Doctor Who at the BBC, Volume Two

Elisabeth Sladen presents another time-travelling journey through the history of Doctor Who on BBC radio and television.

Our good friend the Doctor may continually jump from the past to the present and back to the future, but heÆs never really gone away. Since 1963 he has had a massive influence on our popular culture û as this second volume of rare material illustrates.

Doctor Who has long been a favourite source of inspiration for comedy programmes including The Mary Whitehouse Experience, IÆm Sorry I HavenÆt a Clue and Dead Ringers. It has also provided an endless source of features for programmes such as Nationwide, Pebble Mill at One, WomanÆs Hour and Talkback. All of these, and more, are featured here.

We hear from no less than seven of the first eight actors to play the Doctor on TV: Patrick Troughton, Jon Pertwee, Tom Baker, Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy and Paul McGann all talk about what itÆs like to play the role, and the effect it has had on their lives. The DoctorÆs companions are also well featured, with Elisabeth Sladen, Louise Jameson, Matthew Waterhouse and John Leeson popping up in interviews recorded during their time on the programme.

The issue of violence in Doctor Who is discussed by producer John Nathan-Turner, writer Kit Pedler and some very angry parents; director Paul Joyce takes us behind the scenes on the series; and thereÆs a plethora of news items about the DoctorÆs many returns since 1989. So hold on to your hats û the latest journey starts here!


Douglas Adams at the BBC

Simon Jones, who played Arthur Dent in The HitchhikerÆs Guide to the Galaxy, presents a look back at the life and work of a writer who has captivated the imagination of millions.

When Douglas Adams created The HitchhikerÆs Guide to the Galaxy for BBC Radio 4, it was the genesis of a science fiction comedy legend. Yet his career at the BBC had begun in Light Entertainment, with contributions to The Burkiss Way, Week Ending and other sketch shows of the time. He went on to script edit a series of Doctor Who, and to write a series of Hitchhiker and Dirk Gently books.

In this triple-CD programme, Simon Jones takes an A-Z look at Douglas AdamsÆs career, taking in extracts from the many radio and TV programmes he contributed to. These include personal appearances on Wogan, TomorrowÆs World and Desert Island Discs, his own radio programmes such as Last Chance to See (about the search for endangered species) and The HitchhikerÆs Guide to the Future (a look at impending technology), and even a ælostÆ segment of The HitchhikerÆs Guide to the Galaxy which Adams wrote specially for Radio 4Æs Steafel Plus in 1982. Also included are some of the many tributes paid to Adams following his untimely death in May 2001.

This is a fascinating and in-depth audio biography of a man whose brilliant work has inspired, enraptured and entertained millions of people worldwide.

FAITH STEALER, by Graham Duff

When the Doctor, Charley and C'rizz find their journey through the Interzone interrupted by a nightmarish vision, they are surprised to find the Kro'ka offering the perfect solution.

The Multihaven a vast array of religions and faiths housed in one harmonious community appears to offer the perfect sanctuary in which to convalesce. But under the guidance of the charismatic Laan Carder, one religion seems to be gathering disciples at an alarming rate.

With the Doctor and Charley catching glimpses of an old friend and C'rizz on the receiving end of some unorthodox religious practices, their belief, hope and faith are about to be tested to the limit.

It's time to see the light.

Starring Paul McGann (the Doctor), India Fisher (Charley), Conrad Westmaas (C'rizz) and Stephen Perring (the Kro'Ka), with Christian Rodska (Laan Carder), Tessa Shaw (The Bordinan), Jenny Coverack (Miraculite), Ifan Huw Dafydd (Bishop Parrash), Helen Kirkpatrick (Jebdal), Neil Bett (Director Garfolt), Chris Walter-Evans (The Bordinan's Assistant), John Dorney (Bakoan) and Jane Hills (L'Da). Directed by Gary Russell. Out September 2004.

CAERDROIA, by Lloyd Rose

Self-exiled to a new universe, separated from his TARDIS, opposed and manipulated by the Divergence and their agent the Kro'ka, the Doctor has been struggling to work out the nature of the cosmic game in which he's an unwilling pawn. Now, at last, he has a chance to find the answer and regain the TARDIS!

Threatened and desperate, the Kro'ka abandons his behind-the-scenes machinations to confront the Doctor directly. But will both of them lose their way in the maze of the strange world in which they find themselves? A world in which a clock may have a cuckoo but no hands, a labyrinth imprisoning a paradox, and a Garden of Curiosities reveals something the Doctor has never seen before.

As the Doctor faces these challenges, Charley and C'rizz provide valuable help. But with the TARDIS itself at stake, the Doctor reaches deep inside himself to find some surprising new allies...

Starring Paul McGann (the Doctor), India Fisher (Charley), Conrad Westmaas (C'rizz) and Stephen Perring (the Kro'Ka),; additional cast TBA. Directed by Gary Russell. Out November 2004.

A STORM OF ANGELS, by Marc Platt

What if...the Doctor really had changed History, even just the tiniest bit?

1480: Leonardo da Vinci visits the stars.
1508: Vasco da Gama sets foot on Mars.
1585: Francis Drake begins charting the Asteroid Belt.
1588: Earth is destroyed by a storm of angels.

The Doctor was really enjoying his freedom. But now thereÆs a Temporal Agent on his tail. Gloriana and the President of Gallifrey are not amused. And SusanÆs none too well either.

Possibilities, like the Doctor, have a habit of running away with themselves. But who cares, when the jewels are so dazzlingà

Starring Geoffrey Bayldon (the Doctor) and Carole Ann Ford (Susan), with Cameron Stewart (Francis Drake), Ivor Danvers (Doctor John Dee), Ian Hallard (Zeuro), Nicholas Deal (Anthony Fettiplace), Shiv Grewal (Mr. Raju), Kate Brown (Queen Elizabeth) and Ian Brooker (Shewstone / Bosun). Directed by John Ainsworth. Out November 2004.

FAITH STEALER, by Graham Duff

Starring Paul McGann (the Doctor), India Fisher (Charley), Conrad Westmaas (C'rizz) and Stephen Perring (the Kro'Ka), with Chrsitian Rodska (Laan Carder), Tessa Shaw (The Bordinan), Jenny Coverack (Miraculite), Ifan Huw Dafydd (Bishop Parrash), Helen Kirkpatrick (Jebdal), Neil Bett (Director Garfolt), Chris Walter-Evans (The Bordinan's Assistant), John Dorney (Bakoan) and Jane Hills (L'Da). Directed by Gary Russell. Out September 2004.

THE LAST, by Gary Hopkins

Trapped on a dying world, the Doctor and Charley come face-to-face with those responsible for the war to end wars, while C'rizz tries to understand what has happened and learns the terrible truth.

Powerful forces are at work on Bortresoye that not even a nuclear holocaust can tame; natural forces that have excited the interest of Excelsior, the self-proclaimed saviour of her people.

With Charley immobilised and C'rizz left to battle against the elements with some of the victims of war, one final, desperate hope of escape presents itself to the travellers.

But who will be the last to leave the planet? Who will have to stay behind? And will the Doctor, Charley and C'rizz live long enough to find out?

Starring Paul McGann (the Doctor), India Fisher (Charley), Conrad Westmaas (C'rizz) and Stephen Perring (the Kro'Ka), with Carolyn Jones (Excelsior), Ian Brooker (Minister Voss), Robert Hines (Minister Tralfinial), Richard Derrington (Landscar), Tom Eastwood (Requiem), Jane Hills (Nurse) and John Dorney (Make-Up Assistant). Directed by Gary Russell. Out October 2004.

Short Trips: Repercussions, edited by Gary Russell

The galaxies are awash with stories, myths and legends of the Doctor, the courageous Time Lord who rights wrongs and brings down the evil dictators.

But does the Doctor always get it right? In his efforts to save the smaller picture, is it possible that occasionally the bigger picture, the Web of Time itself, can be broken by his actions? If so, what can he do to repair it?

Repercussions features sixteen tales set on a strange airship taking its passengers on a trip toà who knows where? Amongst the people aboard is young adventuress Charley Pollard, just a few weeks into her life aboard the TARDIS alongside the Eighth Doctor, a man whose past, she will discover, she knows frighteningly little about. She encounters a diplomat trying to stop a war, a young man seemingly murdered by the Doctor, a tramp, a seismologist and a republican trying to save the life of his plague-stricken daughter. One thing they all have in common - an encounter with a strange alien visitor who seemed to help them but perhaps should have left them alone.

Learning their stories, understanding their grief, their anger or even their joy, Charley begins to see a new side to this enigmatic man she has chosen to travel the universe with. And she is forced to ask, will she one day also find herself aboard a strange airship, teeming with fellow travellers, all of whom seem to represent a danger to the Web of Time?

Repercussions is based upon an original idea by John Ainsworth and Gary Russell and is compiled and edited by Gary Russell, who is one of the producers of the Doctor Who audio adventures as well as the author of a number of Virgin and BBC Books Doctor Who novels.

Short Trips: Monsters, edited by Ian Farrington

Whether made of flesh and bone, or created in the deep recesses of the mind, monsters are terrible thingsà

They hunt, they chase, they stalk. They don't stop and they don't listen to your pleasà They come after you in the night, when you least expect it; they invade your world when all seems safe.

Monsters features stories that tell tale of such beasts - some real, some imaginary; some alien, some homegrown. Don't read it aloneà

Featuring stories by Marc Platt, Steve Lyons, Jacqueline Rayner, Jim Mortimore, Joseph Lidster and many more!

The Grel Escape, by Jacqueline Rayner

Young children can be difficult. Tantrums, toy-throwing, not wanting to go to bed, whisking their mothers on dangerous journeys throughout all of time and space.

Jason wants Benny's son Peter to have a normal childhood. Peter has other plans. And unfortunately, Peter also has Benny and Jason's Time Rings. And knows how to use them. Even more unfortunately, the fact-obsessed, tentacle-faced Grel have built a time machine, and they're after Peter.

So Benny finds herself on the run, landing in frightening festivals and deadly deserts, facing ridiculously inaccurate robot doubles and hideously accented tourists, in what can only be described as a sort of chase...