The Qualities of Leadership

Thursday, 17 January 2008 - Reported by Jarrod Cooper

Big Finish Productions has released information on their upcoming Short Trips Anthology, The Qualities of Leadership, which is due out in May.Keith R.A. DeCandido, editor of the volume, made the choice to have each of the stories be a little longer than past stories.

The Stories will include:

Introduction by Keith R.A. DeCandido
"From Little Acorns..." by John S. Drew
"One Fateful Knight" by Peter David
"The Slave War" by Una McCormack
"Goths and Robbers" by Diane Duane
"Good Queen, Bad Queen, I Queen, You Queen" by Terri Osborne
"The Price of Conviction" by Richard C. White
"God Send Me Well to Keep" by Linnea Dodson
"Peaceable Kingdom" by Steve Savile
"Rock Star" by Robert T. Jeschonek
"On a Pedestal" by Kathleen O. David
"Cleanup on Aisle Two" by James Swallow
"The Spindle of Necessity" by Allyn Gibson
"Epilogue" by John S. Drew
King Loran of Zalezna is dead, the victim of an attempted coup. However, with the help of the Eighth Doctor, Loran’s son and heir, Mihal, is able to stop the rebels and claim the throne. Now Mihal faces the prospect of ruling before he’s ready. By way of helping Mihal prepare for his new role, the Doctor tells him of the many leaders he’s met over the course of his lives...

Join the Doctor as he regales Prince Mihal with stories from throughout time and space. There are tales of the Roman Empire, from Emperor Theodoric to rebels Spartacus and Calpurnia to Rome’s enemy Queen Boudica. There’s King Arthur and Plato as they’ve never been seen before, Martin Luther and King Henry VIII in the midst of rewriting Europe’s religious landscape and an unexpected side of William Wallace. The Doctor also travels to such exotic worlds as Rishik and Mitidiki, and arrives at a deceptively mundane department store.

Leadership comes in many forms. Some are unexpected, some are less pleasant than you’d think and some aren’t quite what history would later paint them to be.




FILTER: - Audio

Big Finish Update

Thursday, 10 January 2008 - Reported by Jarrod Cooper

Big Finish Productions has announced some new releases and projects for 2008. Recently. they have begun experimenting with online digital downloads. Currently the only title available though this method is Phantom of the Opera. The forthcoming Stargate series is slated to feature this as well. There is currently no announcement on the Doctor Who line being released in this way.

Doctor Who Magazine Issue 393 will include a free Fifth Doctor audio adventure, Cuddlesome. Written by Nigel Fairs, it is a chilling tale of cute 1980s nostalgia toys for grown-ups taking on a life of their own.

The second season of adventures for the Eighth Doctor and Lucie Miller begin in January with Dead London by Pat Mills. The cover for this title can be found below.

Information on the Sixth Doctor release for January, The Condemned, can be found by clicking on the Spoiler Tagbelow.

Meanwhile, Nigel Fairs, producer of the Tomorrow People range at Big Finish, has confirmed to the Doctor Who Forum that the sixth series of The Tomorrow People has been cancelled due to factors beyond their control. The previous audio CD adventures in this range have been removed from their website.
The Condemned will be the first release to feature India Fisher alongside the Sixth Doctor. Charley Pollard, played by Fisher, was last seen getting into the Sixth Doctor's Tardis at the end of The Girl Who Never Was. The blurb for this story is as follows:

Dr John Smith – you’re under arrest. You do not have to say anything, but it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned something which you later rely on in court..."

Manchester, 2008. The TARDIS lands inside a run-down tower block, beside a dead body – which leads to some awkward questions when the Doctor is found there by the police. Made the prime suspect, how can the Doctor prove to the no-nonsense DI Patricia Menzies that this is not the open-and-shut case it seems, and that she’s actually investigating the death of an alien?

Higher up in Ackley House, a girl named Maxine watches the Doctor being taken away in a squad car. Someone wants her to find out what happened in that room, and isn’t going to be happy if she doesn’t come up with the goods. But she’s got hold of someone who knows – someone very important to the Doctor.

A deadly conspiracy is at work – one whose effects will be felt far beyond the walls of Ackley House…




FILTER: - Audio

Christmas Special Song Preview

Monday, 29 October 2007 - Reported by DWNP Archive

Silva Screen Records has put the full track of The Stowaway, to be featured in the forthcoming Doctor Who Christmas special Voyage of the Damned, on itsMySpace page.

The song is performed by Yamit Mamo and will be included on the Series Three soundtrack CD, to be released on November 5.

WARNING: May - or may not - contain spoilers!

(Thanks to Patrick Wigfull.)




FILTER: - Specials - Audio

McGann Season Two Details

Saturday, 27 October 2007 - Reported by Jarrod Cooper

Big Finish has released full details on the forthcoming second season of audios featuring Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor, with Sheridan Smith as Lucie Miller. The series will be released monthly beginning in January.




FILTER: - Audio

Westmaas says goodbye

Sunday, 21 October 2007 - Reported by Jarrod Cooper

Conrad Westmaas, Eighth Doctor companion C'rizz, has issued aGoodbye Statement in the Big Finish Forum at DoctorWhoForum.com. This statement follows the release of his final audio for Big Finish,Absolution. Click on the Spoiler Box below to read the statement. It does not include actual spoilers, it is just to conserve space on the news page.

Dear All,

Well, my work here is done.

Five-ish years as a Who companion are up and before Lizard Boy is consigned to his odd little place in the Hall of Obscurity, I just wanted to say some thank-yous to a few fabulous people. (I would have prepared a Sarah-Jane or Tegan-style tear-jerker, but I haven't got a pot plant and it never "stopped being fun", so I've opted for the tried & tested 'thank-you-&-gush' format instead) Here goes:

DWM: First of all, HUGE thanks to the Talented Mr Clayton Hickman for keeping the flag flying in the wilderness years and beyond and for getting me involved in the crazy, mixed-up world of Who in the first place, to my then colleagues Scott Gray, Paul Burley, Peri Godbold, Benjamin Cook & Andrew Pixley - and to the new team Tom Spilsbury, Peter Ware & Stuart Manning. Big thanks to Martin Geraghty whose artwork has given me a great souvenir of my time in the TARDIS. And speaking of dreams coming true..

Big Finish: It's no secret that's it's been a bumpy ride at times but only when Pixley's Official History of Who is written will Big Finish's role in steering the show safely back to our screens get the credit it deserves. So another HUGE thanks to the wonderful Gary Russell and Jason 'Huge-Salary' for letting me guest in 'Omega' and then inviting me back on board proper to join the Eighth Doctor crew and making Daleks, Victorian freakshows and lethal ice-cream vans all part of a day's work! Thanks also to dear Nick Briggs and Barnaby Edwards for honouring what Gary started and giving me a great send off, to lovely Nigel Fairs, Ian Farrington, John Ainsworth & Ed Salt, and to BF's fine stable of writers including Joe Lidster, Lloyd Rose, Gary Hopkins, Julian Shortman, Alan Barnes, Trevor Baxendale, Nev Fountain, Simon Guerrier, Steve Lyons, Jim Mortimore, Will Schindler, Eddie Robson, Philip Martin & Graham Duff - and to the talents of the unsung post-production heroes, Steve Johnson and the CD cover artists - much appreciated. Thanks to my Who-gurus Davy Darlington & Robert Dick and of course to BF Doctors Peter, Colin, Sylvester & Paul and all the TV & audio companions & villains I've worked with, too numerous to mention, who've made the job such a joy. Oh, and just to put 3 quick myths to bed: a) No, Nick Briggs isn't systematically 'firing'/exterminating/deleting all the BF companions (hang on, what's that knock at the door? Aaargh!) b) Yes, Mr McGann recorded every single story with us in the studio and c) Yes, we really are all as buff as we look in the DWM 'Coming Soon..' comic strips.

Thanks to Derek & all at Tenth Planet for numerous signings & conventions, Cary & co at Regenerations, Ben & all at The Oncoming Storm, Shaun Lyon & the mods & bods of Outpost Gallifrey, James Goss & all at bbc.co.uk, Barnaby et al at The Offstage Theatre Co, lovely Charlie Ross, the fabulous naughty folk of KiNda and to Ed Thomas & Liz Griffiths at BBC Wales for a set visit I'll never forget.

And to every Who fan who's taken the trouble to write, email, draw a picture, buy a drink, make me laugh or just come up to say hi - you know who you are - thanks for making my day. (And to the less-than-kind corners of fandom - thanks for the tough exoskeleton.) Whatever you think of my contribution to BF, I hope you've enjoyed the work of some of the acting chums I've put their way like Daniel Barzotti, Liz Crowther, Lizzie Hopley, Eve Polycarpou and Zehra Naqvui.

Special mention must go to Edwardian adventuress and all-round best mate India Fisher. I suspect that (sooner rather than later..) Charley Pollard will be listed up there along with Sarah-Jane and Rose Tyler as one of the finest companions in any medium, just see if I'm wrong.

I'm bound to have missed a load of people out, so thanks to everyone who's made the last five years such a wild, weird & wonderful experience - aside from making all my fanboy dreams come true (Travelling in the TARDIS! Fighting Daleks! And getting paid!!!) it's been an invaluable source of fun, support and an incredible learning experience which has opened up some interesting new avenues of work. Speaking of which, if I can end on few of blatant plugs:

'Absolution' is available from Big Finish
Check out the trailer for my new film 'The Visitor'
& I'm currently appearing in 'Othello' at the Salisbury Playhouse.

To everyone listed above and to anyone I've missed - love always and thank you for giving me the trip of a lifetime.

Conrad xxx




FILTER: - Audio

Big Finish Update

Tuesday, 2 October 2007 - Reported by Jarrod Cooper

Big Finish has released covers and announced scheduling changes for releases over the next few months.

The first installment of Dalek Empire: The Fearless has been delayed due to problems with sound design. Originally set for a September release, October 7th is the new target release date.

Also pushed back is Short Trips: Defining Patterns, which will now see release in March 2008.

Now released are the covers for three of the upcoming Companion Chronicles, as well as the December release The Girl Who Never Was. Trailers for all four Companion Chronicles are also availabl




FILTER: - Audio

Sarah Jane Audios

Monday, 1 October 2007 - Reported by Josiah Rowe

The official Doctor Who site has announced that BBC Audiobookswill be releasing two original audiobooks based on The Sarah Jane Adventures, read by Elisabeth Sladen.

In The Glittering Storm by Stephen Cole, Sarah Jane investigates the strange behavior of patients at a London clinic and discovers a plot to harvest all the gold from Earth. Says Cole, "My first memories of Doctor Who are of poor Sarah stuck in a ventilator shaft back in 1975, so I jumped at the chance to write a story for Lis Sladen. She is a fantastic actor with a wonderful voice, and Sarah Jane is a marvellous character. With The Glittering Storm I aimed to provide a story with creepy scares - as well as humour and thrills - in the vein of the new TV series. The idea is that we on Earth are not the only people who prize gold highly... Others in space have a fascination for the stuff too, and are rather more menacing in the way that they use it..."

In The Thirteenth Stone by Justin Richards, Sarah Jane finds an secret associated with an ancient stone circle. Richards says, "I had enormous fun writing The Thirteenth Stone. It's always slightly daunting writing a story that is going to be read aloud - you really have to be at your best. But knowing that Elisabeth Sladen - Sarah Jane Smith herself - was going to be reading it was a tremendous boost to the confidence as well as a huge privilege. I can't wait to hear the finished result!"

Both audiobooks will be available for purchase as CDs or downloads from November 5. Teaser clips from both stories are available through the official site.




FILTER: - Audio - Sarah Jane

Soundtrack Vol. 2

Sunday, 30 September 2007 - Reported by Josiah Rowe

Following the announcement in the latest Doctor Who Magazine that a second CD of Murray Gold's incidental music is to be released, the cover and release date have begun to appear on a number of retail sites. According to HMV amongst others, the CD is due in UK shops on 5th November, and will feature music from the show's third series.




FILTER: - Murray Gold - Audio

Collected Audiobooks To Be Released

Friday, 28 September 2007 - Reported by Jeremy Bement

According to the BBC's Doctor Who website, October 1st will see the release of Doctor Who: Collected Stories from BBC Audiobooks. Says their release statement:
The Feast of the Drowned, The Stone Rose and The Resurrection Casket are all narrated by David Tennant.

Anthony Head (Mr Finch in School Reunion) reads The Nightmare of Black Island, Shaun Dingwall (Pete Tyler) reads The Price of Paradise, and Don Warrington (The President in The Age of Steel) reads The Art of Destruction.

The set, which runs to about 15 hours of audio, will cost £50.




FILTER: - Audio - Books

Companion Chronicles

Sunday, 23 September 2007 - Reported by Jarrod Cooper

Big Finish has released story and narrator details on the upcoming second series of The Companion Chronicles.

Set to be released in October, Mother Russia sees Peter Purves returning to the role of Steven Taylor alongside Tony Millan.

"It's 1812 and the Doctor, Steven and Dodo get ready to spend their winter in a Russian village. The French are on their way, but that's not the only invasion the travellers will have to deal with."

Helicon Prime, due out in November, features Frazer Hines returning to the role of Jamie with Suzanne Proctor.

"It's been a long time since Jamie McCrimmon remembered anything about his travels with the Doctor, but his visit to Helicon Prime just won't stay hidden... but why remember their murder investigation now?"

Nicholas Courtney reads Old Soldiers, the December release, a story for the Third Doctor told by the Brigadier. Toby Longworth guest stars.

"Old soldiers, comrades in arms - the Brigadier saw many fall during his years with UNIT, but perhaps none more tragically than those at Kreigskind. Called to help when a friend falls ill, how can Leftbridge-Stewart fight an enemy that can breach every defence?"

Leela returns in January, once again played by Louise Jameson in The Catalyst. This Fourth Doctor tale features guest star Timothy Watson.

"The pride of the Z'nai matches that of Leela of the Sevateem. Why would the Doctor imprison one in such an unlikely place, and what terrors will be brought about by letting it loose?"




FILTER: - Audio