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[bishopcruz]

Edits: Changed some of the Images to make the thread a little less gaudy and huge. Also added some of the recommendations

Hey, well we just finished the 50th anniversary, and it was awesome. The thing is, as of Night of the Doctor, we now know that the TV series is not the only canon in Doctor Who. There is a whole load of great stories available for the Classic doctors and for the time between the 1996 Movie and the 2005 reboot it was just about the only place where you could get new Who with actors at all.

What are these?

From the Wiki

Many of those initially involved in Big Finish had worked on the Audio Visuals fan series of unlicensed Doctor Who audio plays.

Big Finish began with a series of audio plays adapted from New Adventures. These were a series of novels from Virgin Books which had originally been licensed Doctor Who stories, but by then had become officially independent from the show and were based around the character of Bernice "Benny" Summerfield. Big Finish then obtained a (non-exclusive) license to produce official Doctor Who plays, beginning with the multi-Doctor story The Sirens of Time. Doctor Who and spin-offs have remained the main part of the company's output ever since, although they have since diversified.

The Doctor Who audio plays feature the five surviving lead actors to play the character of the Doctor in the classic series (Tom Baker, Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy, and Paul McGann), as well as many of the regular supporting actors over the many years of the programme. The late Jon Pertwee's voice is featured in the 40th-anniversary story Zagreus. His part in the story was pieced together from snippets of dialogue (from the fan-produced Doctor Who video "Devious") recorded prior to his death.

Of the surviving Doctors, Tom Baker had for years declined invitations to return to the role (though in March 2010 he mentioned on his website that he had a new story in the works, and Big Finish confirmed these plans on their own website[7]).

Big Finish's licence, which has been extended to 31 December 2015, only covers the original Doctor Who series. Big Finish are therefore unable to feature any material from or references to the new series, which prohibits Christopher Eccleston, David Tennant, and Matt Smith from appearing as the Ninth, Tenth, and Eleventh Doctors respectively. The extent of the restriction remains unclear, as the character of the Ninth Doctor makes a silent "off-screen" appearance that affects the plot of 2006's The Kingmaker.]

So, there are a LOT of these, and I've only listened to a relative few of them. Thing is, overall they are GREAT. The audios do a great job of telling compelling stories with some very strong acting and usually a great cast. Characters that will likely never appear in the TV show again (past companions) are often allowed to return, and that in and of itself is great. You also get to find out things like what happened to Susan, and just how badass the Eighth Doctor really was.

The dramas also apparently do a great job in redeeming the sixth Doctor. I haven't listened to much of his adventures, but the reviews and buzz about them has been quite strong.

The biggest problem with the Audio dramas is that they aren't cheap, but there is a sale right now that has the first 50 available for download at $2.99 a pop. That's a whole lot of Who.

As for where to start, I can only speak to my experience, and that was starting with the Eighth Doctor line. I got into who with the 11th hour, then went back and watched everything from the 9th Doctor onwards. I also watched a smattering of Classic who on Amazon and Netflix. I was curious about the Doctor that time more or less forgot, and decided to check these out. They were GREAT. The Eighth Doctor line has had its hiccups over the 11 years its been going, but he still ends up being my favorite Doctor. I'm almost caught up, I just need to finish listening to Dark Eyes, the most recent release.



Big Finish's Main Doctor Who page.

http://www.bigfinish.com/hubs/v/doctor-who

Recommendations (will update as more come in):

Eighth Doctor:

The first two seasons, starting with Storm Warning and concluding with Zagraus are excellent. If you have to try just one, I would go with either Storm Warning, the first, or Chimes of Midnight, the best Christmas Story in Doctor Who history. The nice thing is, all of this are currently only $2.99 so getting in is pretty easy.

The Eighth Doctor's original run follows his adventures with Charley Pollard, self proclaimed Edwardian Adventuress, they are as follows:

Season 1:

Storm Warning
Sword of Orion
Stones of Venice
Minuet in Hell
Invaders From Mars

Season 2:
The Chimes of Midnight
Seasons of Fear
Embrace the Darkness
The Time of the Daleks
Neverland

40th Anniversary Special:
Zagraeus

3rd Season:
Scherzo
The Creed of the Kromon
The Natural History of Fear
The Twilight Kingdom

4th Season:
Faith Stealer
The Last
Caerdroia
The Next Life

5th Season:
Terror Firma
Scaredy Cat
Other Lives
Time Works

6th Season:
Memory Lane
Absoultion
The Girl Who Never Was

From the Wiki:

BobbyRoberts recommends the Eighth Doctor Adventures line, which is also quite good, though a more expensive place to start:

I'd disagree that Storm Warning to Zagreus is the best intro to the Audio Dramas, or to the Eighth Doctor. Plus the image used doesn't even come from that, but comes from the drama that continues AFTER what I'd consider to be the better recommendation for newcomers.

The Eighth Doctor Adventures

These are their own series, with only one or two episodes outside the series needed to understand any of what's going on (and even then - you don't really lose anything). They're produced with the New Who viewer in mind, and tend to take on the formatting of those episodes, whereas previous Big Finish productions are much more in the 4-5 part 25min serial mode of Classic Who.

The Eighth Doctor (Paul McGann) meets a companion named Lucie Miller (Sheridan Smith), who feels to me a bit like a combination between Rose Tyler, Jackie Tyler, and Donna Noble. That's not the best way to describe her, I know, but she is a really well-written companion, who evolves quite a bit over the course of the run, which includes run-ins with classic Who villains (Daleks, Cybermen, Zygons, Ice Warriors) and classic Doctor Who characters, including the return of his granddaughter, Susan.

There are four seasons, with about 10 episodes each season, each episode running about 40-50 minutes long.

List of Episodes (provided by wikipedia)

Series 1

1 Blood of the Daleks Part 1
2 Blood of the Daleks Part 2
3 Horror of Glam Rock (co-stars Wilfred Mott as a grimy band manager)
4 Immortal Beloved
5 Phobos
6 No More Lies
7 Human Resources Part 1
8 Human Resources Part 2

Series 2

1 Dead London
2 Max Warp (spoofs Top Gear)
3 Brave New Town
4 The Skull of Sobek
5 Grand Theft Cosmos
6 The Zygon Who Fell to Earth
7 Sisters of the Flame (Part 1)
8 Vengeance of Morbius (Part 2) August 2008

Series 3

1 Orbis
2 Hothouse
3 The Beast of Orlok
4 Wirrn Dawn
5 The Scapegoat
6 The Cannibalists
7 The Eight Truths (Part 1)
8 Worldwide Web (Part 2)

Series 4

1 Death in Blackpool
2 Situation Vacant
3 Nevermore
4 The Book of Kells
5 Deimos (Part 1)
6 The Resurrection of Mars (Part 2)
7 Relative Dimensions
8 Prisoner of the Sun
9 Lucie Miller (Part 1)
10 To the Death (Part 2)

A synopsis of some of the better episodes provided by Den of Geek is here

From there, you can work backwards to the episodes called out in the OPs post, or you can hop forward to "Dark Eyes," which is the miniseries that picks up directly after the Eighth Doctor Adventures.

Fifth Doctor:

Honestly haven't listened to any of these, but I hear nothing but good things about Spare Parts.

For a Fifth Doctor audio recommendation, I'll throw out Loups-Garoux. It has the 5th Doctor and Turlough in Rio with werewolves in a story by Marc Platt (who wrote Ghost Light). What more needs to be said?

Sixth Doctor:

Again, looking to get into him next, and there is a LOT, but I did listen to Jubilee, the story that was reworked into the episode Dalek in Season 1. Great, great stuff. The Holy Terror is the one I plan to listen to next.

Once you're hooked, you'll probably wanna check out the other Doctors, in which case:

As OP stated, the Sixth Doctor is absolutely redeemed by the audio dramas, and his run with Evelyn Smythe, (played by Maggie Stables) one of the better companions the Doctor has ever had, made even more interesting by the fact she's the first companion I can think of who is north of 50. She's a history teacher, and the way she and Colin Baker bounce off each other is pretty damned great.

Her run of episodes, from wiki:

The Marian Conspiracy
The Spectre of Lanyon Moor
The Apocalypse Element
Bloodtide
Project: Twilight
Real Time
The Sandman
Jubilee
Doctor Who and the Pirates
Project: Lazarus
Arrangements for War
Medicinal Purposes
Pier Pressure
Thicker than Water
The Nowhere Place
100
Assassin in the Limelight
A Death in the Family (with the Seventh Doctor)
A Town Called Fortune
The Crimes of Thomas Brewster
The Feast of Axos
Industrial Evolution

Seventh:

Absolutely NO idea. But hopefully some others in the thread can give some advice here.

And for the Seventh, The Fires of Vulcan (features Mel, set in Pompeii as Vesuvius erupts) is a great one.

A good one for the 7th Doctor is Love & War. You get 7, Ace and a brilliant intro to Bernice Summerfield. Once you've finished that get started on the main Bernice range. I <3 Lisa Bowerman.

The Fourth Doctor:

Tom Baker also just started with his own range of stories, The Fourth Doctor adventures. As these are new they are more expensive, but I honestly haven't heard much about them. Anyone have any thoughts on them?

As you can see, even after listening to about 50 of these stories, I still have barely scratched the surface of the non Eighth Doctor lines. So, for fans of these, chime in. What's good, what's bad? Let us know!

KuwabaraTheMan also recommends:

There should also be some mention of the Companion Chronicles, which is a great range. It's the only real way to see the continuation of the first three Doctors on audio, and the narrated format allows the stories to play around with story structure a lot more. I'd recommend Frostfire (also a Marc Platt story, this time with Vicki) as a good intro to the range and an example of what the Companion Chronicles can achieve.

 

[RedShift]

Never really seen anything outside of the reboot and the TV Movie, been meaning to maybe listen to a few of these. Especially the Eighth, he seems like a cool guy. Thanks for the info.

Should make constant commuting on the bus a bit more interesting.

 

[bishopcruz]

Never really seen anything outside of the reboot and the TV Movie, been meaning to maybe listen to a few of these. Especially the Eighth, he seems like a cool guy. Thanks for the info.

Eighth is a really cool place to start. And the nice thing, is through these adventures you do get to learn more about some of the monsters and little bits of lore spread throughout the reboot. For example. the Zygons, from the 50th show up in the run, as does the Sisterhood of Karn from Night of the Doctor. That and McGann is just amazing as the Doctor.

 

[Bobby Roberts]

I'd disagree that Storm Warning to Zagreus is the best intro to the Audio Dramas, or to the Eighth Doctor. Plus the image used doesn't even come from that, but comes from the drama that continues AFTER what I'd consider to be the better recommendation for newcomers.

The Eighth Doctor Adventures

These are their own series, with only one or two episodes outside the series needed to understand any of what's going on (and even then - you don't really lose anything). They're produced with the New Who viewer in mind, and tend to take on the formatting of those episodes, whereas previous Big Finish productions are much more in the 4-5 part 25min serial mode of Classic Who.

The Eighth Doctor (Paul McGann) meets a companion named Lucie Miller (Sheridan Smith), who feels to me a bit like a combination between Rose Tyler, Jackie Tyler, and Donna Noble. That's not the best way to describe her, I know, but she is a really well-written companion, who evolves quite a bit over the course of the run, which includes run-ins with classic Who villains (Daleks, Cybermen, Zygons, Ice Warriors) and classic Doctor Who characters, including the return of his granddaughter, Susan.

There are four seasons, with about 10 episodes each season, each episode running about 40-50 minutes long.

List of Episodes (provided by wikipedia)

Series 1

1 Blood of the Daleks Part 1
2 Blood of the Daleks Part 2
3 Horror of Glam Rock (co-stars Wilfred Mott as a grimy band manager)
4 Immortal Beloved
5 Phobos
6 No More Lies
7 Human Resources Part 1
8 Human Resources Part 2

Series 2

1 Dead London
2 Max Warp (spoofs Top Gear)
3 Brave New Town
4 The Skull of Sobek
5 Grand Theft Cosmos
6 The Zygon Who Fell to Earth
7 Sisters of the Flame (Part 1)
8 Vengeance of Morbius (Part 2) August 2008

Series 3

1 Orbis
2 Hothouse
3 The Beast of Orlok
4 Wirrn Dawn
5 The Scapegoat
6 The Cannibalists
7 The Eight Truths (Part 1)
8 Worldwide Web (Part 2)

Series 4

1 Death in Blackpool
2 Situation Vacant
3 Nevermore
4 The Book of Kells
5 Deimos (Part 1)
6 The Resurrection of Mars (Part 2)
7 Relative Dimensions
8 Prisoner of the Sun
9 Lucie Miller (Part 1)
10 To the Death (Part 2)

A synopsis of some of the better episodes provided by Den of Geek is here

From there, you can work backwards to the episodes called out in the OPs post, or you can hop forward to "Dark Eyes," which is the miniseries that picks up directly after the Eighth Doctor Adventures.

Once you're hooked, you'll probably wanna check out the other Doctors, in which case:

As OP stated, the Sixth Doctor is absolutely redeemed by the audio dramas, and his run with Evelyn Smythe, (played by Maggie Stables) one of the better companions the Doctor has ever had, made even more interesting by the fact she's the first companion I can think of who is north of 50. She's a history teacher, and the way she and Colin Baker bounce off each other is pretty damned great.

Her run of episodes, from wiki:

The Marian Conspiracy
The Spectre of Lanyon Moor
The Apocalypse Element
Bloodtide
Project: Twilight
Real Time
The Sandman
Jubilee
Doctor Who and the Pirates
Project: Lazarus
Arrangements for War
Medicinal Purposes
Pier Pressure
Thicker than Water
The Nowhere Place
100
Assassin in the Limelight
A Death in the Family (with the Seventh Doctor)
A Town Called Fortune
The Crimes of Thomas Brewster
The Feast of Axos
Industrial Evolution

Jubilee of that run was re-adapted into the Ninth Doctor's "Dalek" episode. Given almost 3 times the length in the audio drama, the story is both weirder, goofier, and darker than what ended up making it intact to the screen back in 2005, and much of the story's power comes directly from Stables' performance as Evelyn.

I haven't heard any of the Fourth Doctor adventures yet. Those are kinda new-ish and I haven't sprung for them yet, but I haven't heard anything bad so far, and really, so long as Tom Baker is reading ANYTHING, you're at least going to have a cool sounding story rolling through your speakers - even if the story itself ends up being gibberish. I doubt that's the case with his run, though.


Big Finish's Main Doctor Who page.

http://www.bigfinish.com/hubs/v/doctor-who

 

[bishopcruz]

I'd disagree that Storm Warning to Zagreus is the best intro to the Audio Dramas, or to the Eighth Doctor. Plus the image used doesn't even come from that, but comes from the drama that continues AFTER what I'd consider to be the better recommendation for newcomers.

Honestly I just picked an image that had a cool look of the Eighth Doctor, kinda partial to it.

And while the Eighth Doctor Adventures are great, quite great, I do think being able to pick up three stories of the original run for the cost of just ONE Eighth Doctor Adventure since they came later makes it a lot less intimidating of a proposition. Plus Charley is just great.

Still, you can't go wrong with either. There is a LOT of stuff out there. And I still say my favorite stories "Chimes of Midnight", "Neverland", "The Natural History of Fear" are all from the main range.

The Eighth Doctor Adventures

These are their own series, with only one or two episodes outside the series needed to understand any of what's going on (and even then - you don't really lose anything). They're produced with the New Who viewer in mind, and tend to take on the formatting of those episodes, whereas previous Big Finish productions are much more in the 4-5 part 25min serial mode of Classic Who.

The Eighth Doctor (Paul McGann) meets a companion named Lucie Miller (Sheridan Smith), who feels to me a bit like a combination between Rose Tyler, Jackie Tyler, and Donna Noble. That's not the best way to describe her, I know, but she is a really well-written companion, who evolves quite a bit over the course of the run, which includes run-ins with classic Who villains (Daleks, Cybermen, Zygons, Ice Warriors) and classic Doctor Who characters, including the return of his granddaughter, Susan.

There are four seasons, with about 10 episodes each season, each episode running about 40-50 minutes long.

List of Episodes (provided by wikipedia)

Series 1

1 Blood of the Daleks Part 1
2 Blood of the Daleks Part 2
3 Horror of Glam Rock (co-stars Wilfred Mott as a grimy band manager)
4 Immortal Beloved
5 Phobos
6 No More Lies
7 Human Resources Part 1
8 Human Resources Part 2

Series 2

1 Dead London
2 Max Warp (spoofs Top Gear)
3 Brave New Town
4 The Skull of Sobek
5 Grand Theft Cosmos
6 The Zygon Who Fell to Earth
7 Sisters of the Flame (Part 1)
8 Vengeance of Morbius (Part 2) August 2008

Series 3


1 Orbis
2 Hothouse
3 The Beast of Orlok
4 Wirrn Dawn
5 The Scapegoat
6 The Cannibalists
7 The Eight Truths (Part 1)
8 Worldwide Web (Part 2)

Series 4

1 Death in Blackpool
2 Situation Vacant
3 Nevermore
4 The Book of Kells
5 Deimos (Part 1)
6 The Resurrection of Mars (Part 2)
7 Relative Dimensions
8 Prisoner of the Sun
9 Lucie Miller (Part 1)
10 To the Death (Part 2)

A synopsis of some of the better episodes provided by Den of Geek is here

Mind if I pop this in the OP?

 

[Bobby Roberts]

Feel free!

And also, apologies if I came off as "WRONG!" in my post. It's not like anyone starting with Storm Warning is going to have a bad run - those adventures are fun, as well. I just think the actual Eighth Doctor adventures were created and made with the express purpose of ensnaring the more casual fan who is kinda used to how New Who works, as opposed to older fans who have a familiarity with the pacing and style of the classic stories.

But you're right, getting 3 Charley stories for the price of one Eighth Doctor adventure is a damned good deal

 

[bishopcruz]

Feel free!

And also, apologies if I came off as "WRONG!" in my post. It's not like anyone starting with Storm Warning is going to have a bad run - those adventures are fun, as well. I just think the actual Eighth Doctor adventures were created and made with the express purpose of ensnaring the more casual fan who is kinda used to how New Who works, as opposed to older fans who have a familiarity with the pacing and style of the classic stories.

But you're right, getting 3 Charley stories for the price of one Eighth Doctor adventure is a damned good deal

No problem, I just wanted to get some discussion on these going.

It's a good point. Technically the first one I listened to was Blood of the Daleks, and it really drew me in. But yeah, at $2.99 those older ones are just an amazing deal right now. For those who care, the older ones are similar to Classic Who broken up into 30 minute chunks of 4 episodes or so, but the pacing is usually loads better than the Classic TV episodes, IMO. In that regard it is a great bridge either to or from the reboot as it can help you better understand the format of old Who.

Thanks for the info on Six, BTW. Good stuff to know.

Now we only need some 5th and 7th recs.

As far as the stories themselves go I just finished with Lucie Miller/To the Death (MAJOR SPOILERS for the end of the Eight Doctor Adventures run)

Spoiler

Holy crap! I figured Lucie was done for but I never expected them to kill off Alex. Poor, poor Susan. Her life just SUCKS. The Doctor really can't help but fucking up people's lives can he?

 

[Exterminieren]

More people need to be exposed to the charms of LUCIE BLEEDIN' MILLER.

 

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Great idea for a thread. I'm still making my way through a lot of the early audios myself.

For a Fifth Doctor audio recommendation, I'll throw out Loups-Garoux. It has the 5th Doctor and Turlough in Rio with werewolves in a story by Marc Platt (who wrote Ghost Light). What more needs to be said? And for the Seventh, The Fires of Vulcan (features Mel, set in Pompeii as Vesuvius erupts) is a great one.

There should also be some mention of the Companion Chronicles, which is a great range. It's the only real way to see the continuation of the first three Doctors on audio, and the narrated format allows the stories to play around with story structure a lot more. I'd recommend Frostfire (also a Marc Platt story, this time with Vicki) as a good intro to the range and an example of what the Companion Chronicles can achieve.

 

[bishopcruz]

Great idea for a thread. I'm still making my way through a lot of the early audios myself.

For a Fifth Doctor audio recommendation, I'll throw out Loups-Garoux. It has the 5th Doctor and Turlough in Rio with werewolves in a story by Marc Platt (who wrote Ghost Light). What more needs to be said? And for the Seventh, The Fires of Vulcan (features Mel, set in Pompeii as Vesuvius erupts) is a great one.

There should also be some mention of the Companion Chronicles, which is a great range. It's the only real way to see the continuation of the first three Doctors on audio, and the narrated format allows the stories to play around with story structure a lot more. I'd recommend Frostfire (also a Marc Platt story, this time with Vicki) as a good intro to the range and an example of what the Companion Chronicles can achieve.

Ok, I'll add the recs to the OT when I get the chance.

As for the companion chronicles, are they still audio plays? Or is it more like a narrated story? I was curious about them, but it seems it would be odd not having any of the doctors in it. I know that the first three are dead, and this is the only way it could work, but how do they for example handle the doctors speaking? Is it more like an audio book?

 

[Slowdive]

Great thread.

More people need to be exposed to the charms of LUCIE BLEEDIN' MILLER.

This.

I've mostly listened to just The Eight Doctor's adventures which are great, next I plan to get around to listening to more of 7's audio stuff.

 

[Hellers]

A good one for the 7th Doctor is Love & War. You get 7, Ace and a brilliant intro to Bernice Summerfield. Once you've finished that get started on the main Bernice range. I <3 Lisa Bowerman.

 

[KuwabaraTheMan]

As for the companion chronicles, are they still audio plays? Or is it more like a narrated story? I was curious about them, but it seems it would be odd not having any of the doctors in it. I know that the first three are dead, and this is the only way it could work, but how do they for example handle the doctors speaking? Is it more like an audio book?

They're not quite plays, but not quite audio books either (although a little closer). They usually have two actors, with the main actor telling a story. So, for example, Jamie telling a story to someone about an adventure he went on with the Doctor, and he'll narrate the story and read the Doctor's lines in a different voice (his Troughton in particular is so good you would swear it was actually Troughton), with another actor playing a different role (usually the villain). Some actors are better than others at doing certain voices (Caroline John's Brigadier voice just sounds like she's yawning), but the stories are usually structured such that the lead actor's role is the most important one.

They're more involved than an audio book generally, because the story is being narrated by the character rather than the actor, so you can actually get inside the characters' heads and see it from a more personal level.

 

[bishopcruz]

A good one for the 7th Doctor is Love & War. You get 7, Ace and a brilliant intro to Bernice Summerfield. Once you've finished that get started on the main Bernice range. I <3 Lisa Bowerman.

More people need to be exposed to the charms of LUCIE BLEEDIN' MILLER.

Love the recs from everyone. And yeah, LUCIE BLEEDIN' MILLER is just amazing.

Looking over Big Finish, it's just ridiculous how much stuff is out there, between the Doctor Audios, the Companion Chronicles, Bernice Summerfield (from the 7th Doctor Novels), Jago and Lightfoot (don't even know who these guys are), and stuff like Gallifrey and the Dalek Empire. Pretty insane when you look at it.

 

[Shiv47]

I've listened to all of Tom Baker's BF stuff, and they're well worth checking out. The first series features Leela as companion, moves to Romana 1, and will eventually have Romana 2 back in a year or so. There's also a two story "Lost Stories" set with stories that were meant for the show but never made, both with Leela. It should be noted that prior to joining up with Big Finish, Tom did three series of audio stories (five stories in each, IIRC) with the BBC through their AudioGo line: Hornets' Nest, Serpent Crest, and Demon Quest. They feature Captain Yates from the UNIT days in several, and a new companion, Mrs. Wibbsey (a crotchety old Victorian era woman).

The Companion Chronicles from Big Finish are a must, as stated above, as well.

 

[Suppersalmon]

If you want 7th Doctor audio recommendations they mainly fall into 2 camps 7 and Ace with Hex and 7 & Ace without Hex, the stories with Hex do have a lot of story arc to them especially towards the end. However the stories with just 7 and Ace are more individual

Colditz - Cheesy prisoner of war movie style of story , however this has pre 10th doctor David Tennant playing a prison guard, it also spins off its own series with the 7th Doctor and Klien. Looks into the effects of using time travel to change history.

Master - The 7th Doctor meets the Master ( Geoffrey Beavers) who has lost his memory and formed a new life in a Victorian / Gothic house for dinner.

45 - Collection of 4 short stories with an overreaching arc introduces the Wordlord as a villain, this story also guest stars Benedict Cummberbatch in one of the short stories. quite a fun listen as each of the stories are about 25 mins each.

Protect and Survive - A very doctor lite story features Ace and Hex in 1980's England when world war 3 starts, trying to survive nuclear fallout.

Gods and Monsters - a Sequel to curse of the fenric however I wouldn't listen to this without having to listened to previous 7, Ace & Hex audio adventures as there are some very heavy story arc elements from the previous 7, 7th Doctor, Ace and Hex stories.

 

[bishopcruz]

I've listened to all of Tom Baker's BF stuff, and they're well worth checking out. The first series features Leela as companion, moves to Romana 1, and will eventually have Romana 2 back in a year or so. It should be noted that prior to joining up with Big Finish, Tom did three series of audio stories (five stories in each, IIRC) with the BBC through their AudioGo line: Hornets' Nest, Serpent Crest, and Demon Quest. They feature Captain Yates from the UNIT days in several, and a new companion, Mrs. Wibbsey (a crotchety old Victorian era woman).

The Companion Chronicles from Big Finish are a must, as stated above, as well.

Sigh, more stuff to pick up it seems. As Baker is so far my favorite of the Classics, and unlike Davison, his voice doesn't seem to have changed much from the old days.

Question for everyone. Of the first 50 BF Doctor stories (The ones on sale for $2.99) which would you all recommend? I have the 8th doctor ones of course. For that price though it seemsa great time to get into 5,6, and 7. Seven is the one I know the least, should I watch some TV eps of him first before I try the BF audios?

 

[TetraxShards]

Jago & Litefoot are a Holmes & Watson pastiche, more or less. They appeared in The Talons of Weng-Chiang, a Fourth Doctor story from the old series.

Blood of the Daleks was my first Big Finish story (I only started this year), and I've been listening non-stop ever since. Can whole-heartedly recommend the Eighth Doctor Adventures, though do be advised they take place after the Eight/Charley era and before Dark Eyes.

 

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Sigh, more stuff to pick up it seems. As Baker is so far my favorite of the Classics, and unlike Davison, his voice doesn't seem to have changed much from the old days.

Question for everyone. Of the first 50 BF Doctor stories (The ones on sale for $2.99) which would you all recommend? I have the 8th doctor ones of course. For that price though it seemsa great time to get into 5,6, and 7. Seven is the one I know the least, should I watch some TV eps of him first before I try the BF audios?

Of the first 50 that I've listened to, The Holy Terror is my favorite. It's just a brilliant black comedy with the 6th Doctor and Frobisher (a talking penguin from the comics). One of the best scripts I've ever experienced in any medium. It's funny and sincere, while also having plenty of jokes about the political system and religious beliefs. I can't recommend it highly enough.

And yeah, I would recommend getting more familiar with McCoy's TV stuff before checking out his audios. A lot of the Ace audios really build off of what was done in the series, especially Season 26.

 

[Lynd7]

William Russell's companion chronicles are really nice to listen to. He's great at it. I listened to the one that came with The Light at the End, its called The Revenants.

I also recently bought Storm Warning and thought it was quite good. I'm going to purchase the Tom Baker Lost Stories set next I think.

 

[KuwabaraTheMan]

I also recently bought Storm Warning and thought it was quite good. I'm going to purchase the Tom Baker Lost Stories set next I think.

That one is highly worth it. The Foe from the Future is my favorite of the Tom Baker material Big Finish has done. It's a really good script, and it uses both the Doctor and Leela really well. I think the lost stories work better than the 4th Doctor adventures, because the 4/6 parters are a more natural fit for Tom's Doctor. The shorter story format of the 4DA keeps the stories from really having enough time to breath.

 

[Suppersalmon]

Sigh, more stuff to pick up it seems. As Baker is so far my favorite of the Classics, and unlike Davison, his voice doesn't seem to have changed much from the old days.

Question for everyone. Of the first 50 BF Doctor stories (The ones on sale for $2.99) which would you all recommend? I have the 8th doctor ones of course. For that price though it seemsa great time to get into 5,6, and 7. Seven is the one I know the least, should I watch some TV eps of him first before I try the BF audios?

Jubille, Holy Terror (mainly as it has the 6th doctor and a talking penguin as his companion) ,Spare Parts ( Cyberman Origins Story) , Davros & Master

As Most of the 7th Doctor audio feature Ace you would probably need to watch a few of the 7th Doctor stories which have Ace in, Mainly Curse of Fenric, Remembrance of the Daleks, Ghost Light and Survival.

 

[Shiv47]

Sigh, more stuff to pick up it seems. As Baker is so far my favorite of the Classics, and unlike Davison, his voice doesn't seem to have changed much from the old days.

Question for everyone. Of the first 50 BF Doctor stories (The ones on sale for $2.99) which would you all recommend? I have the 8th doctor ones of course. For that price though it seemsa great time to get into 5,6, and 7. Seven is the one I know the least, should I watch some TV eps of him first before I try the BF audios?

Yeah, Tom sounds exactly the same as he did then, pretty much, He doesn't smoke like a chimney the way Davison did/does, I guess.

There is literally something for everyone in the Big Finish stuff, assuming you are into the classic series, or want to explore it. The Unbound series is pretty interesting, with various "what if" scenarios (what if the Valeyard won, what if the Doctor and Susan never left Gallfirey, etc), with actors playing alternate versions of the Doctor, including David Warner and Derek Jacoby. Dalek Empire is cool as well, though it's Doctor-free.

 

[V_Arnold]

The Eight Doctor Adventures are just amazing. I have to say that the "monster of the week" stuff gains so much depth in these, compared to the TV Show. The writers just have more room to make it work, or is it our mind, filling the blanks? Whichever it is, it works.

McGann is wonderful in these. So is Sheridan Smith. Lucie is straight up the best companion in new-Who, imho.

 

[TetraxShards]

As far as the Companion Chronicles, I really enjoyed Peri and the Piscon Paradox.

Peri is one of my favourite companions, I've no idea why but I always liked her even as a kid watching the repeats on BBC 2. It does rely on a bit of knowledge of the classic series (mostly what happened to Peri in The Trial of a Time Lord) but I really enjoyed it overall. It was my bridge to the CCs with the first three Doctors. Colin Baker is the extra voice in this one as Six and he's great as usual.

 

[mclem]

Probably worth mentioning for UK folks that if you want a sampler, the 8/Lucie series occasionally crops up on Radio 4Xtra, along with some other Who-related things (At the moment there's an audiobook version of Dalek Invasion Of Earth read by William Russell)

 

[APZonerunner]

Great thread idea.

Jubille, Holy Terror (mainly as it has the 6th doctor and a talking penguin as his companion) ,Spare Parts ( Cyberman Origins Story) , Davros & Master

As Most of the 7th Doctor audio feature Ace you would probably need to watch a few of the 7th Doctor stories which have Ace in, Mainly Curse of Fenric, Remembrance of the Daleks, Ghost Light and Survival.

'Tis worth pointing out if you've watched the new Series of Who that Jubilee & Spare Parts have both been cannibalised and essentially re-done as 'Dalek' and 'Rise of the Cybermen/The Age of Steel' respectively - though the latter is a much looser adaptation.

 

[Nudull]

Never listened to an audio drama before, and I do love Doctor Who, so I'll be giving these a shot, probably with the Eighth Doctor stories, first.

 

[bishopcruz]

Never listened to an audio drama before, and I do love Doctor Who, so I'll be giving these a shot, probably with the Eighth Doctor stories, first.

They are great. Eight is the perfect mix of Classic and Modern Who. Let us know how you like them.

 

[mclem]

While it's not strictly Doctor Who, can I bring up The Scarifyers? It's a lot of Who alumni in Who-style stories (in the gothic horror style) without actually being Who; the initial leads are Nick Courtney (the Brig from Who) and Terry Molloy (Davros in Who), with various other people involved through the episodes.

 

[KoolKing]

I want to say excellent job to the OP. I've listened to a bunch of the McGann stuff (he puts in such a great performance) but this thread will be great in helping me branch out. Thanks!

 

[Quick Mustard]

I'm looking to get stuck into these, but I'm a stickler for wanting to start at the beginning and go all the way in order.

Is there any type of guide I can follow or anything that would help me with this at all?

 

[obin_gam]

I've been trying these, but they are all terrible. I dont get how one company can make so dull and dreary audio stories. I love audio books, as I listen to them while commuting to and from work, but I have never fallen asleep as many times as when trying out Big Finish's Doctor Who stuff.

 

[APZonerunner]

I've been trying these, but they are all terrible. I dont get how one company can make so dull and dreary audio stories. I love audio books, as I listen to them while commuting to and from work, but I have never fallen asleep as many times as when trying out Big Finish's Doctor Who stuff.

Give Dark Eyes a go. It's the culmination of them gradually shifting from the Old Doctor Who style format to the more modern style. You may well find that more interesting.

 

[StalkerUKCG]

So I jumped in at Blood of the Daleks. It's okay so far, I'm struggling to keep my attention on it and the audio seems to dip in and out to create a faux 3d effect which is jarring.

 

[bishopcruz]

I'm looking to get stuck into these, but I'm a stickler for wanting to start at the beginning and go all the way in order.

Is there any type of guide I can follow or anything that would help me with this at all?

It really depends what Doctor you are interested in. For the Eighth pretty much everything is up on the OP, start with Storm Warning (You can watch the TV movie before if you haven't I warn you it's not great.) and go down the list from there.

Basically, the main range alternates Doctors, usually 5,6,7 and later 8. The big finish website has the main range up, you can list them in order, so they are numbered.

I've been trying these, but they are all terrible. I dont get how one company can make so dull and dreary audio stories. I love audio books, as I listen to them while commuting to and from work, but I have never fallen asleep as many times as when trying out Big Finish's Doctor Who stuff.

Give Dark Eyes a go. It's the culmination of them gradually shifting from the Old Doctor Who style format to the more modern style. You may well find that more interesting.

I'd say that transition happened with the 8th Doctor Adventures.

So I jumped in at Blood of the Daleks. It's okay so far, I'm struggling to keep my attention on it and the audio seems to dip in and out to create a faux 3d effect which is jarring.

Never noticed that before. Is it on both channels, or just one?

 

[ramyeon]

I've never done audio books/plays before, but I'm gonna get into this since I need new Doctor Who stuff to satisfy cravings.

Might start with the Eighth Adventures first since those seem to be the most accessible? Keen on checking out the Fourth ones after that though, since he's my favourite classic Doctor.

 

[APZonerunner]

I'd say that transition happened with the 8th Doctor Adventures.

It definitely begins there, especially with Lucie and stuff, but I feel like it reaches critical mass and becomes properly like the modern Doctor Who I know odin watches with Dark Eyes. It's safe to say he might like that story, and also safe to say that if he doesn't he'll probably never be into Big Finish Who.

 

[Bobby Roberts]

The concept of these audio dramas are so fascinating that I only just now noticed the word Doctor is misspelled in the title of the thread

 

[bishopcruz]

The concept of these audio dramas are so fascinating that I only just now noticed the word Doctor is misspelled in the title of the thread

Um... I have no idea what you mean. It's perfectly fine... you just read it wrong...

Spoiler

damn it

 

[ramyeon]

Listened to and really enjoyed the entirety of Blood of the Daleks from Eighth Doctor Adventures - can't wait to listen to more!

 

[AFollowerNotALeader]

If you are in the UK, a bunch of these pop up fairly regularly on the Seventh Dimension on Radio 4 extra (formerly Radio 7).

I really love the Elizabeth Klein arc (A Thousand Tiny Wings, Survival of the Fittest, Klein's Story and The Architects of History). It's great having the Doctor with a companion who hates him, and there's some great to and fro between them.

Seven is the best Doctor.

 

[ramyeon]

Loving these Eighth Doctor Adventures. The "Immortal Beloved" episode was a really cool concept, especially after I was kind of let down with the "Horror of Glam Rock" episode.

 

[bishopcruz]

Loving these Eighth Doctor Adventures. The "Immortal Beloved" episode was a really cool concept, especially after I was kind of let down with the "Horror of Glam Rock" episode.

Immortal Beloved was really, really cool. Great cast in that one too. Horror of Glam Rock is actually kinda important, but yeah it's not one of the best. Glad you are liking them though. If you ever want a break from Lucy, I still can't recommend the stuff with Charley enough.

Eighth doctor is best doctor.

If you are in the UK, a bunch of these pop up fairly regularly on the Seventh Dimension on Radio 4 extra (formerly Radio 7).

I really love the Elizabeth Klein arc (A Thousand Tiny Wings, Survival of the Fittest, Klein's Story and The Architects of History). It's great having the Doctor with a companion who hates him, and there's some great to and fro between them.

Seven is the best Doctor.

Those are all Seventh stories? I'll add them to the list.

Anyhow, I finished Dark Eyes, and it was a good story. I didn't think it was quite as good as the later EDAs, but well worth the time. Molly is a nice companion, even though I pretty much figured out the twist in the second episode.

About halfway through 'The Holy Terror'. Really strange episode, and the voice acting is a little spotty (Frobisher especially.) but it is damned funny. And EP3

Spoiler

The death of Pippin's wife was horrifying. Turning her into a baby and then killing her? WHO THINKS OF THAT? Also the voice of the child-god is both alien and annoying. Really creeps me out.

Also, anyone listen to the Eighth Doctor ones with Mary Shelly? Are they any good?

 

[ramyeon]

Immortal Beloved was really, really cool. Great cast in that one too. Horror of Glam Rock is actually kinda important, but yeah it's not one of the best. Glad you are liking them though. If you ever want a break from Lucy, I still can't recommend the stuff with Charley enough.

Eighth doctor is best doctor.

Just finished off the first series of the Eighth Doctor Adventures - it was really, really good. Never been so compelled to keep listening to an audio drama before, usually I find they don't keep my interest long.

Definitely making me a bigger fan of the Eighth, it's such a shame he never got a TV series of his own.

 

[KuwabaraTheMan]

I finished listening to Here There Be Monsters, the first Susan Companion Chronicle earlier tonight. It was really strong, and Carole Ann Ford did a great job narrating. She obviously couldn't completely sound like Hartnell, but she did a wonderful job capturing his mannerisms and speech patterns, so it sounded pretty good. The story did a really good job of delving into Susan's mind and fleshing her character out (far better than she ever got on television), and setting up her departure quite well. The story was also pretty interesting in terms of looking at a possible future for humanity and looking at imperialism from that point of view, while giving us some neat sci-fi ideas. I loved the idea of a tree controlling a space ship. It had a very 60s era story feel to it.

About halfway through 'The Holy Terror'. Really strange episode, and the voice acting is a little spotty (Frobisher especially.) but it is damned funny. And EP3

Spoiler

The death of Pippin's wife was horrifying. Turning her into a baby and then killing her? WHO THINKS OF THAT? Also the voice of the child-god is both alien and annoying. Really creeps me out.

Yeah, Robert Shearman clearly thinks up some really fucked up things. The black comedy feeling of that story is so good (and I feel like the sixth Doctor is perfectly suited to that type of story in general). So many laugh out loud moments, and moments of 'did that really just happen?'.

 

[ramyeon]

Thank you for making this thread.

I'm half way through Series 2 of the New Eighth Adventures, and although Paul McGann's Doctor was just a blip on Who history for me until now, his portrayal has skyrocketed to being one of the best for me after going through these.

Makes me really wish he had gotten some kind of series, what could have been...

 

[Bobby Roberts]

I know you said you wanna hop to the Fourth Doctor adventures after this, as he's your favorite, but if you get a chance - check out that list of episodes I posted with the Sixth Doctor and his companion, Evelyn Smythe.

Those episodes legitimately redeemed Colin Baker for me. Everything about his Doctor improves. Characterization, performance.

It helps you don't have to ACTUALLY look at his godawful costume. But still, he gets to create a great Doctor in those dramas, and I would have never thought such a thing was possible if I'd just stuck to his television appearances.

 

[ramyeon]

I know you said you wanna hop to the Fourth Doctor adventures after this, as he's your favorite, but if you get a chance - check out that list of episodes I posted with the Sixth Doctor and his companion, Evelyn Smythe.

Those episodes legitimately redeemed Colin Baker for me. Everything about his Doctor improves. Characterization, performance.

It helps you don't have to ACTUALLY look at his godawful costume. But still, he gets to create a great Doctor in those dramas, and I would have never thought such a thing was possible if I'd just stuck to his television appearances.

I'm definitely down for anything that even slightly redeems Colin Baker's Sixth Doctor, I'll check it out. Not being able to see that damn costume is already promising in itself.

 

[Jintor]

I just noticed the thread title is misspelt. Mods?