The Morning of the Day of the Doctor

"The Doctor was chaos."

Writer: Ingrid Oliver

Format: Short Story

Released: October 2024

Printed in: The Adventures Before 08

Featuring: Osgood, Curator

Synopsis

Discover what happened before...

What did Osgood do the morning of The Day of the Doctor?

What happened to Tegan before Arc of Infinity, and why does it involve strange sentient lights in the Australian outback?

What was the Tenth Doctor doing in a hall of mirrors, right before Planet of the Dead?

Answers to all these questions lie in an incredible collection of new Doctor Who short stories that give a glimpse into the moments just before we saw the Doctor step on screen.

From Skaro to Apalapucia, from a shop front drained of colour to Rassilon's tomb, join a host of incredible adventures across the universe with Doctors, companions, friends and foes.

Verdict

The Morning of the Day of the Doctor was an excellent way to conclude my reading of The Adventures Before prequel collection! Deciding to do a prequel to The Day of the Doctor is a bit of a no brainer because there really are so many directions to go in, but having Ingrid Oliver write her own Osgood story is just wonderful! It was clear right from the off that she absolutely nailed the character. It was so obviously written with the voice of Osgood and that made it immediately interesting. The title is also absolutely what it says on the tin and I liked the way things were set up for what we would see on screen. We get to see Kate and UNIT going into the National Gallery and seeing those giant paintings of the Tenth Doctor alongside Queen Elizabeth I. We see that there are mysteries going on with paintings and figures seemingly departing them. And from that we see just why Kate made the rather unique and strange call to bring the TARDIS in, much to the chagrin of the Eleventh Doctor who was inside! But for me, the highlight was getting an extended sequence with the Curator. He is such a fascinating character and I love how Oliver captured how powerful that voice is. Even when I watched the story again earlier this year for the first time in a decade or so, that moment where we hear Tom Baker before actually seeing him was just stunning. So it was good that Osgood had something of a similar moment. I thought she wrote the Curator ever so well and it sounded exactly like he did on screen. She absolutely nailed the voices of the characters in the story and that's a delight to be able to say. I loved the little nod from the Curator to the knitwear that Osgood was wearing which was of course reminiscent of the Fourth Doctor's famous long scarf, and it was nice for him to find out that he thought the scarf actually found her rather than the other way around. He could see that there was something special in Osgood and that's why she would be tasked with finding the TARDIS. I liked how nervous Osgood was at the proposition of finally meeting the Doctor and she quickly did find the TARDIS near Billericay. It was good that she was nervous at meeting a man she described as very chaotic. She had read and studied all of the files almost from day one in the job, but now it was suddenly getting very real that she would meet the real article. I thought Kate alluding to the future and the Thirteenth Doctor with a female incarnation of the Doctor to come was intriguing, but it was definitely right for Osgood to question why he stayed male almost exclusively. I thought getting to know a little of Osgood's personal life was nice as well and we even interacted with her sister Nova. That was good stuff although she got a little too involved when it came to McGillop. I liked that he was present in the story and him wanting to get Nova's phone number from Osgood put the scientific advisor in a tricky position. She didn't want to admit that despite her actions on the outside regarding him, she actually quite liked him and didn't enjoy the idea of her sister dating him. It was her worst nightmare. But she would be spared the answer in fun style with the ringtone of the TARDIS dematerialisation saving her blushes. Saved by the Doctor as always. A really fun way to end what was a terrific read! 

Rating: 9/10