Across the trilogy, Sir Derek Jacobi’s Master will encounter Bernice Summerfield, David Warner’s Unbound Doctor, the War Doctor and Torchwood’s Captain John Hart. 

Audio producers Big Finish have revealed the second trilogy from their epic Dark Gallifrey series featuring Doctor Who villains.

Following on from Morbuis, the second set of stories focus on Sir Derek Jacobi’s War Master. However, he doesn’t feature in the first part of the tale as it explores the search for the mythical “Dark Gallifrey” of the series title.

The story will draw in heroes and villains from across the Doctor Who universe. The first part sees Lisa Bowerman’s Bernice Summerfield, accompanied by David Warner’s alternative universe “Unbound” Doctor. This is Warner’s last appearance for Big Finish, recorded before he passed away in 2022.

James Marsters appears as Torchwood’s Captain John Hart in the second and third instalments, alongside Jonathon Carley’s younger version of the War Doctor.

The story arrives in monthly instalments, between July and September 2024.

Dark Gallifrey: The War Master

Many have sought the legendary Dark Gallifrey over the millennia, Professor Bernice Summerfield and Captain John Hart among them. But there is another who has his eyes on that glittering prize; one who knows how such power could be wielded – the War Master himself!

Part One

Intrigued by rumours of a hidden Gallifrey – the Dark Gallifrey of Time Lord myth – Bernice Summerfield resolves to find it.

But as the Doctor points out, some things should never be found, and some doors should never be opened. Especially ones that want to be…

Part Two

Amid the dreaming spires of Braxiatel University, Benny is dividing her time between her lectures, her cats, and managing the romantic advances of one of her students, John.

The new Provost – such a nice old man – doesn’t approve of their dalliance, and advises her not to get involved. For John wants to know about Dark Gallifrey, which is something Benny has done her best to forget, and thinks he can help her find it again.

The funny thing is, the dear old Provost wants to find it first…

Part Three

The Master and Captain John are trapped amid the ruins of Dark Gallifrey, where familiar faces and infinite impossibilities gather.

With his dream of the ultimate weapon almost within his grasp, the Master revels in the chaos. But all roads lead… to the Imbomination.

Producer Scott Handcock said:

“David Richardson asked me to do a Dark Gallifrey box set with the War Master, and there were certain other characters he wanted in the mix. So I turned to James, with a Terrance Dicks-style Five Doctors shopping list, and asked, can you work up a story featuring the War Master, Captain John Hart, Bernice Summerfield, and the David Warner Doctor, and even a little cameo from the young War Doctor? Very quickly, he came up with a storyline that accommodated everyone, that made sense and celebrated those combinations of characters.”

Writer James Goss added:

“Only Big Finish would be able to go, ‘We’ll get that man from Buffy and that national treasure and we’ll have them acting together’. They’re both great actors but from very different worlds.

“I love the idea that the War Master is the effective Master. All the other Masters come with ridiculous, overarching plans which never come to fruition, but the War Master is meticulous – when he makes a shopping list, he sits down and goes – kale, must it be kale? Captain John is the anathema to the Master. He’s never had a plan in his life. They both have a different approach to their goals, they’re forced to work together, and it doesn’t quite work.”

You can pre order Dark Gallifrey: The War Master from Big Finish now. Part One lands in July 2024, with Part Two following in August and Part Three in September.

Each part is available as a single-disc collector’s edition CD (+ download), or on download only. There are also bundles available. including one which covers all eight trilogies from across the four-year saga.