Why You Need to be Listening to The War Doctor

Big Finish are currently offering a number of stories free from their back catalogue to enjoy. So, over the next few weeks, I'll give you a review of the individual episode in question, as well as some reasons why you should be listening to the range or series the story hails from in full. We start with - The War Doctor...

The CD cover for "The Innocent", the first War Doctor audio, designed by Tom Webster.

Back in 2015, Big Finish finally acquired the rights to use characters from the modern iteration of Doctor Who. This unlocked a number of storytelling opportunities: from bringing the Tenth Doctor and Donna back for more adventures, to creating spin-offs for modern UNIT, River Song and Winston Churchill. But, by far the most exciting (for this listener at least) was bringing back John Hurt for a brand new series of adventures as the War Doctor, the character originated in 2013's "The Day of the Doctor". It was only by a quirk of fortunate timing that Big Finish were even able to get John Hurt at all: due to undergoing treatment for cancer, Hurt had to lessen his workload, and, so decided to do it because he was unable to work on films. As such, he was able to build on the groundwork laid in "Day of the Doctor", and expand upon the character of the War Doctor much more than one episode allowed. Hurt recorded four box-sets of three stories each, with Hurt planning to do more work with Big Finish (he did get the chance to star in Big Finish's adaptation of HG Wells "The Invisible Man"). Sadly, however, Hurt passed away in January 2017, meaning that these had to be abandoned. As such, The War Doctor stands as one of Big Finish's shortest ranges: with only four releases in just over a year. However, the range remains a popular one with Big Finish fans. Partly because of the appeal of Hurt himself, but also because the stories are some of the most interesting and fascinating tales in the show's 57 year history. Being set in the sprawling mass that is the Time War, these stories are slightly more sideways takes on Doctor Who, and push the character of the Doctor in directions that the regular show couldn't hope to.

The box-set cover for "Only the Monstrous", the first set of
stories for the War Doctor, designed by Tom Webster.

The first story, "The Innocent", is a great scene setter for what is to come. After an arresting opening which sees the War Doctor blowing a whole Dalek fleet, what we get is definitely not what you expect from a Time War series, but is exactly what was needed in order to give this series the grounding it needs. Focusing on the Doctor's relationship with one woman, this intimate focus on character and the morality of war makes for an interesting hour of audio drama. While it is part of the bigger box set "Only the Monstrous", this story does work on its own terms, and it allows you to get a glimpse of the War Doctor's psyche. Seeing the Doctor build up a relationship with Rejoice (played by Lucy Briggs-Owen) is wonderful, and we get to see the two characters play off each other, as they size each other up, and form a connection, almost despite themselves. In terms of actual plot, this story is less interested in things like that, and it is all the better for it. There is some excitement in the middle, with the Doctor helping to defeat another race of genocidal aliens, but, for the most part, this is focused solely on either setting up the larger box set story, or exploring character themes and issues. We do get introduced to the other big feature of the War Doctor series here (and no, I'm not talking about the Daleks, they're a bit of a given), which is the character of Ollistra, played by the late Jacqueline Pearce. While she's really just a background character in this story (and even in this first box set), you immediately get a sense of her character, who she is and what she stands for. She was such an instant hit with listeners that she became not just a fixture of the War Doctor series, but crossed into other Big Finish releases such as the Eighth Doctor Time War series, and we even got to see an earlier incarnation (played by Caroline Pickles) in "Doom Coalition 4" and the recent "Dark Universe". "The Innocent" isn't the obvious start for a War Doctor series - you'd expect to be thrown right into the heart of the battle, with an epic confrontation between Daleks and Time Lords. But this story's more subtle, introspective approach is absolutely the right way to go, and, as a result, produces one of the most interesting hours of audio drama Big Finish have ever created.

The box set cover for "Infernal Devices", the second set of
stories in the War Doctor saga, designed by Tom Webster.

Now, if you do go and enjoy "The Innocent" (and why wouldn't you? It's free!), here are five reasons why you need to go and get the rest of the War Doctor series as well:

1. John Hurt:
This kind of goes without saying, really, but John Hurt is just magnificent in these stories. Finally given the chance to fully inhabit the role, Hurt absolutely brings his A-game to these box sets, developing his Doctor in some surprising ways. He brings a lot more sensitivity to his Doctor on audio then you are expecting from "The Day of the Doctor", while remanding you of why this Doctor was buried in the memory of the other Doctors for so long. An actor of Hurt's calibre was always going to shine in the role of the Doctor, not matter which incarnation of the character he would be playing. But the role of the War Doctor offers a unique opportunity to take the character into area the show can't normally take them. After all, this Doctor spends his time blowing up Daleks and doing extreme reshaping to planets. There's a lot of issues this character has, and an actor like John Hurt is perfect for bringing them to the surface.

The CD cover for "The Thousand Worlds", the second story in
the first War Doctor box set, designed by Tom Webster.

2. Audio Movies:
Because of the scope that these stories are working on, they have the same scale as the biggest blockbuster movies. Many will tell you that audio is at its best when it focuses on the intimate, but, when a large scale story is written well, like these are, then they can be some of the most exciting stories that can be attempted in this medium. And the War Doctor series sounds like the Doctor Who movies we never had in the 1990's, with an expansive soundtrack and some breathtaking sound design. All four box sets feature the work of the genius that is Howard Carter, who brings a multitude of temporal locations, warzones and hellish landscapes to life. Central to this is his wonderful remix of the Doctor Who theme tune, which is the most perfect version of the theme tune for the War Doctor. Honestly, once you have heard it, you can't imagine them using anything else for the character. The episode scores are vast and sweeping, bringing the stories to life with style and showmanship. Honestly, the production on these releases is standout, and key to the success of this series.

3. Classic Creations:

The box set cover for "Casualties of War", the fourth and
final set of stories for the War Doctor, designed by Tom
Webster.

While the War Doctor series does mostly rely on its own creations to fuel its stories, it does occasionally dip into the past history of the show, to great effect. The first time this really starts to happen is in box set three, "Agents of Chaos", with the introduction of the Dalek Time Strategist, and an appearances from classic foes the Sontarans. The Time Strategist is an evolution of the Time Controller character from previous Big Finish adventures, namely the "Dark Eyes" saga, though slightly more sane than the Time Controller ever was. Its nice to have a Dalek who doesn't just shout and shout at things, and the Time Strategist's almost whispering tomes are a marked contrast to the legions around him. The Sontarans, meanwhile, appear in "The Eternity Cage", and plan to get into the Time War by taking Ollistra and the Time Strategist hostage in order to bring the Time War to their doorstep so they can take part. Building upon elements previously mentioned in "The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky", the Sontarans give the War Doctor a chance to rail against a different form of antagonist, and show off even more of Hurt's range. The next box set, however, topped "Agents of Chaos" completely. "Causalities of War" brought back a familiar face from the Doctor's past: Leela, the warrior companion to Tom Baker's Doctor in the late 1970's, once again played by Louise Jameson. This collision between the Time War and the Classic Series gave us the chance to see what would happen if the War Doctor met someone from his past. Leela is the perfect fit for this, due to her violent nature to start with, and the drama that is born from the situation makes for some of the most interesting in the series.

The CD cover for "The Neverwhen", the third story in the
second War Doctor box set, designed by Tom Webster.

4. Storytelling:
Of course, the Time War takes place across the whole of eternity, so its only natural that the stories take place in a wide breadth of locations. From a ruined planet devastated by the after effects of a Dalek invasion to a region of space/time peopled by the unwritten, burned back into the universe, this series encompasses the massive gourmet of storytelling this war allows. There is a story set in a dying Battle TARDIS, there's a story set in Cold War Berlin, there's one dealing with Fake News in a warzone, there's even a story set on a temporal battlefield, where the combatants keep shifting along their own time streams. It's this kind of variety that makes the War Doctor series such an appealing one, and it really brings the idea that the Time War was an all-encompassing one to the fore. There's so many different types of stories, all of which explore different aspects of the war, and the best ones even come across as warped versions of regular Doctor Who stories. Things like "The Neverwhen" and "The Shadow Vortex" tell regular Doctor Who stories, but they warp into something very different when the Time War collides into them. The Doctor is forced to make terrible decisions, break his own personal code and bend the rules in order to even just keep himself alive, never mind defeating whatever terrible antagonist the writers have dreamed up. There's absolutely no limits to a story set in the Time War, and these stories demonstrate that point through their immense variety.

5. The Cast:

The cover for "The Shadow Vortex", the first story in the third
War Doctor box set, designed by Tom Webster.

This may come up a lot in this series, but, honestly, the calibre of talent this company work with is amazing. Not just content with John Hurt and Jacqueline Pearce, as well as Dan Starkey and Louise Jameson, Big Finish pulled out all the stops regarding casting. Several names familiar to Doctor Who fans crop up throughout these box sets: David Warner (best known for his appearance in the 2013 episode "Cold War", as well as an Unbound Doctor for Big Finish) appears as a primary antagonist for an episode, Neve McIntosh (better known as Madame Vastra) plays a duplicitous Dalek agent, and Beth Chalmers (Big Finish companion Raine Creevy) plays Veklin, a recurring agent for Cardinal Ollistra. As well as familiar faces, this series also includes some big names from beyond the Doctor Who universe: Carolyn Seymour (best known for her role in the 1970's hit BBC series Survivors), Tim Bentinck (best known for his recurring role on BBC Radio 4 soap The Archers), Jaye Griffiths (best known for her role in the 1990's BBC series Bugs), Josh Bolt (best known for being one of the regulars on the BBC series Last Tango in Hallifax) and Honeysuckle Weeks (best known for appearing in ITV's hit series Foyle's War), amongst others. The cast list is so impressive, and there's so many others, like Lucy Briggs-Owen, John Banks, Lizzie Roper and Joseph Kloska, who may not be well known, but are great actors who bring their characters to life fantastically.

The box set cover for "Agents of Chaos", the third set of stories in the War Doctor saga, designed by Tom Webster.

The War Doctor series is one of the most interesting and varied things Big Finish have ever attempted. Over the course of 12 episodes, they took the character of the War Doctor, who was only ever designed as a one-off character, and created a full and vibrant era for him to inhabit. Getting John Hurt back in the role was a masterstroke, and it is testament to all the writers and actors involved that it was such a success. One of the single most flawless runs in the show's history, you need to be listening to the War Doctor series, if only to take a peak at the most enigmatic era of Doctor Who history. The War Doctor comes highly recommended from this listener, and is peak Big Finish.

Until the 12th of April 2020, you can get "The Innocent", the first episode of the War Doctor series, from Big Finish completely free. You can find it here:
https://www.bigfinish.com/releases/v/doctor-who-the-war-doctor-the-innocent-2252

You can also save up to 50% on The War Doctor Series 1-4 until the 12th of April too. You can find a full list of the titles here:
https://www.bigfinish.com/collections/v/weekly-deals

Happy listening! And I'll see you next week for another look at a free Big Finish title!

All pictures copyright to the BBC/Big Finish Productions. Thank you very much for reading.