Radio Who – Big Finish Audio
by PhaseShift
“I’m always telling the Doctors and companions, as they come through the show, that they’ll never be quite done with it – Big Finish is expecting them.”
Steven Moffat – Interview about Night of the Doctor
It’s always been the same. A man sits down at a typewriter and, with glee, changes the Whoniverse. Presents another problem to those who dwell on what stories about a fictional character who is the equivalent of a modern myth are real.
The Eighth Doctor, in a final toast to friends, mentions Charley, C’rizz, Lucie, Tamsin and Molly. These names had occupied a void between real and unreal up to this point, being the Eighth Doctors travelling entourage in a long running series of audio only adventures produced by independent producer Big Finish, under licence from the BBC.
Big Finish saw an immediate upsurge in interest in its Eighth Doctor almost overnight. The questions obviously came thick and fast – who are his companions, and who is the Eighth Doctor, the one who seemed to pick “the warrior” as his next incarnation? Does it make sense? I thought I’d give an overview of those points later, which would count as spoiler territory if you want to approach the material fresh.
I’ll also say I thought it would be good to have a general blog or thread to discuss Big Finish in general, and provide a home for any individual reviews, should you wish to make them. Please use the comments section as you see fit.
BBC Radio
Before TV, Radio was king for home entertainment. News & documentaries, drama, comedy and light entertainment were all delivered by the medium. The emergence of Radio with Pictures saw a shift in the landscape in many worldwide territories where talk radio became the province of the opinionated oafs and endless phone-ins intermixed with popular choons.
In the UK, the original tradition continued with Radio 4, and its current sister station Radio 4 extra (links to station home). Books at bedtime (readings of novels), full cast audio drama, comedy and documentaries continued to be made. As with the TV, some in-house and some commissioned from independent sources. The benefits are many for those who want to sample. Drama, for instance is a boon to those who are partially sighted or blind. I know Radio 4 was hugely beneficial to my mother as she gradually lost her sight. The content is designed and scripted deliberately to avoid the need for visual cues, so nothing is lost.
As Radio is much cheaper to produce, it can afford to be a little more experimental, so for comedy new acts can be tried. Mark Gatiss and his League of Gentlemen chums first saw their characters delivered via Radio, long before the monstrous denizens of Royston Vasey became a TV sensation.
It’s not a medium for everyone though, and for various good reasons some people can’t follow audio drama in particular. Luckily, I grew up with it and it has long been an alternative for me, starting with the Kenny Everett radio segments when I was a kid, following the exploits of Captain Kremmen – Space Adventurer!
While BBC radio is funded from the licence fee, it’s not subject to the same access restrictions, and enjoys a widespread international audience of ex-pats and and experimental.
Big Finish
As an independent producer of audio content, Big Finish was born in 1998 by a number of individuals who were already involved in unofficial audio content. The name most familiar to many is Nicholas Briggs, who has a close association with the AG show, providing voices for many of the creatures. It won the right to produce official commercial content for Doctor Who in 1999, while the TV show was off air.
There are always gaps in the Doctors history for the spinoff media to develop, because the show has always had a habit of indicating that we are not seeing the full adventures of the Doctor. I mean – just who was The Terrible Zodin?
So for the Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Doctor, we have untelevised adventures that can be slotted into the timeline. The Seventh and Eighth Doctors have more room to play with – the period between Survival and The Movie, and the entire Eighth Doctors life are fertile territory. Old companions can return, and new audio only companions created.
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| Destination Nerva | Spare Parts | Jubilee | Genocide Machine |
My feelings about them are mixed – I enjoy some, and not others. Like a lot of spin-off material they exist to be sold, and it depends on who they are targeted at. Some stories are clearly targeted at the continuity junky. Ever wondered about the origins of Magnus Greel from Talons of Weng-Chiang? Well – his story is explored in Butcher of Brisbane. It’s OK if that’s a burning question for you, but it can come across as a little self indulgent. I tend to prefer the stories where we go into new territory, and the writer does something different. Some Big Finish can be very different, and therein lies the charm for me.
Big Finish has been a relative success, and has branched out into other properties (such as Sapphire and Steel, Stargate SG-1, Highlander, 2000 A.D., Blakes 7, The Avengers, Survivors,and The Tomorrow People) and completely new and original material.
Some material is occasionally broadcast on Radio 4 extra, and there have been many offers in the past to freely sample the occasional story. As these occur in the future, we’ll try to highlight them, because it can be worth trying them for free to see if it’s for you, rather than spend what can be a significant amount of money.
The Eighth Doctor Audio
The Eighth Doctor Audio kicked off in the traditional style that the other Doctors enjoy. 30 minute episodic stories, often in about four parts on a double CD. Those who relish and miss the cliffhanger of old are well served. Starting with Storm Warning the doctor meets a new companion Charley Pollard (India Fisher) – self styled Edwardian adventuress who’s rebelling against the constraints of her period and her upper class upbringing.
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| Storm Warning | Sword of Orion | Absolution | Light at the End |
Her story is very convoluted and was impacted by what I consider a creative low point in the series, which involves the Doctors exile to an alternative universe, necessary because of his actions when he first meets Charley – he saves her from what should be her natural death. In modern money he alters a fixed point. You can read a summary here. In the alternative universe, they meet C’rizz (Conrad Westmaas), a character with a troubled history. While I think his story suffers from being in that period, his ending is natural and well played in a story called Absolution. Charley is still very popular appearing in the recent 50th anniversary audio Light at the End paired with Paul McGann, and will receive her own series of plays.
As if confirming that Paul McGann is the transitory Doctor, his next series was launched after the TV show came back, and is informed by it. Changing the format to reflect the new show, these are single 50 minute episodes, with occasional two parters. They play into the notions and scope of the new series and are highly recommended.
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| Blood of the Daleks | Situation Vacant | To The Death | Dark Eyes |
Blood of the Daleks introduces us to a new companion, Lucie Miller (Sheridan Smith). A human placed with the Doctor apparently for protection by the Time Lords, she’s a companion who doesn’t want to be there, and initially pretty disdainful of him. “Brash” and “Northern” are two words that readily come to mind when describing her, and her relationship with the Doctor feels very fresh. The mutual affection that develops is endearing and she feels massive betrayal when she discovers that the Doctor has lied to her, forcing a parting of the ways. For a while.
Answering a newspaper advertisement for a position as a time travelling companion brings Tamsin Drew (Niky Wardley) to the Eighth Doctor, but he didn’t place the advert. While they travel together a while, they eventually meet the Time Traveller who did, and the person he recruited. It’s Lucie. Swapping companions, Lucie is there for a Christmas reunion with family. The Doctor is reunited with Susan and her son, Alex, the Doctors great grandson in Relative Dimension. Having still not quite dealt with the issues of betrayal Lucie chooses to take a holiday with Alex travelling in the future world post the Dalek Invasion.
The events of Lucie Miller/To the Death are quite shocking, ending in a bloodbath that really does cost the Doctor dear. It leaves him wondering if he should become the man he was, who was prepared to kill that caveman in Unearthly Child. He considers what he never considers before – should he be willing to interfere with his own timeline? As a narrative it really compliments what we see in The Night of the Doctor.
After these events, a short season called Dark Eyes sees him pair up with Molly O’ Sullivan (Ruth Bradley), which I’ve not experienced yet. Mainly because the series took a pause for over a year, and I think Night of the Doctor is responsible for that, as the television show added a Doctor and defined an end point for Doctor Eight. It continues shortly with new stories in the Dark Eyes strand, and I’m fascinated to see how it plays out. The pieces are in play. The Dalek Time Controller now knows the Time Lords planned genocide in Genesis of the Daleks, and we may get to experience the events that lead to the start of the Time War.
The adventure, as ever, continues…
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@PhaseShift – I’m looking forward to the Gareth Roberts adaptations in a couple of years time, with Baker, Ward & Leeson…
http://www.bigfinish.com/news/v/tom-baker-lalla-ward-and-john-leeson-return-for-new-stories…
Nice piece. Like you, I find the BF audios something of a mixed bag and haven’t really followed the religiously. The ones I have heard of the Eighth Doctor have never failed to convince me of what Night and the Doctor proved in spades — that Paul McGann would have been an excellent TV Doctor.
I find the weakest ones are the allegedly ‘funny’ ones, which almost always are neither as funny nor clever as they think they are, particularly if some kind of satiric edge is intended.
I also find that both McCoy and Davison have done sterling work for BF and have really deepened their Doctors. But I just don’t see this argument that Colin Baker fans give that the Sixth Doctor really finds his feet in the audios. I find him just as annoying as I did the TV version.
@wolfweed
Yes – that should be interesting, Tom and Lalla working together again after so long. Wonder if they can recreate the magic or if they’ll end up throwing things? 😉
It really is a shame with Tom – he signed up for scripts to work with Elisabeth Sladen and Nicholas Courtney and they passed away before it could happen, and was getting into the stride with Mary Tamm, and then she passed away.
Some of his stuff with Louise Jamieson as Leela has been great though, and I’m looking forward to the Philip Hinchcliffe presents stuff next year.
Just so long as they avoid Adric!
@JimTheFish
I’m glad I’m not the only one who thinks that about Doctor Six. I think it’s one of those easy things to say on forums where people are really going to agree with you, or haven’t heard his audio. He’s pretty much the same. I don’t begrudge their existence and I’m happy they exist for the faithful, but stories of his amazing growth and development and really wide of the mark. He’s pretty consistent to his TV work.
Tom’s just a Tomish as you’d want, and Davison and McCoy really obviously enjoy what they do, but I think I’ve followed more Eight than the others, just because it seemed very fresh in the beginning, and with the “nu” style later stories. When I was writing this, I was thinking about some of the aspects like Zygons who can be good and get trapped with the feelings of the people they copy, and Auton replicants who think they are human, and they are ideas would easily fit into SMs more open character canvass. It’s good stuff.
I’ll also agree with you about some of the more farce based stories or attemps at satire, which can feel forced or really labour the point. I think I said in a short review of Fanfare for the Commen Men for Davison that it was a bit like being hit with a big stick marked “SATIRE”.
I tip my hat at their approach to encouraging new writers, but I think they could have spent a bit more time with some of them. It’s a similar issue as it was with the Virgin New Adventures and Missing Adventures. For every Paul Cornell who wrote Human Nature, there was a Paul Cornell who wrote Goth Opera. 🙂
@Phaseshift Thanks for writing this. I used to listen to a couple of old tapes of Tom Baker as the Doctor when I was a kid but have not otherwise ventured into the world of Big Finish. The McGann stories do sound good.
I am also very curious to see (hear) how the Tom Baker and Lalla Ward collaboration turns out. At the Excel, @Craig and I went to a panel with Louise Jameson and when she was asked what her favourite monster on the show was (by a very small kid) she replied “Tom Baker”!
I have listened to a few but I can’t get into them. I’ll try and explain this as best I can. To me personally, everything just sounds artificial. There’s no atmosphere to any of the locations, which makes me find it difficult to believe that the characters are anywhere other than a recording studio. Also the writing sometimes comes across as a little bit fan fictionish at times.
Maybe I just need to get used to them, but I’m just not that interested in them.
@PhaseShift, thanks!
*Way* past my bedtime, so just popping by this blog to give you big props for your Big Finish intro. I was touched by McGann/Eight in the prequel, so getting folk’s input about the audio adventures of Eighth Doctor is a welcome treat.
And a quick aside … I just found out about the BBV videos, many of which star various combinations of Pertwee, Davison, C. Baker and McCoy in non-doctor roles in The AirZone Solution sci fi video, and in doctor-ish without the rights to the Doctor Who name, etc., in a series of Who-style productions. C. Baker just doesn’t seem to get much respect for his portrayal of The Doctor, so I’m kind of curious to see one of these BBV videos — just to see how he acts in something else. Any chance of a mini-C. Baker retrospective? BBV and the Fifth Doctor serial where he attempted to kill Davison? Maybe we could schedule the screenings during times when @JimTheFish has other duties/responsibilities/holidays/fun/distractions. Wouldn’t want him to feel obliged to join in.
TardisBlue
Hello everyone
I’m new, and still navigating the site. I’ve seen this blog and another one about the comic books.
Are all of these stories officially part of the whole Doctor Who history? I know that in The Night of the Doctor, Paul McGann named his Big Finish companions which appears to be Steven Moffat making a statement about ‘canon’. Is it possible to have full enjoyment of the show’s history without knowing the stories from audio and the comics?
And do any of the stories from audio and comics make their way into the television show? Or does the TV show ever reference these other sources for stories?
@Phaseshift
Thanks so much for this blog, really informative. I’ve not dipped into the audio stuff (except for links you’ve posted previously), mainly cos it
‘s hard to know where to start.
I love radio dramas, especially if you get them where there are no other distractions, eg night driving on quiet roads. It’s a shame if listening to them is a skill which is no longer taught, in what is now a highly visual age. You could go anywhere, any time on radio, budget no object. My first exposure to Hitchhiker’s Guide was on the original broadcast on Radio 4 – no visual medium was ever going to come close to that. (And Spike Miligan’s old sock filled with lumpy custard is much funnier in audio concept than it could ever be on TV).
@TheFerret
Definitely. The main thing to recognise about Dr Who “canon” is that it is open to many, many interpretations. Retconning and filling in the gaps is fun, but don’t get hung up on it. That way madness lies! Generally speaking, canon lies in the actual TV series, not the offshoots. Until Moff/current showrunner does something like he did in Night of the Doctor, bringing in McGann, whose tenure up till that point was open to debate.
Then again you could have argued up till DotD that it was canon that Matt was no 11. 😀
And as @Phaseshift points out, sometimes the offshoot stuff has been used as a valuable training ground for new writers, ideas. And a retirment fund for old Doctors 😀
@Juniperfish
Ah..you were a young fish after my own heart. I still have the LPs from that period for Genesis of the Daleks and The Pescatons. Unfortunately, those 70s and 80s stylus did their damage, and they wouldn’t really play now, but I can’t quite bring myself to dispose of them for sentimental reasons. 🙂
Louise and Tom are really good in their new audio plays. Louise still manages to nail that mixture of innocence, curiosity and eye-rolling at some of the Doctors behaviour. I’m guessing that like me, you grew up with her, and it’s been great to hear more of Leela.
@ThekrynoidMan
As I said, I think they aren’t for everyone and I think some miss the visual aspect. The audio is actually put together in exactly the same way as a soundtrack for an animation is compiled, and it’s interesting when you show some people extracts with even basic animation, they are able to follow the story much more closely and they find it less off-putting.
@TardisBlue
Ah, that’ll be Arc of Infinity where Colin meets Doctor five. It’s not the best story, but there are some interesting aspects to why it isn’t the best story that we could talk about. I’ll add it to the list of potentials.
Like @JimTheFish, I have problems with the Sixth Doctor, but I did feel a twinge of guilt as we said a few minutes of him at the end of Caves of Androzani was enough. I’ll have a think about how what we could do for that, because he does have his fans, and some of his stories could be covered pretty rapidly as they were two parters in 45 minute episodes. Revelation of the Daleks or Vengeance on Varos perhaps? It’ll give some of us a chance to explain what we think some of the problems in his period were, and everyone else can judge for themselves.
I think @bluesqueakpip said in our discussion of him on the Faces strand that he can be good in a variety of roles, but mainly bad guys. I still have a fondness for his scenery chewing performance in a Blakes 7 episode as “Baben the Butcher”, and that may be one to consider for a side project I was considering – a wider “sci-fi watch club” periodically looking at other series which have some links to Doctor Who in actors, writers, directors, etc.
@TheFerret
Welcome to the forum, and I’ve noted your request for Curse of Fenric (which we did almost go for to cover Seven last year). Both RTD and SM have dropped in occasional references to the spin-off media as a nod to the way the books, comics and audio kept the idea of the Doctor alive during the long period the show was off air.
I don’t think you really need to experience it all to get enjoyment out of the TV series, and most formats produce more than a few “clunkers”, but there are some really interesting tales.
I think most people are familiar with the notion that Human Nature/Family of blood was based on a Seventh Doctor novel written by Paul Cornell (Human Nature) in the 90s, and that some of the ideas in Blink were originally written by Steve Moffat in a short story in an annual – “What I did on my holidays, by Sally Sparrow”. The Lodger in series 5 was based on a Gareth Roberts strip where 10 and Mickey have to share a flat for a while. Jubilee, which I’ve linked to in the blog is actually by the same author who wrote Dalek for the first AG serial, and shares some real similarities.
The BBC and the creators of the show flatly refuse to decide what is “canon” for Doctor Who, and I see fans determination to enforce the notion bizarre, to be honest. I’ve always approached the Doctor as a modern myth, as I said, and myths can get confusing. It’s kind of like asking for confirmation about whether Robin Hood was a nobleman who rebelled, or a peasant who fought back. The interpretations serve their own purposes. So while some people want to disregard the Eighth Doctor movie from “canon” simply because they used the half-human stuff, I just say that’s part of the tale they got wrong, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t fight The Master in San Francisco, if you get my meaning.
I find it an approach that saves my sanity!
@ScaryB
Many thanks. I tried to introduce the stuff while not really spoiling it too heavily. I really should have mentioned Hitchhiker’s Guide in the piece as it was a serial I refused to miss, probably solidifying my love for the format.
The experimentation on the Radio has led to all sorts on TV. I was delighted when the DVDs for Red Dwarf featured some of the audio for Dave Collins – Space Cadet, where you can see the germination of the ideas between Rob Grant and Doug Naylor for their TV show.
@Phaseshift (and everyone)
Re a 6th Doctor Rewatch – can I nominate Vengeance on Varos – it has the compensation of the fabulous Nabil Shaban as the slithery Sil, and he’s always worth watching.
Good idea on scifi offshoots/links idea – there’s a massive big hole in our viewing schedules between Xmas and Sept(?) as Moffat and co wait for the series 8 budget to catch up with the specials overspend, LOL. Allegedly 😉
@ScaryB
Wasn’t Vengeance on Varos what Colin Baker’s family refused to watch YET AGAIN in that charming Davison/McCoy/Baker programme? 🙂
@PhaseShift
Thank you for all of that information. I had no idea the comics and audios were so closely linked with the TV show.
@PhaseShift – Genesis of the Daleks was the 1st LP I ever got (Still have it) & I’ve now got The Pescatons too (oo-er!)…
I think it’s on the documentary ‘Lost in the Dark Dimension’ on the Inferno special edition DVD, that Gary Russell explains how these records demonstrated that ‘Audio Who’ was a viable endeavour. Hence Big Finish was born.
Varos sounds like a decent choice for Baker and I suppose it’s only fair that we give him a fair crack of the whip in the next retrospective. Should we maybe include one of the audios in there too so that McGann gets a fair crack of the whip?
With regards to canon, I think there’s an element of personal taste there. Both RTD and SM have referenced things from other sources — The Moment being the most recent vivid example but I think there’s an element of choice from the fan’s POV. For example, do we take it as read that the Cybermen are in fact excellent skiers as seen in TV Comic (or that they are evolved from the Voord for that matter?)
And of course one of the genius things about the The Name of the Doctor is that it has thrown even the canon of the first 50 years of the TV show into some doubt now. Really we can say that anything (and nothing) goes as far as canon is concerned…
@Phaseshift
Thanks for this! I came to Big Finish in a desire to fill in the blanks regarding the Eighth Doctor. I had read a few novels, but although I enjoyed some of the writing, I often felt that the authors were portraying their own imagining of the Eighth Doctor, more than anything that I recognized from McGann’s film portrayal, and the portrayals weren’t always consistent from one novel to another. I started the audios at the beginning of the Eighth Doctor’s Main Range and went straight through them, eventually catching up with the Eight Doctor Adventures and continuing to the present.
I found that my love was shared pretty equally between the two series. I thought some of the earlier stories worked very well at the longer length (and I confess that I enjoy the slower pace and cliffhanger format of BG shows, when the writing is good). Many of the later, shorter ones worked brilliantly in the format they were written, although occasionally I wished for a little more time to develop an idea or theme. But this is a problem I sometimes have with the AG TV episodes as well, so I’m sure that it’s partly a case of my personal taste.
I have listened to a small selection of BF episodes featuring other doctors, chosen at random based on hearsay and descriptions that appealed to me, and have mostly enjoyed them. But the Eighth Doctor stories in particular really made me a fan, of both BF and the Eighth. They made it clear from the start what a terrific TV doctor he could have been in the right circumstances, and when I heard his voice on the minisode, my inner fan was jumping up and down with joy!
@ScaryB
I also love the audio form. My imagination has no problem filling in the blanks, and because listening doesn’t tie me to a screen, I can indulge and still be productive in some way. They make the ironing a lot more pleasant, I can assure you! I also agree that the lack of a visual element means that the production is not straight-jacketed by budget issues. Every monster is scary when you can’t see it, every alien world is amazing.
Re: the Hitchhiker’s Guide, I read the novels first, and only heard the radio show later. I loved them both! I have still never seen the TV version, and I agree that the pictures in my head are likely better than any visual that I could reasonably expect!
@JimTheFish @TheFerret
And of course one of the genius things about the The Name of the Doctor is that it has thrown even the canon of the first 50 years of the TV show into some doubt now. Really we can say that anything (and nothing) goes as far as canon is concerned…
I don’t suppose that this will be sufficient to encourage people to forget about “canon” altogether and just enjoy the show? (Most of them don’t actually know what it is anyway, and believe it to be a large weapon mounted on the side of a fort!) For myself, I tend to accept the TV show (BG and AG) and the BF audios as a fair depiction of the doctor’s actual history, with an asterix by the film due to some inaccuracies, and I tend to treat the books and comics as mythology rather than fact. Having studied history, I know how these larger-than-life characters can become the focus of aprocryphal tales. ☺ This makes me happy, so I choose to believe it. At least in the world of Doctor Who, everyone should believe what makes them happy. (People seem quick enough to do this in other areas of life!)
@wolfweed
I’ll have a look out for that – I haven’t got Inferno SE (yet). I take it you got all the “there’s a cream for that” when you talked about “The Pescatons”. 🙂
@arbutus
Welcome – I’m glad to add another to our list of listeners. I’m glad you enjoy them. I’ve always liked the mythological aspect of the character, and the fact that even the most wild and fanciful tales of the Doctor may have a grain of truth in them.
Have you heard the Dark Eyes audio? That’s something I’ve been holding off but I’m tempted with the reduced download price. I was hoping we may get a run on Radio 4 extra after Christmas, but I’ve seen nothing listed at the moment.
I
@PhaseShift
the fact that even the most wild and fanciful tales of the Doctor may have a grain of truth in them.
I like this! Like the Arthurian legends.
I have heard Dark Eyes. I enjoyed it a lot, for various reasons, but I also had a couple of issues with the writing/plotting of the story. The characterization and performances were first-rate, I thought, and because I am pretty easy to please, I enjoyed it on the whole, despite the couple of plot points that bugged me.
@PhaseShift
I’m having to take a flying leap off the Work Deadline Cliff because I finally signed up today after reading this forum regularly for a couple of months. And I agree with @ScaryB that’s it’s far too addictive once one takes the plunge and starts actively commenting (rather than thinking of comments in one’s head).
This blog about the audio episodes is one of the reasons I think this forum is so worthwhile. I’ve said elsewhere that I bought ‘The Light at the End’ at the ExCel DW Celebration weekend and should have time come the end of this week to start listening to it.
I noticed you mentioned that one in your blog. Are you planning to review that one, or any individual audio story, in detail?
Actually I have enjoyed the 8th Doctor ones I’ve listened to. I still have the same problems getting into the story as the others, but Paul McGann and India Fisher so work well together it makes it easier for me. Plus it’s the closest thing we’ve got to an 8th Doctor series.
@PhaseShift – I was wrong. It’s the documentary ‘The Apocalypse Element’ on ‘The Visitation’ special edition dvd, where the audios are discussed. Also mentioned are Bernice Summerfield, the company that became Audio Go, Steven Moffat’s snootiness & subsequent apology, as well as the Big Finish ‘purchase-to-pirate’ ratio and much much more…
There’s no innuendo such as ‘Being grabbed by the Morlocks’, though…
@Arbutus – Thanks for the view on Dark Eyes. I think I may get it with Dark Eyes 2 when that is released.
@MartyB – I don’t think I’ll be doing more detailed reviews of anything before the end of the year, as I have a few other things to be working on. I do invite anyone who has any thoughts on Light at the End to do so here though. I think good reviews can be split into other blogs and threads if interest is shown. I think there are very few who have actually followed every Big Finish release, because it can be cost prohibitive.
The more who want to write about their favourite periods, stories, the better. We can structure blogs and/or forums around subjects as we get new perspectives.
@Wolfweed – and this is why I can’t buy more Big Finish! Too many bloody “Special Edition” DVDs 😉
@PhaseShift
It would be fun to have some reviews/discussions of Big Finish stories, if others are interested. But I think that it would have to be in separate blogs or threads, because of potential spoilers for people who haven’t listened but might still want to.
I enjoyed “The Light at the End” quite a lot, although it is a different kettle of fish altogether than “The Day of the Doctor”. It had more of a BG feel, understandably I guess. It was trying to do something quite different than the TV special, and I thought it was pretty well executed on the whole.
@arbutus
Apologies I missed your comment. I wouldn’t worry too much about spoilers. A single blog isn’t that hard to avoid, so if you and @MartyB want to share your thoughts just start of your review with Light at the End – May contain Spoilers.
With some of the spinoff strands we’d probably want to keep it vague, but cover the topic. So, if someone knowledgeable about the Seventh Doctor stories (for example) wants to write something about his audio timeline, we can have a look and spinoff into another blog, under their name. That could then become the home for reviews and discussion of any Seventh Doctor stories. Alternatively, you could send it to me by PM, and I’ll format it under your name.
This avoids having a forum/thread per story as you’d soon build up quite a few with very little (or no) comment activity. We can evaluate if further sub-divisions are required later on based on activity.