This Fourth Doctor Adventures story begins with Leela demanding that her father takes "the test of the horda" in her place, which, judging by the scream that follows, is a rather painful ordeal. However, this scene is soon shattered by the fourth Doctor’s entrance, creating a moment of palpable unease in the mind of our favourite Time Lord, which never quite seems to leave throughout most of the story.

When the TARDIS lands in the cargo hold of a giant spacecraft, that is inexplicably empty, we are introduced to three characters in rapid succession. Calvert, a rather aggressive man; Arthley, at this point in the story, a rather official type; along with Inspector Efendi, by far the most mysterious character of the trio.

Leela continues to see what might loosely be called "visions" and hears strange noises as her and The Doctor explore a luxury space cruiser, identified as the Moray Rose, attempting to discover what grizzly and troubling fate befell the crew and the myriad of rich passengers.

When they stumble upon a man who is strangely unresponsive, the time travellers are confronted by Calvert. Things then take a turn for the worse as they are subjected to interrogation, with the Time Lord and his companion quickly progressing the plot and background rather than beating about the bush. This means that the story, despite being only two episodes long, can include an enemy encounter within the first 10 to 15 minutes. The metallic insectoid enemies, known as the Salonu, without speaking or negotiation, choose to fire on the unsuspecting Doctor, Leela and Calvert. This scene does present a running gag that is referred to remarkably often in parodies and the main series itself. This is the simple fact that the Doctor doesn’t have a plan formed as he should do with his centuries of experience. His procrastinations actually lead him to make a remark about Leela’s father, creating a moment of tension similar to the opening scene, as the aliens attempt to break down the heavily armoured door.

While this could have definitely made a good end to the first episode, it does continue on with important plot points that are used in a reasonably good substitute.

There are a cluster of new and old series references as you would expect from any Big Finish production. Passing references to the idea of the TARDIS being "bigger on the inside" further cements the remark’s place in canon and the minds of Doctor Who fans, whilst the idea of the Doctor’s fate being in the hands of a companion, now relatively commonplace to fans of the new era, makes its return. Speaking of returns, Nicholas Briggs makes yet another monster come to life with his most well-known piece of equipment, the ring modulator. Although the voice is relatively easy to get used to, I could not shake off the fact that the result sounded like a parallel earth Cyberman that had its voice unit set to a slightly more hyperactive setting than normal.

Past episodes of the series are also alluded to, the most noticeable of these call-backs being to The Face Of Evil, the first story to feature Leela as a character, as well as the infamous Janus thorn.

The "state of temporal grace" in the TARDIS is also brought to light when Calvert attempts to shoot the Doctor. Additionally, the score fits very well with the classic style of the original Doctor Who musical cues, albeit in somewhat of a more updated fashion.

The first episode cliff-hanger does provide a reason as to the story’s title, although it is unclear at that point how relevant it will become.

The return of The Master, a villain reappearing most recently in the David Tennant era, was not as much of a shock to me as it could’ve been, due to two things. The first is that the trailer acknowledges his appearance along with the cast list, with the second reason being to do with the research I conducted to complete this review, I have attempted to leave as many things untouched as possible so that new readers/listeners can enjoy everything there is to offer here.

The entire cast deliver performances that definitely do their characters justice. Louise Jameson’s Leela and Tom Baker’s fourth Doctor share a chemistry that shifts and changes throughout, whilst the Master is very much the villain that he has always been. Geoffrey Beevers, at once, portrays the age of the Time Lord villain, whilst also showing his cunning and skill with the abilities he possesses.

All in all, this story fits in well with the era it attempts to recreate, in addition to allowing the return of a villain that doesn’t get quite as much attention as foes like the Daleks or Cybermen. As to how that comes about and the schemes that the villain in question has in store, to use the words of a certain Professor River Song, "Spoilers..."

Tom Baker's fourth Doctor has, in recent years, returned to the mainstream in not only the 50th anniversary special audio and television adventures, but also with the help of Big Finish Productions. This particular story in the Fourth Doctor Adventures range sees the Time Lord and his companion Leela, who always seems to be getting the customs and elements of other cultures confused, land on earth for what they describe as a “holiday”.

But as is nearly always the case with Doctor Who stories, something is terribly amiss in what should be an idyllic seaside town, albeit a small one.

The story opens with a man who, we discover, is a dealer in second-hand books completing a purchase with a customer, one of the crucial characters in the story. This shop also proves to be the scene of the first rather gruesome murder, one of several committed by an unknown killer using unconventional methods. This leads into a story that I obviously do not wish to spoil, but does involve some rather new twists, turning this two-episode adventure into a story that is part investigation, part dark suspense. This story does have remarkably good character development, considering the amount of episodes and limited running time. However, this could possibly be down to having a full cast to work with as well as their enthralling performances.

The fourth Doctor is portrayed with an ominous sense of foreboding by Baker, with Louise Jameson's Leela offering a pleasant and surprisingly quick method of plot progression. Even though Leela is commonly befuddled by the Doctor's mentioning of things like "enjoying some rock", it isn't just the tribal warrior who presumes a lot about the people or places they discover. One particularly fine example of the stories humorous writing style, seen at scattered points throughout, occurs when the Doctor enters into a relative monologue about autograph signing. The outcome is, to say the least, expected and a good light hearted moment.

Every member of the cast does a remarkably good job here, considering the story takes several possibly unexpected twists and turns. The main villain of the piece, the Crooked Man, is a sinister character who we learn relatively little about, but we understand that he will use any means necessary to achieve his own ends. The voice is well chosen and with this being an audio only adventure, the listener is forced to conjure up their own version of this mysterious foe.

The atmosphere carved out by the drama itself is chilling, the suspenseful piano and string-based score continuing to fill the reader/listener with a sense of unease. This is further enhanced by the appearance of shadows and hallucinations, which seem to be a common theme in this story, with Laura Corbett, returning from her visit to the second-hand book shop, seeing a door that did not previously exist in the house before. This theme of shadows and strange sights helps to intensify the emotional tension that persists throughout.

The Crooked Man is a seemingly new, time sensitive villain, with his suspicious companion in the form of Lesley King, a rather rude and forceful television personality. Although all is not what it seems as an old scenario, the land of fiction, once again returns to menace the Doctor, his companion and potentially the whole world with monsters and foes the likes of which humanity has never seen.

To conclude, this story was a gripping one with the entire cast working collaboratively to produce an experience that will hopefully keep you guessing right until the end. Additionally, those who haven't encountered the land of fiction before shouldn't need any prior knowledge. However, those who are interested can discover more about this mysterious place in City of Spires, The Wreck of the Titan, Legend of the Cybermen and The Claws of Santa in the Big Finish audio range.

An atmospheric, knowing tale that ultimately delivers a number of smart twists, this adventure opens by building neatly on the concluding events of ‘The King of Sontar’. Dwelling on the emotional fall-out of Leela’s earlier decision and the Doctor’s displeasure, we witness Leela’s ongoing development as she reads a series of fairytales in order to escape from the Doctor’s apparently scolding silence. Little is wasted in this cleverly economical script, and the fairytale motif returns a number of times later on, shifting, mutating and deepening as we encounter it in various ways.

However, learning isn’t a wholly positive force in this story. Leela’s acknowledgement – “thank you, Doctor, for my education”, she says at one point – is contrasted with the academic culture encountered by the time-travellers. “Senior Tutor” Bengel and her “research assistants” are busy researching an extremely unusual planet where darkness endures almost constantly. Modified by injections so as to operate in the dark, these boggly-eyed scholars are investigating the “white ghosts” of the title: savagely sentient plants that grow at an accelerated rate when exposed to light. But this isn’t an idealistic pursuit of knowledge. Instead, the team of researchers aim to exploit their discoveries, vying dangerously with one another for status.

The Doctor coins a nickname for one of this scholarly team (performed very effectively by Bethan Walker from the Torchwood episode ‘Cyberwoman’), addressing her as “star pupil”. Elsewhere this might be a compliment, but in this case it eventually takes on a bleakly ironic tone. Meanwhile, the Senior Tutor is voiced by Virginia Hey, crossing from one SF franchise to another, and playing her role with all the conviction and authority that it requires.

For most of its running time this is a taut and compelling creation, veering into the territory of vampire mythology. But the story’s resolution is perhaps slightly hamfisted, depending on an impromptu and convenient spot of time-travelling while the Doctor and Leela are separated from the TARDIS. More intriguingly, the events of ‘King of Sontar’ resonate here in ways that run beyond Leela’s learning. The mythos introduced in ‘State of Decay’ is eventually also referenced, and the Time Lords look set to offer a recurring backdrop to this series of stories.

Although the mystery of the “white ghosts” is eventually solved, the story again doubles and bifurcates its pursuit of knowledge, with one discovery being countered by another of a very different nature. It seems that learning can be both good and evil, hopeful and duplicitous, in this world: fairytales don’t quite offer a reliable guide to the darkness at the edge of the universe.

When Leela engages in combat, we hear her ‘inner voice’ or warrior’s consciousness, and the device works extremely well to capture what could otherwise be a highly visual action sequence hamstrung by an audio-only format. It also slows down the action for a scene or two, in a story that is otherwise furiously concerned with acceleration – accelerated growth, accelerated change, and faster-than-light salvation. This counterpoint works exceptionally well, and Alan Barnes’ story is well served by Nick Briggs’ direction both here and throughout.

Tom Baker’s hilarious delivery of another incarnation’s catchphrase has to be heard to be believed. And there are other aural treats: occasional music cues sound vaguely reminiscent of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy to me, but this isn’t a Douglas Adams-esque romp, coming across instead as a tough SF-vampire thriller. There’s no sparkling in the light in this brand of hard-edged fantasy, and just as the Doctor’s response was called into question at the end of ‘King of Sontar’, some of his actions this time around also seem far from ideal. This realisation of the fourth Doctor is a touch less heroic than some of his televised versions, and rather more compromised or doubting, as Tom Baker notes in the extra feature interviews. It’s a fascinating dynamic, off-setting Leela’s growing understanding and literacy with a slightly less God-like, omniscient Doctor who's recurrently pushed to make difficult choices. However much we might strive to improve ourselves, awkward decisions always remain. And the Doctor’s optimism at meeting “people of learning” proves to be largely unfounded; learning is no guarantee of goodness or civility in ‘White Ghosts’. Light and dark may offer black-and-white certainties, but this is seemingly a grey universe, lacking in moral absolutes. Whether you’re a Doctor, a star pupil, or a Senior Tutor, you might not know best.

On Monday April 14th, the day was uncertain for one of the main attractions. Tom Baker was to appear at The Ivy in Leicester Square, but days before, an illness seemed ready to put a stop to his attendance, having already cancelled a signing the Saturday before. Upon my arrival, and stepping aside at the main entrance, how wonderful it was when the Fourth Doctor himself was then happily posing outside infront of fans and photographers in the sunlight with one of his adversaries, a Dalek. Upstairs at the restaurant and bar provoked a lot of interest for the day with the very costumes of Doctors One to Seven (the latter being from The TV Movie) on display after their previous presence at the 50th Anniversary Celebration at London's ExCel arena.

Gathering fellow Doctor Who fans, bloggers and journalist in a corner of the room, Baker himself, looking very well at 80, greeted all to an enthusiastic "hello" back, as the Q&A session began. A first question posed was his much talked about cameo in The Day of the Doctor, something that the actor initially didn't want to have a part in. Baker spoke in a particularly vein manner when recalling a meeting with former producer Caroline Skinner:
He was then asked if another potential return to the show would be out of the question:

Baker is known to the fandom to have had, at the time, disagreements with producer John-Nathan Turner during the 1980 run of the show which eventually saw a final season with his Fourth Doctor. He explained the reasoning behind his untimely departure:
Interviewing him, I kept creativity in mind, stepping away from the formulaic questions such as "what was it like being The Doctor?", and instead queried about his feelings of the several costumes he wore throughout his tenure, to which he lovingly took on as an acting job. I later queried about his supposed involvement in The Five Doctors 20th anniversary special and if his decline to the opportunity had something to do with his conflicts with Nathan-Turner, which was indeed true:
An interesting question cropped up, revealing that he had been approached to be in The Sarah Jane Adventures for a guest stint as The Doctor intended for a sixth series. Enthused by the prospect, at the time, Baker then reminisced his memories being with former co-star Elisabeth Sladen:

A break allowed all to chinwag about their appreciation of Who and of the man present, with complimentary drinks, refreshments, and (believe it or not) jelly babies layed out on tables. Tom was then photographed in between Peter Davison, Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy's costumes while, as an extra special treat, wearing his burgundy hat and scarf he first wore in his final series as The Doctor. Leading next was Horror Channel's showcase of promoting Classic Doctor Who on the UK channel, represented by the face of the channel, Emily Booth, who proceeded to give a speech and presenting scenes from a couple of Tom's stories, (The Face of Evil and Genesis of the Daleks) set to the full 1963 version of the theme tune. An interview followed with Booth to Baker about his life on the show and his delight at Classic Who being on the channel, sharing anecdotes of being a fan of horror himself. After which, Tom quietly left.

There were musings in coversations that Peter Davison and Nicholas Briggs were to turn up, but alas, this never materialised, but Tom's presence certainly didn't bat this. Three individuals who did were The Fires of Pompeii writer James Moran, a representative from the BBC and a man named Peter, whose company (which I failed to know the name of) were responsible for creating the animation seen in Horror's posters and commercials.

It had been a frankly brilliant day talking non-stop to fans but also briefly exchanging words with the man himself. It had been arranged perfectly by the Horror team at an appropriately posh venue for a showcase like Doctor Who. Baker was on form and kept everyone in good spirits by joking in his usual manner but also being truthful and setting eyes on every person to interact with. Had Baker not have turned up, the launch would have been much shorter and would have felt somewhat empty. In short, Tom Baker saved the day and appeared to have enjoyed it very much.

This story kicks off a run of fourth Doctor stories from Big Finish, returning to the now familiar theme of Leela’s Pygmalion-esque education, albeit with a savage twist. Written by John Dorney, The King of Sontar is a compact two-parter which maintains a cracking pace throughout. It borrows from the best of Doctor Who whilst still creating something that feels both fresh and dramatically vibrant. Among its partial precedents are Genesis of the Daleks, with this template especially visible at the story's beginning, given that the TARDIS is hijacked by the Time Lords and sent on a specific mission. And certain events also put me somewhat in mind of The Silurians, albeit with less moral clarity in this instance.

Diverted to Dowcra, a lump of rock with strategic importance, the Doctor and Leela soon encounter a Sontaran seemingly unlike any other. This is Strang, played very effectively by Dan Starkey, who evidently relishes the chance to portray a darker and far more deadly Sontaran incarnation than that of his recurring TV role. Strang's introduction here, effortlessly taking on a twelve-strong assassination squad, is certainly a stylish statement of intent, and the character challenges pretty much everything that listeners (and the Doctor) think that they know about Sontarans. Amongst other things, this gives rise to an impressive cliffhanger and a sense of mystery that's resolved perhaps a little too soon. I would have welcomed slightly fewer definitive answers regarding Strang’s origins – he seems too good a narrative possibility to be explained away so rapidly. But there’s little sense of a series-long arc being seeded here, and instead this feels far more like a stand-alone opener. Transformatively reinventing a major Doctor Who monster is surely a strong enough idea to sustain a number of stories, though, and on that basis I partly wish Strang had remained more of an enigma for now.

Leela and the Doctor are separated early on in the proceedings, but Dorney makes good use of this common pattern by partnering Leela with Vilhol, a Sontaran wishing to restore his forfeited sense of militaristic honour. Well played by Big Finish regular John Banks, Vilhol – or “the coward”, as he’s become known – is an intriguing character who comes to recognize Leela as a kindred warrior spirit. It’s a rapidly battle-hardened relationship that in turn raises a curious possibility: perhaps this companion of the Doctor’s might feel more at home with an avenging Sontaran than with a universe-hopping Time Lord? And if that’s so, then whose code of honour will Leela ultimately embrace?

“Why are there always alarms?” mutters the Doctor at one point, and sure enough they continue to blare away in the background across this production, with effective sound design constantly lending a sense of urgency to events. Although a few supporting characters feel hemmed in by archetypal structures – you’re rarely in doubt as to what fates are most likely to befall evil mercenaries and misguided scientists – in the end, this story gives Tom Baker and Louise Jameson some great material to work with. Strang may well represent an unusual Sontaran adversary, but by raising the stakes thanks to a Time Lord mission (and an accompanying threat to the universe), The King of Sontar also moves towards an unusual conclusion for the fourth Doctor and his Sevateem student.

Along the way there’s a lot of fun to be had. Strang and the Doctor confront one another via plenty of strong repartee, and David Collings’ turn as the scientist Rosato is also good value. Rosato has been working on a “portal” which could do away with problems such as galactic famine and over-population, as well as coincidentally making him famous, but unfortunately he has become more than a little blinkered in his technological pursuits. And assigned to help with this development, the Doctor seemingly can’t resist being a clever-clogs. However, it is Strang’s excessive monstrosity that becomes the true star turn. Compelling villains often unbalance the stories that they grace, and Strang is almost akin to a Davros-style equivalent for the Sontaran race: a storytelling development opening up new schisms, identities and possibilities. The analogy is another way in which Dorney’s work here seems to have been productively sparked by remembrance of Genesis.

Previous Big Finish fourth Doctor series have been marred by occasional wobbles in quality, but this is undoubtedly a smartly structured and inventive tale. And with the possible exception of a highly stylized performance when the Doctor's being strangled by Strang, Tom Baker is on top form. The same can be said, without reservation, of Jameson (who effortlessly makes “hatchery” seem like a truly alien word) and Starkey, who revels in Strang's self-belief. As a Sontaran experiment of sorts – whether toying playfully with Vilhol’s last syllable of dialogue or posing questions about the Doctor’s educational skills – this consistently yields first-class results.

The Monster Collection is a new series of DVDs that each focus on one of the Doctor's adversaries; unlike previous collective releases such as The Dalek Collection and Cybermen, however, this time around each of the six DVDs pair up both the modern and classic appearance of the subject in question.

There's obviously been an attempt to pair up 'origin' stories: for the Sontarans we have The Time Warrior with The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky, the Silurians have Doctor Who and the Silurians with The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood, and with Dalek creator Davros it's Genesis of the Daleks alongside The Stolen Earth/Journey's End. Things start to go a little awry with The Master, where it's Terror of the Autons paired with The End of Time (though the latter story does explain why the Master is how he is so perhaps more relevant than Last of the Time Lords. The Cybermen are then represented by Rise Of The Cybermen/Age of Steel and The Tomb of The Cybermen (this being the first 'complete' story featuring them) - I'm guessing either the animated reconstructed version of The Tenth Planet wasn't ready for that set's preparation, or maybe it was actually a decision that having an animated episode is mis-representative and might detract newcomers from the show (I doubt it would have been through it's inclusion in the recent Regenerations boxed set, though, being The End of Time is included here!). However, I'm rather more mystified at Asylum of the Daleks's inclusion with The Daleks - I would have thought Dalek would have been a better choice - not to mention meaning that Christopher Eccleston's contribution to the series could also have then been represented!

Speaking of incarnations, only the first four 'classic' Doctors are represented, though with all of the adversaries in the set introduced during the first twelve years of the show that's inevitable. For those that are, we have one Hartnell, one Troughton, three Pertwee and one Tom Baker story (though Troughton only makes it in through The Tenth Planet not being used). Perhaps if the Terileptils, Bandils and Tetraps return then the others could get a look-in (grin).

If future collections were to be considered, then candidates might be - assuming animations remain off the menu - the Ice Warriors represented by The Seeds of Death alongside Cold War, and the Zygons through Terror of the Zygons and the still-be-broadcast The Day of the Doctor. The Autons are another notable absentee, though with Terror already in The Master collection and Spearhead from Space only just been re-released on Blu-ray that set is probably unviable (though it would have given Eccleston another chance with a pairing with Rose!).

However, I suspect that sets such as The Macra (The Macra Terror and Gridlock) and The Great Intelligence (The Abominable Snowmen and The Snowmen) are rather less likely ...

The Discs

The Cybermen and The Sontarans are presented on one disc, with the others across two. As these are a collection, all the discs use the same basic "rainy" montage with spinning TARDIS in the background, with the main protagonist taking centre stage (see the screenshots below). Unfortunately this doesn't extend to the stories themselves, so the 'classic' story has the same graphic as the 'modern' - this is most noticeable with The Master, where John Simm graces Terror of the Autons where I would have really liked an imposing Roger Delgado!


Other than that, these are vanilla releases with only subtitles as an option, and the story-specific sub-menus only give the option to choose a specific episode. There is no restoration work undertaken on these discs either, retaining any rendering issues encountered on their previous dedicated DVD release (for example, David Daker and John Carney credits are still missing from The Time Monster); however, The Tomb Of The Cybermen is the re-released, VidFIREd version from Revisitations 3.

Conclusion

The pairing of a classic era adversary with its modern interpretation is an interesting way to bring those creatures' earlier exploits to the attention of those solely versed in the 21st Century version (not to mention a 'fresh' Doctor, too!) As the publicity says, "These collections are perfect for younger viewers just discovering the scary delights of fifty years of Doctor Who." This is quite a canny move on the part of BBC Worldwide in order to engender an interest in the older stories (and the back catalogue of hundreds of adventures to purcha- enjoy, as well...).

However, there is nothing new of interest to those who already owns previous releases - and the chances are you have, of course - for example with something like Rise of the Cybermen/Age of Steel this is its fourth outing, having been previously released as part of Series 2 Vol 3, The Cybermen (2009) and Doctor Who: DVD Files Vol #10 (not to mention complete series and era boxed sets!). But then, these DVDs are not really aimed at you!

On the other hand, if you are thinking of treating a younger cousin etc. to a Doctor Who DVD in order to introduce them to larger history of the show then these are perhaps a relatively cheap way to do so.

(It's just a shame that the Jagaroth didn't make a re-appearance in order to have City of Death, so you'll just have to buy them the classic release instead!)