IT'S MILLER TIME! CAPTAIN JACK - PERI BROWN - Big Finish

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IT'S MILLER TIME! CAPTAIN JACK - PERI BROWN - Big Finish
ISSUE: 124 • JUNE 2019                             WWW.BIGFINISH.COM

    DOCTOR WHO

PERI BROWN
COLIN BAKER AND NICOLA
BRYANT REUNITED!

  THE WAR DOCTOR

MEN OF WAR
RAGE OF THE TIME LORDS!

  IT’S MILLER TIME!
  SHERIDAN SMITH IS BACK FOR MORE

                          CAPTAIN JACK
                          SAME HARKNESS, DIFFERENT COAT!
IT'S MILLER TIME! CAPTAIN JACK - PERI BROWN - Big Finish
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IT'S MILLER TIME! CAPTAIN JACK - PERI BROWN - Big Finish
COMING SOON

 L
          isteners missing The          work at Department Seven.

                                                                                  I
          Omega Factor are in              “Then Tom finds out that                       T’S RATHER well known
          for a treat this July in      Anne wants him to watch                           within Big Finish that I love
the form of a new story written         one of the shows that is                          Sheridan Smith. So when
by Natasha Gerson – whose               going to be performed at the            she was cast as Lucie Miller I was
father Jack created the series.         upcoming Edinburgh Festival.            delighted as I had been a big fan of
The Omega Factor, based in              The story which follows is              her work for many years. I first
Scotland, starred Louise                mysterious and traumatic.               remember seeing Sheridan in Holby
Jameson as Anne Reynolds and            Many lives are put in danger.           City when she guest starred in half a
the late James Hazeldine as             There are inexplicable                  dozen episodes as a character who
Tom Crane. Big Finish revived           events which seem to mirror             claimed to be the witness to a
the series on audio in 2015             Adam’s experience in the                killing, and I was impressed that
making three series set in the          present day... You’ll have to           such a young actress was able to
modern day, with Louise                 listen to find out more!”               give so strong a performance.
Jameson reprising her role of              She adds: “The Omega                    I then followed her career with
Anne (now a doctor), and John           Factor had an impact because            interest from guest appearances
Dorney playing Adam Dean,               it wasn’t just an ordinary              in The Royle Family followed
the son of Tom.                         thriller. It also contained             by a starring role in Two Pints
   Festival of Darkness will be         timeless elements of the                of Lager and a Packet of Crisps.
the latest release in a series          supernatural, extra-sensory             And that’s when I fell in love
of original fiction audiobooks          perception and science-fiction,         with her, long before the rest
set around the time of the              with echoes of the work of MR           of the country did after Cilla,
1979 TV show. Natasha says:             James, Algernon Blackwood               The C Word and Mrs Biggs.
“We start with Adam looking             and one of my maternal                     Late in 2011 my mum died just
at one of his father’s case             relatives, RL Stevenson. It             41 days after being diagnosed
files. Tom has returned to              couldn’t fail to fascinate, or          with pancreatic cancer. This
Edinburgh in late July 1979             even shock, as evidenced by             obviously floored me, but the two
at Anne’s urgent request. But           Mary Whitehouse’s reaction.             things that helped me get through
he’s there somewhat against             She thought it ‘thoroughly              my grief were the Eighth Doctor
his better judgement because            evil.’ I still love that!”              audio stories with Lucie Miller
he is meant to be taking a              Read by Louise Jameson,                 and TV episodes of Two Pints –
sabbatical after attacks on             Festival of Darkness is available       particularly the musical special.
his physical and mental well-           to pre-order now at £9.99                  This issue I achieved something
being that resulted from his            on download.                            of a lifetime ambition by having
                                                                                an interview with Sheridan
                                                                                (courtesy of Nicholas Briggs, who
                                                                                knows I love her so much). When I
Managing Editor: Jason Haigh-Ellery    Design: Mark Plastow                     mentioned the above to Sheridan,
Executive Producer: Nicholas Briggs    Copy Editor: Stephanie Hornett           I actually made her cry – and I feel
Senior Producer: David Richardson      Marketing: Steve Berry, Kris Griffin,    bad about that – sorry Sheridan!
Editor: Kenny Smith                    Paddy Freeland                           So to cut a long story short,
The Big Finish Team: Sue Cowley,       BFP Administration: Cheryl Bly,          I can’t wait to hear The
Emily de Fraine, Karen Parks,          Brenda Smith, Alison Taylor              Further Adventures of
Hannah Peel, Alfie Shaw, Paul Spragg   Publisher: Big Finish Productions Ltd.
                                                                                Lucie Miller!

                                                                                                      VORTEX | PAGE 3
IT'S MILLER TIME! CAPTAIN JACK - PERI BROWN - Big Finish
ER
    ORD     ATM
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 IT’S THE FURTHER ADVENTURES                                  and encountered the Doctor
                                                              and Rose as he tried to pull off

 OF ONE MAN AND HIS                                           a con.
                                                                Then having reformed
 VORTEX MANIPULATOR...                                        his criminal ways, he
                                                              joined them on their travels
                                                              before being left behind on

                            C
                                      APTAIN JACK             Satellite 5 after the Doctor’s
                                      Harkness – a man who    regeneration began.
DOCTOR WHO:
THE LIVES OF CAPTAIN                  has become very           The Lives of Captain
JACK: VOLUME TWO            familiar, and yet we know so      Jack introduces us to the
                            little about… We know Javic       exploits that follow – before
n Released: June 2019       Thane grew up on the Boeshane     and after he ended up at
n Format: CD and download   Peninsula. His brother was        Torchwood Three in Cardiff.
                            taken during an alien attack;       The second box set in the
                            and he later become a Time        range features Piece of Mind
    ORDER NOW AT:           Agent. His exploits took him to   by James Goss, What Have
    BGFN.SH/CAPSIXIE        Earth after he quit the agency,   I Done? by Guy Adams and
                            took on the name of a captain,    Driving Miss Wells, also by

 VORTEX | PAGE 4
IT'S MILLER TIME! CAPTAIN JACK - PERI BROWN - Big Finish
DOCTOR WHO
                                                                                         CAPTAIN JACK

 Right: John Barrowman

                                       “IT’S ESSENTIALLY JUST
James. We begin with a story
which John Barrowman
                                       A STORY ABOUT FEAR –
himself teased us with on
Instagram when he donned a
                                       THE SHEER CRIPPLING
very familiar-looking brightly
coloured patchwork coat...
                                        EFFECT OF FEAR...”                                    GUY ADAMS

  James says: “A Piece of Mind is
a hoot and a half with a heart,

                                                                           F
in which Captain Jack meets         look good in anything!                           ROM A story with lots
the Sixth Doctor. There’s a line      “And yes, John insisted on                     of fun, we get to
in the TV episode Utopia about      going for an English accent.                     explore the more
how Jack’s been waiting around      His Doctor is the kind of             serious side of Jack in What
‘for the right Doctor’ and we       person grannies would                 Have I Done? James says What
asked Russell T Davies if he        punch on the nose – but               Have I Done? is: “A thoughtful
could meet the ‘wrong’ one!         he’s also very charming.”             adventure set in the trenches
  “As we couldn’t not have            Director Scott Handcock adds:       of World War I, which sees Jack
Jack wearing the coat, the          “It’s a lovely trio of stories. The   determined to save someone’s
story grew from there – it’s        first, Piece of Mind, finds Jack      life against all the odds.
sort of Cyrano de Bergerac          still waiting for ‘his’ Doctor           “It’s a proper character
meets The Prisoner of Zenda.        to come back for him after            piece from Guy Adams
Something terrible happens          the catastrophic events in the        that really captures the
to the Sixth Doctor mid-story,      TV episode The Parting of the         pointless, grinding misery
and Jack has to step into his       Ways, and instead having to           of the setting. It’s also set
spats and save the day.             deal with – and help save – a         at Gallipoli, a battle famous
  “You’ll be thrilled to hear       much earlier incarnation.             for being fought uphill.”
Colin and John stealing             It’s a fun, tender script,               Writer Guy explains:
scenes from each other, and         with joyous performances              “The story I’ve written is
the photoshoot with John            from John and Colin, both of          basically a two-hander.
in the coat was an utter joy        whom get to show a different          What Have I Done? sees Jack
– proof that that man can           side to their characters.”            paired up with a young

                                                                                            VORTEX | PAGE 5
IT'S MILLER TIME! CAPTAIN JACK - PERI BROWN - Big Finish
DOCTOR WHO
    CAPTAIN JACK

  soldier. It’s essentially just a
  story about fear – the sheer
  crippling effect of fear, the
  sheer destructive quality
  of fear, the viral quality
  of fear... it’s surprisingly
  heartfelt at times.
    “What’s important when
  writing about a historical
  era is conveying the truth
  and sense of that era.
    “A lot of time when I’m
  doing research, I collate a
  lot of facts, but these don’t
  tend to make their way in.
  For me, when you’re writing
  about an important real               Above (l–r): Timothy Blore,
  event, you want to capture            Lachele Carl, Vikash Bhai and
                                        Maeve Bluebell Wells

“HE’S HAUNTED BY
 HIS IMMORTALITY,
 AND WANTS
 NOTHING MORE
THAN TO SAVE A
 SINGLE LIFE… BUT
 LIFE IS NEVER AS
 STRAIGHTFORWARD
 AS DEATH. ”          SCOTT HANDCOCK
                                        Above (l–r): Sophie Hopkins,
                                        John Barrowman, Hannah Arterton
                                        and Prasanna Puwanarajah

                                        T
  the truth of it.” Scott adds:                HE BOX set concludes         fantastic Lachele Carl, who
  “What Have I Done? is a                      with the return of a         featured so routinely across
  more serious affair, pitching                character who has the        Doctor Who, Torchwood
  Jack into the battlefields           unique distinction of                and The Sarah Jane
  of Gallipoli not long after          appearing in not just Doctor         Adventures back in the day.
  the death of Ianto Jones.            Who, but Torchwood and The             “It’s such a small tweak,
    “Jack’s at a point where           Sarah Jane Adventures                but makes it just that extra
  he’s haunted by his                  – AMNN newsreader Trinity            bit familiar, and Lachele
  immortality, and wants               Wells. Scott explains: “Driving      relished the chance to tackle
  nothing more than to save            Miss Wells is a paranoid thriller,   more than simply declaring
  a single life… but life is           focussing on a newscaster who        the end of the world!” James
  never as straightforward as          no longer believes the news          agrees: “We all love Lachele
  death. For the most part, it’s       and is questioning everything.       Carl’s newsreader (from every
  a delicate, dark two-hander,           “And rather than any old           crisis in Russell’s era of Doctor
  with the brilliant Atilla            newscaster, when I knew this         Who) and Scott suggested
  Akinci playing a soldier just        story was looming I suggested        we give her a second act.
  as haunted as Jack, but for          to James that we write it for          “This is a story about a
  very different reasons.”             Trinity Wells, played by the         newsreader who one day

  VORTEX | PAGE 6
IT'S MILLER TIME! CAPTAIN JACK - PERI BROWN - Big Finish
DOCTOR WHO
                                                                   CAPTAIN JACK

“CONSPIRACY     stops believing the news and
                becomes convinced she’s
                                                   to people – her mother, her
                                                   boss, Captain Jack – people
THEORIES,       caught up in a conspiracy
                so bizarre even she can’t
                                                   who inhabit a world outside
                                                   of the newsroom, which
 FAKE NEWS      believe in it. She’s also in the   gives her a bit more depth.
                middle of a book tour and            “It ties her more into the
 AND WHY        her publisher has given her        narrative yet still sets her

 PEOPLE GO      a very dashing new driver.
                  “It’s basically a chance to
                                                   apart in a way that shows her
                                                   more as a person with flaws
 ON STRICTLY”   shine a spotlight on Lachele
                Carl (which she seizes) and
                                                   and vulnerabilities; and it still
                                                   allows for a bit of mystery
JAMES GOSS

                Above (l–r): Atilla Akinci
                and John Barrowman

                also to talk about conspiracy      about who she really is.”
                theories, fake news and why          Lachele, who is no stranger
                people go on Strictly.”            to Big Finish having appeared
                  Lachele spoke to Vortex,         as Sheriff Rhonda Tate in the
                and admits she had never           Dark Shadows range of audios,
                expected to be asked to play       had a good time returning
                Trinity again: “Yes, I was         to her old part of Trinity.
                surprised, and it was lovely         She adds: “Absolutely
                to be asked to revive her!”        – everyone was kind and
                  She was also happy to            professional, the cast were
                have a role more central to        great to work with, it was
                the story, rather than just        all very relaxed, and we just
                reporting on it. She says:         had a fun time lifting the
                “Again, it was a surprise and a    words from the page to life.
                very nice one. The script was      Scott, James and the team
                well written and it was fun!       seemed very pleased with the
                  “What I loved most about it      end result, which all made
                was that Trinity was relating      for a happy day.”

                                                                      VORTEX | PAGE 7
IT'S MILLER TIME! CAPTAIN JACK - PERI BROWN - Big Finish
She’s back and it’s about time!
Sheridan Smith chats exclusively
to Vortex and says…

        I
              T’S THURSDAY 23 August 2018. It’s 1.15pm
              and Vortex takes a call from Big Finish
              executive producer Nicholas Briggs. “Hello,
     Kenny,” says Nick. “Hope you’re well, I’m at Moat
     Studios and I’ve got someone here who wants to
     talk to you.” There’s a brief pause as he hands over
     his mobile to someone else. And then Britain’s
     sweetheart, Sheridan Smith, introduces herself.
     “Hiya, I’m Sheridan…” says a very familiar voice.

VORTEX | PAGE 8
IT'S MILLER TIME! CAPTAIN JACK - PERI BROWN - Big Finish
INTERVIEW
                                                                                          SHERIDAN SMITH

                                                                             enthusiasm led to Big Finish
                                                                             commissioning a new box set of
                                                                             adventures in The Further
                                                                             Adventures of Lucie Miller.
                                                                               Sheridan says: “I remember the
                                                                             last time I came in to play Lucie –
                                                                             we worked out it was eight years
                                                                             ago – and when we finished I was
                                                                             feeling so sad. I was like, ‘Please

                                                                       “PLEASE HAVE ME
                                                                        BACK ONE DAY! I
                                                                        DON’T WANT TO
                                                                        GO! I DON’T WANT
                                                                       TO DIE!”           SHERIDAN SMITH

                                                                             have me back one day! I don’t
                                                                             want to go! I don’t want to die!’
                                                                                “And Nick said, ‘Well the thing
                                                                             is with Doctor Who, anything
Above (l–r): Paul McGann                                                     can happen!’ So when they said
and Sheridan Smith
                                                                             that they were wanting to bring
                                                                             her back and do four adventures
                                                                             with her, I was so excited! It’s

 A
          ND IT’S true. Lucie Miller   Award for Best Actress in a Play      something everyone wants to do –
          IS BACK in The Further       in 2013 for Hedda Gabler; and the     everyone wants to work with Big
          Adventures of Lucie          National Television Award for         Finish and everyone wants to be
Miller. It suddenly becomes real       Outstanding Drama Performance         part of the Doctor Who family.”
– and it’s been a long time coming.    for Cilla in 2015. But despite all       Having played a number of
The road to the return of Lucie in     of that success, Sheridan has         parts to critical acclaim since
these four full-cast plays has been    never forgotten Lucie Miller.         she last donned the mantle of
a long one. On 5 July 2010,                                                  Lucie, it’s easy to image that

                                         I
Sheridan recorded her final scenes              AN ATKINS, when              while Sheridan might look back
as the Eighth Doctor’s best friend,             producer of the Doctor       on her time with Big Finish
and, it seemed, was certain never               Who Short Trips range,       with fondness, now that she has
to return.                             contacted Sheridan’s agent in         moved on in her career, she has
   Since then her career exploded,     2015 to find out if she would be      no wish to revisit the character.
winning acclaim for her roles          interested in performing a couple     But that’s far from the case.
on stage and television – the          of his short stories. And the word       Sheridan enthusiastically
Laurence Olivier Award for             came back that she was. Very          replies: “Oh my gosh – I will
Best Actress in a Musical and          interested. After weeks to trying     always make time for Lucie. I love
the WhatsOnStage Award for             to pin down recording days, Ian       her! Poor Briggsy has had to try
Best Actress in a Musical for          breathed a sigh of relief when he     and organise the schedules as Paul
Legally Blonde: The Musical in         saw that the taxi which had been      McGann has been so busy filming
2011; the Critics’ Circle Theatre      sent to collect her was en route to   and I’ve been working – but we
Award for Best Actress and the         Moat Studios on 28 January 2016.      managed to get this week when
Laurence Olivier Award for Best        The two scripts were                  we could both come in. It worked
Performance in a Supporting            subsequently recorded – The Curse     out great – Nick was free to direct
Role for Flare Path in 2012; the       of the Fugue by Alice Cavender in     and it all came together – all the
British Academy Television             April 2016, and Flashpoint by         mates are back. I’m so thrilled to
Award for Best Actress for Mrs         Andrew Smith in July 2017.            be here again. But it’s my last day
Biggs in 2013; the WhatsOnStage        During the recording the actress’     and I’m really sad about that.”

                                                                                                VORTEX | PAGE 9
IT'S MILLER TIME! CAPTAIN JACK - PERI BROWN - Big Finish
INTERVIEW
  SHERIDAN SMITH

                                                                                TV, and regularly featuring in the
                                                                                TV and showbiz columns of the
                                                                                national press. But she admits
                                                                                that, despite her fame, she is
                                                                                touched by the devotion of the
                                                                                Doctor Who fans who want her
                                                                                autograph or a photo with her.
                                                                                   Vortex tells her just how
                                                                                beloved she is to fans of
                                                                                Big Finish, and how much
                                                                                people have taken to the
                                                                                character of Lucie.
                                                                                   Sheridan says: “That’s amazing,
                                                                                thank you so much. I get letters
                                                                                from all over the world and
                                                                                listeners bring the Big Finish CD
                                                                                sleeves for me to sign when I’m
                                                                                working in theatres. It’s lovely
                                                                                that people are interested and
                                                                                remember me. I’ve been to a
                                                                                Doctor Who convention so I
                                                                                know what it means to people,
                                                         Left: Sheridan Smith
                                                                                and I get what people mean
                                                                                about the Doctor Who family.

   Ever the optimist, Vortex
points out that it’s Sheridan’s last
day – for now. “Oh, of course, for
now! Exactly! I love that!” She
bursts out again into that famous
laugh. “I love coming back to
her. It’s the best character I’ve
played, my favourite that I’ve had
I think – Lucy bleeding Miller!
   “It was so funny on the first
day as I walked back into my
booth. They were all laughing
as I went into my old one, like
a well-trained dog. It had been
years but it was like no time
had passed. It’s fantastic –
we’ve been able to pick up the
conversation just like a family,
and carry on exactly where we
left off. It’s just wonderful.            “When people are listening to         Honestly, you have no idea how
   “We went straight back into         it, their minds can go anywhere.         proud I am to be associated
it and it was so much fun – I’ve       It’s a really nice way for people        with it through Big Finish.
missed running on the spot             to get some new Doctor Who.                 “I loved what I knew about
to get away from Daleks!                  “I love Doctor Who on telly but       Doctor Who from what I’d
   “I love working here – you          doing it for audio recordings is         seen on TV, but I had no idea
don’t have to come in dressed!         just so much fun. I feel privileged      just how big it really is. And
Well I did come in dressed, I          getting to do them. Hopefully,           I just love Big Finish, coming
don’t come in naked! I did arrive      fingers crossed, I can always            up to the 20th anniversary
in my slippers one time, which         come back and do more.”                  of making audios now.”
Paul was laughing at, but you                                                      With four new scripts,

                                        S
can come in looking rubbish,                    HERIDAN IS currently            Sheridan admits she’s had a blast
you don’t have to learn your                    one of the most                 each day but has a real affection
lines, and you get to have all                  high-profile actors in          for the one she was recording
these amazing adventures and           Britain, starring in a constant          on the day we’re chatting. She
meet so many lovely actors.            stream of successful dramas on           says: “I really enjoyed the one

VORTEX | PAGE 10
INTERVIEW
                                                                                                  SHERIDAN SMITH

“THERE ARE SOME                                                                     Above (l–r): Paul McGann,
                                                                                    Nicholas Briggs and

 REALLY FUNNY BITS FOR                                                              Sheridan Smith

 LUCIE WHO’S DOING                                                                 TV, we did get to see Sheridan
 A ‘DEAR DIARY’ KIND                                                               and Paul sharing screen time
                                                                                   in The Judas Tree, a Jonathan
 OF THING.”                   SHERIDAN SMITH                                       Creek episode in 2010.
                                                                                      “That was mad, wasn’t it?”
                                                                                   says Sheridan. “I have such a
 we did today, The Dalek Trap, as              is done. “Nah. But he’s             great relationship with Paul
 it’s basically bonkers. Everyone              going to pay me later!”             from doing the Doctor Who
 is losing their mind, without                                                     series, and when I was doing

                                                S
 giving too much away, and                               INCE SHERIDAN last        Jonathan Creek I had a good
 it really makes me laugh.                               played Lucie, Paul        relationship with Alan Davies.
    “There are some really funny                         McGann played the            “When Paul came in and did
 bits for Lucie who’s doing a                  Eighth Doctor on TV for his         an episode it was so bizarre,
 ‘Dear Diary’ kind of thing.                   regeneration in Night of the        having my two ‘brothers’ in
    “I love Lucie and the Doctor’s             Doctor. And before he changed,      the industry in the same place.
 relationship – they’re like                   he mentioned several of his Big     But that was really nice, to be
 squabbling siblings. He’s the                 Finish companions by name...        filming with him. I would love to
 annoying posh older brother                   including Lucie.                    have done Lucie with him on TV.
 with an annoying northern                        This, however, is news to           “Paul’s a great guy. He’s
 brat sister. But there are                    Sheridan. She shrieks: “What?       lovely. He took me under his
 some real sensitive moments                   No? Really? Are you kidding me?     wing. When we first started,
 between them: they really                     I didn’t even know that! Oh my      I was this young mad head
 love each other. There are sad                gosh, Lucie’s been mentioned        from the north. I’m still a
 moments too but also loads                    on TV? That’s amazing!              northern mad head, but just
 of fun, as you can imagine.                      “I remember when I finished      not so young – I’m 37 now!”
    “It’s been incredible. It’s an             the audition and I was so excited      Vortex thanks Sheridan for
 honour to be a small part of the              when they told me I had got         her time, as she returns to
 whole Doctor Who thing. Nick                  the part, and I remember them       the studio to finish recording
 Briggs is a genius – it’s great to            saying welcome to the family.       her last story… for now!
 be back working with him.”                    I thought that was nice, but I         Sheridan laughs again:
    Vortex asks if he’s standing               had no idea how big it was.”        “Yeah – for now! It’s been lovely
 close by in order to retrieve                    And while we never got to see    talking to you – it’s really
 his phone when the interview                  Lucie alongside the Doctor on       made my day!”

                                                                                                        VORTEX | PAGE 11
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                                                        TIME        But all good things must come
  THEY’RE BACK AND IT’S ABOUT TIME!                              to an end and that was the case
  THE EIGHTH DOCTOR AND LUCIE MILLER                             in 2011, when Lucie left the
                                                                 Doctor’s side in To the Death.
  RETURN NEXT MONTH AND WE’VE GOT                                   Executive producer Nicholas
  THE INSIDE TRACK ON REUNITING THEM…                            Briggs admits: “We always
                                                                 had it in mind to bring back
                                                                 Lucie – we only let her go in the

                             T
                                     HE DOCTOR and Lucie.        first place because we could
                                      Lucie and the Doctor.      see Sheridan’s stratospheric
                                      Whichever way round you    career path approaching.
DOCTOR WHO: THE
FURTHER ADVENTURES          think of them, they are without         “After Big Finish producer Ian
OF LUCIE MILLER             doubt one of the most popular        Atkins asked Sheridan to record
                            combinations of Doctor and           two Short Trips single-voice
n Released: July 2019       companion in any media – of all      releases as Lucie, we discovered
n Format: CD and download   time ever!                           that Sheridan was really keen to
                              Over the course of four series,    do more. And so script editor Alan
                            Paul McGann and Sheridan Smith       Barnes, producer Scott Handcock
    ORDER NOW AT:           became a beloved pairing as they     and I started devising The Further
    BGFN.SH/ILOVELUCIE      made their way though space and      Adventures of Lucie Miller.”
                            time, enjoying delirious highs and      The Further Adventures of
                            heartbreaking lows along the way.    Lucie Miller is set between the first

  VORTEX | PAGE 12
DOCTOR WHO
                                                                                                          LUCIE MILLER
 Below (l–r): Alan Barnes, Sheridan Smith,
 Lauren Cornelius, Carlyss Peer, Bethan Dixon Bate,
 Atilla Akinci and Paul Panting

                                                            “IT’S LUCIE HAVING TO COPE
                                                            WITHOUT THE DOCTOR.
                                                            IT’S TRAUMATIC FOR
                                                            HER BECAUSE HE HASN’T
and second series of her adventures                         DISAPPEARED…”                      NICHOLAS BRIGGS
with the Eighth Doctor, between
Human Resources and Dead London.
  Nick explains: “I have always
been clear that I wouldn’t
reverse the finality of Lucie’s
departure. That would somehow
seem like cheating and would
lessen the emotional impact of
what we did. So my plan was
always to revisit Lucie earlier
on in her adventures with the
Eighth Doctor. It’s pretty much
what we do with every classic
companion-and-Doctor pairing,
so why not do it with Lucie?”
  Nick has written the first                          Above (l–r): Paul McGann,
story of the new box set, which                       Nicholas Briggs and
                                                      Sheridan Smith
just happens to feature a race
of aliens Lucie encountered on
her first trip in the TARDIS.
  The Dalek Trap sees the Doctor                      my head for so long. We all fell   another episode that was mostly
behaving distinctly out of                            in love with the character and     about Lucie. It’d been a long time
character, and Lucie having to take                   what Sheridan did with her, and    since I’d written for her but she
control to thwart the Daleks and                      then we expanded our approach      just leapt back to life as I wrote.
a mysterious force of ‘Darkness’.                     when we realised that with         A truly joyous experience.”
  Nick admits he was delighted                        Sheridan, anything was possible.     The Dalek Trap gives Sheridan
to have the chance to write                              “That was how it went when      a chance to shine from the off.
for Lucie once more: “I really                        we did the four seasons back in      Nick explains: “It’s Lucie
enjoyed it. I couldn’t wait to get                    the day. Such a happy time. So     having to cope without the
started. Lucie’s voice has been in                    I jumped at the chance to write    Doctor. It’s traumatic for her

                                                                                                            VORTEX | PAGE 13
DOCTOR WHO
  LUCIE MILLER

                                                                                   Above (l–r): Eddie Robson, Paul McGann,
                                                                                   Nicholas Briggs, Rupert Vansittart,
                                                                                   Sheridan Smith, Scott Handcock,
                                                                                   Emily Woodward, Alicia Ambrose Bayly,
                                                                                   Joe Jameson and Carla Mendoça

     “YES, LUCIE IS TAKING
     PART IN A COMPETITIVE                                                       derby skated into my head.”
                                                                                   Yes, Lucie is taking part in a
     SPORT. AND IT’S QUITE                                                       competitive sport. And it’s quite

     EASY TO IMAGINE HER
                                                                                 easy to imagine her on skates,
                                                                                 physically battling with other

     ON SKATES.”                        ALICE CAVENDER
                                                                                 contenders. Alice says: “Some
                                                                                 say sport is nothing without its
                                                                                 supporters. When the Doctor
                                                                                 and Lucie attend the greatest
because he hasn’t disappeared            story for the characters, Alice is no   sporting event in the galaxy and
– just his personality has. He’s         stranger to writing for the pair.       release a mysterious captive held
like a sort of clockwork shell of          She explains: “I was working          by its sponsors, that’s when the
himself. There, but not there.           with Ian Atkins on the Lucie            people of Castus Sigma really
   “So she’s thrown into trying to       Miller Short Trip The Curse of the      have to choose a side. To outrun
be the Doctor. But of course she         Fugue when he managed to tear           disaster Lucie Miller will literally
isn’t the Doctor, so she bashes          Sheridan Smith away from her            have to get her skates on…”
about in the situation like a bull       hectic schedule to record both

                                                                                  T
in china shop, and eventually            of the Lucie stories. When she                    HE THIRD story in this
comes out on top… sort of. It’s a        subsequently agreed to reprise her                series, like the first, is
story in which the Daleks have           role for this full-cast box set I was             written by an old hand
a very strange, unexpected role          fortunate to be asked to contribute.    from the original run. The House on
alongside the humans who                   “The brief from script                the Edge of Chaos by Eddie Robson
find themselves trapped in a             editor Alan Barnes was that             finds the Doctor and Lucie trapped
threatening, deadly environment.”        the stories could be fun and            in a bizarre building, packed with
                                         energetic. There are some dark          eccentric, social class obsessed

 T
          HE BOX set’s second story      times in Lucie’s journey with           characters and an emerging alien
          is The Revolution Game by      the Doctor and I dearly love            foe like no other.
          Alice Cavender, where          those tales, however this one             Eddie admits that he thought the
something sinister is happening in       is set when the pair are still          days of writing for the Doctor and
a far-flung future Earth colony –        getting to know each other. I           Lucie were gone: “The combination
and Lucie is forced to partake in a      wanted to push Lucie out of             of the character being killed off and
perilous rollerskating contest!          her comfort zone physically             Sheridan being so busy these days
  While it may be her first full-cast    and for some reason roller              made me think that ship had sailed.

VORTEX | PAGE 14
DOCTOR WHO
                                                                                                  LUCIE MILLER

                                                                                 together. And Sheridan has a great
                                                                                 relatability, that’s why she’s doing
                                                                                 lead roles on ITV, she feels like your
                                                                                 friend and she brings that to Lucie.”

                                                                                  L
                                                                                           AST IN this set, but most
                                                                                           definitely not least, is
                                                                                           Island of the Fendahl, as
                                                                                 the classic monster makes its first
                                                                                 appearance in a Doctor Who audio
                                                                                 since the original TV episode Image
                                                                                 of the Fendahl. The story is written
                                                                                 by Alan Barnes, who originally
                                                                                 created Lucie. He says: “We always
                                                                                 knew that Sheridan loved playing
                                                                                 Lucie, so I guess I thought it wasn’t
                                                                                 impossible. I mean Death in
                                                                                 Blackpool was 100% definitely,
                                                                                 no-question-whatsoever going to
                                                                                 be her last-ever story, and look how
                                                                                 that turned out! Certainly, The
                                                                                 Further Adventures has been on
                                                                                 the cards for a while – the trouble
                                                                                 was finding and fixing dates. We
                                                                                 knew, though, that we weren’t
                                                                                 going to bring Lucie back from the
                                                                                 dead – there was lots of narrative
                                                                                 space before and during her second
                                                                                 season particularly, for an added
                                                                                 run. That said, it was still a
                                                                                 massively unexpected thrill to
                                                      Above (l–r): Paul McGann   actually type her first ‘chuff’ into
                                                      and Sheridan Smith
                                                                                 her first scene!”
                                                                                    With the Fendahl having faced
                                                                                 Torchwood earlier this year, what
  “I’m so glad she wanted to return     “The Doctor and Lucie land               made Alan bring them back to face
to the character and I think it’s     in a vast house that forms the             the Doctor and Lucie? He admits:
testament to Big Finish that she      hub of a human colony – but it             “I never saw Image of the Fendahl
did. Actors seem to know it’s a fun   operates in a very hierarchical            when it was first on TV – it came
job to do. And although I didn’t      19th-century sort of way. And              slap-bang in the middle of the
create Lucie, having written a big    everything outside the house is            time my mother had banned
chunk of her first season I do feel   blind, unnavigable chaos...”               me from watching Doctor Who
a bit proprietorial about her – all     Eddie was delighted to capture           because it was too frightening –
the writers on that season pitched    the energy and feel of an era              so to me the Fendahl existed only
in on the initial character outline   of Doctor Who that he first                in the Target Books novelisation.
Alan Barnes came up with – so I       wrote for over a decade ago.                  “I think, actually, it was
was really pleased to be asked to       He admits: “I slipped straight           the idea of the glowing skull
write one for her comeback.”          back into it. It’s mostly about            that fascinated me the most.
  Eddie was given a free hand to      the characters really – every              I love all the lore around the
craft a story for Lucie’s return.     Doctor Who story has its own               Fendahl. Like all the best
He explains: “There was no brief      energy and feel, regardless of             mythologies, it has rules and
for this one – just an Eighth         era. Back when Lucie was being             structure – stuff you can play
Doctor and Lucie story. I’d had a     created I tried to drive her more          with. It needs the skull, it
loose idea about a Jane Austen-       towards being irreverent and               needs a coven, it needs the
inspired Who story for a while,       sarky because that’s the kind of           Core, it manifests Fendahleen,
though that changed quite a           character I like to write! So finding      it’s affected evolution. If the
bit in the process. It was also       her voice again wasn’t hard.               Fendahl was a ‘real’ myth,
inspired by Winchester House,           “Paul and Sheridan have a terrific       academics would have written
the allegedly haunted house that      rapport and I think that comes             thousands of books and
was perpetually being extended.       through in the stories they’ve done        millions of words about it.

                                                                                                    VORTEX | PAGE 15
Above (l–r): Madeline Duggan,
                                                                            Jonathan Keeble, Alicia Ambrose Bayly,
                                                                            Tom Alexander and Alice Cavender

    “THERE’S A WONDERFUL
    BIT IN THE SCRIPT                                                     in fact, one specific aspect
                                                                          regarding this white noise (and
    WHEN THE DALEKS GET                                                   here I could get into spoiler
                                                                          territory if I’m not careful) that
    CAUGHT IN A MOMENT                                                    had me wondering how I could get

    OF ELONGATION. ”
                                                                          that working.
                                                  IAIN MEADOWS               “And in The Dalek Trap there’s a
                                                                          wonderful bit in the script when
                                                                          the Daleks get caught in a moment
It’s all just incredibly rich.”    the last thing I’ll work on as         of elongation. That needed a bit of
  Alan admits there was a          a script editor, at least on a         care because you could just over do
particular pleasure to be taken    semi-permanent basis, because          it, but I hope the balance is right.
when writing this script. He       Lucie’s debut season was pretty        The scripts though are really first
says: “Er, well it should be       much the first thing I worked          class and were a joy to work on.”
pretty obvious that Island         on when I started script-editing          Iain says there were a few
of the Fendahl is something        for Big Finish over 13 years ago.      interesting sound origins
of a, cough, ‘homage’ to a         I seem to have come full circle!”      for Island of the Fendahl. He
particular classic British cult                                           explains: “The island described

                                   W
movie of the early 1970s. Not                ITH THE recordings           in the script reminded me a
completely – I couldn’t actually             completed by Moat            lot of a place I used to visit as
put the Doctor and Lucie                     Studios, the files were      a boy whilst growing up in
inside a giant Wicker Man,         then handed over to sound              Scotland and subsequently
because that’s what actually       designer Iain Meadows. When he         on family holidays to the
happened in Dead London,           read the scripts, was there            borders and Northumberland
the first story in the second      anything that he immediately           – Lindisfarne Island – in the
season of the original Lucie       gulped at and wondered how he          sense that it can feel very
adventures. But Fandor Island,     would realise them? He smiles:         remote and blustery. It so
the island of the Fendahl, isn’t   “The scripts really do push the        happened that I’d only recently
entirely unlike Summerisle         boundaries with what sound can         returned there as my wife,
in certain other respects…         do, so there’s always a moment         being American, was curious
  “But for me, personally, it’s    where you stop and wonder how          to see that part of the world.
incredibly satisfying that the     you might achieve something. In           “Because the terrain is so
whole Further Adventures           The House on the Edge of Chaos,        wonderful, I’d taken my recorder
season has turned out to be        there’s something to do with static,   with me to get some audio that

VORTEX | PAGE 16
DOCTOR WHO
                                                                                               LUCIE MILLER

                                                                              and Ravenous series. That’s not
                                                                              present in these stories giving me a
                                                                              chance to breathe and concentrate
                                                                              on Lucie, the Doctor and anything
                                                                              that comes their way!”
                                                                                 Jamie had a personal highlight
                                                                              working on The Revolution Game.
                                                                              He grins: “Episode two with the
                                                                              rollerblading is really cool. I had
                                                                              to create some music for the
                                                                              arena and so did that first, then
                                                                              made the incidental music sort
                                                                              of come in and out alongside of
                                                                              it. It actually took me a while
                                                                              to get it right but I think we got
                                                                              there in the end and it makes the
                                                                              episode go at a really fast pace.”

                                                                               C
                                                                                        OMPLETING THE
                                                                                        package with the cover
                                                                                        art is Will Brooks. He
                                                                              says: “The brief was nice and
                                                                              clean – here’s four brand new
                                                                              adventures for the Eighth Doctor
                                                                              and Lucie Miller set between their
                                      as an artist in the last couple of      first and second series together.
                                      years since Lucie left the Doctor       “Producer Scott Handcock sent
“A CHANCE TO                          and the Big Finish universe, so
                                      it’s really a great honour to be
                                                                              me the scripts for the four stories
                                                                              and they are brilliant. It really was
 BREATHE AND                          doing the music on these stories.       like being transported back to

 CONCENTRATE
                                         “Paul’s Doctor has really            2007. The stories are packed with
                                      taken off at Big Finish and to          so many great images that it was

 ON LUCIE, THE                        have a companion come back
                                      is very exciting, isn’t it? Lucie
                                                                              tricky to work out which ones I
                                                                              wanted to have on the cover.

 DOCTOR AND                           is fun and bubbly and I think
                                      that should always be reflected
                                                                              Daleks trapped beneath a black
                                                                              hole! A world made of static!

 ANYTHING THAT                        in her stories and music.
                                         “I’ve created her own little motif
                                                                              Insects! Rollerblades! Fendahl!
                                                                              And, of course, right at the heart
 COMES THEIR                          too. And it’s very clever because
                                      it intertwines with the Eighth
                                                                              of it, you’ve got the Doctor and
                                                                              Lucie. In the TARDIS – right where
 WAY!.”     JAMIE ROBERTSON
                                      Doctor’s motif. It has a fun touch,
                                      a cinematic touch, a victorious
                                                                              they belong.”
                                                                                 Now that we’ve had Sheridan
                                      touch for those moments, and            back as Lucie, does that mean
                                      also an emotional touch.”               we could expect to possibly hear
  I figured might be useful down         Each of the stories has been         more from her in the future – if
  the line and so I’d got some        given its own musical palate.           her hectic schedule allows?
  fantastic blustery wind which          Jamie explains: “Nick gave me           Nick nods: “Yes, definitely. If
  I was then able to mix in with      a brief in the style to aim for in      we can make it happen in terms
  some other wind FX to get what      each story. For instance, ‘atonal       of the scheduling. Sheridan and
  just what I was looking for.        and droney’ for the first. The          Paul loved it. Sheridan and I
  There was also a moment that        second is more ‘futuristic’ or          spent another day, mostly just
  a Fendahleen needed to scream       that sort of sound, and then the        the two of us together doing
  – looking around I managed          third is a more classical Victorian     pick-up recordings, and we did a
  to mix together a series of         tone but blending in the modern         lot of gushing about how much
  pig squeals that matched the        score of the Eighth Doctor and          we loved working together. And
  old TV effect quite nicely.”        Lucie themes, of course.                she told me that playing Lucie
     With Iain having completed the      “It’s quite interesting because      has been her most favourite
  sound design, the music was then    for the past two or so years            job. She said she’d love to come
  added by Jamie Robertson. He        we’ve had the Doom Coalition            back, and we and Paul would
  says: “Sheridan Smith has grown     motif amongst the Time War              really like that too.”

                                                                                                 VORTEX | PAGE 17
ER
          ORD     ATM
          NOINW
              ISH
              F
                 .CO
           BIG

                             S
                                     PACE AND time are         the War Master, so Big Finish
WHAT HAPPENS                         being ripped apart by     very swiftly commissioned
WHEN THE WAR                         the Time War. The         three more box sets.
MASTER’S LATEST             Daleks and the Time Lords are        “The first volume told the
                            devising deadlier weapons for      end of the War Master’s story
SCHEME IS                   the conflict. And running          to some extent, so we had free
DISCOVERED BY               through space and time are two     rein to explore him earlier in
                            renegade Time Lords.               the Time War and see what
THE DOCTOR?                   The Master is plotting his       else he may have been up to.
                            most audacious project yet.          “I instantly knew I wanted
                            But where is the Doctor when       to tell a story with the Ood,
                            the universe needs him?            and the possibility of an
THE WAR MASTER: RAGE          Derek Jacobi plays the Master    encounter with the Doctor
OF THE TIME LORDS           and Paul McGann is the Eighth      was irresistible… so I had
n Released: July 2019       Doctor in the third The War        a quick chat with Russell T
n Format: CD and download   Master box set, Rage of the Time   Davies to check we weren’t
                            Lords – to the delight of series   stepping on his toes as far as
                            producer Scott Handcock.           continuity was concerned
    ORDER NOW AT:             Scott reveals: “Even during      and, with his blessing, we
    BGFN.SH/EIGHTVSMASTER   recording on our very first        were able to concoct a finale
                            story we knew Derek was            featuring the Eighth Doctor
                            keen to return to the role of      and the War Master.”

  VORTEX | PAGE 18
THE WAR MASTER
                                                                                     RAGE OF THE TIME LORDS

Above (l–r): Dominic Thorburn, Lu Corfield,
James MacCallum, Shvorne Marks,                      “IF THIS INCARNATION OF
                                                     THE MASTER HAD APPEARED
LIz Sutherland-Lim and Derek Jacobi

  After one single epic story
                                                      DURING PEACETIME HE’D
in the second War Master                              HAVE TAKEN OVER THE
                                                      UNIVERSE IN A MATTER
release, there’s a change again
for this third volume.
  Scott says: “Unlike The Master
of Callous, which was one grand                       OF DAYS... ” TIM FOLEY
scheme featuring the same
cast, this volume reverts to

                                               T
the format of the first release,                        HE WRITING duties on      War II which was lovely to
Only the Good: four separate                            this series are split     research, and we had Derek
episodes but all connecting                             between Tim Foley and     reminiscing about his own
to tell a much larger story.                  David Llewellyn. Tim sums up        wartime memories. I really
  “The first sees the Master                  the series, saying: “The Master     enjoy writing about small
masquerading as a priest in a                 has a plan, as he so often does,    rural communities – I spent
small English village during                  but normally we only get to see     a year as writer-in-residence
wartime, then travelling to                   the end result. Here we follow      on a farm a while back, and it
nineteenth-century America                    our evil Time Lord travelling       allowed me to tap into that.”
for the second. The third                     across space and time to collect      David has written the second
instalment takes us to a                      certain things and prepare for      adventure and explains: “The
high-tech medical facility on a               certain events.                     Coney Island Chameleon takes
barren alien world, before the                  “I reckon that if this            us to Coney Island in the late
Master faces off against the                  incarnation of the Master had       19th century and the murky
Doctor in the final episode, both             appeared during peacetime           world of freak shows, a popular
adapting to the ravages of the                he’d have taken over the            – but exploitative – form of
Time War in their own way.                    universe in a matter of days...     entertainment at the time. It’s
  “There’s even room for the                  But there’s a war on, and that’s    a slice of American Gothic,
recently released Series Five                 hampered his progress. So           complete with a cross-country
of The Diary of River Song                    this box set definitely explores    chase and spooky swamps.”
to slip in between episodes                   his responses to that.”               The third and fourth stories
one and three, so the War                       Tim opens the box set with        form a two-parter, with Tim
Master’s adventures continue                  The Survivor. He reveals: “My       writing the first called The
to build and build, even away                 first story is set in a community   Missing Link. He says: “It’s set in
from his own series.”                         of land girls during World          the Master’s base of operations,

                                                                                                    VORTEX | PAGE 19
THE WAR MASTER
  RAGE OF THE TIME LORDS

   “THERE’S THE FRISSON                                                      Back row (l–r): Su Douglas, Laura RIseborough

    OF A DOCTOR/MASTER
                                                                             and Tim Foley • Front row (l–r): Derek Jacobi,
                                                                             Mina Anwar, Paul Clayton and Katherine Pearce

    COMBINATION MEETING
    FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME.”                                                friends encountering one
                                                                             another after a long time away.
     DAVID LLEWELLYN
                                                                               “They’ve not worked together
                                                                             before so there’s quite naturally
                                                                             the frisson of a Doctor/
which was a fun notion. I              The Missing Link. David adds: “I      Master combination meeting
initially conceived a more             can’t say too much about this         for the very first time whilst
gothic set-up but Scott quite          one as it brings together threads     knowing each other of old,
rightly pointed out that we’ve         from the previous stories, but        and it’s something both Paul
seen that sort of villain’s lair       it’s the Doctor and the Master        and Derek really enjoyed!”
before. How about a functioning        at the edges of reality itself!         There’s also been a bit of time
institute, complete with staff            “By the time we get to Darkness    travel behind the microphone…
and resources? We’ve made our          and Light, the Doctor’s really        Scott explains: “Weirdly Rage
Master as difficult as possible to     been put through the wringer so       of the Time Lords was recorded
defeat – and that only seems fair      he isn’t quite as ebullient as we’d   before we did The Master of
since he is the lead in this series!   normally find him, but this story     Callous, but you’d never get
  “I don’t tend to write for the       is very much about the Doctor         that sense from listening
Doctor and The Missing Link            and the Master’s relationship,        to it. Derek’s incarnation
contains the first bits of Doctor      about how – in a twisted kind         established itself so swiftly
dialogue I ever got to write, so       of way – they complement and          over the course of Only the Good
I was over the moon. It’s such a       maybe even need one another.”         that he immediately becomes
clash of personalities! I’m clearly                                          the Master the instant he

                                        A
biased but I think this is why                   S WELL as producing         gets behind a microphone!
Paul and Derek make such a good                  The War Doctor                “The Master is so
pairing – they’re both suave in                  range, Scott is also the    disarmingly pleasant and
their own way but complete             director of this set. He says: “It    reasonable, at least to begin
polar opposites. Their characters      goes without saying that Paul         with, which makes it all the
would slink seamlessly into            and Derek are two incredible          more unsettling when he
a dance hall, but whilst Paul’s        actors with brilliant voices so       turns. He doesn’t care who
Doctor never wants to stop             listening to them together is a       sees behind the mask – the
waltzing, Derek’s Master has           dream. They both know their           Master’s always in total control
already poisoned the orchestra!”       characters inside-out, and            – and that’s what makes this
  The final episode, Darkness and      clearly relish playing them, so       set a real thrill. It’s the Doctor
Light follows on directly from         it really is like hearing two old     encountering the Master in

VORTEX | PAGE 20
THE WAR MASTER
                                                                             RAGE OF THE TIME LORDS

                                                                          preying sense of evil through
                                                                          the deliverance of his lines. It
                                                                          makes my work very enjoyable
                                                                          and all I need to make sure I
                                                                          do as sound editor is support,
                                                                          accent and complement his
                                                                          tone and narrative. That means
                                                                          picking up on specific lines and
                                                                          boosting them in level above the
                                                                          mix, adding dark transitional
                                                                          sound design effects on the tails
                                                                          of certain lines and generally
                                                                          highlighting important plot
                                                                          moments. So in that respect I
                                                                          don’t approach the stories in
                                                                          a different mindset or with a
                                                                          different palette of sounds.
a Master adventure, rather                                                   “I think perhaps a lot of the
than the other way around.”                                               mood and ‘evil sound’ of the
  Tim adds that writing for                                               Master is generated through
the War Master is: “Curiously                                             the wonderful music created
liberating! When you have                                                 by Ioan Morris. With the score
someone so horrible as your                                               I think you’re able to more
protagonist, why do we care?                                              suitably suggest undertones of
What’s to stop them massacring                                            scheming, puppeteering and
a planet just to pick a daisy? You                                        pure evil, so when I’m reading
can’t just imagine him as an                                              through a scene I’m always
‘evil Doctor’ or it doesn’t work.                                         looking for where music will
You’ve really got to get into his                                         support the narrative better
cunning mindset, and see him                                              than sound design, and making
through the eyes of his victims.”                                         sure I leave the space for it.”

 T                                                                         T
          HE POST-production                                                        HE COVER art has been
                                      Above: Derek Jacobi
          duties on the series were                                                 created by Lee Binding.
          made by Peter Doggart                                                     He tells us: “Scott’s a joy
creating the sound design, with                                           to work with because he’s very
music handled by Ioan Morris.         a way out of the spider’s web,      visual in his story-telling and
   Ioan says: “I think Scott          but as we know in this series       pretty much knows what he
Handcock and the writers              that’s not often the case.”         wants on the cover each time.
smartly tread the line of making         Peter adds: “Creating            And that’s usually a lot of colour!
the Master a compelling figure        otherworldly creatures is always       “Scott loves bright, bold
but not one with whom you’re          a challenge and requires quite      colours, and it took me a while
invited to empathise. Sir Derek       a bit of time and forethought. I    to catch on to that because
is brilliant and frequently very      often find myself recording foley   I’m often using more muted
funny as the Master, but the          for creature design and putting     or uniform colour schemes
character does some horrible,         together a palette of sounds that   for the covers I do. I have to
manipulative things. But in           I think complement each other       say, his instincts are utterly
terms of working on the series,       and will work well to give the      right and I now love working
it’s great fun. A total pleasure.     creature voice, movement and        with these bold swatches! So
   “The Master is the protagonist     character. Both episodes three      I am really fond of this third
but he’s not the hero, and I          and four have creature design       War Master because it is the
wouldn’t want to portray him as       and required a bit of thought.”     brightest and boldest yet.
such. A victory for him is not a         Does Pete approach these            “A few people have asked me,
happy ending, certainly not for       stories with an ‘evil’ sound in     ‘Is that the laser screwdriver on
the characters on the receiving       mind, given our leading man         the cover’. I’m gonna say yes,
end of his deception (and             is a bad one? He says: “The         but a more rough prototype
worse). So although it’s more         great thing about working           version. The Master – and
instinctive than anything, I feel     with Derek Jacobi is that he’s      Missy! – are such tinkerers. Only
I’m scoring the episodes hoping       such an incredible voice actor      they can think of turning an
that our heroes/his victims find      and solely able to impose that      umbrella into a sonic!”

                                                                                             VORTEX | PAGE 21
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                                                                                              ORD        ATM
                                                                                              NIGOFINW
                                                                                                     ISH
                                                                                                        .CO
                                                                                                B

                                        between Revelation of the Daleks     it’s good to have a balance and
DOCTOR WHO:                             and The Trial of a Time Lord. The    also offer individual stories that
MEMORIES OF A TYRANT                    Sixth Doctor has now had many        are completely wrapped up in
                                        different ‘eras’ and quite a few     the one release. That’s what we’re
n Released: July 2019
                                        different companions, and it’s       doing in these three adventures.”
n Format: CD and download
                                        been a while since we heard some        Out for release in July,
                                        adventures with him and Peri.        Memories of a Tyrant by Roland
                                          “Although it’s great that we can   Moore is a tale of morality,
    ORDER NOW AT:                       explore different relationships      mystery and memory.
    BGFN.SH/MEMORIES                    for the Sixth Doctor, I think it’s      John explains: “Memories of
                                        good to return to the format         a Tyrant is set in the far future
                                        of the TV series. Peri remains a     and focuses on one man, Garius

    I
           T’S BEEN a while but one     very popular companion, and          Moro, who may or may not be a
           of the most popular          I’m delighted that we are able to    war criminal. He can’t remember,
           Doctor Who                   present some new adventures          but there are a lot of people
  partnerships is back. Over the        for her and the Sixth Doctor.”       who want to find out the truth,
  next three months, the Sixth            And that’s not the only            one way or the other. Written
  Doctor and Peri are reunited in       similarity with this new run of      by Roland Moore, the story
  The Monthly Adventures.               stories. John adds: “The three       touches on issues of why we feel
    Colin Baker and Nicola Bryant       stories are all self-contained       the need to punish or venerate
  last recorded together in 2014 in     and have no link with each           individuals for their past actions,
  three adventures set after their      other, apart from the Doctor and     even though they may now
  TV travels ended. Producer John       Peri. Story arcs across multiple     be very different people.”
  Ainsworth reveals: “This new          adventures are popular, and there       Roland tells us more: “I’ve
  trilogy of stories featuring the      are several such epic adventures     written a number of plays
  Sixth Doctor and Peri is set firmly   currently on offer from Big Finish   for Big Finish and I asked if
  within established TV continuity.     such as The War Master and The       I could pitch a Sixth Doctor
  In other words, the stories are set   Time War box sets. But I think       idea. John Ainsworth listened

  VORTEX | PAGE 22
DOCTOR WHO
                                                                                    THE SIXTH DOCTOR

                                                                          tries to uncover whether this
                                                                          old man has indeed committed
                                                                          war crimes. But soon the Doctor
                                                                          is in deep, deep trouble!”
                                                                            Roland also enjoyed writing
                                                                          for the Doctor and Peri. He adds:
                                                                          “It was a joy to write for the
                                                                          Sixth Doctor and Peri. Colin and
                                                                          Nicola’s chemistry is fabulous and
                                                                          how they bring these characters
                                                                          so vividly to life is astonishing.

                                                              “FOR A LONG TIME
                                                              IT WAS ACTUALLY
                                                              CALLED THE DALEK
                                                              PLENIPOTENTIARY.”
                                                              ANDREW SMITH

                                                                             “And it’s such a great
                                                                          motivator when you’re
                                                                          writing to know that one day,
                                                                          if it all goes well, you will be
to some of my previous                                                    sitting in a green room with
stories and kindly allowed                                                those actors and they’ll be
me to give him some ideas.                                                slipping back into those roles
  “John was interested in                                                 as if a day hasn’t passed.”
adventures where the story

                                                                             T
would have an impact on                                                             HE FRIENDS face their
characters’ lives – showing how                                                     old foe in August’s
they respond to situations and                                                      release, Emissary of the
showing how they are changed                                              Daleks. John explains: “Emissary
by what happens. He also                                                  of the Daleks by Andrew Smith is
wanted – for this run – stories                                           a deliberate attempt to capture
where perhaps the location                                                the same feel of last year’s
changes or a new character is                                             popular release, Hour of the
introduced halfway through.                                               Cybermen, also by Andrew. It’s
  “Having specific aspects                                                set in the far future on an alien
                                      Above: Nicola Bryant
to a brief is so useful as you                                            world, and sees the Doctor and
can let your imagination                                                  Peri fighting to liberate a people
dream up story ideas and then                                             oppressed by one of their own
interrogate them as to how            people in a single afternoon.       kind who has apparently
they could fit those aspects.”          “And because of the importance    allowed herself to become a
  How would Roland sum up the         of discovering who this man is,     puppet of the Daleks. But were
events of his adventure? He says:     various factions and alien races    her choices as simple as they
“The Doctor and Peri are invited      – each with their own agenda        might seem?”
to the Memory Farm – a state          – have assembled on the space         Andrew tells Vortex: “For a
of the art space station where        station to view the proceedings.    long time it was actually called
memories can be harvested,            Then there is a murder…             The Dalek Plenipotentiary. I had
reviewed and analysed. There            “So it’s partly a whodunit in a   read about a really interesting
they find an old man who is           closed environment as the Doctor    tactic which the Persians used
being assessed in a bid to find out   races against time to find out      to use. They would attack
who he really is because there        who the murderer is, and partly     a city state, win the battle,
is a possibility that he may be       an examination of memory            and then put one of their
a dictator who killed billions of     and mis-memory as the Doctor        people in place to run it.

                                                                                           VORTEX | PAGE 23
DOCTOR WHO
    THE SIXTH DOCTOR

    “Generally, they were quite
  benign rulers after winning
  these brutal fights, and there
  were no reprisals against the
  people they had conquered
  afterwards. However, if there
  was an attempt to overthrow
  the Persian rule, they would
  be brutal in repressing it.
    “On one occasion when there
  was a plenipotentiary in place,
  there was an uprising against
  him. It was subdued, the leader
  of the uprising was killed, and
  his skin was made into a chair!
    “In Emissary of the Daleks
  we meet the plenipotentiary
  the Daleks have put in charge
  of a world, and if there is any
  resistance to the Daleks, they

“STEVE AND I
 WERE KEEN
TO SHOW
 MORE OF
 HOUDINI’S
 ADVENTURES
 WITH THE
 DOCTOR,
 AND THIS IS
THE RESULT.”                                                                     Above (l–r): Richard Keith, Nicholas Briggs,
                                                                                 Natasha Karp, Nicola Bryant, William Ellis,
JOHN AINSWORTH                                                                   Ray Cezan and Colin Baker

                                                                                S
  will come in fast and hard,             breakthrough to explain why                     EPTEMBER’S RELEASE
  and put it down ruthlessly.             there are fewer Daleks there.                   is Harry Houdini’s War
    Andrew did some research to              “I love writing for the Sixth                written by Steve Lyons.
  help with the plotting of the story.    Doctor. It’s almost a cliché but     Not only is the title a nod to
  He explains: “When the Doctor           the character is so well served      1980s novel Harry Sullivan’s War,
  and Peri arrive, the Doctor notices     by Big Finish and I really enjoy     it’s also a sequel to a previous Big
  there are not as many Daleks            being in studio with Colin, to       Finish release. John explains:
  there as he would have expected.        hear what he does with the           “Harry Houdini’s War takes the
    “I did a bit of scientific research   script. He’s such a good actor       Doctor and Peri back in time to
  with this script into primordial        and always well prepared.            World War I. There the Doctor is
  nuclides. They are pieces of               “To write for Colin and Nicola    reunited with his old friend,
  matter that can be found on             again was great. Emissary is my      famed escapologist Harry
  Earth, and have been around             fourth script for ‘Old Sixie’, but   Houdini, but Harry’s not sure
  since the Big Bang. I’ve used           it’s been quite a while since I      whose side the Doctor is on.
  that as an element in the story,        had the pair of them together           “Steve Lyons previously wrote
  which helps give the Doctor a           in The First Sontarans.”             Smoke and Mirrors for the Destiny

  VORTEX | PAGE 24
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