David Bradley Reprising the First Doctor for Big Finish

[Allyn Gibson]

Big Finish will be doing a series of The First Doctor Adventures with David Bradley and his costars from An Adventure in Space and Time reprising the first Doctor and his original companion team. Source.

"This series of adventures pays homage to the beginning years of Doctor Who, and each of the four episodes in each story will be given an individual title. Two of the four stories are historical, focusing on tales from Earth’s history pre-1963. Back in its first few years, Doctor Who was intended to be an educational programme using time travel as a means to explore scientific ideas and famous moments in history, while still captivating the minds and imaginations of generations to come."

Plus, "the First Doctor will encounter his greatest foe, the first incarnation of fellow Time Lord, the Master, played by James Dreyfus."

I'm far more excited about Bradley reprising the first Doctor than an even earlier incarnation of the Master, tbh.

 

[Emperor-Tiberius]

First Master? Well, at least it'll be the First Doctor who gets to meet him.

I seriously hope they won't retcon War Games for me, though. Half the fun for me is watching the Master and the Doctor not speaking their names out loud so that the Time Lords won't get to spot them.

BTW, it really didn't take them long. Much better than William Russell narrating those adventures, at least.

 

[Christopher]

I dunno about this, since for me, the least successful part of Bradley's Hartnell impression is his voice. His timbre and speech rhythms are just too different from Hartnell's. Seeing him onscreen, with the physical resemblance and expressions being reasonably close, I can tolerate the vocal mismatch, but with nothing but his voice, I don't think it'd work for me at all. For an audio First Doctor, I'd much prefer John Guilor.

Then again, the article suggests that they're treating this as sort of a reimagining -- rather than the usual approach of treating the audios as actual untold adventures, it's more like this is the show that could've existed within the universe of Adventures in Space and Time, with those versions of Hartnell, Russell, Hill, and Ford playing the roles -- or rather, perhaps, the revival audio series that that universe's Big Finish would've eventually created if all the actors had lived longer (given that they've retconned in the Master).

 

[The Nth Doctor]

I figured this would happen eventually, although I'm surprised it's happening so closely in conjuncture with Bradley's appearance in "Twice Upon a Time." Usually when a character or a species appears on the show, they're not allowed to be used in Big Finish, but I guess the same doesn't apply to an actor reprising his renewal of an old character such as The First Doctor.

I liked the idea of Big Finish doing a full reimagining with David Bradley's co-stars instead of using him alongside William Russell, Carole Ann Ford, Maureen O'Brien, Peter Purves, and Jean Marsh. That helps keeps things feeling muddled while using Russell and Purves for The First Doctor (both of whom I think do wonderful jobs in different ways). That being said, I haven't yet listened to the Early Adventures entries that utilize Jemma Powell (and Elliot Chapman) because I'm still wary of outright recasting as oppose to a narrative trick in the case of Russell and Purves. I think I'll be more welcoming of these sets that I am of the Powell and Chapman stories.

I'm rather indifferent on an earlier encounter with The Master because of this different set-up but I can see it being fun. I'm actually surprised Big Finish hasn't used The Master in the Early Adventures or Companion Chronicles yet.

 

[diankra]

First Master? Well, at least it'll be the First Doctor who gets to meet him.

I seriously hope they won't retcon War Games for me, though. Half the fun for me is watching the Master and the Doctor not speaking their names out loud so that the Time Lords won't get to spot them.

BTW, it really didn't take them long. Much better than William Russell narrating those adventures, at least.

The War Chief is not The Master. I'll admit that, halfway through a War Games rewatch I wish he was (War Master would work just as well as a title), but he dies, and while Terrance Dicks tweaks that in the New Adventures he then makes it clear the Chief is not The Master.

 

[Christopher]

but he dies

That's never stopped the Master from coming back.

 

[Lonemagpie]

I;m intrigued, since they have the whole An Adventure Team TARDIS.... Though I'd love to see the Beeb use them to redo a wiped story as a special one-off TVM or soomething.

As for the "First Master" - what *another* origin? Or just an excuse to lure newbies in with Simm's jacket on him.

 

[StCoop]

I like the fact that they're making is a seperate entity from their "Early Adventures" releases.

So with the 1st and 3rd Doctors recast (and 9, 10 & 11 too, sort of), will they go for 2 as well? Frazer Hines Pat Troughton is so uncanny there'd seem to be little point.

 

[Emperor-Tiberius]

The War Chief is not The Master. I'll admit that, halfway through a War Games rewatch I wish he was (War Master would work just as well as a title), but he dies, and while Terrance Dicks tweaks that in the New Adventures he then makes it clear the Chief is not The Master.

Don't give one bit of damn. I've shown War Games to three NuWho afficionados, and they all, ALL thought he was the Master. And yes, they've seen The Time Meddler and Mark and the Rani.

 

[diankra]

That's never stopped the Master from coming back.

How often has the Master actually died on-screen? Trapped in inescapable situations (from which he somehow escapes) a lot, but actual on-screen deaths? Planet of Fire (maybe), TV Movie and Last of the Time Lords (both with get-outs scripted in) and the most recent, possibly permanent one.

 

[diankra]

Don't give one bit of damn. I've shown War Games to three NuWho afficionados, and they all, ALL thought he was the Master. And yes, they've seen The Time Meddler and Mark and the Rani.

It does seem that the initial idea for season 8 was that the Master was one of the villains from The War Games (Philip Madoc certainly said, half-jokingly 'Roger Delgado nicked my role!'), and an early draft of TotA referred to the Nestenes breaking the Master out of a Time Lord prison.

 

[Emperor-Tiberius]

It does seem that the initial idea for season 8 was that the Master was one of the villains from The War Games (Philip Madoc certainly said, half-jokingly 'Roger Delgado nicked my role!'), and an early draft of TotA referred to the Nestenes breaking the Master out of a Time Lord prison.

Honestly, I've always figured the only reason the Master and the War Chief weren't linked as the same person in Terror of the Autons is because they didn't want to make such an overt reference to a previous era in the show, especially considering how different the show was by this point.

 

[Nightowl1701]

So with the 1st and 3rd Doctors recast (and 9, 10 & 11 too, sort of), will they go for 2 as well? Frazer Hines Pat Troughton is so uncanny there'd seem to be little point.

Frazier is also 72 and has had bouts with cancer. They're strictly on borrowed time with all the surviving Companions of 1-4 at this point; it's hit the stage of either recast or retire the early Doctors/Companions entirely. So yeah, I reckon we'll 'see' a new 2 fairly soon. And then a new Brigadier and maybe a new Sarah Jane.

 

[Christopher]

How often has the Master actually died on-screen? Trapped in inescapable situations (from which he somehow escapes) a lot, but actual on-screen deaths? Planet of Fire (maybe), TV Movie and Last of the Time Lords (both with get-outs scripted in) and the most recent, possibly permanent one.

The point is, no matter how permanent his death seemed, that would not stop later writers from resurrecting him, with or without explanation. The "Planet of Fire" death was as conclusive as it gets -- he was literally vaporized on camera -- and yet he was back a year later without a word of explanation. Retconning the War Chief's death would've been just as easy.

(My "headcanon" -- ugh, I hate that word, but it seems to have caught on -- is that the energies of the Source of Traken rendered the Master essentially indestructible, and that he survived "Planet of Fire" the same way he survived the Daleks' execution in the movie, by turning into that ooze thing -- although in the former case he was somehow able to reconstitute in Tremas's body. Perhaps he eventually would have in the movie as well, but he didn't have time to wait for it and resorted to bodyjacking the paramedic instead. But when the Time Lords recruited him for the Time War and gave him a new regeneration cycle, that negated the powers he'd gotten from the Source and reset him to standard Gallifreyan physiology.)

 

[diankra]

Oh yes, if the line in TotA had been expanded a bit there'd have been no real issues: "He has not forgotten his past defeats... and he has not forgotten that you left him for dead." Or something like that.

Rewatching War Games, the odd thing is that Bree, Brayshaw and Madoc seem to be in entirely different productions. Brayshaw seems understated and realistic against Bree's abrupt stacatto performance, but then Madoc arrives, asserting his effortless superiority by lounging around on the furniture, and Brayshaw seems stiff and OTT in comparison to him.

 

[Christopher]

Rewatching War Games, the odd thing is that Bree, Brayshaw and Madoc seem to be in entirely different productions. Brayshaw seems understated and realistic against Bree's abrupt statacco performance, but then Madoc arrives, asserting his effortless superiority by lounging around on the furniture, and Brayshaw seems stiff and OTT in comparison to him.

Yes, that's what makes Madoc's performance so brilliant. The others are these broad melodrama villains, and then he comes in and underplays the hell out of it and makes him ten times scarier than they are. The War Lord and the Security Chief have to bluster and intimidate to try to prove their strength, but the War Lord simply is in charge and he knows it and they know it, so he doesn't have to make a production of it.

 

[Mr Awe]

The point is, no matter how permanent his death seemed, that would not stop later writers from resurrecting him, with or without explanation. The "Planet of Fire" death was as conclusive as it gets -- he was literally vaporized on camera -- and yet he was back a year later without a word of explanation.

(My "headcanon" -- ugh, I hate that word, but it seems to have caught on -- is that the energies of the Source of Traken rendered the Master essentially indestructible, and that he survived "Planet of Fire" the same way he survived the Daleks' execution in the movie, by turning into that ooze thing )

I don't recall for sure but wasn't there a very brief line in Mark of the Rani where the Master implies that the Numismaton (I'm sure I misspelled that) gas had something to do with it? The gas having restorative powers as established in Planet of Fire. Of course, that wouldn't help with being vaporized!

 

[Emperor-Tiberius]

The point is, no matter how permanent his death seemed, that would not stop later writers from resurrecting him, with or without explanation. The "Planet of Fire" death was as conclusive as it gets -- he was literally vaporized on camera -- and yet he was back a year later without a word of explanation. Retconning the War Chief's death would've been just as easy.

But it would've been impossible!

Really, this is a show that retconned in not one, but two Doctors by its 50th anniversary. Not really a big deal.

(My "headcanon" -- ugh, I hate that word, but it seems to have caught on -- is that

Fanon. Headcanon doesn't make any sense, anyway.

the energies of the Source of Traken rendered the Master essentially indestructible, and that he survived "Planet of Fire" the same way he survived the Daleks' execution in the movie, by turning into that ooze thing -- although in the former case he was somehow able to reconstitute in Tremas's body. Perhaps he eventually would have in the movie as well, but he didn't have time to wait for it and resorted to bodyjacking the paramedic instead. But when the Time Lords recruited him for the Time War and gave him a new regeneration cycle, that negated the powers he'd gotten from the Source and reset him to standard Gallifreyan physiology.)

What about the TV Movie? He was "dead" there, and then died for "sure" at the end of it. Also, Big Finish already stoke him free off his Tremas body following Surival, where he already was visibly older than he was in Planet of Fire, also. So I'm not sure how you explain those off.

Personally, I say the Time Lords saved him at the end of Planet of Fire, retconning his death in order to help them in The Five Doctors. In short, his appearence in The Five Doctors follows his appearence in Planet of Fire, thus why he survived for the Sixth and Seventh Doctors stories. Its handy and not a stretch by any means to think that its possible, IMO.

What happens after Survival, though... well, that is a proper headscratcher.

 

[Christopher]

Fanon.

Ugh, no, that's enormously dumber. Besides, it makes me think of a certain Marxist, anti-colonial revolutionary writer-philosopher.

What about the TV Movie? He was "dead" there, and then died for "sure" at the end of it. Also, Big Finish already stoke him free off his Tremas body following Surival, where he already was visibly older than he was in Planet of Fire, also. So I'm not sure how you explain those off.

I have no interest whatsoever in nitpickily explaining every individual retcon or explanation. That's all arbitrary, because it's all just stories made up by writers. I'm talking about the writing process, about the reality of how the show was created. I'm saying that in a work of fiction like this, one that's always had a fast and loose approach to continuity, the fact that a character died in a previous story would not in any way preclude a later writer from choosing to bring that character back, whether or not they bother to explain it. I don't need to argue about "how," because the only "how" that actually matters is "because the writer wanted to use the character again." If a writer in 1971 or after had wanted to resurrect the War Chief as the Doctor's recurring nemesis, it would not have been in any way "impossible" to do so, because all they would've had to do was type the words on a sheet of paper.

After all, we're talking about a franchise where the first season had a story where the Doctor insisted that "History cannot be changed, not one line" ("The Aztecs"), but the second season had a story where the characters changed the timeline to prevent their own death ("The Space Museum") and then had to fight to prevent another time traveler from changing history ("The Time Meddler"). Prior continuity was never a restraint on new storytelling, not in Doctor Who.

And I don't count what happened in tie-ins because there are multiple incompatible continuities among the tie-ins, so none of them provides an unambiguous "explanation" for anything. Doctor Who's "reality," both in screen canon and beyond, has always been too mutable for it to be treated as an actual, logically consistent universe.

 

[Lonemagpie]

I don't recall for sure but wasn't there a very brief line in Mark of the Rani where the Master implies that the Numismaton (I'm sure I misspelled that) gas had something to do with it? The gas having restorative powers as established in Planet of Fire. Of course, that wouldn't help with being vaporized!

Actually that one was always an obvious one- teleport/transmat/transporter, considering that he showed no sign of actual burn damage to skin or slothes.