War Room: Loyalties - Propaganda

"Gallifrey does not belong solely to the Time Lords."

Writer: Georgia Cook

Format: Audio

Released: June 2026

Series: Gallifrey 15.01

Featuring: Leela 

Synopsis

With unrest brewing in Low Town, Rassilon demands the immediate location and destruction of a rogue broadcast mocking his name.

With Rasmus, the General and Cresta trapped in the Drylands, and riots bubbling on the streets, Ollistra attempts to steer a course to cement her rule over the War Room.

Verdict

Propaganda was a decent start to the Loyalties third instalment of War Room and the fifteenth series of Gallifrey! Fifteen series! It's been an epic range so far and whilst I came late to the party around seven years ago, it's wonderful to be in a position where I have caught up. And this particular release has been a long time coming! The delays on this one are no secret as it should have been out around eighteen months ago, but late is better than never. I really enjoyed returning to Gallifrey and this time in its chronology is really intriguing to explore. I love anything we get from the Time War because it feels like a huge gap we never saw on screen and it bridges eras which is rather delightful. Throw in the politics of the planet and Lord Rassilon as President and the combination is an incredible setup. There's so much to keep your attention and I like how treacherous everything feels at the moment. The War Room isn't exactly being ran in a hugely successful manner at the moment as Rassilon made perfectly clear to Ollistra which was a powerful moment. I think Richard Armitage is sensational in that role and it's magnificent to see this version of such an important figure in Gallifreyan history. He really does resemble the version we see on screen in The End of Time and that crazed manner was on full display here. It's almost a shame we didn't get more. I thought the focus on Low Town was pretty good and I enjoyed going beyond the Capitol and exploring more of the planet in areas that aren't populated by Time Lords. I'm just not sure the series opener was the place for that. I do think the concept behind the Disruptor was really good and the voice modulation almost made me think he was going to be Romana at first, but it did feel like it was revealed a little too quickly in my opinion. I thought there was potential to drive Rassilon into further madness if his name was being slandered from outside the Capitol. I thought the mission from the General, Rasmus and Cresta was really good and they made a strong trio! The General is fantastic and it's staggering to think that he's still around in the same incarnation by the time Hell Bent comes around. Talk about longevity! Cresta steals the show though and she really is just fantastic as the General's niece. More of her in this series is certainly desired. I thought the uncovering of the resistance communication network was good and will certainly be useful moving forward, but the sacrifice to obtain it was drastic! Low Town was used to siphon the power needed to wipe out the power in the base which was certainly efficient, but the impact was a little more than expected and that resulted in a large number of casualties. Ollistra was not fussed in the slightest as she seemed to only care about results for Rassilon to ensure her continued political position. That makes her an enthralling character. I felt Leela was severely underused for this episode despite her situation limiting her, but surely she ought to have been the one to go to the Drylands to investigate personally. Maybe they will learn from their mistake moving forward? Overall, an interesting story to get back into the swing of things with this range but maybe a little too much political manoeuvring and not enough action? 

Rating: 7/10