Volume 5 of The First Doctor Adventures is OUT NOW

All the world’s a stage in the fifth volume of Doctor Who – The First Doctor Adventures, two brand new full-cast audio dramas released today from Big Finish Productions.

David Bradley returns as the first incarnation of the Doctor, along with companions Susan (Claudia Grant), Barbara Wright (Jemma Powell) and Ian Chesterton (Jamie Glover) in a pair of stories that take them from the sewers of a desperate planet to the great Globe itself, where rebellion is in the air!

Alongside the previously announced Wendy Craig and Lauren Cornelius, the cast is completed by Nicholas Asbury (Space: 1999, The Paternoster Gang), Ian Conningham (The Robots, The Diary of River Song), Susie Emmett (Gallifrey: Time War, Doctor Who: Ravenous), Amanda Hurwitz (Derry Girls, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang), Phil Mulryne (The Avengers, The Omega Factor), Phyllida Nash (Doctor Who: The Monthly Adventures), Clive Wood (Doctor Who: Stranded, The Human Frontier) and Big Finish newcomer Liane-Rose Bunce.

Doctor Who: The First Doctor Adventures – Volume 5 is now available as a collector's edition box set (on CD at £24.99) and as a digital download (at £19.99), exclusively from www.bigfinish.com.

The two TARDIS tales are as follows:

For the Glory of Urth by Guy Adams

The TARDIS has barely landed in an alien sewer when a distant scream sends Susan racing to give aid, and the crew split up. 

Trying to reunite, the travellers find themselves in something resembling a monastery led by a man half-way between an Abbot and a warlord. They discover that they are in Urth, a barbaric place clinging on to its former glory. 

It's somewhere its populace are never allowed to leave, somewhere keeping many secrets from its people. 

And today those secrets will be revealed...

The Hollow Crown by Sarah Grochala

When the TARDIS lands in Shoreditch, 1601, the Doctor suggests going to see a play at the Globe Theatre and his friends readily agree. 

But this is a turbulent time. There is violence in the street, plots against the Queen, and rebellion is in the air. At the centre of it all stands the most famous playwright in British history - William Shakespeare - who is having troubles of his own. 

As tensions mount and wheels turn within wheels, the travellers are about to discover if the play really is the thing...

Of writing The Hollow Crown, Sarah Grochala said: “I loved writing for [Shakespeare and Queen Elizabeth I], they’re two characters that I’m fascinated with! It was also interesting writing for them within the context of what other writers have done for Doctor Who. There is a nod to Elizabeth’s previous relationship with the Doctor and to the fact that Shakespeare has met the Doctor before. The First Doctor, however, looks very different to the Tenth Doctor so neither of them recognise this incarnation.”

Writer of For the Glory of Urth Guy Adams added: “When I’m writing for the First Doctor, the voice in my head is somewhere between William Hartnell and David Bradley. I find it very hard not to let my ears get a little bit infected by the performance, and David’s is brilliant – it’s his performance of the First Doctor as well as a beautiful channelling of William Hartnell. 

“David’s a great actor, and great actors don’t just do impressions. They can’t – the quality will always shine through and it will become something more multi-layered and textured. Listen carefully and you will hear the delightful elements that are more Bradley than Hartnell.”

Doctor Who: The First Doctor Adventures – Volume 5 is now available exclusively from the Big Finish website.

54. Turlough & Torchwood // Randomoids 2 - The Selectortron Strikes Back

In our second episode of stories picked by the Big Finish Randomoid Selectortron, we review Doctor Who Short Trips: Gardens of the Dead featuring Mark Strickson as Turlough and Torchwood: One Rule featuring Tracy-Ann Oberman as Yvonne Hartman. 

Plus, Dwayne's heart is broken as he shares an email from a listener who doesn't appreciate his humour. 

Of course, the burning question on everyone's lips is.... which stories will the Randomoid Selectortron throw up next? 

Recommendations

Philip recommends Torchwood: Lease of Life (Big Finish Audio)

Dwayne recommends Doctor Who: The Paradise of Death (3rd Doctor, Sarah Jane and Brigadier story, BBC)

Philip Edney on Twitter

Dwayne Bunney on Twitter

The Sirens of Audio on YouTube

Theme music by Husky by the Geek

Email: sirensofaudio@gmail.com

Website: sirensofaudio.com

Twitter: @AudioSirens

Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/sirensofaudio/

Clips and music are copyright BBC and Big Finish. No infringement is intended.

Torchwood: Gooseberry OUT NOW

Three’s a crowd in April’s monthly full-cast Torchwood audio adventure from Big Finish Productions. 

 Released today, Gooseberry sees Burn Gorman and Tom Price reprising their roles as dynamic duo Dr Owen Harper and PC Andy Davidson in a thrilling tale of love, deception and, of course, aliens. 

The cast is completed by Lois Chimimba (The One, Trust Me), Daniel Llewellyn-Williams (EastEnders, Torchwood), Betsan Llwyd (Keeping Faith, Young Dracula), Joanna Van Kampen (The Lone Centurion, Casualty) and Big Finish newcomer Lowri Gwynne. 

 Torchwood: Gooseberry is now available as a collector’s edition CD at £10.99 or on download at £8.99, exclusively at www.bigfinish.com. 

 Andy has a girlfriend. She's called Caite and she's utterly lovely. And then she meets Owen. 

 Owen finds out that Caite has a secret. One that he's desperate to understand. But, the more he discovers, the more dangerously close to Caite he becomes.  

 What's going to happen when Andy finds out? 

 Writer and producer James Goss said: “One of the benefits of lockdown has been getting to record more with Burn and Tom Price. Burn himself suggested this story - what if PC Andy gets a girlfriend and Owen has issues with the situation? Lois Chimimba puts in a great performance as Andy's sweetheart. Not everything is what it seems, obviously, but it's a privilege working with them on this during the recording.” 

 Torchwood: Gooseberry is now available as a collector’s edition CD at £10.99 or on download from the Big Finish website at £8.99. 

 Please note that Torchwood contains adult material and may not be suitable for younger listeners. 

Time Lord Victorious Finale OUT NOW

Big Finish, in association with Demon Records and BBC Studios, today releases the long-awaited conclusion of the Time Lord Victorious multi-platform event, starring David Tennant and Paul McGann. 

Echoes of Extinction comprises two separate adventures that listeners can play in any order and each features a different incarnation of the Doctor as they battle the dastardly Network (Torchwood’s Burn Gorman). 

The star-studded cast includes Kathryn Drysdale (Bridgerton, Doctor Who), Arthur Darvill (The Lone Centurion, Legends of Tomorrow), Mina Anwar (The Sarah Jane Adventures, The War Master), Paul Clayton (Torchwood, Cicero), Jack DeVos (The Outpost), Melanie Stevens (Torchwood: God Amoung Us), Jacob Dudman (The Eleventh Doctor Chronicles, The Lives of Captain Jack), Stephen Critchlow (Torchwood, Gallifrey: Time War) and Inès de Clercq (The Lone Centurion, Broadchurch).

Doctor Who: Time Lord Victorious – Echoes of Extinction is now available as a digital download (at £8.99) at www.bigfinish.com. 

Trapped, a haunted monster waits to consume new victims. It needs help. It needs a doctor. Unfortunately, it also needs to kill whoever it meets. Thrust into immediate danger, and on the back-foot, it will take all of the Doctor’s ingenuity to triumph. 

Two interlinked adventures. Two Doctors. One foe.

Director Scott Handcock said: “Alfie Shaw’s done a brilliant job producing the audio adventures for Time Lord Victorious and his script for Echoes of Extinction is no exception. It’s a single story told from two perspectives, balancing two different Doctors, and introducing a host of fantastic guest stars. It’s great to hear David Tennant and Paul McGann tackle opposite aspects of one adventure, with Burn Gorman unifying the two strands as the menacing Network.”

Writer Alfie Shaw added: “I mean, getting to write for Paul McGann and David Tennant is a highlight in and of itself! It was a really interesting challenge to create two stories that had to be both self-contained and also add-up to a whole, and that was something that we worked hard to achieve. Plus, when you’re writing for two Doctors, there’s the opportunity to do a bit of a back and forth between them. I’ve previously written a story which was basically two Doctors proactively bickering, so I wanted to go with a different direction for this one.”

Doctor Who: Time Lord Victorious – Echoes of Extinction is now available as a digital download (at £8.99), exclusively from the Big Finish website. 

REVIEW | Doctor Who: Dalek Universe 1 starring David Tennant

In a world still reeling from the effects of the pandemic, television Doctor Who has been cut back and fans who rely on the Beeb for their fix won't be getting a full season this year. 

Big Finish, on the other hand, seem to have gone from strength to strength. Far from reducing their output due to the pandemic, remote home recording has kept actors and production teams running at maximum output. 

Even with their Monthly Range of adventures coming to an end in March, it still feels like Big Finish are focusing yet still increasing their output to hungry fans.

But will the stories meet fan expectations?

If Dalek Universe 1, a new boxset, the first of three, starring the ever popular David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor is anything to go by, your hunger for new Doctor Who is going to be regularly satisfied!

With companions Anya Kingdom, played by Jane Slavin, and Mark Seven played by Tennant's fellow Broadchurch star Joe Sims, the stage is set for an epic adventure for the ages. With nods to the past Tenth Doctor era and the ancient past with many elements from Terry Nations Dalek universe canvas, fans will be salivating for more. 

But what of the casual listener who rarely, if ever, dips into audio?

Although a 3-part set, it would be handy to hear the prequel story, The Dalek Protocol starring Tom Baker as the fourth Doctor with Slavin and Sims. But it's not vital to the enjoyment of Dalek Universe 1. 

Tennant feels as though he has never left the role and writer of the first two episodes, John Dorney, has captured his era perfectly. It's a sentimental banquet for anyone who was watching the show in the mid-noughties. The dialogue is delivered to perfection and it's difficult to believe that this cast was recording remotely from their laundry or clothes cupboards. 

As the mystery unfolds in the first episode, "Buying Time", we are submersed into the mystery of a tenth Doctor thrown into an adventure without his TARDIS, and meeting characters he knows from a much earlier incarnation. We're also introduced to a character played by Mark Gatiss, who has appeared several times in different roles in TV Doctor Who and on audio.

But hold your horses folks. Any belief that you're in for a typical run of the mill story will be dashed as we are treated to a cliff-hanger for the ages that will blow your mind and force you to listen to the second episode immediately. 

"The Wrong Woman" continues on from the previous story, but not in the way you were expecting. If you've had time to recover your wits from the insane cliffhanger, the ride is far from over as you take a timey-wimey roller-coaster ride that doesn't let up until the end. 

Andrew Smith takes writing duties for the third episode, "The House of Kingdom", a fascinating look into some more of Anya's backstory and a return for more of the creations of Terry Nation's universe from the 60's, including the Mechanoids, which always had the potential to be much more than that single episode in 1965. 

Despite the stress of lockdown, Ken Bentley has done a superb job directing this set. I suspect, however, that Ken would say his job was made easy by the extraordinary cast led by Tennant. 

If all the above ingredients were enough to set my imagination ablaze, it was Howard Carter's incredible score and sound design that officially blew my mind! Howard's work was a standout for me in last year's "Return To Skaro", and this set proves his versatility and adaptability when it comes to different ranges and settings. Incredible stuff! 

The main question on my mind after hearing this set? 

How am I going to bear the 3 month wait until the next set is released in July? 

Get Dalek Universe 1 today from bigfinish.com.

Dwayne Bunney

53. ANNETTE BADLAND - Behind The Mask

We are delighted to be joined by the multi-talented Annette Badland, who first appeared on the Doctor Who radar in 2005 as Margaret Blaine in season one of the revived series of Doctor Who. She was the first person to be asked back to play a recurring villain and appeared again in Boom Town with Christopher Eccleston, Billie Piper and John Barrowman. 

Since then she has appeared in numerous roles for Big Finish productions including the character of Margaret in an audio version of Torchwood. 

Annette speaks about her ongoing career which began in the 1970's, her love of theatre, Outlander and much, much more. 

Thank you Annette for being our guest.

Recommendations

Philip recommends Doctor Who: Suburban Hell (4th Doctor and Leela Big Finish Audio)

Dwayne recommends Torchwood: Sync (Big Finish Audio)

Philip Edney on Twitter

Dwayne Bunney on Twitter

The Sirens of Audio on YouTube

Theme music by Husky by the Geek

Email: sirensofaudio@gmail.com

Website: sirensofaudio.com

Twitter: @AudioSirens

Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/sirensofaudio/

Clips and music are copyright BBC and Big Finish. No infringement is intended.

Doctor Who - Dalek Universe 1 OUT NOW starring David Tennant, Joe Sims, Jane Slavin and Mark Gatiss

David Tennant is back as the Tenth Doctor in the first volume of the epic saga Dalek Universe, released today from Big Finish.

This first volume of full-cast audio adventures features a trio of thrilling tales, as the Tenth Doctor finds himself up against a malevolent businessman without his trusty TARDIS – but with the help of Mark Seven (Joe Sims) and Anya Kingdom (Jane Slavin), the day may just be saved once again.

The cast is completed by Juliet Aubrey (Middlemarch, Primeval), Mark Gatiss (Masterful, Dracula), Kevin McNally (Pirates of the Carribbean, The End of the Beginning) Gemma Whelan (Game of Thrones, Vienna) Maria Teresa Creasey (Space: 1999, The Alienist), Chris Jarman (UNIT: Incursions, The Eighth Doctor Adventures) and Nicholas Briggs as the Mechonoids.

Doctor Who – Dalek Universe 1 is now available as a collector's edition box set (on CD at £24.99) and as a digital download (at £19.99), exclusively from www.bigfinish.com.

Time has gone awry. The Doctor is lost, without his TARDIS. But he’s not alone. The Space Security Service agents Anya Kingdom and Mark Seven haven’t always been on his side in the past, but now they are here to help him. 

And he’s going to need them - because the oldest foes of all are waiting to strike. Ready to take down their greatest enemy... 

Writer John Dorney said: “Buying Time and The Wrong Woman form a two-part story, a Russell T Davies-style Tenth Doctor adventure with a cliffhanger in the middle. I can’t really say too much about The Wrong Woman but one of the things I was keen to do was to make it feel like you’re starting with a finale. The size and scale then just gets bigger and bigger as you figure out what’s going on. There are lots of twists and surprises going on. 

“I also wanted it to be fast and funny. I remember reading something where either Russell T Davies or Steven Moffat talked about how they would do a finale: they would create big moments and set pieces, and work out how to connect them. I realised I’d got a few big moments I could hang the story off, and work a path between them, which gives a crazy journey on a large scale and hopefully a great sense of fun.”

Writer of The House of Kingdom Andrew Smith added: “I was really excited to have the chance to write for another Doctor, actually. The thing with the Tenth Doctor is that he says things before he’s fully formed a thought, and it tumbles out. Right from the TV special The Christmas Invasion he does that, and it’s all down to David Tennant’s delivery.

“The energy of this Doctor is something else, and it affects the pace of the story – boom, boom, boom! They don’t stand around for long, they get on with it. He’s a Doctor who doesn’t wait for things to happen, he gets things done and is in people’s faces. That energy is all over the play.”

Doctor Who – Dalek Universe 1 is now available as a collector's edition box set (on CD at £24.99) and as a digital download (at £19.99), exclusively from the Big Finish website.

Each of the three volumes in Dalek Universe will be released as a four-disc collector’s edition box set or download containing three brand-new full cast audio adventures, plus a selection of behind-the-scenes extras.  

 

Doctor Who fans worldwide can now pre-order all three volumes of Dalek Universe, which are available in three formats – collector’s edition CD, digital download or limited edition gatefold triple LP vinyl – exclusively from the Big Finish website (www.bigfinish.com), from just £19.99.  

 

Big Finish listeners can save by pre-ordering a bundle of the entire series for just £66 (as a collector’s edition box set) or £58 (as a download).  

 

The Dalek Universe triple LP vinyls are strictly limited to a pressing of 1,000 per volume, and can be pre-ordered at £35.99 each, or £99 for the bundle of all three albums, again exclusively at the Big Finish website (www.bigfinish.com). 

Please note: the vinyl editions do not include any behind-the-scenes extras. However, listeners purchasing vinyl LP editions will receive a download of the story automatically and be given access to the CD edits as a bonus download. Episodes will be edited specifically for the vinyl format, presented as two parts, one on each side, each with opening and closing music.  In addition, all pre-orders of the vinyls will also receive the behind the extras as a bonus download.