Big Finish May 2014 Preview

Sorry for not posting anything for a while. It’s something I’m rectifying.

May brings us the Fifth Doctor and Nyssa on a pyramid in space, Jo and Iris fighting monsters for the Elixir Of Doom and the Fourth Doctor facing the Last Of The Colophon. In other ranges, we get more Charlotte Pollard and Pathfinders releases it’s second story.

Doctor Who Main Range 186: Tomb Ship

Written By: Gordon Rennie and Emma Beeby
Directed By: Ken Bentley

Featuring Peter Davison as the Fifth Doctor and Sarah Sutton as Nyssa

The second story of the 2014 Fifth Doctor and Nyssa trilogy, two discs long

Synopis:

The TARDIS brings the Doctor and Nyssa to a vast pyramid, floating in space. A tomb ship – the last resting place of the God-King of the Arrit, an incredibly advanced and incredibly ancient civilisation, long since extinct.

They’re not alone, however. Another old dynasty walks its twisted, trap-ridden passages – a family of tomb raiders led by a fanatical matriarch, whose many sons and daughters have been tutored in tales of the God-King’s lost treasure.

But those who seek the God-King will find death in their shadow. Death from below. Death from above. Death moving them back and forward, turning their own hearts against them.
Because only the dead will survive.

CAST:
Peter Davison (The Doctor), Sarah Sutton (Nyssa), Eve Karpf (Virna), Amy Ewbank (Jhanni), James Hayward (Hisko), Jonathan Forbes (Heff), Ben Porter (Murs), Phil Mulryne (Rek/Hologram-Fresco Voice)

Preparatory Listening: None

Doctor Who Companion Chronicles 8.11: The Elixir Of Doom

Written By: Paul Magrs
Directed By: Lisa Bowerman

A one disc enhanced audio book performed by Katy Manning, primarily as Jo Grant and Iris Wildthyme, and Derek Fowlds as Claude.

Synopis:

Once, Jo Grant travelled in Space and Time with the Doctor. Now, she is travelling with trans-temporal adventuress Iris Wildthyme.

Arriving in Los Angeles in the 1930s, Jo and Iris are caught up in the glamour of Hollywood.

Monster movies are all the rage.

But sometimes monsters are real…

CAST:

Katy Manning (Jo Grant/Iris Wildthyme), Derek Fowlds (Claude)

Preparatory Listening: I’d suggest Find And Replace. The Iris Wildthyme story The Iris Wildthyme Appreciation Society is free as a podcast.

Doctor Who Fourth Doctor Adventures 4.05: Last Of The Colophon

Written By: Jonathan Morris
Directed By: Nicholas Briggs

A two disc full cast audio drama featuring Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor and Louise Jameson as Leela

Synopsis:

The planet Colophos is a dead world. Nothing but dust and rubble – and the ruins of a once-great civilisation. But is it really as dead as it appears? When the Doctor and Leela land, joined by the crew of the Oligarch survey ship, it’s not long before they receive a communication from one of the ruins. A communication from Astaroth Morax, the last of the Colophon. Attended by a sadistic robot nurse, Morax is in a wheelchair and bound in bandages to conceal his terrible injuries. But is he really as powerless as he seems? What became of the rest of his race – and why didn’t he die with them?

Entering his lair, the Doctor uncovers a terrifying secret…

CAST:

Tom Baker (The Doctor), Louise Jameson (Leela), Gareth Thomas (Morax), Jane Goddard (Nurse Torvik), John Voce (Chief Surveyor Hardwick), Jessica Martin (Deputy Surveyor Sutton), Blake Ritson (Pilot Kellaway)

Preparatory Listening: None

Charlotte Pollard: Series One Box Set

Written By: Jonathan Barnes and Matt Fitton
Directed By: Nicholas Briggs

A five disc full cast box set starring India Fisher as Charley Pollard

Synopsis:

Charlotte Pollard’s adventures are over. She escaped death aboard the R101 and travelled in time and space - but now in the service of the monolithic, unknowable Viyrans, their unending mission is stifling her. An encounter with would-be adventurer Robert Buchan, near the mysterious Ever-and-Ever-Prolixity, provides the opportunity Charley needs for escape…

So, the adventuress is abroad once more: meeting a lost expedition in uncharted forests, solving enigmas, and hoping beyond hope to see the people she misses most: her family. But Charley cannot run forever. The Viyrans know the power of the ‘Lamentation Cipher’ and they have a solution… for everything.

Part One: The Lamentation Cypher
Part Two: The Shadow at the Edge of the World
Part Three: The Fall of the House of Pollard
Part Four: The Viyran Solution

CAST:
India Fisher (Charlotte Pollard), Anneke Wills (Lady Louisa Pollard), Terrence Hardiman (Lord Richard Pollard), Michael Maloney (Viyrans), James Joyce (Robert Buchan), Nicholas Briggs (Bert Buchan/The Slaverings), Jacqueline King (Mrs Turnerman), Abigail McKern (Susan Broadstairs), Nicola Weeks (Charity Savage), Lucy May Barker (Emmeline Leigh), Charlie Norfolk (Violet Warren), David Dobson (Michael Dee), Louise Brealey (Millicent Belanger III), Nadia Kamil (Miss Griffin)

Preparatory Listening: The Sixth Doctor and Charley stories (shame I’m putting this up after the sale). Patient Zero is this month’s Listeners (heavily discounted download).

Dark Shadows 43: The Devil Cat

Written By: Mark Thomas Passmore
Directed By: David Darlington and Darren Gross

A one disc audio drama

Synopsis:

"Only we could get lost in the English countryside and find ourselves trapped in The Wicker Man!"

While on vacation in England, detective Tony Peterson and the witch Cassandra visit Tony's estranged cousin Lord Trent Malkin and his wife Ruby. The two couples team up to investigate the disappearance of a maid from the manor and a series of murders by an ancient cat cult. Complicating things are hostile villagers, an unfriendly vicar and amateur sleuth, Miss Emma Simon.

Who can be trusted in the village of Little Bascombe? And if the legend of a Devil Cat wandering the countryside in search of souls to devour is true, are Tony and Cassandra about to face the greatest threat of their lives?

CAST:
Jerry Lacy (Tony Peterson), Lara Parker (Cassandra), Sarah Sutton (Miss Emma Simon), William McGeough (Lord Trent Malkin), Wendy Albiston (Lady Ruby Malkin), Joe Johnsey (PC Darren Westcott), Michael Shon (Reverend Joseph Tuttle),Greg Patmore (Clive Taylor), Barra Collins (Ralph Walters), James Lawrence (Bert Osgood), Ryan Wichert (Jack Thorpe), Dilek Latif (Dolly Elton)

Preparatory listening: Being unfamiliar with the series, a passing knowledge would most likely be most helpful.

Blake’s 7 Liberator Chronicles: Volume 8

Written By: Simon Guerrier, Marc Platt and James Goss
Directed By: Lisa Bowerman and Ken Bentley

Three enhanced audio books

Synopsis:
President by Simon Guerrier
Alone together, two Federation officials at last share the truth. Supreme Commander Servalan agrees to explain to Secretary Rontane how she set up the President.

And when she is done, Servalan’s executioners will be waiting…

The Sea of Iron by Marc Platt
Cally wishes to find Captain Mani Yalleg, her instructor when she was training to be a freedom fighter. His trail leads to the Goliath System, where Cally will discover a shocking lost secret from her past...

Spoils by James Goss
Roj Blake dreams of bringing down the Federation. Of toppling the President and Servalan and establishing a free society.

What would happen if he won? He is about to find out.

CAST:
Gareth Thomas (Blake), Jan Chappell (Cally), Jacqueline Pearce (Servalan), Peter Miles, Dan Starkey, Jemma Churchill

Preparatory listening: Being unfamiliar with the series, a passing knowledge would most likely be most helpful.

Blake’s 7 Classic Audio Adventures 1.5: Cold Fury

Written By: Mark Wright and Cavan Scott
Directed By: Ken Bentley

A one disc full cast audio drama

Synopsis:
When Travis scores a victory over the Liberator crew, Blake is willing to risk everything in order to get back what is theirs.

The destination is the uninhabited ice world Horst Minor, where eugenics specialist Dr Tirus is working on experiments for the Federation President.

Horst Minor has many secrets. And Blake is not going to like what he finds there…

CAST:
Gareth Thomas (Roj Blake), Paul Darrow (Kerr Avon), Michael Keating (Vila Restal), Jan Chappell (Cally), Sally Knyvette (Jenna Stannis), Brian Croucher (Travis), Alistair Lock (Zen/Orac), Hugh Fraser (The President), Caroline Langrishe (Dr Tirus), 

Preparatory listening: Being unfamiliar with the series, a passing knowledge would most likely be most helpful. The previous entries in the range would also help.

Blake’s 7: Lucifer: Revelation

Written By: Paul Darrow

A novel and ebook

Synopsis:
Many years have passed since the death of his companions on Gauda Prime, but Avon is still very much on the minds – and a thorn in the sides – of those in power. On the run in a stolen spaceship, Avon has world leaders, warlords, aliens, bandits and hitmen on his trail, all hoping to seize control of the super computer Orac, and to be rid of Avon once and for all.
But those who underestimate Avon do so at their own peril…

Preparatory listening: Being unfamiliar with the series, a passing knowledge would most likely be most helpful. The first Lucifer book

Pathfinder Legends 1.2: Rise Of The Runelords: The Skinsaw Murders

Written By: Cavan Scott
Directed By: John Ainsworth
A one disc full cast audio drama

Synopsis:
Sandpoint used to be such a safe place to live – until the scarecrows started to walk.
A series of grisly murders points to an undead killer. With Merisiel missing, Valeros, Harsk and Ezren must track the mysterious Skinsaw Man back to his haunted lair. Can they survive vengeful spirits, necrotic guardians and assassin cults to discover the secrets of the ancient rune carved into each of the corpses? Or will death find them as they explore the dangerousstreets of Magnimar?

CAST:
Trevor Littledale (Ezren), Ian Brooker (Harsk), Stewart Alexander (Valeros), Kerry Skinner (Merisiel), Yuriri Naka (Ameiko Kajitsu), Toby Longworth (Belor Hemlock), Katarina Olsson (Iesha Foxglove), Duncan Wisbey (Aldern Foxglove), Tam Williams (Justice Ironbriar), Helen Goldwyn (Lissa Hambley), Sunny Ormonde (Xanesha), Sean Connolly (Maester Grump)

Preparatory listening: Being unfamiliar with the series, a passing knowledge would most likely be most helpful.

What are you looking forward too? Please comment below about the releases you most eagerly anticipate.

The Monster Collection: Book re-issues

I know it’s slightly off-topic here, but I thought I’d talk about some upcoming novels that are being released later this year. Last year this was done for the 50^th anniversary, with one novel featuring each Doctor, with the books drawn from the BBC’s Past Doctor Adventures line for Doctors 1 to 6, a Target novelisation for the Seventh Doctor, a BBC Eight Doctor Adventure (it’s hard finding a title from there not continuity linked in some way!) and the BBC New Series Adventures for Doctors 9-11.

This new batch of books has TV monsters in prose form, in all new stories, with the new covers showing that monster. The original texts are also taken from a wider range of ranges, including the Virgin novels! If I have read that title, I may give my verdict on it.

Corpse Marker by Chris Boucher (Fourth Doctor and Leela, Voc Robots)

Past Doctor Adventures #27, released November 1999

The Doctor and Leela arrive on the planet Kaldor, where they find a society dependent on benign and obedient robots. But they have faced these robots before, on a huge Sandminer in the Kaldor desert, and know they are not always harmless servants. The only other people who know the truth are the three survivors from that Sandminer - and now they are being picked off one by one. The twisted genius behind that massacre is dead, but someone is developing a new, deadlier breed of robots. This time, unless the Doctor and Leela can stop them, they really will destroy the world. It is an adventure featuring the Fourth Doctor, as played by Tom Baker, and his companion Leela.

My verdict: Not as good as Robots Of Death, but then it takes someone as amazing a Nick Briggs to pen that amazing a sequel. Some intriguing developments, so worth a read

Shakedown by Terrance Dicks (Seventh Doctor, Benny, Chris and Roz, Sontarans)

Virgin New Adventures #45, released December 1995

For thousands of years the Sontarans and the Rutans have fought a brutal war across the galaxy. Now the Sontarans have a secret plan to destroy the Rutan race - a secret plan the Doctor is racing against time to uncover. Only one Rutan spy knows the Sontarans' plan. As he is chased through the galaxy in a desperate bid for his life, he reaches the planet Sentarion - where Professor Bernice Summerfield's research into the history of the Sontaran-Rutan war is turning into an explosive reality. It is an adventure featuring the Seventh Doctor, as played by Sylvester McCoy.

Fun fact: Part of this novel is based on the spin-off video Shakedown: Return Of The Sontarans, the second (and so far last) time the Sontarans and the Rutans appeared on screen together

Illegal Alien by Mike Tucker and Robert Perry (Seventh Doctor and Ace, Cybermen)

Past Doctor Adventure #5, released October 1997

The Blitz is at its height. As the Luftwaffe bomb London, Cody McBride, ex-pat American private eye, sees a sinister silver sphere crash-land. He glimpses something emerging from within. The military dismiss his account of events - the sphere must be a new German secret weapon that has malfunctioned in some way. What else could it be? Arriving amid the chaos, the Doctor and Ace embark on a trail that brings them face to face with hidden Nazi agents, and encounter some very old enemies. It is an adventure featuring the Seventh Doctor, as played by Sylvester McCoy, and his companion Ace.

My verdict: Get this one. It is a good read, and if you choose to pick up later releases that link into this one, rewarding.

Fun fact 1: This was going to be a TV story before the 89’ cancellation. Mike Tucker mentions this in the documentary on the Survival DVD

Fun fact 2: This is the first book in a cycle of Seventh Doctor and Ace stories. After Illegal Alien, there’s #16 Matrix, #23 Storm Harvest (first appearance of the Krill, who are also in the Big Finish Dust Breeding with a certain Mr Seta..), #33 Prime Time, #57 Heritage and #60 Loving The Alien (wraps up threads from these books)

Touched By An Angel by Jonathan Morris (Eleventh Doctor, Amy and Rory, Weeping Angels)

New Series Adventure #46, released June 2011

'The past is like a foreign country. Nice to visit, but you really wouldn't want to live there.' In 2003, Rebecca Whitaker died in a road accident. Her husband Mark is still grieving. He receives a battered envelope, posted eight years earlier, containing a set of instructions with a simple message: 'You can save her.' As Mark is given the chance to save Rebecca, it's up to the Doctor, Amy and Rory to save the whole world. Because this time the Weeping Angels are using history itself as a weapon. It is an adventure featuring the Eleventh Doctor, as played by Matt Smith, and his companions Amy and Rory.

My verdict: Jonathan Morris weaves his magic with the Weeping Angels, who are just as intense on print as they are on screen. Why can’t Johnny Morris write a TV script? I’d recommend all his Big Finish stuff, and also his many other novels. His debut, Festival Of Death (re-released last year) is a masterpiece)

The Scales Of Injustice by Gary Russell (Third Doctor, Liz and UNIT, Silurians and Sea-Devils)

Virgin Missing Adventure #24, released July 1996

When a boy goes missing and a policewoman starts drawing cave paintings, the Doctor suspects the Silurians are back. With the Brigadier distracted by questions about UNIT funding and problems at home, the Doctor swears his assistant Liz Shaw to secrecy and investigates alone. But Liz has enquiries of her own, teaming up with a journalist to track down people who don't exist. What is the mysterious Glasshouse, and why is it so secret? As the Silurians wake from their ancient slumber, the Doctor, Liz and the Brigadier are caught up in a conspiracy to exploit UNIT's achievements - a conspiracy that reaches deep into the heart of the British Government. It is an adventure featuring the Third Doctor, as played by Jon Pertwee, his companion Liz Shaw and UNIT.

Popular opinion: Often said to be a very popular book, I hope this gives me the chance to read for myself

Fun fact: Some characters reappear in the Past Doctor Adventures novels Business Unusual and Instruments Of Darkness, both by Gary Russell

Prisoner Of The Daleks by Trevor Baxendale (Tenth Doctor, Daleks)

New Series Adventure #33, released April 2009

The Daleks are advancing, their empire constantly expanding. The battles rage on across countless solar systems - and the Doctor finds himself stranded on board a starship near the frontline with a group of ruthless bounty hunters. Earth Command will pay these hunters for every Dalek they kill, every eyestalk they bring back as proof. With the Doctor's help, the bounty hunters achieve the ultimate prize: a Dalek prisoner - intact, powerless, and ready for interrogation. But with the Daleks, nothing is what it seems, and no one is safe. Before long the tables will be turned, and how will the Doctor survive when he becomes a prisoner of the Daleks? It is an adventure featuring the Tenth Doctor, as played by David Tennant.

My verdict: By getting past the Dalek continuity from the new series, Trevor Baxendale brings us hoards of Daleks and a plot that will impact the whole universe. The characters are memorable as well. Get it

Sting Of The Zygons by Stephen Cole (Tenth Doctor and Martha, Zygons)

New Series Adventure #13, released April 2007

The TARDIS lands the Doctor and Martha in the Lake District in 1909, where a small village has been terrorised by a giant, scaly monster. The search is on for the elusive 'Beast of Westmorland', and explorers, naturalists and hunters from across the country are descending on the fells. King Edward VII himself is on his way to join the search, with a knighthood for whoever finds the Beast. But there is a more sinister presence at work in the Lakes than a mere monster on the rampage, and the Doctor is soon embroiled in the plans of an old and terrifying enemy. And as the hunters become the hunted, a desperate battle of wits begins - with the future of the entire world at stake. It includes an adventure featuring the Tenth Doctor, as played by David Tennant, and his companion Martha.

My verdict: not the best, yet an interesting story none the less, and the “who (or what…) is a zygon” thing is fun. I would rather the BBC brought out the early Eighth Doctor Adventure The Body Snatchers by Mark Morris, which featured Sam and Litefoot (the book is also referenced the Eighth Doctor Big Finish audio The Zygon Who Came To Earth), and is less widely available than this title

The Sands Of Time by Justin Richards (Fifth Doctor, Nyssa and Tegan, Osirians and Mummy Robots)

Virgin Missing Adventure #22, released May 1996

The Doctor is in Victorian London with Nyssa and Tegan - a city shrouded in mystery. When Nyssa is kidnapped in the British Museum, the Doctor and Tegan have to unlock the answers to a series of ancient questions. Their quest leads them across continents and time as an ancient Egyptian prophecy threatens future England. To save Nyssa, the Doctor must foil the plans of the mysterious Sadan Rassul. But as mummies stalk the night, an ancient terror stirs in its tomb. It is an adventure featuring the Fifth Doctor, as played by Peter Davison, and his companions Nyssa and Tegan.

My verdict: An original idea, with plenty of time-hopping and good, but not overdone use of timey-wimey. I say yes, and you're also unlikely to find it anywhere else.

These titles are available from March this year. Some are from the hard to find Virgin years (which can only be found on eBay or second hand bookshops) and hopefully include forwards by the authors like last year’s batch did. A good introduction to prose Doctor Who if you target likes the monsters

Comment below, or tweet me at @jbmastawa. What books or authors would you like to see re-issued? Have you read these titles and which ones do you recommend? What ones would you like to read or re-read?