The Secret of Novice Hame

"Once I was such a wild cat."

Writer: Russell T Davies
Format: Webcast
Released: 30 May 2020
Series: #DoctorWhoLockdown

Featuring: Tenth Doctor

Synopsis

On the last day of her life, Novice Hame has a final, terrible secret... but who will she tell?

Verdict

The Secret of Novice Hame was an outstanding webcast adventure to go alongside the #NewNewYork watch-along of New Earth and Gridlock. Unfortunately, I did not take part in the Tweet-along as I had other plans on the Saturday night, but I was very excited to watch/listen what went alongside it and I have to say that it was absolutely tremendous! It was such a wonderful little story with Novice Hame on her deathbed and like the Face of Boe, she had one last secret for the lonely traveller. The parallelism there was just brilliant and whilst it was clear that she knew all about the Doctor and his different faces and many men, woman (and even animals!) taking the name, it was terrific that her Doctor came to see her. The Tenth Doctor. I thought the music that accompanied the narration of Novice Hame was magnificent and it was just marvellous to have some additional music from Murray Gold to go alongside Russell T Davies's fantastic writing. The background history we got on the character of Novice Hame was magnificent and despite Hame being on her deathbed, the feel good factor in this story was off the charts! She seemed extremely content with the fact she was going to die and she needed to tell the Doctor the truth about New Earth. The arrival of the Doctor to say goodbye to Novice Hame, presumably during his farewell tour in The End of Time, was wonderful and I thought it was brilliant that David Tennant was back voicing the Tenth Doctor! It made the story excel even further than it already had and just added a huge amount of credibility. This really was a fitting farewell for the character and it was nice to have those little holographic images of her appearances in New Earth and Gridlock. It was nice that she was back to being Novice Hame but seemingly dressed in her Sisters of Plenitude attire as that brought everything around nicely for her character's story. Discovering that she had been sold by her family to the Plenitude was very good and I loved that it was the Doctor who sent her parents to New Earth to find her. That was really nice and a touching moment. The imagery in this story was excellent and even though there weren't too many differing images, it was just great and looked spectacular. Hame wanting to know if the Face of Boe's dying secret was true or not and that the Doctor was indeed not alone. His recalling of the events of Utopia/The Sound of Drums/Last of the Time Lords and even further adventures he'd had since last seeing Hame encountering the likes of Scarecrows, Weeping Angels and the Flood was brilliant. It seemed to put a smile on Hame's voice, at least that's the impression I got from Anna Hope's narration as she reprised her role very impressively. The team behind this webcast was pretty sensational if I'm being honest. The music and the delivery of the incredible writing made for a stellar combination and this really might be the best #DoctorWhoLockdown bonus story yet. Hame's secret being that she believed that New Earth itself was actually a trap and that there was something within the planet was fantastic, but her secret would have to wait as she had already passed with her final words being 'I Wonder', which the Doctor really thought fitted her character. It was a lovely way to send off such a good character, whilst exploring her history and potentially setting something brilliant up for the future. Overall, a superb story!

Rating: 10/10

Speed of Flight

"Nothing ever comes back from the Dead."

Writer: Paul Leonard
Format: Novel
Released: October 1996
Series: Missing Adventures 27

Featuring: Third Doctor, Jo, Mike Yates

Synopsis

"Those who are intelligent, strong and virtuous are promoted. The stupid, the weak and the unworthy will die. How else is it possible for the world to make progress?"

The TARDIS lands on Nooma, a world in the middle of an industrial revolution. But the Third Doctor, Jo and Mike Yates quickly discover that there is no limit to upheaval. The sky is alive, and at war with the ground. The continents are on the move, competing for a place under the sun. And somewhere, there is a starship...

Mike finds himself committed to a fight where his only option is to kill or be killed. Jo is caught in a workers' revolt. And the Doctor must find out what is really happening to Nooma before the struggle for survival kills the world and everyone on it.

Verdict

Speed of Flight was a decent read for the most part and quite the interesting Missing Adventures novel! This is definitely one of the most uncommon novels that I have the pleasure of owning and I was intrigued from the start to see how things would fare with Mike Yates accompanying the Doctor and Jo on their travels. It presented an interesting dynamic and I liked how with him joining the pair in the TARDIS for this outing, it presented us with something different from what we saw on television with this incarnation of the Doctor. Once Mike was inside the TARDIS and off on his travels, I loved how he suddenly realised that the Doctor's travels in time and space were legitimate and definitely no joke. That was tremendous. I enjoyed the way Mike was thrown along on the journey after he and Jo were set up on a blind date together and that fitted in well with the era. It was also intriguing placement having the story set prior to The Green Death with Jo contemplating if she wanted to continue travelling in the TARDIS by the book's conclusion. I thought the novel for the most part was pretty good and the alien planet presented a very good setting. It was distinct, unique and unlike anywhere the Third Doctor had been before which worked in its favour. The slow reveal that the planet was actually artificial was really good and I thought that was fun to play with, even if it is something I have come across at least a couple of times in everything I have blogged so far. It works. The idea of the Flight didn't get put into as much detail as I might have expected, and what interested me more was the planet's inhabitants' desire to fight. It was natural and almost uncontrollable which was very good. The evolutionary cycle involving children of the forest becoming men and then becoming naieen was intriguing and I really think there ought to have been more emphasis on that. With the latter cycle involving the ability to fly, it should have been used as more of the basis for Epreto's plot to destroy the world. His relationship with the Doctor was intriguing throughout and I liked how he was intent on not letting the naieen in on the truth regarding the sun. Finding out that it was artificial was good and worked well for what was to come with it being where all sights were set towards the end. I thought Jo had a very good story and I liked how she was referred to as a man and a cripple after what initially happened to her in the forest, despite her supposed to be staying in the TARDIS. I mean, surely the Doctor didn't think she would have stayed put! The TARDIS being taken by the Dead was great, but I loved how the Doctor was confident of getting it back and never seemed worried. The moment where book one ended with Mike Yates being dead was terrific, but despite the impact of the moment I think the seeds of his safe return were given a little too quickly. And then he was barely mentioned for sixty pages! Jo and Yates being taken over from within, but on a somewhat partial basis, was good and I enjoyed the moments where they told the Doctor that he should needed to be dead. That image in the TARDIS was great. The contrast between the Land and the Sky was very intriguing, but I still think there should have been a bit more background of the mythology and legends of the planet. Epreto's dismissal of legend seemed a tad strange. Mike's eventual return was not much of a surprise, but his not being in his own body was good and I was very surprised that he was pondering staying Dead. That was very unexpected! The ending seemed like it was excellent and exciting with Mike shooting Jo dead, but from then on I was not impressed with how things ultimately ended. The Doctor realised that there was repair work to do, but we had Mike as Dead and not in his body, and Jo literally dead after being shot, and then the epilogue started with the pair back to normal without too much explanation? That was not something I enjoyed and that alone brought the book down a full mark for me. As a whole, I enjoyed the story and setting, but that ending needed a great deal more clarity and just seemed a bit too easy of an escape. Overall though, a decent read.

Rating: 7/10

Blackout

"We don't believe in aliens in New York."

Writer: Oli Smith
Format: Audio
Released: September 2011
Series: NSA 14

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor, Amy, Rory

Synopsis

It's November 9th, 1965. New York City is plunged into darkness, a taxi driver has bad dreams, and an invisible spacecraft hovers ominously above the skyline.

As an extra-terrestrial disease sweeps the populace, Amy and Rory must sabotage the city's water supply to slow the spread of infection, and a dying Doctor holds another man's life in his hands.

With the death toll rising, and his companions stalked through the streets by alien businessmen, the Doctor is forced to make a terrible decision...

How far must he go to save his friends?

Verdict

Blackout was an excellent New Series Adventures audio! I thoroughly enjoyed this one from start to finish and even though it was relatively lengthy for a single episode in the format a 77 minutes, it seemed to fly by! It was a really great listen. The way the story started as we were introduced to Clint was very good and I liked how he was immediately talking to the Doctor. The story began at a point in the middle of events which can work really well and this was definitely one of those occasions. I really enjoyed the setting of 1965 New York and although this is set prior to Series 7, I think it is a lot of fun to think of what happened to Amy and Rory in The Angels Take Manhattan and the fact that they would have been in the city when all that occurred here was transpiring and were helpless to do anything about it. They'd have known all abut the contaminated water and how it was resolved which is fun to consider. Clint being a black man was addressed well in line with the racial environment of 1960s America. I was a very big fan of Stuart Milligan's narration and I think it's quite fun that an actor who played Richard Nixon told an American-set Doctor Who story. He was pretty perfect it has to be said. Clint having dreams was an interesting element and I really liked his reaction to the simplicity in which the Doctor uncovered the alien spaceship above the city. Something like that just shouldn't be so easy! Amy and Rory were separated from the Doctor for much of the audio which I think worked well and it was good to have them doing their own investigative work. The water being contaminated was very good as a central problem for the plot and it was obviously going to be connected to the aliens that the Doctor had discovered were sticking around which gave him time to defeat them. I loved the use of Times Square in a story with this name and it was fantastic to have the lights actually used as a loose plot device. The contrast in the audio between heat and ice was excellent and it worked very well to have them complimenting each other. Finding out that Clint was actually not poisoned by the water contamination was intriguing and what came later with the revelation of the alien experiment was superb. I loved how he turned out to be the anomaly needed to control the experiment and the terminology really took me back to my schooldays in chemistry. It was really fun and explained a huge amount. The Doctor wanting to use that knowledge to get the vaccine that it clearly proved they had was terrific and I really liked the characterisation of Matt Smith's Eleventh Doctor. The exploration of the woman in Clint's dreams was good and I also enjoyed the excitement of Amy and Rory being chased across New York. The aliens talking telepathically inside the head was very good and they sounded quite creepy but without being threatening. That suited the audio well in my opinion. The image of the Doctor being in a sports car was fantastic and I could just imagine this particular incarnation having the biggest smile on his face. Sports cars are cool! The aliens wanting to leave their experiment despite it failing and leaving humanity to die was an unexpected twist, but the calmness in which it was delivered was terrific. The use of the sports car from the Doctor to drive it through a magnetic field and bring about the vaccine amidst the alien message was a great way to conclude what was an excellent audio! Overall, a brilliant adventure.

Rating: 9/10

Wirrn Dawn

"This is the way it used to be. The way of nature."

Writer: Nicholas Briggs
Format: Audio
Released: June 2009
Series: EDA 3.04

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Lucie

Synopsis

"This is full scale war. Wirrn and Humankind locked in a deadly struggle for survival. When did that happen?"

The Doctor and Lucie land right in the middle of one of the human race's bloodiest periods of history. Trying to make a difference here would be like standing up and calling for a cease-fire on the Somme. Certain death...

Or worse.

Survival can be a messy business.

Verdict

Wirrn Dawn was a decent continuation of the third series of the Eighth Doctor Adventures! I really enjoyed the pairing of the Doctor and Lucie again and they really have blossomed into a favourable TARDIS pairing. The return of the Wirrn was why I recently read Doctor Who and the Ark in Space to affiliate myself with the enemy once again, but I was quite surprised and somewhat disappointed by how far removed they seemed from their televised appearance. I'm all for developing on a villainous monster that only made one appearance on television, but they just seemed completely different which was strange. I really liked the idea of the TARDIS arriving amidst a terrible period in human history with their war against the Wirrn, but I think there was a lot of potential here that wasn't realised. There really ought to have been more of a link to The Ark in Space surrounding the war, but there was actually more of a link to The Sontaran Experiment which was strange but not at all a bad thing! I found it great that Daniel Anthony appeared in a Classic era Doctor Who story given that he played Clyde Langer in The Sarah Jane Adventures and I thought he gave a good enough performance. Paul McGann was very good as the Eighth Doctor and I loved the humour at his and Lucie's arrival with her wanting to turn around and depart immediately because of the muddy surroundings. The Doctor had promised! Of course, they didn't end up leaving at all. I wouldn't have expected anything else! I thought the first part was definitely the better of the two with it being a bit more tense and exciting, with the second instalment sadly dragging out a little towards the end. It seemed that the war had been resolved a little too early with the installing of a new Wirrn Queen, and then the speeches that followed were unnecessary. I liked the development of the Ingens (spell check needed) stemming from the indigenous species of Humankind and the history of that was really interesting. The Wirrn swarm was very good and the imagery that came into my head when they were in space and essentially slicing through some of the Humankind was excellent. If they had stayed that way then I think they would have been more of an effective enemy, but I genuinely believed they were hurt a little by the format of the story. Once they started talking, and thankfully that was mostly kept to a minimal for the most part, they just didn't seem able to be taken seriously which was a big shame. It felt a bit normalised by the time the Queen started speaking during the conclusion, but we knew the threat was over by then. Their voice just wasn't impactful in an audio format and I think their look was so distinctive and crucial to them being quite a famed monster. The story that came with the TARDIS being lost is always fun and I liked hearing how desperate Lucie found the situation. Of course, this has happened to the Doctor several times so he was rather calm. The comedy surrounding his location of the TARDIS key after they were out wearing spacesuits was brilliant. I really am enjoying the dynamic between the Doctor and Lucie in this range, but I am a little surprised there doesn't appear to be a story arc for the third series. Admittedly, I have done this series much more on a sporadic basis than the first two series, but even so I thought there would be some threading through. Regardless, that's not what is always needed and this remained a good little audio. Overall, a decent tale that brought the Wirrn back, but I think they were slightly impacted by the format.

Rating: 7/10

Decline of the Ancient Mariner

"Events here are somehow mirroring some old poem."

Writer: Rob Nisbet

Format: Audio

Released: March 2020

Series: Short Trips 10.03

Featuring: Third Doctor, Sarah Jane

Synopsis

When NASA has a problem they can't quite understand, they quickly turn to the Doctor and Sarah Jane Smith to investigate. Their Mariner 10 probe disappeared for 30 minutes, with no apparent explanation. What starts out as quick investigation ends up having catastrophic consequences for the time travellers.

But the reason for the probe's disappearance sounds a little too familiar for the Doctor...

Verdict

Decline of the Ancient Mariner was a very good little Short Trips audio! I recently bought this one as part of the Big Finish sale on UNIT adventures and whilst the only involvement from UNIT was the familiar setting of the Third Doctor era and the Doctor himself being sought after for his knowledge, I still thoroughly enjoyed this story. I liked Ross as a representative from NASA and I loved how when they couldn't quite work out what had happened to their Mariner 10 probe close to Mercury, they turned to the Doctor as he was UNIT's Scientific Advisor. That was a lot of fun. Mark Reynolds did a very good job as the narrator of the story and playing Ross and I also thought his take on both the Doctor and Sarah Jane was pretty decent! That definitely helped things. I think that was also aided by how good the characterisation was from Rob Nisbet. He really did write well for the two lead characters. The reference to The Time Warrior was good and I liked how that made it seem that this was very early on for Sarah Jane, but she was clearly still quite comfortable in her new life and surroundings. The Mariner 10 picking up detailed pictures of Mercury was intriguing and the idea of a number of craters and an explosion sounded very exciting. Of course, these were just new photos and the Doctor indicated that the explosions may have happened long in the past. The Doctor's curiosity regarding the Mariner 10 going missing for half an hour got the better of him and he took the TARDIS to last Friday, from the story's perspective in 1974, to Mercury and in sight of the probe. That caused a paradox though as it turned out that it was the TARDIS itself that drew the Mariner 10 off course! I loved the idea of the Doctor's meddling going wrong. I also liked the details we got of Mercury itself and how, even for the TARDIS scanner, at the proximity they were to the planet closest to the Sun the light would just be too much to bare. That's almost incomprehensible to imagine, but I love thinking about it. Mercury isn't exactly a planet that can do a lot in Doctor Who, but along with Mercury from the Short Trips books now, we are getting a bit more which is terrific! It's a familiar planet and that adds a lot to the story in my opinion. The idea of a Vortex craft was terrific and is definitely something I would like more exploration of in a longer in-depth story format. Host made for an intriguing villainous character and her capturing the Mariner 10 was intriguing for her to assess the technology. The potential of a Jagon invasion was very good and I liked how they would disguise themselves as technology to take over. In this case, they would be disguised as humanity to take over Earth and that was what we saw with their personalisation of Ross. Sarah Jane believing that this was the Ross they'd met from NASA on Earth was good and the Doctor had to keep reminding her that it was not the same person. The idea that Earth was rich in minerals and resources wasn't exactly unique, but it does work well. What I wasn't expecting was for Marilyn Monroe to manifest as the TARDIS in a sort of opposite of what Ross represented as the Jagon Vortex craft. I wasn't sure if I enjoyed that so much, as the lack of reaction from the Doctor was quite a surprise. What I did enjoy was the linking between the classic poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and the events of this adventure. They seemed to be mirroring which was good and I actually always remember the poem well from a project I did in comprehensive school some nine years ago now. Overall, this was a very good story and I wonder if there will ever be any development on the potential relationship between Sarah Jane and Ross.

Rating: 8/10

Doctors Assemble

"This is the Doctor... calling the Doctor!"

Writer: James Goss

Format: Webcast

Released: 23 May 2020

Series: #DoctorWhoLockdown

Featuring: First Doctor, Second Doctor, Third Doctor, Fourth Doctor, Fifth Doctor, Sixth Doctor, Seventh Doctor, Eighth Doctor, War Doctor, Ninth Doctor, Tenth Doctor, Eleventh Doctor, Twelfth Doctor, Thirteenth Doctor

Synopsis

Planet Earth is in terrible danger. Trapped inside the TARDIS, the Doctor calls upon some familiar faces to help save the day...

Verdict

Doctors Assemble was an incredible webcast adventure to continue the wonderful Doctor Who Lockdown series of stories! I absolutely loved the premise as I am more than a sucker for a multi-Doctor story, but the idea of every single incarnation together was just mesmerising! The result was outstanding despite the cluster it could have become, but James Goss did a stellar job in organising a total of fourteen Doctors together. It worked really well in having them talking through the TARDIS interface and it was just a joy to have differing incarnations arrive one by one. Unfortunately, the original actors of each Doctor were unable to voice their incarnation, but the impressions that came were pretty impressive. I have to say, Jon Culshaw's take on the Third Doctor was sublime and definitely the most accurate in my opinion. It was quite uncanny how good it was with all of the mannerisms on display in stellar fashion. As if that wasn't great, the takes on the Ninth, Tenth and Eleventh Doctors were also sensational! I was delighted when I did initially hear the Ninth Doctor speak because the impression was definitely an improvement on what I have heard thus far in my listening of the Ninth Doctor Chronicles. I thought the mannerisms and traits of the Fourth, Fifth and Eighth Doctors were also very impressive and I loved the arrival of the Seventh Doctor and his constant reminders that what had trapped the Fourth Doctor in his own TARDIS was a deadly force of evil. That was a great deal of fun. I thought the use of cat pictures was a little cheap initially, but it coming from the Sixth Doctor made a lot of sense given his badge on that famous attire and them actually turning out to be important as location vectors was very amusing. I thought it was brilliant to have the War Doctor arrive late on the scene and the impression of John Hurt's incarnation was also superb. I was really impressed with that. This was my first experience of David Bradley's take on the First Doctor outside of Twice Upon a Time and I have to admit it didn't fill me with a huge amount of confidence for when I do get around to the First Doctor Adventures. The writing of the incarnation from James Goss was magnificent though and full of comedy with the voices stemming from the food machine. I also wasn't overly thrilled with the impression of the Thirteenth Doctor, but it was just magnificent to have her there alongside thirteen men that preceded her! The line about Sunday now being an important day was very good though. I was a big fan of the little TARDIS animations and I found the choice of photos for each Doctor rather intriguing. They were definitely personal, I'm just not sure who to! I would love for the Thirteenth Doctor to do battle with the Sontarans as was shown in her photo. I really am just longing for a Sontaran story! Anyway, the idea of the Third Doctor not enjoying the Eleventh Doctor's outfit was terrific and I liked the idea of the Doctors splitting into teams. The Third and Twelfth definitely seemed like they would be on the same page which was fun to play with. The Sixth and War Doctors combining to ultimately bring about the solution to save the Fourth Doctor was great and unexpected, and I also loved the continuation of the bickering between the Second and Third Doctors. That's always a great deal of amusement. In the end, as acknowledged, it was a tad bit of anti-climax, but what we got was just an absolute treat and I can't thank everyone involved enough for this delightful lockdown treat. Just magical. All of the Doctors together, probably for the first and only time. Overall, just wonderful.

Rating: 10/10

Doctor Who and the Ark in Space

"You can at last begin the great awakening of your people."

Writer: Ian Marter

Format: Novel

Released: May 1977

Series: Target 04

Featuring: Fourth Doctor, Sarah Jane, Harry

Synopsis

At a time in the far-off future, Earth has become uninhabitable. A selection of humanity is placed, deep-frozen, in a fully automated space station, to await the day of their return to Earth...

Thousands of years later, Doctor Who arrives. He finds things going suspiciously wrong, and the station under attack from the giant Wirrn, deadly creatures who, in their lust for power, now threaten the future of the whole human race...

Verdict

Doctor Who and the Ark in Space was a very good novelisation of the televised story that served as the Fourth Doctor's second serial on screen! I was a little surprised by how different this was to the televised version with Space Station Nerva being renamed as Terra Nova which I wasn't a fan of, and I also thought the linkage into The Sontaran Experiment was very strange in having the Doctor, Sarah and Harry go down to Earth in the TARDIS. That didn't seem to fit in with the arc of Season 12 in my view and just seemed a strange deviation. Ian Marter as author was an intriguing dynamic given that he starred in the televised serial this book is based upon as Harry. I was expecting a tad more of an insight from his character, but the story didn't really need that. I just thought it might have come given the authorship. One element of the adventure that I was a tad disappointed by was the lack of description of, what would be in this one, Terra Nova. It's such an iconic setting and that might be heightened because it was also a primary setting for Revenge of the Cybermen, but that just seemed lacking and quite generic with just a number of different rooms. Right, that's the negatives out of the way and now I can talk about the positives. It is a very good story and the concept of the entire future of humanity being on board is great. It works well for Harry's first venture in the TARDIS after his introduction in Robot and I liked how the Doctor didn't want him wandering off, but of course that is exactly what he did. The characterisation of the Fourth Doctor was decent with this being his early days and I also thought the writing of Sarah Jane was pretty good. I loved the moment where the Doctor challenges Sarah Jane to get through her tight squeeze, although it did seem quicker here for her to realise that she was just being gently encouraged. The Wirrn, weirdly referred to without the novelisation with three of the letter R, didn't come until pretty late in the game which I didn't expect, but I think they make a very good enemy and benefit from the novel format because the frame of reference to go off for their appearance is the tremendous cover. The cliffhanger moment of part one worked well in prose as a chapter conclusion with the Queen Wirrn falling out of the cupboard. One thing I noticed about this book was how frantic the pace was and I think that definitely worked in its favour. It was certainly a lot of fun and the decision to only have eight chapters definitely helped in my opinion. I found that I whizzed through things! Vira was an excellent character and I liked the development of her opinion on the Doctor throughout the adventure. It went from trepidatious to trusting in quick time. Noah was also good and him serving as the focus for the enemy was very good with him being infected by the Wirrn. The threat that befell Sarah Jane when she was put into cryogenic sleep was brilliant. Harry's desire to touch things made for some amusing moments. Rogin was also a very good character and I enjoyed his relationship with Vira a lot. The final two chapters in particular were very pacy and just exciting which is exactly what you want in a conclusion. Rogin's sacrifice along with Noah leading the Wirrn to be ejected from within was very good and a nice way to let Vira live on and essentially restart the human race. The brief moment where Sarah Jane and Harry firmly believe that the Doctor is dead was fantastic and it shows in the latter's reaction that he was new to travelling because he didn't seem so impacted. I'm not sure the Brigadier would be impressed though! Overall, a great novelisation.

Rating: 8/10

The Song of Megaptera

"Here be Space Whales."

Writer: Pat Mills

Format: Audio

Released: May 2010

Series: Lost Stories 1.07

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Peri

Synopsis

Deep space in the distant future, and Captain Greeg and his crew are hunting mile-long Space Whales on a vast harvesting ship. By pure accident, they also capture the TARDIS.

The Doctor and Peri must use all their wits to survive. But what is the creature running loose in the ship's bowels? And can the Doctor save Megaptera before its song is extinguished forever?

Verdict

The Song of Megaptera was a very good Lost Stories audio! The name of this one has always fascinated me and I think it's because when I first saw the title I misread as Menoptera and thought it had links with The Web Planet. Alas, the only story it might have links with would be The Beast Below! After listening, I was quite intrigued to discover that the initial story was actually to be featuring the Fourth Doctor and later reworked into a Fifth Doctor serial introducing Turlough, but it was of course replaced by the sensational Mawdryn Undead. Regardless of the form and TARDIS team, I am delighted that we are able to get the story in some shape here. It works really well and I love the pairing of the Sixth Doctor and Peri. They work so well together and it's also testament to Colin Baker's performance that his take on the Doctor here is more closely resemblant of his televised days than what we would later get on audio with his softer side. That's really impressive. Their arrival on the Orca was excellent and I thought it was admirable that Peri wanted to do all they could to save the space whales from being hunted and captured. The Doctor taking on the persona of a WILF investigator was magnificent and he certainly had a great deal of fun in that role. The humour that came with his comments about saving flies and even contemplating bacteria was excellent. I liked how the Doctor had in fact utilised the flies to infect the ship with a virus that temporarily stopped whale capture. In the meantime, Peri's scenes after she had been infected were marvellous and the comedy that came with her being delirious was brilliant! I loved how she referred to the Doctor as an imposter because she momentarily forgot about his regeneration and she also contemplated wanting a pet Dalek in the TARDIS! She thought they might be cute under that armour exterior. Loopy is definitely what Peri was. I thought it was a good twist by having the TARDIS responsible for why Megaptera was unable to escape by diving through time. The Doctor and Peri were there to save the Space Whale, but the presence of their ship was interfering with the time element of the creature and had actually resulted in both things being stuck! The materialisation at the end of part two was intriguing and I couldn't help but think of what the sets for inside the Space Whale might have been like back in the 1980s. I'm not sure how they would have looked, but I'd love to have seen it! The Caller was a good addition as the story developed and I enjoyed the creepiness of the voice. It brought a very good atmosphere. The inclusion of Sontaran weaponry in the audio was an unexpected bonus and it was just nice for continuity to know that they had been in this sector of time and space previously and been somewhat unsuccessful. Captain Greeg made for a good villainous character and him ultimately being responsible for the wrongdoing behind the hunt for Space Whales was good and not a surprise, not that it was intended to be so though. I thought the computer voice of the ship after being infected with a virus was quite a bit of fun with its differing voices and the frustration that was causing to Greeg. The devotion those had to Megaptera was really good and I liked how that also provided frustration to the Doctor as he wasn't able to convince them of his methods. They believed that they'd be saved. Megaptera ultimately being rescued was good and definitely how things should have concluded and it was quite nice for the Doctor and Peri's mission to be a success, even if it went in a roundabout way! Overall, a great audio adventure. 

Rating: 8/10

The Eye of the Jungle

"We are designing warriors."

Writer: Darren Jones

Format: Audio

Released: July 2011

Series: NSA 13

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor, Amy, Rory

Synopsis

The Amazon Rainforest, 1827. The Doctor, Amy and Rory arrive in the jungle near a hurriedly abandoned campsite, where they are surrounded by hungry black caiman – huge lizards. Only the arrival of a man with a rifle sees off the giant beasts. Oliver Blazington has come to the forest to bag big game, and his companion Garrett is a naturalist, collecting exotic creatures for London Zoo. But the Doctor soon discovers that another very different hunter is stalking the Amazon. Animals and people have been disappearing without trace, and local villagers speak darkly of "the Eye of the Jungle". Amy senses that the all-seeing Eye is watching them – but she and Rory are powerless to intervene when it sets its sights on the Doctor...

Verdict

The Eye of the Jungle was an excellent New Series Adventures audio! I really enjoyed this listen from the get go which I was delighted by as these kind of stories, particularly the format, can sometimes be a bit of a struggle. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a bit trepidatious about doing a two-part story of this nature, but I needn't have been because it was quite brilliant! I was a very big fan. I think David Troughton's narration had a lot to do with that because he was a fantastic narrator. Even though his take on Matt Smith's Eleventh Doctor wasn't overly great, I think that was because of the nature of who the actor is and he had that familiar Troughton twang that made a lot of the Doctor moments seem like they were featuring the Second Doctor instead! That was quite fun. I did enjoy his impersonations of both Amy and Rory though. He delivered them in a very decent way which helped. I was a big fan of the 19th century Amazon Rainforest setting as it's not a traditional kind of location for a Doctor Who adventure and this is where audio can come in and reap the benefits. The natural threat of the caiman was good and I liked how it being so real and natural made them all the more difficult to combat. Blazington arrived to save them with his gun in an entertaining pre-titles sequence. Finding out that the story was specifically set in 1827 was very good and the idea of this being where some of the animals gathered as a collection for the opening of London Zoo the next year was brilliant. I liked how it showed that the British were not all good whilst encompassing something historical. Garrett was a good character alongside Blazington and I liked how they worked together. The threat in the audio being extended by the revelation that people had been going missing was intriguing and set things up very nicely for what was to come, mostly in part two. Marta was a lovely little character and I really liked her relationship with Amy. The addition of the TARDIS going missing only added to the danger in the story which was really good. The cliff-hanger in the middle of the adventure was a very good one with the Doctor being shot and I enjoyed the resolution being that it was just a teleport beam. There was definitely a different feeling in part two and it felt more energetic which was a good shift. The story developed naturally and we got to learn of the war between the Nadurni and Prokarian which was terrific. I really enjoyed that and how it served as the focus for the story. The Nadurni were searching for specimens to manipulate their genes and create warriors for the war effort. That was intriguing and I liked how that was the true purpose of the connection with gathering a collection of species. It almost shifted into an alien zoo which was pretty neat. They, in similar vain to the Krillitanes, had gone a bit too far with their splicing on themselves though and needed others now. Of course, they were eventually led to discovering the Doctor's DNA and they were simply awestruck. I loved their marvelling at what the Doctor's DNA contained, particularly when it came to the cellular regenerative capabilities. One moment that had me laughing was with Amy and Rory and how they joked "we haven't had one of those today" when referring to their last minute gamble. That was an excellent inclusion. The concept of Blazington becoming the ultimate warrior was very good, but the Doctor was able to see that this would not be the case. He was able to utilise the Eye of the Jungle that had been threaded throughout much of the second part and was the source of the disappearances by relaying it and basically send the alien zoo back home and un-splice them, reverting back to normality and into their original singular species. It was pretty good going as far as the Doctor was concerned there! The full circle of the prized jaguars going missing and the Doctor having some involvement there was also a really nice way to finish. It worked very well. Overall, a fantastic audio! 

Rating: 9/10

The Drowned World

"Sara Kingdom is now at peace."

Writer: Simon Guerrier

Format: Audio

Released: July 2009

Series: Companion Chronicles 4.01

Featuring: First Doctor, Steven, Sara

Synopsis

Space Security Agent Sara Kingdom is dead, her ashes strewn on the planet Kembel. But, in an old house in Ely, Sara Kingdom lives on...

To the Elders of this ruined world, Sara is a ghost, a phantom that must be excised. She must prove her right to exist, and she does so with stories. Stories of a time when she travelled the universe with an ancient Doctor and his heroic companion Steven inside a magical space/time ship called the TARDIS. 

And one story in particular could make a difference. The one about their trip to a world covered in water, where a human expedition is being wiped out. It's a battle to survive, as the travellers face the horrors of the drowned world...

Verdict

The Drowned World was a very good Companion Chronicles audio! I am always fascinated with anything featuring Sara that isn't The Daleks' Master Plan because it just really shouldn't be possible seeing as that's the story she both debuted as a companion and then died. Of course, there is a lot of wiggle room for adventures featuring her as the companion as the novelisation of Mission to the Unknown displayed with the way it ended. There were obvious references to that epic First Doctor serial with the likes of the Time Destructor taranium and the look back onto Sara killing her own brother Bret as part of orders given to her within the SSS. I really liked that Sara respected her duty as a security agent and used those instincts to try and save the miners once we got into the story details that were being retold. Of course, there isn't just a simple story to rehash from the companion's perspective when it comes to Sara as was first told in Home Truths. It was good to have Robert back to hear Sara's story and explore the possibility of her very existence. Her connection with house is intriguing and I really liked how it is used to keep an essence of her alive and able to tell untold adventures between her, the Doctor and Steven. Although it didn't feature too often as it wasn't needed for what the story was, I really liked Jean Marsh's take on the First Doctor. It was very impressive and had all of the traits of Hartnell's incarnation which was magnificent. The TARDIS sinking into deadly water shortly after the trio arrived was excellent and it happened very suddenly which made for a good impact. The miners that the Doctor and co met were good but they actually thought they were being saved by the newcomers! That wasn't exactly why the trio were there. They had arrived in the middle of a dangerous situation with just an hour or so of oxygen left amidst a location where the water was deadly. I'm a big fan of the threat in the story being something natural. Water was the issue at hand here and I liked how it's quite difficult to defend against. I think that's the appeal of natural threats. The tendrils within the water didn't become more than that and it was great that they didn't become the main focus as an enemy. The cliffhanger was intriguing and even though the situation with the water was pretty perilous, the cliffhanger itself actually came from the perspective of Sara telling the story and Robert wishing her to disperse. I thought that was unexpected and a good move to be unique. His coming back to the house in part two with a diseased daughter was a very good way to develop things and showed how cynical he was in wanting Sara when she could offer him something with her wish granting abilities. That was a bit sad for Sara and it really hit home at the end of the audio when her loneliness was evidence. She just wanted people to come and see her which was admirable. I could understand her frustrations at the Doctor not even coming to visit her, but how could he possibly know that the option was there? The eventful retelling of the events in part two was good and I liked how Sara scarified herself to save some of the miners. The links between Sara and the house in order to save her were very interesting and I look forward to potentially more Sara chronicles told from this perspective. Overall, this was a really solid and enjoyable tale! 

Rating: 8/10

The Widow on the Moor

"The prison knows we're trying to get out."

Writer: Una McCormack 

Format: Audio

Released: May 2017

Series: Ninth Doctor Chronicles 1.02

Featuring: Ninth Doctor, Rose

Synopsis

Emily and her sisters once told each other fables of warring kingdoms: wicked princes, noble dukes, and their battling armies. Now she wanders the moors of her childhood alone, remembering those tales. The TARDIS arrives amid a strange civil war, with prisons made of glass and cities stalked by terrifying beasts. As windows open between worlds, stories and storyteller meet, and Rose comes face to face with Emily Bronte. 

Verdict

The Widow on the Moor was another decent story to continue along my listening of the Ninth Doctor Chronicles! In saying that though, I can't help but feel like I wanted a little bit more. As my rating reflects, this was a very solid adventure and at this stage I'm really glad to just get anything new with Christopher Eccleston's incarnation of the Doctor. However, I think the lack of familiar actors hurt this story a little bit and with both Adam and Jackie to come, I think it would have been better to have one of them here rather than having them back to back at the end of the boxset. But hey, maybe that's just me. I was glad to have the Ninth Doctor reunited with Rose and getting an extra story with purely that pairing was terrific, especially as she wasn't featured in The Bleeding Heart as it was set prior to her debut in Rose. I have to say, I wasn't thrilled with Nicholas Briggs' attempted impression of the companion and he sadly just made her sound like a generic chav which was a big shame. I was very glad that we did get some Rose, but I just felt he didn't do her justice. It would have been much better to just say Rose's dialogue in the same way he was narrating. Despite that, I think the Nicholas Briggs take on the Ninth Doctor is growing on me in a big way and I really was quite impressed with his impression here. It definitely like the Ninth Doctor which was very important. I also commend Una McCormack on the feel of the story and how it seemed to fit seamlessly into the Series 1 era. It was very well suited. Emily Bronte appearing was a very good inclusion, although I think she would have been better suited in a pure historical. It didn't quite feel right to have her on an alien planet, even if it did perhaps links with Wuthering Heights. The humour at the end in the TARDIS with Rose mentioning the film rather than the book was terrific. I loved the idea of a glass prison that was perhaps sentient and the whole concept behind the glass in the story was very good. I enjoyed the character of Julius for the most part, but I do think there could have been quite a bit more about the civil war. We only really got a line or two background and that wasn't enough to fully gauge my interest. The war between Julius and Drake was good and I liked how it was concluded, but I think the audio would have been more effective if the civil war the Doctor and Rose landed in the midst of was more familiar, historical or not. Ada was another good character and her likeness to Emily was an intriguing element of the story. I liked the use of the windows being a way from the planet to Earth during the time of Bronte, but I didn't feel like they were used to their fullest potential. There definitely seemed like there was more that could have been done with them. Considering this was set during a civil war, I think a few more action scenes would have added to the excitement of the adventure. The characterisation of the Ninth Doctor was good and his bemoaning the fact that Rose wasn't staying where he wanted her to was great. That really doesn't ever get old. I also loved the line where the Doctor asks, "hey, who turned out the lights?" which is surely a nod to Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead. Some coincidental foreshadowing perhaps? That's the benefit of writing for a past Doctor when you can have fun like that. Overall, this was a decent adventure but it just felt like it could have been ever better.

Rating: 7/10

Fear is a Superpower

"Somewhere along the way he forgot to be scared."

Writer: James Peaty

Format: Webcast

Released: 20 May 2020

Series: #DoctorWhoLockdown

Featuring: Danny

Synopsis

Danny Pink is scared. But what's wrong with scared? Scared is a superpower. It's your superpower!

Verdict

Fear is a Superpower was a unique little webcast to wrap up the #FearIsASuperpower watch-along of Listen. Unfortunately, I didn't really enjoy this webcast as it didn't really seem to be anything new and that kind of defeats the object of the bonus content to go alongside the watch-alongs in my opinion. Of course, I shouldn't start negatively and I have to acknowledge the incredible effort made my all involved to produce this little webcast and I am definitely glad to have watched it. The artwork was quirky and I liked how it was trying to do something new amidst the current climate. We have had a lot of short stories and narrated adventures, so it was nice to get something in between here. I think a lot of why I didn't enjoy this one so much was because I am not a big fan of Danny Pink. When the whole story centres on his run in Series 8 and his life, I am not going to think it is a great one! I just never really did like his character and it's pretty much as simple as that. The first part of the webcast literally just recaps the event of the episode that everyone would have just watched which I thought was a bit of a shame. Even Gemma, who I took a lot of convincing to watch this one with me because she is not a fan of comic strips or animation in the slightest, said at the end that it was literally just a recap of his life. I would have expected at least something new! Maybe if it was Danny who narrated it? I think that would have improved things for sure. I thought the narration we did get was fine, but I was confused as to why they didn't just include a voiceover of the Twelfth Doctor's comment about fear and being scared rather than a somewhat average impression of Peter Capaldi. It was all just a bit strange if I'm being honest. The only 'new' thing we got was an image of Danny on the road after being hit by the car with Clara's image on the phone. Despite the harrowing moment that occurred at the start of Dark Water, that was a powerful image and a reminder of what happened to him. I'm still not sure how Orson came to be if this was his fate, even if he did go on to become a Cyberman as we were reminded, and that's a tad annoying. The tie in with the comic strip element of the story in having Danny's superpower being scared was admirable, but I think the name of the adventure itself should be changed! Scared is a little different to fear in my opinion and a distinction would have been better. I fully appreciated that it was tying in with the hashtag of the tweet-along, but it just didn't sit right with me. There's not a great deal more to say about this webcast, other than that it serves as a reminder of Danny Pink's story in Doctor Who and that essentially, he was a scared man. He became Dan the Soldier Man but that wasn't enough. It made him more scared. He cared for Clara and was scared of rejection, but that was never seriously on the cards if we're being honest. Overall, an impressive story from a visual perspective and big props for doing something different to go alongside the Doctor Who Lockdown, but I think my dislike of Danny meant I was never going to really enjoy this one which is a bit of a shame.

Rating: 5/10

Listen

"What if no one is ever really alone?"

Writer: Steven Moffat

Format: TV

Broadcast: 13 September 2014

Series: 8.04

Featuring: Twelfth Doctor, Clara

Synopsis 

The Doctor has been pondering a question: have people ever been truly alone? Does something lurk unseen beside us all? With Clara at his side, the Time Lord will find himself delving into familiar pasts and eerie futures. Just where does the answer to the old man's unanswerable question lie? Will he find the answers he's been searching for, or will his quest cost him his life this time?

Verdict

Listen was an excellent episode to serve as the latest watch-along organised by the brilliant Emily Cook! Now, lockdown has allowed me to get quite ahead with my blog entries so the date of post is obviously deceiving but I really enjoyed being able to take part in the #FearIsASuperpower watch-along. It was a great deal of fun and Steven Moffat was on top form. The episode is a brilliant one and seems to be a divisive one in my head as this is now the third time I have watched and blogged it, and now it has three different ratings! Regardless, it is definitely a very good episode and it is the first time I have ever watched a Twelfth Doctor story out of order which was a lot of fun from a personal perspective. I was delighted to be watching Clara again and whilst I wasn't a huge fan of her relationship with Danny Pink, I thought she was marvellous in this episode. The Doctor being in her bedroom in case her date went well was typical Doctor-ish humour and I liked reading that it was one of Moffat's favourite things to write for the Time Lord. Speaking of things Moffat writes, the little poem prelude that was released an hour or so before we were all to press play was very good and set the tone for what is a dark and intriguing episode. I had no idea when watching Series 8, or even in my re-watch, that this was considered to be the cheap one of the series. That's testament to how good the acting is from Capaldi and Coleman in particular, Moffat's writing and of course Douglas Mackinnon who was also magnificent with his tweets. I loved how he kept things simple and it was brilliant for him to point out that little blur under the blanket that is visible for just a second in Rupert's bedroom. Prior to the watch-along, Steven Moffat tweeted out an incredible photo of the gift he received from Peter Capaldi after they both departed the show and it included part of the script from this episode. It was beautiful. The concept of this story in trying to deal with the thing under your bed that you are scared of as a child is brilliant and perfect for Doctor Who. I was very intrigued to find that he didn't know where the episode would end when he started writing, but it's only right that we ended up under the Doctor's bed. That revelation takes the episode to an entirely different level and I love how it all comes full circle. It's extraordinary to see the Doctor as a child and I thought it was magnificent that Mackinnon based the boy Doctor's hair from a young photo of William Hartnell. That really is majestic. The Doctor's curiosity to answer the unanswerable is great and literally takes him to the end of the universe! Some elements I didn't enjoy with the episode was how Orson Pink is able to exist when Danny will die at the end of the series in Dark Water, and I also think it's quite poor for the Sanctuary Base 6 logo to be so obviously prominent on the spacesuit. It just doesn't make sense and isn't acknowledged! The way things circle back to fear makes companions of us all is wonderful though and a lovely throwback to An Unearthly Child and ties the Doctor's whole story together in a really neat and just fantastic way. Clara's speech when she realises where the TARDIS landed and what she had done to the Doctor as a child was terrific, but I'm not sure the Doctor would so easily agree to just departing. The links back to the barn and The Day of the Doctor with the War Doctor are brilliant as well. Overall, this is a brilliant episode and I thoroughly enjoyed revisiting it.

Rating: 9/10

The Switching

"In the reflection, the distinguished, bearded face of the Master stared back at him."

Writer: Simon Guerrier
Format: Audio
Released: September 2017
Series: Short Trips: Rarities 2.01

Featuring: Third Doctor, Jo

Synopsis 

Yesterday there were two Time Lord prisoners on Earth – the Master in his cell, the Doctor in his exile.

But today, the Doctor's not quite feeling himself. Today he's seeing things from a different perspective. And today the Master's going to escape...

Verdict

The Switching was a terrific little Short Trips audio! This one has caught my eye on a number of occasions because of what are surely obvious reasons and with it being part of the recent UNIT sale from Big Finish, I just couldn't say no when it was a little over £1 to purchase! The whole premise of the adventure is just magnificent and I think the artwork above to accompany the story is nothing short of wonderful. The story perhaps doesn't always live up to its potential given the format, but it is still an awful lot of fun! The very concept of the Doctor and the Master switching bodies in any era is fantastic, but there's just something about Jon Pertwee's Third Doctor and the first televised version of the Master we see portrayed by Roger Delgado. They really are synonymous with each other and that makes for even more fun here. It sets things up for The Sea Devils quite nicely as well! The reactions of both Time Lords when they realise they are in the body of their arch nemesis is great and I particular love that for the Doctor it was when he felt the goatee that is so famous for this version of the Master that he realised what had happened. The reflection all but confirmed it. Soon after the switch, the Master had to contend with seeing Jo in a bikini which at this time I imagine was a very awkward moment despite his calm nature. The Doctor's attempt to break out of the cell, albeit in the Master's body, was very good and I found it quite humorous that he literally flooded his own cell by pulling the sink off the wall. The Master getting an insight into what knowledge the Time Lords had taken from the Doctor during his exile was really intriguing and he was quite amazed by how rudimentary the Doctor's knowledge of his own TARDIS now was. I almost felt a sense of pity. The Master being the one to reconfigure the roundel design in the TARDIS interior was a lovely touch as well. It's a wonder the Doctor didn't change them back though! The involvement of the UNIT regulars was a lot of fun and I liked how both the Brigadier and Benton noticed that the Doctor, albeit actually the Master, referred to the former as sir. That was just something he didn't do. The Doctor ending up being chained to a wall in the Master's body was great and I thought the use of the Magna Carter was good and perhaps some foreshadowing of The King's Demons. The whole thing being a trap of the Master's to try and escape was a little unexpected but I loved the audacity of this escape plan. He hoped to use the good nature of the Doctor by being in his body to get the Master a cell with a view, something that would obviously help him then escape. Instead he got an island. The Master finding the whole situation amusing was a lot of fun and I liked that to mess with the Doctor, he didn't actually leave any traps in his laboratory. That was a nice touch. I have to say that I thought Duncan Wisby's narration was excellent and he gave solid impressions of all of the main characters. Whilst it was nice to have Jo feature, it was interesting having her in a non-companion role as the story didn't really warrant that. I think it could have been fun if it did though with the idea of a Master and Jo pairing is excellent! Nonetheless, it was not to be and the Master seemed quite content with going back to his own body even if he'd heard through UNIT that it was in a much worse predicament than when he arrived. I'd have enjoyed a little anecdote with the Doctor reflecting on the experience, but we had a good development in the conclusion with Mike Yates asking Jo out to dinner and the pair kissing. That added a sense of realism to the entire era which was fantastic. Overall, a fun little audio!

Rating: 8/10

Journey Out of Terror

"We've become fiction ourselves?"

Writer: Simon Guerrier

Format: Short Story

Released: October 2019

Printed in: The Target Storybook 02

Featuring: First Doctor, Ian, Barbara 

Synopsis

Escaping from the Daleks, the First Doctor, Ian and Barbara accidentally leave Vicki behind. Believing the house they just left was a place of the mind, the Doctor uses the TARDIS's telepathic circuits to transport them to a fictional world. There, they find themselves the subject of a comic strip and read how they will find Vicki. But then the story starts to change...

Verdict

Journey Out of Terror was a brilliant continuation of The Target Storybook! I really enjoyed this one and I was just glad to finally get back into the book that I have only read the first adventure within the collection. I'm not sure why I have had such a gap, but this was a wonderful return! It takes place in the middle of The Chase and I loved that it was specifically right after the episode where Vicki was left behind. Of course, she would then use stowaway the Dalek's own time machine to be reunited, but the Doctor and his companions weren't to know that. The realisation from the trio when they know they have left Vicki behind with the Daleks in what they believe to be a dreamlike land of fiction was magnificent. I thought the style of the short story was really intriguing with the alternation from both Barbara and Ian narrating in the first person. That's a unique dynamic and something I really enjoyed as it was good to get both of their perspectives on all that was going. They both felt incredibly guilty for leaving Vicki behind and not doing more to check if she was inside the TARDIS before taking off and fleeing the Dalek chase. Comparing Vicki to Susan and how she was the Doctor's way of getting over leaving his granddaughter behind in The Dalek Invasion of Earth was really good, although I did think it was a bit of unfair of Barbara in particular that she got angry when the Doctor was building a good relationship with Julia. The trio reading themselves in a comic strip was a lot of fun and I'd have loved an image of what that story might like that! Within the pages they saw them reunited with Vicki which was good, but I really loved it when the story started to change. That was a really good dynamic of fear. Speaking of dynamics, it was really great to have a rare adventure with just the First Doctor, Ian and Barbara. That really was a lot of fun and I thought the characterisation of William Hartnell's first incarnation was outstanding throughout. The Doctor using the TARDIS telepathic circuits in an attempt to get back to Vicki was terrific and I loved the Doctor's belief in belief. If you willed it long and hard enough, then it could happen. That was attempted here, and a whole world of fiction was where they ended up. They had a similar story that would make them feel good in saving Julia, but if they did they would be trapped. The loose foreshadows of The Mind Robber were brilliant and I loved the moment where the Doctor emphatically claimed to have fixed the oxygen, but actually hadn't physically done any such thing. The humour that came with Bunny the dog was fantastic and I really can't imagine the First Doctor appreciating the canine company. The Doctor wanting to take Julia with them in the TARDIS in order to save her was good and I thought it was very unfair of Barbara to suggest he was trying to quickly replace Vicki. That just didn't seem right as the very reason they were where they were was because he was trying his all to get back to her despite the faulty time mechanisation. The Doctor working out that things were actually fictitious and that Julia would be left behind was good and the TARDIS's role in that was very good. Julia would still live on and the final paragraph being from her perspective and her telling us not to turn the page so she would live on was intriguing and perhaps even a little disturbing! Overall though, a superb little short story!

Rating: 9/10

The Descendants of Pompeii

"Evelina makes me sound ancient."

Writer: James Moran

Format: Webcast

Released: 17 May 2020

Series: #DoctorWhoLockdown

Featuring: Evie, Maxine

Synopsis

"Our family had a guardian angel..."

Evie and Maxine trace back their family history to Pompeii.

Verdict

The Descendants of Pompeii was an intriguing and unexpected little sequel to The Fires of Pompeii. I was very excited by the prospect of a sequel to the episode that was the subject of the #VolcanoDay watch-along, but this really wasn't what I was expecting! Firstly, I think it's terrific to be getting more bonus content as part of the Doctor Who Lockdown and this is definitely the most unique of the extra stories that we have been generously granted from an abundance of writers to go alongside the episodes. I absolutely love the title of this one, but I really wasn't expecting things to come full circle to modern times! That was really strange and right from the start I just had a mindset of being a little bit confused as to what I was watching. The use of video chat was good and very much in line with the current societal climate so that was very familiar. It was good to see both Tracey Childs and Francesca Fowler back twelve years on after their initial appearances in the aforementioned Tenth Doctor episode. They certainly look a little different! However, they weren't quite playing the same characters which was not at all what I expected but it was still pretty good. Their discussions about family history was good and I liked that they found the peculiarities amongst their ancestors and their professions a little bit strange. It's not exactly uncommon for children to follow in the footsteps of their parents, but once we got to brief chat about grandparents and great-grandparents, I was sort of expecting a little flashback scene to Caecillius and family but sadly that never came. It would have fitted in well in my opinion. The dynamic of the modern family trying to resemble that of what we saw with Evelina and her parents and sibling was good, but surely still a bit unlikely to have occurred nearly two millennia down the gene pool passing on? I'm probably being harsh here. It was still a good little story to have as an extra and it was a nice thought that the Doctor would still be looking on for the family and acting as a guardian angel. I wonder how that story had changed as it was passed down the family line, but Evie having a folder on her desktop for Pompeii research was magnificent and I would have loved if they had a full family tree going back that far. Her mother definitely seems to have some familial memory ingrained into her genes by calling her daughter Evelina! That really is a lovely name so I was surprised that Evie didn't like it. The ancientness of it is what's great in my opinion. The music that accompanied this adventure was incredibly familiar as it was composed by Murray Gold which was a real treat. It was so vividly representative of the Tenth Doctor's era which was terrific and definitely a highlight of the webcast. Evie thanking the 'someone' that may have been out there looking on for their family through time was good and I loved the ending with her ending the video chat as host, only for an additional caller to also leave the conversation. Gemma didn't like that as it was a bit freaky and incredibly reminiscent of social media horror/thriller films, but I thought it was a nice little touch. It was certainly something I didn't see coming which is always a bonus! Overall, a decent little sequel (of sorts) that just keeps adding to our Doctor Who library! 

Rating: 7/10

The Fires of Pompeii

"This man will prevent the rise of Pompeii."

Writer: James Moran

Format: TV

Broadcast: 12 April 2009

Series: 4.02

Featuring: Tenth Doctor, Donna 

Synopsis

The Doctor intends on taking new companion Donna Noble to Ancient Rome, but they end up visiting Pompeii in AD 79 on the even of the catastrophic eruption of Mount Vesuvius. Nobody knew it was actually a volcano, and the entire city is doomed for destruction.

Verdict

The Fires of Pompeii was a wonderful episode and I was delighted to be able to revisit it for the first time in four years as part of the #VolcanoDay watch-along organised by the tremendous Emily Cook! It's always been one of my very favourite episodes from the modern era and I really do think it's an underrated gem. It's just outstanding from start to finish. It really has everything! History, humour, emotion are all in abundance along with a great twist that puts a different shift on the whole fixed point in time notion. Pompeii has to happen the way it does because of the Doctor. Well, that's a bit harsh but he needs Mount Vesuvius in order to stop the Pyrovile which is just awful. It puts The Fires of Vulcan into perspective as well, giving that a different look knowing that it was the Tenth Doctor, along with Donna, that set off the volcanic eruption. The arrival in what they thought was Ancient Rome was a lot of fun and it was terrific to see Donna on her first venture into the past. She was told all about the translation circuit and then sounded Welsh when she actually tried to speak Latin which was fantastic. Donna really did have one of her very best episodes here. It's always fun to look back on this episode because we have both Karen Gillan and Peter Capaldi making their first appearances in the show before they went on to become Amy Pond and the Twelfth Doctor respectively. Doing the watch-along with Gemma, I was delighted to be able to point out that Karen Gillan starred in the episode and literally as I revealed the fact she appeared on screen! She was really good as the Soothsayer and I thought all of the Priestesses were excellent. I was very intrigued to find through the tweets of writer James Moran that the Pyrovile name was the result of a trimming down process of his original name which was a lot more complex Pyrovillaxians. That's the beauty of the watch-alongs with writers giving insight that you just wouldn't know watching it by yourself! I think trimming down was definitely the right choice. The CGI design of the adult Pyrovile is really good, but just a general look back on 2008 and I find it amazing that I can notice how different the special effects are compared with today's abilities. It's strange and somewhat annoying for my childhood memories! One thing I have to say is that the scene where Evelina and Lucius use their sight gift to reveal their knowledge of the Doctor and Donna's secrets is absolutely incredible. It honestly might be the best of the series. The music and directing that accompanies it is just sublime and I really couldn't do justice how good it was. Superb. The tweets of the actress who played Evelina were also terrific to go alongside the episode and it was interesting to find that she wasn't solely acting ill as at the time of filming she had food poisoning! I thought the end scene in the TARDIS with Donna pleading to just save one family amongst 20,000 victims of the volcanic eruption was further brilliance and it was nice of the Doctor to admit that she was right and he needed somebody sometimes. I was quite annoyed to find that there was a scene cut with Caecillius and his family in the TARDIS cowering in the corner! That must have been great. Them looking on at Pompeii in ruins as everything and everyone they knew burnt and suffocated was such a powerful image. It was nice to end on a positive note though with them six months later in Rome and their household gods being the Doctor and Donna along with the TARDIS. At least he did get to keep some semblance of the art he thought he had purchased! That was fun. As was the earlier reference to The Romans! I am glad that was an intentional inclusion from James Moran. It was also good to get confirmation that there was in fact no word for volcano back in the first century. Did Donna Noble then invent it and enact a paradox? Something to ponder. Overall, such a good episode to revisit and the tweet-along was a great deal of fun

Rating: 10/10

Borrowed Time

"We all have a bad morning sometimes."

Writer: Naomi A. Alderman
Format: Novel
Released: June 2011
Series: NSA 48

Featuring: Eleventh Doctor, Amy, Rory

Synopsis

"You want more time Mr Brown, of course, you do. We all want more time. Let me make you an offer..."

Andrew Brown never has enough time. No time to call his sister, or to prepare for that important presentation at the bank where he works. The train's late, the lift jams. If only he'd had just a little more time. And time is the business of Mr Symington and Mr Blenkinsop. They'll lend him some – at a very reasonable rate of interest.

Detecting a problem, the Doctor, Amy and Rory go undercover at the bank. But they have to move fast to stop Symington and Blenkinsop before they cash in their investments.

Verdict

Borrowed Time was an excellent novel! I really enjoyed this one from start to finish and I had a good feeling that would be the case from the synopsis alone. I'm a big fan of stories that deal with time and whilst Doctor Who obviously has a considerable relationship with it, there aren't that many adventures actually about time itself. That's where this came in quite wonderfully. Andrew Brown served as a good common character along with Sameera at the Lexington International Bank. I thought they worked really well together battling for the same promotion and as the story developed, it was obvious that they would get together by its conclusion. It was nice to see those elements threaded out. Mr Symington and Mr Blenkinsop were terrific characters and their persuasive manner in selling time was fantastic. The chemistry that came when those two were written on the page, particularly in the first half of the novel, was magnificent. I really enjoyed them. I thought the Doctor, Amy and Rory's beginning to the adventure being in 51st century Earth was a lot of fun and the use of the Super Lucky Romance Camera to slow down time on the outside world was really good. I wasn't expecting it to get so much use in the book! The moments where it was running out of battery just when it was needed most were very humorous. It was clear to see here just how much Amy meant to Rory as he was quite angry when his holiday was cut short, although I did think his outburst when Amy wasn't really enjoying three hours of sunset was unwarranted. The 2007 setting worked really well as it was pretty much the present from the perspective of the companions and fitted in nicely with the global economic collapse that would come just a year later. What I really loved about this adventure was the concept of borrowing time and how Symington and Blenkinsop were offering it in the form of a watch. I work in finance as a research analyst, but even I will admit that things got a little complicated when the Doctor tried to explain compound interest with a cake icing analogy. That didn't quite seem like the best example to use, but the overall message was there in that the interest was way, way more than five minutes in the hour. I really liked that Amy ended up borrowing time herself and took way more than just the initial hour she wanted so she could answer urgent calls from both the Doctor and Rory. She ended up driving to Leadworth to spend a night with her parents! That was nice to know though and it was clear she was using her extra time wisely. The Doctor instantly knowing that Amy had borrowed time was excellent and I thought the characterisation of Matt Smith's incarnation was outstanding. Some of the best ways he's been written in prose thus far. The revelation that it was actually Joyce, the PA, and not Vanessa as being the head Time Harvester didn't have too much of an impact whilst still being a good surprise. The nature of the enemy being all one organism with Symington and Blenkinsop having numerous versions was fantastic. I loved the idea of the original ones seeing Amy or Rory for example resulted in all of them seeing them because they remembered from their own past. It was a great use of the timelines. The idea of storing time was intriguing and a little challenging to comprehend, but I really enjoyed the Millennium Dome storage facility. The miniaturisation was a lot of fun with the cockroach as well! The way the Doctor ended up paying off the debts without death being the result was pretty clever and I liked that the camera bubble was used in the conclusion to destroy the time source that Joyce had relied upon from the Time Market, another fun addition to the story that perhaps deserved longer. The story with Nadia was quite emotional seeing how damaging borrowing time could be, but I did feel that the swapping of fates with an aged Sameera at the end was a bit too coincidental. Overall though, this was a thoroughly enjoyable novel!

Rating: 9/10

Vigil

"Blood turned to ancient powder in her veins."

Writer: Michael Collier
Format: Audio
Released: November 1998
Series: BBC Cassettes

Featuring: Sixth Doctor, Peri

Synopsis

The Doctor and Peri arrive in Hastings, where Peri is reunited with her college friend Martin and his domineering fiancee Meryl. The Doctor sets off to visit his own friend, pathologist Val Menard, only to find him mourning the loss of his daughter who has been in a coma since a recent car accident. However, the Doctor soon finds out he is responsible for much worse than a coma.

Verdict

Vigil was not the greatest of listens if I'm being honest. It was a bit of a slog to get through in parts which was a shame because I was really looking forward to it given that it is quite the anomaly! I really do think that this audio adventure would be absolutely perfect for Doctor Who Magazine's new Apocrypha feature as I can't imagine a great number of fans will have gotten their hands on this. I had no idea it even existed until I found myself going through the Doctor Who content on BorrowBox and I usually gloss over the Target readings in audiobook format as I much prefer to read the prose itself. There's nothing like having the actual book! Anyway, my eye just caught a glance on the titles within the Tales from the TARDIS collection and noticed one was called Out of the Darkness. Of course, I know that isn't based off a televised story so I did some research and found that this was the only audio exclusive story on the set! I was intrigued and very much eager to get it listened to. I thought it started off quite well, even if after a really out of place and just unfamiliar opening with a loud and boisterous piano theme. That was very strange and I honestly had to check more than once that I was listening to the right story! The Doctor and Peri are a terrific pairing, but there wasn't any of their enjoyable relationship in this one. It seemed like it was trying too much to fit into Season 22 and the darker side of the Doctor. That isn't suitable for me and it just didn't work well with only Nicola Bryant narrating the story. She did that role decently well, but the tone really was lacking a lot. There needed to be a great deal more excitement in my opinion. Peri being reunited with her old college friend Martin was good and I liked that we got to meet somebody from her past. It was clear there had been a relationship on an intimate level in theist, but then we were introduced to Meryl who was a very clingy and dominant fiancee of his. Peri's reaction to finding out that Martin was engaged was heartfelt, but then after that the story just span off into boredom. That's a bit harsh, but it really didn't seem to be going anywhere thrilling. The Doctor's hate of hospitals because it was full of people not wanting to be there was good, but it wasn't really explored which I'd have liked. Martin's bedroom performances getting mentioned was just weird and out of place and didn't add anything to the audio for me. It just seemed like it was trying to be a bit more adult for the sake of it. Finding Meryl had her head smashed in and the sheets of her bed were wet with blood came quite suddenly and should have been more impactful. I'm not sure why, but the nature of this audio just seemed like it was avoiding any big moments. The Doctor working out that all of the infections were his own indirect doing from the TARDIS and it bringing time sensitive microbes was good and should have been identified so much earlier! If we knew that was the focus, I think I'd have enjoyed things much more. The emotional end was definitely the highlight of the audio in my opinion with Peri's minor outburst about how they always arrived somewhere when killing started. That was rather emotional and I just felt quite sorry for her because of all that was going on and what she had to see. I also felt sorry for the Doctor because the odds of him bringing the microbes with him were infinitesimally small and yet it happened and caused devastation. That ending definitely saved the audio from complete disaster, but for me this was a pretty poor story.

Rating: 5/10