News Big Finish brings The Eighth Doctor and The War Master together

[The Nth Doctor]

In the third Big Finish box set of The War Master series (out in July), the Time Lord villain will face against The Eighth Doctor, continuity be damned!

In The War Master: Rage of the Time Lords, four new stories explore the Master’s exploits in the Time War.

1. The Survivor by Tim Foley
2. The Coney Island Chameleon by David Llewellyn
3. The Missing Link by Tim Foley
4. Darkness and Light by David Llewellyn

With all of space and time in chaos, the Master plots his most audacious project yet. Only one other Time Lord has ever been able to stop him. But where is that Time Lord when the universe needs him?

This new series of adventures take the Master into darker terrain as he gathers his forces against the Daleks in one of his most nefarious schemes to date. Will the Doctor stop him? Will he want to? Or has the Master’s deadly scheme proved too great to be controlled…

Producer and director Scott Handcock told us more: “This incarnation of the Master is very much the ‘Hannibal Lecter’ of Time Lords – intelligent, charming, but thoroughly ruthless. We had a lot of fun in studio bringing the War Master back to life! It’s been a gift of a project, and we can’t wait for listeners to hear it.”

Sir Derek was only seen on screen for one TV episode. On returning to the role on audio in 2017, he said: “I didn’t expect to come back to it all these years later but I was thrilled to be remembered. The plots in all these episodes have been very good indeed, very interesting, very dramatic and beautifully written. The whole process has been a delight!”
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I'm sure it'll end with yet another amnesia moment for The Eighth Doctor, but I don't care. I already know this will be an awesome face-off.

 

[Emperor-Tiberius]

Oh, no. Still. I mean, its not part of the Eighth Doctor box-sets, which means its not part of the series "proper" but rather, of the War Master's own show, so you know, still nuff, but not annoyingly part of the main narrative.

 

[Allyn Gibson]

I have no idea how the Master's Time War timeline makes sense. There's a Derek Jacobi Master in Big Finish (presumably to become Yana in "Utopia"), while Titan has the Master as a young boy (presumably to line up with what Yana remembers of his past in "Utopia"). I'm at the point where the only thing that makes sense is multiple Masters.

 

[thribs]

I want the story about Davros in the time war.

 

[The Nth Doctor]

Oh, no. Still. I mean, its not part of the Eighth Doctor box-sets, which means its not part of the series "proper" but rather, of the War Master's own show, so you know, still nuff, but not annoyingly part of the main narrative.

Uh...what?

I have no idea how the Master's Time War timeline makes sense. There's a Derek Jacobi Master in Big Finish (presumably to become Yana in "Utopia"), while Titan has the Master as a young boy (presumably to line up with what Yana remembers of his past in "Utopia"). I'm at the point where the only thing that makes sense is multiple Masters.

At this point, I don't really care. I'm all in for the performances alone. But if I had to explain, i would hand wave Time War shenanigans, even if that doesn't make any sense.

I want the story about Davros in the time war.

Yeah, that's definitely a must have. Maybe even some crazy scenario with both Terry Molloy and Julian Bleach.

 

[Mr Soak]

On a related note, it would be incredible for BF to snag Timothy Dalton for the final story(ies) of one of their Time War series. Failing that, Ken Bones would do.

 

[ClayinCA]

Apparently Big Finish tried to get Timothy Dalton for the next Gallifrey box set, but he sadly wasn't interested. I live in hope that they'll get Ken Bones, though.

 

[The Nth Doctor]

Apparently Big Finish tried to get Timothy Dalton for the next Gallifrey box set, but he sadly wasn't interested. I live in hope that they'll get Ken Bones, though.

Damn, where did you read that? Over at Gallifrey Base or somewhere else? Pity Dalton wasn't interested.

 

[BritishSeaPower]

The Master is one of the few Time Lords we know to show up in other Time Lords' lives non-linearly. I don't really see a problem with the young adult Master running around with the War Doctor and then regenerating into the War Master and then ultiamately giving himself a new lease on life by becoming a baby yet again.

My guess is we're going to get a story where Eight and the War Master interact only via voice like the first few River and Eight stories and during the final story they "meet" but we're told the Master never turns around.

 

[BritishSeaPower]

Damn, where did you read that? Over at Gallifrey Base or somewhere else? Pity Dalton wasn't interested.

I'm still somewhat shocked they got John Hurt to do as much as he did for them. I can see Dalton being less interested (or perhaps they can't pay him what he'd want for it.)

 

[Mr Soak]

Shame about Dalton, if true.

What’s the current thinking on the placement of the Macqueen Master? Before Jacobi?

 

[Nightowl1701]

I'm still somewhat shocked they got John Hurt to do as much as he did for them. I can see Dalton being less interested (or perhaps they can't pay him what he'd want for it.)

From all reports, John had a blast working with Big Finish (he also did an adaptation of The Invisible Man for them) and was slated to do at least two more boxsets (which got reworked for Eight); the clock just ran out on him first. Dalton I could definitely (and sadly) see as a 'If you have to ask, you can't afford me' kind of guy.

MacQueen's definitely before Jacobi on the Master list. That kid in the Titan comics is probably in-between them.

I'm sure it'll end with yet another amnesia moment for The Eighth Doctor, but I don't care. I already know this will be an awesome face-off.

Nine hundred (or so) years pass between when Eight sees the bearded War Master and when Ten meets the clean-shaven (and, to all other appearances and senses, human) Professor Yana. That's a long time to keep the memory of a face fresh in your mind, even for a Time Lord. (Esp. if the last time you saw said person, he was a kid!) Ten thinks the Time Lords are all dead, so he has no reason at all to suspect Yana is the Master. "I never know where they come from, the faces..."

 

[Marc]

From all reports, John had a blast working with Big Finish (he also did an adaptation of The Invisible Man for them) and was slated to do at least two more boxsets (which got reworked for Eight); the clock just ran out on him first. Dalton I could definitely (and sadly) see as a 'If you have to ask, you can't afford me' kind of guy.

So I guess if Hurt hadn't passed away this could have been a War Doctor vs War Master box set.

 

[The Nth Doctor]

So I guess if Hurt hadn't passed away this could have been a War Doctor vs War Master box set.

And what a shame we missed out on that particular pairing. An I, Cladius reunion to boot!

 

[Allyn Gibson]

I'm still somewhat shocked they got John Hurt to do as much as he did for them.

To add to what Nightowl1701 said, one factor in Hurt doing Big Finish was his cancer diagnosis. His doctors wanted him to limit his filming. He could still work and stay busy by doing audio, though, and he did several other audio productions around that time for the BBC (War and Peace with Patterson Joseph as Pierre, The Divine Comedy with David Warner as Virgil, and the solo Jeffrey Bernard Is Unwell).

 

[Emperor-Tiberius]

Uh...what?

The main narrative, basically, is the TV and BF audio stories, for me. That means, the Companion Chronicles are really retellings of the original adventures, so they take place after the story they're telling (exceptions include The Prisoner of Peladon that, basically, could be placed anywhen before Monster of Peladon, but I choose to place it in season 10 to fill the Peladon gap in that year).

So, I don't really place the War Master tales in the main narrative. Like the Sarah Jane and Torchwood shows, its outside that narrative, its own drive. Even more specifically, I rather they're a part of the Gallifrey Chronicles, but that's purely a choice.

In any case, I hope I made myself clear there.

At this point, I don't really care. I'm all in for the performances alone. But if I had to explain, i would hand wave Time War shenanigans, even if that doesn't make any sense.

I wish we had gotten a MacQueen-to-Jacobi regeneration, if we're honest. I don't like that the comics took an approach that seems like a jab to MacQueen's Master, so I'm not a fan of having to reconcile that, either.

Yeah, that's definitely a must have. Maybe even some crazy scenario with both Terry Molloy and Julian Bleach.

We really do need another Eight-Davros encounter. Just to realize Ten's recounting of it in Journey's End.

 

[matthunter]

We really do need another Eight-Davros encounter. Just to realize Ten's recounting of it in Journey's End.

Whilst BF is free to overwrite anything that isn't in the shows themselves, there's a recent short story dealing with that encounter but with the War Doctor in the anthology Twelve Angels Weeping. It's very good and told from the perspective of another Time Lord.

 

[FrobisherthePenguin]

I get the feeling that this was originally planned for the War Doctor, but John Hurt died while it was still in the planning stages. Still excited though.