Big Finish - Short Stories Update

Saturday, 14 January 2017 - Reported by Marcus

A Heart on Both Sides (Credit: Big Finish)

Big Finish have announced two new Short Stories exploring some small but important chapters in the Eighth Doctor's involvement with the Time War...

With the universe fracturing around him in the crossfire of the Time War, the Eighth Doctor has turned his back on his people, choosing to help those suffering from their actions. But what happens when events of the Time War touch upon those he's known and cared for? Two new Doctor Who Short Trips in the Autumn of 2017 explore what it means for former companions when Time War influences reach their lives...

Producer Ian Atkins comments

I'm hugely looking forward to this year's The Eighth Doctor - The Time War boxed set, and that made me think about celebrating the release with a special pair of Short Trips in the months before. While the stories aren't connected to the boxed set directly, they do mark a special couple of tales, so we've got some striking, distinctive designs from Tom Saunders for them, and we're able to announce them nice and early.

In September comes Rob Nisbet's A Heart on Both Sides, read by Sarah Sutton:

After her medical work on Terminus, Nyssa is now the controller of a hospital ship, the Traken. As the universe burns in the crossfire of the Time War, she and her assistant travel to a planet close to Gallifrey where they are needed more than ever. A long time ago, Nyssa knew a Time Lord and understood his people. But it seems they can change...

Ian Atkins comments:

Rob wrote a gorgeous story called The Patient for a fanzine I saw in the 1980s, with Nyssa at work in a post-Terminus hospital. With my Time War goggles on, it struck me that could be a very rich area to play with, and I've loved Sarah's work for the range already so I knew she'd rise to the occasion (and she did). Rob's delivered a wonderful take on the madness and confusion that arises when you get caught up in a war that's not your own.

The second story follows in October: All Hands on Deck by Eddie Robson, read by Carole Ann Ford:

Everyone, Susan Campbell cared about has gone. Most of them died in the second Dalek invasion, and her grandfather never visits. She's living in what used to be Coal Hill School, helping Earth rebuild again.

Then, one night, she's called away to help with an emergency. A piece of appropriated Dalek technology is malfunctioning, and everyone's afraid of what it might do...

This is just the first in a sequence of predicaments facing Susan - and the connection between them will shape the rest of her life.

Atkins added

When we had Sheridan Smith return to the Eighth Doctor era in The Curse of the Fugue, It had made me think about the Doctor meeting his granddaughter Susan again anyway, so the ideas just seemed to come together when I was thinking about the Time War. I was a huge fan of Eddie Robson's Eight Doctor writing, and I was over the moon when he agreed to revisit the era. He knows the characters so, so well and with strong character pieces like the Short Trips, that's exactly what you want. Listening to Carole Ann in studio is always a joy. She works so hard at it, with a great attention to detail.

Also confirmed are three other releases: August's The British Invasion by Ian Potter read by Wendy Padbury, November's The Ingenious Gentleman Adric of Alzarius by Julian Richards read by Matthew Waterhouse, and the first 2018 release - The Authentic Experience read by Nicola Bryant, written by Dan Starkey. prices.

Full details of all Big Finish Doctor Who releases can be found in the Doctor Who Guide.

FILTER: - Big Finish - Eighth Doctor

New Third Doctor Comic

Tuesday, 10 January 2017 - Reported by Marcus

This Wednesday sees Titan release their fourth comic featuring the Third Doctor.

DOCTOR WHO THIRD DOCTOR #4

Writer: Paul Cornell
Artist: Christopher Jones
Cover A: Andy Walker Cover B: Photo Cover C: Claudia SG Iannicello

Menaced by an unexpected megalomaniac, the Third Doctor and Jo Grant join the forces of UNIT to repel dangers from within and without! Can the Doctor and his allies triumph over a foe who seemingly knows the Doctor better than he knows himself? And we don't mean the Master!

DOCTOR WHO THIRD DOCTOR #4 Cover_A (Credit: Titan)

DOCTOR WHO THIRD DOCTOR #4 Cover_B (Credit: Titan)

DOCTOR WHO THIRD DOCTOR #4 Cover_C (Credit: Titan)

DOCTOR WHO THIRD DOCTOR #4 Page_1 (Credit: Titan)

DOCTOR WHO THIRD DOCTOR #4 Page_2 (Credit: Titan)

DOCTOR WHO THIRD DOCTOR #4 Credits (Credit: Titan)

Two previously announced titles, Doctor Who: Eleventh Doctor Year Three #1 and Doctor Who: Tenth Doctor Year Three #1 are also out this week.

FILTER: - Comics - Third Doctor

New Titan Comics

Monday, 2 January 2017 - Reported by Marcus

The start of 2017 sees new comics featuring the Tenth, Eleventh and Twelfth Doctors.

Out Wednesday 4th January

ELEVENTH DOCTOR YEAR THREE #1

Writer: Rob Williams
Artist: Simon Fraser
Colourist: Gary Caldwell
COVER A – Josh Burns COVER B – Photo COVER C – Question No. 6 COVER D – Simon Fraser COVER E – Simone Di Leo

Same great creators – whole new flavor! The Eleventh Doctor begins his blockbuster third year with writer Rob Williams (Suicide Squad) and series artists Simon Fraser and Leandro Casco in the hot seat! Year Three unfolds in single issue stories, as the Doctor and Alice Obiefune, seeking a fresh start after the stresses of last year’s epic mystery, set off in search of strange new worlds and amazing new sights! Every issue is packed with story and wonder! Dive deep into the unseen reaches of time and space! Super-accessible jumping on point for new readers – come see what the fuss is all about!

ELEVENTH DOCTOR YEAR THREE #1 Cover_A_Josh_Burns (Credit: Titan)

ELEVENTH DOCTOR YEAR THREE #1 Cover_B_Will_Brooks (Credit: Titan)

ELEVENTH DOCTOR YEAR THREE #1 Cover_C_Question_No_6 (Credit: Titan)

ELEVENTH DOCTOR YEAR THREE #1 Cover_D_Simon_Fraser (Credit: Titan)

ELEVENTH DOCTOR YEAR THREE #1 Cover_E_Simone_Di_Meo (Credit: Titan)

ELEVENTH DOCTOR YEAR THREE #1 Preview_1 (Credit: Titan)

ELEVENTH DOCTOR YEAR THREE #1 Preview_2 (Credit: Titan)

TWELFTH DOCTOR #2.13

Writer: Robbie Morrison
Artist: Rachael Stott
COVER A: Simon Fraser COVER B: Photo COVER C: Question No. 6 COVER D: Verity Glass

A French swordswoman, dark matter monsters, alternate universes, swashbuckling adventure and symbiotic intrigue - all just another Wednesday for the Doctor! But when you throw in secret police, an alien takeover of the aristocracy, a villainous Count, the inquisition, and alchemical discoveries...well, then it gets interesting! More breathless adventure and visual delight from the stellar Twelfth Doctor team!

Twelfth Doctor #2.13 Cover_A Simon Fraser (Credit: Titan)

Twelfth Doctor #2.13 Cover_B (Credit: Titan)

Twelfth Doctor #2.13 Cover_C Question No. 6 (Credit: Titan)

Twelfth Doctor #2.13 Cover_D Verity Glass (Credit: Titan)

Twelfth Doctor #2.13 Preview_1 (Credit: Titan)

Twelfth Doctor #2.13 Preview_2 (Credit: Titan)

Twelfth Doctor #2.13 Preview_3 (Credit: Titan)

Out Wednesday 11th January

TENTH DOCTOR YEAR THREE #1

Writer: Nick Abadzis
Artist: Giorgia Sposito, Arianna Florean
Cover A: Josh Burns Cover B: Photo Cover C: Marc Ellerby - Linked Cover Cover D: Iolanda Zanfardino Cover E: Brian Miller & Hi-fi Cover F: Elena Casagrande

It's a brand-new season for the Tenth Doctor and his loyal travelling companions, Gabby Gonzalez and Cindy Wu! Jump on board with a two-part opening story - 'Breakfast at Tyrannies' that introduces a whole new terror to test the Doctor and his friends! Plus: a new companion joins the TARDIS - the like of which you've never seen!

TENTH DOCTOR YEAR THREE #1 Cover_A_Josh_Burns (Credit: Preview_2-3)

TENTH DOCTOR YEAR THREE #1 Cover_B_Will_Brooks (Credit: Titan)

TENTH DOCTOR YEAR THREE #1 Cover_C_Marc_Ellerby (Credit: Titan)

TENTH DOCTOR YEAR THREE #1 Cover_D_Iolanda_Zanfardino (Credit: Titan)

TENTH DOCTOR YEAR THREE #1 Cover_E_Brian_Miller (Credit: Titan)

TENTH DOCTOR YEAR THREE #1 Cover_F_Elena_Casagrande (Credit: Titan)

TENTH DOCTOR YEAR THREE #1 Preview_1 (Credit: Titan)

TENTH DOCTOR YEAR THREE #1 Preview_2-3 (Credit: Titan)

FILTER: - Comics - Eleventh Doctor - Tenth Doctor - Twelfth Doctor

Fantom Publishing: Who Talk update

Saturday, 24 December 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Who Talk: An Unearthly Child (Credit: Fantom Publishing)

Who Talk: Cyber60s (Credit: Fantom Publishing)

Fantom Publishing have released details on the next two releases in their Who Talk range of alternative audio commmentaries.

First up is the original television adventure, An Unearthly Child. Producer Paul W T Ballard explains:

"One of the first thoughts we had after the success of Web and Enemy, was to revisit the first Doctor Who story and complete the commentary for it. The original DVD release of An Unearthly Child covered only two out of four of the episodes, plus the pilot, whereas we have been able to introduce some new voices to the mix and complete all four instalments plus the pilot.

The commentary features William Russell (Ian Chesterton), Jeremy Young (Kal), Waris Hussein (Director), Brian Hodgson (Special Sound) and Clive Doig (Vision Mixer), and is moderated by the omnipresent Toby Hadoke.

The second release celebrates the Cyber 60s, with Paul saying:

Whilst we have an ongoing mission to cover episodes without any commentary at all, we are also having fun bringing new contributors to the fold to provide alternatives on some classic serials. I think Cyber60s is a fitting celebration of fifty years of one of Doctor Who's most popular monsters.

The set contains commentaries for the Patrick Troughton serials The Tomb of the Cybermen, The Wheel in Space and The Invasion. Moderated by both Paul and Toby, this release features Wendy Padbury (Zoe), Michael Kilgarriff (Cyber Controller), Sally Faulkner (Isobel), Sylvia James (Make-Up), Roger Bunce (Cameraman) and Marcia Wheeler (Assistant Floor Manager).

The company are also offering a special edition bundle featuring both commentaries: each set will be signed by an actor from each release as well as a both disc featuring additional commentaries on The Tenth Planet and The Moonbase. These CDs are very limited, and exclusively available via the Who Talk website.

Who Talk will return in 2017 with a full of schedule of alternative DVD Commentaries.

FILTER: - Audio - Fantom - First Doctor - Merchandise - Second Doctor

New Tenth Doctor Comic

Thursday, 22 December 2016 - Reported by Marcus

This week sees Titan Comics release the latest Doctor Who comic featuring the Tenth Doctor, the spectacular finale of year two. .

TENTH DOCTOR #2.17

Writer: Nick Abadzis
Artist: Giorgia Sposito
Cover A: Wellington Diaz - B: Will Brooks Photo - C: Matt Baxter - D: Claudia Ianniciello - E: Nick Abadzis

The grand finale of Year Two! The impossible has occurred, and an ancient foe, long since defeated, has returned again to plague the Doctor, the universe, and to threaten all of reality! Has Anubis fallen to the ways of his father, Sutekh... or has Sutekh found a way to transcend death? Whoever survives will head into Year Three forever changed!

TENTH DOCTOR #2.17 Cover_A_Wellington_Diaz (Credit: Titan)

TENTH DOCTOR #2.17 Cover_B_Will_Brooks (Credit: Titan)

TENTH DOCTOR #2.17 Cover_C_Matt_Baxter (Credit: Titan)

TENTH DOCTOR #2.17 Cover_D_Claudia_Ianniciello (Credit: Titan)

TENTH DOCTOR #2.17 Cover_E_Nick_Abadzis (Credit: Titan)

TENTH DOCTOR #2.17 Preview (Credit: Titan)

TENTH DOCTOR #2.17 Preview 2 (Credit: Titan)

TENTH DOCTOR #2.17 Preview 3 (Credit: Titan)

FILTER: - Comics - Tenth Doctor

Big Finish: Fourth Doctor update

Wednesday, 21 December 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Big Finish have announced that the Fourth Doctor Adventures will continue into 2018 with a new series featuring the Doctor (Tom Baker), Leela (Louise Jameson) and K9 (John Leeson).

This time around the series will be released as two boxed sets of four episodes each. January 2018 will see the release of Series 7A, consisting of Episode One by Andrew Smith, The Crowmarsh Experiement by David Llewellyn, and The Mind-Runners / The Demon Rises by John Dorney; May sees the release of Series 7B, with The Shadow of London by Justin Richards, Episode Six by Dan Starkey, and Kill The Doctor! / Episode Eight by Guy Adams.

For digital listeners, as well as the two boxed sets it will also be possible to buy the episodes individually. Pre-orders can be purchased at a discount to the final release price. For full details see the Big Finish website.

Meanwhile, Season 6 kicks off in January, which as well as K9 will feature the Doctor's Time Lord side-kick Romana (as portrayed by Lalla Ward):

The Fourth Doctor Adventures: The Beast f Kravenos (Credit: Big Finish)

6.01 The Beast of Kravenos
Written by Justin Richards, directed by Nicholas Briggs
Released January 2017

A stunning new star act is wowing the audiences of the New Regency Theatre. The modern mechanical marvel of canny canine charisma - the automated dog that can answer any question - the incomparable - the unbeatable - K9!

The Doctor and Romana have returned to Victorian London and been reunited with their old friends Professor George Litefoot and Henry Gordon Jago. However this is not merely a social visit. A terrifying crime spree is sweeping the capital, and the burglaries of 'The Knave' defy all logic.

Something impossibly dangerous is taking place amid the fog. Only the time travellers and their friends can stop it... but can they be sure they're all on the same side?

The Fourth Doctor Adventures: The Eternal Battle (Credit: Big Finish)

6.02 The Eternal Battle
Written by Cavan Scott and Mark Wright, directed by Nicholas Briggs
Released February 2017

The TARDIS has landed in a war zone. The Doctor, Romana and K9 find themselves traipsing through an inhospitable battlefield. Strange lights flicker in the sky, and stranger creatures lurk in the darkness.

When rescued from an attack by a Sontaran tank, the time-travellers discover they’re facing a far more dangerous foe than the battle-hungry clones. This terrifying fight has been going on longer than anyone can remember… and shows no signs of stopping.

With the TARDIS missing and their luck running thin, the Doctor and his friends’ only hope of survival is to uncover the truth about what is happening on this planet. If they can discover the secret of the eternal battle they might just survive... but it might just mean the end of them all.

The Fourth Doctor Adventures: The Silent Scream (Credit: Big Finish)

6.03 The Silent Scream
Written by James Goss, directed by Nicholas Briggs
Released March 2017

On the set of a busy Hollywood movie in the late 1920s, a damsel is in distress! As cameras roll, she opens her mouth to scream and... nothing comes out. Nothing at all. It's happened again.

The Doctor, Romana and K9 have arrived in a terrified Tinseltown. A new film is being made and several stars of the silent screen are viewing it as a potential comeback... but it may prove a poisoned chalice. Actors are vanishing and strange creatures stalk the streets.

Something evil is lurking behind the scenery. Can the Doctor stop it when he doesn't have a voice?

It's time for his close-up.

The Fourth Doctor Adventures: Dethras (Credit: Big Finish)

6.04 Dethras
Written by Adrian Poynton, directed by Nicholas Briggs
Released April 2017

In the control room of a World War 2 submarine something strange has started to happen. As the ship runs out of control, its crew begin to fall unconscious...

Finding the submarine in the last place they'd have expected, the Doctor and Romana are confronted by a mystery. Once fully populated, there are now only three men on board. And there's now also a chimpanzee.

What has happened to the rest of the crew? What are the strange noises they can hear outside the hull?

6.05 The Haunting of Malkin Place
Written by Phil Mulryne, directed by Nicholas Briggs
Released May 2017

The Doctor and Romana meet the spiritualist Talbot, who has been called to investigate ghostly apparitions in a 1920's mansion.

6.06 Subterranea
Written by Jonathan Morris, directed by Nicholas Briggs
Released June 2017

The travellers are taken deep underground by a steam-driven alien drill ship, where the terrifying Silex await.

6.07 The Movellan Grave
Written by Andrew Smith, directed by Nicholas Briggs
Released July 2017

An archaeological expedition in 1980 uncovers a Movellan power pack. Before long, a reactivated alien ship is rising – a ship that contains a deadly secret weapon from an interstellar war...

6.08 The Skin of the Sleek
Written by Marc Platt, directed by Ken Bentley
Released August 2017

The Doctor arrives on the amazing world of Funderell, which is covered by a giant gelatinous ocean that people can walk on... but stand still and you sink.

6.09 The Thief Who Stole Time
Written by Marc Platt, directed by Ken Bentley
Released September 2017

The Doctor arrives on the amazing world of Funderell, which is covered by a giant gelatinous ocean that people can walk on... but stand still and you sink.

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

Moments in Time - Welcome to The Highland Piper

Saturday, 17 December 2016 - Reported by Marcus

It was fifty years ago today, on Saturday 17th December 1966, that the Second Doctor met a young highland piper, James Robert McCrimmon, someone who would stay with him through the rest of his incarnation, becoming the longest serving companion in the history of the series.

Frazer Hines has, so far, appeared in 116 episodes of Doctor Who. Only four actors, the first four Doctors, have appeared in more episodes. However, when Frazer Hines joined the company in November 1966, he had been contracted for one story only and was only expecting to feature in four episodes.

He would play the young piper Jamie in The Highlanders, set in the aftermath of the Battle of Culloden. During the production, the producers spotted something in the young actor and the chemistry he had with rest of the TARDIS crew, so after three weeks he was offered the chance to join the series as a regular character.

Scripts were hastily rewritten and a guide to the character of Jamie produced for potential writers.

He is a piper, and the character must be that of a simple but engaging Scot. Although his smile disarms opposition, he is on occasion a man of action who will defend his friends or principles fearlessly. He is cheerful, open, manly, flexible - more flexible in fact than Ben and Polly.

When either Ben or Polly are pulling his leg he reacts with a grin.... He always wears the kilt, his hair is longer and his shirt has a swashbuckling appearance.... He must assume the part of the young hero in each story. He must constantly be amazed and perplexed that he is wandering through space and time and is coming up against things, even commonplace things, which he could never have dreamt of in his day. The large things, planes computers etc, rock him back on his heels, he finds it hard to comprehend the all

He brings many of the attributes of the Highlander of this period with him, being courageous, impetuous, superstitious and romantic. His impetuosity often provokes difficult situations for the time travelers, but his direct approach will sometimes help solve problems as well as create them.

Frazer Hines was just 22 when he joined Doctor Who. However, even at that age, he was a veteran of film and television acting.

He had studied at the Corona Theatre School and before he became a teenager he had already appeared in a number of films. At 13 he appeared in Charlie Chaplin's A King in New York. He made his TV debut in 1957 playing Mickey Day in an episode of London Playhouse. He joined the series Huntingtower playing Napoleon alongside Roger Delgado a future Doctor Who director Graeme Harper.. Appearances followed in the war drama The Silver Sword, Queen's Champion and Run to Earth as well as a number of small roles in classics such as Z-Cars, Dr Finleys Casebook, Compact, Emergency-Ward 10, Coronation Street and King of the River.

He first worked with Patrick Troughton when he was cast in Smuggler’s Bay based on the J. Meade Falkner novel, Moonfleet. The two instantly hit it off and when Hines joined Doctor Who three years later it was apparent how well they worked together. Talking in 2009 Hines explained how he was told he would be continuing in the series after being offered a lift home by Producer Innes Lloyd.

He was a gentleman, a real gentleman of television. He was an ex-Navy man. I always remember him picking me up at location one day, saying ‘Come back with me, don’t go in the mini-bus’. He had a little VW beetle, we were driving back, he said ‘Well, Frazer, you’re settling in okay, how do you fancy joining the old TARDIS crew for a while, maybe another year?’

Frazer Hines would stay with Doctor Who for three series, leaving, along with Troughton in the summer of 1969.

I’d never have left, I was having so much fun, but I had an agent at the time who was saying ‘You must leave, you’ve done three years of television, you need to do films’, and Patrick’s wife at the time was saying (to him) ‘You’re a much better actor than children’s teatime television, you should be doing bigger things’, and I still say to this day, if he hadn’t had that woman nattering in his ear, they’d have had to shoot us and drag us kicking and screaming out of the TARDIS, we’d still be there now.

Sources: The Handbook: The Second Doctor: David J Howe, Mark Stammers, Stephen James Walker (Doctor Who Books, 1994)

FILTER: - Moments in Time - Second Doctor

New Comics out Next Week

Friday, 16 December 2016 - Reported by Marcus

Next Wednesday sees the release of Titan's comic featuring the Ninth Doctor as well as the latest in the Torchwood series by John and Carole Barrowman.

The previously announced Eleventh Doctor #2.15 has been delayed and will also be published next week.

Ninth Doctor #8

Writer: Cavan Scott
Artist: Cris Bolson
Colourist: Colourist
A: Pasquale Qualano & Marcio Menys - B: Will Brooks Photo- C: Question No. 6

UNIT agent Tara Mishra is on the verge of whistleblowing the existence of aliens to the British public, after rampaging daikaiju have been spotted in the English Channel! Can the Doctor, Rose, and Jack prevent her from changing the course of the 20th century by revealing the truth... and do they even want to? Plus! A new companion aboard the TARDIS -- and a new thread in the unravelling weave of Jack's missing memories!

Ninth Doctor #8 Cover_A_Pasquale_Qualano (Credit: Titan)

Ninth Doctor #8 Cover_B_Will_Brooks (Credit: Titan)

Ninth Doctor #8 Cover_C_Question_No_6 (Credit: Titan)

Ninth Doctor #8 Preview_1 (Credit: Titan)

Ninth Doctor #8 Preview_2 (Credit: Titan)

Ninth Doctor #8 Preview_3 (Credit: Titan)

Torchwood #4

Writer: Carole E. Barrowman, John Barrowman
Artist: Antonio Fuso
Cover A: Kelly Yates Cover B: Will Brooks Photo Cover C: Pasquale Qualano & Marcio Menys

The Navigators need Jack’s help to battle an alien threat from his past – but he’s an ocean away and several bullet holes from being able to help them out! Gwen finds herself torn between two worlds, as Jack’s quest threatens everything she holds dear – including the very core of Torchwood itself! And the Committee want the Ice Maiden and its crew – and its advanced, alien technology – for their own purposes, and they’ll kill anyone who gets in their way! The first arc of the ongoing Torchwood saga ends – but what a cliffhanger! We’re back with more shocks and surprises – and the full creative team – for #5!

Torchwood #4 Cover_A_Kelly_Yates (Credit: Titan)

Torchwood #4 Cover_B_Will_Brooks (Credit: Titan)

Torchwood #4 Cover_C_Pasquale_Qulano_Marcio_Menys (Credit: Titan)

All comics are released on Wednesday 21st December.

FILTER: - Comics - Ninth Doctor - Torchwood

Big Finish main range during 2017

Wednesday, 7 December 2016 - Reported by Chuck Foster

Big Finish have announced details for their main range of Doctor Who adventures over the course of next year.

January sees a new trilogy featuring the fifth Doctor and companions, which as well as Tegan and Nyssa will also see them joined with Adric, as played by Matthew Waterhouse. Having first returned to the Doctor Who fold in 2014's Fifth Doctor Box Set, the character now arrives in the main range, with Matthew commenting:

I took a long time to get around to the idea of doing the audios – and now I just absolutely love it, I think the character's beautifully written. Everything we're doing at Big Finish is stuff that's already in the character, in the stories, they're just being extended a bit. Having said I don't want to do them, now I think “when's next week's one going to arrive?”. This is proper Doctor Who, they're really carefully written, they're witty and funny, they're highly inventive.

Range editor Alan Barnes said:

It's been great to at last bring Adric into the monthly range – well, before his tragic death, at least! Andrew Smith wrote the character's introductory story on TV, so I was determined to get Andrew to write his re-introduction. Andrew's The Star Men, full of far-out cosmic science, is the first story of the trilogy, in which an astronomical base at the fringes of Earth's galaxy finds itself on the frontline of a war with an unimaginably alien force...

Matthew added:

Adric's quite heroic in this, and a young woman finds him rather hot because she's a bit brainy like he is: there's some genuine, character work going on with a great concept and there's some really nice moments between him and a young woman called Autumn (played by Sophie Wu).

The characters continue their journeys over the next two months, with Alan adding:

Phil Mulryne's The Contingency Club comes next, in which the TARDIS lands inside the most exclusive gentlemen's club in all of Victorian London – a club where all the waiters are identical clones! The final instalment of the trilogy is Zaltys by Matthew J Elliott, which brings the TARDIS to a world just hours from catastrophe, while Tegan is stranded in space... where she comes face to face with a very particular sort of horror, one she thought existed only in nightmares...

Additional cast members include Sue Holderness (Only Fools And Horses) in The Star Men, Philip Jackson (Inspector Japp in ITV's Poirot) and Clive Merrison (The Tomb of the Cybermen, Paradise Towers) in The Contingency Club, and Rebecca Root (Boy Meets Girl), Niamh Cusack (Heartbeat), Philip Franks (The Darling Buds of May, Heartbeat) and Carol Sloman – daughter of Doctor Who writer Robert Sloman - in Zaltys. The trilogy has covers from designer Tom Webster.

The Contingency Club (Credit: Big Finish)

April sees a change in style for the regular range, as Big Finish embarks on the first of three special two-disc collections of two stories. The first stars Peter Davison as the fifth Doctor in Alien Heart by Steve Cole, and Dalek Soul by Guy Adams. This is followed in May by Colin Baker's sixth Doctor starring in Vortex Ice by Jonathan Morris, and Cortex Fire by Ian Potter, and then in June Sylvester McCoy brings the trilogy to a close with Shadow Planet by AK Benedict and World Apart by Scott Handcock.

Alan commmented:

The double-bills in April to June came about because, er... well, we all quite liked the idea of double-bills, really! Each consists of two two-part adventures, each by a different author, one on each of the two discs; each, hopefully, has a very different style and tone to its companion piece – there should be a nice contrast between the two. Alien Heart is about a species of weird spider-like monsters linked to the systematic destruction of planets, and Dalek Soul is a particularly bleak piece set on the Dalek-occupied world of Mojoxalli.

May features Lisa Greenwood as Flip – hurrah! – reunited with the sixth Doctor, in two adventures set before her (apparent) exit in Scavenger. Vortex Ice is a brain-scrambling conundrum of a story set in a diamond mine; then Cortex Fire, like its title sort-of suggests, is about an epidemic of spontaneous human combustion on a distant planet. Finally, in June, there's the return of the seventh Doctor and Ace in Shadow Planet/World Apart. The first has them at a far-out therapy centre, getting some very alternative medicine; then the second the TARDIS travellers are found marooned somewhere very inhospitable indeed...

Looking a little further into 2017, July sees the award-winning John Dorney back writing for the main range with The High Price of Parking starring the seventh Doctor, Mel and Ace. August's title has yet to be confirmed, but September will see two releases, with Matthew J Elliott's The Silurian Candidate for the seventh Doctor and Eddie Robson's Time in Office featuring the fifth Doctor, Tegan and another Doctor's one-time companion. The end of the year sees a full trilogy of adventures featuring the sixth Doctor, Constance and Flip, following on from this month's release, Quicksilver.

The main range can be bought individually, or subscribed to in both six- and 12-episode runs, at money-saving prices as well as special exclusives such as PDF scripts, extended extras and up to four Doctor Who - Subscriber Short Trips a year. Full details can be found via the Big Finish website.

FILTER: - Audio - Big Finish - Fifth Doctor - Merchandise - Seventh Doctor - Sixth Doctor

Tom Baker meets the Vashta Nerada for Big Finish

Tuesday, 29 November 2016 - Reported by Marcus

Tom Baker /Pam Ferris (Credit: Big Finish )

The fourth doctor, in the form of Tom Baker, is to battle the Vashta Nerada in an new audio play from Big Finish.

The Fourth Doctor has joined the line-up for the new series Doctor Who: Classic Doctors, New Monsters, where he will be battle a foe that will one day fight his Tenth incarnation.

The new story, recorded on 16 November, finds the Doctor in a futuristic funfair on an alien world where he comes across the flesh eating shadows, created by Steven Moffat for the David Tennant story Silence in the Library.

Producer David Richardson said

Our first volume of Classic Doctors, New Monsters really captured the imaginations of our listeners. They loved the fusion of two different eras of the TV series. And I’m sure they are going to equally love John Dorney’s brilliant Night of the Vashta Nerada, in which the shadowy predators create mayhem in a story straight out of the Philip Hinchcliffe era.

With the Fourth Doctor travelling alone, director Barnaby Edwards has assembled a fine guest cast. Pam Ferris (Call the Midwife, Rosemary and Thyme) plays professional hunter Amanda Steele, Lorelei King (Doctor Who: A Town Called Mercy) is Georgia Donnelly, Emma Lowndes (Downton Abbey, Cranford) plays Phelan, Matt Devitt (Campus, Down to Earth) plays Bernnetto.

Doctor Who - Classic Doctors, New Monsters Volume 2 is out in 2017 and can be pre-ordered now at £20 on either Download or a CD set (which unlocks digital access).

FILTER: - Big Finish - Fourth Doctor

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