UNIT Dating

"I've missed this old place."

Writer: Roy Gill

Format: Audio

Released: March 2021

Series: Eighth Doctor Adventures: Stranded 2.02

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Liv, Helen, Andy, Brigadier

Synopsis

When the Doctor dips into his past to help TARDIS repairs in the present, Andy joins him on a trip to UNIT. In the 1970s, young soldier Ron Winters has just met lab assistant Tony Clare. But in 2020, they need Liv and Helen's help when their memories start falling apart...

Verdict

UNIT Dating was another great story to continue my way through the second Stranded series of Eighth Doctor Adventures! This is a very clever little title given the controversy and inconsistency with the UNIT dating timeline, but the dating referred to here very cleverly didn't become about a calendar. That was a really nice touch. I liked the idea of the Doctor being eager to give the TARDIS another test flight despite the difficulties he endured in Dead Time. This time he was going to try and visit the past and with him unable to travel in space, the prospect of him returning to the near past in Camden was very exciting. I really enjoyed how Andy basically became the companion for the episode with Liv and Helen left in 2020 and it's a pairing that I never thought we'd get! PC Andy Davidson travelling in the TARDIS with the Eighth Doctor. It's just ludicrously wonderful. It's nice to hear how mature Andy is by 2020 after his time with Torchwood that we saw on screen around a decade prior. The reference to those early Torchwood interactions when he mentioned not getting on well with pterodactyls was a nice touch too! I thought Tony and Ron were really nice characters and it's lovely to think that a lasting romance all started back at UNIT during the era of the Third Doctor. Being homosexual openly during that time was not as easy or as carefree as it was in 2020 and having Helen as a companion from the 1960s was really powerful in showing just how much society has changed. She was so happy for Tony and Ron that their love had lasted so long and they didn't have to hide anything, but her story at the end about her brother Albie who was disowned by their father for his sexual orientation was very sad. She had looked up on Wikipedia when homosexuality was decriminalised and it's staggering to think it was only in 1968. We'd had a whole era of the First Doctor come and go before that! It was so matter of fact in 2020 to casually use the word gay or pan or bi to describe sexual orientation and Liv coming from the future where that was meaningless provided a strong contrast. I liked how she comforted her fellow companion and it was really genuine that she was always there if Helen need someone to talk to about anything at all. It was a good format for the episode to have Helen and Liv in the present with the older and nearly retired pair of Ron and Tony as their memories of the past were altering due to the Doctor interfering and getting caught in the time loop that their younger selves were also within. The Eighth Doctor meeting the Brigadier at this point in his life was good fun and I enjoyed how accepting Lethbridge-Stewart was of the situation. Nothing surprised him about the Doctor anymore! That's pretty easy to accept as a listener too. I liked the proximity to The Three Doctors with the Eighth knowing that the Third would soon be free to roam again so he was just using his own workings to try and get his TARDIS working fully again. The Eighth Doctor showing appreciation for the Brigadier was a really touching moment too. I liked the concept behind Ogrons being left on Earth after the events of Day of the Daleks and whilst they didn't provide too much of a threat here, their presence was good fun. I enjoyed the continuity and Ron and Tony remembering them as hairy beasts was an apt description! The Doctor knowing all along how to break the time loop was amusing and Andy actually being the one to push Tony and Ron together was delightful. He didn't exactly hide the fact he was from the future very well when he blurted out about them being a boyfriend! The Doctor having Andy disguised with Jo's lanyard was tremendous as well and the confusion about him being mistaken for her when it come to her getting acquainted with the soldiers was fantastic. Ensuring the memories became consistent for the old UNIT pair was really nice and I enjoyed how after some struggles things were back on track. The TARDIS didn't seem to have any issues and perhaps should have been more at the forefront of thoughts, but overall this was a great little episode to continue the series! 

Rating: 8/10