#75 Doctor Who Unbound: Sympathy for the Devil

Doctor Who Unbound: Sympathy for the Devil

Starring: David Warner as the doctor and Nicholas Courtney as Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart
Format: One CD-length full cast episode.
Silly? There are numerous jokes but they are not the focus of the story.
Standalone? This is the first story in the David Warner timeline. Substantial knowledge of the Jon Pertwee TV era is expected.
Recommended? Yes.

My reaction to this story contains spoilers for it, subsequent David Warner Doctor stories, and the first series of Big Finish UNIT.

#74 Doctor Who: The Company of Friends

My Randomoid Selectortron may not be very good at these short hops, but hop it does, into...

Doctor Who: The Company of Friends

Starring: Paul McGann as the Doctor, Lisa Bowerman as Bernice Summerfield, Matthew Di Angelo as Fitz, Jemima Rooper as Izzy, and Julie Cox as Mary Shelley.
Format: Four separate episodes of half-CD length each.
Silly? Yes in all episodes. Least in the first, escalating successively.
Standalone? The first part assumes prior familiarity with Bernice's relationship with the seventh Doctor. The fourth ties into other eighth Doctor audios but not in an entirely mandatory way.
Recommended? Yes if you want Paul McGann Doctor Who comedy.

My thoughts on this anthology contain spoilers for it and earlier eighth Doctor audios, and possibly spoilers for the continuities it uses companions from.

#73 Doctor Who: Short Trips Volume 04

Chimes fade into the distance as my Randomoid Selectortron escapes to...

Doctor Who: Short Trips Volume 04

Starring: Various readers presenting stories about the first eight Doctors and various companions
Format: Eight single-reader prose stories, with sound effects, totalling 2 CDs in length.
Silly? Variably from story to story, but mostly no.
Standalone? Yes. The stories are independent from each other and from other audio releases.
Recommended? Yes overall, but not yes to every story.

My reactions to this anthology contain spoilers for it and possible spoilers for No More Lies.

#72 Doctor Who: The Chimes of Midnight

My Randomoid Selectortron loops around a few times then zooms away to...

The Chimes of Midnight

Starring: Paul McGann as the Doctor and India Fisher as Charley Pollard
Format: Four half-CD-length full-cast episodes
Silly? Yes
Standalone? No. Details of how Charley joined the Doctor in Storm Warning are necessary for the resolution.
Recommended? Yes. This story is not as high in my own esteem as it is in that of many Big Finish fans, but it is well worth its price point.

My reaction to this story contains spoilers for it, Storm Warning, and possibly other Charley Pollard audios.

#71 Gallifrey: Square One

My personal Randomoid Selectortron departs one new world to take me to another...

Gallifrey: A Blind Eye

This is an out-of-order selection from a range I've decided to cover in-order, so I'm manually reselecting...

Gallifrey: Square One

Starring: Lalla Ward as Romana, Louise Jameson as Leela, and John Leeson as K9
Format: One CD-length full cast audioplay with no episode breaks. 
Silly? Not particularly, but not dryly serious either.
Standalone? No. The political situation of the Gallifrey series is relevant. 
Recommended? Yes.

My reaction to this story contains spoilers for it and possible spoilers for No More Lies and Bang-Bang-a-Boom!

#70 Doctor Who: Voyage to the New World

My Randomoid Selectortron raises itself from the muck of a New Orleans graveyard and takes me to...

Doctor Who: Voyage to the New World

Starring: Colin Baker as the Doctor, Christopher Benjamin as Jago, and Trevor Baxter as Litefoot
Format: One full-cast CD (or download) with no episode breaks
Silly? Part of the science fiction premise is rather over-the-top.
Standalone? Yes for the main plot. Connections to other Jago & Litefoot stories are isolated.
Recommended? Yes.

My reaction to this release contains spoilers for it and for other Jago & Litefoot content.

#69 Dark Shadows: The Voodoo Amulet

After eventually blogging about The Demons of Red Lodge, I am once again ready to board my Randomoid Selectortron, which brings me to...

Dark Shadows: The Voodoo Amulet

Starring: Jerry Lacy as Tony and Lara Parker as Cassandra
Format: One partially narrated full-cast CD-length episode.
Silly? I don't think it was intended to be, but some voice acting is too broad.
Standalone? Prior awareness of Tony & Cassandra is expected.
Recommended? Not independently, and it is a skippable part of its larger arc.

My reaction to this story contains spoilers for it and for other Tony & Cassandra audios.

#68 The Demons of Red Lodge and Other Stories

My Randomoid Selectortron ejects the fictive Vixens from the Void and loads...

The Demons of Red Lodge and Other Stories

Starring: Peter Davison as the Doctor and Sarah Sutton as Nyssa
Format: Four full-cast half-CD-length episodes
Silly? Variably between episodes, but never primarily silly.
Standalone? Yes. The four episodes even stand alone individually.
Recommended? It's not the best 5/Nyssa anthology, but it's decent light entertainment.

My reactions to this release contain spoilers for it.

#67 Mervyn Stone podcast #1-#7

Lacking proper authorization from the Temporal Powers, my Randomoid Selectortron arrives unscheduled at...

Mervyn Stone podcast #1-#7

Starring: Uncredited. I believe Nicholas Briggs, Nev Fountain, and Nicola Bryant play all or most parts. John Banks might or might not be playing Mervyn Stone.
Format: Seven podcast episodes of about six minutes each
Silly? Yes
Standalone? Yes; it's intended to promote other Mervyn Stone material for sale, not to supplement it
Recommended? Yes as amusing light entertainment about the world of 80s and early 90s British sci-fi production; no as a murder mystery.


My thoughts on this podcast contain spoilers for it, and possibly for Mervyn Stone novels.

#66 Gallifrey: Weapon of Choice

I decide not to try to come up with a clever segue into...

Gallifrey: Weapon of Choice

Starring: Lalla Ward as Romana, Louise Jameson as Leela, John Leeson as two K9s, and Miles Richardson as Braxiatel, and Andy Coleman as Torvald
Format: One full-cast CD-length episode
Silly? No
Standalone? No prior audios are essential before listening; the ending has some significant dangling plot threads but the main action of the episode is resolved.
Recommended? Yes


My reactions to this story contain spoilers for it and possible spoilers for early Big Finish Doctor Who.

#65 Doctor Who: Live 34

The Randomoid Selectortron leverages its synergies and blue-sky thinks its way to...

Doctor Who: Live 34

Starring: Sylvester McCoy as the Doctor,Sophie Aldred as Ace, and Philip Olivier as Hex
Format: Two full-cast CDs (or download) of four half-CD episodes
Silly? Satirical at times, but less silly about it than several television Doctor Who stories.
Standalone? Yes.
Recommended? Yes for style, no for substance. The framing device of live news broadcasts on four different days is very well used, but the story has problems.

My reactions to this story contain spoilers for it and for the earlier Seventh Doctor audio The Fearmonger.

#64 Doctor Who: Davros

My Randomoid Selectortron shakes off some sand and transports me to...

Doctor Who: Davros

Starring: Colin Baker as the Doctor and Terry Molloy as Davros
Format: Two CD-length episodes.
Silly? Yes.
Standalone? Yes.
Recommended? If you are comfortable with the idea of a story that is briefly an office comedy starring the Doctor and Davros, highly recommended.

My reactions to this story contain spoilers for it.

#63 Fourth Doctor Adventures: The Sands of Life

My random butterfly flapping through the time stream continues, alighting next in...

Fourth Doctor Adventures: The Sands of Life

Starring: Tom Baker as the fourth Doctor, Mary Tamm as Romana, and John Leeson as K9.
Format: One full-cast CD (or download) of three episodes
Silly? Very slightly, but less than TV stories from Mary Tamm's season.
Standalone? This is the first half of a story continued in War Against the Laan.
Recommended? Not unless War Against the Laan turns out to be so good that a mediocre introduction is worth it.


My reactions to this story contain spoilers for it, and possibly mild spoilers for subsequent stories with the same villain.

#62 Doctor Who: Storm Warning

I pilot my Randomoid Selectortron away from the planet Legion for now, to...

Doctor Who: Storm Warning

Starring: Paul McGann as the Doctor and India Fisher as Charley Pollard
Format: Two full-cast CDs (or download) as four half-CD episodes.
Silly? Briefly and to its detriment near the start of the fourth episode, but generally no.
Standalone? Yes. This is the starting point for the Eighth Doctor with Big Finish and requires no prior Eighth Doctor awareness.
Recommended? Yes.

My reactions to this story contain spoilers for it, and possibly for later Eighth Doctor developments.

#61 Bernice Summerfield: Legion: Vesuvius Falling

My Randomoid Selectortron once again veers away from the bleakness of the Dalek Empire, seeking perhaps more hospitable climes in the vicinity of...

Bernice Summerfield: Legion

My usual practice for boxsets of distinctly titled episodes applies here, meaning this specific post will be a reaction to the first disc only:

Bernice Summerfield: Legion: Vesuvius Falling

Starring: Lisa Bowerman as Bernice Summerfield, Ayesha Antoine as Ruth, and Thomas Grant as Peter Summerfield
Format: One full-cast CD or download (of 3) with no episode breaks.
Silly? Yes.
Standalone? Not really; prior awareness of Bernice's relationships with Peter and Braxiatel is important.
Recommended? If this is the weakest story of Legion, as I remember it being, then Legion's worth getting.

My reactions to this story contain spoilers for itself and for the status quo of Bernice Summerfield audios leading into it.

#60 Dalek Empire: "Death to the Daleks!"

My Randomoid Selectortron squeaks away from another sinister trap, and into...

Dalek Empire: The Demons

As with past Dalek Empire selections, I'm overriding the random selection to listen to Dalek Empire in order.

Dalek Empire: "Death to the Daleks!"

Starring: Sarah Mowat as Susan Mendes, Mark McDonnell as Alby Brook, and Gareth Thomas as Kalendorf
Format: One full-cast CD (or download) with no episode breaks.
Silly? No.
Standalone? No. 
Recommended? Yes, although I say this without having heard the conclusion of the series.

My reactions to this story contain spoilers for it and preceding Dalek Empire episodes.

#59 Doctor Who Special Releases: No Place Like Home

My Randomoid Selectortron will have to return to France and the Great War someday to finish the job, but for now it visits...

Doctor Who Special Releases: No Place Like Home

Starring: Peter Davison as the Doctor Caroline Morris as Erimem, and Mark Donovan as Shayde
Format: One half-CD-length episode.
Silly? Yes.
Standalone? It's aimed at people who might not have heard any Big Finish Doctor Who before.
Recommended? Yes.


My thoughts on this story contain spoilers for it.

#58 Doctor Who: Dark Eyes: The Great War

The scanner of my Randomoid Selectortron is still unable to home in on Bernice Summerfield: Beyond the Sun, and so I instead set course for...

Doctor Who: Dark Eyes

Dark Eyes is a 4-disc boxset, so I am following my usual tactic of treating this as a selection of the first disc and leaving the set available for re-selection.

Doctor Who: Dark Eyes: The Great War

Starring: Paul McGann as the Doctor and Ruth Bradley as Molly O'Sullivan
Format: One full-cast CD (or download) of four, with no internal episode breaks.
Silly? No.
Standalone? No. 
Recommended? As an episode in itself, definitely no.

My reactions to this story contain spoilers for it and for the final arc of Eighth Doctor Adventures.

#57 UNIT: The Longest Night

The Randomoid Selectortron speeds away, preparing me for high-altitude insertion into...

Bernice Summerfield: Beyond the Sun

Beyond the Sun is a standalone release and there's no content-related reason for me to be overriding the selection, but it was never released as a download and I can't find it among the physical CDs in my immediate possession. I am pretty sure it's in my room somewhere, but I'm not going to ransack the entire room looking for it today. I will manually select it when I find it. For now, I'm going to mash randomize some more and get to...

UNIT: The Longest Night

Starring: Siri O'Neal as Emily Chaudhry, Nicholas Deal as Robert Dalton, and Michael Hobbs as Francis Currie
Format: One full-cast CD-length episode.
Silly? No.
Standalone? No. This is the beginning of the end of UNIT audio series 1.
Recommended? Yes.

My reactions to this story contain spoilers for it and the rest of its season.

#56 Doctor Who Companion Chronicles: Project: Nirvana

As the curtain closes on Terrance Dicks's stage spectacle, my Randomoid Selectortron exits the theatre, its next stop...

Doctor Who Companion Chronicles: Project: Nirvana

Starring: Sylvester McCoy as the Doctor, Maggie O'Neill as Lysandra, and Amy Pemberton as Sally
Format: Narrated three-actor single CD (or download) in two half-CD parts
Silly? No.
Standalone? No. This is not a typical Companion Chronicle; it is a supplemental installment to an arc of the Doctor Who monthly range, released during that arc.
Recommended? Yes, but not without context.

My reactions to this story contain spoilers for it and potential spoilers for other Seventh Doctor audio releases related to it.

#55 Doctor Who: The Stageplays: Seven Keys to Doomsday

I've delved into Doctorless Dalek stories twice in a row now. The odds of another one are pretty low, but this Randomoid Selectortron has surprised me in the past. Let's see where it lands...

Doctor Who: The Stageplays: Seven Keys to Doomsday

Starring: Trevor Martin as the Doctor, Charlie Hayes as Jenny, and Joe Thompson as Jimmy
Format: Two full-cast CDs (or download) with one act per CD
Silly? Childish, but not particularly funny.
Standalone? Yes
Recommended? No, but I will say the cast do a good job of acting.

My reactions to this story contain spoilers for it.

#54 I, Davros: Purity

On the cusp of a Dalek attack, my Randomoid Selectortron flees the scene to bring me to...

I, Davros: Corruption

I've selected an out-of-order I, Davros episode again, so I'm backing up the Selectortron slightly to park where I'm up to in the series...

I, Davros: Purity

Starring: Terry Molloy as Davros
Format: One full-cast CD (or download) with no episode breaks
Silly? No.
Standalone? No. Prior awareness of the events of Innocence is required.
Recommended? Yes, after Innocence.

My reactions to this story contain spoilers for itself and I, Davros: Innocence, and possibly for related stories such as Dalek Empire and Davros.

#53 Dalek Empire: The Human Factor

My Randomoid Selectortron flees the planet Saravas in paranoia and confusion. Memory grows hazy and I recover consciousness in...

Dalek Empire: The Future

Dalek Empire episodes are sold separately, but I've already made the decision to listen in order, so a manual override brings me to:

Dalek Empire: The Human Factor

Starring: Sarah Mowat as Susan Mendes, Gareth Thomas as Kalendorf, Mark McDonnell as Alby, and John Wadmore as Gordon
Format: 1 full-cast CD (or download) with no internal episode breaks
Silly? No.
Standalone? No.
Recommended? Yes, after Invasion of the Daleks.

My reaction to this story contains spoilers for it.

#52 Bernice Summerfield: Missing Persons: Big Dig

The Randomoid Selectortron follows the CORDIS briefly, then takes a forty-five degree turn to chart a course for...

Bernice Summerfield: Missing Persons


This is from the same series of boxsets as Epoch, and like I did when I randomly selected Epoch, I'm doing just one story from it for this selection.

Bernice Summerfield: Missing Persons: Big Dig

Starring: Lisa Bowerman as Bernice Summerfield, Ayesha Antoine as Ruth, and David Ames as Jack
Format: 1 full-cast CD (or download) with no internal episode breaks, disc 1 of 4 not sold separately
Silly? There is some comical media satire, but it's not silly on the whole.
Standalone? No. The resolution to the mystery of the episode depends on Epoch, and there is a status quo change leading into the next episode.
Recommended? If you're up to this point in Bernice Summerfield's chronology, keep going; don't try to jump in here.

My reactions to this story contain spoilers for itself, subsequent parts of Missing Persons, and other Bernice Summerfield boxsets.

#51 Doctor Who: The Word Lord

My Randomoid Selectortron departs a Europe on the brink of war and transports me to...

Doctor Who: The Word Lord

Starring: Sylvester McCoy as the Doctor, Sophie Aldred as Ace, and Philip Olivier as Hes
Format: One full-cast half-CD-length download (also available as part of a 2-CD anthology)
Silly? Yes, in a somewhat horror-story way
Standalone? The Word Lord has loose links to other stories preceding it in the anthology Forty-Five. The fact that The Word Lord was released as its own separate download is because of its importance to the later audio A Death in the Family.
Recommended? If you are listening to the groundwork for A Death in the Family, then The Word Lord is essential. Otherwise, it might make more sense not to purchase it separately from Forty-Five.

My reaction to this audio contains spoilers for it and mild spoilers for Bernice Summerfield and the Criminal Code and A Death in the Family.

#50 Doctor Who: Year of the Pig

The Randomoid Selectortron departs the house by the sea, trailing teeth and shadows, and lands in...

Doctor Who: Year of the Pig

Starring: Colin Baker as the Doctor and Nicola Bryant as Peri
Format: Two full-cast CDs (or download) as two 1-CD episodes
Silly? Yes, though somewhat to deeper thematic effect rather than purely for comedy.
Standalone? Yes.
Recommended? If you are comfortable with Colin Baker and Nicola Bryant being silly.

My reactions to this story contain spoilers for it and possible spoilers for Peri and the Piscon Paradox.