Big Finish: July releasesBookmark and Share

Friday, 19 July 2013 - Reported by Chuck Foster
Big Finish have released details about the latest adventures for the Doctor and his companions in July.

Doctor Who: Persuasion returns former Nazi scientist Klein to the Seventh Doctor's life as the pair become embroiled in a quest for a very dangerous object. And this time there's room for another person in the TARDIS: Klein's assistant Will Arrowsmith. It stars Sylvester McCoy and sees Tracey Childs reprise her role as Klein, with Christian Edwards playing Will. It has been written by Jonathan Barnes, author of Sherlock Holmes story The Adventure of the Perfidious Mariner, and the upcoming The Ordeals of Sherlock Holmes box set.

Persuasion (Credit: Big Finish)Persuasion (available to order)
Starring Sylvester McCoy as The Doctor, with Tracey Childs as Dr Elizabeth Klein

The Umbrella Man is back. But when the Doctor recruits UNIT's Scientific Adviser Elizabeth Klein for an off-the-books mission to the apocalyptic final days of Hitler's Germany, he isn't expecting Klein's hapless young assistant, Will Arrowsmith, to be joining them too.

The Doctor isn't the only alien creature seeking to loot a very particular secret from a Nazi base in Dusseldorf, however. Strange and sinister beings are converging on the same time/space location in search of the scientist Schalk, whose experiments are the key to a devastating power...

The power of Persuasion.
Producer David Richardson says:
We love working with Tracey Childs at Big Finish, and in Klein – originally created by Steve Lyons – we have found the most wonderfully complex and nuanced character to play with. If you think you knew it all about Elizabeth, then you’re in for a few shocks in this new trilogy, which continues with Starlight Robbery in August (with features the Sontarans) and Daleks Among Us in September (with the return of Davros).


Doctor Who - The Companion Chronicles: Mastermind takes us back to the UNIT Vault and the lives of Ruth Matheson (Daphne Ashbrook) and Charlie Sato (Yee Jee Tso), guardians of its secrets. Alongside all the artefacts, though, is a highly deadly prisoner: the Master (Geoffrey Beevers). And he has a story to tell which is certainly not guaranteed to have a happy ending. Writer Jonathan Morris locks himself back into the Vault for an in-depth look at quite possibly the Doctor's most dangerous foe...

The Companion Chronicles: Mastermind (Credit: Big Finish)Mastermind (available to order)
Starring Daphne Ashbrook as Ruth Matheson, Yee Jee Tso as Charlie Sato, with Geoffrey Beevers as The Master

The Vault – an archive of alien artefacts securely stored deep beneath the Angel of the North.

There's also a prisoner in the Vault. An extraterrestrial known as the Master. He has been on Earth for some time, but now he's under lock and key.

This is his story.

Or, as Captain Ruth Matheson and Warrant Officer Charlie Sato discover… perhaps it is theirs.
David Richardson says:
After the success of Tales from the Vault, which introduced Ruth and Charlie, we were determined to revisit the Vault – and Jonny Morris has found the most fascinating way to do so. I’m thrilled that already it has been so well received, as people are responding to a labyrinthine script that reveals a lot of new information about the Doctor’s arch enemy. And Geoffrey Beevers is, of course, magnificent.


The Fourth Doctor’s second season ends with The Final Phase, in which the mysterious Cuthbert's plan for the Proxima System is reaching its climax. The Doctor and Romana have been separated. The Doctor is aiding the Proximan fight-back. Romana and K9 are prisoners of the Daleks. And as the countdown to the opening of the Quantum Gateway begins, the Daleks reveal their true intentions.

Starring Tom Baker as the Doctor, John Leeson as K9 and, sadly, for the final time Mary Tamm as the first Romana, Doctor Who: The Final Phase brings the second series of The Fourth Doctor Adventures to a shattering conclusion. It also stars David Warner and Toby Hadoke as Cuthbert and his ever-faithful sidekick Mr Dorrick, and the incomparable Nicholas Briggs as the ever-malevolent Daleks.

Fourth Doctor Adventures: The Final Phase (Credit: Big Finish)The Final Phase (available to order)
Starring Tom Baker as the Doctor and Mary Tamm as Romana, with David Warner as Cuthbert

'The raw power of the very fabric of reality itself. And you dare to think you can conquer it?'

Cuthbert's plan for the Proxima System is reaching its final phase.

The Doctor and Romana have been separated. The Doctor is aiding the Proximan fight-back. Romana and K9 are prisoners of the Daleks.

And as the countdown to the opening of the Quantum Gateway begins, the Daleks reveal their true intentions.
David Richardson says:
Mary loved this script. And when we recorded it, she specifically asked to record the final scene again – just because she felt it was a pivotal moment for Romana, and she wanted to get it exactly right. It’s heartbreaking to think that would be the last time we saw her. But we’re all so grateful to Mary for driving this second season of The Fourth Doctor Adventures through, despite her illness. A remarkable lady.


Finally, the second season of Counter-Measures stars Simon Williams, Pamela Salem and Karen Gledhill reprising their Doctor Who Remembrance of the Daleks roles of Gilmore, Rachel and Allison, Counter-Measures - Series Two brings four more tales of Sixties-set 'black and white' espionage, conspiracy and derring-do. It also stars Hugh Ross as the team's mysterious boss, Sir Toby Kinsella.

UNIT: Counter Measures 2 (Credit: Big Finish)UNIT: Counter Measures 2 (available to order)
Starring Pamela Salem as Rachel Jensen, Simon Williams as Group Captain Gilmore, and Karen Gledhill as Allison Williams

The British government has created the Counter-Measures group, a specialist team that investigates strange phenomena and dangerous technology. This box set contains four of their adventures plus a behind-the-scenes documentary.

Manhunt by Matt Fitton
Group Captain Gilmore is on the run for murder; Sir Toby is dealing with his unctuous new assistant, Templeton; and Allison and Rachel are investigating a bizarre series of deaths across the country. A maniac is on the loose, but for Counter-Measures it's business as usual.

The Fifth Citadel by James Goss
People are falling ill near Holborn and displaying a sickness with all the hallmarks of radiation poisoning. While Gilmore and Allison look into a graveyard, Sir Toby and Rachel venture underground to meet an old friend with a desperate scheme.

Peshka by Cavan Scott and Mark Wright
A visit to an international chess tournament isn't quite the relaxing experience the Counter-Measures team might have hoped for. With a defection to arrange and violence erupting on the streets it's time for a dangerous gambit. What pieces will be left on the table when the Endgame approaches?

Sins of the Fathers by John Dorney
When a massacre results from the ruins of an old case, it poses more questions than it answers. But with Sir Toby stonewalling, Gilmore and Rachel are forced to investigate alone. The past is catching up with Counter-Measures. With decades old secrets about to be revealed, can anyone survive the fallout?
David Richardson says:
I’m hugely proud of this series, which I think has really hit its stride now. The first series went down a storm, so we're delighted to be able to release the five-disc box set early.

These four tales take the Counter-Measures group into some dangerous new situations – in which the biggest threat is humanity itself... You can experience Gilmore's brush with the wrong side of the law, an illness that looks like radiation sickness, a chess match that leads to defection and the revelation of a long-kept secret - can the team stay together in the face of adversity?


Win a copy of Mastermind!

This month's competition thanks to Big Finish is to win one of five copies of Mastermind. To be in with a chance to win, please answer the following question:
Mastermind features both the Master and UNIT personnel - and on television Geoffrey Beevers has played both! Name the role he played within UNIT.
Send your answer to comp-mastermind@doctorwhonews.net with the subject line "You Will Obey!", along with your name, address, and where you saw the competition (the news website, twitter, facebook, etc.). Only one entry per postal address will be accepted. The competition is open worldwide, and the closing date is 31st July 2013.




FILTER: - Merchandise - Audio - Seventh Doctor - Competitions - Fourth Doctor - Big Finish