Jo Martin’s mysterious Doctor returns as the star of her own series.
During Jodie Whittaker’s run, Doctor Who’s mythos expanded as we learned of the Timeless Child. As part of that storyline, we were also introduced to a hitherto unknown Doctor.
Dubbed ‘The Fugitive Doctor’, and played by Jo Martin, this no-nonsense incarnation was on the run from her Time Lord masters, having previously been an operative for a shadowy organisation known as “The Division”.
Jo Martin played the Fugitive Doctor on screen and was promptly signed up by Doctor Who audio producers Big Finish. Her solo series kicks off in January 2025 with the first of two announced box sets.
In three exciting audio adventures, Martin’s determined Doctor encounters ruthless bounty hunters, a mythical Russian witch, and even the Daleks (Nicholas Briggs). All the while, she must evade the hot pursuit of Time Lord agent Cosmo, voiced by Alice Krige (best known for her role as the Borg Queen in the Star Trek franchise).
The Fugitive Doctor: Most Wanted
The three episodes in box set are:
‘Fast Times’ by Robert Valentine
When the mysterious Division tries to arrest their equally mysterious agent, the Doctor, she evades capture and heads out in search of answers… but trouble is never far behind.
Captured by bounty hunters and imprisoned in a maximum-security hulk ship, the Doctor is about to learn that there’s no time to stand still when you’re a fugitive. And times are about to get very fast indeed.
‘The Legend of Baba Yaga’ by Rochana Patel
On the run from the Time Lords and in serious need of help, the Doctor heads for 17th century Russia in search of the legendary witch of Slavic folklore… Baba Yaga.
But while trying to gain assistance from this powerful entity, the Doctor finds herself embroiled in events from the most famous of Baba Yaga’s tales when the tries to help a beautiful young woman called Vasilisa retrieve a burning ember to save her family from the bitter Russian winter.
What is real? What is fantasy? And will the Doctor be able to tell the difference in time?
‘The Dimension of Lost Things’ by Lisa McMullin
Fleeing Cosmo through the Vortex, the TARDIS gets sucked down a temporal plughole, and the Doctor emerges into a weird landscape. Finding other lost souls in the form of mountaineer George Mallory and scavenger Athelia, the Doctor soon stumbles across another, more surprising denizen of this strange dimension – herself!
With Cosmo still in pursuit and memory-stealing winds threatening to wipe her mind for good, the Doctor senses a complex trap in action. But whose trap is it, and how can she possibly escape?
Jo Martin said:
“Doing these audios has been super fun! There wasn’t enough time in the TV episodes to see all the different sides of the Fugitive Doctor. She’s gung-ho, but there’s a softer side to her. With these episodes, the listeners will hear her vulnerability, her kindness and her loyalties. She’s a lone wolf, and that can’t be easy.”
Producer David Richardson added:
“This was an absolute treat to work on. The Fugitive Doctor is such a brilliant, head-turning twist in this amazing long-running show we all love, and script editor Robert Valentine and I had such fun making plans.
“Thirteenth Doctor showrunner, Chris Chibnall, very generously gave up his time and met with us on Zoom while we threw around ideas and he gave us some clarifications about this most enigmatic era of Doctor Who. We came out of that meeting elated, full of purpose and sure of our direction.
“Chris told us that Jo was fantastic and a gorgeous person to work with, and he was absolutely right of course – she came into the studio full of joy for the part, always smiling, always brilliant and charismatic. The Fugitive Doctor now has her own audio series – and as the saying goes, it’s about time…”
The Worlds of Doctor Who – The Fugitive Doctor: Most Wanted is out in January 2025. It’s available on Collector’s Edition CD (+ download), or download only, from Big Finish.
The Fugitive Doctor in Doctor Who – Once and Future
Before her own series kicks off however, Jo Martin debuts her Doctor on audio in the last act of the 60th Anniversary mini-series Once and Future.
Here’s the synopsis for Coda – The Final Act:
Dealing with the repercussions of degeneration, the Doctor has a limited window of time to
evade capture, recruit old allies, wage a war, and find out what’s really going on. A warrior is being hunted by a mysterious stranger in a TARDIS. A rogue agent has been assigned a mission to eliminate a dangerous foe. This is a fight between a war criminal and a fugitive. A fight between Doctors.
As well as Jo Martin and Jonathon Carley, voicing the War Doctor, the story also stars Lisa Bowerman’s time-travelling archaeologist Bernice Summerfield and Chase Masterson as the recurring frenemy and impossibly glamourous bounty hunter Vienna Salvatori.
Also in the cast are Imogen Stubbs as Queen Elizabeth I, Nicholas Khan as Shalvar, leader of the Voord, and Richard Reed.