The 12th Doctor and Nardole find themselves in a world that makes no sense…

Some millennia ago – or the summer before COVID – there was a terrific play in London’s West End based on the seminal TV series The Twilight Zone. It paid homage to Rod Serling’s series, recreating elements of it, but putting its own distinctive spin on the material. Jonathan Morris’ latest audio – one of his best stories yet – does similar, from the story’s opening narration through its many Easter eggs to a resolution that is true to both the series (plural) he’s homaging and to Doctor Who. (That’s not a spoiler, given what’s on the back cover of the CD!)

It’s set in a period that seems hardly touched for spin-off stories, the time when the 12th Doctor and Nardole were travelling together. Focus was on the arrival of Bill Potts, and then of course on the debut of Jodie Whittaker’s 13th Doctor, so this has been unfairly overlooked. Morris captures the dynamic between this dour incarnation and the figure who trots after him, with Dan Starkey providing an incredibly good portrayal of Matt Lucas’ character.

I don’t want to spoil the many twists and turns in this – you may think you can jump ahead, but in true keeping with the TV stories of the period, things don’t necessarily pan out as you might anticipate – and David Roocroft’s sound design is essential to selling the shifting environments in which the Doctor, Nardole and those they encounter find themselves.

Verdict: A terrific tale from an overlooked era. 10/10

Paul Simpson

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