but thankfully not for the whole story! If the likeness of Lalla Ward as Romana was not permitted to be used in this Doctor Who Annual, then she either shouldn't be featured in the artwork or not seeing her so clearly face on. The woman depicted here just looks nothing like the companion we saw on screen and one thing that has also irked me throughout the Annual is the lack of consistency in her illustration. I understand that it's out of the artist and writer's control to not have the license to draw Lalla Ward, but at least give us a consistent Romana throughout each adventure! But she looks so different throughout which is just baffling. Even that would help. I also thought the actual layout of the story was strange with the text clunky and interfering with the illustrations or leaving large gaps. It just wasn't an easy reading experience which is a shame as the content was fine. I liked the idea of the Doctor and Romana taking the place of the Gallifreyan delegation at the Intergalactic Federation Conference and the former knowing that the true Time Lord party were called back because of an emergency was good stuff. I thought he might have orchestrated the emergency but that was actually something put into play by the Voton spy. The way he took the place of the Numese mud creature worked well, but the illustration of this creature was horrific. The actual artwork itself was fine and it did look impressive, but it just wasn't anywhere close to the description provided in the story. It was stated to be seven foot tall but was smaller than the Doctor, and it was also detailed how it had a row of eyes and the image of the creature was dominated by a large singular eye! It was very bad. The suckers and tentacles didn't match either, it was disappointing. I thought the Doctor's method of talking down on the submicroscopic species to anger up the crowd and oust the Voton with his disguise fluctuating didn't make much sense at all and that was even acknowledged as unorthodox within the adventure! It was a bit strange. Thankfully, the actual imagery of the numerous species at the conference was presented very well and the Fourth Doctor was characterised very nicely. I enjoyed the humour at the end with the Doctor realising he'd missed the actual speech he came to see, but the TARDIS democracy voted against trying again with Romana and K9 set on adventures elsewhere. Overall, a decent story unfortunately impacted by the formatting and presentation. 

Rating: 6/10

Gifts from Afar

"Put me in your police box and take me into custody!"

Writer: Steve Cole

Format: Short Story

Released: October 2023

Printed in: Ten Days of Christmas 07

Featuring: Tenth Doctor, Martha

Synopsis

Return to the incredible days of Ten this Christmas...

For the Tenth Doctor, the festive season always brought adventure.

In fact, he's saved Christmas across space and time more times than we ever knew...

Join the Doctor (and Donna and Martha and Rose, and other friends old and new) for incredible tales of daring and danger. From Daleks plotting to save humanity to Sycorax working to exploit it... from star-narwhals massing on the Moon to a toy factory in space.

Because even in the jolliest of seasons there's a world or two to save.

Verdict

Gifts from Afar was another really strong story to continue my way through the Ten Days of Christmas collection! The big day itself has been and gone now but that's no reason to not get stuck into more festive adventures of the Tenth Doctor. This is the man who once blogged Tales of Terror over the summer so it wasn't a necessity for me to read this over Christmas, but I won't be too far removed by the time the ending comes! This was another strong story in what is turning out to be a very consistent collection. Nothing screams out as extraordinary in this book so far but it's really solid and quite clear that with the entirety of the collection by the same author, that he's bringing out all the best hits in terms of the formula of a Doctor Who story. I'll jump ahead as all of my blog entries are certainly full of spoilers, but when the truth regarding the Aviakks came out that they weren't actually evil but just trying to help I found myself smiling because I should have guessed. It was a good surprise and revelation, but it's not exactly a unique idea. That's fine though as the formula is tried and tested. It does work and did so again here as my rating reflects. It's just from a personal perspective that this was now the 'aliens aren't actually evil' story that we've seen many a time in Doctor Who stories of the past. You can't have a Tenth Doctor collection without having a story that includes Martha as companion and she was wonderful. Despite her popularity I do think she is an underrated companion so it was nice to see her shine here. She built a good relationship with Trinkin in quick fashion and when the Doctor left the two women together as he went in search of their new acquaintance's spaceship, she really did shine in a more senior role. Their discussions about Christmas were fun and fed in nicely to the festive theme of the book, probably in ways much more obvious than some of the book's other instalments. Trinkin having stolen some myrrh, frankincense and gold was pretty humorous, and the Aviakks having used the first two elements to repair her ship was great. Especially because the gold was fake! That was a fun revelation and her moment of realisation was strong, although she might not be in as much trouble now! The Doctor would help but she'd still have to answer for her attempted theft. But the Doctor was in a forgiving mood considering it was nearly Christmas on Jaslo. Martha's reaction to hearing that they still celebrated Christmas was a nice moment that brought her a little closer to home. I liked the Doctor pondering on his previous time to the planet of the pterosaur as he called it and surely it must have been the glimpse we saw with Rose in Army of Ghosts/Doomsday where she said she would stay with him forever. I'm surprised that wasn't referenced as Martha's reaction would have been a hoot! It was funny enough to have her and Trinkin paraded around by the Aviakks! They were just helping though and they'd brought the TARDIS to the height of their base because that's where they took off from so thought the ships should too. It meant the book ended quite calmly despite the threat of meteor storms, but it was still a really enjoyable read! Overall, a strong story. 

Rating: 8/10

Starlight Robbery

"The power to change the way people think sold to the highest bidder."

Writer: Matt Fitton

Format: Audio

Released: August 2013

Series: Monthly Adventures 176

Featuring: Seventh Doctor, Klein, Will

Synopsis

Sick of the same-old slaughter-appliances? In need of a killer new killing-machine? Then look no further than Garundel Galactic's secret arms auction. Blasters, tanks, missiles and bombs – no bang too big or micro-laser too small. If you've got the credits, Garundel's got the kill-sticks. (Cash buyers get preferential rates). 

In search of the key to a sinister alien technology, the Doctor, Klein and Will set their sights on an illicit intergalactic arms fair run by an old acquaintance – the slippery Urodelian crook, Garundel. But what are their chances of pulling off a particularly audacious heist from under the noses of Garundel and his alien clients, the ever-belligerent Sontarans...?

Verdict

Starlight Robbery was an excellent audio to continue my way through the Monthly Adventures! This story serves the middle portion of what certainly looks to be a linked trilogy with the Seventh Doctor, Klein and Will. It's a new TARDIS team which is always fun and delving deep into the time of the seventh incarnation, particularly at a time much later in his life than we saw on television, is exciting because who knows what he has in store! The continuity from Persuasion was brilliant and this was essentially a direct follow on from that story. The persuasion machine was for sale and a familiar crook was heading the auction. Having Garundel return after his stint in Black and White was brilliant and I loved how he was teasing the Doctor about his former companions from that story. He'd moved on a lot now from Ace, Hex, Sally and Aristedes now and that did haunt him a little with how McCoy played that moment of looking back, but he was looking to the future and that meant nobody should get their hands on the persuasion machine. The idea of it being sold alongside the manual which was the brain of Kurt Shalk was very good and hearing the advertisement on the intergalactic wavelengths was really fun. The idea of the Sontarans hearing and then being drawn in by an advert is hilarious but it actually made sense! Garundel's advert that is in the synopsis was actually tremendous and really was enticing. What kind of alien power wouldn't want to be purchasing some dodgy weaponry he had on offer? The Sontarans weren't the main enemy of the story which was a little surprising as that firmly fell to Garundel, but I thought they were a fantastic inclusion. They're so much fun and their plan to wipe out everyone else suspected of being a Rutan ally was great stuff. Everything centred on the glory of Sontar and the never ending war with the Rutans. I enjoyed the discussions they had with Klein regarding honour and their lack of understanding of the word suicide was a real highlight. An honourable death is all a Sontaran could hope for! Klein actually being saved by a Sontaran was fun stuff as they didn't appreciate that she had no forewarning of an attack and there would be no honour in her death. Will was a lot of fun in his first adventure as companion and he built a strong relationship with Ziv which was lovely. From the off I suspected she was more than just Garundel's assistant, and the revelation that Shalk was in a spaceship and not a secret vault was very well done. That was a fun cliffhanger with her seemingly shooting the Doctor! The fate of Ziv in being killed was a big shock though I must admit and Klein sparing Will's feelings regarding the truth of what happened to her was a nice moment of compassion. She knew he cared for her greatly so him believing that she decided to stay on rather than come in the TARDIS was good. He'd be sad but not devastated. Garundel trying to wipe out the Doctor and Sontarans in one go was nicely done but they were ahead of the game. Sure, he had all the weapons after a fun introduction to the auction that even would involve name tags, something the Sontarans didn't enjoy, but their armour could be weapon enough. Face to face combat could ensue and that was okay with the Sontarans. The Sontarans then being wiped out at the end of the story apart from Stenn was a big shock as Garundel was in league with another party - the Daleks! The whole thing had been a trap for the Doctor which was unexpected but I really like that this will now lead into the next story. That kind of continuity works well, and imagine the Daleks with the persuasion machine! Even if it was the light version. They would be unstoppable. I am really excited by the prospect of this TARDIS trio meeting the Daleks. This was a fine recipe of a superb story in its own right and setting up the future to come. A wonderful listen. 

Rating: 9/10

The Church on Ruby Road

"Have you been having any bad luck recently?"

Writer: Russell T Davies

Format: TV

Broadcast: 25 December 2023

Series: 2023 Christmas Special

Featuring: Fifteenth Doctor, Ruby

Synopsis

Long ago on Christmas Eve, a baby was abandoned in the snow. Today, Ruby Sunday meets the Doctor, stolen babies, goblins and perhaps the secret of her birth.

Verdict

The Church on Ruby Road was a really fun festive episode to firmly kick off the era of the Fifteenth Doctor! It’s been a long time coming and one thing I am delighted about with the return of Russell T Davies as showrunner is that the Christmas Specials are back. It just feels right. Doctor Who is perfect for Christmas and whilst the New Year’s Day specials of the Chibnall era were all good, they never felt the same. This is tradition and long may it continue! I didn’t think the Christmas element of the episode overshadowed it too much and whilst we did get a lot more of the Fifteenth Doctor than bargained for in The Giggle, it was nice to get his first full outing here. I really enjoyed the approach of focusing on Ruby Sunday as the new companion and I suspect there will be a lot more information regarding her birth mother and her being left outside the titular church on Ruby Road. Whilst much of the episode was lighthearted and had a festive feel, I was really impressed with how the special set things up for the series to come. I am massively interested in finding out who Ruby’s mother is and that’s surely something that will play a role. Is it just me or were those boots and three quarter trousers a little bit like the Thirteenth Doctor? Now that would be something! I am really enjoying how whilst this is a whole new era, the Doctor is still adapting to the revelations of The Timeless Children and referencing how he recently found out he was adopted. That was fun continuity and I was glad to see it included. This is no hard reset. The introduction for Ruby was beautiful and she’s instantly a very likeable character. She’s perfect companion material and it’s clear she has an eye for the Doctor right away with how he was dancing in the club. This incarnation certainly knows how to express themselves! The moment they meet again with Ruby hanging from the ladder and the Doctor conversing with her as he runs from roof to roof was amusing and a fine moment for a new pairing that I get the feeling we’re going to love. The chemistry between them was instant and honestly at one point I thought they were going to get it on. There definitely seemed like some lust there! Ruby’s mother of Carla and grandmother of Cherry were really strong characters and the humour that came from the latter in particular was just wonderful. She just wanted a bloody cup of tea! She was delightful from the comfort of her own bed. Carla as a foster mum was also incredible and the scale of the images on her fridge for her supposed family was quite touching. An incredible and giving mother. The latest addition was Lullabelle which was a fun name that of course the Doctor liked whereas Carla and Ruby thought it questionable. Ruby was tasked with one rule of not losing the baby when Carla had to pop out, so of course some Goblins would come and take it for their Goblin King to feast upon. The Goblins were a fun element of the episode if not a little silly. They didn’t get overbearing by any stretch but they were a little difficult to take seriously. The Goblin Song was a great publicity stunt for the episode and it’s certainly catchy! I did love when the Doctor and Ruby put their own words to it though and I just get the feeling they’re going to be a joyous pair. They both nailed the lyrics! The new addition of the gloves that take the weight also felt a bit like cheating and I’ve never known the Doctor to actually have any issues with hanging on, but it worked relatively well in bringing an end to the Goblin King thanks to the church spire. That was pretty emphatic! I did love the cheek of the Goblins in going back in time and taking Ruby before she was found by the church and then adopted, with the timeline in play there very different! Ruby’s moment of realisation that the Doctor could travel in time was spectacular and I absolutely loved her TARDIS moment of walking around the police box. She’s going to be tremendous! Overall, a strong start to the era. 

Rating: 8/10

The Teeth of Ice

"I live in darkness now."

Writer: Andrew Lane

Format: Audio

Released: August 2023

Series: BBC Audio 16

Featuring: Eighth Doctor

Synopsis

Indomitable reporter James MacFarlane has travelled to the remote MacReady Base near the South Pole, his mission to interview the famed explorer Pentius Rochdale. On arrival MacFarlane is astonished to discover that the base's new medical officer is none other than the Doctor!

MacFarlane is intrigued by rumours of strange goings-on at the Base, whilst a recent attack on a neighbouring station – by creatures unknown – attracted the Doctor's attention. The two friends focus on Rochdale's expedition to find the legendary lost continent of Mu, which he believes may lie in Antarctica. 

When a series of grisly deaths disturb the Base's calm, the Doctor's suspicions are aroused. Whatever is preying on people, it's intelligent and has deadly claws and teeth. But by the time he and MacFarlane have uncovered the truth, they are well within biting distance of the teeth of ice...

Verdict

The Teeth of Ice was another excellent BBC Audio adventure for the Eighth Doctor! This incarnation has multiple worlds of stories with Big Finish so it’s rather nice to also hear him having a lease of life here on a more reserved range. Dan Starkey returns as the narrator for the Eighth Doctor and unless we get Paul McGann himself I don’t ever want that to change. It’s not just the impression of this Doctor that Starkey does a tremendous job with but it is the entire performance. He does such a good job of differentiating each character and it really doesn’t feel like we have just one actor performing. It’s a testament to his strengths and vocal capabilities. I’ve enjoyed following the encounters James MacFarlane has had with the Doctor and after some unique experiences in Edinburgh and Cardiff respectively, this story took us to Antarctica! With it being the start of the twentieth century, that was a very niche setting that I was thoroughly excited to explore. It was perfect for a Doctor Who adventure given how remote it was and the Doctor being there as the site’s medical officer was rather fun! I thought the introduction to the site from John Shadrak as the base commander was excellent and really set the scene for James and the listener. The weather extremes are almost difficult to comprehend with even sweat being a threat if then frozen! It really is a different world so it’s no wonder the Doctor was hopeful his next medical patient wasn’t suffering from frostbite. That’s all he had to treat. He knew James was coming though which was fun and reminiscing on the events of The Scent of Blood and The Code of Flesh was terrific. I thought Rochdale was a good character that basically served as the villain and his search for the lost continent of Mu was fascinating. I must admit it was something I wasn’t aware of but I do enjoy the idea of hunting for mythical and mysterious places. The Atlantis humour was good and I also loved how when the Doctor found out that’s what Rochdale was searching for he immediately knew the location was all wrong. That was fun stuff. The link in the story to werewolves was really good and whilst the location didn’t quite feel in tune with that kind of adventure, the time in history did and James encountering that also felt apt. It just worked. It was really interesting stuff and it felt like a horror which is certainly the right kind of vibe. There was good action throughout and the threat posed from Rochdale and his wolves. As if the ice and the natural elements weren’t enough! It was really good stuff and just felt like classic gore. This could almost have come out of a pre-Victorian literature novel. It had that classic feel. The way things shifted at the end was somewhat unexpected though as despite the evils of Rochdale and the threat of the werewolves, the Doctor was less than impressed with the actions of James in not offering a chance or any kind of leniency. It seems there will be another meeting between James and the Doctor at some point in the future which is very exciting given how things were left here. James wasn’t sure if that next meeting would be as friends or enemies which is daunting! As a listener, it’s very exciting and I can’t wait to hear how things go! Overall, a terrific adventure. 

Rating: 9/10

The Eternal Present

"I am back screaming again and always."

Writer: Steve Cole

Format: Short Story

Released: October 2023

Printed in: Ten Days of Christmas 06

Featuring: Tenth Doctor, Rose

Synopsis

Return to the incredible days of Ten this Christmas...

For the Tenth Doctor, the festive season always brought adventure.

In fact, he's saved Christmas across space and time more times than we ever knew...

Join the Doctor (and Donna and Martha and Rose, and other friends old and new) for incredible tales of daring and danger. From Daleks plotting to save humanity to Sycorax working to exploit it... from star-narwhals massing on the Moon to a toy factory in space.

Because even in the jolliest of seasons there's a world or two to save.

Verdict

The Eternal Present was another great short story to continue my way through the Ten Days of Christmas festive collection! After her outing in Life in Oils earlier in the book, this saw a welcomed return for Rose as the companion alongside the Tenth Doctor and I thought the story was a good representation of that Series 2 era. It just felt right at home within that timeframe which is testament to the writing of Steve Cole. Speaking of which, credit must go to him as the author of this book because coming up with ten different stories centred around Christmas cannot be easy! There wasn’t much of a Christmas theme in this story which was fine and it was just in proximity date wise towards the big day, but having an adventure in the Brazilian jungle doesn’t feel all that festive in my opinion! I enjoyed that unique setting though and it was nice to take Rose somewhere different on her home planet. I thought James Pryce was a good character as an agent of MI5 and his search for whatever the Nazis and other national powers were after in this specific location was a great focus for the story. Starting with him within the time bubble he’d be frozen in for 108 years was intriguing though and hearing the description of his eternal screaming in the present was very dark. It wasn’t the revelation I was expecting but I liked that. This story certainly wasn’t predictable. I thought it was fun for James to recognise the Doctor from within the bubble and that was something that surprised the Time Lord, but it would all tie together nicely over the thirty or so pages. I enjoyed Ernest Hobley as the man that was being searched for because of his time freeze technology and the connection to Black Orchid and him being a friend of Cranleigh’s that had gone missing was a nice little addition. That worked very nicely and made sense for him to be in hiding with the ability to go as small as freezing one person in time whilst the world moved around it, or for it to go as large scale as a country. His example of doing that and then having an opposing power’s troops at the borders without the country preparing for defence was excellent, especially in a world where the Nazis were growing and war was once again looming. I was a big fan of that. As I was of the connection of James being found by Jo and Cliff who let the Doctor know. He required some investigating to make sure that James wasn’t dangerous, and getting the information on the expedition and the creature killing his entire party was fantastic. It was timey wimey and somehow not overly confusing! Rose defying the Doctor’s orders of staying in the TARDIS was fun and always going to happen, and I liked how she was sort of responsible for the fate that befell James. His putting the two ends of the faulty time vector together and essentially short circuiting them and himself was good stuff and tied everything up nicely by the conclusion really. The Doctor had sent the creatures to an asylum world and now in 2045 James needed a lift back home. He’d even be there in time for Christmas. Overall, a great little read! 

Rating: 8/10

Persuasion

"We are the gods of old and new."

Writer: Jonathan Barnes

Format: Audio

Released: July 2013

Series: Monthly Adventures 175

Featuring: Seventh Doctor, Klein, Will

Synopsis

The Umbrella Man is back. But when the Doctor recruits UNIT's Scientific Adviser Elizabeth Klein for an off-the-books mission to the apocalyptic final days of Hitler's Germany, he isn't expecting Klein's hapless young assistant, Will Arrowsmith, to be joining them too.

The Doctor isn't the only alien creature seeking to loot a very particular secret from a Nazi base in Dusseldorf, however. Strange and sinister beings are converging on the same time/space location in search of the scientist Schalk, whose experiments are the key to a devastating power...

The power of Persuasion.

Verdict

Persuasion was an excellent story to continue my way through the Monthly Adventures from Big Finish! It feels quite surreal to finally have less than one hundred of this range left to conquer and even though I started listening to it over a decade ago now, this feels like progress. And this was a fantastic story to kick off what looks set to be another fascinating and mysterious trilogy with the Seventh Doctor! I think Elizabeth Klein is a fine character and is the right kind of personality to act as companion to this Doctor. Her having the Doctor’s old position of scientific advisor at UNIT is tremendous and I loved that the organisation had on file that the Doctor with the umbrella was perhaps the most dangerous of them all. It’s difficult to argue against that with his conniving and manipulative ways. You only have to look at the relationship with Ace to know that. I thought this story’s proximity to the Seventh Doctor we see in The Movie was great stuff and fine continuity. It’s almost like an entirely new era for this Doctor and it was clear that the TARDIS desktop theme update to that iconic Victorian design we saw in 1996 was a new occurrence. I really liked that and it’s a TARDIS interior that has such scale, even on audio. Klein following the Doctor after her meeting with Will was good and her assistant actually inadvertently joining their adventures to Düsseldorf in 1945 was terrific. He was a really fun character especially considering the fact he was deemed not fit for the field at UNIT. More of an office desk guy. So having him meet a loyal German after the Second World War was over was a really strong dynamic. I really enjoyed Klein not believing that the Doctor wasn’t up to anything despite his claim of just keeping tabs. It would never be that simple. That was confirmed when Hinterberger reacted to her on arrival with awe and shock, so much so that he offered her his gun. Will was saved, but Klein had questions that we didn’t get the answer to. There’s more to play out there I’m sure. Hearing the conversation between the Shepherd and Shepherdess at the start of each part and their arrival into this universe was tremendous and really gave the story a powerful feeling. It felt more than which was terrific and the way they spoke almost in Shakespearean rhyme was a good quality to go with. They were full of mystery. Their position as gods was brilliant and the moment Casta willingly gave herself showed they had serious power. The hunt for Kurt Schalk across the universe was really intriguing and I thoroughly enjoyed the concept of the persuasion machine. It was certainly catchy! And with its powers it would certainly be the envy of anyone who didn’t have it. The potential it would have for changing history and just the course of any race was incredible. Imagine having one will and pushing that? The consequences could be off the scale. I thought the Doctor trapping the gods on a prison planet was good although the holographic element was the only part of the story I wasn’t a huge fan of as it just felt like cheating, even for the seventh incarnation. The Khlecht were a fun element in the story too with their communication being via what were basically advertising announcements. Their obtaining of the Struwwelpeter empire by just saying they had it was marvellous. I liked them a lot without them actually doing a huge amount. It was really unique. Overall, a really strong story! A thoroughly enjoyable listen. 

Rating: 9/10

Salvation

"It spreads through thought."

Writer: June Dawson 

Format: Audio

Released: June 2022

Series: Redacted 1.10

Featuring: Thirteenth Doctor, Abby, Shawna, Cleo

Synopsis

Cleo's been redacted. She finds herself in a weird, empty London full of 9 million ghosts. There's no Abby to make plans, no Shawna to kick ass. Just Cleo and half an AS level in drama. Oh, and also this weird blue box, with a woman stepping out of it.

Verdict

Salvation was a great story to conclude what has been an excellent opening podcast series of Redacted! I had my trepidations about this series prior to listening but upon its completion, I’m so happy I’ve listened to it. Right from the off it was engaging, fun and full of danger in a world where the Doctor has not only gone missing but has been forgotten. That was remedied in this episode so I’m intrigued to hear where things will go in the second series, but for now this really rounded out the story in a lovely way. It was delightful to get a full appearance from Jodie Whittaker as the Thirteenth Doctor here to mark what’s really her first full audio adventure, and it really adds a lot of credentials to the authenticity of the story and series. Whilst we’ve had different actors for the likes of Vastra, and Penny Carter, here we get the actual Doctor. That helps a lot! Whittaker was tremendous and on a personal note it was just lovely to hear her providing new content again. She’s such a good Doctor and I do miss her. Cleo was the main character alongside her for the episode after being redacted and her reaction to seeing the TARDIS materialise was fantastic. After an entire podcast series of discussing the myth and stories surrounding that blue box, here it was in the flesh! That was a good moment. The Doctor describing what had happened with the psychic virus and how it spread by thought was good even if it was obvious. I figured that was the explanation already, but confirmation from the Doctor is always welcomed. She would come with a plan and her teabag analogy about sometimes needing to be in hot water before the magic could happen was a lot of fun because it’s certainly correct! Hearing this Doctor ponder on her past with the Powell Estate and Rose was lovely and I thought it was very fun that Cleo used to have her as a babysitter! Cleo having blocked out something in her past that involved the Doctor was good and it explained the sudden vanishing of her dad. He hadn’t just left, he’d died and the Doctor was too late at the incident of the Red Hatching. Cleo was the one who was saved on that occasion and the mind blocking it out meant she was safe from the virus. That was a more than sufficient explanation. The simplicity of the virus making you believe and therefore you were in terms of the Doctor or being in another place was good and that meant a relatively simple resolution of the Doctor using the TARDIS to amplify a message of wake up across the cosmos. The psychic coma would be no more and the Doctor would be remembered. I enjoyed the idea of during this time of no Doctor that worlds were left vulnerable without the Doctor’s and/or their friend’s protection, so she had a lot of work now to put that right. That’s why Cleo couldn’t come with her which was quite an emotional ending for her as she so wanted to travel in the TARDIS. The bigger on the inside moment was nicely done and I thought concluding with Abby and Shawna finally getting into a relationship was wonderful for them. Overall, a really strong finale! 

Rating: 8/10

The Code of Flesh

"I live in darkness now."

Writer: Andrew Lane

Format: Audio

Released: October 2022

Series: BBC Audio 14

Featuring: Eighth Doctor

Synopsis

In 1890s Cardiff, reporter James MacFarlane is intrigued by rumours of 'anaesthesia frolics', at which gatherings the latest frontiers in pain relief is demonstrated to influential guests.

After he speaks to someone who attended several such 'frolics' – and left with a hand and two fingers missing – James realises that the events have a dark side. Contriving an invitation, he is astounded to find another guest also investigating – it's his old friend the Doctor!

Reunited in mystery, the Doctor and James enter the murky underbelly of polite Cardiff society, where they uncover a shattering secret – and a monster lurking at its heart.

Verdict

The Code of Flesh was an outstanding BBC Audio adventure! This must go down as one of my all time favourite stories from the range and I honestly can’t remember if I’ve ever given any adventure from the range the perfect score. I can’t think of one off the top of my head so this is some achievement. I remember really enjoying the character of James MacFarlane in The Scent of Blood so to have him back here was a real treat. A sense of continuity is something that has been lacking from this range for the most part but since it moved to mostly featuring just past Doctors, that has certainly improved. We’ve had the War trilogy and now we’ve got this episode in the middle of an Eighth Doctor trilogy with James. Having this incarnation of the Doctor in the Victorian era just feels right and he’s certainly well suited. However we started the first ten minutes or so with James and him getting involved in some very mysterious goings on regarding missing body parts and even limbs in some instances. The discussion and scientific debate regarding the ether was terrific and I liked how it was going to be a medical innovation. Take it and you could essentially time travel which was fun stuff considering it just knocked you out and it meant some painful operations and surgery could be carried out without being in serious turmoil. I thought that was good and the whole frolics element was really well done. It all felt very Victorian, so when the Doctor arrived for once he didn’t seem out of place! That’s not a normal occurrence. I was a huge fan of Cardiff being the setting for this episode and I enjoyed the insinuation of the Rift being active and causing the city to be highly active in the mysterious. I thought the Welsh accents on display from Dan Starkey were actually really impressive and didn’t get close to being stereotypical or offensive which isn’t always the case. I thought the mentions of Welsh rarebit, bara brith and the town of Caerphilly were lovely touches and really did feel like this story was set at home, albeit in the past. It was really nice to hear being a patriotic Welshman! Dan Starkey’s narration throughout was actually tremendous and I was so impressed with his impression of the Eighth Doctor. It was so authentic and really helped with the listening of the story. The characters in this one were strong with Trescothick and Wolfcastle the obvious standouts, although my spelling of those could be completely off! TARDIS Wiki doesn’t have any characters listed so I’m trying by best. I’m confident on the spelling of the Shrave though as the aliens responsible for the body part shenanigans here. Their nature being to look for things left over from the war between the Time Lords and Vampires was fantastic and I also loved how they foreshadowed to James of a bigger war to come for the Doctor. Of course that meant the Time War. The turmoil within the almost companion of whether he should tell the Doctor about that was very good. I loved the concept of the Shrave hunting the weaponry that the Time Lords had literally left in the DNA code of beings in case they were wiped out or lost. That’s a phenomenal concept! And here they were on Earth searching for some weaponry. The way the Doctor sent them packing with multiple TARDIS arrivals within seconds of each other was sensational with the noise of all those materialisations and the Doctor breaking so many Time Lord rules. I also liked how the Doctor set up the next meeting with James in not thinking this would be their final meeting. Overall, a tremendous listen!

Rating: 10/10

The Christmas Blessing

"Every word you speak will cause destruction on the Earth."

Writer: Steve Cole

Format: Short Story

Released: October 2023

Printed in: Ten Days of Christmas 05

Featuring: Tenth Doctor

Synopsis

Return to the incredible days of Ten this Christmas...

For the Tenth Doctor, the festive season always brought adventure.

In fact, he's saved Christmas across space and time more times than we ever knew...

Join the Doctor (and Donna and Martha and Rose, and other friends old and new) for incredible tales of daring and danger. From Daleks plotting to save humanity to Sycorax working to exploit it... from star-narwhals massing on the Moon to a toy factory in space.

Because even in the jolliest of seasons there's a world or two to save.

Verdict

The Christmas Blessing was an excellent short story to continue my reading of the Ten Days of Christmas collection! I was delighted with this offering and it was certainly the best of the collection so far. I loved the concept of reuniting the Tenth Doctor with UNIT as that was always something of a frosty relationship on screen which was no different in this adventure. The UNIT in question here being from 2183 was a lot of fun and the Doctor still carrying weight with his former Scientific Advisor credentials was a lot of fun. The confirmation that a large blue box had come out of nowhere was all the confirmation required for Colonel Peshawar to give him access and not to shoot him. I wonder how long it had been for UNIT since their last encounter with the Doctor? The indication was that it had been some considerable time which made this a good reunion. Even upon exiting the TARDIS the Doctor knew where he was thanks to the comms of the greyhound base. The little nod to the Brigadier when the Doctor heard the word greyhound was a lovely touch and the ship also being called the Benton was both hilarious and lovely homage. It was nice to honour the UNIT of old some two hundred years on. The companion role in this story was filled by Eliz who was a very lovely character. The Doctor took a liking to her straight away because not only was she very much in favour of peace and not a shoot first policy, but her job was to categorise and collect space junk! That seemed very exciting but her description of low orbit debris wasn’t all that glamorous. The Doctor knew it was though. The Herkalocks were something that she named too and they were a very interesting species. The scale of them was good to explore and their efforts of communicating coming in giant sound waves was actually incredibly damage. It had been misconstrued as an attack from the soldier minds of UNIT on the Benton but the Doctor and Eliz were quick to show that they didn’t know that to be true. So they were horrified when UNIT had launched missiles at the Herkalocks because they’d landed on the Moon which was deemed Earth territory. The alien’s reaction of thinking they were refreshments was unexpected but a good moment of humour, especially when they asked for more! I’m not sure Geneva would approve of that kind of military spending. I thought the origin of the Herkalock name from Eliz was a nice story and it was fun for it to have stuck after a casual mention. The description of them being like Narwhals was good and was a fine way to get the blessing into the title with that being the term for a collective. I have no problem with it but I’m finding that the Christmas theme of the book is very loose and not at all necessary to the stories which is actually quite fun. This one was a week before Christmas and whilst Eliz took the circumstances of the ending as a Christmas present, there wasn’t anything particularly Christmassy about the story. The agreement between Eliz as the Doctor’s appointed representative of the space junk and the Herkalocks was a neat ending as they also understood the devastation that could potentially be caused by their sound wave communication. Overall, an excellent read!

Rating: 9/10

The Romanov Project

"There is a darkness here. A darkness that feeds."

Writer: Niel Bushnell

Format: Audio

Released: December 2023

Series: BBC Audio 20

Featuring: Thirteenth Doctor, Graham

Synopsis

It's 1970, and record-breaking explorer Silvia Sandstrom has completed an epic lone drive to the North Pole. But as she activates her on-board experimental equipment, her vehicle is swallowed by a massive hole in the ice.

Meanwhile the TARDIS is drawn to an arid wasteland, also apparently at the North Pole. There the Doctor and Graham meet Silvia – but it's clear that she is a woman out of her own time.

Why is a nearby experimental base haunted by deranged figures? And who is the genius behind the Romanov Project, the wave of energy that now threatens to rip the Earth apart at every point in history?

Verdict

The Romanov Project was a decent story to mark the long awaited and frankly way overdue debut of the Thirteenth Doctor on BBC Audio! It really is a travesty that throughout her entire run on screen we didn’t get a single audio release featuring the then current incarnation, but at least we’ve made a start here as we return to the time of the Fam and what I would presume to be somewhere in the middle of Series 11. I will admit it’s not my most favourite of eras of the show as I don’t think the hard reset worked all that well and I wasn’t a fan of the secrecy and lack of publicity the show was receiving throughout the Thirteenth Doctor era. Perhaps that’s why we never got an audio? Regardless, it was a fun twist to basically make this as a Thirteenth Doctor and Graham story with Ryan and Yaz quickly left behind waiting for an ice cream. That was refreshing and it was nice for Graham to be a sole companion and provided a slightly new dynamic to the Thirteenth Doctor. Now, the story itself was absolutely fine and really interesting which I’ll get to shortly, but I can’t help but say that I think the narrator severely impacted my enjoyment of the story. I don’t think Toby Longworth was the smartest choice for the first audio with a female Doctor. Nothing against him as I’m not familiar with his work for the most part, but surely it would have been the right move to go with a female actress? There was no impression resembling this incarnation of the Doctor which was a shame and the less said about the voice adopted for Graham the better. It was honestly horrific! Why oh why did he choose to go with a cockney geezer for the most innocuous man going? It didn’t make sense at all and was really off putting as it didn’t dissipate at all. The dynamic between the Doctor and Graham was good and familiar, and the absence of Ryan allowed the companion to ponder on his relationship with his grandson. That was good stuff and the impact of Grace is still felt. She only made one appearance in The Woman Who Fell to Earth but the impact she had has been incredible! She really is a part of Graham now. Speaking of which, digging into his childhood with his fascination for Silvia Sandstrom was terrific and his reaction when he realised they’d landed amongst one of the mission he might have watched as a twelve-year-old was great stuff. A proper fanboy. The technology being experimented with was intriguing to look at and I really loved the ideas of timelines and zones crashing and combining. That was the extent of the Romanov wave that had been emitted as part of the NASA initiative which was really fascinating. With an actual cast and some more sound effects, I think that’s an idea that has legs for more exploration for sure. Silvia being the problem at the end and having to get back home and in her proper place and time to solve everything was good after the timelines basically folded back in on each other. Greenland in 1970 was perfect for her and that’s definitely a unique place for a story! I admired her efforts to get where she was today, and the way she dealt with Graham being a fan and spoiling little events of her future was terrific. Overall, a really strong story but unfortunately the production wasn’t to my liking in the slightest. 

Rating: 7/10

The Cuckoo

"I don't like the Doctor spending time with other friends."

Writer: Steve Lyons

Format: Audio

Released: December 2023

Series: BBC Audio 21

Featuring: Twelfth Doctor, Clara

Synopsis

For Clara Oswald, life has fallen into a routine. By day she teaches the pupils at Coal Hill School, and by night – and at weekends – she travels in Time and Space with the Doctor.

Clara's having the time of her life, enjoying all the thrill and laughter of being with the Doctor – until, one day, there's somebody else.

To Clara's immense shock, the Doctor has acquired a new companion – and Arix is just as at home in the TARDIS as she has been. Suddenly, Clara's world has titled on its axis.

As the two companions size each other up, the Doctor is caught between them. And when they all wind up in an alien swamp, it's time for a reckoning of grievances, grudges – and bravery. 

Verdict

The Cuckoo was an excellent BBC Audio adventure! This had a really strong and intriguing premise that certainly became the key appeal of the episode. I must admit, I’m not a huge fan of the arrangement that Clara and the Twelfth Doctor come to during the time of Series 9 with the companion not constantly travelling in the TARDIS. It takes away that aspect of continuity with the companion and that was fully on show in this episode here. It seems weird for Clara to have a schedule that involves her going off with the Doctor just on Wednesdays, but hey ho that’s the situation in play here and it’s captured into the story in a phenomenal way. Clara is so set in her ways at this point in her time as a companion so the shock she has when entering the TARDIS and finding Arix there was magnificent. She couldn’t believe the prospect that she had been replaced, but I couldn’t really blame the Doctor much! It’s not exactly appealing to have a companion on a weekly basis, especially for someone who enjoys travelling and adventure as much as he does. So when he snuck off between visits with Clara, Arix had become something of a new companion and that didn’t sit well her. That was a fun dynamic and it was really fun to hear both Clara and Arix mess with each other and try to get the one up. It was definitely vibes of School Reunion between Sarah Jane and Rose but not quite to the level of jealousy. It was close though! I enjoyed that we actually got a mini adventure of sorts with both Clara and Arix as the companions alongside the Twelfth Doctor, and he was predictably awkward about the whole situation. The concept of having psychic jungle insects was excellent and the fear factor that Clara had with the giant spider on her back was really good. The moments shared between Clara and Arix in the jungle were fantastic and they really provided some bonding moments that were needed. I thought Arix being a 25er was good and the confusion that came at the end from the Doctor omitting very important information regarding her death was great stuff and typical of the lack of empathy and understanding of this incarnation. That was well captured and certainly felt like something that would happen during this point of the era. With the calculations from Arix’s date of birth and death, Clara understandably concluded that she had died very young and assumed the Doctor had gone through a serious accident with her. Of course, time travel meant Arix had lived a full life until the age of 85 and it really upset Clara that she was led to believe the Doctor’s new friend had perished. The tears were a bit of a surprise given how strong Clara usually is, but it would have been frustrating for sure. They’d gone through a lot together in that jungle in saving each other which was nice to happen, but the Doctor was rather clueless. I thought Jaye Griffiths was fine as the narrator although she was almost a bit too Scottish in her take on the Twelfth Doctor and I wasn’t overly fussed on her impression of Clara. Arix being there helped for sure. Overall though, a poignant and excellent story! 

Rating: 9/10

Life in Oils

"Imagine being just dissolved like that."

Writer: Steve Cole

Format: Short Story

Released: October 2023

Printed in: Ten Days of Christmas 04

Featuring: Tenth Doctor, Rose

Synopsis

Return to the incredible days of Ten this Christmas...

For the Tenth Doctor, the festive season always brought adventure.

In fact, he's saved Christmas across space and time more times than we ever knew...

Join the Doctor (and Donna and Martha and Rose, and other friends old and new) for incredible tales of daring and danger. From Daleks plotting to save humanity to Sycorax working to exploit it... from star-narwhals massing on the Moon to a toy factory in space.

Because even in the jolliest of seasons there's a world or two to save.

Verdict

Life in Oils was another great little adventure to continue my way through the Ten Days of Christmas short story collection for the Tenth (and Fourteenth!) Doctor. This particular story saw a welcomed return to the era of Series 2 as Rose was here in the companion role, but there was no real indication that I could identify of where it would be placed. Judging by the relationship between this Doctor and his companion, I would guess it would be somewhere prior to The Impossible Planet, but that’s pure assumption and speculation on my part! It’s not really all that important though as this was just a really good and solid outing. I liked the idea of the setting and the futuristic time of the 26th century with Earth firmly in the grips of having an empire in space. The Doctor being angered by the drive for money and financial gain was fantastic and that allowed for some fine moments of seriousness from this incarnation. I thought that aspect of the Tenth Doctor was written very well as he was scornful regarding what was happening at the actions of Folkow as the head of the organisation. She was a very decent character and I liked her dedication to her job and the aim of getting as much money and resources for Earth as she could. To her, the kind of indigenous life that existed in the way that wasn’t typical carbo-hydro forms didn’t mean much. And that angered the Doctor in a big way. I thought the Goobers were an intriguing element of the story as being literally sentient sediment, but I must say the name that they were adorned didn’t help them. It just sounded a bit silly but thankfully it was sugarcoated a little with it not being their official species name, just what the rig workers called them. Rose noticing right away that something was a little off was good and the Doctor soon was in agreement regarding the smell. Perhaps there wasn’t as much protection from the fumes as first suspected. That turned out to be true in a pretty fun way as Rose was basically intoxicated and at one with the Goobers. That was good stuff and allowed for some good jeopardy as the voice that came out of her mouth wasn’t always hers. That’s always a bit freaky but the Doctor actually tried to use it to his advantage as he realised the connection with Rose was two way. So whilst she was feeling what the Goobers were feeling, so were they feeling her sadness and being scared. That was nicely done and proved important. Rose was able to relate to the Goobers which was a good way to gain some sort of emotional connection, something that didn’t seem possible when they were just described as being sludge beings. The humour that came from the Doctor and Rose communicating with the Goobers because of the TARDIS translation and it sounding like gibberish to the rest of the crew was fun stuff. I thought the ending was pretty simple and could have had a little more action, but it was a quick remedy and basically a fertiliser to reverse the effects of the rig actions against them. Rose thinking of Christmas dinner with her mum as a happy thought was a nice way to incorporate the Christmas theme into the story too, but the Doctor didn’t want Jackie to know and receive credit! That was fun. Overall, a great read!

Rating: 8/10

Rescue

"Calm down Medusa."

Writer: David K Barnes

Format: Audio

Released: June 2022

Series: Redacted 1.08

Featuring: Shawna, Cleo

Synopsis

It's the end of the world. Terrifying static ghosts have taken over every major city on the planet. Cleo and Shawna are running for their lives, Abby is entangled with UNIT, and Madama Vastra wants them to meet her oracle – an individual with extensive knowledge of both space and time.

Verdict

Rescue was an excellent episode to serve as the penultimate story in the first series of Redacted! I will admit that my expectations for this podcast series prior to listening were not high and that’s probably why it has taken me this long to get blogging it, but as I head for the series finale now I really cannot wait to listen to it! This was a superb follow up to the previous episode that ended with Vastra revealing herself and whilst it is a little strange to have her recast here when she features so prominently, it’s really lovely to catch up with her in the present day. Her comments about Jenny and how she was her late wife were very sad but all indications were that they had a happy life together. That makes me happy and I do hope they did. I thought tackling the issue of stereotypes and assumptions here was very cleverly done and in a series starring and head written by members of the trans community, having Cleo react to Vastra in a similar way was nicely done. It’s an example of how easy it is to offend and that nobody is exempt. It was handled well with it being something that Cleo was genuinely sorry for as that’s something she has experienced countless times and knows how it feels. The line that I took as my quote was just too funny though! I really did laugh out loud at that as it was just the way and quick wit in which Cleo stated it. Glorious stuff. The return of Abby to save Shawna and Cleo was nicely done and an emotional reunion was always going to be on the cards ahead of the finale. Shawna wasn’t really in a forgiving mood after Abby abandoned them for UNIT but I could understand her actions. She felt betrayed by the one she loved, albeit at the moment unrequited love. Abby explaining that she wanted to become part of the story instead of just tell it was very eloquently put though. A fine moment and a nice sign of maturity for her character. I thought the rescue that was the title of the episode was good action and Vastra provided a lot of great information regarding what had happened with the Doctor being redacted. London was impacted in a big way but that depth would soon spread to the whole country, planet and beyond. The entire universe was at threat and the sole cause was the Doctor! For once, they were not the resolution and that’s a scary prospect indeed. The only way that Vastra saw fit to put things right was to remove the Doctor permanently. Not in a redacted way, but in death. I wonder how the Doctor will take that! I was shocked but it made for a stunning cliffhanger even if the believability factor of the podcast trio firstly agreeing and then carrying it out was extremely low. So I was glad that a final cliffhanger occurred with the virus getting to Cleo who was also now redacted. That’s a brilliant ending and adds some serious jeopardy as we head into the finale! I’m really excited to hear what happens and I’m anticipating an extended appearance from Jodie Whittaker which would be a delight. For now though, an excellent episode! The twenty-three minutes absolutely flew by.

Rating: 9/10

The Three Doctors

"The TARDIS never really lets go."

Writer: Pete McTighe

Format: Webcast

Released: November 2023

Series: Tales of the TARDIS 1.04

Featuring: Jo, Clyde

Synopsis

Jo Jones and Clyde Langer meet again as she remembers when the Time Lords summoned three Doctors to fight an awesome adversary from Gallifrey's past.

Verdict

The Three Doctors was a beautiful episode of Tales of the TARDIS! I’m not ashamed to admit this was actually the one episode from this series that I wasn’t actually excited for and I think that’s because it’s the only one where two companions who travelled in the TARDIS didn’t reunite. Of course, Jo and Clyde did meet in Death of the Doctor but they don’t have that connection that has made the three previous reunions ever so special after a long time apart. However, I was quickly proven wrong and this might just have been the best of the set so far! It started humorously with Clyde mucking about in the Remembered TARDIS and that’s exactly what I’d expect of his character. It’s actually incredible how little he has aged since the conclusion of The Sarah Jane Adventures and the character really was seamlessly brought back to life after so long. It was tremendous to hear an update on what Luke was doing now at UNIT and I appreciated that the continuity for Rani was kept ambiguous given her ongoing Big Finish series. It’s clear from the off that Clyde had feelings for her and addressing that here was really well done. I’ll skip ahead to how things ended and I really liked the elderly advice from Jo to Clyde about not wasting time and telling him to let Rani know how he felt. It was obvious he still had the feelings for her and didn’t even hesitate when questioned about it. Of course he did! We all knew it 13 years ago and nothing has changed. I couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for him though because that’s an incredibly long time to have feelings for someone and do nothing about it! It must be eating him alive. It was nice to hear that he was successful with his comic series in Los Angeles though. Sarah Jane would be proud of that! I thought the moment Jo had hold of her owl teddy was a touching moment to and this was the right episode to honour her memory. That’s probably why Clyde featured! The only other options for this series to reunite Jo with from the Third Doctor era would be either Benton or Yates, but I don’t think that would have had the same emotional impact. Exploring the Remembered TARDIS was a lot of fun and I absolutely adored the moment we saw the assembly of sonic screwdrivers. They ranged from the Second Doctor’s retro design to the less favourable design of the Thirteenth Doctor’s! I thought that was good fun and both Clyde and Jo wanting a go was amusing. They were both big kids but who could blame them? Jo wanting to use the design of her Doctor’s was a nice touch and the danger that came from her getting a little whacky with it was great stuff. This episode of course tells the story of The Three Doctors which is a wonderful story to celebrate the tenth anniversary of Doctor Who, and the way things were led to that was very clever. Clyde asking Jo just how many Doctros she knew was fun and that led to a fine recount of the adventure and her meeting with three incarnations of the Doctor and a battle with Omega. It was really nice to revisit this story as I adore the banter between the Second and Third Doctors. It really is magnificent. It’s such a shame illness prevented William Hartnell’s First Doctor from being more involved, but it’s just terrific to get anything extra with him as the original that pioneered the part of the Doctor. It was also a fun return to the early representation of Gallifrey in the show which is just glorious. I’ll focus more on the scenes with Jo and Clyde though because that’s the new content which really feels special. Clyde paying his respects to Jo after hearing that her Cliff had passed away was really touching and that just helped push her into wanting Clyde to tell Rani how she felt. She admitted to loving the Doctor which I don’t think was in any doubt, but it wasn’t the same way she loved Cliff. And it was with him that she had the real adventure with. The wish at the end and her being reunited with her lost loved one was so touching and a fitting way to end what was magnificent episode! Overall, a joy to watch. 

Rating: 10/10

A Midsummer's Nightmare

"No stars to be seen, and not the faintest trace ."

Writer: Unknown

Format: Short Story

Released: September 1980

Printed in: Doctor Who Annual 1981

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Romana II, K9

Synopsis

The Doctor, Romana and K9 set sights on the Norwegian everlasting sunlight, but the TARDIS has slightly other ideas...

Verdict

A Midsummer's Nightmare was a good little short story to continue my reading through the 1981 Doctor Who Annual! These kind of adventures are always unique and this one was certainly no different. I’m a big fan of the format in having the illustrations accompanying the text that makes up the story, but I must say that the layout for this particular adventure was a little clunky. There was more than one instance of the illustration and the text blending and becoming jumbled which didn’t go down too well with the use of colours. It was only a few lines here or there though so it wasn’t the biggest issue in the world, but it is just something I think can be easily rectified with a little more attention to detail. That’s the case for most of these Doctor Who Annuals though! I thought the illustrations themselves were decent and painted a good enough picture of what was happening, even if I do feel that in general with these stories the imagery depicted could be a little more focused on what’s happening instead of the Doctor and K9. It’s clear the likeness of Lalla Ward is not something that was licensed in terms of the use of Romana II as the companion for these stories, but thankfully the generic blonde that appeared in the drawings here wasn’t a million miles away from being recognisably as the Time Lady companion. It was certainly an improvement on some of the stories I’ve already blogged from this particular Annual. I thought the atmosphere of this adventure was good and definitely felt creepy which was great. The story felt contained and quite intimate which was a good achievement considering it was set outdoors and not exactly the intended setting of Norway and the eternal sunshine in the night. I’ve actually visited Oslo earlier this year and I was impressed with the city but unfortunately it was only a fleeting day trip on a layover so I never got to experience what it’s like in the Nordic night. I can’t imagine what it would be like to be constantly bright! I think that would really mess with my head so I enjoyed the aim of the Doctor in seeing that. Romana didn’t have much knowledge of it which was intriguing. I think Romana was presented as being a little less intelligent or lacking in knowledge than we saw on screen, but it wasn’t massively noticeable. I thought the humour with K9 was great too when it came to the lion references. K9 growling was tremendous! But of course the Doctor wanted him to know that lions roared. Good fun. The aliens that were unnamed, which in of itself is a shame as I find it more difficult to relate to them or take them seriously as a threat, but their intentions of taking the Doctor’s body as a younger one was flawed with his age as a Time Lord. I do find humour in the inconsistencies of the Doctor’s age with him being stated here as over five hundred. That seems apt but there are plenty of contradictions! The way the aliens were defeated was a bit quick and easy with K9 shooting down the roof on them, but the breaking of the spell and Sven having his family freed tied things up pretty nearly. He was a decent character despite the incredibly stereotypical Nordic name, and the image of him being featureless with those gaping eyes was very scary! Overall, a more than decent adventure. 

Rating: 7/10