The Eighth Doctor and Charley are interrogated after mysteriously arriving at a top secret air base…
Julian Richards’ brief but effective tale for the original Big Finish 8th Doctor TARDIS team works perfectly well on its own, but slots neatly into Big Finish’s own additions to Doctor Who’s continuity, with links to one of the earliest of their adventures (and moderately frequent references to one of the underlying themes of that first season), as well as to the Destiny of the Doctor series – and even, if you listen carefully, to Counter-Measures (as well as almost to a David Tennant-era tale).
Richards weaves all of these into the length of a classic episode, with the majority of the story spent with the time travellers under interrogation from a military officer who’s perhaps surprisingly receptive to some of the ideas that they throw at him. There’s a lot of fun in the details – a cuddly rabbit is key at one point while the descriptions of the Doctor as being like a puppy, and Charley’s role in his adventures fit perfectly with those more carefree days. India Fisher portrays Paul McGann’s sometimes breathless delivery well, while making the other characters clearly distinctive.
Verdict: Big Finish fans will probably guess the “twist” earlier than others, but this is an enjoyable tale that reminds me of some of the Brief Encounters that ran in DWM a few decades (!) ago. 8/10
Paul Simpson
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