Richard Armitage is Rassilon in ‘Gallifrey: Time War 4’
The audio drama series Gallifrey: Time War is coming to end. The last volume of the series will be released in February 2021 and Big Finish just announced that the Lord President of the Time Lords Rassilon will appear in this last volume and will be played by Richard Armitage (The Hobbit). Armitage is not a newcomer to Big Finish audio dramas, since he previously played Herbert in Big Finish’s adaptation of HG Wells’ The Martian Invasion of Earth. Rassilon will be his first role in Big Finish’s The Worlds of Doctor Who.
Armitage is joining Louise Jameson (Leela), Pippa Bennett-Warner (Livia), Seán Carlsen (Narvin), Miles Richardson (Braxiatel), Samuel Clemens (Mantus), and Nicholas Briggs as the Daleks.
Romana is lost to the Time War though Leela and Narvin still fight to survive. A resistance, caught between Rassilon’s fury and the Dalek Emperor’s mania, have a desperate plan to stop the conflict. Everything ends. And for some on Gallifrey, the Time War will soon be over.
Gallifrey: Time War 4 contains four climactic stories:
- Deception by Lisa McMullin
- Dissolution by Lou Morgan
- Beyond by David Llewellyn
- Homecoming by Matt Fitton
Producer/Director Scott Handcock said:
“It’s been a pleasure to induct Richard Armitage into the ‘Doctor Who’ universe! He’s such a brilliant actor. I loved him in ‘Hannibal’ and most recently ‘The Stranger,’ plus of course Big Finish’s own adaptation of ‘The Martian Invasion of Earth,’ so he’d been on my wish list for a while.”
Actor Richard Armitage said:
“Rassilon is one of those defining spines of this lore. I’ve watched enough sci-fi to know that there has to be an omnipotent being that has a self-aggrandising mental state which puts him above everybody else, like a malevolent, maniacal dictator. I grew up with ‘Doctor Who.’ The Daleks and the Cybermen were definitely my ‘hiding behind the sofa’ baddies. But I loved being frightened. Tom Baker was my Doctor Who. He had that voice. In a way, what I have tried to do with Rassilon is a little bit Tom Baker-esque.”
Gallifrey: Time War 4 is available to pre-order as a collector’s edition five-disc CD box set or as a download, exclusively from the Big Finish website. Listeners can also order a bundle of the four volumes to save money.