Writer: Justin Richards

Director: Lisa Bowerman
Featuring: Christopher Benjamin, Trevor Baxter, Dan Starkey

Big Finish Release (United Kingdom):
First Released: November 2015
Running Time: 2 hours
 

It is kind of amazing what Big Finish can do. They can somehow base a series around two characters that appeared in one story in 1977, make it a success, and then for a bit of a fun event, have them crossover with a recurring character from the new series. And it can still be fairly accessible for newcomers.  These adventures don't really require a ton of backstory for you to find them enjoyable.

I am aware of Jago & Litefoot from their lone appearance in the 70s, and while I've not really had too much chance to dive into their Big Finish run, I have enjoyed nearly all of their appearances in regular Doctor Who adventures. This adventure, in which they team up with New Series recurring Sontaran Strax.  It's a smart use the newly acquired Big Finish license, which gives them use of New Series characters.  Why not take your classic series spin-off featuring a couple of guys solving paranormal and alien mysteries in Late Victorian England, and team them up with at least one member of the New series team that does the same? 

In this Two-Part story, titled "The Haunting," Strax ends up assisting Jago & Litefoot on a supposedly haunted house mystery...though the entire time he thinks they are just Vastra and Jenny undercover. Strax is dumb. Which is fun!  The entire two-part mystery is good fun.  Jago & Litefoot have a good rapport, and Strax is usually a pretty funny comic relief to the Paternoster Gang, so the story has a good comedy line-up. Oddly, that comedy team is investigating murders in a haunted house.  That is the fun of it. 

I rather enjoyed this story.  It is light, funny, with just enough drama mixed in to balance it all out. As someone who was only mildly familiar with the Jago & Litefoot series before I began this, I can say it is definitely accessible to newcomers, and if anything it just makes you want to listen to more from this series.