The extra instalment of the Big Finish 60th Anniversary series sees a clash of two outsider Doctors.
You know what it’s like with mysterious, hitherto unknown incarnations of the Doctor. One is unveiled for the show’s 50th anniversary celebrations, then another appears just a few years later.
Of course, John Hurt’s War Doctor and Jo Martin’s Fugitive Doctor never met onscreen, but the two characters’ inevitable coming together is the focus of a new audio drama release today – the final day of the show’s 60th year.
Coda – The Final Act is the last instalment of Doctor Who – Once and Future, a 60th Anniversary celebratory mini-series of audio dramas. Across the first seven parts, we found the Doctor destabilised by a weapon which caused them to degenerate back into previous faces. In a quest to stabilise and uncover the mystery, the adventures took us up and down the timelines, meeting old friends and battling old enemies along the way.
Now, the story takes its bow with the Fugitive Doctor as she makes her audio debut, ahead of her own series which begins in the New Year. She faces off against Big Finish’s younger incarnation of the War Doctor, played by Jonathon Carley.
Here’s the synopsis for Once and Future: 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.
The story comes from writer Tim Foley and is directed by Ken Bentley.
As well as Jo Martin and Jonathan Carley, the cast includes old friends Professor Bernice Summerfield (Lisa Bowerman) and Vienna Salvatori (Chase Masterson). Plus, the Voord (Nicholas Kahn) and Queen Elizabeth I (Imogen Stubbs).
Jo Martin said:
“Doing Doctor Who on telly was life-changing. It’s led to more opportunities than I’ve ever had before. And now I’m here, doing the audio, which is just incredible. And meeting these guys who have been here so many years, and are still looking fabulous and sounding great – it’s all good!”
Her co-star Jonathon Carley added:
“I recorded the surprise twist appearance of the War Doctor at the end of The Union but assumed that was it. But then when I found out about Coda and who would be in it, I was just giddy.
“To pair these two ‘secret’ Doctors together, it takes that antagonism of different incarnations to a whole new level. Not so much two Doctors teaming up together, at least not initially, but actually fighting each other. Jo’s Doctor is really no-nonsense and quite formidable – it was a journey of discovery to react to that, because we’ve seen so little of her Doctor on screen, it’s really new and exciting.”
Doctor Who – Once and Future: Coda – The Final Act is available to pre-order as a single-disc collector’s edition CD (+ download), or on digital download only. It’s also available as part of a Special Edition series bundle, which contains extended behind-the-scenes extras and music suites for each story.
Catch up with our coverage of Doctor Who – Once and Future, including reviews of all the previous instalments.