Doctor Who: Delta and the Bannermen
by Malcolm Kohll (Target, 1989)
audiobook read by Bonnie Langford (BBC, 2017)
An ambitious story, in that it pairs manifestly serious themes (not least, genocide) with a feel-good, late-1950s rock ‘n’ roll vibe. Kohll opts for blithe exuberance in the novelisation, and, regrettably, not to excise the American agents. Langford’s reading is pure Mel.
Doctor Who: The Good Doctor
by Juno Dawson (BBC, 2018)
audiobook read by Clare Corbett (BBC Digital, 2018)
An insipid, paint-by-numbers novel. Dawson offers nothing original in terms of content and almost less than that in delivery, as if the BBC range editors were fixedly determined to scrub the word ‘new’ from ‘New Series Adventures’. Clare Corbett tries her best.
Doctor Who: The Zygon Who Fell To Earth
by Paul Magrs (Big Finish, 2008)
A pleasantly small-scale invasion story with a focus on relationships, humbugged somewhat by overtly manipulative, aggressively heart-rending incidental music. Steven Pacey is a welcome addition to the voice cast, as is Tim Brooke-Taylor in his one, gloriously understated appearance for Big Finish.
Doctor Who: The Masque of Mandragora
by Louis Marks; dir. Rodney Bennett (BBC, 1976)
Tom Baker is in fine fettle as the Doctor swashbuckles around a rather small-looking historical adventure, countering an alien threat that he himself has enabled. Elisabeth Sladen brings matchless nuance to her performance. Giuliano narrowly survives a foreshadowing of Blackadder’s Lord Percy.
Doctor Who: The Kairos Ring
by Stephen Gallagher; read by Steven Pacey (BBC Audio, 2021)
A novelette that would have benefited from a longer treatment. Gallagher is an accomplished writer peddling a nifty idea, but Romana has too little involvement (especially for a Doctor-less story) and the threat, having been built up, is vanquished rather too easily.
Doctor Who: The Book of Kells
by Barnaby Edwards (Big Finish, 2010)
A solid historical adventure, commendably underplayed (albeit mostly a veiled character set-up). Paul McGann is excellent as ever, his delivery a sublime and mercurial mix of conceit, solemnity, flippancy and suppressed wrath. Goodies fans will appreciate a well-pitched appearance by Graeme Garden.
Doctor Who: The Power of the Doctor
by Chris Chibnall; dir. Jamie Magnus Stone (BBC, 2022)
Grandiloquent, saccharine, but something of a wet dream for longstanding Who fans. The plot is bonkers (not in such a bad way) and trades nostalgia for closure. Amidst the series-spanning Easter egg hunt, Sacha Dhawan gives the one performance of independent merit.
Doctor Who: The Annihilators
by Nicholas Briggs (Big Finish, 2022)
Excellent voice performances by the actors recast to play classic Doctor Who characters. Conceptually, the story is fun and era-appropriate (albeit not much more than a rehash of Galaxy 4). The execution, however, is unnecessarily choppy, disavowing any hint of longer scenes.
Doctor Who: The Evil of the Daleks
by David Whitaker; dir. Derek Martinus (BBC, 1967/2021)
A moody story that stays pleasingly small-scale for the majority of its seven episodes. While the premise proves a bit batty, Dudley Simpson’s incidental music keeps the viewer invested. The animation flatters the Daleks and rises to something near resplendence on Skaro.
Doctor Who: The Lichyrwick Abomination
by Joe Vevers; audiobook read by Jacob Dudman (Big Finish, 2021)
A curiously meandering short story. While Vevers focusses on moodiness and setting, the core of the premise itself—Malcolm’s guilt—becomes lost in the mist. Dudman’s reading goes some way towards salvaging the production but it’s still a bit of a muddle.