Last month, Big Finish released the first volume of its new Doctor Who series called Dalek Universe featuring David Tennant as The Tenth Doctor. The second volume of the audio drama will be out in July and Big Finish shared more information about the cast joining David Tennant, Jane Slavin (Anya Kingdom), Joe Sims (Mark Seven) and Nicholas Briggs (The Daleks).
The audio drama is composed of three adventures and the synopsis of each story is already known:
Cycle of Destruction by Roy Gill
After Mark starts behaving oddly, the Doctor and Anya find themselves on a strange planet with their friend missing. Searching for him they find their way to an isolated research base. The corridors show signs of animal incursions and the scientists are behaving strangely. But a big surprise is waiting for them. Because this is where Mark Seven came from. They’re about to find out who he is. But is that information too dangerous to know?
The Trojan Dalek by John Dorney
The Doctor, Mark and Anya head for an SSS space-station searching for the missing temporal scientist, Arborecc. But the officer in charge denies all knowledge of his presence and demands their departure. Unwilling to leave so easily, the group split up to investigate… and uncover a heinous plot involving the Doctor’s oldest foes. Or do they?
The Lost by Rob Valentine
When the Doctor’s latest scheme to get back to the future fails, the team’s ship crashes on a strange world, potentially trapping them for ever. Searching for replacement parts, they find their way to a building where heart-breakingly familiar faces await them. Lies are about to be exposed. Everyone will learn the truth. And nothing will be the same again.
In the first adventure, Cycle of Destruction, written by Roy Gill, the heroes are joined by an android family composed of Mariah Six (Nina Toussaint-White), Jason Four (John Banks) and Hera (Avita Jay).
Nina Toussaint-White said about the script:
“My first impression was pure excitement, and a lot of surprise! I was excited because Mariah’s character is so meaty, and I was eager to jump on and follow her on her journey – seeing this transition and understanding why she did the things that she did, I felt a lot of empathy for her actually.”
Avita Jay agreed:
“I found the script really intriguing from start to finish, meeting these android characters. It evoked a lot of imaginations of what this alien place and its inhabitants would look like, so I found it a really exciting read!”
John Banks added about recording the story:
“It was great fun, as always, working with the people who contribute to Big Finish – some of whom I’ve never met before and some of whom I have worked with. Jane Slavin and I have done a number of projects together, and I was very thrilled to work with David Tennant again after Time Reaver – he’s a great fan of Doctor Who as well as being integral to it, and he’s just lovely to work with.”
In The Trojan Dalek by John Dorney, Blake Ritson plays Major McLinn. Pippa Bennett-Warner as Fliss Keeley and Barnaby Edwards as Arborecc complete the cast of the story.
Blake Ritson said about his character:
“Although he’s superficially quite charming, in some ways I think McLinn is actually a bit of an extremist – he’s prepared to forgo all moral questions in the search for the upper hand against the Daleks. And the script was tremendous fun – there’s a lot of witty exchanges!”
Barnaby Edwards added about the script and about working with David Tennant:
“A John Dorney script is always a pleasure – they’re always witty, and really well-plotted and just a joy to do, with really good, well-defined characters! “One of the great joys about doing this story is getting to play with David’s Doctor again – he has got so much richness, subtlety, humour and even seriousness into his performance. It’s just a joy to hear him weave his vocal magic again.”
Pippa Bennett-Warner agreed:
“I’ve not worked with David Tennant before, but he’s really cool. I think what makes his Doctor so loved is his charisma, charm and the humour of his performance – he’s one of my favourite Doctors!”
Kevin McNally is back as Merrick Kingdom in the third story named The Lost by Rob Valentine alongside Leighton Pugh playing The Lost.
Of Merrick Kingdom, Kevin McNally said:
“He starts off as a very charming man, then he reveals a more sinister side, and then he has to make a very big, moral decision… and the way that goes I won’t spoil!”
Leighton Pugh added:
“It’s a great script, the usual Big Finish mix of punchy dialogue and action – you have to keep your wits about you!”
Doctor Who: Dalek Universe 2 is available to pre-order on Big Finish website as a CD box set and as a download. Listeners can save money by buying a bundle with all three volumes in the series.
