So, from what I gathered online, Colin Baker’s Big Finish work may be considered the best of the various Doctor Who audioplays. Having listened to a few from various Doctors, I will say that while I haven’t come across any I didn’t care for, the Sixth Doctor is the one I find myself liking best so far.
But so far, it does seem odd that his have been consistently done over two discs. Granted, my exposure is a bit limited, but it does seem a little odd.
Anyway, the Doctor is dropping off a companion that was created for Big Finish, one Constance Clarke. Or, as she prefers, Mrs. Clarke. She’s a bit formal. Anyway, Constance is member of the Women’s Royal Naval Service, sometimes called a WREN from the looks of things, from the time of World War II. Her husband Henry is military intelligence, and the Doctor assures her he got her back not long after she left. Then she finds a letter from the government informing her that her husband Henry died in the line of duty.
Or, perhaps, he didn’t. Much of the bulk of the action takes place in 1948 Vienna, divided into four zones for the different Allied nations, and the Doctor finds a new problem: an alien fleeing some other, armored troll-like aliens got to Earth and opted, for the sake of survival, to sell the humans some of his tech. The Doctor knows that giving humans, and humans from the 40s, advanced tech that could be used for war just as the Cold War is starting up is really bad news. Fortunately, Constance is up for a jaunt to Vienna to help look for it.
Besides, the Doctor knows there’s a decent chance Henry, last seen in Vienna, is still alive over there because reporting a death that didn’t happen is not a bad way to conduct intelligence operations. In fact, that’s exactly what happened. Henry’s fine.
He also remarried.
Oh, and he and his new wife found a young girl named Phillipa “Flip” Jackson. She’s another Sixth Doctor companion Big Finish created, a supermarket employee from the early 21st century that somehow found herself in 1948’s Vienna.
I’d say that from there is a bit of a comedy as Constance sees Henry with Flip, and Flip defends herself as she is also a newlywed and was not stepping out with a married man. However, Henry’s defense for when his new actual wife shows up is basically to point out Constance had just disappeared.
You know, it’s a wonder that sort of thing didn’t happen with more companions.
As for the Doctor, he and his alien friend are first captured by the British for nosing around Project Quicksilver. The good news is they escape. The bad news is they are then captured by the Soviets, and they have ways of dealing with anyone they think might be a spy.
Oh, and the alien Vilals are running around the city.
And Henry might have sold out both Constance and Flip to them for some reason.
Not a good time to be the Doctor from the looks of things.
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